Merry New Year!
Give me a moment to catch my breath.
.
.
I barely managed to finish my yearly reading goal of 50 books. I resorted to reading comics and short stories on the last few days of the year—which is fine—but also felt like I was cheating. Honestly, I blame the end-of-the-year reading hustle on the cluster-fudge that was my second semester of school (shush mom, I don’t want to take responsibility). Luckily, the frantic read-a-thons this year were not for naught, and I discovered some new favorites this year:
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Goodreads Description: Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.
Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil’s name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr.
But what Starr does—or does not—say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life.
This book has won countless awards and was recently made into a major motion picture (which I haven’t seen yet. Let me know what you thought of it if you have!). It deserves all its recognition for being a relevant, informative, and own-voices story about the African American experience.
Crooked Kingdom by Leigh Bardugo
Goodreads Description: Welcome to the world of the Grisha.
Kaz Brekker and his crew have just pulled off a heist so daring even they didn’t think they’d survive. But instead of divvying up a fat reward, they’re right back to fighting for their lives.
Double-crossed and badly weakened, the crew is low on resources, allies, and hope. As powerful forces from around the world descend on Ketterdam to root out the secrets of the dangerous drug known as jurda parem, old rivals and new enemies emerge to challenge Kaz’s cunning and test the team’s fragile loyalties.
A war will be waged on the city’s dark and twisting streets―a battle for revenge and redemption that will decide the fate of theGrisha world.
The following is from the review I made for Crooked Kingdom:
Crooked Kingdom surpassed my expectations and entertained me considerably more than Six of Crows. Although I loved reading about the crew’s schemes to get revenge, the fantastic character growth was what set this story apart from the previous book. This book was so close to becoming a favorite of mine before one //thing// happened at the end of the story.
Gemina by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
Goodreads Description: Moving to a space station at the edge of the galaxy was always going to be the death of Hanna’s social life. Nobody said it might actually get her killed.
The sci-fi saga that began with the breakout bestseller Illuminae continues on board the Jump Station Heimdall, where two new characters will confront the next wave of the BeiTech assault.
Hanna is the station captain’s pampered daughter; Nik the reluctant member of a notorious crime family. But while the pair are struggling with the realities of life aboard the galaxy’s most boring space station, little do they know that Kady Grant and the Hypatia are headed right toward Heimdall, carrying news of the Kerenza invasion.
When an elite BeiTech strike team invades the station, Hanna and Nik are thrown together to defend their home. But alien predators are picking off the station residents one by one, and a malfunction in the station’s wormhole means the space-time continuum might be ripped in two before dinner. Soon Hanna and Nik aren’t just fighting for their own survival; the fate of everyone on the Hypatia—and possibly the known universe—is in their hands.
But relax. They’ve totally got this. They hope.
Gemina is the second book in the Illuminae series and is a solid—dare I say better—story than in its predecessor. Its unique storytelling format and mesh of science fiction, romance, and thriller tropes will captivate a diversity of readers.
Second Variety by Philip K. Dick
Goodreads Description: In the aftermath of a devastating nuclear war between the United Nations and the Soviet Union, sophisticated robots nicknamed “claws” are created to destroy what remains of human life. Left to their own devices, however, the claws develop robots of their own. II-V, the second variety, remains unknown to the few humans left on Earth. Or does it?
Philip K. Dick was an American science-fiction novelist, short-story writer and essayist. His first short story, “Beyond Lies the Wub,” was published shortly after his high school graduation. Some of his most famous short stories were adapted for film, including “The Minority Report,” “Paycheck,” “Second Variety” (adapted into the film Screamers) and “We Can Remember It For You Wholesale” (adapted into the film Total Recall).
Every short story I read by Philip K. Dick this year was my favorite. It’s amazing how quickly he can build and immerse the reader in a realistic, terrifying techno future. If you’re a fan of Black Mirror, you’ll love his stories too.
Josh and Hazel’s Guide to Not Dating by Christina Lauren
Goodreads Description: Hazel Camille Bradford knows she’s a lot to take—and frankly, most men aren’t up to the challenge. If her army of pets and thrill for the absurd don’t send them running, her lack of filter means she’ll say exactly the wrong thing in a delicate moment. Their loss. She’s a good soul in search of honest fun.
Josh Im has known Hazel since college, where her zany playfulness proved completely incompatible with his mellow restraint. From the first night they met—when she gracelessly threw up on his shoes—to when she sent him an unintelligible email while in a post-surgical haze, Josh has always thought of Hazel more as a spectacle than a peer. But now, ten years later, after a cheating girlfriend has turned his life upside down, going out with Hazel is a breath of fresh air.
Not that Josh and Hazel date. At least, not each other. Because setting each other up on progressively terrible double blind dates means there’s nothing between them…right?
Hands down the funniest, most lovable romance I read in 2018.
The Alice Network by Kate Quinn
Goodreads Description: In an enthralling new historical novel from national bestselling author Kate Quinn, two women—a female spy recruited to the real-life Alice Network in France during World War I and an unconventional American socialite searching for her cousin in 1947—are brought together in a mesmerizing story of courage and redemption.
1947. In the chaotic aftermath of World War II, American college girl Charlie St. Clair is pregnant, unmarried, and on the verge of being thrown out of her very proper family. She’s also nursing a desperate hope that her beloved cousin Rose, who disappeared in Nazi-occupied France during the war, might still be alive. So when Charlie’s parents banish her to Europe to have her “little problem” taken care of, Charlie breaks free and heads to London, determined to find out what happened to the cousin she loves like a sister.
1915. A year into the Great War, Eve Gardiner burns to join the fight against the Germans and unexpectedly gets her chance when she’s recruited to work as a spy. Sent into enemy-occupied France, she’s trained by the mesmerizing Lili, the “Queen of Spies”, who manages a vast network of secret agents right under the enemy’s nose.
Thirty years later, haunted by the betrayal that ultimately tore apart the Alice Network, Eve spends her days drunk and secluded in her crumbling London house. Until a young American barges in uttering a name Eve hasn’t heard in decades, and launches them both on a mission to find the truth…no matter where it leads.
I can never read enough stories about the strong women of the World Wars. The Alice Network gives recognition to brave female spies who endured unspeakable violations to serve countries that saw them as indecent pawns rather than the servicewoman they were.
Honorable Mentions
Belle Can Read 
Great list! I loved crooked Kingdom too!!
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Thank you 😁! Crooked Kingdom was such a pleasant surprise.
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