Here we are at Day One of another New Year, and, as I have noted in the past, this is a time for lists. I started a practice in 2017 of listing my Top 5 favorite books that I had read during the previous year and don’t feel the need to stop. Even with a productive writing year, I read a lot during the past 12 months, going through nearly 40 novels or non-fiction works. Some of them were re-reads, but most were ones I hadn’t read before.
My list is purely subjective and based solely on my opinion, so it doesn’t mean one book was artistically better than another or that it was a bigger seller. Or that it was even released during the past year. It just means I enjoyed it a little more than others I had read.
Before I get started, there a couple of honorable mentions: I thoroughly enjoyed the four entries of the Hell Divers series by Nicholas Sansbury Smith, along with the first three installments of The Vampire World saga by P.T. Hylton and Jonathan Benecke. While none of their successors cracked the Top 5, I eagerly await the next offerings in these two post-apocalyptic series.
So here’s the Top 5:
Number 5 –
Extinction 7: War by Nicholas Sansbury Smith
A fitting conclusion to Sansbury Smith’s Extinction series (although a prequel is due out in 2019), this entry wrapped up the storyline quite well. The finale to the seven-part series has it all: strong and believable characters, fast-paced military action, life-or-death tension (the writer isn’t above killing off a favorite or two, so you never know), and just enough science to make everything feel uncomfortably plausible. I guess the best sign of how much I enjoyed the story is the fact I was disappointed the series ended. I wanted more.
Number 4 –
The Stand (unabridged) by Stephen King
This was a re-read of the massive PA tome by one of my favorite authors (The Outsider and Sleeping Beauties with son, Owen, were in the Top 10). While some have called it bloated and unmanageable, I still believe it’s one of his finest efforts. Yes, there are multiple plotlines moving along simultaneously at different speeds and you have to mentally work to keep them sorted out, but what’s wrong with that? Besides, King brings it all together in the end – with a bang. I’ve always believed character development is one of his best skills because he gives you a peek at the human condition – good, bad, and sometimes ugly – and provides you a connection with these fictional creations. There’s got to be something said for a writer whose skill can make you feel a twinge of empathy for The Walking Dude, while at the same time question what the hell Mother Abigail is up to.
Number 3 –
Rain Gods by James Lee Burke
This was an unintended re-read. I picked it up at the Darlington library and quickly immersed myself into the hardboiled world that only Burke can create, although this one is different from the Dave Robicheaux setting. I am such a fan of his poetic and visual style that I didn’t care I had read this one years before, and I willingly checked out the previously unread sequel, Feast Day of Fools, which landed just outside the Top 5. I like that Burke’s protagonists are flawed people trying to do good, and he is such a talented writer that you can feel empathy for his bad guys, although they wouldn’t give you the same courtesy should you meet them in real life.
Number 2 –
Twisted Prey by John Sandford
For the life of me, I don’t know how he does it. The most-recent of Sandford’s Lucas Davenport series – the 28th installment – is another can’t-put-it-down, page-turner about the Minnesota law enforcement officer (although he now works for the US Marshal Service). I am amazed the storyline is still fresh and innovative, which is a testament to the writer’s skill. I enjoy that Davenport’s tough-guy persona usually puts him in untenable situations, but it’s his brains that get him out of those predicaments. But, like always, the trip from Point A to Point B is well worth the roller coaster ride. I look forward to another Davenport story due out later this year and the as-of-yet unread Virgil Flowers one from 2018.
Number 1 –
’Salem’s Lot by Stephen King
I guess it’s no surprise this re-read of one of my all-time favorites ends up in the top spot of my list for 2018. While parts of it are a smidge dated, the writing and story itself are as good as ever; it’s a slice of small-town Americana infused with a dash of Gothic horror. Employing deft character development, King doesn’t shy away from looking beneath the veneer of an idyllic rural life and exposing the ugly realities in a way the arrival of an ancient evil can’t, although that definitely exacerbates matters. To me, the scariest part has always been he makes it seem so damn believable. This was the novel that opened my eyes to the writer Stephen King many years ago (I read the paperback – which I still have – a year after the hardcover was published in 1975) and I have been a fan since. I may be a bit partial, but to me ’Salem’s Lot ranks as one of the best vampire stories ever written. It did way back in 1976, and it still does today. ... See more
