I have a very long series of flights coming up, 36-ish hours round trip, and I am on a mission to make sure my Kindle is locked and loaded (with a paperback or two in my backpack just to be safe). I hate flying and like to dissociate entirely when I am in the sky.

For me, that means reading easy-to-devour page-turners, filthy or suspenseful enough to keep me from thinking too hard about how I am trapped in a tube with a hundred other people who probably haven’t washed their hands in a hot second.

Mysteries and romances are the best options on planes. Fantasies require entirely too much attention. I can’t learn about a whole new world up in the air, with two wildly expensive airport bar cocktails in my bloodstream, no thank you. Instead, I want action and drama that can keep me completely engaged and distracted the entire time, without forcing me to think too hard. Here are some of the best books to read on airplanes, if this sounds like the way you fly.

Mysteries

Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell

Then She Was Gone is a twisty, fast-paced, mystery that will keep you hooked on every page. It follows a mother, still reeling from the disappearance of her 15-year-old daughter ten years before the start of the events of the book. She is trying to rebuild her life, but then, for the first time, new information surfaces in the case. Then she meets a new man, and their relationship quickly develops into something meaningful. Everything turns upside down when she meets the man’s nine-year-old daughter — and she looks just like the daughter she lost ten years before.

This book is devious and dark, and full of drama, with an antagonist that few will suspect, at least at the beginning. Lisa Jewell always brings the juiciest storylines, with characters that are both captivating and mystifying. Your flight delayed by hours, turbulence, and ridiculous baggage fees will seem entirely manageable in comparison to what this author puts these characters through. Not to mention, the story will keep you so engaged that the flight will seem to pass in an instant.

The Fjällbacka Series by Camilla Läckberg

I bought the first book in this series, Ice Princess, in an airport bookstore many years ago. I’ve now read every book in the series that is currently available in the US, and they are among my favorite mysteries. The series follows a small-town policeman and a local writer, whose paths initially cross investigating the murder of the writer’s childhood best friend. They continue to run into each other, solving crimes with each other’s help.

These books don’t necessarily have to be read in order, each has a contained plot and case they’re trying to solve, although some of the personal lives of the main characters make more sense if read in order. The Fjällbacka books are character-driven, psychological mysteries each with a captivating case with all kinds of suspense and secrets revealed. They are impeccably translated and easy to read, perfect to rip through on a long flight.

The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

The Girl on the Train is a New York Times Bestseller that’s been adapted to both screen and stage, and for good reason. This book is intense and will leave readers guessing until the very end. Rachel has recently lost everything. Her husband, and her beautiful house, were all gone in her messy divorce. Now, all she has is her daily rides on the train where she watches life go past her through the window. She fixates on one couple that she sees on their deck every morning. She imagines a perfect life for them, one much like the life she no longer has. One day, she sees something shocking. Something she can’t forget. When she goes to the police, it kicks off an investigation where her reliability is questioned, and then everything is questioned.

Rachel is without question an unreliable narrator, and that leaves readers unsure of where all these characters truly stand until the final reveal. Nothing is quite as it seems in this book, and it makes for a read that you won’t want to put down. Perfect for passing the time.

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson

The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo is not actually an easy read. Nor is it short. But it is an absolute page-turner, even if it requires a little more brain power than the rest of the books on this list. A troubled young woman with incredible hacking skills teams up with a disgraced journalist to try to solve a decades-old missing person’s case for a wealthy benefactor with a vested interest. Generations of secrets, lies, and misdeeds are uncovered through their investigation, putting both of them in grave danger.

I wrote my college thesis paper on this book. It is just that good. I truly believe this is one of the greatest mystery books ever written, and will undoubtedly be for sale and readily available in any airport bookstore. While this one might be a little more involved to read, it will certainly keep your mind busy (and off the fact that you’re trapped in the middle seat at the back of the plane) for the entire travel day.

Romances

Priest by Sierra Simone

A tortured priest, celibate, has a new member of his flock. A troubled, blue-blooded beauty who quickly becomes a fixation, and maybe his downfall. The result is a scorching forbidden romance, with heady tension and off-the-charts spice. There is a creative use of anointed holy oil, to say the least. Priest is actually the beginning of a series of standalones, each one following a different brother, reckoning with religion in their own ways.

Look, reading this book on a plane is a bold move. If the person jammed in next to you looks at what you’re reading they may well be horrified. If said person is Catholic, they might have a meltdown. But it will be worth it.

Bride by Ali Hazelwood

Bride is such a hilariously clever and witty romance, set in a paranormal world with humans, vampyres, and werewolves all fighting for dominance. Any chance of peace hinges on an arranged marriage between a vampyre woman and the Alpha of the werewolves. It’s a disaster waiting to happen, and disaster indeed comes. This is a paranormal romance that embraces all the classic features of the genre and makes for an incredibly fun read.

This book is perfect for in-flight entertainment thanks to it’s fast-moving plot and witty banter. Not to mention its snarky commentary on the failings of the human race, which is nowhere more obvious than during air travel.

Birthday Girl by Penelope Douglas

A delicious age-gap romance, Birthday Girl makes for perfectly delicious in-flight entertainment. Jordan and her mediocre-at-best boyfriend lose their apartment and are forced to move in with his father, Pike, who begins to notice just how poorly his son has been treating her. And then he begins to notice that she’s perfect for him. It’s a taboo that’s handled in a way that feels very graceful, despite the inherent trickiness of this trope. There is a lot of slow-burn tension, a lot of heartbreak, and a happily ever after that feels so well-earned.

Pike is such a dreamy main character and will win pride of place on any list of book boyfriends. Jordan is so relatable, and the chemistry between these two truly sizzles. The chemistry is hot enough to keep you distracted and fully entrenched in Pike’s gorgeous home instead of thinking about how uncomfortable your tiny seat is.

The Home Wrecker by Sara Cate

The Home-wrecker is the second in The Goode Brothers series, a series of interconnected standalones following a family of brothers as they find themselves amid religious trauma, family drama, and of course, love. This story is pure kinky and bisexual fun.

Caleb and Briar are the classic good Christian couple. He’s a lawyer, she’s a housewife, and they have a six-year-old daughter. Then their lives are turned upside down when Dean, a man from Caleb’s past who now happens to be a sex worker, moves into their guest house apartment. Sexual tension, jealousy, and awakened feelings long buried fly all over the place in this wonderfully dirty book. There is so much excellent drama and tension here that you will fly through this book the whole flight.

Knockemout by Lucy Score

The Knockemout series is a three-book series of interconnected standalones, and each and every one of them feel like laying out on a warm towel with a cold glass of lemonade in the sun, or wrapping yourself in a blanket next to a fire with a cup of tea when it’s cold. These small-town romances are the pinnacle of the rom-com genre, with just a little bit of action and edge thrown in.

The first book in the series is Things We Never Got Over, and while all three are excellent, this one is my favorite. It’s a grumpy/sunshine romance with a touch of everything: a runaway bride, a lottery winner, and an estranged twin sister causing all kinds of trouble. The heroine is someone you just desperately want to root for, and the hero is a broody but loveable stubborn mess of a man, which makes his journey just all the more satisfying. The Knockemout series will provide all kinds of comfort if you need something to calm your soul on a turbulent flight.

The Harlequin Crew by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti

The Harlequin Crew is a six-book contemporary why choose romance series that is dramatic, devious, and full of wild twists. It’s an enemies-to-lovers romance featuring gangs, surfing, and a great deal of angst and sexual tension.

Rogue is dead. That’s what everyone thinks, anyway. But when she digs herself out of her grave, she heads back to her hometown—back to her former best friends who abandoned her and broke her heart—with nothing left to lose. And there is nothing more dangerous than a woman with nothing to lose. Those boys run the town now, at the helm of the Harlequin Crew gang, but Rogue has a plan to take them down, to get revenge for what they did to her.

Six books might seem like a huge commitment, but once you get started these books just fly by, perfect for a long travel day.

I believe I’ve made it abundantly clear that I disdain air travel with fervor, but hopefully, this list will make your next flight a little less inhumane.

Note: some of the links included here are Amazon Affiliate links, which means if you purchase through said links, The Nora Theory gets a cut.