Like many people, I read a lot of books in 2020. I actually had the good fortune to travel a bit in February, before the pandemic really hit the US, so I got a head-start by reading on the plane and in airports. Then once we were locked down in WA, I had a lot of time at home to read. In June, we unfortunately had a major health scare with our dog Daisy, which meant a lot of time in the car in the vet’s office parking lot, waiting for updates, and a lot of time at home, too stressed out to do anything productive. Books were an obvious escape.
My reading in 2020 was pretty eclectic. Fiction across numerous genres, academic works on dance, cocktail recipe books, pop sci, and really, whatever else I could get my hands on. I did a book bingo challenge over the summer, which saw me expanding my horizons. I read new releases, but also whatever was available at the library at the time. So not everything on this list was published in 2020.
These books are presented in no particular order, because it’s hard to truly rank “the best” when you’re comparing such disparate genres and subjects.
Harrow the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir
I told myself I’d keep my language clean on this blog, but there’s no way around this: Harrow the Ninth was a mindf*ck. I really regretted not re-reading Gideon the Ninth before this, as I spent probably the first half or more of the book trying to figure out how much of my confusion was my poor memory, and how much of it was an unreliable narrator.
This is not a standalone novel. It is the second book of the Locked Tomb Trilogy and you must read the first book to have even a clue of what is going on (and even then, you’ll still be confused).
In some ways, Harrow the Ninth is a mess, but it’s a glorious mess. I really cannot wait for the conclusion of the trilogy.
The Care and Feeding of Waspish Widows by Olivia Waite
I promise not every book on this list is about lesbians, although I do read a lot of queer fiction, so here we are. The Care and Feeding of Waspish Widows is a F/F historical romance featuring a beekeeper and a publisher. It also has one of the most warm and inviting covers ever, even if I think the two models look much younger than the characters in the book (the titular widow being old enough to have a son who has his own secondary romance plot).
Like the previous entry in this list, Waspish Widows is the second novel in a series. However, it can easily be read on its own. The publisher was a minor secondary character in the first book (or as romance fans like to call it, “sequel bait”), but the events of this book are not particularly connected to the first book. That said, A Lady’s Guide to Celestial Mechanics is also an incredible book, and one of the heroines designs incredible embroidery patterns.
Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse
Did someone say “epic fantasy set in a world inspired by pre-Columbian Americas?” Yes, someone did, and that someone is Rebecca Roanhorse.
I have to say, I see the term “epic fantasy” getting tossed around a lot as people look for their next Game of Thrones (preferably a queerer, more diverse GoT with less rape, but I digress). I feel like a lot of books under this label fail to live up to my idea of “epic”, but Black Sun hit the mark. We’ve got a vividly realized world, multiple POV characters coming together from across the world, prophecies, world-altering consequences, gods, magic, warring factions, adventure, potential romance… I had a really hard time putting this one down.
Keep Going by Austin Kleon
This was a re-read for me, but it was much needed as I struggled with the motivation to keep creating art in a year full of tragedy. Keep Going is a short, breezy read, the sort of book that makes a great gift even for non-readers, as it’s presented in bite-sized chunks with lots of Kleon’s artwork. If you’re wondering what the point is of creating (whether you write, dance, draw, sing, etc), this book may help you understand the importance of what you do, and help you create even when the world feels overwhelming.
Beautiful Booze by Natalie Migliarini and James Stevenson
Speaking of creating, if you’re looking for inspiration to improve your home cocktail game, look towards Beautiful Booze. Created in tandem by both a home bartender and a seasoned pro, this book is designed to help home bartenders learn how to make creative, attractive cocktails, drinks that taste as good as they look and are sure to get lots of hearts on Insta.
Because the book is geared towards home bartenders, it doesn’t involve too many specialized techniques or pieces of expensive equipment. Most of the ingredients are easy to find at your local liquor store or supermarket, and the few that you have to make at home are incredibly simple (once you learn how easy it is to make flavored simple syrups at home, you’ll wonder why you haven’t been making them all your life).
One thing I really like about this book is that it mixes and matches a lot of the same ingredients, allowing you to make a lot of delicious cocktails with only a few bottles. One of my great frustrations as I’ve improved my own home bartending skills is how frequently I buy a bottle for a recipe, only to find that there’s nothing else I can make with it.
Also, there’s lots of fun travel stories about where the authors were when they made the cocktail, or when they discovered one of the ingredients. It’s almost like taking a trip around the world while still obeying stay-at-home orders.
The Boba Book by The Boba Guys
Confession: I still haven’t made anything from this book but I really want to. I LOVE boba and other fancy milk tea style drinks. The Boba Book was created by the owners of popular boba tea chain The Boba Guys and it shares how to make some of their trendy IG-friendly drinks as well as some original recipes for the book. It also talks a lot about growing up as an Asian-American, and what role boba tea played in the authors’ youthful social life. It’s a really fun book, and you’ll learn a lot, and maybe make some gorgeous drinks when you’re done.
Witchmark by C.L. Polk
Bringing it back to fiction, Witchmark blends fantasy, mystery, and romance into an enjoyable and brisk read. Although the M/M romance is secondary to the main plot, and is of the “closed door” variety, I promise you have never in your life read a more erotically charged shaving scene.
Witchmark deals with some rather hard subjects, such as post-war PTSD, and wrongful imprisonment, and yet somehow it never felt dark, perhaps because there was an element of hope woven throughout.
The second book, Stormsong, is also delightful and has a F/F romance element. The two books (and presumably the forthcoming finale of the trilogy) must be read in order, as Stormsong picks up almost immediately after Witchmark and continues the meta plot.
Hench by Natalie Zina Walschots
Hench is a book about the damage caused by superheroics and the gig economy. It’s absolutely brilliant and fun to read and I think anyone who’s struggled with a non-traditional career path will enjoy it. The main character, Anna, works as a temporary henchman for a series of supervillains, just trying to pay the bills, before being horribly injured as collateral damage during a super-powered battle. What follows is a tale of revenge via spreadsheets.
Mexican Gothic by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
I know we’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but Mexican Gothic has the most lusciously beautiful cover. It also had a really image-based marketing campaign which included a lipstick promotion with Besame Cosmetics (a brand that specializes in vintage-style cosmetics) and a set of paper dolls depicting a few of the main character’s outfits as described in the book.
Speaking of the main character, Noemí is an unapologetic socialite. She’s very feminine, dresses nicely, cares about her hair and makeup, enjoys parties and dancing and flirting with boys. In a lot of other books she would be the antagonist, the mousy main character’s glamorous sister or the mean girl at school, but instead she is allowed to be beautiful and femme and clever and courageous and caring. More of this, please.
Your Turn
How about you? What were your favorite reads of 2020? Anything you think I should have included on this list, or any of my choices you disagree with? Let me know in the comments.
Coming soon: The books I’m most excited to read in 2021.
About the links: All links in this article are Bookshop.org affiliate links. If you purchase a book using my link, I will get a commission and you will be supporting independent bookstores! If you do not use my links I highly encourage you to get your books from a local indie store, or your local library system (which is where I got many of these books).