Hey book lovers! Welcome to MJ’s Reading Roundup 2024, where I share my thoughts on the books that kept me company throughout the year.
That said, I completely missed my 2023 Roundup (breaking my three-year streak, ouch!) and can only recall reading fourteen full-length novels over the last two years.
In my defense, I was nose-deep in writing the final book of my TimeBlink series, which hit the shelves in February, followed by a prequel novella in November. Between those two releases and catching up on my reading, it’s been quite the bookish couple of years.
Find the complete twisty-turny Syd Brixton TimeBlink Series here.
A quick side note before we dive into my reviews: I recently had the pleasure of contributing to Shepherd.com, a clever book discovery platform where authors share their personalized reading lists. There, I curated a list called ‘The best time travel books that don’t fit the sci-fi mold,’ featuring five books that share themes with my own work.
So, if you’re stumped about what to read next, you should definitely check out Shepherd.com—their recommendation system is scary good at matching readers with books they’ll love.
In the meantime, enjoy this year’s Reading Roundup where you’ll notice the majority of the books have to do with TIME… either bending it, traveling through it, or getting hopelessly tangled up in it.
Here they are in no particular order. 📚
The Unmaking of June Farrow – Adrienne Young
Magical Realism / Time Travel
Young has delivered a spellbinding supernatural mystery that proves impossible to set aside. What begins as a seemingly straightforward story about generational secrets transforms into a time-bending puzzle when the character steps through a mysterious door, adding the unexpected element of time travel to this mesmerizing read.
Driven by forces beyond her control, protagonist June Farrow launches into a determined quest to break a family curse, find answers about her mother’s disappearance, and solve a murder that has lingered in the shadows for decades.
The addition of a love story spanning different timelines grounds the supernatural elements in genuine human connection. Combined with gothic mystery and speculative fiction, the result is a hauntingly immersive reading experience.
I invite you to explore my feature on Shepherd.com, where I share further thoughts on The Unmaking of June Farrow and reveal why this book earned its place among my Top 3 Reads of 2024.
The Mind, Heart, and Soul Series – Jessica Cantwell
Women’s Contemporary Fiction
This author first came to my attention with her coming-of-age fantasy series, The Realm Saga, which I enjoyed, despite being a genre I wouldn’t normally gravitate toward.
Now, in a bold departure, Cantwell tackles deeply personal territory with her Mind, Heart, and Soul Series. While categorized as Women’s Contemporary Fiction, these novels draw from real-life events, artfully blending lived experience with fictional elements to create something both authentic and compelling.
Rebuilding Jennifer is a gritty, heartbreaking story that follows young Jennifer Lee Black who has been dealt a life of abuse, neglect, and torment. These unthinkable acts are committed not only by her mother but also by friends and trusted figures in the community who were meant to protect her.
Despite these impossible challenges, Jennifer’s innocence and optimism infuse a welcome lightheartedness into a story that could easily have been overwhelmingly dark.
Indeed, Cantwell has given us a powerful story that highlights love, hope, and the resilience of the human spirit.
Book two in this series, Finding Preston, is another extraordinary narrative from this author.
On the surface, Finding Preston is a traditional love story, but it’s so much more. It’s a fearless portrayal of personal trauma and healing. Again, largely autobiographical, the author uses the now teenaged Jennifer Lee Black’s character as a lens to examine her own path to self-discovery.
When we are first introduced to Preston Ledger, the character behind the title, he comes off as an overly self-confident, abrasive personality leaving me to wonder how he could ever truly connect with Jennifer. However, he evolves in ways that feel both authentic and unexpected.
Though the narrative follows the pair’s budding relationship, it is 17-year-old Jennifer’s character development that remains the story’s true heart. Her resilience shines through moments of frustration and triumph, particularly in her relationship with her great-grandmother—a character who brings a delightful warmth and wisdom to the story. Watching Jennifer gradually learn to assert herself against toxic family dynamics and professional obstacles is at once heartbreaking and inspiring.
I recommend this story to readers comfortable with themes of psychological abuse, sexual trauma, and family violence. Cantwell approaches these emotionally challenging subjects with a delicate balance of honesty and hope, creating a narrative that’s impossible to put down. I look forward to reading the final instalment in this series.
(Content guidance: physical/psychological/sexual abuse of a child, gun violence, rape, explicit sex)
The Book of Doors – Gareth Brown
Time Travel Thriller
Bookstore clerk Cassie Andrews inherits a special book after one of her favorite customers dies…but it’s not any book; it comes with special powers (sound familiar, TimeBlink fans?).
Enter Drummond Fox, a weary Scottish librarian with a hidden collection of magical books similar to Cassie’s. For more than a decade, he’s been on the run from a ruthless faction of book hunters who are willing to torture and kill for the powerful tomes. Recognizing that Cassie possesses the most coveted book of them all, Drummond knows he must protect her–and The Book of Doors–at all costs.
My favorite stories blend everyday reality with tantalizing glimpses of the extraordinary, and this one hits all the marks.
If you, too, are drawn to narratives with all the elements of a grown-up fairy tale—heinous villains, likeable protagonists worth rooting for, and a dash of magic—The Book of Doors is yours to unlock.
Starry Starry Night – D. K. Till
Metaphysical Science Fiction
I have a confession.
When I came across D.K. Till’s new time-travel novel in a Facebook group, I almost dismissed it as something I didn’t want to read…even though the book’s cover, description, and Amazon categorization fit my tastes bang on.
Why, might you ask, would a devoted time-travel fan be so quick to pass on the perfect book?
My reservations stemmed from a visit to the author’s website where I discovered that the book fell under Christian Fiction. This isn’t a genre I typically explore, and I was concerned it might lean too heavily on religious themes, potentially overshadowing the time-travel elements I enjoy.
I decided to take a chance on it anyway, and I’m so glad I did. What I found was a well-plotted psychological thriller populated by compelling, believable characters.
The story follows Tree, who lives in the future in a transformed country called Normerica with her boyfriend, Glim. The pair use newly perfected time travel technology to explore the past and future, but the journey becomes perilous when Tree uncovers a secret that threatens her very existence if she returns to her own time.
Meanwhile, in 2019, pregnant newlywed Paige becomes entangled in a mystery surrounding her friend Katrice’s disappearance and the time travel story Katrice had been writing. As Paige investigates Katrice’s vanishing, the two timelines converge, triggering ripples that could reshape not only the women’s lives but also the very course of history. Yes, Paige often asks God for guidance during crises, yet the author balances this spiritual element enough to avoid overwhelming the narrative.
I recommend Starry Starry Night to readers who appreciate spiritual themes interwoven with their thrillers or those open to exploring religious perspectives without feeling coerced.
Wrong Place Wrong Time – Gillian McAllister
Women’s Psychological Fiction
Another gripping thriller that kept me glued to the pages well past my bedtime.
Can you imagine what you would do if you witnessed your normally happy, easygoing teenage son stab someone to death—only to wake up every day following that further back in time? That’s the story’s premise, and it’s as chilling as it is heartbreaking.
My only criticism is that I got frustrated at around the two-thirds point, prompting me to say, “Oh come on, figure it out, will you?” That being said, it didn’t stop me from enjoying the book thoroughly, and I recommend it to anyone who loves a good time-bending tale with domestic thriller vibes.
Dark Matter – Blake Crouch
Technothriller
A friend recommended this book to me a couple of years ago, and I shouldn’t have waited so long to read it. The premise revolves around Jason Dessen, a man leading a seemingly average life with his wife, child, and a decent job as a college professor.
Jason’s world is upended one night when he’s kidnapped, knocked unconscious, and awakens in a reality that mirrors his own yet is starkly different. In this new world, he’s a celebrated scientist, but alarmingly, he has no family.
I’m drawn to stories that explore questions about destiny, love, and paths not taken. Blake Crouch has achieved this in Dark Matter, crafting a tightly paced plot infused with an intriguing sense of mystery and edge-of-your-seat danger. The story not only captivates but also prompts introspection about your own ‘what ifs.’
I highly recommend this book to anyone who enjoys a time travel thriller with underlying themes of resilience and family loyalty.
A Day Like This – Kelley McNeil
Women’s Literary Fiction
Imagine waking up from a car accident to find your entire life has changed.
This is Annie Beyers’ reality in A Day Like This by Kelley McNeil.
Annie’s memories of a beautiful yellow farmhouse, a doting husband, and a young daughter contradict her new reality. Everyone insists she gave up her idyllic country life years ago to pursue an art career. And if this wasn’t alarming enough, they claim she never had a daughter, and that she’s in the midst of a painful divorce.
Determined to uncover the truth, Annie embarks on a quest for answers as soon as she recovers from her accident.
Interestingly, this story has a strikingly similar premise to Dark Matter, reviewed above. Both books feature protagonists who awaken to unwelcome new lives, desperately seeking their way back to their loved ones and their comfortable, happy lives. However, the similarities end there. While Dark Matter fits neatly in the Technothriller and Dystopian categories, A Day Like This has a distinct metaphysical vibe and is classified as Contemporary Women’s Fiction. The result? Two novels with similar concepts but vastly different reading experiences. I highly recommend both.
Adrift – Lisa Brideau
Psychological Thriller
From its gripping opening—an amnesiac woman awakening alone on an unfamiliar sailboat—Brideau’s Adrift immediately pulls readers into its psychological undertow. The mysterious note instructing ‘Ess’ to ‘Start over’ while keeping her identity hidden adds a sinister undercurrent to the protagonist’s already precarious situation.
As someone who grew up in the Pacific Northwest, I found myself completely immersed in Brideau’s portrayal of the coastal landscape—every detail of its untamed waters and rugged shoreline rang true.
Set in 2038, the novel offers a haunting glimpse of a world transformed by unchecked climate change, making the familiar landscape of my childhood both recognizable and disturbingly altered.
Readers not familiar with the region will be equally captivated by the author’s rich descriptions of the setting, which serves as more than mere scenery; it is almost a character unto itself.
While the landscape magnifies Ess’s vulnerability, it’s the human element that proves most unsettling. Despite the warning to remain anonymous, Ess’s desperate search for identity leads her to encounter various people along her journey, with each new interaction leaving readers questioning motives. Are they potential saviors or hidden threats? This constant tension of trust versus suspicion adds to the fundamental fear of not knowing who you are—or who you’re running from.
The Midnight Library – Matt Haig
Time Travel / Literary Fiction
Matt Haig tackles the universal question of ‘what might have been’ through an inventive and moving premise.
At the story’s center is Nora Seed, who finds herself in a mysterious library during her darkest moment. Each book within the shelves offers a gateway to a different version of her life—the lives she would have lived had she made different choices.
The novel sidesteps conventional time travel tropes in favor of a more contemplative approach. Set in a dreamlike space between life and death, the story becomes an intimate exploration of regret, possibility, and self-acceptance.
As I followed Nora through her various potential lives, I found myself examining my own choices with new perspective. The novel’s power lies not just in its clever premise, but in how it transforms our understanding of the paths we choose—and those we leave behind.
Wish You Were Here – Jodi Picoult
Women’s Literary Fiction
If this novel had been published in 2019 rather than 2021, its premise of a worldwide pandemic stranding protagonist Diana O’Toole on the Galapagos Islands might have seemed far-fetched. Yet reading it now, the story resonates with chilling authenticity. Through Diana’s growing realization that her luxury vacation has become a nightmare of closed hotels and dwindling resources, Picoult expertly captures the dawning horror of isolation in paradise.
As always, the author’s gorgeous imagery and emotional nuance take center stage, particularly in Diana’s early exploration of the island and her encounters with Gabriel, the enigmatic local guide whose presence alternately comforts and unnerves her.
Picoult challenges readers to consider who we become when stripped of our familiar routines—in Diana’s case, her art career with Sotheby’s and her carefully mapped-out Manhattan life. The novel delves into questions of identity as Diana navigates an increasingly surreal existence on an island where even basic communication with the outside world becomes a luxury.
The protagonist’s journey from accomplished art dealer to a woman learning to survive on her own kept me thoroughly invested, while the stunning plot twist had me tearing through pages well into the night, fighting the discomfort of gritty, burning eyes.
What begins as a story about being stuck in paradise transforms into something far more profound: a meditation on that global moment when all our certainties crumbled. Through Diana’s experience, Picoult captures the chaos of those early pandemic days—that dizzying sensation when our familiar world suddenly became unrecognizable. While the subject matter may hit too close to home for some readers, Picoult’s clever handling of those uncertain times creates something beautiful from the chaos.
The Unusual Second Life of Thomas Weaver – Shawn Inmon
Time Travel
This first of 22 books in the Middle Falls series offers a familiar premise with a darker twist: a middle-aged man’s suicide attempt unexpectedly transports him back to 1976, months before his brother’s death.
While time travel stories often lean into the wish-fulfillment of second chances, Inmon grounds his narrative in the gritty reality of Thomas’s adult desperation before launching into the more nostalgic elements of the return to his childhood landscape.
Inmon’s straightforward prose occasionally reaches for deeper meaning, particularly in moments exploring Thomas’s relationship with his older brother Zack, but the plot follows predictable patterns that genre fans will both recognize and appreciate.
While there’s nothing particularly groundbreaking about ‘Thomas Weaver’, the novel remains genuinely entertaining. And for a book that came out in 2016, it also maintains a strong ranking in Amazon’s time travel charts, making it a notable case study in the independent publishing space.
Thus, my review of this work stems less from its literary merits and more from its significant market performance. Given Inmon’s devoted fanbase and his impressive catalogue of 20+ books, it’s reasonable to assume his other works deliver similar entertainment value. Paired with an impressive social media presence, it’s easy to see why Inmon has found such outstanding success.
For aspiring writers, Inmon’s series demonstrates how consistent storytelling and relatable themes can build a sustainable career, particularly when infused with compelling period details that transport readers—in this case, to a skillfully rendered 1970s America.
If It Bleeds – Stephen King
Horror
In this collection of four novellas, Stephen King once again demonstrates his mastery of the short format, crafting tales that don’t so much terrify as they do unsettle—like a whisper in an empty room.
For me, the standout story was Mr. Harrigan’s Phone, which explores the increasingly blurred line between technology and the supernatural through the eyes of a young protagonist. Without spoiling the story’s clever reveals, let’s just say you might think twice about checking your phone late at night.
The title story reintroduces us to Holly Gibney, a character King fans will recognize from previous works. Her return brings a familiar comfort that makes the story’s darker elements even more effective by contrast. While not traditionally frightening, this tale left me with a lingering sense of unease that speaks to King’s mastery of psychological tension.
What I admire most about King’s writing in general, and what shines throughout this collection, is how he builds tension through ordinary moments turned slightly askew—a technique that proves far more effective than outright horror.
If It Bleeds is a worthy addition to any King lover’s shelf.
Love Deleted – Paul Indigo
Romance Literary Fiction
British author Paul Indigo presents a compelling premise: a woman seeks to erase her love for her cheating husband through a groundbreaking surgical procedure known as Fluorogenetic Synaptic Deletion, a fictional term relating to the real science of optogenetics.
I wanted to love this book, but unfortunately, it fell short for me. Here are my reasons why.
First of all, plot twists normally hit me like a good old punch to the gut—like they’re supposed to—but I saw this one coming a third of the way through. So when it finally came to light, I felt both clever and disappointed at the same time.
Second, I found it difficult to embrace the author’s unique writing style. The prose was full of quirky Britishisms that got in the way of my enjoyment of the story (ie, they pulled the car out the ditch in place of they pulled the car out of the ditch.) I might’ve thought this was an intentional choice to lend the prose an authentic British flavor. However, because these colloquialisms appear in the narrative itself rather than just the dialogue, I’m inclined to believe they simply reflect the author’s natural speech.
There was also an element of extreme repetition that was likely meant to emphasize the protagonist’s emotional turmoil. Instead, it served as a constant source of irritation for me. To paraphrase how it often went: “Oh no, Jethro. Not you, Jethro. Oh Jethro, Jethro, Jethro.”
Finally, there were several punctuation and spelling errors, including the misspelling of the author’s own word, Fluorogenetic.
With those annoyances aside, what kept me reading was the very idea that a person’s love for another could be erased. It reminded me of the 2004 film Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, a connection the author even references in one of his scenes.
Ultimately, the prose in Love Deleted wasn’t my cup of English Breakfast, but the story was intriguing enough to keep me hooked until the end.
Well, that’s a wrap on this year’s Reading Roundup.
I hope you’ve discovered at least one book that catches your eye in this list. While time travel features heavily in my selections, you’ll notice a few different genres mixed in, so there should be something here for everyone. If you pick up any of these titles, let me know your thoughts, whether in the comments below or via email. I love connecting with other readers.
Oh, and about that adorable miniature bookshop sitting in my bookshelf, pictured at the top of this post—the kit was a Christmas gift from my husband. If you’re curious to see how it all came together, hop over to my Instagram reels to watch the assembly process. It was quite the adventure!
Looking ahead, here’s what’s waiting in my TBR pile for 2025—have you read any of these popular titles?
The Housemaid – Freida McFadden (psychological thriller)
The Seven Year Slip – Ashley Poston (time travel romance)
The Ministry of Time – Kaliane Bradley (time travel romance)
Here One Moment – Liane Moriarty (women’s psychological fiction)
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue – V. E. Schwab (historical fantasy)
Holly – Stephen King (supernatural thriller)
If you don’t want to wait until December 2025, you can read my reviews early by joining MJ’s Cabin Crew, a monthly email full of book-related content, quizzes, giveaways, and a dash of time-traveling fun.
Wishing you good health, a happy heart, and lots of reading in 2025.
