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Top 25 countdown of 2019

#11 Magic 2.0

Magic 2.0
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Magic 2.0
By: Scott Meyer
Narrated by: Luke Daniels

Book 1 – Off to be the Wizard
Book 2 – Spell or High Water
Book 3 – An Unwelcome Quest
Book 4 – Fight and Flight
Book 5 – Out of Spite, Out of Mind
Book 6 – The Vexed Generation

Get ready to work out your abs because this book is going to make you laugh. Luke Daniels does some of the best narrations of character voices I have ever heard, so much so I can’t imagine actually reading a hard copy of this book. Get the audio book and thank me later. The “magic” system in this book really is creative. This is a fantasy contemporary series and takes place in present time, but with a very easy to follow time travel element to it which makes it feel not fantasy, but it is fantasy. This is definitely a feel good read and would strongly recommend reading after you finish a long series epic fantasy series.

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Top 25 countdown of 2019

#12 The Martian

The Martian
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The Martian
By: Andy Weir
Narrated by: R. C. Bray

Movie solid, book AMAZING! Seriously I enjoyed the movie even though the end with the suit hole poking was the silliest thing I have ever seen. This book is one of a handful of books that I just could not put down and listened at every available moment until done. I have the upmost respect for Andy Weir as later I learned how much work went into the science of this book and he does an extremely good job of keeping the science as true as possible. PSA there is a lot of swearing in this book, but many actual lol’s came from that.

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Top 25 countdown of 2019

#13 The Demon Cycle

The Demon Cycle
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The Demon Cycle
By: Peter V. Brett
Narrated by: Pete Bradbury

Book 1 – The Warded Man
Book 2 – The Desert Spear
Book 3 – The Daylight War
Book 4 – The Skull Throne
Book 5 – The Core

Now we are talking about some pretty serious adult fantasy epic books. The character development in this series is fantastic and you really feel for the characters. The story is great as well and felt like a roller coaster where things would happen that change the course of the entire story. Sometimes it is easy for politics of a story to be overdone and in this series it feels just right. The ending felt quick, but satisfying in the end.

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Top 25 countdown of 2019

#14 Harry Potter

Harry Potter
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Harry Potter
By: J.K. Rowling
Narrated by: Jim Dale

Book 1 – The Sorcerer’s Stone
Book 2 – The Chamber of Secrets
Book 3 – The Prisoner of Azkaban
Book 4 – The Goblet of Fire
Book 5 – The Order of the Phoenix
Book 6 – The Half-Blood Prince
Book 7 – The Deathly Hallows


This was the first book I ever read and was gifted to me by my friend Tony Hsu. I had never been interested in reading books and Tony gave book 1&2 to me and said “read this”. I did and instantly fell in love with all the characters. I have since listened to all the books as well this year and came to the conclusion that I like all of the supporting characters more than Harry Potter. My fondest memory is getting book 7 at midnight, reading for 3 hours, then going to work Friday at 6am with 2 hours of sleep. I proceeded to do nothing but read all weekend with the occasional food or sleep break determined to finish the book before work on Monday. Oh and if you think, eh I saw the movies, that is not good enough as the books as always are better than the movies.

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Top 25 countdown of 2019

#15 Inheritance Cycle

Inheritance Cycle
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Inheritance Cycle
By: Christopher Paolini
Narrated by: Gerard Doyle

Book 1 – Eragon
Book 2 – Eldest
Book 3 – Brisingr
Book 4 – Inheritance


DRAGONS, Elves, and a solid magic system. This is actually the first book I ever bought myself to read in hardback. I have read each book and listened to them as well. This book is hands down the best portrayal of elves from any book I have ever read. In addition he writes a great magic system that is believable. It is incredible that Christopher Paolini was in his teens when he wrote this book. As a wedding present my friends Mark and Chelsea gave me a hand drawn map of this world with city names replaced by key locations in my wife and my life. I met Christopher Paolini at Phoenix Comic-con, had some drinks with him, and he signed this custom map for me.

Christopher Paolini
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Top 25 countdown of 2019

#16 Legends of the First Empire

Legends of the First Empire
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Legends of the First Empire
By: Michael J. Sullivan
Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds

Book 1 – Age of Myth
Book 2 – Age of Swords
Book 3 – Age of War
Book 4 – Age of Legend
Book 5 – Age of Death (Release Feb 2020)
Book 6 – Age of Empyre (Release TBD)

Michael J. Sullivan is one of my favorite fantasy authors. Tim Gerard Reynolds is one of my favorite narrators. This is a prequel epic fantasy series that takes place over 3,000 years before the first series he release in the world of Elan. This defiantly holds it own, but I would recommend his other series Riyria Revelations first. The series is not fully released yet, but the final two books are schedule to come out next year (2020). This series has strong male and female characters, but not full of sex or violence. Most of all, this is just great storytelling.

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Top 25 countdown of 2019

#17 Skyward

Skyward
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Skyward
By: Brandon Sanderson
Narrated by: Suzy Jackson

Book 1 – Skyward
Book 2 – Starsight


A really fun young adult novel that is great for a teen or adult. I think part of the reason I loved this so much was that it was Sanderson’s writing style in a sci-fi book. Also the protagonist is female which I have been trying to read more of lately. As of today I am halfway through the second book that was just released and there most certainly is a curve ball in this book and thoroughly enjoying it!

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Top 25 countdown of 2019

#18 Mistborn

Mistborn
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Mistborn
By: Brandon Sanderson
Narrated by: Michael Kramer

Book 1 – The Final Empire
Book 2 – The Well of Ascension
Book 3 – The Hero of Ages
Book 4 – The Alloy of Law
Book 5 – Shadows of Self
Book 6 – The Bands of Mourning

This is my second favorite magic system and my second Sanderson book on my countdown. I want to start off by saying that this is one of my favorite series despite ranking it #18. Book 1 and 2 are absolutely amazing, but did not really enjoy the ending. That said this is part of the Sanderson cosmere and well worth the read, especially if you have read the other books in the cosmere. Book 4 – 6 take place in same world just many years after the first 3 book and these were all very solid books with a great story. The magic system alone is worth the read for sure.

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Top 25 countdown of 2019

#19 Bobiverse

Bobiverse
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Bobiverse
By: Dennis E. Taylor
Narrated by: Ray Porter
Book 1 – We Are Legion (We Are Bob)
Book 2 – For We Are Many
Book 3 – All These Worlds

This was a really fun read and really makes you think of what may be a reality far in the future. Dennis E. Taylor takes 3D printing to the next level in these books and it is fascinating. Feels kind of like you are playing a game on how to survive. There are spaceships and starts out with a dude going to a Comic-con, I mean come on now, it doesn’t get better than that. An audible original and if you like space and star ships this is a must read.

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Top 25 countdown of 2019

#20 Jurassic Park

Jurassic Park
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Jurassic Park
By: Michael Crichton
Narrated by: Scott Brick

This is my good friend Jeff Seifert’s favorite book. If you enjoy the early movies then I strongly recommend this book. It goes into a lot of the science and reasoning behind the story. Although similar to the movies it is has a different feel to it and is really just a great pairing. I knew this was Jeff’s favorite book when we were the best of friends in the early 2000’s and it wasn’t until later in life that he recommended this to me again. I am thankful that he had the opportunity to convince me to read this book as it is one of the pure sci-fi books I truly love. Unfortunately, Jeff is no longer with us, but when I see the movie on TV it reminds me of the great times I had with my friend.