Eight books that offer respite and escape

Why read this: For those who want to wake up in another century, this is a richly imagined return to the world of Pride and Prejudice – but through Mary Bennet’s overlooked perspective. Hadlow transforms a marginal character into a quietly compelling heroine, tracing her journey from awkward outsider to self-assured woman. Drawing rooms, country estates and the rigid expectations of Regency society are rendered with immersive detail, offering a story that feels both faithful to Austen and freshly expansive in its emotional depth. Adapted for BBC One starring Richard E. Grant.

If you’re looking for: A period drama that feels like a warm blanket, character-driven storytelling, Regency society, quiet transformation, sisterhood, social observation.

Great for fans of: Jane Austen, Longbourn by Jo Baker, Bridgerton by Julia Quinn.

What the experts say: ‘A delight. A perfect spring read. Or a perfect read if you are feeling low. Let it lift you.' - Lucy Mangan, author of Bookworm: A Memoir of Childhood Reading

Why read this: Haunting, steeped in atmosphere and a real slow-burn, Last One Out is a mystery that will consume your thoughts. In the dying town of Carralon Ridge, a young man’s disappearance leaves behind only a chilling trace: footprints in the dust that lead in and out. Five years later, his mother returns, determined to unearth the truth of what happened buried within a fractured community. Harper masterfully blends emotional depth with simmering tension, crafting a story where grief, suspicion and secrets hang heavy in the air. This is crime fiction at its most immersive – quiet, devastating and utterly compelling.

If you’re looking for: Atmospheric small-town mystery, unsolved disappearance, emotional depth, slow-burn suspense, fractured communities, layered characters, haunting settings.

Great for fans of: Val McDermid, Chris Whitaker, Elly Griffiths, Ann Cleeves.

What the experts say: ‘Jane Harper delivers unbearable tension’ – Val McDermid, author of the Tony Hill and Carol Jordan series.

Why read this: If you want to leave this galaxy – and its problems – behind. Vast, unsettling and brilliantly imaginative, Children of Strife pushes science fiction into thrilling new territory. When a long-lost terraformed world is rediscovered, what awaits is not salvation but something far more dangerous – a legacy of human ambition gone catastrophically wrong. As scientist Alis descends into a hostile, unknowable ecosystem alongside an unlikely crew, Tchaikovsky explores the limits of intelligence, evolution and control. Combining high-stakes survival with mind-bending speculative ideas, this is immersive, widescreen sci-fi that makes you feel both awed and deeply uneasy about what might be waiting among the stars.

If you’re looking for: A setting in the stars, epic space opera, first contact, alien ecosystems, high-concept science fiction, survival against the unknown, philosophical themes, expansive world-building.

Great for fans of: Dune, Peter F. Hamilton, James S.A. Corey’s The Expanse, Ann Leckie’s Ancillary Justice.

What the experts say:  ‘A joy from start to finish. Entertaining, smart, surprising and unexpectedly human’ – Patrick Ness, author of A Monster Calls

Why read this: It's a journey into someone else’s life and mind, offering respite from your own. Breathtaking, smart and achingly romantic, Almost Life is a sweeping love story about the lives we almost choose – and the ones that slip through our fingers. When Erica and Laure meet on the steps of the Sacré-Cœur in 1978, their connection is immediate, electric, and impossible to forget. What follows is a decades-spanning, near-miss romance that moves between cities, choices and second chances, capturing the quiet devastation of timing and the enduring pull of first love. Millwood Hargrave writes with sensuality and precision, creating a story that is as emotionally consuming as it is beautifully observed.

If you’re looking for: Epic love stories, will-they-won’t-they tension, missed chances, queer romance, evocative European settings, emotional intensity, stories that span decades.

Great for fans of: David Nicholls’s One Day, André Aciman’s Call Me by Your Name, Maggie O’Farrell, Normal People by Sally Rooney.

What the experts say: ‘Immersive, sensual, beautiful and powerful' - Marian Keyes, author of My Favourite Mistake

Why read this: An instant Sunday Times No. 1 bestseller, this is the kind of romance that wraps you up completely – warm, witty and fizzing with chemistry, leaving you feeling lighter than when you started. When buttoned-up radio meteorologist Jackson and thrill-seeking field reporter Delilah are forced to cover a record-breaking snowstorm together, their long-standing rivalry begins to thaw into something far more electric. With sparkling banter, irresistible tension and a pitch-perfect opposites-attract dynamic, Borison delivers a love story that feels both comforting and exhilarating – like your favourite romcom, but sharper, hotter and full of heart.

If you’re looking for: Opposites-attract romance, forced proximity, sharp banter, slow-burn chemistry, workplace rivals-to-lovers, emotional payoff. 

Great for fans of: Emily Henry, Hannah Grace, When Harry Met Sally, Tessa Bailey.

What the experts say: ‘A new Borison book feels like coming home in the best way’ – Hannah Grace, author of Icebreaker.

Why read this:  For readers who crave total immersion, this is portal fantasy at its most addictive – a story that sweeps you out of reality and drops you into a brutal, brilliantly imagined world. When Maggie wakes in the city from her favourite fantasy book, she has one advantage: its a city she knows intimately. But knowledge is a dangerous weapon in a place ruled by ambition, magic and bloodshed. As she becomes entangled with assassins, nobles and rival powers, the novel balances high-stakes political intrigue with sharp humour and irresistible momentum – a thrilling escape where every choice could rewrite fate.

If you’re looking for: Portal fantasy, isekai tropes, out-of-this-world adventure, political intrigue, found family, slow-burn tension, morally complex characters, high-stakes adventure.

Great for fans of: Game of Thrones, Outlander, Samantha Shannon, Sarah J. Maas, Danielle L. Jensen.

What the experts say: ‘Absolutely brilliant! This is the kind of book that will make you forget the world exists’ – Sarah Beth Durst, author of The Spellshop.

Why read this: Dark, sensual and steeped in gothic atmosphere that will draw you into its depths, The Brides reimagines Dracula through a fiercely romantic, sapphic lens. When Mafalda travels to Budapest with her secret love, Lucy, in pursuit, their journey is clouded by a chaperone’s wasting illness, a maid’s uncanny visions, and a deepening sense of dread. As the women seek the healing waters of Transylvania, a nobleman's invitation lures them toward the legendary Castle Dracula. Far from civilization, they discover their aristocratic host harbors a monstrous ambition – one that threatens to consume their lives and tear their souls apart.

If you’re looking for: Gothic horror, sapphic romance, dark retellings, eerie atmosphere, obsessive love, supernatural dread, slow-building tension, tragic stakes

Great for fans of: Bram Stoker’s Dracula, Hungerstone by Kat Dunn, The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova.

What the experts say: ‘Dracula’s worthy successor . . . chills and delights in equal measure’ – Johanna Van Veen, author of Blood on Her Tongue.

Why read this: Sultry, suspenseful and laced with danger, Nightshade is dark academia at its most addictive. Set against the brooding backdrop of a remote Scottish Highlands university, this is a story where privilege hides secrets and every shadow feels alive with threat. Ophelia arrives determined to uncover the truth behind her parents’ deaths – but her investigation pulls her into a dangerous orbit around Alex, the son of her prime suspect. What follows is a heady mix of murder, revenge and slow-burning desire, where trust is fragile and love might be the most dangerous risk of all.

If you’re looking for: Dark academia, enemies-to-lovers, romantic suspense, murder mystery, elite secret societies, brooding settings, revenge plots, morally grey characters.

Great for fans of: Ali Hazelwood, The Secret History by Donna Tartt, Gothikana by RuNyx.

What the experts say: ‘Immensely fun and sexy . . . everything I love about dark academia. Autumn Woods wrote a winner!’ – Ali Hazelwood, author of Bride and Mate.