Best Reads of 2014

Yesterday, I gave an overview of my reading year in 2014 (with charts!). It was mostly data, so here's the part where I talk about actual books that I loved this year: my yearly ten best reads.

Been doing this since I started the blog in 2009, and if you're interested in finding out what books made it to my list each year, feel free to check out my best reads of the year label.

Anyway, on to my most enjoyable reads of the year. "Enjoyable" is how I qualify my best reads, given that the term "best read" is such a subjective matter and highly susceptible to mental, psychological, and emotional status at the time of reading. So, if the book leaves me with a glow during and after reading, or made me say internally (occasionally externally, too), "Holy shit, this is awesome." then that usually makes it to my best reads list.

And without further ado, in the order in which I read them during the year...

1. Locke & Key (the entire series) by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez - I found this at a time when I was looking for a really good story I could sink my teeth into. Joe Hill and artist Gabriel Rodriguez more than delivered. You have kids who lose their father (I swear, this isn't a spoiler) and go home to an old house where they discover magic keys that open different kinds of doors, plus an evil entity who understands the true mystery of the keys. It (the story, I mean) is magic.
2. Dark Demon Rising by Tunku Halim - I attended the Kuala Lumpur Publishing & Rights Conference in April, and what struck me there is how there are so many wonderful stories and storytellers from other Asian countries that unfortunately don't get to US nor Philippine shores. I also learned that Malaysia has a strong and rich tradition of horror stories based on local myths. So, I sought out a Malaysian horror story in English that I could read. I found Tunku Halim and this book. I don't think this is even Halim's best, based on what websites tell me, but I found it so fascinating. It was well-told, familiar enough to make me comfortable, and unfamiliar enough to draw me in. And scary. Man, it was scary. I loved it. When I finished it, I sort of felt sad, because it did prove that there are wonderful stories out there that I'd love to read, but have to find or wait till they're translated. And that is a bummer.
3. Tenth of December by George Saunders - I didn't realize that I already owned and read a Saunders (The Very Persistent Gappers of Fripp), so thought that this was my first. But golly, my golly, I felt like I was on tenterhooks while I was reading these short stories. Not that they were edge-of-the-seat exciting, no. The tenterhooks were because I thought they were damned beautiful and well-crafted, and I found that exhilarating. If I still taught English, I would find a way to teach almost all of the stories here. I loved them that much.
4. The Everything Store by Brad Stone - So, ok, MacKenzie Bezos (Jeff Bezos's wife) panned this book. I don't care. I loved it. And, uh, this is the first time I'll come out and say it, though I think friends suspect: I am a fan of Bezos, made all the more so by this book. Ok, don't get me wrong: Amazon is ruthless and can be a major asshole, and all that lands squarely on Bezos's shoulders. But I admire Jeff Bezos because, let's face it, he's a freaking great strategist. He may be destroying literature and all that (which, for the record, I think is too great an endeavor to impute to one man or one company. Which means I think literature will survive, Bezos or no), but you can't deny what a force he is because he knew what he wanted and employed all his resources and talent to get it.
5. The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch - I had no expectations coming into this book. Not even sure why I started it, except that it was on sale and I probably read about it somewhere. But it brought me back to all the reasons why I loved long fantasy novels: wonderful characters and dialogue, with some healthy heartbreak thrown in. I haven't gotten to the second nor third books yet (partly because I heard that the fourth book is taking a while in coming), but will definitely revisit the Gentlemen Bastards.
6. Dwellers by Eliza Victoria - This is a very short novel, but my favorite by Eliza who, full disclosure, is a friend. I also used to publish the ebook versions of her titles under the company I used to work for. But those relationships are neither here nor there. Dwellers is a delicious mystery with fantasy/local myth elements. I loved it both for itself and what it promises, which is writers coming up with more Filipino novels that are a) quality and b) actually read by the public.
7. Attack on Titan (or Shingeki no Kyojin) by Hajime Isayama (all of it! All of it, I say!) - I went gaga over this one. First, hubby and I watched the anime. From the first episode, I was hooked. By the fifth episode, I was tearing my hair, and then had to put it back on by the 7th episode (if you've seen it or read the manga, you'd understand). I only started reading the books after we finished the first season. And, oh my gosh, the manga is as interesting and exciting (although I am a bit sad that there's no soundtrack that automatically plays with the manga) as the anime. Anyway, Attack on Titan is set in a post-apocalyptic world with mostly mindless titans who consume humans. The rest of humanity survive behind 50m high walls to keep the titans out. That is, until a 60 m., sentient titan appears and kicks the wall open. And then havoc ensues, plus the triggering factor to creating the hero, Eren. Trust me, it's awesome.
8. Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer - This is my first Vandermeer. I am deeply sorry about that, because Annihilation is all kinds of awesome. You're not told much, not even the characters' names. You don't know what exactly is going on, nor what threat the main character is facing, nor what is really up with Area X. But all of this is all right because with a talented writer, you are along for the ride and he can make it worth your while. Besides, all the unanswered questions? It just keeps you reading along because you want them answered. Bear in mind, you might not get the answers in the first book. At least, that's what I'm told.
9. The Girl from the Well by Rin Chupeco - I found out about Rin because I was looking for Filipino authors who actually have literary agents which they got not through the usual patronage system that does exist in some local literary circles, but because they worked for it on their own. Rin is one of very few writers who fit this category. Anyway, I got a copy of her book because I invited her to speak during the Filipino ReaderCon. The Girl from the Well is a YA horror novel. If you've seen The Ring, the book's main character will remind you of it. I did some research, however, and it seems that there is a strong tradition of Japanese ghosts, and the story of a girl murdered and thrown into a well is a long-standing Japanese ghost story. So, I read through it and found it truly, truly enjoyable, including the occasional beheading. (My apologies to delicate readers. I do enjoy horror novels, after all.) What I found fascinating is that the story is told from the point of view of the ghost, who spends her ghostly existence avenging other murdered children. If it sounds pretty dark to you, that's because it is. But it is glorious, and I hope more people read it when the paperback comes out in mid-2015.
10. An Untamed State by Roxane Gay - This book...I can't. I will never have the words to do it justice. Just read it. But you have to be brave, because it is the least we can do for the character and the one who wrote it.

That's it. Would love to hear what you have to say about any of these books, or find out what your best reads are. Thank you for reading, and may we have an awesome reading year in 2015!