I’ve read a lot of pretty great books this year! Now is the time for me to get all reflective and attempt to make a big decision; what was my favourite book of 2018?
But while I’m not at that stage yet, I do have five incredible reads to share with you today.
By documenting my reading and my ratings for each book for the first time this year, I have discovered a pattern within what I like. I’ve discovered that my favourite kinds of books are mysterious reads. Those kinds of books where you normally have to wait until the end before everything falls in place.
I don’t really know why this is the case, but I do know that I’ve read some pretty great mysterious books so maybe that’s where the bias comes from.
Anyway, here’s my top five mysterious reads of 2018*:
1. Eleanor Oliphant Is Completely Fine : Gail Honeyman
I read this book pretty early on in the year when it was making its rounds through the supermarket charts, and I simply adored it. Eleanor has quickly become one of my all time favourite characters and her story is just breathtakingly beautiful.
It’s ultimately a story about hope, recovery and making a fresh start – basically my favourite themes to a novel!
2. The Room By The Lake : Emma Dibdin
This was one of those books I picked up on a whim from a bargain book shop and had no idea that it would become one of my favourite reads of the year!
Without giving too much away, after all that’s the beauty of these stories, this book is the story of a girl who accidentally gets herself caught up in some kind of ‘retreat’ (read: cult).
It’s pretty dark and a very visceral story, at times I thought I could actually feel what the main character was going through.
3. Sharp Objects : Gillian Flynn
This is the most recent read from this list, despite the fact it’s been out for ages. I finally read Gone Girl in 2018 and immediately after wanted to try more of Flynn’s work.
I managed to grab a copy of this at a bargain book shop and simply devoured it. I know Flynn is kind of a divisive author, but I’ve really enjoyed what I’ve read from her. This book in particular was so upsetting and dark, which is everything I love!
4. Everything I Never Told You : Celeste Ng
This book combines two of my favourite things in one; a mysterious read and unsolved mystery.
It is an incredibly moving and somewhat suffocating story of a Chinese-American family who’s daughter is found dead in a local lake. The story not only works to discover what happened to this character, but also goes so in depth with the family and every single detail is revealed.
It’s one of those slow-burn reads, but I couldn’t put it down. I simply had to know what happened to Lydia, even though it broke my heart.
5. After Me Comes The Flood : Sarah Perry
2018 really has been the year of bargain books for me! This was another amazing find in the sale section of a bookstore.
I don’t really know what attracted me to it at first, but when I read the blurb and found that it was about a man who simply walks away from his life, I knew I had to have it.
This one is certainly a slow-burn and the way the characters are it can sometimes feel frustrating to get through. Everyone is so eccentric and you know there’s more to the situation than they’re letting on, but it is so worth the wait.
If you’re a fan of cults and those kinds of organisations, this one has some of those dark overtones to it.
Those were some of my favourite reads of this year, from my new-found favourite genre.
If you have any recommendations of books you think I would like, please share!
Speak soon,
Rachael.
*affiliate links used
Rachaelic 