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Some books are a warm bath after a long week. The best feel-good reads don't pretend the world is simple - many of them touch real grief or loneliness - but they leave you lighter than they found you, convinced that people are mostly kind and that things can come good. These are the novels our editors and readers reach for when they need a lift.
The short answer
- The one to start with
- Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman — funny and sad, and finally hopeful
- Best comfort read
- A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman — a grump and the neighbours who save him
- Best gentle magic
- The Midnight Library by Matt Haig — the lives you might have lived
What makes a feel-good book?
It isn't the absence of sadness; it's the presence of hope. A feel-good book usually has a character you root for, a community that pulls together, a streak of humour, and an ending that earns its warmth rather than faking it. The titles below range from gentle comedy to quietly profound - but every one of them sends you back into your day in a better mood.
Our pick of the best feel-good books
The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
Between life and death is a library of the lives you could have lived - a gentle hymn to second chances.“A beautiful and inspiring story that is full of hope”Our review, by the LoveReading team
Reviewed by the LoveReading teamA Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman
A curmudgeon, a stray cat and the neighbours who won't leave him alone; grumpy, tender, joyful.Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman
A funny, big-hearted story about loneliness and the small kindnesses that change everything.“A page-turning, compulsive read of great charm”Our review, by Sarah Broadhurst
Reviewed by Sarah BroadhurstThe Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce
One man walks the length of England to save an old friend; quietly life-affirming.The Authenticity Project by Clare Pooley
A notebook of honest confessions draws strangers together - warm, charming and full of heart.The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune
A found-family fantasy so cosy and kind it feels like a hug in book form.Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
A 1960s chemist-turned-TV-cook fights her corner with wit and steel; uplifting and very funny.The Keeper of Lost Things by Ruth Hogan
Lost objects, second chances and gentle magic; a balm of a novel.“One of Our Books of the Year 2017 | Oh my, this is totally and completely gorgeous, in fact, an absolute treasure!”Our review, by Liz Robinson
Reviewed by Liz Robinson
Who chose these books, and why that matters
This is not a list pulled from a bestseller chart. Every title here was read and chosen by the LoveReading editorial panel, and we turn far more books down than we put forward.
The panel includes a judge of the Crime Writers’ Association Gold Dagger; a past Chair of the CILIP Carnegie and Kate Greenaway Medals; a former children’s editor of the Guardian, who is also Children’s Director of the Hay Festival; a Managing Director of the Hay Festival of twenty years; the founder of the Murder One bookshop, who has reviewed for the Guardian, The Times and the Daily Telegraph; and two UK School Librarians of the Year.
Each is named, with a photograph and full biography, on our editorial experts page.
Members of the panel include:
Liz RobinsonLoveReading reviewer since 2014 and former judge of the CWA Gold Dagger
Lois CudjoeBook critic, content creator and passionate cross-genre reader
Maureen StapletonWriter and journalist with international publishing experience
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Julie VuongPublishing journalist, BookBrunch feature writer and Mslexia columnist
Their judgements are informed by our Reader Review Panel — several hundred readers across our adult and children’s sites who read titles before publication and tell us plainly whether a book delivers.
LoveReading has been recommending books since 2004 and has reviewed more than 33,000 titles in that time. We review for schools, for publishers and for readers, and we are a winner of the Small Business x Sage pop-up shop competition on London’s Oxford Street.
Every physical book bought through us donates 25% of the cover price to a school of your choice — more than £100,000 in books so far.
Looking for a gift?
Feel-good novels make some of the easiest, most welcome presents - hard to get wrong, lovely to receive. Browse our latest reviews and editors' picks of the month for more warm, uplifting reads all year round.
Your questions answered
What counts as a feel-good book?
A feel-good book leaves you lighter and more hopeful than it found you. It doesn't avoid sadness - many of the best touch real loss - but it offers warmth, humour and an ending that earns its optimism. Think comfort, kindness and characters you can't help rooting for.
Are feel-good books the same as 'cosy' or 'comfort' reads?
They overlap a lot. 'Cosy' usually points to a gentle, low-jeopardy tone; 'comfort read' often means a familiar favourite. Feel-good is the broadest of the three - any book, in any genre, that reliably lifts your mood. Most of our picks fit all three labels.
Who decides which feel-good books make the list?
Our editorial team, informed by our 800-strong Reader Review Panel, who read widely across every genre. A mood like 'feel-good' can't be measured by a sales rank, so this list reflects genuine reading judgement rather than a popularity chart.
Which feel-good book should I start with?
For gentle comedy with real depth, start with A Man Called Ove or Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine. If you want something cosier and more escapist, try The House in the Cerulean Sea. All are easy to fall into and hard to put down.
More from the LoveReading blog
- 20+ Novels of Community Unity – the best feel-good fiction about communities coming togetherOctober 2023
- Make a New Book-friend in These 10 Fabulous Feel-good Tales Where the Main Focus Is a Relationship Other than a Romantic OneAugust 2022
- 50 Festive Feel-Good Reads To Get You In The Christmas Spirit In No TimeOctober 2023
- Q&A with Charlotte Levin: Outside. Tender, funny, Feel-Good Fiction.August 2026