Book Recs: Tearjerkers

Back at ya with another book recommendation post! You guys voted for them and seem to enjoy them so here’s my “tearjerkers” rec post, these (of course) are all books that had me tearing up. It doesn’t take much though to be honest! These books really knew how to tug at the heart strings though!

Here are some books that had me bawling, weeping, and cursing the author’s name. But here I am….convincing you all to read them and suffer the same fate. Fun!

This post is SPOILER FREE although some of you may consider it to be spoiler-y just to say there’s something sad that happens. Nonetheless I won’t be specifying what in any details that will spoil the plot for you all!

PLEASE let me know in the comments if you’d like to see any other kind of recommendation posts!

Each book title will be linked to my full review with the synopsis if you’d like more info!

---

I Am Still Alive by Kate Alice Marshall

This is a survival story about a young girl, Jess, who becomes stranded in the Canadian wilderness after her father is murdered and his cabin burned to the ground. With only her dad’s dog, Bo, as company she must figure out to survive on her own as winter approaches and as she awaits the return of her father’s killers to exact her revenge.

Survival and revenge? Um, yes please! This is definitely more than your average survival story, it’s not slow and boring like I feel a lot of them are it’s actually really evenly paced. It also features a main character with a disability, which was awesome and I thought it was well portrayed and it was never used to make Jess seem “weak” or “helpless”. Jess goes through so much and by the end of the book I was definitely crying….. a lot.

---

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

If any of you know anything about this book then you know why it’s on this list. It’s about a boy named Conor whose mother is going through cancer treatments and doesn’t know how to accept it so a monster comes to help him.

This is a very powerful, emotional read and once again by the end of the book I was crying.

---

The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

Apparently Patrick Ness is the “King of Making Heather Cry” because I never read through a book of his with dry eyes. This one is takes place on another planet, one where men can hear each other’s thoughts constantly and there are no women. One day Todd and his dog Manchee, whose thoughts he can also hear, discover an area of complete silence and discover a secret that causes them to run for their lives.

This is such a creative book and is honestly just extremely well written, there are more than several parts of the book that had me crying. The characters are so endearing and you won’t be able to help falling in love with them, which also makes their circumstances that much more gut wrenching at times.

---

Red Rising Trilogy by Pierce Brown

That’s right, not just one book. ALL OF THEM! I don’t think I made it through a single one of these without crying! I actually had to put “Morning Star” down and I honestly cried for a half hour straight, maybe longer. I’m not ashamed! I was devastated!

But you know….read them anyways. They’re fantastic. You’ll have your heart ripped out and stomped on…but you’ll enjoy it.

---

Stormdancer by Jay Kristoff

Have I talked about “Stormdancer” enough yet? I feel like I have, but here I am…mentioning it again. This is an Asian inspired, steampunk, fantasy featuring a young heroine and her thunder tiger companion as they take on a corrupt government. There’s some scenes that are so heart breaking that I wanted to throw my Kindle across the room and just scream “NOOOOOO!”. Still, there’s plenty of interesting world building, action, and brutal plot twists!

---

Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

I should have known better, I KNEW this would be sad. I KNEW IT! This is a retelling of “The Iliad” about the romance between Achilles and Patroclus as they grow from children into young men and go to fight in the Trojan War. Madeline Miller is a genius, she writes so beautifully and really captures the heart of the characters and also that of the reader. If you know anything about the story of Achilles and Patroclus you know why this story is so sad and tragic but for me the thing that made it so beautiful and so heart wrenching was the romance.

I haven’t reviewed this book due to emotional distress and not being able to form a coherent review but here’s my review for “Circe” also by Madeline Miller. Hopefully this convinces you to read both of her amazing books!

---

Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry

Throwback to my high school days! This book made such an impact on me that I’m still talking about it and reliving those tearjerking pages. This is a zombie apocalypse book but it really is unique in its own right, it’s more about the characters and their stories than it is about the zombies. (Similar to The Walking Dead, I suppose). The main character, Benny, goes on a journey he wasn’t quite expecting with his zombie hunting brother and learns what it truly means to be human.

---

Tiger Lily by Jodi Lynn Anderson

This is a Peter Pan retelling told from Tinkerbell’s POV about the relationship between Tiger Lily and Peter Pan, we watch the characters grow as the story progresses. This is very well written and complex with some twists to the characters that are pretty….for lack of a better word: depressing. This isn’t your typical happy, care-free Neverland, it’s a bleak place full of broken and flawed characters, it will definitely break your heart.

Have you read any of these? What did you think?
What are some of your favorite reads that you either cried while reading or it really tugged at the heart strings?
Are you planning on reading any of these books?
Let me know in the comments!

Other Book Recommendation Posts:

• Insane Plot Twists
• Books Under 300 Pages
• Books For People Who Love Fast Pacing
• Graphic Novels
• Underrated Books
• Retellings

Follow Me Elsewhere: Twitter * Instagram * Goodreads

Advertisement