Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Books with a High Page Count. I’ve definitely done variations on this topic before, focusing on the longest books I’ve ever read, plus the longest read in particular years (here are my lists from 2021 and 2017/2018) — but it’s been a while, so why not give the topic an update?
To kick things off, here are (more or less*) the longest books I’ve ever read, according to my Goodreads stats:
*this is actually somewhat changeable, depending on the edition… but let’s just say these are among the longest I’ve ever read!
- A Breath of Snow and Ashes – 1488 pages
- Les Misérables – 1463 pages
- The Fiery Cross – 1443 pages
- A Storm of Swords – 1177 pages
- The Stand – 1152 pages
- Shogun – 1152 pages
- A Dance with Dragons – 1125 pages
- Under the Dome – 1074 pages
- A Feast for Crows – 1060 pages
- War and Remembrance – 1042 pages
(Hmmm… I suppose without Diana Gabaldon, George R. R. Martin, and Stephen King, I’d have a lot more free reading time on my hands!)
To keep things fresh, I’ll add in the longest books I’ve read from 2022 until now. My ten longest recent books are:
- Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone by Diana Gabaldon – 902 pages
- Daniel Deronda by George Eliot – 796 pages
- Paper Girls: The Complete Story by Brian K. Vaughan – 784 pages
- Iron Flame by Rebecca Yarros – 623 pages
- Fairy Tale by Stephen King – 607 pages
- The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah – 593 pages
- Persepolis Rising (The Expanse, #7) by James S. A. Corey – 560 pages
- Crazy Rich Asians by Kevin Kwan – 546 pages
- My Calamity Jane by Cynthia Hand et. al. – 546 pages
- Babylon’s Ashes (The Expanse, #6) by James S. A. Corey – 541 pages
- Bury Our Bones in the Midnight Soil by V. E. Schwab – 535 pages
More Gabaldon and King… and yes, that makes 11 books, simply because the 11th longest book is too good to leave off my list!
Which are the longest books you’ve read in the past few years?
If you wrote a TTT list, please share your link!
Bookshelf Fantasies 
I really should read Crazy Rich Asians sometime.
I recommend it! After seeing the movie, I never felt the need to read the book until it came up for me this year as part of a challenge, and I really enjoyed it!
The only ones of the very long ones I’ve read is Shogun. And from your ‘read’ list Crazy Rich Asians and Daniel Deronda
All books I enjoyed! I never would have read Daniel Deronda without my book group, but I’m so glad that I did!
I enjoyed it (read it once with a book group and once on my own)–the Gwendolen parts were probably more interesting than the other thread but overall it made for a good read.
You have an impressive list! 🙌📚
Thank you! Although I have to say, it takes a lot these days to motivate me to pick up anything truly long.
Fab list – loved Iron Flame!
That’s definitely a popular one! I’m in the minority and didn’t love it… but I know most people did!
I’ve been making my way through Brandon Sanderson’s Cosmere. The Stormlight Archives series definitely comes to mind without looking at Goodreads.
A friend keeps pushing me to start those books, but I’m just so hesitant about getting involved with yet another series.
That’s understandable. And it’s a huge commitment.
You read a lot of great chunksters! Several on your list are on my TBR list. Someday, when I’m not feeling pressured for time, I hope to read them. 😀
Well, that’s the thing — lately I do always feel pressured for time and tend to veer toward shorter books. It takes a LOT — mainly a favorite author, at a minimum — to make me go for anything longer.
I had King and Gabaldon on my list too. I really need to read Les Miserables.
I read Les Miserables so many years ago, after first seeing the musical and wanting to do a deeper dive (and it happened to be a time when I was between jobs, had just moved, and had the time to spend on it!)
All the Game of Thrones books were so big! I really wish he would finish it one day. Under the Dome I have had on my TBR shelf for so long!
I loved Under the Dome! I’ve kind of given up hope related to the Game of Thrones series — I have a hard time believing it’ll ever get done.
Oh, no. I don’t think it ever will be finished, unfortunately.
I’m so intimidated 😂
My TTT: https://laurieisreading.com/2025/08/19/top-ten-tuesday-the-beasts/
Haha, big books aren’t that bad… when I have the time, which I really don’t these days!
I didn’t realize Crazy Rich Asians or The Nightingale were that long! I have not read any of these, but the Outlander books are on my TBR list.
Ooh, I can whole-heartedly recommend the Outlander series!
I’ve been slowly working my way through a reread of David Weber’s Honor Harrington series (mostly the original ones. I haven’t gotten to the subseries yet), and I realized the other day how long most of them are! Let’s just say the shortest one was around 550 pages. Most of the recent ones have been in the 600-700 page range. … And the next one, War of Honor is over 900! Yeep! I’ll be reading that one a while once I get to it!
A few weeks ago I was also reading a couple other series, and realized that every book I was reading was around 600 or more pages! 🤦♀️😂. The shortest one was something like 535 pages! …. No wonder I’ve been taking a break mostly lately. (Although I’m currently working on a 550 page one again. Too bad it’s been dragging for the last 130 pages! Oh well, only 20 more to go!)
Whoa, that sounds like quite a series commitment! I’d have a hard time picking up a 900 page book right now (unless it was the next Outlander book).
The Outlander books have appeared on so many lists today…and I’ve yet to read them…I think that maybe I should after this!
I’m a bit Outlander fan, so I’d say yes!
I think my longest books are probably the Stormlight Archive books by Brandon Sanderson. I’m currently rereading the series and they are long!!!!!!
A friend has been urging me to read the series, and I have to admit that the length of the books is not encouraging me to get started!
They are definitely a bit intimidating I agree
Not surprisingly, I have read most of the King books on your list. I gravitate towards shorter books these days, but you have read quite a few doorstoppers!
Those King books… I have a few big ones on my shelf still to read, like you, I really have been gravitating more toward shorter (300-400p) books lately.
Gabaldon and King have definitely produced some chunksters over the years! I’m a Kristin Hannah fan, especially of THE NIGHTINGALE. THE WOMEN is on my list this week, but I didn’t love that one, unfortunately.
Happy TTT (on a Wednesday)!
Susan
http://www.blogginboutbooks.com
I’ve enjoyed Kristin Hannah’s books over the last several years — I did really love The Women!
The only reason Gabaldon isn’t more on my list because I haven’t found the time to continue the Outlander books yet… King appears various times on my list as well. I’ve been meaning to pick up Under The Dome, but its size has been putting me off.
I know what you mean – I look at some of the bigger books on my TBR, even by favorite authors, and it takes a lot for me to want to start them!
I need to try and read the Game Of Throne books one day having only seen the series. I’m also particularly curious about The Stand. I’m not sure I want to try Les Mis though. I love the musical so much that I’m worried a negative reading experience would end up being a major disappointment.
I loved Bones but somehow still need to start the Fourth Wing series 🙈 I also didn’t realise the Jane book was over 500 pages long, for some reason I pictured it being such shorter 🤔 I think my longest so far this year are Priory Of The Orange Tree and The Raven Scholar.
I didn’t actually love the Fourth Wing books (and decided I was done after the 2nd), but I know I”m in the minority on that one! I think Les Mis is the one book where I’d be comfortable saying reading an abridged version might be the way to go. (There are such long sections about things like sewers and convents… ) I’d like to reread The Stand at some point — it really was my first taste of post-apocalypse fiction, but it was a very long time ago, and I’m sure it would feel different to me if I picked it up again.
Aww I’m sorry to hear that. Althoufh I will admit that part of the reason I haven’t gotten to them yet is that I’m worried they won’t live up to the hype 😬 thanks for the advice. And I hope you enjoy it if you do get around to rereading it sometime then. I believe there’s a short story collection set within that world now too, although oddly it’s not written by Stephen King 🤔
Oh, I’ve seen promos for the Stand collection! It looks like some sort of tribute, maybe? Stories inspired by The Stand? Could be interesting!
Let me know how you find the collection if you end up giving it a chance. If I enjoy the novel I may try it afterwards, but I do want to discover the setting through Stephen Kings book first.