Table of Contents
If you’re a book lover and avid TikTok user, you’re probably familiar with the hashtag “#booktok.” The hashtag has gained popularity as users continue to recommend their favorite reads. Some users even pose their videos as stories about themselves, giving descriptions of the plot of a book as if they’ve experienced them, revealing the book at the end. Booktok videos are beginning to influence publishers and best-seller lists, with some books getting so popular that bookstores have sold out of them. For those wanting to venture into the world of Booktok, here are the top 10 most popular TikTok books you should add to your reading list.
1. We Were Liars
- Genre: Mystery
@alifeofliterature If anyone asks you what happens at the end, just LIE 🌊 #wewereliars #books #booktok #booker #ya #bookclub #bookworm #fyp #4u
Published in 2014, the first of these TikTok books made the bestseller list for the second time in the summer of 2020, much to author E. Lockhart’s surprise. The book follows Cadence Sinclair, a member of a wealthy family that owns a house on a private island off the coast of Cape Cod. Cadence spends each summer on the island with her cousins, along with their friend Gat, until her fifteenth year, when she suffers a mysterious accident. She is left with hazy memories and spends the course of the book trying to piece together what exactly happened to her. If you’re looking for a twist ending, this is the book for you.
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2. They Both Die at the End
- Genre: Young Adult
https://www.tiktok.com/@joannes.library/video/6937463590219730182?_d=secCgYIASAHKAESMgow5C5qiePUZ48lkvtCvnAiyQueAwZ7WEzpvRj%2FkUEHGAV1hW3lbXECJ%2FR%2Bgg4ziLhfGgA%3D&language=en&preview_pb=0&sec_user_id=MS4wLjABAAAAg0hX-BTIIRgLo01m0XzdQbHcyne2kRe2R3Vulon4WSQ0QMlEzYHNPAk4jd5Pu5AO&share_app_id=1233&share_item_id=6937463590219730182&share_link_id=FAD84E3F-F0C6-4471-B895-BF9E64B05118&source=h5_m×tamp=1621483632&tt_from=copy&u_code=d7ekekje4ik75g&user_id=6720069792185467909&utm_campaign=client_share&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=copy&_r=1
Written by Adam Silvera, this book follows Mateo and Rufus, who discover they’re going to die in 24 hours. They are complete strangers, but both are looking to make a new friend on their End Day. They meet through an app called Last Friend, and end up spending their final day together. If you’re looking for a good cry, this TikTok book is perfect.
3. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo
- Genre: Romance
@thebooksiveloved not me crying on video 🤧🥺 ahskagfkag send help—I’m not okay after this book (pt2) #thesevenhusbandsofevelynhugo#booktok#bookish#books#lovestory
From the author of Daisy Jones & The Six (one of the major popular TikTok books in its own right), this book follows Evelyn, a legendary film actress, over the course of her life as she recounts her story to a reporter. Evelyn is aging and reclusive, and when she chooses Monique, an unknown reporter, to tell the story of her scandalous life, no one is more surprised than Monique herself. As Evelyn spins a tale of ambition and friendship, Monique begins to feel a connection with her, but soon it becomes clear their lives intersect in an interesting way.
4. The Song of Achilles
- Genre: Fantasy
https://www.tiktok.com/@cecemcgeese/video/6933497824084561158?_d=secCgYIASAHKAESMgownAmO1KslpXFTYEF1oV201ZTrbemxVljJlMfU7C50ocRk40Vc7tGJqiaFaOv6O8u3GgA%3D&enable_clips=1&language=en&preview_pb=0&sec_user_id=MS4wLjABAAAAg0hX-BTIIRgLo01m0XzdQbHcyne2kRe2R3Vulon4WSQ0QMlEzYHNPAk4jd5Pu5AO&share_app_id=1233&share_item_id=6933497824084561158&share_link_id=44199A8A-EAB3-490B-8DFC-4CC936098276&source=h5_m×tamp=1621484128&tt_from=sms&u_code=d7ekekje4ik75g&user_id=6720069792185467909&utm_campaign=client_share&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=sms&_r=1
In the age of Greek heroes, Patroclus, a young prince, is exiled to the court of King Peleus and his son Achilles, who takes Patroclus in as a friend. Soon, as they train in the art of war and medicine, their friendship grows into something more, much to the displeasure of Achilles’ mother, the cruel sea goddess, Thetis. When Helen of Sparta is kidnapped, Patroclus and Achilles travel to Troy to save her, not knowing how trying the coming years will be. This original take on the Trojan War is a sure tearjerker. If you love this novel, don’t worry. Madeline Miller is no stranger to our list of popular TikTok books.
5. The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue
- Genre: Historical Fiction/Fantasy
@aymansbooks (yes i’m posting this again bc tiktok took down the sound.) #theinvisiblelifeofaddielarue #bookrecommendations #booktok #bookrec
In the 1700s, Addie LaRue is cursed with immortality and invisibility: she will live forever, but no one will ever remember her. Thus begins a tale of adventure that plays out across centuries as Addie searches for a way to leave a mark on the world. But everything changes when, nearly 300 years later, a young man in a bookstore remembers her name.
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6. It Ends With Us
- Genre: Romance
https://www.tiktok.com/@caitlinsbooktok/video/6942154648606215429?_d=secCgYIASAHKAESMgowe9lEeDHQCGl4%2F05cJLYGsYeHS19YYbDNzZd1z%2BCqApHnS%2BLvPhHZSHx6iVj3eIE8GgA%3D&enable_clips=1&language=en&preview_pb=0&sec_user_id=MS4wLjABAAAAg0hX-BTIIRgLo01m0XzdQbHcyne2kRe2R3Vulon4WSQ0QMlEzYHNPAk4jd5Pu5AO&share_app_id=1233&share_item_id=6942154648606215429&share_link_id=8AB4F9BD-21E2-4134-B434-58E736F37C9B&source=h5_m×tamp=1621484256&tt_from=sms&u_code=d7ekekje4ik75g&user_id=6720069792185467909&utm_campaign=client_share&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=sms&_r=1
Lily has come a long way from the small town in Maine where she grew up. She graduated college and moved to Boston, where she started her own business and meets Ryle, a neurosurgeon with a sweet spot for Lily and aversion to relationships. As Lily begins to question her relationship with Ryle, her old love Atlas resurfaces, threatening everything she’s built with Ryle.
7. Red, White, and Royal Blue
- Genre: Romance
After his mother became president, Alex is suddenly American royalty. He is handsome and charming, but he has one vice: beef with the Prince of Wales, Henry. Soon after an altercation between the two boys, a plan for damage control is devised. They are to stage a truce. But soon this staged friendship blossoms into something more: a secret romance. This enemies-to-lovers TikTok book is sure to make you laugh out loud.
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8. A Court of Thorns and Roses
- Genre: Fantasy
@starlight_books this is my WHOLE personality now #bookish #booktok #azrielshadowsinger #acotar #acourtofsilverflames #acourtofthornsandroses #readingisfunclub
This is the first of a five-book series following nineteen-year-old huntress Feyre. When Feyre kills a wolf in the woods, a creature arrives demanding retribution. Suddenly, Feyre is dragged into a new world and she discovers her captor is one of the immortal faeries that once ruled her world. As she adjusts to her new life, she discovers an evil growing in the faerie world that she must stop.
9. Anna and the French Kiss
- Genre: Romance
@shereadsforfun thoughts on this book?? #annaandthefrenchkiss #bookaesthetics #booktok #yabooks #booktiktok #defrosting #mykindofwoman #bookrec #contemporarybooks
Anna is excited about her senior year in Atlanta, so when her dad ships her off to boarding school in Paris, she’s less than thrilled. But soon, she meets Etienne St. Clair, which complicates things with her crush from back home. Etienne is perfect, despite one flaw: he’s in a relationship. But in the city of love, Anna might still be in for her French kiss.
10. Circe
- Genre: Fantasy
@zoya.ans One of the best feminist fictions i’ve ever read. #circe #booktok #bookrecs #songofachilles #greekmythology #bookclub #fantasy #fiction #reader #fyp
The last of our TikTok books is the only double author appearance. From the author of Song of Achilles, comes Circe, which follows the daughter of Helios, god of the sun. So unlike her parents, Circe turns to the mortal world for companionship. Soon she discovers she possesses the power of witchcraft, and a threatened Zeus banishes her to a deserted island. Ultimately, Circe finds herself pitted against the most powerful of Olympians and she’s forced to choose between her worlds, both god and mortal.
Honorable Mentions
These books are also popular on TikTok but didn’t quite make the Top 10.
| Book | Author | Genre |
|---|---|---|
| Honey Girl | Morgan Rogers | YA Contemporary |
| Verity | Colleen Hoover | Thriller |
| Ninth House | Leigh Bardugo | Adult Fantasy |
