My Favourite Books of 2009

I’ve decided to follow the example of bloggers such as Adele, Reggie and Steph Su in posting a list of my top reads of 2009. Not all of the these books were published this year, but I’ve read them all in 2009. The books aren’t listed in any particular and there’s quite a few of them. I tried for five but failed. Miserably!

The Hunger Games and Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins
Possibly two of the best books I’ve ever read. The mixture of a kick-ass heroine, a brilliant love triangle and a terrifying dystopian world make them unforgettable. (My reviews are here and here.)

Perfect Chemistry - Simone Elkeles
An intense and enthralling love story of Romeo and Juliet proportions. I’m beyond excited to read the sequel, Rules of Attraction, next April. (My review is here.)

The Morganville Vampires - Rachel Caine
I love me some Morganville! This is one of my favourite series’. Action-packed, traditional bad vampires and lovable characters make them incredibly compelling reads. (Here are my reviews: Glass Houses, The Dead Girls’ Dance, Midnight Alley, Feast of Fools, Lord of Misrule, Carpe Corpus)

Vampire Academy - Richelle Mead
Another of my favourite series. And another about vampires! Truly individual lore, the irrepressible Rose and gorgeous Dimitri make them truly addictive books. (These are my reviews: Vampire Academy, Frostbite, Shadow Kiss, Blood Promise)

The Mortal Instruments - Cassandra Clare
I know, another series. I can’t help it! I devoured the first two and nearly went mad waiting for City of Glass. Demons, Jace and forbidden love. What more could you want? (My reviews are here and here.)

Being Nikki - Meg Cabot
The mixture of Meg Cabot’s trademark humour, a geeky protagonist, some science-fiction and my sister’s threats if I didn’t put it on this list put Being Nikki on the best of 2009 list. (My review is here.)

If I Stay - Gayle Forman
A heartbreaking and beautifully written novel that should be a must-read for everyone. I doubt anyone who reads this will get to the end dry-eyed. Stock up the tissues! (My review.)

Stolen - Lucy Christopher
One of the best books I’ve ever read, it was hard to believe it was Lucy's first novel. Shocking, stunning and truly one of a kind. I've never read anything like it and I doubt I will again. (My review.)

Jessica’s Guide to Dating on the Dark Side - Beth Fantaskey
Vampires again! A steady, believable love story between an endearing heroine and a gorgeous, old-fashioned vampire. The wedding chapters on beth's website were a brilliant edition to the story. Fabulous! (Here is my review.)

Fallen - Lauren Kate
A sultry atmosphere, confounding mysteries, fantastic mythology and powerful writing. This is one of my favourite supernatural reads this year. It’s going to be a hell of a wait for the next in the series. (Here’s me review.)

Ice - Sarah Beth Durst
An enchanting and gorgeously written fairytale re-telling. I never expected to love this as much as I did and I'm so glad that I gave it a chance. Perfect for fans of the weirdly wonderful. (My review.)

Shiver - Maggie Stiefvater
One of the most beautiful books I’ve read this year. Captivating writing, a believable and intense love story and magic made this so much better than I expected it to be. I’m normally Team Vampire, but Shiver could easily change my mind. (Here's my review.)

These are only a small proportion of the amazing books that I’ve read this year and that’s mostly due to blogging. 20009 was a brilliant book year and I think that 2010 will be even better…

Sophie

Girl, Aloud - Emily Gale

Girl, Aloud - Emily Gale

Pages: 276
Publisher: Chicken House
Release Date: 7th December 2009

This is serious.

This is big.

Dad has finally lost it.

He’s entered me for The X Factor.

This would be less of a crisis if:

1. I could sing.

2. Any tiny bit of me wanted to be a star.

3. I hadn’t lost my two best friends over a boy in brown boots.

Inside I’m screaming, I just wannabe…me!

Girl, Aloud is the story of a girl finding her voice that’s at once painfully embarrassing and incredibly sad.

Emily Gale wrote a brilliant cast of characters in Girl, Aloud. Kass is strong, funny, and even though nothing ever goes right for her, I didn’t want to pity her. I felt that she would work things out. Raff is funny and strange, like all little brothers, and even a little sweet. And Char and Izzy are great friends with distinctive character traits that set them apart.

One of the elements of Girl, Aloud that I really enjoyed was Kass’s dream conversations with Simon Cowell. They were really brilliant. I loved the way that they argued and it made Kass realise things about herself. I’d never be able to talk to Simon Cowell, though: he scares me a little!

After such a great debut, I’m really looking forward to reading what Emily Gale writes next.

Sophie

In My Mailbox 44

This meme was started by the fabulous Kristi who was inspired by Alea. If you want more information check out their blogs. All summaries are from the book jackets.

For review:
Beautiful Creatures - Margaret Stohl and Kami Garcia

In Ethan Wate’s hometown there lies the darkest of secrets…
There is a girl.

Slowly, she pulled the hood from her head…green eyes, black hair.
Lena Duchannes

There is a curse.
On the sixteenth moon, of the sixteenth year, the Book will take what it’s been promised.
And no one can stop it.

In the end, there is a grave.

Lena and Ethan become bound together by a deep, powerful love. But Lena is cursed and, on her sixteenth birthday, her fate will be decided.
Ethan never even saw it coming.

!!! I don’t even really have to say anything, do I?

Bought:

Fade Out: The Morganville Vampires - Rachel Caine

Without the evil vampire Bishop ruling over the town of Morganville, the resident vampires have made major concessions to the human population. With their newfound freedom, Claire Danvers and her friends are almost starting to feel comfortable again…

Now Claire can actually concentrate on her studies, and her friend Eve joins the local theatre company. But when one of Eve’s cast mates goes missing after starting work on a short documentary, Eve suspects the worst. Claire and Eve soon realise that this film project, featuring the vampires themselves, is a whole lot bigger - and way more dangerous - than anyone suspected…

It’s no secret that I love this series so when this was delivered on Tuesday, over two weeks before it’s publication date, I remembered why I love Amazon UK pre-orders so much.

Splendour: A Luxe Novel - Anna Godbersen

New York City, 1900

While the once revered Holland family recovers from scandal, the spirited Miss Diana Holland is seeking adventure abroad. But then a surprising clue about her father’s death is revealed and everything is thrown into question.

Meanwhile, the delectable Henry Schoonmaker has also left the city and bravely gone to war while his wife relishes her role as Manhattan royalty - until a real prince pays a visit and turns her fickle head.

As New York’s most dazzling stars chase dreams, cling to promises and tempt fate, society wonders: at exactly what price does a life of splendour come?

Another reason why I love pre-orders. I’m so excited the read this!

For Christmas:

Succubus Blues - Richelle Mead

Succubus (n.) An alluring, shape-shifting demon who seduces and pleasures mortal men.
Pathetic (adj.) A succubus with great shoes and no social life. See: Georgina Kincaid.

When it comes to jobs in hell, being a succubus seems pretty glamorous. A girl can be anything she wants, the wardrobe is killer, and mortal men will do anything for just a touch. Granted, they can often pay with their souls, but why get technical?

But Seattle succubus Georgina Kincaid’s life is far less exotic. Her boss is a middle-management demon with a thing for John Cusack movies. Her immortal best friends haven't stopped teasing her about the time she shape-shifted into the Demon Goddess getup complete with whip and wings. And she can't have a decent date without sucking away part of the guy's life. At least there's her day job at a local bookstore--free books; all the white chocolate mochas she can drink; and easy access to bestselling, sexy writer, Seth Mortensen, aka He Whom She Would Give Anything to Touch but Can't.

But dreaming about Seth will have to wait. Something wicked is at work in Seattle's demon underground. And for once, all of her hot charms and drop-dead one-liners won't help because Georgina's about to discover there are some creatures out there that both heaven and hell want to deny...

I love the Vampire Academy series so I’m really looking forward to starting her adult books.

How to Make a Tornado - New Scientist

Who on earth would:
- Burn off their beard with a laser?
- Produce a fireproof umbrella that doubles as a parachute?
- Use ‘glow-in-the-dark’ toothpaste - to reflect the headlights of oncoming cars?
- Celebrate Mozart’s bicentenary by inventing a musical bra?
- Replace police sniffer dogs with gerbils?

Drawn from the archives of New Scientist magazine, How to Make a Tornado is about the weird and wonderful margins of science - not the well-trodden routes of research, but its outrageous, outlandish and just occasionally brilliant by-ways. This extraordinary collection of scientific endeavour is a brilliant reminder that even as its most misguided, science is insanely creative, often hilarious, and can fire the imagination like nothing else.

More Heath Robinson that Albert Einstein, this astonishing collection follows the previous New Scientist bestsellers.

My mum gets me the new New Scientist every Christmas because they are really good fun and, well, I’m a nerd!

Can Reindeer Fly? The Science of Christmas - Roger Highfield

What are the thermodynamics involved in cooking turkey? Is the concept of a virgin birth scientifically feasible? How does snow form? How does Santa manage to deliver all those presents in one night? (He has, in fact, little over two ten-thousandths of a second to get between each of the 842 million households he must visit.)

Fully revised and updated, Can Reindeer Fly? is a hilarious romp through the science of Christmas. Highlights include information on teleporting Santa, gravy science, the healthy aspects of eating chocolate and the latest research on a cure for hangovers…

Another sign of my nerdiness…

Sophie

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas everyone!

I hope you have a fantastic holiday and get loads of books!

Sophie

The Forest of Hands and Teeth - Carrie Ryan

The Forest of Hands and Teeth - Carrie Ryan

Pages: 308
Publisher: Gollancz
Release Date: 1st July 2009

Other Titles in the Series: The Dead-Tossed Waves (US 09/03/10, UK 08/04/10)

In Mary’s world there are simple truths. The Sisterhood always knows best. The Guardians will protect and serve. The Unconsecrated will never relent.

And you must always mind the fence that surrounds the village; the fence that protects the village from the Forest of Hands and Teeth.

But, slowly, Mary’s truths are failing her. She’s learning things she never wanted to know about the Sisterhood and its secrets, and the Guardians and their power, and about the Unconsecrated and their relentlessness. When the fence is breached and her world is thrown into chaos, she must choose between her village and her future - between the one she loves and the one who loves her.

And she must face the truth about the Forest of Hands and Teeth. Could there be life outside a world surrounded by so much death?

The Forest of Hands and Teeth is Carrie Ryan’s bleak debut novel written in stark, beautiful prose.

At first I found this very heavy and hard to read. The disaster after disaster gave The Forest of Hands and Teeth a depressing and hopeless feel to it. The Sisters are creepy, harsh and quite scary in the power that they wield over the residents of the village and the secrets that they keep. I have to admit that I very nearly gave up on it.

But by the time that I got half-way through The Forest of Hands and Teeth I was very glad that I persevered with it. I ended up quite enjoying it. Carrie Ryan’s gorgeous writing was what made me carry on reading and even ended up making me cry. I never imagined that this book would have that effect on me!

Other than the gloomy beginning, I do have a few other complaints. I didn’t really like any of the characters. They were all either selfish, hard or disloyal towards each other and I just couldn’t connect with them properly. We were also launched straight into the story with no explanation or back-story of the Return. I know that Mary herself didn’t know very much about it and so she couldn’t really tell us, but I just felt that it needed it to complete it.

I did enjoy The Forest of Hands and Teeth in the end and I’ll be reading the sequel, The Dead-Tossed Waves, next year to how a new heroine deals with life alongside the Unconsecrated.

Sophie