Best Books of 2012

Since it's almost 2013, I thought it was time to name my top-whatever of Best Books that I read this year. So here they are! They are not all published in 2012, but they are all read in 2012.

The Fault in our Stars by John Green
Man, this book made me weep like a baby. After liking, but not loving his other books, I read this one and instantly fell in love with it. The way it was written, the emotions and just.. I can't even explain myself. One of my favorite contemporaries. Ever.

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Touch of Power by Maria V. Snyder
One of the first books I read this year and one of my favorite fantasy novels I've read so far. I haven't read the sequel yet, but I absolutely adored this one. Belen was awesome, as was Kerrick. But let's not forget about Tohon, who is in my top 3 favorite villains. Maria has a way with words..

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Second Chance Summer by Morgan Matson
I didn't believe the hype this book was getting when it first came out. Everybody was raving about it, but all I could think of was how I disliked the cover and it sounded 'just okay'. Well, guess again. Second Chance Summer sucked me right into the story. And while the plot was a little thin at times, Matson made up for that and more with her way to take you on a roller-coaster ride of emotions. I mean, my feelings were all over the place, with one particular scene breaking my heart into a million tiny pieces. This is one that I'll definitely be re-reading next year.

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The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness
If you haven't read the Chaos Walking Trilogy yet, I strongly recommend you do so. The Knife of Never Letting Go was written in such a distinctive way, I couldn't help but want more and more. This one just picked up after the cliffhanger in the first book and MAN it was good! I kinda wish I could read this entire series again for the first time, purely because it was so addictive and original. This series is one of my all time favourites.

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Variant by Robison Wells
It's a book that originally didn't earn the full five stars from me, but it STILL has me thinking - even though I read it all the way back in July. It's one of those WTF-books, messing with your brain and confusing you by throwing plot twists your way when you think you know where the story is going. It's so awesome to find a book that is able to do that! Man, I loved this take on boarding school, combined with sci-fi goodness and a crazy storyline.

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Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi
Another one that I read early on in the year, but it's one that I absolutely adored. I loved the combination of a dystopian society combined with a wasteland, kind of post-apocalyptic story mixed in with some paranormalish elements. I particularly fell in love with Roar, who just swept into the story and stole the limelight. I thoroughly enjoyed the character development and slowly building romance in this one and I cannot wait to get my grabby little hands on the sequel.

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Insignia by S.J. Kincaid
Dude. I don't even know how to describe this one, aside from "epic". I didn't even know I liked sci-fi, but this one pretty much rocked my bookish world. I was thrown into something I didn't think possible without sounding unbelievable, yet Kincaid managed to do it. AND HOW. I'm still in awe how she was able to do this. This has the potential to be one of my favorite series ever. Great book!

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Cinder by Marissa Meyer
Cyborg Cinderella! This was one of the biggest surprises for me. I got this as a galley because everyone was raving about it, and while I wasn't expecting something that would blow my mind, I devoured this book. Everything in this book combined to an unputdownable read, making sure I wanted to read on more than I wanted to eat (believe me, that's serious business). One of the most promising debut authors of 2012.

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Well.. I think I spot a trend in these favourite reads of this year xD Apparently blue and red covers work their magic..

While I didn't read as many books as I did last year, I've read a TON and quite a few were awesome. Some honourable mentions that just barely didn't make this list: Amy & Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson, Five Flavours of Dumb by Antony John, The Duff by Kody Keplinger, Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry and Blood Bound by Rachel Vincent. If you're looking for a good read, I'd definitely recommend checking any of these titles out!

So, these are my personal favourites, but which books made your top-whatever list of 2012? I'm curious!