Friends, now that 2019 is very nearly in the rear view (!!!), I’m offering one last, lingering look behind at the books I read over these past 12 months with a recap of a few of my faves, many of which I listened to on audio.

As a side note: since adding audiobooks to my TBR, my reading capacity has increased significantly. I probably consumed twice the number of books I normally would in 2019 thanks to audio. I listen on the Overdrive app, enabling me to check out books for free from my local library. A huge boon to my reading life!

So here are my picks, in the general order in which I read them:

The Mountain Between Us by Charles Martin. I loved this one for its sparkling dialogue and sky-high stakes. Also, for the skill with which the author crafts a riveting story featuring only two people for 80% of the novel.

The Saturday Evening Girls Club (audiobook) by Jane Healey. Because I don’t normally go in for this type of histfic, I found this one surprisingly satisfying, especially with narration by Cassandra Campbell. It was well researched, with an unexpected depth to the girls’ characters, which provided new insights to the time and place. Several twists toward the end kept me entertained to the last word.

Commonwealth by Ann Patchett. Gripping from first line to last, with the unexpected found on every page. I especially liked how the author trusts her readers’ intelligence; she doesn’t bother to connect every dot or tie up every loose end. Deeply human, surprisingly moving.

Whistling in the Dark by Lesley Kagan. This novel features the strong, unique voice of a delightful young narrator. The story is woven through with secrets and mysteries artfully revealed. Masterfully drawn characters are set in an interesting time and place. Loved it.

Absent in the Spring (audiobook) by Mary Westmacott (an Agatha Christie nom de plume). Haunting, pitch-perfect psychological suspense, superbly narrated by Jacqui Crago.

You Were Always Mine by Nicole Baart. Possibly Nicole’s finest novel yet (although Beautiful Daughters still ranks as one of my all-time faves). She consistently delivers what I love: complex characters, page-turning plots, and nuanced themes, all wrapped up in the loveliest of prose. This one is a cut above.

These Is My Words (audiobook) by Nancy E. Turner. A love story at its heart, with beauty celebrated above life’s harsh realities. I liked the unexpected turns, the quick pace, the depth of the main characters, as well as Sarah’s earthy insights and her way of looking at the world. I didn’t like so much the narrator at first as she adopted a kind of sing-songy cadence that I found distracting–but either that smoothed out or I got used to it, for I didn’t notice it so much in the second half. I loved the book so much that after consuming it on audio, I bought a print copy to keep on my shelves. It’s just that good.

Beartown (audiobook) by Fredrik Backman. I’ve read other books by this popular author, including A Man Called Ove, none of which appealed to me the way this one did. Backman’s writing tends toward the quirky (not my fave), but Beartown is different. It is not quirky. It possesses instead the kind of depth and gravitas I seek in my character-driven fiction. Trigger warning: lots of big issues here. Do your research before deciding whether this one’s for you. On audio, I was riveted.

Farming Grace: A Memoir of Life, Love, and a Harvest of Faith by Paula Scott. A memoir filled with such dramatic twists and turns that, were it fiction, readers would have a hard time suspending disbelief. But every word is real, in the truest sense, right down to its redemptive conclusion. A gritty love story brimming with brokenness and beauty, told by a natural storyteller.

The Mother-in-Law (audiobook) by Sally Hepworth. I loved this. The audio narration is fantastic. Perfectly paced, masterfully drawn characters. Mystery and compelling relational drama wrapped up in one gripping story.

. . .

And here are a few more riveting reads that I can’t call personal favorites, exactly, because of their heaviness in tone or content. But they’re worth noting because of the way they kept me glued to the page.

The Weight of Heaven by Thrity Umrigar. I gave this book a 5-star rating even though I’m not sure I liked it. In fact, rather think I did not, even though I swallowed it down in just a few big gulps. Thrity Umrigar’s work is compulsively readable, with her incredibly well-drawn characters and vivid sense of place. Not a feel-good story by any stretch, but satisfying and somehow just. This is Umrigar’s genius.

Visible Empire by Hannah Pittard. From one page to the next, I had no idea where this story was going. An intriguing and satisfying read, though if I could I’d excise about 12 lines (and one subplot) from the story.

Fall and Rise: The Story of 9/11 (audiobook) by Mitchell Zuckoff. Reading this book, more than any other post-9/11-related activity, has allowed me to grieve all that happened on that day and what it’s meant for our nation ever since. September 11, 2001 occurred just six weeks after the birth of my first baby, which meant I experienced that day and those that followed in a postpartum haze. It left me feeling, then and afterwards, somehow detached from the heartbreak that most Americans experienced. I’m grateful to Mitchell Zuckoff for changing that. His book is meticulously researched, masterfully written, containing a wealth of stories revealing what really happened on that life-changing day. I wish I’d read it before we traveled a year ago to NYC, DC, and Pennsylvania. Now I want to return with fresh insights into all that transpired there. Though it’s achingly hard to read (or listen to, as I did), it felt like a way to honor both the fallen and the heroes, who are often one and the same. Highly recommended.

And you? What were your favorite reads from 2019?