Outlaw

India Black

Genghis 1, 2, 3

Several mystery series, Medicus by Ruth Downie, Barker, Llewellyn series by Will Thomas,  Captain Lacey series by Ashley Gardner, and the Gilded Age Mysteries P.B. Ryan

I've read/listened to 55 books so far this year.  It's hard to pick the best, so many were great!  But if forced, I would say:

Shadows and Strongholds

Barker & Llwewllyn series

Imperium and Conspirata

Ransom (David Malouf)

Oh wait...I have to add Uhtred to this list!!  I can't just pick one or two.  I've had a great reading year so far!

Boy, looking through my reviews I've had a lot of *meh* books so far.

Lily Cigar by Tom Murphy

I am the Chosen King by Helen Hollick

I'm not even finished with it yet (have about 250 pages out of 970 to go), but Pillars of the Earth is amazing!  I also liked The Merlin Trilogy by Mary Stewart.

Looking over my BIR list, I am amazed that many of my best books were read LAST year - it seems like yesterday!

I would have to say that my favorite books, so far, this year are:

The Henry Gresham series by Martin Stephen

The Martyr by Rory Clements

Genghis by Iggulden

Most of the books I've read this year have been very good. But if pressed to name the truly outstanding books, I'd go with (in no particular order):

• Morton's The Forgotten Garden
• Grissom's The Kitchen House
• Bradley's The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie and The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag (audio versions)
• Chadwick's A Place Beyond Courage, The Love Knot, To Defy a King, and Shadows and Strongholds
• Pargeter's The Heaven Tree Trilogy (still reading this but I can't imagine that it won't be one of my best reads of the year)

And I want to give a nod to the (non-HF) Dr. Siri series by Cotterill  -- just delightful books.

And a note to Cathy and Karla -- I think you two are responsible for hiking up the price of Lily Cigar -- can't find it for less than $30 which is a bit steep for a used mmpb.

My best HF read so far this year was The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society. I listened to it on audio, and it was a real treat! I loved it. I also really loved Sepulchre by Kate Mosse (also on audio).

I'm listening to The Historian right now, and I'm thinking it just might also make the 'I absolutely loved it list.'

Other than HF, my other favorite read so far this year was Little Women. It's a keeper for me for sure. :)

And a note to Cathy and Karla -- I think you two are responsible for hiking up the price of Lily Cigar -- can't find it for less than $30 which is a bit steep for a used mmpb. 

Deb, unbelievable the way copies of that disappeared after Karla and I pimped it all over Goodreads and Amazon. There are libraries in the US with copies, so anyone interested to inquire about interlibrary loan. Glad you're enjoying The Heaventree Trilogy. Very lovely writing in that one.

A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens

Moloka'i by Allen Brennert

First Fruits of Prayer by Kh. Frederica Mathewes-Green (I read it every Lent, and every Lent it is fabulous)

How could I forget Hollick!

Best reads would have to be:

Genghis by Conn Iggulden

1066 The Hidden History in the Bayeaux Tapestry by Andrew Bridgeford n/f

Personna Non Grata by Ruth Downie

How could I have forgotten...Queen of Swords by Judith Tarr

Slammerkin by Donoghue

March by Brooks

The Killer Angels by Shaara

My best HF reads were The Forgotten Garden and Distant Hours by Kate Morton, The Heretic's Daughter by Kathleen Kent, I Am Messenger by Marcus Zuzak, My Name is Mary Sutter by Robin Oliveira, The Home of the Blizzard by Douglas Mawson, Pope Joan by Donna Wolfolk, The Grass Crown by Colleen McCullough and The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet by David Mitchell.

Several of my best reads were fantasy: a series by Cassandra Clare which begins with The City of Bones, The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss, The Fox Woman by Kij Johnson, Perdido Street Staion by China Mieville (absolutely outstanding), and The Shape Changer's Wife by Sharon Shinn.  Read some wonderful YA books, very good contemporary novels and some classics that were great as well.  I'm really having a good year!

Loved Heaven Tree Trilogy by Pargeter!

This year's standouts for me - so far - are

Hood, Scarlet & Tuck, Stephen Lawhead

Queen of Swords, Judith Tarr

Hand of Isis, Jo Graham

Song of Troy, Colleen McCullough

Kelly

Most of my hf this year have been in the good-not-great category. 

Will say that I really, really liked "The Last Letter" by Jeanne Westin-but then y'all know that I like those Tudors(and I love Westin). 

I've only read 22 books this year, but in the HF category, I'd say the best were Genghis, A Place Beyond Courage, and Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag. .

In non-HF, it would be Crooked Letter, Crooked Letter by Tom Franklin (crime mystery) and Healing Sands by Nancy Rue (CF).

I gotta get Genghis again - I have checked it out of the library two times and have not been able to find time to read it :-(

Best reads so far this year for me:

Middle Passage - Charles Johnson (excellent writing)

Junkyard Dogs - Craig Johnson (humor, good writing, interesting characters, beautiful locale, loveable hero, this series has it all)

Unbound - Dean King - Amazing book about Red Army's Long March in 1934/35 - it focuses on the 30 women who endured the trek. The Long March is considered one of the greatest physical feats of the twentieth century.

Shelia,  I think that a lot of us weren't all that excited to read Genghis.  I can only speak for myself, but I probably never would have read this but for the read along.  But, it is absolutely one of the best books this year for me. 

Daughter of the Red Deer, Joan Wolf

Outlaw, Angus Donald

Queen of Swords, Judith Tarr

Shores of Darkness, Diana Norman

Genghis and Lords of the Bow, Conn Iggulden

The Proud Villeins, Valerie Anand

Sherwood and Robin & the King, Parke Godwin

Linda

I few that I like a lot this year

Kitchen Boy by Robert Alexander

One Thousand White Women by Jim Fergus

Victoria Victorious by Jean Plaidy

India Black

Several good paranormals but we won't go there.

Alice

Carolyn check out HBO's miniseries Pillars of the Earth iti svery well done

Alice,

I'm plan on watching it (once I renew my Netflix account).  My friend just finished reading Pillars, as well, and she watched the series and said it was very good.  But I loved the book so much, I'm kind of afraid to see what they changed 

My favorites thus far:

While We're Far Apart - Lynn Austin

The Good Thief - Hannah Tinti

The Archer's Tale - Bernard Cornwell

Fire by Night - Lynn Austin

The Ladies of Missalonghi - Coleen McCullough

The Shadow Women - Angela Hunt

Jill - I LOVED The Good Thief! - but I read that one last year so I couldn't put it on my list this time.

Deb - I just got a copy of The Kitchen House! yay - just what I needed since I was almost out of reading material again (Ha!)