With the holiday season arriving in full force and the winter break getting ready to commence, finding something to fill the free time can be a struggle. Sure there are video games, television, Netflix series to binge watch, and so many other things to do; however, there is something so charming about snuggling up by the fire with a cup of coffee/hot chocolate with a good book in your hands. Strolling through a bookstore can be great if you have a few hours to spare, but if you are an in and out shopper, bookstores can be chaotic. So whether you are strolling or just wanting to pop in and grab a quick book, here is a list of books that you are sure to love over the holiday season. So stop by your favorite bookstore this holiday season and grab a book to enjoy by the fire.
1. A Man Called Ove
This novel written by Fredrik Backman is a wonderfully charming novel. Much like the old man from Up, Ove is a grumpy, lovable, man of solitude who finds his world completely turned around when an animated young family moves in across the street. Behind the cranky exterior of Ove is a story and a sadness that will bring you to tears. This is the feel-good story of the year that explores the profound impact one life has on countless others.
2. I'm Thinking of Ending Things
A debut novel for author Lain Reid that has you on the edge of your seat until the very end. It is a literary thriller that examines the depths of the human psyche. I'm Thinking of Ending Things is edgy, tense, gripping, and utterly bizarre with an ending that is even stranger. This novel could be read in a day, because once you start, you won't be able to put it down. This novel will leave you thinking long after you have finished, as it finds a spot in your heart and head.
3. Night School: A Jack Reacher Novel
For all those Lee Child lovers out there, here comes the latest installment of the Jack Reacher series. It's 1996, and Reacher is still in the army. Receiving a medal in the morning and back off to school in the afternoon;however, that night he is off the grid. From Langley to Hamburg, Jalalabad to Kiev, Night School moves like a bullet through a battlefield of double crosses, faked identities, and terrible new enemies, leaving Reacher to maneuver inside the game and outside the law.
4. Two By Two
Nicholas Sparks returns with another emotionally gripping story about the challenges, risks, and rewards that come with unconditional love. Russell Green, 32, has it all, beautiful wife, a darling daughter, lavished home in Charlotte, and a big shot career as an advertising executive. Underneath the shiny exterior of his "perfect" life are cracks that not even Russ could expect. Within a matter of months, Russ finds himself, jobless, wifeless, and caring for his six year old daughter, all the while struggling to adjust to his new reality. Russ embarks on a journey that is both terrifying and rewarding, that test his emotions and abilities far beyond anything ever imagined.
5. Milk and Honey
Rupi Kaur takes readers through a journey of life's most bitter moments and somehow finds sweetness in them. A collection of poetry and prose that speaks about survival, violence, abuse, love, loss, and femininity, Milk and Honey is one for the ages. Kaur's poetry is simple, relatable, beautiful, and honest. This collection leaves you wanting more as her work will send you to past thoughts and realities you never knew you had.