Books to Beat the Winter Blahs

Readers, I have a confession. It's no secret, but I hate winter. Loathe it. Despise it with an undying passion! It's cold and blustery, cloudy and grey. I crave warmth in a way that seems I'll never be satisfied again. Honestly, if I could hibernate the winter (and spring considering our snows) away I totally would. Alas that is not an option and neither is a dream home in the Caribbean to while away the cold seasons. At least I have my towering TBR to give me some respite :)

With all the winter storms of late it seems everyone is putting together a winter reading list. I'd actually begun preparing this one before the so called polar vortex hit but now I'm late to the game in posting.

If you suffer from the winter blahs like I do, here's a random set of reading suggestions to help get you through!

Chunksters to Pass the Time

Sue Grafton's Kinsey Millhone series - on their own, each installment is a super quick read. Combined you could probably get through a massive chunk of winter with the current 23 installments. Start with A is For Alibi. If you're not hooked by C is for Corpse, well...

The Song of Ice and Fire series by George R. R. Martin, with supplemental reading material (i.e. GRRM's SoI&F novellas). I strongly suggest also padding it out with the tv show as well since it's phenomenally done.

Stephen King's Dark Tower series - with seven books (eight including the add on of Wind Through the Keyhole, ten if you include Talisman and Black House, and infinity if you tack on all the connected pieces in King's oeuvre).

At Least We Don't Have it This Bad

The Terror by Dan Simmons - seriously, the doomed northwest passage expedition. I read it during a blizzard, I kid you not. (I could load this list up with Simmons but I'll resist the urge this time.)

Smilla's Sense of Snow by Peter Høeg - one of my first and still one of my favorite Scandinavian thrillers.

The Silent Land by Graham Joyce - it's kind of a wonderfully fascinating but bleak read. If odd and thoughtful are your thing I highly recommend it. Joyce is fabulous and more people should read him.

Summer Settings

The Cypress House by Michael Koryta - a noir-esque thriller set it Florida in 1935.

Castaways by Briane Keene - fun and gory gross-out horror that pits Survivor like contestants in a competition that means life or death.

The Shadow Year by Jeffrey Ford - a coming of age tale somewhat reminiscent of King's The Body.

Oh, the Horror!

Apocalypse Cow by Michael Logan - Zombiefied animals rampaging through Scotland, sure it's gross but it's also hilarious! If this doesn't get your mind of the winter ick, nothing will.

The People Next Door by Christopher Ransom - what, summer does exist in Colorado after all?!

And two new ones I haven't read yet

Snowblind by Christopher Golden - brand new horror set around a blizzard. This one hit shelves on the 21st.

The Abominable by Dan Simmons - this one clocks in over 600 pages and is set on Everest. It's in my TBR as we speak.

Some of the other great lists I've come across include this one from Epic Reads and this one from the BN Book Blog (which has a few in common with my own list).