Hello Patrons! 🙂

My semester ended on Friday so now I have more time to blog! I want to start the end of the year posts with a positive vibe and talk about my favorite books of the year. Tomorrow I will do my least favorites, and then next week I’ll do my 2022 goals and 2022 TBR. In other book news, I’ve been crushing my December TBR! So far, I’ve read 11 books this month. I will post my January TBR sometime before New Years Eve. (Cut to January 4^th me posting my January TBR).

Okay, let’s get into it! I am going to give super brief descriptions, so this won’t be super long. I rated all of these books highly.

These are in no order:

Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall. Fake dating. Luc is the son of a rockstar, Oliver is a barrister (lawyer), and they need to pretend to be boyfriends for an event that the organization Luc works for is doing, and Oliver’s parents wedding anniversary party. Shenanigans ensue. I laughed so hard I snorted. I read this in January, and it’s stuck with me. (There’s also a sequel coming out in 2022).

Concrete Rose by Angie Thomas. It’s a sequel to The Hate U Give where readers follow Mav, Starr’s dad as he becomes a teen dad. I liked seeing Mav become the person we meet in THUG. I read this in February and love the cover.

Last Night at The Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo. Queer historical fiction with an Asian main character. The main character wants to be a scientist. She falls in love with another girl in school. The book is set in 1950’s San Francisco. The writing style is so vivid and interesting, because along with the main character Lily, and her love interest Kath’s story, you get Lily’s family story. The Red Scare plays a big part of this story which I found interesting. I read this at the end of February. I keep thinking about it.

That Way Madness Lies edited by Dahlia Adler. YA Shakespeare retellings! Unlike a lot of short story anthologies, there were a lot of strong stories in this collection. I had a lot of fun reading it in March, and if you want my in-depth thoughts, you can read my review.

Not Here to Be Liked by Michelle Quach. A girl is passed up for being her high school newspaper’s editor. Then a manifesto she wrote gets posted online. This is a meditation on feminism. It wasn’t preachy. I liked that the main character was Asian and not white, so that gives a different perspective. I thought the main character, Eliza was super interesting. I read this in mid-September.

Chain of Iron by Cassandra Clare. This is the second book of the 4^th series in the Shadowhunter world. It takes place in Edwardian England. Demon Hunters in Edwardian garb! I can’t get into the actual plot because that would spoil all of book 1, Chain of Gold. (Chain of Thorns comes out in late 2022). Chain of Iron was such a rollercoaster! I can’t wait for Chain of Thorns. I read this in March.

The Agitators by Dorothy Wickenden. This is a non-fiction book about 3 women fighting for suffrage and for abolition. The audiobook was fantastic. Each woman’s story had a different narrator. Each woman super distinct. I read this in November. So good!

Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid. Four adult kids in 1980’s Malibu throw an end of summer party. By the end of the night their house goes up in flames. Along the way you learn about their history. The audiobook is very good. TJR was redeemed this year after I didn’t like Daisy Jones and the Six last year. I read this over the summer, I think in June.

The One Hundred Years of Lenni and Margo by Marianne Cronin. A young girl in a Scottland Hospital meets an older woman and start a friendship. It made me tear up. The audiobook is cute. I read this in September.

Garlic and the Vampire by Bree Larson. An anthropomorphic garlic goes on an adventure to discover if there’s a vampire living outside her villain. It’s a graphic novel. Very cute. I read this in mid-October.

These Precious Days: Essays by Ann Patchett. These are essays written by the Ann Patchett about various topics. I love the cover. I love the writing style. So good! I finished this a week or so ago.

Tell me your favorite book of 2021. Have you read any of the books I talked about? Let me know. Take care of yourselves, get vaccinated, wash your hands, practice some self-care, and…