I always love to think back over my favorite reads of the year. This year was a FANTASTIC reading year for me. My best ever. I somehow managed upwards of 85 books. I was only shooting for 70; even that felt like a daunting task.
I found a new reading routine that had me reading for 2-3 hours before bed each evening and that allowed me to devour books. Not only that, but books also became even more of an escape. Perhaps, arguably, an addiction. It was a challenge narrowing down 85 books into a select number of favorites. Especially knowing there are others out there that might be better than my favorites, but I just didn’t get to them in time. I decided to have two categories: favorite backlist book/series reads of 2021 and favorite new releases of 2021. I’ll list out each book with three bullets of what stood out and why I enjoyed it.
Note: I gave a couple of stars out to the series that I couldn't get off my mind for a second and couldn't stop reading. These are the books I abandoned my TBR for that turned into absolute 5-star reads.
Favorite 2021 New Releases (YA):
The Cruelest Mercy (Kinder Poison #2)
-Desert setting
-Fun love triangle
-Enemies to lovers
House of Hollow
-Creepy!!
-Unique contemporary world building
- Sister bonds
Six Crimson Cranes
-Sibling bonds
-Sweet romance line
-Beautiful Asian culture inspiration
Favorite 2021 New Releases (Adult):
Empire of the Vampire
-Dark, snarky, and slightly gruesome
-Jumps between present and past storytelling
-Cool take on vampires
A Court of Silver Flames
-Super steamy romance with enemies to lovers
-Strong character arc/character growth
-Set in the ACOTAR world
The Crown of Gilded Bones
-Super steamy
-Layers upon layers of world building
-A badass female MC who comes into her own power
Top Favorite Backlist Book or Series Reads:
⭐️A Discovery of Witches
-Amazing contemporary setting world building packed with history
-Excellent romance development
-Compelling, brainy, accomplished female MC
From Blood and Ash
-Interesting/different world building -Great romance development
-Strong female MC who must discover how powerful she is
⭐️Demigods of San Francisco
-Set in alternate reality with powerful demigod beings
-Super spicy enemies to lovers
-Strong female MC who discovers how powerful she is
A Deal with the Elf King (Married to Magic)
-Lovely fairytale feel with interesting magic and world building
-Enemies to lovers with arranged marriage
-Great female lead who has a unique set of skills with plants
⭐️Mercy Thompson/Alpha and Omega (Aspen Creek Fandom)
-Werewolf shifters, Vampires, Fae, oh my!
-Super strong female MCs that give courage to any reader
-Great murder mysteries to solve
The Black Witch Chronicles
-Tons of relevant deep and difficult themes set on a fantasy backdrop
-Enemies to lovers romance woven in
-Unique world building with various types of races/species
Kingdom of Ash (Throne of Glass #7)
-Tons of plot twists and turns
-Awesome battle scenes
-Great cast of unforgettable characters
Graceling
-Female MCs that break the mold
-Fairytale style writing
-Compelling romance
Nevernight
-Raw, unapologetic writing
-Badass female MC
-Unique world building
Stalking Jack the Ripper
-Victorian era murder mystery
-Strong female lead who is ahead of her time
-Great romance dynamic
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