Best YA books of 2013

 

Friday Follow is a blog hop that was started by Parajunkee and Alison Can Read.  Each week a different question is posted by our hosts and we will answer!  This is a great opportunity for bloggers to network and interact. 

2013 was a good year for books, especially in the YA genre, picking a few is pretty much impossible so expect my list of favourite books of 2013 to get a little long.

The Pirates Wish by Cassandra Rose Clarke

This was the sequel to one of my favourite books of 2012 and was one of my most anticipated reads of the year.  The Assassin’s Curse series is some of the best high fantasy I have read especially in the YA category.  It is action packed, exciting, full of magic and focuses on two characters that I easily fell in love with.   The Pirate’s Wish didn’t let me down and it was a really great end to an awesome series.

My review of The Pirate’sWish

The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon

This book wasn't perfect but it is one the most engaging books I read in 2013.  I just could not put this book down and stayed up practically all night to finish it in one go.  The Bone Season is smart, exciting and does a good job of injecting new life into a repetitive dystopian market.  The rights to the movie have already been sold and the sequel is coming out sometime this year so I expect to hear a lot more from this series in the future.

My review of The Bone Season

Crown of Midnight by Sarah J Maas

I am really surprised that this book made it on my list because I really didn’t like the first book in the series.  I think that Sarah J Maas must be some kind of magician because she somehow managed to make me go from dislike to love in the space of about 420 pages.  I loved Crown of Midnight and more than that I cared about it.  It was full of imagination, action and a pretty special romance.  This book is in my top three of the year without doubt. 

My review of Crown of Midnight

The Eternity Cure by Julie Kagawa

No book has made me feel equal joy and despair in 2013 more than The Eternity Cure, never have I wanted to simultaneously hug and hit an author (not that I would actually hit you Julie but there would be words, gushy ones then stern ones.) The Immortal Rules was my favourite book of 2012 so its follow up had a lot to live up to but it managed it.  The Eternity Cure was gripping and exciting.  It has the best character line up I think I have ever read (I love them all) and a cliff hanger that makes you want to scream ‘why’ dramatically at the sky. 

 

My review of The Eternity Cure

 

All Our Yesterdays by Cristin Terrell

This is probably the most well rounded book on this list, Terrell just gets everything right and the result is a roller-coaster ride full of action, drama and a little heart ache.  It is a smart book that doesn’t dumb down the science fiction, it keeps you guessing and you are never quite sure what is going to happen next.  The characters are really well developed and easy to relate to which I fin sometimes lacking in YA science fiction. This is an impressive debut and I cannot wait to see what Terrell does next.

My review of All Our Yesterdays

Arclight by Josin L. McQueen

Arclight is the most creative and original book on this list it grabbed me from the first page and didn’t let go.  It is so rare to come across a book that is completely different from anything you’ve read before but Arclight manages it.  It is bold, imaginative and smart and offers readers science fiction that packs quite a punch.  It managed to impress Ron Howard enough that he is going to helm the movie adaptation which I cannot wait to see.  

My review of Arclight

Another Little Piece by Kate Karyus Quinn

This is by far my favourite book of the year, it may not have been as big as some of the other books on the list but it surpassed them all in quality.  To be fair I get why this book isn’t for everyone, firstly it is a horror which as a genre is not everyone’s cup of tea and also it is kind of gross.  It is more than a little disturbing in parts and it extremely dark which is why I loved it so much.  It was also engrossing, original and creative.  Kate Karyus Quinn didn’t hold back the nastiness and I thank her for that.  YA literature doesn’t have to be squeaky clean, it can be horrific and uncomfortable and scary too.  I hope more people pick this up because it deserves some more attention.

My review of Another Little Piece

Poison by Bridget Zinn

Poison is the only fun comedy to make it on the list this year, there have been some real good ones but none stand out more than Poison.  There was little to dislike about this book it was sweet, funny, charming and exciting.  I love the fantasy genre but it can often be quite dark and serious, Zinn added a little light to proceedings and created an epically fun fantasy adventure.  Sadly Zinn passed away this year so this is the only book of hers we will ever get to read, from what I’ve heard Poison is a reflection of the fun and cheerful nature of its author.  Bridget Zinn and her words will be sadly missed.

My review of Poison

Fragments by Dan Wells

The Partials series is one of my favourite dystopian series of all time unlike so many others it seems to be getting better not worse with every book that is released.  What I love about Fragments is how Dan Wells takes his time to really create his world at 564 pages this is not a short book but it is packed full of action and drama without giving up on the world building and writing.  It didn’t feel long and I could have probably read another 500 pages without getting bored.  The third book, Ruins, is out in March and I cannot wait to see what happens next.

My review of Fragments

Giveaway

To celebrate 2013 being a great year for books I am giving away a copy of Resist by Sarah Crossan the follow up to the hugely successful Breathe.  The giveaway is open internationally and will run until the end of January.  To be in with a chance to win enter via the rafflecopter below.

The winner will have 48 hours to respond to their winners email book supplied by Bloomsbury UK.

a Rafflecopter giveaway