Red, White & Royal Blue was McQuiston’s debut novel; it hit the New York Times list about a month after release and quickly built a passionate fanbase. 

The book features in lists derived from “Most Read Books of the 2019/2020/2021 Goodreads Reading Challenge”  Red, White & Royal Blue is specifically listed among the 51 most-read challenge books for 2021, and appears again in list-challenge versions of 2020/2020-most-read-challenge data. 

From debut queer romcom by an unknown author to multi hundred thousand copy bestseller, then a major film adaptation that pushed the book to even more readers. 

RWRB is exactly the kind of book that thrives in a Reading Challenge environment  fun, emotionally satisfying, widely recommended. Once it became one of the “challenge comfort reads,” it kept recirculating on feeds and in “what should I read to finish my challenge?” threads, amplifying its original buzz.

The Love Hypothesis was Hazelwood’s breakout romance, originally rooted in Reylo fanfic and published as her debut rom-com. 

In “The 60 Most Read Books of the 2022 Goodreads Reading Challenge”, it appears near the very top of the list (around #4), right under mega-hits like It Ends With Us and The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo. 

Now marketed everywhere as an “Instant New York Times bestseller and TikTok sensation” with a film adaptation in the works from Amazon MGM. 

This is a clean “relatively new author, one big book, massive challenge uptake” pattern. Challenge readers, especially in romance, helped normalise it as one of the default reads for hitting annual goals, which multiplies exposure far beyond initial romance community buzz.

McFadden was a digital first, mid list thriller author before The Housemaid. It was published by Bookouture in 2022 after sitting in a drawer, with no expectation of becoming a mega hit. 

The Housemaid and its sequels (The Housemaid’s Secret, The Housemaid Is Watching) show up heavily in “Most Read Books of the 2025 Goodreads Reading Challenge (So Far)” style lists, dominating the thriller slice of challenge reading. 

Wikipedia and coverage explicitly state that the series’ fanbase grew partly due to attention from the Goodreads community, BookTok on TikTok, as well as discussion boards on Facebook.

The Housemaid becomes a “monster hit” selling millions of copies, sitting on Amazon and NYT bestseller lists for dozens of weeks, and now being adapted into a high profile film. 

McFadden wasn’t a household name. She’s a great example of someone whose digital discoverability (Goodreads readers + challenge completions + TikTok) propelled her from “niche thriller readership” to “global brand with a big studio adaptation.”

The Silent Patient was Michaelides’s first novel. It went on to become the biggest-selling debut in the world in 2019, spending over a year on the New York Times list and selling in 50+ countries. 

It appears prominently in “The 51 Most Read Books of the 2021 Goodreads Reading Challenge” list. Goodreads explicitly ranks it among the most read books of the year by challenge participants. 

From a brand new name in thrillers to permanent fixture in “must read thriller” lists, a staple of BookTok and Bookstagram, and a classic “gateway thriller” for casual challenge readers.