Don’t Mind Your Own Business with Books That Take You Inside Their Characters’ Brains

For an irresistible novel perfect for fans of The Secret History and true crime stories, pick up Rebecca Makkai’s I Have Some Questions for You. Bodie Kane, our main character, returns to the campus of her boarding school as a professor and becomes transfixed on the murder that rocked the school when she attended as a student. A captivating mystery, an interrogation of the past, an entrancing campus novel, I Have Some Questions for You is a propulsive page-turner.  

A gripping thriller, The Secret History is the type of intoxicating book that you simply cannot put down. With a charismatic classics professor, a group of eccentric misfits, and a new way of living and thinking, this book is an exploration of boundaries and just how thin the line really is between truly living and the ease of killing. 

If you’re looking for your next read after The Secret History, then you should definitely check out If We Were Villains. This debut is an exploration of passion and jealousy, and if you’re a fan of Shakespeare, then it’s the perfect dark academia for you! Set at a conservatory, it follows seven young actors with a history of cutthroat competition. In their fourth year, the tragedies they’re so used to on stage catch up to them off of it, and they find themselves having to step into the biggest part they’ve ever played, one that convinces the police (and themselves) that they are innocent. 

The 7½ Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle is a murder-mystery full of high stakes and unexpected twists under a touch of an identity crisis (but in a good way). Groundhog Day meets The Hunting Party when a man must assume eight identities in eight identical days to solve the murder of a young Evelyn Hardcastle at the party thrown in her honor. Inventive and action-packed, this book is a compelling whodunnit that makes a perfect one-sitting read. 

Everything I Never Told You is a powerful novel about a Chinese family in the 1970’s whose lives are ripped apart when their child is found dead. Each of them has their own perspectives and their own secrets. The entire family is gripped by the need for the truth — and the desire to run from it. Celeste Ng envelops readers in this enthralling novel perfect for anyone looking for an emotional and devastating read.  

Laura Lippman, author of Sunburn and the Tess Monaghan series, returns to the streets of Baltimore in this classic story of ambition, dreams and murder with perfectly placed elements of noir and sly humor. This historical thriller weaves together 20 points of view as a reporter tries to investigate the death of Cleo Sherwood. Fast paced and haunting, this riveting thriller delivers all the right twists and will keep your mind spinning until the very end. 

The Great Believers is a striking emotional journey that explores the psychological effects of tragedy and heartache. Interweaving the stories of Yale Tishman and his friend’s little sister Fiona, this absorbing story bounces between 1980s Chicago and contemporary Paris as Fiona works to track down her estranged daughter after she disappeared into a cult. As Fiona processes how the devastating losses in her life during the 80s affect her current life and her relationship with her daughter, this story of friendship and redemption will move readers and linger with them long after they’ve finished reading. 

A hostage situation with a dash of humor takes center stage in Fredrik Backman’s Anxious People. When an apartment open house is crashed by a failed bank robber, a group of strangers with their own individual quirks, grievances, secrets, and passions simmering under the surface find themselves revealing their own surprising truths, setting off a chain of events so unexpected that explanations elude them. Masterful and capturing the messiness of humanity, Anxious People explores friendship, forgiveness, and hope, even in moments fraught with anxieties. 

If you’re a creature of habit, you might relate to Elinor Oliphant. Her story starts as her life is completely uprooted when she and Raymond, the IT guy from her office, save a stranger together. As they develop an unlikely friendship, Elinor Oliphant is Completely Fine gives readers a look into how Elinor’s past trauma informs her present. Heartbreaking and humorous, this novel is a warm hug with a subplot that will keep you on the edge of your seat.  

For a quirky story of a mother/daughter relationship with a dash of mystery and a whole bunch of snark, run, don’t walk, to grab your very own copy of Where’d You Go, Bernadette. Not only will it keep you guessing the entire time, but the discoveries 15-year-old Bee makes when her mother, Bernadette, disappears just before a family trip to Antarctica will both entertain and intrigue you. Witty and inventive, this book dives into Bernadette’s mind with email messages, official documents, and a secret correspondence her daughter compiles to try to figure out where Bernadette went.