Introduction
Book Review: The Best Novels That I Read in 2016. I read twenty novels in 2016 and will detail my favorites in this post.
Top Five Novels That I Read in 2016
- The Name of the Wind (The Kingkiller Chronicle #1) by Patrick Rothfuss
I had read great reviews of this novel in the past and finally read it last year. The praise is well-founded. The framing story is about an innkeeper called Kote. He reveals himself to be the legendary wizard Kvothe and then details his life of adventure and magic to the Chronicler who transcribes the tales. How much of his tales is the truth or an elaboration has yet to be determined?
- The Wise Man’s Fear (The Kingkiller Chronicle #2) by Patrick Rothfuss
Sequels do not always match the wonder of the first novel, but this one does. It works as an extension of the first novel. It’s been a long wait for the third novel, The Doors of Stone, but I see why it must be this way. It must be very difficult to maintain the quality of the narrative considering that all the threads must be completed to have a finished series. The three parts should read like one long novel. It is the story of Kvothe from apprentice to master.
- Words of Radiance (Stormlight #2) by Brandon Sanderson
This is the second book in the Stormlight Archive. While the first book is mainly focused on Kaladin’s story, this novel expands on Shallan’s story. Many events occur by the end of this long novel and set up the third book, called Oathbringer due to be released in 2017, which features the story of Dalinar.
- The Black Prism (Lightbringer #1) by Brent Weeks
The magic system in this fantasy, called chromaturgy, involves the magician turning various colors of light into a substance called luxin. The luxin can be manipulated into items depending upon which color of light is used. This novel focuses on the struggles of Gavin Guile as he tries to preserve the balance of light in chromaturgy and tries to rule the peoples of the Seven Satrapies as the Prism. Gavin may be the ruler, but he has many problems that plague him, including interacting with Kip, Dazen, Karris, Corvan, Liv, and the mysterious Lord Omnichrome.
- Leviathan Wakes (The Expanse #1) by James S. A. Corey
This book was adapted for television by the SyFy Channel as the first season of The Expanse. That is why I initially chose to read this novel. I enjoy examining the comparisons from book to screen. Some examples are The Man in the High Castle, Games of Thrones, and the Harry Potter series. The Expanse is set in the future in the solar system, where the Terrans, the Martians, and the Belters (people who live beyond Mars) all vie for materials and power. The main characters are captain Holden and Detective Miller. They must unravel who has released an alien virus called the protomolecule and why it was released.
Novels Six to Ten of the Novels That I Read in 2016
- Hope and Red (Empire of Storms #1) by Jon Skovron
The author describes this novel as a mix of kung-fu, pirate, and gangster adventure. I heartily agree. This is a fun and fast-paced novel, which includes many twists and turns. Hope begins the novel as the lone survivor of her village. The village was exterminated by the order of biomancers. Biomancers serve the emperor and can manipulate any living thing. Their power is a mix of science and magic. She is taken in by the Vinchen warriors, who practice a variation of kung-fu training and philosophy. She vows vengeance on the biomancers.
Red begins the novel as a young boy, who falls into becoming a pirate. After some adventures, he takes to the streets of New Laven and learns the trade of a thief. When Hope and Red meet halfway through the novel, the novel takes off showing their vengeance on the biomancers and the empire. The twists at the end set up the next volume called Bane and Shadow, which is due to be released on February 28, 2017. I have preordered it and look forward to reading it then.
- Promise of Blood (Powder Mage #1) by Brian McClellan
This series mixes muskets and magic. The magic system uses gunpowder as its base. The protagonists can use gunpowder to enhance their stamina, accuracy in shooting, and self-healing ability. The exploits of Field Marshall Tamas, his son Taniel, and Inspector Adamat can be followed in the trilogy. A second trilogy starts when Sins of Empire is due to be released on March 7, 2017.
- Caliban’s War (The Expanse #2) by James S. A. Corey
The sequel to Leviathan Wakes expands the conflict in the Expanse series. Captain Holden of the ship called Rocinante is back. The crew chooses to help Prax, whose daughter has been kidnapped from the moon of Ganymede. Ganymede has been attacked by enemies unknown as witnessed by Martian Marine Bobbie Draper. United Nations Under-Secretary Avasarala also becomes involved in the plot as the four characters unravel what has transpired between Earth, Mars, the Belt, and the kidnappers. Most of these events will be covered in the second season of the SyFy Channel program called The Expanse. The first episode is scheduled to air on February 1, 2017.
- Fevre Dream by George R. R. Martin
I have always enjoyed the author’s science fiction and the Song of Ice and Fire series. This novel was written in between the two. I had steered away from it because it included vampires because it felt like there was no place interesting to go with that trope. I decided to try it anyway and was pleasantly surprised. The novel is set in the 1850s on the Mississippi River. The story is about riverboat captain Abner Marsh and his mysterious benefactor, Joshua York. They build a big and fast boat and sail down the Mississippi toward New Orleans. York’s past catches up to him and secrets are revealed. These vampires have a well thought out history and biology. It is a science fiction type retelling of the vampire and werewolf superstitions.
- The Bands of Mourning (Mistborn #6) by Brandon Sanderson
This novel is the third book featuring the characters of Wax and Wayne. The Mistborn trilogy featured a different cast of characters and was set in a semi medieval world. There are three magic systems that exist in all of the books; allomancy, feruchemy, and hemalurgy. The technology level of the Wax and Wayne series is roughly Western with guns and trains mixing with the magic systems. In this novel, Wax searches for the legendary bands of mourning and tries to discover the intentions of a secretive group called The Set. The stage is set for a climactic final novel featuring these characters. The seventh Mistborn novel is called The Lost Metal and will be released in 2018.
The Other Ten Novels I Read in 2016
The other novels I read last year were The Man in the High Castle by Phillip K. Dick (This was a reread prepping me for the first season of the Amazon Instant Video series), Tuf Voyaging by George R. R. Martin (This was a reread so I could follow the you tube video series by Preston Jacobs on the Thousand World Stories by Martin), The Slow Regard of Silent Things by Patrick Rothfuss, The Atlantis Gene (The Origin Mystery #1) by A. G. Riddle, Murder at the Kinnen Hotel by Brian McClellan (background short story in the Powder Mage series labeled #0.3).
The Gunslinger (The Dark Tower #1) by Stephen King, A Fire Upon the Deep (Zones of Thought #1) by Vernor Vinge, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (Harry Potter #8) by J. K. Rowling, John Tiffany, and Jack Thorne, The Long Way to a Small, Angry Planet (Wayfarers #1) by Becky Chambers, and Song of the Sea Spirit (The Mindstream Chronicles #1) by K. C. May.
Upcoming Books I Want to Read
Books that I’m looking forward to reading this year that are scheduled to be released this year:
-Arcanum Unbounded by Brandon Sanderson on November 22, 2016
-Oathbringer (Stormlight #3) by Brandon Sanderson sometime in 2017
-The Heart of What was Lost (Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn #4) by Tad Williams on January 3, 2017
-Bane and Shadow (Empire of Storms #2) by Jon Skovron on February 28, 2017
-New York 2140 by Kim Stanley Robinson on March 14, 2017
Series that I want to continue reading:
-Powder Mage Series by Brian McClellan
-Lightbringer series by Brent Weeks
-The Expanse series by James S. A. Corey
-Mars Trilogy by Kim Stanley Robinson
Books I will wait for as long as it takes:
-The Winds of Winter (Song of Ice and Fire #6) by George R. R. Martin
-Doors of Stone (The Kingkiller Chronicle #3) by Patrick Rothfuss
Links
This is the link to my Goodreads page.
https://www.goodreads.com/user/show/58365344-gary-gillen
This is a link to my review of The Land That Time Forgot by Edgar Rice Burroughs, which is a fun quickly-paced science fiction/fantasy adventure story. It has the lost world theme and an interesting method of alternative evolution included in this world. It is just the perfect story for that pre-teen boy to read.