Star Wars Beginners Guide to the Canon Books

This is the book that I can safely say everyone would recommend. Lost Stars is everything you would want in a book, great story, exciting moments, and memorable characters. Instead of the book focusing on main characters we all know from the movies, it's a story about two characters from an outer rim world. Seriously, do yourself a favor and pick this book up first.

The Thrawn Books

If you want to read about a genius imperial who climbs through the imperial ranks quickly, and constantly outsmarts his opponents in combat then definitely pick these books up. Bonus: You get to see a little of Darth Vader in Thrawn and then see a lot more of Vader when he teams up with Thrawn in Thrawn: Alliances.

Tarkin

In Tarkin you get to learn about Tarkin's backstory and why he's such a cruel and heartless individual in the movies. This book allows you to learn more about Tarkin's homeworld and his family while providing a stellar story that will keep you hooked.

Aftermath Trilogy

Yes, the aftermath trilogy definitely has it's ups and downs, the writing style is different to the least, and are generally regarded as not the best in the canon series, but overall I do feel that by the end of the trilogy you learn a whole lot more about what happens after Return of the Jedi all the way up to the battle of Jakku and the characters grow on you. If you can trudge through the first two books, then the third will definitely reward you.

Bloodline & Dark Disciple

In this book we get to see more of Leia, the political landscape in the galaxy that the movies fail to show us, the failings of the senate. In Bloodline Claudia Gray absolutely nailed how Leia acts which is reminiscent of how her character is in the movies.

Ever wanted to see more about Asajj Ventress? Then this is the book for you! Not only do we got to see Ventress be a complete badass, but we also get to see Quinlan Vos, a character who hasn't really been explored more in the past. The plot of the book is that the Jedi order decides to assasinate Count Dooku and picks Vos as the jedi to do it. In an unexpected turn of events, Quinlan chooses Ventress to help him with the deed which results in a surprisingly intriguing story plot, love story, and stays true to the Clone Wars TV show.