Favorite Books Of 2021

Believe it or not, I don't watch TV all the time. Sometimes I shut the TV off and crack a book!

I am part of a book club with friends and here is what we read this year.

Get our free mobile app

1. The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah

The Nightingale is historical fiction. It is set in France during WWII. It tells the story of two sisters, Isabelle and Vianne. One is a married mother of one and the other is younger and more strong-willed and defiant. However, we learn both sisters protest the Nazis in their own ways. They both do what they can and what they think is right to survive German-occupied France. I loved this book. It has some French in it so I had to keep my translator app nearby and it is super long. The book is 600 pages, but don't let that scare you. It goes fast and is worth it!  Fun fact: Dakota and Elle Fanning have been tapped to play the sisters in a movie adaptation.

2. Disclosure by Michael Crichton

Ok, so this book actually came out in the 90s, but sometimes it's fun to read older books from today's perspective. This book is about a man working at a fictional tech/software company in the 90s. An ex-girlfriend becomes his boss and she takes things a little too far at work. Putting aside all the outdated tech in this book, it goes deep into issues of power, gender roles, our preconceived ideas about sexual assault and harassment in the workplace, all of which are still very relevant today. There were many times I had to reassess my own beliefs. The movie stars Demi Moore and Michael Douglas.

3. The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

This book tells the story of a fictional old Hollywood starlet, Evelyn Hugo. She, at the age of 79, decides to give a tell-all interview about her life, her career, and most importantly, her seven husbands. This book had a lot of buzz around it and I did enjoy it, but parts of it were a little predictable. I did enjoy the look into old Hollywood and how studios and stars would manipulate each other and the press for their own gain. There is a little bit of a twist with the woman with whom she gives the tell-all interview. The book is loosely based on the lives of Elizabeth Taylor and Ava Gardner.

4. My Husband's Wife by Jane Corry

This book has everything: adultery, murder, lies, deceit, and betrayal! Lily is a lawyer in England and just got married. Things should be great, but she ends up working on a trial for a suspected murderer, then she finds out some secrets about her husband's life. Oh, and she's keeping some secrets of her own! Then add to the mix the single mother and her daughter that live in their building and you've got a recipe for some messy stuff. The book has a time jump in the middle and then things get even messier! Twists and turns! I highly recommend.

Well, that's it! Those are the books I read in 2021. Sure, it's only four, but that is better than none!

What did you read this year?