2019 has been a pretty good reading year for me. Although I’m glad I studied English Literature at uni, it did for a while dampen my love of reading. I didn’t have much time to read for pleasure, and when I finished the degree, I still couldn’t get back into loving reading in the same way I had before. In the last few months though I’ve really started loving reading again and I’m excited (having been two years since I finished my degree) to finally be really back into enjoying it again.

I reached my Goodreads reading goal of reading 20 books this year which I’m really happy with. Now that I’m enjoying reading more I’m probably going to up my target a bit for 2020. Most of my favourite books I’ve read this year happen to be fantasy. I’ve read a couple of disappointing contemporary books and haven’t read any amazing sci-fi either.  

The best book I read in 2019 has to be Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor. It’s the only book I’ve given 5 stars this year. I can’t even put my finger on why exactly, for some reason this book had a certain spark and I completely fell in love with it. When I finished reading it, all I could think was ‘wow’, because it was just so imaginative, vivid and brilliant.

I’m so glad I discovered Sarah J. Maas a couple of years ago because I’ve loved all her books I’ve read so far. A Court of Thorns and Roses really surprised me as it was slow to start but got really intense and suspenseful in about the last quarter. That ending section Under the Mountain was just so good that it made up for the slowness at the start. I’m currently reading the second book, A Court of Mist and Fury, and loving that too.

I was super excited to get an eARC of Renée Ahdieh’s The Beautiful. The hook of vampires in 1800s New Orleans made this one of my most anticipated releases of 2019. This book seems to have divided people but I loved it. The blend of mystery, romance and the paranormal works so well and I loved the New Orleans setting.

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo is one of those books that gets talked about so much, I was worried to read it. I enjoyed the Shadow and Bone trilogy, so I was excited to read this one, but it did take me a while to get into it. By the end though I could see why people rave about it. It’s so cleverly done and I loved getting to know the characters over the course of the book.

Another highlight from 2019 was The Devouring Gray by Christine Lynn Herman. I wasn’t expecting to like this one as much as I did, but the author does an amazing job at creating a spooky and mysterious setting and I loved getting to know all the characters.

What are the best books you read in 2019? Have you read any of the ones on my list? Let me know in the comments!