Books

My Friends’ Favorite Books of 2020!

January 10, 2021 by Mackenzie 10 Comments

I love hearing about what my friends are reading! It’s one of the best ways to learn about new books that I might like. That gave me the idea to do a post celebrating my friends and the books that they loved this year. I asked my friends to pick up to 7 of their favorite reads of the year, and say a bit about them if they wanted. I hope you find some great new books to check out from this list, I know I did. Also, this ended up being a lot longer than I expected haha but it’s worth it I promise!

Sakina

I met Sakina through bookstagram (she is @aforestofbooks on there), and we initially bonded over our love of Tamora Pierce and her books! She blogs at A Forest of Books. I’m super grateful for her friendship and for all of the things she adds to my tbr haha. One day I swear we will meet up and be the best irl friends we are meant to be. Okay, let’s get started with Sakina’s top books of 2020!

  • The House in the Cerulean Sea (T.J. Klune) – found family trope that’ll make you cry happy tears and squeal constantly
  • A Song of Wraiths and Ruin (Roseanne A. Brown) – MALIK IS A SOFT CINNAMON ROLL
  • Loveless (Alice Oseman) – the aroace rep I’ve been looking for my whole life
  • Elatsoe (Darcy Little Badger) – atmospheric, fun, and friendship 🥺
  • These Violent Delights (Chloe Gong) – ENEMIES TO LOVERS DONE RIGHT
  • Grown (Tiffany D. Jackson) – dark, disturbing, an edge of your seat book, very powerful and important story
  • Djinn Patrol on the Purple Line (Deepa Anappara) – beautifully written story about some kids who take on the roles of detectives to try and find out why kids in their neighbourhood are going missing. Cannot recommend this enough. It’s dark, but in a way you won’t realize until it’s too late

Gretal

Sakina introduced me to Gretal since she is also a fellow Tamora Pierce fan. Gretal reads sooo many books and so many diverse books that my wallet cries when I put all of her book recs on my list. I am very thankful for her texts that feature the antics of her cute pets. You can find Gretal on Instagram (@booksandbreadcrumbs), and at her blog Books and Breadcrumbs. Here are Gretal’s top books!

Corey

Corey is one of the raddest people out there! His blog (Grimdark Dad) has stellar reviews, and his bookstagram (@grimdark_dad) has stunning outdoor shots of books. I love reading his reviews and I love that we have become friends. I also love when he sends me pics of his pups haha. Here are Corey’s 2020 top reads.

  • Ashes of the Sun (Django Wexler) – A book that just made me remember all the reasons I love reading fantasy. The Star Wars influence is strong with this one, it’s got some delightfully awkward romance in a queernorm world, and I just adored literally every aspect of this book.
  • Black Sun (Rebecca Roanhorse) – One of a few books I read this year that made me realize how deeply I appreciate fantasy novels that don’t get too wrapped up in their magic systems. Beautifully written, unique, and totally riveting from the first page. Just an incredible start to a new fantasy series!
  • The Bone Shard Daughter (Andrea Stewart) – This is likely my favorite debut novel of the year. I fell in love with this strange world of moving islands and magical creatures right away. Funny, diverse, mysterious, and basically everything I’d look for in a fantasy world. I fucking loved this so stupid much. 
  • The Boatman’s Daughter (Andy Davidson) – I can’t remember loving a horror novel this much in a long time. Haunting & weird AF & absolutely beautiful. Such an atmospheric, absorbing, and disturbing read. 
  • The First Sister (Linden Lewis) – I had no idea what to expect going into this, having not read the two titles this seems to be most compared to (RED RISING and THE HANDMAID’S TALE), and I was blown away by this book. Absolutely jaw-dropping action sequences in this one, and an incredibly diverse cast of characters. LOVED THIS!
  • King of the Rising (Kacen Callender) – Callender concludes their ISLANDS OF BLOOD AND STORM duology with this haunting & heartbreaking book. Completely murdered my feelings. These books are so amazing, but folks should be aware of the heavy content before diving in. 
  • Who I Was With Her (Nita Tyndall) – Another stunning debut and this one just fucking ruined me, hard. Angsty & moody & filled with beauty & heartache. I need this as a Netflix limited series, BADLY. 

Kibby

Kibby is another friend from bookstagram (find her at @thedarkforestco). She is really funny and a great friend. She also runs her own business creating REALLY AWESOME merch for various nerdy fandoms (books, television, etc). Her store even has merch for my FAV TAMORA PIERCE!!! Which is awesome because no store ever has Pierce inspired things. I love Kibby for many reasons but that is definitely one of them hahaha. You can also find her at The Nerd Daily as a contributing writer! Here are Kibby’s top book picks from last year.

  • Crownchasers (Rebecca Coffindaffer) – There were a ton of amazing debut YA novels this year, but Crownchasers takes….well, the crown. This is the kind of book that proves YA science fiction is as diverse, imaginative, and epic as the YA fantasies that are typically pushed more by publishing. If anyone tells me YA sci-fi is dead, I will hand them this book and sternly glare at them until they read it.
  • Legendborn (Tracy Deonn) – I almost don’t know what to say about this one. Legendborn is everything I could hope for from a YA urban fantasy and more. Deonn writes with ferocity and pulls zero punches when it comes to calling out racism. To say I am eagerly anticipating the sequel would be a vast understatement.
  • This is How You Lose the Time War (Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone) – This was the first book I read in 2020 and it remained my favorite book of the year. While it’s unique style of story telling is not going to work for everyone, it hit home for me in so many ways. I can’t remember the last time I read a book so beautiful and epic.
  • The Illuminae Files series (Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff) – If you know me at all, you know I wasn’t going to leave this series off this list. I reread this series six times over the course of 2020. I’m not sure what it says about me that a bloody, snarky, intense YA science fiction trilogy is my comfort read, but here we are. And I will say this until there is no breath left in my body: read this one via audiobook!

Kori

I first met Kori on bookstagram (@korireads), and when I moved to New Jersey, we went from internet friends to real life friends! She is the first person I hung out with when I moved here from across the country. The first time we met up, we were going to a book signing and she picked me up at a very sketchy train station in Pennsylvania hahaha. And we didn’t really know what the other looked like. I’m so grateful for her friendship over the years!!! And here are her book choices!

  • The House in the Cerulean Sea (T.J. Klune) – The House in the Cerulean Sea is exactly what we all need after the tumultuous year that was 2020. It reads like a Pixar movie (but better!), feels as if you are being wrapped in a warm hug, and is laugh out loud funny. Everything about this story is lovely – the misfit magical children, the found family story, the setting, all of it! In short, it is extraordinary and something that I’ll recommend to anyone and everyone, forever.
  • The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo (Taylor Jenkins Reid) – Following a fictional, famous, old Hollywood actress throughout her life, Evelyn was one of the most complex characters I’ve ever read and I loved getting to see every facet of her story. I’m still amazed that the book was less than 400 pages long! From the very first page, I was completely immersed and it didn’t let me go until the very end. Because of this book, I read all of Taylor Jenkins Reid’s books and it’s safe to say I found a new favorite author.
  • The Empire of Gold (S.A. Chakraborty) – I fell in love with the Daevabad trilogy when I read Kingdom of Copper, and I enjoyed this finale so much I read all 750+ pages in two days. Empire of Gold was one of the most phenomenal series endings I’ve ever read. It hit all the right notes; the character arcs were done SO well and I felt totally satisfied by the end, even if I shed a few tears along the way.
  • A Little Life (Hanya Yanagihara) – A Little Life is a book that I picked up sort of randomly based on one friend’s recommendation. It is an incredibly raw and moving story of friendship, trauma, love and pain. It’s 800 pages of heartache and made me feel more than anything else I’ve ever read. I am not exaggerating when I say this book made me cry so hard I went through a whole box of tissues and had a headache for a full 24 hours. It will stay in my heart for a long time.
  • The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue (V.E. Schwab) – Addie LaRue was one of my most anticipated releases for the year and it completely exceeded my expectations. I’m a sucker for a great standalone and I think this is some of Schwab’s best writing. Beautiful, lyrical, and a story that will stick with me for a long time. 
  • Educated (Tara Westover) – Educated was probably my most surprising favorite of the year. To be honest, I’ve never read a non-fiction by choice but I listened to this on a recommendation and I was mind boggled the entire time. The story was wildly fascinating and I basically haven’t stopped thinking about it since I listened in February.
  • The Poppy War (R.F. Kuang) – The Poppy War is the start of a historical fantasy trilogy and is one of the most well-written and well-researched books I’ve ever read. It was WILD. I felt like I read a full series, not just 500 pages. It’s very plot-driven and overall just exquisitely written. It’s dark, brutal, and an amazing debut from a new favorite author.

Goni

I met Goni way before I was ever on bookstagram, or blogging. We met during college! Which means we’ve known each other for like…..6 years?? 7 years?? I don’t know, a long time. (She reminded me it has been 7 years…wow.) We both study astrophysics, and have even been lucky enough to go to the same PhD program. She’s always been such a light in my life, and I will always be indescribably thankful to have met her. Fun fact – early on in knowing each other, we went to get tattoos together. That is the event that really kickstarted our closer friendship. She thought I was scary before that, but when I got my tattoos I was a big baby and had to hold her hand hahaha. So then I wasn’t as scary. Here are Goni’s top reads of last year!

  • Know My Name (Chanel Miller) – A young woman’s memoir about her assault and its aftermath that was infuriating and devastating but beautifully written and incredibly powerful. This moved me immensely and I think everyone should read it. Of course, content warning for sexual assault.
  • In the Dream House (Carmen Maria Machado) – A creatively written memoir about an abusive relationship between two women that is unique and gripping. I loved this book, and found it valuable to see a queer relationship story that is not a trope.
  • The Heart’s Invisible Furies (John Boyne) – An epic novel spanning decades of a gay Irish man’s life. This book provides an image of post-war Catholic Ireland, NYC during the AIDS epidemic, and historical and cultural attitudes toward queerness and manhood all through one man’s experiences. It is heartbreaking at times, joyful at others, and generally an emotional trip.
  • Lie With Me (Philippe Besson, translated by Molly Ringwald) – A short French novel about a gay romance that explores themes of memory, nostalgia, and authenticity. I read this in one sitting and regretted not savoring it once I was done.
  • Station Eleven (Emily St. John Mandel) – An apocalyptic post-pandemic novel that almost made me feel grateful for the current status of the world. The characters are fun and interesting. It was somehow comforting to read despite the bleakness.
  • An American Marriage (Tayari Jones) – A novel about a marriage between two Black Americans whose love for one another is tested by this country’s broken criminal justice system. This book had something nuanced to say about what love, marriage, and devotion really mean. It felt at once both very specific and very universal.
  • The Undocumented Americans (Karla Cornejo Villavicencio) – An investigative non-fiction exploration of undocumented Americans. The author of this book is herself an undocumented immigrant, and was one of the first to graduate from Harvard. She focuses on workers who are not DACA recipients or otherwise lauded as the best of the bunch, but rather ordinary humans who contribute in extraordinary, invisible ways.

Erin

Erin is another one of my astrophysics friends! She and I share a great love of science fiction, fantasy, the McElroy family, and Dungeons and Dragons. She is a dungeon master for me and some other friends and her imagination is incredible. I think it’s shocking that we have never attended a book event together – though not for lack of trying. One year on my birthday we attempted to see Neil Gaiman, but we were foiled by a massive winter storm. It’ll happen sometime!!!! Aaaand Erin’s picks are:

  • The House in the Cerulean Sea (T.J. Klune) – A book so nice I read it twice! This book is a warm hug. It was the kind of escapism I needed, where the stakes are high but don’t feel perilous. And I’m a sucker for any found-family tropes, especially when they break away from your store-brand cis-heteronormative blandness. Sometimes a family is just two dads, one mom, and their seven incredibly special and weird children. And the fact that the main character is a Bilbo Baggins type is just icing on the cake. If you haven’t read this book and you’re looking for something that is just truly joyful to read, what are you doing?!
  • Harrow the Ninth (Tamsyn Muir) – The second book in what is becoming one of my favorite trilogies ever. Was it as gut-punching fun as the first one? No. But I loved it because it really expanded on the universe in interesting ways. It’s still hella fun though, there are NECROMANCERS in SPACE!! Love all these spooky scary skeletons click-clacking around. Plus, it made me scream aloud when it referenced MULTIPLE old internet memes (go look up all of the references if you haven’t already, this is some old millennial humor here, vintage early naughties).
  • The City We Became (N.K. Jemisin) – I know some didn’t like this book, and that’s ok (they’re wrong, but not everyone can be right all the time about books). Honestly, this book hit me so hard because it felt like a love letter to New York City. As someone who’s lived in the city for the better part of the last decade, this felt like one of the best literary, modern depictions of it. Not just in terms of atmosphere and real-world contentions that she brought into it, but in the very locations she chooses. I know most the real places Jemisin described intimately, and the places she made up have very real counterparts. Lots of books that take place in NYC have vague descriptions and only name tourist landmarks. Jemisin, an NYC native, described it as a native would, with incredible detail. I really heckin’ love this city, and this pandemic has taken it away from me in most ways. This book gave a piece of it back to me though, and had the audacity to make me cry about it.
  • Cemetery Boys (Aiden Thomas) – This book was a slow starter for me, but I really got sucked into it. I wish more fantasy books incorporated indigenous magic systems from the New World (I tried Gods of Jade and Shadow, but sadly I could not get past the simplistic writing style). This world is richly fleshed out, and I love how it depicts being trans in a culture that has such a strong dichotomy between the sexes, right down to the language. It’s an all-around great story, even if I did predict the ’twist’ a handful of pages in. Super enjoyable, a cute romance, found family good vibes, and refreshing to read.
  • Piranesi (Susanna Clarke) – One word – atmosphere. This book has loads of it. It kind of invokes in me the same sort of discomfort and lowkey horror I feel about liminal spaces? It’s absolutely haunting. Something about the setting also reminds me of the lower halls of the Starless Sea – just beautiful and lonely and sad and unimaginably old. The book also has interesting twists and turns that I couldn’t always suss out. This book is like falling into a Dali painting or some other work of surrealist art. Definitely recommend if you want something different.
  • Anodyne (Khadijah Queen) – My favorite book of poetry that came out this year. The poems in it are unlike any that I usually read. They’re beautiful and provoking. Sometimes they feel really intimate and personal, and sometimes they feel so vast and existential it’s terrifying. This is definitely not an easy book of poetry, but it feels like a really honest and reflective product of the times.
  • The Order of the Pure Moon Reflected in Water (Zen Cho) – I debated this one a bit because it didn’t quite end up on my ‘Favorites’ shelf when other books that are not in this list did. But honestly, this book is so much fun and most importantly has an Ace main character. I feel like it’s so rare to see Ace characters at all, and for her to be one of the main characters and to (minor spoiler) end up in a romantic relationship at the end was so refreshing and incredible. Plus, the world is queernormative, there are more queer characters, and that good good found family trope again (see, told you I’m a sucker for it)

Brianna

Last but definitely not least we have my friend Brianna! And yes, another friend I met via astrophysics. We also lived together for 3 years. I ‘m so thankful for all her unwavering support of the years! She is one of the few people I actually let borrow my books, since I know she treats them with care! I’ve enjoyed making recommendations and having her “check them out” from my personal library haha. She is also part of a book club that reads a lot of different books, so it’s cool to hear about those from her. Here are Brianna’s choices:

I both love and hate my friends, because they give such good recommendations!! Okay I guess it’s more like I love them, but my wallet and shelf space hate them hahaha. I’m definitely excited to put all of these on my TBR. One of the best parts about doing this post was hearing about books from all different genres, since obviously not everyone is like me (only reading sci-fi and fantasy haha). What were some of your favorite reads from last year? Did any of these catch your eye?

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