Top 13 Books of 2013

These are 13 of my favorite books I read this year.  I believe that most of these were published in 2013 but I don't think they all were.  All right, I'm going to jump right in! (They're in no particular order).

Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan.  I read this book just after Christmas, which was the perfect time to read it.  I was in the Christmas mood, there was some snow on the ground, and this story just warmed my heart right up.

Wonder by R. J. Palacio.  This book is about a boy with a facial deformity going to school for the first time, and I absolutely loved it (like all of the books on this list).  I thought the characters were great, the story, and just everything.  I definitely recommend it, and it even got the bi-yearly book award at my school.

Legend by Marie Lu.  The first book in a dystopian trilogy, the idea intrigued me and it took me forever to actually buy it.  I am so happy I bought this and wish I had bought it sooner, I haven't read the rest of the series but I own them and hope to read them soon!

Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J. K. Rowling.   I just read the Harry Potter series over the summer and I had to include my favorite one.

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins.  This story is so amazing, it gushes and oozes romance.  It takes place in Paris (my favorite place on Earth) and is about a girl who meets a boy and romance and drama ensue; go read.

The Fault in Our Stars by John Green.  My first John Green book.  Phenomenal, can't wait for the movie in June.  (Do I seriously need to tell you what this book is about?)

Coffeehouse Angel by Suzanne Selfors.  This book is about a girl who's grandmother owns an old-fashioned coffee shop that's going out of business.  One day the main character meets an angel that grants her one wish.  Can she save the coffee shop or has new-fangled ways taken over?  This book was great and I really liked it; highly recommended.

The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey.  A young adult fantasy novel about aliens; this book is the first in a trilogy with the second book coming out later in 2014.  This book was so interesting, and I can't wait for The Infinite Sea.

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell.  An adorable love story about two misfits.  That's all I have to say; oh, and Rainbow Rowell is amazing.

The Darkest Minds by Alexandra Bracken.  A new sci-fi/dystopian series where one day kids wake up with super powers.  I didn't read Never Fade yet, but I have it waiting on my kindle!

The House of Hades by Rick Riordan.  The fourth installment of the Heroes of Olympus series.  If you haven't read this or the Percy Jackson series you need to go now, because they are absolutely amazing.  Percy is absolutely hilarious and a wonderful main character, and the story is just brilliant.  I'm (im)patiently waiting for The Blood of Olympus. *cough* I need it now *cough*

The Book of Broken Hearts by Sarah Ockler.  This book was so sweet and was truly amazing.  Don't let the title fool you, this story is not only a romance it also deals with family relationships.  In this book Jude's dad has early on-set Alzheimer's and this book is about Jude learning to cope with that and the journey she goes on.

Fracture by Megan Miranda.  This cover intrigued me as well as the blurb on the back (you have to read it in a really cool voice to add effect):

A lot can happen in eleven minutes.  Decker can run two miles in eleven minutes.  I once wrote an English essay in ten.  No lie.  And God knows Carson Levine can talk a girl out of her clothes in half that time. 

Eleven minutes might as well be eternity underwater.  It only takes three minutes without air for loss of consciousness.  Permanent brain damage begins at four minutes.  And then, when the oxygen runs out, full cardiac arrest occurs.  Death is possible at five minutes. Probable at seven.  Definite at ten. 

Decker pulled me out at eleven...

That really intrigued me, especially because these kinds of medical phenomenas do occur.  Even though that is possible, the book does include some magical realism elements.  Highly enjoyable, and definitely recommend it.

All right, those are my favorite books from 2013, and don't judge me for not including Fangirl because I haven't read it yet!  Hope you all had an amazing start to your years and your New Year's resolutions if you made any.  Leaving you with a quote from Brad Paisley (even though the new year already started) ... 

"Tomorrow is the first blank page of a 365 page book.  Write a good one."

Bout of Books Read-a-thon Goals

As you all now, I'm participating in the Bout of Books read-a-thon!  The read-a-thon starts on Monday January 6th and goes until January 12th.  Hopefully during the read-a-thon I'll be able to finish the Legend and Divergent series.  I also have a bunch of books en route to my house, and hopefully I can read them if they get here in time.  Good luck to all participating in the read-a-thon, I'll be posting soon with my favorite books from 2013.  Happy Holidays and Happy Reading!

Fall Book Haul

These are all of the books that I've bought since school started.  Some of them I've read and reviewed already, others I have not.  The first handful of books I purchased at my school book fair a few weeks ago, and the rest are from Barnes & Noble.

Perks of Being a Wallflower- I've heard many good things about this book, but it was given my attention because of a project I've been working on in school.  In my English class, we are having a debate about Book Banning, and Perks is one of the most challenged books of 2013.  For this debate I was chosen to advocate for book banning, which is difficult because this is not my personal opinion, nor is it the opinion of anyone chosen to be on the School Board for our mock-Debate.  Anyway it's a challenge I'm willing to take on, wish me luck!

Clockwork Prince- This is the second book in the Infernal Devices Trilogy by Cassandra Clare.  I have not read this series yet, but I can't wait to get Clockwork Princess so I can just marathon them!

Unnatural Creatures- This book is by Neil Gaiman and I have only heard wonderful things about him, so when I was at my school book fair and saw this book I didn't hesitate to pick it up.

Allegiant- The third book in the Divergent series by Veronica Roth, I haven't read Insurgent yet but I hope to read both of them by the New Year.

Etiquette & Espionage- This book is by Gail Carriger, and I have already read it.  It was really interesting and was the first steam punk book I've read.  All in all a great experience and I definitely recommend it to people looking for something new.

Fangirl- I'm a huge fan of Rainbow Rowell after reading Eleanor & Park so I can't wait to read Fangirl!

Paper Towns- This is a John Green book that was given to me by one of my friends for my birthday, and I can't wait to read it.

An Abundance of Katherines- Another book from my school book fair, and another book by John Green.  Ever since I started watching the vlogbrothers on YouTube, I've been trying to get my hands on John Green's books and now I can't wait to read them!

Day of Doom- The final book in the second arc of the 39 Clues series, this book is written by David Baldacci who is one of my dad's favorite authors, so I can't wait to read this one either.

Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy-  This book is the second book in the Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter which is about a girl who goes to a boarding school for spies.  Not only that, but her mother is the headmaster so she has a lot to live up to.

Legend- This book is by Marie Lu, and I read it at the beginning of the school year and I absolutely loved it.  It was so amazing and I recommend it to everyone and anyone that reads books.

Prodigy- The second book in the Legend series by Marie Lu, I have not had a chance to read it yet abd would like to read it before the New Year.

Champion- The final book in the Legend Trilogy by Marie Lu, and I really want to read this!

Psych Guide to Crime Fighting for the Totally Unqualified-  This book is absolutely amazing.  It was given to me by a friends for my birthday and I haven't had the chance to read it yet, but I have skimmed.  And boy have I enjoyed what I skimmed, this book is a must-have for any Psych fans!

Rikki Tikki Tavi- This is a fable that was given to me by a friend for my birthday.  It is about a mongoose and two king cobras.

House of Hades- This book is the fourth book in the Heroes of Olympus series by Rick Riordan, and I read it in October.  I am a huge fan of Rick Riordan's, I was first introduced to him in third grade with The 39 Clues series and have been reading his books ever since.  I can't wait until next October when the final book in the Heroes of Olympus series comes out, The Blood of Olympus.

Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea-  This book started off really promising with an amazing cover and an intriguing plot, but there were some things that left me unsatisfied.  The second book in this duology comes out next year, and I'm not sure what's going to happen but I'm excited to find out.

A quick update on my New Year's Countdown: It's not going well.  I have finished one book so I need to read thirteen more in nine days.  I have changed my "TBR" a little bit, and have decided to re-read the Percy Jackson series since I love them so much and they were really quick reads.  I've been in a little bit of a reading slump lately and hopefully this will help me out!

My New Year's Countdown

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Since I'm really behind on my GoodReads 2013 Reading Challenge, I have decided to do a New Year's Countdown.  There are fourteen days until the new year, and I have fourteen books left to read.  So that's one book per day.  Now I'm going to share for you the books I plan on reading, and hopefully reviewing after!

1. Who Done It? by Jon Scieszka

2. Winter's Child by Cameron Dokey

3. Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy by Ally Carter

4. Day of Doom by David Baldacci

5. Prodigy by Marie Lu

6. Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

7. Paper Towns by John Green

8. Champion by Marie Lu

9. An Abundance of Katherines by John Green

10. The Darkest Minds Never Fade by Alexandra Bracken

11. Insurgent by Veronica Roth

12. Allegiant by Veronica Roth

13. Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

14. Wintertown by Stephen Emond

Keep in mind these books are not set in stone and are subject to change especially depending on the books I receive for Christmas.  If you're like me and are behind on your Reading Challenge or Goal for 2013 then join in on my New Year's Countdown.

Bout of Books Read-A-Thon 9.0

Hello, everybody!  I'm back from the dead.  I'm not going to give you guys excuses for not posting in about a month, and I'm not going to promise to update on Wednesday.  But... I am going to try to update more often.  I'm starting to get back on track with school work and reading, and I'm really excited about some of the books I got recently.  I hope to do a book haul, and share my New Year's Countdown with you guys!

This post is to tell you guys that I'm doing Bout of Books again!  I can't wait to do this read-a-thon and it's perfectly timed for I'm sure I'll be getting lots of books for Christmas.  Go sign up if you want to participate too and for those of you who don't know what Bout of Books is continue reading for the official blurb.

The Bout of Books read-a-thon is organized by Amanda @ On a Book Bender and Kelly @ Reading the Paranormal. It is a week long read-a-thon that begins 12:01am Monday, January 6th and runs through Sunday, January 12th in whatever time zone you are in. Bout of Books is low-pressure, and the only reading competition is between you and your usual number of books read in a week. There are challenges, giveaways, and a grand prize, but all of these are completely optional. For all Bout of Books 9.0 information and updates, be sure to visit the Bout of Books blog. - From the Bout of Books team

Okay guys, I'll try to post more often.  Comment what book you guys are hoping to get for Christmas, what books you got for Hannukah, or for any other holiday you may celebrate.  Happy Holidays!