Modern & Literary Fiction Books
Rules of Civility by Amor Towles
Rules Of Civility by Amor Towles is the unforgettable debut by the million-copy bestselling author of A Gentleman in Moscow and The Lincoln Highway...
View full detailsSalem's Lot by Stephen King
With a stunning new cover look, King's chilling classic of a small new England town about to be engulfed in terror. Turn off the television - in fa...
View full detailsThe Paris Connection by Lorraine Brown
Fresh, charming and wonderfully escapist' BETH O'LEARY, author of The Flatshare'A wonderfully engaging tale of love and self-discovery' MIKE GAYLE,...
View full detailsBlack Widows by Cate Quinn
Blake Nelson had three perfect wives. Until one of them killed him. 'An exquisite murder mystery' CHRISTINA DALCHER'Atmospheric and addictive' THE ...
View full detailsThe Summer That Changed Us by Cathy Bramley
The new feel good read about three women searching for friendship in a sparkling seaside town, from your favourite storyteller Cathy Bramley'An emo...
View full detailsMy Kind of Happy by Cathy Bramley
It started with a wishlist... Now can she make it happen?'A story bursting at the seams with sunshine' Milly Johnson'Filled with warmth and laughte...
View full detailsQueenie by Candice Carty-Williams
THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERBOOK OF THE YEAR AT THE BRITISH BOOK AWARDS SHORTLISTED FOR THE COSTA FIRST NOVEL AWARD LONGLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE...
View full detailsOther Women by Cathy Kelly
Don't miss the stunning new novel from Cathy Kelly about sisterhood, love & friendship - The Wedding Party is available to pre-order now!'A bur...
View full detailsThe Idea of You by Robinne Lee
THE SCORCHING HOT RICHARD & JUDY LOVE AFFAIR THAT WILL LEAVE YOU OBSESSED!'IF YOU ONLY READ ONE BOOK THIS YEAR, MAKE IT THIS' 5***** reader rev...
View full detailsA Cornish Summer by Catherine Alliott
ESCAPE TO THE CORNISH COAST IN THIS DELIGHTFULLY HEARTWARMING SUNDAY TIMES TOP TEN BESTSELLER'THE PERFECT SUMMER READ' Sophie Kinsella__________Flo...
View full detailsAnxious People by Fredrik Backman
The funny, touching and unpredictable No. 1 New York Times bestseller, now a major Netflix TV series'A brilliant and comforting read' MATT HAIG'Fun...
View full detailsStill Me by Jojo Moyes
THE NO. 1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER from the author of THE LAST LETTER FROM YOUR LOVER, now a major motion picture'Immensely readable and enjoyable' ...
View full detailsGrown Ups by Marian Keyes
Hilarious and painfully relatable, Grown Ups is the perfect escape into someone else's wonderfully messy family . . . 'Magnificently messy lives, b...
View full detailsAfter You by Jojo Moyes
THE SEQUEL TO THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING PHENOMENON ME BEFORE YOU The beautiful love story that will make you both laugh and cry, from the autho...
View full detailsThe Farmhouse of Second Chances by Helen Rolfe
A heartwarming story about family, forgiveness and the importance of kindness' FIONA HARPER on The Kindness Club on Mapleberry Lane'Comforting and ...
View full detailsThe Mountains Sing by Nguyen Phan Que Mai
Winner of the Blogger's Book Prize, 2021 Shortlisted for the People's Book Prize, 2021Winner of Best Literary Fiction and Best Multicultural Fictio...
View full detailsGrey Bees by Andrey Kurkov
Ukraine's most famous novelist dramatises the conflict raging in his country through the adventures of a mild-mannered beekeeper. From the author o...
View full detailsTin Man by Sarah Winman
SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2017 COSTA NOVEL AWARDFrom the internationally bestselling author of WHEN GOD WAS A RABBIT comes a heartbreaking celebration of...
View full detailsThings We Never Say by Sheila O'Flanagan
Sheila O'Flanagan's unputdownable bestseller THINGS WE NEVER SAY is a must-read for fans of Marian Keyes and Veronica Henry. Abbey Anderson is stun...
View full detailsWhispers by Rosie Goodwin
Sometimes the past really does come back to haunt you... The old manor house has stood empty for years, left to rot since the last master of the Fe...
View full detailsStardust by Neil Gaiman
A FAIRY TALE FOR EVERYONE. 'Beyond all the borders that divide us, there is a place of infinite possibilities and pure magic. I think of Neil Gaima...
View full detailsAmerican Gods by Neil Gaiman
AN ACCLAIMED, EMMY-NOMINATED TV SERIES ON AMAZON PRIME VIDEOWINNER OF THE HUGO, LOCUS AND BRAM STOKER AWARDS'To give him his full title: Neil Gaima...
View full detailsThe Island by Victoria Hislop
***A beautiful 10th anniversary paperback edition that includes a new essay by Victoria Hislop on the impact of this million-copy bestseller.***'A ...
View full detailsSmall Island by Andrea Levy
Small Island by bestselling author Andrea Levy won the Orange Prize for Fiction and the Orange Prize 'Best of the Best' as well as the Commonwealth...
View full detailsSharp Objects by Gillian Flynn
Some scars never heal . . . An addictive thriller from the author of the mega bestseller GONE GIRL. When two girls are abducted and killed in Misso...
View full detailsBefore We Say Goodbye by Louise Candlish
Sometimes second chances are the most dangerous of all. FROM THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF OUR HOUSE'A master of her craft' Rosamund Lupto...
View full detailsThe Chocolate Lovers' Diet by Carole Matthews
THE BESTSELLING SERIES FROM THE MULTI-MILLION-COPY-SELLING AUTHOR CAROLE MATTHEWSSurvival tips for times of stress:1. Take deep breaths2. Count to ...
View full detailsThe Cuckoo's Calling (Cormoran Strike 1) by Robert Galbraith
The Cuckoo's Calling reminds me why I fell in love with crime fiction in the first place' VAL MCDERMID-----Now a major BBC drama: The Strike series...
View full detailsLittle Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan
Escape with Jenny Colgan in 2021. The paperback of Jenny's latest bestseller, FIVE HUNDRED MILES FROM YOU, and her new feel-good novel, SUNRISE BY ...
View full detailsThe Five People You Meet In Heaven by Mitch Albom
THE INSPIRATIONAL CLASSIC FROM THE MASTER STORYTELLER WHOSE BOOKS HAVE TOUCHED THE HEARTS OF OVER 40 MILLION READERS'Mitch Albom sees the magical i...
View full detailsGoodbye to Berlin by Christopher Isherwood
As Cabaret returns to the West End, revisit the KitKat Club in the book that introduced Sally Bowles to the world. Set in the 1930s, Goodbye to Ber...
View full detailsParadise by Abdulrazak Gurnah
**By the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature 2021**A BBC RADIO 4 Book at Bedtime SHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 1994'A poetic and vividly con...
View full detailsMe Before You by Jojo Moyes
Discover the love story that captured 21 million hearts . . . from the author of The Last Letter from Your Lover, now a major motion pictureThe No....
View full detailsThe Girl With No Soul by Morgan Owen
How can you find your soul mate, when you don't have a soul? Iris lives in a world ruled by The Order. Inspectors police the population by keeping ...
View full detailsThe Power by Naomi Alderman
WINNER OF THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTIONONE OF BARACK OBAMA'S BEST BOOKS OF 2017'Electrifying' Margaret Atwood'A big, page-turning, thought-provokin...
View full detailsThey by Kay Dick
As heard on BBC Radio 4's Front Row: the radical dystopian classic, lost for forty years: in a nightmarish Britain, THEY are coming closer. 'A cree...
View full detailsBoys Don't Cry by Fiona Scarlett
I can't remember ever reading anything so moving . . . It's so beautiful.' MARIAN KEYESThey say boys don't cry. But Finn's seen his Da do it when h...
View full detailsThis One Sky Day by Leone Ross
LONGLISTED FOR THE ONDAATJE PRIZE'Dazzling' Cosmopolitan'Stunning' Kei Miller'Gorgeous' Financial Times'Haunting' Independent'Wonderfully fearless'...
View full detailsLove After Love by Ingrid Persaud
*WINNER OF THE COSTA FIRST NOVEL AWARD 2020**LONGLISTED FOR THE OCM BOCAS PRIZE*AS SEEN ON BBC'S BETWEEN THE COVERSONE OF STYLIST'S BEST NEW BOOKS ...
View full detailsOutline: A Novel by Rachel Cusk
Author of the Booker-longlisted novel Second PlaceOutline is a novel in ten conversations. Spare and lucid, it follows a novelist teaching a course...
View full detailsMilkman by Anna Burns
Blazing.' Daily Telegraph'Outstanding.' New Statesman'A triumph.' Guardian'Utterly compelling.' Irish Times'The best Booker winner in years.' Metro...
View full detailsGrief Is the Thing with Feathers by Max Porter
A SUNDAY TIMES TOP 100 NOVEL OF THE TWENTY-FIRST CENTURYWinner of the 2016 International Dylan Thomas Prize and the Sunday Times/Peter, Fraser + Du...
View full detailsThe Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro
*Kazuo Ishiguro's new novel Klara and the Sun is now available*The Romans have long since departed, and Britain is steadily declining into ruin. Th...
View full detailsMayflies by Andrew O'Hagan
Winner of the Christopher Isherwood PrizeShortlisted for the Portico PrizeA Guardian, Spectator, Sunday Times, Financial Times and Evening Standard...
View full detailsTokyo Redux by David Peace
A powerful, stirring read.' The Times'Typically brilliant . I loved it.' Adrian McKinty'The most stone-cold crime novel of 2021.' CrimeReadsTokyo, ...
View full detailsThe Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera
A cult figure.' Guardian'A dark and brilliant achievement.' Ian McEwan'Shamelessly clever ... Exhilaratingly subversive and funny.' Independent'A m...
View full detailsThe Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath
A modern classic.' Guardian'A near-perfect work of art.' Joyce Carol OatesSylvia Plath is a major cultural icon who continues to inspire new genera...
View full detailsMiss Benson's Beetle: An uplifting story of female friendship against the odds by Rachel Joyce
WINNER OF THE WILBUR SMITH ADVENTURE WRITING PRIZE | BEST PUBLISHED NOVELWOMAN & HOME BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR and A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER'Th...
View full detailsCreative, formula-bending, genre-defying, character-focused, and most importantly, a literary exploration of the human condition—contemporary & modern literary fiction is arguably the most experimental genre within literature.
The landscape of literary fiction is constantly being revolutionised by literary fiction authors; that are known to constantly push the boundaries of genre fiction and blur the lines of distinction between literary fiction and other genres of literature.
Given the creative ambiguity of contemporary literary fiction; the genre witnesses a dazzling lineup of highly acclaimed debuts and fresh progressive voices each year. From trailblazing memoirs to the cultural history of humanity—no other genre captures the exactness of our collective life experience more creatively than literary fiction.
The list of bestselling literary fiction is an exciting mix of very distinct literary techniques and contrasting voices. Precisely why, we at Books2Door bring you and a carefully curated collection of the best literary fiction books of all time whilst also helping you gain an acute understanding of what qualifies as modern & literary fiction.
Formula-bending, genre-defying, and experimental
Modern and Contemporary Literary Fiction or experimental fiction is possibly the literature’s most rebellious genre. It doesn’t follow any literary formulas, nor does it adhere to any rules. In that, literary fiction authors are free to build an unpredictable narrative. Anything can transpire; exciting or unnerving. In literary fiction, any established literary theme can be turned on its head. For instance, literary fiction authors have challenged the good-triumphs-over-evil theme; so common otherwise in genre fiction books.
George Orwell’s social satire Nineteen Eighty-Four is one example. A book best categorised as dystopian literature; (remember the recently trending hashtag #makeorwellfictionagain ?) Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four not only challenged the good vs evil theme but also blurred the lines of distinction between genre fiction and classic literary fiction.
Employees creative storytelling
Considering literary fiction doesn’t adhere to any rules of genre or sub-genre; every literary fiction author is free to be creative and create his own rules. This makes the storyline an adventure, that can take its readers by surprise.
Devoid of any rules, the literary fiction writer is free to break convention and employ his creativity. This practice has birthed some extraordinary literary works. For example, Audrey Niffenegger’s The Time Traveler’s Wife where Niffenegger’s uses dual narrators from the first person point of view, in the present tense.
Thought-provoking and introspective
Like we said earlier, no other genre captures the exactness of the human condition and our collective life experience more creatively than literary fiction. Whilst most genres are designed to entertain the readers, literary fiction is meant to do more than that. Literary fiction seeks to make sense of the world. It is meant to be thought-provoking, and introspective and is meant to push the reader to think critically of the human condition.
Sylvia Plath’s The Bell Jar, for instance, explores the mind of a depressed, anxious, and neurotic young woman. Whilst the book has a coming-of-age plot line; it is the inner dialogue of this character that truly makes it a memorable book. This strong character study is what makes literary fiction a character-focused and introspective genre.
Explores the human condition
Stories in literary fiction do not shy away from dealing with difficult subjects and the realities of the human condition with artistic honesty. Literary fiction, therefore, is not always designed to help the reader escape. It can make the reader uncomfortable and push them to think about issues.
Literary fiction however is not non-fiction; so it doesn’t just report the truth. Instead, it relies on creative techniques and artsy symbolism to convey a deeper meaning. Literary fiction relies on metaphors and creative storytelling to convey meaningful messages. As a result, the takeaway from these stories is more than just the story, the takeaway is the experience, the message, and at times the characters.
Literary fiction is character-driven
Whilst genre fiction is focused on the story, plotlines, and on being an engaging read; literary fiction is more stressed on the characters or on conveying a meaningful message or idea. At times, it is focused on both. The characters in literary fiction can have layers, the depth of a character's actions and psyche are explored to forward the plot. Literary fiction doesn’t just show a character’s story, it shows how their actions and circumstances change the character.
Literary fiction can be as absurd and ambiguous as life itself
Literary fiction is experimental in nature much like absurd art, which means it doesn’t have to have a happy ending or an ending at all. Art movements like absurdism, dadaism and surrealism, are all, artsy cousins of experimental prose.
Literary fiction gives writers the liberty to let a story end abruptly or for the entire plot to be absurd. Stories in this genre don’t necessarily have to resolve but they have to have meaning. The meaning however is left to the reader’s interpretation.
Literary fiction is good for the reader
Because literary fiction pushes boundaries, employs a unique perspective, searches for meaning, and is designed for intellectual and emotional stimulus--it is much like the art you see hanging in galleries and the movies that bring meaningful conversations alive. Just like artsy movies and art itself, the creative genius of literary fiction is largely open to criticism. Some of the best contemporary literary fiction books have won critical acclaim and awards but missed out on winning the masses.
Big box sets at tiny prices
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We understand that buying kids books can be expensive. That's why we offer a wide range of box sets and series at affordable prices, making it easier for parents, teachers, and libraries to access quality books for children.
Our team is made up of book lovers who are dedicated to sourcing and providing the best books for kids. We work closely with publishers and authors to ensure that we offer the best books on the market for your child.
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