Hi, friends!
Thank you for coming to spend another cozy post today. I figured since it’s still the first month of the year I would share with you all my favorite books of 2024.
I am a BIG reader and have been since my teenage years. My first loves are fantasy, romance, and mystery books. Who else loves these genres?
Last year I hit a big milestone in my reading challenge, and I read 52 books! I do owe a lot of those reads to my classes and audiobooks because I doubt I would’ve been able to figure out 52 books to read on my own, let alone read them so fast. However, I am doing another challenge, which is to read 50 books this year.
Fingers crossed that I will be able to read that many.
Last year, I got to venture out to different kinds of books and plays that I wouldn’t have pushed myself to read.
I started the year with a horror book “The Final Girl Support Group” by Grady Hendrix and ended the year with “The Christmas Tree Farm” by Laurie Gilmore.
Also, I got to explore a lot of different plays like “Mrs. Warren’s Profession” by George Bernard Shaw and “The Verge” by Susan Glaspell. I used to take theatre classes back in middle school, so reading plays took me back to my acting days.
I am honestly so grateful to enjoy all of the books and plays last year. My favorite part though was being able to discuss them with others who liked and didn’t like them. Getting new perspectives in both reading and discussions enriches my personal experience with each story. I hope I get to enjoy that more often, especially outside of the classroom.
Before I talk about my 2024 5-star books, I want to let you know the criteria I place:
- I prefer the casting in the book to be diverse.
- I want to audibly laugh during the reading.
- I want my favorite book tropes to be included, although not all of them have to be in the book.
- I love well-written spice in my reads.
- I want to experience big emotions: heartbreak, despair, joy, relief, anger.
- Lastly, I want to cry.
I know, some of these are odd, like wanting to cry, but that’s why they are my criteria for readings.
These are only my big criteria when it comes to making my 5-star ratings. I tend to have 3-star reads where I experience audible laughing, but it didn’t affect me in a gut-wrenching way.
Are you ready for my favorite books in 2024? Well, pick a comfy spot to sit, grab a blanket, and let’s chat about books!
I’m going to start strong with my first 5-star read, “The Last Letter” by Rebecca Yarros. Many people will recognize Rebecca’s name through TikTok or her famous book “Fourth Wing”. But before she wrote her first romantasy, she wrote romance books.
This book is about a single mother who makes a pen pal with a soldier who’s in her brother’s brigade. They share intimate details of their lives, hopes, and fears. Although they’re strangers by societal standards, they’re the most important person in each other’s lives. Beckett comes to Ella’s home to help her through a family hardship.
Ella’s circle is very small, it includes her brother, her twins, and her employees who are more like family. However, it’s made smaller through the loss of her brother while he was in battle. She’s had to survive to keep a roof over her children’s heads and food on the table, so when a mysterious Beckett shows up weeks after her brother’s funeral, she has a hard time trusting his intentions.
Ella and Beckett’s story had me rooting for them from the beginning. Ella’s strong will and determination had me fist-pumping the air but also made me want to give her a big hug while she cried. Beckett’s instinct to protect had me worried because that could quickly turn into controlling. (Hello, Dain.) But he proved to be able to listen to what others needed, see what he was doing incorrectly, readjust, and fix it. The twins stole my heart with every interaction, and I was devastated by the unfairness they experienced. Rebecca tore my heart, sewed it back together, and tore it again with this book. It was a fantastic read, and I highly recommend it if you don’t mind crying about 20 times during your read.
Hannah Maehrer’s “Assistant To The Villain” is a great cozy read!
Evie struggles to figure out a way to help care for her dad while making sure he and her sister don’t starve. They experienced a tragedy that led to them losing both Evie’s mom and her brother in one fell swoop. Our main female character is witty, smart, kind, and nothing like you’d expect in an assistant to a villain. However, out of sheer fate and desperation, she accepts the position to assist the local villain and occasionally comes to her office to find an unconscious man on her desk. If you want to read a book that gives you a new perspective of villains and witty banter, then I recommend this book!
“The Unmaking of June Farrow” by Adrienne Young is thrilling! This complex story follows June Farrow and the curse that surrounds her family: madness. Every woman in her family has gone through it, and in the past year June has been experiencing signs herself. Through June’s story, we get a mystery filled with magic, horror, and star-crossed love. It’s similar to “The Time Traveler’s Wife” by Audrey Niffenegger. While June leans into her family’s curse, she tries to find out what happened to her mom and who’s the mysterious man who’s trying to kill her. Her adventure changes the past and the future, but with the secrets revealed will she live to see change?
I have read multiple of Adrienne’s books and enjoyed every adventure she takes me on. If you like mystery books with magic intertwined in the story, then give this book a try.
“Thank You for Listening” by Julia Whelan is a fun book experience through the audiobook version, which Julia narrates herself!
This book takes you through the world of being an audiobook narrator through the main female character’s eyes, Sewanee Chester. After setting a hard rule for herself, Sewanee narrates one last romance novel for a beloved author’s last wish. Sewanee joins the mysterious and highly wanted Brock McNight in narrating the book, and through back-and-forth emails, they find themselves falling for one another. You get a well-mix of banter, flirting, intimacy, and secrecy. Julia’s book gives you a good look into the audiobook-narrating world that we may take for granted as listeners. As an audiobook lover, I appreciate looking into the world and am truly thankful for helping me enjoy so many books.
As you saw in my title, since my list consists of seven books, I thought I’d do my readers the kindness and split my post in two. I hope you don’t mind, but I want to make sure you don’t feel like I’m rambling about my favorite books from last year.
Plus, I enjoy a good reading break like most people, but I hope you come back next week to see the next half of my favorite books from 2024!
I would love to hear your 5-star reads and criteria for what it takes for a book to meet your 5-star list! Let me know and leave me a comments below.
Until next time, friends! Bye!