Top Ten Books Read in 2024
It's here, the final TTT of the year! (queued post, will be linked)
And it's a tough one, because I read 224 books this year. I gave 40 of them 5 stars on Goodreads (though some were more like 4.5 rounded up). I have spent two full weeks working on this post in tandem with the still-in-progress end of year reading surveys, agonizing over which ones were truly BEST, and I almost gave up and did even more, but...I THINK I managed to do it.
I feel pretty confident about my top 6, but couldn't pick an actual favorite from those, so those are just in chronological order by read date. I also feel pretty confident about the inclusion of books 7-9. Choosing the last spot from so many equally worthy candidates was crazy tough and I'm still not sure I chose 100% correctly, but we're just going to have to go with it for now.
1. Billion Dollar Girl - Megan Shull (2022)
Second book I read this year and I simply cannot shake how QUALITY this young-end-of-YA read was, with so much incredible detail about the Pacific Northwest and generally beautiful writing as this 13-year-old Social-Services-dodging runaway accidentally meets relatives she never knew she had, while pretending to be the 16-year-old summer employee at an island wilderness resort who ended up deciding not to come.
2. The Seat Filler - Sariah Wilson (2021)
I had a few contemporary romances with OTP couples vying for a slot, but ultimately, the PG-13 rated one won on the strength of its incredible kissing scenes (and dogs).
3. Emily Wilde's Encyclopedia of Faeries (and Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands) - Heather Fawcett (2023-24)
Secret 2-for-1 because I love these equally. Emily, Wendell, the pair of them together, are everything 2 me and really kick-started this year's journey to cozy fantasy, after years of protesting that I don't really read fantasy.
4. The Spellshop - Sarah Beth Durst (2024)
It is honestly impossible for me to decide if this or the above is the best fantasy book of the year; I was glad they were put in different Goodreads Choice categories even though neither won, and this definitely isn't "romantasy." Every minute of this was a cottagecore dream.
5. The Ornithologist's Field Guide to Love - India Holton (2024)
First book I read from her and even though the romance didn't make me swoon, it is - spoiler alert - at least tied for winner of the funniest book of the year / book that made me the happiest while reading.
6. The Work of Art - Mimi Matthews (2019)
Similarly to number 2, speaking of people who write the most incredible kissing scenes...and this book is also filled with dogs! This romance was outstanding.
7. In Front of God and Everybody: Confessions of April Grace: - K.D. McCrite (2011)
This is the book that no.5 is tied with, by the way. This 1986-set, series-opening narrative from a 5th grader about the ridiculous changes that come into her life that year was just so incredibly joyous that I have not stopped thinking about it since.
8. In Another Time - Caroline Leech (2018)
This WWII YA novel set in Scotland and featuring lumberjills in the Women's Timber Corp was a fascinating look at a bit of history, with a cast just FULL of memorable ladies.
9. Aunt Jane McPhipps and Her Baby Blue Chips - Frances V. Rummell (1960)
This is a reread, which I normally wouldn't include for consideration in a list like this, but I'm making an exception because a) the year I first read it, I wasn't doing any kind of year-end wrapups yet, and b) I don't think it would have made my top-10 then anyway, since on this read I upgraded it from 4 to 5 stars. The last time I read it was 14 years ago, by the way, and in all that time I never forgot how much I'd enjoyed this whimsical narrative, and was so thrilled when I got the exact same experience if not better upon reread.
10. I Hope This Finds You Well - Natalie Sue (2024)
Recency bias is showing here -- I wish I had a few more months to see if this one holds up long-term -- but it just reminded me so much of my beloved Attachments, not quite to that caliber, but with a definite edge in how hard I identified with the main character and saw myself in her. And how hard I full-body sobbed because of it. The Goodreads Choice awards have a lotta flaws, but I have to thank them for bringing this nominee to my attention.
And it's a tough one, because I read 224 books this year. I gave 40 of them 5 stars on Goodreads (though some were more like 4.5 rounded up). I have spent two full weeks working on this post in tandem with the still-in-progress end of year reading surveys, agonizing over which ones were truly BEST, and I almost gave up and did even more, but...I THINK I managed to do it.
I feel pretty confident about my top 6, but couldn't pick an actual favorite from those, so those are just in chronological order by read date. I also feel pretty confident about the inclusion of books 7-9. Choosing the last spot from so many equally worthy candidates was crazy tough and I'm still not sure I chose 100% correctly, but we're just going to have to go with it for now.
1. Billion Dollar Girl - Megan Shull (2022)
Second book I read this year and I simply cannot shake how QUALITY this young-end-of-YA read was, with so much incredible detail about the Pacific Northwest and generally beautiful writing as this 13-year-old Social-Services-dodging runaway accidentally meets relatives she never knew she had, while pretending to be the 16-year-old summer employee at an island wilderness resort who ended up deciding not to come.
2. The Seat Filler - Sariah Wilson (2021)
I had a few contemporary romances with OTP couples vying for a slot, but ultimately, the PG-13 rated one won on the strength of its incredible kissing scenes (and dogs).
3. Emily Wilde's Encyclopedia of Faeries (and Emily Wilde's Map of the Otherlands) - Heather Fawcett (2023-24)
Secret 2-for-1 because I love these equally. Emily, Wendell, the pair of them together, are everything 2 me and really kick-started this year's journey to cozy fantasy, after years of protesting that I don't really read fantasy.
4. The Spellshop - Sarah Beth Durst (2024)
It is honestly impossible for me to decide if this or the above is the best fantasy book of the year; I was glad they were put in different Goodreads Choice categories even though neither won, and this definitely isn't "romantasy." Every minute of this was a cottagecore dream.
5. The Ornithologist's Field Guide to Love - India Holton (2024)
First book I read from her and even though the romance didn't make me swoon, it is - spoiler alert - at least tied for winner of the funniest book of the year / book that made me the happiest while reading.
6. The Work of Art - Mimi Matthews (2019)
Similarly to number 2, speaking of people who write the most incredible kissing scenes...and this book is also filled with dogs! This romance was outstanding.
7. In Front of God and Everybody: Confessions of April Grace: - K.D. McCrite (2011)
This is the book that no.5 is tied with, by the way. This 1986-set, series-opening narrative from a 5th grader about the ridiculous changes that come into her life that year was just so incredibly joyous that I have not stopped thinking about it since.
8. In Another Time - Caroline Leech (2018)
This WWII YA novel set in Scotland and featuring lumberjills in the Women's Timber Corp was a fascinating look at a bit of history, with a cast just FULL of memorable ladies.
9. Aunt Jane McPhipps and Her Baby Blue Chips - Frances V. Rummell (1960)
This is a reread, which I normally wouldn't include for consideration in a list like this, but I'm making an exception because a) the year I first read it, I wasn't doing any kind of year-end wrapups yet, and b) I don't think it would have made my top-10 then anyway, since on this read I upgraded it from 4 to 5 stars. The last time I read it was 14 years ago, by the way, and in all that time I never forgot how much I'd enjoyed this whimsical narrative, and was so thrilled when I got the exact same experience if not better upon reread.
10. I Hope This Finds You Well - Natalie Sue (2024)
Recency bias is showing here -- I wish I had a few more months to see if this one holds up long-term -- but it just reminded me so much of my beloved Attachments, not quite to that caliber, but with a definite edge in how hard I identified with the main character and saw myself in her. And how hard I full-body sobbed because of it. The Goodreads Choice awards have a lotta flaws, but I have to thank them for bringing this nominee to my attention.