Once again, I’m one of the last of the bloggers to weigh in on the best books of the year. The great news is that, unlike last year, which was a bleak year for my reading, this year was much better. My ten best books are all from 2018—no backlist! They’re a varied lot, ranging from mythology to miracles to food to marriage. The only constant in the majority of them is humor. Even in serious novels I appreciate a snarky aside and most of these books revealed authors who know how to make me laugh.
Food Glorious Food (and Adventure)
Set in the Ottoman Empire, The Pasha of Cuisine is a tale of food, adventure, and love. If you love being immersed in a time and place, whisked away to an exotic land, then this is a must-read. My review
From Forgotten Daughter to Unforgettable
Who knew Greek mythology could be so exciting? Apparently, Madeline Miller because in Circe she turns the story of one of the lesser daughters of the great God Helios into a gorgeous story of a woman finding herself and her power. My review
A Modern Take on Marriage
Tayari Jones combines the powder keg pressure of being black in America with the difficulties of a new marriage in her novel, An American Marriage. Searing and important reading. My review
Two Books that Made Me Question
What if there was no such thing as coincidence? Or there was, but they were engineered by beings in another realm? The Coincidence Makers is not a spooky ghost tale or metaphysical conundrum, just a beautiful, touching novel about life behind-the-scenes. My review
A paralyzed soldier gets up from his wheelchair and walks. There is no medical explanation for his cure. What follows, in Anatomy of a Miracle, is everything I look for in a novel: humor, sadness, and an inside look at lives and motivations not my own. My review
When the Past and the Present Align
I haven’t read Barbara Kingsolver in decades, but am so glad my return to her was her new novel, Unsheltered. I found the parallels between contemporary America and 1800s America fascinating and loved her characters. My review
Small Books, Big Impact
Tin Man weighs in at a brief 214 pages but encompasses a wide range of human emotion with a quiet beauty. A story of love and friendship. My review
If Tin Man is serene than The Line That Held Us is brutal in its beauty. A harsh story of life in the Southern Appalachians with an anti-hero who counts the Old Testament and nature as all he needs to guide himself. My review
Ferocious Women
You don’t need to have read the Old English epic Beowolf to be seduced by The Mere Wife. Author Maria Headley takes the bones of the story and fashions them into a stunning novel of fierce women. My review
The Book that Charmed Me
I can’t remember what drew me to So Much Life Left Over but I’m grateful, whatever the reason. It turned out to be book two in a series and I loved this novel of two British families so much I dropped everything and went back to the first book, which I also thought was marvelous. My review
That’s all for my favorite reading of 2018! What books did you love this year?
The Extraordinary Life of Sam Hell was my favorite book of the year but other favorites were “Educated,” “Circe,” “Kingdom of the Blind” and “The Girl From Berlin.”
I haven’t heard of that book- I’ll have to check it out! I liked the twists in Kingdom of the Blind, but didn’t care for the mystery as much.
Thanks so much for continuing to support my blog! I’m grateful for readers like you.
Oh my gosh – we’re so different this year on our picks! An American Marriage is our only overlap! I liked The Line That Held Us, but not in my top 10.
I know! Our reading is diverging.
Looks like you and the (paid) literary critics agreed on lots of books.
I haven’t published my list yet but there’s not much from 2018 on it.
Really?! I thought my reading this year was too far from the norm. I was just happy that I did have good luck with 2018 releases. I’m sorry your year was not so good- kind of like 2017 for me.
What I meant to say was that my reading year has been great but my favourites were published before 2018. I haven’t read many new releases this year.
Definitely like me in 2017! Sometimes it’s great going that way. I’ve read nothing but backlist this month and it has been some of my best reading of the year!
You’re not the last blogger to post a Best Of list! I’ve yet to post mine, but American Marriage will be on it for sure. So many of your books I hadn’t even heard of! Kudos for reading off the beaten path.
Well, we’re on the same page- I wasn’t going to post mine until next week. Is it because we think (hope) there might be some amazing book at the end of the year that blows us away? Are we book optimists?!
As for the beaten path, each of these books was a ‘gut’ pick. Just a feeling, so I’m really grateful they worked so well. I realize they may not so for others, but hope you found something you might want to try. And I can’t wait to read your list!
Great list. I agree on Tin Man, Circe, and The Line That Held Us. I read An American Marriage but wasn’t as enthralled by it as many were. It was just an ok read for me.
I own The Coincidence Makers and Unsheltered, while Anatomy of a Scandal is on my tbr.
I haven’t heard of The Pasha of Cuisine, The Mere Wife, or So Much Life Left Over, but I’ll be checking them out now. All 3 sound great.
The Coincidence Makers got no buzz and it may be that I was in the mood for its blend of whimsy and serious. Anatomy of a Miracle is kind of the same way- I know others who read it and did not like it as much as I did. Except for Susie at Novel Visits. She loved it as well. It combined so many things I love in my reading- snarky, but thought-provoking, and challenging.
I’m glad you had such a good reading year! These all sound wonderful – I’ve been terrible at reading any new releases this year. I haven’t read Beowulf but I’m always intrigued by novels based on myths and legends (Circe is the only one on your list that I’ve read, and loved).
It is definitely ending on a better note than it began!
I tried reading Beowolf once and could not do it. This modern interpretation really struck me in how she portrayed women.
Nice list. Tin Man and American Marriage also made my Best Of list. I’d like to read Kingsolver’s new one.
100% agree on Circe and An American Marriage!