best in books 2019 Archives - Elizabeth Maria Naranjo

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It’s that time of year again! Thanks to Jamie over at The Perpetual Page Turner for once again hosting this annual End of Year Book Survey. I tell myself every January that I’m going to get better at reviewing books as I read them; alas, it never happens. Still, a yearly wrap-up is better than nothing, and here is mine for the year 2019:

Number Of Books You Read: 62
Number of Re-Reads: 4
Genre You Read The Most From: Mysteries

1. Best Book You Read In 2019?

Adult: A Game of Thrones by George R. R. Martin

One of my reading goals for 2019 was to finally tackle George R. R. Martin’s gargantuan high fantasy series A Song of Ice and Fire. I can’t say I loved all the books, but the first one is flat-out masterful.

YA: The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo

A brutal and beautiful coming-of-age story told fiercely in verse. Listen to the audiobook if you can.

MG: Inkheart by Cornelia Funke

Oh, middle grade, you own more of my heart as the years go by. This one involves books coming to life, which of course equals pure magic.

2. Book You Were Excited About & Thought You Were Going To Love More But Didn’t?

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

Maybe it was the distracting use of vernacular in dialogue, maybe it was the fact that so much of this was just too unbelievable, or maybe it just wasn’t for me.

3. Most surprising (in a good way or bad way) book you read?

In The Woods by Tana French

In a good way. But also a maddening way. Don’t expect all the answers, but do read this dazzling first entry in French’s superb Dublin Murder Squad mystery series.

4. Book You “Pushed” The Most People To Read (And They Did)?

Digital Minimalism by Cal Newport

You know you should quit Facebook, but you won’t, so read this for ways to cut back. Way, way back. (And then quit.)

5. Best series you started in 2019? Best Sequel of 2019? Best Series Ender of 2019?

Ah, this is hard! I started and ended 2 series in 2019: A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin and Tana French’s Dublin Murder Squad series. Both are excellent, both have some disappointing entries, but I’d say Tana French’s series is overall more consistent. The final two books in A Song of Ice and Fire are just so different from the first three in terms of quality.

6. Favorite new author you discovered in 2019?

Anjali Sachdeva, whose debut short story collection All the Names They Used for God is simply divine.

7. Best book from a genre you don’t typically read/was out of your comfort zone?

Bully Love by Patricia Colleen Murphy

Poetry can be intimidating for me, but this debut collection—which won the 2019 Press 53 Award—was accessible, atmospheric, and evocative. I especially loved the author’s eloquent observations and reflections on the Sonoran Desert.

8. Most action-packed/thrilling/unputdownable book of the year?

We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson was completely mesmerizing and I read it in one sitting.

9. Book You Read In 2019 That You Would Be MOST Likely To Re-Read Next Year?

A Game of Thrones

10. Favorite cover of a book you read in 2019?

The cold, wanting, and fractured nature of this cover perfectly reflects the story within, including our conflicted main character Rob who is haunted by childhood memories he cannot recapture.

11. Most memorable character of 2019?

Tyrion Lannister

Really I could have chosen pretty much any character from A Game of Thrones. The Hound, Jamie, Cersei, Daenerys, take your pick. I chose Tyrion for his brilliance, his wit, and his bravery. It’s not his fault he was born a Lannister.

12. Most beautifully written book read in 2019?

On Earth We’re Briefly Gorgeous by Ocean Vuong

13. Most Thought-Provoking/Life-Changing Book of 2019?

The Diary of a Bookseller by Shaun Bythell

Comprised of simple, daily entries that describe the often dull day-in day-out life of a bookshop owner, there’s nothing particularly exciting here. And yet it’s captivating. Why is that? I couldn’t tell you, I just know I loved this book and it inspired me to commit more fully to journaling every day.

14. Book you can’t believe you waited UNTIL 2019 to finally read?

‘Salem’s Lot by Stephen King

How can you call yourself a true Constant Reader without having read SK’s critically acclaimed second novel and contribution to the vampire genre?

15. Favorite Passage/Quote From A Book You Read In 2019?

Sigh.

16.Shortest & Longest Book You Read In 2019?

Shortest: Bully Love by Patricia Colleen Murphy

Longest: A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin

17. Book That Shocked You The Most

A Storm of Swords by George R. R. Martin

You know why.

18. OTP OF THE YEAR (you will go down with this ship!)

Ellie Winter and James Hawley in Simone St. James’ The Other Side of Midnight

19. Favorite Non-Romantic Relationship Of The Year

Detective Antoinette Conway and Stephen Moran. My least favorite entry in Tana French’s Dublin Murder Squad mystery series nevertheless featured my favorite non-romantic pairing. Just go read some Tana French, seriously.

20. Favorite Book You Read in 2019 From An Author You’ve Read Previously

The Other Side of Midnight by Simone St. James

Since reading The Broken Girls in 2018 I am a full-on Simone St. James superfan. I wrapped up my 2019 by reading the rest of her entire backlist and can attest … she is always perfect.

21. Best Book You Read In 2019 That You Read Based SOLELY On A Recommendation From Somebody Else/Peer Pressure/Bookstagram, Etc.:

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte

Reader, I did it. I finally read Jane Eyre, but my dark and twisted heart will always belong to the windswept moors of Wuthering Heights.

22. Newest fictional crush from a book you read in 2019?

James Hawley from The Other Side of Midnight

23. Best 2019 debut you read?

Goodnight Stranger by Miciah Bay Gault

Miciah Bay Gault’s debut is a page-turner full of mesmerizing prose and chilling menace. I felt off-kilter for much of the novel, trying to piece together the mystery of a familiar stranger who may or may not be the main character’s deceased baby brother reincarnate. The ending does not disappoint.

24. Best Worldbuilding/Most Vivid Setting You Read This Year?

A Game of Thrones

Come on, how could I choose anything else? I am in AWE of GRRM’s worldbuilding skills.

25. Book That Put A Smile On Your Face/Was The Most FUN To Read?

Substitute: Going to School With a Thousand Kids by Nicholson Baker

A renowned author painstakingly documents 28 days working as a substitute teacher in Maine public schools, and the result is as you’d expect: a little depressing but also extremely funny, sweet, and just plain old fun.

26. Book That Made You Cry Or Nearly Cry in 2019?

The Day That Went Missing by Richard Beard

A beautifully written memoir about a brother haunted by the death of his sibling and the way his family processed (or not) the loss.

27. Hidden Gem Of The Year?

Split Tooth by Tanya Tagaq

A gorgeous, unique, coming-of-age story told in poems, story fragments, dreams, and memories. (Thank you to my friend Adrien who reviewed it on Goodreads; otherwise it would have stayed a hidden gem to me.)

28. Book That Crushed Your Soul?

A Storm of Swords

Yep, I managed to make it to 2019 without having any idea what The Red Wedding was. The horror of reading that chapter in A Song of Ice and Fire’s third installment will remain with me forever.

29. Most Unique Book You Read In 2019?

Orange World by Karen Russell

If you have never lost yourself in the irresistibly weird and astonishingly inventive stories of Karen Russell, remedy that now. She is truly one-of-a-kind, blending horror, humor, and wit in accessible literary fiction. Orange World is Russell’s third collection of short stories.

30. Book That Made You The Most Mad (doesn’t necessarily mean you didn’t like it)?

No Apparent Danger by Victoria Bruce

An unflinching, often gruesome account of the tragedies at Nevado del Ruiz in 1985 and Galeras in 1993. Both volcanic disaster stories will have you clenching your fists in fury at the negligence and arrogance that led to so much loss of life, but there are plenty of heroes to be found here too.