Favorite reads of 2019

Happy New Year, everyone! As we get ready to welcome 2020, here were my favorite reads of 2019.

1. The Wife Between Us - Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen
Many books have claimed to be the next Gone Girl, but of all the psychological thrillers I've read since Gillian Flynn's, The Wife Between Us is the most worthy successor. The book is full of twists, some of which I was able to guess but some that I was happily surprised by. It's also written in a way that kept me turning the pages, wanting to find out what happens next. I literally couldn't put it down and finished the book in two days.

2. Recursion - Blake Crouch

This was the most gripping and mind-blowing book I read all year, so it's no surprise that it landed near the top of my list of favorite reads. Unfortunately, I can't say more without spoiling what actually happens in the book, but I highly recommend it! The only reason it wasn't #1? It took more than the usual amount of suspension of disbelief to buy into the premise, but once I did, I was sucked in.

3. Broken Lands - Jonathan Maberry 

The Rot & Ruin series is one of my favorite YA series of all time, so imagine my delight to discover that there's a new series set in the same universe. Many of the beloved characters from Rot & Ruin play a part in Broken Lands, and if this book is any indication, I'm going to love the new series too.

4. An Anonymous Girl - Greer Hendricks and Sarah Pekkanen 

After reading The Wife Between Us, I had to read the next book by this author duo. An Anonymous Girl shares a lot of the same elements that made their first book such a great read, but it's not another Gone Girl, in case you were expecting a similar story line. However, it's still a great book, and I highly recommend it. I can't wait for the next book by Hendricks and Pekkanen.

5. Aurora Rising - Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff 

Speaking of author duos who I want to see write more books together, Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff have done it again. The books in their Illuminae Files trilogy were the top reads the last three years. Their latest collaboration, the first in the new Aurora Cycle series, is also great. This book isn't written in an unusual format like the Illuminae Files were, but it's still a must read for fans of YA speculative fiction.

6. Stepsister - Jennifer Donnelly 

Stepsister is one of the best fairy tale retellings I've read. I liked how we heard the Cinderella story from the point of view of one of her stepsisters, and in a way that made us sympathize with her without turning Cinderella into a villain. But more important than the quality of the story were the messages in it, including (as quoted from one of the characters), "We all make mistakes. What matters is that we don't let our mistakes make us." This book was not only entertaining but inspirational.

7. Redshirts - John Scalzi 

I'm not sure how much my love of Star Trek played a role in my enjoyment of this book, but I sure liked it! I've wondered what it was like to live the life of a redshirt on the show, and now I know. Unexpectedly, this book got me thinking about its thematic message more so than most of the books I read this year. Whether you're a Star Trek fan or not, I encourage you to give this book a try.

8. Saint Anything - Sarah Dessen 

Based on the description, I wasn't sure if I was going to like this book, but I chose it to satisfy my Authors A to Z challenge. I'm sure glad I did. This was the best contemporary book I read in 2019. I immediately liked the main character and her best friend, and as a result, I was easily invested in the story line. I'll be reading more books by Sarah Dessen now.

9. Circe - Madeleine Miller 

After all the buzz I heard about this book, I gave it a try and liked it as much as I expected to. It helps that I'm already a fan of Greek mythology. I really enjoyed the way the story is told in Circe's point of view, shedding more light on some myths that I only knew superficially or only heard one side of. The novel really brought Greek myths to life in a way where I felt like the characters involved were more real.

10. Scrappy Little Nobody - Anna Kendrick 

I don't normally read non-fiction, especially autobiographies, so the fact that Scrappy Little Nobody ended up on my list of favorite reads of the year was a surprise. I selected this book to fulfill the Authors A to Z challenge and because I liked the Anna Kendrick movies I've seen. She is hilarious in writing, and if anything, reading this book makes me want to watch more of her movies.

What I read in 2019

As another year comes to an end, it's time to review the books that I read in the last twelve months. In 2019, I read 84 books, one less than in 2018.

The average rating for the books I read was 4.01 stars per book, broken down as follows:

• 5 stars - 24 books
• 4 stars - 37 books 
• 3 stars - 23 books 

The 4.01 stars average was a slight decrease from the 4.07 stars per book in 2018.

Of the 84 books read, 26 were part of the Authors A to Z Challenge that I embarked on in January. One of the goals of the reading challenge was to read books by authors whom I haven't been exposed to before, and in that regard, I considered my efforts successful, as 16 of the 26 books were from authors new to me.

The ratings for the books in the Authors A to Z challenge were distributed as follows:

• 5 stars - 6 books 
• 4 stars - 10 books 
• 3 stars - 10 books 

The average rating for the books in the challenge was 3.85, lower than my overall rating for books read in 2019. This shouldn't have come as a surprise since I read several books outside of my comfort zone. However, the experience was well worth it, and I'll have to repeat the reading challenge again in the future.

In my next post, I’ll list my top ten favorite books of 2019. Stay tuned!

What would you do with a Groundhog Day time loop?

I watched a movie recently that was similar to "Groundhog Day" in that the main character relived the same day over and over. I don't know if "Groundhog Day" invented the genre, but it's pretty amazing to think of the number of movies following the same plot: "Before I Fall," "Edge of Tomorrow," and "Happy Death Day" (the movie I just watched) to name a few.

Columbia Pictures

The movie got me thinking about what I would do if I were to ever be caught in a Groundhog Day time loop. First, it would depend on what happens during the repeating day. If, like in the case of "Edge of Tomorrow" or "Happy Death Day," I end up dying, my top priority would be to prevent that from happening. Death is no fun. I would spend each iteration trying to figure out how to change my fate.

What if the day was a normal day like in "Groundhog Day"? My first reaction was, "I hope it's not a Monday!" Repeating a typical working Monday would be awful. But then, if I really was stuck in a work day, I'd stop going to work once I found out what was happening to me. I'd take the day off and do something else instead.

What if the repeating day was a great day, like a vacation to Disney World? I'd be happy to relive it the first few times. I'd probably make tweaks to my schedule to go on that ride I didn't get to go on the first time or to try the restaurant I didn't eat at.  However, I wonder if I would tire of it after a while. As with the work scenario, would I eventually ditch Disney World to spend the day doing something else?

In the end, I decided that as long as something catastrophic doesn't happen, it doesn't matter which day repeats. If I knew I'd have the day to live over again, I can do whatever I want to today. There's a sort of freedom in the "Groundhog Day" scenario that we don't get in ordinary life. You may be wondering, "Why wait for a time loop to make those choices? Why not do those things today?" The reason is that there are consequences in real life. If I don't show up for work day after day, I'll lose my job. If I eat sweets and fattening foods all day (something I'm likely to do if the day resets itself), my body will be in pretty bad shape.

If I think about it more, there could be a bucket list of things I'd do even if I weren't stuck in a time loop, but it might not be so bad to actually relive Groundhog Day over and over again. :-)

Harry Potter vs. Star Wars, Theme Park Edition

It's no surprise that there are many similarities between Harry Potter and Star Wars. They both now share something else: with the opening of Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge at Disney World and Disneyland this year, both franchises have theme parks, coincidentally in Orlando and Los Angeles.

I had the pleasure of traveling to Orlando earlier this month and visited the Harry Potter park inside Universal Studios as well as Galaxy's Edge in Disney World. Although I recommend seeing both if you have the opportunity,  here are some ways they're similar and different if you have to make a choice.

• Immersive Experience: Both parks do a good job of making you think you're within the Harry Potter/Star Wars universe. Given that they're both part of larger parks, the delineation between the Harry Potter/Star Wars sections and the rest of the parks is clear. When I first walked into Diagon Alley, I thought I had entered the movie. There are so many details that will impress any Harry Potter fan. Galaxy's Edge is similarly immersive, although the setting is Batuu, a planet that isn't featured in the movies. It's close enough to Jakku or Tatooine that casual fans may think they're on one of those planets instead. If there's one difference between the two parks, I'd say it's that the employees who work at Galaxy's Edge pretend as if they're inhabitants of the planet, whereas those who work at the Harry Potter park act like regular theme park employees.
• Signature Drink: Harry Potter has butterbeer, and Galaxy's Edge has blue milk and green milk. Based on my taste alone, I prefer the butterbeer, but I'm glad I sampled the blue milk. Both parks also offer additional drinks from their respective franchises, such as pumpkin juice and gillywater or the selection of cocktails at Oga's Cantina in Galaxy's Edge.
• Choose Your Wand/Saber: If you bring home one merchandise from the parks, I'd say it'd be a wand from Harry Potter and a light saber from Galaxy's Edge. At Ollivander's, you can choose wands from a variety of characters. Being a Hufflepuff, I went with Cedric Diggory's. I didn't buy a light saber because they were more expensive (starting from $130) and I didn't have room in  my luggage to carry it home, but the ones on display looked pretty awesome. You can choose the light saber from your favorite character or build a custom one.
• Rides: This is where the parks are most different, with Harry Potter being the hands down winner. Galaxy's Edge currently only has one ride, Smuggler's Run, but a new ride, Rise of the Resistance, will open in the winter. Harry Potter has five rides if you count the Hogwarts Express, which I do because it was fun. I didn't get to go on the new Hagrid's Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure because the line was insanely long, and the Forbidden Journey ride made me sick, but I enjoyed the others.

The next time you're in Orlando or Los Angeles, I recommend visiting the Harry Potter and Star Wars: Galaxy's Edge parks. Even if you can see only one, it'll be fun. I'm planning to visit the parks in Los Angeles next year, and I can hardly wait!

Famblooey!

Did you know that Dr. Seuss invented the word "nerd"? Or that John Milton came up with "pandemonium"? Charles Dickens coined words such as "doormat" and "boredom" (no comment on the irony of the latter), and many words in the English language can be attributed to Shakespeare. The reason I mention these words invented by authors is that I've started using a new word of my own invention: famblooey.

What does "famblooey" mean? Think of the best place you've ever been for vacation. That place was famblooey. Imagine the most delicious meal you've ever had. It was famblooey. Your favorite book? Yup, famblooey. Synonyms for famblooey include "awesome" and "supercalifragilisticexpialidocious." However, "famblooey" isn't as atrocious, but I can't guarantee that you'll sound precocious when saying it.

So the next time you encounter something that you thought was too wonderful to describe with words, now you can; it's famblooey! You heard it here first! :-)

May you have a famblooey day!

2019 Summer Sale

If you're feeling blue because summer is almost over, I have something to help cheer you up: a summer book sale! For the next seven days, most of my e-books will be on sale for 99 cents or FREE on Amazon! Snap up these titles before they return to their normal prices on August 11!

99 CENTS:

Beneath the Earth		All That Remains of Me		Beyond New Eden		Gifted

Transmissions		In the Hands of Children		Keep Your Enemies Close		George and the Galactic Games

A House in the Woods		Protect		Search		Rescue

FREE:

Drive		Through a Tangled Wood		Celestial		Spectral Tales

Happy summer reading!

2019 Authors A to Z update

At the beginning of the year, one of the reading goals I set for myself was to read 26 books by authors whose last names begin from A all the way to Z. With 2019 half over, I've read 12 of those 26 books, spanning A to L.

A big reason why I like challenges like this is that it forces me to read authors I normally wouldn't. Mission accomplished so far. Nine of the 12 books I've read during the challenge have been new authors I've never read before. More surprising was how much I enjoyed some of the books, given that many were picked at random to satisfy the challenge's criteria. I rated four of the books five stars, and I'm pretty sure at least one of them will end up on my year-end list of favorite reads.

With six months and 14 more books to go, I'm excited to see discover more hidden treasures among the remaining books in the Authors A to Z reading challenge.

Did you have a reading goal this year? If so, how is it going so far?

Finding room for books

Image courtesy of My Modern Met

I admit that I have a book buying addiction. I buy books every month. I buy them online and I buy them from physical stores. I buy new books and used. You name it, I'm interested. This is not a post about how to defeat my addiction though. It's about what to do with all of these books once I've bought them.

At this point, I have three bookshelves full of books in my room. My kids have bookshelves where books that once belonged to me are stored if they're interested in the books too. (For example, the Harry Potter series is now in their room, not mine.) But I still don't have enough space for new books. I have books piled by my nightstand and books under my bed. There are books on top of and under our coffee table in the living room. Books in the DVD case. Books on top of dressers. Basically, books everywhere.

I wish I was handy enough to build something like the bookshelf staircase in the photo above, or that my house was designed in such a way that would allow for it. However, I have a feeling I'd quickly fill that space too. For those of you who also own a lot of books, what are some ways you find room for your books? 

Spoilers, anyone?

Two of the most anticipated finales that I can remember recently aired: Avengers: Endgame and Game of Thrones. Despite the numerous fan theories about how both series would end, the studios kept the endings a secret. Even the casts weren't aware of how the finales would play out until near the end. Amazingly, in both cases, the veil of secrecy worked. I, for one, did not hear about what would happen in the finales until they aired.

Once Avengers: Endgame and the final episode of Game of Thrones were released, however, all bets were off. You couldn't get out of the way of spoilers if you lived a somewhat normal life, i.e., one where you used the Internet or talked to other people. In my case, I was lucky to have watched Endgame on opening weekend, so the Monday morning office conversations didn't spoil anything for me. Not so with Game of Thrones, where I didn't watch the finale on the Sunday night when it aired and was promptly spoiled Monday morning by radio DJs. (Yes, I still listen to the radio, but that's a different topic for another time.) It's a good thing I'm not too bothered by being spoiled. I didn't expect things to turn out the way they did, but I'm not as displeased as some fans seem to be.

How about you? Did anyone spoil Avengers: Endgame or Game of Thrones for you? If so, what was your reaction?

Visiting the world's largest independent bookstore

Powell's City of Books claims to be the "largest used and new bookstore in the world, occupying an entire city block and housing approximately one million books." I had the good fortune of visiting Powell's while passing through Portland, and it was by far the most impressively gigantic bookstore I've ever been in!

It's true that the store occupies an entire block. That's an awful lot of real estate. Not only that, but it's at least three floors tall. I say "at least" because there were lower levels where I wasn't sure if they were part of the first floor or a basement level. The books were organized by color-themed rooms, but in the short time that I was there, I couldn't figure out which books resided in which rooms. I had to follow the signs, and even then, I got lost a few times. How amazing is it to actually get lost in a bookstore?

One would expect that with a bookstore so huge, the selection would be just as vast, and it was. There were old books and new releases, used books and new, in every genre you can think of. I was able to find a couple of books that I'd been looking for that I haven't been able to find at other book retailers. (Yes, they're available on Amazon, but the prices at Powell's was actually cheaper.)

I wish I had more time to browse the store. I could easily spend a day there and not see everything. They even have a rare books room, which could have occupied an hour all by itself.

If you ever get a chance to visit Portland, or if you're lucky enough to live there, I highly recommend visiting Powell's City of Books!

I'm reading more thrillers

I'm a big believer that, to be a better writer, one should read more. As a corollary, reading in the genre that one intends to write is even better. For the last few months, I've been working on a thriller, which I'm in the midst of editing, so I've been reading more thrillers recently.

Thriller is a broad genre. According to Wikipedia, it encompasses stories that elicit feelings of suspense, excitement, surprise, anticipation, and anxiety. For me, when I think of thrillers, I think of authors like Lee Child and Lisa Gardner. I also think of psychological thrillers like Gone Girl and The Girl on the Train.

In my personal reading, I've seen the balance shift from YA to thrillers. This year alone, I've read five books in the YA category but eight thrillers so far. I expect that trend to continue because I'm finding that I really like the books I've read. Thrillers have been my second favorite genre for a long time (and hence the reason why I decided to write one myself), but the more I read, the more hooked I'm getting. This is especially true for psychological thrillers, although I don't think I'm ready to write one of those yet. I haven't been able to come up with some of the neat twists (e.g., Gone Girl) that I've read, but maybe someday I will.

This could be the first year since I started tracking my reading activity on Goodreads that I read more books in a genre other than YA, but I'm enjoying it so far. Who knows, this might signal the beginning of a transformation from my being a YA author to a thriller author!

Getting Older Isn't All Bad

Rarely does a day go by when I'm not reminded that I'm getting older. Whether it's forgetting little things, dealing with nagging injuries that used to heal in days when I was younger, or wishing I could still eat buffets without worrying about my expanding waistline, my body likes to make sure I'm aware of my age. However, when it comes to writing, my years on the earth have provided several benefits.

1. I've had lots of practice writing. I don't know if I've hit the 10,000-hour milestone yet, but the more I've written, the better my writing has become.
2. I've read lots of books. This is a corollary to #1. Reading is one of the best ways to become a better writer IMHO, and by my conservative estimates, I've read more than 2,000 books so far in my life, not counting essays, papers, and other passages that were required for school. That's a lot of examples to draw from when it's time for me to write my own books.
3. I've had more life experiences. A couple of years ago, I read some of the short stories I wrote when I was under twenty. Not only was my writing laughably awful, but the things I wrote about and my viewpoints were naive. Even if I had mastered a command of the English language at that age, my stories wouldn't be as textured as the ones I can write now, and that's due to having been alive for a few decades.
4. I have more discipline. Having to juggle a full-time job, raising a family, and all of the other adult responsibilities in my life have taught me how to get things done. I don't always succeed in doing what I ought to, but I'm a lot better at it now than when I was twenty.
5. Insomnia means more time to write or to think about writing. This is somewhat tongue-in-cheek, but as I get older, I've had more trouble sleeping. What do I often do when I'm lying in bed? I brainstorm ideas for my work in progress or new story ideas. If only my aging brain would hold on to more of those ideas until the morning when I can write them down, but that's another topic...

Richard Adams didn't publish his first novel, Watership Down, until he was 52, and Laura Ingalls Wilder didn't publish the Little House books until her 60s, so I still have many more productive writing years ahead of me. Chances are that I'll become an even better writer as I continue to age.

Reading goals for 2019

Every year, I try to have some kind of reading goal or theme to complement the books I'd normally choose to read. In 2017 and 2018, it was to make an appreciable dent in the TBR books I already own, and I've been able to do that, completing 65 such books in the last two years.

This year, I'm planning to have two reading goals:

1. Re-reading my favorites: I rarely re-read a book, no matter how much I love it, because there are so many new books to read. However, this year, I'm going to do just that. I want to re-read at least six books (one every two months) that I've rated 5 stars. I don't know what those books will be yet, but it should be fun regardless of which ones I pick. Note: For purposes of my year-end reading statistics, I won't include the ratings for these books because I've already rated them.
2. Authors A to Z: Back in 2013, I started an A to Z reading challenge where I would read one book by an author whose last name started with each letter of the alphabet. Back then, it took me 26 months to go through all 26 letters. This year, my goal is to finish that challenge within one year.

At the end of the year, I'll report how I did with both reading goals. What reading goals did you make for yourself this year?

Favorite reads of 2018

Happy New Year! As we ring in the new year, let's take a look back at the top ten books I read last year.

1. Obsidio - Amie Kaufman & Jay Kristoff
Wow, what an awesome conclusion to an awesome trilogy! All three books in the Illuminae Files series ended up as my #1 favorite read in the year I read them. A great plot, great characters, engaging writing, and an unusual format make this an ideal combination for me. If you haven't read the Illuminae Files yet, go do it now!

2. Muse of Nightmares - Laini Taylor

I can't think of an author who writes as beautifully as Laini Taylor, and Muse of Nightmares was Ms. Taylor at her best. She wields words as masterfully as Michelangelo wielded a paint brush. What also left me awestruck about this book was the way all of the pieces fit together in the end. Laini Taylor is a genius for coming up with the backstories and story line. If not for the fact that I'm such a sucker for books with unusual formats, this could have been my favorite read of the year.

3. Warcross - Marie Lu
Marie Lu is one of my favorite YA authors. First, there was the Legend series. Then The Young Elites. She's done it again with Warcross, a near-future YA book centered on the titular video game. The story is engaging, the action is fast paced, and the writing is as good as with any of her other books. The only drawback was the ending and how much was left open, which was obviously a way to entice readers to read the second book in the series.

4. My Plain Jane - Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, Jodi Meadows
My Lady Jane was one of my top 10 reads for 2016, and the second book by the "Lady Janies" was as good if not better. This re-imagining of Jane Eyre was full of funny and entertaining moments. Whether you're a fan of Jane Eyre or not (and I've never read Jane Eyre - gasp!), you'll enjoy this book.

5. Artemis - Andy Weir
This second novel by Andy Weir isn't as heavy on the science as The Martian was, and it was more fun to read. The best part of the book was the protagonist's irreverent tone (the story is told in first person), although sometimes that irritated me a little too. However, the fast-paced plot more than made up for it. I finished the book in two days, which is fast for me. This was a great, entertaining read.

6. The Diabolic - S.J. Kincaid
This book had all the elements of a great YA sci-fi story that I look for. The plot was interesting and kept me flipping through the pages, losing track of time as I read large chunks in a single sitting. The protagonists were easy to sympathize with, even if I wasn't sure if I should because it was hard to tell with certainty who was good and who wasn't. The world was also nicely laid out, and I thought the author did a nice job of describing how the government worked without resorting to info-dumping. The novel does get violent at times, so those with weak stomachs should be warned. However, for most YA readers, I highly recommend The Diabolic.

7. The Wise Man's Fear - Patrick Rothfuss
I read the first book of the Kingkiller Chronicles, The Name of the Wind, in 2016. It's taken me this long to read book two, The Wise Man's Fear, not just because I'm notoriously bad at finishing a series in a timely manner, but also because I don't know when the third book will be released, and I didn't want there to be too big a gap between reading the books. Now that I've finally read The Wise Man's Fear, I can say that I like it even more than The Name of the Wind! If you enjoyed Kvothe's adventures in The Name of the Wind, there are more and perhaps even better adventures here!

8. No Middle Name - Lee Child
No Middle Name is a collection of Jack Reacher stories. The Jack Reacher books have become one of my favorites, and I've read more than half of the books in the series. However, only one other has made my yearly top 10 list until now. What makes No Middle Name better than the typical Jack Reacher book? Easy. There are a dozen stories. In this case, "more is better" definitely applies.

9. The Empress - S.J. Kincaid
The sequel to The Diabolic had a lot of the same elements as the first book that led me to enjoy it. The main reason I ranked it lower is that I wasn't as fond of the ending. However, I'm intrigued to read the third (and last?) book in the series to find out how the plot will unfold, given the direction the author decided to take in The Empress.

10. Only Human - Sylvain Neuvel
The final book in the Themis Files trilogy wasn't quite as good as its predecessors were (i.e., not enough battling giant robots) but it was a satisfying conclusion nonetheless. I recommend the series, even to readers who aren't enthralled by giant robots.