12-07-2014, 11:50 PM | #1 |
Wizard
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What were your favorite books of 2014?
Since we now have our 2015 challenges up and running and we're reviewing what we've read this year and deciding on what we want to challenge ourselves with next year, I thought this would be a good time to chime in on what we enjoyed last year.
What were your favorite books of 2014? Anything goes from favorite classics, guilty pleasures, new obsessions, thought provoking works, unexpectedly charming stories, etc. These may be 5-star, award winning (or at least should be award winning!) books or the type of book that exemplifies the "self-published for a reason" stereotype but for some reason really struck a chord with you. Help us increase our TBR piles* as we start the new year and share your favorites from last year! *Note for those who have "reduce my TBR pile" in their 2015 goal, add these now so they don't count against you in 2015... |
12-07-2014, 11:59 PM | #2 |
Wizard
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Since I started this thread, I should probably contribute.
The first book I really want to recommend is Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. I rated this as excellent meaning "GREAT read, I would read again." While I expected to enjoy the book based on all of the reviews I had read I didn't expect to like it as much as I do. For anyone who grew up in the 80s and started playing video games on an Atari (or earlier) and has continued to play in some fashion or for people who have some weird obsession with the 80s this book should hit a lot of high points. Rated high for nostalgia in addition to having a fun, action packed plot, this book was one of my top 5 reads for 2014. As a bonus there is a review by Patrick Rothfuss (author of the The Name of the Wind series) that made me laugh. Spoiler:
Last edited by Dazrin; 12-10-2014 at 08:12 PM. Reason: added a link |
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12-08-2014, 12:56 AM | #3 |
Wizzard
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So far this year, I've really enjoyed the following authors/series who were new to me (linkage to my 2014 list* which links to my comments in the What Are We Reading? thread):
And I read a new Peter David standalone Arthurian comedy which was very light and silly, but fun and appealed to the making-fun-of-Arthuriana instincts I've acquired after years of more conventional fantasy reading. * At some point I'll get around to putting in my usual numerical ratings but for now the ticks and hearts are up for stuff I really liked and/or recommend, which are not necessarily the same thing. Last edited by ATDrake; 12-08-2014 at 01:16 AM. Reason: I haven't actually read the entire lot of Christie yet, just a selected dozen or two. |
12-08-2014, 03:35 AM | #4 |
Witcher
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Witcher series by Sapkowski. I've read them all, and it was amazing.
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12-08-2014, 05:16 AM | #5 |
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I'm listing all the books that gained 5/5 scores from me during 2014. The following books are the top four, the absolute best books of 2014 that I've read.
Night Fall (John Corey #3) by Nelson DeMille As the Crow Flies by Jeffrey Archer Hush Now, Don't You Cry (Molly Murphy Mysteries #11) by Rhys Bowen Be Careful What You Wish For (The Clifton Chronicles #4) by Jeffrey Archer The next part of my list contains quite a few cozy mysteries. I've forgotten all of their stories, due to the confusion from reading their series in bulk. Mother's Day Murder (A Lucy Stone Mystery #15) by Leslie Meier Father's Day Murder (A Lucy Stone Mystery #10) by Leslie Meier Birthday Party Murder (A Lucy Stone Mystery #9) by Leslie Meier Dirty Rotten Tendrils (A Flower Shop Mystery #10) by Kate Collins The Fatal Funnel Cake (Fresh-Baked Mystery #8) by Livia J. Washburn The Pumpkin Muffin Murder (Fresh-Baked Mystery #5) by Livia J. Washburn These two books were surprisingly good reads. One of them is a re read. The Moral Landscape remains the only book I've re read since I got an ereader. Big Trouble by Dave Barry The Moral Landscape: How Science Can Determine Human Values by Sam Harris These are all David Baldacci books. They've made me a fan of the author and a couple of them could have crept into my top four books depending on my mood. Very hard to separate and rate them according to preference. They are all great reads and I recommend them without hesitation. The Target (Will Robie #3) by David Baldacci The Innocent (Will Robie #1) by David Baldacci Hell's Corner (Camel Club #5) by David Baldacci Stone Cold (Camel Club #3) by David Baldacci The Collectors (Camel Club #2) by David Baldacci It has been a delightful year and I hope the upcoming 2015 gives me more 5 star books. I have hopefully learned from choosing what to read and I wish that will show in my scores and in my reading choices. |
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12-08-2014, 06:29 AM | #6 |
Zealot
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Solitaire by Kelley Eskridge hit the sweet spot for me. Definitely a page turner without being dumb down. Somehow both character and plot-driven. (Avoid synopsis and cover-text before reading it, there are spoilers!) Rightfully a Nebula finalist in 2002.
I also liked Ancillary Justice and -Sword a lot. Apart from that I my most prefered novels were re-reads. |
12-08-2014, 08:48 AM | #7 |
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Station 11, by Hillary St. James Mandel
The City & The City, by China Mieville Middlesex, by Jeffrey Eugenides The Poisonwood Bible, by Barbara Kingsolver Island Beneath the Sea, by Isabel Allende North and South, by Elizabeth Gaskell The House Cat, by Takashi Hiraide Hollow City, by Ransom Riggs (Miss Perigrine's Peculiar Children #2) The Snow Child, by Eowyn Ivey |
12-08-2014, 09:07 AM | #8 |
Grand Sorcerer
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Well, it's early, but I'll contribute. Since my challenge this year was geography based I will include the country as well.
Uruguay - Genesis: Memory of Fire by Eduardo Galeano Poland - The Pianist by Władysław Szpilman Indonesia - The Rainbow Troops by Andrea Hirata Algeria - The German Mujahid by Boualem Sansal Bulgaria - Natural Novel by Georgi Gospodinov Norway - The Transformation by Mette Newth Syria - Damascus Nights by Rafik Schami Russia - Roadside Picnic by Arkady Strugatsky Finland - The Year of the Hare by Arto Paasilinna and while I haven't quite finished it, unless it goes south badly, the first 350 pages of this one have been spectacular: Japan - Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage by Haruki Murakami Last edited by HomeInMyShoes; 12-18-2014 at 12:04 PM. |
12-08-2014, 09:14 AM | #9 |
Wizard
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There are still a few books left to read in 2014, but these were the best so far.
Written in My Own Heart's Blood (Outlander #8) by Diana Gabaldon The Lady Julia Series by Deanna Raybourn The Silkworm (Cormoran Strike #2) by Robert Galbraith Burn For Me (Hidden Legacy #1) by Ilona Andrews The Last Hour of Gann by R. Lee Smith The Murder of Roger Ackroyd (Hercule Poirot #4) by Agatha Christie God of the Hive (Mary Russell #10) by Laurie R. King 11/22/63 by Stephen King Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett Fool's Assassin (Fitz and the Fool Trilogy #1) by Robin Hobb The Martian by Andy Weir Last edited by treadlightly; 12-12-2014 at 08:13 AM. Reason: Added a late entry! |
12-10-2014, 05:13 AM | #10 | |
Grand Sorceress
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Quote:
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12-10-2014, 11:47 AM | #12 | |
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I see a number of books which are still on my TBR list, so the endorsements here will help move them up and increases the probability that I'll read them in 2015.
Quote:
Stone Cold was the very first book I read on my very first Kindle (and therefore the first eReader I owned) back in February 2008. I had finished reading The Collectors just a day before unpacking the new Kindle, so I bought the next book in the series using the Kindle to execute the purchase. |
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12-10-2014, 12:11 PM | #13 |
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What I'd like to know is what are your favorite books that were published in 2014?
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12-10-2014, 07:36 PM | #14 |
Grand Sorcerer
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Here are my top five:
Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion The Martian by Andy Weir Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown The Science of Interstellar by Kip Thorne Ready Player One by Earnest Cline |
12-10-2014, 08:07 PM | #15 | |
Wizard
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Quote:
The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss which was excellent but is definitely a change of pace from most books. It follows Auri through her life for a short period of time and has virtually no action and has no dialog at all but was still captivating for me. I mean, how often has anyone included a 5+ page passage in a fantasy story where the main character is just making soap? It was very different, but I loved it. This is one my favorite stories read this year, not just my favorite that was published this year. I am fairly sure it is not your type of book though JSWolf; I would recommend trying a preview before purchasing if you consider it. Sand (Omnibus) by Hugh Howey which is a grittier post-apocalyptic tale than his Silo series. I enjoyed enough to read any sequels (not that any are announced) but I didn't enjoy it as much as the Silo series. I am not sure if this counts, but The Martian by Andy Weir was re-published this year by a traditional publisher. It was still excellent and only slightly different than the self-published version from 2012. I would skip it if you read the original version previously. Last edited by Dazrin; 12-10-2014 at 08:11 PM. Reason: added a link |
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