I love a good book recommendation, and if anyone’s reading something they’re really enjoying, do tell. Here’s my holiday reading list – I’m still working my way through it, but there’s some goodies on here.

Apple Tree Yard, by Louise Doughty
(*My top pick*)
This courageously written, gripping novel leads readers into dark territory as a woman realises she’s in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong man. If you’re a budding novelist, this is a must: it’s amazingly well-constructed and full of suspense.

The Hundred-Year-Old Man Who Climbed Out of the Window and Disappeared, by Jonas Jonasson
As the title suggests, it’s about an elderly man who can’t face his hundredth birthday party and embarks on an unlikely adventure. Most interesting, however – and I did find myself speed reading to get to these parts – is the parallel narrative about his earlier life, in which he helped to make the atom bomb and meets Stalin, Harry Truman, Russian tyrants, and Chinese leaders.

Sunshine Soup: Nourishing the Global Soul, by Jo Parfitt
*Top expat pick*
A first-timer, lifer and love immigrant living in an expat bubble experience the darker side of life in Dubai, as culture shock, loss of identity, depression, temptation and grief set in. A brilliant read.

No-One Ever Has XXX on a Tuesday, by Tracy Bloom
I had to self-censor there to deter unsavoury blog visitors. About a one-night stand that leads to chaos, this book made great, light-hearted, easy airplane reading.

Me and Mr Jones, by Lucy Diamond
Three grown-up boys and their lives, wives and problems. It appealed to me because I enjoy reading about boy-families (especially those brave enough to have more than two), and I found myself happily swept along by the lives of the three Jones’ partners.

Still to go:

Life After Life, by Kate Atkinson
Perfect, by Rachel Joyce

Anymore to add to this list?