With the start of the new year comes the start of a new reading challenge. Whether you’ve decided to try and get into reading for the first time, or are a Goodreads reading challenge regular like myself, I’ve assembled the perfect list of fast reads that will hook you from the very start and help you accomplish whatever reading goal you’ve decided to set for yourself this year.
Animal Farm – George Orwell – 141 pages
“All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.”
For fans of George Orwell’s more popular work, 1984, Animal Farm features many of the same themes and symbolisms as 1984. After a farm is overrun by the mistreated animals living there, the social hierarchy of the animals is quickly constructed as they try to create a farm of justice and equality. This satirical novel commentates on the social injustices of the world, while still producing a humorous effect.
All Systems Red – Martha Wells – 144 pages
“As a heartless killing machine, I was a complete failure.”
As a 2017 Goodreads Choice Award nominee for reader’s favorite science fiction, All Systems Red is definitely a fan favorite. This book is the first in the Murderbot Diaries series, which will soon be produced into a series available for streaming in 2025.
All Systems Red follows an AI security android who names itself Murderbot after hacking into its own programming. While trying to do its job and protect a group of scientists doing experiments on a distant planet, Murderbot struggles with emotions, sarcasm, and the feeling of just wanting to watch movies all day.
What Moves the Dead – T. Kingfisher – 165 pages
As another Goodreads Choice Award nominee, this time for reader’s favorite horror in 2022, What Moves the Dead, is another popular fan favorite. What Moves the Dead is a retelling of Edgar Allan Poe’s classic, The Fall of the House of Usher. This book takes place in the Usher household, where a childhood friend of Alex Easton, a retired soldier and this story’s protagonist, is currently suffering from an unknown illness.
As Alex explores more of the wildlife surrounding the Usher house, he begins to wonder what the cause of Madeline Usher’s illness is, and if it has anything to do with the mysterious fungi growing on the property. With a truly horrifying concept and loads of suspense, it is clear to see why What Moves the Dead is so popular.
The Great Gatsby – F. Scott Fitzgerald – 180 pages
“Every one suspects himself of at least one of the cardinal virtues, and this is mine: I am one of the few honest people that I have ever known.”
The Great Gatsby is one of the most widely recognized novels which turns 100 years old this year as the novel was originally published on April 10th, 1925. The novel portrays the idealized “American dream” of the 1920s, where social status, material possessions, and freedom were at the heart of many citizens.
Looking into this world is Nick Carraway, who meets his mysterious neighbor, Jay Gatsby, at one of Gatsby’s famous parties. Nick attempts to help Gatsby win over his lover, Daisy Buchanan, but ends up learning the truth of what Gatsby is capable of, and how the upper class of Long Island behave.
Escape Room – Maren Stoffels – 207 pages
When four teenagers decided to book an escape room on a Friday night, they expected to have a fun time. Escape Room is a thriller novel where the Game Master has locked their victims in an escape room and has no intentions of letting them out. When the four teenagers realize that the escape room is more real than they had originally thought, secrets are brought to light, friendships are tested, and none of them know when they’ll be able to leave the escape room. Plot twists will keep on coming, and the suspense will leave you at the edge of your seat with the fast pacing of this novel.
Over My Dead Body – Sweeney Boo – 240 pages
In the graphic novel, Over My Dead Body, teenage witches settle in for another school year at the Younwity Hidden Institute of Witchcraft. However, when one student goes mysteriously missing and the Coven who runs the school still hasn’t found any evidence of the girl’s disappearance, Abigail takes matters into her own hands. The artwork in this book is truly stunning, and the story itself has mystery, suspense, and lots of parallels between the past and present.
