As readers, we love talking about the books we’re reading with others. Most of the time though, we’ve already finished the book and are just sharing our overall thoughts. If you’ve ever wanted to share your play by play thoughts about your book, you might want to consider a buddy read!
Buddy reading is when you read a book with a friend (or multiple friends!) at the exact same time. It’s one of my favorite ways to connect with my book besties! You might think that this sounds super easy, but there’s an art to it…kinda. 😉 I’ll share my thoughts on the different ways to buddy read, as well as give you book recs and tips to make it super easy and fun!
Before we continue, you might be thinking, ‘Mallory, how is this different than a book club?‘ The answer is, you get to talk about the book AS you’re reading it, not just at the end. 🙌 You’re giving your thoughts in the moment! I’ve loved being able to share theories and predictions with my friends because then you get bragging rights at the end if you’re right. 😏 So now let’s dive in…
I believe there are two ways to approach a buddy read:
civilized vs. chaotic
The civilized way is the least stressful way. It involves you creating a kind of ‘reading plan’. You could choose to read a certain amount of chapters by a certain day or just say, we’ll be halfway thru the book by this day. The goal is to not spoil anything for the other person so if you keep the chapter plan shorter, you’ll usually be okay!
The chaotic way is the most stressful way. And honestly, this is the way I always choose. 🤪 This is when you decide the day you’re starting the book and then you just read as fast as you can, LOL! You run the risk of spoiling things a bit more this way if you aren’t communicating well, but I figured out some work arounds for that.
Both plans require a decent amount of communication,
but I have some hacks!
No matter way you choose, you always need to communicate what part you’re at in your book. 😂 It can be as simple as texting your friend(s) your page number OR if you’re technologically savvy, the StoryGraph app has a buddy read feature! It’s seriously so cool. You can write up a description (aka the plan you want to follow with your friend) and then update your progress with hidden comments! So you can leave comments in the app as you go and they’ll stay hidden to your friends until they reach that place in the book and then they can choose to see it… GENIUS. 🤓
Another app I love using, and may or may not bully my friends into getting for our buddy reads, is Marco Polo! This is a video messaging app because let’s be real, my thoughts cannot be contained to a text message. 💁♀️ Now, each time I start a polo I make sure to say, ‘this is the page I’m on so if you’re not there, turn this off,’ so as to not spoil anything, but this is hands down my favorite way to discuss! It makes me feel like I’m in person gossiping with my friends instead of being miles apart.
Wondering what books would make a good buddy read?
I got you!
To be honest, any book can make a good buddy read if you and your friend(s) are interested in it! So make sure to chat about your favorite genres/authors to help narrow things down. Then, consider these suggestions to help set yourself up for success for your first buddy read.
First, you might want to choose a book in the 300 page count – it’s not too long, but not too short! Second, choosing a standalone book, rather than one in a series, will be best so you don’t feel compelled to keep going if the buddy read isn’t what you expected. 👍 Lastly, maybe choose a friend who has a similar reading speed as you, lol! Though it’s not necessary, especially if you do the civilized way, it might take the pressure off to try and read quickly if you’re on the same level as your friend(s).
Need help deciding what book to read?
Here are some suggestions!
I’ve read stand alone books and series as buddy reads and had a blast with both. I’m including some books I’ve personally done a buddy read with, as well as some ideas based on genre for you to get started!
ROMANCE
You might have heard of these three women, but have you read ALL of their work? These ladies are my romance queens! 👑 You can read their books in any order* so choose whichever one(s) seems best for you! PS. I cannot even choose my favorites from each one so that’s why I’m mainly recommending authors as opposed to titles for this category. You can’t go wrong!
Carley Fortune || Her books range from 300-350 pages and take place in Canada with a cottage-y vibe which I’m always here for. She has 3 books out currently with a 4th releasing spring 2025.
Emily Henry || You’ve heard of her, you probably love her, but yes, I still recommend! Her books range from 360-400 pages and all have a literary theme running thru them.
Abby Jimenez || *Abby does have ‘series’, but they’re not necessary to read in order. They just have 1-2 overlapping characters, but don’t follow an overarching storyline you’d need to follow. Her books range from 350-450 pages and she always mentions Nadia’s Cupcakes, her other business!
MYSTERY
I’ve chosen some of my favorite mysteries from the past 2-3 years that I still think and talk about to this day! Mysteries can be hard because sometimes they’re predictable, but these ones really had me taken by surprise.
‘Rock, Paper, Scissors’ by Alice Feeney || Two words… THE TWIST. I loved it so much I wrote a GoodReads review for it after I finished and I never do that, lol! I can’t stop telling people to read this so it’s no surprise it made this list. {300 pages}
‘The Silent Patient’ by Alex Michaelides || This one made me think! I always take that as the sign of a good book because it’s not predictable like others I’ve read. It’s won GoodReads Awards and has an epic twist that I truly didn’t see coming. {336 pages}
‘The Only One Left’ by Riley Sager || I’ve read 2 of Riley’s books and they do not disappoint! Lots of twists and such an interesting story/plot I hadn’t read before. When I mention mystery books to people, his name is usually one of the ones that comes up first. You can’t go wrong! {383 pages}
FICTION
These are some great standalone fiction books that I’ve rated very highly over the last year. Two of them have elements of magical realism, but it always helps me to know that going in, so you’re welcome. 😉
‘Love Song for Ricki Wilde’ by Tia Williams || This book is fiction with magical realism and centers around a beautiful, and musical, love story. If you know me, music is a big part of my life! So yea, I’m going to enjoy a love story about a musician, LOL {350 pages}
‘The Library of Borrowed Hearts’ by Lucy Gilmore || If you’re in the mood for a feel-good read about young love, how books brought them together, with a hint of mystery, here you go! This was a beautiful, heartwarming story that left me with the biggest smile on my face. {368 pages}
‘Remarkably Bright Creatures’ by Shelby Van Pelt || You’ve probably heard people talk about this one and though it took me a minute to get into it (sometimes ‘magical realism’ does that for me), I loved this story and the writing! It will lead to great discussions for sure. {368 pages}
FANTASY
Okay this is a HARD category to choose books in because I’ve only read one standalone fantasy book. 😂 I know they exist, but I’ve only ever read fantasy series! So, I’m going to tell you about some that I love that aren’t Sarah J Maas or Rebecca Yarros. (But you should still read all the books by them, LOL!)
‘Bride’ by Ali Hazelwood || This WAS a standalone until she announced a sequel to be released Fall 2025 so until then you can pretend it’s a standalone. I devoured this book in 24 hours and thought it was a better, more adult version of Twilight since we have vampires and werewolves with a hint of Romeo and Juliet! {400 pages}
‘The House in the Cerulean Sea’ by T.J. Klune || This one isn’t romantasy- it’s straight up fantasy – but in a way that’s digestable for everyone! The fantasy aspect isn’t overpowering and this book gave me ALL the feels. I laughed out loud, I cried, it made my heart burst. Found family, choosing where you belong, and also shining a light on complacency in our society. It does have a sequel that recently released, just fyi! {394 pages}
‘The Shepherd King’ Duology by Rachel Gillig || I told you it was hard to find a standalone book so hopefully you’re okay with a duology. ✌️ This ‘series’ is romantasy, has 2 books {399 + 439 pages}, and the magic system is unlike one I’ve ever read about before! Very unique and I read them both in 48 hours so they come highly recommended, lol!
Now that you’re an expert on buddy reading, I hope you’ll call up your book bestie(s) and get on it! I’d love to hear what books you’ve buddy read in the comments👇 so we can all add some more to our TBR. And if you’re wondering if there’s a great place for you to get together in person for your next buddy read, why not come to book·cation?! It’s the reading retreat you’ve been craving, I promise.
Be the first to comment