Christoph Fischer Awards for Romance, Poetry, YA Fiction, Dystopian Fiction and Anthology 2015

I’ve had such a great year with plenty of memorable reading pleasures, so today I continue to hand out Awards to noteworthy books and writers. To make the Awards less drawn out and representative of the genres I read, here are a bunch of winners in genres that I visit less frequently (without short lists).

 

So here goes:

The Award for Outstanding Romance Novel goes to “Cupcake Cutie” by Lynn Cooper

“Cupcake Cutie: (Plus Size Romance Series) ” by Lynn Cooper is a breath of fresh air for many reasons. The obvious being that we deal with a romantic lead in a Plus Size, not another body fascist anorexic ‘perfect’ heroine. Discriminated against and used to it, even though her plus size is ‘legitimate’ due to an illness, our heroine Ella doesn’t have to explain those reasons to handsome Decker when he rescues her and asks her out. The knight in shining armor (although with some complications) is a true gent whose appeal lies not just in his sexiness but also in the fact that he stands up for her.

Now all that ‘politically correct’ aspect aside: The story reads smoothly, is very entertaining for the characters and the dialogue and is damn romantic, full stop. Absolutely lovely and enjoyable this should do very well with romance readers in all shapes and sizes. At times the story is sexually explicit but it is definitely a romance, and a very good one. Get it!

 

 

 

The Best Poetry Award for 2015 goes to:  Bonfire Peter: (Peter: A Darkened Fairytale, Vol 13)
by William O’Brien

A wonderful collection in the Peter series. It’s perfect for any time of year, but especially now, with all the Halloween activities. Mermaids, mystical lakes, bonfires, goblins, and candy — it’s all in here. A fun read for kids and adults.

My Award for Best Young Adult Fiction 2015 goes to “Angelic Business” by Olga Nunez Miret 

“Angelic Business: Pink Matters” by Olga Núñez’ is a very entertaining and light-hearted teenage story about ‘Pink’, an ‘average’ girl who finds herself suddenly the focus of angelic, demonic and human attention.
Her friend Seth, a good looking and arrogant boy, needs to be put into his place after making some insulting remarks. As if by magic, help arrives in the shape of ‘G’, an interesting newcomer to the school who just might be the person to help her make Seth jealous (or at least see that he is not the only man in Pink’s universe). Only, there is something spooky about G. Now enter Azrael, another mysterious figure and you have a great set of players in this teenage drama.
Yet, there is depth to this humorous story as theological themes, such as God, angels and demons are discussed and pondered about. Although this is kept on a superficial level, the way that the angels, demons and theological ideas are presented gives you something to think about. The tone is playful and tongue-in-cheek and added to my enjoyment.
The characters and the narrative are well crafted and while this might be aimed at young adults, I had a great time reading it and am looking forward to the next parts to see where this is going. Very well done.

The Award for Best Dystopian Novel of 2015 goes to “The Crystal Curse” by Inge H Borg .

The novel is great fun to read, an action-packed and yet thoughtful thriller, set in an apocalyptical world. Egyptologist Naunet Wilkins, her scientist husband Jonathan and a few friends are on a boat with ancient artefacts when they become captured by pirates.
Borg does an excellent job at exploring what makes us civilised and advanced as cultures by off setting primitive modern behaviour with the relicts of a more evolved culture from the planet’s past.
Her characters are colourful and make for some very enjoyable reading, while the thrilling plot is strong, full of suspense and moves at a fast pace.
Everything in this book is well researched, from sailing jargon to the ancient cultures. I don’t often go for futuristic settings and post-apocalyptic settings but here it works very well and left me in awe of the clever and thoughtful writing.

The Award for Best Anthology of 2015 goes to L.A. Punk Rocker by Brenda Perlin et al

This is a fascinating book: part memoir, part short story collection about the times of punk in general and some punk rockers in specific. I know some of the famous names in punk but am otherwise fairly unfamiliar with the punk movement. I always had a soft spot for it, though, had friends who were really into it. I understand the desire to be non-conformist and finding your musical niche and Perlin does a splendid job at bringing the era and the movement alive.
The stories will ring true for all youngsters and those who had good times during their youth. The book got me excited and made me dwell on my own memories of those days. This is great reading.