The Guardian publishes the bestselling books of 2018 and what they regard as the best books of the year. Goodreads have a similar poll with various categories. What they tend to have in common is they are all traditionally published, bestselling books. What happens to the Indie books some of us read?

Looking back over this year’s reading it is hard to pick just one book as my book of the year, so here are two.

Reign of the Marionettes by Sheena Macleod https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/customer-reviews/R1JRVDCSR409GK/ref=cm_cr_getr_d_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B01NASZF6G

I think one of the main reasons for liking this is the author’s knowledge of the period and the way she weaves this into the story. Not living in Glasgow or Northern Ireland I don’t think people realize how deep and painful the Catholic / Protestant divide is and would have been in Tudor times. Factor in a scheming social climber and you have the basis for a compelling story. Part of my preference for historical fiction is the chance to learn something new, but it must be remembered fiction dramatizes what we believe may have happened and is not meant to be a source of historical fact.

My second book would be The Prize by Geoffrey M Cooper https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/customer-reviews/RN9EPWGO3UVQF/ref=cm_cr_dp_d_rvw_ttl?ie=UTF8&ASIN=B076J9ZQ72

This is a very modern book filled with lots of academic and scientific references. In common with the above I feel the author really knows his subject and he is imparting something new to me in a way I can understand. It is a story of intrigue with some not very nice people.

Out of the 32 books I’ve read this year these two are my Indie Favourites – what are yours?