Books from 2024 that made a mark
Each year, we wait for December to approach so we can create reading challenges for the following year, assess the books we read this year and see whether or not we met our goals. If you are anything like me, you are an inconsistently consistent reader.
Let me explain what this entails. I have reading seasons throughout the year. There are months where I will read five books in a row, or 10 over the course of two months, and then I won’t read anything for the next five or six months. This has been my reading routine over the years.
When I get that motivation to read, I hold onto it until I completely exhaust it. Then I take a hiatus from the book world until my next spell of reading motivation. This year was no different. 2024 was a phenomenal year for reading. Let me present to you the best books that I read this year.
I must preface, I love psychological thrillers. That is the genre of books I tend to read the most. I also adore historical fiction. My interests are often categorized by current obsessions regarding specific topics. But above all, I read to soothe my soul and feel whatever emotions and feelings I am holding back.
A monumental book that I read this year was Atlas of the Heart by Brené Brown. This is a beautiful book that explains 87 of the emotions that we experience as humans. From joy and happiness to grief and anguish, the human mind is a powerful anchor of various emotions that explain what it means to be human.
This book helped me understand the emotions I feel in great detail. Additionally, I found it to be a pivotal book in my personal development journey, as it helped me stop mixing emotions together and categorizing them as one particular emotion, when in reality, what I was feeling is a completely different emotion.
I have learned that this is a way that I mask my emotions. I will say I am feeling sad when what I feel is grief and anguish. All in all, this book is perfect if you want to use 2025 to better yourself, and most importantly, understand your emotions.
Another book that I read this year is The Body Keeps the Score: Brain, Mind, and Body in the Healing of Trauma by Dr. Bessel van der Kolk. In case you haven’t noticed already, there was a clear pattern in the books that I read this year. I wanted to understand myself and gain knowledge about my experiences, feelings, and emotions.
Dr. Bessel introduces a scientific analysis and a guide for understanding your experiences as a way to heal from them. He focuses on the effects that trauma has on our brain, body, and emotions. Through this book, we learn how trauma re-shapes the human nervous system. Additionally, it alters brain function and affects our ability to connect with ourselves and our surroundings, as well as our ability to regulate our own emotions.
The third best book that I read this year was The Next Mrs. Parrish by Liv Constantine, a sister duo who are two of my favourite authors. This is a follow up to their previous book The Last Mrs. Parrish. Both books are juicy, dramatic books that you will speed through.
The Next Mrs. Parrish is a fun read characterized by mystery, intrigue, and thriller. It centers around Amber Patterson who previously set her sights on the other prominent character, Daphne Parrish’s husband. Amber is jealous of Daphne’s wealthy lifestyle, and creates a plot to steal Daphne’s life.
As Amber succeeds in her plan, Daphne’s life falls apart. She walks away from her previous wealthy life only to run into more challenges as she navigates single motherhood, an abusive ex-husband, and his new wife Amber, who is still after her. I highly recommend this book as it is an exciting read that unfolds fast and forces you into its attention-gripping world.
Lastly, here are some honorable mentions: Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-Joo, The Wife Upstairs by Rachel Hawkins, Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris, Apples Never Fall by Liane Moriarty, Sometimes I Lie by Alice Feeney, The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller, The Drowning Woman by Robyn Harding, and Where The Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens.
