First of all, Happy New Year. I want to thank you all for visiting and commenting on Breathing Through Pages in 2018 and making me want to continue blogging and sharing book love with you. I want to thank all of the publicists and publishers as well for being so kind with sending books this way! Seriously, thank you for making my little corner of the internet a joyous one.
BEST BOOKS OF 2018
Now, before I begin with sharing which books I liked last year I just want to note that none of these books are rated from ‘1 to 10’ or ‘worst to best’ etc. I just felt like doing a post reminding you, the readers, as well as me of the books I enjoyed a lot in 2018. With each book I will be posting a short comment on it as well as a Goodreads link so you can add it//them to your TBR pile.
BEST OF 2018
The Heart’s Invisible Furies by John Boyne published 14th December 2017 by Black Swan.
I read this book earlier in January of 2018 and absolutely loved it. This was my first Boyne novel and it was filled with such interesting characters and I couldn’t look away from it. I was totally immersed in it.
The Only Girl in the World by Maude Julien, translated by Adriana Hunter published 4th January 2018 by Oneworld Publications.
I love reading memoirs and this book was so good! The horrific childhood of Maude Julien was so, well, horrific to read but also very fascinating and interesting. If you’re someone who loves reading memoirs this is the one you must pick up!
Educated by Tara Westover published 20th February 2018 by Random House.
Another fantastic memoir I highly recommend you pick up! Westover writes so well and her upbringing is something you’ll find so interesting. It’s one of those books that stay with you and make you think about them long after you’ve read them.
The House of Impossible Beauties by Joseph Cassara published 1st February 2018 by Oneworld Publications
This book is very special to me – from the moment I saw it I fell in love with that cover and when I read it I just got lost in the NYC ball scene and the lives of many LGBTQ+ characters. Such a fantastic debut! It’s the one I’ll never stop shouting about because I want everyone to read it.
The Immortalists by Chloe Benjamin published 4th January 2018 by Tinder Press.
If you’re someone who’s active on social media and ‘the book world’ there’s a high possibility you’ve heard of this one. A family saga following four siblings who go to a fortune-teller to find out their death dates. I mean, come on. Read it.
I’ll Be Gone in the Dark by Michelle McNamara published 1st March 2018 by Faber&Faber.
Amazing true-crime novel. Worth every hype it got and praise it still gets. A must read.
VOX by Christina Dalcher published 23rd August 2018 by HQ.
This is a debut dystopian novel from Dalcher which I found to be pretty great and entertaining. I especially loved the use of the author’s profession in the book.
Kill For Me by Tom Wood published 26th July 2018 by Sphere.
This book came at the right time for me and I devoured it. Kill For Me is so entertaining and fast-paced you just can’t look away from it! Definite recommendation for thriller lovers.
The Clockmaker’s Daughter by Kate Morton published 20th September 2018 by Mantle.
It’s Kate Morton. Although not one of her best it’s still worth reading..
The Incurable Romantic and Other Unsettling Revelations by Frank Tallis published 6th June 2018 by Little, Brown UK.
I loved reading Tallis’ stories about love and obsessive love. If you love psychology books I recommend you pick it up because it’s so interesting as well as fascinating!
The Real Lolita: The Kidnapping of Sally Horner and the Novel That Scandalized the World by Sarah Weinman published 11th September 2018 by Ecco.
I’ve read mixed reviews on this one but my personal experience of it was very enjoyable. I loved this book. Yes, it did read like a long thesis on Nabokov but I still loved it. True crime lovers – it’s a good one!
True or Poo? by Nick Caruso and Dani Rabaiotti published 18th October 2018 by Quercus Books.
A lovely short book that contains many interesting facts about animals and many animal things. It also has some fantastic illustrations!
The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker published 30th August 2018 by Hamish Hamilton.
My experience with this book was positive and I just love stories like this. A must read.
The Syndicate by Guy Bolton published 20th September 2018 by Oneworld Publications.
Noir crime book, I was sold. I loved reading this one. Bolton is the one to watch.
Little by Edward Carey published 4th October 2018 by Aardvark Bureau.
The illustrations inside done by the author are fantastic. The story inside is such a memorable one. I just love this book so much! It’s in my heart.
The Parting Gift by Evan Fallenberg published 4th September 2018 by Other Press (NY).
Such a fantastic one! It reminded me of Gone Girl in a way. Read it, yes!
The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle by Stuart Turton published 1st October 2018 by Bloomsbury UK.
Believe the hype. I found it to be a very interesting book and very original. Definite recommendation.
A Different Drummer by William Melvin Kelley published 1st November 2018 by Quercus Books.
An important work of literature. I teared up a few times reading it. I cannot wait to read more of Melvin Kelley in the future. Read it.
The Chestnut Man by Søren Sveistrup publishing on 10th January 2019 by Michael Joseph.
This one is not out yet but since I read it last year I’ve decided to add it here. It’s a debut from the producer of The Killing. I found it to be an awesome thriller book.
THE END
Thanks for reading this blog post. Do you agree with my picks? Would you add any of them to your TBR? Let me know below in the comments.
Brilliant! Glad you did one Nikola
I really want to read the Boyne novel!
So many good books. Some I’ve read and loved and others I’m dying to read.
Caryl
I love lists 💕
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Hi Caryl! Thank you so much!
The Heart’s Invisible Furies is so good! I hope you get a chance to read it 🙂
I’m glad you found some you’ve already read as well as some you wish to read! 🙂
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Fantastic list! I shared a bunch of favorites with you – The Only Girl in the World, I’ll Be Gone in the Dark, and The Real Lolita. Funny you mention that one having mixed reviews, I noticed that too, and that reviews of it seemed one extreme or the other. I loved it – Nabokov thesis and all 😊
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Thank you! Yay for Maude Julien and Michelle McNamara! 🙂 Yes, The Real Lolita has caused such mixed opinions.. I agree with you!
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Honestly, I’m STILL thinking about I’ll Be Gone in the Dark and it’s been almost a year since I read it. I’m so glad others are loving it too!
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Yes! I loved it so much. It was so chilling!
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A great selection. There are a few I’ve read, and a few more that I have that I’ve not read yet that I really need to move up the TBR! 🙂
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Thanks a bunch, Jo! I’m glad you found some you’ve read 🙂
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I adored The Heart’s Invisible Furies, probably one of my favourite reads of recent years. I will be checking out some of your other choices too.
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THIF is such a good one. My heart!! Thank you, Cleo 🙂
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What a brilliant post! And lots of books to add to my TBR!
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Thanks so much! It means a lot!
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Nice best of list 🙂 (love the graphics too, btw 😉 )
There are a few books here that I am planning to read and I am glad to see them get the mention in this very important post!
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Thanks so much, Liz! Let me know when you get to those books 🙂
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Will do 🙂
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Such a great list.. several of these I still want to read! It’s still early days but The Chestnut Man could be on my list this year 🙂
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Thank you! Yay for The Chestnut Man 🙂
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Fantastic list!
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Thank you, Ova 🙂
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Yay for Vox and The Silence of the Girls, both are great reads and were pretty close to making my list.
I have to confess I have The Immortalists but gave up on it after just a few pages as I wasn’t in the right mood. Maybe I should give it another go.
Great choices.
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I know that you had issues with The Silence of the Girls and I agree with them but I still enjoyed it a lot.
The Immortalists is worth reading. Do give it another go in the future!
Thank you!
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What a fantastic line up! I love the graphics too! ☺️
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Thanks so much, Misti!
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The ones from this list that I’ve read are also on my list hahaha ❤
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You had a wonderful reading year in 2018!
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I did Myndi! It was such a good one! I wish I read more though!
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