Books like Something To Talk About — picked by fans

I loved that this book’s inciting incident is the toppling of a many-tiered wedding cake of a British royal couple. The cause? The immature tussling of a prince and the U.S. president’s son? (Adults, mind you. They’re adults) And because of that, they have to pretend to be friends, pals, buddies.

And as with most fake-relationship-themed books, the fake friendship soon turns into real love. Even though both Alex and Henry are outrageously advantaged individuals, I saw them as people—people in love—and not as a representation of their class.

Perhaps the thing I love most about McQuiston’s writing is the idealism and hopefulness she brings to the story. The obstacles Alex and Henry must overcome are literally international and yet, she can boil their love down to the simplest of gestures—and make it seem realistic.

I don’t usually like commercial fiction, but as an L.A. filmmaker, I found this story of a scandalous actress in Hollywood and her love affairs with men and women irresistible.

Told partly through the eyes of a young journalist interviewing a fading star, and partly through Evelyn Hugo’s own words, the intergenerational relationship also intrigued me: Would Evelyn’s influence on the younger, ambitious woman be beneficial, or lead to disaster?

I thoroughly enjoyed the many unexpected twists and turns between husbands and lovers in Evelyn Hugo’s life.

This was the first book by Alexis Hall I’ve read, and I fell in love with his writing. It’s witty and charming and perhaps a bit ridiculous at times. But that’s what makes it charming. Luc’s job is in danger unless he begins to get his life together. What job? He works for a nonprofit charity whose goal is to save the dung beetle—Coleoptera Research or Protection Project, or CRAPP. The solution? A fake boyfriend.

I love the large supporting cast this book has, each quirky enough to get their own story one day. Hall is a master of comedic writing, but more than that, I love that he can also write poignant moments. This book is one of my all-time favorites.

I'm a political junkie. And if you want Veep in book form, this is for you. Are Thom and Clay likable? Eventually, yes! Is the premise completely nuts? Totally, and I love it.

I am a huge sucker for enemies-to-lovers. And pining. And the public lens being trained on our MCs. And this one has it all. The banter, the chemistry, everything you want in a romance, plus the absurd US political system is like a cherry on top. 

A few years before I came out, I remember marveling at the boldness of certain women like Frida Kahlo, Toni Morrison, Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley, who expressed so freely. With jealous awe I wished I could do that. But how could I? I came from a family of clergy people! In time, however, those brave women inspired me as I came out loud. The remarkable autobiographical story of Congresswoman Davids has that same power. She grew up always speaking, yet also listening, including to those often ignored. A lesbian and member of the Ho Chunk Nation, which means People of the Big Voice, she saw the lack of minority representation in Congress and boldly stepped forward. Now she listens and raises her Big Voice loud in service of others! So inspiring!

If I had to name my one favorite thing about The West Wing, which is nigh on impossible, I would probably, in the end, say that it was the relationship between Josh and Donna, including their more light-hearted shared moments.

This book, written by Al Gore’s daughter (who knows the DC of which she writes), captures some of that flavor in a book that was marketed as Bridget Jones meets The West Wing, which I would say is entirely accurate. 

I cannot resist beautiful, elegant writing, and Hoffman achieves this every time. Set in the Old Testament on the refuge of Masada in Judea, you come to know the lives of four women intimately.

I love substantial, complicated narratives that bring you directly into people’s lives. Each woman is strong and steadfast in what they will do to survive and save their children in lives full of danger. It is a stunningly truthful story and one of my all-time favorite books.

I love this book because it is well-written and utilises characters from some of Jane Austen’s novels without having a wildly improbable plot, as so many Austen variations do.

The characters are fleshed out and very realistic. It impressed me that the characters chose to perform a play by a playwright of the era whom I’d never heard of. The book is well-researched, and the language used by the characters and in the book’s narration is very authentic to the era, without trying to ape Jane Austen’s writing, which is impossible today, and when authors attempt it, it isn’t enjoyable.

I enjoyed the pace and style of the book and could imagine myself back in the Regency era, having to deal with Lady Catherine de Bourgh and the Reverend Collins.

I don’t think I knew, at least consciously, that magic and witchcraft needed to be revisited from a woman’s perspective until I read this book. It was so influential on my thinking! Williams takes on unspoken assumptions that underlie many of the theology, ritual, and ideas in magic and witchcraft, and she reconsiders ritual in that light.

I love that she is scholarly but explains everything simply and straightforwardly. I love that she cares about the impact of magic and witchcraft on us as human beings. 

This spectacular collection of award-winning short stories set in Anchorage is probably my favorite book of the past two years. Newton is the only one of these five authors whom I’ve never met, so I can say with complete neutrality that these stories make up the most memorable depiction of urban Alaskan life anywhere: doctors with expensive float planes and more expensive mistresses, a disturbed suburban clairvoyant, even one historical flashback to the mudhole the city was founded upon in 1915. Hilarious at times, but also a reminder to me that Alaska has always attracted a certain type of misfit politely referred to as “adventurous,” but often seen as simply “nuts.” Myself included.