2018 Reading Roundup

I had lofty goals when I started this blog last year. Lofty goals indeed. One of which was to keep a digital catalog of all the books I was reading. And if that wasn't enough, I also planned to share my thoughts and opinions in an effort to save you from wasting your time on some of the "must read" books that didn't live up to the hype. As evidenced by the two months I did manage to slap together a reading list (Jan, Feb), regular blogging is not something I'm currently exceeding at. No matter, New Year, New Me. Now, I'm the first to admit have the memory of a 87-year-old grandmother with mild dementia and couldn't possibly remember all the books I finished this year, so hopefully you'll indulge me if I just share the highlights from last year.

The books I've recommended every chance I've gotten:

1. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, by Taylor Jenkins Reid
2. The Immortalists, by Chloe Benjamin
3. The Nightingale, by Kristin Hannah
4. Lilac Girls, by Martha Hall Kelly
5. Charlotte Walsh Likes to Win, by Jo Piazza
6. Crazy Rich Asians, by Kevin Kwon

The books I thoroughly enjoyed, but could continue to function in society having not read:

*The Last Time I Lied, by Riley Sager
*Beach House For Rent, by Mary Alice Monroe
*Eleanor Oliphant is Completely Fine, by Gail Honeyman
*Ready Player One, by Ernest Cline
*The Masterpiece, by Fiona Davis
*My Year of Rest and Relaxation, by Ottessa Moshfegh
*Vox, by Christina Dalcher
*To All the Boys I've Loved Before, by Jenny Han
*Final Girls, by Riley Sager
*The Women in Cabin 10, by Ruth Ware
*The Hate U Give, by Angie Thomas

I'll also add, at the rate I'm going, I can find it challenging to find new books. Coupled with the fact that I try to borrow from the Library whenever possible, I tend to have lengthy wait lists for some of the more popular books and usually need to keep a running list in order to be constantly reading. If you too suffer from a similar hardship, I would like to share some of the way's I tend to find new books.

1. I'm religious about checking The Stripe at the beginning of each month. Grace is a quick reader and I've found some great books from her monthly Reading Lists. She just listed out the 82 books she finished last year, by genre, which I'm sure will be very helpful if you share her reading tastes. 

2. Check the tables at bookstores and keep a running list on your phone. The most popular books always tend to be on display in an easily accessible way. Yes, I do feel guilty doing this and am sure to buy books from independent bookstores every once and awhile, but at the rate I read and the given the size of my apartment, its just not as feasible to always buy. 

3. I reference the Book of the Month's curated lists. I got BOTM for my mom as a gift for her birthday last year and in turn got a free month trial. I loved it and highly recommend this subscription service since they do tend to have books not yet available at the Library. I don't currently use BOTM anymore, since my Library list got rather long, but plan to pick it back up at some point this year. I will add that when I'm not subscribed, I do still check their monthly lists and reference them against the library catalog.

4. I often check the NYTimes yearly roundups. Mostly because I want to see how many books I've actually read on their roundup, but also to discover new ones to read in the new year.

5. I know its lame, but I actually find a lot of books on Instagram. Some influencers I follow also tend to share books they're reading in the moment. If one seems of interest to me, I take a screenshot so I remember. 

Tell me, what books do you recommend?