Struck By Lightning by Chris Colfer

Struck By Lightning is a coming-of-age novel by Chris Colfer best known for playing Kurt Hummel on Glee.

The story begins with the growing up of young Carson Phillips in a small town in the US. Carson's parents divorced when he was a kid which had a huge impact on his personality formation. Carson's father didn't participate in his life very much and his mom never got over her broken marriage and started heavy drinking and substance abuse. 

Being a highschool student, Carson found himself alienated from the entire population of his town and it became his paramount ambition to get into Northwestern University and leave Clover for good. 

However, on the way to his dreams, Carson encounters a lot of obstacles and has to make tough decisions. Having had to blackmail nearly every senior student of his school he is getting closer to his destination, however, he is yet to find out what the future holds for him.

Lives of The Saints by Nino Ricci

Lives of The Saints is a novel written by the Canadian author, Nino Ricci with Italian origins in 1990. 

The setting of the story is Italy, small village Valle del Sole in 1960s. The novel brings up social issues of the designated time period and with the focus on gender inequality, marginalization social prejudice towards women. The main character of the story is a young Vittorio Innocente whose mother has become a victim of social judgment and would not yield to the society for she believed in equality. As the situation between the Innocentes and the villagers starts to escalate, young Vittorio becomes the next victim of social judgment. 

When young Vittorio Innocente's mother, Cristina, is bitten by a snake during an encounter with a blue-eyed stranger in the family barn, the superstitions and prejudices rampant in their small Italian town immediately roil t the surface. But the worst is yet to come for the independent-minded Cristina. Eight months pregnant and unable to abide her treatment in the village any longer, she books a passage to Canada for herself and Vittorio, although it will not be to join her irascible husband Mario, who sailed there when Vittorio was an infant.

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

Les Miserables is a historical novel written by the world famous author Victor Hugo in 1862. It is believed to be one of the best novels of the 19th century.

Victor Hugo's tale of injustice, heroism and love follows the fortunes of Jean Valjean, an escaped convict determined to put his criminal past behind him. But his attempt to become a respected member of the community are constantly put under threat: by his own conscience, when, owing to a case of mistaken identity, another man is arrested in his place; and by the relentless investigations of the dogged policeman Javert. It is not simply for himself that Valjean must stay free, however, for he has sworn to protect the baby daughter of Fantine, driven to prostitution by poverty. A compelling and compassionate view of the victims of early nineteenth-century French society, Les Miserables is a novel on an epic scale, moving inexorably from the eve of the battle of Waterloo to the July Revolution of 1830.

Victor Hugo is famous for his very detailed descriptions and precision storytelling, thereof, the story is is told on no less than 1,300 pages giving all the specifics to the reader. However, if you like to get right to the meat of the story, there is a shortened the Penguin edition which walks the readers through the main storylines with minimum specifics and historical facts.