Top Ten Best Books Of 2016

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This week's topic: Top Ten Best Books Of 2016 (you choose -- best books overall of what you read regardless of pub date, of a particular genre, 2016 debuts, 2016 releases, etc)

Julia's Picks:
1. The Martian by Andy Weir - I really liked this book and was glad I read it before I saw the movie. I liked the book more, just a bit because the movie was amazing as well, but the book just captured more of his "Oh no. I am stuck on Mars" point of view. 

2. Career of Evil by Robert Galbraith - Ah, the Cormoran Strike series. I really love this, and this one was slightly different than the other two since it focused on a case that directly affected Strike and Robin. JK Rowling really writes some engaging stuff in this series. 

3. Say Yes to the Marquess by Tessa Dare - I didn't read a lot of romance novels this year, but I read a lot of Tessa Dare. I think this one was my favorite I read. Her books are always so funny and heartwarming. The best kind of novel. I can just devour them. 

Jamie's Picks:
4. Salt To the Sea by Ruta Sepetys: Ruta's books have all been amazing to me but I think this was her best yet. If you love historical fiction, check this one out!

5. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas: this book is a early 2017 release but I read it this year and OH MY GOD...it is amazing and super important. Truly. I love Starr and her family has been added to my fave fictional families list. I can't wait til this book gets the world talking because there is SO much to talk about!

6. One True Loves by Taylor Jenkins Reid: all of her books have been favorites for me and I was so excited for this one and wowwowow one of the most visceral responses I had all year reading.


7. Summers at Castle Auburn by Sharon Shinn: I randomly grabbed this book at the library in March and hadn't heard anything about it except knew people liked Sharon Shinn but I always heard people talk about her other books. This book is one I will reread next year for sure. It made me so truly happy and just charmed the pants right off me. The best part is my friend Gillian read it after I reviewed it and then she raved about it and this amazing chain reaction happened and others fell in love with it as much as we did and it was one of those moments that reminded me how important it is to still rave about the backlist books you read and love because there are so many people who might also find their new fave book that went under the radar!

Jana's Pick:
8. A Court of Mist and Fury by Sarah J. Maas: I'm sure this comes as no surprise to anyone who knows me! I loved this book even more than ACOTAR!! I love Rhys and the Night Court and the swooooons!

Lauren's Picks:
9. The Heart Goes Last by Margaret Atwood - I know I'm at Atwood fan girl, but her latest novel blew me away yet again. Her prose is perfectly worded without the clutter of excess details that have seemed to drag on for me this year. She knows how to take an otherworldly society and topple it over with grace. This is easily one of my all time favorite Atwood novels, be it is definitely my favorite read of 2016. 


10. The Fold by Peter Clines - Science fiction, a little fantasy, and all the amazingness wanted all wrapped up with a bow. This was an amazing science fiction novel for 2016 that I honestly just may have to pick up again in 2017!

Ten Books I Wouldn't Mind Santa Leaving Under My Tree

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This week's topic: Ten Books I Wouldn't Mind Santa Leaving Under My Tree

Jamie's Picks:

1.  Talking As Fast As I Can by Lauren Graham: I have loved Lauren Graham since Gilmore Girls aired and then loved her in Parenthood so I am IN NEED of this book something fierce. Preferably would be nice if Santa could at least have it signed by her and also maybe like include a coffee date so Lauren and I can become bffs??

2. Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake: I've heard amazing things about this YA fantasy and want to see what the hype is all about!

3. The Hating Game by Sally Thorne: I had this on my TBR when I saw it in a publisher catalog but then I forgot about it until EVERYONE started talking about it and saying it was the best ever so YEAH I need it.

4. Summer Skin by Kirsty Eager: This isn't sold in the US and I love Kirsty Eager so maybe Santa could pick this one up when he's in Australia and bring it to me!

5. Tell the Truth, Shame the Devil by Melina Marchetta: I love Melina Marchetta's books soooooo much. They are my faves and this one came out this year and I've yet to snag it! 

Julia's Picks:

6. A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles: Most of these are going to be off NPRs Book Conceirge 2016. This one sounds super interesting because it's about a guy who gets sentanced to house arrest in a hotel in Russia. It's right up my alley.

7. A Promise of Fire by Amanda Bouchet: Sounds like romance meets fantasy to me. Mythology and world building? Sign me up.

8. The Dark Days Club by Alison Goodman: I am just going to quote the reviewer for NPR, Margaret H. Willison, for why: "if you're equally excited to read about well-bred young ladies slaying demons and the tiny jugs they carried underneath their gowns in case they needed to relieve themselves while awaiting a royal audience, look no further. This is the book for you."

9. Some sort of cookbook by a chef I suppose: I just started to get into cooking, and I am not the greatest at it. I think I need to get a book and just try and keep practicing. Maybe Santa will bring one that doesn't include me setting the smoke alarm off three times in one night...

10. The Winds of Winter by George R.R. Martin: Because I think at this point it would take Santa magic for me to ever read this book...

What books would you like Santa to bring you?

Top Ten Books We're Looking Forward To For The First Half Of 2017

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This week's topic is... Top Ten Books We're Looking Forward To For The First Half Of 2017

Lauren's Picks

1 -- Little Heaven by Nick Cutter

2 -- Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman

3 -- Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris

4 -- Caraval by Stephanie Garber

5 -- Starfall by Melissa Landers

6 -- The Bone Witch by Ri-n Chupeco

Lori's Picks

7 -- South and West by Joan Didion

New Joan Didion, enough said. Coming in March.

8 -- Always Happy Hour by Mary Miller

This looks like a fun collection of short stories that can especially speak to women in their late 20s, early 30s. But I'm sure the appeal will be broader. An Internet buddy was raving about this ARC, so I pre-ordered without much thought. Coming out early January.

Jana's Picks

9 -- The Bear and the Nightingale by Katherine Arden 

It sounds like an amazing debut, and is inspired by Russian fairytales!

10 -- Lucky In Love by Kasie West

New Kasie West!! I loved her last book, P.S. I Love You. 

11 -- RoseBlood by A.G. Howard

A Phantom of the Opera retelling! I've been wanting this for years!

12 -- Song of the Current by Sarah Tolcser

A fantasy "set along the waterways of a magical world". That's ALL I NEEDED.

Which books are you excited to read next year?

Top New-To-Us Authors We Read For The First Time In 2016

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Top Ten New-To-Us Authors We Read For The First Time In 2016

Bridget's Pick:
Jeff Vandermeer! He wrote the Area X trilogy. I've only read the first two (I really need to go back and finish!) but the prose is stunning. Very different from what I would normally expect from sci-fi. It's beautiful and ethereal and a little dense but definitely worth it. 

Daisy's Picks:

Lyndsay Faye: I LOVED Jane Steele! The writing style was amazing and I can't wait to read more from this author!

Garth Nix: I cannot believe that it took me this long to finally pick up one of Garth Nix's books, but Sabriel was SO GOOD! I'm definitely continuing this series in 2017!

Jamie's Picks:

Sarah Fine: I read The Imposter Queen this year and it was definitely one of my favorite fantasy books of this year! I can't wait to go through her backlist.

Jeff Zentner: His debut novel, The Serpent King, just really blew me away. One of those feelings like "this could be a potential ALL TIME fave author" if all his books do this to me. 

Claire Legrand: GUYS you must read Some Kind of Happiness. I rarely read MG books but this book made her one of my fave new-to-me authors of this year!

Kimberly's Pick:

Steven Rowley: I read Lily and the Octopus this year and... It was an incredible experience. I reviewed it on the blog this summer. 

Julia's Pick:

Kelly Bowen: I read Duke of My Heart on a whim earlier this year when I was trying to be better about getting into reading again. I have been leery with trying new historical romance authors because I have been put off by so many, but I actually quite enjoyed it. So I read the second one, and like that too. Now I have got the third one on my radar... 

What are your favorite authors this year? 

Help Kimberly meet her Goodreads goal!

Okay fellow book lovers. I need your help. I need to read 16 books before the end of the year. I'm SEVEN books behind schedule!! How did that even happen? Okay, so I hit several reading slumps this year, that's how it happened. It's been a weird year.

What are some of your favorite quick reads? Novellas? Graphic novels? Tell me all about them!  Help me reach my goal of 100 books this year!

Top Ten Tuesday - Holiday Gift Guide Freebie

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Hey there! Jana here. :) Did you survive the Thanksgiving weekend? We BARELY did, which is why we're taking a little break this week. Please excuse us as we spend a little extra time laying on the couch recovering from mashed potato and pie overload! We'll be back next week. :)

Did you get any awesome deals on Black Friday or Cyber Monday? What gifts are on your radar for the upcoming holiday season? We're excited to jump around and see what creative gift list ideas you've come up with this week.

A Gilmore Revival Marathon

Unless you live under a rock, you surely know what today is.  :)  When news of the impending revival was released, it went like wildfire through many a friendship circle.  My very good friend and I decided to watch it together.  In true Gilmore fashion, we planned our food.  I added food to it (I'm getting to double dip a bit because my boyfriend's family is coming into town later today and I needed to cook for them anyway).  I decided to write a post about it and update it as we watched or until I got too drunk to continue updating it.  This post will include food eaten, books referenced, and NO SPOILERS!  It will likely hold general impressions, like "After this episode, I was left feeling..."  But DO NOT WORRY about me blowing major plot points.  If you are commenting, I ask that you kindly do the same.

The revival experience began last night.  My friend met my boyfriend and I at my uncle's house for some post Thanksgiving meal drinking.  We ran to a grocery store on the way back to my house for her portion of the food.  We watched some football.  I continued drinking.  Then my lovely boyfriend said he would excuse himself so we could watch a couple of episodes.  We each picked our favorite episode.  I chose season one's "Love and War and Snow," while she picked "They Shoot Gilmores, Don't They" from season three.  Then we watched the finale.  We wrapped it up around 1:00am.  The new episodes wouldn't drop until 3:00, so we decided to go to bed for a while and wake up at 7:00.  I'm up.  I got me some water and some allergy meds.  I'm ready to go!  

The last time we saw Lorelai, Rory, and the gang, I was just finishing up my freshman year of college.  I totally felt Rory's sense of "OK, now what do I do?"  However, during the entire run of the show, I felt like I could relate way more to Lorelai.  The daughter who had to do things the hard way.  Anyway, I finished college, went to grad school, took a year off, and started law school (currently in my second year).  From what I've seen of the previews for the revival episodes, Rory's is feeling completely adrift--it looks like she's between jobs, not in a relationship, feeling rootless, like she's just marking time.  I TOTALLY GET THAT!  I always thought that by now I'd be way more settled down and rooted.  So, it's odd, but maybe in this revival, I'll relate more to Rory.  We shall see.

OK.  So, my friend, Kelly, is up.  Finally.  We're about to get started.  I'm still not ready for food.  But I have an awesome looking breakfast casserole waiting for me.  

Let's get started!


Episode 1

It was weird seeing everyone again after so long!  But it also felt like coming home again, in a way.  The first episode is "Winter."

Books Referenced:
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
Leaves of Grass
On the Road
The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up

Not as many books as I would have thought!  But these are good ones.

Food consumed:
Powdered Donuts
Coffee
Breakfast Casserole

It took a while before I was awake enough to eat food, but I managed to scarf down some donuts.  Then I moved onto the breakfast casserole.  Super yummy!  I highly recommend the recipe.

We've both expressed some level of disappointment that now the revival is 25% over.

Quick bathroom break, then onto the next episode!



Episode 2

"Spring"  Ah!  This episode!  This is what I was talking about!  I love how it's all coming together.  And now we're sad that it's half over.

Books Referenced:
Shakespeare
Aeschylus
Death of a Salesman
Edith Wharton
Fiddler on the Rood
Ralph Waldo Emerson
The Art of War
Dorothy Parker
David Foster Wallace
Cloud Atlas

So many more books this episode!  And I love the authors.  This is shaping up to be a pretty good reading list.  :)

Food Consumed:
More breakfast casserole.
More coffee.
More powdered donuts.
And we broke into the pie and ice cream.  :)


I guess we are on to summer!


Episode 3

Books Referenced:
Wild
Anna Karenina
Games of Thrones
The Godfather
Edward Albie/Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Nora Ephron/I Feel Bad about My Neck: And Other Thoughts on Being a Woman


Food Eaten:
Frozen pizza.  :)

The plot thickens!


Episode 4

Books Referenced:
Wild
Eat Pray Love
Macbeth
The Raven
Picture of Dorian Gray
David Mamet
Little House in the Big Woods
True Grit
Alice in Wonderland

Food Eaten:
Not much.  But I did make a pot of chili.

Ummmm...wtf?!  We're definitely going to need some more episodes!


Overall, I think there was a pretty good reading list to be gleaned from the episodes.  But there weren't as many books as I would have liked.  Nor did they reference some really good recent picks.  I was kind of surprised by how many classics were mentioned.

I'll have to watch the episodes again to see how many books I missed!