Friday 2 January 2015

2014 Year in Review

I had a great year for reading in 2014! I read 152 books, rated 21 of them 5-stars, and I read 13 books that were newly published in 2014. I finished 20 series and started 18 new ones. I discovered 46 new authors. From M/M and erotica, to YA romance, to high fantasy and hard sci-fi. And now I am going to share the best of the year with you!
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Best Books Published in 2014 

(I am going with the number 7 because there were 7 books published in 2014 that I rated 5-stars. Other lists may be different lengths)

This book totally blew my mind! It is absolutely only for fans of erotica. For some strange reason it is categorized as NA on Goodreads and I think that is drawing in the wrong readers and resulting in negative reviews. I don't know why it is listed as NA when the heroine is 26 and the hero is 36. This is just full blown Alpha erotica! No ifs, ands, or buts about it. It kind of reminds me of a cross between Beautiful Bastard by Christina Lauren and Twist Me by Anna Zaires, but with a better hero than either of them. A better hero than Bennett and Julian combined and multiplied by 10. And both of those books got a 4.5/5 from me. 

If you are a fan of that type of book you know the bulk of the story is just an alpha male who has to win over a woman. There aren't a lot of... more


“As you learn to trust me, as you give yourself to me, so will I learn to trust you, and give you myself.”



I think I can solidly say that this is now my second favourite Cassie Mae book after Reasons I Fell for the Funny Fat Friend. I know that I have said that about every one of her books I have read since, but that only means that her books keep getting better and better! I still have 2 unread published books by her. Well, 3 when counting Unexpectedly You. I really need to get to them now! 

I think there were two major things that made me love this book so much. 1) Eric. :) 2) Mia. Haha, but I will get into more detail than that.


Eric is just so amazing! He is so sweet and vulnerable but he didn't put up with shit. I can't say that he is my favourite Cassie... more 

“I can't tell if I hear your heart beating, or if it's mine." 
"Aren't they the same thing?”


This series is one of my absolute favourites. 5-stars across the board. It's just so unique. I really can't get over how unusual it was. It's so dark. And by dark I mean dark. The bad guys in this story are true evil. There is so much blood and death and destruction and pure greed and evil. Yet, at the same time, Kami is simply one of the best, smartest, funniest, and wittiest YA heroines I have ever read. She provides a balance that you need in order to handle all the darkness. This is one of those books where, when you try to list your favourites quotes, you find that you want to quote the whole book.

Another thing I loved about this book was all the love. Kami and Jared's love is epic, but it wasn't the only focus. Everyone loved each other and were willing to sacrifice so much for each other. Kami loved... more 


"Your name was the first word for love I ever knew."


This is my 13th M/M book and I absolutely loved it. Only once I had already finished this book did I find out that it was written by an author who had started out as a M/F author, and that this book was what got a lot of people into reading M/M romance in the first place. I am not a veteran of the genre, but I am not new to it either.

This is either the smuttiest romance, or the most romantic smut that I have ever read. I am gonna lean towards calling it the most romantic smut, because really, there is no need to have that much sex in a book unless you are writing a smut. Not that I am complaining. I love a good smut. But I really can't get into a book unless there is a good foundation to the relationship before... more 


“You make me crazy and furious and out of my mind with need, but in the end, you make me so fucking happy.”



This book destroyed me! It was just the right combination of factors to rip my heart out. 

First, it heavily featured Kishan, the 'book boyfriend' love of my life. Secondly, it was from the POV of a woman who loved him. When she met Ren and compared him to Kishan, she actually found him wanting. In Kishan's eyes she saw the warm sun and kindness, not a man who always fell short. And thirdly, the real clincher to my broken heart, is the fact that I knew what would happen in the end. I knew that once again, or for the first time, chronologically, Kishan's love would be ripped from him. Every time Yesubai thought of Kishan it broke my heart again, knowing that they would never be together. It was constant pain and suffering for me to finish this book. I can't remember the last... more


“Like the trees, his roots went deep, and I daydreamed that if he wrapped me in his arms, he could safely tuck me away within his branches and hide me from the world.”



This book is amazing and unique, like absolutely nothing I have read before. I love that it is solely from Ehd's POV, it gives us such a unique perspective. When we first meet Elizabeth, its clear she is from the future from the way that Ehd describes her jeans and eyeshadow, but we have no idea where she came from or who she was. She yells and shouts at Ehd when he takes her back to his cave, but we have no idea what she is saying. I can imagine why she is afraid, but we can only guess from Ehd's observations. As time passes, we know exactly how Ehd feels about her. How she has become his #1 priority. How everything he does is the provide for her and protect her. But we can only guess how Beh feels, as Ehd does. She isn't afraid of him anymore, but she sometimes cries, and we can assume it is... more

"If she doesn't wake up, then I will just lie with her until I don't wake up either."


This book is beyond perfection. Its beyond anything that I ever could have hoped and dreamed. It was so perfect that it left me afraid for most of the experience, waiting for the other shoe to drop. I was anxious until the end. It was as if it was fanfic written by someone who was Team Warner, it had everything that we, as Warner lovers, could have ever wanted. But of course it couldn't be fanfic because only Tahereh Mafi could have ever written something so beautiful. 

The absolute best thing about this series is the transformation of the characters. I just love the way that Mafi portrayed real struggle and realistic change. Although the story was great, it was really only the backdrop for Juliette's personal story. And Warner's. They both... more


"So the two of you--I mean, together-- you two could basically--" 
"Take over the world?" 
"I was going to say you could kick some serious ass, but yeah, that too, I guess."


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Best Books Read in 2014 


This has turned into the best YA high fantasy I have read since Graceling. The story is vast and spans three kingdoms as well as a magical realm. It encompasses epic characters from across the kingdoms in various key roles, all of who could tip the scales in the war and in the race to find the Kindred. Sorceresses, kings, princes, princesses, rebels, and immortals.

There isn't a single character that I don't love, except perhaps the villain, King Gaius. He is a bit predictable and blinded by his thirst or power. But he is so psychotic and single-minded in his pursuit, that in a way, that makes him a great villain. He is so evil that it makes him more interesting. I didn't like Jonas too much in Falling... more

"The prince moved closer still. Before Nic could fumble for his sword to protect himself from attack, Ashur took his face between his hands and kissed him. 
Nic stood there, frozen in place. 
This was not what he'd expected. At all."



This book is amazing and unique, like absolutely nothing I have read before. I love that it is solely from Ehd's POV, it gives us such a unique perspective. When we first meet Elizabeth, its clear she is from the future from the way that Ehd describes her jeans and eyeshadow, but we have no idea where she came from or who she was. She yells and shouts at Ehd when he takes her back to his cave, but we have no idea what she is saying. I can imagine why she is afraid, but we can only guess from Ehd's observations. As time passes, we know exactly how Ehd feels about her. How she has become his #1 priority. How everything he does is the provide for her and protect her. But we can only guess how Beh feels, as Ehd does. She isn't afraid of him anymore, but she sometimes cries, and we can assume it is... more

"If she doesn't wake up, then I will just lie with her until I don't wake up either."


This book thoroughly exceeded my expectations. I loved The Lost Prince, but I think it was still missing something that the original four Iron Fey books had. I didn't even give Julie Kagawa's Blood of Eden books 5-stars. I enjoy them but they don't even come close to how much I love The Iron Fey. But The Iron Traitor has everything that I ever loved about The Iron Fey.

The sense of adventure and of being on a mission was very strong in this book. Every step they took had a purpose. The story didn't wander around at all. Even if Ethan didn't always agree with their mission's purpose, and even if they failed in the end, it still took them somewhere important. I really enjoyed getting to know all the characters better in this book, even Ethan. He was the MC so we got to know him pretty well in... more


"I loved her more than anything else in my life. My heart turned over, and the air caught in my throat. I pulled back, breathless with the realization. I... was in love."



This book was amazing! It easily made up for any issues I had with book 2. I absolutely loved the characters and the story since book 1, but in this one it seemed to grow so much more depth! Veronica Roth's writing was always good, but neither of the first two books made me think, or made me feel, like this one did.

The story took a lot of turns that I did not see coming. The breadth of the story has grown beyond anything I had anticipated. Looking back to the problems of book 1, they seem so meaningless in comparison to the things Tris and Four had to contend with in this one. And it brought everything together. I remember, when Divergent was first released and started gaining popularity, there were a few negative reviews... more


"[My mother] taught me all about real sacrifice... That it should be done for people who need your strength because they don't have enough of their own."



This book is beyond perfection. Its beyond anything that I ever could have hoped and dreamed. It was so perfect that it left me afraid for most of the experience, waiting for the other shoe to drop. I was anxious until the end. It was as if it was fanfic written by someone who was Team Warner, it had everything that we, as Warner lovers, could have ever wanted. But of course it couldn't be fanfic because only Tahereh Mafi could have ever written something so beautiful. 

The absolute best thing about this series is the transformation of the characters. I just love the way that Mafi portrayed real struggle and realistic change. Although the story was great, it was really only the backdrop for Juliette's personal story. And Warner's. They both... more


"So the two of you--I mean, together-- you two could basically--" 
"Take over the world?" 
"I was going to say you could kick some serious ass, but yeah, that too, I guess."



This wasn't quite what I had expected but I greatly enjoyed it. I read New Spring first so I expected this to be similar. New Spring was heavily political and focus mostly on magic, mythology, and intrigue. I was totally blown away by it, but I later discovered a lot of people weren't because they expected it to be like the rest of the series. I suppose its a good thing then that I read it first and was able to enjoy it. The Eye of the World had a good deal of magic but very little politics and intrigue. It was primarily an adventure. 

I know this must be simply the introduction to a much grander story, and there were certainly signs of that. With curses and prophecies and chosen ones, this is far from over. I would have known that, even... more


“Whether the bear beats the wolf or the wolf beats the bear, the rabbit always loses.”



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Best Series Discovered in 2014 

(I have only included series where I have read at least 2 installments)

I picked up this book because I was in the mood to try something new. M/M romance was something I hadn't tried yet and this one was recommended to me. But I ended up enjoying it for mostly different reasons. Fantasy has always been one of my favourite genres so it was pretty easy for me to get into this. I love stories that introduce new worlds to me, and especially worlds with their own mythology and forms of magic.

I enjoyed the idea and the story, but it wasn't as good as it could have been. There are so many things that I still don't understand about what was going on. Who some of the characters were, what their involvement is, what the magic means, who is supposed to have it, and... more


“Giving his life for another means nothing to him, because he can always have more, but for you, he'll give up his soul.”



I loved this book and I read it in one sitting. I am surprised by how easily this book drew me in even though I am usually a really tough critic of contemporaries. But this book didn't have any of the things that I usually hate about the genre.

Nix was a tough guy character, but he wasn't a bad person and he didn't follow any stereotypes or cliches about tattoo artist love interests. He was serious about his business, his family, and his friends. He had a past, but he was responsible and reliable and not an asshole.  
Scotlyn is one of those super tragic heroines like Echo from Pushing the Limits or Nastya from The Sea of Tranquility, but unlike those two, Scotlyn felt entirely genuine. I didn't feel like she was a drama queen, needed... more

“I will take you from him, Scotlyn," he said with quiet confidence. "I think about you every fucking minute of the day, and I will not let you slip out of my life. I will take you from him.”



I was not expecting such a complicated story. All the Elizabeth Hoyt novels I have read in the past were more simple and mostly focused on the romance. They were still amazing stories. But this one focused a great deal on the murders in St. Giles, on the foundling home, and on Caire's complicated character. 

Caire was such a tortured character that I felt like I was reading a book by Anne Stuart or Sherrilyn Kenyon instead. Elizabeth Hoyt's Princes were never that tortured and I loved it. Tortured heroes are my absolutely favourite type of leading man. Throughout the book people kept saying he was notorious for his "unusual bedsport" or his "sexual perversions" and it kept making me nervous because I hate BDSM, but more... more


“It was a strange thing, this feeling of empathy. He'd never experienced it before. He realized that what hurt this woman hurt him as well, that what made her bleed caused a hemorrhage of pain within his soul.”


This book was adorable, as I knew it would be. I think this is now my second favourite Cassie Mae book. Since reading Reasons I Fell for the Funny Fat Friend I have kept reading all her books hoping they would be as good. They have all been great (except for maybe Switched which I wasn't a big fan of) but this one came the closest.

Levi was adorable, which I knew from How to Date a Nerd. But what I didn't know was that Sierra was so awesome. I love her weird style and how she made her own outfits. I would never wear any of it myself, but at least she was creative and unique. I liked that about her. I loved how to story was so simple and straight forward. Sierra didn't need to hatch an elaborate plan to win Levi. They just clicked. Probably the... more


“He gives me a half smile, and taps his leg with his piccolo.
He is without a doubt, the sexiest human being alive.”



This is my 13th M/M book and I absolutely loved it. Only once I had already finished this book did I find out that it was written by an author who had started out as a M/F author, and that this book was what got a lot of people into reading M/M romance in the first place. I am not a veteran of the genre, but I am not new to it either. 

This is either the smuttiest romance, or the most romantic smut that I have ever read. I am gonna lean towards calling it the most romantic smut, because really, there is no need to have that much sex in a book unless you are writing a smut. Not that I am complaining. I love a good smut. But I really can't get into a book unless there is a good foundation to the relationship before sex comes into the picture. I have... more 


""So...what's your truth, Logan?" Logan stared at him so intently that Tate wondered what was going on inside his head before he replied, "I think you are," leaving Tate speechless."


This wasn't quite what I had expected but I greatly enjoyed it. I read New Spring first so I expected this to be similar. New Spring was heavily political and focus mostly on magic, mythology, and intrigue. I was totally blown away by it, but I later discovered a lot of people weren't because they expected it to be like the rest of the series. I suppose its a good thing then that I read it first and was able to enjoy it. The Eye of the World had a good deal of magic but very little politics and intrigue. It was primarily an adventure. 

I know this must be simply the introduction to a much grander story, and there were certainly signs of that. With curses and prophecies and chosen ones, this is far from over. I would have known that, even... more


“Whether the bear beats the wolf or the wolf beats the bear, the rabbit always loses.”


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Best Authors Discovered in 2014 


I read two books by Jasinda Wilder this past year. Alpha and Wounded. They were both excellent. Alpha was more erotica, but both had a lot of turmoil and a certain darkness to them. They both explored the darkness of people and what can be forgiven and forgot. How far someone is willing to go for love and their happiness. 

Jasinda created captivating characters for both stories. People who you instantly wanted to know. People you knew had a story to tell. And did they ever. Especially Rania and Valentine. They were both fascinating and complicated characters who had been through a lot, and had done a lot, but who were not bad people and I couldn't help but love. I look forward to reading Alpha's sequel, Beta, in the coming months, and discovering new series by Jasinda Wilder.


Failte is an author who has written 9 stories on FictionPress, four of which are listed on Goodreads. This year I read his story The Girl For Me, which was absolutely amazing. It was a story that explored the relationship between a cross-dressing teenage boy, and a gay-for-you jock. It is one of the best M/M romances that I have ever read. It explores all the emotions involved in young love, not to mention all the addition complications added by Kevin's sexual confusion, and Danny's gender confusion. These two young men went through a lot together and it was one of the most complex yet beautifully simple romances I have ever read.

Anyone who can write such real characters needs more attention. I hope to explore more of Failte's stories in the coming year. 



I read two stories by Shay Savage this year. Transcendence and Otherwise Alone. Otherwise Alone is only a short story, an introduction to a longer series, but it still managed to draw a detailed picture of its characters, and made me care a great deal about what happened to them. 

I am not surprised that the author who created Ehd and Beh can so easily create likable characters for a short. I plan to continue the Evan Arden series in the coming year, as well as discovering new stories by Shay Savage.






I read two stories by Madison Parker this year. Play Me, I'm Yours, and Sock it to Me, Santa! I am pretty sure Sock it to Me, Santa! was one of the most adorable things I have ever read. It was a short I read early last month in preparation for the Christmas season. I loved it so much that I immediately went and bought Play Me, I'm Yours. 

Play Me, I'm Yours is a coming-of-age story more in the vein of Failte's The Girl for Me, but much more light-hearted. It still deals with the issues of sexual identity, teenage insecurities, and new love. It was the beautiful and sometimes painful story of Lucas' journey to discover who he is. Madison really has a way of capturing the innocence of young love.




I have not heard as many good things about Ella Frank's M/F series, but nonetheless I intend to read them. It may be that it took her time to grow into her talent. I suppose I will find out. But I find it hard to believe that the author who brought us Logan and Tate is not a formidable talent. 

The Temptation series is without a doubt my favourite M/M series; as I posted above, my second favourite new series that I discovered in 2014; and Trust is my most anticipated book of 2015. Ella Frank is my favourite discovery of 2014 and I look forward to reading her other works as I impatiently wait for the release of Trust.


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Most Anticipated Books in 2015


 

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I discovered my love of M/M romance in 2014, and it was a glorious discovery. I read my first in July and have not looked back. One of my favourite things about the romance genre in general is the "Love Conquers All" message. I most enjoy stories where a couple have to fight for their right to be together. Whether it be against family, society, or supernatural forces. M/M romance adds a whole new level of struggle through disapproval and self-realization with gay-for-you characters, which is a favourite subgenre of mine. Here are the top 5 reasons why M/M romance is my new love affair.

Best M/M Books Read in 2014 

I picked up this book because I was in the mood to try something new. M/M romance was something I hadn't tried yet and this one was recommended to me. But I ended up enjoying it for mostly different reasons. Fantasy has always been one of my favourite genres so it was pretty easy for me to get into this. I love stories that introduce new worlds to me, and especially worlds with their own mythology and forms of magic.

I enjoyed the idea and the story, but it wasn't as good as it could have been. There are so many things that I still don't understand about what was going on. Who some of the characters were, what their involvement is, what the magic means, who is supposed to have it, and... more


“Giving his life for another means nothing to him, because he can always have more, but for you, he'll give up his soul.”



This story was so sweet! It took a bit for me to adjust to an effeminate MC. I have never read a book like this before. Where the MC is a man, refers to himself as a man and has no problem admitting it, but acts and dresses like a woman. It was a bit jarring at first, until I got used to it and I could see that that is just Carson. It's just who he is and he is wonderful. 

He was also very much like Jet's usual MCs, with low self-esteem and I just could not wait to see him shown his true worth by someone. So enters Eddie, the superintendent of Carson's building, who, when he sees Carson crying over a bad break-up, gives him a single rose from his gardens. Carson cannot resist befriending the man because... more

"Eddie, you can't do this to me. I do nothing for you." 
"That's not true. You make my world bright."



I am really starting to enjoy coming of age/coming out stories. They are so sweet and innocent. I really loved Lucas. He was so vulnerable in the beginning. The kind of person who would have been picked on even if he wasn't gay, just because he was so small and socially awkward. Its really hard to believe how cruel kids can be sometimes. I really hated seeing the things Lucas' classmates did to him. It really wasn't fair. Just because he didn't defend himself and he had a passion for music? Ridiculous. He was such a great person, if they only would have given him a chance. He was smart, and he respected and loved his parents, was an honest and loyal friend to Alex and Trish. And despite all the mistreatment, he admired and loved his brother. I am so glad that he was able to get past it all in the end. I really enjoyed how the... more

"He was usually relaxed when he played. He liked to let himself be swept away from the here and now, but with Zach beside him, brushing his arm when Lucas played the high notes, he was acutely aware of where he was and what he was doing. It was an emotional piece to begin with, now intensified by his feelings for the boy sitting next to him, the physical manifestation of his own dreams of love."



I don't even know where to start. I can't say how much I loved this book. It started out feeling very much like a normal YA contemporary romance. Danny was 16 and Kevin was 17 when they met at a party, despite a few significant changes, it began to progress as expected. Kevin convinced Danny to help him with his homework and they study together after school At this point it felt like a normal "wrong side of the tracks" romance, except they are both boys, and Danny likes to wear dresses.

Kevin and Danny don't get off on the right foot, but from the beginning you can tell Kevin isn't a horrible person. He just hasn't had the right influence. From the sound of things he had some pretty horrible friends, not to mention his father. But once he befriends Danny you see... more


“I just meant that I wish you could just be you. You're great, Danny! You're fuckin' wonderful! Why do you have to be one thing or another? I... I just don't get why its so important to you to call yourself 'boy' or 'girl'!”



This is my 13th M/M book and I absolutely loved it. Only once I had already finished this book did I find out that it was written by an author who had started out as a M/F author, and that this book was what got a lot of people into reading M/M romance in the first place. I am not a veteran of the genre, but I am not new to it either. 

This is either the smuttiest romance, or the most romantic smut that I have ever read. I am gonna lean towards calling it the most romantic smut, because really, there is no need to have that much sex in a book unless you are writing a smut. Not that I am complaining. I love a good smut. But I really can't get into a book unless there is a good foundation to the relationship before sex comes into the picture. I have... more 


“You make me crazy and furious and out of my mind with need, but in the end, you make me so fucking happy.”


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Thank you for reading! And I hope I was able to help send you on the path to wonderful reading in 2015! And I wish you all the best of luck in the new year!

2 comments:

  1. Love what you have done here Rebecca!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you. :) I really appreciate you looking at it. I hope I can help you find some good books for 2015.

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