As much as I love reading, in non-pandemic years, I don’t do nearly enough of it as I’d like. However, one of the few positives to come out of 2020 is that I’ve been able to devour more books than I usually would. Here, in no particular order, are five of my favourite fiction boos that I’ve read this year.
N.B These books didn’t come out this year, I just read them this year! The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Taylor Jenkins Reid If you have frequented my social media pages this year you will know how much I adore this book. My friend lent it to me with a ‘This book is so you, you HAVE to read it’ and I replied with a ‘Sure, thank you’ and got to reading. Within a few chapters I was hooked and finished it within two days. The book follows the story of famous actress Evelyn Hugo as she recounts her life story and her many husbands, starting in the heyday of glamourous 1950s Hollywood. The characters are well developed, the storyline is filled with dramatic twists and the central love story had me smiling and weeping on every page. I wasn’t expecting to love this book as much as I do but I now consider myself a superfan and will happily talk about it for days on end! Rebecca, Daphne du Maurier I had been reticent to read this book for years as I don’t tend to get on very well with older texts. I understand the value they have in the literary canon, but I usually find myself frustrated by the plot, the characters or both, and after years of feeling guilty about it I finally decided that I don’t have to be and they’re simply not to my taste. However, I finally gave in after it was forced into my hand by a friend (the same friend who recommended Evelyn Hugo; she keeps me on the straight and narrow when it comes to books.) This was a slow burn for me but I found myself turning the pages and trying to work out where things were going so before I knew it I was completely invested and eager to read as much as possible. Rebecca focuses on the central character who is only ever referred to as Mrs de Winter and the second wife of the older Maximilian de Winter. When she moves into his familial home, once run by Max’s now deceased first wife, Rebecca, she finds it impossible to feel at home and make her mark on the place. As the plot progresses, we learn more about how this aristocratic world behaves and the relationships that the new Mrs. de Winter has found herself tied up in. I’m so glad that I finally got over myself and read this because not only is the story fantastic, but the writing is also top level and genuinely inspiring. I read the whole book thinking ‘I wish I could write like this!’ The Flatshare, Beth O’Leary This is a romcom with bite. I am partial to a romcom, especially those by Mhairi McFarlane (more on her later), and this one has been doing the rounds a lot on Instagram this year so I thought it would be a good lockdown read. The Flatshare follows the lives of Tiffy and Leon as they become flatmates except, not really. Rather than sharing a flat in the traditional sense, Tiffy rents the flat for the evening and morning and Leon rents it for the day time, including the only double bed in the flat. As a result, the characters don’t meet for a while and their relationship grows primarily through sticky notes. The book also touches on some hard-hitting issues including emotional abuse and the false imprisonment of Leon’s brother; both of which I feel were handled really well considering it’s a genre that is usually more fluffy. However, I appreciate that I’m lucky enough to not have experienced those things so understand that I could be wrong. O’Leary writes with a warmth and humour that really does bring these characters to life in such a way that I found myself routing from them from the start. I’d also quite like to grab a few drinks with Tiffy because she sounds like the kind of bonkers woman I’d get along with. The Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller You may already know that I’m a Greek mythology nut and this year in particular I have been striving to learn more about these ancient stories. I had wanted to read The Song of Achilles for years but, similar to Rebecca, I was always a bit intimated. I think I worried that the language would be too intelligent for me and there’s always a concern that a book with so much hype then turns out not to be enjoyable. Of course, none of this was true and I fell in love with the story within about five pages. Miller retells the story of Achilles from his childhood to his time in the Trojan war from the perspective of his beloved Patroclus. I thought this was genius as you’d expect a story this epic to be told by the protagonist but Patroclus understandably gives a new perspective on this legendary hero. This perspective also gives the story an air of mystery to Achilles which I liked. After all, there are so many versions of Achilles’ life that it seems fitting for there to still be a few questions about what he was up to when Patroclus couldn’t see or be with him. If I Never Met You, Mhairi McFarlane As mentioned, I am a big fan of Mhairi McFarlane’s books. She writes romcoms with characters that perfectly encapsulate modern living and all the trials and tribulations that come with it. Her dialogue is also hilarious. If I Never Met You plays into the trope of a fake relationship and although it’s a predictable storyline, as I appreciate most romcoms are, it’s McFarlane’s characters that always win me over. The central character, Laurie, is dumped by her boyfriend of eighteen years and embarks on a fake relationship with her co-worker to make said boyfriend jealous and win him back. However, there’s more to it than that and Laurie is one of the most realistic female characters I’ve ever read. She has her struggles at home and at work, yet her humour doesn’t really fade and her grit always shines through.
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