Top 3 Books of 2018 (Lizzie)

Do you ever think about a book and know you read it but can't quite remember what year it was you read it? Well, I'm pretty sure I read these books this year and not last year. If I wasn't sure when I read it, or if it was a short story, I omitted it to make the choosing easier. My list focuses on the fantasy books I read, since this is a fantasy blog. However, I couldn't help but mention some of the other full-length books I loved.

Top 3 Fantasy Books Read in 2018

1. The Restorer (Sword of Lyric)

With adventure, relatable characters, great spiritual truths, and a fascinating fantasy world, this was an unexpected gem. I'm looking forward to reading the next in the series, which I bought as a Christmas gift to myself. You can read my review of it here.

2. Tinsel in a Tangle by Laurie Germaine

I loved this book when I came across it in a writing critique group and even remembered to hunt for it years later to see if it had been published. A contemporary YA with a twist, the twist being that the main character is a Christmas elf (well, mostly an elf) living in a fairly modern town (Santa's workshop and elves can have phones and snow mobiles too, after all), it's a delightful, funny romance. Laurie Germaine was a guest on our blog earlier this year. You can read her post here.

3. Masque

Resourceful and witty heroine, strong hero, humor, cleverness, murder, mystery, wonderful British language, and a Beauty and the Beauty-style love curse, Masque was a delightful read. It reminded me of Jen Turano's Ladies of Distinction series, only with an intriguing world of magic rather than the intriguing, though equally foreign, world of 1880s Park 5th Avenue. Masque also gets an award for one of my favorite covers of 2019!

Top Non-fantasy Books of 2018

In no particular order, here are some of my other favorite reads from this year.

1. Where We Belong by Lynn Austin I absolutely loved this historical fiction about the adventures of two sister who educate themselves and travel in a time when that was frowned upon. With romance, exotic locations (Egypt and a monastery in Sinai), and ancient Biblical texts, I loved the history and the characters.

2. and 3. The Silent Songbird by Melanie Dickerston and More than Meets the Eye by Karen Witemeyer Two thoroughly enjoyable books by two of favorite historical romance authors.

4.  No God but One: Allah or Jesus by Nabeel Qureshi My only non-fiction book on the list, I actually read this one twice, which isn't something I do too often. I learned a lot from Qureshi's studies into his former faith of Islam and the faith his research led him to embrace: Christianity. It taught me a lot about who the Christian God is and how he is a God of love and relationship.








5. The Tainted Coin by Mel Starr Another fantastic medieval murder mystery in the Hugh de Singleton Chronicles, only this time with buried treasure and kidnapped ladies to add to the adventure.

Have you read any of these books? Do any spark your interest? What were your favorite reads of 2018?