Here's what has happened, as of September, 2015. Over the course of the last 9 months, I have pulled up several books on my Goodreads account to make sure that I gave them 5 stars and stellar reviews when I read them. And each time I do that, I realize that I read each of these books in 2014, and then I have to pull up this website to see what books I listed as honorable mentions for the year to remember why one of the books from last year didn't get it. At this point, I've decided that I read far too many good books in 2014 and that I'm just going to add another one here. The Rithmatist was truly superb and I still absolutely love it and can't wait for the sequel, but I'm honestly questioning how smart is it to pick a book of the year without giving it at least 6 months to settle out, considering that this is now the second year in a row I've ended up re-thinking my decisions (see the Honorable Mentions for 2013 for more on that.
My original honorable mentions for 2014 and the original post, from early January, 2015, are still listed below with reviews. I'm also adding Rooms by Lauren Oliver. You can see my review by clicking on the title. I think if I were making the decision about this right now, Rooms would take the cake and The Rithmatist would be an honorable mention, but only because The Scorpio Races doesn't meet my qualifications. If it did, it would win and Rooms would be an honorable mention.
My original honorable mentions for 2014 and the original post, from early January, 2015, are still listed below with reviews. I'm also adding Rooms by Lauren Oliver. You can see my review by clicking on the title. I think if I were making the decision about this right now, Rooms would take the cake and The Rithmatist would be an honorable mention, but only because The Scorpio Races doesn't meet my qualifications. If it did, it would win and Rooms would be an honorable mention.
The Scorpio Races by Maggie StiefvaterIt's hard to say whether The Scorpio Races would have beat out The Rithmatist as my favorite book of the year or not. In the end, it doesn't matter because The Scorpio Races was published in 2011, and I didn't read it until 2014, which makes it ineligible to win for the year. Here's my original review from Goodreads.
Every November, the island of Thisby is overrun with tourists in town for the Scorpio Races. And those island men brave enough to attempt to ride the fearsome capaill uisce, the carnivorous water horses that emerge from the sea, race, desperately trying to maintain control of the animals they ride. Sean Kendrick and his water horse Corr are the returning champions. Puck Connolly never wanted a part of the Races. But when she enters, the first girl ever to do so, in order to save her home, they both must rethink why they are participating, what they hope to gain, and what their strange island home truly means to them.
I absolutely adored this book. Puck, the main character, is highly relatable; she's simply trying to make the best choices that she can. She recognizes that she can't fix everything and that nothing will end up perfect every time, but she knows she can fix some things, and she always, always gives everything she has. She's working for the future, and while it is uncertain, she knows she can get there and that it will be good. I also fell in love with Thisby as a place. I imagined this windswept, grey place off the coast of England with rolling hills covered with tall field grass. In a way, I was reminded of the moors of Wuthering Heights. I'm not even sure Stiefvater actually described the place physically, but she littered it with these super intriguing characters (especially the women) and mysterious sea horses and the whole thing was just perfect. Puck is a freckly redhead and I just constantly had this picture of her standing on the top of a hill, knee deep in field grass, hair whipping behind her, looking out over this grey ocean threatening a storm, with shadows of the capaill uisce riding the waves. The inevitable relationship between Puck and Sean, which I was really wary of at first (I'm so over every YA book having to have a love aspect to it), developed so naturally that I honestly ended up loving every part of it and getting anxious about it not working out. It happens not because Puck, or Sean for that matter, needs it because gahhhhhhh I'm such an angsty teenager and I have to have his love, but because their personalities complement each other so nicely and they are going through the same experience. They both question it a really appropriate amount, which I also really appreciated. This is a hard book to categorize, or to truly explain in any full way. It's very realistic except for the rather supernatural element of the capaill uisce. But if the story lacked the capaill uisce, it would not be the same story and it wouldn't be as good. I can't explain why. In a way, I suppose they represent the obstacles, the scariness, of real life. The island is Puck and Sean's whole world, their lives; the capaill uisce are the physical manifestation of all the things life throws at you. Anyway, this is a very, very good book. I stayed up way too late finishing it one night, but it was totally worth it, honestly. |
Out of the Easy by Ruta SepetysOut of the Easy didn't win simply because it didn't stick with me quite as much as The Rithmatist did. I was just slightly less enthralled with, but I still loved it and it deserves a mention because this was a hard choice. Here's my original review from Goodreads. You'll notice I start the review with exactly the same words as the one I wrote for The Scorpio Races.
It’s 1950, and as the French Quarter of New Orleans simmers with secrets, seventeen-year-old Josie Moraine is silently stirring a pot of her own. Known among locals as the daughter of a brothel prostitute, Josie wants more out of life than the Big Easy has to offer. She devises a plan get out, but a mysterious death in the Quarter leaves Josie tangled in an investigation that will challenge her allegiance to her mother, her conscience, and Willie Woodley, the brusque madam on Conti Street. Josie is caught between the dream of an elite college and a clandestine underworld. New Orleans lures her in her quest for truth, dangling temptation at every turn, and escalating to the ultimate test.
I absolutely adored this book. I think the biggest reason for that was the characters. The plot was good, but it's truly a character driven story. Josie, the protagonist, is a fantastic young woman, though her life has been one long hardship. Her mother is a prostitute, only after money and constantly getting herself in deep with the wrong guys, specifically Cincinnati. Josie has grown up around the brothel her mother works at. She cleans the house every morning and is seemingly one of the house madam's most trusted people. But she has distanced herself. She lives in an apartment above the bookstore where she works, and has done both of those since she was 12. She is intelligent, kind, loving, witty, and wishes to go to college (and definitely should be able to), but keeps a strong head on her shoulders and never lets the problems that surround her get her down. The house madam, Willie, is an enigma. Yes, she is a house madam, but she cares deeply for Josie, most of the girls in her house, and those people who have helped make her who she is or proven their worth. She's also well-liked and well-respected in the community, is friends with doctors and attorneys (and not just because they like to frequent her girls), and constantly desires the best for Josie. I absolutely fell in love with both Patrick and Jesse, for extremely different reasons. Sepetys does a fantastic job with the love triangle. (Sidenote: I'm so tired of love triangles. I was fine with this one because calling it a "love triangle" is a stretch in this case. And because, seriously, it's so well done). Both offer something very different to the story and to Josie, while being equally supportive of her and her dreams. Seriously, I can't talk enough about these characters. I want to be friends with all of them. Especially Josie. And Charlotte. Oh my god, I forgot to write about Charlotte. |