by Jay Wilburn
One of my favorite things is giving book recommendations. It helps the readers, it helps the authors, and maybe makes the world a better place. Looking over the last month, I did a non-scientific survey of all the books I shared on Twitter, Reddit, Facebook, in private messages, through e-mail, by text, in person, and everywhere else. From that, I organized the ten books I recommended the most regardless of genre.
This is not to say other books weren’t as good or that these authors don’t have more books just as good or better than these. As I tried to match readers’ interests to a recommendation, these are the books that came up the most often in the past month. A different set of readers will probably create different recommendations in the coming month.
These books appealed to a number of readers for different reasons and as such, I think you might like them, too.
If you are looking for a particular type of book, contact me directly and let me know what you are looking for.
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10
Hunger Pangs by Scott J Moses
This short story collection is only available as an ebook on Kindle. I didn’t realize it at the time I picked it up, but I believe it may be his first release. There are 13 stories in here that have a dark style and a rawness that I hope this author is able to hold onto as he releases more work. I’m curious to see what he does in the future.
9
Stay by Catherine Ryan Hyde
This novel is literary and deals with some heavy topics. I didn’t find it as dark as other readers and reviewers did, but it does deal the characters making choices about whether to go on living. Other characters fight for life or against death in their own ways. I think it makes a great novel of characters grappling with life and death during a tumultuous range of years in American history.
8
My Sister’s Lies by S.D. Robertson
This story paints a beautiful picture of a broken family. The characters have agency and depth. The secrets take the seemingly perfect life of one sister and turns it upside down with the turmoil of the other sister’s life. I like the character of the daughter and how the author portrayed her between these worlds. There are a lot of great conflicts in here that add layers to a story worth discovering.
7
In an Instant by Suzanne Redfearn
This novel does an expert job of creating an event that shatters the characters in all different directions and forces them to rebuild themselves in whatever ways they can. It’s tough for broken people to rebuild themselves in positive ways while they are still in trauma. This novel does a wonderful job taking us forward in a realistic way from a moment that changes everything.
6
The House on Abigail Lane by Kealan Patrick Burke
The structure of this book adds to the terror of this cursed house. Burke seems to be setting out to create a haunted/cursed/demon possessed house that rivals Amityville. I think he achieved it both in description, action, and the investigative style of the information presented. I like a novel that takes risks and I love one that succeeds in those risks. Really solid horror here from cover to cover.
5
The Green Mile by Stephen King
This may be the closest to a perfect novel ever written by Stephen King. It is a little quirky transitioning between sections because it was originally published as a multi-part serial, so the recaps are a little detailed. Story, characters, and action are all nearly flawless in their execution. The story is beautiful and strong from beginning to end.
4
United States of Apocalypse by Mark Tufo and Armand Rosamilia
World War 3 breaks out and two groups of survivors battle against the chaos. Tufo and Rosamilia use characters from each of their signature series to create a great story in a different sort of apocalypse. I’ve been recommending this book a lot lately because the authors are in the finishing stages of the second book. These authors make great apocalyptic stories separately and together.
3
Along Come Evening by Steven L Shrewsbury
This is a revenge story that’s Wild West, early 20th Century, World War Era, weird, visceral, surprisingly heartfelt, and entirely unique. Shrewsbury is an author with a range of storytelling ability and iron courage in his prose that is not appreciated enough by nearly enough readers. He tells violent events with the heart of a cowboy poet. This is part of a series of interconnected books, but Shrewsbury tells individual stories in each of his novels that move freely through the lifetimes of characters, much in the spirit of the old Conan tales, so you can enjoy them in any order, but you will probably want to read everything he writes after a taste.
2
The Night Silver River Run Red by Christine Morgan
I have nothing but praise for the splatter western run of books by Death’s Head Press and this latest addition is a masterpiece. The cover gives a better preview than I could trying to explain all the cool moments in this story. Morgan is a Splatterpunk Award winning author. I have especially liked her short fiction. I felt like up until now there hasn’t been a book that showed all her potential and talent even though everything she writes is great. This book shows the full greatness she is capable of in a huge way.
1
The Living Dead by George A Romero and Daniel Kraus
I have read a ton of zombie stories. I’ve written more than a few myself. This novel is in its own league. Kraus completed the novel from the fragments and notes left by the late Romero, the godfather of the zombie trope. When I heard a reading from it, I could tell it was something special. When I read it, I realized that it is a must read for any zombie fan or fan of apocalyptic fiction in general. I need to write better now that I know this story exists.
If you read all that and you’re still looking for more, check out Vampire Christ. It’s political and religious satire in a vampire horror story.
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