Monday, December 31, 2012

Top 12 of 2012

12. Black Dawn and Bitter Blood by Rachel Caine:

Rachel Caine never ceases to amaze me with her Morganville Vampire series. Each new book that comes out is just as exciting as the beginning of the series so I couldn't just pick one. 



11. The Sanctuary by Ted Dekker
 This was a companion novel to The Priest's Graveyard which I haven't read(but definitely want to).


10. Glamorous Illusions by Lisa T. Bergren


I chose two of Lisa Bergren's books but gave them separate ratings because they were from different series unlike choosing 2 books from Rachel Caine and 2 books from Julie Lessman. Glamorous Illusions is the first in the Grand Tour series and I am looking forward to the next one!

9. Curveball The Year I Lost My Grip by Jordan Sonnenblick





 Jordan Sonnenblick never disappoints me! I have enjoyed every book he has written. His stories make me laugh and make me cry and I am definitely a fan!


8. Flesh & Bone by Jonathan Maberry




One more book after Flesh & Bone in the Benny Imura series. This one left me hanging and I cannot wait until the last one comes out! I must find out how everyone ends up. I never thought I would be a fan of zombie fiction, but this series has definitely kept me wanting more!


7. Kiss of Death by Debbie Viguie




A Christian writer that writes about vampires? Yep! Kiss of Death is the 2nd book in the Kiss Trilogy. And yes, I am a fan!

6. A Dangerous Stage by Camy Tang




This is the 2nd book in the Protection for Hire series. I love the kick-butt heroine in this series and I'm looking forward to the next installment. Camy Tang's character Tessa has a sense of humor and skills that keep the reader turning til the last page.

5. Bourne by Lisa T. Bergren

I love The River of Time series! I hope that Lisa will write more!





4. Wish You Were Eyre by Heather Vogel Frederick

 A bit bitter-sweet since this is the last book in the series. I was hoping that the author would continue on through the characters high school years but that is not the case and it makes me sad. A definite favorite series of mine.



3. Invisible by Ginny Ytrtrup(available April 1, 2013)

 There is definitely something in Ginny Yttrup's writing that captures and holds my attention. This is the 2nd book I have read by this author and I was not disappointed in either read. Her book WORDS made my top 10 picks in 2010 so I was very pleased to be able to include Invisible on this year's top 12.


2. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer(Available February 5, 2013)




This series is definitely now in my favorites! I loved the first book Cinder, but I found that I liked Scarlet even better! This one hasn't even come out in stores yet. Thanks for my friend Karin who loaned me her ARC copy. I have a hardback on order because I love the covers of these books. Can't wait for the next one to come out!

1. A Love Surrendered and A Light in the Window by Julie Lessman




I read this series totally backwards. I had no idea that I wasn't starting at the beginning. I read The Winds of Change first and fell in love with the O'Connor family. Out of those 3 books A Love Surrendered was definitely my favorite. Then I read The Daughter's of Boston(the first 3 books in the O'Connor saga) and finally I read the prequel to the whole series A Light in the Window which tells the parents Marcy and Patrick's love story. Julie Lessman proclaims herself as a CDQ(caffeinated drama queen) and that definitely shows up in all of her books. While I am adverse to drama in my own life the characters throughout the series grew on me and I found myself reading each book with anticipation.  Julie was nice enough to allow me to read A Light in the Window before it was published and she even put up with me constantly contacting her on facebook to complain about this or that characters behavior! She is definitely a gracious and sweet person and I am looking forward to a new series she is starting.

Woo hoo! So there you have it! My top 12 picks of 2012. Feel free to leave a link in the comments with your post for your top 12. Looking forward to seeing what you all have read!

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10 comments:

  1. Julie LessmanDecember 31, 2012 at 8:29 AM

    YOU, Julie G.G., are one of my BIGGEST BLESSINGS of 2012!!! Thank you soooooo much for your incredible support and precious friendship!!

    Hugs and more hugs,
    Julie

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  2. JulieDecember 31, 2012 at 8:40 AM

    Thank YOU Julie for counting me among your blessings this year :) and for allowing me to read ALITW before it was published. You are a gracious CDQ and I have enjoyed visiting with you through FB and blogging! Looking forward to your new series in 2013!!! Thanks for stopping by and commenting!

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  3. danicapageDecember 31, 2012 at 2:30 PM

    I also loved Julie Lessman's Love Surrendered. It was incredible.

    I really need to read Rachel Caine's book still.

    Great list. My TBR list just got a little bigger.

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    Replies
    1. JulieDecember 31, 2012 at 2:41 PM

      Isn't it the truth Danica? When you look at other's lists our TBR pile tends to get bigger and bigger. Since I started blogging I don't think I have ever had an empty TBR shelf! Rachel Caine's books are really good if you like vampires and if you don't mind some more adult situations. For the most part she stops at the bedroom door(no graphic sex scenes), but there is some mild to strong cursing in each book. So it depends on what your tolerance level is for this series.

      Thanks for stopping by! :)

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  4. Amber HolcombDecember 31, 2012 at 2:37 PM

    Great list, Julie - I love how varied it is and genre and style! :) I really enjoyed Julie's books and Glamorous Illusions, as well (so excited for Grave Consequences!). And I'm so happy you loved Scarlet, since you know I have it on pre-order now! ;)

    Happy New Year, my friend!

    ~Amber

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    Replies
    1. JulieDecember 31, 2012 at 2:45 PM

      AMBER!!!! Girl, you took the words right out of my mouth! I was flipping back to the top of my post and I was thinking to myself WOW, I read a lot of different genre's! Now I'm biting my nails hoping that you like Cinder and Scarlet! Really you should read Cinder first to know what the setting is for the series. Anyway, I hope you like it as well as I did. Don't you always worry when you recommend something to someone and give it high praise and then think "oh no what if they don't like it?" Ack! Thanks so much for stopping by and commenting!

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    2. Amber HolcombDecember 31, 2012 at 4:47 PM

      Hehehe, great minds think alike! ;) (It's quite different than my list, because, as Rel pointed out, I have a very obvious historical affinity!) Although it would have helped if I had said "in" and not "and" before genre and style... Oops!

      Anyway, yes, I know what you mean! It's exciting to have people want to give a book a try after you rave about it, but then you're worried that they'll be disappointed or not love it as much as you do. But don't worry! You're not the only one who loved Cinder, and I really wanted to give it a try! (I'll be sure to read it before Scarlet!)

      ~Amber

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    3. JulieDecember 31, 2012 at 4:59 PM

      I understood what you meant ;)

      Yes, I had to go back and look at your top picks and you definitely have a historical affinity! I always think that I'm not a historical fiction fan, but then when I look back to things I have read I see that I do enjoy it very much. One thing that does run through the majority of books I read though is romance...add that to any genre and I'm pretty happy :)

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  5. GaniseJanuary 1, 2013 at 10:30 PM

    Amen to what you said for Julie's books.

    Happy New Year, Juli @ My Favorite Pastime!


    :-)

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    Replies
    1. JulieJanuary 2, 2013 at 8:07 AM

      Hi Ganise! Thanks for stopping by! Looks like Julie Lessman has a lot of fans!

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