Today is my 2 year blogging anniversary and I’m still loving it – I love the interaction I get from fellow bloggers and the recommendations I get from them (although I’m not sure my TBR would agree!!)  I still haven’t got the hang of turning down blog tours to try and make a dent in my TBR but I have read some amazing books and I am generally better at choosing books I really want to read.

Yet again I have attended some amazing events – including preview evenings, the Folio launches, some events for books including The Last and The Flatshare and most recently I attended the Sunday Times / University of Warwick Young Writer of the Year Award.  I’m lucky to have met some bookish friends in real life for the first time this year and without sounding too corny, I feel like I have found my people!

On a personal level, the year has mostly been positive.  We had an amazing two weeks in Florida and we have managed to tick off some big house jobs including a new bathroom (bliss!) and rendering.  My job has been more challenging this year – I have pretty much been doing the same thing for almost 20 years but with a restructure and a new manager I have had to do lots outside my comfort zone, including being in a corporate video!

My youngest son has developed a love of drama and took part in a production of Bugsy Malone which was amazing – I was so proud of him.  My older son has suffered with ongoing health problems but we are now at a point where his pain is under control and he is about to sit his A-Levels and go to University!

I’ve saved my 2019 highlights until the very last minute because you never know when a book might make it into my top books but first some stats (because I’m a nerd)

• I have published 108 posts which include all the books I’ve read and some of the bookish events I’ve attended.
• I’ve read 102 books, up from 91 in 2018.  My original target was 80 as I figured I read around 1 book every 4-5 days, but there were some books I read quicker.  I’m sticking at 80 for 2020 – there is enough pressure in life and I don’t want to make my life any harder!
• That’s 33943 pages!
• I gave 5 stars to 30 books
• I’m going into 2019 with 222 books on my shelves that I haven’t read (up from 129 last year – oh dear!)
• The shortest book I read was 87 pages; the longest 496 pages
• If you want to be friends on Goodreads, you can find me here
• I’ve chosen 11 books from 2019 that I have loved – I couldn’t narrow it down to 10 so there you have it!

Top Eleven Books of 2019 (in the order in which I read them)

• The Flatshare by Beth O’Leary

• Tiger by Polly Clark

• After the End by Clare Mackintosh

• Sweet Sorrow by David Nicholls

• This is Going to Hurt by Adam Kay

• The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

• The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker

• Grandmothers by Salley Vickers

• My Dark Vanessa by Kate Elizabeth Russell

• The Switch by Beth O’Leary (review to follow on publication April 2020)
• Three Hours by Rosamund Lupton (review to follow as part of a blog tour in January 2020

Do you agree with any of these?  I hope I’ve influenced a few of you to add more books to your lists! Thank you for reading.  Happy New Year to you and here’s to lots more bookish fun in 2020!

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