Books of 2012

 My goal was to read 50 books this year.  I didn’t make it, mostly because once my body started growing a baby full time sleep took precedence over everything.  But I still read some really great books and some not so great books.  You can read about my first 25 books here.

Excellent

26. Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart.  I really, really loved this book.  It’s Jane Eyre meets Rebecca which, as you can imagine, is a most wonderful combination.

27. Thunderstruck by Erik Larsen. Excellent Book. It was the same format as Devil in the White City (which I read last year), but I liked this one better because it was a little less gruesome (only one murder as opposed to many.) Erik Larson is definitely not an author for the faint of heart, but I love all the historical details in addition to the fascinating (true) story in his books. This book also takes place in London in the early 20th Century (think Downton Abbey) which delighted me.

28. These is my Words by Nancy E Turner.  I can’t believe it took me so long to pick up this book because I’d heard great reviews about it for years.  It’s the amazing story of Sarah Prine, a pioneer woman living in Arizona. I seriously don’t think I wouldn’t have lasted a day back then, but I guess if I didn’t know 2012 life then maybe I could have just dealt with it.

29. Edenbrooke by Julianne Donaldson. I loved this sweet romance.  I couldn’t put it down and was so sad when it was over that I almost started it right over again.

30.  A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens.  I just read this last year and wasn’t thinking that I was going to read it again this year, but when I happened upon the audio book read by Jim Dale I couldn’t resist.  It was fantastic. 

31. Les Miserables by Victor Hugo.  Amazing.  I just barely squeezed this one in before seeing the movie yesterday.  Both the movie and the book are wonderful.  Yes, the book doesn't have the added emotion that the music brings to the movie, but it fills in the details that make the story complete.  Please do yourself a favor and see/read it.

Great
32. Daughters in my Kingdom: The History and Work of Relief Society. I read this book last year as well, it's a wonderful summary of our church's women's organization, the Relief Society.  Made me grateful to be a part of it.

33. Seven Miracles that Saved America by Chris Stewart.  The first chapter about Columbus kind of drags, but I found the rest of the book fascinating.  But, I’m also a history nerd.

34, 35, 36. Gregor and the Curse of the Warmbloods, Gregor and the Marks of Secret, Gregor and the Code of Claw by Suzanne Collins.  I really enjoyed this series; I thought Gregor made an excellent hero.  The last book (Code of Claw) was definitely my favorite. 

37. The Fault in our Stars by John Green. I hadn't really ever read a book like this; it was so, so sad to read from the viewpoint of a teenager with cancer. I cried, a lot. I thought it was well-written and a sweet story, and I love how witty the characters were.

38, 39. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, The Weed that Strings the Hangman’s Bag by Alan Bradley.  Flavia is an eleven year amateur detective and chemist.  She is delightful, and I thoroughly enjoyed both these books but then I just couldn’t get through the third book.  Maybe it’s because I read all three in a row and I just needed a break.  I’ll have to get back to A Red Herring Without Mustard.

40. I’ve got your number by Sophie Kinsella.  I really loved the story, it was both heartwarming and hilarious.  Sophie Kinsella comes up with the most ridiculous but addictive characters.  Beware: heavy on the language.

41. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald.  I read this in high school, but enjoyed it so much more this time when I was reading by choice.  It’s just a great book.

Good

42. The Maze Runner by James Dashner. It took a little while for me to get into this book, but then I enjoyed it. Dystopian novels aren't my favorite genre, and this one didn't really make sense to me (which I realize is the point, since there are more books in the series, but I would have liked a little more explanation at the end.) To me it was good, not great.

43. One Summer by David Baldacci.  The only other Baldacci novel I’ve read is Wish You Well (which I loved.)  It’s kind of fascinating to me that he can write in such a variety of genres so I wanted to see what this book was like.  Apparently he decided to simply copy a Nicholas Sparks novel.  It seriously had every component- coastal Carolina, family dealing with trauma, budding romance, and a group of rowdy troublemakers.  It was good, but not amazing at all. 

44. The Paper Bag Christmas by Kevin Alan Milne. A cute and fun Christmas book.  Quite cheesy and predictable, but isn’t that what Christmas books are supposed to be?

Meh

45. The Scorch Trials by James Dashner.  Bryan and I listened to this on the way to Disneyland.  I may or may not have slept a little bit (read: I probably missed a good 1/4 of the book) so it just didn’t make sense to me and I still wasn’t getting the answers I wanted so I gave up.  I grudgingly finished this book, but never did finish the series.  (It sounds like this is a trend with me- I never make it to the 3^rd book)