Year 2014
*101 books for the year.

January 2014

1. Losing Control, Finding Serenity: How the Need to Control Hurts Us and How to Let It Go – Very interesting read by an interesting guy. Worth a read if you are interested.

2. How I Sold 1 Million eBooks in 5 Months – I wasn’t expecting much from this book but it was amazing, great sales person with lessons that apply to everything online. If you are an author this is a must read to build your tribe.

3. A Moveable Feast: The Restored Edition – I’m really loving Hemmingway and this is the 2nd book I’ve read. Just seems like a really cool guy.

February

4. The Almond – Wow, really really interesting read. A bit outside my normal reading and liked it.

5. Illusions: The Adventures of a Reluctant Messiah – A hilarious and great read, one I’m going to read again in a sec as it needs a bit of thought :).

6. Hood: The King Raven Trilogy – Book 1 – A retelling of the Robin Hood story and quite good, I am going to buy the second one soon and see how it goes. Also I picked a more sci fi book from him as well to try. Good writing.

7. Unlabel – A fantastic business book with great real world advice by Marc Ecko. One of the most interesting business books I’ve ever read and def goes on my must read recommendation for business books. Very candid about his failures, problems, and where he fucked up. Highly recommended.

March

8. No More Mr. Nice Guy – I’m not sure how I ended up with this one, either someone recommended it or something weird. Was a weird read and a really weird book, went ahead and finished it as it was short. Wouldn’t recommend it as just a weird collection of advice and didn’t seem very helpful for anyone.

9. Legions of Orion (Star Crusades Nexus) – A good book but I couldn’t see the world clear enough through the writing. Maybe I’ll try the sequels in the future if I can’t find any other good series.

10. The Sad Tale of the Brothers Grossbart – A crazy but well written book, I recommend it if you are looking for something VERY VERY DARK and different :). Fun read but by the end I was a bit gross out and tense. Not the best book to read when you are sick over spring break :).

11. 12. The Atlantis Gene and The Atlantis Plague. Very well written thrillers and made for a great read, still waiting on book 3 and curious will the author will take it. I can’t stand much of the cliche crap that most thrillers bring but this one has some really cool stuff + well written. Highly recommended for a fun read!

13. The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers – One of the best business books I’ve ever read in terms of real advice about real hard situations. Ben is known in the industry and I love the advice on his blog. This one is short listed for the best business book of the year for sure.

14. The Skin Map – Pretty well written but slow going, cool sci fi concept with some multi dimensions stuff. Not going to read the series as just couldn’t click with it.

15. Medici Effect: What You Can Learn from Elephants and Epidemics – A nice short read with some good examples. What is this theory? “The Medici Effect shows how breakthrough ideas most often occur when we bring concepts from one field into a new, unfamiliar territory, and offers examples how we can turn the ideas we discover into path-breaking innovations.”

16. Good Boss, Bad Boss: How to Be the Best… and Learn from the Worst. Great book from the guy who wrote the book the ‘no asshole rule’. Good follow up with some good advice. Recommended for any manager / someone trying to learn to be a better leader.

April

17. Pines – A really well written horror mystery book, just not my cup of tea so not reading the rest. Get tired of the crazy twist endings.

May

18. Words of Radiance (The Stormlight Archive) – Book two of Brandon Sanderson’s new work and it is AMAZING!!! I have no words for how good this is :). The man is a god.

19. Overwhelmed: Work, Love, and Play When No One Has the Time – This is quite simply one of the best books I’ve read this year on the tendency to get so busy and frantic and never feel centered. A MUST read for the entire population, especially Americans. Such a well written fascinating book. Super highly recommended!!!

20. Kinslayer: The Lotus War Book Two – A fantasticly unique fantasy book set in a crazy version of Japan. I can’t wait for book 3!!!

21. Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World – A fascinating amazing person and this was a great book. I listened to a series of podcast on the Mongul empire, and wanted to read some more about him. Great read!

22. Flash Boys: A Wall Street Revolt – All about the flash trading by a famous author, its a good overview but I’ve read previous books on this that I feel are better. Just check out some of my past reviews to really learn about the explosion of these parasites. I am very glad the public and government are taking note so we can shut these guys down and hopefully put them in jail and take all their money.

23. The Maze Runner – One of the dumbest books I’ve ever read. I can’t believe they are making this into a movie, utter shit.

24. Breakthrough – Ok thriller book, but not very good. I wouldn’t recommend it. Basically about a duplicate world, atlantis, flooding, dolphins that can talk, etc.

25. The last StormDancer: Lotus Wars book 1 – A fantastic steampunk japanese fantasy book. See above for book 2 and more info. Some of the best fantasy sci fi books I’ve read this year.

26. 27. Steel World and Dust World – Two really fun space books, mindless and just fun. All about a space marine going through bootcamp and navigating a world with this huge space empire.

June

28. My Grape Escape – A fun little travel book about rebuilding a french farm house. Funny :)

29. How to Change the World: Social Entrepreneurs and the Power of New Ideas – This was an amazing book that should be required reading by everyone in public schools in high school and college. It was one of the best business oriented books I’ve read this year and I am hoping to get some time to post some thoughts on it soon too. I don’t think I’m patient enough to be a social entrepreneur :).

30. Starship Grifters (A Rex Nihilo Adventure) – An absolutely hilarious book about a space adventure, amazing awesome characters and just freaking hilarious. Recommended and buying another one by this great author!

31. The Lost Fleet: Beyond the Frontier: Steadfast – I love this series but this one was just filler… boring, get to the shit dude. Space fighting and the politics of these simple books is fun, but this one was just not as good as the previous ones.

32. Point of Impact – An ok thriller, well written and going to try another buy him. I saw the movie too which I didn’t realize until I started reading it, I hate knowing where it is going.

33. Terms of Enlistment (Frontlines) – An interesting view of the future, but overly simplistic and just couldn’t get into it enough to spend more money on the series.

34. Down and Out in Paris and London by George Orwell. What an amazing man and a great book. Go buy this! I’ve read some of his others and you get such an amazing view of a group of people that the world never seems to look at with such a fair and accurate view. He basically becomes a homeless / bum / down on his luck individual for years to learn what it is like and make friends. Fantastic read!

35. The Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick) – A fantastic book and one I highly recommended, short and sweet!

36. Trojan Horse – Ok but not great, supposed to be a techno thriller. I give it a C+, easily skippable.

37. The Last Firewall – Very interesting science fiction book about the rise of AI, and how we keep them honest. Great read and fun one!

38. Ark Royal – Science fiction book about an old space carrier, ok read but nothing fantastic. I give it a C+, if you love love love space fiction maybe. But the characters fell flat. I am skipping the sequel as it just didn’t hook me enough.

39. 40. Nexus and Crux – A fantastic series of books about programmable nano bots that allow you to become post human. Loving it and can’t wait for the 3rd one :). Highly recommended and some of the best science fiction I have read this year.

41. The Back Door Man – A terrible fucking book, ok writing but just every single fucking cliche in the book. Cliche nerd, cliche boss, cliche background, etc. And as you keep reading it it gets worse and worse, turns out the cliche boss is actually the most ridiculous impossible psycho path ever :). It is hilarious if it wasn’t so bad and if you didn’t pay money for it. SKIP THIS BOOK. They even manage to pull in some stupid shit about a rich dad and god at the end, so dumb.

42. Time to Hunt – Another book by the famous sniper/military author. Pretty good but the pace just feels off, highly recommended though as you find few as good :).

July

43. 44. Brilliance and A Better World – An amazing science fiction book about the near future when “Brilliants” start being born, basically humans that have supernatural intelligence but in a certain area. The author is fantastic and it is one of the best things I’ve read this year. I can’t wait for book 3!

45. The Blade Itself – From the same author this is a crime drama set in Chicago, not too bad, but def one of his earlier works and lacking some of the skill that Brilliance had.

46. Young Money: Inside the Hidden World of Wall Street’s Post-Crash Recruits – A fantastic book following 8 new recruits to wall street over a 2 to 3 year period. Fascinating and superbly written!

47. The Progress Principle: Using Small Wins to Ignite Joy, Engagement, and Creativity at Work – A great book and super super in depth, like reading a textbook. I am going to need to go back over the years and reread this one a few times to glean new ideas from it.

48. 49. Abaddons Gate (book 3) and Caliban’s War (book 2) – Book 2, and 3 of the Expanse series, a giant big space odyssey that is awesome. Great characters, believable, and just really well written and BIG. Love it and still reading the next couple books as well :). Happy to finally find a good one after a lot of duds.

August

50. A Piece of Danish Happiness: One Woman finds the secrets of the happiest people in the world – Another book I was reading recommended this one, unfortuntly it was a bit flat, great for a story about this woman growing and finding a better path. With a few insights into Dutch culture that was interesting.

51. Cibola Burn – Book 4 in The Expanse series, a huge space sci fi adventure that is fantastic!!! Can’t wait for the future ones and I can’t recommend this author enough, each one is a bit of a separate story connected with some big dots. Great series and been missing space sci fi :).

52. Titan: The Life of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. – An AMAZING person and awesome read, after reading the book on Vanderbilt I jumped over to this one. The things he did were amazing and this book did a great job of providing a balanced and riveting read. Great author and highly recommended, one of the most interesting books I’ve read this year!

53. Leviathan Wakes – I did a quick re-read of this one before I read the brand new 4 books in the series :). This is book one in the Expanse series and amazing!!

September

54. Influx by Daniel Suarez – I loved his first book, Damon. This one is better than the last one, but still just ok. The characters are just a bit flat, but luckily the tech is pretty cool. He is def improving as a writer, and I am looking forward to about 5 books down the line. Keep up the great work!!

55. Startup Boards: Getting the Most Out of Your Board of Directors – A great book for someone on their first board, or enjoying their first board. Very useful book and I’ll need to revisit this one every few years to see what new insights it can bring. Well written, and by people with a TON of exp in the area. Highly recommended if you need some help!

56. Six Years in Mozambique: Things I Haven’t Told Mom – Fascinating account of someone who moved to Mozambique. While Lindsey was running her Yali program I got to meet some cool people, I wish i had more time with them but it was a really busy month for us. Africa is a very interesting area of the world, but a lot of challenges that can make it heartbreaking to experience. Slowly and surely it is improving, and hopefully more and more by the people who live and know it best.

57. The Amazon Way: 14 Leadership Principles Behind the World’s Most Disruptive Company – Pretty decent read, nothing super special but some good solid advice in here. I wish there was more info on the detailed metrics they use.

58. One Summer: America, 1927 – An amazing book by Bill Bryson, one of my favorites! It goes over everything happening this one year and really gives a great glimpse into people of the time etc. Highly highly recommend!

59. Fallen Dragon by Sci Fi King Peter F. Hamilton. This was one of the best sci fi books I’ve read so far this year, really really cool ending too. Highly recommended and out there along with great characters. Buying a lot more of his books.

60. A Year In Provence – A great book about a couple moving into a new home in France and exploring and renovating. Always makes an interesting read with a lot of cultural learning.

61. Zero Day – This was supposed to be a techno thriller, and is one of the many Jeff Aiken books out there. In short they suck, characters are not believable, plot lines are basic, and just lacking a whole degree of coolness. I really really wanted it to be better than it was. Maybe because I am pretty nerdy/technical it seemed like a miss, but just wanted a bit more excitement and realism in the plot. Def not a Tom Clancy.

62. The Silkworm (Cormoran Strike Book 2) – This is the 2nd in a detective series the Harry Potter author put out. Good read & good story. Good for the beach!

63. 64. Mindstar Rising and A Quantum Murder by Peter F. Hamilton. Amazing detective books set in this future dystopian world that comes about because of global warming. HIGHLY recommended and I am buying everything by this author. These might be the best sci fi books I’ve read in the last couple years, it is like reading the best detective/thriller novels but in a crazy interesting universe.

October

65. Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don’t – One of the best books I’ve read this year and it really puts down in words a lot of what I believe and have seen in effect over the last 10 years. Really great book and highly recommend it!!! Really seems to define what great leadership is.

66. A Fighting Chance by Elizabeth Warren – A must read to gain a little hope in politics, someone who is fighting for the middle class and saying things honestly and actually has exp getting things done etc. I really hope she becomes the next president or VP.

67. Great North Road – Another amazing book by Peter Hamilton, this one is about an investigation into a murder but set in this amazing sci fi universe. Super big book and loved it. Just a couple more books and I will have read everything he has written so far :).

68. The Third Horseman: Climate Change and the Great Famine of the 14th Century – A very very interesting book about the affect of climate on history, I wish there was a little more info on what caused the climate change to just happen so heavily in europe, but overall good read. Recommended for history / political nerds.

69. Beyond Performance Management: Why, When, and How to Use 40 Tools and Best Practices for Superior Business Performance – This was a beast of a book at 416 pages with little studies and pros and cons on a number of different management tools. Really really good overview and highly recommended as a resource into the latest tactic/fad you heard about in the biz world.

70. Fluency – This was the first book I read using Kindle Unlimited! This was an ok book, the premise was pretty cool but there was just something missing with the story, it was a little too bill and jane with flat characters. Not going to read the sequel but I’ll keep an eye on the author.

71. The Mandel Files, Volume 2: The Nano Flower (Greg Mandel Trilogy) – By Peter F. Hamilton who is one of my now favorite authors. He has written so many great books and I am trying to read them all :). This was as good as the first two and I just love this futuristic post global warming universe so much, it is part science fiction, part politics, part mystery. Fantastic and so fun to read! Highly recommended!

72. Deep Black Sea by David Salkin. This was a little outside my normal habits, but it was a pretty good sci fi horror film about a group of people going deep in the ocea. I just found the starting premise a little weak but otherwise a good quick read.

73. The Widow’s House – A great book but I made a stupid mistake somehow and bought book 4 of the series, and didn’t realize it till I finished it. Which is really frustrating as now I feel like I know so much I can’t go back and read the other. Oh well, it was a great book but missing a little something I think. I will definitely try another book by the author though.

74. 75. The Promise of Blood and The Crimson Campaign – I think Brian McClellan is the best author I’ve found since Brandon Sanderson, these are AMAZING GRIPPing books and you should go buy them. I read each in about 1 day they were so good. He does a very good job of constraining the magic in these and creating rounded vivid characters who are fascinating to read about. Highly recommended and currently short listed for the best fantasy I’ve read this year. It is a world of muskets, swords, mages, and powder mages that use gun power. Unique and freaking awesome.

76. Prince of Fools – This was book one in a new series by Mark Lawrence and it was great, it even had me laughing out loud at some points. I wish more of the series was out as they are due in the future. I am going to go buy some of his other books now :). One of the best books I’ve read this year for fun.

November

77. 78. Blood Song and Tower Lord – These are two AMAZING fantasy books, it just picks you up and throws you in an awesome world. Cool magic system, cool characters, and just solid solid writing. Highly recommended! I really like how the first book starts with a historian writing the intro and then slowly merging it into real time.

79. The Emperor’s Blades – This was pretty good but it was hard to connect with the characters, and they seemed pretty flat. I am not going to read another one, but still a pretty good story.

80. 81. To Honor You Call Us and For Honor We Stand – Two books in a type of space warfare but in the style of British naval combat. Very simple but fun, just an adventure in the stars. I am looking forward to the 3rd one, hopefully I’ll read it while at the beach.

82. The Thousand Names: Book One of the Shadow Campaigns – This book had a very slow start, it wasn’t till probably about 75% of the way through that I was more and more into it. At that point it got a lot more interesting and the characters started evolving a little more. I bought the next one and I am going to try it, hopefully it doesn’t have such a slow start.

83. The Shadow Throne – Book 2 of the first one and MUCH better than the first one, faster pace and now that a lot of things are clear it was a great read. Janus won a little too easy, and it feels like the big demon plot hasn’t even started but I will def pick up the 3rd once it comes out.

84. Bringing Up Bébé: One American Mother Discovers the Wisdom of French Parenting (now with Bébé Dayby Day: 100 Keys to French Parenting) – A hilarious fantastic book that me and Lindsey are reading. Really really really funny and also really useful, good read :)

85. Red Rising – An AWESOME book that I wasn’t expecting to be quite so awesome. It is really well written and about this sci fi futuristic world where society is organized by classes where you are shown by your color, and about one man who fakes the top color and enters their world. I can’t wait for the 2nd one and it was highly entertaining.

86. Thornbear – Book one in a very unique fantasy series, I liked it a lot but it also was a really long introduction with a few cliches. I’ll probably grab the 2nd in the series once it comes out, but it will need to do bettr if I am going to finish it out. Pretty well written.

December

87. On Basilisk Station (Honor Harrington Book 1) – A pretty good space warfare book, I am probably going to grab the second one of these days. The writing was great, but just not my style and not as descriptive as I like. Good stuff though and highly recommended!

88. The Education of Millionaires: Everything You Won’t Learn in College About How to Be Successful – A fantastic read and the type of book that would be beneficial to give kids in high school and junior high. It got a little marketing oriented in the middle, but otherwise a good overview with discussions with people who did make this move. I know I don’t see much reason in going to college anymore, unless its free or paid for and you are using that time to do more than just go to classes. Or if you are becoming a petroleum engineer.

89. The Shadow Of What Was Lost (The Licanius Trilogy Book 1) – This one had a slow start but hits its pace about half into it. Unfortunately they jump around time too much, and make all kinds of unclear points about things you have no idea they are talking about. As a reader I am not willing to wait till another books comes out to find if a message x person, or something x person saw happens. Blah, not picking up the 2nd but def some good writing.

90. 91. 92. Legend of ZERO series – Forging Zero, Zero Recall, and Zero’s Return – A freaking awesome crazy giant space odyssey with a fantastic main character. Book 1 was a little slow to start but fun, book 2 was really really good, and book 3 was good but ends with a total cliffhanger. I really need book 4 soon :). Plot summary: Aliens come to earth, earth surrenders, they accept earth into galactic congress + demand all their 5 to 12 year olds for the army. This is the story about one of the most famous and his role in the fall of galactic congress.

93. Tap Dancing to Work: Warren Buffett on Practically Everything, 1966-2013 – A great collection of articles from the King of common sense, great read and I really enjoyed it!

94. A.I. Apocalypse – A good read but quick and pretty simple. About the rise of a new AI. Skip it.

95. On Silver Wings – A simple sci fi military book, nothing special and I wouldn’t recommend. Cool aliens but just not enough deep characters / plot.

96. Dove – A fantastic book about a 16 year old sailing alone around the world. Just a fun read as I love these type of stories :). Sailing sounds so fun and so scary.

97. Living with Crohn’s & Colitis: A Comprehensive Naturopathic Guide for Complete Digestive Wellness – Somewhat useful read, also annoying as the diet part is just wide open and all the advice everyone gives for anything. Decent place to start.

98. Solitaire Spirit: Three Times Around the World Single-Handed – An amazing book about Les Powles, he was in his 50s and with only 8 hours of time in a boat learning to sail he decides to sail around the world. On his first trip he crashes into Brazil, but slowly he figures it out :). Fantastic read and just a really interesting guy. The only reason I wouldn’t recommend this as strongly as some of the others is it just isn’t as much a narrative as a log of his 3 trips. Really really cool guys.

99. 100. Gregor the Overlander Collection Books 1-5 – I only read the first two books, think Harry Potter style but just not as good writing. Probably aimed at a bit younger audience but they were fun and a really cool universe. But, not good enough for me to continue them.

101. True Spirit – This is the story of a 16 year old girl’s solo sailing trip around the world. I was amazed by her, but really disappointed with the book, its more just the logs of everything. Probably to be expected, but I recommend skipping it unless you are around 16 or younger.