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With the current state of the world and even more specifically, in Isla Vista, I think it’s fair to say that we all want and need a break from what’s going on around us. Especially at the beginning of the pandemic, while swiping on Tiktok and other social media platforms, I found myself frustrated at the constant tragedies I was trying to escape being thrown back into my face. It wasn’t until I picked up The Unhoneymooners by Christian Lauren that I found the exact escape that I needed.
I’ve always been an avid book reader, but that small hobby became a huge love over quarantine, and now acts as a comfort while I work to navigate my first year of college. I believe that reading could act as a good escape for everyone else as well, but I do understand that getting into reading can be difficult. This is why I’m giving you 5 different genres and my top pick for each so you can join my fellow book lovers club.
ROMANCE❤️
This genre is one for the hopeless dreamers. The ones who love the world they live in, but wish it was just a little bit different. For Romance I recommend the very book that got me back onto my reading game, The Unhoneymooners by Christian Lauren.
The Unhoneymooners follows Olive as she hits a sudden break in her life full of bad luck. When her twin sister, extreme coupon and sweepstake extraordinaire, gets married and has the wedding fully funded on prize winnings, she accidentally gives all her guests food poisoning. Well… all except Olive and the insufferable best man/brother to the groom, Ethan. The two of them are coerced into taking the sick couple’s sweepstake won honeymoon, where both Olive and Ethan will have to pose as a newlywed couple. Time and time again Olive and Ethan are pushed into situations which will make them question the seemingly mutual hatred they both hold for each other. Will they survive this fake honeymoon and emerge the same as they had before, or will romantic setting and fate have something to change about that?
This book was FILLED with tension between Ethan and Olive which I personally LOVED! Even though the plot is very predictable, I found it to be a cute and easy read that I finished in two days. It is definitely a book with a lot of cheesy romance for all the hopeless romantics out there.
FANTASY✨
I would say the best book genre to escape in is Fantasy. There are so many fantasy series that create a whole new world for the reader to explore. Despite the many series that could keep a reader entertained for months, I would have to recommend the single standing book by V.E. Schwab titled The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue.
Addie LaRue, in desperation to escape a life she couldn’t continue living, makes a deal with the devil, but she isn’t expecting the consequences that come with toying in such fate. Forgotten by everyone she meets, Addie is left to an eternity of wandering loneliness, having only the tortuous and conniving devil to keep her company. That is until she meets a young man, one who doesn’t fall for her thieving disappearance act and remembers her. But can Addie really trust this man she just met, the only person to remember her? Will he forget her like everyone else has, or does he have something even more sinister to hide?
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is a book that was honestly a slow start for me, but once you get past Addie’s backstory, the plot really picks up and it becomes a book you really can’t put down.
THRILLER👻
Sometimes a good distraction from our worldly issues, is to delve into someone else’s. Honestly any Stephen King book will do for a good Thriller/Horror escape, but my most recent read and personal pick for a good thriller novel would be The Institute.
At 12 years old, Luke Ellis was attending a school for gifted children, applying to one of the country’s best colleges (MIT), and still managing to have a social life filled with lots of laughter and friends. Luke was a genius, and maybe that’s why in the dead of night a team of intruders broke into his home, murdered his parents, and stole him in the back of a black SUV. Luke woke up back in his room, only it wasn’t his room. When he walked outside the bedroom door, all that could be seen was a long hallway filled with doors and children walking casually out and in of each. The more time he spends at this place, the more Luke learns of the real operation occurring in the shadows, and the more he realizes: he needs to escape.
Fair warning that The Institution starts off not exactly how you would expect it to. But I promise that if you continue reading, by the end of part 2, you’ll be hooked. Stephen King does great work in paranormal writing and this is another one of those excellently enthralling stories that had me gasping at all the right parts.
MURDER MYSTERY🔍
There’s nothing like a good murder mystery to keep you entertained on a raining stormy night (or any night for that matter). I find myself so enthralled in these books that I’ll find myself thinking about the possible suspects outside of reading the book itself! One of my favorites has been the trilogy titled Remember Me by Christopher Pike
Sharri Cooper woke up a ghost. One second she was taking a breather outside from a party, and next thing she knew, she was dead. Sharri knows she was pushed off the four story balcony, so why was everyone saying she fell?! A restless and roaming spirit, Sharri decides that it’s her new purpose to find who exactly murdered her and why. Her investigation is invasive, and what she finds is shocking, but is it better to have known or should she have never tried looking in the first place?
This was actually a book my mom read in high school and told me to read as well, which ended up becoming a really fun conversation starter between the two of us. This isn’t my favorite murder mystery, but it is one that isn’t super mainstream and was a fun read if you’re up for it!
NONFICTION🧠
I’m more of a fictional reader, because I enjoy world building and character developments, but there are a few nonfiction pieces that have really grabbed my attention. Blink by Malcolm Gladwell would be my recommendation for the most enthralling and thought provoking read for this genre.
Blink focuses on the subconscious part of our mind. Gladwell touches on the inner thoughts and actions we may have without even realizing about it. You’d be surprised by the amount of choices we make in the blink of an eye without a second guess. He talks about the secret all great decision makers have and how to master the skill he calls “thin-slicing”.
Gladwell has many other books that touch on topics similar to this, which lead their reader to gaining better control over themselves and their future.
Books in general act as a great escape from our daily troubles. I find that despite having a horrible week, just being able to read a couple chapters on the weekend helps to calm my mind and give me a break from everything. I hope, through this article, that you could either find that same break in one of these books, or start delving into the different genres for your next exciting read!