happy 2010! i’m back from england!
it’s so good to be home safe. holiday fotos
will follow soon! for the past three years,
i’ve shared my reading list as well as my
top five books on my blog. this year is different,
as i’m beginning to read books that are written by
authors i know, some even friends to me! the list
is most definitely predominantly young adult, more
so than all previous years.
so without further ado, these are my top five
favorite reads of 2009!
1. THE KING OF ATTOLIA by megan whalen turner
if you haven’t read the queen’s thief series, why
ever not? one of my 2009 highlights was to meet
megan in person and actually hang out. she’s totally
fun and down to earth, despite her rockstar status.
2. FLASH BURNOUT by l.k. madigan (debut)
i was so so thrilled when i found out lisa
was on the shortlist for morris award! (these
are given to YA debut books only.) i love blake
and this novel satisfied on multiple levels.
3. THE HERETIC QUEEN by michelle moran
i’m a fan of michelle’s historical fiction.
this is my favorite by her with a strong heroine
and a wonderful story. she writes with enough
detail to immerse you in the time and culture but
not so much that you feel lectured to.
4. FIRE by kristin cashore
i enjoyed graceling but liked FIRE even more.
i love seeing more traditional fantasy within
young adult genre!
5. EYES LIKE STARS by lisa mantchev (debut)
such an original and fun debut.
charming and whimsical and i have a crush
on her naughty elemental, ariel! who lisa tells
me looks like daniel henney too, so that never
hurts. =D
here are my favorite reads from 2008 :
1. swordspoint by ellen kushner
2. gifts by ursula le guin
3. paper towns by john green
4. the lady elizabeth by alison weir
5. graceling by kristin cashore (debut)
and from 2007 :
1. the meaning of night by michael cox (debut)
2. american gods by neil gaiman
3. confessions of an ugly stepsister by gregory maguire
4. the blood of flowers by anita amirrezvani (debut)
5. in cold blood by truman capote
below is my complete 2009 reading list, in alphabetical order :
- a conspiracy of kings by megan whalen turner
- ash by malinda lo
- beautiful creatures by kami garcia and margie stohl
- book of a thousand days by shannon hale
- break by hannah moskowitz
- cleopatra’s daughter by michelle moran
- crown duel by sherwood smith
- evermore by alyson noel
- exclusively chloe by j.a. yang
- eyes like stars by lisa mantchev
- faery rebels by r.j. anderson
- fire by kristin cashore
- flash burnout by lk madigan
- forget-her-nots by amy brecount white
- fortune’s folly by deva fagen
- give up the ghost by megan crewe
- hush, hush by becca fitzpatrick
- liar by justine larbalestier
- north of beautiful by justina chen headley
- paris pan takest the dare by cynthea liu
- perfect chemistry by simone elkeles
- prada and prejudice by mandy hubbard
- radiant darkness by emily whitman
- sacred scars by kathleen duey
- shadowed summer by saundra mitchell
- shanghai girls by lisa see
- shiver by maggie stiefvater
- skin hunger by kathleen duey
- soulless by gail carriger
- the absolutely true diary of a part-time indian by sherman alexie
- the adoration of jenna fox by mary pearson
- the demon’s lexicon by sarah rees breenan
- the graveyard book by neil gaiman
- the heretic queen by michelle moran
- the king of attolia by megan whalen turner
- the last queen by c.w. gortner
- the queen of attolia by megan whalen turner
- the season by sarah maclean
- the stolen one by suzanne crowley
- the thief by megan whalen turner
- theodosia and the serpents of chaos by r. l. lafevers
13 Comments
I totally agree with Flash Burnout!
Good books! There are some sequels coming out this year that I want to read. When is yours due?
Wow I haven’t read any of the books in your top 5 list :( But I want to and this just furthers my resolve! I also want to read Souless, Shanghai Girls and Exclusively Chloe.
I loved Ash, Liar, Perfect Chemistry, North of Beautiful and of course, Silver Phoenix :)
martha, i lean so heavily toward loving fantasy and historicals more, so the fact that i adored FB is that much more endorsement for how fantastic it is!
sherrie, my sequel is out fall 2010!
missA, awesome! i think reading tastes are so personal and there are so many great books out there. fantastic “problem” to have! i also loved all the books you mentioned!!! some would be in my top 10. =)
Cindy, THANK YOU!!! I’m honored.
One of my 2010 goals is to finally read Megan Whalen Turner. With your recommendation … I can’t wait to get started.
xo
I’m glad I saw this – I read The Thief and Queen of Attolia a few years ago, but hadn’t realized that there was a third! To the bookstore!! :]
lisa!! pleasure was mine! =D
jen, yes! please do read The King of Attolia! and megan’s fourth book, A Conspiracy of Kings is out in the spring!
Flash Burnout and Eyes Like Stars are on my TBR list, so I’m excited to see them both in your top five–woot!
Gosh, a top five list is so hard! Let’s see, my YA list from 2009 would include:
The Hunger Games
Catching Fire
Shadow Kiss
Story of a Girl
The Perks of Being a Wallflower
A close runner-up is this book by some bootay shakin’ author called Silver Phoenix–ever heard of that one? :) Pretty amazing testament to that book, since I rarely read/enjoy straight fantasy. Looking forward to the sequel soon!
Fun post, Cindy–thanks!
aww, thanks debra!
reading is so personal, isn’t it?
my lists reflect my strong leanings
toward fantasy and historicals, i think.
Eyes Like Stars was also in my top 5, as was Silver Phoenix :o) With Beautiful Creatures and Prophecy of the Sisters and Willow. http://www.iheartmonster.com/2009/12/ihm-top-5-of-2009.html
Happy New Year!!
WOW Cindy. I’m honored to be a part of your top five list. Thank you!
SILVER PHOENIX was absolutely one of my favorite reads this year. I am very much looking forward to the sequel!!!!!
michelle, the pleasure is all mine! and was so happy to meet you and your handsome hub at my OC signing! a highlight!! dont know why i didn’t take a foto w you. =( boo.
I’ve read Michelle Moran’s Cleopatra’s Daughter and loved it–I think I’m going to have to read The Heretic Queen now after your glowing review of it :)