The Best Books I Read in 2016

Belated Merry Christmas wishes!!!

When I started writing this post earlier in December I actually forgot that some books I really, REALLY enjoyed were books that I read this year. When you read 117 books in one year, it can be hard to remember them all, which is why I LOVE Goodreads and my bullet journal for keeping track of the books I read and what I thought of them.

I wanted to narrow my "best books of 2016" list down to 10 books like I did last year, but that was honestly impossible, so this post is what you get. Here are my favourite and most notable reads from the past year and a bunch of extra enjoyable reads at the end. I wouldn't recommend all of these books to every reader because we all have different tastes, but I think I've tried to include a bit of a variety here too. Looking forward to seeing which books make it on to other readers' lists!! Check out Steph and Jana's blogs today for the link-up. I'm also linking up today with Top Ten Tuesday over at The Broke and The Bookish.

Harry Potter and the Cursed Child by J. K. Rowling, Jack Thorne, and John Tiffany - So...of course I loved this book. I knew I would love it before anyone even had the idea to write it and I am absolutely completely biased because I could read a new Harry Potter book everyday and be the happiest person alive. BUT my more unbiased opinion would be that this was a fun way to revisit some beloved characters, and although the play format was different, it made for a quick read and I really loved it. It wasn't nearly enough to quench my Harry Potter thirst and I am dying to re-read the series so I might even start doing that this week. I know there are a lot of critics out there, but this was pure enjoyment for me.

The Inspector Gamache series by Louise Penny - my personal favourites were book 4 (A Rule Against Murder), books 5-6 (The Brutal Telling, Bury your Dead), book 9 (How the Light Gets In) and book 12 (A Great Reckoning - published this year). This entire series is worth the time and I will recommend it until the day I die, but if you don't like it, we can still be friends. It starts a bit slow, but it's best to read the books in order if you can. I went on a huge Louise Penny binge read in 2016 and I do not regret it one little bit.

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton - (see review here) I read 2 Kate Morton books this year and I had planned to read more, but I ran out of time. ;) Her books take awhile to get into, and they are a bit long, but they are so, so good. I'm sure I will get to her other books in 2017 and I can't wait. The Secret Keeper was intricately woven and absolutely completely satisfying at the end.

What Alice Forgot by Liane Moriarty - I had forgotten that I'd read this book this year because it stayed with me so much that I feel like it's been in my life forever. I read it in January and actually checked it out from the library again in November to re-read parts of it. I loved this book so much and have recommended it to people because I thought it was just such an interesting perspective on married life, motherhood, sisterhood, and all of it. It was SO interesting and so well done, in my opinion. Definitely my favourite book by Liane Moriarty so far.

When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalinithi - I'd heard so many amazing reviews of this book, but I wasn't sure how much I would like it because memoirs are not typically my thing. This book was amazing though. Parts of it were desperately sad, but there was also so much hope. The writing was beautiful. I listened to it on audiobook and I definitely recommend that format.

Better than Before and The Happiness Project by Gretchen Rubin - I am not a big non-fiction reader but these books were both incredible, and incredibly inspiring. Not for everyone, but I am a huge fan. AND check this out:

You can order a signature card to put inside your book on her website! She ships them for free in Canada and the US!

Persuasion by Jane Austen - might just be my favourite of all of them. This story was phenomenal and I don't know why I didn't read it sooner. I go back and forth between P&P and this as my favourite Austen every day.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini - this was an absolutely incredible book and it has sold millions (and been highly rated for many years) for a reason.

The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah - if you haven't heard of this book, you've been living under a rock. ;) The emotions that I experienced while reading this book were INTENSE but it was so absolutely incredible. It's also the book that turned me off WWII books for the rest of 2016, I think. So there's that..but it was great. 

One True Loves - by Taylor Jenkins Reid - I gushed about this book for months and was able to buy it last month so I read it all again. I might get over it someday, but not anytime soon. For the record, I also loved After I Do and Maybe in Another Life. If you haven't picked up a TJR book yet...get one of these asap.

The Grand Sophy by Georgette Heyer - this book came quite highly recommended by Kristen and it did not disappoint me one little bit. I hope to re-read it sometime. It was SO humorous for that genre and highly enjoyable.



Other books I loved that you should check out if you're looking for recommendations:

Endgame - by Susan Kelly <--- this is my aunt and I am still abundantly proud of her for publishing her first novel this year.
Sense and Sensibility & Emma by Jane Austen - if you are trying to branch out from Pride & Prejudice
The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt - if you like middle grade at all or have a teenager in your life...this book was SO great.
A Tree Grows in Brooklyn by Betty Smith - if you want to read a more modern classic ;)
The Secrets of Happy Families  by Bruce Feiler - if you like books about parenting.relationships without all the mumbo jumbo crap. This was a good one.
Happiness for Beginners by Katherine Center - if you like Taylor Jenkins Reid's books or are looking for a slightly less fluffy contemporary romantic fiction book
Eligible by Curtis Sittenfeld if you like Pride & Prejudice but you aren't a purist
Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah - if you want to cry your eyes out after 450 pages
The Likeness by Tana French - I hope to read more of this series someday, this one was an interesting murder mystery
All the Light we Cannot See - by Anthony Doerr - if you love beautiful writing and WWII
The Golden Son by Shilipi Somaya Gowda if you enjoyed The Kite Runner
One Plus One by JoJo Moyes if you liked the movie Little Miss Sunshine
The Bridgerton Series by Julia Quinn if you like historical romance and series about families :)
The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale - I'm not sure what I would link this book to, but probably if you like The Secret Garden or other similar older YA classics.

Just for fun, here were my top ten books in 2015. :)

And here are a few BEAUTIFUL book covers from 2016:

We had a beautiful Christmas and I am absolutely 100% enjoying spending every waking moment soaking up my lovely children and relaxing. Looking forward to reading more "best of" lists this week and sharing my 2016 book analytics post soon!!! Happy New Year to all of my favourite reading buddies :) :)