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📖 Books That Made Me Forget My Phone

19 items

Cindy

For all book lovers out there. Here are some of the books I couldn't put down. From Dark Romance to Dystopian adventures, find your next read here.
📲 Prefer reading on Kindle? Tap here for my Kindle-only list + KU links → benable.com/cindypicks/kindlelibrary

Sections

Epic Fantasy Worth the Commitment

YA & Adult Romantasy

Dark Folklore / Unsettling Romance

Dystopian / Sci-Fi

Historical Fiction

Gripping Thrillers & Dark Twists

Epic Fantasy Worth the Commitment

These aren’t just books, they’re full-blown universes. Complex plots, huge casts, political drama, their own languages, and dragons (probably). If you're ready to fall in and not come up for air until the end… start here.

Wholesome hobbits, ancient kings, and battles that shaped fantasy as we know it. These books are slow, immersive, and perfect for readers who want to escape into a world that feels like folklore come to life.

The Hobbit & The Lord Of The Rings

Let’s be real: if you’re gonna read one, you’re gonna read them all. This full set covers everything from the Stark-Lannister beef to the rise of dragons and the chaos beyond the Wall. Way deeper and darker than the show, with plotlines that still ha...

A Song of Ice and Fire Series

YA & Adult Romantasy

Fantasy romance with high stakes, emotional damage (the fun kind), and plots that pull you in FAST. Think brooding magic boys, badass heroines, and chemistry that crackles. These are the ones you’ll read ‘til 3AM and immediately need fan art for.

Slow-burn fantasy romance that pulls you in quietly… then refuses to let go. If you like fae, slow-burn tension, and chaotic hot men, this is your entry drug.

A Court of Thorns and Roses

Fast, intense, addictive… Danger, desire, enemies-to-lovers, dragon college, military academy. If you like your romantasy with spice, violence, and unhinged tension… this one eats.

Fourth Wing - The Empyrean Series Book 1

The sequel that made me feral. Plot twists, betrayals, and character arcs that hit harder than expected. Don’t even try to guess what's coming.

Iron Flame - The Empyrean Series Book 2

The fallout hits harder here. Darker turns, deeper bonds, no easy exits. Spicy romantasy with rich lore and a touch of morally grey madness.

Onyx Storm - The Empyrean Series Book 3

This full set includes Fourth Wing, Iron Flame, and Onyx Storm. Aka the entire dragon-riding, romantasy saga that had BookTok in a chokehold. Expect spice, betrayal, plot twists, and characters that will emotionally ruin you (in the best way). If you...

The Empyrean Series - Full Set

Vampire Hunger Games but make it romantasy. Dark, dangerous, and dramatic. And yes, the main guy is a little toxic. We don't judge.

The Serpent and Wings of Night - Crowns 1

A Hades x Persephone retelling with spice and sass. Modern gods, forbidden love, and all the “I hate you... but also take your clothes off” energy.

A Touch of Darkness

Sharp-tongued and fast-paced fantasy romance with sharp tension, dangerous attraction, and stakes that keep escalating. If you like assassins, rebellion, and a heroine who actually bites back, this one's for you.

Quicksilver

Darkly funny romance with sharp banter, morally questionable characters, and a surprisingly addictive enemies-to-lovers dynamic. It's unhinged... and yet romantic? I don't make the rules.

Butcher & Blackbird

Dark, fast-paced romance with obsessive tension and a story that’s hard to put down. I devoured this book.

Lights Out

Dark Folklore / Unsettling Romance

Where the air is thick, the woods are watching, and love feels more like a curse than a cure. These stories are slow, shadowy, and emotionally feral… built on tension, isolation, and the thrill of not knowing who to trust. Not always happy. Never for...

A dark, unsettling romance built around ritual, isolation, and a bond that forms where fear should have won. Think demons, haunted towns, and “I could fix him but I won’t” energy. Spooky and spicy.

Her Soul to Take

Dark, isolating, twisted, and intense. A romance that leans into obsession and consequence. This book gets messy fast, but that’s the point. Not for the faint of heart.

Anathema

Dark, unsettling romance where survival, morality, and desire collide. One of the Four Horsemen falls for a human girl while spreading literal plague. A surprisingly soft slow-burn under all the chaos.

Pestilence

Dystopian / Sci-Fi

I'm a sucker for dystopia. Power, control, survival… these stories ask the big questions and don’t offer easy answers. Gritty, gripping, and made to keep you thinking long after the last page.

A chilling, thoughtful dystopia that questions power, morality, and who gets to decide. Futuristic, morally complex, and terrifyingly believable. No death, no disease… unless a Scythe chooses you. I flew through this.

Scythe

Historical Fiction

Deeply personal stories shaped by politics, war, culture, and survival. These books center on resilience, quiet strength, and the complexities of love, all grounded in real-world history. Powerful, emotional, and often unforgettable.

Heartbreaking, beautiful, and deeply human. A look at love, resilience, womanhood, survival, and sisterhood in war-torn Afghanistan. It will stay with you.

A Thousand Splendid Suns

Gripping Thrillers & Dark Twists

Fast-paced, emotionally messy, and full of secrets. These are the thrillers that had me staying up way too late, and immediately grabbing the next book in the series.

Utterly addictive. If you love morally messy characters and plot twists you didn’t see coming, this one’s for you. I flew through it… about to start book two.

The Housemaid

Easy, Entertaining Reads

Quick, witty, and low-effort in the best way. These are the books you breeze through with a smirk. Clever, fun, and perfect when your brain wants to snack, not spiral. A little cheeky, a little charming, always entertaining.

If you’ve ever fantasized about moving to Paris and living the expat dream... this book is the brutally honest (and hilarious) reality check. Think: croissants, chaos, cultural confusion, and a lot of “WTF is going on?” moments. Perfect for fans of d...

A Year in the Merde