Top 10 of 2011- Books I’m looking Forward To

This event is hosted by Lisa from A Life Bound By Books, Rachel from Fiktshun & Jaime & Patricia from Two Chicks on Books and Confessions of a Bookaholic where everyone can join the fun! You can check out this post for more information. 

Top 10 Books I’m looking Forward To!  

This was a fun list to compile.  Next year looks very promising…bye bye HD-TV hello HBB (hard back book). 

Series that ROCK MY WORLD with a release in 2012:

(Note:  DON'T READ THIS MESSAGES BELOW THE BOOK PHOTOS IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE SERIES)

Lover Reborn (Black Dagger Brotherhood, #10) by J.R. Ward 

March 27th 2012

 

DON'T READ THIS NEXT MESSAGE IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THIS SERIES:  Don't say I didn't warn you.  Remember the brother that went missing after his pregnant wife was murdered en route to take that chick John Matthew was crushing on home?  Yep, I'm talking about Tohrment!  Well he's back and its time to find him LOVE!!!!

Darker After Midnight (Midnight Breed, #10) by Lara Adrian

January 24th 2012

Sterling Chase is about to get the hook up.  Well its about time.  It broke my heart the way he was always running up behind Elise.  She wouldn't give the poor dude the time of day.  I wonder if his personality will go back to the "Harvard" I once knew and loved.

 

Thirteen (Women of the Otherworld, #13) by Kelley Armstrong

July 5th 2012

I hated the cliffhangers on the last two books.  Adam needs to get over the weirdness and age difference and get with the program.

Spell Bound (Hex Hall, #3) by Rachel Hawkins

March 13th 2012

 No offense Archer, but I want to see some action between Sophie and Cal!

Never to Sleep (Soul Screamers #5.5) by Rachel Vincent & Before I Wake (Soul Screamers #6) by Rachel Vincent

January 1st 2012 & July 2012

I haven't read "If I Die", but this series never disappoints me! 

Because I’ve been following far too long to quit now:

Hey, don’t look at me like that.  I know some of you don’t like the following series, but I’ve read this far and I’m NO QUITTER!

Fallen in Love (Fallen #3.5) by Lauren Kate & Rapture (Fallen, #4) by Lauren Kate

January 24th 2012 & June 12th 2012

Hidden (House of Night, #10)by P.C. Cast

October 6th 2012

This series made me made because I think it could have ended a couple of books ago; but we shall see what the new year brings.

1 NEW TITLE I've got to check out:

Cinder (Lunar Chronicles #1) by Marissa Meyer

January 3rd 2012

Now who couldn't get excited about a possibly biotic futuristic retelling of Cinderella?

7 Honorable Mentions:

Like you, I have no idea if the following's any good.  But I’ll check it out next year because the cover’s pretty and/or I like the synopsis.  Wishing a publisher’ll let me take these babies for a test drive!

Enchanted Again by Robin D. Owens

January 1st 2012

 

Magic has a price—and for Amber Sarga it's days and years off her life. Each curse she breaks ages her—and the bigger the curse the bigger the cost, and not only to her. That's why she hides away and has vowed not to get involved again… That's why she hates looking in a mirror…

And then an ill-fated stranger arrives. Rafe Davail doesn't believe in curses—not even knowing that in his family every first son dies young. Amber offers guidance but she won't break the curse. Still, as she grows closer to Rafe and discovers the secrets of their pasts, she wonders if for this time, this man, she should risk it all…. 

Life Is But a Dream by Brian James

March 27th 2012

Alec and Sabrina are crazy in love. Problem is: Sabrina’s really crazy.

Sabrina, an artist, is diagnosed with schizophrenia, and her parents check her into the Wellness Center. There she meets Alec, who is convinced it's the world that's crazy, not the two of them. They are meant to be together; they are special. But when Alec starts to convince Sabrina that her treatment will wipe out everything that makes her creative, she worries that she'll lose hold of her dreams and herself. Should she listen to her doctor? Her decision may have fatal consequences.

The Selection (The Selection #1) by Kiera Cass

April 24th 2012

For thirty-five girls, the Selection is the chance of a lifetime. The opportunity to escape the life laid out for them since birth. To be swept up in a world of glittering gowns and priceless jewels. To live in the palace and compete for the heart of the gorgeous Prince Maxon.

But for America Singer, being Selected is a nightmare. It means turning her back on her secret love with Aspen, who is a caste below her. Leaving her home to enter a fierce competition for a crown she doesn't want. Living in a palace that is constantly threatened by violent rebel attacks.

Then America meets Prince Maxon. Gradually, she starts to question all the plans she's made for herself- and realizes that the life she's always dreamed of may not compare to a future she never imagined.

All That Bleeds (Etherlin, #1) by Kimberly Frost

January 3rd 2012

As the last heiress of the House of North, Alissa knows that striking up a secret friendship with a half-vampire enforcer is dangerous, but Merrick is a temptation she can't resist. But when Alissa is kidnapped, Merrick proves that he will do anything to protect the woman who tempts him with her very existence.

The Seduction of Phaeton Black (Paranormal Investigator, #1) by Jillian Stone

February 28th 2012

In the gaslit streets of Victorian London, phantoms rule the night, demons dance till dawn, and one supernatural detective dares to be seduced by the greatest power of all. . .
He's The Man With The Magic Touch
A master of deduction, seduction and other midnight maneuvers, Phaeton Black is Scotland Yard's secret weapon against things that go bump in the night. His prodigious gifts as a paranormal investigator are as legendary as his skills as a lover, his weakness for wicked women as notorious as his affection for absinthe. But when he's asked to hunt down a fanged femme fatale who drains her victims of blood, he walks right into the arms of the most dangerous woman he's ever known. . .
She's The Devilish Miss Jones
Pressing a knife to his throat--and demanding he make love to her--Miss America Jones uses Phaeton as a willing shield against the gang of pirates chasing her. As deadly as she is, with a derringer tucked in her garter, Miss Jones is not the vampiric killer he's been staking out--but she may be just what Phaeton needs to crack the case. As the daughter of a Cajun witch, she possesses uncanny powers. As a fearless fighter, she can handle anything from Egyptian mummies to Jack the Ripper. But when an ancient evil is unleashed on the world, she could be his only salvation. . .or ultimate sacrifice.

For Darkness Shows the Stars by Diana Peterfreund

June 12th 2012

Generations ago, a genetic experiment gone wrong—the Reduction—decimated humanity, giving rise to a Luddite nobility who outlawed most technology.

Eighteen-year-old Luddite Elliot North has always known her place in this caste system. Four years ago Elliot refused to run away with her childhood sweetheart, the servant Kai, choosing duty to her family’s estate over love. But now the world has changed: a new class of Post-Reductionists is jumpstarting the wheel of progress and threatening Luddite control; Elliot’s estate is floundering; and she’s forced to rent land to the mysterious Cloud Fleet, a group of shipbuilders that includes renowned explorer Captain Malakai Wentforth—an almost unrecognizable Kai. And while Elliott wonders if this could be their second chance, Kai seems determined to show Elliot exactly what she gave up when she abandoned him.

But Elliot soon discovers her childhood friend carries a secret—-one that could change the society in which they live…or bring it to its knees. And again, she’s faced with a choice: cling to what she’s been raised to believe, or cast her lot with the only boy she’s ever loved, even if she has lost him forever.

Inspired by Jane Austen’s PERSUASION, FOR DARKNESS SHOWS THE STARS is a breathtaking romance about opening your mind to the future and your heart to the one person you know can break it.

Destiny's Fire by Trisha Wolfe

January 10th 2012

It’s the year 2040, and sixteen-year-old Dez Harkly is one of the last of her kind—part of a nearly extinct race of shape-shifters descended from guardians to the Egyptian pharaohs. Her home and her secret are threatened when the Council lowers the barrier, allowing the enemy race to enter the Shythe haven.

As the Narcolym airships approach, Dez and her friends rebel against their Council and secretly train for battle. Not only is Dez wary of war and her growing affection for her best friend Jace, but she fears the change her birthday will bring. When Dez’s newfound power rockets out of control, it’s a Narcolym who could change her fate… if she can trust him.

Dez’s guarded world crumbles when she discovers why the Narcos have really come to Haven Falls, and she's forced to choose between the race who raised her and the enemy she's feared her whole life.

Here's my wrap-up for the year!
100 Books Read!
35,568 pages read!
118 posts this year!

My goal for this year was 90 books so next year I'm bringing that up to 110!
So What are you looking forward to in 2012?

Top 10 of 2011- Book Villains

This event is hosted by Lisa from A Life Bound By Books, Rachel from Fiktshun & Jaime & Patricia from Two Chicks on Books and Confessions of a Bookaholic where everyone can join the fun! You can check out this post for more information. 

Top 10 Book Villains!

#1- Vanessa Lattimore form Trina by Darrell Debrew.  I finished reading this last night and I don’t think any villain can cut a betrayal wound as deep as your own mother.

#2- The "REAL" Jace from the Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare.

#3- Neferet from House of Night series by  P.C. Cast, Kristin Cast. 

#4-He-whom-we-do-not-speak-of aka he-who-shall-rename-nameless and Level 7 from The Vampire Huntress Series by L.A. Banks.

#5- Who/What the children were hiding from in Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs.

#6-Victoria from the Twilight series.

#7-Sabine Campbell from My Soul to Seal by Rachel Vincent.

#8-Dragos from the Midnight Breed Series by Lara Adrian.  

#9- the archangel, Azrael, from The Space Between by Brenna Yovanoff.

#10-The whole twisted dysfunctional family in Don't Breathe a Word by Jennifer McMahon takes the cake! 

So who were your top 10 VILLAINS in 2011?

Top 10 of 2011-Book Boyfriends



This event is hosted by Lisa from A Life Bound By Books, Rachel from Fiktshun & Jaime & Patricia from Two Chicks on Books and Confessions of a Bookaholic where everyone can join the fun! You can check out this post for more information. 

Top 10 Book Boyfriends!

Hey, hey now I’m a married woman, so I can’t elaborate too much on why these guys are my top ten.  So if you’re familiar with these gentlemen from novels and “you know what I mean” just give me a nod; and say “Amen” to the literary geniuses to brought these characters to life and into our hearts forever.  Here you go (on no particular order):

  

#1- Gideon from  Eric Jerome Dickey's Gideon Series:

Gideon is one sexy international assassin that'll make you wish you're next on his "hit" list!

#2- Eric Northman from Charlaine Harris' Southern Vampire Mystery Series. (Need I say more?!?!)

#3- Quinn O'Connor from Keri Arthur's Riley Jenson Guardian Series:

 (There are 9 books total in this series and Quinn *sigh* is one heck of a vampire.  Be still my heart.....)

#4- Carlos Rivera from The Vampire Huntress Legend Series by L A Banks.  (See my book boyfriend Tag)


#5- Jeremy Danvers from Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld Series:
 (There's 13 books total in this series, but he really shined in "No Humans Involved".)


#6- Jean-Claude from Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter Series.


#7 & #8- Dante Brown and Scamz from Eric Jerome Dickey's Thieves' Paradise:



#9- Adam Hauptman from  Patricia Briggs' Mercy Thompson Series.


#10- ALL THE VAMP MEN FROM MIDNIGHT BREED SERIES AND BLACK DAGGER BROTHERHOOD!

*GASP*  When I started this list I thought I wouldn’t get able to get to 10!  Now I can think of waaaay more names to add that’ll take it way over 10!!!  

OH, my gosh!!!!  Does that make me a book slut?



Top 10 of 2011

This event is hosted by Lisa from A Life Bound By Books, Rachel from Fiktshun & Jaime & Patricia from Two Chicks on Books and Confessions of a Bookaholic where everyone can join the fun! You can check out this post for more information. 

The following are my favorite reads of 2011:

  A Lady Awakened by Cecilia Grant

Newly widowed and desperate to protect her estate and beloved servants from her malevolent brother-in-law, Martha Russell conceives a daring plan. Or rather, a daring plan to conceive. After all, if she has an heir on the way, her future will be secured. Forsaking all she knows of propriety, Martha approaches her neighbor, a London exile with a wicked reputation, and offers a strictly business proposition: a month of illicit interludes . . . for a fee.

Theophilus Mirkwood ought to be insulted. Should be appalled. But how can he resist this siren in widow’s weeds, whose offer is simply too outrageously tempting to decline? Determined she’ll get her money’s worth, Theo endeavors to awaken this shamefully neglected beauty to the pleasures of the flesh—only to find her dead set against taking any enjoyment in the scandalous bargain. Surely she can’t resist him forever. But could a lady’s sweet surrender open their hearts to the most unexpected arrival of all . . . love?

I got this book ARC and I was excited to find out today the there is a sequel in the Blackshear Family  series. 

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

In the ruins of a place once known as North America lies the nation of Panem, a shining Capitol surrounded by twelve outlying districts. The Capitol is harsh and cruel and keeps the districts in line by forcing them all to send one boy and one girl between the ages of twelve and eighteen to participate in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV.

I finally found out what all the hype was about......and Now I'm on the band wagon!

The Bitten (Vampire Huntress Legend #4) by L.A. Banks

The vampire civil war has been averted, deadly were-demons have been beaten back and now it Damali Richards and Carlos Rivera (now a Council level vampire) will finally have the chance to settle in and explore their deeper, sexier love. But Carlos and Damali should know by now that there is no rest for the saviors of the known world. One of the four topside Master vampires has stolen one of the Keys-the living blood of Christ---that opens the sixth seal as foretold in Revelations. He who possesses the Key and the Seal can decide to the outcome of the Final War, a.k.a. Armageddon. With a vampire in possession of the Key, the balance between the Light and the Dark have been thrown off and even Damali is deeply effected. She is now sporting a pair of fangs. In order to retrieve the Key, Carlos and Damali are quickly thrust into a web of vampire politics and intrigue. And when Carlos's secret drug, Oblivion, finds its way into the hands of the enemies, even the seventh level of Hell comes calling.

This was the turning point for me in this series.  This book made me LOVE it!

 The Forsaken (Vampire Huntress Legend #7) by L.A. Banks  

The Chairman of the Vampire Council is dead, and Lilith, the consort of the Unnamed One, and the Unnamed One himself are out for revenge against Damali Richards, the Vampire Huntress, and her lover, Carlos Rivera. A ruthless and carefully planned strategy---one that not even Damali will anticipate---has been developed. There is only one entity who can best Damali, send Carlos packing, and put the Guardian team at mortal risk. This powerful being was once banished into a forsaken land and possesses everything that would bring a Neteru to his or her knees. This time the fight is not so clear-cut, and it is not only Damali's soul in the balance but her body and heart as well.

Funny how I came across this series.  I sent my husband to the library to pick up my holds and her came back with Minion (the first in this series) instead.  I told him I'd never let him run my errands again.  I don't know if he did it on purpose, but in the end I loved it.  So now I let him pick my books up when I need something new to read in hopes that he'll stumble on another good book!

Veil of Midnight (Midnight Breed #5)  by Lara Adrian

Bound by blood, addicted to danger, they'll enter the darkest—and most erotic—place of all.

A warrior trained in bullets and blades, Renata cannot be bested by any man—vampire or mortal. But her most powerful weapon is her extraordinary psychic ability—a gift both rare and deadly. Now a stranger threatens her hard-won independence—a golden-haired vampire who lures her into a realm of darkness…and pleasure beyond imagining.

A combat-loving adrenaline junkie, Nikolai dispenses his own justice to enemies of the Breed—and his latest quarry is a ruthless assassin. One woman stands in his way: the seductive, cool-as-ice bodyguard, Renata. But Renata’s powers are put to the test when a loved one, a child, is threatened and she’s forced to turn to Niko for help. As the two join forces, as desire fans the flames of a deeper hunger, Renata’s life is under siege by a man who offers the exquisite pleasure of a blood bond—and a passion that could save or doom them both forever.…

This was my favorite of all the Breed love matches.....*SIGH*!!!

Men of the Otherworld (Otherworld Stories I) by Kelley Armstrong

New York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong has captivated readers with her spellbinding Women of the Otherworld series. Now, for the first time, in this collection of four tales she gives center stage to the men who love these sexy, supernatural women—the men who live on the other side of humanity…the wild side.

As a curious six-year-old, Clayton didn’t resist the bite—he asked for it. But surviving as a lone child-werewolf was more than he could manage—until Jeremy came along and taught him how to straddle the human-werewolf worlds, gave him a home…and introduced him to the Pack. So begins this tantalizing volume, featuring three of the most intriguing members of the American Pack—a hierarchical founding family where bloodlines mean everything and each day presents a new, thrilling, and often deadly challenge. For as Clayton grows from a wild child to a clever teen who tests his beloved mentor at every turn, he must learn not only to control his animal instincts but to navigate Pack politics—including showing his brutal archnemesis, Malcolm, who the real Alpha is....

From the nature of fear, weakness, and courage, to the triumph of belonging and the complications of love and loyalty, these mesmerizing tales reveal the trials of a werewolf coming-of-age, and lay bare the hearts and minds of the men strong enough for the women of the Otherworld—and adept enough to take on two worlds.

Finally, a glimpse into the guys' past!!!

Bitten (Women of the Otherworld #1) by Kelley Armstrong

Elena Michaels seems like the typically strong and sexy modern woman, She lives with her architect boyfriend, writes for a popular newspaper, and works out at the gym. She's also a werewolf.
Elena has done all she can to assimilate to the human world, but the man whose bite changed her existence forever, and his legacy, continue to haunt her. Thrown into a desperate war for survival that tests her allegiance to a secret clan of werewolves, Elena must recon with who, and what, she is in this passionate, page-turning novel.

This the second book on my list with the same name.  Being bitten was popular this year...lol!

City of Glass (The Mortal Instruments #3) by Cassandra Clare  

To save her mother's life, Clary must travel to the City of Glass, the ancestral home of the Shadowhunters -- never mind that enter-ing the city without permission is against the Law, and breaking the Law could mean death. To make things worse, she learns that Jace does not want her there, and Simon has been thrown in prison by the Shadowhunters, who are deeply suspicious of a vampire who can withstand sunlight.

As Clary uncovers more about her family's past, she finds an ally in mysterious Shadow-hunter Sebastian. With Valentine mustering the full force of his power to destroy all Shadow-hunters forever, their only chance to defeat him is to fight alongside their eternal enemies. But can Downworlders and Shadowhunters put aside their hatred to work together? While Jace realizes exactly how much he's willing to risk for Clary, can she harness her newfound powers to help save the Glass City -- whatever the cost?

Love is a mortal sin and the secrets of the past prove deadly as Clary and Jace face down Valentine in the final installment of the New York Times bestselling trilogy The Mortal Instruments.

This was a perfect ending.  I'm afraid to pick up the next book in the series.

 Bumped (Bumped #1) by Megan McCafferty

When a virus makes everyone over the age of eighteen infertile, would-be parents pay teen girls to conceive and give birth to their children, making teens the most prized members of society. Girls sport fake baby bumps and the school cafeteria stocks folic-acid-infused food.
Sixteen-year-old identical twins Melody and Harmony were separated at birth and have never met until the day Harmony shows up on Melody’s doorstep. Up to now, the twins have followed completely opposite paths. Melody has scored an enviable conception contract with a couple called the Jaydens. While they are searching for the perfect partner for Melody to bump with, she is fighting her attraction to her best friend, Zen, who is way too short for the job.
Harmony has spent her whole life in Goodside, a religious community, preparing to be a wife and mother. She believes her calling is to convince Melody that pregging for profit is a sin. But Harmony has secrets of her own that she is running from.
When Melody is finally matched with the world-famous, genetically flawless Jondoe, both girls’ lives are changed forever. A case of mistaken identity takes them on a journey neither could have ever imagined, one that makes Melody and Harmony realize they have so much more than just DNA in common.

This book did not get a 5-star rating from me, however I could not over look it for this list.  It's definitely memorable.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. And a strange collection of very curious photographs. It all waits to be discovered in Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, an unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children who once lived here—one of whom was his own grandfather—were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a desolate island for good reason. And somehow—impossible though it seems—they may still be alive.

A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

Again, 4-stars but definitely a memorable book.

The following is my favorite covers of 2011:

Betrayal (The Descendants #1) by Mayandree Michel

Clarity (Clarity #1) by Kim Harrington

Spirit Storm (Spirit Guide #2) by E.J. Stevens

Angel Arias (Night Creatures #2) by Marianne de Pierres

Spiderwork (Apocalypto #2) by L.K. Rigel

Unlovable (Port Fare #1) by Sherry Gammon

My Life As a White Trash Zombie (White Trash Zombie #1) by Diana Rowland

Exiled (Immortal Essence #1) by RaShelle Workman

My Unfair Godmother (My Fair Godmother #2) by Janette Rallison

Wayfinder (Worldwalker Duology #2) by C.E. Murphy

So what are your top 10 of 2011?