It’s the end of another year! I can’t believe how quickly this year has passed. There have been some great moments and some not so great moments, but I am ready for 2016! I’ve read some great books in 2015, and I have compiled a list of the 15 best books, according to me. I’m surprised by how many new releases have made my list, most years I usually work my way through author’s backlists, but now I am actually caught up with quite a few of my favourite series. Anyway, onto the list! I’ve linked to my reviews, if I happened to review them!
15. Flowers for Algernon by Daniel Keyes.
I really enjoyed this novel, I read it so that I could teach the short story at school, but found myself wishing I could just teach the novel. It brings to mind so many questions about morals and disability.
14. Kingdom of the Strong by Tony Cavanaugh
Such a great book! So tense and well plotted out. My first foray into Cavanaugh’s work, but I’m going to go hustle up some copies of his backlist.
13. Lockdown by Sean Black
I chose to include the first book in this series in my list, despite liking book 3 just as much. I discovered this series in 2015, and I am loving it. Lock is such a great character and I love his tough-cool sidekick, Ty.
12. The Sniper & The Wold by Scott McEwen and Thomas Koloniar
Yet another series I started this year, this series follows Gil Shannon who is a sniper. I love the way Ewen and Koloniar mixes political, military, action and family drama to create really involved storylines.
11. The Secret Agent by Joseph Conrad
One of the better classics I have read, this one had a really great twist at the end and kept me reading through a readathon!
10. Black Ops by Stephen Leather
Leather’s Spider Shepherd series is my favourite series – and Black Ops was a solid addition to it. I get so excited to read these books when they are released, then power through all 500p in less than a day. This was a fun read, but doesn’t feature higher up the list because other books have been more memorable.
9. Diggers Rest Hotel by Geoffrey McGeachin
The first in the Charlie Berlin series – Diggers Rest Hotel is a historical mystery set in the 60’s and 70’s Melbourne. It is really interesting and the characters that McGeachin has created are second to none. This whole series is worth checking out.
8. Sandakan – Paul Ham
Sandakan took me AGES to read – about 3 months. It was too heavy to read for prolonged periods, but I felt so compelled to know more that I kept picking it back up, reading for ten pages, and then putting it down in disgust. Not at the author, but at what happened. This is one of those non-fiction reads that made me angry (also, how could I have not been told about this in my many years studying history at university) and will stick with me for a long time.
7. Death Force – Matt Lynn
I’ve read all four books in the Death Force series, and they rate up there – each one earning at least four star ratings. My average on Goodreads is 3.2, so that tells you something about how many 4’s and 5’s I award! The big difference about these military thrillers is that it surrounds a team or mercenaries who are completing dangerous jobs not for queen and country, but for their bank balance. It adds a different element. I also like the way that these books feature a very strong ensemble of characters, from all over the world. The last book in the series would be my favourite, but I’ll always be thankful to Death Force for hooking me.
6. In The Cold Dark Ground by Stuart MacBride. – Review to come in 2016
I had MacBride’s other novel The Misisng and the Dead at number 8 in this list, but I read In The Cold Dark Ground at the very end of December and it deserves its place higher up this list. I’m a total fangirl for McRae – I love him and his boss/friend/annoyance Roberta Steel. This would be one of my favourite books of the series, I won’t give anything away but… so much happens. The ending is UNBELIEVABLE, and it made me cackle like a mad old witch.
5. Hellfire – Chris Ryan
The Danny Black series is strong. It was made stronger in Hellfire through an amazing plot featuring Caitlin. She would have to be my favourite character of the year – she was strong, capable and realistic. She was not introduced as a love interest, and although she ended up hooking up with someone, it certainly added depth to her character – not his! Hellfire was riveting, fact paced and Chris Ryan at the top of his game.
4. The Call of The Wild – Jack London
I read the whole of The Call of The Wild in my ophthalmologists waiting room. It was sensational, I loved its exploration of the similarities between beast and man. After I finished it, I was talking about it for weeks. I’ve also just built a unit plan around it and cannot wait to teach it (hopefully in 2016!)
3. The Devil’s Anvil – Matt Hilton
The Joe Hunter series is one that has cemented its place in my bookshelf and heart. The first few books in the series were good, but a bit formulaic. They combine the hunting down a serial killer trope with the action man character. That’s great, but in the past few books the plot has deepened and the characters have become more engaging. I also have an obsession with the banter between Hunter and Rink – it is so witty and hilarious.
2. The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde.
Damn, Wilde can write. I know, that’s not news, but I hadn’t known. I wasn’t ready and I was blown away. The storyline is so well known, so how can you be surprised? I need to hunt down more Wilde now, but I haven’t squeezed him into my classics club list, so it will have to be additional to my monthly classics club read!
1. Fortress by Andy McNab
This surprises me. I like Andy McNab books, and I’ve probably read close to a dozen. They are always enjoyable, but somewhat mindless action romps in which the hero does remarkable things to save the world/the girl/the company and then proceeds like it is no big deal. Not so with Fortress. I was emotionally invested in Buckingham’s situation. I identified with his background and where he was coming from. The exploration of politics and moral issues was deep and complex, with a delicate handling of racism and right-wing extremists. I have put off reading the next book in the series because this book was so good, I can’t imagine that anything will top it, and as such, it will be a disappointment. I’ve never felt like that about a book before.
As such, Fortress by Andy McNab is the best book I read in 2015
I read five books in July, I was hoping to get more read during July, while I am still on university holidays. Now I am back studying, I have less time to devote to leisure reading. The standout read for July was The House of Mirth by Edith Wharton. My second of Wharton’s works, and I loved this more than Ethan Frome. My classics TBR is now bursting – I’ve just added The Age of Innocence to the list.
I will be continuing on with #20booksofsummer (in winter), and I’m allowing myself to cross a couple of the bigger, chunky classics off the list and put some mood reading on the list – and I know that I will be able to finish more books if they are pulpier. So bring on the war thrillers and crime novels – I’m finishing this challenge even if it takes me out in a storm of pages. As of the 8th of August, I have read 11 of the books from my list in full, and Middlemarch is just under half way cooked – so it will be a push but I’ll put some effort in.
The other event that will be kicking off in August is Bout of Books, which is my favourite of the readathon events – but August is the ‘thon that I generally don’t take part in or low key participate. It runs from 22 – 28 August, and this year my Dad’s 60th falls just before that, and my own birthday too. My sister is also due to have her baby late August – early September and I don’t want to be focusing on something like Bout of Books when I should focus on helping and being with family. If I do participate, it will probably be a limited amount of time. Or even limiting myself to how much reading I complete.
My favourite book I read this month was First Response by Stephen Leather. It was fresh, different and had an excellent main character. I will be posting a full review on Thursday, and will go into some of the things that I loved about this book. It’s a bit different for Stephen Leather, but it works well.
Ranty Runt of a Reader 