year in books

Welcome to the somethingth edition of “A Year In Books” here at CdPdN. It’s where I chronicle and count up the books I’ve read in a given year. Mostly, it helps me remember what I’ve read if I forget, and it occasionally helps me recommend books to others.

Also, in October of 2020, I noticed there was a whole bunch of garbage code here after tracking numbered lists for over a decade, so I started cleaning it up. I expect it’ll be a work in progress, but ideally, I’ll eventually clean up all the extraneous html/php elements.

___________________
2024:

      1. Lincoln’s Dreams – Connie Willis
      2. Enough – Cassidy Hutchinson
      3. System Collapse – Martha Wells
      4. Legends and Lattes – Travis Baldree
      5. Counting the Cost – Jill Duggar and Derick Dillard
      6. By The Blood of Heroes – Joseph Nassise
      7. Defiant – Brandon Sanderson
      8. Witches Incorporated – K.E. Mills
      9. Silent Blade – Ilona Andrews
      10. The Glass-Sided Ant’s Nes – Peter Dickinson
      11. Bookshops and Bonedust – Travis Baldree
      12. The Space Between Worlds – Michiah Johnson
      13. Democracy Awakening – Heather Cox Richardson

2023:

  1. Hench – Natalie Zina Walschots
  2. Never Deal With A Dragon – Robert N. Charette
  3. The Case of the Bizarre Bouquet – Nancy Springer
  4. The Ink Black Heart – Robert Galbraith
  5. The Accidental Summoner – R.E. Carr
  6. Choose Your Enemies Carefully – Robert N. Charette
  7. Find Your Own Truth – Robert N. Charette
  8. Watching the Bodies – Graham Smith
  9. Upgrade – Blake Crouch
  10. Certain Dark Things – Silvia Moreno-Garcia
  11. The Department of Rare Books and Special Collections – Eva Jurczyk
  12. Shadow of the Gods – John Gwynne
  13. The Obelisk Gate – N.K. Jemisin
  14. Pelosi – Molly Ball
  15. Go Mutants! – Larry Doyle
  16. Beyond the Wand: The Magic and Mayhem of Growing Up a Wizard – Tom Felton
  17. A Borrowed Man – Gene Wolfe
  18. Interlibrary Loan – Gene Wolfe
  19. How To Sell A Haunted House – Grady Hendrix
  20. A Letter to Three Witches – Elizabeth Bass
  21. Profiles In Ignorance – How America’s Politicians Got Dumb and Dumber – Andy Borowitz
  22. Burning Shakespeare   – AJ Hartley
  23. 18 and Life on Skid Row  – Sebastian Bach
  24. Empowered: Volume 1 – Adam Warren
  25. Paddle Your Own Canoe – Nick Offerman
  26. Empowered: Volume 2 – Adam Warren
  27. The Malaise Falchion  – Paul Barrett
  28. Gone To The Wolves – John Ray
  29. This Bird Has Flown – Suzanna Hoffs
  30. Horrostor – Grady Hendrix
  31. If, Then – Kate Hope Day
  32. Hogfather – Terry Pratchett
  33. 13 Bullets – David Wellington
  34. Equal Rites – Terry Pratchett
  35. 99 Coffins – David Wellington
  36. Going Postal – Terry Pratchett
  37. On Earth As It Is on Television – Emily Jane
  38. End Times – Peter Turchin
  39. Starter Villain – John Scalzi
  40. Titanium Noir – Nick Harkaway
  41. Confessions of a Geek Bard – Mikey Mason
  42. No Plan B – Lee Child
  43. The Accidental Sorcerer – K.E. Mills
  44. The Running Grave – Robert Galbraith
  45. The Chosen One’s Assistant – Kimber Grey
  46. Run, Rose, Run – James Patterson/Dolly Parton
  47. Look Out For The Little Guy – Scott Lang (Rob Kutner)
  48. The House On Dead Man’s Curve – Jason Roach
  49. MCU: The Reign of Marvel Studios – Joanna Robinson, Dave Gonzales, Gavin Edwards

2022:

  1. The History of What Comes Next – Sylvain Neuvel
  2. Sunreach – Brandon Sanderson & Janci Patterson
  3. Step By Step Mixing: How to Create Great Mixes Using Only Five Plugins: Bjorgvin Benediktsson
  4. Chaos Rising – Timothy Zahn
  5. Cytonic – Brandon Sanderson
  6. Dune Messiah – Frank Herbert
  7. Agnes at the End of the World – Kelly McWilliams
  8. Iron Widow – Xiran Jay Zhao
  9. Broken Horses – Brandi Carlile
  10. Greater Good – Timothy Zahn
  11. Evershore – Brandon Sanderson & Janci Patterson
  12. Hammers on Bone – Cassandra Khaw
  13. The One – John Marrs
  14. Ink & Sigil – Kevin Hearne
  15. Leviathan Falls – James S.A Corey
  16. ReDawn – Brandon Sanderson & Janci Patterson
  17. Black Leopard Red Wolf – Marlon James
  18. NPCs – Drew Hayes
  19. Paper & Blood – Kevin Hearne
  20. Split the Party – Drew Hayes
  21. The Kaiju Preservation Society – John Scalzi
  22. The Beast in Aisle 34 – Darrin Doyle
  23. 2034: A Novel of the Next World War – Elliot Ackerman & Admiral James Stavridis
  24. My Dungeon Master Is A T-Rex Rules Lawyer But Fortunately I Rolled A Crit On The Pound My Butt Check – Chuck Tingle
  25. Going Rogue – Drew Hayes
  26. Children of Dune – Frank Herbert
  27. Siege Tactics – Drew Hayes
  28. Goliath – Tochi Onyebuchi
  29. The Devil’s Been Busy: Monster Hunder Mom Season One – JD Blackrose
  30. A Carnival of Snackery: Diaries (2003-2020) – David Sedaris
  31. Blood, Sweat and Tears (Bubba The Monster Hunter, Season 5) – John G. Hartness
  32. Noble Roots – Drew Hayes
  33. Whatever for Hire: A Magical Romantic Comedy (with a body count) – RJ Blain
  34. Cultish: The Language of Fantaticism – Amanda Montell
  35. Hello, Molly!  A Memoir – Molly Shannon
  36. Day Zero – C. Robert Cargill
  37. Battling the Big Lie – Dan Pfeiffer
  38. A Prayer for the Crown-Shy: A Monk and Robot Book – Becky Chambers
  39. KEVIN (Or The Latter Days of Romulus Augustulus, Last Emperor of Western Rome) – Dan Nokes
  40. Music is History – Questlove
  41. Meddling Kids – Edgar Cantero
  42. Lies Across America – James W. Loewen
  43. Death By Dumpling – Vivien Chien
  44. Dawnshard – Brandon Sanderson
  45. Heroic Hearts – Jim Butcher & Kerrie Hughes (ed)
  46. Buckaroo Banzai Against the World Crime League Et Al – The Reno Kid with Earl Mac Rauch  (Act 1)
  47. Differently Morphous – Yahtzee Croshaw
  48. Buckaroo Banzai Against the World Crime League Et Al – The Reno Kid with Earl Mac Rauch  (Act 2)
  49. Why We Did It: A Travelogue from the Republican Road To Hell: Tim Miller
  50. More Than One Way To Breathe – Abigail Wild
  51. Darwin’s Radio – Greg Bear
  52. Darling Girl – Liz Michalski
  53. The Constant Rabbit – Jasper Fforde
  54. Randoms  – David Liss
  55. The Fifth Season – NK Jesimin
  56. Nona The Ninth – Tamsyn Muir
  57. Confidence Man – Maggie Haberman
  58. The Hydrogen Sonata – Iain m. Banks
  59. Hidden Empire – Kevin J Anderson
  60. Remarkably Bright Creatures – Natalie Zina Walschot
  61. Version Zero  – David Yoon

2021:

  1. Qualityland – Mark Uwe-King
  2. The Passengers – John Marrs
  3. Rhythm of War – Brandon Sanderson
  4. All Systems Red – Martha Wells
  5. Ready Player Two – Ernest Cline
  6. The Art of Drowning – Abigail Wild
  7. One of Us Is Lying – Karen M. McManus
  8. Blood of Elves – Andrzej Sapkowsk
  9. How I Paid for College: A Novel of Sex, Theft, Friendship, and Musical Theater –  Marc Acito
  10. Monster – A. Lee Martinez
  11. A Highly Unlikely Scenario, or a Neetsa Pizza Employee’s Guide to Saving the World – Rachel Cantor
  12. F**k Anxiety – Robert Duff
  13. Face the Music – Paul Stanley
  14. The Beautiful Ones – Prince
  15. Universal Language – Robert T. Jeschonek
  16. Gameboard of the Gods – Richelle Mead
  17. The Warded Man – Peter V. Brett
  18. The Girl With All The Gifts – M.R. Carey
  19. The Desert Spear – Peter V. Brett
  20. The Lies of Locke Lamora – Scott Lynch
  21. Artificial Condition – Martha Wells
  22. Rogue Protocol – Martha Wells
  23. She Come By It Natural: Dolly Parton and the Women Who Lived Her Songs – Sarah Smarsh
  24. You’re Doing Great! – Tom Papa
  25. Axiom’s End – Lindsay Ellis
  26. The Daylight War – Peter V. Brett
  27. Red Seas Under Red Skies – Scott Lynch
  28. Wanderers – Chuck Wendig
  29. The Long Way to A Small Angry Planet – Becky Chambers
  30. A Desolation Called Peace – Arkady Martine
  31. Lord Foul’s Bane – Stephen Donaldson
  32. Some Girls Bite – Chloe Neill
  33. Proxy – Mindy Arnett
  34. Project Hail Mary – Andy Weir
  35. Avalon – Mindy Arnett
  36. A Closed and Common Orbit – Becky Chambers
  37. Record of a Spaceborn Few – Becky Chambers
  38. Sound of the Beast: The Complete Headbanging History of Heavy Metal – Ian Christie
  39. Manna: Two Views of Humanity’s Future – Marshall Brain
  40. Spellhacker – MK England
  41. Persist – Elizabeth Warren
  42. Exit Strategy – Martha Wells
  43. Naked Came The Stranger – Penelope Ashe
  44. The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires – Grady Hendrix
  45. The Calculating Stars – Mary Robinette Kowal
  46. Grim – MK Eidem
  47. Network Effect – Martha Wells
  48. The Final Girl Support Group – Grady Hendrix
  49. Dog Dish of Doom  – EJ Copperman
  50. Fugitive Telemetry – Martha Wells
  51. The Nymphos of Rocky Flats – Mario Acevedo
  52. X-Rated Bloodsuckers – Mario Acevedo
  53. Persephone Station – Stina Leicht
  54. Final Girl Support Group – Grady Hendrix (again – audio)
  55. The Hierarchies – Ros Anderson
  56. The Galaxy, and the Ground Within – Becky Chambers
  57. Thrawn – Timothy Zahn
  58. Thrawn: Alliances – Timothy Zahn
  59. Robert E. Lee and Me – A Southerner’s Reckoning With The Myth of the Lost Cause – Ty Seiduel
  60. Valor’s Choice – Tanya Huff
  61. The Skull Throne – Peter V. Brett
  62. LIFEL1K3 – Jay Kristoff
  63. A Psalm for the Well-Built – Becky Chambers
  64. Small Gods – Terry Pratchett
  65. Skyward – Brandon Sanderson
  66. Broken (In The Best Possible Way) – Jenny Lawson
  67. Thrawn: Treason – Timothy Zahn
  68. The Fated Sky – Mary Robinette Kowal
  69. DEV1AT3 – Jay Kristoff
  70. How to Live Safely in a Science Fictional Universe – Charles Yu
  71. The Relentless Moon – Mary Robinette Kowal
  72. Attack Surface – Cory Doctorow
  73. Starsight – Brandon Sanderson
  74. The Lady Astronaut of Mars – Mary Robinette Kowal
  75. Machine Man – Max Barry

2020:

    >

  1. Whispers Underground – Ben Aaronovich
  2. Terminal Alliance – Jim C. Hines
  3. The Last Wish – Andrzej Sapkowski
  4. The Princess Beard – Delilah Dawson and Kevin Hearne
  5. Broken Homes – Ben Aaronovich
  6. See Jane Win -Caitlin Moscatello
  7. Foxglove Summer – Ben Aaronovich
  8. Terminal Uprising – Jim C. Hines
  9. The Hanging Tree – Ben Aaronovich
  10. The Two Income Trap – Amelia Warren Tyagi and Elizabeth Warren
  11. Lies Sleeping – Ben Aaronovich
  12. Magic for Liars – Sarah Galley
  13. Moon Called – Patricia Briggs
  14. Age of Heroes – C.C. Ekeke
  15. Itty Bitty Writing Space – Brick & Caile (ed)
  16. Skinwalker – Faith Hunter
  17. Trail of Lightning – Rebecca Roanhorse
  18. The Stars Now Unclaimed – Drew Williams
  19. Deadtown – Nancy Holzner
  20. Hellforged – Nancy Holzner
  21. Storm of Locusts – Rebecca Roanhorse
  22. Blood Bound – Patricia Briggs
  23. The Devil Inside – Jenna Black
  24. Thief’s Covenant – Ari Marmell
  25. Dragon Bones – Patricia Briggs
  26. Red Mars – Kim Stanley Robinson
  27. Dragon Blood – Patricia Briggs
  28. The Name of the Wind – Patrick Rothfuss
  29. Iron Kissed – Patricia Briggs
  30. Whatever For Hire – RJ Blain
  31. Green Mars – Kim Stanley Robinson
  32. The Wise Man’s Fear – Patrick Rothfuss
  33. Juan of the Dead – Jacalyn Boggs (she’s a friend of mine, buy the book!)
  34. Bone Crossed – Patricia Briggs
  35. The Last Emperox – John Scalzi
  36. Blue Mars – Kim Stanley Robinon
  37. In the Ocean of Night – Gregory Benford
  38. False Value – Ben Aaronovich
  39. Dragongate: Devils – James Maxey
  40. The Room Where It Happened: A White House Memoir – John Bolton
  41. A Woman Can Never Be Too Curious – Mary Wine
  42. Magic Bites – Ilona Andrews
  43. Peace Talks – Jim Butcher
  44. Magic Burns – Ilona Andrews
  45. River Marked – Patricia Briggs
  46. Frost Burned – Patricia Briggs
  47. Rosemary and Rue – Seanan McGuire
  48. A Memory Called Empire – Arkady Martine
  49. Night Broken – Patricia Briggs
  50. Armor – John Steakley
  51. Chicken: USDA Rejected: Dan Nokes
  52. Across That Bridge: John Lewis
  53. The Mediterranean Caper – Clive Cussler
  54. Fire Touched – Patricia Briggs
  55. Silence Fallen – Patricia Briggs
  56. The Case of the Missing Maquess – Nancy Springer
  57. Interference – Brad Parks
  58. Storm Cursed – Patricia Briggs
  59. Mexican Gothic – Silvia Moreno-Garcia
  60. Shadow Kin – MJ Scott
  61. Blood Kin – MJ Scott
  62. The Case of the Left-Handed Lady – Nancy Springer
  63. Iron Kin – MJ Scott
  64. Devolution – Max Brooks
  65. Fire Kin – MJ Scott
  66. Smoke Bitten: Patricia Briggs
  67. The Sheriff of Yrnameer – Michael Reubens
  68. Battle Ground – Jim Butcher
  69. Calamity – Brandon Sanderson
  70. Gideon the Ninth – Tamsyn Muir
  71. Eyre Affair – Jasper Fforde
  72. Too Much and Never Enough – Mary Trump
  73. Lost In A Good Book” – Jasper Fforde
  74. Harrow The Ninth – Tamsyn Muir
  75. A Chain Across The Dawn – Drew Williams
  76. The Witches of Echo Park – Amber Benson
  77. The Last American Vampire – Seth Graham Smith
  78. The Sword of Destiny – Andrzej Sapkowski
  79. Troubled Blood – Robert Galbraith
  80. The Only Good Indians – Stephen Graham Jones
  81. The President’s Vampire – Christopher Farnsworth
  82. The Slow Regard or Silent Things – Patrick Rothfuss
  83. A Local Habitation – Seanan McGuire
  84. The Wee Free Men – Terry Pratchett
  85.  A Hat Full of Sky – Terry Pratchett
  86.  The 2084 Report – James Lawrence Powell
  87. Stranger Things: Suspicious Minds – Gwenda Bond
  88. Wintersmith – Terry Pratchett
  89. Titanshade – Dan Stout
  90. Provenance – Ann Leckie
  91. (most of)The Priory of the Orange Tree – Samantha Shannon
  92. I Shall Wear Midnight – Terry Pratchett
  93.  The Companions – Katie M. Flynn

2019:

        1. Born To Run – Bruce Springsteen
        2. You Are Here – Jenny Lawson
        3. Alice Isn’t Dead – Joseph Fink
        4. Make Me – Lee Child
        5. Storm Front – Richard Castle
        6. Strange Practice – Vivian Shaw
        7. Gideon’s Sword – Preston & Child
        8. The Rifle Chronicles – Jason Gilbert
        9. High Heat – Richard Castle
        10. DisneyWar – James B. Stewart
        11. Night School – Lee Child
        12. Heat Storm – Richard Castle
        13. Red Moon – Michael Chussett
        14. Don’t Panic: Douglas Adams & The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Neil Gaiman
        15. Nine Princes in Amber – Roger Zelazny
        16. The Guns of Avalon – Roger Zelazny
        17. Sign of the Unicorn – Roger Zelazny
        18. The Hand of Oberon – Roger Zelazny
        19. The Courts of Chaos – Roger Zelazny
        20. The Trumps of Doom – Roger Zelazny
        21. Blood of Amber – Roger Zelazny
        22. Signs of Chaos – Roger Zelazny
        23. Knight of Shadows – Roger Zelazny
        24. Prince of Chaos – Roger Zelazny
        25. Monster City: Music, Murder and Mayhem in Nashville’s Dark Age – Michael Arntfield
        26. Metal Shark Bro – Bob Franz
        27. Midnight Line – Lee Child
        28. Valley of the Raven – Ken Ramirez
        29. The Truths We Hold – Kamala Harris
        30. All Our Wrong Todays – Elan Mastai
        31. Vox – Christina Dalcher
        32. Eater – Gregory Benford
        33. Lethal White – Robert Galbriath
        34. Alien Morning – Rick Wilbur
        35. How To Build A Girl – Caitlin Moran
        36. Medusa Uploaded – Emily Devenport
        37. The October Man – Ben Aaronovich
        38. Going Through The Change – Samantha Bryant
        39. Deep Secets – Diana Wynn Jones
        40. Your Best Game Ever – Monte Cook
        41. Midnight Riot – Ben Aaronovich
        42. The Poppy War – RF Kuang
        43. Hell’s Gate – Bull Schutt & JR Finch
        44. Shortest Way Home: One Mayor’s Challege and A Model For America’s Future – Pete Buttigeig
        45. Soul Music – Terry Pratchett
        46. The Second Amendment: A Biography – Michael Waldman
        47. Darkness on the Edge of Town – Andrew Christopher
        48. Mort – Terry Pratchett
        49. Your Dad Stole My Rake – Tom Papa
        50. Hunger Makes Me A Modern Girl – Carrie Brownstein
        51. Witches Abroad – Terry Pratchett
        52. Tiamat’s Wrath – James S.A. Corey
        53. Fluke – Christopher Moore
        54. Death By Black Hole – Neil DeGrasse Tyson
        55. Red, White, and Blood – Christopher Farnsworth
        56. Blood Oath – Christopher Farnsworth
        57. One Summer – Bill Bryson
        58. A Warning – Anonymous
        59. Werewolf Cop – Andrew Klaven
        60. Tomorrow’s Kin – Nancy Kress
        61. No Country for Old Gnomes – Delila Dawson and Kevin Hearne
        62. Moon Over Soho – Ben Aaronovich

2018:

        1. Chasing the Phoenix – Michael Swanwick
        2. I Suck at Girls – Justin Halpern
        3. The Fold – Peter Clines
        4. Heir to the Jedi – Kevin Hearne
        5. Small Favor – Jim Butcher
        6. The Risen Empire – Scott Westerfeld
        7. Hounded – Kevin Hearne
        8. Killing Floor – Lee Child
        9. Servants of the Sands – Leona Wisoker
        10. Astrophysics for Busy People – Neil DeGrasse Tyson
        11. Die Trying – Lee Child
        12. Hail to the Chin – Bruce Campbell
        13. Specters Anonymous – Phil Budhan
        14. Persepolis Rising – James S.A. Corey
        15. The Intern’s Handbook – Shane Kuhn
        16. Strange Weather – Joe Hill
        17. Artemis – Andy Weir
        18. Heroine Complex – Sarah Kuhn
        19. Hostile Takeover – Shane Kuhn
        20. Election Night – D.J. McGuire
        21. Black Star Renegades – Michael Moreci
        22. Oathbringer – Brandon Sanderson
        23. Dracula the Un-Dead – Dacre Stoker and Ian Holt
        24. Stories – Neil Gaiman and Al Sarrantonio (eds)
        25. Nothin to Lose – Ken Sharp w Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley
        26. Scourged – Kevin Hearne
        27. A World Without “Whom”: TheEssential Guide to Language in the Buzzfeed Age – Emmy J. Favilla
        28. Drafter – Kim Harrison
        29. Beatles vs. Stones – John McMillan
        30. Heat Wave – Richard Castle
        31. Dark State – Charles Stross
        32. Naked Heat – Richard Castle
        33. Dreaming Spies – Laurie R. King
        34. Head On – John Scalzi
        35. Space Opera – Catheryne Valente
        36. Falling Dusk – Jennifer R. Povey
        37. Trifle and Folly – Gail Z Martin
        38. Fire and Fury – Michael Wolff
        39. Journal of a UFO Investigator – Daniel J Halperin
        40. Time and Time Again – Ben Elton
        41. Hot Lead, Cold Iron – Ari Marmell
        42. Heat Rises – Richard Castle
        43. The Martian Race – Greg Benford
        44. Daemon – Daniel Suarez
        45. Hallow Point – Ari Marmell
        46. Frozen Heat – Richard Castle
        47. The Crown Tower – Michael J. Sullivan
        48. Influx – Daniel Suarez
        49. Uncharted – Kevin J. Anderson and Sarah A. Hoyt
        50. Brief Cases – Jim Butcher
        51. Trifles and Folly 2 – Gail Z. Martin
        52. Kill The Farm Boy – Delila S. Dawson & Kevin Hearne
        53. Rock Revival – Natania Barron
        54. Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? – Philip K. Dick
        55. Pandemic – A.J. Riddle
        56. Year One: A Quincy Harker, Demon Hunter Collection – John G. Hartness
        57. The Princess Diarist – Carrie Fisher
        58. Notorious RBG: The Life and Times of Ruth Bader Ginsburg – Irin Carmon & Shana Knizhnik
        59. Max Rage: Intergalactic Badass – Jake Bible
        60. Monsters, Magic, and Mayhem – John G. Hartness
        61. The Wild Dead – Carrie Vaughn
        62. Fear: Trump in the White House – Bob Woodward
        63. Nights in Sandbridge – Elizabeth L. Brooks & Lynn Townsend
        64. Genome – A.J. Riddle
        65. Act of Will – A.J. Hartley
        66. The Subtle Art of Not Giving A Fuck – Mark Manson
        67. Robots of Gotham – Todd McAulty
        68. Cryptid Zoo – Gerry Griffiths
        69. A Generation of Sociopaths: How the Baby Boomers Betrayed America – Bruce Canon Gibney
        70. Superheroes Anonymous – Lexie Dunne
        71. We Sold Our Souls – Grady Hendrix
        72. Shoot the Messenger – Pippa DaCosta
        73. Supervillains Anonymous – Lexie Dunne
        74. Raging Heat – Richard Castle
        75. Personal – Lee Child
        76. Impossible Tales of the Last Pit Stop – Dan Nokes

2017:

        1. Dragonsong – Anne McCaffrey
        2. A Multitude of Monsters – Craig Shaw Gardener
        3. Dragonsinger – Anne McCaffrey
        4. Beasts of Imagination – E.A Bowen
        5. Dragondrums – Anne McCaffrey
        6. Saturn’s Children – Charles Stross
        7. Martians Abroad – Carrie Vaughn
        8. Monster Hunter International – Larry Correia
        9. March: Vol 1 – John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, Nate Powell
        10. March: Vol 2 – John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, Nate Powell
        11. March: Vol 3 – John Lewis, Andrew Aydin, Nate Powell
        12. Symbiont – Mira Grant
        13. Moranifesto – Caitlin Moran
        14. Gone Girl – Gillian Flynn
        15. Hidden Figures – Margo Lee Shetterly
        16. Chimera – Mira Grant
        17. The Young World – Chris Weitz
        18. Essential Defenders Vol 5 – DeMatteis, Milgron, et. al
        19. The New Order – Chris Weitz
        20. The Fireman – Joe Hill
        21. Essential Defenders Vol 6 -DeMatteis, et al
        22. The Complacent Class – Tyler Cowan
        23. Essential Defenders Vol 7 – DeMatteis, et al
        24. The Collapsing Empire – John Scalzi
        25. Religious Literacy – Stephen Prothero
        26. Arcanum Unbounded – Brandon Sanderson
        27. A Perfectly Good Guitar – Chuck Holley
        28. Retreat of Dragons – Carrie Vaughn
        29. Shadowplay – Nigel Finley
        30. The Wolf’s Hour – Robert McKinnon
        31. Scattered, Smothered, and Chunked: Bubba the Monster Hunter, season 1 – John G. Hartness
        32. Grits, Guns, and Glory: Bubba the Monster Hunter, season 2 – John G. Hartness
        33. Wine, Women, and Song: Bubba the Monster Hunter, season 3 – John G. Hartness
        34. Walkaway – Cory Doctorow
        35. Skin Game – Jim Butcher
        36. The Wind in the Night – Barb and JC Hendee
        37. Homeland – Cory Doctorow
        38. The First and Last Sorcerer – Barb and JC Hendee
        39. Timecaster – Joe Kimball
        40. Bannerless – Carrie Vaughn
        41. Besieged – Kevin Hearne
        42. Ready Player One – Ernest Cline
        43. Walking on the Sea of Clouds – Gray Rinehart
        44. Oberon’s Meaty Mysteries: The Purloined Poodle – Kevin Hearne
        45. A Plunder of Souls – DB Jackson
        46. Caliban’s War – James S.A. Corey
        47. Abbadon’s Gate – James S.A. Corey
        48. Date Night on Union Station – E.M. Foner
        49. Doctor Strange and the Secret Defenders – Mars, Thomas, Coates, Grinberg
        50. The Chapel Perilous – Kevin Hearne
        51. Two Tales of the Iron Druid – Kevin Hearne
        52. We Are Legion (We Are Bob) – Dennis E. Taylor
        53. Cibola Burn – James S.A. Corey
        54. The Cassandra Project – Jack McDevitt and Mike Resnick
        55. Seven Dirty Words: The Life and Crimes of George Carlin – James Sullivan
        56. Aftermath: Empire’s End – Chuck Wendig
        57. Phasma – Delilah S. Dawson
        58. A Plague of Giants – Kevin Hearne
        59. Other Minds: The Octopus, The Sea, and the Deep Origins of Consciousness – Peter Godfrey-Smith
        60. Rimrunners – CJ Cherryh
        61. Jack White: How He Built an Empire from the Blues – Nick Hasted
        62. Nemesis Games – James S.A. Corey
        63. Revisionary – Jim C. Hines
        64. What Does This Button Do? – An Autobiography – Bruce Dickinson
        65. The Clockwork Dynasty – Daniel H. WIlson
        66. Babylon’s Ashes – James S.A. Corey
        67. Fight Club – Chuck Palahniuk

2016:

        1. Lost Stars: Claudia Gray
        2. Carter and Lovecraft – Jonathan L. Howard
        3. Down These Strange Streets – George R.R. Martin and Gardener Dozios (ed)
        4. Uprooted – Naomi Novik
        5. The Man in the High Castle – Philip K. Dick
        6. Ancillary Mercy – Ann Leckie
        7. Soren: The Idaho Jane Doe Murders – Danny Birt
        8. Classic – Lynn Townsend
        9. Go Set A Watchman – Harper Lee
        10. Splinter of the Mind’s Eye – Alan Dean Foster
        11. Sandman Slim – Richard Kadrey
        12. How to Fake A Moon Landing – Darryl Cunningham
        13. The Bands of Mourning – Brandon Sanderson
        14. Anonymous Rex – Eric Garcia
        15. Worldwar: In the Balance – Harry Turtledove
        16. Mothership – Isla Neal and Martin Leicht
        17. The Magician King – Lev Grossman
        18. The Magician’s Land – Lev Grossman
        19. Kitty Saves the World – Carrie Vaughn
        20. Plays with Cars – Doug DeMuro
        21. The Stainless Steel Rat – Harry Harrison
        22. The Man in the White Suit – Ben Collins
        23. Elfquest: Journey to Sorrow’s End – Wendy and Richard Pini
        24. The Stainless Steel Rat’s Revenge – Harry Harrison
        25. The Stainless Steel Rat Saves the World – Harry Harrison
        26. Decision at Doona – Anne McCaffrey
        27. 30 Pieces of Silver – Carolyn McCray
        28. Deadly Curiosities – Gail Z. Martin
        29. The Reaper Virus – Nathan Barnes
        30. Jalopnik’s Book of Car Facts and History Even Gearheads Don’t Know – Jalopnik Writers
        31. Gauntlet of Time – Trip Ellington
        32. Purgatory Pub (book 2) – Gabriel Dunston
        33. Captain America and The Nationalist Superhero – Jason Dittmer
        34. Bumper-to-Bumper – Doug Demuro
        35. What Remains – Nathan Barnes
        36. Doctor Strange : Way of the Weird – Jason Aaron, Chris Balacho
        37. Staked – Kevin Hearne
        38. Dirty Magic – Jaye Wells
        39. Living Like A Runaway: A Memoir – Lita Ford
        40. Cursed Moon – Jaye Wells
        41. Compendium of North American Cryptids and Magical Creatures – Maury Brown, Ben Morrow, Mike Young, Ffion Evans
        42. Captain America: The Tomorrow Soldier – Remender/Pacheco
        43. Goblin Emperor – Katherine Addison
        44. Harry Potter and The Cursed Child – J. K. Rowling, Jack Thorne, and John Tiffany
        45. Fantastic Four: First Family – Casey & Weston
        46. Deadly Spells – Jaye Wells
        47. The Sleeping Dragon – Joel Rosenberg
        48. The Sword and the Chain – Joel Rosenberg
        49. The Silver Crown – Joel Rosenberg
        50. Vostok – Steve Alten
        51. Avengers: Time Runs Out, vol. 1 – Hickman & Chueng
        52. How Star Wars Conquered the Universe: The Past, Present, and Future of a Multibillion Dollar Franchise – Chris Taylor
        53. Jessica Jones: The Pulse, complete collection – Bendis, Bagley, Gaydos, et al.
        54. The Last American Vampire – Seth Grahame-Smith
        55. Defenders: Volume 1 – Fraction and Dodson
        56. All That Jazz – Lynn Townsend (*beta read – pre-publication)
        57. Trouble Boys: The True Story of the Replacements – Bob Mehr
        58. Oh Florida: How America’s Weirdest State Influences the Rest of the Country – Craig Pittman
        59. All New, All Different Avengers, Volume 1: The Magificent Seven – Waid/Kubert
        60. The Long Earth – Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter
        61. Let’s Pretend this Never Happened – Jenny Lawson
        62. The One Eyed Man – L. E. Modesitt Jr
        63. The Long War – Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter
        64. The Secret Service – Mark Millar, Dave Gibbons, Matthew Vaughn
        65. League of Dragons – Naomi Novik
        66. Summer Knight – Jim Butcher
        67. American Gods – Neil Gaiman
        68. The End of Time: A Fabulous Narrative – T.S. Creager
        69. Proven Guilty – Jim Butcher
        70. Hawkeye Vol 1: My Life as a Weapon – Fraction/Aja
        71. Furiously Happy – Jenny Lawson
        72. Lafayette in these Somewhat United States – Sarah Vowell
        73. The Long Mars – Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter
        74. Jimmy Olsen Adventures by Jack Kirby, vol 1 – Jack Kirby
        75. “We Side with the Free” – Gray Rinehart
        76. The Long Utopia – Terry Pratchett and Stephen Baxter
        77. Parasite – Mira Grant
        78. The Iron Assassin – Ed Greenwood
        79. Aftermath: Life Debt – Chuck Wendig
        80. All The Birds in the Sky – Charlie Jane Anders
        81. Amazing, Fantastic, Incredible – Stan Lee w/ Peter David
        82. 1602 – Neil Gaiman/Andy Kubert

2015:

        1. Running With Scissors – Augusten Burroughs
        2. Altered Carbon – Richard K Morgan
        3. Firefight – Brandon Sanderson
        4. Trading in Danger – Elizabeth Moon
        5. The Wedding of Deadpool – Posein/Duggan
        6. Alias v4: The Secret Origin of Jessica Jones – Bendis/Gaydos/Bagley
        7. Ancillary Justice – Anne Leckie
        8. Welcome Back Frank – Garth Ennis
        9. The Alien Factor – Stan Lee w Stan Timmons
        10. Falling Sky – Rajan Khanna
        11. The Quantum Thief – Hannu Rajaniemi
        12. Redshirts – John Scalzi
        13. Low Midnight – Carrie Vaughn
        14. A Marked Man – Lynn Townsend
        15. Paranormal Bromance – Carrie Vaughn
        16. The Way of Kings – Brandon Sanderson
        17. Doctor Atlantis – vol 1 – Ian Ally-Seals, Carl Mefferd
        18. Words of Radiance – Brandon Sanderson
        19. Earth Awakens – Orson Scott Card, Aaron Johnston
        20. To Kill A Mockingbird – Harper Lee
        21. Doctor Atlantis – vol 2 – Ian Ally-Seals, Carl Mefferd
        22. A Fighting Chance – Elizabeth Warren
        23. The Magicians – Lev Grossman
        24. Dead Witch Walking – Kim Harrison
        25. Mistborn – Brandon Sanderson
        26. Unlocked – John Scalzi
        27. Bloodring – Faith Hunter
        28. The Good, The Bad, and the Undead – Kim Harrison
        29. Fade To Black – Tim McBain and L.T. Vargus
        30. Doctor Atlantis – vol 3 – Ian Ally-Seals, Carl Mefferd
        31. Bled White – Tim McBain an L.T. Vargus
        32. Red on the Inside – Tim McBain and L.T. Vargus
        33. Seraphs – Faith Hunter
        34. Agent to the Stars – John Scalzi
        35. Hosts – Faith Hunter
        36. Deadpool: Soul Hunter – Duggan & Posehn
        37. The Secret History of Wonder Woman – Jill Lapore
        38. Time Salvager – Wesley Chu
        39. Ancillary Sword – Anne Leckie
        40. Trigger Warning – Neil Gaiman
        41. Girl in A Band: A Memoir – Kim Gordon
        42. Every Which Way But Dead – Kim Harrison
        43. Armada – Ernest Cline
        44. The End of All Things – John Scalzi
        45. The Martian – Any Weir
        46. The Three Body Problem – Cixin Liu
        47. City of Stairs – Robert Jackson Bennet
        48. A Fistful of Charms – Kim Harrison
        49. Hounded – Kevin Hearne
        50. Blood Rites – Jim Butcher
        51. Dhampir – Barb and JC Hendee
        52. Dead Beat – Jim Butcher
        53. Hexed- Kevin Hearne
        54. Unbound – Jim C. Hines
        55. Hammered – Kevin Hearne
        56. Tricked – Kevin Hearne
        57. Trapped – Kevin Hearne
        58. Ship Breaker – Paulo Bacigalupi
        59. The Serpent of Venice – Christopher Moore
        60. The Silkworm – Robert Galbraith
        61. The Aeronaut’s Windlass – Jim Butcher
        62. Shadows of Self – Brandon Sanderson
        63. Hunted – Kevin Hearne
        64. …And on That Bombshell: Inside the Madness and Genius of ‘Top Gear’ – Richard Porter
        65. Where the Hell is Tesla? A Novel – Rob Dircks
        66. Shattered – Kevin Hearne
        67. Star Wars: Aftermath – Chuck Wendig
        68. The Dinosaur Lords – Victor Milan
        69. The Monster Show – A Cultural History of Horror – David J Skall
        70. Ant-Man: Scott Lang – David Michelene et. al.
        71. Career of Evil – Robert Galbraith
        72. Understanding Comics – Scott McCloud
        73. Marvel Masterworks: Daredevil – Lee, Wood, etc
        74. Dinosaur Summer – Greg Bear
        75. Silver Screen Fiend – Patton Oswalt

2014:

        1. Doctor Strange and Doctor Doom – Triumph and Torment – Roger Stern, Mike Mignola
        2. Between Their Worlds – Barb and JC Hendee
        3. Batman: The Killing Joke – Alan Moore, Brian Bolland
        4. Spider Island – Dan Slott, Humberto Ramos, et al.
        5. Clementine – Cherie Priest
        6. The Mote in God’s Eye – Niven & Pournelle
        7. Sandman Vol 10 : The Wake – Neil Gaiman & Michael Zulli
        8. Fiddlehead – Cherie Priest
        9. Code Monkey Save World – Pak, Coulton, Miyazawa
        10. Dreams of the Golden Age – Carrie Vaughn
        11. Shadowkeep – Alan Dean Foster
        12. The Real Frank Zappa Book – Frank Zappa w. Peter Occhiogrosso
        13. Angel Trumpet – Ann McMillan
        14. Ultimate Comics Spider-Man – Vol. 4 – Bendis et. al.
        15. Marvel’s Finest- Avengers: The Kree-Skrull War – Adams, Thomas, Buscema
        16. Nothing O’Clock – Neil Gaiman
        17. The Dog in the Dark – Barb and JC Hendee
        18. Fabula Zero Exposition – Nick Davis
        19. She Hulk – The Complete Collection v. 1 – Dan Slott, et. al.
        20. The Martian – Andy Weir
        21. Time Travelers Never Die – Jack McDevitt
        22. Ghost Train to New Orleans – Mur Lafferty
        23. Steelheart – Brandon Sanderson
        24. Idiot America – Charles Pierce
        25. Fires of the Desert – Leona Wisoker
        26. The Strain – Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan
        27. The Final Solution – Michael Chabon
        28. Roll – Lynn Townsend
        29. The Alloy of Law – Brandon Sanderson
        30. Survival – Julie Czerneda
        31. Dawn’s Early Light – Pip Ballantine and Tee Morris
        32. Unseaming – Mike Allen
        33. The Summoner – Gail Z Martin
        34. Prison Nation – Jenni Merritt
        35. Bone Dance – Emma Bull
        36. Skin Game – Jim Butcher
        37. Blood King – Gail Z Martin
        38. Blood Sight – Lynn Townsend
        39. She-Hulk by Dan Slott – The Complete Collection, Volume 2
        40. Dark Haven – Gail Z Martin
        41. Fifty Shades of Grey – EL James
        42. The Necessary Beggar – Susan Palwick
        43. Serenity – The Shepherd’s Tale – Joss Whedon, Zack Whedon, Chris Samnee
        44. Pride of Baghdad – Brian K Vaughn, Niko Henrichon
        45. Incredible Hulk – Visionaries – John Byrne et. al
        46. Wolves on the Border – Robert N Charrette
        47. The Rithmatist – Brandon Sanderson
        48. Dodger – Terry Pratchett
        49. Bad Wizard – James Maxey
        50. Old Man’s War – John Scalzi
        51. No Man’s Land – Greg Rucka
        52. Ultimate Fantastic Four vol. 1 – Millar/Bendis/Kubert
        53. Civil Blood – Ann McMillan
        54. Ultimate Fantastic Four vol 3 – Ellis/Immonen/Kubuert
        55. Designers and Dragons – the 70s – Shannon Appelcline
        56. Chickahominy Fever – Ann McMillan
        57. Designers and Dragons – the 80s – Shannon Appelcline
        58. Books of Magic – Neil Gaiman
        59. The Gutbucket Quest – Piers Anthony and Ron Lemming
        60. Charisma +1 – Jessica Brawner
        61. Designers & Dragons – the 90s – Shannon Applecline
        62. Spider-Man: The Fantastic Spider-Man – Dan Slott, Christos Gage, et al
        63. Avengers Arena vol 1 – Kill or Die – Dennis Hopeless et al.
        64. Ant Man: Season One – Tom Defalco, Horatio Dominguez
        65. Designers & Dragons – the 00s – Shannon Applecline
        66. Thank You For Smoking – Christopher Buckley
        67. Critter vol. 1: Kitty in the City – Tom Hutchinson et al
        68. The Monster in the Closet – Chris Otto
        69. Critter vol. 2: Purrfection – Tom Hutchinson et al
        70. River Monsters – Jeremy Wade
        71. The Jungle – David Drake
        72. Critter vol. 3: Truth or Consequences – Tom Hutchinson et al
        73. Lock In – John Scalzi
        74. Thieftaker – DB Jackson
        75. The Silkworm – Robert Galbraith
        76. Fray – Joss Whedon
        77. The Replacements: all over but the shouting (an oral history) – Jim Walsh
        78. Blues – Lynn Townsend
        79. Transmetropolitan volume 2 – lust for life – Ellis/Robertson
        80. A New Dawn – John Jackson Miller
        81. Spider-Men – Bendis/Pichelli
        82. Avengers vs. X-Men: Versus – Waid/Immonen/et al
        83. Avengers vs. X-Men: Avengers Academy – Gage/Remender/Grummet
        84. Avengers vs. X-Men: Consequences – Gillen/et al
        85. Fantastic Four: Season One – Aguirre-Sacasa/Marquez
        86. Fantasy and Science Fiction – July/August 2014
        87. 1632 – Eric Flint
        88. Song of Spider-Man: The Inside Story of the Most Controversial Musical in Broadway History – Glen Berger
        89. Hawkeye vol 3 : LA Woman – Fraction/Wu/Pulido
        90. Tithe – Holly Black
        91. An Astronaut’s Guide to Life On Earth – Chris Hadfield
        92. Fluke – Christopher Moore
        93. Legion of Superheroes vol. 1: Teenage Revolution – Waid/Kitson
        94. Unfamiliar Fishes – Sarah Vowell
        95. Thief’s Quarry – DB Jackson
        96. Choose Your Own Autobiography – Neil Patrick Harris
        97. Critter vol 4: High Tide – Tom Hutchinson
        98. Capes N Babes vol 1: You Can’t Print Flick – Chris Flick
        99. Capes N Babes vol 2: You Still Can’t Print Flick – Chris Flick
        100. Capes N Babes vol 3: That’s Why You Can’t Print Flick – Chris Flick
        101. Purgatory Pub (book one) – Gabriel Dunston
        102. Capes N Babes vol 4: This Fur Don’t Burn – Chris Flick
        103. Jurassic Park – Michael Chrichton
        104. Uglies – Scott Westerfeld
        105. Neptune’s Brood – Charles Stross
        106. You – Austin Grossman
        107. Goliath – Scott Westerfeld

2013:

        1. Analog – December 2012
        2. The Arsonist’s Guide to Writers’ Homes in New England – Brock Clark
        3. Asimov’s– January 2013
        4. The Black Cauldron – Lloyd Alexander
        5. Entoverse – James P Hogan
        6. Dragonheart – Todd McCaffrey
        7. The Man Called Cash – The Life, Love, and Faith of an American Legend – Steve Turner
        8. Moranthology – Caitlin Moran
        9. The President of Vice: The “Autobiography” of Joe Biden – The Onion
        10. The Eye of the World – Robert Jordan
        11. Carte Blanche – Jeffery Deaver
        12. JLA/Superman: The Never-Ending Battle – Roger Stern
        13. Gullible’s Travels: The Adventures of a Bad Taste Tourist – Cash Peters
        14. Spook Country – William Gibson
        15. The Great Hunt – Robert Jordan
        16. Changes – Jim Butcher
        17. Changelings – Anne McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough
        18. Adams vs. Jefferson: The Tumultuous Election of 1800 – John Ferling
        19. The Dolphins of Pern – Anne McCaffrey
        20. Lamb – Christopher Moore
        21. Look to Windward – Iain M. Banks
        22. The Ladies of Grace Adieu – Susanna Clark
        23. Heart Shaped Box – Joe Hill
        24. Ghost Story – Jim Butcher
        25. The Language of Bees – Laurie R. King
        26. Ready Player One – Ernest Cline
        27. I Wish I Knew That: US Presidents – Editors of Readers’ Digest
        28. Gamers – Thomas K. Carpenter
        29. Bells of the Kingdom – Leona Wisoker
        30. The Sacred Book of the Werewolf – Victor Pelevin
        31. Kitty Rocks The House – Carrie Vaughn
        32. Small Favor – Jim Butcher
        33. Throne of the Crescent Moon – Saladin Ahmed
        34. Ninjas, Piranhas, and Galileo – Greg Leitich Smith
        35. The Daughter of Frost – Nick Davis
        36. His Majesty’s Dragon – Naomi Novik
        37. God of the Hive – Laurie R. King
        38. Turn Coat – Jim Butcher
        39. Burma Chronicles – Guy Delisle
        40. The Wheel of Darkness – Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child
        41. N0S4A2 – Joe Hill
        42. Good Omens – Neil Gaiman & Terry Pratchett
        43. Isaac The Pirate – 2. The Capital – Christophe Blaine
        44. Sandman – vol 2 – A Doll’s House – Neil Gaiman, various artists
        45. Sandman – vol 3 – Dream Country – Neil Gaiman, various artists
        46. Rocket Raccoon and Groot – the complete collection – Bill Mantlo, Dan Abnett, Andy Lanning, Jack Kirby, various artists
        47. 20th Century Ghosts – Joe Hill
        48. The Shadow of the Sun – Barbara Friend Ish
        49. Batman: The Compete Knightfall Saga – Dixon, Moench, etc
        50. Fool – Christopher Moore
        51. The Human Division – John Scalzi
        52. Throne of Jade – Naomi Novik
        53. The Golden Age of Death – Amber Benson
        54. The Shambling Guide to New York City – Mur Lafferty
        55. Showcase Presents – Legion of Super Heroes Vol. 2
        56. Clockwork Phoenix 4 – Mike Allen (ed)
        57. Boots on the Ground By Dusk – Mary Tillman
        58. Into the Wild – John Krakauer
        59. Leviathan Wakes – James S.A. Corey
        60. Just A Geek – Wil Wheaton
        61. Shenzhen – Guy Delise
        62. My Big Fat Supernatural Honeymoon – PN Elrod (ed)
        63. The Ocean at the End of the Lane – Neil Gaiman
        64. The Meowmorphosis – Franz Kafka and Coleridge Cook
        65. Hawkeye: My Life as A Weapon – Matt Fraction et. al.
        66. Saving Mars – Cidney Swanson
        67. The Dragon’s Path – Daniel Abraham
        68. Layer Cake – JJ Connolly
        69. Soon I Will Be Invincible – Austin Grossman
        70. A Princess of Landover – Terry Brooks
        71. WE3 – Grant Morrison & Frank Quitely
        72. Chicken with Plums – Marjane Satrapi
        73. The Dragon Reborn – Robert Jordan
        74. Pirate King – Laurie R. King
        75. Hawkeye: Little Hits – Matt Fraction et al
        76. Matter – Iain M. Banks
        77. Laika – Nick Abadzis
        78. Kitty in the Underworld – Carrie Vaughn
        79. Warm Bodies – Isaac Marion
        80. The Night Gwen Stacy Died – Sarah Bruni
        81. Candle – John Barnes
        82. Crooked Little Vein – Warren Ellis
        83. Neverwhere – Neil Gaiman
        84. Startide Rising – David Brin
        85. Storm Front – Jim Butcher
        86. Sandman Vol. 4: Season of Mists – Neil Gaiman, various Artists
        87. Sandman Vol. 5: A Game of You – Neil Gaiman, various Artists
        88. Sandman Vol 6: Fables & Reflection – Neil Gaiman, various Artists
        89. Cuckoo’s Calling – Robert Galbraith
        90. Kaleidiscope Century – John Barnes
        91. Sandman Vol 7: Brief Lives – Neil Gaiman, various Artists
        92. Anansi Boys – Neil Gaiman
        93. Garment of Shadows – Laurie R. King
        94. Choke – Chuck Palahniuk
        95. The Sky So Big and Black – John Barnes
        96. X-Men: The Dark Phoenix Saga – Claremont & Byrne
        97. Argo – Antonio Mendez and Matt Baglio
        98. Proven Guilty – Jim Butcher
        99. Prophetic Sisterhood: Liberal Women Ministers of the Frontier, 1880-1930 – Cynthia Grant Tucker
        100. Sandman Vol 8 – World’s End – Neil Gaiman, various artists
        101. The Infinity Gauntlet – Jim Starlin, George Perez
        102. Memoria – Alex Bobl
        103. Ultimate Comics Spider-Man (vol 1) – Bendis et al
        104. Ultimate Comics Spider-Man (vol 2) – Bendis et. al
        105. Suicide Kings – George R.R. Martin (ed)
        106. Sandman Vol 9 – The Kindly Ones – Neil Gaiman, various Artiss
        107. Rule 34 – Charles Stross
        108. Libriomancer – Jim C Hines
        109. Ultimate Comics Spider-Man (vol 3) – Bendis et. al
        110. The Mallet of Loving Correction – John Scalzi
        111. Codex Born – Jim C Hines
        112. Crucible of Gold – Naomi Novik
        113. Blood of Tyrants – Naomi Novik
        114. Kobolds Ate My Baby! In Colour!!! – Chris O’Neill & Dan Landis, illust. by John Kovalic
        115. The Reckoning – Howard Owen
        116. Dead March – Ann McMillan
        117. Kraken – China Mieville

2012:

        1. A Game of Thrones – George R.R. “Not Your Bitch” Martin
        2. Bedlam Boyz – Ellen Guon
        3. Nightshade – Laurell K. Hamilton
        4. Star Guard – Andre Norton
        5. Straying from the Path – Carrie Vaughn
        6. On Basilisk Station – David Weber
        7. Knight of the Black Rose – James Lowder
        8. Journey to Elsewhere – Murray Leinster
        9. Kittys’ Greatest Hits – Carrie Vaughn
        10. BtVS: Tales of the Slayer, Vol 1
        11. The Duplicators – Murray Leinster
        12. Giant’s Star – James P. Hogan
        13. The Honor of the Queen – David Weber
        14. Bewitched and Betrayed – Lisa Shearin
        15. Paradise Towers – Stephen Wyatt
        16. Broken Blade – Kelly McCullough
        17. The Gods of Mars – Edgar Rice Burroughs
        18. Quiet – The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking – Susan Cain
        19. Erfworld: The Battle for Gobwin Knob – Rob Balder & Jamie Noguchi
        20. A Clash of Kings – George R.R. Martin
        21. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone – JK Rowling
        22. The Dark Design – Philip Jose Farmer
        23. The Guardians of the Desert – Leona Wisoker
        24. The Windup Girl – Paolo Bacigalupi
        25. Con and Conjure – Lisa Shearin
        26. Drift – Rachel Maddow
        27. Between a Roc and a Hard Place – Danny Birt
        28. Phoenix Rising – Pip Ballantine and Tee Morris
        29. Nickel and Dimed: on (not) getting by in America- Barbara Ehrenreich
        30. Spectre Nightmares and Visitations – Pamela K Kinney
        31. Strike Zone – Peter David
        32. Redshirts – A Novel with Three Codas – John Scalzi
        33. All Spell Breaks Loose – Lisa Shearin
        34. Fuzzy Nation – John Scalzi
        35. Awol on the Appalacian Trail – David Miller
        36. A Storm of Swords – George R.R. Martin
        37. Adam and Eve: Bizarre Love Triangle in the Zombie Apocalypse, Vol 2. – Dan Nokes
        38. A Dog’s Life: No Shenanigans!!! – Chris Otto
        39. The Janus Affair – Pip Ballantine and Tee Morris
        40. Analog – September 2011
        41. Analog – October 2011
        42. Analog – November 2011
        43. A Feast for Crows – George R.R. Martin
        44. Kitty Steals the Show – Carrie Vaughn
        45. Teenagers from the Future: Essays on the Legion of Superheroes – Timothy Callahan (ed.)
        46. How to be A Woman – Caitlin Moran
        47. A Dance With Dragons – George R.R. Martin
        48. Pirates of Mars – Chris Gerrib
        49. Let The Right One In – John Ajvide Lindqvist
        50. Nobody Gets The Girl: A Superhero Novel – James Maxey
        51. DC Comics Showcase: The Legion of Superheroes vol. 1
        52. The Warlock In Spite of Himself – Christopher Stasheff
        53. Snow Crash – Neal Stephenson
        54. Star Trek:TNG/Doctor Who: Assimilation² (vol 1) – Tipton, Tiption & Woodward
        55. The Casual Vacancy – JK Rowling
        56. A Teddy Bear Tale II – Nick Davis
        57. Geek Love – Katherine Dunn
        58. Escape Velocity – Christopher Stasheff
        59. Marvel Comics: the untold story – Sean Howe
        60. Dinosaur Wars: Earthfall – Thomas Hopp
        61. Sub-Human – David Simpson
        62. John Gone – Michael Kayatta
        63. How To Be Death – Amber Benson
        64. Burn Baby Burn: A Supervillain Novel – James Maxey
        65. Post-Human – David Simpson
        66. Further: Beyond the Threshold – Chris Roberson
        67. A Dog’s Life: Bark to the Future – Chris Otto & Ben Taylor
        68. Analog – Jan/Feb 2012
        69. Galactic Creatures – Elektra Hammond (ed)
        70. Cold Days – Jim Butcher
        71. Trans-Human – David Simpson
        72. Paranoia! – The Computer is Your Friend – Ultraviolet Books
        73. Analog – March 2012
        74. Predation – SJ Parkinson
        75. Spider-Man: Skin Deep – JMS & Mike Deodato
        76. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime – Mark Haddon
        77. Blood Stripes: The Grunt’s View of the War in Iraq – David J. Danelo
        78. Horns – Joe Hill
        79. Asimov’s – October/November 2012
        80. The Ten-¢ent Plague: The Great Comic-Book Scare and How it Changed America – David Hadju
        81. Isaac the Pirate (vol 1) – Christophe Blain
        82. Asimov’s – December 2012
        83. Analog – November 2012
        84. Jerusalem – Guy Delisle
        85. The Fourteenth Dalai Lama – Tetsu Sawai

2011:

        1. Deception Point – Dan Brown
        2. Mockingjay – Suzanne Collins
        3. Through Stone and Sea – Barb & JC Hendee
        4. The Switch – Elmore Leonard
        5. The Abstinence Teacher – Tom Perrotta
        6. The Day After and Other Stories – Wil Wheaton
        7. Dreadnought – Cherie Priest
        8. A Hymn Before Battle – John Ringo
        9. Analog: March 2011
        10. Sweet Myth-tery of Life – Robert Asprin
        11. The Ranger’s Apprentice: The Icebound Land – John Flanagan
        12. Blasphemy – Douglas Preston
        13. To Your Scattered Bodies Go – Philip Jose Farmer
        14. Hunter – Wil Wheaton
        15. Analog: April 2011
        16. Bonk – Mary Roach
        17. Furies of Calderon – Jim Butcher
        18. The Fabulous Riverboat – Philip Jose Farmer
        19. Dark River – John Twelve Hawks
        20. Behemoth – Scott Westerfeld
        21. Analog: May 2011
        22. The Wizardry Compiled – Rick Cook
        23. A Chosen Faith – Buehrens & Church
        24. The Lost Symbol – Dan Brown
        25. Serpent’s Storm – Amber Benson
        26. With A Little Help – Cory Doctorow
        27. Haunted Richmond – Pamela K. Kinney
        28. The Dresden Files RPG: Your Story – Butcher, Hicks, etc
        29. Steel – Carrie Vaughn
        30. Tongues of Serpents – Naomi Novik
        31. Analog: June 2011
        32. After the Golden Age – Carrie Vaughn
        33. Secret of the Sands – Leona Wisoker
        34. You’re Not Fooling Anyone When You Take Your Laptop Into a Coffee Shop: Scalzi on Writing – John Scalzi
        35. Analog: July/August 2011
        36. Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk – David Sedaris
        37. I’m Dreaming of a Black Christmas – Lewis Black
        38. Emma and the Vampires – Jane Austen and Wayne Josephson
        39. Kitty’s Big Trouble – Carrie Vaughn
        40. Ghost Story – Jim Butcher
        41. LA Noire: The Collected Stories – Rockstar Games
        42. Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter – Seth Grahame-Smith
        43. Bossypants – Tina Fey
        44. Nerd Do Well – Simon Pegg
        45. Ghost Troopers – Joe Schreiber
        46. Zombie Spaceship Wasteland – Patton Oswalt
        47. The Snow Queen’s Shadow – Jim C Hines
        48. The Bedwetter – Sarah Silverman
        49. Stories I Only Tell My Friends – Rob Lowe
        50. The Dirt: Confessions of the World’s Most Notorious Rock Band – Mötley Crüe w/ Neil Strauss
        51. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen: Black Dossier – Alan Moore and Kevin O’Neill
        52. The Authoritarians – Bob Altemeyer
        53. Timecaster – Joe Kimball
        54. Of Truth and Beasts – Barb & JC Hendee
        55. Elegy Beach – Steven Boyett
        56. Abigail Adams – Woody Holton
        57. Adam and Eve – Bizarre Love Triangle in the Zombie Apocalypse – Dan Nokes
        58. It’s Not News, It’s Fark – how the mass media tries to pass off crap as news – Drew Curtis
        59. Club Dead – Charlaine Harris
        60. Haunted Virginia – Pamela K. Kinney
        61. The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities – Ann and Jeff VanderMeer (ed.)
        62. Gust Front – John Ringo
        63. The Gentle Giants of Ganymede – James P. Hogan
        64. The Warrior’s Apprentice – Lois McMaster Bujold
        65. The Sandman, Vol. 1: Preludes & Nocturnes – Neil Gaiman
        66. Vampire Science – Jonathan Blum & Kate Orman
        67. Unconditional – A Teddy Bear Tale – Nick Davis & Dan Nokes

2010:

        1. Humans – Robert J. Sawyer
        2. In Shade and Shadow – Barb & J.C. Hendee
        3. Kitty’s House of Horrors – Carrie Vaughn
        4. Your Hate Mail Will Be Graded: A Decade of Whatever – John Scalzi
        5. Crazy for God – Frank Schaeffer
        6. Proven Guilty – Jim Butcher
        7. Ill Wind – Rachel Caine
        8. White Night – Jim Butcher
        9. Human Nature – Paul Cornell
        10. The Breach – Patrick Lee
        11. The Time Traders – Andre Norton
        12. Galactic Derelict – Andre Norton
        13. Digital Knight – Ryk E. Spoor
        14. Analog – April 2010
        15. Fallen Angels – Niven, Pournelle, & Flynn
        16. Game Change – John Heilemann & Mark Halperin
        17. The Two Faces of Tomorrow – James P. Hogan
        18. Cat’s Claw – Amber Benson
        19. Analog: May 2010
        20. The God Engines – John Scalzi
        21. Heat Stroke – Rachel Caine
        22. Voices of Dragons – Carrie Vaughn
        23. Small Favor – Jim Butcher
        24. Primary Inversion – Catherine Asaro
        25. Last Call – Tim Powers
        26. Analog – June 2010
        27. Little Fuzzy – H. Beam Piper
        28. The Things That Are Not There – CJ Henderson
        29. Boneshaker – Cherie Priest
        30. Free Range Kids – Lenore Skenazy
        31. Essential Doctor Strange (vol 4) – Stern, Claremont, Etc.
        32. My Own Kind of Freedom – Steven Brust
        33. The Stench of Fresh Air – CJ Henderson
        34. Makers – Cory Doctorow
        35. Get Opinionated – Amanda Marcotte
        36. The Mountains of Mourning – Lois McMaster Bujold
        37. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies: Dawn of the Dreadfuls – Steve Hockensmith
        38. For The Win – Cory Doctorow
        39. Omnilingual – H. Beam Piper
        40. Doctor Who and the Cave Monsters – Malcolm Hulke
        41. Prince of Stories: the many worlds of Neil Gaiman – Wagner, Golden & Bissette
        42. Exile’s Burn – Elaine Corvidae
        43. Essential Moon Knight Vol 2 – Moench & Sienkiewicz
        44. Turn Coat – Jim Butcher
        45. The Sleep that Rescues – CJ Henderson
        46. Nextwave: Agents of H.A.T.E: ultimate edition: Warren Ellis & Stuart Immonen
        47. Geek Dad – Ken Denmead
        48. Fifty Dangerous Things (You Should Let Your Children Do) – Gever Tulley w/ Julie Spiegler
        49. Analog: September 2010
        50. Anathem – Neal Stephenson
        51. Sunrise Alley – Catherine Asaro
        52. Spellcrash – Kelly McCullough
        53. The Clockwise Man – Justin Richards
        54. Kitty Goes To War – Carrie Vaughn
        55. The Eight Doctors – Terrance Dicks
        56. Analog: July-August 2010
        57. New Moon – Stephenie Meyer
        58. Discord’s Apple – Carrie Vaughn
        59. Goth Opera – Paul Cornell
        60. Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
        61. Analog: October 2010
        62. The Monsters Inside – Stephen Cole
        63. Red Hood’s Revenge – Jim C. Hines
        64. Wizard’s Bane – Rick Cook
        65. Alternate Generals – Harry Turtledove (editor)
        66. Med Ship – Murray Leinster
        67. Essential Defenders vol 4 – David Kraft et al.
        68. Analog: November 2010
        69. Lai Wan: Tales of the Dreamwalker – CJ Henderson
        70. The Hunger Games – Suzanne Collins
        71. Life As We Knew It – Susan Beth Pfeffer
        72. Changes – Jim Butcher
        73. The Lightning Thief – Rick Riordan
        74. Clash of the Geeks – Wheaton, Scalzi, etc
        75. Unnatural History – Jonathan Blum & Kate Orman
        76. Scott Pilgrim’s Precious Little Life – Bryan Lee O’Malley
        77. I Am America (and so can you!) – Stephen Colbert
        78. Scott Pilgrim vs The World – Bryan Lee O’Malley
        79. Scott Pilgrim and the Infinite Sadness – Bryan Lee O’Malley
        80. Scott Pilgrim Gets It Together – Bryan Lee O’Malley
        81. Scott Pilgrim vs. The Universe – Bryan Lee O’Malley
        82. Scott Pilgrim’s Finest Hour – Bryan Lee O’Malley
        83. Analog: December 2010
        84. An Unearthly Child – Terrance Dicks
        85. The Taint – Michael Collier
        86. The Line – Teri Hall
        87. Assassination Vacation – Sarah Vowell
        88. Hybrids – Robert J. Sawyer
        89. Lucifer’s Hammer – Niven & Pournelle
        90. When You Are Engulfed In Flames – David Sedaris
        91. xkcd: volume 0 – Randall Munroe
        92. The Lace Reader – Brunonia Barry
        93. Dirty Sexy Politics – Meghan McCain
        94. The Guinea Pig Diaries: my life as an experiment – A.J. Jacobs
        95. Holidays on Ice – David Sedaris
        96. The Wordy Shipmates – Sarah Vowell
        97. Dress Your Family in Courdoroy and Denim – David Sedaris
        98. Leviathan – Scott Westerfeld
        99. Born Standing Up – Steve Martin
        100. The Party Cloudy Patriot – Sarah Vowell
        101. The Great Derangement – Matt Taibbi
        102. Fast Food Nation – Eric Schlosser
        103. Essential Marvel Two-in-One, vol 3 – Gruenwald et. al.
        104. Oryx and Crake – Margaret Atwood
        105. Analog: January/February 2011
        106. Catching Fire – Suzanne Collins
        107. Side Jobs – Jim Butcher

2009

        1. World War Z – Max Brooks
        2. Child of a Dead God – Barb and JC Hendee
        3. Fool Moon – Jim Butcher
        4. The Year of Living Biblically – A.J. Jacobs
        5. Twilight – Stephanie Meyer
        6. The Stepsister Scheme – Jim C. Hines
        7. Kitty and the Dead Man’s Hand – Carrie Vaughn
        8. The Wrecking Crew – Thomas Frank
        9. Analog – April 2009
        10. Sunken Treasure – Wil Wheaton
        11. 1984 – George Orwell
        12. The Forever War – Joe Haldeman
        13. Kitty Raises Hell – Carrie Vaughn
        14. Essential Doctor Strange: v. 3 – Engelhart, Brunner, Colan, et al
        15. The Hacker Crackdown – Bruce Sterling
        16. Analog – May 2009
        17. Death’s Daughter – Amber Benson
        18. Analog – June 2009
        19. Grave Peril – Jim Butcher
        20. Singularlity Sky – Charles Stross
        21. Zappa – Barry Miles
        22. Zoe’s Tale – John Scalzi
        23. Hero of Ages – Brandon Sanderson
        24. Summer Knight – Jim Butcher
        25. Analog – July/August 2009
        26. Victory of Eagles – Naomi Novik
        27. Analog – September 2009
        28. MythOS – Kelly McCullough
        29. Death Masks – Jim Butcher
        30. Wolfkin – Elaine Corvidae
        31. The Trouble With Demons – Lisa Shearin
        32. The Yiddish Policeman’s Union – Michael Chabon
        33. In The Shadows – Joseph Lidster
        34. Analog – October 2009
        35. Blood Rites: Jim Butcher
        36. Your Inner Fish – Neil Shubin
        37. Saturn’s Children – Charles Stross
        38. The Motherhood Manifesto – Joan Blades, Kristin Rowe-Finkbeiner
        39. Analog – November 2009
        40. Warbreaker – Brandon Sanderson
        41. Dinosaur Planet – Anne McCafferey
        42. Someone Comes to Town, Someone Leaves Town – Cory Docotorow
        43. Dragons of the Cuyahoga – S. Andrew Swann
        44. The Apocalypse Troll: David Weber
        45. Goblin Quest – Jim C. Hines
        46. The Buried Pyramid – Jane Lindskold
        47. Dwarves of Whisky Island – S. Andrew Swann
        48. Pride and Prejudice and Zombies – Jane Austen & Seth Grahame-Smith
        49. Rats, Bats & Vats – Dave Freer & Eric Flint
        50. Inherit the Stars – James P. Hogan
        51. The Rats, The Bats, and the Ugly” – Eric Flint & Dave Freer
        52. Goblin Hero – Jim C. Hines
        53. Analog December 2009
        54. Sense And Sensibility and Sea Monsters – Jane Austen & Ben H. Winters
        55. Sheepfarmer’s Daughter – Elizabeth Moon
        56. Memories of the Future: Volume One – Wil Wheaton
        57. A Wizard of Earthsea – Ursula K. Le Guin
        58. Goblin War – Jim C. Hines
        59. Ariel – Steven R. Boyett
        60. …And Another Thing – Eoin Colfer
        61. Analog – Jan-Feb 2010
        62. Dead Beat – Jim Butcher
        63. The Multiplex Man – James P. Hogan
        64. Waiting for Athena – John Scalzi
        65. Shatnerquake – Jeff Burk
        66. More Information Than You Require – John Hodgman
        67. The Mermaid’s Madness – Jim C. Hines
        68. Surface Action – David Drake
        69. Analog: March 2010
        70. Confessions of a Part-Time Sorceress – Shelly Mazzanoble
        71. Imago – Octavia Butler
        72. Hominids – Robert J. Sawyer
        73. Analog: May 1984

2008:

      1. The Audacity of Hope – Barack Obama
      2. The Cradle of Saturn – James P. Hogan
      3. The Price of Paradise – Colin Brake
      4. The Genesis Machine – James P. Hogan
      5. Rebel Fay – Barb and JC Hendee
      6. Robots and Empire – Isaac Asimov
      7. Edenborn – Nick Sagan
      8. Lamb – Christopher Moore
      9. Mistborn – Brandon Sanderson
      10. Red Mars – Kim Stanley Robinson
      11. Old Man’s War – John Scalzi
      12. Kitty and the Midnight Hour – Carrie Vaughn
      13. The Android’s Dream – Scalzi
      14. Spin – Robert Charles Wilson
      15. Rockets, Redheads, and Revolution – James P. Hogan
      16. Agent to the Stars – John Scalzi
      17. The Outstretched Shadow – Mercedes Lackey and James Mallory
      18. The Moor – Laurie R. King
      19. Farthing – Jo Walton
      20. Kitty Goes To Washington – Carrie Vaughn
      21. A Secret Atlas – Michael A. Stackpole
      22. Crystal Rain – Tobias Buckell
      23. Lord of the Isles – David Drake
      24. Iron Man – Peter David
      25. The Ghost Brigades – John Scalzi
      26. Kitty Takes A Holiday – Carrie Vaughn
      27. The Beatles – Bob Spitz
      28. Through Wolf’s Eyes – Jane Lindskold
      29. The Disunited States of America – Harry Turtledove
      30. Reiffen’s Choice – SC Butler
      31. Jerusalem – Laurie R. King
      32. Sun of Suns – Karl Schroeder
      33. Kitty and the Silver Bullet – Carrie Vaughn
      34. Four and Twenty Blackbirds – Cherie Priest
      35. Little Brother – Cory Doctorow
      36. Essential Avengers, Volume 2 – Stan Lee, Don Heck, Roy Thomas, John Buscema
      37. Starfish – Peter Watts
      38. Magic Lost, Trouble Found – Lisa Shearin
      39. The Incredible Hulk – Peter David
      40. Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom – Cory Doctorow
      41. Armed and Magical – Lisa Shearin
      42. Touch of Evil – CT Adams and Cathy Clamp
      43. Lyra’s Oxford – Philip Pullman
      44. Boomsday – Christopher Buckley
      45. I Love You Beth Cooper – Larry Doyle
      46. Codespell – Kelly McCullough
      47. 2033: The Future of Misbehavior – Nerve.com editors
      48. Black & White – Lewis Shiner
      49. In the Garden of Iden – Kage Baker
      50. Jennifer Government – Max Barry
      51. Hal Spacejock – Simon Haynes
      52. Me of Little Faith – Lewis Black
      53. Orphans of Chaos – John C. Wright
      54. In The Midnight Hour – Patti O’Shea
      55. Well of Ascension – Brandon Sanderson
      56. Flash – LE Modessit
      57. Darkness of the Light – Peter David
      58. InterWorld – Neil Gaiman and Michael Reaves
      59. Elantris – Brandon Sanderson
      60. Soul – Tobsha Learner
      61. Justice Hall – Laurie R. King
      62. Eastern Standard Tribe – Cory Doctorow
      63. The Captain’s Honor – Daniel and David Dvorkin
      64. The Last Colony – John Scalzi
      65. Playing For Keeps – Mur Lafferty
      66. The Good Fairies of New York – Martin Millar
      67. The Game – Laurie R. King
      68. Fahrenheit 451 – Ray Bradbury
      69. Locked Rooms – Laurie R. King
      70. Watchmen – Alan Moore & Dave Gibbons
      71. The Graveyard Book – Neil Gaiman
      72. M is for Magic – Neil Gaiman
      73. Dawn – Octavia Butler
      74. Outrageous Fortune – Tim Scott
      75. Dead Until Dark – Charlaine Harris
      76. Fragile Things – Neil Gaiman
      77. Dreams from my Father – Barack Obama
      78. Living Dead in Dallas – Charlaine Harris
      79. Adulthood Rites – Octavia Butler
      80. War for the Oaks – Emma Bull
      81. The Road – Cormac McCarthy
      82. Jumper – Steven Gould
      83. Storm Front – Jim Butcher
      84. Dinosaur Planet Survivors – Anne McCaffrey

No Responses to “year in books”

  1. 1
    chuck Says:

    “Mistborn” – Brandon Sanderson

    I got this one in my email this week for signing up for the new Tor Books newsletter. They’re apparently launching a newly designed site, and are giving away free e-books (well, PDF files) to drum up page counts.

    Yay, free books.

    This’ll keep me going at lunchtime for a few weeks, I imagine.

    -chuck

  2. 2
    chuck Says:

    Jennifer – you’ll like the “Kitty” series from Carrie Vaughn. I can tell you this now, even though I haven’t finished the first one yet.

    A hip, snarky, single girl werewolf who has a late-night call-in radio show about supernatural problems; it also looks like the author’s trying to set her up with either one of the local vampires, or perhaps the werewolf/vampire hunter guy…not sure yet.

    It’s fun, kinda like the early anita blake books, perhaps a little more econonomical and clever on the prose. You should read it.

  3. 3
    chuck Says:

    couple more comments.

    I’m starting to really like Scalzi, not just because he once taped a piece of bacon to a cat, then took a picture of it and posted it on the internet.

    “Old Man’s War” was really clever; who can resist a novel whose first line is:

    “I did two things on my seventy-fifth birthday. I visited my wife’s grave. Then I joined the Army”

    It’s basically the typical “boys go off to war” novel, except the boys are all older than John McCain. Then the get new super-bodies (and deal with all the ramifications of such) and go out and fight aliens.

    “Android’s Dream” is also shaping up to be fun read – I’m really starting to get a sort of “American Adams” vibe from this guy – lots of fun, kind of absurd situations and ideas (a future religious sect involving ritual bowhunting known as the Nugentians? classic!). All wrapped around a great little “race to find the thing” story.

    Lots of nods to other classic sci-fi authors; both of these stories owe a lot, either in structure or simple little references, to Heinlein. Still, any of these stories could be easily enjoyed by someone who’s really not into scifi at all.

  4. 4
    chuck Says:

    R/R/R – Hogan: just started it the other night; collection of essays and short stories. Not bad. Once I finish it, I ought to be through the box of Doug’s books for the year.

    Agent to the Stars – yeah, another Scalzi book – what can I say, I like this guy. I figure I’ll burn through his whole catalog this year easily. This one’s actually his “practice” novel that he wrote just to prove he could; never sold it to a publisher, and has since put it online for all to see. The latest in my “lunchtime reading” series….

  5. 5
    chuck Says:

    a few I wasn’t necessarily fond of:

    A Secret Atlas – picked this one up because I liked the cover, mostly. It wasn’t a “bad” book per se, but took its sweet time getting around to things happening, and then, once things got rolling at all, it became really episodic; “this happened to this guy, this happened to that guy, prince goes “muah, ha ha”, rinse, repeat…” Colleen liked it more than I; perhaps I missed the throughline, as I was sick through most of the reading. I may try it again sometime. Thinking about it, though, I never quite got into the world the author was trying to build; I’ve no doubt he has all sorts of ideas about how it fits together, but he didn’t communicate it so well, at least to me.

    “Lord of the Isles” – another one of those free books from Tor; not awful, but definitely the least of the offerings so far. I think there were just too many pieces on the board overall to keep me into it; the world was better realized, though still kind of a mish-mash of stock fantasy tropes, and the secondary characters are infinitely more interesting than the “Chosen One” boy hero, which is never a good sign.

  6. 6
    chuck Says:

    crossing over the 50 books line…

    highlights since last time:
    Little Brother – Cory Doctorow All sorts of people are raving about this one, and rightfully so. The book’s nominally a YA title, but that’s not a knock against it at all – a great meditation on privacy and civil rights issues, especially in terms of electronic surveillance. Read it; you’ll learn something!

    I Love You Beth Cooper – Larry Doyle The night after graduation, through the eyes of the nerdy class valedictorian who used his speech to proclaim his love for the school’s head cheerleader. The perfect novelization of the movies John Hughes should still be making.

    Codspell – Kelly McCullough – third in a great series; the adventures of a minor power in the Greek Pantheon; in a world where the gods fused magic with modern information technology and computing (code, after all, is much more efficient than blood rituals!).

  7. 7
    chuck Says:

    Orphans of Chaos – a lot of interesting ideas; in fact, enough ideas for a couple of entirely different books. Any of the following ideas would make the great hook for a novel:

    • A teenage girl with the ability to perceive and project herself into 4-D space
    • A war between two supernatural forces with the earth in the balance
    • An S&M thriller with lots of tying up and spanking
    • The Greek pantheon running a modern English boarding school for nefarious purposes
    • A group of plucky teenagers, each with a special power, fighting for freedom from their captors, who have opposing special powers
    • A discussion of complex theology and geometry?

    When ALL these ideas are wedged into one 300 page book, though, it gets kind of muddled.

  8. 8
    chuck Says:

    In The Midnight Hour – Another free book; Oh, Tor, why must you trick me into reading smutty romance novels laced with vague sci-fi supernatural elements? Free books, I know. There might actually have been a decent story with romantic elements here, but instead, the whole “plot” business was pushed into the deep background to make room for the graphic “undulating passion”.

    And it’s a shame, because the story, fleshed out a little bit, would probably have been really good…if they’d spent as many pages on the big plot developments and confrontations with the threatening (but barely present, sadly) adversary as they did on the smutty, smutty smut.

    The plot points in this book were treated with about as much gravity as the stereotypical “Hey lady, plumber here – need your pipes cleaned?” setup in a bad porn movie.

    Why can’t we have BOTH the interesting plot and the graphic sexuality?

    After wading into a couple of these romance novels (paranormal or no), no one can ever tell me that “proper” women don’t use pornography – they just take it in a slightly different format.

    Wanna know what else is weird? I can’t for the life of me figure out what the title of this book had to do with the story…

  9. 9
    chuck Says:

    Me of Little Faith: Lewis Black discusses religion. Equally sarcastic, cynical, and, oddly, reverent. Not quite as good as Nothing Sacred, but still worth a look.

  10. 10
    chuck Says:

    Well of Ascension – I’m really enjoying Sanderson’s work, even if I didn’t expect to – Mistborn was one of the first of the Tor free books, and one of the pleasant surprises in that particular promotion. The characters are basically archetypes, but you still find yourself involved in them, and their well-established, but still mysterious world (which I’m sure will be expounded upon in coming volumes).

    That, and the guy writes action scenes well; all frentic motion and opposing forces, but in a way the reader can coherently follow.

    This second book in a series falls into the not-done-nearly-enough category of “well, the good guys won – now what?”; and makes it work, and opens up a few doors to further adventures.

    I’m currently working through his first novel, Elantris; it’s not at all related to the mistborn books, but has the same flavor, with all sorts of political intrigue and cleverly implemented magickal systems.

  11. 11
    chuck Says:

    The Captain’s Honor – cleaning out the crawlspaces, found this OLD Star Trek TNG tie-in novel….oh, was it bad.

  12. 12
    chuck Says:

    Fahrenheit 451 – 34 years old, and I’ve never read this one before; who’d have thought? Interesting read, and filled a gaping hole in my experience.

  13. 13
    chuck Says:

    Watchmen – reading it yet again (mostly in anticipation of the upcoming film version that will almost certainly disappoint); every time, I find something new and interesting. If you haven’t read this GN yet, do yourself a favor, track it down now.

  14. 14
    Joy Bedwell Says:

    My favorite author is Nickolas Sparks. Try a few of his books if you didn’t already read them.
    Joy

  15. 15
    chuck Says:

    Dreams from My Father: Yeah, I started this one right after the election, but it’s been moldering in my stack for a while now. Having read both President-Elect Obama’s(I still love the sound of that) books, I can say I like this one a lot better than Audacity of Hope, which kicked off this year’s reading list.

    AoH was clearly a “hey, I’m running for president!” book; an excellent example of one (I’ve read a bunch of these, and most are pretty awful), but still very guarded and not particularly personal; more an outlay of vague policy, than the “get to know the candidate” book that these are usually billed as.

    DfmF, on the other hand, is something else entirely; a personal story told well, and, unlike most books by politicians, unguarded. You really get a feel for who the author is, and how he thinks.

    I guess that’s because it wasn’t written by a politician, it was written by a law student who hadn’t yet seriously considered entering politics. I won’t say there’s anything particularly shameful admitted to in the book, but there are a few things that might (and some would argue, did) come back and bite him on the ass later. Kudos for Obama for not burying this little book he wrote years ago, and letting new readers discover it.

  16. 16
    chuck Says:

    Dinosaur Planet Survivors: I’ve had this paperback lying around for probably fifteen years; I picked it up at a thrift shop or something. I waited so long because I was probably a bit McCaffrey’d out when I got it, and I always half-intended to pick up “Dinosaur Planet” and read it first. Never happened.

    The book was just okay.

    I’m leading off the new year with WWZ, which is way better so far.

  17. 17
    chuck Says:

    Child of A Dead God – Another January, another Hendee “Noble Dead” book; I’ve been keeping up with this series for at least four years now. They’re all pretty much “extruded fantasy product”, but it’s good EFP; and it has vampires and a telepathic wolf – did LotR have vampires and telepathic wolves? I don’t think so.

  18. 18
    chuck Says:

    twilight – so yes, I managed to scrape up a copy to see what the fuss was about; I won’t say it’s the worst book I ever read (I’d probably say that was The Legend of Rah and the Muggles); at least all the subjects and verbs agreed. I also can’t say that it’s the transcendent experience (as millions of pre-teen girls will tell you), or that it’s even particularly good.

    There was a plot buried in there somewhere, one that a skilled writer might have been able to do something with. But not this one.

    The main characters are entirely unsympathetic; edward may be a sparking (!) god physically, but is also a stalker with bi-polar issues, serious problems maturity and stilted, awkward speech patterns. Bela is, by all rights, a hot nerd chick who is vastly intelligent and has six decent guys fawning all over her between every class, but considers herself boring and ordinary and claims nobody likes her; it’s hard to get invested in, especially when these characters get together, and the book portrays the relationship as healthy.

    Buffy did this better in season two, and correctly played the “naive young girl and older bad boy” relationship as a bad idea.

    The only character I kind of liked was Alice, but since her big “vision of the future” was revealed in the final pages, I guess she’s not long for the world.

    The book wasn’t super painful, but it’ll probably be a while before I dive into any of the others – where if I understand correctly, all the authors weird sexual hang-ups and “proper” gender roles really boil up.

    Might be an interesting trainwreck, but I’m not ready for it yet.

  19. 19
    chuck Says:

    Essential Doctor Strange: volume 3: Collecting 30-odd issues of “Doctor Strange” (plus a couple from “Tomb of Dracula” that tied in) from roughly 1975-1977.

    Exquisite weirdness – The Master of the Mystic Arts battles deranged Ex-bishops, Lords of the Undead, Satan himself, planets made of worms, and just for the hell of it, a space dragon he just happened to run into while going somewhere else, for no plot related reasons other than the fact that Doctor Strange spending two pages fighting a space dragon is the coolest thing ever.

    Oh, and Doc Strange gets cockblocked by Benjamin Franklin during a bicentennial-inspired time travel adventure. I wish comics were still this cool.

  20. 20
    chuck Says:

    catching up on the last couple of months:

    Death’s Daughter: bought this book primarily because I’ve had a long-time TV crush on the author (she played Tara Maclay on Buffy), but was pleasantly surprised by reasonably solid urban fantasy, even if it veered a little in to SatC territory occasionally – do we really need to talk that much about shoes and designer bags, Amber?

    Zappa: Always enjoyed Zappa’s music, loved his testimony to congress in the PMRC business way back. Interesting book, even if it turns out that the great artist was also kind of an asshole.

    Zoe’s Tale: Another one of this Year’s Hugo nominees I’ve actually read. Retells “The Last Colony” story from the perspective of Zoe, teenage daughter of the protagonists. Good stuff. Write faster, Scalzi!

    Wolfkin: bought this from the author (signed) at RavenCon this year. It’s more romance-flavored Extruded Fantasy Product, but competent EFP, with all the courtly intrigue, buckling of swashes, and dark mysterious heroes you could ever want.

  21. 21
    chuck Says:

    Your Inner Fish: worth a whole post on it’s own.

  22. 22
    chuck Says:

    Saturn’s Children: taking me to 4 for 5 in reading this year’s Hugo nominees (just Anathem left), is this fun solar system spanning mystery taking place a couple of centuries after humanity died out, leaving it’s android servants to carry on civilization. It offers plenty to think about regarding freedom, prejudice, and personhood, as well as plenty of neat hard sci-fi stuff about space travel and AI.

    Also, lots of robot sex.

    My favorite bit, however, is the minor aside where Stross turns the evolution/creationism debate on it’s head: the androids have mostly ironclad proof that they were “intelligently designed” by a Creator race, yet a “Church of Evolution” (complete with Prophets Darwin, Gould and Dawkins) arises to deny this proof, believing that something to efficiently designed as themselves had to evolve from ‘lesser’ forms.

  23. 23
    chuck Says:

    Dinosaur Planet – amongst all the RavenCon 09 swag, we picked this one up from a used bookseller. Lots of stuff in Survivors makes sense now. One niggling problem: if you’re going to make the big reveal “These are EARTH DINOSAURS on this ALIEN PLANET!”, don’t call your book Dinosaur Planet!

    Goblin Quest – snagged this whole series at C&C books from the going-out-of-business sale. The story of a lowly goblin who rises above his standard station as low-level RPG encounter fodder. Silly, light, and fun.

    Pride and Prejudice and Zombies – Take most of Jane Austen’s original text, add the undead, some ninjas, and a handful of anachronistic double-entendres, publish. It works surprisingly well, retains Austen’s wit amidst the mayhem, and actually fills in a couple of Austen’s plot inconsistencies. I enjoyed it tremendously.

  24. 24
    chuck Says:

    been a while…rolling into 2010:

    looks like the beginning of the year; new entries from Vaughn and the Hendees, like always. Good stuff all around there.

    Crazy for God: memoir from one of the guys who got the whole evangelical anti-abortion movement going, paving the way for Falwell, Roberston, etc; then turned away from it, because it left a bad taste in his mouth. interesting reading, offering insight into that particular subculture.

    Ill Wind: first of a series by Rachel Caine; kinda lukewarm toward it (veers a little close to “paranormal romance” rather than “urban fantasy” for me), but figured I’d read it, since the author’s the GoH at RavenCon this year.

    Human Nature the novel upon which the excellent two parter from Doctor Who: Series 3 (relaunch) was based, only this novel featured the 7th Doctor rather than the 10th, (though it did feature one of the shape shifting aliens pretending to be the 10th Doctor…weird).

    Time Traders/Galactic Derelict: Couple of time travel adventures written in the late 50s by a woman who chose a male sounding pen name to get published. Interesting stuff from a cultural artifact perspective, and in the way time travel is taken as a complete given by everyone, but the rest of the tech (like spaceships and beam weapons) is taken as completely incomprehensible by the characters.

  25. 25
    chuck Says:

    Digital Knight: neat little first novel with vampires and werewolves and psychics and databases. Enjoyable diversion, but what’s really cool is that the author himself dropped a comment on this very blog thanking me for reading.

  26. 26
    chuck Says:

    Game Change: the book with all the dirt on the 2008 election. Didn’t learn much I hadn’t already heard at the time (well, except for the Edwards sex tape stuff – ew); but then, this is a “book of the blog” project, and I tend to run in the same internet circles as the authors. Good read, though, as it has all the goodies in one place.

    The God Engines: Scalzi tries his hand at fantasy in a small-press novella. Very interesting ideas. Still a space opera, but that’s not a bad thing. What surprised me is how terribly bleak it all was, but then, that’s not a problem either (given my HP Lovecraft kick these last couple of weeks).

  27. 27
    chuck Says:

    well, it’s been a while, hasn’t it? – a few highlights I haven’t made mention of in the blog proper:

    Voices of Dragons: Carrie Vaughn’s first published young adult novel; worth the read.

    Boneshaker: steampunk, airship pirates, and zombies…what’s not to like? Great story.

    Makers: very Doctorow story about all kinds of ideas, though at it’s heart, it’s about the pleasure of improvising with the materials at hand and turning someone else’s trash into something useful, affecting, and important.

    Dawn of the Dreadfuls: the prequel to Pride and Prejudice and Zombies. Without the direct connection to Austen’s prose, this story actually works a bit better than the original mash-up (which was still quite enjoyable, really). Even though it’s still got the Bennetts as characters, it feels less a stunt and more an attempt to write a legitimate Regency novel with horror elements. Zombie stories are almost always an attempt to comment on some element of society using the metaphor of monsters – which is probably why Austen’s social commentary meshed so well with mobs of undead craving brains to begin with. So, worth the read, even if the whole literary-monster mash-up genre is probably close to played out.

    Doctor Who and the Cave Monsters: an old novelization from almost 40 years ago of a 3rd Doctor serial featuring the first appearance of the Silurians, who recently cropped up again in the current Matt Smith series.

  28. 28
    chuck Says:

    Alternate Generals: An anthology of alternate military history that totally defeated me. I’ve owned this volume for probably a decade, and never finished it, until now, but only by technicality (I pretty much skimmed the last half). Turtledove edited – and while I generally love his stuff, I found myself bored to distraction with this one – it’s less historical exploration and more fetishizing militarism and the loneliness of command…and mostly terribly dull.

    Also, the cover promised Roman Centurions driving panzer tanks…the book delivered no such thing!

  29. 29
    chuck Says:

    Deception Point: starting off 2011 with a complete piece of disposable cheese from the “Hey! Free Books!” box in the Richmond office break room. Not as completely terrible as the other three Dan Brown books I’ve read, though still pretty crap. Still, sometimes you just gotta eat that cardboard fast food cheeseburger, right? If only to remind you how good other things are.

  30. 30
    chuck Says:

    Hunter: Really a short story, but I’m counting it anyway, because Wil’s a stand-up guy (at least he was in the limited email interaction I had with him a few years ago) and I enjoy his work. This is one of his first forays into fiction, a nice little sci-fi yarn that sets up a world I’m interested to hear more of. He’s released it as a pay-what-you-want story, which is a neat model – pay what you think it’s worth. In any case, I enjoyed it.

Leave a Reply

© 2024 chuck dash parker dot net | Entries (RSS) and Comments (RSS)

Your Index Web Directorywordpress logo