Top Ten Tuesday – Ten of My Favorite Reads from 2020
Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!
This week’s TTT topic is Favorite Books of 2020. It was hard to pick just ten favorite books because as bad as 2020 was overall, it was actually a really great reading year for me. As of the moment I’m sitting here drafting this post, I’ve read 172 books this year, the most I’ve ever read, and looking through my Goodreads shelves, most of those reads were 3 stars and above so yay! I did have more DNFs than ever before, which I also consider a win because I’m finally getting better at just saying no to books that aren’t working for me. All of that said, I’m sharing 14 of my favorite reads from this year. All of the books below are a combination of 2020 releases and older releases since one of my big goals this year was to read more of the older books that have been sitting neglected on my bookshelves. I did pretty well with that goal as well and will have a second half of 2020 Beat the Backlist wrap up coming later this week to share all of the older books I’ve read in 2020.
Anyway, back to my favorites of the year…I rated all of these 4.5 or 5 stars and as you can see, I had winners from a variety of genres. Light, fluffy, and romantic books were my favorites overall, but I still had some darker and more atmospheric reads in there too. I’d highly recommend any of these titles to someone looking for a read they won’t be able to put down.
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My Favorite Reads from 2020
(In no particular order)
1. THIS IS MY AMERICA by Kim Johnson – most powerful book I read this year.
2. BEACH READ by Emily Henry – the book whose cover made me think it would be a light and fluffy read but ended up being so much more.
3. BLACKTOP WASTELAND by S.A. Cosby – My favorite crime novel of the year. It’s so action-packed that it reads like The Fast and the Furious.
4. CRAZY STUPID BROMANCE by Lyssa Kay Adams – I went back and forth trying to decide which Bromance book was my favorite this year since I also read Undercover Bromance and loved them both. Going with this one mainly because of Beefcake the cat, haha.
5. TAKE A HINT, DANI BROWN by Talia Hibbert – This one wins for most adorable couple. I read this months ago and still smile every time I think about them.
6. JUST OUR LUCK by Julia Walton – A heartwarming coming of age story about overcoming anxiety and finding friendship and love. This was one of my final reads of 2020 and it was just such a lovely note to end the year on.
7. THE LIONS OF FIFTH AVENUE by Fiona Davis – Fiona Davis’ novels never disappoint because they combine two of my favorite things, historical fiction and NYC iconic buildings. This one features the New York Public LIbrary and a fantastic mystery to boot.
8. MAGIC LESSONS by Alice Hoffman – It’s Alice Hoffman and it’s a prequel to Practical Magic that shows the origins of the Owens bloodline and the infamous curse. What else do I need to say? It’s glorious!
9. THE ONCE AND FUTURE WITCHES by Alix E. Harrow – While nothing can top Alice Hoffman’s witchy series (see above), my second favorite witchy read of 2020 was this gorgeous and atmospheric read by Alix E. Harrow. I also read and loved her book Ten Thousand Doors of January this year and look forward to reading more from her.
10. ONE DAY IN DECEMBER by Josie Silver – This was actually one of my very first reads of the year and the beautiful and emotional story has just stuck with me all the way through 2020.
11. THE SIMPLE WILD by K.A. Tucker – The older book that I could kick my own butt for not reading it sooner. By far, my favorite romance of the year. I loved it so much that the sequel and the holiday novella are queued up on my kindle now to read in January.
12. SORCERY OF THORNS by Margaret Rogerson – Another gorgeous story that I could kick my butt for ignoring for so long. This is a fantasy novel that actually lives up to all of the hype, plus it’s set in libraries and features magical books. What’s not to love? Another huge bonus? It’s a standalone, which is heaven for people like me who struggle with series.
13. THE SUN DOWN MOTEL by Simone St. James – I don’t usually read books classified as horror but something about this one just called to me and I’m so glad I answered the call. It is the creepiest, most atmospheric book I read all year and I loved every page of it. It was my first time reading Simone St. James and I loved it so much that I recently picked up a copy of The Broken Girls so that I can experience more of her gorgeous writing.
14. WHAT YOU WISH FOR by Katherine Center – This is my third book from Katherine Center and she is quickly becoming one of my favorite contemporary authors. I have fallen in love with the characters in every book so far, especially with the protagonist in this book, who is a school librarian.
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What were some of your favorite reads of the year? Do we share any favorites?
Review: JUST OUR LUCK by Julia Walton
Just Our Luck by Julia Walton 
on December 29, 2020
Genres: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary Fiction, Romance
Pages: 272
Source: Netgalley
Amazon | Barnes & Noble | The Book Depository
Goodreads
FTC Disclosure: I received a complimentary copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley. All opinions are my own.
Julia Walton’s new novel, Just Our Luck, is the feel good book I really needed in my life this year. It follows Leo, a teen who has struggled with anxiety all his life. His mom died when he was younger so his Greek grandmother, Yia Yia, was the one who watched over him and provided him, not only with coping mechanisms, like knitting, to help with his anxiety, but also with two “rules for life”: 1) Bad luck follows lies, and 2) Leave the Paros family alone. When his grandmother passes away and his father is too wrapped up in his own grief to really know how to relate to Leo, Leo starts to struggle even more and manages to break both of Yia Yia’s “rules for life” in one fell swoop when a fist fight at school, followed by a fib to his father about what happened, lands Leo enrolled in a self-defense class at a gym where you guessed it, Evey Paros, of the forbidden Paros family from rule #2, works. What follows is a life-changing journey for Leo and a delightfully, heartwarming coming of age story filled with humor, friendship, love, and so much more.
It was impossible not to root for Leo every step of the way as I was reading Just Our Luck. I’m a sucker for an underdog and for a soft boy and Leo is definitely both. Leo’s passions are photography and knitting and the thought of having to even set foot in a martial arts style self defense class makes his heart race. When Evey tells him she can secretly switch him over to a hot yoga class that takes place at the same time in exchange for a favor, Leo eagerly jumps at the chance even though he can practically hear his grandmother screaming at him to “LEAVE THAT PAROS GIRL ALONE!” Even though he has no idea what he has gotten himself into, with either the hot yoga or with Evey, I loved watching Leo take this journey because he just grew so much every step of the way. There were honest and raw moments as he continues to work through his anxiety and his overall awkwardness around people, and there were also hilarious moments in the yoga classes as well as with some of his antics with Evey. I also enjoyed watching Leo and Evey grow closer and learning what the deal was with grandma’s rule about Evey’s family.
I think my favorite part of Just Our Luck though was the friendship that develops between Leo and Drake, the boy who punched Leo in the face and kicked off this whole chain of events. Leo and Drake are forced to sit in a special detention every day and they have one goal: to work through whatever issue led to the punch in the face. It’s a hard sell at first with both boys just sitting there in awkward silence day after day, but once the breakthrough finally happens, a really wonderful friendship emerges. One that left me with an even bigger smile on my face than Leo and Evey growing closer.
I could go on and on about how truly heartwarming and delightful Just Our Luck is, but just take my word for it. If you’re in the mood for a feel good story, Just Our Luck is a must read.
About Julia Walton
Julia Walton received her MFA in creative writing from Chapman University. When she’s not reading or baking cookies, she’s indulging in her profound love of Swedish Fish, mechanical pencils, and hobbit-sized breakfasts. Julia lives in Huntington Beach, California, with her husband and daughter.
Top Ten Tuesday – 10 Books I Hope Santa Brings Me This Year
Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. Top Ten Tuesday has been one of my favorite memes ever since I started blogging, so huge thanks to Jana for taking over the hosting duties!
This week’s TTT topic is 10 Books I Hope Santa Brings. This is an easy topic just because I always keep a book wishlist handy since books are pretty much always my preferred gift to receive. Here are a few books (and a couple of pre-orders – Kristin Hannah and Leigh Bardugo) I’m hoping to get this Christmas.
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10 Books I Hope Santa Brings Me This Year
2. BOYFRIEND MATERIAL by Alexis Hall
4. THE FOUR WINDS by Kristin Hannah
5. FROM BLOOD TO ASH by Jennifer L. Armentrout
6. GROWN by Tiffany D. Jackson
7. THE MIDNIGHT LIBRARY by Matt Haig
8. BREATHLESS by Jennifer Niven
9. RULE OF WOLVES by Leigh Bardugo
10. A SKY BEYOND THE STORM by Sabaa Tahir
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