I need to make up for my silence in this space, and share some of my favorite books that I read from the last half of 2019. Like I did in my post about books I read the first half of the year – this post isn’t all inclusive, but will include books I loved and want to share with you, as well as a few others that I feel I need to share thoughts about. Enjoy, and happy reading! (And feel free to follow along with the books I read on Goodreads!)
Excellent Books
Love, Heather is one that took me by surprise. I was expecting a fluffy, revenge thriller, but what I got was something much more emotional and meaningful. It deals with some hard topics but I loved it.
Holy cow, the Arc of a Scythe trilogy (I read books 1 and 2 last year, currently reading the 3rd as it just came out!) are so unique, so amazing, so well told. I flew through them. You should read them. You just should.
The Grace Year was insane. This book took some of my favorite books (The Handmaid’s Tale, The Hunger Games, The Crucible), smashed them together and left me reeling. It gets a touch slow in the middle, but overall, amazing. And horrifying.
If you’re looking for a fresh take on zombie novels, give The Girl With All The Gifts a try! It was such a fun read, and really made me think. I didn’t care for book two, though.
I read Recursion, another Blake Crouch book and found it just as insane and confusing and wonderful as Dark Matter.
The Starless Sea was captivating and beautiful. I have a few friends who didn’t finish it, because it is long and disjointed, but if you stick it out you will encounter a magical world and everything comes together at the end. I found it amazingly mesmerizing.
I was pleasantly surprised by One of Us Is Lying. It’s a YA thriller, but it felt more real to me, with actual character development.
The Turn of the Key is one that got a lot of hype, and for good reason! It was sooo creepy. Ruth Ware can WRITE.
Silent Souls Weeping is a fantastic book about depression and the LDS Church and every member of the church should read it.
A sweet middle-grade read, The War That Saved My Life just made my heart burst. It tackled tough issues with grace in an age appropriate way and I just loved it.
Thirteen is a courtroom thriller that was much better than your average one. I really enjoyed it!
Another great Kate Morton read, The Clockmaker’s Daughter was engaging and mysterious and masterfully crafted. She is such a fantastic storyteller!
Daring Greatly. I mean, what else do I have to say? Brene Brown is queen.
A Few More To Mention
Most people seem to love Colleen Hoover books, but I read November 9 and hated it. It put me off her books forever. Anyone feel the same?
Red Rising is one that I have heard great things about, and seemed right up my alley, but while the first few chapters were compelling, I was bored, bored, bored for 90% of the book and have no desire to finish the series. It was disappointing for sure.
I re-read Where’d You Go, Bernadette and it was just as hilarious and delightful as the first time I read it.
Nine Perfect Strangers wasn’t my favorite Liane Moriarty book, but I still enjoyed it!
Before We Were Yours is a book that’s going around right now, but I don’t think I loved it as much as everyone else. I found the true story behind the book fascinating, but the book itself was just ok to me. I do have the companion book Before and After (true stories of the children who survived the Children’s Home) in my Kindle line up and I’m sure I will love it!
And last but not least…. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. I started re-reading the series for the umpteenth at the end of the year, and as always, it’s magical. My favorite book series of all time. Ever.
