Our favorite books of 2021

A gorgeous, emotional romance published in 2021, Seven Days in June is one of my favorites of the year. I love a well-written romance, and this might have some of the best writing and characterization I’ve found in the genre. It’s also a novel about writers, a niche genre I am very interested in as an aspiring writer myself. And it’s set in Brooklyn, with lots of references to places and neighborhoods I know well. 

If you love a well-written, angsty romance, immediately pick up this book!

Charlotte McConaghy is a new author I discovered this year after lots of prodding from my Mom (see Migrations below). Both of her books that I read this year are set in a future where global warming has taken a firm hold on the planet. With a devastated planet as the setting, she writes beautifully about nature and science, and our impact on the planet. Once There Were Wolves is set in Scotland and explores a future effort to repopulate wolves in the highlands.

Like Once There Were Wolves, Migrations explores a world that is falling apart due to climate change. Migrations is about a researcher with a dark past who will do whatever it takes to follow the flight path of Arctic Terns as they make their way to Antarctica. Moving and beautifully written, I can’t recommend Charlotte McConaghy enough!

My favorite YA book of 2021! This is everything I love in a YA novel. Legendborn is about Bree, a young Black girl attending early college at UNC Chapel Hill just after her mother passes away in a car accident. After arriving at UNC, Brie discovers she had magical powers and becomes entrenched in one of the oldest secret societies on campus. This book combines Arthurian legend with the experiences of Black people in the South. 

Now I wait in suspense for the sequel coming in 2022.

This is the start of a fun, fast paced trilogy set in outer space. The series reminded me of the Hunger Games (in a good way). There is action, intrigue, and a little romance. Brown has written two separate trilogies in this universe if you really enjoy the first three books. 

A popular one on BookTok this year. The Priory of the Orange Tree is THICK, but let that deter you. It’s a standalone epic fantasy with alternating POVs between a few strong female characters. The writing is beautiful and the world sucks you in. Even though it’s long, I went through this fast.

A magical school in Britain where the students are locked in their freshman year, and the lucky ones leave alive four years later. This is dark academia at it’s finest and great for fans of Harry Potter. Also there’s a sequel out now, but you’ll have to wait for the conclusion to the trilogy. 

I love V.E. Schwab. This is one of her older series, but it’s a fantastic concept. Four different Londons exist in four different planes, and only a few are able to move between them. There is magic, there is adventure, there is romance. These books are so good!

One of my favorite fluffy romcoms from this year (and I read a lot of them). Sometimes you need a little escapism and this one delivers, despite being set at a retirement home. Sally Thorne also wrote The Hating Game, but I actually prefer Second First Impressions. 

Will you cry? Probably. This book is tragic, but so beautifully written. It follows two young men who live in a world where you receive a phone call on the day before you die. They do, in fact, both die at the end, but this story is about the journey. This book really makes you contemplate life, relationships, and the choices you make every day.