Friends! Happy Monday! Happy New Year! Happy New Decade!

I took a little blogging break over the last couple of weeks, and just concentrated on my people. Such a fun time of relaxing and making some great memories.

But, now I am BACK!

As of today, I am back in business over here at Lunchbox Babies, and am kicking off the year with my favorite type of post! A book review! But, not any book review! The BEST OF THE BEST: 2019 Book Review!!! A week into 2020, but all the same! So excited!

In 2019, I read 47 books! FORTY-SEVEN BOOKS!!! A handful of them were amazing, most of them were great, and one or two were hard to finish, and just one was literally THE WORST! But, overall, I loved the majority of the 47 books I read! As a reminder, here is the list from last year. Click on the links to read the individual book reviews.

January
The Woman in the Window by A.J. Finn
Just One of the Guys by Kristan Higgins
The Dinner List by Rebecca Serle

February
Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens
My One and Only by Kristan Higgins
An Unwanted Guest by Shari Lapena
Catch of the Day by Kristan Higgins
Swear On This Life by Renee Carlino
The Hating Game by Sally Thorne
Until There Was You by Kristan Higgins

March
Then She Was Gone by Lisa Jewell
99 Percent Mine by Sally Thorne
The Best of Us by Robyn Carr

April
Too Good To Be True by Kristan Higgins
An Anonymous Girl by Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen
For Once In My Life by Colleen Coleman
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
The Mother-in-Law by Sally Hepworth

May
The Proposal by Jasmine Guillory
Fight or Flight by Samantha Young
It’s Always The Husband by Michele Campbell
Big Sexy Love by Kirsty Greenwood

June
Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah
The Last Time I Saw You by Liv Constantine
The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang
The Other Woman by Sandie Jones

July
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
My Favorite Half-Night Stand by Christina Lauren
My First Mistake by Sandie Jones

August
Meet Cute by Helena Hunting
The Silent Patient by Alex Michaelides
Life and Other Inconveniences by Kristan Higgins
The Wedding Party by Jasmine Guillory

September
Things You Save In A Fire by Katherine Center
Watching You by Lisa Jewell
On Mystic Lake by Kristin Hannah
Good Luck Charm by Helena Hunting

October
Someone We Know by Shari Lapena
The Last Post by Renee Carlino
The Banker’s Wife by Cristina Alger
Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah

November
All I Ever Wanted by Kristan Higgins
One Day in December by Josie Silver
The Third Wife by Lisa Jewell

December
Girls Like Us by Cristina Alger
The Mister by E.L. James
Magic Hour by Kristin Hannah

So, I really think that you need to read every single one of these books. One or two weren’t my favorite, but we all have different tastes. After going back over this list, there are a handful that still stand out to me. Some weeks after I have read them. Some months.

So, here is my list of THE BEST BOOKS of 2019! I have three favorites, plus three honorable mentions. But one of my favorites, may be an all-time favorite. UGH! So good.

Honorable Mentions

The three books in the section were exceptional. I really loved them. Highly, HIGHLY recommend these three.

Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah

Kristin Hannah once mentioned her love of Anna Wintour, the character in Winter Garden. Of course, I had to read. And, friends . . . Anna is a ROCK STAR!! I loved this book. It was a bit slow to start, and quite frankly I couldn’t stand Anna. But, as the book went on, my love grew. This was a beautiful book of strength and resiliency. Click here to read my initial review of this book, and click here to grab a copy for yourself. I just loved this book. I didn’t want it to end!

The Last Time I Saw You by Liv Constantine

If you remember, this is the book that I read on our annual “framily” trip this summer. The kids were ALL up this book, per the picture proof! I was telling them the end of the book here, and they were into it!

This book was such the perfect suspense, who did it kind of story. At the end of every chapter, I was convinced the bad guy was someone else. It was suspsensful, but not nightmare/anxiety-inducing. Hence, why I was able to tell a “tamed down” version to the kids. It was just SO FUN! Harlan told me today that I needed to find a new Liv Constantine book for this year’s annual “framily” trip because the kids loved it so much. Definitely check this one out! Click here to read my initial review, and click here to grab a copy for yourself!

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Oh, Evelyn Hugo. This book was recommended to me by two separate friends, and I just loved it. Truly, it rocked my world. If someone told me that this was a true story, I would believe them 100%. It just seems true. Such a raw and heartbreaking story about what is real and what is of the heart. Truly beautiful. I would say that this book is rated R, but barely a R. I have thought about this book, and the amazing Evelyn Hugo ever since I put it down last summer. Click here to read my review for this book, and click here to grab a copy for yourself!

TOP THREE BOOKS OF 2019!!

3RD RUNNER UP:
The Banker’s Wife by Cristina Alger

In October, I told you of my love for this book and this author. SOOOOOOO GOOOOOD! This book is like reading the Bourne Identity. Does that even make sense? This is a fast-paced, suspenseful story with a huge mystery, international espionage, and a love story all mixed into one. Yes please! If you like this genre of books AND only read one a year, read this one! Trust me on this one!

I read this book when we traveled to Vail, and I think I had it finished in less than 36 hours. I could not put it down. I will definitely be reading every Cristina Alger book that I can get my hands on. Such a talented and detailed writer! You will be hooked from the first chapter. Click here to read my initial review and then click here to grab a copy for yourself!

2ND RUNNER UP:
Swear On This Life by Renee Carlino

Oh, this book. My heart!

I read this book WAY back in February of 2019, and I am STILL thinking about it. It is a chick-lit book that dives WAY down deep into poverty, abuse, forgiveness, and love. WOWZA. Just typing this, I am thinking that I need to read it again. This is the kind of book that makes me want to read. It has all of the things, and gives you all of the emotions. YES.PLEASE.

Click here to read my initial review of this book, and click here to grab a copy for yourself. SO.SO. GOOD.

WINNER:
The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

In fifty years, if someone asks me what my all-time favorite book is, I would imagine that I would say it was The Nightingale. Hands down.

After I read and feel in love with The Great Alone, several of you were trying to convince me to read The Nightingale. I did start it a handful of times, but when one of the main characters is named Sophie . . . and you lost your sweet Sophie about a year before . . . it is hard to get through. So, I put it down for awhile.

Let me just say that when I finally picked it up for good, I was so thankful. This book moved me in a way that no other book has done. Kristin Hannah has such a beautiful way of writing strong women characters that tear at your heart while you are wondering what in the world you would do in their situation.

I had to read the last two chapters twice because the tears and the feelings. Oh, y’all. Please, please read this book. It is being made into a movie, which both excites me and terrifies me. I don’t want the beauty of this story to be ruined in any way. I really can’t say enough about this book.

I always say that Kristin Hannah writes the kind of books that you can feel in your bones. This book is very much that way.

I can’t imagine the book that blows The Nightingale away as my favorite of all time! Thank you to ALL of you that convinced me to finally read this. I have thought back to this book MANY times since putting it down LAST APRIL!

Click here to read my my initial review and love of this book, and click here to grab a copy for yourself. You will thank me. Promise!

*******

Whew! That was a BIG post for the first one back in 2020! I LOVE reading, and I am so happy that so many of you do as well.

Full disclosure . . . I have yet to crack a book in 2020. I have just had so much fun lounging and playing with my people, and any book takes a back burner to that!

Of course, I am currently COMPLETELY ADDICTED to the Netflix show Schitt’s Creek, so my evening time has been dedicated to that. No worries though, I have a stack of books sitting on my desk and plan to work through them soon!

Have a great day, friends! As always, let me know what books you are loving! Happy reading! XO