One last best of and then we can officially move on into the new year I promise! Last but not least let's take a look at what stood out to me in the book, tv, film and music world:
Books:
First off: If you would like to get a conclusive look at what I have been reading all year you can click
and this should take you to my goodreads 'Year in Books', also I started a new reading challenge AND I am on a bookban because I want to drastically reduce my sub-list (Still Unread Books). If you are a bookworm like me and would like to start your own reading challenge or just would like to see how I do with mine you can friend me on goodreads.com. I love this site, it neatly keeps track of my progress and helps me to remember all the books I have read and how I liked them. It also let's interact with other bookworms, etc.
Book-wise this was a big year. I read Sebastian Fitzek's Eye Collector and Eye Hunter, The Eye Collector pretty much in one sitting because it gripped me tight and didn't let me go until the end. Fitzek renewed my love for psycho thrillers. Once the book ban is over I cannot wait to get my hands on his new offerings.
Next up was Ken Follett's Century Trilogy parts one and two. Fall of Giants and Winter of the World were absolutely beautiful. The books follow the destinies of four families one from the UK, the US, Germany and Russia respectively. It was amazing to see all the strands come together that led to the first World War and to get all the different perspectives on World War I and II. So far I only really knew what happened in Germany and I only knew the basics about the other countries. This series helped to give the horrors of the first and especially the second war a human face. What stood out to me was the kindness that Follett showed towards the German characters. It would have been easy to make them the bad guys, instead he portrayed a family with a son falling into the nazi trap, a father broken by the fall of democracy and a mother and daughter who desperately try to do the right, good thing in a world where they may easily get killed for just that. Follett didn't play any of the nazi crimes down but he also remembered there were human beings affected in this war on all sides.
The third book Edge of Eternity is coming out in the fall and I will break my bookban for that.
Another trilogy that stands out to me is Deborah Harkness' All Souls Trilogy parts one and two A Discovery of Witches and Shadow of Night. Vampires, witches, a beautiful lovestory, gorgeous locations and lovable characters, these books have it all. I cannot wait to go on the last ride with Matthew and Diana, even though I dread it too, I don't want it to be over. Book three The Book of Life comes out in summer and is another ban-breaker.
I also read and loved Susan Ee's Angelfall, the entire Divergent-trilogy (unpopular opinion: I loved the ending), I finished the Infernal Devices-trilogy with Clockwork Princess and cried a river over another beautiful ending, I discovered my ultimate guilty pleasure in Susan Elizabeth Phillips' Chicago Stars- series (chick flick with a little American Football on the side? YES PLEASE!). Honorary mentions also go to Alyson Noel's Fated, Lauren Graham's Someday Someday Maybe (great great love) and Nalini Singh's Angels' Blood (currently started to re-read it to get ready for the collab with The Bookbeauty, yay!).
TV shows:
I fell and fell hard this year. Remember my 3 months long Tudors- craze? Then there was the Sons of Anarchy-phase (oh the brilliancy of that one! Will re-watch it once I am done with Gossip Girl), and of course the Friday Night Lights-phase. FNL and Veronica Mars hold the top spot of my most loved, most influential tv shows of all time. SoA exposes my masochistic vein: It cracks me open, strips me bare, shocks me and still I'm coming back for more.
Another show that was burned into my heart this year was Vikings. I have seen the first season about 5-10 times by now and in February the dvd's are finally coming out, expect the craze to resume then!
Honorary mentions go to Dark Angel (still need to pick up season 1) and s4 of Smallville, I caught up on the Closer (another great love of mine, waiting for s7 now), on Trueblood (next stop s5), picked up two more seasons of Bones (s4 and s5) and finally found the courage to finish Lost.
On a different segment of the spectrum I watched the crap out of Mock the Week and Russell Howard's Good News over the summer and I keep on coming back to rewatch a couple of episodes every few weeks. I don't know what it is but there is something about British political comedy that makes me giggle again whenever I watch it again. Dara o'Briain, Frankie Boyle, Andy Parsons, Adam Hill and of course Russell Howard never fail to make me smile, no matter how upset I am.
I don't really know what I am looking forward to this year. Well, clearly Sherlock s3, Vikings s2 and the new Der Letzte Bulle (German crime procedural), but other than that? Oh yeah and obviously new seasons of Mock the Week and hopefully Russell Howard's Good News!
Movies:
That one is easy: It's a tie between Man of Steel and Pacific Rim.
Music:
2013 was the year of me delving into new music worlds while still loving my old faves:
My main discovery this year was Mumford & Sons. Their two albums Sigh No More and Babel whisked me away. I love the combination of blue grass, a british accent and beautiful lyrics, I am constantly stuck between dancing and dreaming away.
My favorite band Saltatio Mortis brought out a beautiful new album, again with beautiful lyrics and an amazing sound somewhere between old and well known and a new spin.
A fairly recent addition is Awolnation with Megalithic Symphony but this album took my by a storm. It is quite different to what I normally listen to and it keeps me on my toes. It just feels fresh and new to me because it is so different to my normal power rotation.
Honorable mentions go to Lady Gaga - Fame Monster Album (yep, I'm late on that band waggon), Gloriana- Can't Shake You, Fun.- Some Nights, Of Monsters and Men- Little Talks, Eminem- Recovery Album (currently binge listening to the Marshall Mathers LP2 and Curtain Call), Katzenjammer- A Kiss Before You Go Album, Delain (just for being Delain, I love them so much! also We Are The Others!), Tarja- Colors In The Dark Album, The Birthday Massacre and Letzte Instanz.
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