The Books I Read in 2020
/I go through phases where I read and then I don’t. 2020 kicked off with a major reading boom! And it just didn’t quit. I read over 35 books this year. I’m fairly confident that is a personal record. Here’s what I read in 2020.
The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare
City of Bones
City of Ashes
City of Glass
City of Fallen Angels
City of Lost Souls
City of Heavenly Fire
A few years ago, I found a book at the library called City of Bones. It had a really cool cover and was on the free book cart as I was heading out the door. It caught my attention so I grabbed it, but when I got home I stuck it on the shelf and forgot about it. Right around New Years Eve, I was looking for a book to read and browsed through my shelves to see what I hadn’t read yet. This book grabbed my attention once again, and I decided to go for it. And I’m so glad I did! I loved this series so much! (Here’s the wikipedia page with a synopsis.) It was action packed, and the world that Cassandra Clare creates is rich and interesting and super intriguing. The main cast of characters are fun and funny and endearing, all things I like in characters. When I finished the last book in the series, City of Heavenly Fire, I wasn’t quite ready to be done with the Shadowhunter world, so I decided to read a trilogy that is set a few years in the future.
To buy: The Mortal Instruments, The Complete Collection (paperback); Individual books on Kindle—Book 1. Book 2. Book 3. Book 4. Book 5. Book 6.
The Dark Artifices series by Cassandra Clare
Lady Midnight
Lord of Shadows
Queen of Air and Darkness
This series is set a few years after The Mortal Instruments series. It focuses on a new set of characters but also brings in some of the main characters from The Mortal Instruments series. I liked this series even more than the original one, and I felt like it truly “ended” the full series of books. You could probably read just these books, but I think you would enjoy them much more if you read the other series first.
To buy: The Dark Artifices, The Complete Paperback Collection. Individual books on Kindle—Lady Midnight. Lord of Shadows. Queen of Air and Darkness.
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
From there, I totally changed genres and read Little Women. I’m sure I read this a long time ago, but I didn't really remember it. It took a few pages to get into it, but then I devoured it! I know some people think it’s a little corny, but I think the story is so endearing. You have to watch the PBS mini series after you read the book because it’s my favorite and totally the best tv adaptation!
To buy: Little Women paperback via Barnes and Noble. Masterpiece—Little Women DVD.
The Summer Before the War by Helen Simonson
And then because I was in the mood for another historical fiction novel, I went for The Summer Before the War. It’s been on my list for a long time, and it just seemed interesting. I really enjoyed it. If you like period pieces, this is a really cute story. It’s a bit sad, but overall, it’s a quick read and very endearing.
Good Night, Mr. Wodehouse by Faith Sullivan
Sticking with the historical fiction genre, I read Good Night, Mr. Wodehouse. This book is set in a small town in Minnesota and spans a long time period. Overall, I don’t tend to like historical fictions that cover such a long span of time, but this one was decent. I liked the main character, and I was genuinely interested to know what would happen to her. It’s definitely a slow burn, though and probably isn’t for everyone. I’d give it 3.5 stars (out of 5).
Sookie Stackhouse Novels by Charlaine Harris
Dead Until Dark
Living Dead in Dallas
Club Dead
Dead to the World
Dead as a Doornail
Definitely Dead
All Together Dead
From Dead to Worse
Dead and Gone
Dead in the Family
Dead Reckoning
Deadlocked
Dead Ever After
After that I devoured the Sookie Stackhouse novels. Set in a small town in Louisiana, Sookie Stackhouse discovers that vampires and werewolves are real, and she has some unexplained powers of her own. There’s vampires, there’s a good love story, there’s suspense and mystery. Also, Sookie is a lovable, smart, funny main character. I read every spare minute I could find because I loved these books so much. Dylan and I watched the HBO series True Blood a few years ago, and we both agreed that Eric Northman, played by Alexander Scarsgaard, is one of our favorite tv characters of all time. He’s charming and witty and just perfect. We knew the series was based on books, and one day Dylan surprised me with the set. The books are different from the show, but I really liked them. One disclaimer: the genre is Southern Gothic Romance, and it does have some intense sex scenes. So take that into consideration.
To Buy: Sookie Stackhouse Complete Series (Books 1–13 paperback set)
After I finished the Sookie Stackhouse novels, I was still in the mood for something spooky/mysterious, so I tried to read Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, but I hated it and stopped about 30% in.
From there, I jumped to …
Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
My sister and I decided to read Anne of Green Gables together, and I thought it was really cute! I do have to admit that I was a bit annoyed by her in the beginning perpetually talking about her imagination, but at the same time, she grew on me. She’s very endearing! I can definitely see reading this book with Penelope when she’s a little older and talking through some of the lessons that Anne learns. Maybe someday I will read the other books in the series. If you are going to buy the book, I highly recommend the Barnes and Noble collectible edition (linked just below). It has a beautiful cover and is a very good quality book.
(One side note: I started to watch the Netflix series Anne, after I finished the book, and I turned if off partway through the second episode. It is terrible! They twist a lot of the story around, change integral parts, and they make her out to have mental struggles. I would love to find an old adaptation at some point, but I haven’t taken the time to look. But just know, the Netflix one is not worth your time.)
To buy: Anne of Green Gables (Collectible Edition) from Barnes and Noble
The Vacationers by Emma Straub
I found a copy of The Vacationers by Emma Straub at Goodwill for $0.99. It was an easy read, but I decided I didn’t care for it. I was actually a bit disappointed. I was expecting a funny book, and it was definitely not. I personally would not recommend it.
The Last of the Moon Girls by Barbara Davis
After that I came across The Last of the Moon Girls, and I breezed through it. I really enjoyed it. It was a nice mix of suspense/mystery, as well as a ‘finding yourself’ story. I liked the main character, I liked the setting on their family farm, I liked the mystery that needed to be solved. I would recommend this one highly.
Her Final Words by Brianna Labuskes
From there I turned to Her Final Words, which I had gotten through the Amazon First Reads program. The premise of it was very intriguing. I think I liked it overall, but I will say that it felt a bit forced, maybe. I’m not sure the best way to describe it. The mystery of the story was well conceived and super interesting. I really didn’t know who did it until the end. However, the main character was a flat, very stereotypical FBI agent. I wished her character would have been developed more, or at least didn’t feel so stereotypical. Overall, I would say I enjoyed it. If you are in the mood for a suspense, it is worth a try.
Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman
I was in a ‘magic’ mood because I was still thinking about The Last of the Moon Girls, so I decided to read Practical Magic. It had been on my list for a while, and I was always intrigued by the premise, but it never grabbed me. I was generally interested, though, and decided to go for it. I would give it 3 out of 5 stars. It was fine and interesting, but it was also very weird and totally not what I thought. I am also not a huge fan of stories that span a lifetime/long time period, so that probably played into it. The end 1/3 was super interesting and probably made the whole book worth it. So, do with that what you will. Ha!
All Souls Trilogy by Deborah Harkness
A Discovery of Witches
Shadow of Night
The Book of Life
I came across the All Souls Trilogy when I was browsing through Amazon. I noticed they were making it into a show with Matthew Goode, and I was intrigued. I thought about this book series a good deal after I finished it. I think I decided I would give it 3 out of 5 stars. More specifically, I would give the first book 3 stars, the second book 3.5 stars, and the third book 4 stars. I don’t regret reading it, but it’s hard to recommend it, and I honestly cannot believe it has so many high reviews on Amazon. It must be a niche genre that I just don’t appreciate as much as other people. I personally felt that the world she created was super intriguing, but her overall writing style was way too wordy. I think she could have cut her content down dramatically to make the books faster paced; it would have been better off and much more interesting. I also felt that the main character, Diana, was a bit flat. Part of the storyline is supposed to be a bit of a ‘finding herself’ story, but it just fell flat in my opinion. You’re supposed to get the impression, through the eyes of the other characters, that Diana is super interesting, but she just doesn’t come off that way. The cast of supporting characters really carries the book in my opinion. That said, I do still want to check out the tv series because I think the world might better translate to video, and they could show things without the long descriptions in the book.
Where’d You Go, Bernadette by Maria Semple
This was a re-read for me, but I remembered liking it so much that I pulled Where’d You Go, Bernadette up on my Kindle and read it again just for fun. I am hoping to watch the movie soon. This book is quirky and fast paced and just fun.
Molly's Game: The True Story of the 26-Year-Old Woman Behind the Most Exclusive, High-Stakes Underground Poker Game in the World by Molly Bloom
I stayed up way too late a couple of nights in a row reading Molly’s Game because it was so fun and mind boggling. The tone of the book is very fast paced, almost frantic. The tension is palpable, and I just couldn’t put it down. It’s a quick, fun read, and super interesting!
The Spellman Files: Document #1 by Lisa Lutz
At the beginning of November I was really hoping for a new book to read, and my sister and I looked into fun, light-hearted books. I came across one called The Spellman Files: Document 1 by Lisa Lutz. It was totally kooky, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about it part-way through, but it picked up quite a bit about 30% in. I really liked it—it was totally different than most books I read; it was funny; it was sweet in its own weird way. Definitely worth a read if you want something off the beaten path.
North and South (Audiobook) by Elizabeth Gaskell
I contemplated reading the next The Spellman Files book when I finished the first one, but I decided to go a different route and listen to an audiobook while I was doing some house projects/doing the dishes. I chose North and South by Elizabeth Gaskell. As you may remember from my post, My Favorite Historical Fiction Shows & Movies, I absolutely love the tv series of North & South. It is one of my favorite love stories of all time. Overall, I liked the book, although it was slightly different than the tv series. My one critique is that I didn’t really care for how the narrator portrayed Mr. Thornton in the ending. It just seemed kinda off from his overall character. That being said, I enjoyed listening to it, and I enjoyed doing dishes because I could have an ‘excuse’ to listen. :) Someday, I would be interested to read it for myself and interpret Mr. Thornton for myself, but in the meantime, my desire for historical fiction was sated.
To Buy: Audiobook
Emma by Jane Austen
To close out the year, my sister and I decided to read Emma by Jane Austen. I love the tv mini series with Romola Garai, but I am somewhat ashamed to say that I had never read the book. I found it hard to get into the story, but once I did, I enjoyed it. Her writing style is very different from Pride & Prejudice, but it felt fitting with the more flighty characters portrayed throughout. Overall, I liked it, and I would recommend it to anyone who liked Pride & Prejudice or generally likes an English love story. Mr. Knightley has my heart. :)
To Buy: Kindle; Jane Austen: Seven Novels (Collectible Edition) from Barnes and Noble
Now I’m on the hunt for a good read to cozy up with after the kids go to bed. If you have any recommendations or books you’ve been intrigued by recently, I’d love to hear!
