2013 Reading Year in Review

JANUARY

1. Lover Enshrined by J.R. Ward
2. Notorious Nineteen by Janet Evanovich
3. A Winter’s Dream by Richard Paul Evans
4. Come Home by Lisa Scottoline
5. Private: London by James Patterson and Mark Pearson
6.  Merry Christmas, Alex Cross by James Patterson

FEBRUARY

7. World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks
8. Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
9. Private: Berlin by James Patterson and Mark Sullivan

MARCH

10. Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
11. The Painted Girls by Cathy Marie Buchanan
12. Beautiful Darkness by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl
13. The Forgotten by David Baldacci

APRIL

14. Edge of Dawn by Lara Adrian
15. Lover Avenged by J.R. Ward
16. Lover Mine by J.R. Ward

MAY

17. Lover Unleashed by J.R. Ward
18. Lover Reborn by J.R. Ward
19. Alex Cross, Run by James Patterson
20. Dead Ever After by Charlaine Harris
21. Don’t Go by Lisa Scottoline
22. No Way Back by Andrew Gross
23. Inferno by Dan Brown

JUNE

24. The Hit by David Baldacci
25. Whiskey Beach by Nora Roberts
26. Lover at Last by J.R. Ward
27. Wedding Night by Sophie Kinsella
28. 12th of Never by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro

JULY

29. The Heist by Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg
30. Suspect by Robert Crais
31. Revenge Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger
32. Hidden by Catherine McKenzie
33. Family Pictures by Jane Green
34. Second Honeymoon by James Patterson and Howard Roughan
35. 9th Girl by Tami Hoag
36. Unseen by Karin Slaughter
37. Legend by Marie Lu

AUGUST

38. Prodigy by Marie Lu
39. Big Girl Panties by Stephanie Evanovich
40. Never Knowing by Chevy Stevens
41. The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion
42. Still Missing by Chevy Stevens

SEPTEMBER

43. The City of Bones by Cassandra Clare
44. Always Watching by Chevy Stevens
45. The Never List by Koethi Zan
46. Forever, Interrupted by Taylor Jenkins Reid
47. The Longest Ride by Nicholas Sparks

OCTOBER

48. City of Ashes by Cassandra Clare
49. The Bride Wore Size 12 by Meg Cabot
50. Reconstructing Amelia by Kim McCreight
51. Chose the Wrong Guy, Gave Him the Wrong Finger by Beth Harbison

NOVEMBER

52. Allegiant by Veronica Roth
53. Abandoned by Lisa Scottoline
54. Gone by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge

DECEMBER

55. King and Maxwell by David Baldacci
56. Cross My Heart by James Patterson
57. The Book Thief by Markus Zusak
58. Champion by Marie Lu

No. 37 for 2013

Title: Legend
Author: Marie Lu
Rating: 5/5
Book: 37/50
Pages: 305 pgs
Total Pages: 15,265 pages
Version: Book
Next up: The Love Wars by Alison Heller

I wasn’t expecting much out of this book but I could NOT put this book down! I read it in less than 24 hours and I can’t wait to get my hands on the sequel! For anyone who likes dystopian fiction, you must check this book out!

About The Book:

What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic’s wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic’s highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country’s most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.

From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths—until the day June’s brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family’s survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias’s death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets.

No. 36 for 2013

Title: Unseen
Author: Karin Slaughter
Rating: 4/5
Book: 36/50
Pages: 379 pgs
Total Pages: 14,960 pages
Version: Book
Next up: Legend by Marie Lu

This book got off to a slow start for me but once the plot started rolling, it was hard to put down. I haven’t read all of the books in this series so I should really pick them up from the library. Slaughter is a great author to check out if you are in search of a good mystery.

About The Book:

Bill Black is a scary guy: a tall ex-con who rides to work on a Harley and trails an air of violence wherever he goes. In Macon, Georgia, Bill has caught the eye of a wiry little drug dealer and his cunning girlfriend. They think Bill might be a useful ally. They don’t know that Bill is actually a Georgia Bureau of Investigation agent named Will Trent. Or that he is fighting his own demons, undercover and cut off from the support of Sara Linton—the woman he loves, who cannot be told of the risk Will is taking.

Sara herself has come to Macon because of a cop shooting: Her stepson, Jared, has been gunned down in his own home. Sara holds Lena, Jared’s wife, responsible: Lena, a detective, has been a magnet for trouble all her life, and Jared’s attack is not the first time someone Sara loved got caught in the crossfire. Furious, Sara finds herself involved in the same case that Will is working without even knowing it, and soon danger is swirling around both of them.

No. 35 for 2013

Title: 9th Girl
Author: Tami Hoag
Rating: 4/5
Book: 35/50
Pages: 405 pgs
Total Pages: 14,581 pages
Version: Book
Next up: Unseen by Karin Slaughter

I don’t think I have read one Hoag book that I haven’t liked. This book kept me on the edge of my seat and turning pages, eager to know what happened. I really need to go back and read the other books in this series sooner rather than later! That being said, you don’t need to read the other three books in the series to follow this book along.

About The Book:

On a frigid New Year’s Eve in Minneapolis a young woman’s brutalized body falls from the trunk of a car into the path of oncoming traffic. Questions as to whether she was alive or dead when she hit the icy pavement result in her macabre nickname, Zombie Doe. Unidentified and unidentifiable, she is the ninth nameless female victim of the year, and homicide detectives Sam Kovac and Nikki Liska are charged with the task of not only finding out who Zombie Doe is, but who in her life hated her enough to destroy her. Was it personal, or could it just have been a crime of opportunity? Their greatest fear is that not only is she their ninth Jane Doe of the year, but that she may be the ninth victim of a vicious transient serial killer they have come to call Doc Holiday.

Crisscrossing America’s heartland, Doc Holiday chooses his victims at random, snatching them in one city and leaving them in another, always on a holiday. If Zombie Doe is one of his, he has brought his gruesome game to a new and more terrifying level. But as Kovac and Liska begin to uncover the truth, they will find that the monsters in their ninth girl’s life may have lived closer to home. And even as another young woman disappears, they have to ask the question: which is the greater evil–the devil you know or the devil you don’t?

No. 34 for 2013

Title: Second Honeymoon
Author: James Patterson and Howard Roughan
Rating: 4/5
Book: 34/50
Pages: 403 pgs
Total Pages: 14,176 pages
Version: Book
Next up: 9th Girl by Tami Hoag

This is one of Patterson’s better reads. After a few okay-but-could-be-better books, this one took off with a bang, kept me guessing until the end and was an entertaining read. I do hope we see John O’Hara and Sarah Brubaker again!

About The Book:

A walk down the aisle, a resort hotel, a drink on the beach…for these unlucky couples, the honeymoon’s over.
A newlywed couple steps into the sauna in their deluxe honeymoon suite-and never steps out again. When another couple is killed while boarding their honeymoon flight to Rome, it becomes clear that someone is targeting honeymooners, and it’s anyone’s guess which happy couple is next on the list.

FBI Agent John O’Hara is deep into the case, trying to figure out who this deranged killer is. At the same time, Special Agent Sarah Brubaker is hunting another ingenious serial killer, whose victims all have one chilling thing in common.

As wedding hysteria rises to a frightening new level, John and Sarah work ever more closely together in a frantic attempt to decipher the logic behind two rampages.

No. 33 for 2013

Title: Family Pictures
Author: Jane Green
Rating: 3/5
Book: 33/50
Pages: 344 pgs
Total Pages: 13,773 pages
Version: Book
Next up: Second Honeymoon by James Patterson and Howard Roughan

This book was okay. It was very predictable which is unfortunately true for a Green’s last few books. Green is a talented writer but her earlier works are much better than the books she’s been producing lately.

About The Book:

From the author of Another Piece of My Heart comes the gripping story of two women who live on opposite coasts but whose lives are connected in ways they never could have imagined. Both women are wives and mothers to children who are about to leave the nest for school. They’re both in their forties and have husbands who travel more than either of them would like. They are both feeling an emptiness neither had expected. But when a shocking secret is exposed, their lives are blown apart. As dark truths from the past reveal themselves, will these two women be able to learn to forgive, for the sake of their children, if not for themselves?

No. 32 for 2013

Title: Hidden
Author: Catherine McKenzie
Rating: 4/5
Book: 32/50
Pages: 355 pgs
Total Pages: 13,429 pages
Version: Book
Next up: Family Pictures by Jane Green

I fell in love with McKenzie’s books when I first read Spin. While this book was good, I didn’t fall in love with it like I did with McKenzie’s other novels. I definitely recommend the book though!

About The Book:

When a married man suffers a sudden fatal accident, two women are shattered—his wife and someone else’s—and past secrets, desires and regrets are brought to light

While walking home from work one evening, Jeff Manning is struck by a car and killed. Not one but two women fall to pieces at the news: his wife, Claire, and his co-worker Tish. Reeling from her loss, Claire must comfort her grieving son and contend with funeral arrangements, well-meaning family members and the arrival of Jeff’s estranged brother—her ex-boyfriend—Tim.

With Tish’s co-workers in the dark about her connection to Jeff outside the workplace, she volunteers to attend the funeral on the company’s behalf, but only she knows the true risk of inserting herself into the wreckage of Jeff’s life. Told through the three voices of Jeff, Tish and Claire, Hidden explores the complexity of relationships, our personal choices and the responsibilities we have to the ones we love.

No. 31 for 2013

Title: Revenge Wears Prada
Author: Lauren Weisberger
Rating: 3/5
Book: 31/50
Pages: 381 pgs
Total Pages: 13,074 pages
Version: Book
Next up: Hidden by Catherine McKenzie

My overall opinion of this book: Meh.

I LOVED The Devil Wears Prada and I was thrilled (although a little puzzled) when Weisberger announced she was writing a sequel. I was thrilled because I was happy to return to such a great story but I was puzzled as I wasn’t sure what was left of the story to tell.

After reading this book, I really wish I hadn’t. The Devil Wears Prada was a great book and it should have been left as it was originally intended to be: a stand alone, single book. There was no need for a sequel.

I found the book dragged in parts. There was no real plot and Weisberger was famous for skipping over large chunks of time several times over the course of the book, which got confusing if you weren’t entirely paying attention.

If you are thinking of reading this book, I wouldn’t bother. You will not be missing much if you skip this book.

About The Book:

Almost a decade has passed since Andy Sachs quit the job “a million girls would die for” working for Miranda Priestly at Runway magazine—a dream that turned out to be a nightmare. Andy and Emily, her former nemesis and co-assistant, have since joined forces to start a highend bridal magazine. The Plunge has quickly become required reading for the young and stylish. Now they get to call all the shots: Andy writes and travels to her heart’s content; Emily plans parties and secures advertising like a seasoned pro. Even better, Andy has met the love of her life. Max Harrison, scion of a storied media family, is confident, successful, and drop-dead gorgeous. Their wedding will be splashed across all the society pages as their friends and family gather to toast the glowing couple. Andy Sachs is on top of the world. But karma’s a bitch. The morning of her wedding, Andy can’t shake the past. And when she discovers a secret letter with crushing implications, her wedding-day jitters turn to cold dread. Andy realizes that nothing—not her husband, nor her beloved career—is as it seems. She never suspected that her efforts to build a bright new life would lead her back to the darkness she barely escaped ten years ago—and directly into the path of the devil herself…

No. 30 for 2013

Title: Suspect
Author: Robert Crais
Rating: 5/5
Book: 30/50
Pages: 309 pgs
Total Pages: 12,693 pages
Version: Book
Next up: Revenge Wears Prada: The Devil Returns by Lauren Weisberger

I loved this book! It made me tear up and laugh in many spots. The plot moved well and you can’t help but fall in love with Scott James and his K-9 partner, Maggie: two broken souls who find a way to heal together. A definite must read for all mystery lovers.

About The Book:

LAPD cop Scott James is not doing so well. Eight months ago, a shocking nighttime assault by unidentified men killed his partner Stephanie, nearly killed him, and left him enraged, ashamed, and ready to explode. He is unfit for duty…until he meets his new partner.

Maggie is not doing so well, either. A German shepherd who survived three tours in Iraq and Afghanistan sniffing explosives before losing her handler to an IED, her PTSD is as bad as Scott’s.

They are each other’s last chance. Shunned and shunted to the side, they set out to investigate the one case that no one wants them to touch: the identity of the men who murdered Stephanie. What they begin to find is nothing like what Scott has been told, and the journey will take them both through the darkest moments of their own personal hells. Whether they will make it out again, no one can say.

No. 29 for 2013

Title: The Heist
Author: Janet Evanovich and Lee Goldberg
Rating: 3/5
Book: 29/50
Pages: 294 pgs
Total Pages: 12,384 pages
Version: Book
Next up: Suspect by Robert Crais

I wasn’t overly crazy about this book. It seemed to lack the humour that I expect from an Evanovich book. It was an enjoyable read but I’m not hooked on the series quite yet.

About The Book:

FBI Special Agent Kate O’Hare is known for her fierce dedication and discipline on the job, chasing down the world’s most wanted criminals and putting them behind bars. Her boss thinks she is tenacious and ambitious; her friends think she is tough, stubborn, and maybe even a bit obsessed. And while Kate has made quite a name for herself for the past five years the only name she’s cared about is Nicolas Fox—an international crook she wants in more ways than one.

Audacious, handsome, and dangerously charming, Nicolas Fox is a natural con man, notorious for running elaborate scams on very high-profile people. At first he did it for the money. Now he does it for the thrill. He knows that the FBI has been hot on his trail—particularly Kate O’Hare, who has been watching his every move. For Nick, there’s no greater rush than being pursued by a beautiful woman . . . even one who aims to lock him up. But just when it seems that Nicolas Fox has been captured for good, he pulls off his greatest con of all: He convinces the FBI to offer him a job, working side by side with Special Agent Kate O’Hare.

Problem is, teaming up to stop a corrupt investment banker who’s hiding on a private island in Indonesia is going to test O’Hare’s patience and Fox’s skill. Not to mention the skills of their ragtag team made up of flamboyant actors, wanted wheelmen, and Kate’s dad. High-speed chases, pirates, and Toblerone bars are all in a day’s work . . . if O’Hare and Fox don’t kill each other first.