Favourite Books of 2024

Posted on by

Romance

  • Much Ado About Nada by Uzma Jalaluddin – second-chance romance; Persuasion re-telling set in Toronto’s Muslim community. I’m a huge fan of Uzma Jalaluddin’s work, and books like this are exactly why. It’s evocative and heartfelt, with main characters who make huge mistakes but actually have understandable reasons for doing so.
  • Jane and Edward by Melodie Edwards – contemporary Jane Eyre re-telling set in Toronto. As much as I love Jane Eyre, I was skeptical that it could be adapted to the present-day, but Melodie Edwards achieves this, and in spades! I love how she handled the complex power imbalances between Jane and Edward, and I especially love how she updated the Mrs. Rochester / “mad woman in attic” subplot.
  • Miss Rose and the Vexing Viscount and Miss Isobel and the Prince by Catherine Tilney – fun and flirty Regency romances, two in a trilogy about beautiful blonde triplets who travel to London to learn more about their birth family and experience their first (and only, due to their guardian’s budget constraints) season. Book 1 is about shy triplet Rose, Book 2 is about outspoken triplet Isobel, and I for one can’t wait for Book 3, about practical eldest triplet Anna!
  • The Witch is Back and De-Witched by Sophie H. Morgan – contemporary romances with witchy main characters. Lots of fun, sparky banter, lots and lots of angsty reasons why the leads can’t be together, and some beautifully hard-won happily-ever-afters. Oh and cute dogs! Books 1 and 2 of the Toil and Trouble series (named after the bar the heroines of the first three books co-own) feature a second-chance romance between a shy witch and the charming warlock who left her years ago, and a grumpy-sunshine forbidden romance between a bubbly, animal-loving human and a super-serious warlock with trust issues.

Mystery/Romance

  • The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year by Ally Carter – both homage to, and pastiche of, Agatha Christie’s finest, this is a locked-room mystery starring two rival crime writers who are spending the holidays at a famous author’s mansion when the author suddenly goes missing. With a larger-than-life author character clearly modelled after Christie herself, and a pair of leads trading sparky enemies-to-lovers banter, this story is sheer delight from start to finish.

Mystery

  • It’s Elementary by Elise Bryant – Funny and fantastic series characters lead a strong kick-off to this cozy mystery series about a PTA mom who gets sucked into a mystery at her child’s school.
  • Those Opulent Days by Jacquie Pham – Historical mystery set in French-colonial era Vietnam, this story stands out not only because of the strength of its core mystery, but also because of its incisive and fascinating commentary of the complex race- and class-based social hierarchies of the period.

Contemporary Fiction

  • Hate Follow by Erin Quinn-Kong – a timely and heartfelt exploration of the complexities of using one’s children for social media content. I love how the author showed not just the daughter’s right to privacy over her own life, but also the mother’s need for her income as an influencer to continue paying for her children’s basic needs. It’s hard to see a resolution that would meet both their needs, but the author somehow manages to do it, and show both characters’ growth at the same time.

Graphic Novels

  • Age 16 by Rosena Fung – a heartwarming, heartwrenching, heart-EXPANDING story about three generations of women and their experiences at age 16. The specifics and locales may differ, but many elements also remain the same, reflecting how trauma can get passed down, despite each generation’s best efforts. A must-read for daughters of mothers and grandmothers, especially those of us who know the struggles of being big girls in a society that equates beauty with thinness.
  • Pillow Talk by Stephanie Cooke and Mel Valentine Vargas – this fun riff on Whip It features a pillow fighting league (!), lots of awesome body diversity, and powerful messages about the strength we draw from community. I especially love that the main character’s journey to success in her new life as a pillow fighter (again – !!!) doesn’t involve completely shedding elements of her old life; rather, her pre-pillow fighting BFF ends up staying just as integral to her life all the way through the end.

Lady Kidlat Meets Her Match is a plus-size, nerdy romance set in Toronto, about a museum educator/comics creator and a psychologist who fall in love while working together on art therapy workshops. Features yummy Filipino food, Star Trek conversations and sexy role-playing, and cute kitties. If this sounds like your kind of thing, check out my book at:

Leave a comment