Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics.  The official topic for this week’s Top Ten Tuesday was to list a participant’s favourite purple, yellow, and/or green Book Covers in honour of Mardi Gras, however, I really did not have any great book covers to feature on this list so I am going to do something a little different and list my top viewed posts of 2020.

Over the last month or two I have been having fun listing some of the top releases I enjoyed in 2020, including my favourite debuts, audiobooks, new to me authors, pre-2020 novels and books that I read last year.  However, it is probably time to finish this line of Top Ten Lists off and move onto different topics, so I thought that I would do something new as a closing act and decided to take a quick look at which of my posts got the most views in 2020.  Not only this a fantastic way to finish highlighting some of the best novels released last year, but I am also genuinely curious to see which posts people were most interested in last year as this may some impact on what I try and read going forward.

To fill out this list I checked out the nifty stats section of my WordPress website to see which of my posts got the most views last year.  While some of the posts I wrote before 2020 did get a lot of attention last year, I decided to limit this list to those blog entries that I published in 2020 and I only ranked them by views received last year.  This resulted in a rather interesting collection of posts and I was so intrigued by this I decided to expand the selection out to my top 20 posts rather than 10, which I think created a much more varied and captivating list.  The final list contains a great combination of different posts, including reviews, Waiting on Wednesday posts and even a few other Top Ten Tuesday lists.  I am really happy with how this latest list turned out, so let us see which posts made the cut.

Top Twenty List:

Waiting on Wednesday – The Evening and the Morning by Ken Follett – 940 views

The top scoring post was the Waiting on Wednesday post I did for the latest Ken Follet novel, The Evening and the Morning.  I was a little surprised that this Waiting on Wednesday did so well last year, especially as a lot of the views on it occurred after the book got released, but the view count on this post has continued to grow and grow.  A lot of this is probably down to how impressive each of his massive novels are, as readers know they are in for a good time and keep an eye out for the latest Follett book.

House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas review – 449 views

After the fantastic first entry there is a bit of a drop in views, but second place is held strongly by my review for House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J. Maas.  This is not too surprising, considering that Maas has a pretty substantial fanbase, and House of Earth and Blood was one of the most anticipated fantasy releases of 2020.  This was only the second novel from Maas that I have read (the other being Catwoman: Soulstealer) and the first adult fantasy novel from an author that specialises in young adult fiction.  I ended up really enjoying the complex and lengthy story that Maas created for House of Earth and Blood and I am looking forward to seeing how the series continues in the future.

Lost by James Patterson and James O. Born review – 317 views

Number three on this list was a bit of a surprise.  While I enjoyed Lost, I must admit that it was not one of my favourite books of 2020 and I did not expect my review of it to get as much attention as it ended up getting.  Still, with Patterson’s immense number of fans and followers, I guess it makes sense that people would be interested in seeing how one of his books would turn out, and I really need to check out some more of his novels this year.

Waiting on Wednesday – Relentless by R. A. Salvatore – 265 views

The next entry on this list is the Waiting on Wednesday article that I did for legendary fantasy author R. A. Salvatore’s second 2020 novel Relentless.  Relentless was a particularly cool fantasy novel from last year which followed on from Salvatore’s previous novels Timeless and Boundless.  There ended up being a good amount of interest in this post, and it looks like there are a lot of fans of Salvatore and his amazing fantasy novels.  I actually just posted a slightly belated review of Relentless, and it will be interesting to see how much attention it gets this year.

Waiting on Wednesday – 2021 Thrillers – 229 views

Next up we have a Waiting on Wednesday post of three thrillers released in early 2021.  Each of these novels, Relentless by Mark Greaney, The Kaiser’s Web by Steve Berry and Prodigal Son by Gregg Hurwitz, are the latest entry in a popular and established thriller series, and each of these authors already have a lot of dedicated readers.  I have already read Prodigal Son (review coming soon, but in short it is pretty awesome), while I have copies of Relentless and The Kaiser’s Web currently sitting on my table.  It will be interesting to see how they turn out, but I am predicting some epic and amazing reads from them.

A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik review – 224 views

Naomi Novik is a talented fantasy author with a lot of buzz surrounding her, so it is no surprise that a lot of people were interested in her latest book, A Deadly Education.  A Deadly Education was an outstanding and captivating read that proved to be extremely inventive and addictive.  I deeply enjoyed reading and reviewing A Deadly Education last year, and Novik’s upcoming sequel, The Last Graduate, is one of my most anticipated reads of 2021.

Top Ten Tuesday – Favourite Books of 2020 – 223 views

This post listed my absolute favourite books of 2020.  Featuring 20 novels, including impressive reads like The Trouble With Peace by Joe Abercrombie and Battle Ground by Jim Butcher, this was always going to be a post that a lot of people would be interested in, and I was very happy with how many views it got in closing days of 2020.  I cannot wait to list my favourite books of 2021 in 10 months’ time.

One Minute Out by Mark Greaney review – 222 views

Considering how much attention that the above Waiting on Wednesday for Greaney’s next book got last year, it is not surprising that a lot of people also checked out my review for One Minute Out.  Serving as the ninth book in Greaney’s impressive Gray Man series, this was a fantastic read that got a full five-star rating from me.  I cannot wait to read the next book, especially if turns out to be as good as One Minute Out.

Top Ten Tuesday – Most Anticipated Releases for the Second Half of 2020 – 208 views

Another Top Ten List with a lot of major and popular entries in it, including How to Rule an Empire and Get Away With It by K. J. Parker and Call of the Bone Ships by R. J. Barker.  This was a fun and intriguing list to pull together, especially as I ended up reading and loving every book featured on it.

The Gates of Athens by Conn Iggulden review – 205 views

It looks like a lot of people were interested in historical fiction last year as my review for The Gates of Athens by the always impressive Conn Iggulden got viewed more than 200 times.  The Gates of Athens was a particularly awesome novel as well, and I am looking forward to reading the sequel, Protector, soon.

The Law of Innocence by Michael Connelly review – 196

I actually reviewed two books from iconic crime fiction author Michael Connelly last year, Fair Warning and The Law of Innocence.  While both were fantastic reads, it seems more people were interested in my review of The Law of Innocence, which saw the return of the Lincoln Lawyer.  This was a particularly fun and enjoyable read and I am glad that so many people were keen to see what I thought about it.

Usagi Yojimbo: Volume 34: Bunraku and Other Stories by Stan Sakai review – 173 views

I did quite few reviews of Usagi Yojimbo comics in 2020, all of which proved to be rather popular, which was great considering how niche these comics are.  Out of all these, the one that got the most attention was for the 2020 release, Bunraku and Other Stories.  I had an amazing time writing a passionate review for this comic, the first to be released completely in colour, and it was great to see so much interest in it.  My Waiting on Wednesday article for the next Usagi Yojimbo volume, Homecoming, has already gotten a substantial number of views in 2021, so hopefully readers will also enjoy my review for this upcoming volume.

Top Ten Tuesday – Longest Audiobooks That I Have Listened To – Part II – 166 views

A continuation of a previous Top Ten Tuesday list I did, I spent a bit of time working out the longest audiobooks I have ever read.  This is a post I will probably revisit again this year, although I very much doubt that the current longest audiobook, The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson, is going to be unseated from its top position on the list.

Waiting on Wednesday – Colonyside by Michael Mammay – 150 views

Another Waiting on Wednesday that got a lot of attention last year was one I did for the cool science fiction thriller, Colonyside.  Serving as the third book in Michael Mammay’s Planetside series (which also includes Planetside and Spaceside), this article got a bit of attention after a timely retweet from Mammay.  I recently read and reviewed Colonyside a few weeks ago and it really lived up to the hype.

Demon in White by Christopher Ruocchio review – 143 views

Now, this was a fun book to review.  Demon in White is the third epic entry in impressive new science fiction author Christopher Ruocchio’s outstanding Sun Eater Sequence, which previously featured Empire of Silence and Howling Dark.  Considering how amazing this latest entry in the Sun Eater series was, I am very glad that my review for his book got some attention last year, and I would strongly recommend this impressive, gothic read.

Waiting on Wednesday – Ink by Jonathan Maberry – 124 views

I always really enjoy reviewing or promoting anything written by Jonathan Maberry, and this Waiting on Wednesday I did for his standalone horror novel, Ink, ended up getting a lot of attention in the end.  Maberry has a new novel coming out in a few months, Relentless, which I am very excited for, and I anticipate a lot of views for that review when I get it written up.

The Constant Rabbit by Jasper Fforde review – 113 views

One of the funniest books of 2020, The Constant Rabbit was a lot of fun to review and I am glad that a lot of people checked it out last year.

The Evening and the Morning by Ken Follett review – 111 views

While it may not have gotten as many views as its Waiting on Wednesday article, my review for The Evening and the Morning by Ken Follett did make the Top Twenty list.  Serving as a prequel to Follett’s iconic The Pillars of the Earth, this was one of the best historical fiction novels in 2020 and is a strongly recommended read.

Top Ten Tuesday – My Favourite Horror Novels – 110 views

The penultimate post on this list was an interesting Top Ten Tuesday I did for Halloween, listing my favourite horror novels I have ever read.  I honestly am not the biggest fan of the horror genre, but I was able to rustle up a good Top Ten list for this post, including some great reads like Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant and Patient Zero by Jonathan Maberry.  It looks like a lot of horror fans were out in force last Halloween as people were quite interested in this list, and I hope I recommended a few good reads for any fans of the genre out there.

Top Ten Tuesday – My Favourite Books from the First Half of 2020 – 107 views

The final entry on this list was a Top Ten article that highlighted some of the best books from the first half of 2020.  Featuring some particularly cool reads, including Into the Fire by Gregg Hurwitz and Song of the Risen God by R. A. Salvatore, this one got a bit of attention early in the year and it was interesting to see which of the books featured eventually made their way onto my overall favourite reads of 2020 list later in the year.

While mainly a conduit for my ego, I think this list turned out pretty well, and I really enjoyed seeing which of my posts got the most views last year.  I had a lot of fun pulling this list together and I think this might be something I will revisit in the future.  In the meantime, I hope everyone has a happy and safe Mardi Gras.