Here we are, it’s practically the end of December and it’s time for me to share my top books of 2024! (plus showcase my amazing artistic skills in my banner! Go on, praise me, I’ll wait patiently…)
In 2023, I made the decision to read solely indie books (ok, I actually read 2 trad pub books but that was out of a total of 30 some) since I was about to venture into self-publishing. I read a lot of great books by some really great authors, many of whom I befriended along the way. Near the end of the year, I decided I wanted to do a fun awards ceremony with humorous categories. I had a ton of fun doing it, so this year I’m going to do it again, just a bit slightly different now that I’m a part of this nifty FanFiAddict blog team (that and as a newborn parent, I don’t have the time to go as all out as I did last year).
This year, I’m going to highlight some of my top indie books with some humor not only in the categories but also with my short reviews. I read over 50 books/novellas this year so I’m not touching all of them, but I implore you all to check out indie books where you can, there are plenty of great self-pubbed books out there that need your reads! Also rate and review if you can, as that is the lifeblood of indie authors.
Without further ado, let’s have some fun!
Furthest into a Book (near 50%) the MC Claims Ignorance Regarding Info Dumping due to Age:
Review:
A brownie gets captured by some hyena beasties, raised in their warrior culture, makes some friends, finds a lover (who’s a goblin), and ends up pregnant. She’s also somewhat a chosen one.
Told solely through said knocked-up brownie’s POV, we follow her from aged 11 to maybe 16 when the aforementioned sexual shenanigans occur. And because she’s a young little bitty, lots of lore dumping occurs but we don’t care because she’s is that young and knows less than Jon Snow.
Action-packed, heartfelt, maybe a tad sweary at times, Daughter of the Beast was a blast!
Best Ocean of Demons:
Review:
Post one apocalypse, a young girl gets sci-fi’ed/magicked into a realm by some god-like being, given some powers, maybe a chosen one trope, idk… Then boom! another apocalypse!
Humanity hates each other, they are surrounded by a sea of literal demons in the wasteland that is North America. Some mechs and AI are to be found, so let’s all go find them and make them ours. Factions fight against demons and time, little girl’s faction has nasty powers. Some betrayals, some gross things occur. AI is allowed to run rampant. Did I mention mechs?
(Top book I read this year by far)
Best Dog:
Review:
A dog revenge martial arts extravaganza, and not the John Wick type of dog revenge, moreso in the manner that the main character’s dog is the star of the book. Not really, but Dog is a fantastic character and central to all the humor in this balls-to-the-wall revenge story.
It’s martial arts to the nth degree. Masters call out their technique before attacking/defending. Giant dino-like beasties to fight and use as currency, just because they can. Dog peeing on defeated bad guys (good doggo).
Snark-filled, brutal action, a fun plot. If revenge is for you, check this one out!
Best Use of Sex Toys in a Fantasy Setting (x2):
Review:
Clumsy princess flees into enchanted forest and finds a vampire boy to fall in love with. Well, not right away. They kinda hate each other for a bit. It’s mostly because they want to bang soooo badly but can’t because there’s a whole book to fill.
Enter in the vibrating dagger. It’s supposed to protect the princess from fae (re: vampers) but once this will-they-won’t-they crappola ends, ohhhh boy does this vibrating dagger do stuff. Wink wink.
Oh, there’s also betraying nobles to suss out and lots of vampire blood caste stuff happening, maybe a witch spewing fireballs and such. Mostly romance.
Review:
Lots of Greek mythology in this sapphic love story, folks. Aphrodite went ballistic and destroyed the world, outlawing Love. Immortal Lover Hunter, Carys, escorts a princess named Ishana to her homeland of Lovers, eventually, shocker, they become lovers… (it’s a romance, it’s not a spoiler!).
Between bouts of bloodletting (and one viscous murder, word chosen on purpose…), these two lovebirds get it on. There’s also some Deadpool-esque regrowth scenes since we are talking immortals here. But in the final battle, Carys bets Ishana won’t keep a sex toy in a certain spot the entire time… and I about died from laughter!
But big big big shout-out to one hella awesome twist at the 50% mark of this story!
Most Failed Plans:
Review:
Amidst winterplum wine and bicorne hats are Gen and Cordyn, two buddies, one a sword-swinging lush with a fondness for naming things Francois and the other a philandering schemer. Cordyn is more a pantster than a planner as his plans often go amok. He tries though, that’s all that counts.
On his latest scheme, he does end up saving some children, mayyyyyybe gets the girl, loses all his hair and gets flogged, but at least he made it out alive! A lot of quips are tossed around, wine tossed back, and water spikes of magic tossed at people.
For two best friends, they really do need some guidance before they embark on another mission…
Best MacGuffin (spoiler, it’s the baby on the cover):
Review:
This cute little baby is the driver of this book’s plot just the same as the briefcase is in Pulp Fiction. Super important, but really it’s not. Poor baby.
Buuuuuut, Fabio from the cover (his name is Lin) undergoes some crazy magic and personal belief revelations all due to this little cutie’s parentage. There’s murder, there’s tapestry magic, there’s illegal spells, there’s Gollum-like bad guys, there’s a ton of introspection, and there’s the best unrequited love triangle ever! #freedenny
It’s a pretty solid character study about beliefs, nature v nurture, etc. But who cares about that stuff, look at those chubby little cheeks!!!
Best Meta Jokes by an Assassin:
Review:
Move over Deadpool, there’s something special when an author uses a first person point of view to skew themselves and the writing community at large. Especially the overlord we all bow to as self-pubbed authors…
Lord Mute is kinda crazy, fully suffering from mommy issues, definitely melancholy, but most assuredly out of touch with everyone around him, including his mistress of the night girlfriend… ok, not really girlfriend just a lady who takes his money, but again, he’s out of touch… He kills people, he’s not nice, but he’s also very close to the throne. So politics grab hold of him, despite his best effort.
A short novella that’s made even shorter due to said meta skewing of authorial tropes. Like info dumping, worldbuilding via dialogue, or Lord Mute’s personal favorite, long boring scenes of travel. Not gonna get that here, my friends!
Best Non-porridge Food Scene:
Review:
If there is no porridge, is it even fantasy??? I’ll give Sunset Sovereign a pass because it has a lovely soup. And the entire plot of the dragon’s tale revolves around serving this lovely soup. Kinda.
A human wants to kill a dragon, how original, right? Well it’s a good thing this dragon has had an awesome life, so he’ll just leave once said human listens to his story. He’s kinda like that parent who’s telling their adult child about the time they first tried alcohol. Lots of eye rolling… I digress, but that’s what happens here. Lots of retelling of a life gone by, a child not understanding what their parent has gone through. It’s heartfelt, just like warm soup.
Best Ditzy Dragons in Space:
Review:
Oh yes, you read that right, there are dragons in space here! You may also see wooden ships here too, what a concept! But these dragons, oh boy are they ditzy as heck. Super forgetful, super hilarious.
This is book 2 of this series so bad things happened to this space-faring crew in book 1, but they were saved by these awesome space dragons at one point. Ok fine, there is a lot of stuff happening with found parents, talking animal creatures, space lizards, you know all that good stuff.
But come on, space dragons!!!
Best Dance Scenes during War:
Review:
Romantic and gushy, these dance scenes not only make us care about a couple of mutants, but also showcases some killer moves before these mutants showcase some killer moves. A few spins, a couple of dips, a lot of close kissy calls. Oh we have some romance, friends!
But then we also have a war these mutants have to die over and over again because the plot demands it. Yeah, time travel is involved. Poor kissy romance fans. Just saying, it’s not an HEA… orrrrr is it???? I won’t say anything!
Ok, I will say this, I loved this novella!
And there we are, my top reads of 2024! Again, I read so many good books/novellas this year, the vast majority a solid 5 stars. My TBR list is insanely long, so it looks like 2025 is already going to be a really good reading year!
Hope your 2024 was as great as mine!
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