I feel a little silly saying that I read 14 books in 2024 after seeing so many people share the dozens (some even into the hundreds!) that they read last year, but as you may know, I have a lot of hobbies on top of all the other regular life responsibilities. I generally read at the end of the day and most nights I am so tired that I don't make it more than a chapter or two. I shared the first eight books I read this year in this post, so now I'll share the last six.
1. Sarah's Key by Tatiana de Rosnay- I picked up this older book at a library book sale over the summer and the funny thing is that a friend had told me about it years and years ago, but I had never added it to my list. I was glad to find it for fifty cents. This book flipped in time between World War II Paris and modern day, focused on a family who had been removed from their apartment and the one who was about to move there. I really do love historical novels and this one didn't disappoint. I enjoyed the back and forth of the story and it has stuck with me. Carol told me that there's also a movie made from it so I might have to watch that one weekend too. Highly recommend this book if you're a fan of historical fiction set in war as well.
2. One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston - I learned about this book from Caitlin, a fellow stitcher that I met at StitchCon. She has a flosstube called Stitch.Read.Repeat and covers her stitching and reading. This book sounded interesting when she talked about it and it was available at my library so I picked it up. We follow two women in New York City who only see each other on the train. It takes a while for one to figure out the other one can't leave the train and is a time traveler. There was a lot going on in this novel but it was an enjoyable read. I thought I knew how it was going to end (or maybe I should say, there was a specific way I wanted it to end) and it surprised me. I think I would have liked my ending better. ;) Reader beware, this one has some steamy sections.
3. The Marriage Portrait by Maggie O'Farrell - this is the story of Lucrezia de Medici, a young duchess who was married away to a prince at the age of 14 in the 1500s. It is based in some truth (the marriage really did happen) and you know from the beginning that Lucrezia won't live a full year in her marriage, so you're watching things happen and trying to determine how it will all play out. The story flips back and forth between the weekend of her death and the story of the marriage arrangement and life once she is married. This one was a slower read for me - despite the premise of the book, it didn't have the same catch at the end of the chapters as some suspense novels have and I found it was easy to put down. It wasn't a bad book, just not one of my favorites this year.
4. Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens - I think I might be the last reader in the US to read this one. My cousin shared her copy with me and I let it sit on my night table for half the year before I started it. She'd told me it was very sad and I just wasn't in the mood to read sad. I got into it and didn't find it to be as sad as I'd imagined - Kya certainly was a lonely child, but I was captivated by how she managed to live by herself in the marshes of North Carolina. I felt the author did an excellent job describing the landscape and characters and I had no trouble imagining them all (I know this one is a movie too and I haven't yet watched it). I did find myself turning pages quickly in this book as I wanted to know what had happened and also follow along with Kya's adventures and loves. The end surprised me and also made me smile. It wasn't what I predicted again, but this time, I was glad for the ending the author gave us. Highly recommend this if you haven't already read it. I think this was my second favorite from the second half of the year.
5. Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin - my favorite book from the second half of the year, I'd heard about this one on a few podcasts. It had been described as "a book about video games" and that wouldn't be my normal genre, but once I heard several people recommend it, I decided to give it a try too and I am so glad I did. It's really a story about friendship and growth. You follow Sam and Sadie, childhood friends who had a falling out, as they reconnect and try to build a video game together. It's the long and winding story of their friendship. I would have said this book was just good until about 2/3 of the way through - when the climax of the story happens, you're surprised and then have to know what follows. I had a half day of vacation to use near the end of the year when I was reading this and I came home from work and read most of the afternoon to finish the book.
6. How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water by Angie Cruz - My last book of the year was on my "books to read" list and I am not sure where I heard about it. It was a quick read about Cara, a woman who was out of work and going to weekly sessions with a job counselor to help her find a job. You learn fairly quickly that Cara isn't quite a reliable narrator as she spends most of each session telling stories to the counselor. The whole story is from her perspective and she dribbles out information a little at a time. I got through this one, but it wasn't fantastic - it wound up mid/low for the year for me.
Overall, I am pleased with the 14 books that I read this year - several that had been on my "to read" list for a long time and some new discoveries. I am heading into 2025 with a goal to do more reading in 25...we'll see if I can get better at going to bed earlier so I can read longer!
Comments