My Top Ten Books of 2014

       So, we raked in a lot of pretty choice diamonds this year in our reading!  This year on Goodreads my challenge was to read 200 books.  It's been a tough year, with a lot of health challenges and depression keeping me from going as far as I used to.  But I made it to 200 books.  I actually read 3 over that and I am SO proud of myself for reaching my goal!  My New Year's Resolution: To be a LOT more active on the blog in 2015 than I was this year.  I feel like I left it on life support for awhile and that things really derailed when my Mom was in the hospital for a month.  I'm gonna do better this year you guys!  I did read some pretty great books this year, that I think were a little out of the ordinary.  So I will make a link for the Goodreads page of each book after the title and author is listed.  Here comes my heartbreaking work of making a list and checking it twice, only to be left with my definite favorites:

My Top 10 Books of 2014

10.  Into the Still Blue (Under the Never Sky #3) by Veronica Rossi (Goodreads)

9.  Broken Skies (Broken Skies #1) by Theresa Kay (Goodreads)

8.  These Broken Stars (Starbound #1) by Amie Kaufman & Meagan Spooner (Goodreads)

7.  I Want Crazy (Loco Texas #2) by Codi Gary (Goodreads)

6.  Breathe, Annie, Breathe (Hundred Oaks #4) by Miranda Kenneally (Goodreads)

5.  Afterglow (Wildefire #3) by Karsten Knight (Goodreads)

4.  White Hot Kiss (The Dark Elements #1) (Goodreads) & Stone Cold Touch (The Dark Elements #2) by Jennifer L. Armentrout (Goodreads) (Yes, I'm totally cheating!) 

3.  Injustice: Gods Among Us, Vol. 1 (Year One) [Goodreads] & Injustice: Gods Among Us, Vol. 2 (Year One) [Goodreads] by Tom Taylor, Jheremy Raapack (Illustrations), Various

2.  Crane (The Legends Saga) by Stacey Rourke (Goodreads)

1.  Timebound (The Chronos Files #1) (Goodreads) & Time's Edge (The Chronos Files #2) by Rysa Walker (Goodreads)

Well peeps, what do you think of my top 10 books of 2014?  I know there are some you probably think deserve to be on here which is why I have a bonus feature: Top 10 Books That Didn't Quite Make the List.  Thought you'd want to be reassured that I don't quite live under a rock!

Top 10 Books That Didn't Quite Make the List (Not In Any Particular Order)

1.  Maybe One Day by Melissa Kantor (Goodreads)

2.  Winner's Curse (The Winner's Trilogy #1) by Marie Rutkoski (Goodreads)

3.  Everything That Makes You by Moriah McStay (Goodreads)

4.  Sway by Kat Spears (Goodreads)

5.  Boys Don't Knit (Boys Don't Knit #1) by T.S. Easton (Goodreads)

6.  The Thousand Dollar Tan Line (Veronica Mars #1) [Goodreads] & Mr. Kiss and Tell (Veronica Mars #2) [Goodreads] by Rob Thomas & Jennifer Graham 

7.  After the End (After the End #1) by Amy Plum (Goodreads)

8.  Tinseltown: Murder, Morphine, and Madness at the Dawn of Hollywood by William J. Mann (Goodreads)

9.  Dorothy Must Die by Danielle Paige (Goodreads)

10.  Cruel Beauty (The Cruel Beauty Universe #1) by Rosamund Hodge (Goodreads)

        There they are, the diamonds of 2014 that are at the top of the bunch.  Y'all should definitely take a look at some of the ones you might not have read, they are all great books, even if they're not as extremely well known as some to be published this year.  What books made your lists?

My Top Tens of 2012

     So, I don't know about you guys but 2012 was a year that introduced me to a lot of great new things!  I have been blogging for over a year now and this year's challenge on Goodreads was to read 380 books - which was a lot more than 2011's challenge of 225!  At some points I wasn't sure that I would make it, but although it was a close call I got there and actually went one book over! :)  While it was a good year for reading, I feel like my choice of top ten favorites wasn't as tough as last year's.  There are, as usual, some mainstream and some a little more obscure.  Just in case you guys are interested in finding out more on these books, I'll add a Goodreads link for each of them.  I have also decided to give my Top Ten T.V. Shows and Movies of the year as well this time.  I hope my fellow bloggers and readers can each find something new to explore on these lists.  Here comes my heavy task of making a list and checking it twice, only to be left with my definite favorites:

My Top Ten Books of 2012

10.   Paris In Love by Eloisa James (Goodreads)

9.  Aristotle and Dante Discover The Secrets of The Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz (Goodreads)

8.  Pushing Limits by Katie McGarry (Goodreads) 

7.  The Sweetest Spell by Suzanne Selfors (Goodreads)

6. Origin by Jessica Khoury (Goodreads)

5.  Grave Mercy (His Fair Assassin #1) by R.L. LaFevers (Goodreads)

4.  Something Like Normal by Trish Doller  (Goodreads)

3.  Time Between Us by Tamara Ireland Stone (Goodreads)

2.  The Crown of Embers (Fire and Thorns #2) by Rae Carson (Goodreads)

1.  Amber House by Kelly Moore & Tucker Reed & Larkin Reed (Goodreads)

Top 10 Books That Didn't Quite Make the List (Not In Any Particular Order)

1.  Keeping the Castle by Patricia Kindl (Goodreads)

2.  Shadowfell (Shadowfell #1) by Juliet Marillier (Goodreads)

3.  Flutter by Gina Linko (Goodreads)

4.  Beta by Rachel Cohn (Goodreads)

5.  A Wrinkle In Time: The Graphic Novel by Hope Larson (Goodreads)

6.  Romeo Redeemed (Juliet Immortal #2) by Stacey Jay (Goodreads)

7.  Jane by Robin Maxwell (Goodreads)

8.  How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr (Goodreads)

9.  Dragonswood by Janet Lee Carey (Goodreads)

10.  Dust Girl (The American Fairy #1) by Sarah Zettel (Goodreads)

My Top 10 T.V. Shows of 2012

1.  Once Upon a Time

2.  Downton Abbey

3.  Vampire Diaries

4.  Hart of Dixie

5.  Don't Trust the B**** In Apt. 23

6.  Boardwalk Empire

7.  Merlin

8.  2 Broke Girls

9.  Neverland (SyFy Miniseries)

10.  Shameless

My Top 10 Movies of 2012

1.  Moonrise Kingdom

2.  Mirror, Mirror

3.  Brave

4.  Peace, Love & Misunderstanding

5.  John Carter

6.  The Avengers

7.  The Hunger Games  

8.  Salmon Fishing In the Yemen

9.  Cabin In The Woods

10.  Pitch Perfect

     There they are, the diamonds of 2012 that are at the top of the bunch.  Y'all should definitely take a look at some of the ones you might not have read, they are all great books, even if they're not as extremely well known as some to be published this year.  What books made your lists?  Also, these movies and T.V. shows are well worth your time too.  If anything sounds interesting, you should definitely give it a shot.  I hope you had as great of a year as I did, and let's have fun exploring 2013 together! :)

My Top Ten Books of 2011

 

   So, we raked in a lot of pretty choice diamonds this year in our reading!  Before I began this blog, I gave myself a challenge on Goodreads to read 225 books this year - and I started in February.  The last ten months have given me 221 so far, and I am still moving toward the finish with less than a week to complete my goal.  I have a LOT of books to choose my top ten from.  But there are ones that I have never even seen mentioned in the blogosphere that some of you might find interesting.  So I will make a link for the Goodreads page of each book after the title and author is listed.  Here comes my heartbreaking work of making a list and checking it twice, only to be left with my definite favorites:

My Top 10 Books of 2011

10.  Stolen: A Letter to My Captor by Lucy Christopher (Goodreads)

9.  Wildefire by Karsten Knight (Goodreads)

8.  Nightspell by Leah Cypess (Goodreads)

7.  Dreamland Social Club by Tara Altebrando (Goodreads)

6.  Wrapped by Jennifer Bradbury (Goodreads)

5.  So Shelly by Ty Roth (Goodreads)

4.  A Long, Long Sleep by Anna Sheehan (Goodreads)

3.  Rippler by Cidney Swanson (Goodreads)

2.  My Life As a White Trash Zombie by Diana Rowland (Goodreads)

1.  Darker Still by Leanna Renee Hieber (Goodreads)

Well peeps, what do you think of my top 10 books of 2011?  I know there are some you probably think deserve to be on here which is why I have a bonus feature: Top 10 Books That Didn't Quite Make the List.  Thought you'd want to be reassured that I don't quite live under a rock!

Top 10 Books That Didn't Quite Make the List (Not In Any Particular Order)

1.  Wither by Lauren DeStefano (Goodreads)

2.  Forgotten by Cat Patrick (Goodreads)

3.  Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel (Goodreads)

4.  The Pull of Gravity by Gae Polisner (Goodreads)

5.  Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs (Goodreads)

6.  Chime by Franny Billingsley (Goodreads)

7.  Delirium by Lauren Oliver (Goodreads)

8.  Cate of the Lost Colony by Lisa M. Klein (Goodreads)

9.  Timeless by Alexandra Monir (Goodreads)

10.  Cryer's Cross by Lisa McMann (Goodreads)

   There they are, the diamonds of 2011 that are at the top of the bunch.  Y'all should definitely take a look at some of the ones you might not have read, they are all great books, even if they're not as extremely well known as some to be published this year.  What books made your lists?