Here’s my wrap up for 2017! I read a total of 37 books not including short stories. I just thought I’d mention a few of last year’s reads. If I’ve reviewed it you can click on the title links of each read.

Worst novella of 2017: Spring Garden by Tomoka Shibasaki 

This is part of a series of Japanese novellas published by Pushkin Press that I was interested in. After reading Spring Garden, I don’t think I’ll be reading the rest. I reviewed this novella alongside a few others in a post, including Binti and We Have Always Lived in the Castle.

 

 

Best novella of 2017: The Emperor’s Soul by Brandon Sanderson

I was just off the high of the awesome ending that was the Hero of Ages and I wanted to read more Sanderson so I jumped straight into the Emperor’s Soul. One of my favorite novellas of all time.

 

 

Other novellas and short reads:

• The Ballad of Black Tom by Victor LaValle: 4 out of 5 mortars
• Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan Mcguire: 3 out of 5 mortars
• We Have Always Lived in the Castle by Shirley Jackson
• There Are Monsters Here by Cameron Chaney
• Mapping the Interior by Stephen Graham Jones
• The Ice Dragon by George RR Martin

Worst fiction book of 2017: Orlando by Virginia Woolf

While I commended Orlando for it’s forward thinking regarding sexuality and gender, this was a very slow read for me. The beginning was somewhat interesting but towards the end, I just wanted to speed read through it. Still, it was nice to see how open-minded the character, and perhaps by extension the author, was considering this was published in 1928. I didn’t actually assign a rating to Orlando in my post since it was more of a discussion than a review but here it is:

 

 

Best fiction book of 2017: Rebecca by Daphne Du Maurier

Du Maurier’s book was immersive! I had a lot to talk about in my review. The power of memory and the past haunting you are themes that are prevalent in this book. It’s like a ghost story without an actual ghost.

 

 

 

Other fiction books:

• The Women in the Castle by Jessica Shattuck: 3 out of 5 mortars
• Pride and Prescience by Carrie Bebris: 4 out of 5 mortars
• Talking as Fast as I Can by Lauren Graham: 3 out of 5 mortars
• My Cousin Rachel by Daphne Du Maurier: 3 out of 5 mortars

 

Worst fantasy book of 2017: Lord of Chaos by Robert Jordan

This was not a terrible book, just slow compared to the previous installments and other fantasy books I’ve read. It had its good moments with an entrancing beginning in the prologue and very strong ending but the middle was so-so and the characters were getting very annoying.

 

 

Best fantasy books of 2017: 1. The Hero of Ages by Brandon Sanderson

I had to include two books in this categories. With the Hero of Ages, I haven’t actually reviewed this one because I read it before I started the blog. But suffice it to say it’s a satisfying conclusion with twists, turns and revelations. The way a good series should end!

 

 

2. The Dragon Reborn by Robert Jordan

Another I haven’t reviewed on the blog but this is a very strong continuation of the Wheel of Time after the first two books, also with a strong finish! The mythology in this series I found to be very interesting. Of course, the women hating men bit gets worse from here on out.

 

 

 

Other fantasy reads:

• The Shadow Rising by Robert Jordan: 4 out of 5 mortars
• The Fires of Heaven by Robert Jordan: 3 out of 5 mortars
• A Crown of Swords by Robert Jordan: 3 out of 5 mortars
• The Fifth Season by N.K. Jemisin: 5 out of 5 mortars
• The Obelisk Gate by N.K. Jemisin: 4 out of 5 mortars
• Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman: 3 out of 5 mortars
• Monstress Vol 1 by Marjorie M. Liu: 5 out of 5 mortars

Worst sci-fi book of 2017: The Collapsing Empire by John Scalzi

The Collapsing Empire is by no means a bad book; it just wasn’t my style. Still, I enjoyed some of the characters and it is a fun, sci-fi read. The ending of this book opens the way for the series to continue.

 

 

Best sci-fi book of 2017: The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu

Three body is a kind of sci-fi I’m not sure I’ve ever read! One particular character stuck out for me, one who you follow throughout the book and makes some interesting choices with drastic repercussions. It’s a very interesting book and although some parts dragged on a bit, this was my favorite sci-fi of the year, of course not counting my Star Trek reads!

 

 

Other sci-fi reads:

• Star Trek Deep Space Nine: Unity: 5 out of 5 mortars
• Scythe by Neil Shusterman: 3 out of 5 mortars
• Binti by Nnedi Okorafor: 4 out of 5 mortars

 

Any books jump out at you? Let’s see what 2018 brings reading-wise!

Also, I’ve posted a silly video I did as a wrap-up on my Instagram so check it out if you’re interested.

Check out Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3.