I’m finally closing my year of reading with a quick recap of my whole reading year before diving into my top 5 books. Unlike other readers, I feel like the amount of reading that I make would not suffice for a top 10 books of the year so I am narrowing it down to 5. I would probably do a top 10 if I managed to read more than 100 books in a year.
Okay I will quit blabbing and let’s get into the recap. (Thanks to Goodreads!)
56 books and 17,393 pages. An achievement if you asked me.
2019 is a year of series for me. I managed to finish a lot of series this year and I feel so proud, even my bookshelves are proud of me. So I decided that this top 5 books will only consist of 1 book per series that I have finished, if ever they make it to my top 5 books.
So without further ado, here is my TOP 5 BOOKS of 2019!
TOP 5 – Orange Vol. 5
SYNOPSIS (Vol. 01):
On the day that Naho begins 11th grade, she receives a letter from herself ten years in the future. At first, she writes it off as a prank, but as the letter’s predictions come true one by one, Naho realizes that the letter might be the real deal. Her future self tells Naho that a new transfer student, a boy named Kakeru, will soon join her class. The letter begs Naho to watch over him, saying that only Naho can save Kakeru from a terrible future. Who is this mystery boy, and can Naho save him from his destiny? This is the heart-wrenching sci-fi romance that has over million copies in print in Japan!
📖Thoughts:
I’ve been into manga this year because of this book. I love the series as a whole but I love the last book even more. The story of unselfish love and friendship touches my heart. I can relate in so many levels to Kakeru’s friends. This really warms my heart but broke it at the same time. If you haven’t read this manga, go read it! It’s only short so you will fly through this!
Top 4 – Moonlight Over Manhattan
Synopsis:
She’ll risk everything for her own Christmas miracle…
Determined to conquer a lifetime of shyness, Harriet Knight challenges herself to do one thing a day in December that scares her, including celebrating Christmas without her family. But when dog walker Harriet meets her newest client, exuberant spaniel Madi, she adds an extra challenge to her list–dealing with Madi’s temporary dog sitter, gruff doctor Ethan Black, and their very unexpected chemistry.
Ethan thought he was used to chaos, until he met Madi–how can one tiny dog cause such mayhem? To Ethan, the solution is simple–he will pay Harriet to share his New York apartment and provide twenty-four-hour care. But there’s nothing simple about how Harriet makes him feel.
Ethan’s kisses make Harriet shine brighter than the stars over moonlit Manhattan. But when his dog-sitting duties are over and Harriet returns to her own home, will she dare to take the biggest challenge of all–letting Ethan know he has her heart for life, not just for Christmas?
📖Thoughts:
I believe that having a Sarah Morgan book in my yearly best of the year is becoming a thing. This is another book that wraps-up a series that I have known and love. This is the series that introduced me to Sarah Morgan. Two things that I love about this book: 1.) one of the main characters is a doctor 2.) the moral lessons (like stepping out of your comfort zone). I just love seeing the hospital settings and all the things that’s going on especially in the E.R.
Click here for the full review
Top 3 – The Dazzling Heights
Synopsis (book 1):
NEW YORK CITY AS YOU’VE NEVER SEEN IT BEFORE.
A thousand-story tower stretching into the sky. A glittering vision of the future where anything is possible—if you want it enough.
WELCOME TO MANHATTAN, 2118.
A hundred years in the future, New York is a city of innovation and dreams. Everyone there wants something…and everyone has something to lose.
LEDA COLE’s flawless exterior belies a secret addiction—to a drug she never should have tried and a boy she never should have touched.
ERIS DODD-RADSON’s beautiful, carefree life falls to pieces when a heartbreaking betrayal tears her family apart.
RYLIN MYERS’s job on one of the highest floors sweeps her into a world—and a romance—she never imagined…but will this new life cost Rylin her old one?
WATT BAKRADI is a tech genius with a secret: he knows everything about everyone. But when he’s hired to spy for an upper-floor girl, he finds himself caught up in a complicated web of lies.
And living above everyone else on the thousandth floor is AVERY FULLER, the girl genetically designed to be perfect. The girl who seems to have it all—yet is tormented by the one thing she can never have.
Amid breathtaking advancement and high-tech luxury, five teenagers struggle to find their place at the top of the world. But when you’re this high up, there’s nowhere to go but down….
📖Thoughts:
This is the book that I least expected to love but ended up in here. After reading the first book in this trilogy, I am afraid to dive into this book, which is the second book, because I feel like I know how the story will developed. Truth be told, after the first book I don’t know how the author will pull off the second book let alone a third one. But I was so wrong. The plot takes an unexpected turn that I did not see coming. I was taken aback by the flow of the story that it makes me dived into the third book right after. And this is probably a first where I like the second book in the whole trilogy.
Top 2 – I’ve Got Your Number
Synopsis:
I’ve lost it. 😦 The only thing in the world I wasn’t supposed to lose. My engagement ring. It’s been in Magnus’s family for three generations. And now, the very same day his parents are coming, I’ve lost it. The very same day. Do not hyperventilate, Poppy. Stay positive!! 🙂
A couple of glasses of bubbly with the girls at a charity do and Poppy’s life has gone into meltdown. Not only has she lost her engagement ring, but in the panic that followed, she’s lost her phone too. As she paces shakily round the hotel foyer she spots an abandoned phone in a bin. Finders keepers! Now she can leave a number with the hotel staff. It was meant to be!
Except the phone’s owner, businessman Sam Roxton, doesn’t agree. He wants his phone back, and doesn’t appreciate Poppy reading all his messages and wading into his personal life. As Poppy juggles wedding preparations, phone messages and hiding her left hand from Magnus and his parents, can things get any more tangled?
📖Thoughts:
I picked this book up on a whim. I am not really a big fan of contemporary but I feel like I have read this book in the perfect time. This is the book that I never knew I wanted. The relationship was slow-burn and you could see the development. If you haven’t read this book, do check it out!
Top 1 – The Martian
Synopsis:
Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first men to walk on the surface of Mars. Now, he’s sure he’ll be the first man to die there.
It started with the dust storm that holed his suit and nearly killed him, and that forced his crew to leave him behind, sure he was already dead. Now he’s stranded millions of miles from the nearest human being, with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive–and even if he could get word out, his food would be gone years before a rescue mission could arrive. Chances are, though, he won’t have time to starve to death. The damaged machinery, unforgiving environment, or plain-old “human error” are much more likely to get him first.
But Mark isn’t ready to give up yet. Drawing on his ingenuity, his engineering skills–and a relentless, dogged refusal to quit–he steadfastly confronts one seemingly insurmountable obstacle after the next. But will his resourcefulness be enough to overcome the impossible odds against him?
📖Thoughts:
This book is just PERFECT. If I would recommend a book to someone this would be it! There is no romance, the story is so unique and the main character is hilarious. I think readers and non-readers alike would enjoy this book if they will give it a try. This is a whole new experience and it is very entertaining. If you haven’t read it, go check it out. This is the biggest plot twist of my 2019 and I never knew that this book would make it to my best book of all time! Highly highly recommend!
And that my friends is my Top 5 books for the year 2019. Wishing you all a Happy New Year and a more prosperous reading year for us all!
Till next time!
Maria ❤
A Daughter of Parchment and Paper 