100 books like Bad City

By Paul Pringle,

Here are 100 books that Bad City fans have personally recommended if you like Bad City. Shepherd is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup

Why am I passionate about this?

As a hospital clinical lab director, I have a mission to promote the value of my profession. Are we more important than our soldiers protecting our country? Politicians who make laws? Judges who help maintain law and order? I argue that the health of our families is near or at the top of our priorities. While we ask our doctors to achieve this goal, they ask us every day to help them. The lab is not about boiling tubes and colored flasks. The 8 books I have written and the 5 that I have selected illustrate, in an entertaining manner, who we really are and why we matter.  

Alan's book list on learning how clinical labs really work and why this is important to you and your family

Alan H.B. Wu Why did Alan love this book?

Mr. Carreyrou was the Wall Street Journal reporter who broke the story that eventually led to the downfall of Elizabeth Holmes, CEO of Theranos. At its peak, this company was worth over $9 billion. Today, Holmes and her former COO have been convicted of fraud and are serving time.

I like this book because it serves as a curriculum for how NOT to operate a biotech company. It shows that while belief in your vision is essential for all successful entrepreneurs, there is no place for secrecy and arrogance in the business world.

Unfortunately, the “Theranos” effect has led to a decline in investment in new medical technology and has had a negative effect on the value of clinical laboratories.

By John Carreyrou,

Why should I read it?

5 authors picked Bad Blood as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The shocking true story behind The Dropout, starring the Emmy award-winning Amanda Seyfried, Naveen Andrews and Stephen Fry.

'I couldn't put down this thriller . . . a book so compelling that I couldn't turn away' - Bill Gates

Winner of the Financial Times/McKinsey Business Book of the Year Award 2018

The full inside story of the breathtaking rise and shocking collapse of Theranos, the multibillion-dollar biotech startup founded by Elizabeth Holmes, by the prize-winning journalist who first broke the story and pursued it to the end, despite pressure from its charismatic CEO and threats by her lawyers.

In 2014,…


Book cover of The Plot

Rachana Vajjhala Author Of Kinetic Cultures: Modernism and Embodiment on the Belle Epoque Stage

From my list on dazzlingly written books from the past five years with both style and substance.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m a music historian who loves to read novels. Most of my childhood was spent either playing the piano or devouring whatever books I could get my hands on. Now, I try to share my love of music and good writing with my students at Boston University. When not at school, you can usually find me exploring the trails of New England with my dog.     

Rachana's book list on dazzlingly written books from the past five years with both style and substance

Rachana Vajjhala Why did Rachana love this book?

Whether trying to finish an email or a book, I feel Dorothy Parker’s words deeply: “I hate writing,” she is purported to have said, but “I love having written.” 

In this book, protagonist Jacob Finch Bonner does Parker one better. Stuck after his well-received first novel, he takes someone else’s story and passes it off as his own. Korelitz unravels the dire consequences, though with fizzy, suspenseful glee rather than scared-straight preachiness.

Bonner may not be, as he tells himself, “a great writer,” but Korelitz certainly is. It made me want to try to write again: hate, love, and all other feelings welcome. 

By Jean Hanff Korelitz,

Why should I read it?

11 authors picked The Plot as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

** NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER! ** The Tonight Show Summer Reads Winner ** A New York Times Notable Book of 2021 **

"Insanely readable." ―Stephen King

Hailed as "breathtakingly suspenseful," Jean Hanff Korelitz’s The Plot is a propulsive read about a story too good not to steal, and the writer who steals it.

Jacob Finch Bonner was once a promising young novelist with a respectably published first book. Today, he’s teaching in a third-rate MFA program and struggling to maintain what’s left of his self-respect; he hasn’t written―let alone published―anything decent in years. When Evan Parker, his most arrogant student,…


Book cover of The Feather Thief: Beauty, Obsession, and the Natural History Heist of the Century

Jean E. Rhodes Author Of Older and Wiser: New Ideas for Youth Mentoring in the 21st Century

From my list on understanding the psychology of deception.

Why am I passionate about this?

I'm clinical psychology professor at UMass Boston and expert on mentoring relationships. When I was a senior in high school, my dad left behind thirty years of marriage, four kids, and a complicated legal and financial history to start a new life. I couldn't fully comprehend the FBI investigation that forced his departure—any more than I could've fathomed the fact that my classmate Jim Comey would eventually lead that agency. I was also reeling from a discovery that my dad had “shortened” his name from Rosenzweig to Rhodes, a common response to anti-Semitism. It was during that period that I experienced the benefits of mentors and the joy of books about hidden agendas and subtexts.

Jean's book list on understanding the psychology of deception

Jean E. Rhodes Why did Jean love this book?

This book, by Kirk Wallace Johnson tells the story of a bizarre heist that took place at the British Museum of Natural History in 2009.

The thief, Edwin Rist, was a 20-year-old American flute student who broke into the museum to steal hundreds of priceless, exotic bird specimens, many of which were collected by the naturalist Alfred Russel Wallace in the 19th century.

What first drew me to the book was that I knew Edwin’s dad back when I was in grad school. But what kept me turning the pages was the writing and story. The book explores the world of Victorian-era fly-tying and the obsession that collectors have with rare feathers.

Rist, who was also an avid fly-tier, had planned the heist to obtain feathers for his own collection, which he intended to sell to other collectors. Many of the collectors and fly-tying enthusiasts knew that the feathers probably…

By Kirk Wallace Johnson,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked The Feather Thief as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

As heard on NPR's This American Life

"Absorbing . . . Though it's non-fiction, The Feather Thief contains many of the elements of a classic thriller." -Maureen Corrigan, NPR's Fresh Air

"One of the most peculiar and memorable true-crime books ever." -Christian Science Monitor

A rollicking true-crime adventure and a captivating journey into an underground world of fanatical fly-tiers and plume peddlers, for readers of The Stranger in the Woods, The Lost City of Z, and The Orchid Thief.

On a cool June evening in 2009, after performing a concert at London's Royal Academy of Music, twenty-year-old American flautist Edwin…


Book cover of She Said: Breaking the Sexual Harassment Story That Helped Ignite a Movement

Tammy Leitner Author Of Don't Say a Thing: A Predator, a Pursuit, and the Women Who Persevered

From my list on journey from sexual assault to survivor.

Why am I passionate about this?

As an investigative journalist, I’ve spent my career interviewing and trying to understand the worst of humanity: murderers, child molesters and rapists. They are all predators, but rape is personal for me. I was a young journalist starting my career when a serial rapist assaulted my neighbor. He entered many things uninvited—homes, bedrooms, and my mind. For twenty years, I was obsessed—learning everything I could about him and sexual assault. I read these books to understand why the justice system and society sometimes fail survivors. Yet these remarkable survivors still manage to heal their trauma–at least, that’s what I found in each of these books. 

Tammy's book list on journey from sexual assault to survivor

Tammy Leitner Why did Tammy love this book?

For me, this book had it all: a behind-the-scenes look at the incredible investigative journalism by NY Times journalists Jodi Cantor and Meghan Twohey, who exposed Harvey Weinstein’s decades of sexual assaults.

And the courageous journey of the survivors who chose to tell their stories—which ultimately ignited the #MeToo movement.

By Jodi Kantor, Megan Twohey,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked She Said as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

*SOON TO BE A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE STARRING CAREY MULLIGAN AND ZOE KAZAN* 'Explosive' Margaret Atwood 'Seismic' Observer 'Brilliant' Nigella Lawson 'Gripping' Jon Ronson A FINANCIAL TIMES, NEW STATESMAN, DAILY TELEGRAPH, METRO AND ELLE BOOK OF THE YEAR On 5 October 2017, the New York Times published an article by Jodi Kantor and Megan Twohey that helped change the world. Hollywood was talking as never before. Kantor and Twohey outmanoeuvred Harvey Weinstein, his team of defenders and private investigators, convincing some of the most famous women in the world - and some unknown ones - to go on the record.…


Book cover of Fletch

Lee Goldberg Author Of Calico

From my list on humor that makes us human.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been writing crime stories since I was a child. They entertained me and helped me cope with a lot of family strife. My first novel was published in college and sold to the movies, which got me into screenwriting, leading to writing hundreds of hours of TV and fifty novels to date. The one thing all of my stories share is humor because I believe it’s an essential part of life–and of memorable story-telling. Humor makes characters come alive, revealing shades of personality and depths of emotion you wouldn’t otherwise see. Here are five books that taught me that it’s true and that continue to influence me as a writer. 

Lee's book list on humor that makes us human

Lee Goldberg Why did Lee love this book?

This book changed my life. Honest to God. I always wanted to be a novelist and TV writer, but this book made me believe I could. I can still remember exactly where I was when I read it–late at night, in a sleeping bag in an old wooden cabin at Loon Lake, Washington.

I marveled at how the characters and story emerged almost entirely through the dialogue, which is so snappy, clever, and funny that the original book cover was just an excerpt of it against a black background. But MacDonald also manages to strike a perfect balance between laugh-out-loud humor and the mystery-crime story he’s telling without sacrificing the puzzle's suspense or pleasure.

I didn’t know if I could ever be a prose stylist, but this book showed me that I didn’t have to be. I just needed to capture how people talked, how they saw the world, and…

By Gregory McDonald,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Fletch as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Book one in the bestselling mystery series that brought to life an iconic literary antihero of subversion and schemes
Fletch, investigative reporter extraordinaire, can’t be bothered with deadlines or expense-account budgets when it comes to getting his story.

Working undercover at the beach to dig up a drug-trafficking scheme for his next blockbuster piece, Fletch is invited into a much deeper narrative. Alan Stanwyk, CEO of Collins Aviation and all-around family man, mistakes the reporter for a strung-out vagabond and asks him for a favor: kill him and escape to Brazil with $50,000. Intrigued, Fletch can’t help but dig into…


Book cover of Madwoman

Caroline Lamond Author Of Well Behaved Women

From my list on inspired by the lives of real women.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a historical fiction writer, every time I learn about an amazing woman, I instinctively want to write about her, to understand her life and bring her – often forgotten – story to a wider audience. It’s a wonderful way to live vicariously, and it’s a privilege to spend time in these women’s worlds for a brief period. There’s a Sylvia Plath quote that strongly resonates with me, beginning: ‘I can never be all the people I want and live all the lives I want…’. Reading and writing historical fiction allows me a glimpse into the worlds of different people living different lives in different eras, and for that I’m extremely grateful.

Caroline's book list on inspired by the lives of real women

Caroline Lamond Why did Caroline love this book?

I'd long been fascinated by Nellie Bly, a remarkable woman considered the world's first investigative journalist, who made her name by undertaking feats such as a real life Around the World in Eighty Days.

This novel gives a brief background to her life but focuses on her time incarcerated in an asylum on Blackwell's Island in New York, where she feigned madness to be committed, then reported on the horrific conditions inside on her release. It's told in a spare, but incredibly moving, style and is a wonderful insight into an incredible woman.

By Louisa Treger,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Madwoman as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

**A HISTORICAL FICTION BOOK OF THE YEAR IN THE TIMES AND THE SUNDAY TIMES** The extraordinary story of a woman's quest for the truth against all odds - and how her story changed the world 'A moving story' SUNDAY TIMES, Best historical fiction books of 2022 'A must read!' GILL PAUL 'Intriguing ... A fascinating read' HAZEL GAYNOR 'Remarkable' ESSIE FOX 'An astonishing tour de force' REBECCA MASCULL In 1887 young Nellie Bly sets out for New York and a career in journalism, determined to make her way as a serious reporter, whatever that may take. But life in the…


Book cover of The Meat Racket: The Secret Takeover of America's Food Business

Chloe Sorvino Author Of Raw Deal: Hidden Corruption, Corporate Greed, and the Fight for the Future of Meat

From my list on the meat industry.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m an investigative journalist who focuses on the intersection of finance, wealth accounting, and climate change. I head up food and agriculture coverage at Forbes, and have been reporting on the wealth and power hiding within the food industry for nearly a decade. I’ve been called a billionaire whisperer, and have a knack for getting folks to talk. Based in New York City, I’m a member of a Lower East Side community-supported agriculture share and keep composting worms on my terrace garden. 

Chloe's book list on the meat industry

Chloe Sorvino Why did Chloe love this book?

This book, in many ways, is the spiritual grandfather to my book. Christopher Leonard is a pioneer.

He went to a level of detail that no one had before. His deep investigation of Tyson Foods is a formative example of how corporations pick profits over their farmers and use their power to exert control over producers, workers, and suppliers. It has informed my research time and time again. 

By Christopher Leonard,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Meat Racket as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

An investigative journalist takes you inside the corporate meat industry—a shocking, in-depth report every American should read.

How much do you know about the meat on your dinner plate? Journalist Christopher Leonard spent more than a decade covering the country’s biggest meat companies, including four years as the national agribusiness reporter for the Associated Press. Now he delivers the first comprehensive look inside the industrial meat system, exposing how a handful of companies executed an audacious corporate takeover of the nation’s meat supply.

Leonard’s revealing account shines a light on the inner workings of Tyson Foods, a pioneer of the…


Book cover of Fair Warning

Anthony Lee Author Of Doctor Lucifer

From my list on thrillers with the most unique premises.

Why am I passionate about this?

I love thriller stories. I also love a variety of types of thrillers because there are so many ways for someone to face great challenges, overcome those hurdles, and achieve a major goal, all in the context of high stakes and fast-paced situations. It doesn’t matter if the story is related to crime, medicine, science, law, politics, espionage, etc. After experiencing such a diversity of thriller stories, including the books recommended below, I am passionate about creating my own stories, based on my life experiences and endless imagination.

Anthony's book list on thrillers with the most unique premises

Anthony Lee Why did Anthony love this book?

I love Michael Connelly’s crime thrillers featuring Harry Bosch and legal thrillers centering on Mickey Haller, but let’s not forget his thrillers focusing on journalist Jack McEvoy, especially this third one.

What gripped me so much while reading this story is how the villain knows more about the protagonist than the other way around, along with the horrifying consequences of genetic information getting into the wrong hands. Combine that with not knowing yet who the villain is, and you have a thriller that is no doubt heart-pounding.

By Michael Connelly,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Fair Warning as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

HOW DO YOU FIND A KILLER WHO KNOWS EVERYTHING ABOUT YOU?

'AS EXCITING AS ANYTHING CONNELLY HAS WRITTEN' THE TIMES

* * * * *

Jack McEvoy is a reporter with a track record in finding killers. But he's never been accused of being one himself.

Jack went on one date with Tina Portrero. The next thing he knows, the police are at his house telling Jack he's a suspect in her murder.

Maybe it's because he doesn't like being accused of a crime he didn't commit. Or maybe it's because the method of her murder is so chilling that…


Book cover of 1979

Tony Harcup Author Of Journalism: Principles and Practice

From my list on journalists as heroes.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve worked in and around journalism long enough to know that not all journalists are heroes. Few even aspire to be. But there is something quietly heroic about the daily task of holding the powerful to account, even in democracies where the risk of imprisonment or assassination is less than in more authoritarian states. Here is my selection of books to remind all of us about some of these more heroic aspects of the journalism trade. I hope you find reading them enjoyable and maybe even inspiring.

Tony's book list on journalists as heroes

Tony Harcup Why did Tony love this book?

Thriller writer and contemporary ‘queen of crime’ Val McDermid draws deeply on her own years as a tabloid journalist to bring fictional reporter Allie Burns to life during the winter of discontent. This unputdownable tale of a newspaper investigation into matters of life, death, and corruption is so evocative of a 1970s Glasgow newsroom that I could practically smell the fags and taste the whisky. More Allie Burns stories are promised, and I for one can’t wait.

By Val McDermid,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked 1979 as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

THE FIRST IN A THRILLING NEW SERIES FROM THE NO.1 BESTSELLER

Pre-order Val McDermid's explosive new novel, 1989, now!
____________________

She's on the hunt for a killer story . . .

1979. It's the winter of discontent, and Allie Burns is chasing her first big scoop. One of few women in the newsroom, she needs something explosive for the boys' club to take her seriously.

Soon Allie and fellow reporter Danny Sullivan are making powerful enemies with their investigations - and Allie won't stop there. When she discovers a terrorist threat close to home, she devises a dangerous plan to…


Book cover of Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup
Book cover of The Plot
Book cover of The Feather Thief: Beauty, Obsession, and the Natural History Heist of the Century

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