I've read 37 books this year, and you can keep track of my progress at listsofbests if you want. I guess the only advantage in doing that is if I've read something you want to read is that you can ask me whether it's worth reading and why. Though the list site is pretty good at that. I don't really have a preference when it comes to genre, although I tend to avoid vampire fiction.
Ever since the Twilight Saga became a hit, vampire books seem to be all over the place, to the extent that they seem to be overtaking the Young Adult section at bookshops. I am an advocate of YAF and even children's fiction, because there are some really good books out there, but it's annoying. I'll be honest, I never finished Twilight - I got to the second book and decided it was crap, not just because Edward wasn't in it (yes at one point I was going all fangirly over him), but because it was just ridiculous. And other people cash in on it, though there is one book that I want to read, The Reformed Vampire Support Group, by Catherine Jinks, because it's a comedy. And I've also heard that Cirque du Freak is a good series.
But it's not the trend of vampire fiction that I mourn most in YAF, it's the idea that in a book where there is a female protagonist, the main outcome of the series that everyone is most concerned with is who she'll end up with. First it was Team Jacob and Team Edward. In Inkdeath, there was a new character introduced so that Meggie would have to make a choice. And of course, in The Hunger Games there was Gale and Peeta. In regards to Mockingjay, it pissed me off that fans were wondering about who Katniss would choose, not necessarily the revolution. Because the biggest decision in every girl's life is who we should marry. I'm probably not making my point very well.
I was actually going to go through the books I've read this year and state my favourite. My favourite was probably Mockingjay, despite the point I made above, because it was about the war, rather than Katniss' love life, and it was intriguing, wonderful and heartbreaking all at the same time. Keys to the Kingdom is something I started and never finished, so I started again and loved it - truly one of the most original fantasy series I've ever read. All the Jasper Fforde on the list is there because I bought Shades of Grey at the beginning of the year and loved it so much that I read all of his other published books. Shades of Grey is the best thing he's written. And Agatha Christie is just amazing, so I keep reading her books.
Finally, any recommendations are welcome :)
