The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien has been on my to-read list since I read The Lord of the Rings trilogy forever ago. I finally made it around to it and was rewarded. I love to good book, and this is just such a fun story. I never thought I'd enjoy Bilbo Baggins like I did.
I read Nathaniel's Hawthorne's classic tale of adultery, repentance, and redemption out of my need to make up for all the books I didn't have to read in high school. I fully expected to wade through it. Instead, I was totally drawn into the storyline. Some books are classics because they are simply good books. This is one of them. P.S. Do NOT read The Grapes of Wrath. It may be a classic, but there were no redeeming features to this book!
This book was my most anticipated read this year. Mockingjay is the third in a series by Susanne Collins about a girl forced to participate twice in a reality-show type competition where she has to kill off other kids to survive and "win." She ends up as the face of a revolution and suffers immensely for her efforts. The series is full of drama, heart-rending defeats, and little hope. But it's enough, and the ending was perfect, I thought. Her characters are messed up after their experiences, to be sure, but you're left feeling that the world is a better place because of them.
Deanna Raybourn's Silent in the Grave is the first in Victorian-era series about a widow, Julia Grey, who becomes entangled in mysteries after the death of her first husband. Getting a taste for the intrigue, she follows Nicolas Brisbane around trying to vie for a place as an agent and possibly more. I absolutely love the temptestuous relationship between Julia and Brisbane, and this series fits totally within my current obsession with historical novels.
The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows is one of those rare books that is just good all the way around. It's written very creatively through the letters of the characters to one another and takes place on an island post-WWII. Fantastic book!
Linger by Maggie Stiefvater is probably my favorite YA novel of the year. The story about teenage werewolves in perhaps not my favorite, but her writing is so fluid and beautiful. It feels like you're reading straight poetry. I love it!
The Secret History of the Pink Carnation by Lauren Willig is my absolute favorite book of the year. In fact, it's well in the running for my favorite book ever. Set in Napoleon French era, it's full of swashbuckling spies, and romantic misadventures. The characters are hilarious, and the plot to unmask the Pink Carnation was totally surprising. I love the commentary from our modern counterpart, Eloise. I love Richard, Amy, Jane, and the whole gang. I'm reading it a second time right now and love it even more. Side note: There's a couple decidedly PG13 pages in this book. Beware sensitive readers.
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