*no audio narration this week because… well, it just wouldn’t make sense haha*
As promised, here is a full list of all the books I consumed in 2024! I’ve given each one a rating out of 5 stars, and also assigned it a “genre”. If you’re confused about the name of the genre I assign, refer to my intro post (the one right before this) for my explanation of a couple of my niche genre descriptions. For the handful of books that I “DNF” (Did Not Finish), I’ll also give the main reason why I didn’t finish it. If any of these books are part of a larger series, I will include the name of the series in parentheses and group them together when it makes sense to do so. Lastly, some of these books were rereads, so I’ll include a * next to those ones for context.
I think that a brief explanation of how I determine a book’s rating might be helpful. As I said in my last post – I am far from being a literary snob. I read for pure enjoyment and, often, to try and find a renewed sense of wonderment or romanticism about life! Because that is sort of my “standard”, my rating system is centered around how I felt at the end of a book. So here are the loose (and entirely subjective) parameters:
5 stars – I loved the book so much that I will definitely remember the name to recommend to a friend, and would consider purchasing a copy to read again in the future (which is a big deal, coming from someone who almost exclusively loans books from the library)
4 stars – I enjoyed the book and have no particular complaints about it, but it didn’t stand out enough to necessarily remember specific details or want to read again. Would still recommend to a friend if they’re looking for something in that genre.
3 stars – I liked the book, but have significant complaints about aspects of it that made the experience less enjoyable. Usually the complaints are related to inappropriate content, frustrating characters (with no growth), or overall feeling about the progression of the story. Probably wouldn’t recommend.
2 stars – I finished the book, but I’m mad about it (lol). Usually means I was sucked into the storyline enough to get invested, but ended the read significantly disappointed and feeling like I wasted my time.
*I generally don’t rate anything 1 star, because if a book is that bad then I probably DNF*
As I mentioned in my introduction post to this series, I will be making further posts with more details on each read for those of you who like that sort of thing – but in the meantime, this will give you just a snapshot! I really don’t have much else to say, so let’s get right into it! Starting with my 5 star reads, and working our way down to the DNFs.
– ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ –
Aunt Dimity and The Duke (Aunt Dimity Mystery #2) by Nancy Atherton – Whimsical Mystery
*Aunt Dimity and The Wishing Well (Aunt Dimity Mystery #19)
Everyone In My Family Has Killed Someone (Earnest Cunningham #1) by Benjamin Stevenson – Murder Mystery
Faking Christmas by Cindy Steel – Romance (Christmas)
Juniper Bean Resorts to Murder (Happy Ever Homicide #1) by Gracie Ruth Mitchell – Murder Mystery + Rom/Com
The Bookshop on the Corner by Jenny Colgan – Life Discovery
The Brilliant Life of Eudora Honeysett by Annie Lyons – Life Discovery
The Cheat Sheet by Sarah Adams – Romance
The Happy Life of Isadora Bentley by Courtney Walsh – Life Discovery
*The Hobbit by J.R. Tolkien – Fantasy/Adventure
The Library of Borrowed Hearts by Lucy Gilmore – Romance + Mystery
The Lost Bookshop by Evie Woods – Whimsical/Magical + Life Discovery
The Lost For Words Bookshop by Stephanie Butland – Romance + Life Discovery
*The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart – Children’s Adventure
The Summer of Yes by Courtney Walsh – Life Discovery
To Sir, With Love by Lauren Layne – Rom/Com
– ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ –
Aunt Dimity’s Death (Aunt Dimity Mystery #1) by Nancy Atherton – Whimsical Mystery
Aunt Dimity’s Good Deed (Aunt Dimity Mystery #3)
Aunt Dimity Digs In (Aunt Dimity Mystery #4)
But He’s My Grumpy Neighbor (But He’s a Carter Brother #1) by Annah Conwell – Romance
But He’s My One Regret (But He’s a Carter Brother #2)
But He’s My Fake Fiancé (But He’s a Carter Brother #3)
But He’s My Roommate (But He’s a Carter Brother #4)
Cabin Mate (Under Kansas Skies #4) by Leah Brunner – Romance (Christmas)
Dear Henry, Love Edith by Becca Kinzer – Rom/Com
*Divergent (Divergent #1) by Veronica Roth – Dystopian
*Insurgent (Divergent #2)
Everyone On This Train Is a Suspect (Earnest Cunningham #2) by Benjamin Stevenson – Murder Mystery
Heidi Lucy Loses Her Mind (Happy Ever Homicide #2) by Gracie Ruth Mitchell – Murder Mystery + Rom/Com
Passion on Park Avenue (Central Park Pact #1) by Lauren Layne – Romance
Love on Lexington Avenue (Central Park Pact #2)
Marriage on Madison Avenue (Central Park Pact #3)
Passion or Penalty (D.C. Eagles #0.5) by Leah Brunner – Sports Romance
Desire or Defense (D.C. Eagles #1)
Flirtation or Faceoff (D.C. Eagles #2)
Betrothal or Breakaway (D.C. Eagles #3)
Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt – Whimsical Life Discovery
Season’s Schemings (Cyclones Christmas #1) by Katie Bailey – Sports Romance (Christmas)
The 7 1/2 Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton – Mystery
The Golden Goal (More Than a Game #1) by Annah Conwell – Sports Romance
The Perfect Putt (More Than a Game #2)
The Run Option (More Than a Game #3)
The Highgate Cemetery Murder (Tate and Bell Mystery #1) by Irina Shapiro – Historical Murder Mystery
The Hundred Loves of Juliet by Evelyn Skye – Whimsical Romance
The Little Bookshop by the Sea by Eliza J. Scott – Life Discovery + Romance
The Pumpkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore – Romance
The Wife Upstairs by Freida McFadden – Thriller
Tom Lake by Ann Patchett – Reflective Life Discovery
When Crickets Cry by Charles Martin – Life Discovery
– ⭐️⭐️⭐️ –
Aunt Dimity Beats the Devil (Aunt Dimity Mystery #6) by Nancy Atherton – Whimsical Mystery
Beach Read by Emily Henry – Life Discovery + Romance
Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine by Gail Honeyman – Life Discovery
Ghosts of Greenglass House (Greenglass House #2) by Kate Milford – Children’s Adventure/Mystery
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince (Harry Potter #6) by J.K. Rowling – Fantasy
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Harry Potter #7)
Just Look Up (Harbor Pointe #1) by Courtney Walsh – Romance + Life Discovery
License to Date (Better Date Than Never #6) by Susan Hatler – Romance
Off the Beaten Path (The Mountains Are Calling #1) by Madison Wright – Romance
The Mystery Writer by Sulari Gentill – Murder Mystery
The Off Limits Rule (It Happened In Nashville #1) by Sarah Adams – Romance
The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn – Thriller
Winter Street (Winter Street #1) by Elin Hilderbrand – Life Discovery (Christmas)
– ⭐️⭐️ –
A Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR #1) by Sarah J. Maas – Fantasy
Where’d You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple – Mystery + Life Discovery
– DNF –
*Allegiant (Divergent #3) by Veronica Ross – Dystopian
Having read the series before years ago, I wanted to reexperience it… but once I remembered that a main character dies at the end of the series, it felt pointless to finish and I stopped reading immediately (lol).
I Hate You More by Lucy Gilmore – Rom/Com
I was already feeling kinda meh about the story, but then there was a very weird graphic intimacy scene early on so I took that as my sign to stop.
The Lost Apothecary by Sarah Penner – Life Discovery / Historical Fiction POVs
I listened to this on audiobook, and endured my annoyance at the main character for quite a while until I finally realized I didn’t even care enough to find out how the story ended.
The New Couple in 5B by Lisa Unger – Thriller
Literally in the first chapter there was a graphic intimacy scene… which came completely out of nowhere and was quite startling on audiobook, to say the least.
Phew! Well, there it all is. This was really fun to put together and look back on all these books. And, as I expected, I generally stay pretty true to my usual genres of choice! Have you read any of these books? If any of these ratings are offensive to you, try not to take it too seriously. Regardless of my ratings, I don’t believe that any of these books are irredeemably bad – it’s all about the way it hits me.
If you’re interested in more of my specific thoughts on a lot of these books, stay tuned! I expect it to take me a little bit longer to put the next posts together, but I’m hopeful that fleshing everything out here will give me a solid outline to start from. Until then, hopefully this gives you a good place to start!
That’s all for now – peace out, peeps!
Love,
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