Last year was a great reading year for me. I challenged myself to read 150 books on Goodreads and I surpassed that challenge. The amount of books I read this year made it difficult for me to consolidate all my favorites in one list. So I decided to do multiple blogs this time.

Here is my first blog on Favorite Fictional Standalone Books -

Code Name Verity / Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein

Rating: 5 star

I started this year with two books by Elizabeth Wein and immediately fell in love with the story and the characters. You can check out my review for these two books here.

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas

Rating: 5 star

One of the best books I read this year. This book is about the sensitive topics of racism and police violence. Inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, this book centers around Star who losses her best friend Khalil, shot by a cop. Star is the sole witness to this horrific incident. And now, she needs to make choice - tell the truth and endanger herself, her family and the community OR, stay silent and allow Khalil’s name to be tarnished.

The turmoil that Star was in felt real. The characters felt real and their pain felt absolutely real. And this is what I loved most about this book.

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

Rating: 5 star

A brilliant work by Margret Atwood, this book is based on a dystopian, totalitarian society. In this world, handmaid’s are required for only one thing - child birth. Offred is one such handmaid, who had a family, - a daughter, a husband, a job, a life where she was happy. But she was pulled away from all that and turned into a handmaid whose only job and value is decided by ability to give birth. In this society, handmaids wear red and leave the house once a day to go to the market. Every month she has to take part in a ritual with commander and his wife, where commander would try to get her pregnant, while his wife holds her down.

This was such a disturbing read that I stayed up nights thinking over it. The journey that I made with Offered in the book impacted me deeply and scared me. It made me realize that the sudden change in society is something that is not impossible in future. The question is ,if that happens, will we be as helpless as Offred or will we be able to take a stand and save our world and people we love from it?

The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan

Rating: 5 star

“A good book leaves you wanting to re-read the book. A great book compels you to reread your won soul” - Dorigo Evans

The Narrow Road to the Deep North is a heartbreaking story of war, Prisoners of War (PoW) to be exact. The descriptions in the book were so visual and horrific that I actually had to skim through some of them because of the details. The sufferings of the prisoners, the harrowing details of the diseases - cholera, dysentery and ulcers, descriptions of malnutritioned prisoners, the account of their deaths, broke my heart into million pieces. Divided in three parts - pre war, during war and post war, the story is centered around Dorigo Evans and his life during all these three phases of his life. And what a journey it is!

Down among the sticks and bones by Seanan McGuire

Rating: 5 star

This is the second book in Seanan McGuire - The Wayward Children series. Though I enjoyed all the books in this series, my favorite is the second book - Down among the sticks and bones.

This book tells the story of two girls - Jack and Jill, who get transported to The Moors, through a doorway. We meet both the sisters in the Every Heart A Doorway (Book#1 in The Wayward Children Series). This book tells us the story of how Jack & Jill reached to The Wayward School For Children. It can be called a prequel to Every heart a doorway.

I felt this book was darker than the first book. The character development of both the girls is amazing! I was especially intrigued by the fact that two girls from the same household and twins can turn out to be so different from each other. I loved the character of Jack in the story. Considering that the book is a novella, Seanan McGuire did a wonderful job with the characters and the story. I am so glad I picked this series up.

The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

Rating: 5 star

This book is a retelling of the Trojan war and the role of Achilles in it, but from the eyes of Patroclus. The love story between Achillies and Patroclus is beautifully executed. Seeing Achilles from the Patroclus’s point of view is heart warming.

Patroclus - the son of a king, exiled from his own country is a guest at Achilles’s court. Both the boys grew together under the same roof. When Achilles was sent to Cyron for his further training, Patroclus followed and found his passion in medicine. Then came the dreaded Trojan War. Both Patroclus and Achilles wanted no part in it, but were pulled into it. There waited trials of their friendship and love. And the tragic end of their love story.

The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang

Rating: 5 star

This book is my absolute favorite. From the protagonist, prestigious military school descriptions, extremely adorable and a little crazy professors to the description of wars and strategies. This book is an absolute marvel. I loved loved loved the character of Rin. The story has moments of triumphs, losses and sacrifices. I loved the discussions on war strategies (some of them are from one of the books that I will talk about in another post - The art of war).

Nikara Empire is at peace but the clouds of war are still over them. The Federation of Mugen, against whom they fought the first poppy war can make a move anytime and that will mark a beginning of a war. Rin is an orphan who aces Keju - a prestigious exam to get selected in the Sinegard elite military school. There she discovers her shamanic powers and some other facts about her life. Before she could graduate from Sinegard, the war begins. With the war begins the race to save Nikara. Rin maybe the only one who can save the people of her country. But will she be able to do it?

Circe by Madeline Miller

Rating: 5 star

Yes! Madeline Miller makes a comeback on my list!

Circe is the story of - the witch Circe. Her life before and after being exiled to the island of Aeaea. On the journey with Circe, we see how hard she works to become a powerful witch. Giving us a lesson that expertise does not come easy. If you want to achieve something, you have to work towards your goals consistently.

The book focuses on the journey of Circe and how she approaches love, heartbreak, motherhood and life. She is strong and powerful, but she has her weaknesses. She has her own monsters to deal with. This book handles the Greek mythology in the background, with the life of Circe in the foreground, which is far from mundane.

The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

Rating: 5 star

If you love strong female characters, this is the book for you! Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo has one of the strongest female characters that I have read this year. She is ambitious, extremely bold and a ruthless negotiator. She doesn’t flinch from using people for her own benefit. Sometimes she is good, sometime she is bad. A flawed character overall. But she knows her flaws and accepts them with complete honesty.

The book falls under the genre of Historical Fiction, talking about the life of Evelyn Hugo, a movie star. Evelyn’s life is full of scandals and she chooses reporter Monique Grant to work on her autobiography for the first time. As Monique listens to her story, it is revealed why Evelyn Hugo choses her and how their paths intersect.

This book had amazing male-female and female-female friendships. It handled some difficult and scandalous topics. It was an emotional roller coaster ride, with the ups and downs of Evelyn Hugo’s life.

The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August by Claire North

Rating: 5 star

An astonishing novel falling in the genre of Fantasy, Science Fiction with of course - my favorite (drum rolls please!) Time Travel. Because who doesn’t love time travel? Harry August is born in 1919. He lives through his life and dies in a hospital in 1989. You would think the story ends there, but that’s where the story begins. No matter what decisions he makes in his life, he is born again at the same place on the same date, under the same circumstances. He is an Ouroboran or a Kalachakra. During one such life, he is approached by a child (another Kalachara) who passes him the message that the world is ending. Harry decides oto take on the task of finding out the reason for the world to end and how to stop it from happening. The question is, what is he going to find in his pursuit to stop the world from ending?

Though the book was slow paced, I loved reading how Harry approaches each lifetime. I especially enjoyed the bond (strong friendship) he makes with Vincent Rankis and how that relationship turns sour. Both highly respect each other for their supreme intellect, but both have different goal in mind and in order to achieve their goal, they have to stop other person. It is a race, a game of chess. Both trying to outwit another man. The question is who will win?

There There by Tommy Orange

Rating: 5 star

Absolutely stunning work by Tommy Orange, There There takes us on the journey through the lives of twelve different characters. All of them are going to - the Big Oakland Powwow for different reasons. All of them heading towards a disaster which will change their lives forever. What is going to happen in the Powwow is no mystery. But still when you reach at that point, you are absolutely destroyed.

Embedded with history and experiences of native Indians, this book is an emotional ride. It is interesting to see how Tommy Orange has put his own voice in between with an introduction and an interlude.

Sadie by Courtney Summers

Rating: 5 stars

Sadie is a great emotional read. The story starts with a popular radio show - The girls hosted by West MacCray. Mattie, Sadie’s younger sister was murdered. After a while an abandoned car is found on the road, which belongs to Sadie, with no sign of her. Sadie’s grandmother reaches out to West MacCray for help and the search for Sadie begins.

The journey that Sadie makes is astonishing. The revelations as the book progresses are much sinister than one murder. The question is, will West MacCray be able to uncover these sinister plots and will he be able to reach Sadie in time to help her?

All the books mentioned in this blog are my 5 Star reads. I highly recommend these books. They were worth every minute of my reading time.

Coming up next week… My Favorite Books of 2018 - Series.