So Long, 2020!

 

2020 on Goodreads by Various
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

2020 Reading Summary

What a weird year! Despite having more time available for reading, I found my attention wandered too much to be very effective at the task. What should have been an exceptional year became an average year and I found myself hiding in genre fiction, unable to face books with serious or heavy subject matter. Whether I enjoy a book or not is usually more to do with me than the book. I don't give 5 stars often or easily, but I may award 4 stars more readily than some. I find most of my choices wind up in 4 stars and this year was no exception.

Total books read: 234

Longest book: The Reality Dysfunction by Peter Hamilton (and for me it was a stinker!)

Shortest book: Silent Night by Milla Vane (a short story)

Science Fiction & Fantasy Reading Project: 45 books completed.

Favourite reading project book: Sailing to Sarantium by Guy Gavriel Kay. I consistently love this man's novels and my only regret is that I have only 3 of his titles yet to read. Thankfully, there is a strong likelihood that he will produce more.

Best new-to-me author: Willa Cather, whose O Pioneers! And Death Comes for the Archbishop charmed me.

Best Mystery novel: Obsidian: A DreadfulWater Mystery by Thomas King. I have loved this series about Thumps DreadfulWater, former cop and current professional photographer, whose life in the small town of Chinook has entertained me for 5 volumes. Sadly, King has pronounced himself done writing, but at least we are left with some excellent re-reading options.

Best Paranormal Novel: The Southern Book Club's Guide to Slaying Vampires. Not your average vampire book, this one made me think about many of the assumptions held in common in our society and about the racial inequality that plagues us.

Best Artificial Intelligence: All Systems Red by Martha Wells. Murderbot is such a fabulous character, supposedly nonhuman, but really exquisitely human in so many ways. After all the books that make artificial intelligence seek to become humanity's overlords, this one introduces us to an AI who would rather goof off and watch TV. Brilliant!

Unexpected New Enthusiasm: fiction by women in the early 20th century. For example, Less Than Angels by Barbara Pym, The Enchanted April by Elizabeth von Arnim, and Miss Pettigrew Lives for a Day by Winifred Watson. (Not to mention Cather, above).

Most Anticipated New Book: Emerald Blaze by Iona Andrews. Completely adventure/mystery/romance and one of my favourite confections. I will, with great delight, read anything that this husband and wife duo publish.

Best YA Novel: The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Kiersten White. I've become quite a fan of Ms. White's work and found this retelling of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein to be wonderfully disturbing. She took the horror of the original and updated it for the 21st century.

Best Espionage Novel: Nobody Walks by Mick Herron. Another author who has become a “must read" in my opinion. John le Carre may be the undisputed king of Cold War spying, but Herron is master of the 21st century espionage novel, with an unforgettable cast of characters who will amaze you with their twisty minds and their unexpected bravery.

Best Victorian Era Mystery: A Murderous Relation by Deanna Raybourn. Mystery with a good dollop of romance , featuring the irrepressible Veronica Speedwell and the delectable Stoker. The author obviously enjoys these characters, making them a joy to read.

Best Non-fiction: The Five: The Untold Lives of the Women Killed by Jack the Ripper by Hallie Rubenhold. An extremely well researched look at the five victims of Jack the Ripper, effectively switching the focus from the perpetrator to the crime victims. An enlightening look at Victorian society for me, as usually what I have read dealt with the upper classes, not the working people.

Agatha Christie project: I've read 4 novels and 2 books of short stories by the Queen of Mystery in 2020. I've signed on to a reading group where we are reading through Christie's works, one per month, in publication order, so I expect to read 12 more over the course of 2021.

My Shakespeare Project: This project came to a screeching halt this year when cinemas and theatres closed. Once Covid-19 vaccines are available, I'll be in line, rolling up my sleeve for a jab so that I can enjoy these entertainments once again.

Most anticipated books of 2021: An Unexpected Peril by Deanna Raybourn, Angel of the Overpass by Seanan McGuire, Wild Sign by Patricia Briggs, Sufferance: A Novel by Thomas King, Slough House by Mick Herron, and anything that Ilona Andrews produces! I also look forward to continuing The Murderbot Diaries by Martha Wells, the Finishing School series by Gail Carriger, plus a number of mystery series.

Reading kept me as happy as possible over these pandemic months. I don't know how some people live without books! There were days when I didn't want to cook or didn't bother to get dressed, but there was never a day that I didn't read.

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