What should I read in 2013?

[nwhyte]

Dear friendslist (and other readers

Comments

[girfan]

I've not read the books you list for Neal Stephenson, Justina Robson and Paul Cornell but have read others by them and recommend them.

If you read Sleepyhead by Mark Billingham and like it, be sure to read the books in order since the characters evolve and some die. It can be confusing in that way.

[despotliz]

The Stephenson is very long and a very long way from his best; the Cornell is very good, I've only read British Summertime of his and this one is much better.

[altariel]

Dark Eden, Eva, and the Marilynne Robinsons are my tips.

[altariel]

I also liked The Lacuna very much, and The Secret River.

[yiskah]

Another vote for The Secret River, which I thought was excellent.

Otherwise I would heartily recommend Deathless, which has been the best book I've read this year.

[inulro]

I didn't love The Lacuna as much as I love her previous book, The Poisonwood Bible, but I still recommend it.

[chess]

The Hunger Games suffer somewhat from YA Logic (attempting to avoid spoilers, the thing that I thought 'no, that can't possibly be how this ends because that is way too unrealistic' was in fact how one of the books ends) - the first book is definitely worth reading, the others are entertaining but suffer a bit from feeling the need to trump the events of the first book...

[sashajwolf]

In my review of the year, I listed both London Falling and A Book of Silence among the best books I read in 2012. Of the two, I think London Falling may be more to your taste, though; a lot of my enjoyment of Silence came from having had experiences similar to hers, and I don't recall you mentioning anything of the kind yourself.

I found The King's Speech much less readable as a book than it was watchable as a film, so I guess that's a disrecommendation.