Verity<\/a><\/em>.\u00a0<\/p> Even I, a complete book nerd, had low expectations for Verity <\/em>thanks to what seems like a massive amount of hype, but I was pleasantly surprised and you probably will be too. <\/p> The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller<\/h2> Image by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure> Maybe I\u2019m more prone to loving books that have a heavy focus on historical events, but The Song of Achilles <\/em>left me wanting so much more, and viewing the Trojan War through the eyes of Patroclus is definitely a memorable experience.\u00a0<\/p> There\u2019s love, death, betrayal, murder, humor, and everything else you could possibly imagine within the pages of Miller\u2019s story, and you could never say that the Romans were boring. At a base level, The Song of Achilles<\/em> is a story of friendship and perseverance through hardship, but there\u2019s so much more to it that I couldn\u2019t even begin to explain here. You\u2019ll just have to give it a go yourself.<\/p> The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood<\/h2> Image by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure> This has all the ingredients for a classic will-they-won\u2019t-they rom-com that will stick with you for a long time. Olive doesn\u2019t believe in relationships, but she needs to convince her friend that she\u2019s in one. Rather than thinking about it even a little bit logically, she smooches the first man she sees and it causes utter chaos in her life.\u00a0<\/p>
It\u2019s not all that deep, but there\u2019s definitely a connection between the reader and the characters in The Love Hypothesis<\/em>, as well as between the characters themselves, that doesn\u2019t leave you as soon as you finish the last page. There\u2019s even some science thrown in for good measure, but to be honest, science can\u2019t begin to explain the madness you\u2019ll experience while reading. <\/p> A Good Girl\u2019s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson<\/h2> Image by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure> For a little while, I couldn\u2019t open TikTok without seeing at least five posts on my FYP about A Good Girl\u2019s Guide to Murder<\/em>, and that was before it was turned into a series by the BBC and got picked up by Netflix before the entire social media app seemed to implode with love for the story.<\/p> Anyway, A Good Girl\u2019s Guide to Murder<\/em> focuses on Pip, who takes it upon herself to re-investigate a murder-suicide that happened five years prior in her town. Her snooping takes her down a dark path, which ends up turning the town upside down and making people question whether they actually knew what really happened all along.\u00a0<\/p> They Both Die at the End by Adam Silvera<\/h2> Image by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure> It\u2019s a weird sensation, to go into reading a book knowing that both of the characters you\u2019re about to get to know will be dead before you reach the final page, but They Both Die at the End<\/em> is unforgivably heartwarming despite the bizarre concept. <\/p> Two total strangers learn that they\u2019re going to die within 24 hours, and both decide that rather than go out quietly, they want to have one last adventure. Through an app, they meet on their final day of life, resulting in something that will undoubtedly make you cry (make sure to have some tissues at hand) and inspire you to simply do more<\/em> at the same time. Life is short, and Adam Silvera is really good at reminding you to make the most of it. <\/p> The Hating Game by Sally Thorne<\/h2> Image by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure> If you\u2019re anything like me, you\u2019ve probably watched the movie adaptation of The Hating Game <\/em>without even knowing that it was based on a rather funny book by Sally Thorne. It takes a lot to make me outwardly giggle while reading a book, and Thorne manages to do that in The Hating Game.\u00a0<\/p> Two colleagues who apparently despise each other are competing for the same high-paying job at the office, and their interactions are filled with sarcasm, bickering, and outright hate. However, hate and love are very similar emotions if you really think about it, and it\u2019s just not possible to think about someone that much<\/em> without being intrinsically connected to them. <\/p> Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston<\/h2> Image by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure> Red, White & Royal Blue <\/em>is an LGBTQ+ romance novel that won\u2019t fail to utterly sweep you away in the romance between the son of an American politician and a member of the British royal family. It all begins with them both falling into a cake, which results in them having to pretend to be friends and develops into something a lot deeper. This ends up being revealed to the world before anyone is ready.<\/p> Obviously this is a very alternative reality kind of story, with a very different royal family to the one we\u2019re all familiar with, and America\u2019s first female president hailing from Texas, but it\u2019s definitely worth reading if you\u2019re a fan of romance, drama, or inter-continental relationship stories. <\/p>
Tender is the Flesh by Agustina Bazterrica <\/h2> Image by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure> I make this recommendation with a heavy warning: Do not read this book if you\u2019re particularly squeamish about blood, death, or graphic depictions of cannibalism<\/strong>. All feature heavily in this incredible alternate-future story of a dystopian world where animal meat will kill those who eat it, so humans begin being farmed for consumption instead. <\/p> Told you it was heavy.<\/p>
Admittedly, Tender is the Flesh<\/em> is massively different from every other book on this list, and it\u2019s definitely a book you should start reading lightheartedly. However, I first read this book a long time ago and I still find myself thinking about it at random moments. I will always recommend this book to anyone who thinks they have the stomach for it. <\/p> Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros<\/h2> Image by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure> Fourth Wing <\/em>is what you might get if you take the magical concept of Harry Potter and slap an R rating on it. It\u2019s considered a romantic fantasy (Or \u201cromantasy\u201d, if you will), and is the first installment in the Empyrean series. <\/p> Violet is 20 years old and canonically suffers from Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, although this is never explicitly stated in the book itself, Yarros has confirmed it to be true and suffers from the condition herself, using the books as a way to raise awareness about the symptoms. Violet has trained for years to be a Scribe, but her mother pushes her to be a Dragon Rider. Her condition makes it hard, but Fourth Wing<\/em> is all about perseverance and overcoming adversity.\u00a0<\/p> I\u2019m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy<\/h2> Image by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure> If you\u2019ve ever spent even 10 minutes on BookTok, I can guarantee you\u2019ve seen this book at least once and thought \u201cWell, that seems a bit harsh\u201d, but I urge you to give this memoir a chance. Being the daughter of an abusive mother is an incredibly isolating, lonely existence, and reading Jennette\u2019s words is absolutely soul-soothing for anyone who has gone through a similar experience.\u00a0<\/p>
You\u2019ll probably know Jennette from her time as Sam Puckett in Nickelodeon\u2019s iCarly, and the book goes into some detail about her experience working alongside an unnamed producer at Nickelodeon described only as \u201cThe Creator\u201d. It\u2019s speculated by those who have read I\u2019m Glad My Mom Died<\/em> to sound very much like the now-shamed Dan Schneider, but there is no confirmation of that from Jennette.\u00a0<\/p> A Witch’s Guide to Fake Dating a Demon by Sarah Hawley<\/h2> Image by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure> Another example of \u201cHarry Potter with an R rating\u201d, but this one absolutely stole my heart and kept me reading until the early hours of the morning because I just couldn\u2019t put it down. It all starts with an exploding chicken in Mariel\u2019s kitchen, but ends with an accidentally summoned demon who is burdened with a soul and\u2014wait for it\u2014feelings.\u00a0<\/p>
With Mariel being understandably attached to her own soul and unwilling to strike a bargain with her now immovable demon, the two are stuck together, and we all know how that\u2019s going to end. It\u2019s a bumpy road, filled with hiding his horns and convincing her friends that maybe he isn\u2019t out to ruin her life, even though he spends all of his time trying to convince himself that that\u2019s exactly what he wants to do. <\/p>
And, if you fall in love with A Witch’s Guide to Fake Dating a Demon<\/em> like I did, there are two other books in the Glimmer Falls series that bring back familiar characters. <\/p> The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides<\/h2> Image by Destructoid<\/figcaption><\/figure> If there was ever a BookTok book that I desperately want to see turned into a movie or series, it\u2019s The Silent Patient<\/em>. I love a good thriller, and it doesn\u2019t come more thrilling than a seemingly perfect marriage destroyed when the wife shoots her husband five times in the face and then never talks again. Your first question will undoubtedly be “why?” but you\u2019re going to have many more as you read through this masterpiece.\u00a0<\/p> What The Silent Patient t<\/em>urns into is a story of obsession and deep secrets. It\u2019s filled with twists and turns that you probably won\u2019t see coming, but even if you do, that doesn\u2019t take away from how clever they actually are. I cannot recommend The Silent Patient <\/em>enough, you won\u2019t regret curling up to read it, and you\u2019re unlikely to ever forget it.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Highly recommended<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":906,"featured_media":987832,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"article_type":"","gamurs_wordpress_blocks_hide_tags":false,"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"apple_news_api_created_at":"","apple_news_api_id":"","apple_news_api_modified_at":"","apple_news_api_revision":"","apple_news_api_share_url":"","apple_news_coverimage":0,"apple_news_coverimage_caption":"","apple_news_is_hidden":false,"apple_news_is_paid":false,"apple_news_is_preview":false,"apple_news_is_sponsored":false,"apple_news_maturity_rating":"","apple_news_metadata":"\"\"","apple_news_pullquote":"","apple_news_pullquote_position":"","apple_news_slug":"","apple_news_sections":"[]","apple_news_suppress_video_url":false,"apple_news_use_image_component":false,"footnotes":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false},"categories":[21999],"tags":[788,19596],"internal-label":[25965,24254],"invoiceable_action":[26205],"article_type":[23118],"coauthors":[{"id":906,"display_name":"Paula Vaynshteyn","user_login":"Paula Gofford","user_nicename":"paula-vaynshteyn"}],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n
12 Best Booktok books to spend those holiday gift cards on now – Destructoid<\/title>\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n\t \n\t \n\t \n \n \n \n \n