Joel

Shocking I know but I have never read The Hobbit. Always wanted to but never got around to it so when Audible released the audio version I immediately bought it. Overall I truly enjoyed the book and found it to be extremely entertaining from start to finish. Rob Inglis does an incredible job with the crazy amounts of voices and singing he does through the book.

Overall truly enjoyed The Hobbit, it wasn't the epic I originally thought it might be but was entertaining nonetheless.

I loved The Kite Runner, and really enjoyed A Thousand Splendid Suns, but I just couldn't get into Khaled Hosseini's latest novel And the Mountains Echoed. The overarching story is of a brother and sister, but the many parallel and connecting stories dragged down the narrative. I understand what Mr. Hosseini was trying to do and in some cases it works. He is a master story teller and some of these side stories were incredible, while others felt flat.

My biggest problem with this book was that I never felt a relationship with any of the characters. I always wondered when we would get back to the main story arch and when we did it always felt underwhelming. This is still a good novel but no where up to the caliber of his past work.

I absolutely loved the first two books in The Clifton Chronicles. It was a fresh feel for Jeffrey Archer and the characters within the series were easy to connect with.

Now in the third book in the series, it’s starting to feel a bit long in the tooth. Archer is one of the finest authors out there and he makes a plot that is thin to begin with still interesting to read. However when you compare Best Kept Secret to the first two books it’s a sad step in the wrong direction.

Outside of the very last few chapters of the book there wasn't a ton of compelling reasons to keep on with the series. It’s unfortunate but I think this book may prove that Archer stretched out this series a little longer then it needed to be.

I am not sure what drove me to purchase this book in the first place. I am not one that goes out of my way to become sad or to contemplate death more then I have too. But something drew me in about The Fault in Our Stars and I am glad I read it. My only real issue with the book was the over the top nature of both Hazel Grace (main character) and her love interest Gus. Not that they weren't likable characters but their response to certain situations didn't feel real. For a book that wants so desperately to show people what its like to be terminally ill, the characters had a bit more whimsy then felt right.

Don't get me wrong if there are two people out there like Hazel and Gus then color me wrong, I just don't buy it. And if two people did really live like that then I would say they had far more wisdom then most who live five to six times the length of their lives.

Regardless its a heart wrenching tale, a short and sweet experience, that had me wiping tears away a few times.

I have had Ready Player One on my wish list since it was first released and for some reason just never got around to it. Within five minutes or so I bought in. Wil Wheaton does a fantastic job as the main character and the true love of all things nerdy is incredible.

The quest is one that any video game fan can understand. My problem was 2/3's of the way through the quest the main character makes some pretty weird decisions. One's that didn't necessarily match the character they portrayed for the first half of the book.

Even with that being said the constant throw backs to the classic 80's movies, TV, music, and video games were a ton of fun. Any fan of the era will get a kick out of that stuff. I just wish the book would have ended as well as it started.

I'm not the type of person that pushes through bad books but for some reason I did with Snow White Must Die. I was initially intrigued by both the title and the story but that quickly went away. My biggest gripe with Snow White Must Die are the major plot holes. Within the first hour the novel wants you to believe some pretty huge blind leaps of faith.

Combine that with some murder mystery staples, memory loss, famous actress, towns people, and this just felt like your run of the mill murder mystery. I'm not sure what the early praise was for this book because I just didn't get it.

I have had Bossypants on my radar to listen to since it was released, just never got around to it. Finally I pulled the trigger and all in all I am glad I did. Not my favorite biography ever but it was a fun relaxing listen.

From the opening moments of City of Thieves I was instantly hooked. I loved the two main characters (Lev & Kolya) and the different places they were in their young lives. Set in Russia during WWII this book is so different than any other I had ever read before.

The story does take some predictable turns towards the end but all in all I really enjoyed the book. Not to mention the stellar narration by Ron Perlman who really needs to do more narration.

Vince Flynn has continued to perfect and refine his long lineage of Mitch Rapp books and I think The Last Man was yet another highly entertaining listen.

My only gripe with The Last Man was where they took Mitch Rapp early in the novel. It's an overused ploy and it just felt a little tacked on to make the story work. Otherwise I just sat back and enjoyed yet another amazing CIA thriller.

I feel truly fortunate for being allowed to hear the stories of Rob Lowe. I went into listening to his biography with some trepidation. I didn't know much of his past, hadn't watched much of him in The West Wing. In fact I know him best from his times on Parks and Recreation. "Ann Perkins!"

Regardless Rob chronicles his life in such a way that you feel your sitting in a room just having a conversation. It doesn't hurt that Rob has some incredible stories to tell from his times with the young Sheen's to his time visiting the President in the oval office.

I immensely enjoyed my time listening to Stories I Only Tell My Friends and think anyone with any interest in Rob or the trials and tribulations of actors will enjoy this as well.

How many times have we heard not to judge a book by its cover. Usually I take it to mean not to just buy a book based on its cover but in the case of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry it was actually the books cover art that first drew me to the story. Judging based solely on the cover I was expecting a whimsical journey of a retiree.

However this novel is far more then first meets the high. The development of not only Harold Fry but also the support cast is incredible for this length of a novel. I really did find myself carrying for more then just Harold on his walk, but also his wife, son, and friends. I have to say I am super impressed with Rachel Joyce in this novel. It jumps right into Harold's journey but then allows you to really enjoy the simpler things in his walk that most writers might skip over.

Even more endearing about this novel is Jim Broadbent impeccable job reading the book. I instantly associated Jim with Harold and it just felt like a natural read of the book. Bravo Mr. Broadbent.

My only complain was the ending of the book which felt a little more mushy/predictable then the rest of the novel let on to be. Otherwise I think its one of the most enjoyable reads I have had in 2012.