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Monday, December 19, 2011
The Year in Reading: Books Published in 2011
You may or may not be aware that I have a book blog. It’s not hidden or secret (See! Links! Over there in the sidebar!) it’s just separate from here for organization purposes. It exists primarily to help me keep track of what I’ve read and the publication order of stories.
I don’t want to recreate the material from my reading blog, but I would like do an overview of what I read, and give you a quick idea of what I think about that book or series.
This first post is a look at books published in 2011. You’ll notice that the overwhelming majority of these books are a part of a series. Luckily, almost all can be read as stand alone books and there are no cliffhangers involved.
Urban/Supernatural Fantasy Series
(Cal Leandros) (Review: 10)
Cal is half-monster, but thanks to his brother Niko, he remains human. Although this is a supernatural fantasy series, with lots of monsters and ass-kicking, at its core it is the story of the love Cal and Niko have for each other, and the lengths to which they will go to protect one another. Only, you know, not mushy with terms like love but instead with manly ass-kickings and rude remarks and big guns.
If you have not read previous books in the series, you can readily start here, though if you do, you don’t want to miss out on the awesomeness that is the past books.
Kitty’s Greatest Hits (Review: 9)
Kitty’s Big Trouble (Review: 7)
Kitty is a public radio DJ and also a werewolf who was–against her will–outed to the public mid series, and following that outing, the world has been scrambling to come to terms with the existence of were-wolves and wondering what other creatures they thought were imaginary are really out there.
Kitty’s Greatest Hits collects the various Kitty short stories that were published in various anthologies. If you’d like an introduction to Kitty, I’d read the first couple stories in the series, but then go back and start at book one. Although you can read the stories independently of the series, you’ll learn of some important things without the background of how those things happened. As I love short stories, it was good to get this collection, for the stories that I missed in their original anthologies.
Kitty’s Big Trouble takes Kitty out to discover whether certain historical figures were actually werewolves (or even undead).
October Daye is a changeling knight for the Faerie court who worked for years as a private investigator, however, an attack removes her from the world for thirteen years, and when she returns, her mortal life is lost to her.
Although each story are is complete within each book, each successive story builds upon the history of the previous books, so you’d probably want to start at the beginning and read forward.
Necromancer: A Novella (Review: 8.5)
This has been available as a free eNovella, and I highly recommend it. It’s a story that’s tied into the book Hold Me Closer Necromancer, which was published last year, and which I really like.
Check out the novella (it’s a free Kindle book after all) and that’ll give you an idea of whether you want to read the full length book. What I particularly liked was that the novella did not require any knowledge of the other book, and in fact the main character in the novella doesn’t appear in the book.
Eye of the Tempest (Review: 8.5)
Tempest’s Legacy (Review: 8.5)
The Jane True series is a lot of fun. It also contains a lot of boinking and talking and thinking about boiking, but I love how the main character has a sense of humor about everything and she usually feels real. Take the following passage.
…I wiped my nose on his shirt. I was snotty from crying and he was already filthy. It wasn’t ideal but he was holding me so tight I couldn’t move my arms.
“Did you just wipe your nose on me?” he asked, finally. His voice was tight with various emotions, but “oh no you didn’t” had clawed it’s way to the top of the list.
“Maybe,” I mumbled, peering up at him.
That just made me fall in love with the heroine.
This is another series where–although each book is a self-contained story arc–there is so much story and character development over the course of the series, you’ll want to start at the beginning and move your way forward.
Fate’s Edge (The Edge) (Review: 8.5)
Magic Slays (Kate Daniels) (Review: 8)
Although both of these books are written by Ilona Andrews, they are set in two very different worlds.
The Kate Daniels story takes place in our future, where magic comes and goes in waves, and has destroyed much of the technology upon which the modern world was based. It also allowed monsters like vampires and weres to become visible and take positions of power (of some sort) in the world. These story has been running longer (five books) and is an adventure with some elements of romance.
The books in the Edge series are first and foremost romances, but the world building has not been neglected. Here, magic realms exist simultaneously with the modern world, but for the most part magical realms are unreachable to ordinary people, and those with strong magic cannot reach the ordinary realms. Those who can go back and forth tend to live on the Edge–lands between the two worlds.
The Kate Daniels books should probably be read in order, although (as is my preference) each book contains a complete story arc. But Kate’s growth through the series, and the changes in her world make starting from the beginning a good idea.
The Edge series are also self contained, and each book focuses on a different set of characters. Although characters appear in each others books, knowing the past of one character isn’t required to read another character’s story.
Mercy Blade (Jane Yellowrock) (Review: 8)
This is another post apocalyptic series, where mages and werewolves and vampires are now public figures. Jane Yellowrock hunts and destroys rogue vampires. She also has an extremely secret past that will probably get her killed if anyone finds out about it. I particularly like the physics and biology of shape shifting. Although each book is a self-contained story, this is another series where you should start at the beginning and work your way forward.
Uncertain Allies (Connor Grey) (Review: 7)
This is the fifth book in Mark del Franco’s Connor Grey series. Faerie has invaded the modern world, and druids and other fae creatures and monsters have to learn to get along with the humans who had all forgotten their existence. Connor was a powerful druid until an attack leaves him unable to use most of his powers. This series looks at how he deals with those losses, the friends he’s made in the interim, and how the world deal with the return of faerie.
Don’t start here–way to much has gone on in previous books to sum up neatly this far into the series.
This Side of the Grave (Night Huntress) (Review: 7)
I actually have the next book in this series sitting on a shelf waiting to be read. These books are definitely boiking books, but they’re also about a lasting love and commitment between the two characters, despite everything that befalls them. As the series progresses and the characters become an item, they actually deal with the the issues any couple in a long term relationship would have. Except, of course, usually people are trying to kill them.
Cat was born a half-vampire, and wants nothing more than to destroy the very creatures who made her what she is. Bones is a century old vampire whose job it is to remove rogue vampires who are acting in a way that may expose the existence of ghouls and vampires to the world.
As with almost all the series I read, each book is self contained, but this is another where you’ll probably want to start at the beginning and move your way forward.
Kiss Me, Kill Me: A Paranormal Anthology (Review: 6)
A $0.99 eBook. Not bad for the price, but there were some particularly bad stories in with the good.
Ghost of a Smile (Ghost Finders) (Review: 5)
I love Simon R. Green’s Nightside series, but I cannot for the life of me get into his other series (serieses?) My recommendation is to skip this series entirely, and read Nightside instead.
Steampunk
This was a steampunk romance that wasn’t bad, but I can’t say it was one of my favorite books of the year.
Phoenix Rising (Ministry of Peculiar Occurrences) (Review: 6)
Another Steampunk romance, this one is apparently the start of a series that I won’t be continuing.
Comics
Rose Red Bill Willingham, Mark Buckingham, Steve Leialoha, Inaki Miranda, Andrew Pepoy, Dan Green (Review: 8)
I have friends who don’t like or get Fables, but 15 volumes in I’m still loving the story.
If you’re not familiar with the series, I do not recommend starting here, but instead picking up 1001 Night of Snowfall, which is a stand alone book in the series.
Another option would be to pick up Peter & Max which is actually a Fables novel. Either of those should give you a good idea as to whether Fables is for you or not.
Edie Ernst – USO Singer: Allied Spy Brooke McElowney (Review: 9.5)
If you read 9 Chickweed Lane, this collects the story arc in which Juliette and Edda discover that Gram (Juliette’s mother) was a USO spy during WWII. It’s also the story of how Edna met and fell in love with Juliette’s father.
You can read the story online if you want, but I highly recommend splurging for the book.
Broken House of Cards Matt Wagner, Amy Reeder, Richard Friend, Joelle Jones (Review: 9)
Extra-Sensory Matt Wagner, Marley Zarcone, Laurenn McCubbin, Chrissie Zullo, Celia Calle, Marian Churchland (Review: 8)
I know little to nothing of the character of Madame Xanadu aside from what is contained in the volumes of her new series, but I have still very much enjoyed this series.
The first volume is pretty much a requirement, since it tells you Nimune’s past, but after that it shouldn’t matter as much if you read in order or not.
Agatha Heterodyne and the Guardian Muse (Review: 8)
Agatha H and the Airship City by Phil and Kaja Foglio (Review: 7)
Phil and Kaja Foglio have spent years writing their on-line steampunk comic Girl Genius and then publishing volumes once they get enough material.
Agatha Heterodyne and the Guardian Muse is the latest volume in the graphic novel, while Agatha H and the Airship City is the first three volumes of the series as a novel.
I think I prefer the graphic novel, mostly because I am so fond of the Jagermonsters.
Under New Management Matthew Sturges, Luca Rossi, Jose Marzan Jr (Review: 7)
Safe as Houses Matthew Sturges, Luca Rossi, Werther Dell Edera, Jose Marzain Jr (Review: 7)
I cannot decide how I feel about this series. I’ll most likely read the next volume, but will decide after that if I want to keep reading.
Mysteries
Where Shadows Dance (Sebastian St. Cyr) (Review: 7)
Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, is a somewhat dissolute young noble who returned from the Napoleonic wars far more bitter than when he left. A prickly relationship with his father and a willingness to fight duels have not helped his reputation, but he doesn’t much seem to care.
“Those rumors I mentioned?” Christopher said in an undertone as he and Sebastian moved forward. “They say the last time Talbot fought a duel, he chose twenty-five paces, then turned and fired after twelve. Killed the man. Of course, Talbot and his second swore the distance had been settled at twelve paces all along.”
“And his rival’s second?”
“Shut up about it when Talbot threatened to call him out–for naming Talbot a liar.”
Sebastian gave his friend a slow smile. “Then if Talbot should have occasion to call you out for a similar reason, I suggest you choose swords.”
Do not try to start here. Entirely too much has happened in this series. And although this book was good, it was by far the weakest entry in the series so far, whereas every previous volume has been fabulous.
The Year in Reading: Fantasy
The Year in Reading: Supernatural Fantasy
The Year in Reading: Comics, Mystery, and History
The Year in Reading: Books Published in 2011
