The LRG Best Books of 2024

Let me start by wishing you all a Happy Thanksgiving and may the rest  of your holiday season be enjoyable at the very least.

Now, with various end of the year round ups on the way, not to mention the final voting for the Goodreads Choice Awards set to begin tomorrow, putting up my personal Top Five Reads seems to be in order here.

With one exception, most of these books are new releases and for this mystery title, I must credit Booktuber Mara of Books Like Whoa for her enthusiastic recommendation of The Mysterious Case of the Alperton Angels by Janice Hallett.

Told in the format of texts, e-mails and transcripts, this novel chronicles the rivalry between two reporters as they look into an infamous cold case regarding a bizarre kidnapping supposedly done by members of a cult that still leaves a lot of questions unanswered.

To tell any more of the plot would definitely spoil the spine tingling tense delight of reading this book and it’s one of those actual staying up all night to finish stories for sure. I’ve read another one of Hallett’s novels since then(The Appeal) and believe you me, this author is quite the talent to behold:

It’s been a very great year for witches in pop culture and my list happens to have a pair of unusual enchantresses worth being spell bound by.

For Jane Austen admirers, Melinda Taub’s The Scandalous Confessions of Lydia Bennet, Witch take a fiercely fun twist on Pride & Prejudice as the mischievous youngest daughter of the Bennet family has much to tell about her adventures as a budding witch who created a companion sister(yes,Kitty Bennet is an actual cat!) and her relationship with Wickham is truly diabolical in more ways than one.

Taub creates an elaborately creative world within Austen’s very familiar fictional realm that fits in as neatly as a puzzle piece that  charmingly expands upon the original storytelling portrait of society and romance perfectly.

 Also, by tapping into those off screen yet very active subplots involving Lydia from the source material, we get quite the “what if” version of P&P into the bargain:

As for the other witchy tale, it was my first read of a T. Kingfisher novel and wow, folks were not joking about the amazing quality of her work.

A Sorceress Comes to Call is set in a Regency era England where a young woman named Cordelia is constantly at the not so tender mercies of her mother , Evangeline, who uses her magical powers like a whip to keep those about her in line.

When Evangeline sets her sights on a gullible noble man as her next meal ticket, Cordelia finds an unexpected ally in Hester, who has serious doubts about her brother’s new acquaintance and is willing to believe the unbelievable to prevent her loved ones from being harmed.

This book is simply awesome, with moments of humor, suspense, romance and horror that are the perfect ingredients for a page turning plate of delicious fictional feasting that will leave you wanting seconds and perhaps more. This is one witches road that delivers on the promised tricks and trials with potential glory at the end:

When it comes to literary romcoms, this offbeat novel by Kristy Greenwood, The Love of my Afterlife, adds a dash of otherworldly charm into the mix.

When lonely Delphie dies via accident and lands in the netherworld, her afterlife counselor makes her wait in a laundry room style reception area, giving Delphie a chance to make an instant romantic connection with another arrival, a man who turns out to not be ready for the next world just yet.

Since her counselor happens to be a fan of romantic novels, she gives Delphie ten days back on earth to find this possible soulmate or become a candidate for an afterlife dating service. 

Eager to find true love as well as another shot at life, Delphie winds up working with her grumpy neighbor Cooper on this wacky quest. Turns out love wasn’t as far away as she imagined but will this deadline truly be the end?

This story is weirdly fun, with beautifully bittersweet moments and entertaining characters that wish were on a TV series so that you could watch them again and again. Truly a heavenly experience, reading this book was:

The only book on this list that is not a new release (it was published in 2019) is also my solo nonfiction pick here.

However, this graphic novel style of memoir is very well known due to its status as one of the most banned books in America.

Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe chronicles the author’s journey as a non binary asexual person and artist (pronouns are e/em/eir) seeking to find eir place in the world. Told with humor and heartbreak at times, this book urges the reader to embrace empathy, something that seems to be severely lacking in our society right now.

I  buddy read this book with a relative and we had many a good talk about the themes expressed within, not to mention just enjoying some of the great anecdotes that the author shares and appreciating the excellent art work.

Instead of being banned by the ignorantly fearful, Gender Queer ought to be more widely read by those both part of the LGBTQIA community and those who aren’t but would like to have a better understanding there. Young people, especially, would benefit from this honestly told story that shows just how human we all are:

Also, I do have a few Honorable Mentions to highlight as well:

Sex,Lies and Sensibility by Nikki Payne- a great modern day take on Sense & Sensibility that makes me hope that she does this for all of Jane Austen’s work (please do Mansfield Park!)

Just for the Summer by Abby Jimenez-she’s having an incredible year with her heartfelt romance reads and while this one does slightly connect to her earlier books, you can enjoy this one sincerely on its own merits.

A Fate Inked in Blood by Danielle L. Jensen-a rip roaring romantasy that has me eager for the follow up and fingers crossed that it’s a Book of the Month selection so that it matches my copy of this first part!

As we head towards what’s left of this year, it’s going to be hard to look forward to what lies ahead, no question about it. With any luck, we’ll do our best to push back against any negative forces out there and keep our collective spirits up, with the help of a few good books to talk about along the way.

I hope you all have had a great reading year and are planning on finding something to look forward to as the new year approaches, one way or another: