Books I Love - My Faves of 2016!

I read 100 books in 2016 and here are a few of my favorites. Most are from 2016 but a few are ones I discovered this year. Well, here they are in no particular order!

 

  

 

  

 

  

 

 

 

And these two I got for Christmas and am super excited to read!

 

 

 

 

What are your faves of 2016?

 

 

 

Books I Love - THE STEEP & THORNY WAY by Cat Winters

Scene: Oregon, 1923.

Dramatis personae:

Hanalee Denney, daughter of a white woman and an African American man

Hank Denney, her father—a ghost

Greta Koning, Hanalee’s mother

Clyde Konig, doctor who treated Hank Denney the night he died, now Hanalee’s stepfather

Joe Adder, teenage boy convicted of accidentally killing Hank Denney

Members of the Ku Klux Klan

Townspeople of Elston, Oregon

Question: Was Hank Denney’s death an accident…or was it murder most foul?


I loved this update of HAMLET, it was clever and heartfelt. Although the book takes place in the 1920s, it's really easy to relate to Hanalee. Half black and half white, she feels like there is no place for her in the world. The social issues, racism and bigotry, are still alive today, but this historical look helps us see how far we've come...as well as how far we have left to go. I also think Winters did an excellent job of taking what she needed from HAMLET, but not rehashing the same plot and characters. This is definitely a unique story.

Another amazing YA paranormal by Cat Winters!

Cat Winters is an award-winning author of YA and adult fiction. Her YA works include IN THE SHADOW OF BLACKBIRDS, THE CURE FOR DREAMING, and THE STEEP AND THORNY WAY. Her debut adult novel, THE UNINVITED, released in 2015, and her second book for adults, YESTERNIGHT, is coming October 4, 2016.

Winters was born and raised in Southern California, just a short drive down the freeway from Disneyland, which may explain her love of haunted mansions, bygone eras, and fantasylands. She currently lives in Portland, Oregon, with her husband and two kids. Visit her online at www.catwinters.com.

Books I Love - My favorite of 2015!

Here are a few of my favorite books from 2015!

 

Fantasy

 

  

 

Historical Fiction

 

 

Magical Realism

 

 

Science Fiction
 

  

 

  

 

Non-YA

 

 

 

What are your faves from 2015?

 

Books I Love - My Favorite of 2014!

I read 103 books in 2014 (not counting re-reads) and here are just a few of my favorites. Yes, they are mostly YA...and mostly Sci-fi/Fantasy. What can I say? I like what I like. :-)

YA Sci-fi

           

YA Fantasy

       

YA Historical Fiction (Realistic & Paranormal)

         

YA Paranormal

            

Other (Margaret Atwood. Enough said.)

So these are just a few of my favorites...what are some of yours?

Books I Love - UNINVITED by Sophie Jordan

 

When Davy Hamilton's tests come back positive for Homicidal Tendency Syndrome (HTS)-aka the kill gene-she loses everything. Her boyfriend ditches her, her parents are scared of her, and she can forget about her bright future at Juilliard. Davy doesn't feel any different, but genes don't lie. One day she will kill someone.

Only Sean, a fellow HTS carrier, can relate to her new life. Davy wants to trust him; maybe he's not as dangerous as he seems. Or maybe Davy is just as deadly.

Recommended for fans of: YA Sci-fi, contemporary, dystopian, romance...really there's something for everyone!

From the very first page I was hooked on Sophie Jordan's latest YA novel, UNINVITED. The sci-fi is subtle...the world that Davy lives in is very much like our own. Jordan doesn't bog the reader down with a lot of technical terms and strange futuristic gadgets, really the only sci-fi addition is the identification of the "kill gene." This allows the reader to focus on what being found to have the HTS gene really means for Davy and her family. Davy herself is sheltered and naïve...and suddenly everyone looks at her like she's a killer. Davy must face her new life, where she is treated as a second class citizen and a murderer, even though she has done nothing wrong. While keeping Davy's story the focus, Jordan does an amazing job of reaching the bigger issues, such as fear and prejudice. Jordan also makes you wonder if HTS creates a violent individual, or if how people with HTS are treated makes them more prone to violence. If you are told everyday of your life that you are a killer, wouldn't you become one?


 

Never Judge a Book by its Cover

So it seems my holiday blog break has gone on a little longer than anticipated. I'm working on a bunch of different things getting ready for 2015. I've also been reading a ton. I just read the GONE series by Michael Grant and these books are amazing! There are six, and they're longish, but really you'll just fly through them.

I heard good things about the first book when it first came out six years ago, but I didn't actually pick it up until I was at a conference with Michael Grant and EVERYONE was talking about how I MUST READ this series. I hate to admit this, but the reason I didn't pick it up all those years ago was because of the cover. I honestly thought it would be a Christian romance. Not that I have anything against Christian romances, but I prefer Sci-fi or Fantasy. So I almost missed out on this awesome series because of the cover...even though we all learn as children not to judge a book by it' cover.

What about you guys...have you ever passed on a book because of the cover? Have you ever bought a book just because you loved the cover?

Okay, I'll be back when I have more news to share!

Books I Love - THE RAVEN BOYS & THE DREAM THEIVES by Maggie Steifvater

 

Last week I did a post about books I was happy I held off on reading...because I loved them so much I was glad I could go right in to the second book. Well, here's another fantastic combo:

 

 

 

"There are only two reasons a non-seer would see a spirit on St. Mark's Eve," Neeve said. "Either you're his true love . . . or you killed him."

It is freezing in the churchyard, even before the dead arrive.

 Every year, Blue Sargent stands next to her clairvoyant mother as the soon-to-be dead walk past. Blue herself never sees them-not until this year, when a boy emerges from the dark and speaks directly to her.

His name is Gansey, and Blue soon discovers that he is a rich student at Aglionby, the local private school. Blue has a policy of staying away from Aglionby boys. Known as Raven Boys, they can only mean trouble.

But Blue is drawn to Gansey, in a way she can't entirely explain. He has it all-family money, good looks, devoted friends-but he's looking for much more than that. He is on a quest that has encompassed three other Raven Boys.

 

So...these books are so much more amazing than the summary gives it credit for. While Blue is the MC, the four Raven boys are just as important. Each character is unique and realistic...and don't even get me started on the plot. I couldn't put either of these books down!

 

Maggie Steifvater is a NYT bestselling author, so it's not like she needs a plug from little old me, but I'll definitely be checking out her other books. I've hear the SCORPIO RACES was fantastic as well.

 

Back Wednesday!



Books I Love

I've recently read a few books that have been out for a while...books I never seemed to get around to before. Sometimes it's better to wait, because then you can immediately read the sequel! Here are the books...I'll only post the summary for the first book, but I'll put the covers for the second books as well.

 

Seventeen-year-old Ismae escapes from the brutality of an arranged marriage into the sanctuary of the convent of St. Mortain, where the sisters still serve the gods of old. Here she learns that the god of Death Himself has blessed her with dangerous gifts—and a violent destiny. If she chooses to stay at the convent, she will be trained as an assassin and serve as a handmaiden to Death. To claim her new life, she must destroy the lives of others.

Ismae’s most important assignment takes her straight into the high court of Brittany—where she finds herself woefully under prepared—not only for the deadly games of intrigue and treason, but for the impossible choices she must make. For how can she deliver Death’s vengeance upon a target who, against her will, has stolen her heart?

 

Humans and androids crowd the raucous streets of New Beijing. A deadly plague ravages the population. From space, a ruthless lunar people watch, waiting to make their move. No one knows that Earth’s fate hinges on one girl.

Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She’s a second-class citizen with a mysterious past, reviled by her stepmother and blamed for her stepsister’s illness. But when her life becomes intertwined with the handsome Prince Kai’s, she suddenly finds herself at the center of an intergalactic struggle, and a forbidden attraction. Caught between duty and freedom, loyalty and betrayal, she must uncover secrets about her past in order to protect her world’s future.

 

It could happen tomorrow . . .

An electromagnetic pulse flashes across the sky, destroying every electronic device, wiping out every computerized system, and killing billions.

Alex hiked into the woods to say good-bye to her dead parents and her personal demons. Now desperate to find out what happened after the pulse crushes her to the ground, Alex meets up with Tom—a young soldier—and Ellie, a girl whose grandfather was killed by the EMP.

For this improvised family and the others who are spared, it’s now a question of who can be trusted and who is no longer human.

Now I just have to read the third book in each series! What about you guys...read these, or any other good books lately?
 

The Blog Chain - Guilty Pleasure Reading

The Blog Chain question this week is:

 

What are your guilty pleasure books/genres?

 

My guilty pleasure reading is historical fiction...which I admit doesn't sound like it should be a guilty pleasure. It's far from dull, though. I once described historical fiction as a retelling of "really old gossip" and the juicier the better. Especially anything to do with royal intrigue. There's always murder, adultery, international espionage, and of course pampered royalty who have more power than sense.

 

I love love love anything by Philippa Gregory.

 

 

 

 

 

And I also love any historical fiction that is also a ghost story...here' a recent one I read that was fantastic:

 

 



 

 Keep following this topic on the chain and check out Michelle’s blog on Monday, or look back at Katrina's post from yesterday.

 



What are your guilty pleasure books/genres?



The Blog Chain - An American Classic Goes Post-Apocalyptic

The Blog Chain topic this week is:

Pick a book or story and imagine it in a new genre. For example, what would Oliver Twist be like if it was a sci-fi novel. Would Fagin have been a robot? Do you prefer you new creation or the original?

 

 

For my genre reassignment, I chose THE LAST OF THE MOHICANS by James Fenimore Cooper. Even if you haven’t read the original novel, you’ve probably seen the movie featuring a young, rugged Daniel Day Lewis. Let's have look shall we...

 

 

 

 Even though the plot is completely different the movie still covers the basics: Set during the French and Indian War, Hawkeye travels with his adoptive Native American father and brother, Chingachgook and Uncas. They meet up with the newly arrived Munro sisters and take it upon themselves to protect the girls from all kinds of unexpected dangers. Characters run around the American wilderness, fall in love, and some die bravely. Everything you could want from an American classic.

I would love to see these characters survive a virus caused apocalypse. There’s so much survival in pre-revolutionary times, that the skills Hawkeye possesses would really translate. He could even have the same weapons and his adoptive family. Filled with not so subtle racism and sexism, (in the book, English and French hate each other and the Native Americans while the Native Americans hate the English and any other tribe of Native American. There are some interesting jibes about how the English are dogs to their women and the Delaware wear skirts). Even these elements could stay…a post-apocalyptic world would not be completely politically correct. The English and the Native Americans can be updated to two competing factions, while the French would translate well as humans effective by a virus…probably with some horrific mutation. Not quite zombies, but aggressive, violent, sub-humans.

If you’ve read (or seen) LAST OF THE MOHICANS, you know that’s there’s a ton of action, a solid romance, and some heart-breaking loss. The characters are courageous, and fueled by a strength of character required to survive the early days of America.

Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love THE LAST OF THE MOHICANS, but I’m really digging the idea of an updated version.

What about you guys, which books would you reimagine and how? 

Keep following this topic on the chain and check out Michelle’s blog on Monday, or look back at Katrina's post from yesterday.