Reading enjoyment is such a personal thing and books shine for a plethora of reasons. When I was asked to name a favourite, or even a top three from my recent reads, I struggled. This has been an outstanding year for new releases, plus I have delved deep into my TBR pile.
What I list here are the contenders for my own personal top slot. I have grouped them under headings to enable readers who like or dislike particular genres to add their own filter. Sometimes it is good to be challenged, other times more gently entertained.
Of the 118 books that I have read so far in 2015, plus the 8 that I read after compiling my recommendations list last year, these are the ones that particularly stood out. If interested you may click on the title to read my review.
Beautiful stories:
After the Bombing by Clare Morrall
A Place Called Winter by Patrick Gale
Our Souls at Night by Kent Haruf
Shtum by Jem Lester
Yellow Room by Shelan Rodger
Thrilling thrillers:
Hotel Arcadia by Sunny Singh
Little Black Lies by Sharon Bolton
Rebound by Aga Lesiewicz
The Abrupt Physics of Dying by Paul E. Hardisty
The Widow by Fiona Barton
Deliciously chilling:
The Blackheath Séance Parlour by Alan Williams
The Loney by Andrew Michael Hurley
Compelling crime fiction:
No Other Darkness by Sarah Hilary
Snowblind by Ragnar Jonasson
Retelling history:
Into the Fire by Manda Scott
Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel
Stories that linger:
Being Someone by Adrian Harvey
Leaves by John Simmons
Light From Other Windows by Chris Chalmers
Lillian on Life by Alison Jean Lester
Feel good, with that something extra:
A Man Called Ove by Fredrik Backman (translated by Henning Koch)
A Robot in the Garden by Deborah Install
The Trouble with Goats and Sheep by Joanna Cannon
The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry by Rachel Joyce
Genre defying but fabulous:
Beauty Tips for Girls by Margaret Montgomery
Playthings by Alex Pheby
The Weightless World by Anthony Trevelyan
Short story collections:
Wrote for Luck by D.J. Taylor
Honeydew by Edith Pearlman
For the children, and the child in us all:
A Boy Called Christmas by Matt Haig
Fleabag and the Fire Cat by Beth Webb
Young adult fiction:
Asking For It by Louise O’Neill
Outstanding non fiction:
Imaginary Cities by Darran Anderson
Place Waste Dissent by Paul Hawkins
.
And finally, a book that I am reluctant to recommend because I know that it will not appeal to large swathes of my reading friends, but which I cannot leave out because it is, quite possibly, the best work of fiction I have ever read:
A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara
neverimitate 
And I just got a whole new shopping list. Thank you. I hadn’t heard of any more than three from this list.
OOOh! I made it into your favs! VERY happy, thank you!
Looks like my Christmas wish list may have to grow a little bit! Thanks for this, really interesting selection of titles.