Total number of books and scripts read in 2013: 245

If time allows, I read a book a day. Other days, I'm not reading a novel because I'm busy reading a script or writing. Two of my original plays were produced this year, and two additional plays had professional readings. A screenplay I wrote got some attention. As an actress and a singer, I appeared in a variety of productions on screen and on stage, and I also spent a lot of time in recording studios. I tend to bring a book and a notebook wherever I go. One night, while filming a movie, I read an entire Sarah Dessen novel.

And now, without further ado, here's my list of what I feel were the best books released in 2013. Please note that a title's placement within a category is not an indication of rank of any sort. Usually, titles are listed in the order in which they were read. Click on a title to read my review.

Top Picks in Adult Fiction
Walking in the Midst of Fire by Thomas E. Sniegoski
The Graves of Saints by Christopher Golden
Tell My Sorrows to the Stones by Christopher Golden

Top Picks in Young Adult (YA) Fiction
The Language Inside by Holly Thompson
The Moon and More by Sarah Dessen
Under the Light by Laura Whitcomb

Additional Notable Releases in Teen Fiction
School Spirits by Rachel Hawkins
Fox Forever by Mary E. Pearson
A Spark Unseen by Sharon Cameron
Seize the Parallel (Parallelogram #3) by Robin Brande
Fire with Fire by Jenny Han and Siobhan Vivian

Top Picks in Juvenile Fiction and Series (MG)
Bone: Quest for the Spark, Book Three by Tom Sniegoski and Jeff Smith
Too Cool for This School by Kristen Tracy
Confectionately Yours #4: Something New by Lisa Papademetriou
Gaby, Lost and Found by Angela Cervantes

Additional Notable Releases in Juvenile Fiction
After the River the Sun by Dia Calhoun
After Iris by Natasha Farrant
The 14 Fibs of Gregory K. by Greg Pincus

Short Story Pick
Pipers by Christopher Golden, published in the anthology Four Summoner's Tales

Best of the Backlist (books published prior to 2013 that I read in 2013)
Blue Plate Special by Michelle D. Kwasney (YA novel)
AM/PM by Amelia Gray (a novel of vignettes)
The Dark Unwinding by Sharon Cameron (novel)
The Skin of Our Teeth by Thorton Wilder (play)
Eva of the Farm by Dia Calhoun (verse novel)
Almost, Maine by John Cariani (play).
Dangerously Ever After by Dashka Slater and Valeria Docampo (picture book)
Dream Animals: A Bedtime Journey by Emily Winfield Martin (picture book)

What's Ahead (books to be published in 2014 that I read in advance)
Snowblind by Christopher Golden

Previous Booklists
To view my annual and monthly lists of best books, click my "best of" tag or browse through my booklists at my blog or at the Bildungsroman website.