2024 Reading Wrap Up

2024 was another very up and down reading year for me. There was some good, some bad, some weird and some WTF was that. 

Let’s have a look at the reading goals I set in my 2023 wrap up:

1. Read 60 books.
2. Make progress on my TBR before adding any more.
3. Start the Storygraph “Reading the World” challenge (reading a book written by an author from every country). 

I ended up doubling my reading goal so I would say that was a success! Number 2 was less successful but we don’t need to talk about that and I did, in fact, start the Reading the World challenge on Storygraph. I’ve only completed 5% of the challenge with 10 out of 195 prompts completed but it’s a start! I’ve not given myself a time limit for this so it’s something I would like to complete in my lifetime. 

I mentioned in my 2023 round up that I had been gifted book four in the Sweetpea series by CJ Skuse from NetGalley. In 2024 I was also gifted the final book in the series “The Bad Seeds” and I was lucky enough to be able to go to the South West launch for this in Bath. It was so interesting to hear how Rhiannon came to life and I left with a copy of the original Sweetpea signed by CJ herself. What a sweetpea she is! 

I also joined the Chapter 25 Book Club as a host a few months ago and I love it so much! It’s such a wonderful bookish community and I’ve already read some books that I wouldn’t normally have picked up. I’m really looking forward to seeing what the next year of book club brings. 

End of Year Statistics

I ended up reading 119 books in 2024. I used Goodreads and Storygraph for my statistics. I’ve also started using Fable. I really don’t need three ways to track books but I’m still looking for my “one”. I’d love to hear your opinions on these and which one you prefer. 

Favourite Reads

My favourites of the year were Margo’s Got Money Troubles by Rufi Thorpe, All the Colours of the Dark by Chris Whitaker, Maeve Fly by CJ Leede and The Passengers by John Marrs.

To be honest with you, I read some really cruddy books last year so the good ones really stood out like diamonds in the rough. These books were all great for different reasons and I would highly recommend all of them (although check your trigger warnings for Maeve Fly). 

I absolutely loved the characters of Margo and Maeve (for very different reasons). Margo is so real and relatable and her story is so heartwarming and empowering. Maeve is unbelievably unhinged and not so heartwarming but I loved her story anyway. 

The Passengers is a classic, twisty John Marrs speculative fiction. There was one moment in this that had me stunned into silence and I still think about it regularly aha. 

It’s hard to describe All the Colours of the Dark or even put it into one genre. But it’s beautiful, hopeful, heartbreaking and a really unique story that I think everyone should read. 

Favourite Audiobooks

I love to read/listen to a book via audio (yes audiobooks count as reading and I won’t hear otherwise). Some highlights for me were; Krampus: The Yule Lord by Brom, Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez and The Wedding Witch by Erin Stirling. 

Obviously you want a good story but a good narrator can make or break an audiobook in my opinion. The narrator of Krampus, Kirby Heyborne, was fantastic. The first 30 seconds of the sample sucked me straight in, purely based on his voice. “You have sung your last ho, ho, ho, for I am coming for your head” in that creepy Krampus voice…amazing. 

Just for the Summer and The Wedding Witch also had great narrators that really brought the story to life. 

New Authors

This was a good year for new authors! Brom, Tia Williams, Abby Jimenez, Chris Whitaker, Andrew Joseph White, Erin Stirling, CJ Leede and Rufi Thorpe to name a few. 

Whitaker, Leede and Thorpe were responsible for my favourite reads of the year. I have several more books from Whitaker waiting for me on my Kindle and I’m eager to get my hands on Leede’s next work; American Rapture. 

Williams, Jimenez and Stirling all had me thinking that maybe I am, in fact, a romance reader…who knew! I can’t wait to explore more of their catalogues.  

Controversial Opinions

Ugh. I feel bad for even saying this. Educated by Tara Westover, Betty by Tiffany McDaniels and Razorblade Tears by S.A Cosby. I read all of these after hearing nothing but stunning reviews but I thought they were just…meh. I’m sorry. I wanted to love them so bad but they just didn’t work for me. 

Magnolia Parks by Jessa Hastings is another book that has so much hype that I really don’t understand. These characters are awful and this is not romantic in any way. 

Finally…Mona Awad. I’ve read but didn’t enjoy (or understand) Bunny but Rouge sounded so good. I gave it a go but still didn’t understand what was going on. Again someone I really wanted to love but I don’t think I’ll be picking up any more of her work. 

Biggest Surprises

I’m pretty sure I only picked up A Love Song for Ricki Wilde by Tia Williams purely because of the cover and I didn’t regret it. This was SUCH a good story and I really didn’t think I would end up loving a romance book. Similarly The Ex Hex by Erin Stirling was also a romance and one of my favourites. I’ve always thought that romance wasn’t for me but I think I was just reading the wrong authors. 

Seed by Ania Ahlborn was quite an average horror read for me until the ending. I won’t spoil it in any way but I was so shocked and it had me staring at the wall for a while. I still think about it often. 

Biggest Disappointments

I’m sure I’m not the only one who feels so frustrated when a book with so much hype falls completely flat. 

Two of the biggest let downs for me were Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel and Teddy by Emily Dunlay. One is about a post-apocalyptic civilisation and the other is about American scandals in 1960s Rome. Both were so boring and forgettable and I don’t think either synopsis really matched the books completely. Having said that, I know that some people love them so keep in mind this is just my opinion. 

We Used to Live Here by Marcus Kliewer is another book that was so hyped last year. I really didn’t understand what was going on or particularly liked any of the characters. I think I did myself a disservice by listening to the audiobook as I’ve heard there are so many clues and hidden things in the book. Maybe I’ll try again one day (but maybe not).

Most Anticipated Reads

I’m a big fan of Taylor Jenkins Reid and R.F Kuang so I cannot wait for their new releases this year. Atmosphere by Reid is due for release in June and Katabasis by Kuang is due in August. 

Another book that caught my eye was a non-fiction called The Secret History of the Rape Kit by Pagan Kennedy. This is the true story of the woman who invented the rape kit in the 1970s and is due for release later this month. 

Goals for 2025

1. Read more for the Reading the World challenge
2. No set reading goal (I don’t want to pressure myself into reading a certain number of books)
3. Read more of the non-fiction on my TBR
4. DNF books that I’m not enjoying (I don’t know why I’m so bad at this)

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This year is beginning with finishing my book club book (The Burnings by Naomi Kelsey), listening to the final hour of Krampus: The Yule Lord by Brom and jumping into a thriller with The Chain by Adrian McKinty.

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What were your favourite reads of 2024? And what are you hoping to read in 2025?