It’s that time of the year.where we all take a moment and look back at all the books that we read this year and try to narrow it down to our favorites. I read 42 books this year which is actually less then normal but that’s okay. It’s quality over quantity right? How do you pick a favorite? Do you go by the book that you just coulnd’t put down? The one you wanted to reread as soon as you finished? The one that gave you the most feels good or bad? All of the above? It’s really hard to choose but I will do my best.
The list is in the order I read them this year as I’m chickening out in saying which one if my favorite favorite. It was too hard to choose.
- On The Come Up by Angie Thomas – This was honest and heart breaking as a young girl finds her voice through many challenges.
- Seafire by Natalie C. Parker – Girl Pirates. That’s it. I mean what else do you want in a book? Besides some great characters. Interesting world building and twist and turns around every corner. The sequel Steel Tide is just as good.
- Dragon Pearl by Yoon Ha Lee – I really wished this wasn’t a standalone because they are so many adventures awaiting Min. Such a fun story and adventure.
- The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson – This book was a couple of years old but I never got around to reading. I’m glad that I finally did because I couldn’t put the trilogy down.
- Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell – What do you get when a Witch, a vampire and a former wizard with wings and a tail take a road trip? The coolest car ride ever!
- Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo – Traumatic and harrowing but a good mystery. I’m truly intrigued on where it goes from here.
- Call Down the Hawk by Maggie Stiefvater – Ronan Lynch is one of my favorite Maggie characters so I was pretty sure I was going to like this book but I surprised at how much I felt for Declan Lynch and new character Jordan.
- The Queen of Nothing by Holly Black– No one does fairies like Holly Black and the finale to your the Folk of the Air trilogy proves why.
What were your favorite books of 2019? Comment down below and let us know what books we need to add to our stacks.
2 Women, So Many Books 
Discovering the Matt Helm series by Donald Hamilton has been a great book highlight for me in 2019. 2019 was also also been the year I read Ian Fleming’s nonfiction book Thrilling Cities, which had been on my list for a while. The nonfiction book The Many Lives of James Bond was a pleasant surprise for me. Usually, I don’t expect to learn very much from new nonfiction books about the Bond series but Mark Edlitz conducted some brilliant interviews that dove as deep into the franchise as I’ve seen anyone do so even hardcore Bond fans who think they know everything there is to know can discover a whole lot more.
I’ve also been lucky to interview a number of people involved in creating the Bond comics at Dynamite so along with reading those new comics series, it’s been a special treat to actually talk with some creators.
Sadly, I’m remiss that I never got around to reading Red Nemesis, the final book in the Young Bond series. Part of it may be down to my typical procrastination but another part of me just doesn’t want the series to end. The Young Bond series was so well written that I usually devoured each entry as soon as I could get my hands on them but there’s something about knowing it’s the final book that makes me want to hold off on reading it. I will make a vow to myself to get to it early in the New Year if not before. Of course it goes without saying that I highly recommend the Young Bond series to you both whenever you have a chance to get to them.
Anyway, happy new year to both of you and I look forward to checking out more of your reviews in 2020!
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The Girl of Fire and Thorns has always sounded so interesting to me, I hope to read it at some point, I’m glad you enjoyed it! 😊❤️
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