{"id":5691,"date":"2013-12-31T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2013-12-31T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/sistahsontheshelf.com\/?p=5691"},"modified":"2020-05-07T18:09:06","modified_gmt":"2020-05-07T22:09:06","slug":"top-ten-tuesday-top-ten-books-i-read-in-2013","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.sistahsontheshelf.com\/?p=5691","title":{"rendered":"Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Books I Read In 2013"},"content":{"rendered":"

<\/strong><\/p>\n

Top Ten Tuesday<\/strong><\/span> is an original feature\/weekly meme hosted at The Broke and the Bookish<\/a>.<\/p>\n

This week\u2019s topic: <\/strong>Top Ten Books I Read In 2013<\/strong><\/span><\/h3>\n

This year has been one of the best for me at Sistahs on the Shelf.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve met some great people. And I\u2019ve branched out and tried some ideas that I\u2019m definitely carrying into the new year.<\/p>\n

Most importantly, I\u2019ve read some fabulous books \u2013 both of the lesbian and the mainstream variety. These are truly my favorites, though. Browse through my garden of good and lovelies, shall you?<\/p>\n

Descendants of Hagar<\/a> by Nik Nicholson<\/h3>\n

I finished reading this book only a couple of weeks ago, and just like that it became my favorite book of 2013. Why? Because of Madelyn “Linny” Remington, the main character of Nicholson\u2019s novel about a 1914 woman who doesn\u2019t follow the strict conventions of her time. She can match wits and strength with any man, but knows being a woman is her greatest asset. Even as ladies in her Georgia town of Zion can\u2019t vote unless through a man, Linny strives to make her voice heard. But the book goes even deeper. Hands down, Hagar<\/i> has the best characterization I\u2019ve seen in a novel this year. Look for a review of Hagar<\/i> very soon.<\/p>\n

Full Circle<\/a> by Skyy<\/h3>\n

What more can I say about a beloved series that has come to a close? That Skyy needs to write more books, that\u2019s what. Full Circle<\/i>, this final novel starring Denise, Lena, Cooley and Carmen, said everything that needed to be said by the last page. Hearts were broken, truths were told, and love brought people together. If you haven\u2019t read any of the Choices<\/a><\/i> series, please get on that.<\/p>\n

I am Your Sister 2<\/a> by Ericka K. F. Simpson<\/h3>\n

Just as intense is Simpson\u2019s I Am Your Sister 2<\/i>, with Symone Holmes undergoing painful flashbacks while finally achieving her dream as a WNBA player. Her growing pains from the previous novel are testaments to Simpson\u2019s talent, tying religion, sports, sexuality and love.<\/p>\n

On the Come Up<\/a> by Hannah Weyer<\/h3>\n

AnnMarie Walker simply could have been product of her public housing upbringing. Yet there was so much more to AnnMarie than her surroundings, a fact beautifully drawn by filmmaker Weyer in On the Come Up<\/i>, a novel based on a true story. Pregnant at 13, she\u2019s no one\u2019s victim. AnnMarie is engaging, smart, and endearing. She becomes a movie star, falls in love, and charts her path \u2013 and we know she\u2019ll be all right. Not a book for everyone (but it should be), On the Come Up<\/i> has a unique voice.<\/p>\n

Ascension<\/a> by Jacqueline Koyanagi<\/h3>\n

Ascension <\/i>was an out-of-the-box read for me, considering I don\u2019t read a lot of science fiction. But Koyanagi endeared me to the story of Alana Quick, a dreadlocked sky surgeon in Heliodor City on the planet Orpim. Her life is fixing space ships with her Aunt Lai, barely getting by, and coping with debilitating illness. She gets aboard a stranded vessel, and goes on a wild ride with her ragtag crew. I was enamored by the space travel. This is the first in the Tangled Axiom series.<\/p>\n

If You Could Be Mine<\/a> by Sara Farizan<\/h3>\n

What is it about first love that allows us to see only roses and skip over the weeds? This is portrayed in If You Could Be Mine<\/i>, a young adult romance set in Iran. I enjoyed it, mostly because I watched as Sahar genuinely laid her heart bare for her best friend. Everything she went through to prove this love \u2013 including a possible sex change operation \u2013 was what kept me reading. Sahar is a great character, and I really want to know what happens to her next (which means I want a sequel).<\/p>\n

The EXchange<\/a> by Nikki Rashan<\/h3>\n

What hot piece of drama this book was! Kyla \u2013 from Double Pleasure Double Pain<\/a><\/em> and You Make Me Wanna<\/a><\/em> \u2013 and her partner Asia decide to bring in a third party to spice up their dull relationship \u2013 and not in the way you think. It\u2019s more like Kyla decides to date her ex while Asia waits for her to decide what she truly wants. A recipe for disaster, but also an entertaining, make-you-think-about-your-own-relationship read.<\/p>\n

Turn Me Out<\/a> by T. Ariez<\/h3>\n

After reading this e-book, I immediately had to interview this author. T. Ariez\u2019s work about stud-on-stud love compelled me to explore her motivation for writing. This concluded in my first Interview & Review feature (which I will do more of in the coming year). Turn Me Out<\/i> is a spicy book, and it managed to get a lot of people reading it and discovering Ariez as an author. I think she will have great things in store in 2014, as she\u2019s been teasing about a new project on Facebook.<\/p>\n

Abandoned Property<\/a> by Kai Mann<\/h3>\n

Hands down, one of the best sequels I read this year. I was so enthralled by the revolving narratives in Mann\u2019s sequel to 30 Day Notice<\/a><\/i>. All the character\u2019s stories come together so seamlessly in the life of Kori Maitlin, whom we\u2019re introduced to in Notice<\/i>. Well done and fully absorbing.<\/p>\n

Broken in Soft Places<\/a> by Fiona Zedde<\/h3>\n

The beauty is not necessarily in how the characters in Zedde\u2019s latest book, Broken in Soft Places<\/i>, treat each other, but in how Zedde deftly writes a novel that makes a deplorable character appealing. Rille can\u2019t be contained by monogamy, much to the chagrin of Sara, but Zedde\u2019s prose keeps you wanting to know what will happen to this couple next.<\/p>\n

So tell me: What’s the best lesbian book you’ve read this year?<\/span><\/h3>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature\/weekly meme hosted at The Broke and the Bookish. This week\u2019s topic: Top Ten Books I Read In 2013 This year has been one of the best for me at Sistahs on the Shelf. I\u2019ve met some great people. And I\u2019ve branched out and tried some ideas that I\u2019m […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"NEW @ SOTS: Top Ten Books I Read In 2013 http:\/\/wp.me\/p3r7qG-1tN"},"categories":[7,27],"tags":[32,88,184,186,206,229,255,267,349,351,415,449,485],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sistahsontheshelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5691"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sistahsontheshelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sistahsontheshelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sistahsontheshelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sistahsontheshelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5691"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/www.sistahsontheshelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5691\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":7129,"href":"http:\/\/www.sistahsontheshelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5691\/revisions\/7129"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sistahsontheshelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5691"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sistahsontheshelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5691"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sistahsontheshelf.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5691"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}