Overlooking the Hudson

We're on vacation. Right now I'm in my parents' apartment overlooking the Hudson River. New Jersey is still shrouded in fog. I'm looking through the books I read this year for part of my upcoming blog tour. I'm struck how many times I read books by authors I love that were disappointing. I couldn't get through ANATHEM by Neal Stephenson, whose Cryptonomicon is one of my favorite books ever. Neil Gaiman's GRAVEYARD BOOK was fine, but I wouldn't rave about it, as I would rave about his SANDMAN ...