Favourite books

I love a good story. Whether it’s told through a novel, film, TV, theatre, or at the pub – I’m not fussy how I get them. Books though, they’re something special. They spark my imagination like nothing else, they come in many forms (print, digital, audio), can be enjoyed anywhere and at your own pace, and the offerings are practically inexhaustible (my reading list is well into the hundreds). Here is an incomplete list of some of my favourites, books I would happily recommend to others. My tastes tend towards the fantastical, mythical, humorous, larcenous, whimsical, extraordinary and the exploration of ‘what if’. I intend to update this list occasionally. In no particular order…

Arcadia by Iain Pears
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones
Saga by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples
The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells
A Psalm for the Wild-Built and A Prayer for the Crown-Shy by Becky Chambers
Tim Te Maro and the Subterranean Heartsick Blues by H. S. Valley
Uprooted by Naomi Novik
Ready Player One by Ernest Cline
Simon Snow Series by Rainbow Rowell
The Rook by Daniel O’Malley
The Ten Thousand Doors of January by Alix E. Harrow
The Stranger Times by C. K. McDonnell
The Tale of Shikanoko Series by Lian Hearn
Shades of Magic Series by V. E. Schwab
Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston
The Long Earth Series by Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter
The Ernest Cunningham Series by Benjamin Stevenson
In Memoriam by Alice Winn
Commonwealth Saga by Peter F. Hamilton
The Greenhollow Duology by Emily Tesh
Highfire by Eoin Colfer
The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern
Mortal Engines Quartet by Philip Reeve
The Golem and the Djinni by Helene Wecker
Gentleman Bastard Series by Scott Lynch
The House in the Cerulean Sea by T. J. Klune
Artemis by Andy Weir
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
American Gods by Neil Gaiman
More Than This by Patrick Ness
Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke
The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared by Jonas Jonasson
River of London Series by Ben Aaronovitch
A Wizard’s Guide to Defensive Baking by T. Kingfisher
The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin
The Thursday Murder Club Series by Richard Osman
Good Omens by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman
The Witches of Woodville Series by Mark Stay
Extracted Trilogy by R. R. Haywood
Hench by Natalie Zina Walschots
Railhead Trilogy by Philip Reeve
Winternight Trilogy by Katherine Arden
Villains Series by V. E. Schwab
The Nevernight Chronicle by Jay Kristoff
The Secret Diary of Hendrik Groen Series by Hendrik Groen
Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel
Wild Pork and Watercress by Barry Crump
The Martian by Andy Weir
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
The Crane Wife by Patrick Ness