Looking Back at 2012

As 2012 draws to a close it’s time to look back and ponder the meaning of Life, the Universe and Everything or at the very least the books I’ve read. 2012 was a very slow year for me. Reading 122 books in 2011 induced a severe case of reading burn-out which I just couldn’t seem to shake no matter how hard I tried. With all the great science fiction books released this year my TBR-pile kept growing while I was frantically trying to take things one page at a time. A battle I simply couldn’t win.

I only managed to read 41 books this year which came as quite a shock since I initially planned to try to beat my 2011 total. One good thing that came out of my burn-out is that I discovered a newfound love for short stories. Before this I never read much short fiction, choosing to stick to those epic tomes you need to lug around in a cart. The short stories were a breath of fresh air which got me through those tough times when I didn’t feel like reading anything. Surprisingly enough I ended up reading a total of 133 short stories/novellas. I’ll definitely be making some time for more short fiction in 2013, dynamite comes in small packages and some of the stories packed quite a wallop.

Top reads of 2012

Since I didn’t get to many of the big releases of 2012 it would be a bit counterproductive to try to compile a ‘best of 2012’ list, but I do want to highlight 2 novels I’d pick as my top reads of the year.

Blue Remembered Earth by Alastair Reynolds

A superbly written, optimistic view of humanity’s future in space. The novel is brimful of stunning ideas and believable near-future technology that kept me engrossed to the very last page.

Earth Unaware by Orson Scott Card and Aaron Johnston

A completely engrossing read that just brought the characters and their environment to vivid life. I just couldn’t get enough.

***

I’d like to take this opportunity to say a huge thank you to all the publishers - Jonathan Ball, Pan Macmillan South Africa and Penguin Books South Africa for their encouragement and continued support.

I didn’t read as much as I wanted to, I neglected the blog far too much and I didn’t catch up on the series I intended to, but overall 2012 was a pretty good year. Pretty darn good.

Happy New Year! I hope that 2013 will be filled with tons of books, but more importantly, that you will have enough time to read them all.

The Apocalypse Averted eBook Giveaway

Since the Mayan apocalypse didn't happen as predicted the kind folks at Night Shade Books are giving away 3 apocalyptic themed ebooks. The titles included are:

Osiris by E.J. Swift

Seed by Rob Ziegler

Wastelands edited by John Joseph Adams

Here's how to get them:

Email StillHere@nightshadebooks.com and you'll receive an auto response from us with a username, password and link to our download site where you'll be able to download the .epub or .mobi files of some of our most exciting and appropriately apocalyptic titles.

You are automatically added to their mailing list, but you can unsubscribe at any time should you wish to do so.

Cover Reveal: Earth Afire

The cover and synopsis for Earth Afire, the second novel in the First Formic War series, co-authored by Orson Scott Card and Aaron Johnston has been revealed. I was completely drawn in by Earth Unaware (reviewed here) and can't wait for this one to be released.

WARNING: If you haven't read Earth Unaware yet, you might want to skip the synopsis below since it contains some spoilers.

EARTH AFIRE
Release date - June 2013
ISBN: 9780765329059
Pre-order from The Book Depository

100 years before Ender's Game, the aliens arrived on Earth with fire and death. This is the story of the First Formic War.

Victor Delgado beat the alien ship to Earth, but just barely. Not soon enough to convince skeptical governments that there was a threat. They didn’t believe that until space stations and ships and colonies went up in sudden flame.

And when that happened, only Mazer Rackham and the Mobile Operations Police could move fast enough to meet the threat.