Five Star Novels of 2016

Out of the 64 novels I’ve read this year, most of them were duds. I very rarely rate a novel five stars, (see my rating system) and the majority of the novels I read were four stars with a toppling 15 three star ratings.

Which books made the top of the list when even Harry Potter and the Cursed Child rated 3 stars for me?

Now remember, these novels are five stars because they had me screaming, “You’re so good! Oh, wow, I can’t believe that just happened. Holy crap that’s hot . . .”

I think you get the idea.

But I had to be screaming those words, at some point.

My list

Water Shaper

This was an enchanting read. The author really wove a beautiful work, taking aspects of real folklore. The main character is realistic and indecisive in her thoughts. She feels as if she belongs nowhere. She can't trust others because her whole life she's been harassed and belittled. But she has an inner fight. The magic brings a real element of curiosity. I wanted to learn more the whole story. I couldn't wait to see it's secrets unfold.

The book is just so amazing. A real tale told by a master storyteller.

Brilliant. I was completely sucked in.

Clean read. Would even be safe to read aloud as a family. Fairy-tale lovers would enjoy this book. 

beautiful, fairy-tale, folklore, magical, mystical, mythology, otherworldly, quick-read

Cornerstone

Okay, Okay. Why am I screaming?

I was absorbed into the way the author described everything. She used every day comparisons to describe the most complex emotions in a way that completely related to me. I think some readers might be turned off by the number of metaphors and similes, but I enjoyed them, especially when they described how Nalena was affected emotionally by Garrett. Eep! I loved it.

favorite, guys-that-make-me-swoon, i-want-to-write-like-her, magical, powers, quick-read, read, romance, wonderful

Destroy Me

The whole Shatter Me series is my most favorite ever. This novella did not disappoint. I love the first person present. I love being in the moment with Warner. He's twisted. He's crazy. He's passionate. He has fire. And he's crushed and destroyed. So much emotion wrapped up in a few pages. This is a read to devour in one sitting.

Only draw back--I wish I had an entire novel from Warner's POV.

Mafi has inspired me as a writer.

Amazed.

adrenaline-rush, best-book-ever, blown-away, dystopian, favorite, gasp, guys-that-make-me-swoon, i-want-to-write-like-her, quick-read, read, thought-provoking, well-crafted

What Lainey Sees

This book was a fun and suspense-filled read with a bit of mythological magic. I loved how the story flip-flopped between the modern-day story about Lainey and Gage and the heartbreaking tribal story about Bright Eyes and Satsokis. Both stories together brought the magic of this adventure to life.

This story is Reader Rated 18+ for graphic sex; also contains moderate profanity and mild violence.

favorite, gasp, read, romance

The Kinshield Legacy

Loved this book on an epic scale! A real faulted hero that I just adored. So many characters' storylines woven together into one awesome adventure. And a villain who is just creepy. Must read more!

Reader rated 14+ for mild language, crude humor, mild sensuality, and mild torture.

Cupcakes, Trinkets, and Other Deadly Magic

I loved this novel! From the sexy cupcake names to the magical werewolf dance club "orgy" to the very horny main character. Fave character was Kett--aka the vampire. So mysterious in a I-want-to-rip-your-head-off way. This was just fun, quirky read. And apparently everything about magic is either really scary or sexy. Will definitely read the other novels!

Reader Rated 15+ for mild language, mild sensuality, and mild violence.

Broken Symmetry

This was a thrilling novel. I was riveted. How in the world did the author come up with this and pull it off? The dynamics of breaking symmetry were hard to follow, but regardless, I was unable to put his novel down. I just decided to go with the the flow and the ride. It's a pretty good trip.

  

How to Review an Author’s Book, the Correct and Non-Trolling Way

Authors love reviews. Please, once you read a book, by all means, write that review. Especially if Amazon is kind enough to prompt you. It takes 30 seconds to 3 minutes.

This helps indie authors. By leaving a review, it says, this book is worth the time to read. This author didn’t spent months or even years writing this for your pleasure, only to have you devour their creative masterpiece in a few short hours and leave it forever in the dust. Let them know you appreciated their hard work.

Authors also need reviews so they can promote their books on various websites. It’s a pain that, in order to get the word out, you have to have at least ten reviews on some sites. (Sometime thirty, sometimes fifty!) But if you can’t get the word out, you can’t get the reviews. See what I’m saying? It’s an endless circle of annoyance for a newly released book’s author. If you happen to stumble upon a new release, or even an old release, write that review. The author will love you for it.

Now, how to do it without stabbing the author in the back.

Amazon and Goodreads have a one to five star rating system. I’m not going to hash out what each of their stars mean. I’m going to hash out my system. A kind system. A non-trolling system. Nobody has the right to make a deliberately offensive or provocative online posting with the aim of upsetting someone or eliciting an angry response from them. Yet, this happens to authors all the time.

They get that one star review, and it’s mean.

Why? What vendetta did this reader have against the author? And if you took personal offense at something the author wrote, maybe you should stop reading—like altogether.

Okay, so back to my method. Anything you write should be constructive.

Five stars is easy to rate. You’ll know it when you read it. You might find yourself exclaiming, “I loved this book! It changed me. Oh baby, I can’t stop thinking about it. Oh, wow! I became the characters. I felt every twinge of emotion. I want to read all the author’s books. Give them all to me—now, now, now!”

Let that expression show. Review this everywhere. Proclaim it on Facebook. Write a blog post. Recommend the book to all your friends. Give them as Christmas gifts.

Four stars. “This was a good book. There are a few things I wished were done differently. Maybe the writing could have flowed better. But it was still awesome. The story was amazing. Great idea. Amazing concept, but it just didn’t make me scream. I didn’t quite connect with the characters. I might check out the rest of the author’s novels since the ending left me wanting more.”

So the book wasn’t perfect. It doesn’t have to be to find enjoyment in it. Very rarely will a book end the way we want it to, but that doesn’t mean we didn’t laugh or cry or want to throw the book across the room during a dramatic moment. Share the love regardless.

Three stars. “I can tell the author really tried with this book, but it just wasn’t for me. I got bored halfway through, but someone out there might like it because it was a well-written story. Or, the story had merit, but there were too many structural errors. If the author made a revision and took a few writing classes, this could be fantastic, because the story is there, it’s just lacking in execution.”

Three stars means, just because you didn’t stay up all night finishing it, doesn’t mean that someone else won’t. Everyone has different tastes. (And reading levels. Someone might not notice those glaring errors that a seasoned author would. Gulp. Yes. Indie books come in all experience ranges. It’s a learn-as-you-go thing. The more you write, the more you learn. Duh. That’s how life is.) Recommend the novel to someone who would love it.

Now the touchy two and one star ratings. Be kind if you have to use these, because sometimes a book does call for it. But it’s rare. If you must rate this way, try holding off and sending the author a kind personal message, saying how they could fix their novel instead of rating it one star. Use encouraging words. Tell them what they did do well. We are in this world to help and uplift.

Two stars. This story made no sense. It was well written grammatically, but I had no idea what was going on. Or, this novel had too many errors that distracted from the story, making it impossible to enjoy. (Don’t go here unless you actually didn’t know what you read, and believe me, I’ve been there. I said that, once, after reading a novel.)

One Star. This novel is an abomination. It’s unreadable. It made no sense and clearly had no editing. It reads like a first draft. This author has no business writing. (Notice, I did not put these words in quotes. You may think this in your head, but you are not typing it out. Please, just don’t. Only rate this way if that is absolutely true, or better yet, don’t rate it. Send the author that personal message. OR, just because you didn’t enjoy an expertly crafted novel and took offense over it, doesn’t mean it’s crap. And rating it one star is just rude.)

There you have it. I’m sure I didn’t cover all the bases, but this is a good jumping off point. The more you rate, the more you tweak to your own style. I even found myself saying, that if I can’t get into a novel in the first few chapters, I’m putting the book down. And I don’t bother rating it. For the love of everything—don’t rate a book it you don’t finish it!

Any questions? Now go out there and review.