The Zen Leaf

Well…2014 isn’t finished yet. There’s a possibility that I’ll read another book this year that will edge one of these out. Some years, my very favorite book comes very last of the year! But there’s only two weeks or so left of December, so I’ll go ahead and participate this week anyway. Here are my top ten books of 2014 (excluding rereads) – as of now, at least! I’m sure none of these will come as a surprise.

In order of when I read them:

1. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell – Not only did I love this one so much that I ended up spending the entire day listening to the audio, but I went back and re-listened to it again nine months later.

2. Cress by Marissa Meyer – Each book in this series gets progressively better. This is by far my favorite so far.

3-5. the Girl of Fire and Thorns trilogy by Rae Carson – These books (The Girl of Fire and Thorns, The Crown of Embers, and The Bitter Kingdom) have some of the best world-building I’ve ever come across.

6. Dreams of Gods and Monsters by Laini Taylor – I was so worried going into this one that it would disappoint me. It didn’t. Everything about it blew me away, from the chills at the beginning to the tempered-but-happy end.

7. Landline by Rainbow Rowell – I came across this one at exactly the right moment, when I most desperately needed to read just this.

8-10. the Raven Cycle books by Maggie Stiefvater – Brilliant characterization, friendships, humor, and tension in these three-so-far books (The Raven Boys, The Dream Thieves, and Blue Lily Lily Blue).

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This year, 21 of the 36 authors I’ve read have been new-to-me authors. Of those 21, only 6 have really made a distinct impression on me. So while this is supposed to be a top ten list, it’s going to end up being a top six list, because I don’t want to just name four other authors that were only so-so for me.

Top new authors of 2014, in order of when I read them:

1. George R.R. Martin – I finally started the Song of Fire and Ice series in January this year. The first two books blew me away. While I’m not 100% sure I like Martin’s style of characterization (a lot of archetypes), I certainly spent a lot of time mulling over these books and the stories within.

2. Rainbow Rowell – I really had no desire to read Rowell’s work when everyone seemed obsessed with Eleanor & Park last year. Indeed, I still have no desire to read E&P. But last year during NaNoWriMo, Rowell wrote a really fantastic pep talk that revolved around her novel Fangirl, which sounded fantastic. So I read it, and then others (but still not E&P). I’ve grown to really love Rowell through the year, and two of her books are in my top-ten of the year.

3. Rae Carson – Coming across Carson this year was a complete fluke or a master stroke of luck. I was bored last spring, and grabbed a handful of random books off the YA shelves at my local library. One by one, I read the first few pages of these books and decided they weren’t for me. By the time I got to The Girl of Fire and Thorns, the last book in the pile, I didn’t expect much. I was blown away. The writing, the world-building, the characterization…it was all just brilliant! I adored this series and can’t wait to see what Carson comes up with next!

4. Jonathan Stroud – Another random find. Actually, to be honest I have no idea how I came across this author. I listened to the audio of The Screaming Staircase in June, but made no note at the time of how I found the audiobook. I don’t know why I grabbed it or how I came across it, but I’ve been very impressed with both of Stroud’s books I’ve read this year.

5. Edgar Cantero – Everyone was talking about this author and his debut novel, The Supernatural Enhancements, during RIP season this year. I was incredibly impressed with Cantero’s ability to surprise. I didn’t see ANY of the twists coming in this book, and I usually do. Then there was all the mysticism in this book, built from the ground up – incredibly impressive.

6. Maggie Stiefvater – I’ve been raving about Stiefvater for the last three months. It’s no surprise that she’s on here. The best part, though, is that the first time I tried to read one of her books, I gave up only a couple chapters in. Oh how times change. I adore her now, particularly the humor in her stories, and the incredibly detailed and slowly-revealed characterization. Stiefvater creates characters that feel like people instead of characters, and friendships that feel real and solid. I’ve often said that friendship seems to be an oft-neglected part of books – something I noticed only after Brandon Sanderson’s books started blowing me away – and I’m glad to find another author who puts so much emphasis on it.

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Confession: I am not really great at knowing what books are going to be coming out in the next year. If it’s not part of a series I’m already following, or by an author I’m already following, it’s unlikely for me to know about the book before its release date. Trying to think of my top ten 2015 reads is VERY difficult (forget top ten debut reads – a topic that will come up in a month and I’ll simply skip because I know NO 2015 debuts at all…). Some of the books I came up with are simply repeats of books I’ve mentioned so many times in previous lists that I feel like a broken record. Be that as it may, here goes. These are listed in order of publication date (per GoodReads, as of when I drafted this post).

1. Firefight by Brandon Sanderson – 1/6/15 – Loved Steelheart last year, can’t wait to get this sequel!

2. Displacement by Lucy Knisley – 2/8/15 – Lucy Knisley is one of the most consistently enjoyable authors I know.

3. The Shadow Cabinet by Maureen Johnson – 2/10/15 – Been waiting for the end of this trilogy for ages!

4. Shadow Scale by Rachel Hartman – 3/10/15 – Maybe I’ll finally write a review for Seraphina, when I read it right before the sequel that is FINALLY coming out, yay!

5. Prudence by Gail Carriger – 3/17/15 – I heard about this one recently, somewhere, and I really liked the related series. Hopefully this is just as good.

6. Razorhurst by Justine Larbalestier – 7/1/15 – I’ve been impressed by Larbalestier before, and this one sounds really interesting.

7. Shadows of Self by Brandon Sanderson – 11/19/15 – Another Mistborn-related book?? Please!!

8. Winter by Marissa Meyer – 11/24/15 – So sad this one won’t be coming out in February like the last three have. I want this one so badly! Can’t wait to see how this quartet gets wrapped up.

9. the next Rithmatist book by Brandon Sanderson – 2015 – This one has no title or firm publication date, and might get pushed back. Hopefully not. It would be great to read this one with my boys again.

10. the next Raven Cycle book by Maggie Stiefvater – 2015 – Same deal, no title or firm publication date. But I want this one so badly!!

I admit, I was a little disappointed to discover that Dead Man’s Palace by Stefan Bachmann has been pushed back to 2016. That one sounds fascinating and I’ve been thinking about it for about 1.5 years now. Ah well. I’m also really interested to see if the next Rae Carson book will come out next year, though as of now, there’s not even a tentative publication date listed for it.

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Winter is a very quiet time for me, in terms of reading. Once the frenzy of RIP reading in September and October end, followed by the frenzy of November’s writing, I tend to go into a short hibernation, reading only quiet comfort reads, at least until January comes around and I sort of explode with energy again.

I could mention a lot of books that I hope to read over the winter, many of which I’ve listed these last few weeks in former Top Ten posts. I don’t want to just keep listing the same titles, however. You guys already know I want to read those books! So I’m limiting my top ten winter TBR list to those titles I have yet to talk about anticipating over the last few months. There are still plenty to choose from!

1. Someone Else’s Love Story by Joshilyn Jackson – After meeting the author at a writer’s conference this summer, I am really excited about this book, even though it’s out of my comfort zone. Even better: the audiobook is read by the author, which I’m guessing is going to be perfect, since I already love the way Jackson narrates stories.

2. Together Tea by Marjan Kamali – A book club member mentioned this one to me, and it sounds like a perfect December comfort read. Plus, it’s by a local author!

3. Lies My Girlfriend Told Me by Julie Anne Peters – I admit, I’ve put this one off a little since it came out this summer, because I know it’s going to rip me to pieces like other Peters’ novels have. So this one will probably wait until late winter.

4. All Joy and No Fun by Jennifer Senior – Nonfiction in my top TBR? Yep. That’s what winter does to me. I have this one on audio at the moment and am really looking forward to it.

5. Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card – I hesitate to put Card’s name anywhere on my blog. I am so against the man that I’ve avoided his books for years. A few months ago, I decided to give in and try the book itself, separating it from the author. I have yet to do so, but admit that the story does sound interesting, and one that would be a great January read.

6. The Family Romanov by Candace Fleming – More nonfiction! I got this audiobook awhile back. The Romanovs fascinate me, but I have a difficult time with history books in general. This is written for a middle grade audience, which will make it a bit simpler and therefore easier for me to engage and follow. I know, I’m ridiculous.

7. Queen of the Tearling by Erika Johansen – Okay, I admit, this was one of my most anticipated books that I mentioned way back in August. But then RIP came around, and I put off reading (or listening, because I have the audiobook) to it. Now, it’s back to the top of the list!

8. Choose Your Own Autobiography by Neil Patrick Harris – Love the title, love the author, gotta get my hands on this one! Also: third nonfiction in the list. Seriously. Winter.

9. Nekropolis by Maureen McHugh – Back in the summer of 2013, Jason read a bit of this book out loud to me and the boys. From what I could tell, this is adult dystopia in a Middle Eastern setting, which is not something I’ve read before. I was really impressed by the first chapter, which has stuck with me in the eighteen months since I heard it. I’m hoping to finally get to it this winter.

10. Cloud Atlas by David Mitchell – I debated on this one. My friend Stephanie has been trying to get me to read this one forever, but I’m really scared of it. She says it’s brilliant, though, so I’m going to try. It just edged out A Feast For Crows by George RR Martin, mostly because while I loved the first two Song of Fire and Ice books, I really didn’t like the third, and I’m a little leery to continue. So Cloud Atlas it is! Now let’s see if I actually manage to get to it, heh!

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.