Established in 2007 by the CODES section of RUSA, The Reading List seeks to highlight outstanding genre fiction that merit special attention by general adult readers and the librarians who work with them.

The 2014 winners are:

Adrenaline

Red Sparrow by Jason Matthews (Scribner)
This modern spy novel pits two covert operatives against each other in an intricate cat-and-mouse game. As Dominika and Nathaniel ply their tradecraft, they navigate the moral ambiguities of a post-Cold War world where no one is as they seem and betrayal is business as usual.

Read-alikes:
Night Soldiers by Alan Furst
Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John le Carré
Skinner by Charlie Huston

Adrenaline Short List:
The Caretaker by A.X. Ahmad. (Minotaur Books)
Ghostman by Roger Hobbs. (Alfred A. Knopf)
Lexicon by Max Barry. (The Penguin Press)
Lost by S.J. Bolton. (Minotaur Books)

Fantasy
Vicious by V.E. Schwab (Tor Books)
A friendly rivalry turns vicious when college friends Victor and Eli obtain super-human powers and use them for very different purposes. This dark paranormal fantasy, a riveting tale of vengeance and redemption, proves that extraordinary powers don’t necessarily make superheroes.

Readalikes:
Invincible by Robert Kirkman
Ex-heroes by Peter Clines
Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson

Fantasy Short List:
The Necromancer’s House by Christopher Buehlman (Ace Hardcover)
A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan (Tor Books)
American Elsewhere by Robert Bennett Jackson (Orbit)
The Golem and the Jinni: A Novel by Helene Wecker (Harper)

Historical Fiction
The Outcasts by Kathleen Kent (Little Brown and Company)
Love, morality and greed collide in this Reconstruction Era western. A whore without a heart of gold, Lucinda escapes from a Fort Worth brothel to begin a new life — and a new con. She and her lover are bound to cross paths with Texas Ranger Nate, who is chasing stone-cold killer McGill. Both Nate and Lucinda are unforgettable characters, driven by the need to survive.

Read-alikes:
The Sisters Brothers by Patrick deWitt
True Grit by Charles Portis
3:10 from Yuma (film, Lionsgate Films, 2007)

Historical Short List:
The Abominable: A Novel by Dan Simmons. (Little Brown and Company)
Longbourn by Jo Baker (Alfred A. Knopf)
Out of the Black Land by Kerry Greenwood (Poisoned Pen Press)
The Thicket by Joe R. Lansdale (Mulholland Books)

Horror
Last Days by Adam Nevill (St. Martin’s Griffin)
Deep in debt, documentary filmmaker Kyle Freeman reluctantly accepts the financial backing of an enigmatic self-help guru to make a movie about infamous cult The Temple of the Last Days. Unique, atmospheric and deeply disturbing, Nevill delivers a visceral horror experience that will haunt readers long after they put the book down.

Read-alikes:
The Grin of the Dark by Ramsey Campbell
House of Leaves by Mark Z. Danielewski
Paranormal Activity (film, Paramount Pictures, 2009)

Horror Short List:
Apocalypse Cow by Michael Logan (St. Martin’s Griffin)
The Daylight Gate by Jeanette Winterson (Grove Press)
Doctor Sleep by Stephen King (Scribner)
Red Moon by Benjamin Percy (Grand Central Publishing)

Mystery
Murder as a Fine Art by David Morrell (Mulholland Books)
London, 1854: The Artist of Death ritualistically recreates the sensational Ratcliffe murders inspired by the writings of the notorious opium addict Thomas De Quincey. In this fast-paced mystery, filled with colorful characters and authentic period detail, Scotland Yard detectives, along with De Quincey and his daughter must find the Artist of Death before he executes another macabre masterpiece.

Read-alikes:
The Bedlam Detective by Stephen Gallagher
The Maul and the Pear Tree: the Ratcliffe Highway Murders, 1811 by P.D. James and T.A. Critchley
From Hell by Alan Moore

Mystery Short List:
Alex by Pierre Lemaitre (The MacLehose Press)
The Beggar’s Opera by Peggy Blair (Pintail: The Penguin Press)
How the Light Gets In: A Chief Inspector Gamache Novel by Louise Penny (Minotaur Books)
Seven for a Secret by Lyndsay Faye (Amy Einhorn Books)

Romance
Any Duchess Will Do by Tessa Dare (Avon)
Desperate for grandchildren, the Duchess of Halford strikes a bargain with her only son, Griff: pick a woman–any woman. If she can transform her son’s choice into duchess material, he must marry the girl. Griff picks the least likely candidate in bluestocking barmaid Pauline, only to quickly realize he has no idea who he is dealing with. A humorous and clever historical romance with engaging characters you won’t soon forget.

Read-alikes:
This Rake of Mine by Elizabeth Boyle
The Lady Most Willing by Julia Quinn, Eloisa James, and Connie Brockway
Then Comes Seduction by Mary Balogh

Romance Short List:
Autumn Bride by Anne Gracie (Berkley Books)
The Heiress Effect by Courtney Milan (CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform)
One Good Earl Deserves a Lover: The Second Rule of Scoundrels by Sarah MacLean (Avon)
The Rosie Project”by Graeme Simsion (Simon & Schuster)

Science Fiction
Love Minus Eighty by Will MacIntosh (Orbit Books)
Cryogenics adds a darkly humorous twist on dating, love and relationships in the 22nd century. This multi-perspective story provides a thought-provoking and poignant social commentary on power dynamics, gender, class and the ethical issues surrounding life after life-after-death.

Read-alikes:
Captain Vorpatril’s Alliance by Lois McMaster Bujold
The Curiosity: A Novel by Stephen Kiernan
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (film, Universal Studios, 2004)

Science Fiction Short List:
Abaddon’s Gate by James SA Corey (Orbit Books)
Great North Road by Peter F. Hamilton (Ballantine Books)
Tales of Majipoor by Robert Silverberg (ROC Trade)
Wool by Hugh Howey (Simon & Schuster)

Women’s Fiction
Me Before You by Jojo Moyes (St. Martin’s Press)
Unemployed 26-year-old Louisa takes the only job she can find: as a “care assistant”  to 35-year-old quadriplegic Will. When Louisa discovers the depth of Will’s unhappiness, she embarks on a mission to convince him that life is worth living and in the process begins to think about her own future. This bittersweet, quirky novel recounts an unlikely friendship while grappling with complex issues in a realistic and sensitive manner.

Read-alikes:
The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving: A Novel by Jonathan Evison
Talk Before Sleep: A Novel by Elizabeth Berg
You’re Not You: A Novel by Michelle Wildgen

Women’s Fiction Short List:
The Husband’s Secret by Liane Moriarty (Amy Einhorn Books)
Necessary Lies by Diane Chamberlain (St. Martin’s Press)
Reconstructing Amelia by Kimberly McCreight (HarperCollins)
The Storyteller by Jodi Picoult (Emily Bestler Books)

The winners were selected by the The Reading List Council whose members include Alicia Ahlvers, Chair, The Kansas City Public Library; Craig Allen Clark: Stephanie Chase, BiblioCommons; Emily Anne Hamstra, University of Michigan Library: Jennifer Hendzlik, Anythink Libraries: Victoria Kemp, Flower Mound Public Library: Jared Mills, The Seattle Public Library: Vicki Nesting, St. Charles Parish Library: Gillian Speace, NoveList: Valerie Morgan Taylor, Chester County Library: Anne Chambers Theis, Henrico County Public Library.

The Reference and User Services Association, a division of the American Library Association, represents librarians and library staff in the fields of reference, specialized reference, collection development, readers’ advisory and resource sharing. RUSA is the foremost organization of reference and information professionals who make the connections between people and the information sources, services, and collection materials they need.