My Year In Review: 2024 In Books

2024 is over and 2025 has begun! As I look back on 2024, one of my highlights was starting this blog and all of the wonderful books I read and reviewed. Thank you all for your support and encouragement throughout this journey.

I read a total of 37 books this year. I was three books short of my reading goal, but I still think 37 books is quite a feat and I am proud of myself. Most books I read via a physical copy, but I did re-read a couple of Jane Austen novels via audiobook as well.

Please enjoy my overview below of all the books I have read, most of which I reviewed on the blog this year as well.

1 and 2 stars:

A Long Obedience by Eugene Peterson; Orthodoxy by G.K. Chesterton; A Sorceress Comes to Call by T. Kingfisher; Twilight by Stephenie Meyer; Watership Down by Richard Adams; Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune.

It pains me to rate any book so low as one star, but I did not DNF a single book this year, so I call that a win! Besides, so much of book ranking is a matter of personal taste.

3 stars:

Death Comes to Pemberley by P.D. James; The Wager by David Grann; Emily Wilde's Encyclopaedia of Faeries by Heather Fawcett; The Kamogawa Food Detectives by Hisashi Kashiwai; Shady Hollow by Juneau Black; Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte.

Not pictured under this category is The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, which I borrowed from a friend, and Lady Susan, which I listened to on Spotify.

4 stars:

The Blacktongue Thief by Christopher Buehlman; Educated by Tara Westover; The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo; Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier; Love, Lucy by Lucille Ball; The Ocean at the End of the Lane by Neil Gaiman; The Ghost Cat by Alex Howard; The Fury by Alex Michaelides; The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde.

Not pictured four star books are Catching Fire and Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, which I borrowed from a friend.

Four stars seems to be almost my default rating, as I can be a little stingy with five stars. I guess we shall see how my rating system evolves over the years!

5 stars:

Babel by R.F. Kuang; The Wood at Midwinter by Susanna Clarke; Killers of the Flower Moon by David Grann; The Daughters' War by Christopher Buehlman; Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke; Say Nothing by Patrick Radden Keefe; The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton; Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand; Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy by Mark Vroegop.

Not pictured above is The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides, which was borrowed from a friend.

Most of the books above I have reviewed on my blog to date. And I am looking forward to reading and reviewing more five-star books in 2025!

Re-reads:

Persuasion, Northanger Abbey, and Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

These re-reads remained 5 stars for me! I especially enjoyed listening to Cynthia Erivo narrate Persuasion on Spotify-- I highly recommend that audiobook version!

And finally... if I had to choose my number one book of 2024:

Thank you for coming on this journey with me! It has been fun receiving recommendations, comments, and encouragement from all of you. I look forward to continuing to talk books in 2025 and beyond!

Also, I am starting to put together my reading list for 2025, and I would love to hear your recommendations!