2020 Book List
Last year, when the UK went into its first lockdown around March, I set myself some goals. One of them was to read at least one book a month. That’s right, a published, for-money book. And none of the long fic I read on top counted.
So this is for my own reference and to keep track of what I thought, but feel free to take this as a recommendation list too.
I usually give books about 50 pages and if I decide I’m not into them they don’t get read. These are all the books I finished last year. I’m a picky reader.
The Bookshop Book by Jen Campbell. Can’t remember much about this one. Was just an aesthetically pleasing browse of cute and cool bookshops. Almost more like a coffee table book but A5-ish size.
How to Stop Time by Matt Haig. Again, can’t remember much. Think it took me a while to get into and was still on the fence around p50, but glad I read through it. Was worth the read. Quite thought provoking.
Wakenhyrst by Michelle Paver. Actually picked this one up because I recognised the author name from a series I really liked when I was younger (first book is Wolf Brother, would recommend for an easy, historical but fictional based read). This book is nothing like that. Absolutely gothic fiction -- Edwardian marshland manor house and dual timeline. Would recommend it.
Uprooted by Naomi Novik. Again recognised author name. Liked the fantasy setting and magic used. Felt a bit Disney storyline at the beginning but the second half really got going. Not the most unpredictable book you’ll ever read, but a good one if fantasy realism and haunted forests are your thing.
Geisha of Gion by Mineko Iwasakie. Would absolutely recommend for anyone interested in the specific topic or Japanese history/culture in general. Autobiographical and in response to Memoirs of a Geisha, to try and correct some stereotypes and inaccuracies. It isn’t dry though, reads like any good fictional novel. Very interesting content, narrative and voice.
The Silent Companions by Laura Purcell. Another gothic one. Would definitely recommend this one if that’s your kind of thing. Bit of a slow start if I remember correctly, but sets up nicely for the rest of the novel. Got goosebumps a few times.
Wool by Hugh Howey. This one felt pretty long. I remember thinking it didn’t need like the first 100 pages of the book, but after that super good. Dystopian fantasy for a change of pace. My knowledge of published dystopian fiction isn’t that broad -- but you bet your arse on the fanfic side it’s one of my favourite reads -- but this didn’t feel like anything I’d read before, the ideas were pretty unique even though I’d come across cylo living in fic before.
The Shadow Sister by Lucinda Riley. Why did I read all of this to the end? It was so needlessly long! I know it’s a fairly popular series (about seven adopted sisters going and finding out about their legacies and where they’re from after their father dies) so maybe it was just this particular one? It didn’t feel like it went anywhere. Half of it was about the sister and the other half set in the past about her relative, but it felt disconnected and like it could have just been two separate novels, neither of them super exciting at that. I think I got to a point where I wanted to pack it in, but I’d already read so much of this gigantic novel it felt like a waste to not finish.
Circe by Madelline Miller. I really love her Song of Achilles novel. This one was nearly as good. More ancient Greek mythology. Would recommend. She’s got this lovely writing style that’s easy to read, poetic, but also mature.
Lord of the Silver Bow by David Gemmell. Seems I was having an ancient Greece moment here. This one was Aeneas. Also interesting to see the famous Troy story from the other side, rather than the outside Achilles side. Started slow though and it didn’t get to the more exciting parts of the myth content by the end. Didn’t like the writing style as much as Miller though. I think it’s a trilogy, but I’m not putting effort into finding the others, even though I think those would be more eventful and exciting. Pretty interesting to see some of the relevant myths winding together though.
The Snow Rose by Lulu Taylor. Way to go in a completely different direction. You might have noticed I don’t read too much modern real world, family drama or romance sort of fiction like this one. I think this caught my attention because it’s based around a fictional cult, but the main character's struggles were interesting too, but that’s maybe because I don’t read the genre much. Probably won't search out anything else by her though.
Hood by Stephen Lawhead. I almost wish I hadn’t wasted my time on this one. It’s a Robin Hood trilogy, but this one was just the origin story and it didn’t feel like much really happened. You’d need it for context in the trilogy, because it’s set as a Welsh Hood just after the Norman conquest which is a pretty original take I think, but I actually wish you could just skip to the second book, where I imagine things would hot up a bit. Problem is, I didn’t like it enough to want to actually read the second book.
The Last Wish by Andrzej Sapkowski. This is a series of short stories set in the Witcher universe. Timeline wise, for context if you’ve seen it, the first series of the show is set during this book and between it and the first actual novel (which I’m actually reading now). The nonlinear timeline threw me a bit to begin with, but you get used to it (same as the series. Having said that, the actual novel series doesn’t fuck with timelines as far as I can see so far). I’m not sure how much of it is author style, and how much of it is due to translating, but the style was different somehow. Made it an interesting read.
Skyward: Claim the Stars by Brandon Sanderson. HOLY FUCK! Why didn’t I know this author before!! I think I read this in two nights. One of those books where you look at the clock and it’s 3am and you should absolutely go to sleep, but you can’t make yourself put it down for another few chapters. I think this one is technically YA, but it doesn’t read entirely like it. Some characters, including main, had pretty annoying aspects to them, but by the end they had such character growth you loved them all. Sci-fi btw. I’ve got the next book in the series waiting on my bookshelf. Can’t recommend enough if you like science fiction and fantasy.
The Final Empire by Brandon Sanderson. As we can see, this is my favourite author atm. You can tell this one is adult rather than YA even though the main characters (strong, independent women, non-sexualised, from a male author btw) are around the same age, this one reads more mature. High fantasy with a lot of politics and discussion of how and why the magic of that world works. I think there are 2 trilogies of this particular series, but then also it’s set in the world he uses for other series' as well. So I can’t wait to see how everything links and weaves in future. For such a thick, dense book, I went through this stupidly quickly too. His style is easy to read -- I never found myself skipping any of the dense setting or explanation paragraphs like I do when I get a bit fed up with some other novels -- but mature and with a lot of description.
The Corset by Laura Purcell. And back to gothic again. Think I preferred the other book of hers I read, but still a good read. Think it started slow, but the second half had a much better pace. Interesting concept too.