The Greatest Books Since 1980
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This list represents a comprehensive and trusted collection of the greatest books. Developed through a specialized algorithm, it brings together 759 'best of' book lists to form a definitive guide to the world's most acclaimed books. For those interested in how these books are chosen, additional details can be found on the rankings page.
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13751. Riley's Last Hunt by Frank Calkins
Thel Riley is a veteran big game hunter. He is hired by a wealthy Eastern businessman to guide the man and his son on a treacherous hunt. Riley leads the businessman and his son into the hunt and acts as their guide throughout the dangerous outing. The book follows Riley as he guides the father and son through the treacherous hunt.
The 17175th Greatest Book of All Time -
13752. Weep No More, My Lady by Mary Higgins Clark
Elizabeth Lange arrives at a spa in Pebble Beach, California, still grieving her sister Leila, who plunged to her death from her Manhattan penthouse. Dashing millionaire Ted Winters stands accused of murder, but Elizabeth doubts his guilt and sets out to uncover the truth. Along the windswept cliffs of the Monterey coast and among luxurious bungalows, uneasiness stalks her as glimpses of Leila's life and of Elizabeth herself begin to surface. An ominous threat from an unexpected source builds around her.
The 17175th Greatest Book of All TimePurchase from Bookshop.org -
13753. Precisamos Falar Sobre O Kevin by Lionel Shriver
A searing, epistolary account in which a mother writes to her estranged husband to trace their son’s life from infancy to the moment he orchestrates a school massacre, examining her ambivalence toward motherhood, the unraveling of family life, and the wrenching questions of nature versus nurture, responsibility, and the social consequences of violence.
The 17175th Greatest Book of All Time -
13754. The Hampton Sisters by Bernard F. Conners
The novel is set in the sequestered, eccentric, amiably self-indulged WASP world of Old Hampton, Long Island. The Hampton sisters are rich, desirable, and single, yet their shabby-genteel shorefront estate reeks of murder and madness. Lydia is a gentle recluse and amateur ornithologist. Emily is a star amateur tennis player and budding novelist whose amorous manipulations take her and her lovers between Manhattan's fast-paced publishing world and the leisurely country club of Old Hampton.
The 17175th Greatest Book of All Time -
13755. 'Til The Real Thing Comes Along by Iris Rainer Dart
R.J. Misner is a cynical Jewish woman and one of Hollywood's best female comedy writers. She reluctantly falls in love with a younger man, David Malcolm, a handsome and charismatic man born to wealth and power. The story follows their unlikely relationship and the tensions between her guarded cynicism and his privileged background. Their romance is reluctant.
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13756. Adventures With Dangerous Women by Philip Gurin
Scriptwriter Cliff Dandridge needs a break from his demanding job and girlfriend. He becomes accidentally involved with Nazi hunters, war criminals and the FBI. That accidental involvement draws him into dealings with those hunters and suspected war criminals, and into contact with a series of beautiful, mysterious and dangerous women. The narrative follows his accidental involvement with those forces and the women he meets.
The 17175th Greatest Book of All Time -
13757. Storming Intrepid by Payne Harrison
A high-stakes techno-thriller in which a clandestine U.S. intelligence vessel is seized by hostile forces, triggering a tense race by intelligence operatives and special-operations teams to unravel a wider conspiracy, reclaim the ship, and avert an international crisis; the novel blends political intrigue, espionage, and high-technology action as the protagonists confront betrayal, shifting alliances, and the dangerous consequences of modern surveillance warfare.
The 17175th Greatest Book of All Time -
13758. Joy Ride by Barbara Howell
Madeleine Gibbons is a traditional wife and mother of two who becomes drawn to the sensuous, reckless Joy Castleman. Joy intrigues Madeleine even as she betrays her. The relationship forces Madeleine to confront and question much of what she believes about herself, her family, and her role. She must reevaluate her choices and the life she once accepted.
The 17175th Greatest Book of All Time -
13759. The Dark Forest by Liu Cixin
Humanity learns that an alien fleet will arrive centuries hence and faces crippling sabotage of science by alien probes, so world leaders launch the Wallfacer program—granting four individuals near-limitless secrecy and resources to devise hidden strategies against the invaders. The novel follows shifting political maneuvers, the rise of a reluctant strategist who develops a chilling cosmic theory that the universe is a “dark forest” where revealing any civilization’s location invites annihilation, and the use of that logic to create a deterrent that forces a tense, morally ambiguous standoff between species. Themes of trust, sacrifice, fate, and the limits of knowledge drive a suspenseful saga of human resilience and existential dread as long-term plans, betrayals, and technological constraints shape the struggle for survival.
Reading Statistics
Click the button below to see how many of these books you've read!
Download
If you're interested in downloading this list as a CSV file for use in a spreadsheet application, you can easily do so by clicking the button below. Please note that to ensure a manageable file size and faster download, the CSV will include details for only the first 500 books.
DownloadTo download this list as a CSV file, please log in to your account. Once logged in, you'll be able to download the data for use in spreadsheet applications.
Login to Download