I made a goal for myself to read at least 100 books before the end of this year. So far, I've gotten off to a pretty good start, completing 32 books before the end of the first quarter. Which I'm happy about because last year I only read a grand total of 26 books (I was busy writing, but still, I wasn't pleased with that number). Now some of these are short stories, and some are short novels, but I'm okay with those counting towards my goal. The point is, I should always have a book that I'm working on. My complete list appears at the end, but here are some of the highlights of the year so far.
1. The Grisha Trilogy by Leigh Bardugo
I was happy that I discovered this trilogy after all the books were released because I don't know that I could have handled waiting a year in between each book. There are also a handful of short stories that take place in the Grisha Universe that are available in ebook. It had been a while since I've been so thoroughly engrossed in a book and these were the kind of books that kept me up late into the night, long after I should have been asleep, knowing that I would pay for it in the morning but not really giving a damn because they were just that good. I loved the mythology of Ravka, the strong-yet-flawed female protagonist, and a love story that was a slow burn instead of the dreaded "insta-love" that I so dislike.
2. Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
I've been a Percy Jackson fan for a long time now and saying goodbye was no easy task. The House of Hades and The Blood of Olympus were worthy entries into the Heroes of Olympus series and I though Riordan ended things well. Here's hoping that Percy and Annabeth will have a cameo appearance in Riordan's next series, due out this fall.
3. The Lunar Chonicles - Marissa Meyer
The Lunar Chronicles is a futuristic retelling of favorite fairy tale charactes. To give you a taste, Cinder is of course about Cinderella, only she's a cyborg and the Evil Queen lives in a colony on the moon. It's fantastic really. I read Cinder when it first released a few years ago and I loved it. I've since waited for several more entries in the series to release before picking it up again. I re-read it before following with Scarlet, Cress, Fairest, and a handful of short stories also published with the series. Now I just have to wait (impatiently) for Winter to be released this November and wrap this incredible series up.
4. The Nightingale - Kristin Hannah
This was one of those books that simply took my breath away. Repeatedly. Set during the Nazi occupation of France, the story follows two sisters who fight for their lives and the lives of others in separate but equally strong ways. It brought me to tears and I recommend it to anyone who loves historical fiction and well-written characters.
5. Ready Player One - Ernest Cline
This little gem easily landed itself among my all time favorite books, and that is no easy feat. The book is about a kid named Wade who lives in a pretty bleak future version of America where shit's so bad that most people spend the majority of their time virtually plugged into the OASIS - a massive online community that contains everything from houses and shopping malls, to gaming planets and schools. Our Wade attends school in the OASIS and is a bit of a loner without much of a family.
As the book opens, James Halliday, the eccentric multibillionaire creator of the OASIS has just died with no heirs. A video is released wherein he states that he has hidden an egg somewhere in the massive OASIS platform and that whoever finds that egg first will inherit his fortune and his company. He's also hidden clues to the whereabouts of the egg in a massive almanac that contains countless pop culture references to the 80's, his absolute favorite decade. Wade, along with millions of other OASIS users becomes a "gunter" - an egg hunter - and when he stumbles on the first clue he learns the hard way that the game he's playing may just be for his own life.
It's seriously fun and amazing. And it will make a kick-ass movie one day.
So those are my favs so far. And here is a complete list of my books from this quarter.
1. Writing the Breakout Novel - Donald Maass
2. Shadow and Bone - Leigh Bardugo
3. Siege and Storm - Leigh Bardugo
4. Ruin and Rising - Leigh Bardugo
5. The Witch of Duva - Leigh Bardugo
6. The Tailor - Leigh Bardugo
7. The Too-Clever Fox - Leigh Bardugo
8. The Little Knife - Leigh Bardugo
9. The Sun Never Sets - Cate Caldwell
10. The Writing Life - Annie Dillard
11. The China Study - Colin T. Campbell
12. Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail - Cheryl Strayed
13. The House of Hades - Rick Riordan
14. The Blood of Olympus - Rick Riordan
15. Princess: A True Story of Life Behind the Veil in Saudi Arabia - Jean Sasson
16. Princess Sultana's Daughters - Jean Sasson
17. Princess Sultana's Circle - Jean Sasson
18. Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life - Anne Lamott
19. How to Write Dazzling Dialogue - James Scott Bell
20. Kino - Haruki Murakami
21. The Nightingale - Kristin Hannah
22. Cinder - Marissa Meyer
23. Scarlet - Marissa Meyer
24. Cress - Marissa Meyer
25. The Little Android - Marissa Meyer
26. The Queen's Army - Marissa Meyer
27. Carswell's Guide to Being Lucky - Marissa Meyer
28. Fairest - Marissa Meyer
29. The Mermaid's Sister - Carrie Anne Noble
30. Euphoria - Lily King
31. Ready Player One - Ernest Cline
32. Mary Poppins - P. L. Travers
first quarter book list 2015