Can you see that, Savvy Readers? Just over yonder? Only a liiiiittle distance away? Yes, that’s the end of 2019! The new year is on the horizon, so close you can see it in your calendar app without even scrolling. And that means it’s time to turn back and reflect on all the things that have happened this year – specifically, all of the great books that we’ve read. So, we’ve taken it upon ourselves to compile a list of our favourite books that came out in 2019!

JANUARY

Freefall by Jessica Barry
No Exit by Taylor Adams
Notes on a Nervous Planet by Matt Haig
Crucible by James Rollins
The Lost Girls of Paris by Pam Jenoff
99 Percent Mine by Sally Thorne
A Matter of Malice by Thomas King

What can we say? We started our year off RIGHT with these books.

FEBRUARY

The Last Romantics by Tara Conklin
On the Come Up by Angie Thomas
No Beast So Fierce by Dane Huckelbridge
The Secretary by Renee Knight
A Version of the Truth by BP Walter
The Art of Leaving by Ayelet Tsabari
The Next to Die by Sophie Hannah
Mourning Has Broken by Erin Davis
The Border by Don Winslow
The Huntress by Kate Quinn

Interestingly, no romcoms for the Valentine’s Day month! Quite a few thrillers, though… What does that say about us?

MARCH

A Good Wife by Samra Zafar 
Beautiful Bad by Annie Ward
Cemetery Road by Greg Iles
The Quintland Sisters by Shelley Wood
The Library of Lost and Found by Phaedra Patrick 

March was an excellent mix of genres and vibes. An amazing memoir, historical fiction, and what can we say – we love a good book about books!

APRIL

One Summer in Paris by Sarah Morgan
The One by John Marrs
The Better Sister by Alafair Burke
The Guilty Party by Mel McGrath
Little Darlings by Melanie Golding
The Stranger in Our Home by Sophie Draper
The Unlikely Adventures of the Shergill Sisters by Balli Kaur Jaswal

April was filled with thrillers tempered with some more light-hearted stories to make sure we didn’t go too batty!

MAY

The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek by Kim Michele Richardson 
Humans: A Brief History of How We F*cked It All Up by Tom Phillips
Resistance Women by Jennifer Chiaverini
The Last Time I Saw You by Liv Constantine
The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna by Juliet Grames
The Confessions of Frannie Langton by Sara Collins 
The Favorite Daughter by Kaira Rouda
The Sentence is Death by Anthony Horowitz
Her Secret Son by Hannah Mary McKinnon
The Woman in the White Kimono by Ana Johns

Now this was a back-and-forth month! Books with thrills and chills, wit and charm, warmth and whimsy, murder of course, and good old talking-to in book form from Mr. Phillips.

JUNE

Summer Hours by Amy Mason Doan 
The Chai Factor by Farah Heron
Fix Her Up by Tessa Bailey 
The German Midwife by Mandy Robotham 
Dear Wife by Kimberly Belle

We were into the more romantic stories this past June – with a bit of a twist there at the end. Perfect for the warmer weather!

JULY

Don’t You Forget About Me by Mhairi McFarlane
Growing Things by Paul Tremblay
Swan Song by Kelleigh Greenberg-Jephcott
The New Girl by Daniel Silva 
How to Hack a Heartbreak by Kristin Rockaway

We felt pretty well-rounded this month, dipping our toes into a few different genres as we (metaphorically) reclined by the pool.

AUGUST

The Right Swipe by Alisha Rai
Our Stop by Laura Jane Williams 
The Last Widow by Karin Slaughter 
The Ventriloquists by E.R. Ramzipoor
The Wake by Linden MacIntyre
Take It Back by Kia Abdullah 
The First Time Lauren Pailing Died by Alyson Rudd

Can you tell we love a good romcom and a story full of suspense (real or fictional)?

SEPTEMBER

Akin by Emma Donoghue 
Five Wives by Joan Thomas
A Girl Named Anna by Lizzy Barber
Home Front Girls by Suzanne Hayes and Loretta Nyhan 
After the Flood by Kassandra Montag
Cold Storage by David Koepp
The Chestnut Man by Soren Sveistrup 
Crow Winter by Karen McBride
The Nanny by Gilly MacMillan
The Last Train to London by Meg Waite Clayton
A Wedding in December by Sarah Morgan 
Postscript by Cecilia Ahern 
The Dutch House by Ann Patchett 
The Hunting Party by Lucy Foley 

We’re dizzy just LOOKING at this list. How could September have space for all of these incredible books?! I think this list speaks for itself – September was a gift of a month for book lovers!!

OCTOBER

The Familiars by Stacey Halls 
Butterfly Girl by Rene Denfeld
The Shape of Family by Shilpi Somaya Gowda
Finding Christmas by Karen Schalder
The House of Brides by Jane Cockram
The Killer Inside by Cass Green 

Naturally, we had some witchy and spooky picks for this month. But once the throws of Halloween are over, we have to admit we’re quick to jump at Christmas!

NOVEMBER

Finding Chika by Mitch Albom 
The Other Windsor Girl by Georgie Blalock 
The Poppy Wife by Caroline Scott
The Andromeda Evolution by Daniel H. Wilson
The Ambassador’s Daughter by Pam Jenoff 

November was all about historical fiction, with a splash of heartfelt memoir and mindblowing science fiction.

DECEMBER

Africville by Jeffrey Colvin
The Girl Next Door by Phoebe Morgan
The Wives by Tarryn Fisher
Good Girls Lie by J.T. Ellison
Second Best by Jessica Dettmann 
The Move by Felicity Everett 

Now, we know most of these aren’t out yet – but we can guarantee that they are * chef’s kiss* and we simply can’t wait for you to read them. So, we’re planting those good thoughts in your mind early, because we know they’ll be some stand-out reads to end your year on!

Look at all those books, Savvy Readers! It’s hard to believe that so many great ones came out this year – and here’s to a fantastic year of books in 2020 to come! What favourites did you have from this year? Let us know in the comments or over on our Twitter!

Happy reading!

Sarah.

You can follow us on Twitter @SavvyReader.