Best novel I've read this year
925676
Matthew Stover is a criminally underrated Author.  Blade of Tyshalle deserves mention in anyone's top 5 books list. If you are a fan of sci-fi at all, you owe it to yourself to read the entire series of Caine novels.  It's soon to be released in electronic format, which is a wonderful thing - the whole world should read this book.  I'm not kidding.

What makes this book (and the series) so good?  Easy - It's mayhem for the thinking man - sharp, gritty, and realistic. There's too much about this book and series to love - I could never list it all.  Read. This. Book. Now.
2579713
This book is definitely one of the best books that I've read this year.  I started it during my lunch hour and just couldn't put it down.  I am planning to read the author's other novels as well.
730860
Wonderfully creepy novel with an entertaining set of detective/investigators that kept me enthralled. I loved spending time with this book and these characters, which were hilariously true to life. One of the best books of my year. I'm going to buy the next one immediately.
3429039
Really great read.  Likable characters doing things that happen in real life.  This is my favorite book of the year so far.
2375281
This is a magnificent book, certainly the best I've read this year, The evocation of Greece, Hydra in particular (which I've visited), is rich and beguiling I wanted to fly back there immediately. Aside from the craftsmanship, it's a cracking good story! I became addicted to its charms and to the two women protagonists, the 'beautiful animals' of the title. I can't recommend this book highly enough!
1304042
This is my favorite book of the year so far.  Others reviews have already discussed the storyline, so I won't.  The writing is wonderful, the main character is highly appealing to me, poignant and wrily funny and I literally tried to read as slowly as possible to try to make the book last.
My new favorite author!  Can't wait for the 2nd in what hopefully will be a new series.
1661917
Best book I've read this year. Enjoyed every word and when I realized that these wonderful sisters and many of the historical details had really happened, I wanted to start from the top and read it again.
2144985
I have not read a novel this good in a long time. The complexity of this story has taken me on an emotional journey in the land of war. This has deeply touched me and inspired me, to say the least. I highly recommend this for anyone looking for something different, a great story based on real facts. Great read.
2060325
May be the best book I've read this year. Great detective pieces, world building, and sci-fi throughout. Could not put it down even though it's long I was left wanting more.
2238270
Best novel I've read all year. Science mingled with comedy and the castaway feel are a perfect combo. Loved this book!!
4283572
i don't usually get into novels, but this one was fantastic.  intriguing and keeps you guessing right along with the characters.  i laughed, i cried, i loved it.
601131
One of the best books I've read this year.  Insomniac producing, unforgettable story.  I dare you to quit reading after a dozen pages!
3613383
This book was one wild and crazy roller-coaster ride.  I loved every minute of it.  It's easily one of the best novels I've read all year.  I loved the intricate plot.  The author clearly thought out every detail before she sat down to write.  I loved the amazing plot twists that I never saw coming.  I loved that the story was told in the first person, alternating between the husband and wife, leaving the reader to wonder if either was a reliable narrator.  I loved the fact that every time I put it down I started to wonder what that clue meant or how this person was involved or what could possibly happen next.  I never guessed the ending.  I know a lot of readers didn't like the way it ended, but I thought it was perfect for the characters.  This book was just plain fun to read and a real page turner.  I highly recommend it.
2144883
Best book of the year for me. I recommend to all. Very intriguing; fast moving; and spiritual. A historical fiction with good character development. Will remember this book for quite some time and probably read again.
1502046
This book was so good that as soon as I turned the last page, I started over. It's the best fiction I've read this year and I read for a living.

In fact, I have a girl crush on Alma ... she's one of the most memorable characters in modern fiction. I loved spending time in her world. Brava, Elizabeth Gilbert.
2597385
MT Anderson's "Feed" is the best novel I have read so far this year - "The Catcher in the Rye" crossed with "Brave New World". Titus and his authentically horrible buddies are the way the world is going. It is a vision of hell.
The world of Feed is only one remove from our own; what seem like exaggerations at first are really too close for comfort to the way we live now. Anderson presents this nightmare society with devastating clarity, so that you can't help but see its seeds as you look around you today.
Please don't be put off by the (very plausible) futuristic slang or the inarticulate dialogue - the speech of people who have forgotten how or why to read, and who have no need of learning. Every so often Anderson - in the voice of Titus - produces an astonishing image, a piece of poetry in the midst of it all. His satires on advertising, fashion and corporate youth-speak hit exactly the right note.
Inside the satire is a love story - a tragedy - and like all the best tragedies, the plot has a wounding inevitability to it. I don't agree with the reviews who find the ending unsatisfying. It's the only possible ending because this is a novel about the horror of entropy: that things, and people, fall apart, gradually, unstoppably. There's the grain of hope that caring enough can hold back the tide, if only it is not too late. But perhaps, by the time Anderson's world comes to be, it already will be.
Did I forget to mention it's also very funny? Well, it's also very funny, and also very moving.
Like the Feed, this book sticks in your head and won't let you alone. Everyone should read it.
2152880
This was one of the best books I've read this year. The writing style was outstanding. The story was compelling. The characters rich...