16 Books to Cozy Up with This Winter

Winter Solstice

by Rosamunde Pilcher

In this quiet novel (sometimes categorized as a romance, but don't let that scare you off), five individuals, each dealing with their own painful personal tragedy, are unexpectedly brought together during the Christmas season in the Scottish countryside—though they've decided not to celebrate the holiday; it's too painful this year. But redemption is found in surprising places, and in the midst of so much loss, love and redemption emerge.This book was a delightful surprise; I enjoyed it so much.

Chirp

Winter Garden

by Kristin Hannah

Many of you call this your favorite Hannah novel—and that's saying something, considering this is from the author of The Nightingale. The publisher calls this "a powerful, heartbreaking novel that illuminates the intricate mother-daughter bond and explores the enduring links between the present and the past."

Persuasion

by Jane Austen

Pride and Prejudice should be read in the spring; Emma in the summer. But Persuasion is for fall. This the last novel Austen completed before her death, and it’s darker and more serious in tone than her earlier works. With its themes of love, regret, and fidelity, this is my favorite Austen novel—at least some of the time. But always in autumn.

The Snow Child

by Eowyn Ivey

It's Alaska, 1920, the night of the first snowfall, which inspires a typically serious couple to indulge in a bit of silliness: they build a child out of snow, just for fun. In the morning, the snow child is gone, but, in a way that eerily mirrors a much-loved fairy tale, the couple spies a young girl they've never seen before running through the trees. I loved this magic-infused story about love, loss, and the wildness of nature.

The Dry

by Jane Harper

"You lied. Luke lied. Be at the funeral." Federal Agent Aaron Falk is summoned home with these words after his best friend Luke dies in a heartbreaking murder-suicide, turning the gun on himself after killing his wife and 6-year-old son. Falk obeys—but he can't believe his best friend could have done such a thing, and so he starts digging, dragging long-buried secrets back to the surface. The setting is the drought-ravaged Australian Outback, and the brittleness and heat are almost palpable. Imagine an Australian Tana French, and you've got this stellar debut about right. (Psst—we're talking with the author in the MMD Book Club this summer.) Publication date: January 10.

Peace Like a River

by Leif Enger

An MMD 2017 Winter Book Club selection. This was one of my favorite books of 2014, although it was published back in 2001. A gorgeous novel that takes you on a journey across the frozen Badlands of the Dakotas in the heart of the frozen winter. Read it for yourself and see why so many readers call this their favorite book ever written. A tragedy, a romance, a coming of age story.

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Winter’s Tale

by Mark Helprin

I first encountered this book when a dear friend got married and chose a passage for for a reading in the ceremony. ("Nothing is random, nor will anything ever be ...", in case you've read it.) OF COURSE I had to read the book after that. If you look on Goodreads, you can see that readers love this or hate it, and when readers say (as they often do) that it's unlike anything they've ever read, they're not messing around. It's packed with symbolism, depth, and beautiful writing: only you can know if that means you should snatch it up quick or run away. (Psst—the book bears very little resemblance to the movie.)

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

by Annie Barrows, Mary Ann Shaffer

This novel told in letters is sweet and sunny, even though it's set during a dark period of history. The action unfolds on the British island of Guernsey (and you'll want to book your trip immediately). A testament to the power of literature, but a love story at heart. (Hot tip: the audiobook is fantastic.)

The Bear and the Nightingale

by Katherine Arden

A trip to Moscow left such an impression on Katherine Arden that when she sat down to write her book, "Russia came pouring back out." In this reimagined fairy tale, set in medieval Russia amongst snowy landscapes and magical forests, a young girl with a special gift attempts to save her family from the evil lurking in the woods. This spin on the Baba Yaga stories reminded me of Naomi Novik's Uprooted, Erin Morgenstern's The Night Circus, and anything Neil Gaiman.

Greenglass House

by Kate Milford

It's Christmas vacation at the smuggler's inn Greenglass House, and Milo finds himself with a mystery to unravel. While I couldn't help but wonder if the author was tipping her hat to The Phantom Tollbooth, the story reminded me of The Mysterious Benedict Society. An engaging read for kids and adults alike, and a perfect choice for cozy winter evenings.

In the Midst of Winter

by Isabel Allende

In Allende's new release, a traffic accident caused by a horrible Brooklyn snowstorm gets the ball rolling, bringing three very different people together to carry out a common mission. As they travel together through the frozen landscape, each character's story is revealed, as Allende takes us from present day New York City to recent events in Guatemala to forty years ago in Chile and Brazil. Not my favorite Allende, but she sure makes you want to know what happens next.

The Little House Collection

by Laura Ingalls Wilder

These 9 books tell the story of Laura Ingalls’ childhood and coming of age on the American frontier. Follow the Ingalls family as they move from the Big Woods of Wisconsin to the Kansas prairie, from a creekside dugout in Minnesota to the shores of Silver Lake, South Dakota. Destined to be read over and over again. (The audio cds by Cherry Jones are completely wonderful.) Age 6 and up.

Snow Falling on Cedars

by David Guterson

This lyrical and heartbreaking first novel is set in an isolated, snow-covered Washington State island town in the 1950s, where a Japanese man stands trial for murdering a white fisherman. The trial brings the town's painful history and many citizen's long-submerged sense of guilt and shame sharply to the surface; Guterson skillfully unfolds both the history of the town and that of two star-crossed lovers layer by layer.

Murder on the Orient Express

by Agatha Christie

It was supposed to be the perfect crime. But an avalanche stops the Orient Express in its tracks just before a passenger is found murdered in his berth, foiling the perpetrator's getaway, and trapping 13 potential suspects—each with an airtight alibi—in the train car with Inspector Hercule Poirot. If you've seen the movie, take note: Branagh changes Christie's ending. Hot tip: Dan Stevens's audio narration is fantastic.

Wuthering Heights

by Emily Bronte

This groundbreaking classic was downright scandalous in its day—and it hasn’t lost much of its shock value in the intervening 160+ years. Heathcliff is every bit as much the abominable scoundrel now as he was then, and the English moors are every bit as creepy. Read it once, and decide whether you love it or hate it. (And if you do both, you’re in good company.)

All the Light We Cannot See

by Anthony Doerr

Doerr's characters in this World War II novel are fascinating and altogether unexpected. The book’s setting couldn’t be lovelier: much of the action takes place in Saint-Malo, France, a unique walled port city on the English Channel. Haunting story, beautiful prose, and entirely deserving of its place on 2014's best-of-the-year lists.

16 Books to Cozy Up with This Winter

Winter Solstice

Winter Garden

Persuasion

The Snow Child

The Dry

Peace Like a River

Winter’s Tale

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society

The Bear and the Nightingale

Greenglass House

In the Midst of Winter

The Little House Collection

Snow Falling on Cedars

Murder on the Orient Express

Wuthering Heights

All the Light We Cannot See

Find your next read with:

100 Book recommendations
for every mood

16 Books to Cozy Up with This Winter

Find your next read with:

100 Book recommendations for every mood

100 Book recommendations
for every mood