02 January 2020 @ 03:47 pm
2019 Q4 Reading Round-Up  
During the past three months I read 84 books, which brings my total for the year to 378, which is 3 ahead of schedule to hit my updated goal of 375 books for the year. 46 of the books were M/M Romances, which means 38 of the books were not, and 2 of those books were Pulitzer Prize winners. This puts me at 18 out of my  raised goal of 18 Pulitzer Prize winners for the year, which would be an average of 1.5 a month. I also read 1of the hard-copy books I own, which puts me at 4 of my goal of 4 for the year.

FAVORITE BOOKS:

YA Sci-Fi/Fantasy: Supernova (Renegades #3) by Marissa Meyer
SUCH a great conclusion to the series! I really adore this author's works, and this series was FASCINATING. It actually had a lot of stuff that reminded me of fanfic and Harry Potter-type tropes, despite being very different.

Sci-Fi: Wayfarers Series Books 1 & 2 by Becky Chambers
Another super brilliant author, and one who's been reminding me how much I adore sci-fi! Very character-focused (which I prefer) and also very queer and charming and relatable and thought-provoking, and engaging. Highly recommend!

M/M Romance: Best Man by Lily Morton
I really enjoy this author and this one was just a lovely, well-written read!

Fantasy: Nightrunner Series Books #6-7) by Lynn Flewelling
This series was highly recced when I went out searching for queer fantasy, and I can definitely see why. It was such a treat getting 7 substantial books with bisexual MCs where the relationship was definitely key and important, but there was also lots of super fascinating and engaging plot! Very satisfying ending to the series.

RUNNERS UP:

Memoir: Gender Outlaw by Kate Bornstein
I really fucking loved this book. I listened to the audiobook, which is read by the author, and they did SUCH a great job. Really fascinating, smart, funny, poignant, thoughtful look on the construct of gender.

M/M Romance: Second Song by Edie Danford
This was a longer book, which I don't always love in this genre, but the length was actually justified here and I thought the pacing was spot-on. Gorgeous, lyrical, and emotional.

Nonfiction: Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men by Caroline Criado-Pérez
This was FASCINATING and a bit terrifying, and absolutely worth a read! As a woman in th world, it's not like I was unaware that the world was designed for and by white men, but the degree to which those decisions reverberate throughout life is really interesting and disturbing.

Historical Fantasy: Reticence (The Custard Protocol #4) by Gail Carriger
Another author that I love basically everything by! Wonderful conclusion to this spin-off series, though I'm bummed I no longer have a new book/series to look forward to from this author! Eagerly awaiting her announcement of her next main project!

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

Historical Fiction: The Red Tent by Anita Diamant
I really enjoyed this one, though I didn't LOVE it the way everybody told me I would. But it was certainly interesting, and I imagine it would be even more so for those with a great familiarity with the biblical story it draws inspiration from.

M/M Romance: Mastering the Flames by S.J. Himes
I really have been enjoying this supernatural series, and this book was pretty much exactly what I was wanting!

YA Fantasy: Wayward Son by Rainbow Rowell
Lovely sequel! I will say, I hadn't realized it was part 2 in a triology when I read it (I thought it was the final book) so I wasn't quite prepared for the super open ending, but generally very much enjoyed.

Nonfiction: Maybe You Should Talk to Someone by Lori Gottlieb
I didn't have super high expectations here, but I LOVED this one! Beautifully written, poignant, emotional, and really just a wonderful read.

UGGHH:

M/M Romance: Angel's Sing by Eli Easton
I generally reall like this author but this was a massive miss for me. Too much kid!fic, a way-too-fast and fairly bland relationship development, and a backstory that totally put me off.

Non-Fiction: The Feminine Mystique by Betty Friedan
I just found this really boring. I wanted to love it, but it was a mega slog. Some interesting information that still applies, but man, it was not an easy or enjoyable read.

YA Fantasy: Earthsea Cycle Books 1-2 by Ursula K. Le Guin
I've only read the first two so far, but I have to say, I'm not overly impressed. They're just... boring? They move very fast, and I just don't end up really connecting with the characters or the story at all.

HARDCOPY READ:

The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson
Wasn't sure what to expect with this one, but I quite enjoyed it! Not a topic I particularly cared much about to begin with, but the author really drew me in. Super interesting style where this non-fiction book reads like a traditional novel.

COMING UP:
These are just a handful of books/series that are on my TBR list. Many I plan to read in the next 3 months, though I definitely won't get through all of these. The ones with (*) are books I own a hard copy of and my goal is to read at least one of those per quarter.

* The Japanese Lover by Isabel Allende
Record of a Spaceborn Few (Wayfarers #3) by Becky Chambers (currently reading)
Gilded Cage by K.J. Charles
The Dark Artifices Series by Cassandra Clare
Playing in the Dark by Avery Cockburn
Taji from Beyond the Rings by R. Cooper
Arden St. Ives Series Books 2-3 by Alexis Hall(will need to re-read book 1 as well)
Seven of Spades Series Books 3-5 by Cordelia Kingsbridge (will need to re-read books 1 & 2 as well)
Bell, Book, & Scandal (Bedknobs and Broomsticks #3) by Josh Lanyon
After Ben by Con Riley
* The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skoot
Call Down the Hawk (Dreamer #1) by Maggie Stiefvater
Bitter Springs by Laura Stone
rock by Anyta Sunday
 
 
 
 
( Post a new comment )
writcraft[personal profile] writcraft on January 3rd, 2020 12:32 am (UTC)
This is such a wonderfully interesting post and I am so happy you enjoyed Gender Outlaws as that's one of my favourites too. I think I might start keeping track of bookish things too as I am so bad at keeping track of what I read in any given year and I have a private list of things I want to read this year so I might do it as a post!

I love the variety of stuff you read too. You know I don't read a load of M/M which is odd as I'm sure I'd love it, but I'll definitely be checking out the YA recs and funnily enough one of the categories I want to read more in this year is nonfiction, so I've added 'Invisible Women' to my list! It sounds right up my street.
gracerene[personal profile] gracerene on January 3rd, 2020 01:49 am (UTC)
You totally should! I love hearing about what people are reading!! And if you're not on goodreads, you should totally join and add me!

I also have a bunch of other nonfiction recs as I've been reading a bunch, particularly in race, feminism, and environmentalism.
pauraque[personal profile] pauraque on January 3rd, 2020 01:03 am (UTC)
Aw, the Earthsea series is one of my faves. Too bad it wasn't your style! I'll try not to take it personally. ;)

I read The Red Tent a long time ago, but it's stuck with me. I really thought it was terrific. At the time I actually had just read an annotated translation of Genesis that added a lot of historical and cultural context to those narratives, so maybe that did help give it extra impact.
gracerene[personal profile] gracerene on January 3rd, 2020 04:36 pm (UTC)
I definitely enjoyed the Red Tent immensely, but not as much as many people seemed to have. But I do think if I read it at a time where I was more immersed in/familiar with the historical/cultural context of that time I would have loved it more.
nia_kantorka[personal profile] nia_kantorka on January 3rd, 2020 09:11 am (UTC)
Funny, I didn't like the Earthsea books either and stopped early in the third. But then I read LeGuin's The Left Hand of Darkness last year and it was one of my top three books of 2019. It literally blew me away and I'm still not sure how the same author wrote both stories. It might be more your style because it's Sci-fi and the charters' arcs are the focus though it's also in its later parts a thrilling story. Fair warning: All in all it's a sad book but it also makes you think a lot.

It sounds as if you had a very good year in books. :D

Edited 2020-01-03 09:12 am (UTC)
gracerene[personal profile] gracerene on January 3rd, 2020 04:37 pm (UTC)
Yes, I've got Left Hand of Darkness on my list! I hadn't read anything by that author and thought I'd start with her YA series since it was shorter, LOL! But that's good to know that you enjoyed LHoD better!
nia_kantorka[personal profile] nia_kantorka on January 3rd, 2020 07:48 pm (UTC)
Hope it'll work better for you too. :))
[personal profile] magpie_fngrl on January 3rd, 2020 04:03 pm (UTC)
What a wonderful selection and well done on 378 books!!!

Friends have been raving about Becky Chambers' books since they were first published and I still haven't read the first book, because sci-fi isn't my fave. I'm sure I'll love it, when I get to it, but there's always something else to read. After your enthusiastic review, I'll try and give it a try this year.

Edited 2020-01-03 04:04 pm (UTC)
gracerene[personal profile] gracerene on January 3rd, 2020 04:38 pm (UTC)
Thank you! And yes, I HIGHLY recommend anything by Becky Chambers! I will say, they're all very much character-driven books, and though the sci-fi aspects are quite present, it's not super dense or confusing. She's super talented at finding natural ways to get the reader up to speed on the universe without it feeling like an exposition dump. Plus, the books are very casually queer, and I'm all about queer sci-fi and fantasy reads these days!