Time to Vote for the Top 10 Reads of 2024

[Robin P]

Ellen wrote:
Least Favorite:
Take a Hint, Dani Brown - Hibbert

I read 2 of the Brown sisters books before realizing I really didn't like them

[Michelle H]

My Top 10 Favorite Reads in 2024. I had 2 primary themes; women in politics and running

Something Lost, Something Gained: Reflections on Life, Love, and Liberty - Clinton
Civil Rights Queen: Constance Baker Motley and the Struggle for Equality - Brown-Nagin
Oath and Honor: A Memoir and a Warning - Cheney
Marathon: The Ultimate Training Guide - Higdon
Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents - Wilkerson
26 Marathons: What I Learned About Faith, Identity, Running, and Life from My Marathon Career - Keflezighi
Humble Pi: A Comedy of Maths Errors - Parker
Our Time Is Now: Power, Purpose, and the Fight for a Fair America - Abrams
The Bright Side Running Club - Lloyd
The Guncle Abroad - Rowley


Least favorite book read in 2024: Fordlandia: The Rise and Fall of Henry Ford's Forgotten Jungle City

[Lyn]

My top 10 this year:

Hell of a Book - Mott
Tom Lake - Patchett (audio)
The Personal Librarian - Benedict
Remarkably Bright Creatures - Van Pelt
The House of Silk - Horowitz
The Wild Robot - Brown
Unbroken - Hillenbrand
Finding Dorothy - Letts
Crying in H Mart - Zauner
The Boston Girl - Diamant

My least favorite:
Uprooted - Novik it just wasn't a genre I enjoyed

[Rachel N.]

My top 10:

Tell the Truth, Shame the Devil - Marchetta
Spinning Starlight - Lewis
Guards! Guards! - Pratchett
Lincoln - Donald
The Thursday Murder Club - Osman
Ink Blood Sister Scribe - Torzs
Fourth Wing - Yarros
Unmarriageable - Kamal
Thirteen Hours - Meyer
Eight Perfect Murders - Swanson

Worst book by far The Last Battle by C.S. Lewis. what an awful way to end the Narnia series.

[Steven]

Project Hail Mary - Weir
Shogun - Clavell
King: A Life - Eig
Dinosaurs - Millet
The Bullet Swallower - Gonzales James
Essex Dogs - Jones
The Tainted Cup - Bennett
The Familiar - Bardugo
Storm Front - Butcher
The Bright Sword - Grossman

Least Favorite:

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - Stevenson

[Amy]

The Covenant of Water – Abraham Verghese
The Museum of Failures – Thrity Umigar
Song of Achilles – Madeline Miller
Don’t Forget to Write – Sarah Goodwin Corfino
The Echo of the Old Books – Barbara Davis
Travelers to Unimagined Lands – Dasha Kiper
A Girl Called Samson – Amy Harmon
The Secret Book of Flora Lea – Patti Callahan Henry
By Any Other Name – Jodi Picoult
The Fox Wife – Yangsee Choo

Honorable Mentions - (There were plenty of those

The Unknown Beloved – Amy Harmon
The Starfish Sisters – Barbara O’Neal

[Linda]

The Book of Lost Names - Kristin Harmel
I Will Always Write Back: How One Letter Changed Two Lives - Caitlin Alifirenka
A Little Princess - Frances Hodgson Burnett
The Cross Gardener - Jason F. Wright
The Art of Love and Lies - Rebecca Anderson
A Lady's Guide to Marvels and Misadventure - Angela Bell
The Wish List - Eoin Colfer
Every Soul a Star - Wendy Mass
The Snow Child - Eowyn Ivey
Christmas by Accident - Camron Wright

Least Favorite book--Educated - Tara Westover

[Karin]

Jen wrote: "Karin wrote: "I'm waiting because I have the newest novel by Helen Simonson here and really liked the other two I've read by her. Ideally it will be one of my top 10."

I'm waiting to finish my lis..."

I've had very few five star books because of Play Book Tag. Even the one I'm reading now is only going to be 4 even though her other two books were five. The only difference is that in the eight years between this book and the last one she published, I've been come tired of books during or surrounding and about the two world wars. That said, it's still going to be 4 stars.

[Karin]

Theresa wrote: "Joy D wrote: "My Friends - Matar
Playground - Powers
Washington Black - Edugyan
Black Butterflies - Morris
Time of the Child - Williams
Q&A (Slumdog Millionaire) - Swarup
Morality Play - Unsworth
T..."

I gave Morality Play 4 stars, which surprised me since I didn't think I'd like it at more than 3, but it's not going to make my top 10 once I figure it out.

[Linda C]

Rachel N. wrote: "My top 10:

Tell the Truth, Shame the Devil - Marchetta
Spinning Starlight - Lewis"

I loved Spinning Starlight. I read it in 2023 and it was a great retelling.

[Jason]

I am currently reading The Pearl by John Steinbeck and I may I have to edit my list when I finish.

[Karin]

In no particular order my top five are (I only had 5 new-to-me 5 star books this year due in part to BWF)

The Hazelbourne Ladies Motorcycle and Flying Club - Helen Simonson
The Mistletoe Promise- Richard Paul Evans
Newcomer - Keigo Higashino
The Enchanted April - Elizabeth von Arnim
Okay for Now - Gary D. Schmidt


Worst -- I'll name only one even though there were a few tied as worstincluding Uprooted, but that's been named, so I'll put this one (I only finished it because it was so short)

Winter in Sokcho - Elisa Shua Dusapin

[Kimber]

Top 10 for 2024:


Tom Lake - Patchett
Orbital - Harvey
Silver Nitrate - Moreno-Garcia
The Familiar - Bardugo
Bride - Hazelwood
Winter Solstice - Pilcher
Summerwater - Moss
Death Valley - Broder
Reykjavik - Jonasson, Jakobsdottir
Get in Trouble - Link

Least fave: The Maker of Swans - O'Donnell

[Jason]

I really want to add The Pearl - John Steinbeck to my top 10 but I don't know what book to remove. I guess it does not matter much since other people wouldn't be adding it to their top 10 this year.

[Jgrace]

I. am. still. reading! It isn't 2025 yet so I still have time to decide.

Going back to my book now.

[NancyJ]

Jgrace wrote: "I. am. still. reading! It isn't 2025 yet so I still have time to decide.

Going back to my book now."

Me too. We have until January 5, so don’t sweat it. I had high hopes for my current book, but it’s not going to make my top 10.

[Jen]

Jgrace wrote: "I. am. still. reading! It isn't 2025 yet so I still have time to decide.

Going back to my book now."

Thank you.....made me laugh and I needed that.

[LibraryCin]

Jgrace wrote: "I. am. still. reading! It isn't 2025 yet so I still have time to decide."

LOL! I, too, usually wait until Jan 1 or 2 to post my top 10.

But I'm going to be lucky if I finish any more books this year, and even if I do, none will make my top, so I may just figure this out today or tomorrow, after all.

[Anita]

At this point, I have entered all your books into the spreadsheet, so please ALERT ME below this message if you switch anything out (or add anything new to an under 10 list.

Please denote the book you are deleting as well as the one you are adding.

Thanks so much!!!

[LibraryCin]

I have to look just a bit closer but on a skim, I have zero 5 star books this year, and only eight books more than 4 stars (4.25 or 4.5 stars). And one of those is a reread, and I don't count those in my Favourites (it already made a previous favourites list, anyway). So, at this point, I may only have seven. But I'll look closer to see if I want to include three more 4 star books that seem like they might fit.

I also have more books (I think) rated under 3 stars this year than usual. I suspect that's just because I'm more willing to rate lower than I used to be.

[Karin]

LibraryCin wrote: "I have to look just a bit closer but on a skim, I have zero 5 star books this year, and only eight books more than 4 stars (4.25 or 4.5 stars). And one of those is a reread, and I don't count those..."

I don't count rereads, either :)

[Nicole R]

Play Along - Tomforde
The Rachel Incident - O'Donoghue
Same As It Ever Was - Lombardo
Long Island Compromise - Brodesser-Akner
Blue Sisters - Mellors
Shark Heart - Habeck
The Wedding People - Espach
Things We Left Behind - Score
The Familiar - Bardugo
The Women - Hannah

My favorite book of the year, hands down, was Shark Heart by Emily Habeck. The description is quirky and I wasn't quite sure what I was getting into, but I absolutely loved it. Fair warning: I sobbed for 75% of the book, but in the best way.

My least favorite book of the year: The Heaven and Earth Grocery Store. I know that James McBride is highly regarded and wins all the awards, but I truly despised this book. I thought it was horrible. I would not have finished it except that I was the one who picked it for my in-person book club! I have apologized to my book club every month since and am still banned from picking something else.

My reading this year was dominated by contemporary romance, and they rarely reach the level of being outstanding books or my favorite reads. BUT, this year I read some outstanding contemporary romance novels. I limited myself to adding two to the above list:
Play Along by Liz Tomforde -- Liz is a goddess in my world and her books are elite in the genre. Even elite out of the genre.
Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score -- The Knockemout trilogy by Score totally took me by surprise. It was so wonderful, but this final installment had me enthralled start to finish.

[Anita]

Nicole R wrote: "Play Along - Tomforde
The Rachel Incident - O'Donoghue
Same As It Ever Was - Lombardo
[book:L..."

I really want to read Long Island Compromise. And I'm with you on Heaven & Earth Grocery Store. Was not a fan. I gave it two stars which I felt was generous.

[Joanne]

Nicole R wrote: "Play Along - Tomforde
hThe Rachel Incident - O'Donoghue
Same As It Ever Was - Lombardo
[book:L..."

Glad to see Bardugo obw your list, she was a close call for me

[Jen K]

Top 10

The Chinese Groove - Ma
Rebecca - Du Maurier
Ship of Magic - Hobb
A Fever in the Heartland - Egan
The Will of Many - Islington
Braiding Sweetgrass - Kimmerer
All Quiet on the Western Front - Remarque
Trust - Diaz
James - Everett
Some Desperate Glory - Tesh

Least Favorite: Merry Kissmass - Rayne

[Theresa]

Jen K wrote: "Top 10

The Chinese Groove - Ma
Rebecca - Du Maurier
Ship of Magic - Hobb
A Fever in the Heartland - Egan
The Will of Many - Islington
Braiding Sweetgrass - Kimmerer
All Quiet on the Western Front ..."

Love seeing Rebecca on there. You clearly liked Braiding Sweetgrass a lot more than I did!

[LibraryCin]

I have only a top 9:

Supremacy - Olson
Fire Weather - Vaillant
Thousand Words - Brown
The Traitor’s Wife - Higginbotham
Schulz and Peanuts - Michaelis
Climate Changed - Squarzoni
Lessons in Chemistry - Garmus
Up and Down - Fallis
Science Comics: Cats: Nature and Nurture - Hirsch
__________________________________________________

Dishonourable mention (1.5 stars):
The Sandcastle Girls / Chris Bohjalian
Murder on Black Swan Lane / Andrea Penrose
__________________________________________________

Additional comments:
My top 9 included seven 4.25 and 4.5 stars, and two 4 stars. I did not have any 5 star books this year.

Science Comics: Cats: Nature and Nurture / Andy Hirsch (this should include the entire series as a favourite, but this is the one I read this year)

[Robin P]

Anita wrote: "Nicole R wrote: "Play Along - Tomforde
The Rachel Incident - O'Donoghue
Same As It Ever Was - [author:Lombardo|..."

I gave Heaven and Earth 3 stars. I liked some parts but there were too many different episodes and characters. I expected more after all the hype.

[Nicole]

I look forward to this list every year and number of my personal favorites for 2024 came from past lists.

My top reads of the year:

Beartown - Backman
This Tender Land - Krueger
The Boy, the Mole , the Fox and the Horse - Mackesy
First Lie Wins - Elston
84, Charing Cross Road - Hanff
The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy - Joyce
Holly - King
The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi - Chakraborty

[Jgrace]

Ok. I finished my last 2024 book at 8pm 12/31/24. So here's the list in no particular order.


Backyard Bird Chronicles - Tan
North Woods - Mason
Shakespeare:The Man Who Pays the Rent - Dench/O’Hea
Table for Two -Towles
The Glassmaker - Chevalier
There Are Rivers in the Sky - Shafak
Playground - Powers
The Frozen River -Lawhon
The Ministry of Time - Bradley
Death at the Sign of the Rook - Atkinson

[Lyn]

Nicole wrote: "I look forward to this list every year and number of my personal favorites for 2024 came from past lists.

My top reads of the year:

Beartown - Backman
This Tender Land - Krueger
The Boy, the Mol..."

The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse and The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy were both very close to making my top 10 for this year.

[Hahtoolah]

The Armor of Light ~ Follett
A Fever in the Heartland ~ Egan
The Frozen River ~ Lawhon
The Girls in the Stilt House ~ Mustang
The Lion Women of Tehran ~ Kamali
A Meal in Winter ~ Mingarelli
Peach Blossom Spring ~ Fu
The Real Mrs. Tobias ~ Koslow
The Secret Keeper of Jaipur ~ Joshi
Stranger in the Desert ~ Salama

[Nicole R]

@Nicole — First Lie Wins just barely missed my top 10 list! I thought it was excellent!

[Nicole R]

@Jgrace —several of your books are first on my list for 2025: North Woods, Playground, The Glassmaker, and There are Rivers in the Sky.

Also, I am clearly going to need to read Fever in the Heartland.

[Theresa]

Nicole R wrote: "@Nicole — First Lie Wins just barely missed my top 10 list! I thought it was excellent!"

I agree.

[Diana]

Us Against You - Backman
The Last Anniversary - Moriarty
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow - Zevin
The Paradise Problem - Lauren
Dragonfly in Amber - Gabaldon
Dust - Howey
Career of Evil - Galbraith
The Reappearance of Rachel Price - Jackson
The Flatshare - O'Leary
All the Dangerous Things - Willingham

Least favourite:
Invisible Monsters - Palahniuk

[Jgrace]

Nicole R wrote: "@Jgrace —several of your books are first on my list for 2025: North Woods, Playground, The Glassmaker, and There are Rivers in the Sky.

Also, I am clearly going to need to read Fever in the Heart..."

Nicole, I think you will enjoy all of those books. North Woods will tick your scientist boxes, but Playground will do that and more. It made me feel that I might have wasted my life because I never learned to scuba dive.

[Robin P]

You will want to watch out for the title -
North Woods - 2 words by Daniel Mason is a historical novel centered on one physical space over centuries

Northwoods - 1 word by Amy Pease is a mystery by a Wisconsin author about a sheriff's deputy who is dealing with PTSD. I heard the author speak and asked her if it was a problem about the names being similar. They came out about the same time. She said it was probably good for her because if people looked up the Mason book, they might find hers.

[Jgrace]

You're right, Robin. I'll edit that title.

[Nicole R]

Jgrace wrote: "Nicole R wrote: "@Jgrace —several of your books are first on my list for 2025: North Woods, Playground, The Glassmaker, and There are Rivers in the Sky.

Also, I am clearly going to need to read F..."

North Woods is up first -- it is my in-person book club's first pick of the year!

I think Playground will be up next on audio. I just started a historical fiction, but it is moving quickly.

[Nicole R]

Anita wrote: "Nicole R wrote: "Play Along - Tomforde
The Rachel Incident - O'Donoghue
Same As It Ever Was - [author:Lombardo|..."

Anita, I think you will really like Long Island Compromise. I listened to it on audio and it was great, if you want to opt for that medium.

[Theresa]

Robin P wrote: "You will want to watch out for the title -
North Woods - 2 words by Daniel Mason is a historical novel centered on one physical space over centuries

[book:Northwo..."

There's a 2025 Popsugar prompt - 2 prompts actually - that says read 2 books with same title. While I don't preplan, this is too intriguing with books that interest me to resist for those prompts.

[Karin]

I see a few books I've voted for in other years :)

[annapi]

Not the greatest year for me. The only books I rated 5 stars this year were re-reads from my childhood. I won't count those, but that leaves only 6 books that I rated 4.5 stars, these are the first 6. The last 4 are the best of my 4-stars:

The Exception to the Rule (novella) - Lauren
Toxic Prey - Sandford
Spirit Crossing - Krueger
Not Another Love Song - Soto
The Emperor's Soul (novella) - Sanderson
The Lincoln Highway - Towles
The True Love Experiment - Lauren
Demon Daughter (novella) - Bujold
Bookshops and Bonedust - Baldree
To Shape a Dragon's Breath - Blackgoose

I am surprised to find that three of the books on my list are romances! Two are mystery/thrillers, four fantasy and one literary fiction.

On the other hand, my lowest rating was 3 stars, so no terrible reads this year.

[Rachel]

In no particular order my 2024 favourites

Runt by Craig Silvey
The Foretelling of Georgie Spider by Ambelin Kwaymullina
Tomorrow, When the War Began by John Marsden
The Sixteen Trees of the Somme by Lars Mytting
Silence of the Chagos: A Novel by Shenaz Patel
There Are Rivers in the Sky by Elif Shafak
Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie
The Invincible Miss Cust by Penny Haw
Sculptor's Daughter by Tove Jansson
When Hoopoes Go to Heaven by Gaile Parkin

[NancyJ]

Can anyone direct me to the previous year’s versions on this thread? I found the group top ten lists, but not all of our individual lists. I can’t even find my own.

Found it - 2023 was in footnotes, so I imagine I’ll find others there too.

[Sallys]

My Top 10

Homegoing by Yaa Gyazi
Lady Tan's Circle of Women by Lisa See
A Good Hard Look by Ann Napolitano
Same As It Ever Was by Claire Lombardo
A Town Called Solace by Mary Lawson
Random Family by Adrian Nicole Le Blanc
The Maid by Nita Prose
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
The Catcher in the Rye by J.D. Salinger
The Alienist by Caleb Carr

3 of these were rereads

[Linda C]

annapi wrote: "Not the greatest year for me. The only books I rated 5 stars this year were re-reads from my childhood. I won't count those, but that leaves only 6 books that I rated 4.5 stars, these are the first..."

I remember really liking The Emperor's Soul
I read it back in 2016. The main character is a 'forger' of souls. I have a task for Play Harder: A book about forgery or a forgery or counterfeit
Maybe I should do a reread of this for that task!