10 Must Read CONTEMPORARY fiction books

30/4/2017

1. The Handmaid's Tale

To breed - the only choice given to Offred by The Republic of Gilead, lest she wishes to be hanged at the wall or be sent out to slowly die of radiation sickness like the dissenters. But neither Offred's desire and nor the two men's on whom her future hangs can be eradicated by a repressive state.

An excellent masterpiece that presents modern day America through Margaret Atwood's mind-bending irony, wit and shrewd perception.

2. This Is Not Your Story

Set foot in the land of awe and inspiration. "This is not your story" goes well with my personal philosophy of life "The book of life is empty until you decide to write in it". Colour me ecstatic, each segment of the book had my senses fired up. The book is the perfect food for those in need of energy in their lives. The characters are realistic and relatable and their lives are interwoven beautifully. Their stories will touch you in wondrous ways.

A majestic work of art by Savi Sharma, the book teaches us that dreams can turn into reality. Jump onto the wagon of fascination and flow into a reality that fills your mind with love and positivity.

3. Pride and Prejudice

Pride and Prejudice is a novel of manners by Jane Austen, first published in 1813. The story follows the main character, Elizabeth Bennet, as she deals with issues of manners, upbringing, morality, education, and marriage in the society of the landed gentry of the British Regency. Elizabeth is the second of five daughters of a country gentleman living near the fictional town of Meryton in Hertfordshire, near London.

4. A Dog's Luck

Ellie, a young woman writing her philosophy dissertation, becomes disrupted by echoes from the past. She follows the voices replaying in her mind to an introspective examination of her childhood and adolescence within her extended family. This intimate inspection of relationships between family members–and the family's dogs–leads her to uncover three generations of the family secrets and the focal points of tension in the family's history.
A story of love, separation and longing, A Dog’s Luck by Liora Barash is a unique, moving and thought-provoking work of literary art that deals with existential issues in a heartfelt, high-tempo and dynamic style. It touches on love, separation and longing, in an expressive, multi-layered language that provokes the readers to reflect upon subtle nuances of their own inner worlds.

5. Anthology of Jorge Luis Borges

The most popular anthology of Jorge Luis Borges's short stories, Fictions is a wildly original and influential collection of fantastic tales, translated from the Spanish with an afterword by Andrew Hurley in Penguin Modern Classics.
Jorge Luis Borges's Fictions introduced an entirely new voice into world literature. It is here that we find the astonishing accounts of 'Funes the Memorious', the man who can forget nothing; 'Pierre Menard, Author of the Quixote', who recreates Miguel de Cervantes's epic word-for-word; a society run on the basis of an all-encompassing game of chance in 'The Lottery in Babylon'; the mysterious world of 'Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius' which seems to be supplanting our own; and the 'Library of Babel', which contains every possible book in the whole universe. Here too are the philosophical detective stories and the haunting tales of Irish revolutionaries, gaucho knife fights and dreams within dreams which proved so influential (and yet impossible to imitate). This collection was eventually to bring Borges international fame; over fifty years later, it remains endlessly intriguing.

6. Oracle of Spirits

Strange noises. Haunting shadows. A handsome man with a mysterious past.

Enid Runa doesn't ask for anything or anyone to slip into her life, but fate deems her destined for an adventuresome life that begins with a shadow and ends with her being carried off into the night. Her captor is the enigmatic and flirtatious Ian Osman, a man with a lot of secrets and more than one interest in her. He tells her that she's entered the world of the paranormal, and he's her only safe ride through the fun land of horror that has their blood-red eyes set on her. She doesn't know whether to slap Osman or hug him, and matters are complicated when she learns his darkest secret.

** Warning: this series contains paranormal romance, and snark. Lots of snark. **

7. Lovin' a Hero

Aditi has lost all hopes of happiness; she has a hectic schedule and a broken marriage to sting her memories. Her only refuge of peace is her son. She thinks love can never enter her life again when the most unexpected event shapes her life and happiness. She ends up dating the 'king of romance' of Bollywood. However, there are familial obstacles in her way and the Bollywood heartthrob must now woo Aditi's father and son in order to prove his worth as a father, often leading to hilarious consequences. LOVING A HERO by Ch. Lady Diana is the story of finding hope and learning to have faith in the people we love, and of course, in love itself!

8. A Tale of Two Cities

How is this book unique?

15 Illustrations are included
Short Biography is also included
Original & Unabridged Edition
Tablet and e-reader formatted

A Tale of Two Cities (1859) is a novel by Charles Dickens, set in London and Paris before and during the French Revolution. The novel depicts the plight of the French peasantry demoralised by the French aristocracy in the years leading up to the revolution, the corresponding brutality demonstrated by the revolutionaries toward the former aristocrats in the early years of the revolution, and many unflattering social parallels with life in London during the same period. It follows the lives of several characters through these events.

9. The Fat Man's Monologue

Life is a feast to be devoured
A popular history lecturer realizes at mid-life that he is not accountable to anyone, & decides to pursue his passions: food, women and human history. Traveling through northern Italy, Wales, Devon and more, he learns and writes about food and the stories behind it.

For lovers of food and life, whether fat or slim
A charming, funny and witty monologue by a fat man, that touches on his cravings for food and women, with detours into human history. A book about food and about people who like to eat, about unique places and extraordinary recipes: the paraphernalia of food, people, places and events.

A portrait of a fat man who cannot be ignored
The Fat Man’s Monologue is a book about love of life and food, and about delightful places, journeys and recipes. It offers an inspiringly optimistic and humanistic look at life, through the eyes of a charismatic hero-narrator who will stay with you long after the last page.

10. Million Dollar Question

What can rock your world faster than winning or losing a king's ransom overnight?

Just as a huge financial scandal throws New Yorker, Olivia Wheeler, from wealth and success to bankruptcy and shame, struggling impoverished single-mother Rosie Dixon wins an unexpected million pounds. Good luck? Bad luck? Who can tell? Both women have more in common than they realize. While Olivia struggles to survive her humiliations, fleeing broke and homeless to London, shy unassuming Rosie discovers sudden riches arrive with their own mega-load of problems.

Can workaholic career-obsessed Olivia find a passion for something earthier and warmer than power and prestige? And can Rosie sift through envy and greed to discover true friends, true family and even true love? Two strangers who've never met. Yet neither realizes how each is affecting the other's destiny or the places their paths touch and fates entwine.

How will they surmount the pitfalls and perils of their outrageous change of fortune?

That is the million dollar question.

Get these great books and read them if you are a contemporary fiction fan.