With 2015 behind us, here’s just a quick peek at the books I gave 5 stars to throughout the year. Keep in mind these aren’t necessarily books that came out in 2015, but rather books I read in 2015. I hope you found some of these just as enjoyable as I did!

BOOK REVIEW: Dr. Mutter’s Marvels by Cristin O’Keefe Aptowicz examines the life and influence of Thomas Dent Mutter, a nineteenth century surgeon in Philadelphia that is best known today for his collection of medical oddities that can be found in Philly’s Mutter Museum. This is a quick and heavily illustrated read that will have you cringing when you read about what patients had to endure to have surgery 150 years ago. (Hint: “anesthesia”=sip of booze.) After reading this book you’ll find yourself thanking Dr. Mutter the next time you get knocked out for a procedure, or when your doctor has exceedingly good bedside manners. Five Stars.

BOOK REVIEW: World Gone By is the third book in a trilogy by Dennis Lehane that began with The Given Day and continued with Live By Night. It’s the slimmest of the three books and doesn’t require that you read the first two. This is also the best book Lehane has written sinceMystic River and the Kenzie and Gennaro books. The plot momentum is fairly non-stop from start to finish…and what a finish. You won’t see it coming…and you’ll be enthralled and heartbroken. One of my favorite books so far this year. Five Stars.

BOOK REVIEW: I’ve heard nothing but good things about David McCullough, but The Wright Brothers was my first experience reading his books. I can see why he’s so popular: he doesn’t waste any time getting to the meat of his biographies, and the writing reads like a novel. The challenge here is that the climax of the book–the first flight at Kitty Hawk–comes only 70 pages into the book. I thought I’d be bored with the rest of it, but found it just as compelling as the parts leading up to that historic day. A wonderful and informative read. Five Stars.

BOOK REVIEW: Roger Hobbs is the real deal. The best new thriller writer since Joseph Finder burst onto the scene with The Moscow Club. Vanishing Games is Hobbs’s second book, and there’s no sophomore slump here. In fact, he builds on the promise of his first book, Ghostman, and delivers a thriller that catapults you through from start to finish. Modern day pirates seize a cache of sapphires–and something else I won’t spoil–off the coast of Macau. When things go horribly wrong, the ghostman–whose name changes along with his appearance–is called in to clean up the mess and help a friend. There is brutal violence in this book, and it’s not for the faint of heart, but it’s one of the best thrillers I’ve read in a long, long time. Five Stars.

Book Review: Asylum is the first book in Madeleine Roux’s Asylum series, which is–to date–up to three books deep. Let’s just get this out of the way: This is the best young adult book I’ve read in a long, long, time. Forget the popularity of The Hunger Games for a moment,  and you can certainly skip over Ransom Riggs’ Peculiar Children series, another illustrated series which this clearly aims to capitalize on. This series is so much better. Sure, it’s young adult, which means that the writing isn’t anything award-winning (after all, the writing in some of those other books borders on pretentious, which is just another way of saying boring). This follows a group of teenagers that attend a summer program at a college that was converted from an abandoned lunatic asylum. What they find there is thrilling, scary, and vastly entertaining all at once. Any time you can work family history, serial killers, and a cast of characters (none of whom can be trusted)…well…you’ve got yourself a recipe for a winner. I’m already reading the second book, Sanctum. Five Stars.

Book Review: There’s already been some criticism about The Marvels, Brian Selznick’s latest book (he’s the one that gave us The Invention of Hugo Cabret, his most popular book). People are upset about the alternative lifestyle portrayed in the book. I say that kids probably won’t care or even notice for that matter. Instead, enjoy the lush pencil drawings that tell one part of the story for the first 400 pages, then the wonderful prose that tells the second part of the book, followed by another short drawn section that ties everything together into one of the most masterful children’s books I’ve ever read. This book was a true masterpiece of storytelling and a pleasure to spend a few hours with. You know…if you can forget about the other stuff that seems to offend people for some reason. A wonderful book nonetheless (but pricey!). Five Stars.

Book Review: The Poisoned Crown is the third book in Maurice Druon’s Accursed King series, which George R.R. Martin has said is the basis for his Game of Thrones series. (And don’t think they don’t let you know it on the cover of every book!) What makes this series great historical fiction is the fact that while every book is short, they’re all jam-packed with intrigue and double-crossing at every turn. Like Game of Thrones, you never know who will survive to see the end of any particular book in the series (unless you’re a scholar of Medieval history). It’s a book and series that constantly keeps you guessing, while delighting the reader and making the pages–and hours–fly by. Five Stars.