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Top Books of 2012 part 1
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for YA, I don't have a top 5, I have a top 2 ;) - 1. Daughter of Smoke and Bone - the imagery that she used of prague as well as the world building just blew me away - I did listen to the audio which I think influenced me for the positive
2. Forbidden - I still need to write my review for this one, because nothing I write measures up to how it made me feel and think
I wouldn't mind hearing a few of your fav adult books too, Dee. I think last year we didn't stick only to YA... did we?
Nope, its cool if you post your Adult picks too, Dee. Of course we want the main focus to be on YA, but at least I personally don't mind at all to know what your Adult Favs are.
I know AT LEAST one of my favs this year is an Adult book.
Me too. Yu could always separate them in the post too. I think that's what I did last year.
My YA Fav's from Jan-June of 2012!
- This book was daaaark. It went where I never thought a YA would go. Honestly, I thought that Anna Dressed in Blood was creepy, but that was a roll on a Daisy covered hill in comparison to Angelfall. Super Creepy and chilling, but still so good and humerous. Grade A book. Blew. My. Mind!
- Buckets of tears went into reading this book. Buckets. Waterfalls. Even rereading the quotes randomly (yes, I do this!) still gets me choked up and my eyes tear up. Did I expect it? Absolutely. Were parts of it like Green was purposely poking that emotional button? For sure. Didn't matter, it still suckerpunched me in the gut. At the same time, it was absolutely beautiful and funny, poignant. One of the coolest YA characters ever in Gus Waters.
- This book is shelved as Middle Grade at our bookstore. I definitely think it fits, and you should read it with that mindset. With that said, it is a great look at kindness and acceptance and love. In my review I said that I think every young child should read this book, and I meant it. I read it outloud with my own daughter because I think there's a pretty important lesson in here, on top of a great funny/sad story. The end was a bit overshot, but the ideal was in the right place. A must read, I say.
- This may be an old book for most of you but I only JUST read it a couple months ago. I love Schusterman. His writing stile is awesome and thought provoking in a brilliantly offbeat way. Moments in this book were brutal to read, (view spoiler), but damn if it doesn't leave a serious impression. My fav Adult books!
&
- Um, do I really have to explain?! Curran, hello!
- Don't read this book if you can't handle M/M, violence, brutal depiction of war, or violent crimes. IF you can, then this is a seriously amazing story. I have no words, really. Here is my review.
my fav adult books so far (and these are the ones I have given 5 stars too)Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close - I know of a lot of people who had issues with this book because of some of the pictures included, but because I listened to it - I was completely sucked into the story - it used 3 narrators so you could really hear the different POV's and I loved the main character
I am Forbidden - I just finished this book the other day, so no review yet - but it blew me away - maybe cause I didn't know a lot about this sect of judaism (if that is even the right word) - and I totally didn't see the ending
Hmmmmmm.Favorites:
- Don't think I need to explain this one really. Brilliant.
- Also freaking brilliant. One of my top historical fictions, along with Between Shades of Gray.
- Fun, fun, fun lore and world and characters and everything.
- Sad and authentic and sweet.
- Fun, fun, fun world, sexah villain, reluctant hero, adorb love interest.
- Amazing look at the darker side of human nature, not a lot of face biting but there is at least one face bite. I love the moods that Courtney Summers is able to create for her characters.
- Sad and wonderful all at once.Honorable Mention:
- Another fun, engrossing fantasy. I'm not sure the writing is quite good enough to make me rank it among these others, which is the reason for the honorable mention.I liked a lot of sad and fucked up books so far this year! Wow. but also a few fantasies whose worlds are pretty easy to become immersed in. So there you go.
I am Forbidden looks really good Dee. I just added that to my list.Will come up with my list later tonight maybe.
Wow, I can't believe we're here again!!In no particular order:
One of the best fantasy books of all time, it got me hooked with the poison taster bit and I just loved how the story continued.
Yeah... I know I always bring this one up but it's soooooo good!!
Amazing book of two best friends set in England in world war 2, they had a lot of courage. What amazed me the most was the style of writing, it was done in such a unique way.
One of the most heart-wrenching, harrowing books I've ever read... hoping it wins the Carnegie Medal 2012 tomorrow!
message 11:
by
Stacia (the 2010 club), groupaholic, YA-MA founder
(last edited Jun 13, 2012 05:09PM)
(new)
Oh I hope it wins too! I want Between Shades of Gray to get some attention. It would make an excellent movie. It's the WWII movie that's never been made.I'm going to have to read When I Was Joe sometime. If a person goes on that much about a book it might be worth checking out!
* going to edit this in a bit..
Absoulute Best of this year so far
YA:
Brilliantly told in a heartwrenching brutality, that leaves you breathless. Absolutely amazing.
Not the perfect book, but oh so entertaining. I keep thinking that it had its faults, but the fact that I'm still thinking about it, having read it back in March, must mean something. A great Fantasy book with entertainment, growth, action, twists and 'didn't see that coming' resolutions. I am highly anticipating the sequel.
Do I even need to say why? Well, I shall just quote my dear friend Stacia. "This book, is WORD PORN."Adult:
It is freaken Charley Davidson. And it was awesome! I can not get enough of this story, these characters, the humor, the sexual tension(and release), and the "Oh so good" plot twist, Darynda Jones keeps throwing at us!
Very short, very good story. If you're looking for a great erotica that isn't just smutt, but has a good story and good characters too. Well pick this one up.
Its corny, its cheesy, blah blah blah. Its my guilty pleasure. 
Its Patricia "Freaken" Briggs, people. Can't expect anything less! 
Thanks to this book, I officially love Historical Fiction. This is Between Shades of Gray, with a much bigger Love story. A definite MUST READ in every night stand!
Tabboo? Yes. Mindfuck? Yess. Still incredible? Yesss! I got more very good books I've read, but these are definitely the best-of-the-best!
Stacia ~ the professional insomniac wrote: "Oh I hope it wins too! I want Between Shades of Gray to get some attention. It would make an excellent movie. It's the WWII movie that's never been made."It didn't win unfortunately,
did which was also good. But with it being on the shortlist it's been "shadowed" by 1000s or schools in the UK which is amazing stuff.
A Monster Calls was amazing. I liked Between Shades of Gray, it was an amazing amazing story. I liked A Monster Calls more though. I think it was a mix of the beautiful haunting story along with the artwork.
Still haven't read it. :(
Okay, strange. It's showing both
and
listed on my 2012 feed but I know I listed at least one of those for last year's end of the year topic, not sure which one now.They're both worth mentioning again I guess.
Ready Player One was such a gamer/80's pop culture love fest. Any fan of movies/t.v./music/video games from the 70's, 80's, 90's etc. should read this book. It starts off slow but once you're into the virtual gaming world it becomes a lot of fun.
Angelfall - Post-Apocalyptic, horror, adventure, sexy, something-or-other type of read. It's got a little bit of everything. It's the perfect paranormal book for people who refuse to read PNR because there's no sappy angsty garbage in sight.
anywho...on to the rest of the list of books I know are from this year. Going off the top of my head because my list is way too long this year for books read. It's quite sad.
Group Reads I loved that I probably don't need to rehash for the millionth time -
Zombie winners -
(sweet)
(creepy/scary)Sci-Fi -
(pre-apocalyptic, there's a switch)Adult mainstream -
Adult sexy time -
Jim Kay the illustrator won the greenaway for the illustrations too, it's the first year both have been won by the same book!http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainme...
That's awesome.
That is so awesome! I loved the story, but it wouldn't have had the same impact without the artwork.
Looking at my favorites shelf, there's really not that much that has wowed me so far this year...kinda weird. So, here are the topsAdult:
-pretty much perfect. Loved everything about it!
-wasn't my favorite in the series, but just getting back to Jamie and Claire was awesome!Young Adult:
-something totally different from the norm and dark...
just love these books-humor, action and sexy guys. Disclaimer: No, I still haven't read the VA series!
-best dysotopian so far this year. Original world building and really liked Perry :-)
-I just love these books for some reason...
-one word-Lucas.
message 23:
by
Stacia (the 2010 club), groupaholic, YA-MA founder
(last edited Jun 15, 2012 11:53AM)
(new)
Wendy F wrote: "That is so awesome! I loved the story, but it wouldn't have had the same impact without the artwork."That's why I haven't read it yet. Not going to even bother with an ebook.
It wouldn't be worth it at all unless you could get your hands on a print book. I'd be willing to send it to you if you want to read it but not buy it. You could just send it back when youre done.
As much as it costs for shipping, I could just pay a couple of dollars more and buy the book, so I'd rather wait. Thanks though. :)
Hmmm my favorites, in no particular order:
- John Green is an awesome writer. This book made me cry like a baby, yet it made me laugh so much. Beautiful story and loved the characters.
I'll post the rest later...my phone is not cooperating haha.
I was so confused, like 'in no particular order'?
My phone hates me. It wouldn't let me go back to the end of my comment, if that makes sense haha
LOL! It totally makes sense when you said it was your phone. Those things can be the devil!
Katy wrote: "Hmmm my favorites, in no particular order:- John Green is an awesome writer. This book made me cry like a baby, yet it made me laugh so much. Beautiful story and..."I agree with you 200% this book made me teary even after i read it. Every time i thought of it, i would laugh and cry... great read!
Sorry about ur phone..those things have minds of their own!
Help!! My to-read shelf is overcrowded. I want to read them all. I feel so book-starved here in Alaska. Where are all these books? Like any good addict, I don't have the money to feed my addiction. Any suggestions on an on-line used bookstore with free shipping? I've only found Thrift Books.
Many books can be read free online. I am always short on money so read online often. I usually use onread.com. They have added an advertising pop up in the last couple of months that is annoying but once you get past that it's pretty good. Check them out and see if you can put a dent in your TBR list. Mine keeps growing regardless of how much I read.
Are you looking for mainly paper books or a combo of paper and ebooks? Because the options are much more broad with ebooks because of online library lending, freebies, gallies, etc.
Diane wrote: "Many books can be read free online. I am always short on money so read online often. I usually use onread.com. They have added an advertising pop up in the last couple of months that is annoying bu..."Thanks Diane and Stacia. Who knew? Now I do. I'll (try to) check it out.
- How am I ever going to wait until fall 2013 for book #3?!
- My 16 yo daughter kept telling me I needed to read this book. Very glad I did.
- Fantastic message. Kind of reminded me of the new tv series Touch with Kiefer Sutherland.
- Thanks to the book challenge I was forced to read a sci fi book and found that I thoroughly enjoyed it!
- Probably my favorite monthly book choice.
message 38:
by
Stacia (the 2010 club), groupaholic, YA-MA founder
(last edited Jun 24, 2012 02:10PM)
(new)
Kim wrote: "Diane wrote: "Many books can be read free online. I am always short on money so read online often. I usually use onread.com. They have added an advertising pop up in the last couple of months that ..."I've been super slacking this week on checking for deals and freebies but we do post finds in this topic : http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/6...
The audiobooks topic has this summer's free offerings from Sync. Daughter of Smoke and Bone, one of the books on a few people's favorite lists will be among one of the freebies this summer, as are a couple of other good books such as Anna Dressed in Blood. : http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/7...
okay so I can finish my list now haha!! TFIOS is probably my favorite. After that:
Another sad but beautiful book. (I'm one for emotional books haha.) This was such a quick, easy read, yet it left SUCH an impression. So heart wrenching. 
A lot of people seem to dislike this book/series, but it was like crack for me. I was unsure the first few chapters...and then I was addicted. It was just a fun and crazy read. 
I'm interested in school shootings- I always have been. I do a lot of research on them. I was so excited when I finally got my hands on this book, and I was not disappointed. It's an emotional ride and very real. I also really connected with the main character. Also, though this is nonfiction,
left me speechless. I couldn't even look at a high school for like 2 weeks. I already knew a lot about Columbine, but I learned a lot more from this book. So sad though.
I've wanted to read Columbine for a while now. One of my husband's good friends was attending there when the shooting happened, so I've always been curious about the story behind what happened.
Stacia ~ mistress of mediocrity wrote: "I've wanted to read Columbine for a while now. One of my husband's good friends was attending there when the shooting happened, so I've always been curious about the story behind what happened."I have that book on my shelf, and I really should get down to reading it. I think I need to be in the right frame of mind for that though.
Yes, it is an intense book. I couldn't read it before bed. I don't recommend it unless you are prepared-even though you really can't prepare yourself for it.
My absolute favorite of the year so far is
. I wonder if I'll read anything in the second half of the year that will top it?My other 5 star reads so far:
And since that's only 9, I'll throw in an almost 5 star read:
Drink, Slay, Love was such a fun read. I love snarky characters and the were-unicorn twist was awesome.Adding a couple from this month :
- The story is so beautifully written and the author is such a sweetheart. With all of the author drama on GR lately, it's nice to find a genuinely sweet person who is gracious to the reviewers. The student-teacher relationship was handled carefully, and the ending was satisfying without any sort of feeling like you wanted to strangle the lead character for making poor decisions when it was all said and done.
- the story was extremely gruesome and dark but it was handled in a way that wasn't too over the top or tacky.
Here are my favorites from the first half of this year, in the order I read them:
Hilarious premise and it's satire! Plus the funniest fake commercial ever. And the audio version (read by the author) rocks.
I cried buckets. I even laughed. Read it quickly, then listened to it to savor it.
I love this series and the latest did not disappoint.
I was skeptical because I tried Shiver and couldn't get past the first 40 pages, but I loved it. Really good on audio. I wanted to move there, and I am not a place person as far as reading goes.
Bloody Brilliant. One of my top 2. (Can't pick just one!)
I'm counting these as one because I read them back-to-back-to-back. It took me a little to get into the first one but once I was there, I loved it. Fantastic trilogy with a concept I found to be really original.
Yes, it's nonfiction. And it's not trendy. But I'd be lying if I didn't include it among my favorites.
Bartemeaus is back!
The other one that is tied for the top spot. Awesome. Pure awesome. I was actually excited for my 45-minute drive home because it meant I got to listen to more of it.
I thought it was really different and really enjoyed it.
Nice list Emily!
Rated YA-MA
Books mentioned in this topic
Haven: War of the Princes (other topics)The Girl of Fire and Thorns (other topics)
Throne of Glass (other topics)
The Fault in Our Stars (other topics)
Unwind (other topics)
More...
Just like last year, let's share those books that have made our favorites and stayed with us this year.
Let's pick our Top 5 to 10 books we have read from January to June 2012
TO
And let everyone know in a brief message, why the book was so great.
Near the end of the year, I'll post a PART 2 to this topic. But for now, let's see the awesome books everyone's read so far!