I read 79 novels or author collections in 2014.
Of those, 31 were written by woman and 48 were written by men. 49 of the novels were “core” genre in that they were recognisably written or published by someone involved in the SF/F scene. The other 39 would be classified as literary novels. I’m insane if I think I’m going to be able to read over 130 books in 2015 (as part of discussing and considering more than 25 award shortlists). But who needs sleep anyway.
The best novel I read this year was a toss-up between three remarkable books –
- The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton (winner of the 2013 Man Booker)
- We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves by Karen Joy Fowler (shortlisted for a bunch of awards, including the 2014 Man Booker)
- How To Be Both by Ali Smith (also nominated and winner of awards in 2014)
And here are ten others novels I thought were fantastic and highly recommend –
- Station Eleven by Emily St John Mandel
- Bearded Woman by Teresa Milbrodt
- Hild by Nicola Griffiths
- The Last Policeman by Ben H. Winters
- Dust Devil on a Quiet Street by Richard Bowes
- The Shock of the Fall by Nathan Filer
- The Narrow Road to the Deep North by Richard Flanagan
- A Song for Issy Bradley by Carys Bray
- Redeployment by Phil Klay
Sounds like you are definitely shifting away from being a genre reader (which is by no means a bad thing in and of itself).
I’m definitely finding non-core genre novels more interesting. It could be a matter of maturing tastes, or an indication of the sort of novel core genre publishes. Having said that I am going to make a concerted effort to read the Locus Award nominees this year. If there’s one place where the best of genre is represented, it’s there.
Where is Delta of Venus, you sod?
It’s up there. But not only of my favourites. However, of all the books I read dealing with rumpy pumpy, it’s the best!