Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl with a new prompt each week. This week’s prompt is “freebie.” We decided to pick our favorite slump busters. Admittedly, (Meagan here) this topic is a bit self-serving so I can get some help meeting my goal to always be reading something this year. Comment with your recommendations, please.
Alyssa
To be honest, I don’t feel like I get into a slump too often, but I’m in one now. Which means I need something that draws me in quickly. Sky in the Deep by Adrienne Young is a little bit gruesome with a whole lot of feeling. Enemies to lovers, Viking-style, is quite the hook.
Meagan
That makes two of us, Alyssa. For me, slump busters are fast reads and are usually contemporary romance or mystery. I’ll start off by recommending a short (only 260 pages), cute romance. I enjoyed Nora Goes off Script by Annabel Monaghan – it was quick and I was rooting for her throughout the story. I love being able to root for the main character.
Alyssa
Tuesday is a character I was definitely rooting for. She gains quite the crew in her mysterious search. Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts by Kate Racculia was a fun read with magical realism, mystery, and adventure. I was completely invested in this book.
Meagan
Love & Saffron by Kim Fay is only 208 pages and this book is how I accomplished my 2022 reading goal. The format of this book is letters between two (I think unlikely) friends, and I loved it! It almost felt like non-fiction and I kept wanting to know what was going to happen next in their lives.
Alyssa
Dear Aaron by Mariana Zapata has a similar format, but with emails (and a lot more pages). Ruby signs up as a pen pal for army soldiers and is paired up with Aaron. Their relationship builds over their email exchanges and it’s surprisingly fun to read. I would not have expected to enjoy it that much. Plus, Mariana is a master of the slow burn. Ruby and Aaron make a cameo in Lukov with Love if you’ve read that one.
Meagan
This one comes with a warning…if you’re not into “raunchy”, then don’t read this. Happenstance (269 pages) by Tessa Bailey is a reverse harem romance about a woman that gets trapped on a tram with 3 men and follows their quad-relationship after this encounter. This is the first encounter I had with reverse harem and it was wildly entertaining.
Alyssa
Yes, Meagan got me to read that one and I also recommend. 😉 We don’t mind raunchy, so I’ll go ahead and recommend another Tessa Bailey. Fix Her Up has so much…grumpy-sunshine, age gap, brother’s best friend…and plenty of spice.
Meagan
Alyssa got me to read Fix Her Up and I also loved it. Tessa Bailey is a favorite of mine for slump-busting books. After I Do by Taylor Jenkins Reid (336 pages) may not be a fast read for everyone, but I adored this story and had to know how it ended. It’s about a married couple going through a no contact separation for a year and it is beautiful and a realistic love story. This one made me cry.
Alyssa
Just Haven’t Met You Yet is a hopeful story about a woman who discovers what you find may just be better than what you are actually looking for. I thought this was a really sweet book and generally enjoy anything by Sophie Cousens. Maybe I should pick up The Good Part for my current slump.
Meagan
I think this one is sweet in a completely different way. The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dave (306 pages) is a mystery about a woman whose husband disappears. She is focused on finding out what happened to him and taking care of his daughter during the process. Bonus, this has been adapted to a TV series – you can reward yourself for busting your slump by watching the show! Now, off to conquer this slump…
Comments
8 responses to “Top Ten Slump Busters”
Ooh, Love & Saffron would fit perfectly with my chosen theme today (books about/with food)! 😍 I’ll have to see what it’s about. Great list!
Tuesday Mooney Talks to Ghosts sounds fun.
Here is my Top Ten Tuesday.
I’m lucky that I rarely find myself in a reading slump. I might be found slumped and reading though…
Great list!
My TTT: https://laurieisreading.com/2024/04/09/top-ten-tuesday-series-i-desperately-need-to-finish/
Sky in the Deep sounds interesting! Here is our Top Ten Tuesday. Thank you!
I have a few of these on my TBR, and hope to enjoy them as much as you did.
Pam @ Read! Bake! Create!
https://readbakecreate.com/the-ds-have-it-ten-titles-starting-with-d/
I’m putting Love and Saffron on the TBR! Great list!
I don’t really get into reading slumps, but I was in a bit of a mini one where none of the books I picked up really hooked me. I finally started reading HOW TO SOLVE YOUR OWN MURDER and I’m loving it. I’m listening to an audiobook I like, too, so slump solved!
Happy TTT (on a Wednesday)!
Susan
http://www.blogginboutbooks.com