Top 10 of 2013

To be clear, these are not necessarily books that were published in 2013, just books that I happened to read in 2013. And this list is in no specific order, because ranking them would probably be kind of like Sophie’s Choice.

Some of these are series, in which case I combined them. Because it would be a very crazy list if I named every book in every series that I loved this year!

The Woodlands and The Wall are probably two of my favorite books of all time. No, not probably, definitely. I am so giddy for the third book, The Wounded, to come out that I can hardly stand it. A perfect dystopian series with wonderful character development, I simply could not put it down.

I was such a fan of the Apocalypsis series by Elle Casey. And this last book, Haven, simply blew me away. When I first began reading Kahayatle (the first in the series), I was not sure I’d like it. But after the first few chapters, I was hooked, and could not wait to read the next books. This was one of those series that I never wanted to end, but when it did end, it ended perfectly.

The Dwellers and The Country Sagas by David Estes were so entertaining for me. With three books in each series, plus a combined 7th and final book, the stories’ twists and turns, along with the wonderfully eclectic group of characters had me turning the pages at a rapid speed.

Another great series, though this book barely made the cut since I finished it in early January, it is not a series to be missed. The third and final book comes out in January, and I absolutely cannot wait. Aria and Perry are such wonderful characters, and Roar is amazingly endearing as a secondary character. I almost gave up on the first chapter of the first book, thinking I wasn’t liking it. I am so glad that I returned to it, as this is not one I’d want to miss out on!

This book has it all: It makes you laugh, it makes you ugly cry, and it makes you think. I loved it, and I love John Green and would probably read instruction manuals if he’d write them.

I enjoyed this one a lot. It is a little different than my usual fare, but so worth it. The story just sucks you in, and makes you really feel and sympathize with the characters.

While it did have some Hunger Games traits, it had its very own, unique dystopian story. I absolutely adored the main character, and really hope that there will be a sequel to this one.

While I liked the first book, Dissonance, quite a bit, Vengeance was in an entirely different league for me. I was so engrossed in this book, I finished in two nights. I was sad when it was over, but it was a completely satisfying duo for me to read.

I will admit, I resisted reading this one for a long time. I was not interested in the whole “alien” idea, and thought this would be a waste of time. I was so ridiculously wrong. The first 20% or so went a little slowly for my liking, but when it picked up, it was good. There have been rumors of sequels, but I am not really holding my breath. And I was fine with the way it ended if it ends up being a standalone.

Is this cheating? Fine, I read this trilogy years ago, I know. But I also read it several times this year, so it counts. I credit this book with rekindling my love for reading. I was hesitant to read it, didn’t want to get into the Young Adult genre, etc. But I did, at a friend’s coercion, and the rest is history. I fell in love, and began reading like a crazy person. In my opinion, this is hands down the best series ever written. So of course, it makes the list.

That’s it for 2013. Out of my 114 books, not including the many re-reads of THG, these were my top choices. There are so many books I am looking forward to in 2014, so bring it on!