Fiction Books of 2017

Photo by Anthony Tran on Unsplash

Well, friends, it's that time of year again.  The time of year where I tell you all about the books I read in the past year, and maybe inspire you to try some of them!

Why I read all of these books this year:
1. I LOVE to learn through reading engaging books. It's my favorite.
2. I love to escape through stories. (I learn here too, but it's much different.)
3. Stories inspire me.
4. I get better at life and adulting when I read more.
5. I had a goal of reading 18 books-- 1 1/2 books each month. (I didn't do any audio books last year, but I think I will this year.)  I actually read 26 books in 2017, which means maybe I need to set my goals on the smaller side, and I'll blow them out of the water, because I'm 26 books smarter now than I was on January 1st of last year!  Wahoo!

Here are the fun fiction books I read this year. I'll catch you up on the non-fiction ones I read in a few days.

1. Bridget Jones's Baby by Helen Fielding.
You know what this is, people.  It was a fun, quick escape into the funny and oddly romantic life of that lovable quirky lady.

2. Bridget Jones Mad About the Boy by Helen Fielding.
See above.

3. Happy People Read and Drink Coffee  by Agnes Martin Lugand.
I mean, I'm happy. I read. I drink coffee.  I guess she's got a point. It's about a woman who moves to Ireland after a devastating loss to find herself. Instead, she finds a cranky guy who lives next door. It was interesting enough to read the sequel, which is on my list.

4. One and Only  by Emily Giffin.
I have an interesting relationship with Emily Giffin's books.  You see... She creates interesting characters that make really poor decisions in the "name of love." Like falling in love with your best friend's dad. That's what this book is about. A chick who falls in love with her best friend's dad. But it's not dumb like it seems like it'd be. I mean, it sort of is, but it's also fun to escape and learn how dumb it would be to fall in love with your best friend's dad. I don't advise falling in love with your best friend's dad. But you can read this book.

5. Something Borrowed  by Emily Giffin
Again, interesting character, bad decisions. This chick falls in love with her best friend's fiance and sleeps with him. Don't do this either. I mean, seriously. You are not this dumb. And yet, you'll sort of like this main character, but you'll be mad at her... Kinda like when Rory was being an idiot in Gilmore Girls, and you were like, "Rory! Stop it! You're being so stupid!" I mean, I'm gonna read the sequel, which is told in the best friend's POV. But don't say I didn't warn you.

Books by Lisa Genova
6. Still Alice 
OMG, you guys. This book killed me. Maybe because I have Lyme Disease and that makes me forget words and I've experienced some of these weird, frustrating, scary things, and I fear that this is my future, but this was an incredible story. It's about a brilliant professor who gets early-onset Alzheimers. Read this one for sure.

7. Love Anthony 
Another beautiful heart-wrencher. Love this one about a mom who lost her autistic son and becomes a photographer on Nantucket?  Or Martha's Vineyard?  Somewhere like that. It was good.

Books by Liane Moriarty:
8. The Last Anniversary
9. Three Wishes
10. The Husband's Secret
These are all great. Read everything by Liane Moriarty. I just love her style of story-telling. Always with a twist. Always something engaging. Always interesting characters.

11. Dark Matter by Blake Crouch
Okay, this one was weird. But really good. I'm not usually into Sci-Fi, but even far-fetched multiple universes couldn't derail me from the story of a man who just wants to go home to his wife in his perfectly imperfect life.

12. Good As Gone  by Amy Gentry
If you weren't worried about your kids before, you will after you read this book. It's a beautiful story about a mother and her daughter... The mother losing her daughter, finding her again, and coming home. It's a gory, read it in 48 hours thriller. 

13. Maybe In Another Life  by Taylor Jenkins Reid
You know that thing we do where we wonder what would've happened if I had... Well, you get to watch each decision play out with lovable characters.  Another fun 48 hour read.

14.  The Forgetting Time by Sharon Guskin
So... this one is also a little weird. It's about a little boy who had a previous life. You know how these books go.  When someone tells you about the book, it sounds crazy and far-fetched, and then you read it, and you're like, "Yeah. I get that. These characters aren't crazy.  Why won't people believe them?!  I love them!" This is a great story.

That's it for last year's fiction!  I can't wait to tell you about the amazing things I learned last year in my non-fiction reading!