Favorite Books of 2020: Adult & Nonfiction Edition

December is always one of my favorite book blogging times of the year – if, not my favorite – because I truly enjoy wrap-up season. Over the past two weeks, I’ve shared my most anticipated young adult and contemporary romance releases of 2021. It’s now time to move on to stage 2 of December wrap-up season, aka favorites time! I want to preface this favorites post by saying that my schedule is going to be a little wonky for the next 2 weeks. Although I won’t be venturing out of my home much for the holiday season, I adjusted my schedule since I do celebrate Christmas and want to have my end of year wrap ups posted by New Year’s Eve. This week, I’ll be positing my favorite YA books of 2020 on Wednesday, and I have another blog post coming on Saturday instead of Friday. Next week, I’ll be posting on Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday.

Today, I’ll be giving some love to adult fiction and non-fiction by sharing my favorite reads of the year within those genres! I didn’t create an anticipated releases post for 2021 adult fiction, but I will be sharing some titles in my January and February anticipated releases post early next month. I usually reach for a few adult fiction titles in between YA and contemporary romance, but I definitely reached more for the genre in the latter half of the year. It was a mix of some of my favorite adult authors coming out with new books, recommendations from other bloggers and podcasts, and wanting to take on some less fluffy reads. While I wouldn’t call it a staggering amount, I also read more nonfiction in 2020 than ever before. 

Adult Fiction 

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue is truly one of the most beautifully written books  I’ve ever read. I just think this book is so timeless and original. Following a woman who made a deal with the devil 300 years ago, it was the perfect blend of fantasy meets contemporary world. 

The Heir Affair (The Royal We #2) by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan

I remember blowing through The Heir Affair on my Kindle this summer because I truly needed to just keep reading this sequel to Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan’s The Royal We. Following the fictional British royal family, The Royal We is more of a play on William and Kate, while The Heir Affair is more of a play on Meghan and Harry. Although I didn’t necessarily enjoy the book’s love triangle, everything else about it cemented it as one of my favorite 2020 reads. 

House of Earth and Blood (Crescent City #1) by Sarah J. Maas 

We all know that ACOTAR isn’t really YA – and will officially be considered new adult/adult with A Court of Silver Flames – but I was truly obsessed this year with Sarah J. Maas’ official foray into adult fiction with House of Earth and Blood. I seriously think Crescent City has the potential to beat out Throne of Glass and become my all-time favorite SJM series. The world-building and cast were absolutely phenomenal, and most of all, I loved that even against the plot and romance (can you say, STEAM??), this book was truly about female friendship. Read More »

Contemporary Romance TBR

Since about mid-2019, adult contemporary romance has been the genre I’ve been craving the most. I absolutely fly through most books in this genre, yet I find myself unsuccessfully attempting to take my time reading them because I want to enjoy them as long as possible. Everyone knows I love binge-reading series, but I’ve been trying not to binge-read the books in the series so I know I always have a book to look forward to.

Since I’ve been practically adding more contemporary romances to my TBR whenever I’m scrolling through Goodreads, today I’ll be sharing which adult & new adult contemporary romances I plan on reading (hopefully soon). I’ve divided this TBR by released books and 2020 releases still to come.

Well Met by Jen DeLuca – I’ve decided that on my next bookstore trip (or whenever I get a Barnes & Noble coupon) I’ll be buying Jen DeLuca. I’ve heard so many great things about this ren-faire inspired romance from many contemporary-loving bloggers. There will be also be two more books set in the Well Met world, Well Played (September 29) and Well Matched (2021).

Not the Girl You Marry by Andie J. Christopher – Not the Girl You Marry has received some mixed reviews, but I read its synopsis while strolling through the romance section in the bookstore and still added it to my TBR. I haven’t read a book set in the city in a while, and I love how the female protagonist, Hannah, is an event planner.

Roomies by Christina Lauren – I could probably dedicate a whole TBR to Christina Lauren books (actually, that’s not a bad future post idea…). Roomies received a ton of love and attention when it first came out in 2017, and I think it’s time for me to see what the hype is about.

Heidi’s Guide to Four Letter Words by Tara Sivec & Andi Arndt – What the main character does in Heidi’s Guide to Four Letter Words honestly sounds like something I would do. After being fired from her job as a kindergarten teacher, Heidi starts a podcast reading the steamy scenes from romance novels and finds way more success than she could have imagined.

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