My 2020 Year in Books

While 2020 did a whopper on all of us, I can at least say that I had my best reading year! I read a whopping 223 books. That’s 36 more than I read in 2019, which was my previous high. It wasn’t even a number I was trying to surpass, but I did.

I need to pause here a moment…an average rating of 4.4?!?! That’s fantastic!! I know most of the books I picked up this year were at least 4 star reads for me.

Side note here ~ I absolutely loved this series!! I definitely recommend it for fantasy/romance fans!

I also want to say here that this post will be quite long. I’ll be sharing some end of the year thoughts on different books. I figure it’ll be a fun thing for me to look back on later. Feel free to just skim through, though. 🙂

Josh & Hazel is one of my favorite romances of the year. I’m looking forward to rereading it at some point. The City of Brass had a slow start, but I still recommend the series! And Gus is a must read for all Bright Side fans!

I finally read my first Krista & Becca Ritchie book, but I still need to move on to book 2 of this series. What the Wind Knows is a must read for historical fiction fans that love being immersed into history and having great characters that you’ll fall in love with along the way!

Yay for finally picking up a Meghan March book, but unfortunately I haven’t moved on to the next one yet. Kate Stewart’s series was fantastic from beginning to end. And JLA’s series is a must for PNR fans!

Kingdom of Copper also had a slow start, but I’m telling you…still worth it! Franco was a great wrap up for the Bright Side series. Finale…what can I say??? I’m a Jacks fan! I want more books in this series, and Jacks needs to get the girl! The Guinevere Deception was interesting, and I’m hoping to pick up the second book soon.

What He Doesn’t Know ~ well, I never thought I’d like a book based around cheating so much. I still need to pick up the next book. A Gentleman in Moscow – definitely a contender for best book of the year. The Diary of a Young Girl and Long Shot were both so good and heartwrenching at the same time. The Bear and the Nightingale was so interesting, and I’m looking forward to continuing the series!

The Simple Wild (well, the whole series) was just soooo incredibly good!! Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda…so glad that Tanya @ Girl Plus Books demanded I go read it NOW. LOL! And I picked up a physical copy for Christmas, so I’m anxious for a reread already! And for those of you that enjoy sweet YA romances with a bit of depth (but not too heavy), be sure to check out Richardson’s series!! Very underrated!

Illuminae was a reread but so glad I finally finished the series!! Also happy I squeezed in my first Roni Loren. I need to pick up the next book already! The Wall of Winnipeg and Me was so, so good. I can still recall so many details of that book. I want to reread it, too! A Man Called Ove – another favorite of the year and my first Backman. I’ll definitely be reading more by him!

Tweet Cute was absolutely adorable, and I can definitely see myself rereading it. So glad I finally picked up The Cruel Prince! Now I need to get to The Wicked King, which has been sitting on my kindle waiting on me. Echoes Between Us resonated so much with me since I share a health issue with the MC. McGarry was fantastic at putting so many of my thoughts onto paper! The Hating Game…FAVORITE romance of the year!

If you’re a fan of witches, romances, and enemies-to-lovers, you definitely need to check out Serpent & Dove! HOUSE OF EARTH AND BLOOD…this is probably my favorite overall for the year!!! Shadow of the Fox had a great start and I’m looking forward to the rest of the series!

Love and Other Words just did a number on me! The Dark Artifices series was so very good! I’m also super excited that I got in some Morgenthaler and Jimenez. And Snow’s series is perfect if you like your romances a little on the darker side.

Love Lettering was fantastic! Grip was so very fitting for 2020. The Traitor’s Kiss was such a great start to the series as was Nevermoor: The Trials of Morrigan Crow.

The Loneliest Girl in the Universe was another of my favorites this year!! And Rage and Ruin is a must for you JLA fans!!

I was so happy to start making a dent in Kleypas’s series. I still need to finish catching up! And I made a little progress in Ward’s series.

Obsidio!! Man, I can’t recommend the Illuminae Files enough for sci-fi/romance fans. Thanks to Jane Austen rereads for pulling me out of the covid funk! The Jane Austen Society was perfect for piquing my interest in Jane. And The Hiding Place was so good at helping me see how good I still have things here in my little world.

Empire of Gold was another top 5 read for me this year with A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder and Beach Read right behind it. I told ya to check out Chakraborty’s series! While the first two books had slow starts, but great finishes, Empire of Gold was a 6 star read from start to finish!! Yes, I said 6!

The Book of Lost Names is another one I highly recommend for historical fiction fans! So very good!! I thoroughly enjoyed the second book of Nevermoor. Number Neighbors was fun! And the Others series was fantastic!

Savaged was another favorite of mine this year. Mia continues to impress me! The Marriage Game was a lot of fun!

Heart Bones was like a return to old school CoHo, and I loved it so very much! Where the Lost Wander was another fantastic historical fiction by Harmon. It’s fantastic but be forewarned that you’ll have your heart ripped out before it’s pieced back together. The Traitor’s Ruin was a great 2nd book, and I can’t wait to pick up the 3rd book.

Cemetery Boys was fantastic! I felt so immersed into the culture!! Midnight Sun was everything I’d been dreaming it would be and more! Every Last Breath…Roth is just everything!!

Can I say that I want more of the Others?!? I need more Sam, more Meg and definitely more Simon!! The Beast of Beswick is definitely one for historical romance fans to pick up! I was pleased with the second Serpent & Dove book. I’m looking forward to Gods & Monsters this year! Crave far surpassed my expectations. I think I read so many hater reviews and went in with very low expectations. I ended up loving it!

From Blood and Ash felt like it came out of left field for me! I have always been such a fan of JLA’s PNR books, but she stepped deep off into fantasyland with this series, and she killed it!!! If House of Earth and Blood was my favorite for the year, JLA rocked my second spot with From Blood & Ash and A Kingdom of Flesh and Fire. The Roommate was super cute, and I was so very glad I finally got my hands on Love & Gelato!! And My Dear Hamilton is perfect for Hamilton fans!!

Crush was a fantastic follow up to Crave! I can’t wait for more! The Plus One Pact, Sex Symbol and The Cul-de-Sac War were all solid romance reads!

Yay for finally picking up another Meghan Quinn, and it was sooo good! The Billionaire’s Wake-up-call Girl wins the top notch for romantic comedy this year! I recommend that whole Martin series if you need a laugh! I was also sucked into the Empire High series. I reminded me a little of Tijan’s Fallen Crest.

I was a little worried after the first chapter of Fable, but I ended up absolutely LOVING it!! The Office Party was a fun and perfect quick read for the holiday! Yay for finally getting JLA’s third Origin book! It did not disappoint!!

And last but not least, I definitely recommend the Kings of Football series by Quinn, Locke, and Madden-Mills to you romance fans!

So that’s my 2020 wrap up! All 223 books! This will be fun for me to look back on later.

Here’s wishing you all a fantastic 2021!!

Happy Reading,

Alison