This week, the most read books on Goodreads list had a bit of a shake-up. Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke has been knocked down to the third position, thanks to the recent movie adaptation of Verity by Colleen Hoover. Plus, a new novella in a popular romantasy series has swooped in to snag the #1 spot. But before we get into that, let’s take a look at some new releases out this week.
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Two New Books Out This Week You Should Know AboutUnfortunately, the most read books on Goodreads tend not to be diverse by any definition of the word. So, here are a couple of new books out this week that deserve wider readership.
The Occidental Book of the Dead by T. Geronimo Johnson
This is the thickest book on my TBR so far. PEN/Faulkner Finalist T. Geronimo Johnson’s previous novel, Welcome to Braggsville, got a lot of love in addition to being longlisted for the National Book Award. I’m readying myself for a deep, potent read with this book about a Black cop shaken out of his life of assimilation after a confrontation with a white teen turns violent. —S. Zainab Williams
Children of Owl by Darcie Little Badger and illustrated by Abigail Rajunov
Maisie, Joel, and Verona are three cousins who live in a trailer park that is surrounded by creatures, both safe and murderous. For Maisie, life’s never been the same since her best friend died and Owl, harbinger of ill tidings, made her a visit. Joel’s been forced into a summer of kitten fostering, thanks in part to some bad decision-making. Verona is so desperate to leave the trailer park that she’s willing to watch a haunted house. Then there’s Owl–despite who he is, he cares deeply about each of these kids.
Little Badger’s latest book weaves together four stories, illustrated by Rajunov, that play with good and evil, myth and reality. It looks SO good. —Kelly Jensen
The Most Read Books on Goodreads This Week #5:The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood
This 2021 romance is getting a boost from the movie adaptation, which came out on September 23rd. It’s one of the STEMinist romances Ali Hazelwood is known for, following Ph.D candidate Olive Smith as she accidentally starts fake-dating a grouchy professor—as you do. (I was pleasantly surprised to learn the movie is the first major motion picture to have a character on the asexual spectrum. Olive is demisexual, which is mentioned on screen.) 19,000 users read it this week, and it has a 4.1 average rating.
#4:The Calamity Club by Kathryn Stockett
This is the newest book from the author of The Help. The Help was a huge bestseller, made into a blockbuster movie, but it received a lot of criticism for its use of stereotypes of Black people and white saviorism, as well as its historical inaccuracies. This criticism didn’t prevent Stockett from snagging a lucrative book deal for her new novel, however, and it looks like it hasn’t hurt its sales. The Calamity Club was read by 20,000 users this week and has a 4.6 average rating.
#3:Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke
Still in the top five is Yesteryear, which came out in April. It’s one of several buzzy tradwife novels out this year. In this one, a tradwife influencer wakes up one day in the time period she’s been romanticizing, and real-life homesteading turns out to be much more difficult—and dangerous—than it looks on Instagram. Yesteryear was read by almost 28,000 users this week and has a 3.9 average rating.
#2:Verity by Colleen Hoover
Verity was first published in 2018, but it’s back on the bestseller lists following the movie adaptation starring Anne Hathaway and Dakota Johnson, which came out on October 2nd. So far, the movie has a 33% Tomatometer rating from critics, but a 71% Popcorn rating from critics. It was read by 31,000 users this week and has a 4.3 average rating.
#1:Threshing Day by Rebecca Yarros
The fourth book in the Empyrean series still doesn’t have a release date, so fans likely have a long time to wait. In the meantime, they can revisit the world in this new novella, which follows 13 characters on their Threshing Days, when they endure a deadly trial in attempts to bond with a dragon. It was read by a staggering 163,000 users this week and has a 4.6 average rating.
If you’re looking for more buzzy books, check out The Bestselling Books of the Week, According to All the Lists.
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