Saturday, January 2, 2021

The Best, The Worst, The Unexpected...Part 1

 


Hey y'all, it's Jayme. The year 2020 is FINALLY over and I'm pretty sure I've aged like 5 years. But, one good part of 2020 was the fact that, with most of the world shut down, I had way more time for reading. As a quick little wrap-up of my year in books, I thought I would introduce you to some of the best books I read this year, some of the worst books I read this year (in my opinion -- obviously others will love them and I greatly respect the authors for their time and their craft), and some of my reading stats.

Before we get to that, here's a quick wrap-up of my December reads:

Craigslist Confessionals ☕☕☕☕.25
Heart Bones ☕☕☕.75
The Last Flight ☕☕☕.75
Still Missing ☕☕☕☕75
Better Luck Next Time ☕☕☕☕.5
Buried in Secrets ☕☕☕☕.25
It ☕☕☕.25
Home Before Dark ☕☕☕.75
Invisible Girl ☕☕
In A Holidaze ☕☕☕☕
Layla ☕☕.75
The Valentine ☕☕☕.75



Now to kick 2020 to the curb! Ready? Let's go!

The Best...
Y'all, this category was SO HARD to choose books for!

Best Fiction:
This is How It Always Is by Laurie Frankel

Best Romance:
The Unhoneymooners by Christina Lauren

Best Historical Fiction:
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Best Thriller:
The New Husband by D.J. Palmer

Best Young Adult:
Full Disclosure by Camryn Garrett

Best Sci-Fi/Fantasy:
Oona Out of Order by Margarita Montimore

Best Memoir:
Know My Name by Chanel Miller

Best Classic:
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

Best Standalone Novel:
The Only Plane in the Sky by Garrett M. Graff

Best Series:
Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich

Best Audiobook:
I'll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara




2020 Five Star Reads:
The Wives - Tarryn Fisher
I Can Be A Better You - Tarryn Fisher
Let It All Burn - Denise Grover Swank
The Killer Across the Table - John E. Douglas
Her Scream in the Silence - Denise Grover Swank
A Nearly Normal Family - M.T. Edvardsson
The Only Plane in the Sky - Garrett M. Graff
When the Bough Breaks - Denise Grover Swank
Know My Name - Chanel Miller
The Substitute - Denise Grover Swank
One Foot in the Grave - Denise Grover Swank
Dear Wife - Kimberley Belle
This is How it Always Is - Laurie Frankel
The Book of Unknown Americans - Cristina Henriquez
Night - Elie Weisel
A Good Girl's Guide to Murder - Holly Jackson




Just want to add a small disclaimer here. I'm using "The Worst" because it's what goes along with "The Best". But I know that just because a book doesn't work for me, doesn't mean it's a bad book. I firmly believe there are NO BAD BOOKS because obviously someone liked it to publish it. Authors are amazingly talented. These just weren't for me....

The Worst...

Least Liked Book I finished:
Where'd You Go Bernadette - Marie Semple

Yes, I said it.

2020 DNF: 
An Unwanted Guest - Shari Lapena
Station Eleven - Emily St. John Mendel
Sadie - Courtney Summers
Purple Hibiscus - Chimamandah Ngozi Adichie
The Genius of Women - Janice Kaplan
Winter Street - Elin Hilderbrand


If 2020 was good for anything, it taught us that things don't always go as planned. Here's some twists I did not expect....

The Unexpected...

Book I thought I would love, but didn't:
Maybe You Should Talk to Someone - Lori Gottlieb (Solid 3 stars, but I really thought it'd be 5)

Book I thought I would hate, but loved:
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo - Taylor Jenkins Reid

Most unexpected thriller twist:
The New Husband - D.J. Palmer

Books over my Goodreads goal:
41

Any other unexpected bookish happenings?
I read a lot more non-fiction than I have in years past. I've also been listening to a ton of audiobooks and have really liked listening to bookish podcasts.


And finally, if you're interested, some overall stats for the year...

2020 Reading Stats:

Total Physical Books Read:
40

Total ebooks Read:
65

Total Audiobooks Listened to:
56

Total Books Read/Listened to:
161

Total Pages Read:
32,121

Total Audiobook Minutes:
33,438

Number of Five Star Reads:
16

Number of DNFs:
6

Longest Book Read:
The Only Plane in the Sky - Garrett M. Graff

Longest Audiobook:
It - Stephen King (45 hours!!)

Number of Book of the Month Books Read:
42

Highest Goodreads Rating Read:
The Only Plane in the Sky - Garrett M. Graff

Number of ARCs Read:
19

Challenges Completed:
Book Challenge by Erin - twice

Total of "20 Most Anticipated Reads of 2020" Books Completed:
14.
Did not read: Something She's Not Telling Us, The Wrong Family (first read of 2021), Untitled Paula Hawkins (got pushed back to 2021), Wild At Heart, Whiskey, and Always Enough.



Don't think I forgot about my goals from the beginning of the year! Here's how they went...

1. Read at least 5 classic novels
I read one. Oops.

2. Expand my reading into more non-fiction
Yes I did!

3. Reach 500 followers on our Bookstagram
We are at 1,043!

4. Read 120 books
#NailedIt

5. Finish Denise Grover Swank's backlist
I'm 54/79.


We are so looking forward to continuing on (and expanding with new ideas) our Bookstagram, Blog, and Facebook page going in to 2021. Keep an eye out for Meg's Best, Worst, Unexpected post tomorrow and our 2021 Goals posts coming up soon!




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