My June weekends were mostly full of all sorts of things like hosting a birthday (my own, round 50) 🎂, hunting for a fridge (old side-by-side started dying, see A Tale of Two Fridges), shopping with my daughter 💜, and some reno-related stuff I don’t even have the energy to get into. Surprisingly enough, I still seem to have found time to read almost as much as any other month. June reads were a mix of long-awaited sequels and new releases from favorite authors, and some completely new finds.
A Letter from the Lonesome Shore, by Sylvie Cathrall – I loved this sequel to A Letter to the Luminous Deep ❣️ The same ethereal ambiance, some twists and turns and a happy ending.
Everybody Wants to Rule the World Except Me, by Django Wexler – Sequel to How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying. Fun and gamey, but a bit more of a serious undertone as life for Davi is not a game anymore. Mysteries are unraveled and yes, this book too has a happy ending.
The Amalfi Curse, by Sarah Penner – A superb witchy realism story where past meets present and romance wins.
The Haunted Housekeeping series (4 books), by R.A. Muth – Funky, quirky cozy mysteries with just a touch of supernatural and magic. A bit “easy” reading for my liking.
Fearless, by Lauren Roberts – book 3 in the Powerless series (the final one), which was, well in line with the other ones, but liked it somewhat better again than the first one. I think Book 2 was my favorite in this trilogy (series – as it has a book 1.5 which I somehow didn’t feel like reading even though I have it).
The Resurrectionist, by A. Rae Dunlap – Historical gothy fiction from a time when autopsies were considered sacrilege, but the more advanced though hushed Parisian syle training, ie. hands on and cutting corpses open, was in need of bodies to work on. Also, forbidden gay romance 💜
The Mysterious Bakery on Rue de Paris, by Evie Woods – magical realism romance, sweet and heartwarming, while quite predictable.
Bury our Bones in the Midnight Soil, by V.E. Schwab – Three vampire women, destiny tied together in a way that is not entirely guessable in the beginning. Intriguing travels through centuries, stopping here and there for a bit longer to shed light on the evolution of the characters.
Phantasma, by Kaylie Smith – Not quite as enchanting as I expected, not quite as ingenious as I hoped. More like a “everything tries to kill you and you just need to survive (though you’re really not up to the task)” kind of a story than witty and puzzly, like I’d prefer. Quite enjoyable none the less, and now I’m a bit past the half mark on the sequel, Enchantra (which is more of the same while different).
Enigma, by RuNyx – I absolutely love RuNyx and her way of weaving these dark romance mysteries. Full of twists and turns and secrets to unravel bit by itty bit, clues to tickle your brain and lead you astray, passion, even obsession (which maybe is not my thing, but I can accept it here). Can’t wait to get more RuNyx!
June 1, Finally, finally reading (well, started already yesterday) A Letter from the Lonesome Shore, by Sylvie Cathrall I loved the first book, A Letter to the Luminous Deep; this sequel is one my most anticipated reads of the year!
June 14, Started the fourth book of The Haunted Housekeeping, by R.A. Muth, series last night. While the books are kinda funny and quirky – enough to keep me reading through them all, especially when they’re not very long – they are a bit simple to my liking. I realize cozy mystery (even with a paranormal/fantasy/magical realism twist) is just not my cuppa. Things are too easygoing, a bit lame and simple. I want some actual suspense, gory bloody gruesomeness and such. Go figure.
Curiously, my 14 books of May amount to one page more than my 14 books of April 😀 Not exactly true as in pages I read, maybe, since the bios of both Edith Piaf and Judy Garland had a whole lot of pages of lists in the end, so not exactly pages to read. May saw the end of the Sookie series, some books I’ve had in my library for years, some new discoveries, and the long-awaited last book in the Nevermoor (Morrigan Crow) series.
Reckless, by Lauren Roberts – book 2 in the Powerless series. I finished it on the very day the last book, Fearless, was published, but only got that last week so it will be a June read. Anyway, I liked this one perhaps a bit more than the first book; quite good while not among my favorites
Sookie Stackhouse books 10-13, by Charlaine Harris – it was a bit bittersweet to bid farewell to Sookie. She got her happy ending, or at least such was hinted, and I got to move on to other books in Kindle (“got to move on”, you know what I mean, eh?). Had some good times with Sookie!
Not Quite the Classics, by Colin Mochrie – one of those books that have patiently been waiting to be read, and now the time came. Loved it! First and last sentence of 12 classics, with a whole new Mochrie-story in between
Old Bones, by Preston & Child – another one of those, a find from some radom place some years ago. Digging into the Donner Party, with an evil plan lurking over their heads, it’s a story of archeology and crime investigation. It began with way too many characters introduced each in their own chapters before the action got rolling and I almost gave up. Happy I didn’t, for to the end it was full speed and surprising while not
Remedial Magic duology (Remedial Magic and Reluctant Witch), by Melissa Marr – sort of like magical realism except more, since there’s a fully magical realm for witches, in need of saving. Salvation comes in the form of two fabulous ladies (obviously in love), one of whom is the reluctant witch, at least at first
Paratiisin kartta, by Anja Snellman – yet another book bought years ago from some random booksale. An older book of one of the most famous Finnish authors, I suppose I was curious about her. I did enjoy her memoir some years ago, but at least this story where a teacher remenishes her journey through 12 years of school with her class (with a side of personal history of the communistic seventies in the Uni) was not my cuppa, exactly. Kinda touching and stuff, but a bit (or a bit more) boring imo
Edith Piaf: hymni rakkaudelle, by Jean-Dominique Brierre [book in Finnish]- the biography of the beloved Edith Piaf, whom I was introduced to in school French classes, and while her chanson is not something I listen to, really, she made an impression. Such a tragic while enchanting, small yet huge, lady.
Silverborn, by Jessica Townsend – fourth and last book of the YA (or middle grade) Nevermoor series telling the story of Morrigan Crow. Delightful, whimsical, wonderfully entertaining fantasy mystery, with the happy ending suggesting that Morrigan will indeed be quite ok after all!
Wooing the Witch Queen, by Stephanie Burgis – the first book of the romantacy series Queens of Villainy. Totally fun read, with romance and mystery and misunderstandings, and a happy ending (with a hint of the second book to come (in Jan 2026).
Get Happy: The Life of Judy Garland, by Gerald Clarke – Edith Piaf made me think of Judy Garland, so I segwayed my way to her upon finishing Edith. Another tragic yet fabulous life, another small yet huge lady. I have been a fan of Judy since I first saw her in some MGM musical or another way back when. Not Oz, though. Could’ve been Summerstock.
May 5, I’m a big fan of Whose Line Is It Anyway, that improv show. Some time back, I was looking to see if any of the WLIIA cast would have written a memoir/autobio, but couldn’t find any – I did find this book: Not Quite the Classics by Colin Mochrie, and now I finally got around to reading it.
Twelve classics, twelve short stories inspired by the classic, with the first and last sentences provided by said book. Funny stuff, like reading an improv show. I can basically hear Mochrie’s “voice” as I read the stories!
May 22, As I was finishing the bio of Edith Piaf (by Jean-Dominique Brierre) today, I was also expecting to receive Fearless, finally, thinking I would read that next. However, as I read the last chapters of Piaf, I felt the pull of the Judy Garland bio (by Gerald Clarke) change my mind, so that’s what I started reading. Didn’t get far yet, just through the brief history of her parents and right to the paragraph about her birth where it blew my mind to learn that Baby in Dirty Dancing is really a nod and a bow to Judy Garland, named Frances at birth, but called Baby by her family!
So, 14 books in April. Sort of shortish ones, mostly; been bingeing on the Sookie Stackhouse series (by Charlaine Harris) and the books are mostly somewhere around 280-320 pages. I’m currently reading Sookie #10 (of 13 main books in the series, read 1-8 in April), so soon will be moving on to something different again (which is kinda good since there’s several quite long expected new releases coming up in May). I’ve been LOVING this series, seriously! There’s something about Sookie that makes these in a way gruesome books full of death and violence just so sweet and lovely, funny even. I guess Sookie herself is just so sweet and lovely, in the midst of all the mayhem.
Anyhow, there were other books too, so let’s take a look:
Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World (Aristotle and Dante, book 2), by Benjamin Alire Sáenz – such a heartwarmingly wonderful sequel continuing the story of the young lovers in a time when being gay was not really accepted
The Lights of Sugarberry Cove, by Heather Webber – turned out to be a lovely story, once we got past all that whining and resentment going on in the family (I mean, it was the foundation but kinda went on for a bit too long; I got tired of it)
The Courting of Bristol Keats, by Mary E. Pearson – I really enjoyed this one! Beautifully written story of the crude and brutal fae world at war
Three Wild Things and the Truth, by Markus Zusak – A memoir of their life with adopted (rescue – though they don’t call them that) dogs, big and rowdy and violent even. Resonated with my dog experiences a lot (even though ours are small)
Powerless, by Lauren Roberts – a bit of a Hunger Games copy, or at least heavily standing on their shoulders. YA, quite good reading, but nothing truly special or something I’d gush about
April 20, Gee, I loved The Courting of Bristol Keats, (Mary E. Pearson)! One of those books that go to show how very different we are in what we like, even inside a genre. I bought the book, actually specifically ordered the special Fairyloot edition since it was available through a bookstore chain in our nook of the woods too, because a) it was beautiful and b) I knew I was gonna love it.
Then I read some reviews in Bookaholics, that were less than promising. People had struggled with it, not getting into the story, it was too slow, whatnot. I almost got discouraged, but decidedly pushed other people’s opinions away, and started reading the book. It had me hooked in three pages. It held me tight for all 541 pages and now I have a book-hangover – AND have to wait for a half a year for the sequel (and hope that I can get it in the same edition without needing to wait extra…). Another top read of the year (they just keep on piling up, don’t they 😂)
My March weekends were again taxed with reno work at home and some other Life® related stuff, but you can’t keep a reader down 😂 Though ok “only” 11 books read, but some real quality books, most of them! Not that that’s unusual, so.
Torinon enkeli, by Taina Latvala, was my first March read. A Finnish book, one I bought some years ago at a book fair where I seemed to buy a lot of books that interested me only mildly. Still I read it, and I guess it was a quite nice story.
After that bookstore on my way home from work had done that reno, making English books more visibly displayed, I first found out that The Inheritance Games (by Jennifer Lynn Barnes) acually had a book 4: The Brothers Hawthorne, so I had to get that (in Kindle though), obviously! Loved it!
Also loved to discover, upon finishing that, that Jennifer Lynn Barnes has started a new sequal trilogy: The Grandest Game, of which the first book (that’s the name of the book too) is already available and so I got and read that too. Book 2 coming out in July.
Perhaps the read of the month, though, was the Belladonna series: Belladonna, Foxglove, and Wisteria, by Adalyn Grace. Maybe. These rating things are hard for me 😂
The Village Library Demon Hunting Society, by C.M. Waggoner, on the other hand was a tiny bit of a disappointment, plus the ending puzzled me a touch.
The Other Bennet Sister, by Janice Hadlow, was another “read of the month” along with Belladonna and the Hawthornes (no, not the Thorn Grove ones, the other ones)
I also absolutely loved Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe (Aristotle and Dante, book 1), by Benjamin Alire Sáenz, and am 4/5 through book 2, so that will be featured in April reads
Finally, Evidence of a Folktale (Autopsy of a Fairytale, book 5), by Nicole Scarano! As excellent as expected! Also, book 6 coming out in October, yey!
And last but not least, Simon and Milt Bevell and the Sorceress of Oden, by LIsa M Whitehead, which I finished only last night. Maybe not my favorite – I found the story kinda jumpy and sometimes it felt like something had been edited out or changed but not fully edited, and a lot of grammatical errors that occasionally made reading a bit difficult – but I think I’d like a loan arhcer to come and kill my loans with his silver arrows 😝 Fun story, though!
March 15, The Belladonna series by Adalyn Grace – those books I bought at the end of Feb and had an actual conversation about in the book store – they were fabs! They’re right at the top of my best reads so far this year! They’re gothicy, sinister, mysterious, deliciously dark, decadently atmospheric – as Kerri Maniscalco states on the cover of Foxglove, and I can’t put it any better.
Belladonna starts the series, hooking you right up, Foxglove brings it to its peak – definitely the best book of the trilogy, and finally Wisteria brings the storyline to its end. Wisteria started kinda slow, and I didn’t exacly like the ending, but still an excellent read❣️
March 27, Finally, finally! Book 5 of Nicole Scarano’s Autopsy of a Fairytale series, Evidence of a Folktale, was published and dropped into my Kindle on March 21, and just finished it tonight. I didn’t get to it immediately as I was still in the middle of The Other Bennet Sister by Janice Hadlow – the longest read of the year so far with 660 pages or so – at that point, but it was naturally next in line. At the end of book #5 I learned that there’s book #6 to come in October, so another Kindle preorder, another Autopsy book to look forward to still this year!
About that other Bennet sister. It was a wonderful Austen spin-off book, the story of Mary, where we see her bloom and become a charming young lady. It was totally Austenian in the storytelling as well as the ending, and I loved it!
Let’s get down to business then, with the year of books 2024 full review. As the title states, I read a total of 147 books this past year, with one more getting finished probably tonight. Didn’t quite make it to 150, which was my unofficial goal. I don’t generally do goals – I mean, reading is not a chore – and didn’t start this year with one either, but sometime in the early autumn it seemed like 150 would come to pass so my brain turned it into a goal without asking me 😂
So anyway, those 147 books translate to roughly 52000 pages; StoryGraph says 51909 while Goodreads claims 52430, but I figure StoryGraph is closer to the truth because there I actually select the correct edition for each book, while in Goodreads I don’t really care to. Which pretty much simply demonstrates that pages are an inaccurate measurement for reading too, as it goes 😉
[Edit. I finished the first Lady Julia Grey by Deanna Raybourn 43 minutes before the year ended, so actually 148 books, bringing the page count to 52,309 (StoryGraph). And I could even say I did hit the 150 mark, since one of this year’s books is a bundle of three: White Haven Winter is a compilation of books 4-6 of the White Haven Withces series by T.J. Green.]
Be as it may, I like the stats, so before delving into the actual books, let’s look at them a bit deeper. Or at least list a few more numbers:
Average book length was 356 (Goodreads) / 358 (StoryGraph) pages
The Great God Pan (Arthur Machen) was the shortest book, 41 pages
The longest book was Les Miserables (Victor Hugo), 1264 pages (and I do admit to not reading every word or even page entirely faithfully, so a bit of cheat there)
Fantasy was, unsurprisingly, the top genre, again, with 70 books
Romance comes next with 47 books, Mystery comes third with 27 books, Historical 25 books
Classics are quite high in my stats this year with a total of 17 books; partly though not solely thanks to the Extraordinary Adventures of the Athena Club books (read more about both in my bookish notes)
As always, there was a bit of non-fiction in the mix too, this year 8% which means 11 books, not quite one per month
As for the format, surprisingly print wins with it’s 55% ie. 81 books, even though I read a book of each format at any given time, finishing about 3 books per week – and if I’d have to guess, I’d say it’s usually 2 Kindle for 1 print, but I guess my holiday reading (mainly print) tipped the scale then
Languages: all of 5 books in Finnish. It would’ve been 8 had I found the Tuomainen books (The Rabbit Factor trilogy) in print, but as it went, I ended up reading them in English on my Kindle (more about that too in the aforementioned bookish notes)
My top authors this year were Deanna Raybourn 9 books (the Veronica Speedwells, and I now started her Lady Julia Grey series), RuNyx 7 books (Gothikana and the 6 books of Dark Verse), and TJ Klune also 7 books (some older ones, and the newest one, Somewhere Beyond the Sea)
Ready for the montly rollup? Ready or not, here we go! Some months I read more, some months I read a bit less, but I always read!
January – 10 books
Picks of the month:
First book of the year: Assistant to the Villain, by Hannah Nicole Maehrer What Cha-Bang way to start the reading year! Funny, witty, nutty – one of my favorite books of the year (in the series category, since in August, book 2 was released, and next September I’ll get more villainy goodness when book 3 comes out!)
Klune of the month: Into This River I Drown Older TJ Klune, sweet and lovely as ever! Oh, how it touched my soul ❤
Faeries of the month: Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of the Faeries and Emily Wilde’s Map of the Otherlandsby Hannah Nicole Maehrer Took me a bit to get into the story, in the first book, but ended up loving it! Also in the favorites of the year, also in the series category (and also, getting some more of Emily Wilde in 2025 too when book 3 comes out in February)
February – 16 books
Picks of the month:
Silly fun: Mead Mishaps series by Kimberly Lemming Three books in total, three interracial romances of the fantasy creature kind. Adventures, enemies to lovers, a bit of smut too.
Klune of the month: Murmuration Another adorable sweet story from his older works ❤
Best series: The Shepherd King duology, by Rachel Gillig Fantasy, romance, but of the darker variety. Awesome storyline, suspence and mystery even.
Top single: Gothikana by RuNyx A dark neo-gothic mystery (and romance), that had me hooked and made me look into more RuNyx
The disappointment: The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux Not the story but the writing style. The book lacks all of the ambiance of the musical/opera.
March – 10 books
Picks of the month:
The Zamonia book: The Labyrinth of Dreaming Books by Walter Moers I love Booklings and I love Animatomes and I love Zamonia and I love Bookholm with it’s bookstores and the underground labyrinth. I wish they would translate more of Zamonia to English!
Klune of the month: The Bones Beneath My Skin The girl who loved bacon. And the romance, obviously. And the, everything about this book, too! I noticed they’re publishing this with the new cover styles in 2025 – I definitely will get me a copy!
Top single: A Market of Dreams and Destiny by Trip Galey Dreamy, surreal, absolutely wonderful fantasy read, almost like magical realism except that there was nothing realistic about any of it. Except that the setting was London. Somewhere not in time.
The disappointment: The Price of Salt by Patricia Highsmith So dreary and kinda boring! A product of it’s time, for sure, but so very acutely not my time.
The book I wanted to love but didn’t: The Book of Doors by Gareth Brown It had all the makings, but I didn’t love it like I expected I would. I liked it, for sure. I just didn’t love it.
April – 14 books
Picks of the month:
The Dislike: Yön Kantaja by Katja Kallio Not that there was anything wrong with the book in particular, I just found it utterly fucking boring!
The non-fiction: Andy by Lamppu Laamanen Crazy motherfucker that Andy. Reading this book was like reading my teenage diaries, except obviously my shit was not even a % as wild as his. And nobody even knows what is true and what not. I enjoyed it anyway!
Klune of the month: John and Jackie A bit less than most Klune, but a sweet story anyway.
May – 14 books
Picks of the month:
Top single, also feel-good of the month: Elodie’s Library of Second Chances by Rebecca Raisin A book that makes you smile, that wipes away all the darkness left by the sullenly reads preceding it. Makes you feel cozy and warm.
Klunes of the month: Crisped + Sere, Withered + Sere I never thought I’d encounter a Klune I didn’t like, but here we had it. This was a dark dystopia duology that I just could not like. So, the exception to the Klune rule.
The crazy romantacy: Not Your Average Hot Guy and The Date From Hell by Gwenda Bond Funny, hot, crazy fun!
June – 10 books
Picks of the month:
The disappointments: The Atlas Paradox and The Atlas Complex by Olivie Blake I liked The Atlas Six well enough though even that would never have made my top list. Paradox was ok, Complex was a total bore. I really can’t suffer books that dwell inside of the characters heads too much – I have enough of that in my own. I want stories that flow instead of stagnant inter-relationship ponds.
The surprise delight: How to Become a Dark Lord and Die Trying by Django Wexler Ready Player One meets D&D. With footnotes. With footnotes that have footnotes! Funny, dark humor, adventure. And to be continued; book 2 will be published in May 2025
The non-fiction: The Lost City of the Monkey God by Douglas Preston Coulda fooled me – this book is total Indy Jones stuff and then some! In the jungles of Honduras.
Top single: Don’t Want You Like a Best Friend by Emma R. Alban Lesbian romance situated in the British high society on the 1800s. This is actually part 1 of a duology, but the second book wasn’t quite on the same level even though I certainly enjoyed that one too!
July – 11 books
Picks of the month:
Top single: A Letter to the Luminous Deep by Sylvie Cathrall Something of scifi mystery with a very warm heart. Book 2 will be out in May 2025
The disappointment: Children od Anguish and Anarchy by Tomi Adeyemi Not surprisingly, though, since book 2 was already nowhere near as good as the first one. Not bad, just not very good either. A meh.
The tome: Les Miserables by Victor Hugo I love the story. I love the musical, but even then, the book didn’t disappoint. Still, there was just too much irrelevant stuff there. I mean, if Hugo was trying to get this published today, he’d be told to cut out at least a third of the book. Still, I loved it, even though I skipped and skimmed that third or so.
August – 14 books
Picks of the month:
The long-awaited sequel: The Black Bird Oracle by Deborah Harkness Book 5 in the All Souls series. It was originally a trilogy, then there was book 4 (which wasn’t quite as good as the original trilogy), then 5 (which again was right up there!). And now we are to expect a book 6 maybe next year, with rumors about even book 7!
The not quite as long-awaited sequel: Apprentice to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer Book 2 in the Assistant to the Villain series. Obviously waited only for half a year for this one. Such a fantastic series, this!
Top single: The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer I thought this was fantasy, but it wasn’t. It definitely is fantastical drama/adventure though, and a delightful feel-good story!
The magical realism: The Story Collector by Evie Woods The magic is so subtle, but it’s there. And the story is so lovely, so heart-warming. Could’ve been a top single, but damn it, Top 10 only holds ten books!
September – 15 books
Picks of the month:
The long-awaited sequel: The Bookshop of Hidden Dreams by Karen Hawkins Book 4 in the Dove Pond series. There are seven of those sisters, so should be 3 more books to come. Subtle magical realism, sweet romance. Cozy reads, these are.
The Finnish crime: Merkitty by Max Seeck My favorite Finnish author. He spins the suspence masterfully, and while the murders are violent, they don’t feel gory, they don’t make me feel dirty.
Top single: In the Shadow Garden by Liz Parker A witchy magical realism with twists and turns, a mystery and a romance or two, and a happy ending.
The story behind a rock album: Clockwork Angels by Kevin J. Anderson (and Neil Peart) The fantasy story that puts meat around the bones of the Rush album of the same title. An awesome story of its own worth, but a gem for a Rush fan
The disappointment: The Thorn and the Blossom by Theodora Goss I though it would be good but it felt like experimental writing. The same love story, told twice. The magical twist is cool, but the execution was not what I expected, by how much I loved her series The Extraordinary Adventures of the Athena Club (see favorite series at the end)
October – 11 books
Picks of the month:
Top single: The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst Oh, the sweetness of this book! The warmth and the love!
Klune of the month: Somewhere Beyond the Sea by The other top single, also the long-awaited sequel. Book 2 of the Cerulean Chronicles. Heart-warming story where love and caring win the day
The slight disappointment: The Wedding Witch by Erin Sterling I loved the first two books of the Ex Hex series, but this was not as good. Not bad, just not as good as I expected.
November – 12 books
Picks of the month:
The long-awaited sequel: Now or Never by Janet Evanovich Book 31 of the Steph Plum series. Can’t believe how many there are already! New one out every year or so – I started reading Plums when I was pregnant with my younger kid who’s 21yo now. At that point, there were maybe 6 books out. It was love at first book and it’s never turned cold!
The non-fiction: The Third Gilmore Girl by Kelly Bishop I didn’t even know she was a Broadway DANCER before becoming an actress! She does have that elegance, though, and her background lends a cool twist to her line in Dirty Dancing, when she comments to her husband that Baby probably gets it (the dancing, the moves) from her.
The book I wanted to love but didn’t: Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell I don’t mind reading children’s books, like this one with the demography of about 12 year olds. This starter of a series was not bad, not even disappointing, I just didn’t love it as a I thought I would. I will get and read the other books as they come, for sure.
December – 10 books
Picks of the month:
Top single: The Lost Story by Meg Shaffer This most certainly IS fantasy, not even just magical realism. Amazing story, and well worth all the hype.
The meh: The Cinnamon Bun Book Store by Laurie Gilmore The Pumpkin Spice Café (first book in the series) was a rather nice romance with a touch of mystery, but in this one, the storyline was just a lame excuse for the smut. And that’s just a bit boring to me. I’d rather watch 5 minutes of porn than read a book with no other content than smut.
The book I wanted to love but didn’t: The Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong A book I so wanted to love, but ended up merely liking, sort of. A cute story as it is, but a bit dragging and boring. At least it has a real sweet ending!
The gothy mystery: Strange Beasts by Susan J. Morris Fabulous read, could’ve been a top single too.
The disappointment: The Moonlight Market by Joanne Harris Also a book I wanted to love but didn’t. The main character was just so STUPID! And the ending? I’m not sure it was all that satisfying.
The Top Lists of 2024
A lot of fantastic, fabulous reads in the year and not all of them got on the top list either, since I limited myself to 10. Skirted that a touch, though, by making a separate list of my favorite (complete, or as complete as they were this year) series 😉 So, the Top Lists, s’il vous plait:
Top Singles (may be part of a series, but singled out):
Gothikana, by RuNyx
A Market of Dreams and Destiny, by Trip Galey
Elodie’s Library of Second Chances, by Rebecca Raisin
Don’t Want You Like a Best Friend, by Emma R. Alban
A Letter to the Luminous Deep, by Sylvie Cathrall
The Wishing Game, by Meg Shaffer
In the Shadow Garden, by Liz Parker
The Spellshop, by Sarah Beth Durst
Somewhere Beyond the Sea, by TJ Klune
The Lost Story, by Meg Shaffer
Top Series (as complete as they were by the end of 2024)
Assistant to the Villain series by Hannah Nicole Maehrer (book 3 coming in Sept, 2025)
Emily Wilde series by Heather Fawcett (book 3 coming in Feb, 2025)
The Shepherd King series by Rachel Gillig
The Extraordinary Adventures of the Athena Club series by Theodora Goss
Veronica Speedwell series by Deanna Raybourn
Been one heck of a reading year! On to the next one - Excelsior! as Veronica Speedwell would say.
P.S. Edit: one last book of the year and sneak peak to the next
I finished the excellent first book in the Lady Julia Grey series, Silent in the Grave, by Deanna Raybourn just before the year changed. Thus, I will start the new reading year with book 2, Silent in the Sanctuary in Kindle and The Wicked King (book 2 of The Folk of the Air series by Holly Black) in print (I’m maybe 70 pages in).
I loved the first book, A Letter to the Luminous Deep; this sequel is one my most anticipated reads of the year!
System Failure for the Masses 