Faves of 2013

I had a great reading year in 2013. I discovered a bunch of new fave authors and fell in love with some surprising books. I think my reading taste is mostly the same but it has changed in two ways:

1. I give up on books that are not clicking with me far quicker than in the past. If I am not into it, I don't persevere, and I attempted and abandoned at least 50 books in 2013 (some of them I was over 50% into). This makes it hard for me to say exactly how many books I read last year as so many were returned to my library unfinished or still sit on my kindle half read. I do know I completed 100 fiction books :)

2. I am drawn to more cruise-y, relaxing books lately. This is (I am sure) in direct correlation with how many academic texts I am reading for uni. I am so mentally exhausted after study that I don't have the energy to invest in dense and complicated works. I really enjoyed some light fiction and found some new faves that I may not have loved as much in the past but they were perfect for me in 2013.

My picks are a mix of really amazing books, and also books that I just really enjoyed reading :)

Top Nine picks -- in no particular order

 The Vanishing Moment by Margaret Wild

Loved this so much. Margaret Wild is amazing and this book was really different and completely touching and I loved everything about it <3

 All The Truth That's in Me by Julie Berry

This was not at all what I expected ~ it's gorgeous and heart-breaking and lyrical and has this beautiful, stomach-hurting love story and page-turning mystery. I so highly recommend you check this book out.

The Husband's Secret by Liane Moriarty

I love all of Liane's work and this book was her most addictive, most page-turningly suspenseful yet. I can't wait to see this on the Big screen! Liane is a genius and, IMO, one of Australia's finest writers :)

 Paper Chains by Nicola Moriarty

Gorgeous and sad and serendipitous and completely absorbing. I loved this story and it's characters and it's message. I am so looking forward to more Nicola Moriarty ~ she's amazing and writes exactly the kind of books I love to curl up and read <3

 Haze by Paula Weston

I trust by now you all know how much I love this series -- I am a huge advocate for the Aussie YA, upper YA paranormal series. Shadows (book one) was a surprise love for me in 2012 and the best news is Haze amps it up and is even better. This was ridiculously good and ticked all my boxes (especially the swoon/crush aspect). I love these characters so much and I especially love that I have no idea where Weston plans to take her readers with this series.

 If He Had Been With Me by Laura Nowlin

I loved this book so much. Autumn is a gorgeous narrator and I stayed up past 2am to finish it off. This was a sleeper hit which made it all the more awesome. I am so hoping Laura Nowlin has more for us soon!

Swimming At Night by Lucy Clarke

(Also published as The Sea Sisters). I just loved so much about this UK debut. The travel and surfing and Australia and Bali and the twists and turns were compelling and absorbing. Can't wait for more.

 Wildlife by Fiona Wood

Fiona Wood is amazing and Wildlife is a funny, sad, captivating, hopeful and touching stand-out. Bonus: camping (one of my fave settings).

The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton

I've read all of Kate Morton's work and this one is easily my favourite yet. It took a little bit to get into the book but it was so completely worth it. This mystery is stunning and the review/twist is outstanding (I did not see it coming). I love how her stories haunt the reader long after the last page has been turned.






And some bonus recommendations (because I couldn't choose which book to award the tenth spot to)

The Distance Between Us by Kasie West -- for giving me a late-read-into-the-middle-of-the-night good time (light hearted and swoony!)

Between the Lives by Jessica Shirvington -- for surprising me and sucking me in and delivering a truly captivating story with a lot of heart and depth.

The Sky So Heavy by Claire Zorn -- love this Aussie YA debut set in the Blue Mountains (my hometown :)). The plot is compelling and the characters felt real -- this is one for fans of Tomorrow, When the World Began.

Life in Outer Space by Melissa Keil -- for all the smiles and good times. Such a lovable and fun read.

You Had Me At Hello by Mhairi McFarlane A UK chick-lit novel that was just the right blend of fun and swoon and humour and heart.

Champion by Marie Lu -- for the brilliant ending and June and Day <3

Here's to another brilliant reading year in 2014!

Are any of my faves also faves of yours? 

(I just snuck this post in in January, haha. Winning!)

Highlights of my reading year so far (Top 6 Faves)

Yesterday I shared a bunch of highlights from my reading year so far. I tried to make a top ten, but I found it so hard to narrow things down and my list kept overflowing all over the place. However, I wanted to highlight six books that I just really loved:

Two Aussie YA Books

My review of Haze I just love Gaby and Rafa and the way Weston has created her world. So much sexual tension and mystery and reveals and twists and emotion. A really fun, addictive read.

My review of Wildlife Wood's writing is amazing. I fell in love with her character's and I know this book will be a lifelong fave <3

Two Australian adult fiction

My review of Paper Chains I loved the whimsy and the depth of sorrow all mingled up in this one.

My review of The Husband's Secret Oh my gosh, this book by Liane was just so. good. She's amazing and brilliant and my perfect kind of writer.

Two debuts <3 (One contemporary YA and one UK contemporary)

My review of If He Had Been With Me LOVED. I've already reread this.

Swimming at Night. (haven't reviewed!). I love how Clarke captured this story. The travel. The sisters. The travel journal. The surf. Australia! Bali! The foreshadowing and twists and mystery and reveals. A gorgeously written debut, can't wait for more :)

So there's my top 6 faves so far. I also have a post coming up this week on books I am really looking forward to in the second half of this year. So much goodness coming up!

If you had to pick one book you loved this year to recommend to me, what would it be?

If He Had Been With me by Laura Nowlin

Throughout their whole childhood, Finny and Autumn were inseperable - they finished each other's sentences, they knew just what to say when the other person was hurting. But one incident in middle school puts them in separate social worlds come high school, and Autumn has always wondered what if...

The night she's about to get the answer is also one of terrible tragedy. 

It has been a long time since I have fallen so hard for a contemporary YA novel. I have barely heard of any buzz surrounding Laura Nowlin's debut. I ordered it on a whim, not really sure what to expect. I liked the cover, the premise sounded like my kind of thing and I always like the chase of finding a YA book free of preconceived hopes and praise. 

I was unprepared for just how good this book is, easily my favourite YA book of the year so far and it now sits on my favourites shelf.

Nowlin is a born storyteller. And this book differs from other YA books as it spans over three years of Autumn's life (told in the present, but it also encapsulated much more than that with memories and flashbacks). I love the time span of this novel, it stretched ahead of me and wrapped itself around me and I was entirely absorbed into Autumn's world.

This is a YA coming-of-age love story, but not in that swoony, predictable way. It hit me harder than a just the regular dreamy smile for the hot guy next door (and Finny is a hot boy living next door): I felt it right through to my stomach and to my chest constricting as I watched August and Finny together. The things left unsaid, the memories swirling around them, hope's dashed, future's uncertain. 

Nowlin so perfectly captures that teen voice: the misunderstandings between teenagers, the things unsaid, the dreams, the doubts, the wildly good times and also snatches of depression. I love Autumn as she felt so real. no aspect of her was gimmicky. She was fully nuanced, so gorgeous and bold and different without ever falling into a YA cliché and I loved seeing the world from her eyes. She was the perfect blend of confident and unsure. Nothing was black and white: I loved all the shades of grey in her feelings and everything that was going on in her world. I loved her for her fairytale hopes all mashed up with trying to face reality. For her love of reading and her uncompromising stance on who she was, even as she was trying to figure out the very same thing. 

And, oh, how I love the history of her relationship with Finny. There are a lot of flashbacks and memories and I never grew tired of it. I felt included in their lives. Finny himself is now one of my most favourite YA boys, not just as a gorgeous love interest, but for who he was. 

If He Had Been With Me has it's own unique vibe. The prose sometimes has it's own jaunty little rhythm, other times passages are so so poignant and heartfelt that my chest constricted. The writing was deeply personal, holding nothing back. 

With such a lush scope of three years plus, Nowlin explores so many experiences: friendships, cliques, first love, divorce, mental health, sex, all those gorgeous moments caught between the mystery and promise of adulthood looming ahead while thinking back on childhood. 

The thing about this book is it just kept getting better and better. For me, it was like meeting a new friend, and liking them, and then getting to know them until they become one of those lifelong besties that you cannot imagine life without. I liked Autumn so much from the outset, but she grew on me, exponentially so, as did her friends, her mum (and aunty) and, of course, Finny and now I just have this love for them and I know I won't ever be forgetting this gorgeous, beautiful and achey story. 

For discussion: I would have preferred the book without the prologue chapter. The writing itself pulled me into the story, that and the promise of what was to come - I did not need such a dramatic hook. I also am not a fan of the blurb that's on GR. I think it changes the reading experience (luckily, I did not read the blurb on that site - which is also used on most bloggers review posts, amazon, etc - and only read the back cover of the book). The ending felt rushed, then abrupt. I think I needed a tiny bit longer to linger in the story, to make sense of it all, but I understand what Nowlin was trying to do. 

I can't stop thinking about this story. I am crazily excited to fall this hard for a debut author and cannot wait to read more of Nowlin's work (understatement). I have a new absolute favourite book, so much passages bookmarked. I have so much love for this book and hope it falls into many hands. I envy those readers their first time reading experience waiting before them. LOVE

(Confession: I stayed up until 4.30am to finish this one. My only regret is it's already over...)

Perfect Theme Song: The Special Two by Missy Higgins (love this song so much, love Autumn and Finny)