Are you looking for something to read this New Year? Or a book to grab your attention? Here’s a list of five books I find super interesting and would highly recommend!

1. State of Emergency

The 1st of 10 books in the Collapse Series, State of Emergency by Summer Lane is the perfect mixture of sci-fi, thriller, and romance.

The book follows the main character, Cassidy Hart, on her journey to reunite with her father after an electromagnetic pulse destroys the United States. Cassidy is forced into survival mode after the town she once called home is turned into a war zone. Along her journey to find her father, she meets a former Navy SEAL named Chris who is willing to help her. This book is a total of 264 pages, but is a quick read that will keep you on your toes! In general, this series is a great read.

2. The Giver

Released in 1993 by Lowis Lowry, The Giver is the 1st of 4 books and is about a dystopian society where every aspect of its citizens’ lives is decided for them. The book is about a young boy named Jonas who gets assigned a job at age 12, just like everyone else. But, Jonas’s job assignment is quite different. He gets assigned the role of the Giver. Through the job training, Jonas comes to finally understand the corruption that exists in his community. When all becomes too much, Jonas makes a decision that will affect the rest of his life and change his community forever. It totals 240 pages, and it even has its own movie to watch afterward. This book is a hit or miss for some people, but I personally loved it!

3. The Kitchen House

The historical fiction novel, The Kitchen House was released in 2010, by Kathleen Grissom. The novel follows the main character, Lavinia, and her life working on a Tobacco Plantation. Lavinia became orphaned at age 7 after her parents died on their journey to America from Ireland. Shortly after, Lavinia arrives at Tall Oaks Plantation in Southern Virginia and is assigned to work in the kitchen house along with the slaves. The story follows Lavinia’s life and how a series of unfortunate events lead her to take over the plantation at the age of 20. The book is 368 pages long and totals 55 chapters. If you only like books with happy endings, this is not the book for you. Other than that, The Kitchen House is a super interesting book!

4. Divergent

The Divergent trilogy is mainly known for the movies made about it, but the first book was released in 2011 by Veronica Roth. The first of the 3 books, Divergent, is about a futuristic dystopian version of Chicago that has been divided into five factions: Abnegation, Candor, Amity, Dauntless, and Erudite, which all have a different job in society. The book follows 16-year-old Beatrice “Tris” Prior, an Abnegation. Like every 16-year-old in society, Tris has to take a test that will tell her which of the factions best fits her. The test reveals the horrifying truth about Tris that will change her life forever. Shortly after the test, she attends the Choosing Ceremony, but will she make the decision to stay in her family’s faction or leave it all behind? The book has 576 pages, so it is on the longer side. Although, you could just watch the movies. But in my opinion, the books are so much better than the movies.

5. Matched 

Matched by Ally Condie is the first book in a trilogy. The book is considered young adult fiction but has characteristics of science fiction, dystopian, and romance. The book takes place in a utopian universe where society is controlled by the government. At the age of 17, citizens are matched with the person they will marry and spend the rest of their lives together. The story follows the main character 17-year-old Cassia Reyes, who is matched with her best friend, Xander Carrow. Cassia is pleased with the government’s selection until she is shown a picture of her match, only for the boy in the picture to not be Xander. Cassia has to decide to pursue her relationship with the boy in the picture or try to make things work with Xander, all while realizing how corrupt society truly is.

Matched was released in 2010 and is 366 pages long. The trilogy is really good and each book is more interesting than the last!

These five books are some of my all-time favorites. I find the plots super interesting, so I would really recommend these to someone who is looking for a new book!