Favorite Things, Writing

What Are Your Favorite “Guilty Pleasure” Books?

Writer McWriterson

I don’t care for that term, guilty pleasure.

The other day, I was reading a book-related article when the author mentioned not being embarrassed to read certain books. Why do we feel embarrassed about what we read in the first place?

Back in December, I listed my favorite books of 2021, and in the comments, I mentioned how much I enjoy a “trashy” novel, which in my opinion, is not the same as a guilty pleasure book.

The definition given for guilty pleasure is something that one enjoys despite feeling that it is not generally held in high regard.

Why are we hiding our guilty pleasures in the first place? And who are these people from whom we are keeping our pleasures hidden?

Personally, I have nothing to hide. Here is what I’m reading right now:

It’s really good.

Speaking of guilty pleasures, here are some interesting articles:

Guilty Pleasure Foods We Won’t Apologize for Loving

Top 50 Best Guilty Pleasure Movies

50 Awesome Guilty Pleasure Songs We’re Ashamed to Like (But Not Really)

Study Reveals America’s Most Common Guilty Pleasures

The last article lists the top 10 “weirdest” guilty pleasures, and I’m thinking of doing a podcast about it.

The point is, I didn’t always read about self-enlightenment. Sure, non-fiction is my favorite type of book right now, but it wasn’t always that way.

Call them what you will, but here are a few of my favorite “guilty pleasure” books.

Twilight saga by Stephenie Meyer

Stephanie Plum collection by Janet Evanovich

Good in Bed by Jennifer Weiner

Little Earthquakes by Jennifer Weiner

In Her Shoes by Jennifer Weiner

Something Borrowed by Emily Giffin

Bittersweet by LaVyrle Spencer

Home Song by LaVyrle Spencer

sTori Telling by Tori Spelling

Mommywood by Tori Spelling

Jason Priestly: A Memoir by Jason Priestly (What? I liked Beverly Hills 90210, okay?)

Here are more fun links:

15 Books You Secretly Love. Overindulge. We won’t tell…

31 Celebrity Memoirs That Are Actually Worth Reading

And because I mentioned celebrity memoirs, I couldn’t leave out this article:

Ghostwriters Come Out of the Shadows

And I love this article if only for this line “They told me that all reading is good reading, and that I shouldn’t feel guilty about any of it.”

So, what are you favorite “guilty pleasure” books?

It’s okay, this is a safe space. 🙂

52 thoughts on “What Are Your Favorite “Guilty Pleasure” Books?”

  1. I like the Mary Janice Davidson’s series about a vampire, Betsy Queen of the Dead. Pure chick lit. I also used to read Robert Parker’s Spenser series. I figure reading, no matter what genre, is a good thing to do. Convince me otherwise, huh?

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    1. I will look into these! I should’ve added that I can always use more of these kinds of books on my TBR list.

      And you’re right in that any kind of reading is reading. As for me, I recall being mocked in high school by someone for what I chose in the library. It just takes one remark, as is often the case with such things.

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  2. Pretty sure everybody’s guilty pleasures are a bit different. Mine are cozies. I love silly mystery novels, sort of like the Midsommer Murders TV show. And if they have cats in them, even better.

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    2. I recently rated my top 10 favorite detective TV shows, and Midsommer Murders was there… I didn’t know it was a guilty pleasure 🙂
      And less recently, I rated my top 10 favorite holiday movies, Love, Actually was there. I think it’s a GREAT movie, did not expect it to be guilt-ridden (except by the adulterer in the movie :P)

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      2. I don’t think of Midsommer Murders as a guilty pleasure as a TV show because it’s . . . TV. It’s reading the books because I feel a bit like I ought to be reading “literature” instead.

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  4. “Stealing” soap/shampoo from hotels??? That’s what it’s for!

    I read “Good In Bed”… don’t remember a thing. I don’t have much book memory.

    I liked “Sex and Bacon”… alternating chapters on life as a sex worker and cooking. The chapter “How Much Bacon Is Enough” has never left me.

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    1. I don’t have good book memory either! In fact, when I was writing this post, I felt I should go back and read them all over again since I couldn’t remember what they were about! I only remember them being based in Philadelphia.

      I had to look the Sex and Bacon book up myself…I’m adding it to my TBR list.

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  5. I don’t actually feel guilty about anything I like to read but I definitely enjoy the Stephanie Plum series and I really liked Twilight too. I just finished listening to Rob Lowe’s memoir on audiobook and have decided I want to try and see if the rest of the “brat pack” have memoirs too. I never thought of looking for 90210 memoirs but I’d probably like those too (though I HATED Greenlights by Matthew McConoughey– he probably should have hired a ghost writer)

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  7. I don’t classify ANYTHING I read as a guilty pleasure – Stephen King, beach reads, chick lit – none of it. I know what I like and if someone doesn’t care for what I read I figure that is their problem; not mine.

    And that quote about “all reading is good reading”? Very true. And I remember making that argument when another mother complained about her fourth/fifth grade student reading nothing but Captain Underpants – at least the child WAS reading AND comprehending what they were reading. What did she expect – that the child should be reading Shakespeare?

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    1. Or, alternatively, Diary of a Wimpy Kid. That was another one about which mom’s would complain. Also, Dog Man by Dave Pilker. My oldest daughter LOVED those books. They’re graphic novels, which she enjoyed because they were easier for her to read. Someone made a remark about it to her in class. She was embarrassed to read it in front of her friends. 😦

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  8. I don’t think I have a guilty pleasure book! I really like thrillers, which I know aren’t (always) “Great Literature” or whatever… but I love them, unabashedly. Can I tell you my guilty pleasure TV instead? I love “Bachelor in Paradise,” which has no redeeming qualities and is pure candy TV. I feel slightly embarrassed when I tell people I watch it, so I think that counts as a guilty pleasure! Books though… no way. I love what I love.

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    1. I’m a huge fan of The Real Housewives, which is why I’m reading that book. Candy TV…I like that phrase.

      I also enjoy mystery books, particularly those by Mary Higgins Clark. They’re a cross between trashy and mysterious. Trysterious. 🙂

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  9. I only carve out time to read what is on the reading list for my book club, so I guess I don’t read much in the way of what is considered guilty pleasure books. In the summer, I have more time – but I tend to pick books that are similar to what we read for book club – so nothing too light. I’m not really opposed to reading something light or silly, I just choose my reading materials knowing that I won’t have a lot of time and I always have stuff I want to read. I don’t think reading a Jason Priestly book is bad reading form. I know very little about movie stars and singers, so maybe I SHOULD read a few of their memoirs to see what I’m missing. Read what ya love. I wasn’t much of a reader until adulthood, so I have lots of catching up to do.

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    1. I’ll ask you an honest question: do those books make you happy? Who chooses the books? The main reason I’m asking is that I just heard another friend mention a book club and I was curious about who chooses the books. I’m a really picky reader, and I’m not sure I could let others choose a book for me.

      I, too, was not a big reader until I was an adult. In fact, once I started school, I despised reading. So I guess I’m also making up for lost time.

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      1. Most of the time I like the books. A few times I found the book too contrived and I didn’t even finish it. We bring suggestions to book club. I’m glad no one is suggesting sci-fi, because NO THANK YOU. If I don’t like the book, I still go to book club and chat with my friends and explain what I liked or didn’t like about the book, so it doesn’t really take away from my experience and my enjoyment of our gatherings. These are some great women. If I don’t like the book, I just grab something else to read or read the next book on the list. I like to be ahead of the game so I don’t feel rushed to finish something. There are MANY people who attend book club who haven’t finished the book. I wouldn’t want to hear the ending so I try my hardest not to do that.

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  10. I don’t like the term “guilty pleasure” either! Why should we feel guilty! That said, a few years ago I tore through a whole series of YA books – I think it was something like To All The Boys I Loved Before or something like that. It was SO good and I was sad when they were done. Oh, then I found an old Sweet Valley High copy on my shelf and it was super fun to read. I like revisiting books from my past – Judy Blume! – and enjoying them from a different perspective.

    There was a book by Jennifer Weiner I recently read that I loved, I think it was Big Summer, and then there was one that I really DIDN’T love, and I can’t remember the name. When I say “recent” it was probably 2020, I have no idea how time works anymore.

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    1. I bought a Judy Blume book a few years ago and it was so much fun to re-read it! I’m thinking of getting some Judy Blume books from the library that I thought were too risque for me to read in junior high…;)

      I had a similar experience with two of Jennifer’s books! I was almost halfway through one when I just couldn’t read anymore. It surprised me because I used to gobble her books up.

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  11. I have got to get the RHW book. I love all things Real Housewives of Yada Yada. ALL OF THEM. That is my guilty pleasure, but I honestly don’t feel guilty about it. I like what I like.

    Girl. Jason Priestly wrote a book? I LOVED 90210. And him. I need to get on board with your GP books.

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      1. If there were a RHW 24 hour feed I would get nothing accomplished; I have a problem. The only one I don’t really enjoy any longer is Atlanta; only because they are SO physical with each other, I just can’t with that.

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  12. I’m so glad you commented on that housewives book. I’ve been on the fence. I’ll have to order it from the library.

    When I was younger my go to Davenport reads (comfort reads? Guilty pleasures?) were Danielle Steele and Sidney Sheldon. I think I read Rage of Angels and Message from Nam about 100 times each.

    My grandma always had a stash of what she called bodice rippers (they were actually VERY tame and weren’t the kind with the half dressed women and Fabio) that I read too. (Hence me calling them Davenport reads).

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    1. It goes into great detail about each city/season, and now I want to go back and watch them all from the beginning. The author has interviews with all of the producers, including Andy Cohen, so it’s legit. Very interesting.

      Davenport! That is a blast from the past. 🙂

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  13. Right now I’m seeking all things cozy. I fear this makes my reading not exactly embarrassing but instead boring. Give me your cozy romances, lighter fare mysterious, happy ending guaranteed fiction where people are nice to each other (shocking!). And, yep, I am also rereading my childhood favs (and they are heaven!). I won’t even begin to bore you with my fantastically mega cozy TV finds except to say: All Creatures Great & Small: The Reboot! Mrs Hall & Siegfried 4 evah!

    But you know, looking at your list I’m totally drawn to your celebrity reads. How have I not found this section of the Library? This seems BOTH edgy and cozy? I think you’ve created a new literary genre here! (Omg I now intensely wish books at the library were sorted into Cozy categories…). I must look into this more deeply! 😉

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    1. That term, cozy, is becoming one of my favorites! Yes, to all the cozy books.

      I have a couple of celebrity books on my TBR list. Several people have told me that Rob Lowe’s book is really good. Busy Phillips, the Prince biography, and Roseanne Barr’s daughter’s (Jenny Pentland) book are all on my list. Her daughter is a humor writer, and I came across her book at Barnes and Noble, and it looked good. The cover art was really cool. 😉

      Another thing I could’ve mentioned in this post is that I’m a sucker for book cover art. I might slip this into this week’s podcast. I will add a book to my TBR based on cover art alone.

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  14. Ally Bean sent me to check out your blog. We have a couple of authors to love in common—Evanocich, Weiner and Spencer. I’m pretty sure I’ve read everything they’ve written.

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    2. I appreciate the notion of resting your brain. To relax my brain, I’ve recently started reading fiction. I know that sounds silly, but I’ve been reading non-fiction almost exclusively for the past two years, so it’s been a welcome change. 🙂

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  17. You know what? I’ve read a lot of books in my life and I’m at the point of just wanting to read for pleasure now. I don’t want to learn anything. I don’t want to cry about someone with cancer or living in a third world country. Just give me regular old dysfunctional families! Like your previous poster, I’m a huge Elin Hildebrand fan and have read every one of her books. But if you want really guilty pleasure, Crazy Rich Asians is pure heaven!

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  18. Hi Kari, (I think this is your name re: IG) I am thrilled to meet you via ‘Ally Bean sent me.’

    I began reading your interesting, informative, thought-provoking, fun blog last night and an hour later I was still immersed in the articles. I used to use the term ‘guilty pleasure’ and reading in general especially when I was working full time. I am trying to remedy my self talk. It is fun to read your guilty pleasure articles. “Final Destination” is a flashback. Our family often used quotes from this movie. I devoured the “Twilight” series and even stopped in Forks for a couple of days, many years ago.

    I wholeheartedly agree with your paragraph about ‘my readers’ and ‘adore the community’ on your “Who I am” page. I have subscribed to your blog and I look forward to learning more about you.

    I am presently on “pause mode” writing my blog posts for a number of personal reasons. I still visit blogs when I can. I look forward to learning more about you. Erica

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    1. Hi Erica! I am so happy to meet you! Welcome!

      I loved the Twilight series and watched all of the movies. My 14-year-old daughter recently saw all of the movies with me recently and is obsessed. I love that you visited Forks! I hope to visit that part of the country as it is just beautiful.

      I look forward to getting to know you better! XOXO

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  19. I have not thought about this that deeply, but I always find myself turning to Little Women, Heidi, or anything by Agatha Christie when I need the stability and comfort of something I know and love around me. 🙂

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