Books of the year 2014

With the tree lights gently twinkling, and my kitchen disappearing under sparkly wrapping paper, it’s that time of year when it’s customary in the blogging world to choose your ten top books of the year.  What an impossible task that is – a bit like choosing your favourite child. Only books I enjoy ever appear on the pages of my blog – the others quietly disappear, perhaps with a note to the publisher. And I’m quietly horrified at how many times I’ve actually said “This is, without doubt, one of my books of the year”! But enough prevarication – I’ve done it, so here’s my list.

The Memory Book by Rowan Coleman

Keep Your Friends Close by Paula Daly

The Night Falling by Katherine Webb

Crooked Heart by Lissa Evans

Before The Fall by Juliet West

Where Love Lies by Julie Cohen

Significance by Jo Mazelis

The Lying Down Room by Anna Jaquiery

The Third Wife by Lisa Jewell

Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel

The Lemon Grove by Helen Walsh

Her by Harriet Lane

There – not in any particular order, and you really didn’t notice there were twelve, did you? I’m now going to cheat shamelessly and include a few more.

There’s a distinct absence in that list of what you might call “lighter reading” – I include in that the entire output from Choc Lit that I’ve thoroughly enjoyed, read and reviewed this year (Somewhere Beyond The Sea by Mandy James almost made the list…), and books by some of my favourite authors like Milly Johnson, Carol Matthews, Erica James, Lucy Diamond, Scarlett Bailey… it was just too difficult.

I also found it impossible to choose a single book by the thoroughly wonderful Lucinda Riley – I think The Midnight Rose just had the edge, but I also loved The Seven Sisters and The Italian Girl. If you haven’t discovered her books yet, do try them.

And a couple of final cheats.  

I actually read and reviewed them in 2013, but they were released this year and really should be in any list of recommended books published in 2014 – Wake by Anna Hope, and Elizabeth Is Missing by Emma Healey.

And finally, two books I’ve read but haven’t yet reviewed, due for publication in 2015 – The Book Of Lost And Found by Lucy Foley, and The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins.  Keep an eye open for my reviews early next year – both books are going to be massive.

This will be my last post this year – two more books to read to reach my Goodreads target -so I’d like to wish all my readers a wonderful Christmas and I’ll see you all again in the New Year. Happy reading!