Halfway through 2019. Hard to believe, isn’t it? Jen Forbus once asked me to pick my favorite books from the first half of the year. I’ll admit, I’m on an odd schedule, currently reading some September and October releases. And, I’ve read some August books that might be on the end of the year list. But, this list includes only books that came out before July (I loved Jay Stringer’s new book, and Jenn McKinlay’s September release, but it’s too early to talk about them).

Here’s my favorite ten books so far. It doesn’t mean they’ll end up on my list at the end of the year, but several may. The list is in order as I read them.

I’m kicking off my favorites with Debbie Tung’s Book Love. It’s a book of cartoons about a book lover, but Tung also delves into her personal feelings. It’s a book that captures so many of my feelings.

Below the Tree Line by Susan Oleksiw introduces Felicity O’Brien who is struggling to keep her family farm in Massachusetts. She suspects someone has been on the property. Then her new puppy finds a woman’s body. And, it’s only the first one to be found on Felicity’s farm.

There’s actually a nonfiction title on my list, Mary Pipher’s Women Rowing North. It’s definitely aimed at women sixty and older, with practical advice as to how to live a successful happy life after that age. However, no short blurb can do justice to this meaty, practical book.

I was a little leery about picking up Kate White’s Such a Perfect Wife. I’m not interested in all those domestic thrillers. However, White’s book brings back Bailey Weggins who is a reporter. When a wife and mother disappears on her morning run, Bailey is hired to cover the story for an online magazine. I’ve have a weakness for mysteries featuring journalists. And, Kate White doesn’t disappoint.

Connie Berry’s debut mystery, A Dream of Death is one of the best mysteries I’ve read this year. Will it make the final list? It’s hard to say because the second book in the series, A Legacy of Murder, will be out in October. I suspect one of the books will be on the final list of the year. An American antiques dealer, Kate Hamilton, returns to a Scottish island, only to encounter murder her first night back. She teams up with a vacationing English police officer when the local investigators aren’t interested in the murder’s connection to history and the past. History, legends, an atmospheric story, and a touch of romance. It doesn’t get much better.

Claire Booth’s third Hank Worth mystery, A Deadly Turn, is a compelling page turner. It has a heart-breaking opening, and Sheriff Worth will question himself during the entire investigation. He sent a carload of teenagers home, only to have them end up in a deadly crash just a short time later. Worth feels guilty, but something about the accident just doesn’t sit right with him.

Matt Goldman’s The Shallows is the third Nils Shapiro novel. It’s a detective novel set in Minneapolis. Shapiro is hired to investigate a suspicious death by the victim’s widow, but the local police and a politician try to hire him as well. Why are so many people interested in the death of a wealthy man? Shapiro is an intelligent PI who doesn’t fall for stupid tricks. I love the voice in this book. (Watch for the giveaway this coming Friday.)

Deanna Raybourn’s Veronica Speedwell books have been making my lists the last couple years, and I was ecstatic and shared the news when she said she signed a contract for more in this series. Raybourn’s adventurous Victorian lepidopterist and her fellow natural scientist, Stoker, are intelligent and witty with sparkling conversations and numerous jabs at each other. The country house mystery is intriguing in the fourth in the series, A Dangerous Collaboration.  But, it’s the sexual tension that dominates their latest exploit. Veronica accompanies Stoker’s brother to Cornwall, where a longtime friend wants to know what happened to his bride on their wedding day when she disappeared three years earlier. It’s a captivating, atmospheric story of folk tales, ghosts, and mystery.

I actually cheated by a few days to put Garry Disher’s Under the Cold Bright Lights on this list. But, it did come out in Australia several years ago, so I’m considering it fair. Acting Sergeant Alan Auhl retired from the Homicide Squad. Five years later, he’s back to work on the Cold Case Unit. There are two cases that still haunt him. Sisters call him every year to check to see if their brother’s case has been solved. They’re convinced he was murdered. The other involves a doctor. Auhl always thought the man killed his first two wives. Now, the tables are turned and the doctor claims his current wife is trying to kill him. Oh, there will be justice with Alan Auhl on the case.

There’s one romance on my list, The Summer of Sunshine and Margot by Susan Mallery. The Baxter sisters, fraternal twins, have always been unlucky in love. However, this time, they’re determined not to let romance get in the way of their jobs. Bianca is an etiquette coach, hired by Bianca Wray’s son to live in, and work with his mother. She’s an actress known for her outrageous behavior, but she’s engaged to a career diplomat. Sunshine is a nanny for a young boy whose mother has died. The book is witty, with charming characters. The humor and romance are just right.

This is a very personal list. I’m sure others may consider some of these books to be odd choices. However, they’re my favorites of the eighty-three books I’ve read so far this year. If you want to mention several of your favorites for this year, please do so in the comments. If you’d rather think about it, come back on Thursday when we talk about what we’re reading, and tell us about some of your favorite books read this year.

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