20 Best Books For Twenty Somethings (2023 Update)

Lily hasn't always had it easy, but that's never stopped her from working hard for the life she wants. she's come a long way from the small town in maine where she grew up – she graduated from college, moved to boston, and started her own business. so when she feels a spark with a gorgeous neurosurgeon named ryle kincaid, everything in lily's life suddenly seems almost too good to be true. ryle is assertive, stubborn, maybe even a little arrogant. he's also sensitive, brilliant, and has a total soft spot for lily, but ryle's complete aversion to relationships is disturbing. even as lily finds herself becoming the exception to his no dating rule, she can't help but wonder what made him that way in the first place. as questions about her new relationship overwhelm her, so do thoughts of atlas corrigan – her first love and a link to the past she left behind. he was her kindred spirit, her protector. when atlas suddenly reappears, everything lily has built with ryle is threatened.

The #1 new york times bestseller soon to be a hulu limited series starring reese witherspoon and kerry washington. named a best book of the year by: people, the washington post, bustle, esquire, southern living, the daily beast, gq, entertainment weekly, npr, amazon, barnes & noble, ibooks, audible, goodreads, library reads, book of the month, paste, kirkus reviews, st. louis post-dispatch, and many more… "i read little fires everywhere in a single, breathless sitting." –jodi picoult "to say i love this book is an understatement. it's a deep psychological mystery about the power of motherhood, the intensity of teenage love, and the danger of perfection. it moved me to tears." –reese witherspoon "extraordinary . . . books like little fires everywhere don't come along often." –john greenfrom the bestselling author of everything i never told you, a riveting novel that traces the intertwined fates of the picture-perfect richardson family and the enigmatic mother and daughter who upend their lives. in shaker heights, a placid, progressive suburb of cleveland, everything is planned–from the layout of the winding roads, to the colors of the houses, to the successful lives its residents will go on to lead. and no one embodies this spirit more than elena richardson, whose guiding principle is playing by the rules. enter mia warren–an enigmatic artist and single mother–who arrives in this idyllic bubble with her teenaged daughter pearl, and rents a house from the richardsons. soon mia and pearl become more than tenants: all four richardson children are drawn to the mother-daughter pair. but mia carries with her a mysterious past and a disregard for the status quo that threatens to upend this carefully ordered community. when old family friends of the richardsons attempt to adopt a chinese-american baby, a custody battle erupts that dramatically divides the town–and puts mia and elena on opposing sides. suspicious of mia and her motives, elena is determined to uncover the secrets in mia's past. but her obsession will come at unexpected and devastating costs. little fires everywhere explores the weight of secrets, the nature of art and identity, and the ferocious pull of motherhood–and the danger of believing that following the rules can avert disaster.

National bestseller winner of the booker prize "a must-read about modern britain and womanhood . . . an impressive, fierce novel about the lives of black british families, their struggles, pains, laughter, longings and loves . . . her style is passionate, razor-sharp, brimming with energy and humor. there is never a single moment of dullness in this book and the pace does not allow you to turn away from its momentum."–booker prize judges bernardine evaristo is the winner of the 2019 booker prize and the first black woman to receive this highest literary honor in the english language. girl, woman, other is a magnificent portrayal of the intersections of identity and a moving and hopeful story of an interconnected group of black british women that paints a vivid portrait of the state of contemporary britain and looks back to the legacy of britain's colonial history in africa and the caribbean. the twelve central characters of this multi-voiced novel lead vastly different lives: amma is a newly acclaimed playwright whose work often explores her black lesbian identity; her old friend shirley is a teacher, jaded after decades of work in london's funding-deprived schools; carole, one of shirley's former students, is a successful investment banker; carole's mother bummi works as a cleaner and worries about her daughter's lack of rootedness despite her obvious achievements. from a nonbinary social media influencer to a 93-year-old woman living on a farm in northern england, these unforgettable characters also intersect in shared aspects of their identities, from age to race to sexuality to class.

From the new york times bestselling author of something borrowed comes a novel that shows how someone with a ‘perfect life’ can lose it all—and then find everything. darcy rhone thought she had it all figured out: the more beautiful the girl, the more charmed her life. never mind substance. never mind playing by the rules. never mind karma. but darcy’s neat, perfect world turns upside down when her best friend, rachel, the plain-jane “good girl,” steals her fiancé, while darcy finds herself completely alone for the first time in her life…with a baby on the way. darcy tries to recover, fleeing to her childhood friend living in london and resorting to her tried-and-true methods for getting what she wants. but as she attempts to recreate her glamorous life on a new continent, darcy finds that her rules no longer apply. it is only then that darcy can begin her journey toward self-awareness, forgiveness, and motherhood. something blue is a novel about one woman’s surprising discoveries about the true meaning of friendship, love, and happily-ever-after. it’s a novel for anyone who has ever, even secretly, wondered if the last thing you want is really the one thing you need.

Stephanie plum returns to hunt down a new kind of criminal operating out of trenton in the 28th book in the wildly popular series by #1 new york times bestselling author janet evanovich. when stephanie plum is woken up in the middle of the night by the sound of footsteps in her apartment, she wishes she didn’t keep her gun in the cookie jar in her kitchen. and when she finds out the intruder is fellow apprehension agent diesel, six feet of hard muscle and bad attitude who she hasn’t seen in more than two years, she still thinks the gun might come in handy. turns out diesel and stephanie are on the trail of the same fugitive: oswald wednesday, an international computer hacker as brilliant as he is ruthless. stephanie may not be the most technologically savvy sleuth, but she more than makes up for that with her dogged determination, her understanding of human nature, and her willingness to do just about anything to bring a fugitive to justice. unsure if diesel is her partner or her competition in this case, she’ll need to watch her back every step of the way as she sets the stage to draw wednesday out from behind his computer and into the real world.

#1 new york times bestseller – a shocking discovery on a honeymoon in paradise changes the lives of a picture-perfect couple in this taut psychological thriller debut–for readers of ruth ware, paula hawkins, and shari lapena. "a psychological thriller that captivated me from page one. what unfolds makes for a wild, page-turning ride it's the perfect beach read "–reese witherspoon (reese's book club x hello sunshine book pick) named one of the best books of the year by glamour and newsweek – finalist for the itw thriller award if you could make one simple choice that would change your life forever, would you? erin is a documentary filmmaker on the brink of a professional breakthrough, mark a handsome investment banker with big plans. passionately in love, they embark on a dream honeymoon to the tropical island of bora bora, where they enjoy the sun, the sand, and each other. then, while scuba diving in the crystal blue sea, they find something in the water. . . . could the life of your dreams be the stuff of nightmares? suddenly the newlyweds must make a dangerous choice: to speak out or to protect their secret. after all, if no one else knows, who would be hurt? their decision will trigger a devastating chain of events. . . . have you ever wondered how long it takes to dig a grave? wonder no longer. catherine steadman's enthralling voice shines throughout this spellbinding debut novel. praise for something in the water "superbly written, clever and gripping."–b. paris, new york times bestselling author of behind closed doors "deliciously dramatic."–entertainment weekly "thrilling . . . the perfect beach read."–popsugar "a dark glittering gem of a thriller."–kirkus reviews (starred review) "arresting . . . deftly paced, elegantly chilly . . . catherine] steadman brings . . . wit, timing and intelligence to this novel. . . . something in the water is a proper page-turner."–the new york times

Jack swyteck and his family are caught in the crossfire after a deadly school shooting claims twenty casualties–florida's fifth mass shooting in as many years–in this provocative and timely thriller from harper lee prize-winner james grippando that touches on some of the most contentious issues roiling america today. it is the message every parent of a school-age child fears: "active shooter on campus." jack swyteck is at his office when he receives the emergency text from riverside day school. both his daughter, righley, and his wife, fbi agent andie henning, are in danger. andie is in the school's rec center when she hears the fire alarms, then loud popping noises and screams coming from the hallway. a trained law-enforcement officer, andie knows she's supposed to stay locked down inside the room. but righley is in her kindergarten classroom and andie must get her to safety. the tragedy prompts mass hysteria–and dangerous speculation. the police haven't identified the shooter, but they find a handgun on the school grounds registered to a parent, a muslim man named amir khoury. news of the gun and its owner leaks and quickly goes viral. within minutes al qaeda claims responsibility. andie is shocked–amir is married to her friend, lilly, a wasp whose bloodline goes back to the american revolution. when xavier, amir and lilly's oldest child and an eighteen-year-old senior at riverside confesses to the crime, the local community's anti-muslim fervor explodes to levels unseen since 9/11. terrified for her son's life, lilly asks jack to step in. a seasoned defense attorney with a passion to see justice done, he's taken on plenty of complicated cases. xavier's, however, is not one he's inclined to take–until an old friend who lost his daughter in the shooting tells him that he must. with the public calling for blood and prosecutors confident their case is air tight, jack must unearth the khourys' family secrets in order to expose the shocking truth and save his client from certain death. but he may not be able to save everyone–including himself.

Shaun bythell is the owner of the bookshop in wigtown, scotland.

“the good daughter is like law and order meets the good wife.” —theskimminstant new york times bestsellertheskimm book club pick! the stunning new novel from the international #1 bestselling author — a searing, spellbinding blend of cold-case thriller and psychological suspense.two girls are forced into the woods at gunpoint. one runs for her life. one is left behind…twenty-eight years ago, charlotte and samantha quinn's happy small-town family life was torn apart by a terrifying attack on their family home. it left their mother dead. it left their father — pikeville's notorious defense attorney — devastated. and it left the family fractured beyond repair, consumed by secrets from that terrible night.twenty-eight years later, and charlie has followed in her father's footsteps to become a lawyer herself — the ideal good daughter. but when violence comes to pikeville again — and a shocking tragedy leaves the whole town traumatized — charlie is plunged into a nightmare. not only is she the first witness on the scene, but it's a case that unleashes the terrible memories she's spent so long trying to suppress. because the shocking truth about the crime that destroyed her family nearly thirty years ago won't stay buried forever…packed with twists and turns, brimming with emotion and heart, the good daughter is fiction at its most thrilling.

You've read john maxwell's best-selling winning with people, and now you're ready for some specific action steps to build on the knowledge you gained. 25 ways to win with people has just what you need! this complementary companion to the full-sized book is ideal for a quick refresher course on interpersonal relationships. a small sampling of the twenty-five specific actions readers can take to build positive, healthy relationships includes: complimenting people in front of others creating a memory and visiting it often encouraging the dreams of others

Description 1)the field guide the moment luce looks at daniel she knows she has never felt like this before. except she can't shake the feeling that she has. and with him – a boy she doesn't remember ever setting eyes on. 2)torment it took lucinda an eternity to find her beloved angel, daniel. but he waited for her. now they are forced apart again, to protect luce from the outcasts – immortals who want her dead. during their separation, luce learns about her mysterious past lives. 3)passion before luce and daniel met at sword & cross, before they fought the immortals, they had already lived many lives. and so luce, desperate to unlock the curse that condemns their love, must revisit her past incarnations in order to understand her fate. 4)rapture in order to stop lucifer from erasing the past, they must find the place where the fall began. only luce can break the curse, and it is her choice alone that will decide all of their fates. 5)unforgiven cam knows what it’s like to be haunted. he’s spent more time in hell than any angel ever should. and his freshest hell is high school, where lilith, the girl he can’t stop loving, is serving out a punishment for his crimes.

Instant new york times bestseller from #1 new york times bestselling author karen kingsbury comes a brand-new baxter family novel about a beloved high school principal who starts a bible study to improve the lives of his struggling students, only to become the national focus of a controversial lawsuit.hamilton high principal wendell quinn is tired of the violence, drug abuse, teen pregnancies, and low expectations at his indianapolis school. a single father of four, quinn is a christian and a family man. he wants to see change in his community, so he starts a voluntary after-school bible study and prayer program. he knows he is risking his job by leading the program, but the high turnout at every meeting encourages him. a year later, violence and gang activity are down, test scores are up, and drug use and teen pregnancy have plummeted. the program is clearly working—until one parent calls the press. now quinn faces a lawsuit that could ruin everything. with a storm of national attention and criticism, quinn is at a crossroads—he must choose whether to cave in and shut down the program or stand up for himself and his students. the battle comes with a high cost, and quinn wants just one attorney on his side for this fight: luke baxter. in this moment is an inspiring, relevant story about the nuances of religious freedom and how a group of determined people just might restore the meaning of faith in today’s culture.

Soon to be a series from apple tv! a new york times bestsellerthe revered new york times bestselling author returns with a novel set in 1960s baltimore that combines modern psychological insights with elements of classic noir, about a middle-aged housewife turned aspiring reporter who pursues the murder of a forgotten young woman. in 1966, baltimore is a city of secrets that everyone seems to know–everyone, that is, except madeline "maddie" schwartz. last year, she was a happy, even pampered housewife. this year, she's bolted from her marriage of almost twenty years, determined to make good on her youthful ambitions to live a passionate, meaningful life. maddie wants to matter, to leave her mark on a swiftly changing world. drawing on her own secrets, she helps baltimore police find a murdered girl–assistance that leads to a job at the city's afternoon newspaper, the star. working at the newspaper offers maddie the opportunity to make her name, and she has found just the story to do it: cleo sherwood, a missing woman whose body was discovered in the fountain of a city park lake. if cleo were white, every reporter in baltimore would be clamoring to tell her story. instead, her mysterious death receives only cursory mention in the daily newspapers, and no one cares when maddie starts poking around in a young black woman's life–except for cleo's ghost, who is determined to keep her secrets and her dignity. cleo scolds the ambitious maddie: you're interested in my death, not my life. they're not the same thing. maddie's investigation brings her into contact with people that used to be on the periphery of her life–a jewelry store clerk, a waitress, a rising star on the baltimore orioles, a patrol cop, a hardened female reporter, a lonely man in a movie theater. but for all her ambition and drive, maddie often fails to see the people right in front of her. her inability to look beyond her own needs will lead to tragedy and turmoil for all sorts of people–including ferdie, the man who shares her bed, a police officer who is risking far more than maddie can understand.

A read with jenna today show book club pick! finalist for the 2020 national book award (fiction)one of barack obama's summer reads – a best book of the year from: the washington post * time * npr * elle * esquire * kirkus * library journal * the chicago public library * the new york public library * book – style * the new yorker * aarp * publisher's lunch * lit – hub * book marks * electric literature * brooklyn based * the boston globe – a magnetic novel about two families, strangers to each other, who are forced together on a long weekend gone terribly wrong. – from the bestselling author of rich and pretty comes a suspenseful and provocative novel keenly attuned to the complexities of parenthood, race, and class. leave the world behind explores how our closest bonds are reshaped–and unexpected new ones are forged–in moments of crisis. – amanda and clay head out to a remote corner of long island expecting a vacation: a quiet reprieve from life in new york city, quality time with their teenage son and daughter, and a taste of the good life in the luxurious home they've rented for the week. but a late-night knock on the door breaks the spell. ruth and g. h. are an older couple–it's their house, and they've arrived in a panic. they bring the news that a sudden blackout has swept the city. but in this rural area–with the tv and internet now down, and no cell phone service–it's hard to know what to believe. – should amanda and clay trust this couple–and vice versa? what happened back in new york? is the vacation home, isolated from civilization, a truly safe place for their families? and are they safe from one other?

New york times best seller – winner of the goodreads choice award – the award-winning, best-selling author of station eleven and the glass hotel returns with a novel of art, time travel, love, and plague that takes the reader from vancouver island in 1912 to a dark colony on the moon five hundred years later, unfurling a story of humanity across centuries and space. – one of the best books of the year: the new york times, npr, good – reads “one of [mandel’s] finest novels and one of her most satisfying forays into the arena of speculative fiction yet.” —the new york times – edwin st. andrew is eighteen years old when he crosses the atlantic by steamship, exiled from polite society following an ill-conceived diatribe at a dinner party. he enters the forest, spellbound by the beauty of the canadian wilderness, and suddenly hears the notes of a violin echoing in an airship terminal—an experience that shocks him to his core. two centuries later a famous writer named olive llewellyn is on a book tour. she’s traveling all over earth, but her home is the second moon colony, a place of white stone, spired towers, and artificial beauty. within the text of olive’s best-selling pandemic novel lies a strange passage: a man plays his violin for change in the echoing corridor of an airship terminal as the trees of a forest rise around him. when gaspery-jacques roberts, a detective in the black-skied night city, is hired to investigate an anomaly in the north american wilderness, he uncovers a series of lives upended: the exiled son of an earl driven to madness, a writer trapped far from home as a pandemic ravages earth, and a childhood friend from the night city who, like gaspery himself, has glimpsed the chance to do something extraordinary that will disrupt the timeline of the universe. – a virtuoso performance that is as human and tender as it is intellectually playful, sea of tranquility is a novel of time travel and metaphysics that precisely captures the reality of our current moment.

A reese's book club pick“i loved this book. it gave me the same waves of happiness i get from curling up with a classic christie… the alternating points of view keep you guessing, and guessing wrong.” — alex michaelides, #1 new york times bestselling author of the silent patient"evok[es] the great agatha christie classics… pay close attention to seemingly throwaway details about the characters’ pasts. they are all clues.” — new york times book review – a wedding celebration turns dark and deadly in this deliciously wicked and atmospheric thriller reminiscent of agatha christie from the new york times bestselling author of the hunting party. – the bride – the plus one – the best man – the wedding planner – the bridesmaid – the body – on an island off the coast of ireland, guests gather to celebrate two people joining their lives together as one. the groom: handsome and charming, a rising television star. the bride: smart and ambitious, a magazine publisher. it’s a wedding for a magazine, or for a celebrity: the designer dress, the remote location, the luxe party favors, the boutique whiskey. the cell phone service may be spotty and the waves may be rough, but every detail has been expertly planned and will be expertly executed. – but perfection is for plans, and people are all too human. as the champagne is popped and the festivities begin, resentments and petty jealousies begin to mingle with the reminiscences and well wishes. the groomsmen begin the drinking game from their school days. the bridesmaid not-so-accidentally ruins her dress. the bride’s oldest (male) friend gives an uncomfortably caring toast. and then someone turns up dead. who didn’t wish the happy couple well? and perhaps more important, why?

A reese's book club pick“i loved this book. it gave me the same waves of happiness i get from curling up with a classic christie… the alternating points of view keep you guessing, and guessing wrong.” — alex michaelides, #1 new york times bestselling author of the silent patient"evok[es] the great agatha christie classics… pay close attention to seemingly throwaway details about the characters’ pasts. they are all clues.” — new york times book review – a wedding celebration turns dark and deadly in this deliciously wicked and atmospheric thriller reminiscent of agatha christie from the new york times bestselling author of the hunting party. – the bride – the plus one – the best man – the wedding planner – the bridesmaid – the body – on an island off the coast of ireland, guests gather to celebrate two people joining their lives together as one. the groom: handsome and charming, a rising television star. the bride: smart and ambitious, a magazine publisher. it’s a wedding for a magazine, or for a celebrity: the designer dress, the remote location, the luxe party favors, the boutique whiskey. the cell phone service may be spotty and the waves may be rough, but every detail has been expertly planned and will be expertly executed. – but perfection is for plans, and people are all too human. as the champagne is popped and the festivities begin, resentments and petty jealousies begin to mingle with the reminiscences and well wishes. the groomsmen begin the drinking game from their school days. the bridesmaid not-so-accidentally ruins her dress. the bride’s oldest (male) friend gives an uncomfortably caring toast. and then someone turns up dead. who didn’t wish the happy couple well? and perhaps more important, why?

Finalist for the 2021 booker prize & a new york times top 10 book of 2021winner of the dylan thomas prize “a book that reads like a prose poem, at once sublime, profane, intimate, philosophical, witty and, eventually, deeply moving.” —new york times book review, editors’ choice “wow. i can’t remember the last time i laughed so much reading a book. what an inventive and startling writer…i’m so glad i read this. i really think this book is remarkable.” —david sedaris from "a formidably gifted writer" (the new york times book review), a book that asks: is there life after the internet? as this urgent, genre-defying book opens, a woman who has recently been elevated to prominence for her social media posts travels around the world to meet her adoring fans. she is overwhelmed by navigating the new language and etiquette of what she terms "the portal," where she grapples with an unshakable conviction that a vast chorus of voices is now dictating her thoughts. when existential threats–from climate change and economic precariousness to the rise of an unnamed dictator and an epidemic of loneliness–begin to loom, she posts her way deeper into the portal's void. an avalanche of images, details, and references accumulate to form a landscape that is post-sense, post-irony, post-everything. the people of the portal ask themselves. suddenly, two texts from her mother pierce the fray: "something has gone wrong," and "how soon can you get here?" as real life and its stakes collide with the increasingly absurd antics of the portal, the woman confronts a world that seems to contain both an abundance of proof that there is goodness, empathy, and justice in the universe, and a deluge of evidence to the contrary.fragmentary and omniscient, incisive and sincere, no one is talking about this is at once a love letter to the endless scroll and a profound, modern meditation on love, language, and human connection from a singular voice in american literature.

A usa today bestseller“a surprising and incredibly satisfying story of chance and fate.”—new york times bestselling author taylor jenkins reid “i read it in one long gulp and didn’t want it to end.”—new york times bestselling author jill santopoloacclaimed author colleen oakley delivers a heart-wrenching and unforgettable love story about a woman who must choose between the man she loves and the man fate has chosen for her, in a novel that reminds us that the best life is one led by the heart. mia graydon's life looks picket-fence perfect; she has the house, her loving husband, and dreams of starting a family. but she has other dreams too—unexplained, recurring ones starring the same man. still, she doesn’t think much of it, until a relocation to small-town pennsylvania brings her face to face with the stranger she has been dreaming about for years. and this man harbors a jaw-dropping secret of his own—he's been dreaming of her too. determined to understand, mia and this not-so-stranger search for answers. but when diving into their pasts begins to unravel her life in the present, mia emerges with a single question—what if?

A usa today bestseller“a surprising and incredibly satisfying story of chance and fate.”—new york times bestselling author taylor jenkins reid “i read it in one long gulp and didn’t want it to end.”—new york times bestselling author jill santopoloacclaimed author colleen oakley delivers a heart-wrenching and unforgettable love story about a woman who must choose between the man she loves and the man fate has chosen for her, in a novel that reminds us that the best life is one led by the heart. mia graydon's life looks picket-fence perfect; she has the house, her loving husband, and dreams of starting a family. but she has other dreams too—unexplained, recurring ones starring the same man. still, she doesn’t think much of it, until a relocation to small-town pennsylvania brings her face to face with the stranger she has been dreaming about for years. and this man harbors a jaw-dropping secret of his own—he's been dreaming of her too. determined to understand, mia and this not-so-stranger search for answers. but when diving into their pasts begins to unravel her life in the present, mia emerges with a single question—what if?