My Favourite Reads of 2024 (and Vow to Read More in 2025)
Ah, 2024 – a year of unexpected twists, lessons learned, and – I hate to admit it- far fewer books read than I would have liked. If you told me back in January of this somewhat tumultuous year that I would only read a meagre 25 books, I would have snorted in disbelief and eyed my overflowing TBR shelves with a smirk, sure I was going to conquer those towers.
Don’t get me wrong, 25 books is still a respectable amount, but I’m used to devouring books like bags of crisps – one after the other, barely pausing to breathe. (Exactly how it should be!)
In 2024, though, something shifted.
Life was busy, my focus wobbled, and before I knew it, I was halfway through the year with a TBR pile taller than me.
BUT! Here’s the thing: I flat-out refuse to wallow in guilt. No, no! Instead, I am declaring 2025 The Year of the Bookworm!
I’ll be cramming words into every day, in every way, audio, paperback, hardback, and WRITING. Yes, I will be writing my little bookworm heart out.
December 2025 is going to look so different to December 2024, you’ll see!
BUT! Before I turn my sights to this brand new year, before I get ahead of myself here – I want to celebrate the absolute stunners I read in 2024. Because, let me tell you, while I may have read less, I certainly did not sacrifice quality.
Here are my top reads of 2024, each a lovely little marvel in its own way.
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin.
This one mesmerised me.
I didn’t have the greatest 2024 health-wise – I have a chronic eye condition which is the worst kind of mystery and entails me taking trips through to the hospital on a regular basis.
Not one to stay down in the dumps when I can help it, I coincided one of my visits with a trip to the bookshop and purchased this little number as a pick-me-up.
Well, let me tell you, the questions, the existential crisis, the feelings… I loved this beautiful, beautiful story of friendship, creativity and the mess that is human connection.
Not necessarily the pick-me-up I intended, but a joy to read regardless.
The fact that this little number is centred around video game development was a bonus – as someone who was (and somewhere within, still is) a huge gamer, I adored this aspect of the book.
That being said, you don’t need to know a joystick from a cheese stick to be swept away by this book’s emotional undercurrent. The love, the loss… it’s simply beautiful. Delicate and profound all at once. I’ll be thinking about this one tomorrow and then tomorrow and all the tomorrows after that. (Sorry)
Stone Blind by Natalie Haynes
Greek mythology but make it feminist.
Haynes takes Medusa – so often flattened into a villain – and gives her the voice she had taken away. What a voice it is! This wry, sharp and emotive novel had me smiling and crying in equal succession. The tale of Medusa, is written from a perspective which has been unduly missed from the mythological tales we know and love.
I’ll admit, I love these modern spins on the Greek myths, Circe by Madeline Miller will hold a place in my heart always, as will Jennifer Saint’s Ariadne and I just know The The Song of Achilles is going to break my heart.
The delicious flip of the script on histories of maligned women is something I long for, and Medusa’s story felt especially urgent. Stoneblind doesn’t just retell the myth – it reclaims it.
Beautifully done.
Also, Perseus sucks.
Nevermoor by Jessica Townsend
I have not a care in the world that this magical novel is labelled “Children’s Fiction” – It’s pure magic!
Morrigan Crow is everything you could ask for in a protagonist: fierce, funny, flawed and deeply lovable. Townsend’s world-building is just… chef’s kiss. It’s like she plucked the best bits of whimsy, danger and wonder from all of the great fantasy series we know and love so well, and poured them into this enchanting read.
I haven’t felt so well transported since the moment I read Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone back at school.
Every page had me enthralled and that kind of escapism is priceless. I already have the next instalment on my TBR, ready to go.
Somebody’s Daughter – Ashley C Ford
This book hit me like a punch to the chest – breathless – yet somehow weirdly grateful for it.
This memoir is all about family, identity and the hard work which comes with self-awareness and understanding. Ford’s writing is so raw, so real and honest – it had me feeling so many things about childhood, about trauma and family.
This book is so brave, tender and emotionally intense – perfect reading for anyone interested in complicated family dynamics.
LOTS of trigger warnings – Ab*sive relationships, Animal Ab*se, Cancer (Terminal) Child Ab*se, P*dophillia and R*pe to mention a few. Take care.
The Wake-Up Call by Beth O’Leary
Ok, Ok, I needed something fun this year, something less heavy, less introspective and less magical – more… light, but not flimsy, heartwarming, but not saccharine.
Enter Beth O’Leary and a whole bunch of romantic chaos.
This story is about two hotel co-workers who don’t have a nice word to say about each other – and whoops – they get stuck working together in close quarters. (enemies-to-lovers alert!)
The Wake-Up Call was like a rom-com in book form. It had me grinning like an idiot throughout its wonderful 416 pages.
The banter was sharp, the wit on point and the tension was gruelling (In a good way!)
It was the perfect antidote to all the heavier reads (and circumstances) of this year and left me feeling hopeful –which, let’s be honest, is sometimes exactly what is needed.
A Look Ahead: 2025, Here I Come!
So, what did I learn in 2024? That it’s OK to read less. That it’s OK to get stuck in a book and put it down when you have other things going on.
BUT! I have also learned that I miss being swept up in stories. I miss the days when I’d fall into bed and say, “Just one chapter,” and suddenly it’s 3 am and I’m googling words I didn’t know existed.
So, in 2025, I’m permitting myself to go back to that. When I’m able, with zero pressure.
I’ll be tracking my reads, making space for new authors, writing this blog, uploading to bookstagram and most importantly, not feeling guilty when life gets in the way.
More joy, less guilt.
If you have made it this far, I’d love to hear your favourite reads of 2024. Maybe I’ll add them to my 2025 list (Though let’s be honest, that list is already spiralling out of control)
Until then, I’ll be over here with a bar of dairy milk, a strong coffee and a new stack of books ready to devour.
Here’s to a new year of reading – one page at a time.
Your Chaotic Bookworm – Heath
