I'm late writing this post. Last year I did it on the
first of the year. I also didn't meet my 2014 goal of reading 100 books. Life intruded so the books were set aside as tasks needed doing. I did read 70 which is still a goodly number.
The list has resided on my sidebar but now since it's gone I'll repeat the list in the order I read them with only those that were outstanding noted as recommendations to you with an *. I didn't include books that I didn't finish (with one exception) because if I don't like a book I don't invest the time to finish it. Consider all these books worth reading.
1.
Inferno by Dan Brown
2.
The Last Chinese Chef by Nicole Mones
3.
Death Toll by Jim Kelly
4.
The Harlequin Tea Set by Agatha Christie (I thought I was done with Agatha in 2013 but discovered this one not on the lists that appear in the front of her books.)
5.
Death's Door by Jim Kelly
6.
Midnight in Peking by Paul French
7.
Death Wore White by Jim Kelly
8.
The Water Clock by Jim Kelly (As you can see I got into this author. Quite spell binding mysteries.)
* 9.
The Light Between Oceans by M. L. Stedman. Set in Australia after WWI and involves a lighthouse keeper and his wife and the infant child they find in a rowboat. Quiet a story.
[oops! 10.
The Goldfinch. I read most of this book then read the end, which made no sense, and gave up. Can't see what all the hype was about this book. Last half was terrible.]
11.
Miss Marple - the Complete Short Stories by Agatha Christie
12.
Postern of Fate by Agatha Christie (more books not on previous lists)
13.
The Minor Adjustment Beauty Salon by Alexander McCall Smith
14.
Jamaica Inn by Daphne DuMaurier
15.
Double Cross - the True Story of the D-Day Spies by Ben MacIntyre
16.
The Janus Stone by Elly Griffiths
17.
The Songs of Willow Frost by Jamie Ford
18.
Whitethorn Woods by Maeve Binchy
19.
Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen
20.
Ethan Fromme by Edith Wharton
21.
The Dressmaker by Kate Alcott
22.
The Summer House by Marcia Willett
23.
The Eleventh Man by Ivan Doig
24.
Benjamin Franklin's Bastard by Sally Cabot
* 25.
Remarkable Creatures by Tracy Chevalier This is based on a true story about how 2 women made a difference in the scientific knowledge of fossils.
26.
Mansfield Park by Jane Austen
27.
Finding Nouf by Zoe Ferraris
28.
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon
29. T
he Paris Wife by Paula McLain
30.
All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot
31.
Call the Midwife by Jennifer Worth
32.
Alex's Wake - A Voyage of Betrayal and a Journey of Remembrance by Martin Goldsmith
33.
Shadows of the Workhouse by Jennifer Worth
34.
Farewell to the East End by Jennifer Worth
35.
A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolnick
36.
A Star for Mrs. Blake by April Smith
* 37.
Danny Champion of the World by Roald Dahl One to read out loud to youngsters.
38.
A Christmas Wassail by Kate Sedley
39.
City of Veils by Zoe Ferraris
40.
The Museum of Extraordinary Things by Alice Hoffman
41.
A Stolen Life: A Memoir by Jaycee Dugard
42.
The Raft by S.A. Bodeen
43.
The Eve of Saint Hyacinthe's by Kate Sedley
* 44.
Mistress Shakespeare by Karen Harper Did you know that William had two wives? Based on authentic research Harper gives voice to the unknown wife.
45.
Kingdom of Strangers by Zoe Ferraris (These mysteries are set in modern day Saudi Arabia and give quite a picture of the plight of women there besides being spell binding.)
46.
The Widows of Braxton County by Jess McConkey
47.
The Midsummer Crown by Kate Sedley
48.
The Mourning Hours by Paula DeBoard
49.
The Tintern Treasure by Kate Sedley
50.
The Year Without Summer: 1816 and the Volcano that Darkened the World and Changed History by William and Nick Klingaman
51.
The Manor -Three Centuries at a Slave Plantation on Long Island by Mac Griswold
52.
The Bookseller of Kabul by Asne Seierstad
53.
The Painted Girls by Cathy Marie Buchanan
54.
Kind One by Laird Hunt
55.
A Burnable Book by Bruce Holsinger
56.
Owen's Daughter by Jo-Ann Mapson
57. T
he Tenant of Wildfell Hall by Anne Bronte
* 58.
The Ghost of the Mary Celeste by Valerie Martin Totally thought provoking. I think I need to read it to try to understand it all.
59.
Pictures at an Exhibition by Sara Houghteling
* 60.
Neverhome by Laird Hunt Based on true stories of women who went to war dressed as men. this one takes place during the Civil War and is quite moving.
61.
The Bean Trees by Barbara Kingsolver
* 62.
Letters from Skye by Jessica Brockmole A wonderful book.
I reviewed it here.
63.
Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte
64.
I am Malala by Malala Yousafzai with Christine Lamb
65.
The Invention of Wings by Sue Monk Kidd
66.
The Midwife's Tale by Sam Thomas
67.
The Lavender Gardens by Lucinda Riley
68.
The Lie by Helen Dunmore
69.
The Three Kings of Cologne by Kate Sedley
70.
Nine Years Under by Sherri Booker.
That's the list. Quite a mixture of fiction and non-fiction with lots of historical fiction predominating mixed in with mysteries. Hope you find some you'll like too.
I've joined a book club blog.
Springtime in Magnolia It will give me a reason to review books which I find I don't do very often on my blog.
