It’s time for my favourite post of the year! These are all my favourite books which I read in 2020 (not necessarily published in 2020).
I had a great reading year this year! Which obviously makes it difficult to narrow down my favourites. To help me talk about more I did a full advent of book recommendations (summarised in a blog post here) and I loved them all. This list is fiction only. If you want to see my favourite non-fictions you can find them in my Books I Loved in 2020 post.
And here are my favourite 10 reads this year!
* = Sent for review
10. Girl, Woman, Other by Bernardine Evaristo
This was a totally surprise to me. Not something I would have picked up on my own, but I read all the Women’s Prize short list this year and completely fell in love with this. Definitely worth all the hype it received. I listened to it on audio, which I can highly recommend. I think this is one I may revisit in the future, and it feels like one you’ll get more out of each time.
9. The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson (Mistborn #1)
I decided this year to start making my way through Brandon Sanderson’s Cosmere. And while this started off slowly (I feel like I was reading the first half forever!) it very much paid off. After setting the groundwork in the world building, I devoured the second half within a couple of days. I’m not normally one for slow paced fantasy, but I’m currently loving the sequel.
8. The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker
There’s been a tonne of Greek Myth retellings around recently, and this one is my personal favourite (from the ones I’d read!). Such a fantastic read! While it was on my radar, my mother-in-law passing this on to me pushed me to read this. It was wonderfully written, and I adored reading the story of Achilles from a female perspective.
7. The Devil and the Dark Water by Stuart Turton*
This is so wonderfully atmospheric with it’s 1600s isolated setting. It has very much solidified Stuart Turton as a must buy author for me. While both of his novels are very different (this has a liner timeline for example), they have a similar atmosphere and keep you guessing what’s going on.
6. Wave Me Goodbye by Jacqueline Wilson
At the beginning of the year I was reading some of Jacqueline Wilson’s Historical Fiction (The Lottie Project was my favourite as a kid). I completely fell in love with this sweet story of a young evacuee during the Second World War.
5. Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow & Wundersmith: The Calling of Morrigan Crow by Jessica Townsend
Yes, the hype is entirely correct for this series. This gave the the magic and whimsy I experienced when I first read a certain other magical series as a child. Can’t wait for Hollowpox to come out in paperback!
4. The Test by Sylvain Neuvel
I’ve wanted to pick up more of the novellas published by Tor (they have a really great selection) and this was one I picked up on a whim. I had no idea what this was about before going into it, and I’m glad. Surprisingly impactful for such a short read.
3. Seven Devils by Laura Lam and Elizabeth May (Seven Devils #1)*
This was a book I’d hyped up so much to myself, so I was worried it would let me down but thankful it lived up to it! The story really keeps you hooked throughout, but what really makes this novel shine is it’s cast of characters.
2. King and the Dragonflies by Kacen Callender
This is such an incredibly powerful middle grade novel, focusing on a young boy coming to understand his sexuality. It’s fantastic to see this in a novel for children, and this is very much one which can also be appreciated by adults.
1. The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse by Charlie Mackesy
This is a book that completely pulled at my heart strings. I knew it was a beautiful book, but I didn’t quite expect how incredible it would be. I sat down to flip through a couple of pages, and read through the whole thing. This is a book I will keep returning to, and one I’ll keep on gifting to others!
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