I think most of us can say nothing but a hearty good riddance to this year. But at least I read a bunch of good books!
Another year of not much blogging but I can’t break my tradition of doing a yearly book wrap-up. So, for the fifteenth year, here are some of my favourite books this year in no particular order:
A Deadly Education: Naomi Novik – I call this book Hogwarts meets the Hunger Games and it was fab!
A Wizard’s Guide To Defensive Baking – T Kingfisher Great fantasy with an intrepid young heroine, angry sourdough and sentient cookies.
Network Effect: Martha Wells – The first full length novel in the continuing excellent Murderbot series. The paranoid charming android you didn’t know you needed. I’d say start with the novellas because they’re all damned good.
You Had Me At Hello: Mhairi Mcfarlane – A new author to me. British romances about heroines who are in a bit of a messy patch and find their way out. I glommed all her books this year.
Boyfriend Material: Alexis Hall Another new author, and a great funny m/m romance. Another British set book. I seem to have read quite a few Brit set romances this year. If you like Richard Curtis movies for the funny snarky friendship groups, you might like this.
Gideon The Ninth: Tamsyn Muir – I’m a bit late to the party with this book and it’s one that’s tricky to describe but if gothic sword fighting necromancers in space sounds good to you, check it out!
House of Earth and Blood: Sarah J Maas. A new series for Sarah with a very big and complicated world which I’m very interested in seeing where she takes things. This book is a long one but it sucked me in.
Sweet Ruin: Kresley Cole – Another series I glommed this year. Fated Mates is not my fave paranormal trope but Kresley is doing some great things in this world. Sweet Ruin was my fave. I picked this series up due to listening to the Fated Mates podcast with Sarah MacLean and Jen Prokof which is one I enjoy a lot.
The House in the Cerulean Sea & Brothersong: T.J. Klune Two very different books, the former being a lovely kind YA level fantasy and the latter the last in his funny/angsty/sexy/m/m werewolf series but I continue to adore T.J.’s books.
Headliners – Lucy Parker. Another fab romance from Lucy. I’m eagerly awaiting her new series in 2021.
One Kiss from the King of Rock: Ainslie Paton – A great rock star reunion romance. The whole series of these books is fun!
Mindtouch: MCA Hogarth – Gentle SF. Psychic space doctors plus kindness.
A Heart of Blood and Ashes: Mila Vane – A barbarian fantasy romance done very very well.
Naughty Brits: A fun and sexy contemporay novella anthology from a bunch of cool authors who generally write historicals.
The Nancys: RWR McDonald – a young girl who wants to be Nancy Drew and her gay uncle and his boyfriend in a NZ set murder mystery. This book was delightful. I read less mystery this year I think but this was a good one.
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue – VE Schwab. Another book that’s hard to describe. Memory and love and old gods and revenge. Beautiful and unique.
So there you have it. My fave reads of the year. I read lots and could include more but this is a blog post, not a novel. Mosey on over to Goodreads if you want to see everything I read/listened to. I also talked a little about my top 5 SFF and top 5 romances on IGTV. And of course, I talk about books I’m loving in my newsletter, which you can sign up for on my website. My fave comfort listen continues to be The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison, a book I seem to never tire of. Some of my fave podcasts continue to be No Such Thing As A Fish and Chat 10 Looks 3. Some other faves this year: Fated Mates, Writing Excuses, David Tennant Does a Podcast With, Evil Genius, Home Cooking, Strong Songs, The Pen Addict, Shedunnit, The West Wing Weekly and You’re Dead to Me.
If you’d like to check out what books I picked as faves in previous years, here they are:
2019, 2018, 2017, 2016, 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012, 2011, 2010, 2009, 2008, 2007, 2006.
Maybe one of your future faves is in there. If you had a fave this year, let me know so I can check it out! May the new year be full of amazing books, less stress, more joy, an end to this damned pandemic and a new start to things.