To clarify, this is not about books released in 2024, but about the ones you personally read (although they can be both).
I've chosen some categories, but please add your own!
Science fiction/fantasy: Red Side Story by Jasper Fforde. We waited a decade for this sequel and, while it wasn't perfect, it was worth the wait. I love Eddie and Jane as much as ever and am on tenterhooks for the final part of the trilogy (Fforde has promised it won't be another decade).
Crime/thriller: The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley. Fantastic, edge of your seat page-turner, with a genuinely clever and surprising denouement (admittedly I'm terrible at guessing whodunnit). My only complaint is that I stayed awake until the early hours to finish it and was knackered the next day.
General fiction: Mother Naked by Glen James Brown. The most original book I've read in years. The whole thing is a bard's monologue in 'medieval' English, but it's surprisingly easy to read and incredibly moving. A real hidden gem.
A 'new-to-me' classic: Ruth by Elizabeth Gaskell. I'm a big fan of Gaskell and will talk at length about why she's better (as a person and a writer) than Dickens and other contemporaries, so I'm not sure why I never read Ruth before this year. While not my favourite of her books, Ruth is still a remarkable novel, and so incredibly ahead of its time in terms of empathy and acceptance.
Non-fiction: Agatha Christie by Lucy Worsley. Probably benefits from 'just finished it' bias, but I really enjoyed this. I've read books and articles about Christie before, but this one was particularly effective at portraying her as a real human being.
The re-read: The Blind Assassin by Margaret Atwood. The Handmaid's Tale is a lot more famous these days, but this is my favourite Atwood and I think my fourth re-read. I got the urge to read it a few months ago while dusting a bookshelf. Alas the rest of the dusting was not completed.
My thanks to the Storyscape app for actually keeping track of everything I read this year!
by TessMacc
1 Comment
“The Blob That Ate Everyone” by R. L. Stine was far and away my standout favorite. Such an imaginative premise. Great plotting and pacing. Plus a huge twist at the end that melted my brain into a blob of its own.