I'm
one of those people who keeps lists of things. Books I've read
mostly. I read exactly 41 books this year from start to finish.
That does not count the books I started, but put down never to finish, or my textbooks
for my grad school classes (those I definitely didn't read from start to
finish). I did not include picture books, save for one exception. It also
does not include magazine articles or the scriptures which are not read to put
on a list, but to live by.
I’ve
grouped them into likes and dislikes and from there into loose reading
levels. So, farewell 2016 books, you've
brought much enjoyment to the year!
Mild dislike—I
didn’t hate them, but didn’t like them either.
Half
a King by
Joe Abercrombie. This fantasy fiction book for adults was well written
and had a plot that moved along nicely with good character development.
It was, however, very violent. It takes place in a fictional fantasy
world and deals with revenge and war. It had a too much gore for my
liking.
Hannah by Kathryn Laskey. A
younger fiction book that was written poorly. Poor character development,
resolved issues much too quickly. It has mermaids in it, so if you like
mermaids there is that. It seemed formulaic and in need of a good editor.
I would
still recommend these, but I wouldn’t read them again or continue the series
for various reasons.
General
Fiction:
The
Lost Gate by Orson Scott Card. I've tried to read Card
before and have never been able to get through any of his books and I’m not
sure why, they just did not catch my attention. I’ve wanted to get over
this inability and so I tried this one and listened to the audiobook, which
worked well. I quite enjoyed it, just
not enough to try the next dozen books.
Southern
Peach Pie and a Dead Guy by
A. Gardner. A Poppy Peter's Mystery that takes place at a cooking school. I picked this one up trying to find another mystery
series to get into. It didn’t quite hit the spot and I didn’t want to continue
to read about Poppy’s adventures.
Young
Adult Fiction:
The
Siren by
Kiera Cass. Another mermaid book (I read many mermaid books this year,
not on purpose). It was a typical teen fantasy book with a little bit of
romance.
Chasing
Power by
Sarah Beth Durst. I've read Durst before and enjoyed her book, Ice,
quite a lot. In this book her characters weren’t quite as likable and the story didn’t
resonate with me, I had a hard time connecting with the plot. Fantasy.
Discern by Andrea Pearson. Mosaic
Chronicles, book #1. Another magic school book, but this time the school
is a university. Involves some romance and mythology. There are 8 books in the series and I was not
drawn in enough to wade through all of them.
Dreaming
Anastasia by
Joy Preble. A young girl is held captive by Baba Yaga and she happens to
be the daughter of the Romanov's. This is
mostly fantasy and a little bit historical, but not much. It seemed to resolve
rather quickly.
The
Curse of the Thirteenth Fey by Jane Yolen. Very loosely based on Sleeping Beauty.
I love Jane Yolen, but this book was just average.
Merrow by Amanda
Braxton-Smith. Here is another mermaid book. It's not technically
fantasy, however, but fits in this genre better than any other genre. How
is it not fantasy if it's about mermaids? Well if I told you that I'd
give away the ending!
Until
We Meet Again
by Renee Collins. Time travel romance.
Enough said.
All
Fall Down by
Ally Carter. Embassy Row, book #1.
I enjoy Ally Carter, but this espionage series wasn’t enough to compel
me to continue reading the sequels.
That
Summer by
Sarah Dessen. Realistic fiction dealing with family issues. More angst than I normally like to read.
Voices of Dragons by Carrie Vaughn. A young girl can be the key to communicating
with the dragons who have long been thought violent. Little romance is thrown in, not a bad choice really, just didn't like it enough.
Junior
Fiction:
A
Nearer Moon
by Melanie Crowder. A fantasy novel about two sets of sisters--twin
sprites & two human girls, trapped in different worlds. Interesting connections,
just not as interesting as I wanted it to be.
The
Charmed Children of Rookskill Castle by Janet Fox. This book could be in historical
fiction as well as fantasy. Set in World War II, a witch is taking the
souls of children and the Nazi's are trying to steal the power.
I liked
these, I enjoyed my time with the characters and will continue to read
these authors and series.
Non-Fiction
The
Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni. This is a business fable about how to
manage a team. I quite liked it.
An American Plague by Jim Murphy. This children's non-fiction title is quite good. The secondary title sums it up: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow
Fever Epidemic of 1793. Truly
interesting, just don’t read it at night.
Alone. And think about your son in mosquito ridden Dominican
Republic.
General
Fiction:
The
Night Circus by Erin Mogenstern. Two people, fated to magically
fight each other, fall in love. What a
perfect tag line!
Her Good Name by Josi Kilpack. This is a LDS mystery novel, different than
many others of the same type. A bit unbelievable,
but enjoyable.
Young
Adult Fiction:
The
Red Queen by
Victoria Aveyard. First in the fantasy Red Queen Trilogy. War between silver
bloods and red bloods, quite intriguing.
Dorothy
Must Die by Danielle Page.
Yes, this is that Dorothy of Wizard of Oz fame. A nice dark twist on the Oz story. First book
in the series.
A Time to Dance by Padma Venkatraman. Takes
place in India. A lovely look into Indian
culture and the beauty of dance and the human spirit.
The Serpent King by Jeff Zentner. Realistic
fiction with strong characters. The son
of a Pentecostal preacher in small town Tennessee must deal with a multitude of
issues.
Junior
Fiction:
Circus
Mirandus by
Cassie Beasley. A lovely fantasy book that follows a young man searching for
the magical circus his grandfather has been telling him about for years.
The Ghost Knight by Cornelia Funke. This
author never fails to disappoint me. I
listened to the audiobook as I exercised.
A wonderful tale of ghosts and family connections.
Roller Girl by Victoria Jamieson. This graphic novel about a young girl who
joins a roller derby team was a joy to read.
The pictures pushed along the story and added an additional dimension to
the narration. A winner!
The War that Saved My Life by Kimberly Brubaker
Bradley. Historical fiction that takes
place in England during World War II. A
handicapped girl and her brother are taken into the county side for safety and
they and the lady they live with enrich each others lives.
Echo by Pam Munoz Ryan. Another
author that does not disappoint. This is
a collection of stories that seem unrelated but come together beautifully in
the end.
Summerlost by Ally Condie. Realistic fiction
that takes place in Cedar City Utah at the Shakespeare Festival (although if
you weren’t from Utah you probably wouldn’t catch on to that bit of
information). Fun story of two young
kids and their summer adventures.
The Wild Robot by Peter Brown. I love Peter Brown’s picture books, Children Make Terrible Pets is wonderful. His foray into fiction is
successful with this truly unique book about a robot and the animals it
helps.
Saving Lucas Biggs by Marisa de los Santos and
David Teague. Another audiobook success.
This story follows two story lines years apart. They come together in a very satisfying way. I
love a good ending!
Picture Book:
The Last Stop on Market
Street by Matt
de la Peña. I had to include this award
winning picture book. It won the Newbery Medal for 2016 (unique for a picture
book) and received a Caldecott Honor along with a Coretta Scott King
Illustrator Honor. A bus ride that you
will want to take again and again.
Loved—this
list is longer than in years past. I liked different things about each
one. Some of these I loved because they will be on my list of rereads and
some of them I loved because I read them very quickly, excited to turn the next
page.
General Fiction:
Murder on Wheels and Tea Cups and Carnage by Lyn Cahoon.
These are my guilty pleasure.
Tourist Trap mystery series with a bit of romance thrown in. Cahoon comes out with a couple new titles a
year and I have them on automatic order on my kindle.
Prudence by Gail Carriger. Custard Protocol #1. I have loved Carriger’s other steampunk
series. This one is another wonderfully
read audiobook, but unlike the other series she has written for young adults,
this one is for adults. Because of this
the second book in the series that I started to listen to got a little racy, so
I stopped with the first one, which I loved.
Young Adult Fiction:
Lady Thief by A.C. Gaughen. Scarlett
series #2. This Robin Hood series is delightful to read, moves quickly and has
endearing characters.
Manners & Mutiny by Gail Carriger. Finishing
School, book 4. Loved this series.
Vampires, werewolves, flying air machines, espionage. What’s not to love? A must listen to audiobook.
Junior Fiction:
Raymie Nightingale by Kate DiCamillo. I watched a webinar with Kate DiCamillo as
she talked about this new book. She is
delightful. I listened to this audiobook
and the three main characters really came alive for me. A realistic fiction book set in the south.
The Blackthorn Key by Kevin Sands. The first
book in a series (the second book has just come out and I haven’t had a chance
to read it yet). I read this book aloud
to my kids and they were hanging on every word!
A fast paced fantasy novel where the only negative thing is waiting for
the rest of the series to be published!
Mark of the Thief (Mark of the Thief, book 1)
and Rise of the Wolf (Mark of the
Thief, book 2) by Jennifer Nielson. These Roman mythology books rival Percy
Jackson in my opinion!
