Top Ten Authors On My Auto-Buy List

 
1. Melina Marchetta. I was going to make a joke about being so willing to buy anything she writes, I'd purchase her shopping list, but then I realised that sounded totally stalkery and so I won't mention it at all. Ahem.

2. Markus Zusak. I loved The Book Thief and am eagerly anticipating Zusak's next novel, Bridge of Clay. In the meantime I should really get around to reading his earlier stuff.

3. Caroline Overington. Overington's stories cover so many important issues, but at the centre of them all are very authentic characters and realistic emotions. I've loved everything of hers that I've read.

4. Shirley Marr. I love Marr's writing style and the unique stories she writes. Cookie cutter they ain't.

5. Gayle Foreman. Foreman's If I Stay and Where She Went shattered my heart into a million teeny tiny pieces. I admire a writer who can do that.

6. Stephanie Perkins. On the other end of the spectrum, Perkins' Anna and the French Kiss made my heart all light and happy. It's literary fairy floss at its finest.

7. Craig Silvey. I have a bit of a literary crush on Mr Silvey. I devoured Jasper Jones and adored The Amber Amulet, and have Rhubarb on my husband's Kindle waiting for me to steal it away. I can't wait to see what Silvey does next.

8. J. K. Rowling. C'mon. It's the Queen.

9. Charles Dickens. I know, he's dead, but he managed to release a helluva lot of books in his lifetime that I'm slowly making my way through. I've loved what I've read so much I don't hesitate to buy his work, especially when I come across a really cool edition. I totally judge books by their covers.

10. Charlotte Bronte. Same deal as Dickens, except I've actually only read one of her books, that I happened to absolutely love. So I really want to get the rest of Bronte's work.

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

Top Ten Books I Read In 2012

 

1. Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey. An instant favourite – I’m talking top ten books of all time. I loved Silvey’s style, the authentic characters and the intriguing story.

2. On the Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta. It’s Melina Freaking Marchetta. Nobody does beautiful, heartfelt and realistic character-driven stories like she does. This is probably my favourite of her contemporary books.

3. Liesl and Po by Lauren Oliver. This was a magical little book about grief and friendship and love. And magic, of course.

4. The Language of Flowers by Vanessa Diffenbaugh. A unique contemporary novel featuring a bunch of broken and messed-up characters who burrow under your skin and take up residence in your heart.

5. Stuart: A Life Backwards by Alexander Masters. The compelling biography of an “ex-homeless,  ex-junkie psychopath", it's the type of book that stays with you long after you've finished it,

6. Fury by Shirley Marr. A darkly funny mystery featuring a smart and spunky heroine, I was hooked from the first line.

7. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee. Yes, I only read this for the first time this year. And of course it was brilliant.

8. The Piper's Son by Melina Marchetta. Another Marchetta, I know. I went on a bit of a MM-binge earlier in the year, and it was probably my best reading period of the last 12 months. So much gorgeous writing.

9. Bitter Greens by Kate Forsyth. This rich retelling of Rapunzel weaves together the stories of three powerful women: the "real" Rapunzel, the witch who entrapped her, and the woman who wrote down her story.

10. Let the Right One In by John Ajvide Lindqvist. This was the scariest book I've ever read. While I wouldn't say I particularly enjoyed it, it had some powerful (and creepy) imagery, a haunting story and beautiful writing.

What were your fave books of the year?

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Top Ten New-To-Me Authors I Read In 2012

1. Craig Silvey. I read Jasper Jones in one day on my honeymoon and it instantly became one of my favourite books. I totally have an author crush on Mr Silvey, thanks in no small part to meeting him at an event for his novella, The Amber Amulet. I totally fangirled.

2. Kat Zhang. As I mentioned in my review, I had a lot of problems with What’s Left of Me, Zhang’s debut novel, but I still loved it nonetheless. There’s something special about her storytelling ability, so I’m looking forward to seeing what she does in the future.

3. Shirley Marr. I was first introduced to Ms Marr when I won a competition to have a cameo in her book, Preloved. I was beyond excited – even more so when I became friends with her on Goodreads (her author profile is sadly no longer active) and quickly discovered how witty, funny and lovely she is. I finally got around to reading both Fury and Preloved towards the end of the year, and adored them both!

4. Lauren Oliver. I’ve had Oliver’s Delirium on my bookshelf for awhile and still haven’t read it, but I did manage to fly through Liesl and Po earlier in the year and thought it was absolutely beautiful. I really need to read more of Oliver’s books now!

5. Sarah Beth Durst. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed Drink, Slay, Love; especially how funny it was. Considering how over all things vampire I am, I was very impressed that Durst delivered a fresh and fun take on the genre.

6. Vanessa Diffenbaugh. I finally read The Language of Flowers this year and it was every bit as emotional and beautiful as I expected it to be.

7. Alexander Masters. I don’t often read non-fiction, but Masters’ biography of Stuart Shorter blew me away. It was clever, funny and incredibly raw (in a good way).

8. Kate Forsyth. Bitter Greens was a complex, gorgeous historical retelling of the Rapunzel story, which made me eager to try out some more of this talented Aussie author’s work.

9. Gabrielle Williams. I wasn’t really expecting to like The Reluctant Hallelujah, but it completely drew me in – and broke my heart. The writing was powerful and I loved the characters. I must check out more of Williams’ writing.

10. Katja Millay. The Sea of Tranquility has been getting a lot of buzz in the blogosphere, and for good reason – it’s a moving story about two broken people who are slowly helping each other to heal. It reminded me a lot of The Language of Flowers.

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Review: Preloved by Shirley Marr

 
First things first, I have to get some disclaimery stuff out of the way: I received a copy of Preloved from the author, because I won a competition to have a cameo in the book. BAM that's right I'm like totes famous.

The reason I'm mentioning this is not to brag (much), but so that I won't be accused of sekrit bias. Well, maybe I still will be, minus the sekrit part. But I promise I would have loved this book just as much if I had just randomly picked it up at a book shop. Bookworm's honour.

That's right, I loved this book. Like any good nerd, I have a passion for '80s pop culture. Preloved not only features a protagonist with an affinity for '80s pop culture (we first meet her when she is dressed up as Princess Buttercup from The Princess Bride - be still my heart!), but it also features a ghost from the '80s. A hot boy ghost from the '80s. Oh heeeey there Preloved, I think you might be my book soul mate. Can we be BFFs?

Speaking of BFFs, Amy is, like, totally tubular ('80s slang FTW! Uh, I mean - righteous, dude!). She was feisty and smart, but what I loved most of all was that, as she mentions herself, she is the kind of character who is normally relegated to sidekick status, while her bestie, Rebecca (more on her in a sec) is the star of the show. Not so in Preloved, and it is really refreshing. Too many YA books these days seem to have characters that are same old, same old, so when a uniquely awesome protagonist comes along, it's, like, bitchin' to the max (are you sick of the '80s slang yet? NEVER! Oh, that's just me?).

As for Rebecca, wow, I couldn't stand that girl. She is so pretentious and self-centred, and I caught myself thinking, "Amy, why are you friends with this airhead?!". But of course, I totally get it. I was the sidekick in high school to a girl who would ditch me when someone cooler came along, did things just to be seen as cool, craved the attention of boys (and got it), and subtly put me down to make herself feel better. I didn't really see it at the time - she was just my best friend. But in hindsight, wow. It's no wonder I wanted to reach into the book and shake Amy for putting up with Rebecca's crap - but, of course, she has to realise for herself that she's worth more, and this became one of my favourite parts of her journey.

Another of my favourite parts was Amy's relationship with her mum. At the beginning she has difficulty connecting with her mother, and doesn't have a lot of tolerance for her mum's extensive superstitions (which, BTW, were another fun, unique aspect of the book), but as she finds herself actually being haunted, she has to increasingly turn to her mother for help and comfort. I loved seeing their relationship grow and develop as they learned to understand each other better. I felt for Amy's mum and her fear of losing her daughter. It was so real and incredibly touching.

I just realised I've gotten pretty far into my review and I haven't even talked about Amy's love interest, Logan, yet. I think this is because, while there is definitely a love story there, Logan and Amy's relationship functions less as the main plotline and more as a vehicle for Amy to grow and explore her own life and how she feels about herself and the others around her. There is no  "ZOMG, INSTA-LOVE, 2GETHA 4EVA" crap here - and I loved it.

The only complaint I have is that I wish there was more - certain parts seemed very brief and I would have liked more details, especially regarding the backstory with Logan and the flashbacks to how he died. But Preloved as a whole was a lot of fun. It's unique and quirky, but it also has a lot of heart. It's such a refreshing read; I'd definitely recommend it to anybody who is tired of the same tedious YA stories and characters that keep appearing. Basically, Preloved is totally radical, dudes!

Rating: 4/5

Eye Candy
Logan is named after Logan Bruno from The Baby-Sitters Club (as if I could love this book any more!), and I always pictured Logan as Zack Morris. So this Logan managed to look like him too. And at the risk of outing myself as a The Sleepover Club watcher (hey, I was young! It was a guilty pleasure! It was last year), I imagined Amy as looking like Hannah Wang.

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Fine Print
Published: April 2012, Black Dog Books
Get It:  Bookworld

Review: Fury by Shirley Marr

"My name is Eliza Boans and I am a murderer."

How is that for a brilliant opening line? I was instantly hooked. I love a mystery, and when a book opens with the protagonist in a police station confessing to murder, you know you're in for a good one. Who was murdered and why - and whether Eliza actually did it - is slowly divulged through flashbacks, as Eliza tells her story to an interrogator. Importantly, the pace isn't too slow; just the right amount of information is revealed at key moments to keep an impatient Gen Y-er like me satisfied, while maintaining my interest and keeping me guessing till the end. It was intense, but in a very good way.

My favourite thing about Fury was Eliza (which was handy, considering she's the main character and all). She's the opposite of a passive Mary Sue waiting to be saved. Eliza's personality radiates from the page, and as the story unfolds you see she can take care of herself - and her friends, too, for that matter. All of the characters are well fleshed-out and realistic. They're not always likable, but that just made them feel more real to me. Speaking from experience, teenage girls can be downright bitches at times - but they can also be the fiercest friends you'll ever have. I loved that Marr didn't shy away from this aspect in Eliza's friendships.

The authentic feel of the story was enhanced by the language. It's smart, funny, very Aussie and totally teen - but not in an annoying way. Eliza's narration feels natural; not like an "old person" trying to sound like a teenager. Her voice is established on the very first page; she's witty, snarky and a little bit twisted, and uses slang like "povo" and "snogged". But I don't want to make it sound like the language was all sarcastic and slang-y, because it's not. There are moments of absolute beauty and insight; my favourite was around the half way point when Eliza says, "I'm so tired, here in my head.". I hear ya, sister. Basically, Eliza spoke my language. And I loved it.

One thing about the language - or, rather, the names - is that they're inspired by famous literary characters, especially from Jane Austen. I really loved this nod to the classics, but the downside was that it could be a bit jarring at times, taking you out of the story, rather than into it. But this was a minor quibble. I really adored this book - the plot, the setting, the characters and especially its unpredictability. It's not every day you come across a YA book that has a truly unique storyline and a strong voice. But it's awesome when you do.

Rating: 4.5/5

Related
How gorgeous is the cover of Fury? Shirley Marr has done some awesome behind-the-scenes posts about the cover (and the ones that were rejected) here and here.