2013 - Book Retrospective

Let's start, shall we?

I was going to have two here but couldn't manage to finish my Zahi Hawass book so we only have one. 

I cannot summarise how much I adore this book, which worked especially well for me since I have the audiobook. The writing is superb and Marr did what only the best historians seem to manage and most schools fail entirely - he tells the history of our world from the very first humans to modern times and it makes sense. People fail to describe how linked everything is. The West lead the East for so long BECAUSE of what happened in the East and so on. Everything is connected, causality is key and people don't portray that enough.

As for the voice, both Andrew Marr and David Timson are sublime. I adored every second and listened to it over and over already. I cannot recommend this book enough. 

This shouldn't come as a surprise to people who know my tastes...

Possibly, you may have to be a fan of the games to love this book as much as I did. The writing is decent, the characters are true to life and it was so fascinating to find out more about Anderson and the Reapers. It's fun, dynamic and very well paced. The 'lore' is explained very well so if you are new, you can probably just jump in and if you're a hardcore fan (*cough*) you won't get bored of being told what you already know.

The storyline itself was cool. Really cool. Like I said, it's paced so well and linked in. I don't remember the ending because I read it just about a year ago but it left me with a very good feeling overall. And it blew my mind that my favourite games ever have books.

Before I start. I know he's a jerk and a bigot, alright? C.S. Lewis was a hardcore Christian and Arthur Conan Doyle believed in ghosts and mediums towards the end. That doesn't make their masterpieces any better or worse. So if you want to comment on that, have at it, but I don't necessarily care. Now. 

I had slightly mixed feelings about this book and failed to write down notes so this is all from memory. I've heard loads of different comments and they all made sense and didn't, but I'd have to write a more in-depth review so I can avoid spoilers. 

But it was okay. Not amazing. The reason it made this list is because I got to learn more about Ender, whom I started to care about from another book in this series - no, I didn't read in order. Plus, the film was out this year. 

The thing that made it stand out and convinced me I am, indeed, a fan of the series despite disliking the author is his incredible talent for plot twists. Normally I can guess the twists halfway through the book or film, maybe a chapter or so beforehand if they're really good. Card? Hell, I didn't see it till AFTER the thing happened. Dear Lord he's good... Just for that, you have to read it. I don't think the film can possibly capture the mind-stunning details. 

Note, you have to actually think back after you read it. All your complains might make sense - like why it's so slow paced at times, why nothing at all seems to happen, why the adults are such monsters. Trust me. Think about it. 

This book is amazing. You have to read it. The end.

But seriously now. If you don't like really heavy books but want to try some deep scifi, or not really into the philosophical but kind of want something with a bit of meat to it, this is the book for you. It's like Dune lite. And you don't have to have read the above - I didn't, this was my very first Card book.

The characters are fascinating and it goes into issues of honesty and the lies we tell ourselves and each other, religion, philosophy, morality, trust, self-awareness - hold on, don't run away just yet. It's still light. It doesn't shove them at you, they're just part of the plot, there to accentuate, not overshadow. I know it sounds a bit pretentious but go to amazon and look it up and read through the sample. The scifi bits aren't even that overwhelming really so it's a good place to start if you're curious but don't want anything too heavy. 

Again, really well written and goodness does he do plot twists well. I did NOT see it coming. I can't say much without giving stuff away but it's a masterpiece. And funny enough, the title isn't some gothic pun. It's a title, a mix between priest and historian. 

Technically a Scifi series as well, here is one novel/series I went in fully prepared to hate. I have a history of doing that with stuff that's really in and, trust me, I tried. Not only that, I got it as an audiobook and the narration was godawful (sorry Carolyn McCormick). I was slowly getting fed up and was going to put it down when they explained the Reaping and the names came out but, you know what, that's when it gets good. Really good. The pace follows the events - it's intentionally slow at the beginning to show the life she's leading (monotone, limited, desperate, calm) and escalates to the actual Hunger Games. 

The story is brilliant; I've never really been big on dystopian novels but this series spiked my interest like you wouldn't imagine. The characters are believable and all have several layers you can dig through - if you want; if you don't they can pass for simple and make for an easy read. If you're up to it, the moral and philosophical questions posed by the series could very well change your mind about a few things, or at least make you think slightly more. 

A definite must-read, at least the first one. I haven't finished no. 3 yet so I can't say for the whole series but at least give it a go. The film cannot possibly capture the quality and subtlety of the books, if only because they allow you to get into Katniss' head, no matter how good an actress Lawrence is. 

I'm glad I could include at least one book by the legendary Anne Rice, the mother of vampires as we know them today. I mean actual ones. 

This is a book I'd been tracking for ages and ages and finally found in a charity shop, which blew my mind. I am a huge fan and love Lestat's back story and personality and character. He is eternally fascinating and her writing style is a benchmark of fiction, dark fiction, gothic fiction and vampire fiction. Basically, you can't say you read vamp fiction without having read her. 

Memnoch was a mixed bag, however, and I have done a review for a fully detailed recall, as listed in the description box. I loved the book deeply, as you can tell from that review, and I am to this day deeply grateful for finding and being able to read it. And Armand's appearance in it was stellar, if short. Even now, I love and hate the book much as Lestat loves and hates his very existence. 

This is a series by one of my all-time favourite authors, the one I go to whenever I feel down and/or need a quick, nice, easy read. Her books feel like a comfy sweater on a winter evening when you cuddle up with a cup of cocoa and a good book. Preferably hers. Just don't spill the drink on it from laughing so hard.

I hadn't read this series before so I thought I'd give it a go. The first one was just as good as I expected, the last one was so-so but it was, personally, very nice to find fresh material from an author I love. Plus, grumpy, anti-Disney mermaids and a really easy read. It's like literature's fast food. Only good for you.

I've been told other people don't find her funny but, then again, the same people tend not to find me that funny so what do they know? (Yeah, yeah, okay, just look it up).

 The Accidental Werewolf - Dakota Cassidy

Here, my friends, is an epic book, the only reason Fifty Shades (don't worry, it's coming up) isn't anywhere near my 'worst read' list. I can't tell you much about the plot because I got about 3 pages in before I had to choose between continuing to survive and continuing to read and I'm not that mental. 

As for the writing style? Ohhh-hey. Deary me. I can't even.... It's not even so bad it's funny like Fifty Shades or so bad you have to read it in order to appreciate all books from there after. It's just. Why? And worst yet, why is there a series? 

So here's the book I could not finish.

I think it's safe to say Sir Terry Pratchett deserves a section all to himself, not least because his books represent nearly 50% of the ones on this list and about 5 away from half of the ones I read all year. It was hard to limit myself to these but there you go. 

If you enjoy references and Shakespeare, you'll love Wyrd Sisters (Macbeth anyone?) and Maskarade (Phantom of the Opera, not Shakespeare but references). The writing style is phenomenal, as always. If you haven't read any of his books, definitely go for it. It's so funny and the writing can be read on so many levels. For example, if you read them as a child (or young teen, as I started out), they just seem really funny and relative innocent. If you're older (especially once you meet the delightful Nanny Ogg) you will blush. But still laugh. His use of footnotes is legendary and you will never consider them, in themselves, boring again. He also does plot twists magnificently and makes them seem as natural as nature itself. 

He bases his work on so many different myths and stories - 'stories' is discussed as well; the noun, not a grammar mistake. And, best of all, the thing that connects all of the above? Granny Weatherwax. Well, the witches, Granny, Nanny Ogg and Magrat Garlick (intended Margaret but her parents had trouble spelling it so Magrat she is). They're a play on the traditional three witches and personifications of different methods of magic (Magrat is more wiccan, druid and naturalistic, Nanny is the home medicine, motherly witch and Granny is the old fashioned, pure down to earth magic and logic so sharp you could cut yourself on it). There's a further joke about them I won't disclose because it's in the book and it took me ages to get it. 

Granny Weatherwax happens to be one of my - if not simply my - favourite character of his and possibly of all time. I adore everything about her and am quietly dreading finishing the last book with her in it. (He has several characters his stories switch between and has said Granny, Death and Vimes are some he tends to steer clear off because they take over the whole world.)

Although all are brilliant, Lords and Ladies stands out. It is incredibly good - and I mean it literally, I could not believe how good this book is. The myths he uses are so pure, so unrefined, the wordplay is sublime and the story he weaves speaks true and clear. It's like a breath of fresh air, only the air is biting cold and slices all the way down your insides as you drink it in. If you only read one, try this one. 

SPOILERS: Witches Abroad deals with the myths around mirrors, which I am fascinated by, Lords and Ladies with some ancient beliefs and original myths, rather than what we've made them to be and Wyrd Sisters akin to Macbeth. 

Vimes. The detective noire of Discworld. I originally didn't find him all that interesting but he's slowly working his way up behind Granny Weatherwax. These two books deal with his take on Discworld and follow him from a drunken cop in a ditch to the Head of the Watch. I never knew I liked noire novels (although I don't see why it never dawned on me since I love Dresden) but they certainly convinced me.

The stories are interesting, they have dragons - dragon dragons but also swamp dragons, who are tiny, cute and have a tendency to redecorate their surroundings through exploding themselves. There isn't much I can say without giving away major plot points because it all flows so nicely together but the plot twists are awesome, the writing is priceless and the characters are beyond amazing. 

In the Agatean Empire, their worst curse is 'May you live in interesting times'. The story that follows is hilarious, fascinating and downright fun. The main reason this book is on my list, however, is making me enjoy a Rincewind book. Normally I don't like the guy much but the story in this book is so good, I had to add it. 

A book about music. Music with Rocks in. Need I say more? Okay. It's funny as hell, fascinating as all his books are, amazingly written and features Death, the surprisingly lovable and cosy character and his and his grand daughter Susan's past. The story is painfully touching at times and really makes you think...

I feel really bad about including these two. Like you can probably guess by now, I adore Terry Pratchett and think he's one of the gods of literature. Maybe it's because I was really stressed when I read them and read them in bits and lost the plot... that has to be it. They weren't bad as such and the titles are really fun puns (equal rights for women to practice wizardry and sourcery ... well that's a spoiler but it's a pun). They were just... there. Better than most books but not quite as good as his other ones. They're on the list as the only Pratchett books I didn't love (alongside the Rincewind ones but that's cause of the character) and I vow to re-read them because I still think it was my state of mind to blame. 

There are two authors in this category, both very weird for me since I don't read this type of book. I read Davidson, a romance author, because of the humour and Anita Blake because the action is really good, but I don't read straight-up fiction. So they will need some explaining. 

This author... dear lord this author. I started reading her books because I'm a Felicia Day fan (if you play games you may know her, she's pretty darn awesome) and she and three of her friends have a bookclub on youtube that I follow. Her book came up, so I thought what the hell and read it. I was bored and I knew she'd be reading it so why not. The books are essentially romance I suppose, and that's quite a soft term for it. I'm one of the most prudish people you will ever have the misfortune to meet. There is no reason I should like them. None. Yet...

I have very rarely seem better lore in any storyverse. It's jam-packed but not overwhelming, entirely original despite using all the cliché elements (vampires, werewolves, demons, Valkyrie... hold on, that's not that ... anyway). But they all have a spin on them. Werewolves' beasts are actually that, not some veiled reference to how powerful they are. The demons are a whirlwind of species for every sin etc but the ones that stand out have horns. And are red. And flipping scary. There are Valkyrie for gods' sake (heh, gods and Valkyrie... okay so I guess no one will get why that's a joke), they are made when a woman dies bravely and her and Freya's essence merge to make a new being, half the mother's blood but all Valkyrie. 

But the main reason I can even admit I read these books, not all of them mind you, even I have a limit, is because they made me realise how judgemental I am of the genre. But more so - because they have vampires which are Dacians and I didn't send her hate mail*.

*Quick history lesson: Dacians were an ancient people that lived in modern-day Romania. They are our ancestors. 

And you know what? He speaks modern day Romanian. And badly at that. I flipped, I raged to whoever would listen. But I kept reading. Know why? They are so well written. And the lore, my gods the lore... (okay, okay, I'll stop with the joke). 

I can't exactly recommend them, ESPECIALLY if you're not 18 yet (don't give me that 16 years old nonsense, if you're not old enough to drink you're not old enough to do other things). But they certainly helped me question my own views on Romanian vampires. Heck, it was as bad as the classic 'my character is a vampire born in Romania in the town of Budapest' (that's Hungary's capital, we don't get along; One word: wikipedia). 

How could I skip the famous series? Well. Ahem. Considering the above, you might get the wrong impression.

Tough.

So. I have a review of the book, to which I will link in the description box bellow, but let's have a go anyway. 

Everyone knows the story by now and, quite frankly, unless you're even more prudish than me it's easy to guess. So I won't bother with details. 

The writing however makes my top three worst of all time without even trying. Not ruining an interesting plot cause it's boring, like Book with No Name, or downright want to burn the book like Accidentally seen above, just plain downright bad. It managed to make a story about domination and sex be the most boring read of the year, and I read some pretty bleak stuff for my degree this semester. 

But even that wouldn't have made it stand out to me that much. The absolute worst part is that no one seems to note what exactly makes it so bad. It's not the subject matter, I can tell you that and make the guessing a little easier. Yeah, sounds all decadent and dark and mysterious, maybe even fascinating, right? Wrong. For all the build-up, the only decadence happens at the start and then in their discussion, not in anything they do. Don't get me wrong, I'm not disappointed, but this book turned the subject into this great big taboo with everyone flipping missing the point - it's so bad because of the writing! It's frustrating to hear people go on about it without acknowledging the problem. It's like looking at a person who's drowning and instead of giving them a hand you start combing their hair because the water got it all messy. Freaking open your eyes people! 

So, if Accidentally got the prize for worst piece of garbage, this gets it for most infuriatingly frustrating reactions.