Best Books of 2012

The babification of Brave

Disney's sexualised redesign of Brave's Merida drew fierce criticism worldwide - because a cartoon is not just a cartoon, writes Chris McEvoy.

Confessions of a curvy girl

Our reader has learnt to make peace with her "plus-size" weight and stopped worrying about stereotypes.

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The Fault in Our Stars is a gobsmackingly magnificent read.

It's luminescent in its beauty and ugly in its truth. It takes a good, hard and long look at the effects of Cancer on the dying and rips you apart beautifully, terribly and tragically.

Read the full review of The Fault in Our Stars.
Tell The Wolves I’m Home is a magnificent read, reminiscent of Edwin Wintle’s Breakfast with Tiffany but in a darker, sadder way.

Read the full review of Tell the Wolves I'm Home.

Buy your copy now.
Flynn is magnificently skilled at ensnaring the reader. She deceives you, surprises you, and shocks you, even in a genre that often seems predictable.This novel got far more twisted than I’d expected and Flynn pulls you into its insanity with unflinchingly graphic style.

Read the full review of Gone Girl
Adorkable is not just a book about two polar opposites coming together.

It’s for those who feel like they don’t belong, and for those who are trying to find their identity in a society filled with pressure to conform to the expectations that has unwittingly been set out for us.

Read the full review of Adorkable.
Walker has captured the uncertainty of the human condition in a very unique and yet realistic tale, portraying the reactions and lives of people caught up in a situation that no one fully comprehends.

Read the full review of The Age of Miracles.
It’s an endearing, sentimental story that stays with you, I found myself wanting Harold Fry to be real. This book is beautiful, and the message simple and clear: ordinary can be extraordinary.

Read the full review of The Unlikely Pilgrimage of Harold Fry.
There's a wild kind of beauty that exists in the world that she's conjured up and created. It's something primal, unleashed and untamed, its magic and danger bubbling and frothing under the surface - all waiting to be discovered.

Read the full review of When the Sea is Rising Red.
Everything about it felt utterly authentic and completely effortless, and I couldn’t help but feel so much compassion for this heartbroken couple who have uprooted their whole lives to come to this desolate, unforgiving and extremely cold land.

Read the full review of The Snow Child.
McCleen examines what it means to have faith – her poignant passages show how power can cause one to question what is right and wrong; how making decisions have consequences; the ability to accept responsibility for one’s actions; and the difference (or lack thereof) of having faith in oneself and having faith in God.

Read the full review of The Land of Decoration.
Sex, drugs, blood and guns, Rafiki’s and Cape to Cuba – the wise-cracking Radloffs have woven their love for Cape Town all through this funny, pacey adventure which sees the three redheads on a ride through the badlands of both their city and themselves.

Read the full review of Een Stad, Drie Rooikoppe, Sewe Dae.
A peculiar device called a Stepper that allows one to travel between parallel universes. This device works with a… potato?

Of course, this is a book by Terry Pratchett, creator of Discworld; arguably the most popular fantasy cum comedy series of novels ever.

And true to Pratchett, The Long Earth mixes the fantastic with the funny to perfection.

Read the full review of The Long Earth

The writing is extremely subtle and a reader can easily miss the gentle hints from Rogan that first person storyteller, Grace, is not all she seems.

Read the full review of The Lifeboat.
Marian Keyes takes the story of the Walsh family, introduced to readers in her first novel Watermelon, to a new level in The Mystery of Mercy Close , which finally gives the limelight to the youngest sister.

Read the full review of The Mystery of Mercy Close.

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