Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Goals/Resolutions for 2015

From the Broke and Bookish

This week's theme: Top Ten Goals/Resolutions for 2015. According to the girls over at the Broke and Bookish these could be either book related or blog related - I've gone mainly with blog related goals since this will be only my second year of doing this seriously. Look forward to reading every body else's!

 

Goals I control

1. Only request Netgalley or Edelweiss books I know I'm going to read
I have an absolutely horrendous ratio (especially on Netgalley) so this year I'm only going to request books I know I am going to read, ie books I have already got on my absolutely to be read list (ATBR :) )

2. Write a review for every book I read
My ratio of books read to reviews written this year is pretty bad, so even if I only write a small one paragraph review I want to be able to look back and read some thoughts on every single book I read.

3. Post more reviews to Goodreads and Amazon
I haven't posted nearly enough of my reviews to both sites this year so I want to improve on that next year!

4. Read all of the Goodreads Choice Awards nominees I have on my list
I have about 100 so I would like to get through all of these along with some older books and obviously the new releases

5. Do a Shannara Reread
I would love to do something along the lines of the Tor.com rereads (Wheel of Time and Malazan to name but a few) and have a weekly post discussing the chapters I have read. Whether I'll manage that or just do a book by book reread I'm not sure but either way I want to read the books!

6. Add fewer books to my TBR list
Every month I ended up with fifty or so releases on my TBR list, impossible to keep up with. I'd prefer to stay around 15 per month but will try and stick to no more than one book per day of the month at the least!

7. Comment more frequently on my favourite blogs
I have done better at this this year but I need to improve still!

8. Post more regularly on my own blog
If possible once a day but I want to at least make sure I don't leave more than two or three days go by without posting something

Goals outside of my control

9. Get a higher read count and more comments
I've been so happy and amazed at the regular visitors here throughout the year but I would obviously like that to continue and to get a few more regular comments

10. Get a few more followers
Same as above, I have gained one this year, which is fantastic, but I would love to get a few more in 2015!

Look forward to reading your goals and resolutions in the comments (see goal 9! :) ) Thanks to all the visitors here for making this a great year and here's to a greater 2015!

Wrat-Up 2014 - Top Ten of the Year

And so we come to my top ten books in all genres from 2014. What a year it has been! I have read great books in all genres, though I feel like I didn't even scratch the surface of all the books I would have liked to read. Narrowing the lists down to ten has not been easy and arranging them in order even less so.

Still, here are, in descending order, my top ten books of the year!

10. We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

A worthy successor to Gone Girl in the surprise twist ending league, but also a fine YA novel with an intriguing narrator.

9. The Second Amendment by Michael Waldman

Fascinating and extremely well-written, The Second Amendment is the biography of a legal text rife with contradictions.

8. No Place to Hide by Glenn Greenwald

A comprehensive and terrifying look at the revelations made by Edward Snowden about the NSA.

7. The Enchanted by Rene Denfeld

Reminiscent of Stephen King's The Green Mile but told with a fresh, heart-breaking voice.

6. Fool's Assassin by Robin Hobb

Just missing out on on a top 5 spot by a nose, Hobb's triumphant return to Fitz and the Fool. I want the next book NOW!

5. Life, Animated by Ron Süskind

I don't think I've ever read a book better able to break my heart at the same time as filling it with hope. Deals with autism and a possible way out through the magic of animation.

4. Sparrow Hill Road by Seanan McGuire

A perfect book in its genre, spooky, epic and so wonderfully well-written. Seanan McGuire is at the top of my TBR list now!

3. The Martian by Andy Weir

Worthy of all the accolades it has received, a taut, exciting, edge-of-the-seat thriller set on Mars, aided and abbetted by some fantastic characters.

And so we come to the final two, the silver and gold. Both of these books have switched places numerous times while I put this list together so you could almost call it a tie.

2. I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes

From the opening scenes at a murder scene in a hotel in Manhattan to the tense finale, I Am Pilgrim kept me glued to the pages (or screen in this case) until I finished. A great book, a great thriller, and a fantastic narrative voice.

1. The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair by Joel Dicker

My book of the year 2014! A mystery, a thriller, an exploration of the art of writing and the price you pay for love, The Truth About the Harry Quebert Affair made me fall in love with books all over again. Cannot say how much I loved this book. If you haven't already, go out and buy it. Read it. Great stuff!




So there you have it. 2014 in ten books. Can't wait to see how 2015 will match up. See you tomorrow for my top ten resolutions for the year and then on Wednesday for my list of books I'm most looking forward to.

And please share your own top ten in the comments below! Happy reading!

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten New-To-Me Authors I Read In 2014

From the Broke and Bookish

This week's theme: Top Ten New-to-Me Authors I Read in 2014. I've tried to put together a mix of debut authors and older writers I encountered for the first time for this one. Was difficult to get it down to ten - I have started to read some fantastic writers this year! :)

Brian Staveley

First book I read:  The Emperor's Blades

The Emperor's Blades was one of my fantasy debuts of the year, a classy epic with great characters and some wonderful world building.

Looking forward to: The Providence of Fire, Book Two of the Chronicle of the Unhewn Throne, expected next February

Seanan McGuire
 
First book I read:  Sparrow Hill Road

Sparrow Hill Road was a real coup-de-coeur read for me, a perfect ghost story. I have since gone back to catch up on the rest of her books.

Looking forward to: Getting to Discount Armageddon, which I have heard a lot about

Conn Iggulden

First book I read: War of the Roses: Stormbird

Stormbird was the first in a series that will chart the eponymous War of the Roses. I had heard a lot about Iggulden, who has also written series' on Julius Caesar and Genghis Khan

Looking forward to: The follow up to Stormbird, Trinity, on my TBR list for later this month!

Maurice Druon

First book I read: Le roi de fer, first book in the Cursed Kings series

I came across Druon through Pat's Fantasy Hotlist. The Cursed Kings is one of George R.R. Martin's influences for Game of Thrones and quite popular over here in France (it has spawned two well received TV series').

Looking forward to: Completing the series next year, four books left!

Marie Lu

First book I read: The Young Elites

I read The Young Elites as part of my Goodreads catch-up, but Lu has been on my radar for a little while.

Looking forward to: You guessed it, the follow up to The Young Elites, due next year

Elizabeth Bear

First book I read: Range of Ghosts

This is probably the name I'm the most ashamed of having on the list - Bear has written a lot of books and they are all right up my alley. It's a crime that I haven't gotten to her before this, especially considering how good Range of Ghosts was.

Looking forward to: The other books in the Eternal Sky trilogy and then, hopefully, the rest of her backlist

Sally Green

First book I read: Half Bad

An obvious Harry Potter homage, Half Bad distinguishes itself by its sheer guts and darkness. I was enthralled by this book and can't wait for the follow up!

Looking forward to: See above! :) Half Wild, due in March

Gilles Legardinier

First book I read: Demain j'arrete

This is probably the favourite new author I discovered this year - Legardinier's mix of humour, crazy situations and fantastic writing have made him a must read for me!

Looking forward to: His new book, Ca peut pas rater, is on my TBR list for this month!

Rene Denfeld

First book I read: The Enchanted

The Enchanted was a heart-breaking novel, reminiscent of Stephen King at his best, but with a voice all of its own.

Looking forward to: Nothing yet! :( As far as I can tell, Denfeld does not have any book coming next year.

T.E Woods

First book I read: The Fixer

Woods' story of a damaged young woman working as a 'fixer', basically an assassin who only goes after people she deems necessary, may at first have seemed a one-book wonder, what with the fantastic twist hidden in the tail-end of the novel. Luckily, Woods has proven not with the follow-up.

Looking forward to: The Unforgivable Fix, which I am reading right now! :)

So there we go. Ten authors I've discovered for the first time in 2014

What about you guys? Who are your top New-To-You authors this year?

Share in the comments!

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books I'm Looking Forward to In 2015

From the Broke and Bookish

This week's theme: Top Ten Books I'm Looking Forward to In 2015. As per the theme posted on Broke and Bookish, these are not necessarily debuts, which will be dealt with separately. 

Firefight by Brandon Sanderson

The Providence of Fire by Brian Staveley

Gemini Cell by Myke Cole

Dark Intelligence by Neal Asher

Trigger Warning by Neil Gaiman

The Autumn Republic by Brian McClellan

The Skull Throne by Peter V Brett

The Patriot Threat by Steve Berry

The Fitz and the Fool Book Two by Robin Hobb

Twelve Kings in Sharakhai by Bradley Beaulieu

There you have it. Ten books I'm looking forward to in 2015. What about you?

Share in the comments!

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books On My Winter TBR

From the Broke and Bookish

This week's theme: Top Ten Books on my Winter To Be Read List. I'll consider winter to be from December 2014 to February 2015 for this.

 

 

Moriarty by Anthony Horowitz

 

A loose sequel to Horowitz' 2011 House of Silk, Moriarty is apparently set after the death of Holmes and Moriarty, and follows a new character, a Pinkerton detective arrived in London fresh from America to investigate a criminal mastermind...

 

Revival by Stephen King

 

Stephen King. Enough said.... Seriously though, I have heard very good things about this book, which sees King take on the Frankenstein story.

 

Clariel by Garth Nix

 

Oh My God! Cannot wait for this book! I loved Nix's original trilogy set in the world of the Abhorsen, where the dead are controlled by the magic of bells, and cannot wait to get back into it again.

 

A Call to Duty by David Weber and Timothy Zahn

 

Weber and Zahn, two of the biggest hitters in military SF, working together in an earlier timeframe of Weber's Honorverse. The short story that kicked this off in one of the latest anthologies was great fun, so I have high hopes for A Call to Duty.

 

Retribution by Mark Charan Newton

 

Mark Charan Newton's take on the historical mystery, set in a Roman Empire-ish fantasy world, had a strong start with Drakenfeld. Here's hoping Retribution will carry it even higher.

 

The Abyss Beyond Dreams by Peter F Hamilton

 

Hamilton is a fantastic epic space opera author and The Abyss Beyond Dreams returns to his seminal Void universe to start off a brand new duology.

 

The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu

 

One of the débuts I am the most excited to get a look at, translated from Chinese and apparently by one of China's most beloved sci-fi authors. With so much hype building up about this one, here's hoping it will live up to it!

 

Willful Child by Steven Erikson

 

The writer of the Malazan Book of the Fallen tries his hand at a Star Trek pastiche. I loved Scalzi's Red Shirts, so I hope this will be as good.

 

The Providence of Fire by Brian Staveley

 

Following on from what for me was the fantasy debut of 2014, The Providence of Fire continues the Chronicle of the Unhewn Throne, picking up the story of the three children of the Annurian Emperor as they return to the capital, and promising more action, magic and giant birds!

 

Gemini Cell by Myke Cole

 

I was so gutted when Myke Cole's Shadow Ops series apprently came to an end this year with Breach Zone, so you can imagine how excited I am to read Gemini Cell, a continuation of the world without being a sequel to what is a very contained and nicely wrapped up initial trilogy.

 

There you have it. Ten books on my TBR list for this winter. What about you?

Share in the comments!

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books I Want To Reread

From the Broke and Bookish

This week's theme: Top Ten Books I Want To Reread (or if you don't reread...would reread in an ideal world). I do reread, though not as much as I would like to (time, time, time). Here are a few books or series that I am either rereading at the moment or will be rereading hopefully in the near future (if the bad shiny new books would stop glinting at me... stop it! Stop glinting!)

The Malazan Book of the Fallen

I am rereading these at the moment and have just finished the first, Gardens of the Moon. I’m aiming to read one book every two or three months and am reading along with the Tor.com reread at the same time. Great stuff! 

The Wheel of Time

One of the rare series that I have read and reread at least four times, I have just started a new reread although I’m doing it very slowly, following along with the Reread of the Reread over at Tor.com. The ultimate epic fantasy series for our times, IMHO, I love returning to WOT!

The Count of Monte Cristo

My all time favourite book, this is the one I am most likely to actually reread, probably sometime next year. I try and read it once every two years.

The Lord of the Rings

Another great book, one that I am ashamed to say I have only read a couple of times. I keep on meaning to pick it up again but get sidetracked by all those shiny new books. Damn them! Damn them all! J

The Shannara Saga

Another likely reread sometime next year, I would love to reread all the Shannara books in chronological order, starting with Running with the Demon through to the latest book released this year. If I do, I’ll probably try and blog about it, something along the lines of the Malazan and Wheel of Time rereads done over on Tor.com.

Clive Barker

It has been years since I have read any Clive Barker, although I devoured all of his books in one fell swoop a few years ago. I would like to go back and reexplore these dark and twisted words sometime in the future.

Harry Potter

I recently did a rewatch of the films with my wife (we watch them once a year) and as usual got the urge to go back and reread the books. Hopefully another project I’ll get around to at some point.

Perdido Street Station by China Mieville

One I would love to reread but doubt I will ever get around to it. Perdido Street Station blew my mind when I first read it about a decade ago and I would love to see if it stands up all these years later.

Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

A definite reread at some point, probably before the last book in the series comes out (whenever that will be). My second favourite book of all time, Shadow of the Wind is a pure joy and I cannot wait to take another crack at it.

His Dark Materials Trilogy

This trilogy had a huge effect on me when I first read almost ten years ago, so this is another one I am really looking forward to reexploring. I’ve planned a reread a few times over the past few years but never got around to it. Hopefully in the next couple of years...

What about you guys? What books would you like or hope to reread?

Please share in the comments! :) 

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books/Movies To Read Or Watch To Get In The Halloween Spirit

From the Broke and Bookish

This week's theme: Top Ten Books/Movies To Read Or Watch To Get In The Halloween Spirit OR Top Ten Characters Who I Would Totally Want To Be For Halloween. I'm not a huge horror reader or watcher, so I decided to go with a bit of a mixture: 5 books, 3 movies and 2 TV series to get in that Halloween spirit!

Top 5 Books to Get in the Halloween Spirit

It by Stephen King

Choosing one Stephen King book was too hard, so I picked one novel and one collection. Out of his novels, I chose It because for me it is probably the most horror filled of them - although I prefer The Stand, I feel that It, with its small town setting, secret evil and creepy clown is sure to get you nicely freaked out! 

House of Small Shadows by Adam Nevill

A British author, Nevill has written quite a few scary novels but House of Small Shadows, with its dolls, creeped me out the most! 

Swan Song by Robert McCammon

Although there are some who - with good reason - look on McCammon as a Stephen King wannabe, he is a great author who has some amazing books. Swan Song is his take on the post apocalyptic world, but where King took us into a world devastated by a virus, McCammon uses nuclear war. Tapping into a very real fear of the time (Swan Song came out in '87) could have dated this novel but instead it creates a very particular ambiance that serves the story well.

Wildwood Road by Christopher Golden

Golden wrote Buffy the Vampire Slayer tie-ins before creating his own vampire saga. After a few books in that series, he wrote a handful of stand alones, of which Wildwood Road is probably the creepiest. A haunted house story, possession and child ghosts combine to create lots and lots of chills! 

Night Shift by Stephen King

Although Night Shift isn't my favourite of King's short story collections - I preferred the stories in Skeleton Crew - the stories in Night Shift, from earlier in his career, are definitely scarier. From the giant rats in Graveyard Shift to the terrifying kids of Children of the Corn, the stories here are guaranteed to keep you awake until Halloween is far behind you! 

Top 3 Movies to Get in the Halloween Spirit

ILS

This is a French film that was released abroad and is probably the scariest movie I have ever seen. A French couple move to Eastern Europe where their house is invaded by unknown assailants. According to the film's final scene, this is based on real events, which only serves to make this all the scarier. Great stuff! 


The Cabin in the Woods

Joss Whedon's deconstruction of every horror movie released in the last 50 years is funny, scary, gory, smart and mind-bending. So many fantastic shots, but the monsters in cages has to be the best to my mind. 


The Shining

I know this one is controversial, but it is spooky as anything and Jack Nicholson is great.  

Top 2 TV Shows to Get in the Halloween Spirit

Penny Dreadful

Penny Dreadful was released this year by Showtime and is also available through Netflix. A kind of horror-based League of Extraordinary Gentleman, the show starts relatively slowly but ramps up to an amazing finale. With some fantastic acting by Eva Green and Timothy Dalton (to name just two of the great actors in this series) it also has some pretty horrific scenes, sure to get your squirming in time for All Hallows Eve!


Buffy the Vampire Slayer

No Halloween list would be complete without Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I don't think it needs any particular introductions, but the handling of Halloween itself is really nicely done (the actual monsters find it tacky and avoid it like the plague) making for some excellent Halloween episodes. 

So, what will you be reading or watching in preparation for Halloween?

Please share in the comments! :) 

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Authors I've Only Read One Book From But NEED to Read More

From the Broke and Bookish

This week's theme: Top Ten Authors I've Only Read One Book From But NEED to Read More. I thought this was going to be difficult but it turns out there are a LOT of authors I've only read one book from! Time to update the old To Be Read List!

Top Ten Authors I've Only Read One Book From But NEED to Read More

Seanan McGuire

I just finished Sparrow Hill Road (which I loved) and have added all of her books to the top of my TR list for the next few months. How I had not heard about her before now is beyond me!

J.A. Konrath

I was an afficianado of Konrath’s blog for a long time a few years ago and yet I have only read one of his books – The List, back in 2010. I really enjoyed it but never got round to reading any more.

Mike Carey

Again, this dates back to 2010, when I read The Devil You Know. Other series got in the way, though, so I never continued with his Felix Castor novels, something I am definitely going to have to rectify in the future.

David Anthony Durham

Acacia was a fantastic fantasy debut and one of the first books I ever wrote a review about. Unfortunately, I never got around to continuing with the series. They are on my TR list but have been pushed down time and time again. Hopefully I’ll get to them sometime next year!

James Ellroy

The Black Dahlia is my only novel of his I have read. I have Perfidia on my immediate TR list so I will probably have read a second book by this time next month!

Paolo Bacigalupi

A hugely entertaining and mind-bending sci-fi novel, I never got around to reading anything more after The Windup Girl. I will definitely rectify this when his new novel – The Water Knife – comes out next year.

Guillermo del Toro

You would think that with all the hype about the TV series recently I would have gotten around to reading beyond the first book of The Strain, but unfortunately not.

Elizabeth Bear

I had heard so many good things about the Eternal Sky series but only got around to reading the first book in the series earlier this year. Definitely one to follow!

Robert S Redick

Another long-ago debut, The Red Wolf Conspiracy has everything I like in fantasy – a weird world with steampunk leanings, interesting characters and an intriguing plot. I think it was the length of the follow-ups that meant I never got around to reading them but I hope to get on with them next year.

Brian Staveley

Staveley’s The Emperors’ Blades was probably my favourite fantasy debut of the year. I have not read anything else by him for the simple reason that he hasn’t released the follow-up yet. It will be at the top of my TR list as soon as it comes out early 2015. 

Which authors have you only read one book from but want or need to read more? Share below in the comments!