Here are 7 books that Some Bright Nowhere fans have personally recommended if you like Some Bright Nowhere. Book DNA is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of Heart the Lover

karine

From Karine's 3 favorite reads in 2025.

Unknown Author Why Karine loves this book

I love Lily King! Her characters are always very multi dimensional. This book had a great storyline and history.

By Lily King ,

Why should I read it?

6 authors picked Heart the Lover as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

INSTANT NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

“Lily King has written another masterpiece. This book overflows with her brilliance and her heart. We are so lucky.” —Emma Straub, New York Times bestselling author of This Time Tomorrow

From the New York Times bestselling author of Writers & Lovers comes a magnificent and intimate new novel of desire, friendship, and the lasting impact of first love

You knew I'd write a book about you someday.

Our narrator understands good love stories—their secrets and subtext, their highs and free falls. But her greatest love story, the one she lived, never followed the simple rules.…


If you love Some Bright Nowhere...

Book cover of December on 5C4

December on 5C4 by Adam Strassberg,

Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!

On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…

Book cover of The Uncool

Jill Fordyce Author Of Belonging

From Jill's 3 favorite reads in 2025.

Why am I passionate about this?

Author

Jill's 3 favorite reads in 2025

Jill Fordyce Why Jill loves this book

Although I'm a fan of music journalism and memoir, there was a lot I didn't know about the journey of Cameron Crowe. His memoir is filled with great stories and characters from his decades as a music journalist, beginning when he was a young teenager. (His encounters with Gregg Allman and David Bowie stand out as particularly wonderful). I appreciated Crowe's ability to both convey his youthful sense of wonder and his adult reflection on his life as a journalist and filmmaker into this powerful memoir. A particular joy is the description throughout of his mother, including quotes of her singular wisdom and humor at the beginning of each chapter. (Many of us will remember a version of her from the film "Almost Famous"). A bonus if you listen do the audio book is Crowe's warm and funny narration.

By Cameron Crowe ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Uncool as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • “Cameron has written a book that feels like music, an intimate souvenir, like a song you can't stop listening to.” —Stevie Nicks • “A delicious tale of a devotee who worships at the altar of rock and roll....It's a love letter to fandom, sealed with Cameron's trademark sincerity and heart.” —Maggie Rogers • “Such a joy and so well written...My favorite book in a long, long time.” —Anderson Cooper

The long-awaited memoir by Cameron Crowe—one of America's most iconic journalists and filmmakers—The Uncool is a joyful dispatch from a lost world, a chronicle of the…


Book cover of Everything I Never Told You

Linda Rosen Author Of Abandoning the Script

From my list on novels that circle around long-held family secrets.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve heard many stories from friends who, as adults, discovered that the person they always believed to be their mother or father was not, and saw what it did to their sense of self. I became fascinated by the how and why a family would perpetuate such a lie, and it made me wonder about the difference between a secret and a lie, and if there is one. This set me off writing novels about family secrets, and reading many more. I enjoy exploring what such devastating news does to a person, and to the entire family, once the secret is discovered. 

Linda's book list on novels that circle around long-held family secrets

Linda Rosen Why Linda loves this book

I was drawn into this story from its first brilliant line.

Before this book was released, I read an ARC of the novel as a member of the Group Reads committee that curates a list of novels perfect for book clubs. Immediately, I felt this would be a bestseller and am so glad I was right.

The multilayered characters are so well drawn, and the propulsive mystery is deftly laid out, making it a page turner. This is a novel I kept reading late into the night.

By Celeste Ng ,

Why should I read it?

11 authors picked Everything I Never Told You as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The acclaimed debut novel by the author of Little Fires Everywhere and Our Missing Hearts

"A taut tale of ever deepening and quickening suspense." -O, the Oprah Magazine

"Explosive . . . Both a propulsive mystery and a profound examination of a mixed-race family." -Entertainment Weekly

"Lydia is dead. But they don't know this yet." So begins this exquisite novel about a Chinese American family living in 1970s small-town Ohio. Lydia is the favorite child of Marilyn and James Lee, and her parents are determined that she will fulfill the dreams they were unable to pursue. But when Lydia's body…


If you love Ann Packer...

Book cover of When the Road Comes Around

When the Road Comes Around by Katie Powner,

In the small town of Grady, Montana, twenty-four-year-old Tad Bungley has a reputation for trouble. When he lands a job at Come Around Ranch, however, his life seems to take a positive turn. As he develops a soft spot for Sam, the ranch owner's disabled son, and a special bond…

Book cover of The Condition

Katie O'Rourke Author Of Finding Charlie

From my list on deeply lovable dysfunctional families.

Why am I passionate about this?

I was born and raised in New England, growing up along the seacoast of New Hampshire. I went to college in Massachusetts and graduated with a degree in gender and sexuality. I live in Tucson, Arizona with my sweet yellow lab and even sweeter boyfriend. I’m a hybrid author. My debut novel, Monsoon Season, was traditionally published along with A Long Thaw, which I later rereleased on my own. Finding Charlie was chosen for publication by KindleScout in 2015. My fourth book, Blood & Water launched in 2017. I write the kind of fiction I like to read: character-driven, relationship-focused, and emotionally complex.

Katie's book list on deeply lovable dysfunctional families

Katie O'Rourke Why Katie loves this book

Jennifer Haigh's novel is a family saga that reads like a post-mortem. With alternating narration, each of the five family members gives their perspective on what led to the family's demise and current state. The novel's title, The Condition, seems to refer specifically to one child in the family who has been diagnosed with a rare medical condition called Turner's Syndrome. But throughout the book, it becomes clear that each family member has developed their own "condition" or way of existing that is just as much a part of their identity.

By Jennifer Haigh ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Condition as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

In the summer of 1976, during their annual retreat on Cape Cod, the McKotch family came apart. Now, twenty years after daughter Gwen was diagnosed with Turner's syndrome—a rare genetic condition that keeps her trapped forever in the body of a child—eminent scientist Frank McKotch is divorced from his pedigreed wife, Paulette. Eldest son Billy, a successful cardiologist, lives a life built on secrets and compromise. His brother Scott awakened from a pot-addled adolescence to a soul-killing job and a regrettable marriage. And Gwen—bright and accomplished but hermetic and emotionally aloof—spurns all social interaction until, well into her thirties, she…


Book cover of The Children's Crusade

Katie O'Rourke Author Of Finding Charlie

From my list on deeply lovable dysfunctional families.

Why am I passionate about this?

I was born and raised in New England, growing up along the seacoast of New Hampshire. I went to college in Massachusetts and graduated with a degree in gender and sexuality. I live in Tucson, Arizona with my sweet yellow lab and even sweeter boyfriend. I’m a hybrid author. My debut novel, Monsoon Season, was traditionally published along with A Long Thaw, which I later rereleased on my own. Finding Charlie was chosen for publication by KindleScout in 2015. My fourth book, Blood & Water launched in 2017. I write the kind of fiction I like to read: character-driven, relationship-focused, and emotionally complex.

Katie's book list on deeply lovable dysfunctional families

Katie O'Rourke Why Katie loves this book

The major drama in The Children's Crusade revolves around four adult children deciding whether it's time to sell their childhood home. Each sibling tells their own story in first-person narratives and these chapters are interwoven with omniscient narratives that describe their earlier lives. Each character is such a fascinating individual and while their adult voices are distinct from each other, they're also completely recognizable in their portrayal as children. This book explores the unique bond between people you’ve known your whole life.

By Ann Packer ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Children's Crusade as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

From New York Times bestselling, award-winning author Ann Packer, a “tour de force family drama” (Elle) that explores the secrets and desires, the remnant wounds and saving graces of one California family, over the course of five decades.

Bill Blair finds the land by accident, three wooded acres in a rustic community south of San Francisco. The year is 1954, long before anyone will call this area Silicon Valley. Struck by a vision of his future family, Bill buys the property and proposes to Penny Greenway, a woman whose yearning attitude toward life appeals to him. In less than a…


Book cover of Daughter's Keeper

Katie O'Rourke Author Of Finding Charlie

From my list on deeply lovable dysfunctional families.

Why am I passionate about this?

I was born and raised in New England, growing up along the seacoast of New Hampshire. I went to college in Massachusetts and graduated with a degree in gender and sexuality. I live in Tucson, Arizona with my sweet yellow lab and even sweeter boyfriend. I’m a hybrid author. My debut novel, Monsoon Season, was traditionally published along with A Long Thaw, which I later rereleased on my own. Finding Charlie was chosen for publication by KindleScout in 2015. My fourth book, Blood & Water launched in 2017. I write the kind of fiction I like to read: character-driven, relationship-focused, and emotionally complex.

Katie's book list on deeply lovable dysfunctional families

Katie O'Rourke Why Katie loves this book

Waldman is an expert at her depiction of the complicated mother/daughter relationship. Every interaction between Olivia and Elaine is thick with their history of built-up resentment and guilt, an intense love that can often overwhelm and feel burdensome, the competing desires to please and to hurt complicating every moment.

By Ayelet Waldman ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Daughter's Keeper as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

How much would you sacrifice to save someone you love?


When Olivia, wild-haired and headstrong, makes a terrible mistake, she must turn to the person least likely to help—her mother, Elaine. Motherhood was a role that Elaine never embraced and her best never amounted to much. But now Olivia faces prosecution for a naïve connection to a drug deal and she needs Elaine more than ever. As the days count down and Olivia's future hangs in the balance, Elaine must decide just how much she is willing to give for a second chance with her daughter.

With Daughter's Keeper, Ayelet…


If you love Some Bright Nowhere...

Book cover of The Ascent

The Ascent by Adam Plantinga,

When a high security prison fails, a down-on-his luck cop and the governor’s daughter must team up if they’re going to escape in this "jaw-dropping, authentic, and absolutely gripping" (Harlan Coben, #1 New York Times bestselling author) USA Today bestselling thriller from Adam Plantinga.

Book cover of Bellflower

Katie O'Rourke Author Of Finding Charlie

From my list on deeply lovable dysfunctional families.

Why am I passionate about this?

I was born and raised in New England, growing up along the seacoast of New Hampshire. I went to college in Massachusetts and graduated with a degree in gender and sexuality. I live in Tucson, Arizona with my sweet yellow lab and even sweeter boyfriend. I’m a hybrid author. My debut novel, Monsoon Season, was traditionally published along with A Long Thaw, which I later rereleased on my own. Finding Charlie was chosen for publication by KindleScout in 2015. My fourth book, Blood & Water launched in 2017. I write the kind of fiction I like to read: character-driven, relationship-focused, and emotionally complex.

Katie's book list on deeply lovable dysfunctional families

Katie O'Rourke Why Katie loves this book

Each of these vignettes is exquisite on its own and you're free to read it as if that’s all it is. But after you've read a few of the stories, you'll see this is a collection of pieces that fit together to make a greater, more meaningful, whole. The character you fell in love with in the beginning, who you were sorry to see go, will turn up again. The collection spans the lifetime of three main characters and their family networks and reminds us that, in the end, we’re all connected.

By Mary Vensel White ,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Bellflower as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

At a party thrown by his wife’s PTA friend, Glen Hanley makes a reckless choice. Terri Moore’s life has finally settled after an unexpected divorce, until her son reveals stunning news. Elderly and alone, Mrs. Hallowicz finds solace in her flowerbeds and pet turtle, but the pain of a long-buried tragedy threatens to unhinge her. Mary Vensel White’s kaleidoscopic novel-in-moments spans the lifetimes of these three characters and the network of family and friends connecting them. On the shaky ground of California, foundations can suddenly shift. Bellflower is about the mysteries of fate and chance, the delicate balance of relationships,…


Book cover of Heart the Lover
Book cover of The Uncool
Book cover of Everything I Never Told You

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