My Top Fifteen Books of 2024

 

 

  It's that time again...

I intended to do a Top Ten, but as usual when making my list it grew too long - you know how it is!  The books I've chosen were not necessarily published in 2024, but I read them this year.  If any of them pique your interest, please click the title for my review and universal links to Amazon and Goodreads.

I've listed them in the order I read them, aside from the last five, to which I awarded my rare and very special 5 Gold Stars.😊  I hope you see something that appeals, as I highly recommend them all!

The Drau River Flows to Siberia: The Victims of Victory

by Marina Osipova

The story of two people who survived Stalin's Siberian gulags, and the fate of the Cossacks under the care of the Allies in WWII.

I, Richard Plantagenet : Book 2 Loyaulte Me Lie 

by J P Reedman

The later life of Richard III

Hard to Forgive 

by Georgia Rose

Third book in the 'A Shade Darker' series.  A woman alone, a life lived in obsession and regret...

Pride & Pestilence 

by Carol Hedges

Book 11 of the Victorian Detectives murder mystery series

Live and Let 

by Judith Barrow

A short, amusing memoir, much of it about holiday lets.

Psittacide 

by Zeb Haradon

The crazy political arena of 2172, Book 2 in the Disposable Soma series

A Boundary of Stones 

by Millie Thom

The story of Eyam, the Derbyshire village that famously isolated itself during the 17th Century bubonic plague, stopping it from spreading to neighbouring villages.

Local Gods 

by Mark Hurst

An assassin who needs to lie low discovers strange happenings in the village of Little Baddington...

Operation Tulip 

by Deborah Swift

Working for the resistance in Nazi occupied Holland, 1944

The Queen's Avenger 

by Anna Legat

The story of a monk who supported Mary, Queen of Scots, through all she suffered.

*

5 GOLD Stars

All Quiet on the Western Front 

by Erich Maria Remarque

A young German man's experiences in World War I  

A Matter of Time 

by Judith Arnopp

The life of Henry VIII in his own words, from the Anne of Cleves era until his death.

The Swan Maiden 

by Gemma Lawrence

Book 2 of The Surface and the Deep, the story of Anne of Cleves.

Moments of Consequence 

by Thorne Moore

Short stories, dark themes.  Mostly.

Size Always Matters 

by Sally Cronin

Comprehensive guide to weight loss, exercise, nutrition and so much more.

LOCAL GODS by Mark Hurst @MarkHur41481024

5 out of 5 stars

On Amazon (universal link)
On Goodreads

How I discovered this book: Recommendation

In a Nutshell: An assassin who needs to lie low discovers strange happenings in the village of Little Baddington...

Local Gods is a dark and terrifying little gem that I looked forward to getting back to each time I had to put it down.  London assassin Pete Collins allows personal vengeance to enter into his paid work, which does not please the faceless men he serves.  On the advice of his handler, he drives into deepest Gloucestershire, out in the sticks, to avoid any heat that might come his way.  

After a strangely cool reception on the night of his arrival (with the exception of new pub landlord Craig, who has made the mistake of trying to inject Little Baddington with the culture of Hampstead), Pete becomes increasingly unsettled by every experience in the village, and every local with whom he comes into contact.  And it's only going to get worse.  Suffice to say that Pete the contract killer soon starts to feel like the 'goodie'.

I love a story that surprises me all the way through, with developments I can't predict at all, and this was one such.  It's not a particularly long book, I imagine about 65 or 70K words (though I might be wrong, as the words do tend to whizz by when you're eagerly turning the pages!).  It's beautifully edited, with never a superfluous sentence, just the right amount of detail and atmosphere, with characters that pop into life as soon as they appear.  And the ending ... so, so good.  Really wish I hadn't finished it, though!

As is probably obvious, I highly recommend this novel.  If you're not the sort of person who spooks too easily...

THE LONG VIEW by Mark Hurst @MarkHur41481024

 4 out of 5 stars

On Amazon UK
On Amazon.com
On Goodreads

On BookBub

How I discovered this book: friend's recommendation.

In A Nutshell: A girl who can see dead people... and a certain evil.

Oddly, the last book I read was about a boy who could see dead people - just coincidence, it's not my new favourite genre!

Fifteen-year-old Sophie Lydon's father is an undertaker, which is somewhat disturbing for a girl who can communicate with the recently deceased.  The gift was inherited from her mother, now dead; Sophie lives with her father and her mute, intellectually disabled uncle.  Life is not easy for her, and being bullied at school by the cool queen of the class, Cassie, makes it a whole lot worse.  Then again, Cassie has her own problems.

Bob Curran is a former detective who grew obsessed with the work of a serial killer, and is sure that an unnamed evil lies beneath his crimes, one that has not yet been laid to rest.  Then the murders begin again...

I very much liked the concept of 'the Long View', a long, long walk after death, destination unknown, during which the walkers are tempted by offers of rest and comfort.  This is an unusual story, and unpredictable, which is always a plus.  The characterisation is good, particularly Cassie and Bob, and the plot is cleverly worked out.

The story has an omniscient narrator, which did not always work for me; it's a hard style to carry off, as too often it can slide into confusing 'head-hopping' - this is when one minute the reader is inside Sophie's head, the next inside Bob's.  This can be executed convincingly, but in this book there were no gaps between 'heads'; a row of asterisks before the next person's POV can make all the difference.  Similarly, when there is a time gap, or a change in setting, so that the reader doesn't think, 'hang on a minute, isn't she supposed to be in a kitchen in the day time?  How come it's suddenly all dark?'.  I think it could have used the eyes of an experienced editor, for this reason.  However, the person who recommended it to me was not bothered by these aspects, so you may not be, either!

Recommended to those who love a dark paranormal story, and who are not too squeamish - it's far from grisly but there is a fair bit of well-written graphic detail about the murders.