YAY!!! MY BOOK TWIN’S LIST IS READY!! I’ve read a few from her list too, and agree 100% (like that one to the left – it’s going to be on MY list too!!) and I’m intrigued by some of her other choices!! π
But first… some highlights from her year (she’s got a toddler, so she’s been in exhausted, cleaning, decorating, changing things around mode). I don’t know how she has the energy!
About her book life:
I love a soul mate/love for life trope with suspense and angst…
I started back in on Nora Robertβs Year One: Chronicles of The One, Book 1 the other night and Iβm loving it. I love the whole apocalypse type genre, but I canβt say Iβve ever read about rebuilding civilization, if thatβs where this is heading. Itβs different and fresh, for me.
Confession- Iβve developed a bad habit of reading the end of books before I get there. I know, I know, *ducks* but it always feels like I wonβt get another chance to get to it and I just HAVE to see!! It takes a great deal of restraint not to do it. I donβt with thrillers.
I only read on my phone currently. Itβs really easy to browse Amazon, GR, jump on here, social media, check email when I should be reading! Elimination would be best, lol. I donβt think I like having options. The more there are, the more panicked and overwhelmed I feel. I took a quiz when I was searching decidophobia and it said I was a severe case and I should seek counseling. πΒ I want to say Iβm trying to fix it (by making a bunch of decisions on my own), but itβs hard to break the habits.
Random tidbits about her life:
1. 2 hr delay this morning. Baby is sleeping in and I can think of nothing but cookies and baking. Iβm making chocolate chip cookies for a school thing this week. Iβll probably make some snowball cookies bc I have fresh almonds from Louisiana to use and I want to do a cowboy cookie for a Xmas gathering. Anyone have a tried and true recipe for those?
2. Iβd like to wrap more today bc things are starting to feel scrambled.
3. I finished V Wars on Netflix yesterday, in case u missed my post yesterday and I wasnβt more! Watch if youβre interested so we get a season 2! π Also thinking, now what will I watch?
I just bought another crockpot. I now have 3 and all is as it should be. I like the kind that have timers on them. Bc then you can truly leave it on and leave for however long you need. And itβll go directly to warm. My problem was deciding on the 6 or 8qt. I figured in the end bigger is better, in case I have parties or whatever.
I have tried some things I donβt like or never liked growing up and have since changed my mind. My stomach has changed though and I canβt tolerate some stuff. Iβm the cook, so I donβt typically cook things I donβt like and when we order, everyone picks what they like. Iβm an adult, I did my time in the you donβt get a choice chair. π
Yes, I have good memories growing up when it comes to dinner time. Even the bad ones, make me who I am and it give me stories to tell. Like, I literally laughed out loud when I read u snuck and flushed what u didnβt finish- WE DID TOO!
At my Grandmaβs, weβd pick our cereal and pour it every morning and the rule was u eat what u got out. Only, every time weβd fill up before we were finished so weβd wait till she left the room and did a quick run to the toilet. She also once made me eat an entire serving of fried clam strips as I mistakenly grabbed what I thought were something else. But since I grabbed themβ¦omg they were the chewiest, sliveryest nasty things on the planet.
And my stepmom had a thing for ham salad. π€’ I ate the whole thing, every time. I was not a HUGE picky eater, but no one cooked for my tastes. Everyone, I mean everyone, had to cook nasty peppers and onions into everything. But, my Grandma was an amazing cook. My aunt, also amazing. I can also name 1,000 things I couldnβt get enough of.
I went through a pretty long phase (years) of where I could no longer eat popcorn shrimp (previously obsessed) bc I could envision them swimming and squishing around in my mouth. Itβs a mind over matter thing and I got over it. Theyβll live if we have some dud meals and have stories to tell later on.
Iβm not the best with song names, but I frequently listen to the station? Mellow folk on Alexa. It hits all my feels. I just say, Alexa- play quiet music and she says mellow folk is a station I might like- every time. I suppose by now I could just say to play mellow folk, but itβs become routine for the babies to sleep.
Gnomes are my favorite!!! I have 1 in my garden currently with my pumpkins. It looks like heβs the protector of the patch. Lol! And I have a painted wood 1 to put up for Xmas w/ a painted wood tree as well. But, I also want to get a βlazy gnomeβ this year.
And now… her 2019 book favorites!
Hey Maryse, Happy New Year!! I finished reading Jane Doe like I wanted to yesterday and I thought, now is the time to get this list together.
Most books I had raved about or mentioned on the blog as I read them. I read way more than I thought I did this year, yet still wish I couldβve read the handful waiting for me to finish or start on my kindle.
Favorite books of 2019
Jane Doe: A Novel by Victoria Helen Stone
I flew through this book so fast when I finally settled down enough to read it. Jane is such a unique, interesting, twisted and kind of a comical character and I liked her scheming.
Is that bad?
Where the Forest Meets the Stars by Glendy Vanderah
Tasha J: Whoop! Iβve finished Where the Forest Meets the Stars and it was wonderful! Just, perfect. No tears, safe for a cruise read. π Not classified as romance, but does have just what I like! And itβs kindle unlimited.
…No annoyance in hero or heroine. Just a lovely read. Ursa was the star, but I loved Gabe too. And Jo. There are so many little issues I have with descriptions or sappyness or immaturity or dragging or whatever, that this book didnβt have for me. It was refreshing.
FantasticLand: A Novel by Mike Bockoven
…it tricked me into thinking it was real. Lol …Itβs explained there is Universal, Disney, and FantasticLand. I was even thinking I wish Iβd have visited before it was ruined. *shakes head* Iβm so embarrassed!
I mean, I was gearing to look up pictures of the before, not the gore and all. Itβs written in interview form w/managers, the red cross, and parents and the whole get up. It sounded factual! I suppose thatβs the exceptition when you go into a book blind. Hahaha
…Thereβs a particular chapter near the end that just *shivers*. Or Iβm a baby cuz I never read this stuff and it was exciting to me.
My Oxford Year: A Novel by Julia Whelan
Itβs just what I was in the mood for and didnβt even know it- canβt stop grinning!
99 Percent Mine: A Novel by Sally Thorne
*Still Waiting for someone else to read Sally Thorneβs 99 Percent Mine so Iβm not alone in the awesomeness that is this book! …this is seriously completely different. Still has Sallyβs style, but the characters are SO different.
βIβm already walking out. No sugar? Why is life just about giving things up? What have I even got left that I enjoy? The heavy-sigh feeling inside me gets worse. Sadder. I pause at the door.β From 99 Percent Mine by Sally Thorne.
This had me laughing so hard. Itβs how I felt when I read Maryseβs βWhen I used to eat cookiesβ¦commentβ This is from a hilarious sugar addiction scene. I am also an addict and I relate. LOL
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
Tasha J: So, I just finished The Silent Patient and holy cow! It reads so well, sucks you right in and keeps you invested till the very end. Iβm telling you, I had thought up what I thought to be every possibility of what happened and was completely, totally shocked at the outcome. Jezebel vibes, peeps!
Only because of shock value, and the great story, not cause they match or anything.
The Chalk Man: A Novel by C.J. Tudor
I loved my last 2 reads- The Chalk Man and The Silent Patient
The Wolves of Winter: A Novel by Tyrell Johnson
So, I went in blind, completely forgetting what it was about and surprise! Itβs an apocolyptic read! I needed something different so this was perfect for me. Also, something about the Yukon, (snow, snow, snow) and reverting back to pioneers basically really enraptures me. Bonus, thereβs a hint of romance. π I loved it, it wasnβt too long, had just enough of everything to keep me invested, and was well executed.
Just so you guys are aware- the romance in The Wolves of Winter is really just a hint. Itβs not the main focus what so ever. I know that bugs some people, so warning ahead donβt expect that. Mostly, itβs about Lynn and her journey. Her survival in a new world. Goes between past and present, to give a little background. And thatβs not always clearly defined. Itβs not perfect, but for someone who knows nothing about hunting, trapping, the Yukon, wilderness, I thought it was really great writing. Knowledgeable. And itβs a male author, his 1st novel (I was surprised) and heβs writing from a female characterβs POV!
The First Girl Child by Amy Harmon
The First Girl Child. Best book Iβve read in a long time, the writing, the story, is spectacular!!
Bring Down the Stars (Beautiful Hearts Duet Book 1) by Emma Scott
…itβs so good!! Itβs my 1st book Iβve read from her
…Obviously with a doozy ending like that, I should jump right into book 2…
A Bad Day for Sunshine: A Novel (Sunshine Vicram Series Book 1) by Darynda Jones.
This doesnβt release until April of this year, but I read it in 2019 and I loved it, so it made my list.
Boys of Brayshaw High by Meagan Brandy
The Peer and the Puppet (When Rivals Play Book 1) by B.B. Reid
Shadowspell Academy: The Culling Trials: Books 1-3 Omnibus by K.F. Breeze and Shannon Mayer
Secondborn series by Amy A. Bartol
Broken Legacy series by Jaymi Eve and Tate James
Like Tashaβs book taste? Check out more of her favorites:
- Reader Favorites β Tashaβs Best Books of 2017
- Reader Favorites β Tasha Jβs Best Books of 2018 List
- Reader Favorites β Tasha Jβs Best Books of 2019 List
- Reader Favorites β Tasha Jβs Top 20 Books of 2020 List
βββ Β Looking for more of our favorite recommendations? Browse our βUltimate Favorites Listsβ here. Are you in the mood for a certain kind of story? BrowseΒ our favorite βgenre/trope categoriesβ here and our reader favorites lists too.
βββ Do you have your βBest of 2020 listβ for us? Send it to me here. π
I have two of these in my TBR. Hopefully (no definitely) will get to them this year.
This is a lot of books, you had a good reading year.
I did have a pretty good year. I think it started out really well and then became a lot harder once summer came around. I forgot quite a few that were read early on in the year. These are my months of a little more freedom to read- supposed to be anyway, now is the time to get crackin.
Now Iβm in this frenzied state trying to get things back to where they should be and get my kids on track. I just realized kindergarten screening is in March and the boy is not as prepared or easy to teach as the girl. Iβve googled a list of should knows (bc Iβve forgotten) and weβre working hard over here: itβs crunch time. And still keeping on the girl to get those grades up, keep them up and understand and enjoy what she reads. It had to be those particular books or laziness or something, bc I said Iβd pay her $5 for every test she passes after reading them and I was down $20 in December. Iβve changed it to $2 with the start of the new year. Lol
Tasha, try using Goodreads this year. This way you won’t forget what to read. I suggested the same thing in a post last week (I think). I don’t know if you saw. It helps me a lot.
I didnβt see your post, but I do use Goodreads for most of them. I just hadnβt looked back in a long time and was surprised to see what Iβd read this year. Except I hadnβt marked all the kindle unlimiteds. But it was really easy following the directions someone posted.
Thanks for taking the time to put this together, Maryse!! It shows I talk too much too. π
Itβs so easy to vent here, I feel so much lighter throwing my thoughts out into the internet. π
Iβm so looking forward to reading more this year. More juicy, punch to the gut, WOW books. I wanna be blown away more.
You DO NOT talk too much. It’s because of all of our conversations on all sorts of things that we can learn and try new stuff.
I LOVE how much you’re with us. I look forward to your posts so much,
That was fun to read π And thanks for reminding me about My Oxford Year. I’m sure I bought it on a sale but still haven’t read it. One of those books that got lost in my kindle. Must move it up the list.
Tasha, I love hearing all about your life and your rants crack me up so please dont stop! π This is quite a list! That Fantasticland one sounds crazy and I remember when you read it and thought it was real! π
Great list, Tasha!!