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With another year coming to a close, here's a look back at my favorite books of 2018!
SUBURBAN NOIR: "Not That I Could Tell" by Jessica Strawser (St. Martin's Press, $26.99.)
A suburban mommy and her kids goes missing after a mom's night at a neighbor's house, leaving her soon-to-be ex frantic and the whole neighborhood questioning what has happened. This is a story that questions everyone's motives and will leave readers thinking.
WOMEN'S FICTION: "Other People's Houses" by Abbi Waxman (Berkley, $16.)
A mom's affair affects an entire neighborhood as everyone begins to question their relationships at home. This is a good story of families, marriages and the effects of infidelity.
BIOGRAPHY: "Young Washington" by Peter Stark (Ecco, $35.)
Stark follows Washington's adventures as a land surveyor and then in the French and Indian War, as readers see a different side of Washington -- a brash young commander who wants respect and admiration from the Crown.
ROMANCE: "The Theory of Happily Ever After" by Kristin Billerbeck (Revell, $14.99.)
A woman who writes about achieving happiness scientifically finds herself adrift when her fiance leaves her for another woman. Her two best friends decide to sign her up for a singles' cruise as a speaker, where she meets a laid-back bartender and a handsome businessman who has problems with smart women. Will she find a second chance at her own happiness? This is a quirky and fun rom-com of a book.
HISTORICAL ROMANCE: "Freedom's Light" by Colleen Coble (Thomas Nelson, $9.99.)
In Revolutionary War times, a woman marries an older lighthouse keeper to get away from a bad suitor, only to have her new husband die and experience conflict with his family, her sister, a handsome Tory captain and the old suitor. This is an engrossing historical story with plenty of romance and danger.
AMISH ROMANCE: "His Risk" by Shelley Shepard Gray (Avon Inspire, $12.99.)
A man returns to his former Amish roots to help his ailing brother, and accidentally brings his new and more dangerous life home. A romance with a local nursery school teacher blooms, as well as a strange attraction between secondary characters West and Irene, which was my favorite.
SCI-FI: "Obscura" by Joe Hart (Thomas and Mercer, $24.95).
A neurological disease is wiping out the planet and a neural radiologist gets a strange proposition -- visit the UN Space Station for 6 months and do research there. She agrees and soon finds her mission isn't what she thinks -- there's been a murder on the surface of Mars, and the research subjects are displaying similar symptoms as the ones that plague Earth. And she may be the next victim. With a science-fiction and horror vibe, this is a book that begs to be a movie.
YA: "LifeL1k3" by Jay Kristoff (Random House, $18.99).
Robots, romance, assassins, post-apocalyptic cults, gladiator fights and a giant fish. What more could you want? Eve, a gladiator, finds herself rescued by a lifelike robot, Ezekiel, who calls her by a different name, and soon learns her entire life has been a lie. This is a powerful punch of a sci-fi novel with plenty of action, suspense, romance and an ending that broke my heart and had me awaiting a sequel.
REVENGE BOOK: "The Exes' Revenge" by Jo Jakeman (Berkley, $26.)
Three women bond together to get revenge against one man, including his first wife, his second wife and his new girlfriend. There's twists, turns and plenty of spirit to this story.
COOKBOOK: Instantly Southern" by Sheri Castle (Clarkson Potter, $16.99).
It's the cookbook that ushered me into the world of the Instant Pot! And everyone loves Southern cooking. Try the Cube Steaks in Mushroom Gravy.
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Contact Amy Phelps at aphelps@newsandsentinel.com.