Things I Read 'N' Things I Thought 2014: Part 1

Annual blog post! I don't care if no one reads this, it just needs to be done because it's fun. Here we go - books ahoy!

• A Golden Web by Barbara Quick - Innards are fascinating, don't let anyone tell you you can't look at them just because you're a lady.
• A Tree Grows In Brooklyn by Betty Smith - Mind blown! Heart full! How have I never read this before!?
• American Gods by Neil Gaiman - Neil Gaiman does not disappoint. The gods and myth characters are still around and they're awesome.
• Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery - Precious.
• Another Little Piece by Kara Karyus Quinn - A bit gorier than I expected. Not mind-blowingly good, but pretty ok, not obnoxious.
• Ash by Melinda Lo - Cinderella retelling.  It was fine I guess.
• The Best Horror of the Year (Volume somethingorother) by various - Short stories.  Some I hated, some I didn't care, some creeped me the hell out and were rad.
• Bread and Wine by Shauna Niequist - I want to have people over for dinner in my cozy home. It's important.
• Christy by Catherine Marshall - I forgot how GOOD this book is. I forgot how human Christy and the other characters are.
• Cold Tangerines by Shauna Niequist - She makes me feel better about my desire for a "small" life.
• The Dance of the Dissident Daughter by Sue Monk Kidd - Meh. Her journey was interesting, but I really felt no connection to this book.
• Dearie: The Remarkable Life of Julia Child by Bob Spitz - She continues to be awesome.  I had no idea she came from a rich, conservative So Cal family.
• East by Edith Pattou - Love. Always love.
• Emperor Mage by Tamora Pierce - Love. Always love.
• The Face on the Milk Carton, Flash Fire!, The Ransom of Mercy Carter,  and Flight #116 is Down by Caroline B. Cooney - Oh man, the books of my youth! I'll give it to her, she's good at writing teenagers who aren't Mary Sues but aren't evil villains, either. 
• Frog Music by Emma Donoghue - Awful people being awful to each other. It was awful. One Goodreads reviewer put it best: "Lacking a fire, I put it in the recycle bin."
• The Goldfinch by Donna Tartt - Art: it sort of has to do with it. A little depressing in a way, but pretty honest. Excellent descriptions. Described a girl as having something of a "bitchy cheerleader or mean babysitter" about her. Yes.
• The Good Mother Myth by Avital Norman Nathman - Vignettes and perspectives on motherhood from various authors. Interesting at the time, but I don't remember anything about it, so...
• Greenwitch by Susan B. Cooper - Always great.
• God is Disappointed in You by Mark Russell - The Bible, only much shorter and hilarious.
• Harvest Home by Thomas Tryon - Creepy. Also enraging.
• The Hallowed Ones and The Outside by Laura Bickle - Amish teen vampire books! I was very pleased.
• Haunting Violet by Alyxandra Harvey - Sometimes it got a tad eye-rolly, but overall pretty cute. Some fun, witty dialogue.
• Horrorstor by Grady Hendrix - Damn, this was a well-made book! Makes you think differently about a weekend trip to Ikea!
• In the Tall Grass by Stephen King & Joe Hill (short story) - DO NOT EVER leave the road and wander into the grass.  It WILL end badly.
• Innocence by Dean Koontz - Another long, slow, detailed story with an oddly brief, disconnected feeling wrap-up. Apparently I'm just going to reread Watchers and Lightning for the rest of my life.
• The Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O'Dell - Still good. Again, survival books.
• It by Stephen King - Still creepy, still great.
• Jackaby by William Ritter - Adorable.  Monsters, ghosts, detectives. I really enjoyed it. I'd read more.
• Jesus Feminist by Sarah Bessey - Sarah Bessey makes you feel loved and important.
• Jurassic Park by Michael Crichton - Still good, but it's goofier and less suspenseful than I remember.
• Just As Long As We're Together by Judy Blume - I remember this one, Judy Blume rules. 
• The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness - Some people are AWFUL. Interesting premise.
• Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy by Karen Abbott - High five to these ladies (I mean, besides the helping of the confederates...). Dudes: keep it together, they're SO lucky you treated them like fragile idiots.
• The Light of the Oracle by Victoria Hanley - Decent. Not mindblowing, but not hideously bad or boring.  Thought it squandered some great potential, though.
• Locke & Key, Vol. 6 by Joe Hill - IT IS FINISHED. IT IS GOOD.
• The Lost World by Michael Crichton - I shouldn't have re-read it. Not as good as I remember.
• Mile 81 (short story) by Stephen King - Meh.
• Mirrorsight (Green Rider #5) by Kristen Britain - Went in a direction I totally did not see coming. Weird, but good.
• Mr. Mercedes by Stephen King - Fun, detective-y romp.
• My Cousin Rachel by Daphne DuMaurier - I HATE THE NARRATOR. He's an idiot and I wanted to punch him for most of the book.  Dang, Ms. D's a good writer :)
• Naya Nuki and Pathki Nana by Kenneth Thomasma - Childhood favorites. Survival books (a la Hatchet) are the best.
• O Pioneers!  by Willa Cather - Damn, but I love Willa Cather. She's so human and funny and yet complicated.
• Our Great Big American God by Matthew Paul Turner - Interesting, fast, easy read. Doesn't go very in depth, but gives a great overview of how America has adapted God over the years.
• Pastrix: The Cranky, Beautiful Faith of a Sinner & Saint by Nadia Bolz-Weber - Such a human.  I want to be better.
• Rebecca by Daphne DuMaurier - I love the way she writes. Still good the second time.
• The Rosie Project by Graeme Simsion - Just freakin' adorable and funny.
• The Ruins by Scott Smith - It really should have been a quick, tight, mean little short story instead of a rambly, annoying novel.
• The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd - Fab. Hugs and high fives all around.
• Smoke Gets In Your Eyes by Caitlin Doughty - So very interesting. Please don't embalm me.
• Snowblind by Christopher Golden - How did this get good reviews? How was this book so boring? There's an entire subplot through the whole book that I have NO IDEA why it was there. Severly disappointed.
• Sold for Endless Rue by Madeline E. Robbins - Healers and midwives are interesting. Complicated mother/daughter relationships. Misogyny blows.
• The Stand by Stephen King - Snuggles in my heart. Post-apocalyptic, horrific snuggles.
• Summer of Fear, Locked In Time and Daughters of Eve by Lois Duncan - Fondly I recall reading Lois Duncan as a kid - I've always loved creepy. They're goofy now, but they still live in my heart.
• Swan Song by Robert McCammon - I slogged through this entire book and still didn't know if I liked or disliked it until well after I'd finished it. Verdict: WHY DOES EVERYONE SAY IT'S SO GOOD? IT'S NOT GOOD. So many reviews say it's dark and terrifying. Nope. And they say it's one of the most beautiful, hopeful books they've ever read. Nope. And that it's full of loveable, memorable characters. Nope. It felt completely lifeless to me. And full of characters/plot points/objects that really don't add much other than word count - WHY DID THEY SPEND SO MUCH TIME ON THE JOB'S MASK? THERE WAS NO RHYME OR REASON TO WHO IT AFFECTED. Oh, great, now their faces match what's inside, but there was never any doubt right from the start who was a villain and who a hero so what was the damn point? I was hoping to have another massive post-apocalyptic novel to love right along with The Stand but I guess I'm out of luck. SO DISAPPOINTED. I've been lied to.
• Those Who Wish Me Dead by Michael Koryta - A good yarn, that's what I'd call it. Some graphic violence, though, if that bothers you. 
• Through the Woods by Emily Carroll - Illustrated comic-like stories. So. Effing. Creepy. Love.
• The Troop by Nick Cutter -  Gross but not scary. I didn't ever experience suspense or horror. Sturdily meh. Could have been better, but I liked the bleak ending.
• Unashamed, Unspoken, and Unveiled all by Francine Rivers - I remember reading and really enjoying Francine Rivers as a teen. A lot of her underlying messages about men and women kinda creep me out now. But I still enjoy the Ruth & Boaz one.
• Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead - Yes, I read this. Pretty fun actually.
• Watchers by Dean Koontz - I will never stop re-reading this goofy book.
• Where the Heart Is by Billie Letts - It's a snuggle in book form.
• Where'd You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Sempel - So entertaining. Done in an afternoon.
• White Crow by Marcus Sedgewick - Could have been much better, creepier.
• The Winter People by Jennifer McMahon - So much eerie, skin-crawling potential! It was pretty good, but could have been better. At least it wasn't as bad as The Graveminder. Ugh.
• Zita the Space Girl by Ben Hatke - A-frickin-dorable comic.
• The 5th Wave by Rick Yancey - Pretty good. A brave, does what she has to main character.

Biggest winners, Smoke Gets In Your Eyes; A Tree Grows In Brooklyn; Liar,Temptress,Soldier, Spy; Through the Woods; and The Rosie Project. All great for different reasons, but I had a blast with them.

Biggest losers, Swan Song, Snowblind, and Frog Music.  All so very disappointing based on what I'd heard and was expecting, I was actually angry at them a few times. Save yourselves.

Overall 66% new, which is better than I thought.  Horror/Fantasy/Sci-fi was my biggest genre with about 23% (YA H/F/S at 22%). Sounds about right for me! General fiction was the next biggest category.  I just love creepy stories, I guess. Unfortunately, upon review it also looks like the theme of 2014 was disappointing horror stories, so I hope I can correct that in 2015.  

Happy reading, y'all!