Recommended Recent Titles

Reading is one of my hobbies, there are few things I love more than losing myself in a great story. Here is a list of books I would recommend for any other bookworms looking for something to take on their flight. In this list, I have included only recent releases because airports tend to carry only critically-acclaimed and/or recent releases. I wanted to make sure that any of these titles could be found in an airport, incase you prefer to pick books up last minute once you get through security.

The Girl Before by JP Delaney

This book is for those of you who love a good twist and a bit of mystery. I would recommend this novel to anyone who is looking for an up and coming author. JP Delaney only has two books published; The Girl Before and The Perfect Wife. I have read and enjoyed both of these novels and look forward to the author releasing new novels in the future. The Girl Before is set to be made into a film, directed by Ron Howard, who directed The Da Vinci Code and Inferno. If you want to read the book before the movie's release, I would recommend picking it up soon! The book is based on the lives of two different women, who lead totally different lives but who both lived at the same address (not at the same time) under a particularly strange set of circumstances. Whilst they never met each other, the two could have more in common than either of them could know.

The House of New Beginnings by Lucy Diamond

This was a very easy read. The plot follows 3 girls all living under the same roof at a tennancy in Brighton. Each character has fled their old life for a fresh start. I liked this book because I found the issues that each of the main characters were facing to be very relatable. I also like that the story was not predictable and that the author seemed to be delivering a message that sometimes you need to save yourself. That we, as women do not need a man to save us or to make us feel worthwhile. These are things that we can do for ourselves if only we can find our inner strength. I enjoyed that Diamond did not write out perfect happy endings for each character where they fall in love. There are not enough stories out there that portray women as strong individuals.

Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty If you like stories with seperate characters with a secret connection, whose lives come to intertwine, then you will love Big Little Lies. Liane Moriarty is exceptionally good at carrying out this type of plot because she writes all of her books in this genre. The book deals with important issues which are not often talked about, but brushed over in the media and in our day to day lives, because they are too painful to talk about. For example, domestic violence and sexual abuse. It is thought provoking and interesting. The author delves deep into the trials of family life and examines the secrets that people keep and how they can affect our lives. I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys dramatic novels.

The Hundred-Year Old Man Who Climbed Out of the WIndow and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson

This book is very light-hearted and absolutely hilarious. It is perfect if you want something that is easy to pick up after a day of exploring. It is hard to lose your place because the story is easy to follow, so it is good for those of you who may not be avid readers. It follows an elderly man named Alan who gets very tired of his family and decides to jump out of his window to escape into the world. He meets some interesting individuals along the way and finds himself in a number of unusual situations during his adventure. Through a series of flashbacks you learn about Alan's earlier life and gather a greater understanding of his personality.

The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

Twisted and unsettling, this story is set in a kind of dystopian future where mass infertility has lead to a serious decline in the birth rate. We learn that this occurred in part, because of climate change altering the quality of our air with chemicals and radiation. We are also told that nuclear power plants exploded during a large scale earthquake, releasing the chemicals into the already poisoned air and worsening the conditions. As a result of the infertility crisis, a new world order was formed where women are used for breeding, forced to provide children for rich women who cannot conceive. These fertile women are known as handmaids.This is done in a very disturbing way, whereby the handmaids are to lie between the legs of the wives, whilst their husbands proceed to attempt to impregnate them. We follow the life of a handmad called 'Offred'. Names are given to the handmaids by preceding the husband of the household's name with 'Of' as this dictates ownership. This novel is not for everyone, but for those who can stomach such issues, it is certainly an interesting read. This novel was recently converted into a popular television series, which I have yet to watch.