2015 Reading Year in Review!

JANUARY

1. Hope to Die (Alex Cross #22) by James Patterson
2. The Cinderella Murder (Under Suspicion #1) by Mary Higgins Clark and Alafair Burk
3. The Little Prince by Antoine Saint de Exupéry
4. The Demon King (Seven Realms #1) by Cinda Williams Chima
5. Die Again (Rizzoli & Isles #11) by Tess Gerritsen
6. The Book of Negroes by Lawrence Hill
7. Dangerous Girls by Abigail Haas
8. Throne of Glass (Throne of Glass #1) by Sarah J. Maas

FEBRUARY

9. Through the Ever Night (Under the Never Sky #2) by Veronica Rossi
10. Chinese Cinderella and the Secret Dragon Society by Adeline Yen Mah
11. Geek Girl (Geek Girl #1) by Holly Smale
12. Private Vegas (Private #9) by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro
13. Cane and Abe by James Grippando
14. Fairest (The Lunar Chronicles #3.5) by Marissa Meyer
15. Hush by Karen Robards

MARCH

16. All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven
17. Cold Cold Heart by Tami Hoag
18. Everything I Never Told You by Celeste Ng
19. Cruel Beauty by Rosamund Hodge
20. Red Queen (Red Queen #1)  by Victoria Aveyard

APRIL

21. The Vile Village (A Series of Unfortunate Events #7) by Lemony Snicket
22. The Shadows (Black Dagger Brotherhood #13) by J.R. Ward
23. Someone is Watching by Joy Fielding

MAY

24. A Darker Shade of Magic (A Darker Shade of Magic #1) by V.E. Schwab
25. Every Fifteen Minutes by Lisa Scottoline
26. The Liar by Nora Roberts
27. 14th Deadly Sin (Women’s Murder Club #14) by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro

JUNE

28. City of Glass (The Mortal Instruments #3) by Cassandra Clare
29. NYPD Red (NYPD Red #3) by James Patterson and Marshall Karp
30. The Isle of the Lost (The Descendants #1) by Melissa de la Cruz
31. Truth or Die by James Patterson and Howard Roughan

JULY

32. An Ember in the Ashes (Ember in the Ashes #1) by Sabaa Tahir
33. The Wrong Man by Karen White
34. Walking Disaster (Beautiful #2) by Jamie McGuire

AUGUST

35. Cash Landing by James Grippando
36. Defiance (Defiance #1) by C.J. Redwine
37. The Wrath & The Dawn (The Wrath & The Dawn #1) by Renée Ahdieh
38. The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

SEPTEMBER 

39. Origins (Lux #4) by Jennifer L. Armentrout
40. Opposition (Lux #5) by Jennifer L. Armentrout
41. Alert (Michael Bennett #8) by James Patterson & Michael Ledwidge

OCTOBER

42. The 5th Wave (The 5th Wave #1) by Rick Yancey
43. Pretty Baby by Mary Kubica

NOVEMBER

44. Murder House by James Patterson & David Ellis
45. The Scam (Fox and O’Hare #4) by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg
46. After You (Me Before You #2) by Jojo Moyes
47. The Theory of Death (Peter Decker and Rina Lazarus #23) by Faye Kellerman

DECEMBER

48. Winter (The Lunar Chronicles #4) by Marissa Meyer
49. The Mistletoe Inn (Mistletoe Collection) by Richard Paul Evans
50. Tricky Twenty-Two (Stephanie Plum #22) by Janet Evanovich
51. The Guilty (Will Robie #4) by David Baldacci
52. Cross Justice (Alex Cross #23) by James Patterson

No. 15 for 2015

Title: Hush
Author: Karen Robards
Rating: 4/5
Book: 15/50
Pages:  405 pgs
Total Pages: 5,326/15,000 pages
Version: Book
Next up: All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

I really enjoyed this book. It kept me guessing and on the edge of my seat and I couldn’t wait to see how everything turned out.

And an added bonus, the book had a GREAT male character. I hope we see more of Finn in future books!

About the Book:

When Riley Cowan finds her estranged husband Jeff dead in his palatial home, she’s sure it’s no coincidence. The police rule it a suicide, but Riley thinks someone’s out for blood—specifically someone Jeff’s father ripped off in one of the biggest financial fraud cases of all time. She suspects that someone is trying to send a message to Jeff’s father: Tell me where the money is, or everyone you care about will die.

Riley’s in-laws might be billionaires, but she’s afraid that not even their dirty money can protect her from an irate investor who will stop at nothing to get his hands on his misappropriated cash. Enter Finn Bradley, Philly-based FBI agent and Riley’s love interest from way back when. Finn agrees to help Riley, and the two reignite sparks they both thought were extinguished long ago. But can they discover the killer’s identity in time, before he resurfaces—and strikes again?

No. 14 for 2015

Title: Fairest (The Lunar Chronicles #3.5)
Author: Marissa Meyer
Rating: 5/5
Book: 14/50
Pages:  222 pgs
Total Pages: 4,921/15,000 pages
Version: Book
Next up: Hush by Karen Robards

Wow. All throughout The Lunar Chronicles series I absolutely loathed Queen Levana (while still being one of my favourite literary villain) but this book was actually successful in giving her a redeemable quality that makes her likable. This book gave us insight into why Queen Levana is the way she is and it definitely was a satisfying read which leaves me eagerly anticipating Winter!

About the Book:

In this stunning bridge book between Cress and Winter in the bestselling Lunar Chronicles, Queen Levana’s story is finally told.

Mirror, mirror on the wall,
Who is the fairest of them all?

Fans of the Lunar Chronicles know Queen Levana as a ruler who uses her “glamour” to gain power. But long before she crossed paths with Cinder, Scarlet, and Cress, Levana lived a very different story – a story that has never been told . . . until now.

No. 13 for 2015

Title: Cane and Abe
Author: James Grippando
Rating: 4/5
Book: 13/50
Pages:  356 pgs
Total Pages: 4,699/15,000 pages
Version: Book
Next up: Fairest (The Lunar Chronicles #0.1) by Marissa Meyer

The first quarter of this book was super slow for me but it finally picked up around the half way mark and when it grabbed me, it didn’t let go. This book kept me on the edge of my seat and it kept me guessing. Despite it’s slow start, I do highly recommend this one.

About the Book:

An explosive psychological thriller from New York Times bestselling author James Grippando in which Miami’s top prosecutor becomes a prime suspect when his wife’s disappearance may have a chilling connection to the vicious murders of beautiful women in the Florida Everglades

Unbelievable was the word for her. Samantha Vine was unbelievably beautiful. It was unbelievable that she’d married me. Even more unbelievable that she was gone . . .

Samantha died too soon. Abe Beckham’s new wife, Angelina, feels like Samantha never left. Through it all, Abe has managed to remain a star prosecutor at the Miami State Attorney’s Office. But his personal life is a mess, and it’s about to get worse.

When a woman’s body is discovered dumped in the Everglades, Abe is called upon to stay on top of the investigation. The FBI is tracking a killer in South Florida they call “Cutter” because his brutal methods harken back to Florida’s dark past, when machete-wielding men cut sugarcane by hand in the blazing sun.

But when the feds discover that Abe had a brief encounter with the victim after Samantha’s death, and when Angelina goes missing, the respected attorney finds himself in the hot seat. Suspicion surrounds him. His closest friends, family, professional colleagues, and the media no longer trust his motives. Was Angelina right? Was their marriage failing because he loved Samantha too much? Or was there another woman, and did Abe have a dark side that simply wanted his new but very unhappy wife gone?

No. 12 for 2015

Title: Private Vegas (Private #9)
Author: James Patterso and Maine Paetro
Rating: 4/5
Book: 12/50
Pages:  416 pgs
Total Pages: 4,343/15,000 pages
Version: Book
Next up: Cane and Abe by James Grippando

I really enjoyed this book. Private is one of my favourite series by Patterson. Although the plot is sometimes predictable at times, I still really enjoyed it and I do look forward to the next one!

About the Book:

Las Vegas is a city of contradictions: seedy and glamorous, secretive and wild, Vegas attracts people of all kinds–especially those with a secret to hide, or a life to leave behind. It’s the perfect location for Lester Olsen’s lucrative business. He gets to treat gorgeous, young women to five-star restaurants, splashy shows, and limo rides–and then he teaches them how to kill.

Private Jack Morgan spends most of his time in Los Angeles, where his top investigation firm has its headquarters. But a hunt for two criminals leads him to the city of sin–and to a murder ring that is more seductively threatening than anything he’s witnessed before.

No. 11 for 2015

Title: Geek Girl (Geek Girl #1)
Author: Holly Smale
Rating: 2/5
Book: 11/50
Pages:  378 pgs
Total Pages: 3,927/15,000 pages
Version: Book
Next up: Private Vegas (Private #9) by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro

While I didn’t hate this book, I didn’t love it either. It was entertaining for what it is and it definitely made me laugh out loud a few times while reading it but overall, the story fell flat for me. The characters were very annoying and the book just lacked a plot in my opinion. I don’t think I will be continuing on with the series.

About the Book:

Harriet Manners knows a lot of things.

She knows that a cat has 32 muscles in each ear, a “jiffy” lasts 1/100th of a second, and the average person laughs 15 times per day. What she isn’t quite so sure about is why nobody at school seems to like her very much. So when she’s spotted by a top model agent, Harriet grabs the chance to reinvent herself. Even if it means stealing her Best Friend’s dream, incurring the wrath of her arch enemy Alexa, and repeatedly humiliating herself in front of the impossibly handsome supermodel Nick. Even if it means lying to the people she loves.

As Harriet veers from one couture disaster to the next with the help of her overly enthusiastic father and her uber-geeky stalker, Toby, she begins to realise that the world of fashion doesn’t seem to like her any more than the real world did.

And as her old life starts to fall apart, the question is: will Harriet be able to transform herself before she ruins everything?

No. 10 for 2015

Title: Chinese Cinderella and the Secret Dragon Society
Author: Adeline Yen Mah
Rating: 4/5
Book: 10/50
Pages:  322 pgs
Total Pages: 3,549/15,000 pages
Version: Book
Next up: Geek Girl (Geek Girl #1) by Holly Smale

This book was recommended to me by a friend and I highly enjoyed it. I definitely recommend this one to everyone! It’s a must read!

About the Book:

fter enduring abuse at the hands of her cruel stepmother, Chinese Cinderella (CC) seeks refuge at a martial-arts school and joins a secret dragon society.

Under the guidance of Grandma Wu, CC is introduced to the exciting world of espionage as a part of the Chinese Resistance movement. And when CC and her new comrades take on a daring mission to rescue a crew of WWII American airmen, they prove that true bravery knows no age barrier.

No. 9 for 2015

Title: Through the Ever Night (Under the Never Sky #2)
Author: Veronica Rossi
Rating: 4/5
Book: 9/50
Pages:  341 pgs
Total Pages: 3,227/15,000 pages
Version: Book
Next up: Chinese Cinderella and the Secret Dragon Society by Adeline Yen Mah

A good sequel to the first book. While this series isn’t my favourite, it’s still very enjoyable and I do look forward to reading the final book in the series. I think my main issue with this books is I don’t connect with any of the characters but I still did enjoy this book and I would recommend it to those who like dystopian books.

About the Book:

It’s been months since Aria last saw Perry. Months since Perry was named Blood Lord of the Tides, and Aria was charged with an impossible mission. Now, finally, they are about to be reunited. But their reunion is far from perfect. The Tides don’t take kindly to Aria, a former Dweller. And with the worsening Aether storms threatening the tribe’s precarious existence, Aria begins to fear that leaving Perry behind might be the only way to save them both.

Threatened by false friends and powerful temptations, Aria and Perry wonder, can their love survive through the ever night?