Suggestions on new type of book genre

Might you like historical novels. Try any of the Phillipa Gregory books, they're quite easy to read even if you do not know much about the historical period.

The Other Boleyn Girl
The White Queen or the Wideacre series etc. ?

C J Sampson's Shardlake books are worth a read, history and crime mixed with wonderful Tudor characters.
He is a lawyer and gets involved with some interesting adventures.

Weedon grossmith Diary of a nobody
Mark haddon the curious incident of the dog in the nighttime

I'll be back with a few more quirky books that I liked, just cant think of the author at the moment!

I’ve been enjoying “real life “ adventures.

The Salt Path: Raynor Winn. A couple who have lost their home and have nothing but their tent, walk the SouthWest Coast Path

Call of the White: Felicity Aston. A group of ordinary women trek unaided to the South Pole.

Shackleton’s Boat Journey: Frank Worsley. The day by day account of how they made it to South Georgia across the roughest seas in the world.

I guess they’re all books about endurance - and good humour against the odds.

I love listening to books, whilst I am in the car, doing my ironing or cooking. My top recommendations are ANYTHING by Liane Moriaty read by Caroline Lee, I have loved every book and missed every character when finished listening.

I enjoyed The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Shaffer, Mary Ann; Annie Barrows

You could try more "literary" women's fiction. Anita Shreve Alison Lurie, Alice Munroe, early Margaret Atwood (not the Oryx and Crake trilogy which are more sci-fi) Barbara Kingsolver. Have you read Kate Atkinson who has a crime series with Jason Brody but also other novels?

I have really enjoyed spending lockdown reading time with the authors my children read in 1980s, more "grown up" than the Enid Blyton we knew. Maybe some of these will appeal; Joan Aiken, Alan Garner, Leon Garfield, Peter Dickinson.
also later "senior junior" reads like Patrick Ness and David Almond. Happy hunting!

I enjoy 'timeslip' books, authors such as Barbara Erskine and Diana Gabaldon.

Perhaps try “Where the Crawdads
Sing”. It’s beautifully written and is being made into a film with Daisy Edgar Jones of ‘Normal People’ fame in the lead role!

Someone on here recommended the Tarquin Hall books about a rather idiosyncratic Indian detective to me and I loved them. They're hilarious so a mix of your usual crime novels but with a humorous and Indian twist.

To add to Trisher’s list, there’s also Anne Tyler. She writes about families but not in a saga-type manner. They’re thought provoking but not difficult to read.

If you like humour, Sophie Kinsella books are enjoyable to read. Have just read her latest, 'Can You Keep a Secret?' and couldn't put it down. Her Shopaholic series books are also enjoyable reads.

If you like Terry Pritchett type books, they are very silly and entertaining. Tom Holt is another in that genre. Ursula LeGuin? She’s in that vein though not humorous.

Terry PrATchett

I usually listen to audiobooks these days, rather than read.
I often enjoy books intended for children or young adults - at the moment I'm on Harry Potter book 3 and I enjoyed Tin by Padraig Kenny

books.google.co.uk/books/about/Tin.html?id=IJ9eDwAAQBAJ&source=kp_book_description&redir_esc=y

Hazel Prior Away with the Penguins
Clare Pooley. The Authenticity Project
JoJo Moyes The Giver of Stars
Lucinda Riley books are very popular too

I too am a crime fiction reader but for a change I read Rory Clements spy novels from WW2.

I can second Away with the Penguins
Anything by Joanna Trollope

All The Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr - the story will stay with you long after you finish reading. Also, just read The Vanishing Half by Britt Bennett - excellent, thought provoking book.

I am an absolute bookworm and always have 2 or 3 books by my bed , others with me in car or whatever, So there are so many to suggest it is hard to know where to begin. How about Lillian Beckwith A loud Halo, or The Hills are Lonely. she decides in her retirement to go up onto a croft in Scottish Islands. It is her life up there and the gaelic speaking people there. Amusing, written in a light hearted way, but based on the real life of living in a landscape where people are more important than things. What about Alexander McCall Smiths The No 1 Ladies Detective Agency. This is the first in a series of books based in Botswana on Mma Ramotswe - the first and only lady dectective who is joined by her rather abrasive secretary. I must add that it is not a who done it style of book. Most of the actual detection is using common sense, seeing what is around you and working out ways to solve the problem rather than looking to blame and imprison people. There is a good cast of people including Mr J L B Matakoni who runs a garage. This book was recorded I think it was either for womans hour serial or on an afternoon slot on radio 4. Beautifully done and kept to the story. so many times I get annoyed at books badly recorded or charactors being portrayed in a (to my ears) totally wrong style. Then you have books by Tracey Chevalier. The Girl with the Pearl earring. You may have heard or seen something about it. again very well done where a girl becomes a maid in the house of the painter Vermeer. Besides the story line you get a sense of the social mores of that time and place. If you look up this author she has written other books , one of which is about a quiltmaker - a young girl sails to america. Quakers always dress modestly and in quiet colours but they can put whatever colours they like in their quilts . These are handmade and different ones can represent families or friendship groups etc. The american quilters use quite different style of quilting and so as the story moves along the quilting is a metaphor for the changes in her life and how different and difficult things can be , when you feel unable to return for whatever reason to your home. Anyone who has had to move away - whether a short or long distance will recognise the stages you go through. One rather lovely thing I learnt was that the americans called quilts "comforts" . That is such a good word for the quilt, because if you felt ill or cold in a strange place the quilt would physically warm you and as you looked at it you would remember the person who made it or gave it to you etc. Well hope these might give you something enjoyable to read. One of my things that I tend to do - rather like a child in a sweetie shop - is if I find an author I like I devour every other book they have written. Sometimes it is a disappointment where the book you enjoyed is quite different to their normal books, other times I try to pace myself as I know that author has died so there is only a finite number of books to get. I have lived abroad in places as far apart as Portugal and Damascus. So sometimes I have been in a situation where there was very little choice. Then I have just been grateful for a book on anything, where I approach it with an open mind and sometimes get a nice surprise, when I have read something I would never have chosen if there was a choice . Also for many years my husband and I had an old sailing boat and used to go up round scottish islands outer hebridies etc and many places there would have a sort of honesty book box. You put a book in and took one away. I have found books in french and german and danish, lots of sailing books of course and just again all sorts and been happy to take a risk with whatever there was. So whilst it is lovely to browse and choose - of course joining a library is one of my first things I do whenever I move, but another little device if you havent much time and no inspiration is to go to the returned books trolley and either allow yourself to browse and chose one or just say to yoursel f I will take the 4th book from the left hand side. It is like a lucky dip or a book lottery!! Sometimes you will read one page and put it back in the book bag to return at the earliest but who knows you might find an author you would have never looked for and enjoy them. I am a teacher and used to make it seem a little adventure for the children, So they took the book and then the next week we would have a short time where they would tell each other and me of course if they had liked what book they had, how they were getting along reading it and also that was a way to let teach them how to get more books by that author , so using either a michrofiche or going to the shelves and finding that author for themselves. Again if you look at biographies I dont want to read the latest politician or pop stars life, but you can find out some fascinating things about people who are not in the news , but can be experts in their field. Chris Bonnington the climber , or Micheal Palin (all round lovely man to me ) Tracey Edwards round the world yachtswoman. Oh dear I seem to have gone on too much but what a joy a good book is . Do enjoy digging and delving. Happy reading

Try The Jackdaw Mysteries by S.W. Perry. They are set in Elizabethan times but are pacey, and engaging, with a bit of wry humour between the two main characters. There are three or four books in the series so far.
If you like a bit of Ancient Greece, I can highly recommend the books of Madeline Miller, Pat Barker and Natalie Haynes. Greek history and mythology from the women's perspective. Brilliant and entertaining writing.

madelaine45 have you read Tracey Chevaliers latest book “A Single Thread”.

Such a treat?

Historical crime fiction is an enormous genre, and the periods covered in many excellen series range from Ancient Egypt, through Roman Empire, upt to early twentieth centure. I must admit I love these, I like series of books, as I can really get to 'know' the characters and they become friends. Learn a great deal about the social history of the times - the authors do tend to do a great deal of research. There are enough out there to keep anyone busy reading for very many years.