January 1, 2014

Favorite reads of 2013

As I mentioned in my last post, out of the 102 books I read in 2013, 26 of them attained a 5 star ranking, including 9 indie titles. Of those twenty-six, here are my top ten reads of 2013:


1. Legend by Marie Lu
This is one of those books that I heard a lot about from book bloggers but didn't get around to reading until 2013. Boy, am I glad I did. At first, I thought Legend was going to be another typical YA dystopian story, but the writing was so good and Marie Lu drew me into her world and her characters so much that this became my favorite read of the year. I can't wait to read the rest of the series!

2. Fire by Kristen Cashore
I read Graceling in 2012, and while it didn't make the 2012 top ten list, I gave it 5 stars. Fire was even better! If you're looking for a YA fantasy series, you should definitely check out the Graceling Realm books.

3. Outpost by Ann Aguirre
Who said that authors suffer a sophomore slump with the second book in the series? Fire didn't, and neither did Outpost. As was the case with Graceling, I read Enclave in 2012 and gave it 5 stars, although it didn't make the top ten list. I thought Outpost was better than Enclave. You can read my review here.

4. Angelfall by Susan Ee
Although I didn't count Angelfall as an indie book, I could have because it started out as such. You can read my review here.

5. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
Cinder did make my top ten list of 2012 reads. Scarlet was just as good as its predecessor. Although the heroine of the first book had to share the pages with another protagonist, Marissa Meyer managed to tell both characters' stories without short changing either one. I'm looking forward to the release of Cress in 2014.

6. The Breeders by Katie French
I discovered indie author Katie French in early 2013 and was very impressed with her writing as soon as I started reading The Breeders. I've since read Nessa (a companion short story to The Breeders) and Eyes Ever to the Sky (a YA paranormal romance) and I'm just starting on the sequel to The Breeders titled The Believers. She's an awesome author whose works I recommend to everyone!

7. Die Trying by Lee Child
After YA speculative fiction, thrillers are my next favorite genre, and I'm glad I started reading Lee Child's novels. It's no surprise that Die Trying, the second installment of the Jack Reacher series, made my top ten list this year. I'm glad there are many more Reacher novels still left for me to read.

8. Mila 2.0 - Debra Driza
I came across this book because none other than Marissa Meyer spoke highly of it, so I had to give it a try. Although the story line was somewhat predictable, I found this novel to be very engaging. It was very un-put-down-able, and perhaps one of the best things I can say (especially if you know how much I dislike long books) is that Mila 2.0 felt much shorter than a book of over 400 pages.

9. Freak of Nature - Julia Crane
If I were to choose books by its cover, indie published Freak of Nature might have ended up #1 on my list. Aside from the book's beautiful cover, the story itself was totally gripping. Like Mila 2.0, this novel held my attention from the start and I couldn't put it down.

10. Breathe - Sarah Crossnan
Another YA dystopian novel that's up my alley. More formulaic and predictable than the others on my top ten list, Breathe was nevertheless an entertaining read that I had trouble putting down.

No comments:

Post a Comment