How is it already July, and the first half of 2019 is over?  Seriously, where does the time go?  I didn’t even realize how far we were into this year until I read Katie‘s blog post on her top ten favorite books of the year (so far), and it occurred to me – whoops, I’m overdue to share my list!  So, in no particular order, here they are:

Doctor Thorne, by Anthony Trollope – I continue to love and savor Trollope’s Chronicles of Barsetshire.  Doctor Thorne, the third in the series, has everything – love, social comedy, and (spoiler, but this is Trollope, so…) a happy ending.  I’m working my way through Trollope slowly so as to ration, but they’re all so good.

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, by Agatha Christie – Somehow, I am still not sure if I’d ever read Roger Ackroyd before or not.  But either way, I’ve read it now – and WOW.  While I guessed who the murderer was, that never takes away from my enjoyment of a mystery (on the contrary, I like patting myself on the back) and it was such fun.

Queen Victoria: Twenty-Four Days that Changed Her Life, by Lucy Worsley – I hadn’t read anything by Worsley before (although I am being a terrible book friend and sitting on a copy of Jane Austen at Home that belongs to my friend Susan) but clearly I was missing out.  I loved this creative take on biography and will definitely be seeking out more of Worsley’s work.

The Familiars, by Stacey Halls – This book has it all!  Women!  Pregnancy!  Witchcraft!  Medieval towers!  No, seriously, this book has it all.  I was completely captivated – and especially after I learned that it was based on a real witch trial and that all of the main characters in the book – Richard and Fleetwood Shuttleworth and Alice Grey – were actual people.

An Elderly Lady is Up to No Good, by Helene Tursten – I had it in my head that this was going to be unpleasantly violent and gory, but it wasn’t.  Although I enjoyed every story, my favorite was the story of the elderly lady disrupting her former flame’s late-in-life wedding plans, via a little murder, of course.

The Glimpses of the Moon, by Edith Wharton – I’ve been on a Wharton jag for months, which probably hasn’t gone unnoticed.  It was hard to choose just one, but I did really love Nick and Suzy Lansing’s comedy of errors love story.

Good Omens, by Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman – A re-read, read for book club and in preparation for the (awesome!) adaptation, I enjoyed Good Omens just as much as when I read it years ago.  It’s just as funny, just as touching, and just as delightful a read as ever.

The Bird King, by G. Willow Wilson – I first encountered Wilson’s work through the delightful Ms. Marvel, and loved Alif the Unseen when I read it last year.  The Bird King confirms: everything Wilson touches turns to gold.  I’ve got to seek out her memoir, The Butterfly Mosque, next, and I can’t wait to see what she does with Wonder Woman.

Another Self, by James Lees-Milne – Having never read anything by Lees-Milne, but knowing he was a prolific and witty diarist during World War II and in the years after, I wanted to read his memoir of early life first – and I was lucky enough to score an out of print Slightly Foxed Edition.  It was such a good time, and I especially loved his description of a mistaken communication he received while manning the radio while serving in His Majesty’s Forces during the war.

1939: The Last Season, by Anne de Courcy – Sticking with British history (because obviously) I devoured 1939 and loved every page.  The denial, forced gaiety, and desperation to cling to tradition comes through so clearly, and is especially jarring as de Courcy juxtaposes chapters about society functions and cricket matches against chapters describing the increasingly frantic machinations at 10 Downing Street.  I love non-fiction about England in the first half of the twentieth century, and this was just my sort of read.

Not a bad first half of the year, indeed!  I can’t wait to see what the second half holds – hopefully more great reads.