Top Ten New Authors

I read 99 books this year by new (to me) authors. Some were more special than others. These ten have me excited about the future.

Edward Rutherford (historical fiction)

Charles Finch (historical fiction)

Stacy Green (psychological thriller)

Alka Joshi (India fiction)

Balli Kaur Jaswal (India fiction)

Elzbieta Cherezinska (historical fiction)

Ronald Balson (historical fiction)

Jess Ryder (mystery)

Karen McQuestion (mystery)

Sharon Mitchell (mystery)

Top Ten Book Covers 2021

My top ten book covers for 2021 are all from graphic novels. I am surprised that the fiction books I read did not have covers as phenomenal as these.  In past years I did not have any comic covers on the list so this is a first for my blog.

Primer is my best book cover for the year. I love its colorfulness and the girl known as Primer has a curious look on her face that's appealing. As an artist, I am always drawn to these colorful covers.

Top Ten Books of 2021

I read 154 books in 2021!  99 of the authors were new to me.  I primarily read historical fiction, mysteries and graphic novels but also read a few science and political books.  My top ten list combines my favorites from all genres.  Here they are:

10. Twisted Tea Christmas (cozy mystery)

9.  Primer (comic)

8.  Hemlock (cozy mystery)

7.  Superman Smashes the Klan (comic)

6.   Peril (politics)

5.  Dominus (historical fiction)

4.  The September Society (mystery)

3.  Tunnels (graphic novel)

2.  Defending Britta Stein (historical fiction)

And my number 1 book is:  China (historical fiction)

My Top 10 Books For 2020

2020 was a great year for reading due to the coronavirus pandemic shutdown.  I was home more often and read 129 books. Picking my favorite books was difficult because I read many fabulous ones, including books written by 82 new (to me) authors.  The order in which I have rated them was also difficult to determine.  I am not sure that there should be any order at all but here are my selections:  

10.    The Giant by Laura Morelli (historical fiction)

9.      Seven Days by Alex Lake (psychological thriller)

8.      Dreamland by Nancy Bilyeau (historical fiction)

7.      British Ice by Owen Pomeroy (graphic novel)  

6.      Little Girls Tell Tales by Rachel Bennett (murder mystery)

5.      The Bone Fire by S. D. Sykes (historical mystery)

4.      Revenge in Rubies by A. M. Stuart (historical mystery)

3.      Green Lantern Legacy by Minh Le (graphic novel)

2.      Apartment 6 by Stuart James (psychological thriller)

And my best book for 2020 is:

1.      The Evening and the Morning by Ken Follett (historical fiction)

Honorable Mentions go to The Year of the Rabbit by Tian Veasna, Almost American Girl by Robin Ha, Dragon Hoops by Gene Luen Yan and Sabina by C. DeMelo.

Top 10 Books of 2019

I read 77 books this past year, a nice increase from the 52 books that I read in 2018. I found a new author this year that I love, P. K. Adams, and all three of her books are included in my top ten list. Graphic novels were strong in 2019. There were about seven of them that almost made the list but those historical fiction books just grabbed my attention more.

10: Saving Meghan, a medical mystery by Daniel Palmer

9.  Silent Water, a historical fiction novel by P. K. Adams

8.  Brewed Awakening, a cozy mystery by Cleo Coyle

7.  Genesis, a medical thriller by Robin Cook

6.  They Called Us Enemy, a graphic memoir by George Takei

5.  The Weight of Ink, a historical fiction novel by Rachel Kaddish

4.  The Blue, a historical fiction novel by Nancy Bilyeau

3.  The Column of  Burning Spices, a historical fiction novel by P. K. Adams

2.  The Greenest Branch, a historical fiction novel by P. K. Adams

1.  I Was Their American Dream, a graphic memoir by Malaka Gharib. This book made me think hard about what it means to be an American. Gharib is a first generation Filipino Egyptian whose ethnic childhood practices were quickly dropped when she became college aged. She then pursued everything "white."

My Top 10 Books From 2018

Below is a list of the best books that I read in 2018.  Note that they may not have been published in 2018 but I read them in 2018.

10.  The Romanov Empress by C. W. Gortner

9.  The Masterpiece by Fiona Davis

8.  Deadly Cure by Lawrence Goldstone

7.  The Painter's Apprentice by Laura Morelli

6.  Story of a Sociopath by Julia Navarro

5.  The Widows of Malabar Hill by Sujata Massey

4.  Sabrina by Nick Drnaso

3.  Brazen, Rebel Ladies Who Rocked the World by Penelope Bagieu

2.  Berlin by Jason Lutes

1. White Chrysanthemum by Mary Lynn Bracht

My Top 10 Books of 2017

Below is a list of the best books that I read in 2017.  Note that they may not have been published in 2017 but were my favorite reads of the year.

10.  The Empress of Bright Moon by Weina Dai Randel; historical fiction

9.  Butcher Bird by S. D. Sykes; historical fiction

8.  Shelter by Jung Yun; family saga

7.  Pachinko by Min Jin Lee; family saga, historical fiction

6.  A Game for Swallows by Zeina Abirached; graphic memoir, graphic novel

5.  I Remember Beirut by Zeina Abirached; graphic memoir, graphic novel

4.  Rolling Blackouts Dispatches From Turkey, Syria and Iraq by Sarah Glidden; reportage comic, graphic novel

3. Coffin Road by Peter May; mystery

2.  Dead Cold Brew by Cleo Coyle; cozy mystery

1.  The Scribe of Siena by Melodie Winawer; historical fiction