First things first: 1) I read for fun and 2) I read only what I want to read.
Now that we’ve gotten that out of the way, it’ll explain a lot
For instance, why romance books take up 54% of my yearly reading. And why I’m unapologetic about it.
There are a lot of badly written books (aka crap) in every genre, and romance is no different. My average rating for the romance category in 2024 was 2.78/5, which is definitively below my overall average rating of 3.05/5. (I have a theory that self-publication has significantly contributed to the decline in quality, especially given that I’m mainly an eBook reader in this capacity and cycle through both Kindle Unlimited and my library’s selection quite rapidly.)
However, there are some gems.
And even besides the point, just because something is crap doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy it (see: my long-standing rewatching of the God-awful Twilight movies).
So here we go: some of my favorite books of 2024!
Favorite in Nonfiction
It’s no secret that this was high on a lost of lists this year; so popular, in fact, that Hulu adapted it into a mini series late last year. However, it’s for good reason. Say Nothing: A True Story of Murder and Memory in Northern Ireland by Patrick Radden Keefe is a historical account of the Troubles, a period of civil unrest in Northern Ireland lasting from the 60s through to the 90s. The book was a surprising page turner for me and included multiple twists that I simply wasn’t looking for like I would be reading a mystery, which made them all the most enjoyable during the experience.
Even if you aren’t into nonfiction, I feel safe recommending this book.
An honorable mention to Betrayal: The Crisis in the Catholic Church by The Boston Globe. You know the story, but the research is fascinating and the facts, heartbreaking.
Favorite in Mystery
I’m not going to tell you anything about this book and as is the case with any mystery, you should go in blind. However, my favorite mystery of the year was The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie, and if you’re into mysteries in any capacity, I think you’ll enjoy it.
Favorite in Fantasy
In a serious twist from most previous years of reading, I consumed hardly any pure fantasy in 2024 (there was plenty of fantasy-romance, but that’s not what we’re talking about here). The only one I really read was The Naming by Alison Croggon, which I’d seen recommended many times but neglected to get my hands on. After all that time, I finally realized somebody (my mom, I believe) had bought me a copy that was collecting dust on my shelf.
It’s a YA fantasy featuring a soft magical education system, an unsuspecting teenage (and female!) Chosen One, and a lot of LOTR and Wizard of Earthsea derivation. The big questions are: who is Maerad, how’d she end up where she is, and who is this guy Cadvan who seemed to appear out of nowhere to save her? It’s filled with absolutely beautiful, albeit occasionally high-handed, prose and a talented author who pulls off a lot of dread in the narrative. It left a lot of doors open, questions unanswered, and relationships developing for the rest of the quartet.
I’ve since read the second book of the quartet and will be continuing to the third as well.
Favorite in Spirituality
I don’t read a lot of spirituality or religion these days, but Living the Quaker Way by Phillip Gulley was one that caught my attention this year. It’s an interesting look into the Quaker philosophy (perhaps not a religion) and the “testimonies” of simplicity, peace, integrity, community, and equality. An interesting and easy read with a bonus of 30 days of Quaker “queries,” a self-reflectional spin to the typical evangelical devotionals.
Favorite in Graphic Novels
I did not read many graphic novels this year, but what I did, I will recommend to anyone who hasn’t already consumed the cult classic and genre-redefining Watchmen by Alan Moore. It’s gritty, nihilistic, and heavy handed on an impending sense of doom and splash (storm?) of pretension — all of my favorite things in comics. There are no superheroes here, just people making decisions with consequences. There is no saving the world, only attempting to fix, conceal, or capitalize on the mistakes of others.
And at the end of it all, as Rorschach put it, “Existence is random. Has no pattern save what we imagine after starting at it for too long. No meaning save what we choose to impose. This rudderless world is not shaped by vague metaphysical forces. It is not God who kills the children. Not fate that butchers them or destiny that feeds them to the dogs… It’s us. Only us.”
Favorite in Classics
My favorite classic of the year was My Antonia by Willa Cather, a slowly paced, emotive slice of live novel, rich with tragedy intertwined with immersive and poetic passages about the beauty of the land they live on.
The synopsis is as follows: Jim moves to the Nebraska prairie to live with his grandparents at the same time as Antonia and her Bohemian (Czech) immigrant family. The story follows Jim and Antonia’s stories over multiple decades, how their lives are threaded together by the things they experience as children. Jim is set up for success by his stalwart grandparents; Antonia finds her own sort of success despite her self-indulgent and selfish family members. “My Antonia” would suggest she’s the subject, but it’s Jim’s experience coming to terms with the events of their lives and Antonia’s decisions, from his puppy love crush through to his deep respect for her as adults, that create the story.
Favorite Romance
Prepare for a little bit of a wild ride with this one. Wolfsong by TJ Klune is an M/M shifted romance which spans a decade of storytelling, starting with the two main characters as teenager and kid. This is a book that I dnf’d over a year ago and decided to pick up again as it kept being recommended.
Let’s start with the bad: Much of the lore felt like reading a Teen Wolf fanfic circa 2015… which is probably a minus for some, but a nostalgic blast from the past for me. Might not be everyone’s cup of tea. There is an age gap, which is normally something I cannot stand and wondered whether I could get over, and suddenly it felt normal and natural and was written well. The ending wasn’t the strongest executed thing in the world, but by that point I didn’t care. The writing style might not be for everyone; I found it to be completely immersive. (I guess this is a job interview where the negatives were actually positives.)
The good: Everybody’s gay (or bisexual at least). Werewolves!!! Childhood friends to lovers on steroids. I experienced emotion upon emotion — angst and sadness and grief, hope and hopelessness, laugh out loud hilarity. SO much angst (the deserved kind because this is not a light book).
I guess all this to say that I’ll be thinking about this one for a long while.
I also reread two of my all time favorites this year, The Wall of Winnipeg and Me by Mariana Zapata and Broken Records by Bree Bennett, both of which fall into the marriage of convenience trope which is another one of my favorites.
What was your favorite read of 2024?
