Feel-Good Fiction To Read Right Now

A cat a day keeps the doctor away … Discover the award-winning, bestselling Japanese novel that has become an international sensation in this utterly charming, vibrant celebration of the healing power of cats.

“Imagine, the letters one has sent out into the world, the letters received back in turn, are like the pieces of a magnificent puzzle … Isn’t there something wonderful in that, to think that a story of one’s life is preserved in some way, that this very letter may one day mean something, even if it is a very small thing, to someone?” Discover the word-of-mouth hit hailed by Ann Patchett as “a cause for celebration” — an intimate novel about the transformative power of the written word and the beauty of slowing down to reconnect with the people we love.

A book that “speak[s] volumes about our need for connection – human, feline, or otherwise” (The San Francisco Chronicle), The Travelling Cat Chronicles is a life-affirming anthem to kindness and self-sacrifice that shows how the smallest things can provide the greatest joy – the perfect read for cat lovers and travelers!

After months of planning a romantic holiday getaway in Venice, Paul is blindsided when his five-year marriage suddenly unravels. Fueled by heartbreak, Paul endeavors to take the trip alone. Amid the food, sights, and welcoming people of Venice, Paul’s journey culminates in a magical encounter that leads him to feel real connection — to a dog, to a foreign city, and, most importantly, to himself. Capturing Steven Rowley’s signature wit, insight, and indelible characters, The Dogs of Venice offers another timeless story of love lost, and independence found — a holiday tonic for the soul.

A coming-of-age comedy. A telenovela-worthy drama. A moving family saga. All in a phone call you won’t want to hang up on. A rollicking, heartfelt, and utterly unique novel that celebrates the beauty revealed and resilience required when rewriting your own story.

A new Anne Tyler novel destined to be an instant classic: A socially awkward mother of the bride navigates the days before and after her daughter’s wedding. Told with deep sensitivity and a tart sense of humor, full of the joys and heartbreaks of love and marriage and family life, Three Days in June is a triumph, and gives us the perennially bestselling, Pulitzer Prize-winning writer at the height of her powers.

A shimmering, joyful new novel about a pair of opposites with the wrong thing in common, from #1 New York Times bestselling author Emily Henry.

Temi and Wale meet in London. They flirt, date, meet each other’s friends. Then they break up. And Wale goes on a reality dating show … Instead of giving in to heartbreak, Temi throws herself into her dream: Writing. She’s within touching distance of a book deal that would solve all her problems. But publishers keep passing on her novel and bills still have to be paid. So, when the opportunity to ghost-write a celebrity memoir arises, Temi accepts. And, of course, the celebrity turns out to be Wale … Will Temi and Wale repeat the patterns of their past? Or can they write a whole new story?

From his floating bookstore on the Seine, Monsieur Perdu prescribes novels for the hardships of life. However, he’s still haunted by heartbreak after his great love disappeared. The Little Paris Bookshop is a love letter to books, meant for anyone who believes in the power of stories to shape people’s lives.

In California’s central valley, five women and one man join to discuss Jane Austen’s novels. Over the six months they get together, marriages are tested, affairs begin, unsuitable arrangements become suitable, and love happens. With her eye for the frailties of human behavior and her ear for the absurdities of social intercourse, Karen Joy Fowler has never been wittier nor her characters more appealing. The result is a delicious dissection of modern relationships.

In this enchanting tale — a blockbuster bestseller in Korea — the enigmatic owner of a magical laundromat that erases people’s painful memories must learn to find her own peace before she can truly help others. Joyous and inspiring, The Marigold Mind Laundry offers wonderment and comfort as it teaches us to tap into the magic that lives within us all.

Love is in the air for the citizens of Shady Palms, but Cupid’s arrow isn’t the only thing striking the town — not with another killer on the loose …

With her celebrated humor, insight, and heart, beloved New York Times bestseller Emma Straub offers her own twist on traditional time travel tropes, and a different kind of love story.

The brand-new book from Charlie Mackesy, revisiting the much-loved world of The Boy, the Mole, the Fox, and the Horse. Now the four unlikely friends are wandering through the wilds again. They’re not sure what they are looking for. They do know that life can be difficult, but that they love each other, and cake is often the answer. When the dark clouds come, can the boy remember what he needs to get through the storm?

The beloved characters from The Best Man movies and hit television series reunite for a sexy and soulful, heartbreaking and hilarious reckoning of love. Book one of The Best Man trilogy follows Harper, Jordan, and Robyn as they try to establish lives away from the hurts of the past and come to realize that some love is impossible to break. With support from their close-knit crew of chosen family — Quentin, Shelby, Lance, Murch, and Candace — they fight for a future that proves one’s second act can be the extended chapter worth it all.

From Pulitzer Prize-winning author Elizabeth Strout comes a “stunner” (People) of a novel about new friendships, old loves, and the very human desire to leave a mark on the world. Brimming with empathy and pathos, Tell Me Everything is Elizabeth Strout operating at the height of her powers, illuminating the ways in which our relationships keep us afloat.

A warm and uplifting novel about an isolated witch whose opportunity to embrace a quirky new family — and a new love — changes the course of her life.

A Muscogee pop star and a cowboy who couldn’t be more different come together to strike a deal in this romantic comedy. Pop singer Avery Fox has become a national joke after posing scantily clad on the cover of Rolling Stone in a feather warbonnet. With threats coming from every direction and her career at a standstill, she escapes to her estranged grandmother Lottie’s ranch in Oklahoma. Living on the rez is new to Avery — not only does she have to work in the blazing summer heat to earn her keep, but the man who runs Lottie’s horse ranch despises her and wants her gone.

A captivating, bighearted, richly tapestried story of people brought together by love, war, art, flood, and the ghost of E. M. Forster, by the celebrated author of Tin Man. With beautiful prose, extraordinary tenderness, and bursts of humor and light, Still Life is a sweeping portrait of unforgettable individuals who come together to make a family, and a deeply drawn celebration of beauty and love in all its forms.

A professor of literature finds herself caught up in a work of fiction … literally, from the New York Times bestselling author of The Seven Year Slip and The Dead Romantics.

Set during the height of the women’s suffrage movement and with the Great War looming, The Dictionary of Lost Words reveals a lost narrative, hidden between the lines of a history written by men. Inspired by actual events, author Pip Williams has delved into the archives of the Oxford English Dictionary to tell this highly original story. The Dictionary of Lost Words is a delightful, lyrical, and deeply thought-provoking celebration of words and the power of language to shape the world.

A heartfelt debut about the unlikely relationship between a young woman who’s lost her husband and a major league pitcher who’s lost his game. Evvie Drake Starts Over will have you cheering for the two most unlikely comebacks of the year — and will leave you wanting more from Linda Holmes.

The critically acclaimed novel about four women who learn how to carry on while leaning on each other. When the men in their lives prove less than reliable, Savannah, Bernadine, Gloria, and Robin find new strength through a rare and enlightening friendship as they struggle to regain stability and an identity they don’t have to share with anyone. Because for the first time in a long time, their dreams are finally off hold.

In Five Years meets a millennial The Joy Luck Club — a funny and fresh love story of a woman thrown a curveball by fate, and the family secret that will make her question everything. As she battles between fate and chance, head and heart, a family secret is revealed that will make her question everything she’s ever known. Cassia will have to decide if she’ll follow her fate … or make her own.