Hello, it’s the first week of Filipino Fridays 2014! Whether it’s your first time to participate or not, tell us a bit about yourself. More specifically, tell us about your favorite book discoveries for this year. Any author you started reading this year that you can’t get enough of? A book you didn’t think you’d like, but you ended up liking/loving? Any book series that you just have to get your hands on? Have you discovered anything new from Filipino authors this year?
Favorite Book Discoveries for 2014
The Rosales Saga by F. Sionil Jose
I don't read Filipino books much, so to address that deficiency I joined the read-along of this famous series at our book club Flips Flipping Pages (FFP). I read Sionil Jose's "Ermita" last year and liked the historical aspect but disliked the preachy tone at the end, so I didn't expect to enjoy these. I have yet to finish the last book but I am awed by the beauty and truth of Sionil Jose's words. He reminds me of the works of Colombian author Gabriel Garcia Marquez.
Locke & Key by Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez
This was last year's best read by Honey, another FFP member. I did not enjoy Hill's "Heart-Shaped Box" but decided to give this comic book series a try on her recommendation. A blend of mystery, fantasy, horror and suspense, I devoured this series.
Author I Can't Get Enough Of
TJ Klune from Dreamspinner Press. I read an anthology dedicated to him and his fiance Eric Arvin (another MM romance author) and got curious. I started with "Bear, Otter, and the Kid", the novel he is most known for, and had to read the next one, "Who We Are", immediately after, and the one after that, "The Art of Breathing". I like the intelligence of Klune's characters, and their acceptance of their weaknesses.
Book/s I Didn't Think I'd Like But Ended Up Liking/Loving
See "Favorite Book Discoveries" above. :)
Book Series I Have to Get My Hands On
I'm looking forward to reading
- "Edge of Eternity", the last book in Ken Follett's The Century Trilogy, and
- "The Blood of Olympus", the last book in Rick Riordan's The Heroes of Olympus series.
I'm waiting for the conclusion to Justin Cronin's The Passage Trilogy, "The City of Mirrors", scheduled for release next year.
New Discovery from Filipino Authors
"Alternative Alamat", edited by Paolo Chikiamco. I love mythology, and I'm currently enjoying the different takes on our own gods and legends and beliefs.
