100 Books In One Year: Best Of

Friday, February 02, 2018

So, I didn't quite make it to 100 books. I did get to 96, though, so I'm pretty happy with how it all turned out.
I got to wondering, though, which books on my list were the best (in my opinion, anyway) and here are my results. It was hard to choose when there were so many good books for me to read this past year, but after a while, I finally came to a conclusion.
Here we go...

Science Fiction/Dystopian

Replication, by Jill Williamson

Okay, so I'll be honest- this was the only Sci-fi/Dystopian book I read all year. But hey, it was a really good read, and I probably would have given it the "best" title anyway. Ms. Williamson has such an imaginative mind, and I love how unique her stories can be. Martyr's tale of escape and trying to stay alive and away from his captors who are bent on taking him to his former underground life kept me reading and reading until the end.

Contemporary Fiction

Salty Kisses by Robin Jones Gunn

Basically, any book of Robin Jones Gunn's will probably make it into this category. Her books are just so good. I feel as if I'm reading about a real-life couple I've known for years who are living in California. I've been following Christy's story from age eleven- from 15-year-old Christy's first meeting (and crush) with Todd and move to CA, to her first job, college, overseas schooling, and more. I'm not sure how much farther Christy and Todd's story can go, but I'm not ready for it to end!

Children's Fiction

The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

You can't beat The Hobbit. You just can't. I'd already read it once before, but I felt it was time for a re-read, and it reminded me just how much I love the story, and why I love it. Tolkien infuses humor, danger, adventure, sorrow and inspiration into his stories, and Bilbo is such a funny, relatable little guy, you just have got to like him. I think Tolkien was so good at what he did partly because of his experiences in the war- he used stalwart soldiers who doubted their bravery but saved the day in the end as his inspiration. You can read more about it in one of the other books I've awarded below.

Non-fiction

A Hobbit, a Wardrobe and a Great War by Joseph Loconte

Ordinarily, I may find a book like this slightly dull. Several times I had to read a paragraph or sentence over again, as it could be slightly confusing, and all the talk of war and tactics and leaders and things would normally bore me. But besides all that, I was happily surprised to find out how much I enjoyed Joseph Loconte's book. As you can tell from the title, it's about the lives of J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis and their part in World War I, and being a fan of theirs, I found it extremely interesting to read about their experiences. It was really eye-opening to see how terrible the war was, and how much it impacted Lewis and Tolkien's stories. It just made me love their classic books even more, and I definitely recommend it for all fans of Tolkien and Lewis.

Inspirational Non-fiction

The Chase by Kyle and Kelsey Kupecky

I got to see the two authors at a conference the other year, and had such a great (and encouraging) time. This is a book about dating/relationships, and I know you've probably seen a lot of those, but this one is probably one of my favorites by far. Kyle and Kelsey are such young, relatable couple, and their writing was very engaging. I also loved how they would take turns sharing stories and giving out advice, and the slightly fairy-tale-ish theme was great, of course, as well.

Fantasy

By Darkness Hid by Jill Williamson

Unique plot and story line, interesting characters, a new (and pretty cool) fantasy element called "bloodvoicing"... while the writing style wasn't my favorite, the rest of the elements of the book made it a great read. Looking forward to finding out what will happen in the rest of the series!

Classic

Okay, a word beforehand. There is just no way I can only do one book in the "classic" section. I tried, but there is a reason they're called "classics". So here you go- not one, but two classic literature stories that were my favorite in 2017.

I Will Repay by Baroness Orczy

I just love the Scarlet Pimpernel, and the rest of the series is proving to be almost as good. I mean, there's lots of adventure, romance, a Robin Hood figure during the French Revolution who saves others from the guillotine (usually just in the nick of time). I Will Repay was a great read, and if you're a fan of the classics, I think you'll enjoy it.

Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

I loved getting to read a Jane Austen book before seeing the movie (truly a rare thing) and really enjoyed this novel. The romance? It was so-so. Good. But the story in and of itself was what I liked the most. Classics are the best, aren't they?

New for 2017

The One True Love of Alice-Ann by Eva Marie Everson

Eva Marie Everson's novel was so sweet, nostalgic, and romantic (and it was WWII!!!) I had to include it in a category. Seriously, if you like (or, like me, love) WWII novels- or just a sweet read- this one may be for you.

Historical

A Name Unknown by Roseanna M. White

I loved this author to begin with, but this book was, in my opinion, better than all her previous ones. The camaraderie and playful teasing between Rosemary and her street family, as well as her romance with wealthy, quiet Peter, captured my attention from page one.

Suspense

If I'm Found by Terri Blackstock

Again, I have to admit that this is the only book in the genre I read during 2017. But I know, since the book was so good, I'd have given it the "best suspense" title anyway. Seriously, I'm not normally one for this genre (have only read about 3 books of it in my life), but for some reason I decided to try this series and I've really enjoyed it. It's edge-of-your-seat action about a girl wrongly accused of murder and running from some corrupt lawmen. Book three, If I Live, is set to come out soon, and I'll finally get to see what will happen and how Casey's story will end.

Teen Fiction

The Lost Girl of Astor Street by Stephanie Morill

I've said in past posts that I have a problem with teenage fiction, and it's true. A lot of the genre out there is just really romance-y, the characters feel somewhat childish, and there's not a lot of inspirational content-----but there are some out there that deserve to be mentioned, not just for being a good teen book, but just a good book in general. This is one of them. Set in the 1920's, it's the story of Piper Sail, an independent girl whose life is changed when her best friend goes missing. Not content to sit idly by while the police do their investigation, she decides to do a little sleuthing on her own. It will take her into the worst parts of Chicago, but Piper's love for her friend show just how far one will go when a person you love goes missing.

Best Overall out of all these....My #1 Book of the Year...
A Name Unknown by Roseanna M. White

This book combined so many things I love- a Robin Hood/Charles Dickens feel, characters who love books, humor, romance, adventure, WWI. It was a hard choice to decide which read was the best for me, but in the end I went with this one because of how much I loved it and how excited I am for the rest of the series. Roseanna M. White is definitely an author on my watch list!

So, what about you? Have you read any of these? What would you say were your favorite books of 2017?

(As a side note, sorry if the font sizes and layout are a bit messed up- it looked great in my drafts, but blogger is messing it up for some reason)

4 Comments

Korin

4 lovely thoughts

Chloe the MovieCriticFebruary 12, 2018 at 7:27 PM
Whoa! You read so many books in 2017!

I love The Hobbit, and all things Narnia, so I think I would like that book on Tolkien and Lewis.

Northanger Abbey was the only Jane Austen book I read before I saw a movie version of. *hides in shame* I didn't mean it to be the only one, but, oh well.

A Name Unknown sounds sssssoooo good!!

Your blog is great! :)
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KorinFebruary 14, 2018 at 5:22 AM
Haha yeah, I love to read. :)

Yes, you should try the Tolkien and Lewis book! It really showed me how WWI shaped their lives and books.

Same here, although I guess my mom did read the abridged version of P&P to me when I was younger, before I saw the mini series. Not reading them kept the suspense of "how is it going to end?" in the movies, but still, the books are so good! I kind of wish I'd read them first.

Yes, A Name Unknown was really good! I'm in love with the series right now. :)

And thank you! I'm glad you stopped by.
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Hamlette (Rachel)February 14, 2018 at 7:45 AM
A Hobbit, a Wardrobe and a Great War is on my TBR pile and I hope to read it this year. I also loved If I Run and am saving book 2 until book 3 is out so I can inhale them together. Northanger Abbey is one of my fave Austen books, and I'm planning to reread it in a couple months. I actually did a post here on my book blog about my favorite reads from 2017, if you're interested!

MovieCritic, don't feel bad -- I see movie versions of lots of books before I read them. No shame in that! The good thing is that you DO read them ;-)
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