Top 10 books of the decade

What’s your decade look like in the form of books? Let me know what your favorite read of the decade was below! 

I haven’t been the greatest at keeping track of what I’ve read until recently,, but I will say, every year there’s always been at least one memorable book I’ve read. So let’s see how much I can remember.

2010:

Between 2008 and 2010, The Hunger Games, Catching Fire and MockingJay all released in succession. I devoured all three within a few months in 2010, and my favorite of the three: Book 2, Catching Fire.

So much drama. So much angst. So much trauma. It was as deeply a psychological read for me as it was an action-packed dystopian. I was absolutely drawn into Katmiss’s mind. For me though, the clincher was the last line of the book. Best last line of a book I can ever remember reading. Ever.

2011/2012

(because I cannot think that far back LOL)

Somehow I discovered this popular book called The Shoemaker’s Wife. I can’t even remember how or where I discovered it – but I’m oh so glad I did. It is one of my most memorable reads. It’s a sweeping, gripping love story from love’s conception to the end (literally) and in it you experience every emotion therein. It’s technically an historical romance, however it’s so much more than your average historical romance. Here’s my review from several years back. It’s beyond explanation, really, how much I enjoyed this long and beautiful story, so much so I didn’t want it to end. My review, posted later after I began blogging, is here.

2011/2012

One of the most memorable books I’ve read was a book called Until We Reach Home by Lynn Austin. I love historical fiction, and this book is one the few books that has brought tears to my eyes. So devastatingly sad throughout, until things finally come together at the end. I’m actually a sucker for sad books, however, I do appreciate happy endings. Great, very fitting title. My review is here.

 

2013: 

Soon after I discovered Lynn Austin, I discovered her biblical fiction 5 book series the Chronicles of Kings. I read the whole series in 2013 and loved every one. It was difficult to decide which one stood out. I loved books 2, 3 and 4. If I have to choose my favorite, Faith of My fathers (book 4) will have to be it.

The first 3 books in the series encompass the life of king Hezekiah and I thoroughly enjoyed the conflicts, both emotional and historical. Books 4 and 5 take on a new story line, where we see the new character of Joshua, best friend to King Manaseh, who grew up in privilege alongside the king. When his privilege is stripped away because of a costly mistake, he is forced to flee. I enjoyed the adventure, the emotional struggle, the unexpected romance. Such a fun read and a fun series overall to dive into, breathing life into some of the books of the bible. 

2014:

This is the year I discovered Hallee Bridgeman and her amazing, awesome talent for writing. And Thank the Lord I did. Since then, she’d become an inspiration, a dear author acquaintance that someday I wish to call a friend. I love how she shares her life with her audience, how she absolutely loves writing and cooking, and sharing about writing and cooking. I love how she strives to write to the absolute best of her ability and it shows. The first series I read  by her was The Jewel series. My favorite read of that series, was book 3: Topaz Heat.

I‘m such a sucker for unrequited love stories. This story has all the unrequited love you can ask for — and it’s chock full of suspense and tender romance. It’s also the end of a series, which just made it an even more fun and satisfying read. I thoroughly enjoyed it, and have since read every single fiction book by Hallee except for the most recent release. My review is here. 

2015:

This was a great year of reading! I wish I’d kept better track honestly. At the end of 2015, I devoured Nadine Brandes’ first 2 books in her Out of Time series to prepare for the third one’s release in October 2016. (I was excited lol) My favorite of the series was book 2: A Time to Speak.

Amazing writing. Action packed dystopian (futuristic fiction?) full of such awesome characters. A tinge of romance (love me that romance) and heartbreak and all the tension in the world! You’ve no idea what you’re missing. GO and read the Out of Time series! My review is here.

2016:

I read a lot of really, really good books in 2016. It is so hard to choose!!!

I think I have to pick the first book that I read by Becky Wade: Her One and Only. (which ironically was book 4 in her Porter Family series) I was blown away by the amazing talent and have since 2016 read Every Single One of her new releases (including the whole Porter Family series) EXCEPT for Sweet on You which I seriously need to buy! She’s an amazing author, and has gone one to win Book of the Year, and other prestigous awards for multiple novels. She’s also an amazing person and offered me a GUEST SPOT on her blog (a collaborative blog with other CF authors) Discovering her novels was one of the best things that has happened to me in recent years. My Review is here.

2017:

My top read of this year was Connilyn Cossette’s Counted with the Stars which released the previous year, and then went on to win Best First Novel. Her writing is absolutely fabulous. Biblical fiction at its finest. The stories I grew up learning about come to life vividly through her writing. It was such a beautiful and intense read, full of captivating characters, and minute details. It’s fully deserving of all awards given to it and I was not surprised one bit!

My review is here:

2018:

Justice, by Emily Conrad, has been one of my favorite memorable reads. I can’t get it out of my head. It’s such an emotional book, handled with such tender care and exceptional writing talent. I loved the characters, the small town charm, the slow, delightful romance. All of it.  It made my top 10 books of 2018. And I’m still talking about it. My review is here:

 

2019:

For me, this year has been tough. 2018 was difficult, of course, but this year presented so many new difficulties — and then my kindle broke so I wasn’t able to read nearly as much. I’ve also taken on an internship — Yay! — and I put out another book midyear, and I also still work with children during the day. Plus, I’m trying to finish up book 3 of my 3 book contemporary romance series, as well as another WIP.

I’m actually quite exhausted if you can’t tell by reading this. But enough complaining.

The best book I’ve read so far this year was Ordinary Snowflakes by Jennifer Rodewald. Here’s my full review.

I literally sat in the DMV crying in the middle of this book and had to put it down. I so completely related to this mom, and what she was going through, and I will probably pick it back up again just to remind myself of the biblical lessons she learned at the end of her story. Plus, I’m the odd reader who loves love triangles — and this story handled the love triangle with amazing finesse. No cliche backbiting or squabbling or any negativity. Such a heartwarming Christmas love story!

My review just posted.

So, tell me what your favorite book has been in the last year, or ten? i’d love to hear from you below. Or on social media!

Happy New Year! Bring on 2020!

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