{"id":57518,"date":"2021-01-15T06:31:28","date_gmt":"2021-01-15T06:31:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/xenodochial-archimedes.45-76-20-142.plesk.page\/2021x101x1mrs-bishops-best-books-of-2020\/"},"modified":"2022-11-29T17:52:05","modified_gmt":"2022-11-29T17:52:05","slug":"mrs-bishops-best-books-of-2020","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mrsbishop.com\/2021\/01\/mrs-bishops-best-books-of-2020.html","title":{"rendered":"Mrs. Bishop’s Best Books of 2020 – Mrs. Bishop"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
*I received some of these books as PR, others I purchased with my own money. All opinions are my own. This post contains affiliate links. See my Privacy Policy for full details.*<\/em><\/h6>\n

Talk about coming in down to the wire- as I write this I\u2019m finishing up an audiobook, trying to finish up my last couple of reads of 2020. This year I\u2019ve read more than ever. Of which I am referring to as \u2018The Year of the Audiobook\u2019. Thank God for the Libby app!<\/p>\n

Thanks to all of the events that conspired this crazy year, I had my best reading year yet. Packing and moving (twice) gave me lots of time to listen to audiobooks, and quarantine and shut downs gave me plenty of time to curl up and read. Which really is an introverts dream\u2026 I had a really hard time narrowing down my favorite reads from this year. But, these were a few that left an impression. <\/p>\n

The Best Books of 2020<\/h4>\n
\"The<\/figure>\n

Awakening Wonder by Sally Clarkson <\/a>had been on my TBR all year, and I\u2019ve been treating it as my sort of morning devotional. You can\u2019t binge read this book- it\u2019s best taken in small sips. But, it\u2019s absolutely lovely. If you\u2019re schooling your kids at home, it offers practical advice and soul-filling encouragement. I\u2019m going to do a separate, full review later because I have so much to say. If you\u2019re a fellow homeschooler, or just looking to bring more wonder into your children\u2019s lives- add this one to your list.<\/p>\n

I discovered Katherine Center this year, and she is quickly becoming one of my favorite authors. All of her books are so full of hope amidst the hardest challenges. I simultaneously sob and laugh out loud when reading her books, and I\u2019ve enjoyed every one that I\u2019ve read so far. What You Wish For<\/a> was her newest release, and it was a beautiful story. I listened to it on audio and it was an excellent way to experience this story. Highly recommend! I can\u2019t wait to see what she comes up with next. <\/p>\n

The books I\u2019ve read by Josie Silver are always long, but I fall in love with them anyway. The Two Lives of Lydia Bird<\/a> was a heart-wrenching story full of what-ifs and what-could-bes. How would life be different if one moment could be changed? It will also make you cry, and laugh. You can feel her emotions and it\u2019s like you\u2019re experiencing her heartache along with her. I\u2019m definitely going to pick up some more of Silver\u2019s books. <\/p>\n

I *had* to pick up The Winemaker\u2019s Wife<\/a>, because I\u2019m a bit of a Kristin Harmel fan, and she can do no wrong in my book. Her characters are always so fleshed out to me. And her grasp of historical-fiction and the worlds she lets you step into are phenomenally well done. Again, her stories are always a little heartbreaking (am I sensing a theme in the books I love?) but you can\u2019t help but get immersed in the world of the characters she creates. She\u2019s an automatic-read author for me.<\/p>\n

When I saw Me and Patsy Kickin\u2019 Up Dust<\/a> announced I knew I HAD to have it! I mean, Loretta Lynn and Pasty Cline- 2 of the OG Country QUEENS! Loretta Lynn has always been one of my favorites- I\u2019ve watched Coal Miner\u2019s Daughter, her life story at least 100x. Her music reminds me of my Mam, and was so ahead of its time. I still croon Patsy Cline songs in the shower and listen to her music when I\u2019m sad. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to read about their very special friendship in the words of Loretta Lynn. <\/p>\n

The way she talks with all her \u201cdadgums\u2019 and how she speaks with such love and honesty, is just so charming and endearing. What an amazing friend to still be cherishing their memories together some 50 years later. They were so very lucky to have each other, and this book is a testament to their special bond.<\/p>\n

I have to admit, The Thursday Murder Club<\/a> wasn\u2019t on my radar, and it\u2019s not my typical type of read. But, once I picked it up- I couldn\u2019t put it down. These spunky retirees will have you cheering them on as they try to solve a murder in their \u201cboring retired years\u201d and your not-so-typical retirement community. The story is good, the characters are flawed and hilarious, and the mystery will keep you guessing. All the ingredients for a good Winter night\u2019s read.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll say it again and again, I don\u2019t love YA. But, when I was rounding up my Horror novels in October<\/a>, this one landed on my stack. House of Salt and Sorrows<\/a> ended up being not only my favorite YA Horror pick, but also one of my favorite reads overall this year! Can you believe it?! It\u2019s an atmospheric and eerie adaptation of my favorite fairy tale- The 12 Dancing Princesses. The story is hauntingly beautiful and so descriptive and has really creepy undertones. I also don\u2019t usually reach for fantasy novels either, and I gobbled this one up. <\/p>\n

Maybe I even went and bought a physical copy for my shelf after <\/em>reading it on my Kindle so I could revisit this story again later- high praise from me! I definitely recommend if you like a good, twisted fairy tale. Or if you just need to escape to an imaginary world for awhile. It\u2019s a debut novel done right.<\/p>\n

Last but not least- Home Before Dark<\/a> by Riler Sager. I\u2019ve read a couple of Sager\u2019s novels this year, but this one was by far my favorite. I stayed up late into the night to finish it and kept worrying I wouldn\u2019t be able to sleep after it was over\u2026 Also-I will never again be able to listen to my Sound of Music record thanks to this book. A few people have complained about the dual-timeline, but I listened to it on audio. Which was perfect, because you hear the different timelines in 2 different voices- making it really easy to follow. This one gave me the chills the whole way through- and honestly I\u2019m looking forward to reading it again with fresh eyes now that I know how it ends. But\u2026that TBR is awfully long right now, so it may be a looooog while.<\/p>\n

I hope my favorites help you add to your reading list for the new year. Now let me know 1 or 2 of your favorites in the comments! <\/p>\n\n

You may also like: Books for When You Need an Escape<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Thanks to all of the events that conspired this crazy year, I had my best reading year yet. I read lots- but here are my Best Books of 2020!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":59075,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[66,10],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-57518","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-besties-bookshelf","category-books","has_thumb"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mrsbishop.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57518","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mrsbishop.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mrsbishop.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mrsbishop.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mrsbishop.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=57518"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mrsbishop.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/57518\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mrsbishop.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/59075"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mrsbishop.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=57518"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mrsbishop.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=57518"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mrsbishop.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=57518"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}