Top Ten Sci-fi & Fantasy in the last year

at least, according to Ian Chipman at Booklist. Here's his list, with his comments:

1. The Ask and the Answer by Patrick Ness
   The middle volume in the Chaos Walking trilogy expands the series’ litany of heavy themes (genocide, extremism, civil war, terrorism), all while delivering some of the most pulse-pounding action around.



2. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins
   The deal was, if you win the Hunger Games, you get to live out your life in fame and comfort. The Capitol, however, has other plans for last year’s heroes, Katniss and Peeta, as whispers of growing unrest flit about the Districts.



3. A Conspiracy of Kings by Megan Whalen Turner
   In this stand-alone return to the series begun in Turner’s 1997 Newbery Honor Book The Thief, the focus shifts from Eugenides to Sophos, the reluctant king of Sounis, who relates his own rise to power, which is fraught with political intrigue.



4. Cosmic by Frank Cottrell Boyce
   People always mistake 12-year-old Liam for a grown-up, which might help explain how he got to be the adult chaperone for a bunch of kids in a rocket hurtling through space 200,000 miles above Earth.



5. Enchanted Glass by Diana Wynne Jones
   Fantasy veteran Jones hits a high note with this tale of a boy who is stalked by dangerous magical beings and seeks help from a powerful sorcerer. Instead, he finds the magician’s grandson, who has forgotten everything he was taught.



6. Fever Crumb by Philip Reeve
   Set hundreds of years before the Hungry City Chronicles, this story of young Fever Crumb digs into the foundations of Reeve’s intricately imagined future, including how cities started gobbling each other up.



7. Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta
   Ten years ago, the royal family of Lumatere was murdered by assassins and the kingdom ravaged by a blood curse. Now, a group of outcasts, led by the son of a former royal guard, look to resurrect the hopes of their people.



8. Fireby Kristin Cashore
   This romantic and suspenseful fantasy, a prequel of sorts to Graceling (2008) set in an adjoining kingdom, introduces another deadly strong heroine who struggles to use her formidable powers for good.



9. Incarceron by Catherine Fisher
   No one from Outside ever goes into Incarceron, a vast futuristic prison gripped by tyranny and strife, and no one Inside ever escapes. Until Finn finds a crystal key that unlocks every door, and the great escape is on.



10. For your younger sibling:
    The Night Fairy by Laura Amy Schlitz
    This uncommonly dynamic story of a wee sprite is set in the familiar yet exotic landscape of a backyard, where a determined and egocentric young fairy weathers peril and finds redemption.

My opinion? I think Incarceron was slow, that Fire & Catching Fire were good, but not as good as their predecessors (Graceling & The Hunger Games, respectively), and that A Conspiracy of Kings about gave me a heart attack whilst lying in bed it was so awesome (read The Thief, The Queen of Attolia, then The King of Attolia first, though!).

What do you think? Have you read any of these? What's YOUR favorite fantasy/sci-fi book you've read in the last year?