Here are 40 books that It Was Always You fans have personally recommended if you like
It Was Always You.
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I've been reading fantasy for 42 years and writing it for 40, and because I was raised by badass women, I've always enjoyed tales of clever, kickass, indomitable heroines. I've written a bunch of them (a dozen books in an urban fantasy series about a sorcerer named Marla Mason; four books in the Axiom space opera series about ship captain Callie Machedo and her love interest, time refugee xenobiologist Elena Oh; contemporary fantasy/romance Heirs of Grace, about an art student who discovers a magical inheritance, and more). I'm also a longtime book reviewer, editor at SF/fantasy trade magazine Locus, and frequent award juror (Bradbury Prize, Philip K. Dick Award, and more), so... I think about SF/fantasy books a lot.
In 1700s France, the titular heroine of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue makes a deal with a strange force in the forest, and attains one of my favorite superpowers: the ability to not be noticed.
Addie is immortal, and people always forget she exists the moment she leaves their presence. As a result, her life has been sad, lonely, strange, and fundamentally unchanging... until, in the modern era, she meets someone who does remember her. It's a fascinating take on one of my favorite premises.
"For someone damned to be forgettable, Addie LaRue is a most delightfully unforgettable character, and her story is the most joyous evocation of unlikely immortality." -Neil Gaiman
A Sunday Times-bestselling, award-nominated genre-defying tour-de-force of Faustian bargains, for fans of The Time Traveler's Wife and Life After Life, and The Sudden Appearance of Hope.
When Addie La Rue makes a pact with the devil, she is convinced she's found a loophole-immortality in exchange for her soul. But the devil takes away her place in the world, cursing her to be forgotten by everyone.
I’ve always loved stories that rearrange reality in some simple, allusive way, including movies like Groundhog Day or The Truman Show. They remind me of a quote about Italo Calvino that I first read when I was a teenager and have loved ever since: ‘He holds a mirror up to life, then writes about the mirror.’ I tend not to be attracted to stories that simply depict reality and even less so to stories that completely abandon reality for an invented fantasy world. All my favorite fictions take place somewhere in between, in the blending of the real and the impossible.
Time travel is one of those superpowers that I have always found thrilling, yet there are very few convincing examples of it in fiction. The genius of this book is that time travel is presented as a disease. Henry has no control over when or where he is swept away, and every trip revolves around his own life, so he doesn’t ever meet Napoleon or Shakespeare.
What I love most about the story is how it illuminates so many angles of a romantic relationship that are never normally illuminated–and how Henry keeps finding himself naked and throwing up. The last chapter is just so sad and beautiful that it brings tears to my eyes every time I read it.
Now a series on HBO starring Rose Leslie and Theo James!
The iconic time travel love story and mega-bestselling first novel from Audrey Niffenegger is "a soaring celebration of the victory of love over time" (Chicago Tribune).
Henry DeTamble is a dashing, adventurous librarian who is at the mercy of his random time time-traveling abilities. Clare Abshire is an artist whose life moves through a natural sequential course. This is the celebrated and timeless tale of their love. Henry and Clare's passionate affair is built and endures across a sea of time and captures them in an impossibly romantic trap…
I’ve been fascinated by time travel and speculative stories since I was a child. I grew up with The Tomorrow People and then later was captivated by Sapphire and Steel. While I love reading most genres and have a book blog and book column in the local press, I feel speculative fiction has just that little extra edge. It answers that clichéd questionwhat if? And transports you into magical visions of slightly different worlds. I hope you enjoy the books on this list as much as I have. And perhaps, one day, The Storytellers might appear on someone else’s. What a joy that would be!
I lost my mother, gosh, about twenty years ago and the idea of being able to time travel back and see her once more is irresistible. What makes this book even more special is that she goes back and meets her mother as an adult at a time when she would have been a child. She even meets her younger self. How amazing would that be? It raised so many thoughts in my mind. What would I tell my younger self, and would there be a way to save my own mother’s life? It’s both a fascinating concept and compelling story. I think anyone who has lost a parent will resonate with its beauty. The ending itself truly took my breath away.
'Nostalgic' The Independent 'Heart-warming' Platinum 'Uplifting' Cosmopolitan 'Beautiful' Stylist 'Quirky' Best
If you could go back in time to find answers to the past, would you?
For Faye, the answer is yes. There is nothing she wouldn't do to find out what really happened when she lost her mother as a child. She is happy with her life - she has a loving husband, two young daughters and supportive friends, even a job that she enjoys. But questions about the past keep haunting her, until one day she finally gets the chance she's been waiting for.
I’ve been fascinated by time travel and speculative stories since I was a child. I grew up with The Tomorrow People and then later was captivated by Sapphire and Steel. While I love reading most genres and have a book blog and book column in the local press, I feel speculative fiction has just that little extra edge. It answers that clichéd questionwhat if? And transports you into magical visions of slightly different worlds. I hope you enjoy the books on this list as much as I have. And perhaps, one day, The Storytellers might appear on someone else’s. What a joy that would be!
This book is heartbreaking and magical. I thought at first it was a romance novel, but a speculative twist took me by surprise. I became enthralled in those chapters not wanting to leave them. Not quite believing the brilliance of the premise. My daughter had gone through a very similar situation, so every emotion felt raw, and I completely engaged with Anna’s dilemma. How could she choose what to do? I tentatively told my daughter about it and after reading it, she agreed it was amazing too. The ending, which brought me to tears, is hopeful and poignant. It is such a unique story, but I won’t spoil it by mentioning the theme portrayed in it.
From the USA Today and Wall Street Journal bestselling author comes an emotional romance that is "beautifully written and plotted" (Candis).
This is not a typical love story, but it's our love story.
When Anna arrives in a Spanish beach town for a much-needed escape from real life, she isn’t looking for love. Until Adam sweeps her off her feet. There’s no denying their connection, and what begins as a beautiful romance soon becomes a vow to love each other . . . forever.
Years later, cracks have appeared in their marriage. In an attempt to rekindle their fire, they…
When I think of the distant past, I imagine it being populated by those who were a bit closer to the magical world than we. The men (or were they wizards?) who raised the standing stones. The druids of the ancient Celtic world. Figures like Arthur, Robin Hood, and the Viking shamans who harbored a kinship with the waters, with the trees, and with the land. The magic of the past is like a song played on a harp, the echoes of which still waft through our world. Some of us can hear those echoes yet, and some of us write about them.
Avril Borthiry is one of those writers who captivate you, hijack you and absorb you into the tale she tells. You can tell she feels the Historical Romance she writes, and she has the rare talent of imparting what she feels to her reader. This is a powerful tale. As with all of life, there is light and dark in this story, a battle between good and evil. You will love her characters. You will weep, suffer, bleed, and rejoice with them. Even after you finish reading, you will never really leave this book behind.
Alexander Mathanach is a Scottish knight; a man of noble birth haunted by a tragic event in his past. Those he loved betrayed him and almost destroyed his faith. Yet, despite his bitterness, he fulfilled the vow he made. As promised, he took the orphaned child from the abbey and raised her as his own, choosing to live a quiet life in the depths of a remote, northern forest.But Alexander is guardian to more than a young girl. He is also the keeper of a divine artifact, one that draws a terrible evil to his secluded doorstep. When his peaceful…
A few years ago, I began rediscovering my hometown of Denver as I walked neighborhoods and revisited landmarks of the city that I had not seen since I was a kid. Essential Denver highlights the fabulous things the city offers from my perspective as a Denver native. I encourage readers to explore Denver, plan outings, and become involved in the community. I hope this Denver book list sparks more interest in landmarks, treasures, and the history of Denver to ensure the city’s future is strong and vital.
I like reading about Denver's history, but I love seeing pictures bring that history to life. This book shows old pictures of buildings and compares them with the present-day look. In some cases, beautiful old buildings no longer exist or have been drastically altered. This is a great coffee table book.
Celebrating America's favorite cityscapes, this series combines historic interest and contemporary beauty. Then and Now features fascinating archival photographs contrasted with specially commissioned, full-color images of the same scene today. A visual lesson in the historic changes of our greatest urban landscapes.
I’m the author of Fraternity: Stories. I don’t consider myself a fraternity bro, but I hold the Greek men and women I write about very close to my heart because I know the feeling of being young and lost and wanting a guidebook for behavior, and how easily the young can be exiled, in one way or another, by their peers. I feel for every young person who’s disgraced and humiliated, whether it’s on social media or in a tumbledown colonial with wooden letters nailed to the front. I also feel for every young person who lives in fear of disgrace and humiliation.
My wife and I and half of our friends have had the same experience reading this book, namely, bursting into tears while reading it on the subway. About half the stories in this collection have endings that are devastating/ecstatic gut punches, and the reason is that they are explorations of disgrace. Curtis is hilarious, but the everyday ostracizations that befall the young women in this book would tear you apart even if they weren’t funny.
In this dazzling literary debut, Rebecca Curtis displays the gifts that make her one of the most talented writers of her generation. Her characters—young women struggling to find happiness, love, success, security, and adventure—wait tables, run away from home, fall for married men, betray their friends, and find themselves betrayed as well.
In "Hungry Self," a young waitress descends into the basement of a seemingly ordinary Chinese restaurant; in "Twenty Grand," a young wife tries to recover her lost fortune; in "Monsters," one family's paranoia leads to a sacrifice; and in "The Witches," an innocent swim on prom night proves…
Everyone wants to find romance. Some of us find it within the pages—or more than once. I also think romance gets a bad rap, but I for one love to fall in love repeatedly. It doesn’t matter if they’re fictional because when you read a story; you get lost in their world, as though you’re their friend, too. That is what I strive for when I write my characters. I write them as someone you could go out for a drink with and just have a good time. However, most of my characters experience life or death situations, but that just makes them stronger in the end, especially when I base them on my real-life experiences like in Tattooed Dots.
Confined Space is a book that clutches your heartstrings, pulling you in, and demanding you find out what secrets Coral is hiding. I love the way that Rowdy loves Coral and wants to protect her. How he wants to give Archer love too and take care of him. Even after the pain, Coral suffers she can find love again and move on.
E.M. Shue’s Confined Space is an emotional journey and romantic suspense written in K. Bromberg’s Everyday Heroes World.At the end of her rope, Coral Pierce decides to move on to a new town and start over. Sunnyville isn’t what she was expecting when she and her newborn son are involved in a serious accident. She soon finds herself entrapped within not only the car but the eyes of the firefighter helping her. But with her past issues she should just stick to talking to him, not thinking about what he looks like under his bunker gear.Tall, muscular, and independent Rowdy…
I am an author who believes stories must first entertain and thrill if they are ever to instill something powerful and unforgettable. While I would love to sit here and compile books that laud the values I believe in, that’s just not how it works. Action is the best way to convey theme – and these examples celebrate the storytelling techniques I stand by. I love ass-kickers, in literature and in life. And I hope one day to be remembered as one of them.
Good sweet lawd of mercy, if you want ass-kicking, read Marty Wilsey. Ass-kicking with guns? Yes. Ass-kicking with fists? Yes. Ass-kicking with blades? Yes. Ass-kicking with good writing? You better believe it. This is Wilsey’s debut book, and it opens up his breakneck-paced sci-fi repertoire. High recommended.
He's a working stiff looking for a good paycheck. When the Ventura and its crew enter orbit for a scheduled planet survey, the ship activates an automated defense system protecting the planet. Although the Ventura is destroyed in the attack, Barcus alone survives the harrowing fall to the remote planet surface. He struggles to remain alive and sane, and to discover why everyone he knew and loved on the Ventura was deliberately murdered.
Swinging between despair and fury, Barcus discovers that for every answer he obtains, there are more questions raised. Barcus is assisted by the Emergency Module, Em, his…
My passion is writing. I started writing when I was 10 years old and my passion was reignited by my 11-year-old son. Writing runs in my blood as my late father was a journalist and the first black editor of the Zambia Daily Mail and my late brother was a poet. To date, I have published 17 children's books. I love writing children’s books with a positive message and also to make them laugh and entertained.
This is a lovely book with beautiful illustrations. Kids will learn that nothing is impossible as long as their parents are there to encourage them. It really hit home as I am a father and have 3 kids, my son has a dream of becoming a professional soccer player, my firstborn daughter has a dream of becoming a renowned fashion designer and my 2nd born daughter wants to be a world-famous make-up artist. I encourage them all the way and this book just drives that point further.
Royal, A Divine Design…Dream your Dreams and Push Through is about a boy who experiences challenges in the form of criticism, rejection, and physical limitations that should’ve caused him to quit on life. Instead, he determines in his heart that he will embrace his uniqueness and dream to inspire others. Through his journey, he understands that he is special and that all things are possible if you believe. His determination, courage, and hope will inspire you to not only embrace your own uniqueness, but the uniqueness of others. So, no matter what challenges you face, you can Dream your Dreams…
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