2013 Year in Review!!

So I recently completed my Goodreads Reading Challenge for 2013! If you also participated in the challenge feel free to share!  It was touch and go there as to whether or not I’d actually finish it, but I managed to get it done! I’m on vacation until the new year so I will likely not be reading any new books (heck I still need to review a few), but I’ve definitely got enough material for my Best of 2013 wrap up.  Here are my top 10 favorites of 2013! Some books are probably rated better than others but I pretty much ranked these based on how much I enjoyed them and how much I am anticipating their sequels.

10.

The Night Prince Series by Jeaniene Frost

While I like Cat & Bones, I LOVE Vlad! He is my favorite character of the Night Huntress universe (yes, even over Bones) and I have been enjoying Frost treating him to his own series.  I look forward to how she wraps up his trilogy.  My reviews in case you missed them:

Once Burned
Twice Tempted

9.

The Mistborn Series by Brandon Sanderson

I plan to review this trilogy all together so that’s why I haven’t provided a review for this particular book yet. While there is a lot of world building, overall I really enjoyed the story. I loved the magic and I will absolutely read the sequels in January. I’ve only heard they get even better.

8.

The Immortal Circus by A. R. Kahler

This remains my favorite Amazon Prime freebie of the year! The circus theme and the magic totally rocked.  I didn’t enjoy the sequel quite as much, but it was still a good read.  My reviews:

The Immortal Circus
The Immortal Circus: Act Two

7.

Archangel’s Legion (Guild Hunter #6) by Nalini Singh
This is my favorite angel series and it all started with Raphael and Elena, so I was glad to see this book return to their storyline.  Here’s hoping my favorites, Venom and Ilium, can get their own books soon!  My review:

Archangel’s Legion (Guild Hunter #6)

6.

Origins (Lux #4)  and Obsession (Arum Novel) by Jennifer Armentrout

I lumped these together because they are from the same series. Obsession is not surprisingly an adult spinoff while Lux is filed under YA.  These are my favorite novels of the series! My reviews:
Origin

Obsession 

5.

The School for Good and Evil by Soman Chainani

This was probably my favorite debut novel of the year! I enjoyed it from beginning to the end (well, almost), but all in all I am definitely hooked and plan to be back for more. And there WILL be more! My review:

The School for Good and Evil

4.

Unchained by J. Lynn (Jennifer Armentrout)

After finishing this book I realized I am clearly just a fan of Jennifer Armentrout’s writing.  I think she chose a pen name because this was an earlier work and it kind of showed, but I was still invested from beginning to end.  Making my top 10 with 2 series (three if you want to get technical) is definitely a clear sign if I ever needed one. I have decided to read all of her paranormal novels. That is not a guarantee for every author I enjoy, including some of my favorite authors, so I think she’s pretty special.  My review:

Unchained (Nephilim Rising #1)

3.

Magic Rises (Kate Daniels #6) by Ilona Andrews

This was a true game changer for the series and it is probably my favorite Kate Daniels book to date. I so love it when authors make their series STRONGER as the books go on.  And better yet, there’s clearly a LOT more story to tell and I plan to be there for them to tell it! My review:

Magic Rises (Kate Daniels #6)

2.

Bloodlines Series by Richelle Mead

If someone told me a year ago that I’d finish the Vampire Academy books and it’d be its spinoff that would end up being my favorite YA/NA series…yeah I’d have called the loony bin for said person.  But here we are! Richelle Mead’s writing tends to polarize people and that’s why I’ve stayed away because I felt like I’d be more likely to side with the disgruntled bunch, but damn it if she doesn’t have me by the balls on this one! I adore the series and can’t wait to read Books 5 and 6.  My reviews:

Bloodlines overview
The Fiery Heart (Bloodlines #4)

***1.***

The Hollows Series by Kim Harrison

SHOCKER!!! Yeah, I’m j/k. If you’re a follower of this blog this series needs no introduction or my continued fangirling…but I’m going to do it anyway :P.  The two books here really are the pièce de résistance of the series and I am so happy that this is my favorite of favorites!  Next year I’ll likely place The Undead Pool and Hollows #13 in this slot for the last time and that makes me a little sad, but hey, it’ll go out on top! Below is my review for Ever After. I’m working up one for The Undead Pool so I’ll post my link to the teasers and quotes. I plan to re-read it this week to finalize my review and I will update this link:

Ever After
The Undead Pool Teasers

This article has 6 Comments

  1. I can’t believe the number of books I missed in your list. I reached 100 books this year, but I fear my logging on Goodreads petered out fairly early.

    I agree “Ever After” should be number one. And “Magic Rises” would be number 2 for me.

    Although I did read Sanderson and Frost, it was not those novels.

    The rest of my list are older novels but good ones.

    Devon Monks AB series was enjoyable (got through the first 7 so far).

    Hamilton’s Anit Blake and Merry Gentry series both needed to be read along with some Kitty books (Vaughn).

    Stacia Kane’s Downside Ghosts series is also worth reading.

    Huge Shout out to Gail Carriger for her SteamPunk Urban Fantasy series!!!

    Jaye Wells, Tamora Pierce, David Weber, and Garth Nixx round out the list.

    Thanks for sharing your top 10!

    1. Goodreads is like my rock! I need to have a place to jot down my thoughts every so often! Otherwise I probably couldn’t do any type of reviews, lol.

      I am actually reading the Devon Monk books next year. They come highly recommend from my friend, Autumn.

      I read the Anita Blake books a while ago and then I stopped around book 16. The Merry Gentry books, I might read if she decides to complete the series.

      I’ve read 4 of the Downside books and they are well done, but I kind of preferred it as a trilogy. I feel like Book 3 ended things perfectly for me.

      Gail Carriger is also wonderful. I want to start her YA steampunk eventually.

      I requested an ARC for Jaye Wells’s Dirty Magic so we’ll see if I’m approved or not. If not, I did sign up to get the first 8 chapters on Amazon.

      Thanks for sharing!

  2. I met my Goodreads challenge of 100 books. a lot from your list and a few authors I’ll read from your list this next coming year. Kim’s books are always no. 1 with me and one of her books was the 100th !

    1. That’s fantastic Marie! When you the triple digits it’s just a great feeling and it’s an even better one when you can end on a high note! I ended mine on a high with Ilona Andrews.

    1. Thanks! I love Patty Briggs and rated the last Mercy Thompson well, but it was right outside of my top 10. If I did an honorable mentions category it would make that one. I am REALLY looking forward to the next book though. Baby mama drama here we go!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *