Books of the Year 2010

[dillinisgood]

I didn't read a ton stuff that came out this year but here are a few that I liked.

Horns - Joe Hill

Sleepless - Charlie Huston

Mr. Peanut - Adam Ross

The Black Prism - Brent Weeks ( Huge step up for him in my opinion)

Disappointing :

The Passage - Justin Cronin

I'll try to think of more and then edit. I'm looking forward to seeing what you guys liked.

[Arbor Gold]

Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes, hands down.

[The Evil Hat]

Felix Gilman's The Halfmade World. Honorable mentions go to Reynolds' Terminal World, Parker's The Folding Knife, and Nevill's Apartment 16.

[dillinisgood]

Felix Gilman's The Halfmade World. Honorable mentions go to Reynolds' Terminal World, Parker's The Folding Knife, and Nevill's Apartment 16.

Reading The Halfmade World now and from what i've read so far i'd agree. I've had Thunderer for ages and this may prompt me to finally read it.

[The Evil Hat]

Thunderer is very good, but not on the same level. The follow up to Thunderer, City of Gears, is, though. Both are definitely worthwhile.

[Cuchulain]

I haven't read many books released this year, but I loved Esslemont's Stonewielder.

[delete this account pls]

Normally I have a lot of trouble picking a clear favourite, or best, anything. I just don't tend to think that way. And this year, I read a ton of awesome books, so you'd think it'd be even harder.

But it isn't. There were two clear standouts. The first, Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes wins. It isn't just the best book I read this year, it's the best book I've read in ages. Give it a few years, and I'm sure it'll be on my Greatest Books Ever list as well. In a year of great books, this one comes first by a long mile. It is the sort of book that makes me feel overjoyed that it exists, and incredibly sad because I know I can never write anything half as good. Also, this book is harrowing. Just brutal. Yet I couldn't put it down. I already want to reread it, but at the same time I don't think I can put myself through it all again so soon. I feel like this book will be part of the canon in fifty year's time, something proscribed to begrudging school students along with To kill a Mockingbird and The Grapes of Wrath.

The second one is something that by itself would normally win hands down. Wolf Hall by Hillary Mantel. It might have come out in 2009? I only read it this year though. It's the story of Thomas Cromwell and his rise to power, and it is fascinating and breathes new life into the tired story of Henry VIII and his court. It also works as a great character piece, all being told solely from Cromwell's point of view, making this man who is usually portrayed as a villain into a sympathetic, likeable and interesting character.

In a very good year, these two are leaps and bounds ahead of the rest, and Matterhorn is just as far ahead of Wolf Hall.

[RedEyedGhost]

The Half-Made World is my favorite 2010 release that I've read by a fair margin. I still hope to read a couple more before the end of the year, but I doubt they'll beat it. The only book I've read this year that I'd rate above it is Earth Abides, but it's a little older :P

[TheEvilKing]

KJ Parker's The Folding Knife for me, though I haven't read many books that have come out this year. The Half-Made World has been mentioned a few times and is on my To Buy list.

[Garlan the Gallant]

For me:

1) The Way of Kings

2) The Half-Made World

3) Boneshaker

4) George RR Martin's Dunk and Egg story in Warriors

5) The Cardinal's Blades/The Alchemist in the Shadows

6) The Black Prism

7) City of Ruin

8) Bitter Seeds

9) Dragon Haven

10) The Adventures of the Princess and Mr. Wiffle: The Things Beneath the Bed

[palin99999]

The best books I've read that were released this year are:

Disciple of the Dog by R. Scott Bakker

The King of the Crags by Stephen Deas

The Gentlemen's Hour by Don Winslow

Horns by Joe Hill

Sleepless by Charlie Huston

The Devil by Ken Bruen

The best I've read this year released in a previous year was Apathy and Other Small Victories by Paul Neilan

[Datepalm]

I'm not done with it yet, but so far Dervish House is shaping up to be my favorite.

[Astra]

Worst:

The Coldfire Trilogy by Friedman, C.S.

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

Best:

The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson

Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson

We by Yevgeny Zamyatin

1984 by Geroge Orwell

Average:

Under the Dome by Stephen King

Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks

[dillinisgood]

Worst:

The Coldfire Trilogy by Friedman, C.S.

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

Best:

The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson

Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson

We by Yevgeny Zamyatin

1984 by Geroge Orwell

Average:

Under the Dome by Stephen King

Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks

I was so disappointed with Under the Dome that I can't even explain. I thought this could have been a huge way to cap off a great career and it was pretty bad.

[Inigima]

Worst:

The Coldfire Trilogy by Friedman, C.S.

Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle

Best:

The Gargoyle by Andrew Davidson

Mistborn Trilogy by Brandon Sanderson

We by Yevgeny Zamyatin

1984 by Geroge Orwell

Average:

Under the Dome by Stephen King

Night Angel Trilogy by Brent Weeks

Uh, correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't this thread about 2010 books?

[Guinevere Seaworth]

If we are just talking about 2010 debuts then:

Under Heaven by G.G. Kay

At Home by Bill Bryson

Warriors ed by GRRM and Dozois

Salute the Dark by Adrian Tchaikovsky

were all standouts for me

If we are talking about great books read in 2010 regardless of year of publishing then I would have to include:

Never Cry Wolf by Farley Mowat

Life of Pi by Yann Martel

Pilgrim in the Palace of Words by Glenn Dixon

The Shadow of the Wind by Carlos Ruiz Zafon

[red snow]

In 2010

Seasons of War by Daniel abraham (last two books in "the long price" (technically this year for the UK)

Black lung Captain by Chris Wooding

Salute the Dark by Adrian Tchaikovsky

City of Ruin by Mark Charan Newton

The Quantum thief by Hannu Rajaniemi

Shadow and Betrayal by Daniel Abraham (first two books of "the long price"

Peter and Max by Bill Willingham

Veteran by Gavin Smith

None of the 2010 books I've read have been bad, so I'm pretty happy with them all. Seasons of war was excellent though and Black Lung Captain the most enjoyable read of the year.

[Werthead]

A ranking of 2010 releases from top to bottom, with the best at the top and the worst at the bottom, very roughly done:

The Silent Land by Graham Joyce

Warriors, edited by George R.R. Martin and Gardner Dozois

Under Heaven by Guy Gavriel Kay

Corvus by Paul Kearney

Terminal World by Alastair Reynolds

The Quantum Thief by Hannu Rajaniemi

The Passage by Justin Cronin

The Evolutionary Void by Peter F. Hamilton

The Black Lung Captain by Chris Wooding

Towers of Midnight by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson

Stonewielder by Ian Cameron Esslemont

City of Ruin by Mark Charan Newton

Veteran by Gavin Smith

New Model Army by Adam Roberts

The Dervish House by Ian McDonald

Farlander by Col Buchanan

The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson

King of the Crags by Stephen Deas

Kraken by China Mieville

Bitter Seeds by Ian Tregellis

Wolfsangel by M.D. Lachlan

The Thief-Taker's Apprentice by Stephen Deas

The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan

The Alchemist in the Shadows by Pierre Pevel

The Reapers are the Angels by Alden Bell

Shadow's Son by Jon Sprunk

The Desert Spear by Peter V. Brett

Empire of Light by Gary Gibson

Antiphon by Ken Scholes

The Japanese Devil Fish Girl by Robert Rankin

The Fall by Guillermo Del Toro and Chuck Hogan

Tome of the Undergates by Sam Sykes

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The Left Hand of God by Paul Hoffman

Biggest surprise of the year was The Silent Land, which came out of nowhere but was awesome. Farlander by Col Buchanan was also very solid despite little to no pre-release press. The first book is merely good, but the ending promises something more intriguing for the second book. The Quantum Thief was also superb, Terminal World is one of Reynolds' best (an assessment no-one but me seems to agree with based on other reviews, but screw 'em) and Corvus was also excellent.

Most Notable Return to Form was Guy Gavriel Kay with Under Heaven, after a few good-but-underwhelming releases.

Most Improved Author probably goes to Stephen Deas, who really stepped up a notch with both King of the Crags and The Thief-Taker's Apprentice. Mark Charan Newton and Ian Cameron Esslemont also really evolved well with their latest books.

Biggest Disappointment of the Year is tricky to assess. Antiphon was very weak, surprising after the excellent Canticle, whilst The Dervish House was only Very Good instead of Extraordinary. However, the prize I think has to go to The Desert Spear. Brett set up a very promising series with The Painted Man and The Desert Spear sort of flailed around in circles instead of moving the story forward decisively.

Worst Book of the Year was without question The Left Hand of God, which was pretty much crap. My review was way too generous to it, in retrospect. Otherwise it's been a reasonable year: Tome of the Undergates was very problematic, but in the end worthwhile and promising, making The Left Hand of God the only 2010 release I read which I would classify as 'pretty bad'. Everything else was at least readable.

[Astra]

Uh, correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't this thread about 2010 books?

I am sorry. Maybe I misunderstood. I thought we are discussing what we have read in 2010. If it is only about books published in 2010 then I have to delete my post. I did not read a single book published in 2010.

[dillinisgood]

I am sorry. Maybe I misunderstood. I thought we are discussing what we have read in 2010. If it is only about books published in 2010 then I have to delete my post. I did not read a single book published in 2010.

I intended for the thread to be about books published this year but it's not the end of the world if you talk about both. No worries dude.