Well, it seems that my New Year’s Resolution should be to blog more regularly. Of course, that would require me to keep up with my reading goal better than I did this year. But let me tell you something: this year was rough. As a person, yes, but I mean as a reader. The word that can best describe my list of books read is “mediocre”. As such, my end of the year recap is going to be a little different this year. Not only am I going to give you my top 5 (because I did have at least that many), but I’m also going to give you my worst 5 if for no other reason than for you to steer clear of them entirely. So without further ado, let’s start with the worst, shall we?
5 Worst Books of 2024
5. Twisted Love by Ana Huang
Oh man. This was a book club read, but it’s actually a really well-liked book which is what makes this so concerning. The book is a brother’s best friend, enemies to lovers hybrid trope which is filled with cringe moments. It reads like bad fan fiction mixed with a Hallmark movie plot. The only reason people read this book is for the smut and truthfully, even that was not good. But my beef was with the way it was written. The plot was hard to follow, and the characters underdeveloped. Alas, believe it or not, it wasn’t the worst book I read which is why it’s the bottom of the list.
If you want to read my full soapbox review, it’s right here.
4. Coronation Year by Jennifer Robson
Another book club read, albeit a very different kind of book club lol. As an anglophile, it’s a book that should have at least been somewhat entertaining for me. Problem is, it’s also historical fiction. All this to say, it was boring. That’s really its biggest flaw. At least Twisted Love was somewhat engaging. My first read of the year and it was, as my students say, “mid”. Should have seen the rest of the year coming.
3. Bride by Ali Hazelwood
Perhaps my lesson this year should be to not expect to like book club books. This book was so disappointing. Typically, I like Ali Hazelwood. Although her books are cheesy and not super profound, I appreciate them. But this was definitely a different genre for her as it was her first supernatural romance. That alone should have been an indicator because although Twilight had a chokehold on me in high school and I was into Vampire Diaries in college, I cannot deal with it as an adult. The biggest problem with this book is that I could not, at any point in time, take it seriously. It was just so unserious. All of it: plot, dialogue, characters, especially the smut. A lot of people in my book club liked it though, so maybe you will too.
2. House of Blood and Earth (Crescent City #1) by Sarah J. Maas
Now this one might get me into trouble. I know that Sarah J. Maas is the patron saint of female millennial readers, but I’ve been avoiding her for years. To this day, I still haven’t read ACOTAR and at this point, I won’t because it’s a matter of principle. So, when my friends at work decided to read the Crescent City series, they included me, and I want to be included more than I hate Sarah J. Maas, so I sucked it up. Guess what? I was right. I hate this. Not only was this book just not for me, but it was SOOOO long. Too long. In fact, that was my main beef; the book would have been much better if it was half the size. Of course, the hybrid fantasy/modern day setting sounded appealing, but mostly was just annoying and cringe. And guess what? Another book club. 4 for 4 at this point.
1. Wicked by Gregory Maguire
And finally, coming in as the worst book I read in 2024 is Wicked. Unfortunately, I picked this one, so this one is all my fault. To understand why I decided to read this, we have to go back to 2023 when I saw Wicked on their national tour at the Kennedy Center. This set in motion a year-long hyperfixation with the musical. Not only that, but with the movie coming out this year, I wanted to read it. Perhaps I should have skipped it. Now that the movie is out and people are reading it, you’ve likely heard how different it is from the movie and the musical. To me, that’s not the problem. Of course it’s going to be different. The problem was that the story was just strange and not super well-paced. Again, my beef may just be with the fantasy genre as a whole, but like Sarah J. Maas, the minutiae can be eliminated in favor of a more engaging read. Normally, retellings are my favorite genre, but this I did not enjoy. In many cases, the book is better than the movie, but in this case (and only two others) that’s not the case.
Top 5 Books of 2024
5. Dinner for Vampires by Bethany Joy Lenz
This book was one of my most recent reads and a welcome reprieve from some of the more boring ones of the year. Most people watched One Tree Hill and may know her from there, but I didn’t get to watch that. I actually was introduced to Joy’s story through my favorite podcast, “A Little Bit Culty.” The book is a memoir of her experience in a small, Christian cult while starting her career in the film industry. I found her writing to be engaging and easy to read. Not only that, but I could relate to parts of her story. It’s a necessary read for any Christian, in my opinion.
4. Annie Bot by Sierra Greer
Annie Bot was a Book of the Month read, and one that surprised me. Truthfully, the concept was one that sounded interesting on its own, but it was billed as literary fiction, which is one of my go-to genres. As I read though, I found that it was a lot deeper than I anticipated. This book was one that I was chewing on for days to come. It tells the story of a society in the not-so-distant future where female robots are marketed to fulfill “female” tasks such as homemaking and most famously, sex. The themes are deeply feminist in nature and gives the reader something to think about as it relates to how we treat women in this patriarchal society. It’s a brilliant work of speculative fiction which is why it made my list.
3.The Paradise Problem by Christina Lauren
As a rule, I’m a romance girly. I can’t help it; I just love the idea of love. However, without getting too deep here, life has indeed jaded me. As such, these days, I find romance hard to read unless it has some aspect of reality in it. As you may imagine, those are somewhat hard to find, so, I’ve been reading a lot more horror and thriller. HOWEVER, I like Christina Lauren, and this book had a really interesting concept (I’m a sucker for a fake dating storyline), so I decided to pick it up. I’m really glad I did because I enjoyed it. It was one of the only books this year that I actually wanted to read and kept me engaged the whole time. Just a delightful read all together, and everything that a good romance novel should be.
2. None of This Is True by Lisa Jewell
If nothing else, this was the year of Lisa Jewell. This book absolutely blew my mind. I’m no stranger to a thriller, and so it can be hard to impress me, but this one absolutely did. I think it was the fastest read all year for me and it was because I could not put it down; I had to find out what happened. It has all the underpinnings of a good thriller: unreliable narrator, good plot, interesting format. Needless to say, I read like three of her books after this one, but none were as good as this one.
1. Funny Story by Emily Henry
And the top of the pyramid, going 3 for 3, once again, Emily Henry.
In a surprise to no one, the top spot goes to my favorite author, Emily Henry. While some of her books are better than others, they are all absolute masterpieces. Ever since 2022, Book Lovers has been my absolute favorite earning itself a rare re-read. However, it was recently booted from its spot by Funny Story. There’s not much to be said that hasn’t already been said. Emily Henry is a fantastic author who writes stories about love with complex characters and deeper themes. Funny Story has “New Girl” vibes mixed with the traditional Emily Henry charm and it’s a 10/10 read.
So, there you have it. The best and worst books of 2024 according to me. Here’s to hoping 2025 brings more satisfying reads…and more blog posts.
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