Best Books of 2021

2021 was a year, for sure. It had its ups and downs, but there’s no doubt that as far as books go, 2021 was a pretty amazing year. This year, I read less fantasy and more horror, and I see that trend continuing in 2022. I ended up meeting my goal of 95 books read, and to be honest I was hoping to hit 100, but I stalled out in December and just couldn’t make that number. No worries, though! I had plenty of awesome books to choose from. I’m breaking my list up by genre, so I can highlight as many favorites as possible, and I’m starting with my Top Five Books of 2021. Here we go!

Top Five Books of 2021

It was very hard to narrow down my top five this year. I had six or seven books that should be on this list, but a top six or seven just doesn’t have the same impact, so here we are! Come With Me was my discovery of the year and probably my number one book of 2021, to be honest. I was grateful to read two amazing series conclusions with The Fall of Koli and The Bone Ship’s Wake. My first Catriona Ward book, The Last House on Needless Street, has cemented her as a “must read” author, and Chuck Wendig never fails to amaze me, and his 2021 release The Book of Accidents was mind blowing.

Come With Me by Ronald Malfi. The nitty-gritty: Careful plotting, creeping suspense and raw emotion make Come With Me the standout, can’t miss thriller of 2021.

The Fall of Koli by M.R. Carey. The nitty-gritty: A thrilling, heartbreaking and satisfying end to one of my favorite series, The Fall of Koli is one of the best books of 2021.

The Bone Ship’s Wake by R.J. Barker. The nitty-gritty: Loyalty, betrayal, secrets and lies, sea dragons, prophecies and much much more, The Bone Ship’s Wake is a fitting end to a brilliant fantasy series.

The Last House on Needless Street by Catriona Ward. The nitty-gritty: A creepy, disturbing tale perfect for fans of twisty, psychological horror. I couldn’t put it down!

The Book of Accidents by Chuck Wendig. The nitty-gritty: A dark, twisty tale full of surprising connections, unexpected horrors and nuanced characters, The Book of Accidents is a must read.


Below are all the other books I loved this year, divided up by genre (click on the titles to read my reviews):

Best Fantasy of 2021

Birds of Paradise by Oliver K. Langmead | The Shadow of the Gods by John Gwynne | Hall of Smoke by H.M. Long | Titan Song by Dan Stout | The Ladies of the Secret Circus by Constance Sayers | The Blacktongue Thief by Christopher Buehlman | Jade City by Fonda Lee

Best Horror of 2021

The Strange Thing We Become and Other Dark Tales by Eric LaRocca | In the River by Jeremy Robert Johnson | To Dust You Shall Return by Fred Venturini | Revelator by Daryl Gregory | Rovers by Richard Lange | The Gulp by Alan Baxter | Feral Creatures by Kira Jane Buxton

Best Science Fiction of 2021

Adrift by W. Michael Gear | Ten Low by Stark Holborn | Day Zero by C. Robert Cargill | The Last Watch by J.S. Dewes | Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir | Dead Space by Kali Wallace | Eye of the Sh*t Storm by Jackson Ford

Best Mystery, Thriller, Paranormal of 2021

Getaway by Zoje Stage | Later by Stephen King | Whisper Down the Lane by Clay McLeod Chapman | These Silent Woods by Kimi Cunningham Grant | In the Garden of Spite by Camilla Bruce

Best Novellas of 2021

The Album of Dr. Moreau by Daryl Gregory | Comfort Me With Apples by Catherynne M. Valente | The Past is Red by Catherynne M. Valente | Light Chaser by Peter F. Hamilton & Gareth L. Powell | Elder Race by Adrian Tchaikovsky


What were some of your favorite books of the year? Do we have any in common?

Posted December 28, 2021 by Tammy in Best Books of the Year / 70 Comments

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70 responses to “Best Books of 2021

    • Tammy

      Next year I’m hoping to read more older books too, so hopefully some will make my end of year 2022 list:-)

  1. I love seeing these lists, so many great books on here, ones I’ve read and ones I very much want to read. Elder Race was one of my favorites this quarter, just loved it. And I also thoroughly enjoyed Come With Me, Dead Space, and These Silent Woods. It has been a good year for reading. Here’s to hoping for more in 2022!
    todd recently posted…Quarterly Look Back – 4th Quarter 2021My Profile

  2. will

    Seriously Tammy? I’ve read TWO of these lol—and I can’t believe you somehow managed to limit yourself to 5 in each category. I couldn’t even stop at 10!

  3. Mar

    oh I can’t believe I haven’t read any of them! I had an awful reading year and miss so many good books! Time to catch up! Thank you for all the good ideas!

  4. I’ve never read Adrian Tchaikovsky’s work before. Think I’ll start with Elder Race as it’s a novella (and has a gorgeous cover to boot!). I’m also bookmarking this page for some great suggestions on what to read next — I can never have enough of those! 😉 Hope 2022 brings awesome books for you.
    Lex @ Lexlingua recently posted…Favorite Books of 2021My Profile

  5. RS

    Yesss, another “not just ten” rulebreaker like me, love to see it. I also love a good horror novel, but didn’t actually read that many this year as opposed to thrillers (I definitely haven’t read any of yours), so I’m happy settling in to this post for some good recs.

    P.S. Dang that’s a cool header graphic.
    RS recently posted…Top Ten (Percent Of My) 2021 ReadsMy Profile

  6. I always find myself making different categories for my favorites, there’s just too many usually, haha! I really loved THe Last House on Needless Street as well. The Shadow of the Gods, Jade City, and The Last Watch are also amazing, and I think your horror section is reminding me of all the horror books I’ve been wanting to read still! What a great list of books, looks like you had some wonderful books to read this year. 🙂

  7. We have quite a few in common, actually! And quite a few more that I am really hoping to get to ASAP! AND the ones I have read and didn’t add to my list (looking at you, Adrift) were JUST misses, you know? Like- they were 5 stars but they just didn’t quite make the cut. I NEED to get to Light Chaser, Dead Space, Day Zero, and Book of Accidents like, asap. And The Past is Red, The Last Watch, and Hail Mary all made my list too!
    Shannon @ It Starts at Midnight recently posted…Tremendous Tales of ‘Twenty-OneMy Profile

  8. I see myself trending towards more horror and thriller too, and looks like my sci-fi took a dip this year while my fantasy stayed about the same. A lot of great books on this list though and I see we share a lot of the same favorites!

  9. Great list here, and of course, In the Garden of Spite will be on mine… when I get around to posting it.
    Also, it seems that many of us got worn out in these last months of 2021 and we lost some reading/blogging steam.

  10. Well, it really seems like 2021 was pretty good, bookswise!!
    The Last Watch is in my lost of favorites too!! And maybe 2022 would be the year in ehich I finally start The Boneship’s series!!

  11. I’m so happy that we have such a lot of books in common. I’ve read quite a few of these and will definitely be reading These Silent Woods very soon.
    Lynn 😀

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