The Cozy Book List
It's been a while since I made a book list. There are reasons, one being that this isn't a fast process. The other is that due to the algorithms of 'social' media, I can no longer toss out the question of 'what do you like to read?' and get more than a hundred enthusiastic responses. Which is sad, because I refuse to believe that people are reading that much less than they did a few short years ago, and I know for sure that readers love to talk about books they want to share with other readers. I know I do! Even after all these years, I have the heart of a librarian and want to introduce folks to books they might also love, but I understand all too well that not everyone will like the same books I do. This is why I crowdsource the book lists, rather than completely curate them myself. It's fascinating to see, with this list, what readers find to be comfort reads.
Something that aligns with my own experience is that for comfort, readers seem to like entire series, or the whole of an author's work, more often than a single title. I've tried to put in jumping-off points for those.
"I read it three times. I know the plot twists, I know my reactions to the scenes. I like them, that's why I read it again and again and again." --Leeroy Jenkins (while recommending Monster Hunter International)
James and the Giant Peach Roald Dahl Monster Hunter International Larry Correia Lest Darkness Fall L Sprague de Camp The Unknown Ajax Georgette Heyer Flint Louis L'Amour Eric Terry Pratchett Man-eaters of Kumaon
Jim Corbett and Raymond Sheppard
Golden Age of the Solar Clipper series Nathan Lowell Children of Hurin JRR Tolkein Book of Lost Tales JRR Tolkein Spenser series Robert B Parker Innkeeper Chronicles *and other series Ilona Andrews Union Station series EM Foner Carpe Diem
Sharon Lee and Steve Miller
Paladin series T Kingfisher Beauty Robin McKinley Watership Down Richard Adams Combined Operations series Dorothy Grant Alexander Orlov: The FBI's KGB General Edward Gazur Kitty Rocks the House Carrie Vaughn My Name is Legion Roger Zelazny The Sword and the Swan Roberta Gellis Dyce Dare series Sarah Hoyt Lord of the Rings JRR Tolkein Hob's Bargain Patricia Briggs Time Enough for Love Robert Heinlein Drumberley series DE Stevenson Lord Peter Wimsey series Dorothy Sayers Belgariad David Eddings Master and Commander series Patrick O'Brien Dreadnought and Battlestations! Diane Carey How Much for Just the Planet John M Ford Bloodthirst JM Dillard Trustee From the Toolroom Nevil Shute Juvenile books Robert Heinlein Hopalong Cassidy stories Clarence Mulford The Sleeping Dragon Joel Rosenberg Ariel Stephen Boyett The Lieutenants, and The Captains WEB Griffin Undead Pool Kim Harrison Honor Harrington series David Weber The Lost Fleet series Jack Campbell Our Mutual Friend Charles Dickens I, Jedi Michael Stackpole The Enchanted Forest Chronicles Patricia C Wrede The Joyous Season Philip Barry Ware Hawk Andre Norton Vision of the Future Timothy Zahn Dinotopia James Gurney All Cats Are Gray Andre Norton The Cherokee Trail, Hondo, and the Last Stand at Papago Wells Louis L'Amour Cyrano de Bergerac Edmond Rostand Nero Wolfe series Rex Stout Dresden Files Jim Butcher Skolian, Major Bhaajan series Catherine Asaro Vorkosigan series
Lois McMaster Bujold
Shogun and Noble House James Clavell Mrs. Pollifax series Dorothy Gilman The Blue Castle LM Montgomery Arcane Casebook series Dan Willis A Natural History of Dragons Marie Brennan Wearing the Cape series Marion G Harmon Paper Magician Charlie N Holmberg The Cobweb Bride Vera Nazarian 13 Clocks James Thurber Anne of Green Gables series LM Montgomery Freckles and Keeper of the Bees Gene Stratton Porter A Little Princess
Frances Hodgson Burnett
Kim and the Jungle Books Rudyard Kipling Hot Money, Decider, and 10lb Penalty Dick Francis Brat Farrar Josephine Tey The Dreaming Jewels (or The Synthetic Man) Theodore Sturgeon A Town Like Alice Nevil Shute The Heritage of Power serries Lindsay Buroker Star Nomad series Lindsay Buroker Tree of Ages series Sara Roethle Witches of Karres series
James Schmitz and Dave Freer
Joy Comes in the Mourning Dave Freer Moth and Cobweb John C Wright Watchers, The Bad Place, and Dragon Tears Dean Koontz I hate to CookBook Peg Bracken Scaling the Rim Dorothy Grant The Wizard's Butler Nathan Lowell Thud! Terry Pratchett The Forest
Stewart Edward White
Starship Troopers Robert Heinlein The Outlander series Diana Gabaldon Father Tim series Jan Karon Posleen or Troy Rising series John Ringo The Moon is a harsh Mistress Robert Heinlein Podkayne of Mars Robert Heinlein Interview with a a Vampire Anne Rice The Travis McGee series John D MacDonald The Callahan's Bar stories Spider Robinson One For the Money Stephanie Plum Rimworld series JL Curtis The Corfu Trilogy Gerald Durrell