Winter is a time for staying indoors, throwing on your favourite pyjamas and cosying up with a knockout book. We've picked the best page turners of the season, so you can nestle under the duvet with a great story and not look up until the final page.
Recommendations
9 books to curl up with in your pyjamas
The Giver of Stars by Jojo Moyes
The new epic tale from the wonderful Jojo Moyes will fill you with joy from start to finish. A celebration of female friendship, it follows Alice, a woman bored with her life in 1930s England. Soon swept off her feet by a handsome American, she moves to Kentucky and finds herself volunteering to run a travelling library - without her husband's permission. A whirlwind of freedom, feistiness and friendship ensues, especially when the town turns against the women who are trying to take books to those who need them. It's mesmerising. It's romantic. It'll fill you with wonder and love and surprise. Quite simply, you won't find a more beautiful book to spend your winter nights with.
One Winter Morning by Isabelle Broom
If you adore Christmas but not the miserable, grey-skied weather that often goes with it, transport yourself to the enchanting land of New Zealand with this absolute heart-wrencher. Evangeline is missing her adoptive mother terribly. She passed away last Christmas, and the twinkling lights and festive music is only reminding her of her sadness. So when she discovers where her birth mother lives, she decides to take a trip to the other side of the world, to find her family, find some answers, and maybe find herself again. It's an emotional, big-hearted book that comes with a warning: it's likely to reduce you to tears. Keep some tissues in your pyjama pockets, just in case.
This feel-good, eye-opening book is one to devour when you have a whole night to yourself. Switch off Netflix, get in your favourite PJs and lose yourself in a timely, entertaining story about identity, growing up and young love. Frank loves Joy. Joy loves Frank. At least, that's what they tell their parents, because Frank is only allowed to date Korean girls, when really he loves Brit, a white girl who is supposedly off limits. Fake dating solves all their problems. Doesn't it? It's charming, it's funny and it's one to read with your feet up and a big bag of popcorn to hand.
Christmas Shopaholic by Sophie Kinsella
There's only one thing better than Christmas itself, and that's a fun, heart-warming book about Christmas to read in the lead up to the big day! And who better to deliver than the brilliant Sophie Kinsella? Our shopping-obssessed Becky Brandon (née Bloomwood) finds herself with the troublesome task of hosting Christmas dinner this year. No problem, right? Not with all the online bargains that can be had? Throw in a vegan turkey, problematic picnic hamper, uninspiring gift requests and surprise appearance of an old boyfriend, and festive joy is set to turn to complete chaos. It's rip-roaring, smile-inducing entertainment at its best, with a smattering of Sophie Kinsella sparkle. (Plus it'll look beuatiful under the tree with its glittering front cover, in case you want to buy it for a friend, too.)
The Christmas Invitation by Trisha Ashley
If you want nothing more than a heart-warming tale to snuggle up with this winter, then look no further than this heartfelt story from Trisha Ashley. Her loveable leading lady, Meg, isn't exactly a fan of Christmas, and all the tinsel and fuss that goes with it. But when she's invited to spend Christmas in the snowy countryside, she's about to get a taste of the festive magic that she's been missing her whole life. With a romantic blast from the past and her first real experience of a family Christmas, perhaps all the trimmings aren't so bad after all. It's an uplifting book made for nights by the fire, turning the pages as you keep toasty warm beneath a blanket.
The Girl at the Window by Rowan Coleman
Spell-binding, spine-tingling stories are the perfect companions for when it's raining outside and you're cosy indoors. This magical read is no exception, glittering with ghostly atmosphere, a wonderful lead character and some buried secrets that come to light. After the devastating loss of her husband, Trudy returns to her family home with her son, after years of not speaking to her mother. Set on the Yorkshire Moors, the old house has secrets lingering within its walls, and when Trudy finds a bundle of forgotten letters, those secrets are about to be dredged to the surface. It shines with hope, grief and love – and will stay with you long after you finish the final chapter.
It might not be a story as such, but this is a book made for long, cosy nights, where you have a little time and headspace all to yourself. Learn to spark, glow and dazzle with Lorraine Kelly's heartfelt, down-to-earth tips about living life to its fullest. With stories from her own life, expert advice and practical exercises you can do with pen and paper, it's a self-help book that positively shines from the inside out - and will help you to do the same. It'll make a stunning gift this Christmas, but would be equally at home on your bedside table for year-round inspiration. Make a hot chocolate, snuggle down into your pillows, and tap into some well-deserved me-time with Shine.
Sometimes a devilishly dark story is just the thing for a cold winter's night. This eerie psychological suspense novel will have you gripped on every page, telling the story of Charlie, a woman who turns up at a remote village in Cornwall with a secret. She provided a false alibi for a murderer - who just so happened to be the man she loved. Now she's trying to start afresh, keep herself to herself and move on with her life. But someone's watching her. Someone who thinks she needs to pay the price for what she did. This is atmospheric, teeth-clenching drama from start to finish, and a book you won't be able to tear your eyes from.
One Day in December by Josie Silver
Imagine this. A snowy morning, a misted up bus window, a woman's eyes meeting those of a stranger standing at a bus stop. It's love at first sight, but then the bus drives away. And when Laurie meets the man of her dreams again, he just happens to be dating her best friend... Heart-breaking, hopeful and the most romantic story you'll read all year, this is a will-they won't-they romance you'll sink into right from the start. It's a cosy hug of a book, complete with a passionate kiss in the snow that could give Bridget Jones and Mr Darcy a run for their money. We'll say no more. Get in your PJs, make a mulled wine and hunker down with a copy, whether it's December or not.
