TTT: Atmospheric novels with a cozy-ish feel

Top Ten Tuesday: Atmospheric novels with a cozy-ish feel

On October 23, 2023 I created a list of atmospheric novels with a creepy, dark vibe. The books I included on that list were: The Shadow of the Wind; Wuthering Heights; Jane Eyre; Sabriel; Rebecca; The Hound of the Baskervilles; The Thirteenth Tale; Burial Rites; Northanger Abbey; and Sea of Tranquility.

Today I shall attempt to populate my list with books which enveloped me in the story, where I was wrapped up not only with the characters put with the setting. There may be a tinge of darkness, but I lived inside the story during the time of its reading and maybe for a long time afterwards.

1. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern. Yes, there was darkness but the whole story wrapped itself around me like a warm hug.

2. Piranesi by Susanna Clarke. Piranesi lives in a world of statues and tide tables, yet he is kind and comfortable in his role as the caretaker. 

3. The House in the Cerulean Sea by TJ Klune. The house and the island were definitely part of the story. What a fun, odd place.

4. All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr. Set mostly in an old house on the coast of France during WWII, the attic is both a place of solace and of menace.

5. Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor. All I can say is this book had me wrapped up so tight in its hold the whole time.

6. The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker. I lived inside this story for weeks. Is that even possible?

7. Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir. The setting, outer space and inside a spaceship, was so unique and fantastical. Everything about the books setting and plot was atmospheric. 

8. Stardust by Neil Gaiman. Gaiman is the master of the intricate settings and intricate plots. I loved this story about a star who falls to Earth and becomes human. Oh boy. There is a lot to love in this book.

9. Hamnet by Maggie O'Farrell. Set in Shakespeare's home in Stratford-Upon-Avon. His children are sick. One dies. His wife walks through her life as in a dream. The whole atmosphere is very dream-like.

10. And Then There Were None by Agatha Christie. Not a cozy story, but a rather cozy setting, in a house on an island. Mysterious but not scary.

-Anne