Meandering Monday- Best Books of 2011 Part 2

Here's the final 5 titles in my Best Books of 2011 list! This is in order of publication date, not by which I liked better because that would be too hard to choose!


Shine by Lauren Myracle
"When her former best friend, Patrick, is found near death, tied to the pump of the local gas station, sixteen-year-old loner Cat is forced into action. The local sheriff blames out-of-towners, but Cat knows someone in their tightly-knit Southern community is guilty of the crime. And only she has the will- and the fury fueled by a still raw wound- to find him."-summary from back of ARC

I reviewed Shine here and also interviewed Lauren on the blog!

The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson

"Once a century, one person is chosen for greatness. Elisa is the chosen one. But she is also the younger of two princesses. The one who has never done anything remarkable, and can’t see how she ever will.

Now, on her sixteenth birthday, she has become the secret wife of a handsome and worldly king—a king whose country is in turmoil. A king who needs her to be the chosen one, not a failure of a princess. And he’s not the only one who seeks her. Savage enemies, seething with dark magic, are hunting her. A daring, determined revolutionary thinks she could be his people’s savior, and he looks at her in a way that no man has ever looked at her before. Soon it is not just her life, but her very heart that is at stake.

Elisa could be everything to those who need her most. If the prophecy is fulfilled. If she finds the power deep within herself. If she doesn’t die young.

Most of the chosen do."- summary from Amazon

I reviewed The Girl of Fire and Thorns here and it has no comments- go show it some love!!

Amplified by Tara Kelly
"When privileged 17-year-old Jasmine gets kicked out of her house, she takes what is left of her savings and flees to Santa Cruz to pursue her dream of becoming a musician. Jasmine finds the ideal room in an oceanfront house, but she needs to convince the three guys living there that she's the perfect roommate and lead guitarist for their band, C-Side. Too bad she has major stage fright and the cute bassist doesn't think a spoiled girl from over the hill can hack it. . . ."- summary from Amazon

I reviewed Amplified here.

Legend by Marie Lu
"What was once the western United States is now home to the Republic, a nation perpetually at war with its neighbors. Born into an elite family in one of the Republic's wealthiest districts, fifteen-year-old June is a prodigy being groomed for success in the Republic's highest military circles. Born into the slums, fifteen-year-old Day is the country's most wanted criminal. But his motives may not be as malicious as they seem.

From very different worlds, June and Day have no reason to cross paths - until the day June's brother, Metias, is murdered and Day becomes the prime suspect. Caught in the ultimate game of cat and mouse, Day is in a race for his family's survival, while June seeks to avenge Metias's death. But in a shocking turn of events, the two uncover the truth of what has really brought them together, and the sinister lengths their country will go to keep its secrets."- summary from Amazon

I reviewed Legend here and also participated in the blog tour, where Marie talked all about Day, one of the two narrators!

and finally, the last best book of 2011:

Don't Let Me Go by J.H. Trumble
"Some people spend their whole lives looking for the right partner. Nate Schaper found his in high school. In the eight months since their cautious flirting became a real, heart-pounding, tell-the-parents relationship, Nate and Adam have been inseparable. Even when local kids take their homophobia to brutal levels, Nate is undaunted. He and Adam are rock solid. Two parts of a whole. Yin and yang.

But when Adam graduates and takes an off-Broadway job in New York--at Nate's insistence--that certainty begins to flicker. Nate's friends can't keep his insecurities at bay, especially when he catches Skyped glimpses of Adam's shirtless roommate. Nate starts a blog to vent his frustrations and becomes the center of a school controversy, drawing ire and support in equal amounts. But it's the attention of a new boy who is looking for more than guidance that forces him to confront who and what he really wants."- summary from Amazon

I reviewed Don't Let Me Go here and also interviewed J.H. on the blog!

and here's the rest of the list of the ones who almost made the cut (with links to my reviews):

1) 13 Gifts by Wendy Mass
2) The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann
3) The Name of the Star by Maureen Johnson
4) Virtuosity by Jessica Martinez
5) The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler
6) The Probability of Miracles by Wendy Wunder
7) Every Other Day by Jennifer Lynn Barnes
8) Diabolical by Cynthia Leitich Smith


Did any of these make your own Best of 2011 list? What other titles did you all enjoy last year?

Meandering Monday- Best Books of 2011 Part 1

OK, so I've finally compiled my Top 10 books of 2011 (I had to narrow it down from 26 titles), in order of publication date rather than importance because I could not do that. Here are 5 of the 10 (with links to my reviews after each one), the rest will be revealed next Monday. I'll also include a list afterward of books that almost made the cut because I want to showcase them as well.

1)
Real Live Boyfriends by E. Lockhart
"Ruby Oliver is in love. Or it would be love, if Noel, her real live boyfriend, would call her back. But Noel seems to have turned into a pod-robot lobotomy patient, and Ruby can’t figure out why.

Not only is her romantic life a shambles:
Her dad is eating nothing but Cheetos,
Her mother’s got a piglet head in the refrigerator,
Hutch has gone to Paris to play baguette air guitar,
Gideon shows up shirtless,
And the pygmy goat Robespierre is no help whatsoever.

Will Ruby ever control her panic attacks?
Will she ever understand boys?
Will she ever stop making lists?
(No to that last one.)"- summary from Amazon

My review can be found here. You can also listen to/watch me read an excerpt from the book here.

2)
Leverage by Joshua Cohen
"The football field is a battlefield

There's an extraordinary price for victory at Oregrove High. It is paid on-and off-the football field. And it claims its victims without mercy-including the most innocent bystanders.

When a violent, steroid-infused, ever-escalating prank war has devastating consequences, an unlikely friendship between a talented but emotionally damaged fullback and a promising gymnast might hold the key to a school's salvation.

Told in alternating voices and with unapologetic truth, Leverage illuminates the fierce loyalty, flawed justice, and hard-won optimism of two young athletes."- summary from Amazon

My review can be found here.


3)
Clarity by Kim Harrington
"When you can see things others can't, where do you look for the truth?

Clarity "Clare" Fern sees things. Things no one else can see. Things like stolen kisses and long-buried secrets. All she has to do is touch a certain object, and the visions come to her. It's a gift.

And a curse.

When a teenage girl is found murdered, Clare's ex-boyfriend wants her to help solve the case--but Clare is still furious at the cheating jerk. Then Clare's brother--who has supernatural gifts of his own--becomes the prime suspect, and Clare can no longer look away. Teaming up with Gabriel, the smoldering son of the new detective, Clare must venture into the depths of fear, revenge, and lust in order to track the killer. But will her sight fail her just when she needs it most?"- summary from Amazon

My review can be found here. I also read an excerpt and interviewed the author!


4)
Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
"Lina is just like any other fifteen-year-old Lithuanian girl in 1941. She paints, she draws, she gets crushes on boys. Until one night when Soviet officers barge into her home, tearing her family from the comfortable life they've known. Separated from her father, forced onto a crowded and dirty train car, Lina, her mother, and her young brother slowly make their way north, crossing the Arctic Circle, to a work camp in the coldest reaches of Siberia. Here they are forced, under Stalin's orders, to dig for beets and fight for their lives under the cruelest of conditions.

Lina finds solace in her art, meticulously-and at great risk-documenting events by drawing, hoping these messages will make their way to her father's prison camp to let him know they are still alive. It is a long and harrowing journey, spanning years and covering 6,500 miles, and it is only their incredible strength, love and hope that pull Lina and her family through each day. But will love be enough to keep them alive?"- summary from Amazon

My review can be found here.


5)
I Am J by Cris Beam
""Hola, Jeni."

J spun. His stomach clenched hard, as though he'd been hit. It was just the neighbor lady, Mercedes. J couldn't muster a hello back, not now; he didn't care that she'd tell his mom he'd been rude. She should know better. Nobody calls me Jeni anymore.

J always felt different. He was certain that eventually everyone would understand who he really was: a boy mistakenly born as a girl. Yet as he grew up, his body began to betray him; eventually J stopped praying to wake up a "real boy" and started covering up his body, keeping himself invisible - from his family, from his friends...from the world. But after being deserted by the best friend he thought would always be by his side, J decides that he's done hiding - it's time to be who he really is. And this time he is determined not to give up, no matter the cost."- summary from Amazon

You can read my review here. I also read an excerpt and had the author by for an interview and guest blog!


And now, 8 books that didn't make the cut but were very close (the other 8 books will be revealed next week)!

1) Divergent by Veronica Roth
2) Don't Stop Now by Julie Halpern
3) Hourglass by Myra McEntire
4) Withering Tights by Louise Rennison
5) Forgotten by Cat Patrick
6) Wildefire by Karsten Knight
7) Want to Go Private by Sarah Darer Littman
8) Misfit by Jon Skovron

Do you agree so far with my picks? What were your favorite books of 2011? Any guesses as to what books will show up next week?