Ranking the books I read in 2020

Hey guys! Today I am ranking all the books I’ve read in 2020. I won’t be doing in-depth reviews for them but linking to the reviews instead. I will be explaining the position of each book and if I recommend it. We’ll be starting at the worst and ending at the best. Okay, let’s get into it!

2 Star Books

20. I have only one two-star book this year and it’s The Chaos of Stars by Kiersten White. I would not recommend this book to anyone, it wasn’t worth it. The book was confusing and the main character was annoying. I also predicted everything that was going to happen. If you are interested in ancient deities there are books that do a better job.

3 Star Books

19. Just above the worst book I’ve read is Frankenstein. I was just bored while reading this book. I would recommend it if you’re interested and if you enjoy classics, but if you’re looking for a spooky book then pass.

18. The biggest disappointment was Where the Crawdads Sing. It’s not a bad book. There was just a lot of hype around it and it wasn’t what I had expected. If you enjoy nature writing then you will love it.

17. The Woman in the Window was mediocre, which is why it got 3 stars. It was interesting reading about an agoraphobe during a pandemic. But there are way better thrillers out there.

16. Another disappointment was The Siren. I love Kiera Cass and this just wasn’t as good as her other books. The story was so original but the main character was annoying.

15. Up next is Sapiens. I was excited to learn a lot but it turned out I already knew a lot of what Harari discussed in this book. If you’re interested in history but don’t know a lot about the subject then I would recommend it.

14. Right in the middle of the pack is Hunger Journeys. I enjoyed reading from a Dutch perspective during World War 2. The book lost points for lack of character development and a rushed ending.

13. 2020 was the year of sequels/prequels to popular books from my teenage years. Midnight Sun reignited mine (and half of the internet’s) obsession with Twilight. There were many issues with the book but it was fun to revisit the world.

3.5 Stars books

12. I read Voyager and Drums of Autumn (Outlander books 3 & 4) this year. I don’t have a review for them because I’m waiting until I finish the series. But I wanted this to be a master list so that’s why I’m including them. If you ever want my thoughts on Outlander just let me know.

11. My first time reading a stand-alone dystopian novel was with Restoring Harmony. I enjoyed the world that was built but found the main character to be one dimensional. A pretty quick and easy read.

10. Mad Love really surprised me. I thought it was going to be a fun and easy YA romance but there was a lot of magical realism and darker themes thrown in. It was a surprising but interesting read.

9. I loved the Hunger Games when I was younger, and The Ballad of Songbirbs and Snakes cemented my love for it now. It was unnecessarily long at points, but I love the morally grey character of Coriolanus Snow and enjoyed reading his backstory.

8. Gimme a Call would probably be my favourite book if I was younger. I loved the concept and it was fun to read a book set in the late 2000s. I couldn’t handle all the second-hand embarrassment though.

4 Star books

7. The only book I reread (by accident) was The Truth About Forever. I know not everyone likes Sarah Dessen, but I love her books and thoroughly enjoyed the predictability of this one.

6. I love a good historical romance and The Lacey Chronicles did not disappoint. It incorporated some of the negative aspects of history but still had the happy ending I wanted.

5. I’m not a big non-fiction reader, but Educated was amazing. I still periodically think and reflect on what I’ve read in this book. That’s a sign of a good book.

4. The Blood and Ash series isn’t over yet so the rating may change. But so far I’m giving it a 4.25. Really excited to see where this series goes.

4.5 Star books

3. I loved Handmaid’s Tale, and The Testaments was a great sequel to the novel. Atwood created some complex characters and also made this book more readable than the last. I also found the ending to be super satisfying as well.

5 Star books

2. Listen, I think we all know I absolutely love the Throne of Glass series. Not only is it an amazing series that felt like an epic journey, but it also introduced me to the booktok community which I enjoy so much.

1 The final book is The Hate U Give. I just finished it last night so I don’t have a review yet but this book is amazing. I have zero complaints and I think everyone should read this book.

And those are all the books I’ve read this year. I have read 31 books this year (and hopefully I can read a couple more before the new year). I’m so happy that I got back into reading this year – one of the few good things about the pandemic for me. Please let me know in the comments what some of your favourite books that you’ve read this year!

xoxo

Lea