2013 Reading Tally

Total number: 185*. 17 of those were novellas**. 

Last year I didn't think I'd beat that total, and yet, it looks like I did. And the other years too.  Again, I think this is making it hard, hard, hard to repeat.  But who knows. 

TBR pile is still towering at more than a year.  Something to work on. 

It averages to 15 a month.  March was the biggest reading with 26 books. May the wimpiest with 9.

134*** distinct authors.  I read 5 Jill Shalvis books, which was my highest number for any one author this year. (Also second year for Jill Shlalvis as my highest author.  Yay for prolific authors!)  65 new to me authors.  Oldest book was from 1912. Newest is officially from 2014, but due to an early release I was able to read it in December.  90 were from a year not 2013 (or 2014).  Although a lot of those were from 2012. 30 of them had been lingering in my TBR pile.  4 were paper books.  5 were audio books. 

Romance was again highest genre/category at 98. YA was second at 56. Others include non-fiction, new adult, fantasy, mystery, urban fantasy, literary, women's fiction and middle grade.

Most common subcategory - Contemporary.

Number of books that were part of series, serial**** or installments: 98

Ten, or eleven,  books I told people about (because I liked them):

Storm by Brigid Kemmerer - YA series (although I would note that I liked the books a lot, but there's one arcing problem for the Merrick family, so each one ends a little abruptly in my opinion).  Becca saves a guy from some bullies in the high school parking lot and finds herself drawn into a strange situation when it turns out he can control water.  And now that she knows, people think she's one of them. 

Rule by Jay Crownover - a NA about Rule and long time family friend Shaw hook up on her birthday and now they have to figure out if a tattoo artist and a pre-med student who used to be close to his dead twin have a future.   I had some tiny nitpicks about some of the details, but overall loved this. 

Ink by Amanda Sun - a YA about a girl sent to live with her aunt in Japan after her mother dies.  And she discovers one of her classmates can make the ink characters move.  And apparently her presence amplifies it. 

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry - Echo can't remember quite what happened the night she ended up in the hospital with scars on her arms.  And her dad and stepmom seem to want to move on and pretend it's all okay.  Noah's trying to gain custody of his siblings after their parents died in a fire.  But his slipping academics, among other things, are not helping, so the school counselor suggests Echo tutor him. 

Orange is the New Black by Piper Kerman - Ostensibly, I read this for research, but I really enjoyed it.  I think Kerman tells the story with a healthy frame and it also provides a really interesting look at our prison system.  (Yes, I'm planning to watch the show too.)

The Couple Who Fooled the World by Maisey Yates - Proof that if you tweet that you have a story about a virgin and an ex-prostitute I will head to the estore even before I discover that they are also heads of rival tech firms who fake a relationship so they can team up on a joint project. 

Dead Heat by Bronwyn Parry - Australian romantic suspense.  A park ranger discovers a body and a police officer who transferred from the city after an undercover op went very badly now finds himself working a murder and, well, attracted to this ranger.  One of the challenges in romantic suspense is how to show how these two people who haven't met have time to learn to appreciate and fall in love with each other and this is wonderfully done. 

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein - Just read it.  Okay fine, WWII story of two young women  - a pilot and a spy - who become friends.

The Heiress Effect by Courtney Milan - Jane has figured out the secret to having a large dowry but managing to keep away fortune hunters - be a social disaster as in wear atrocious gowns and speak with no filter.  Oliver is illegitimate, and working on getting some political assistance so cannot afford to make a wrong step. 

A Little Too Far by Lisa Desrochers - A young woman in college hooks up one night with her stepbrother, deciding that is a sign the year abroad in Italy is a great idea until she finds herself having, erm, inappropriate feelings for a guy who is just about to become a priest.  I told several people it was either going to be awesome or terrible, and ultimately, I had some quibbles but enjoyed it a lot. 

Cora's Heart by Rachael Herron - I wrote (another) fangirly email to Ms. Rachael after I finished this one.  I've enjoyed the whole series and yet each one just - so good.  And the degree of difficulty was high, because I have been burned by many a story that sounds like this.  Cora was a foster kid, abandoned by her real family.  Married just out of high school got her some family (although her mother in law was still on the fence) and then her husband died in her twenties.  Now, Mac, her husband's cousin who didn't even come home for his funeral and who there might always have been a little lingering something, is back.  And oh.  Go read it. 

And yes, I do seem to like messy cross purposes and feelings.  In books, that is. 

*I counted re-reads if I re-read the whole thing a didn't just skip to my favorite parts. 
**My rule has been that things I can buy separately count as a book, so a book that was released with three novellas, or a collection of short stories counts as one read.  With the rise of electronic publishing the number of novellas that are released all by their lonesome has gone up, but hey, if it was a separate payment (or borrowing) transaction, I'm counting it. 
***I counted authors, not pen names, where possible. 
****Series is based on the book being part of a series, whether or not I read any others.