The death of my Sony Reader (after almost 3 years) made for a rough last few months, putting me further behind in my reviews than I would have liked, but it did give me a reason to upgrade . . . even if other circumstances conspired to delay that replacement longer than I anticipated. In the end, though, I'm quite happy to have made the change to my Kobo Glo. It's faster in almost every respect (turning pages is almost instantaneous!), the lack of buttons allows for a larger screen, and the built-in light means I can get some reading done at night while the baby is getting ready for bed.
With my first full year of regular blogging behind me, I'm extremely grateful for the publishers with whom I have established relationships, filling my shelves and providing me with some advance reads. The gang at Seventh Star Press, Angry Robot Books, Abaddon Books, and Solaris Books have all been amazing, coming on board early, and consistently providing some great books over the course of the year. Tachyon Publications and Simon & Schuster Canada came on board this fall with some advance paperback reads, just in time to see me through my e-reader withdrawals, and Night Shade Books have been great with their giveaways.
On the book tour front, I experimented with several different tour companies this year, with very mixed results. There were a few companies where nothing beyond the original hosted title has been of interest to me, a few others where there just seemed to be no support (not even from the author!), and one where I just seem to keep falling off their radar. I suspect I'll be narrowing my list to 3 or 4 proven companies in 2013, based on those who most often matched my interests in 2012, and those who seem most invested in supporting their tours (with authors who share that enthusiasm).
The year has also introduced me to authors, bloggers, other readers with whom I've been fortunate to establish some lasting friendships. Rowena Cory Daniells was one of the definite bright spots of the year, stopping by for a guest post, couriering me signed copies of her King Rolen's Kin trilogy all the way from Australia, and just generally keeping in touch. On the blogger front I'm sure there are some obvious people I'm forgetting at the moment (sorry!), but Dezmond, Jessica, SQT, Dragana, Anya, and Alex all stand out as people I can rely on to stop by and comment regularly.
Another good friend I've made this year, whom you'll be hearing much more from in 2013, is Donald Armfield. We were originally introduced through the Bizarro Brigade, but have since chatted quite a bit about books, writing, and the juggles of caffeine addiction, parenthood, and dead-end jobs. He's going to be joining me as a semi-regular contributor for the new year, so keep an eye out for that.
Of course, none of us would be here if it weren't for the books, so I invite you to check out what I've deemed The Best (and Worst) to Grace My Shelves in 2012, and to take a peek at my Most Anticipated Reads of 2013.
To borrow a quote from the last-ever Calvin and Hobbes strip, "A new year . . . a fresh, clean start . . . a day full of possibilities! It's a magical world, Hobbes, ol' buddy ... let's go exploring!”
Happy New Year to all, and here's to a bigger and better 2013.
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