Literary Matchmaking (or If You Loved This… Try That…)

Do you suffer from book hangover?  Book hangover is a term used to describe the feeling when you read a book you absolutely love and then are devastated because it’s over. Every new book you try is just not good enough; you want another book just like the one you loved. It’s a horrible feeling and as you troll through Amazon, or listlessly stroll through the library, you search desperately looking for that one book that can take you back to your happy place.

Well, worry no longer!  Today I am playing the role of Literary Matchmaker.  If you are looking for book-a-likes, here is a list of popular books with recommendations for similar books that will quickly put an end to those painful book hangovers!  

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If you like this…. try that!

If you loved The Girl on a Train by Paula Hawkins

You should try…

The Woman in the Window by AJ Finn: Anna Fox is a recluse – she hasn’t left her house in months.  Instead, she spends her time drinking wine, watching old movies and watching her neighbors.  Then, one day, she sees something she shouldn’t, or at least she thinks she did. Is it just the alcohol?  Or is something sinister going on across the street?

An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen: Jessica Farris needs money and what better way than to spend one morning in a psychological test study, right?  All she has to do is answer a few questions and pick up a check. She quickly learns that Dr. Shields’ study is much more intense than that and pretty soon she is in deeper than she ever thought.  Is she losing touch with reality? And can she get out in time?

Something in the Water by Catherine Steadman:   Mark and Erin go to Bora Bora on their dream honeymoon – two weeks in a luxury hotel with beautiful white sandy beaches and crystal clear waters.  Everything was perfect until they found something in the water.  That something changed the entire trajectory of their lives.  Will Mark and Erin’s marriage survive?

If you loved The Haunting of Hill House by Shirley Jackson

You should try…

I Remember You by Yrsa Sigurdardottir:   In this terrifying Icelandic Tale, three friends go to a remote location to renovate a rental house.  They soon realize they are not alone. Meanwhile, in a nearby town, a detective is investigating a strange suicide.  These two stories connect in an unbelievable way! Based on a true story. This book was also made into a movie and is currently on Netflix.

The Little Stranger by Sarah Waters:   Set in the 1940s, the Ayres family is still living on a once prosperous estate, Hundreds Hall.  But finances are strained and they are having to make due the best they can. Roderick returning home from war with injuries makes keeping up even harder.  And when strange things begin to happen, the family wonders if Rod’s PTSD is finally besting him or if something more sinister is at play. The movie release of this book was August 2018.

A Head Full of Ghosts by Paul Tremblay:   When 14 year old Marjorie Barrett’s schizophrenia became more than her family could handle, they called on their local priest to perform an exorcism.  To help pay the bills, they also called a TV crew and became a hit reality TV show. 15 years later, Merry, her younger sister, recounts the terrifying tale.

If you loved Room by Emma Donoghue

You should try…

The Child Finder by Rene Denfeld: Naomi Cottle finds children who are missing, and she takes the case of Madison Culver, who was lost in the Skookum National Forest three years ago.  As Naomi investigates, snippets of her own forgotten childhood start coming back to her. Will she find Madison? And will finding Madison help Naomi find herself as well? This is a difficult read as it deals with child abduction, but the story is so well done – I couldn’t put it down!

Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell: It’s every mother’s nightmare.  One day Laurel’s teenage daughter is standing in her kitchen, the next day she is gone.  She disappeared without a trace. The family is devastated and Laurel finds that her marriage wasn’t strong enough to handle it.  Years later, still reeling from loss, Laurel meets a handsome American, Floyd, who starts to help her heal. But when he introduces her to his 9 year old daughter Poppy, she is startled to see the girl is the spitting image of her own daughter, Ellie.  Slowly, Laurel begins to unravel the horrible truth about what happened to her daughter.

Last Time I Lied by Riley Sager: It all began 15 years ago at summer camp.  Emma woke one day to find her three roommates were missing.  Flash forward 15 years. Emma is now a renowned artist, still reeling from the tragedy of her childhood.  One day the owner of the camp reaches out to her and asks her to return to the camp, as a counselor. Emma returns to the camp to face her past, to face the mystery surrounding the strange disappearance, and to face the facts that things are not always as they appear.

If you loved Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline

You should try…

The Great Alone by Kristin Hannah:   Leni’s father comes home from the Vietnam War a changed man.  His paranoia leads him and his family to the wild solitude of Alaska.  Leni’s mom, desperate to do what she can to keep her family together tries to make the best of a bad situation, but things get worse as winter draws near.  Will the family survive the wilds of the frontier and the growing mania of a sick man?

Before We Were Yours by Lisa Wingate:  This is the story of a poor family, living on a riverboat in the 1930s.  One night the children are left alone in the riverboat. Police, working for a corrupt adoption agency, take the children and they are placed for illegal adoption. This story follows these children as some are adopted and some are left to face to the abuse and cruelty of the orphanage.  The parallel story in the book runs in present time, when two of the sisters are reunited, and still feel an incredible bond, even though it was so many years later. This is a sad story, but one that shows how strong family bonds can be.

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng:   The prominent Richardson  family rents to starving artist Mia and her teenage daughter Pearl in the affluent suburb Shaker Heights.  Mrs. Richardson likes to feel like she is helping the worthy and welcomes Pearl into her home to hang out with her own teenage children.  Things get sticky when her close friend becomes involved with a custody battle over their adopted baby and Mia finds herself at odds with Mrs. Richardson.  This is an interesting look into class differences and long-kept secrets that intersect those divides.

If you loved In the Woods by Tana French

You should try…

Lying in Wait by Liz Nugent: Lydia Simmons lives a seemingly perfect life.  But secrets abound in their household, and when her son finds out, things take a dark turn.

The Dry by Jane Harper: Adam Falk returns to his home town to attend the funeral of his childhood best friend.  Things aren’t always what they seem in this small town!

Missing Presumed by Susie Steiner: Det. Manon Bradshaw is on the case when a young socialite goes missing.  Will Manon find her in time? This is the first book in a Det. Manon series.

I hope you were able to find your next literary love in one of these lists.  If you like lists such as this one, you can sign up for our monthly newsletter. You will get access to book lists, recommendations, and reviews not found on the blog.  Make sure to sign up today so you won’t miss a thing!