**Pen to Paper's Favourite Reads of 2013** & INTERNATIONAL GIVEAWAY

2013 was, at least for me, an excellent year for books. And I know you may be thinking 'but isn't every year a good year for books?', the answer to which would be 'absolutely!', but 2013 seemed to me to be a cut above!
I've read some real gems over the past twelve months, and even discovered a new all-time favourite. It would seem rude of me, then, not to list my favourites for you to go out and find delight in yourselves. My list is in no particular order, but my absolute favourite, the book I've added to my all-time favourite list, will be at the end, saving the best until last.

Oh! And before I get started, feel free to comment, letting us know what books you read in 2013, and which were your favourites.

#10: Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan

Dash & Lily's Book of Dares

Series: None
Publisher: Mira Ink (UK)
Release date: 5th October 2012
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My Review

Goodreads synopsis:

I've left some clues for you. If you want them, turn the page. If you dont, put the book back on the shelf, please.

Lily has left a red notebook full of challenges on a favorite bookstore shelf, waiting for just the right guy to come along and accept its dares. But is Dash that right guy? Or are Dash and Lily only destined to trade dares, dreams, and desires in the notebook they pass back and forth at locations across New York? Could their in-person selves possibly connect as well as their notebook versions? Or will they be a comic mismatch of disastrous proportions? Rachel Cohn and David Levithan have written a love story that will have readers perusing bookstore shelves, looking and longing for a love (and a red notebook) of their own.

I read Dash & Lily's Book of Dares not just once in 2013, but twice. The first time I read it was in March (a weird time of the year to read it, I know, but it was snowing and I fancied it), and adored it. So much that, when I set up the YA book club at the bookstore I work at, I chose it as our introductory book (seeing as our first meeting was in December, this seemed fitting), so I got to read it for the second time. It's very rare that I will read a book twice, especially in the same year - it has to be a very special book for me to do that (too many books, so little time, kind of situation) - but I loved it just as much the second time around, if not more. The first time around, I was really focusing on the story, but the second time around, because I already knew the story, I was focusing more on the characters and what they were saying, and I realised this time just how witty they are.
This book has a lot of awesome qualities, and it made me fall even more in love with David Levithan (as if that was possible!). Definitely one that all YA fans should read, and not just at Christmas, but all year round!

#9: Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell

Series: None
Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books (UK)
Release date: 30th January 2014 (UK)
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Goodreads synopsis:

From the author of the New York Times bestseller Eleanor & Park.

A coming-of-age tale of fan fiction, family and first love.

Cath is a Simon Snow fan.

Okay, the whole world is a Simon Snow fan . . .

But for Cath, being a fan is her life — and she’s really good at it. She and her twin sister, Wren, ensconced themselves in the Simon Snow series when they were just kids; it’s what got them through their mother leaving.

Reading. Rereading. Hanging out in Simon Snow forums, writing Simon Snow fan fiction, dressing up like the characters for every movie premiere.

Cath’s sister has mostly grown away from fandom, but Cath can’t let go. She doesn’t want to.

Now that they’re going to college, Wren has told Cath she doesn’t want to be roommates. Cath is on her own, completely outside of her comfort zone. She’s got a surly roommate with a charming, always-around boyfriend, a fiction-writing professor who thinks fan fiction is the end of the civilized world, a handsome classmate who only wants to talk about words . . . And she can’t stop worrying about her dad, who’s loving and fragile and has never really been alone.

For Cath, the question is: Can she do this?

Can she make it without Wren holding her hand? Is she ready to start living her own life? Writing her own stories?

And does she even want to move on if it means leaving Simon Snow behind?

Right, I have to put my hands up right now and admit that over the past few months, I have been awful with my reviews. I've been reading the books, and recommending them to others accordingly, but my reviews have slipped just a tiny bit. As a result, I read this months ago, and am yet to complete my review (I have notes, I swear!).
To catch up on these is one of my New Year's resolutions, so keep your eyes peeled!
But I will give you a brief summary of why I loved Fangirl so much.
First of all, as a writer, I could really relate to Cath. She spends her time writing fan fiction about Simon Snow, a fantasy world not unlike Harry Potter, and has become one of the most popular fanfic writers for Simon Snow online. But when it comes to the real world, she doesn't really fit in. Her twin sister, Wren, is almost the complete opposite, being more concerned with going out and partying than the stories they used to write together as kids. Now the twins are both at college, Wren has come into her own and Cath is stuck alone in a world completely outside of what she knows. But romance is just around the corner, and her world is about to get turned completely upside down.
I fell completely in love with Cath's character, and the people that end up surrounding her at College. For the first time in my life, I felt like fanfiction was the way forward - I was so jealous of Cath and her Simon Snow stories.
And talking of Simon Snow, that was another incredibly rich world. At the end of each chapter, Rainbow Rowell gives the reader either a snippet of one of the 'real' Simon Snow novels, or a part of Cath's fanfiction, and we even get to see her reading it out loud to her romantic interest.
Everything about Fangirl was well thought-out and beautifully written. The characters make you fall in love, and, as a writer, I felt so incredibly inspired to get my own stories moving faster.
This is such a fun book, and I can't wait to get stuck into more of her novels.

#8: Salvage by Keren David

Salvage by Keren David

Series: None
Publisher: ATOM (UK)
Release date: 16th January 2014
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Goodreads synopsis:

Aidan Jones was my brother. But I couldn't really remember his face. I couldn't remember talking to him or playing with him. He was just a gap, an absence, a missing person.

Before she was adopted by a loving family and raised in a leafy Home Counties town, Cass Montgomery was Cass Jones. Her memories of her birth family disappeared with her name. But when her adopted family starts to break down, a way out comes in the form of a message from her lost brother, Aidan. Having Aidan back in her life is both everything she needs and nothing she expected. Who is this boy who calls himself her brother? And why is he so haunted?

I glance at the paper. There's a big picture on the front page. A girl with dark red hair. A girl with eyes that might have been green or they might have been grey. I sit down and stare at Cass, and it is her, it is. My stolen sister.

Aidan's a survivor. He's survived an abusive step-father and an uncaring mother. He's survived crowded foster homes and empty bedsits. His survived to find Cass. If only he can make her understand what it means to be part of his family. . .

Salvage is, unfortunately, another that I've read recently and haven't yet finished my review for - I'm working on it, I swear! But just because I haven't yet finished and published my review, doesn't mean that you shouldn't pay attention to it.
The chapters switch between two different points of view, Cass and Aidan's. Cass is the adopted daughter of a British MP, and lives in a life of relative luxury. That is until news of his affair hits the tabloids and her life as she knows it begins to crumble away from around her feet.
Aidan's life has been very different. He was not adopted by a wealthy family - or any family, for that matter. He was passed between his own unloving mother, foster homes and children's homes, and eventually, when he turned 16, even the children's homes kicked him out. But he considers himself lucky. He has a job, a place to live and a girlfriend with a son that he loves very much. Life seems to be working out okay for him afterall. He does have some problems though; he can't read very well, which can make small things (like passing his driving test) very difficult, but he manages to read enough to recognise a photo of his long-lost sister, Cass, in a newspaper article concerning her adoptive father's affair, and he sets out to find her.
Cass and Aidan have lead very different lives, and Aidan even holds a secret that, if Cass or his girlfriend should find out, would ruin everything he's worked so hard for.

I adored Salvage. I desperately wanted things to work out for both Cass and Aidan; I felt every emotion they felt with them, and I couldn't bear to put the book down until I knew they were going to be okay. Not only did I feel the characters' emotions, the emotions of own that I felt because of them were wide and varied too. This is a really moving, compelling and uplifting story, and I urge any fan of contemporary YA to give it a go. It's definitely something special.

#7: Will Grayson, Will Grayson by John Green & David Levithan

Will Grayson, Will Grayson

Series: None
Publisher: Penguin Books (UK)
Release date: 10th May 2012 (UK)
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My Review

Goodreads synopsis:

One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, two teens—both named Will Grayson—are about to cross paths. As their worlds collide and intertwine, the Will Graysons find their lives going in new and unexpected directions, building toward romantic turns-of-heart and the epic production of history’s most fabulous high school musical.

Hilarious, poignant, and deeply insightful, John Green and David Levithan’s collaborative novel is brimming with a double helping of the heart and humor that have won both of them legions of faithful fans.

I'm a big fan of both John Green and David Levithan (who isn't?!!), and Will Grayson, Will Grayson is the perfect example of why. It's witty, humorous, fun, romantic, uplifting and ... need I go on?
The idea for the book itself is amazing - I always wondered what would happen if I ever met someone with the same name as me, and if it happened to be anywhere near as awesome as what happens to the two Will Graysons, I'd be extremely happy. My edition of the book also comes with an interview with John and David, where they talk about how they went about writing the book, which was also very cool. They knew the basic premise, and that each of them would write a Will Grayson each. They wrote their first chapters at the same time, and then switched. They were amazed at how many similar themes they'd gone for. They're definitely on the same wave-length as authors, and I think that's part of what makes this novel so spectacular.
I have so much love for these authors. So if you've read them on their own and loved them (even if it's just one of them), or even if you've never read them before at all, you need to pick this book up. It will make you feel happy where you sad, positive where you were negative, and so full of love that you might burst!

#6: Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion

Series: None
Publisher: Vintage
Release date: 14th October 2010
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My Review

Goodreads synopsis:

'R' is a zombie. He has no name, no memories and no pulse, but he has dreams. He is a little different from his fellow Dead.

Amongst the ruins of an abandoned city, R meets a girl. Her name is Julie and she is the opposite of everything he knows - warm and bright and very much alive, she is a blast of colour in a dreary grey landscape. For reasons he can't understand, R chooses to save Julie instead of eating her, and a tense yet strangely tender relationship begins.

This has never happened before. It breaks the rules and defies logic, but R is no longer content with life in the grave. He wants to breathe again, he wants to live, and Julie wants to help him. But their grim, rotting world won't be changed without a fight...

I'm going to put this out there first; I am not usually a fan of zombie novels. Or zombie anythings. But I love Warm Bodies.
But then again, it's not exactly your regular zombie novel.
From the very chapter, this book was making me laugh out loud, and a lot. It was something that I hadn't really expected, and it was a pleasant surprise. 'R' is a zombie, but he's different from all the others 'living' in the abandoned airport with him. He has a conscience of sorts, knows he has to kill people in order to continue existing, but he does manage to feel bad about it. And then when he goes out hunting and devours the brain of Perry, the boyfriend (now ex) of Jules, he begins to fall in love with her. Who knew such a strange kind of love was possible. R saves Jules from the rest of the zombies, and takes her back to his plane, where he tries to show her that she's safe with him, that he cares about her. Could this bizarre romance be changing R? Bringing him back to life?
R's observations and dry humour are very funny, and this is definitely what makes the book so special. It is, to use the movie genre term, a zom-rom-com, but in contrast to what I associate with this genre, it's not cheesy (in my opinion, anyway), it actually makes me laugh and it even manages to be very moving in places.

To briefly mention the movie adaptation (something I'm usually very sceptical about), it did a good job. Although some details were, inevitably, changed, and the story, which is not completed in the book (desperately awaiting the sequel!), is completed for the film, I feel that it was done really well, and I wasn't at all disappointed. Plus, it's Nicholas Hoult ... doing an American accent ... as R!! So much love!

Warm Bodies isn't just one of my favourites of 2013, it's one of my favourites of all time! In my eyes, it's perfect.

#5: Back to Blackbrick by Sarah Moore Fitzgerald

Back to Blackbrick by Sarah Moore Fitzgerald

Series: None
Publisher: Orion (UK)
Release date: 16th January 2014
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My Review

Goodreads synopsis:

When Cosmo keeps his promise to go to Blackbrick Abbey, he unlocks the gate to the place his granddad once worked and finds himself in the forgotten corners of a distant past, one that his granddad has, strangely, never really talked about. Here there are new beginnings, memories are just being born, friendships come to life and everything is still possible...

Back to Blackbrick is definitely a novel that's going to stick in my mind for a long time. It deals with some really difficult issues, but in a sensitive and compassionate way. Cosmo's grandfather, who he's been living with, along with his grandmother, since his mother moved abroad for business, has the first stages of alzheimer's disease. He's forgetting really basic things that Cosmo's clever grandfather would never forget - including who Cosmo is, and the fact that his brother is dead.
After an accident that leaves his grandfather injured, social services arrive to decide whether or not he needs to be moved into a care home. But Cosmo is outraged by this idea, and is determined to prove that his grandfather is perfectly fine and doesn't need to be taken away from the home and family he loves so much. But in a private moment, he begins muttering to Cosmo about a key to the south gate at Blackbrick Abbey, and giving Cosmo the key, he says he'll meet him there. Cosmo finally believes that the social workers might be right about him ... until he goes to Blackbrick Abbey (he'd never break a promise - especially to his granddad), and discovers he's maybe not so mad afterall.
What Cosmo finds behind those gates is part of what makes this novel so memorable and so unique. The written style is beautiful, the story as a whole is very moving and heartfelt, but the unique spin on this story comes from behind those rusty old gates.
I loved every moment of this book and urge all to read it.

#4: Pantomime by Laura Lam

Pantomime by Laura Lam

Series: Pantomime #1
Publisher: Strange Chemistry
Release date: 23rd January 2013
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My Review

Goodreads synopsis:

R.H. Ragona’s Circus of Magic is the greatest circus of Ellada. Nestled among the glowing blue Penglass – remnants of a mysterious civilisation long gone – are wonders beyond the wildest imagination. It’s a place where anything seems possible, where if you close your eyes you can believe that the magic and knowledge of the vanished Chimeras is still there. It’s a place where anyone can hide.

Iphigenia Laurus, or Gene, the daughter of a noble family, is uncomfortable in corsets and crinoline, and prefers climbing trees to debutante balls. Micah Grey, a runaway living on the streets, joins the circus as an aerialist’s apprentice and soon becomes the circus’s rising star. But Gene and Micah have balancing acts of their own to perform, and a secret in their blood that could unlock the mysteries of Ellada.

I read both Pantomime and it's sequel, Shadowplay, in 2013, and I loved them both so much. There really isn't anything I could compare this series to, they're so unique.
First of all, the series is set in the fantasy world of Ellada, which has a kind of futuristic, kind of steampunk feel to it, with an old-world feel and magic-laced futuristic inventions. And then there's the main characters, Micah and Gene, who hold a secret so bizarre that it's impossible to guess. But that's all I'm going to say on that - it's definitely something that needs to be discovered on your own to get the full experience. What I will say, though, is that I fell immediately in love with both of them, and the world of Ellada, despite its many faults.
Both Pantomime and Shadowplay are seriously exciting, compelling reads, and if you're looking for something totally different, then you need look no further!

#3: The Demon Trappers series by Jana Oliver

Demon Trappers Daughter series

Series: Demon Trappers #1-4
Publisher: Macmillan Children's Books (UK)
Release date: 2011-2012
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Goodreads synopsis (Book One):

Riley has always wanted to be a Demon Trapper like her father, and she's already following in his footsteps as one of the best. But it's tough being the only girl in an all-guy world, especially when three of those guys start making her life more complicated: Simon, the angelic apprentice who has heaven on his side; Beck, the tough trapper who thinks he's God's gift, and Ori, the strikingly sexy stranger who keeps turning up to save her ass. One thing's for sure -- if she doesn't keep her wits about her there'll be hell to pay ...In Forbidden: Riley's beginning to think being a Demon Trapper isn't all it's cracked up to be. Her dad's been stolen by a necromancer, her boyfriend's gone all weird and she's getting warm and fuzzy feelings for someone who's seriously bad news. It's tempting to give it all up and try to be normal, but that's not an option. Because the demons have plans for Riley. And they're not the only ones.

I don't usually read an entire series back to back. I don't know why ... I used to. I think it's maybe because then the series is over too fast. But with the Demon Trappers series, I couldn't help myself.
I got a bind-up edition of the first two novels, so the book was enormous - about 850 pages, I think - but it still only took me a few days to get through! I became immediately addicted, not only to the world that the novel builds, but also to the main character, Riley, and of course, the lovely Beck. There wasn't a single thing about this series that I didn't like (apart from the fact that it's only four books long and I wanted MORE. Unless you count Grave Matters, a novella that Jana released herself, and takes place after the final book. It's a guilty pleasure novella really, just so we can see more of Riley and Beck!).
Just a note: for some reason, I am currently unable to find my reviews that I wrote for this series, so I will be working on finding and re-posting those in the next couple of weeks.
But despite the lack of review for me to link to at the moment, you should definitely check this series out - it's incredible!!

#2: Looking for JJ by Anne Cassidy

Looking for JJ

Series: Jennifer Jones #1
Publisher: Scholastic (UK)
Release date: 1st August 2013 (new ed)
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Goodreads synopsis:

Three children walked away from the cottages on the edge of town toward Berwick Waters. Later that day, only two of them came back. Alice Tully knows exactly what happened that spring day six years ago, though it’s still hard for her to believe it. She’ll never be able to forget, even though she’s trying to lead a normal life—she has a job, friends, and a boyfriend whom she adores. But Alice’s past is dangerous, and violent, and sad... and it’s about to rip her new life apart. A gripping and emotionally searing novel by accomplished British author Anne Cassidy, Looking for JJ infuses a terrifying subject with humanity and hope.

I read Looking for JJ right at the end of 2013, and I can safely say that there couldn't have been a better book to end the year on! The story is split into two different time frames; the present, with Alice Tully and her new life, and the past with Jennifer Jones, and what really happened on the day that she murdered another young girl, her best friend, Michelle.
Both parts of the story are intensely gripping, and it's incredibly difficult to put the book down at any point. Luckily, the sequel, Finding Jennifer Jones, comes out in February this year, so readers will still have more Jennifer Jones to come. I was lucky enough to be able to make this my first read of 2014, so I can safely say that it's amazing and well worth the wait!
If you're looking for gripping, compelling and heart-pounding reads, then you've found them in Looking for JJ and Finding Jennifer Jones - seriously good!

#1: Taste of Darkness by Maria V. Snyder

Taste of Darkness

Series: Avry of Kazan #3
Publisher: Mira (UK)
Release date: 3rd January 2014
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Goodreads synopsis:

She's fought death and won. But how can she fight her fears? Avry knows hardship and trouble. She fought the plague and survived. She took on King Tohon and defeated him. But now her heart-mate, Kerrick, is missing, and Avry fears he's gone forever. But there's a more immediate threat. The Skeleton King plots to claim the Fifteen Realms for his own. With armies in disarray and the dead not staying down, Avry's healing powers are needed now more than ever.Torn between love and loyalty, Avry must choose her path carefully. For the future of her world depends on her decision.

This is the final book in one of my favourite trilogies (or series for that matter) EVER. I have been obsessed with it since the first chapter of book one, and that obsession hasn't waned in the slightest. I was lucky enough to get to read both the second and final books in 2013, and I'm incredibly grateful that I didn't have to wait the full year to read Taste of Darkness, because book two, Scent of Magic, ends on such an enormous cliffhanger that you can't help but scream "Nooooo!" at the top of your lungs and slam your fist into the nearest solid object in frustration.
Because I read this at the end of the year, and barely had a spare moment to breathe, let alone blog or write, my review for this still hasn't been published. But like I said, I'm working on it, so watch this space for a TONNE of new reviews coming your way soon - and this will be one of them.

Seriously, if you've not picked up this trilogy yet, what are you doing? Go out, or log onto an online retailer right this second and buy yourself a copy of Touch of Power (book one). You can thank me later.

And the runaway winner is ... 

The Humans by Matt Haig

Series: None
Publisher: Canongate Books
Release date: 9th May 2013
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My Review

Goodreads synopsis:

It's hardest to belong when you're closest to home...One wet Friday evening, Professor Andrew Martin of Cambridge University solves the world's greatest mathematical riddle. Then he disappears. When he is found walking naked along the motorway, Professor Martin seems different. Besides the lack of clothes, he now finds normal life pointless. His loving wife and teenage son seem repulsive to him. In fact, he hates everyone on the planet. Everyone, that is, except Newton. And he's a dog. Can a bit of Debussy and Emily Dickinson keep him from murder? Can the species which invented cheap white wine and peanut butter sandwiches be all that bad? And what is the warm feeling he gets when he looks into his wife's eyes?

The Humans is, without a doubt in my mind, the single best book I read in 2013. You can see from my review just how much I loved it.
The Humans is the story of Professor Andrew Martin - or the alien passing for him, anyway. When Andrew Martin solves the greatest mathematical problem known to man, the implications for mankind are huge. An alien race, who don't believe we're ready for such technological advancement as this would bring, abduct the real Andrew Martin and replace him with one of their own, in order to destroy all evidence of the problem having been solved.
The alien they send has never come across humanity before, and so the result of him being on Earth for the first time is hilarious. He doesn't understand much about the human race at all, and so the situations he gets himself into are very funny. As are his observations about humanity and our (it has to be said) very odd habits.
The Humans is an incredibly witty, humorous, observant, uplifting and heart-warming novel, and it is definitely one of my favourite books, not just of 2013, but of all time. It holds a very special place in my heart, and I know I will delight in reading it over and over again, for many years to come.
If you've not picked this up already, do so. It will almost certainly work its way into your heart.

So there you have it; my favourite reads of 2013! This was an incredibly difficult list to put together, not because I had trouble filling it, but because I didn't want to leave any books off it! There are so many books I wish I could have squashed in, told you about, recommended, but alas, the post would be enormous, and it would take you the rest of 2014 to read it!
A quick mention to my other favourites of the year; Requiem by Lauren Oliver, The Fault in Our Stars by John Green, Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan, Boy Meets Boy by David Levithan, Lost & Found by Tom Winter, Catching Fire & Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins, Enclave by Ann Aguirre, and a TONNE more! Seriously, I wish I could mention each and every one of them.
2013 was an awesome year to be a reader, that's for sure.
And we can make 2014 an even better year.

To celebrate all the awesome books I read in 2013, and to try and make your 2014 awesome, I'm going to be giving away one of my favourite books mentioned in this post, to one lucky international follower. It's been a long time since I've done a giveaway, and this seems like the perfect way to bring them back to Pen to Paper!
There are just a few quick rules that I need to lay down before we get going, and then go and get yourselves entered!

• This giveaway is international and is for followers of Pen to Paper, so make sure you're following via Google Friend Connect before you enter.
• If you go for any of the extra entries, please make sure you complete each task before entering.
• I will email the winner when the giveaway is closed (so make sure the email address you leave in the Rafflecopter is correct. The winner will then have 48 hours to respond to my email with the book they want and their postal address. If I don't receive a response within this time period, they will forfeit their prize and I will have to choose another winner.
• Any personal details will not be passed on to any other organisation, and details will be deleted when the giveaway is over.
• Please do not leave your email address anywhere on Pen to Paper. I use Rafflecopter to protect your details, so make sure you keep safe and use it.
• The giveaway will end on February 10th 2014.

That's it! All that's left to do now is enter in the Rafflecopter below. Good luck to everyone who enters!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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