December always feels like a good time for reflection, and as the month draws to a close I started thinking about all the books I read this year and all the ones that are still languishing on my TBR. There were quite a few books I was super excited to read this year and somehow… didn’t.
Being a mood reader, this does actually happen quite often: I’ll get excited for something, then my reading mood changes, I switch books and next thing you know it’s the end of December and that book is still on my bedside table, unopened.
Review commitments and blog tours also haven’t helped with this. I’m super grateful to have the opportunity to take part in them and shout about those amazing books, but it does mean that when my reading time is more limited I sideline all my other reads to concentrate on those instead. Which is why for next year I intend to slow down on blog tours to focus on all the great books I haven’t gotten around to reading yet.
Here are a few books I was super excited to read in 2024 but haven’t yet. They’re not all new releases, just books I planned on reading this year – and in some cases for several years running!
1. The House in the Cerulean Sea by T. J. Klune
I’m probably the last person left in the online bookish community who hasn’t read this book… This has been on my TBR for ages, and I bought a copy a few years ago but somehow I haven’t gotten round to picking it up yet.
It’s also a book I’m pretty sure I would love because it has all my favourite tropes, so I really need to pick it up! First bookish resolution for the New Year is: read this!
2. Labyrinth’s Heart by M. A. Carrick
So, you know how only a few days ago I said I love The Mask of Mirrors? Well, I still need to read the final book in the series!
I’m notoriously bad at finishing series… somehow I’ll get started and then never get to the final book. But this is one I absolutely want to complete. I miss Ren, Serrado, and Vargo, and I want to know how their stories end!
3. Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier
This is a classic I absolutely want to catch up on, because it sounds amazing. It’s been on my spooky season TBR for the past couple of years, but I always ended up bumping it due to some other more urgent read (why, hello library due dates!).
I saw the film a few years ago, so I’m really curious to go back to the source sometime soon!
4. Babel by R. F. Kuang
“A historical fantasy epic that grapples with student revolutions, colonial resistance, and the use of language and translation as the dominating tool of the British Empire”
If that doesn’t sound like a book for me, then I don’t know what would! I was really looking forward to reading Babel, but it never felt like the right moment for it. Hopefully I’ll have some headspace to tackle it in the next few months!
5. Spells for Forgetting by Adrienne Young
I loved the Fable series by Adrienne Young, so I was really looking forward to this. I don’t even know why I ended up not reading this, especially considering it came out almost 2 years ago already!
6. Voyage of the Damned by Frances White
A gay murder mystery on a cruise ship. That should be enough to instantly make me read this. And yet, here we are. I have a gorgeous Illumicrate edition of this, so I really have no excuses for not picking this up!
7. Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel
An Indian myth retelling is right up my alley, and yet this is also stuck in my e-reader…
8. Her Side of the Story (Dalla Parte di Lei) by Alba De Céspedes
I was delighted to find a copy of this under the Christmas tree last year because I’d been wanting to read it for so long. And I still do…
The author described this as “the story of a great love and of a crime.” Every time I see it on the shelf, I’m reminded of how much I want to find the time and headspace to pick up this story of resistance and feminism.
9. Maude Horton’s Glorious Revenge by Lizzie Pook
That title alone was enough to catch my attention. I was also lucky enough to be approved for this on NetGalley, but somehow it slipped through the cracks. One to catch up on for sure!
10. Saltblood by Francesca De Tores
A fictional account of the story of Mary Read, one of history’s most famous pirates. Need I say more?
That’s only scratching the surface of my never-ending TBR! Have you read any of these? What are some of the titles you were excited for that are patiently awaiting for you to pick them up? Let’s chat in the comments!
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I did the same for my Top 10 and listed books I was meant to read in 2024, but never did. I love looking at the end of year lists. Thanks for sharing and I hope you get around to the books you listed.
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Thank you! I love taking a peek at other people’s lists too, so thanks for sharing yours 🙂
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If it makes you feel better you’re not the last person to read that T. J. Klune book, I’ve read nothing by them yet 🙈 I’ve selected a couple of their books for my high priority TBR but considering how big that supposedly selective list has become I’m not 100% convinced when I’ll get to them 🙈🙈
You’re also not alone with struggling to finish series. I’ve seen so many other people say the same thing. I have two I’m prioritising once I’m up to date with arcs (I only have a few and they’re not out until March & April but I want to keep on top of them). But I majorly need to read The Ending Fire as it’s the finale in one of my favourite series and also the last Daevabad book as I was loving it, and the second had a must carry on ending.
We share a few other titles too such as Spells For Forgetting, Kaikeyi and Voyage Of The Damned. Although the last of them only recently really caught my eye when I saw it mentioned and realised it was a fantasy mystery.
I hope you enjoy all of these whenever you get a chance to pick them up. There are so many incredible sounding books around that keeping on top of everything that catches your eye is such a struggle. Still it’s better to have too many options than too few 😂
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Haha glad to know I’m not alone! Having too many options of good books to read is definitely a great problem to have 😂 Thank you!
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