Yes, I do. Just like the Donna Lewis song from 1996. I love you always and forever. Near and far, close together. Everywhere, I will be with you. Everything, I will do for you … my beloved books of 2017. Before we leap into a new year that is hopefully full of amazing and satisfying books, I want to share the books that left an indelible mark on me this past year.
A Few Fun Observations from 2017
A few interesting tidbits about my reading habits.
- Whoa. I read a lot last year: 78 books, excluding DNFs. While I don’t set reading goals, I’m very impressed with myself.
- The most books read in a month was 10, achieved in January, February and April.
- The lowest number of books read was one book in October. I was undergoing a massive reading slump.
- 50 out 78 books would fall broadly into the mystery/thriller/suspense genre. So yeah. I like my mysteries!
- My best source of recommendations, to absolutely no one’s surprise, is Show Us Your Books. My most mixed source is Bookbub. Most of my meh, loathed or DNFed books were Bookbub recommendations. And yet the best book I read last year was recommended by them.
I’m not setting a reading goal for 2018 because I read whatever catches my fancy. Plus, it is my nature to get weirdly obsessive about things and don’t want anything to affect my reading pleasure. Because that’s why I read: for pleasure and entertainment.
The Best, Most Awesome Books I Read in 2017
All right! Let’s get this party started. I broke my best books into categories because that’s how I roll and this is my blog.
Best YA
In the past, I loved YA. This year I loved it a bit less. π
Salt to the Sea by Ruth Sepetys
I read this as part of Erin’s 5.0 (I think) Challenge last year. It received numerous rave reviews but I was initially a little hesitant. Not because I didn’t believe the reviews, but I really have to mentally prepare myself whenever I read a WW2 book. This book truly earned its high praise. I instantly connected with the characters and did my typical begging throughout: please, please don’t die. Spoiler alert: Some did die. My heart broke numerous times and yet my faith remained steadfast and hopeful that even as cruel and hateful as man can be, we also have so much capacity for goodness too.
Honorable Mentions
The Memory Box by Lara Avery
This is not the book to read if you want something lighthearted. This is not the book to read in public, unless you’re cool ugly crying in front of others with snot dripping down your nose. This book devestated me and I love it. I love the heart, the hope and the honesty of life because death is a part of life, even when it cruelly involves a teen.
Best Thriller/Mystery
Thriller! Thriller Night … for me is a good mystery. I expanded this section because the bulk of my books fit into the category.
Roses of May by Dot Hutchison
This is slightly controversial if you’re a fan of The Collector Trilogy because The Butterfly Garden is without a doubt the superior book, but it’s my #2 because I just simply love this book. I read Roses when I desperately needed all the fabulously fierce women in it. When I needed men (or at least the majority of men) to also be good guys and not entitled douche bags (and maybe for the good men to not require pats on the back for being a decent being, a la Matt Damon). And whenever I need a I am Woman: Hear Me Roar moment, I reread my favorite parts of this book and roar.
Please note: This is part of a trilogy so read The Butterfly Garden first!
Honorable Mentions
Butterfly Garden by Dot Hutchison
This is book #1 in The Collector Trilogy. It has a very original, unique and horrifying story line that will keep you riveted. When I finished it, I didn’t know if my heart would let me read it again, even though I really enjoyed it. Fortunately, my heart is stronger than I thought because I’ve reread it twice and my heart grows fonder (and stronger) every time I do.
Roanoke Girls by Amy Engel
Sometimes I wonder what it says about me that I enjoy such messed up books. π This is another doozy. It deals with a very difficult topic (if you’re super anti-Team Lannister β and not because Cersi is a right bitch β you probably won’t enjoy this) and Lane can be difficult at times as you alternate between wanting to hug and smack her. But you respect her bitterness and still want her to escape becoming another Roanoke Girl.
Trust No One by Paul Cleave
This is the only Cleave book I’ve read but all of his others books are on my TBR and Jana says (HA, Jana says! I’m such a nerd.) they are all must reads. This may shock you but it’s a pretty messed up book with a unreliable narrator, perhaps one of the most interesting ones. He’s not trying to mislead but Jerry suffers from dementia. It also broke my damn heart.
The Yard (Scotland Yard Murder Mysteries) by Alex Grecian
I read three or four books in the series thus far and have enjoyed them all. It takes place in London after Jack the Ripper’s reign of terror. It’s a great choice for people who like historical mysteries with less graphic murders. Now, they are part of the Murder Squad so murders do occur and generally awful murders. You just don’t get every gruesome tidbit (The Devil’s Workshop was a tad more graphic) and bless my ever loving Saucy Jack heart, he eventually returns to wreak havoc.
Next of Kin by James Tucker
Is this the best mystery I read last year? No. But did I rip through it in a few hours, completely engrossed? Yup. And that’s the definition of a good book to me! In fairness, it also received a few extra love points because it’s the book that broke my book funk. It’s a new series and one I’m looking forward to continuing. I enjoyed the main characters and Tucker gave them enough shading to make me care about them and eager to learn more about them in the subsequent books.
Best Fiction
This is my mishmash category. π
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
This was my first Taylor Jenkins Reid book. Since she receives constant praise from many participants in Show Us Your Books, I worried she wouldn’t be able to live up to the hype and the pedestal I built for her. Silly Tanya! She killed it! Evelyn is my hero. PERIOD. We could use a lot more Evelyn’s. And now, with #MeToo, the book and Evelyn’s experiences in Hollywood resonate even stronger.
Honorable Mentions
Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult
I made my IRL book club read this because left to my own devices I wouldn’t have read it. Everyone has triggers and racism is my biggest. This book honestly scared me and I waited until the day before book club to read it. And I won’t lie: there were parts I skimmed because survival required it. I was also deeply impressed by how well it was written. Picoult is obviously a pro, but a white woman writing about a black woman’s experience seemed like a recipe for making Tanya scream. But she nailed it and I tell people to read it just for the TJMaxx scene. I sorta broke my book group too since we all had strong opinions. Some were a bit defensive because it was the first time they became aware of their privilege. And that’s why you need to read it. We all have prejudice and bias and privilege that blinds us to the reality that others live every day. No one is immune, but the truly brave are willing to go to uncomfortable, difficult, eye-opening places to better themselves. This book helps you start that journey.
Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
I’d like to have coffee with Crouch, just to learn how he comes up with such interesting ideas. While this book dragged at times with too much science/math stuff, it was such a weird trip that I didn’t mind. I also like that it made me think about what I would do in Jason’s shoes which really plays with your head (I won’t tell you why it messes with your head so much but if you’re curious β go read the book!). This book definitely requires that you get your Fox Mulder on and “believe” and if you can’t, then this probably isn’t the book for you. Because it is weird. But good!
Best Horror
I used to hate horror. And now, well, I kinda like it.
The Devil’s Prayer by Luke Gracias
Honestly, this book is a bit uneven. Gracias did a ton of research and it shows. He just tends to share his knowledge a bit like a research paper, which tone-wise felt distinctly different from the fictional horror elements (he’s trying blend a bit of fact and fiction). But there is a section that is exceedingly awesome and exciting and horrifying and I loved it.
Honorable Mentions
The Final Girls by Riley Sager This is a slasher movie in book form. While slasher movies are generally my least favorite kind of movie, I did like this quite a bit. I like that I wasn’t sure where it was going. That I didn’t know who to trust. Ultimately Sager played it a little safer than I preferred, but it’s still a great read for horror fans.
The Silent Corner/The Whispering Room by Dean Koontz
I don’t really know if I consider these books to be horror. Horror-lite? Sci-fi? Koontz is normally classified as horror so that’s why I put them here, but the bad guys are very much human with no Mike Myers or Freddy Kruegers in sight. Somehow that actually makes it more terrifying since what’s going on at the core of these books is scarier than any boogey man because it seems not only possible (although extremely difficult) but also something that many would applaud.
Best Non-Fiction
Braving the Wilderness by Brene Brown
Brown hit it out of the ballpark again. As always she was dropping truth bombs on me left and right, which also left me uncomfortable. After all, it’s always easier to point out other people’s obvious faults than to examine your own. And with today’s increased polarization, this book feels even more relevant and necessary. Also, to be clear, this is not about a woman who goes on a trip or adventure to discover herself, like Eat Pray Love or Wild. Brown is referring to the outside world (or people with differing views than your own) as the wilderness.
Honorable Mentions
Troublemaker by Leah Remini
Generally, I am not a big fan of memoirs but I really enjoyed this. I find Scientology to be fascinating and Remini definitely opens the curtains and shows the “wizard” behind it. She is her characteristic blunt self. She’s honest about her own past complicity, what opened her eyes and her new mission to expose the truth.
Worst Surprise
Yup, you read that correctly, WORST Surprise. Last year I shared the books that surprised me by how great they were. While I expect every book to be great, sometimes a book exceeds my wildest expectations and blows me away. This year the books that surprised me are also the best books I read this year. Thus, I decided to share two books by authors who earned spots on my 2016 Best of list and their follow-ups disappointed mightily.
I See You by Clare Mackintosh
I Let You Go earned a spot on my 2016 Best Books list. Her follow-up was a hot mess. The actual premise is better, in my opinion, but the execution is not. It’s boring. And while some found I Let You Go to be slow (to be fair, it is slow and atmospheric which I liked), there was relevant stuff happening. Here, we’d endure long periods of nothing. Plus, the villain reveal was awful. Just awful. Like stupid awful. And then she made it a 100 times worse by adding a twist in the epilogue that made me actually throw the book.
Heartless by Marissa Meyer
I loved the Lunar Chronicles so I was really excited to read Meyer’s new book, then I realized it a redux of Alice in Wonderland, which is one of my least favorite fairytales. But still I figured Meyer would find a way to make me like it; I was wrong. I immediately connected with the characters of Lunar Chronicles but not so much here. No character stood out, none captured my heart and most were blah, meh or forgettable. It possible my dislike of the original story influenced me but this left me cold.
The 2 Best Books I Read in 2017
Drum roll, please … the best books I read in 2017!
Behind Her Eyes by Sarah Pinborough
This is a love/hate kind of book for many. Obviously, I fall into the love side and almost always know who won’t like the book, but I feel it’s wrong of me to say why because it reveals a secret. And I’m no secret-breaker! I love that it played against a very familiar trope of a meek wife with a controlling husband and flipped everything around. It shocked and surprised me, which rarely happens, and it made me laugh like a loon (not because the book is funny but I was so pleased to be surprised) at the end and immediately begin rereading it. And again, I had to set the book down and laugh and laugh and laugh.
The Mothers by Brit Bennet
This is probably the most beautifully written book I read last year. Bennet has a way with words. Her writing is so effortless and thoughtful. I could just lose myself in her writing and am terribly jealous of her abilities. π I also happen to love the story. It is not a feel-good story that makes you high on life but it is an incredibly honest story about the choices we make and the real consequences of those decisions. The characters felt like real people too, making bad and good choices because it was true to who they were, not for the sake of the novel and adding another few hundred words.
To More Great Books in 2018
First, I would like to think Jana and Steph for hosting the awesome Show Us Your Books Link-Up. For us book nerds, and we are legion, the second Tuesday of the month is the best day of the month. Thank you for your hard work and helping create this awesome community of book lovers! Please be sure to the visit their Best Of 2017 link-up and see all the participants favorite books from the past year. Second, I am looking forward to another great year of amazing books that make me laugh and cry and think and dream. I cannot wait to see what fantastic new books and authors I discover. Here’s to Happy Reading in 2018!
What was your favorite book in 2018?
Tanya
Very fun way your organized your list!
Thanks, Ericka!
Ah haha I remember differing in opinion on I Let You Go early in the year.
As you know I love my murder/suspense/thrillers too so always happy to share interest in many of the books you share every month!
I always take a close look at the mystery/thrillers you recommend because I know we have similar tastes there. I still need to read Kate Burkholder and Fina Ludlow and am determined to read their first books in January!
I love how you broke it down!!!
I love me some YA books,& not heard of that one.,adding it.
Good job on all the reading. I totally missed my goal this year. I slacked the last few months. Boo.
Thanks, Rebecca Jo! I normally love YA too but this year, I noticed that more of my YA books were okay versus great. Boo! Well, you had a really good excuse for slacking off on your reading. You had a very busy but good year-end!
YAY for Paul Cleave!!! I love, LOVE his books.
The Mothers and SGT made my list last year. So did Dark Matter.
I still can’t get behind horror.
I definitely need to pick up another of Cleave’s book. Trust No One kinda broke my heart a bit so that’s why I’ve been so slow to do so. So dang good though! It’s weird that I like horror because it was not that long ago that I would have never, ever picked up a horror book.
Ahhhh The Mothers made my list too! ITβS SO GOOD! Love love love. Roanoke Girls & 7 Husbands is on my TBR.
The Mothers was excellent and Bennett is such an amazing writer. I can’t wait to see what she writes next. I hope you enjoy Roanoke Girls and 7 Husbands – both are excellent. Very different from another but great reads. Enjoy!
I’m with you on the suspense/mystery reads being my favorites! The Butterfly Garden is on m list to read in 2018. I still have to read Salt to the Sea. I only read one of Sepetys’ books and loved it. Dark Matter, The Mothers and Roanoke Girls are all on my to read list. I’d also like to read some Brene Brown in 2018. Looking forward to a great year of reading in 2018!
Yay! Another mystery/thriller fan! I enjoy them so much and really get caught up in them. I think you’ll really enjoy The Butterfly Garden. Salt to the Sea surprised me a bit. It had been heavily praised but I didn’t expect to love it so much. I really like Brene Brown. She doesn’t lecture or preach and always seems to tell me what I need to hear, even when I don’t really want to hear it.
oh my recommendations come from SUYB as well. or goodreads friends. i rarely find new books on bookbub, but i do scan my emails to see if any catch my eye because i know they are already on my TBR or i recognise the author. i have a horrible memory when it comes to actually reading books or watching movies, but i can add a book to my TBR 5 years ago, randomly see it on a bookbub list and know it’s on my TBR. so yeah. lol.
i am still a bit heartbroken about the memory box. goodness me that book was gut wrenching. Salt to the Sea is on my list, i’m sure i’ll get to it soon, but like you i have to prepare myself for books like that.
‘if youβre super anti-Team Lannister’ HAHAHAHAHA that is the best description for the Roanoke girls ever.
i loved I Let You Go, but skipped I See You because… yeah. lots of people were not fans. i just saw her newest is on netgalley but i didn’t request it. i’ll wait to see what other people say lol.
the mothers is on my list! heartless too, even if i hate it i still have to do it. Evelyn Hugo! so good! love her. i’ll be interested to see if you read other TJR books what you think because Evelyn Hugo is very different to her other books. not in a bad way, just in a .. different way.
Memory Box slayed me. Seriously, I can still ugly cry over it. But so good! Salt to the Sea is great but I do have to really “gird my loins” for WW2 books. They just hurt too much. Hehehe. Glad you liked my description of the Roanoke Girls. π I saw Clare Mackintosh’s new book on netgalley too and did not request it either. I still feel a little burnt after I See You, so unless it gets rave reviews, it’s going to be a hard pass for me. Definitely give Heartless a try. If I recall correctly, I was definitely in the minority and saw lots of love for it. And like I said, I am not an Alice fan, which probably didn’t help. Others have said Evelyn was very different from other TJR’s book, which has made fear that I’ll compare them and that’s not really fair. Since I loved Evelyn so much (it was probably my 3rd favorite book of 2017), I need to give it some time before I try another one.
I loved I Let You Go but the premise of I See You didn’t pull me in so I didn’t try it and now I’m glad I didn’t bother.
I also loved Behind Her Eyes, but I know some who really were in the hate camp.
I definitely found I See You deeply disappointing. I Let You Go was slow-paced but had a taut storyline. I See You meandered with a really dumb villain reveal that was clearly meant to make me gasp in shock but made me roll my eyes instead. Ugh! Yeah, Behind Her Eyes is definitely one of those love/hate kind of books. Not many fall in the okay camp but I definitely loved it.
I love all of your categories! I want to read Salt to the Sea. I loved the Memory Box! I have Next of Kin on my wish list, and I own the first Alex Grecian book and I need to read it! It seems perfect for me though.
-Lauren
The Memory Box was so good. I didn’t expect it to affect it me so deeply but man! Oh, how I cried and cried and cried. π Next of Kin was just exactly what I needed to get out of my book funk – a rip-roaring, page turner that kept me engaged and entertained. I really like the Scotland Yard Murder series but I love that time period and Saucy Jack. π
I just bought Salt to the Sea. I’m really going to have to gear up before I dive into it!
It’s sad that Small Great Things broke your bookclub, but I s’pose that means that members of the club definitely needed to read it! I loved Evelyn Hugo. I devoured that book in three days- picked it up each night after work and cried the final time I set it down.
I feel like I need to invest some time in Brene Brown. I’ve heard good things about her work, but I’ve never read anything from her.
Heartless wasn’t amazing, but I didn’t hate it. I love Alice in Wonderland and I love Marissa Meyer, so I had high hopes. But there were not characters to connect to- you’re right.
(Why is AiW your least favorite fairytale?? I’m very curious!)
I agree with Rebecca Jo- great breakdown of your books!!
I hope you enjoy Salt to the Sea. It’s really good but I always need to gear up for WW2 books because they always break my heart a bit. And that’s okay. They should hurt a bit. Yeah, there were a few members who were defensive. They had never really been aware of their privilege and felt guilty. I don’t want them to feel guilty but I do want them to be aware. To be woke. Evelyn Hugo was sooooooo good! I devoured and was sad when it ended too.
So I totally started singing that song in my head when I read the title of your post and the beginning of your post! I love that song, and that’s amazing how many books that you read this year! I totally read a ton of mystery/thriller books too, and I loved most of them. Evelyn Hugo is on my list for next year for Erin’s challenge, and I can’t wait to start reading it after hearing everybody rave about it. I also want to pick up the second book in The Collector series because I loved The Butterfly Garden so much! It really was awesome to have such strong female characters in that book!
I love that song too. And I have to laugh when I looked up the lyrics because I totally massacred them when I was a kid singing along. LOL! Mystery/thrillers are my jam and I can never get enough of them. No, that’s not true. One month I read too many and scared myself silly so I didn’t even want to leave my apartment without bodyguards. π Evelyn Hugo is so good and I hope you enjoy it. I’ve heard it’s a bit different from her other books, but it was my first TJR book so that didn’t phase me. The female characters get even stronger in the Collector Trilogy (in my opinion) and we get a more rounded picture of the FBI agents too. I think you’ll really enjoy it.