But, I used to this thing where I'd prep a Long List; a bunch of titles I adored and was considering for my ultimate, no-squee-restrained Best Of list. The Long List is open to additions, should I read some more amazing stuff, and it's, well, long. The longest Best Of list I've ever had was 2013's Top 10, but the Long List can stretch to as many titles as I want to include.
I figured I'd revisit the practice this year, partly because the runners-up section of my Year In Review post is liable to be a behemoth otherwise and partly because I really do enjoy squeeing about books and would like to stretch the experience out.
So here goes. Let's begin with my best rereads of 2014, with "reread" meaning any book I've read more than once within the last fifteen years. They're listed alphabetically by author but in publication order within each series, with links to my reviews:
- The Magicians by Lev Grossman - steady at 4.5 stars
- The Magician King by Lev Grossman - steady at 4.5 stars
- Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb - 4.5 stars, up from 4
- Royal Assassin by Robin Hobb - steady at 4.5 stars
- Assassin's Quest by Robin Hobb - 4.5 stars, up from 4
- Mad Ship by Robin Hobb - 4.5 stars, up from 4
- Fool's Errand by Robin Hobb - 4.5 stars, down from 5
- The Golden Fool by Robin Hobb - steady at 4.5 stars
- Fool's Fate by Robin Hobb - steady at 4.5 stars
- Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones - 4.5 stars, up from 4
- The Great Hunt by Robert Jordan - 4.5 stars, up from 4
- The Shadow Rising by Robert Jordan - 4.5 stars, up from 4
- The Fallen Queen by Jane Kindred - 4.5 stars, up from 4
- The Vintner's Luck by Elizabeth Knox - 4.5 stars, up from 4
- The Queen of the Damned by Anne Rice - unrateable, up from 5 stars
- The Raven Boys by Maggie Stiefvater - steady at 4.5 stars
- The Dream Thieves by Maggie Stiefvater - 5 stars, up from 4.5
- The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud - 4.5 stars, up from 3.5
- Saga, vol. 1 by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples - steady at 5 stars
- Saga, vol. 2 by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples - steady at 5 stars
2014 was the Year of the Awesome Reread.
And now, every new-to-me book I rated 4.5 stars or above, with "new-to-me" meaning any book I read for the first time within the last fifteen years and 4.5 stars being my "I loved the hell out of this" rating:
- A Game For Swallows by Zeina Abirached - comics memoir
- The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison - secondary world fantasy
- The Warrior's Apprenticce by Lois McMaster Bujold - science fiction
- Agatha Heterodyne and the Chapel of Bones by Phil & Kaja Foglio - alternate historical fantasy comic
- Agatha Heterodyne and the Heirs of the Storm by Phil & Kaja Foglio - alternate historical fantasy comic
- Agatha Heterodyne and the Hammerless Bell by Phil & Kaja Foglio - alternate historical fantasy comic
- Agatha Heterodyne and the Siege of Mechanicsburg by Phil & Kaja Foglio - alternate historical fantasy comic
- Agatha Heterodyne and the Chapel of Bones by Phil & Kaja Foglio - alternate historical fantasy comic
- Stealing Fire by Jo Graham - historical fantasy
- The Magician's Land by Lev Grossman - contemporary fantasy blended with secondary world fantasy
- Avengers: The Children's Crusade by Allan Heinberg and Jim Cheung - superhero comic
- Fool's Assassin by Robin Hobb - secondary world fantasy
- Stolen Songbird by Danielle L. Jensen - YA secondary world fantasy
- Shadows of Asphodel by Karen Kincy - NA alternate historical fantasy
- The Armies of Heaven by Jane Kindred - secondary world fantasy blended with contemporary fantasy
- Warchild by Karin Lowachee - science fiction
- Burndive by Karin Lowachee - science fiction
- The King by Tiffany Reisz - erotica
- Misbehaving by Tiffany Reisz - screwball romantic comedy
- Ember by Bettie Sharpe - dark fairy tale retelling
- Blue Lily, Lily Blue by Maggie Stiefvater - YA contemporary fantasy
- Saga, vol 3 by Brian K. Vaughan and Fiona Staples - science fiction comic
- The Summer Queen by Joan D. Vinge - science fiction
- My Real Children by Jo Walton - alternate historical science fiction
- What Makes This Book So Great by Jo Walton - essays on science fiction and fantasy
- Hunter's Oath by Michelle West - secondary world fantasy
- Hunter's Death by Michelle West - secondary world fantasy
Any guesses which books will make my Top 5 of 2014? What were your best books of the year?
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