December 18: Top Ten Books I Read In 2012

This weekly feature was created by the gals over at The Broke and the Bookish. Click here to see upcoming topics! This week is the top ten books read in 2012 and it was certainly a challenge to choose ONLY ten. I scoured my blog and my goodreads and my library checkouts and came up with these. Although not all of these received five stars, they stayed with me a lot longer. Being memorable is one of the most important things for the books I end up re-reading and consequently recommending long after my reader high.

In no particular order, these are my top ten:

1. Burning Blue by Paul Griffin: There will be a review here sometime soon for this one, but I've just got to say that it surpassed all my expectations. The characters where heartbreakingly real, and the psychological aspects explored in this novel were so much more in depth than I would expect from a YA novel. The writing was great, and the villain was someone that I couldn't have foreseen. Suspenseful and action-packed.

2. The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith: It is under 24 hours that two people meeting under less than desirable circumstances find the answer a whole lot of their individual problems. I can't express how believable the romance is in this story. Skeptics of first love will also be convinced that the relationship between Hadley and Oliver is based on a whole lot more than just looks. You can check out my review for PBR here.

3. Mad Science Institute by Sechin Tower: Guess what? This book is from a small publisher and although I had my prejudices when I started it, Mad Science Institute is a book that I will re-read. The main character is absolute hilarious! And the comic-book villain is loads of fun. A definitely unique cast of characters and compelling storyline got this one on my top ten. My review here.

4. Madame Tussaud: A Novel of the French Revolution by Michelle Moran: This is probably the longest book I read this year at a hefty 446 pages. But every single one of those pages was compelling and full of soooooooo much information. I had to take frequent breaks just to absorb the events surrounding it, but this overload was effective in getting a response of distress out of me as I imagined what our main character was going through. It spans a huge period of time, but gives the reader a wonderful story and accurate information on the French Revolution at the same time.

5. all these things i've done by Gabrielle Zevine: If I absolutely had to choose a favorite of the year, this one would probably be it. Words are lacking to describe how I feel about this book. Although it wasn't as...criminally as would have been expected, the story was still superb. My review.

6. Fracture by Megan Miranda: Something about this book just got to me. The characters aren't always good people and the story itself isn't something uber spectacular. But the way the writing managed to weave magic and reality into something almost seamless was astounding. It was just one of those books that you don't know why you loved it so much.

7. Shadowfell by Juliet Marillier: Usually I am extremely wary of anything sounding like epic fantasy, mostly after trying, trying and failing to get through the 2nd book in the Inheritance Cycle. But this! Up my alley. Imaginative and action-packed, I cannot wait to get my hands on the sequel. Review here.

8. Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver: I actually read Delirium over the summer...but it just didn't live up to the hype. Lena seemed more like a twelve-year-old than anything with all the clingy-ness and pity-partying and just general whining. But I liked the story and I liked the writing, so I had to read on. And let me tell you that Lena grows up for this one. Her new-found strength made this book ten times better. There was also another great storyline with lots of fights and surviving and such. Although the romance less than convinced me, that ending was akdjskdjkds!!! High hopes for the next one!

9. The Iron King by Julie Kagawa: Published in 2010, this series blew up the blogosphere, but I am always wary of things that sound too good to be true. When I crossed paths with this book at my  library, I decided to see if it was worth the praise. And yes. Yes it is. There are no typical characters in this novel. All of them are different from what I expected and although they at first seem to fit a mold, as I progressed through the story, they revealed their gray areas. I've yet to pick up the other books in the series, but I promise to do so eventually! Review here.

10. Just One Wish by Janette Rallison: It is melodramatic. Sad, but moving. Family loyalty is a very strong theme in this book and although meeting a hot actor seems way out there, the writing will make you believe it possible. Wonderful book.

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Most Anticipated Books For 2013

This weekly meme is brought to you by the wonderful bloggers at The Broke and the Bookish. You can find future topics listed here as well as more information about the feature. Today is like a massive wish-list post and without further ado, here are the top ten books I am most anticipating in 2013!

Links go to Goodreads.

1) Lessons in French: A Novel by Hilary Reyl: This novel isn't YA, I don't think. But it sounds like an excellent story. The protagonist is straight out of college and looking for work and it is in France and it is in 1989. It just sounds so different, from what I usually read, but I may be interested because I wonder what I will be doing when I get out of school. It is a coming-of-age story by the sound of it.

2) The Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd: I'm sure this is high on a whole lot of people's wish lists. In case you have been living under  a rock (Don't worry. I've been known to once in lots of whiles!), here is the Goodreads summary because I couldn't do it justice.

London, 1894. Juliet Moreau has built a life for herself—working as a maid, attending church on Sundays, and trying not to think about the scandal that ruined her life. After all, no one ever proved the rumors about her father’s gruesome experiments. But when she learns her father is alive and continuing his work on a remote tropical island, she is determined to find out if the accusations were true. 

Juliet is accompanied by the doctor’s handsome young assistant and an enigmatic castaway, who both attract Juliet for very different reasons. They travel to the island only to discover the depths of her father’s madness: he has created animals that have been vivisected to resemble, speak, and behave as humans. Worse, one of the creatures has turned violent and is killing the island’s inhabitants. Juliet knows she must end her father’s dangerous experiments and escape the island, even though her horror is mixed with her own scientific curiosity. As the island falls into chaos, she discovers the extent of her father’s genius—and madness—in her own blood.

 3) Panic by Sharon M. Draper: Gorgeous cover! The color scheme makes the butterfly's wings pop. And I feel something of a struggle from it as it is pinned down. Fairly simple, but I think it connects well with the summary for this book.

It is a mystery of sorts? Because from the summary, it sounds like we will be on both sides of the conflict. Maybe we will live Diamond's moments of captivity and then also live the fear her family has trying to find her kidnappers. It sounds like it will be emotionally wrenching and hopefully cathartic.

4) City of a Thousand Dolls by Miriam Forster: I fell in love when I read the title. Add the majestic cover and you get one of my most anticipated books of 2013. Nisha is the main character and she may or may not be training as an assassin? Anyways, it will take major sleuthing for her to find out what is causing girls her age to kick the can. And there will be forbidden romance along the way. All good reasons to beg someone to get it  for me!

5) Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell: Although I've read some good reviews and some not so great ones, I am still looking forward to reading it. The main characters sound so ordinary! So not stars of a novel type characters, but everyone has a story to tell. I think this will be a very memorable read, because the story may be generic, but the characters are something else altogether.

6) Revolution 19 by Gregg Rosenblum: Read this as a cautionary tale against robots. I knew it! They will eventually take over the world and where will we be left? It will be 2071 and some humans will survive only to be forced to live in fear deep in the woods. But things get much worse for three teens living the nightmare. They must begin an uprisiing, a revolution, to release their families from the clutches of robots. I for one, cannot wait to see how they will fight a bunch of machines.

7) Also Known As by Robin Benway: A girl in high school is actually a spy. And her parents are spies too. That is all I know and I am intrigued! Did I mention there are spies?

8) The Murmurings by Carly Anne West: Dark books aren't my favorite kind of reads, but this one will hold readers in suspense. Her sister committed suicide,  because she heard voices. But now Sophie hears them too and she on a mission to find out whether there was more to her sister's suicide then her doctor wants to let on. This novel sounds like it will have a kick-ass heroine and deals with two very major issues.

9) Flowers in the Sky by Lynn Joseph: Flowers in the Sky will be a sentimental and probably heartbreaking read. Nina Perez has to move from  the Dominican Republic to New York and of course she is homesick, but what she finds in New York may or may not trump all the bad things in her life. Sweet, sad, and full of longing, I will save this one for a rainy day (which there are a lot of in Oregon).

10) The Sweet Revenge of Celia Door by Karen Finneyfrock: A freshman bent on revenge, Celia Door's character seems pretty wacky. But of course, enter the cute guy from New York  and Celia's plans for sweet revenge may be flipped upside down. I wonder if it will be an ironic  story or a comedy, since Celia sounds pretty intense for a 14-year-old.

So these are just a few books that I can't wait to get my hands on. It is kind of sad in a way to be thinking of the books coming out next year when my to-be-read list is insane enough as it is. I'm sure that about a hundred of those books came out this year and the other hundred last year. Soooo many wonderful novels and there just isn't time enough in the world to read all the ones I want. Feel free to post links to your TopTenTuesday in the comments as I am always adding more and more to by tbr pile despite the huge number of books already in it!