Most Notable Reads of the Year

I'm getting a jump on this a little early, I know. And if I wind up reading a masterpiece between now and Jan 1, I'm sure I'll kick myself. But whatever-- I probably won't have time later.

I'm sorry to admit that my reading this year wasn't quite as diverse as last year. I mostly stuck to known quantities. But for all that, there were some real gems. Not all of them came out in '12, but most of them are fairly recent, regardless.

Here's my favorite books read this last year:

-Choice Cuts- Joe Clifford.

-Savage Blood- James Reasoner

-Texas Rangers- James Reasoner

-The Circuit Rider- Dani Amore

-As I Was Cutting & Other Nastiness- L.V. Rautenbaumgrabner

-The Bitch- Les Edgerton

-The Sisters Brothers- Patrick deWitt

-Somebody Owes Me Money- Donald Westlake

-The Axe- Donald Westlake

-Manhunter's Mountain- Wayne D. Dundee

-Screaming Woman Road- Jason Stuart

-Smonk- Tom Franklin

-Fun & Games- Duane Swierczynski

-Julius Katz & Archie- Dave Zeltserman

...and two non-fictions that I thoroughly enjoyed:

-American West- Dee Brown

-The Bad & the Beautiful- Hollywood in the Fifties- Sam Kashner and Jennifer McNair

Probably the best crime novel I read this year hasn't come out yet, so I decided to omit it until next year, when I'm sure it will top the list (you know the one I'm talking about, Les...).

Still to come, favorite movies of the year, and a year in review post. Merry Christmas, everyone.