Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly blog meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. These are all things I can wholeheartedly get behind.
This week’s topic is “Top Ten Quick Reads” or recommendations for novellas. I was SO excited when I saw this topic! I read a lot of novellas. Like, a lot. While speculative novellas are my favorites, I also love a good fantasy, horror, or romance novella. I’ve put my own spin on the prompt and have turned it into “If you like this popular book, read this novella.”
Though there aren’t ten recommendations here, I have listed five recommendations based on popular books and series that I hope will help you find a new novella. This list took a lot of thought and time, but I had so much fun scouring through my Goodreads for books I’ve read. I’ll definitely do a part 2 of this prompt in the future!
Without further ado, here are five popular books and their novella counterparts!
- If you like The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis, read Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire.
This is one you’ve probably heard before, but I think McGuire’s Wayward Children series is the best way to dip your toes into novellas if you’re completely new to them. Honestly, you can’t go wrong with any of Seanan McGuire’s novellas. If you love portal fantasies and young adult fantasy, Every Heart a Doorway is a lovely read.
- If you like Every Heart a Doorway (or the other Wayward Children books) by Seanan McGuire, read Doorway to Nowhere by Rebecca L. Fearnley
If you’ve already read the Wayward Children series and enjoyed the portal fantasy premise, I highly recommend the novella Doorway to Nowhere by indie author Rebecca L. Fearnley. You can pick it up on her website, along with the rest of the Nowhere Chronicles series.
- If you like Daisy Jones & the Six by Taylor Jenkins Reid, read Wylding Hall by Elizabeth Hand
This is one I genuinely can’t believe more people haven’t talked about. Wylding Hall is a Locus Award nominated, Shirley Jackson Award winning novella about a 1970s folk band that’s forced to whose management has them holed up in an old British country house to write their next album. During that time, their lead singer disappears. Now, many years later, the surviving band members are interviewed for a documentary. Tell me that doesn’t give Daisy Jones & the Six vibes!! Wylding Hall is classified as horror and it does have a ghost, but it doesn’t really read like horror. It’s gothic, moody, and dark. It’s also one of my favorite novellas of all time!
- If you like Pride and Prejudice (or any other Austen books), read Spellswept by Stephanie Burgis
If you are an Austen lover (like me) and you enjoy a good regency romance, Spellswept is a must read. It’s a gaslamp fantasy novella/short-story that’s only 83 pages and takes place in an underwater ballroom. It’s absolutely incredible, and I can’t wait to read more in this series by Burgis.
- If you like The Themis Files by Sylvain Neuvel, read The Tusks of Extinction by Ray Nayler.
The Tusks of Extinction is unlike other recent Tordotcom novellas I’ve read. It feels so scientific, even though it largely takes place in a dystopian world and in the mind of a mammoth. Like Sleeping Giants and the rest of The Themis Files, it tells a sci-fi story from the point of view of extremely scientific and educated individuals. While Themis deals with individuals operating alien technology, Tusks sees a character’s consciousness downloaded into the mind of a mammoth. This may sound wildly different, but, in practice, it’s not so dissimilar. If you like science-y sci-fi, both of these books are excellent reads.
Thanks so much for stopping by today! I’d love to know some of your favorite novellas in the comments below, so I can make sure to add them to my Year of the Novella goal this year.
Be sure to share your TTT in the comments below so I can check it out!
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