For 2016, like 2015, I am not dividing books into separate category lists, but each review line will have a tag or two indicating what kind of book it is.

The year’s summary: I read 52 books in the year, up 10 from 2015 (and conveniently one a week), but the page count was down very slightly. I guess I’m reading shorter books on average! Slightly disappointingly, there were very few books more than about 50 years old, with Kalidasa’s Recognition of Shakuntala the outstanding early text. For 2017, I have a target of reading more old stuff alongside the new. In 2016 there was also more of a spread of genres, with roughly equal proportions of historical fiction, science fiction, fantasy, and non-fiction (aka “geeky”), contrasting with previous years where historical fiction has dominated.

• Voyages, The Gift Vol. 1 (4*)… Historical fiction
• Sea Kings of Mars (4*)… Science fiction
• Prehistoric Rock Art in Cumbria (4*)… Non-fiction
• Britannia’s Amazon (5*)… Historical fiction
• Voice of the Whirlwind (4*)… Science fiction
• Dorothy Wordsworth’s Illustrated Lakeland Journals (4*)… Non-fiction
• Lord of Mathura (4*)… Fantasy/Classic
• Terra Incognita (4*)… Historical fiction
• A Sickness in Time (5*)… New Podler Review of Books…  Science fiction
• Hymns of Mortality (4*)…  Science fiction
• The Song of Middle Earth (4*)… Non-fiction
• Spin (4*)… Science fiction
• The Riddle Master of Hed, Heir of Sea and Fire, and Harpist in the Wind (5*)… Fantasy
• Wrath of the Furies (4*)… Historical fiction
• Auckland Allies (4*)… Contemporary fantasy
• The Recognition of Shakuntala (5*)… Classic
• The Quest for Kriya (3-4*)… New Podler Review of Books… Contemporary
• Slingshot (3*)… Science fiction
• Recompense (5*)… Fantasy
• A Pig in the Roses (4*)… Historical fiction
• Historic Cumbria off the Beaten Track (4*)… Non-fiction
• Walks in Ancient Lakeland (5*)… Non-fiction
• Prehistoric Henges (5*)… Non-fiction
• Prehistoric Astronomy and Ritual (5*)… Non-fiction
• Dr Margaret in Delhi (4*)… The Review Group review… Historical Fiction
• Star Nomad (4*)… Science fiction
• The Colony (5*)… New Podler Review of Books… Science fiction
• Spartacus: The Gods Demand Sacrifice (4*)… Historical fiction / Alternate history
• The Land of Green Ginger (5*)… Children’s fantasy
• Kritsotopoula (4*)… HNS Review… Historical fiction
• Outward Frontier (4*)… Science fiction
• A Guide to the Stone Circles of the Lake District (5*)… Non-fiction
• Barbarians at the Gates (5*)… Science fiction
• Nyssa Glass and the House of Mirrors (5*)… The Review Group review… Steampunk
• Rise of the Altered Moon (4*)… Science fiction
• The Crimson Bed (4*)… Historical fiction
• A Short Walk in the Hindu Kush (4*)… Amazon.co.uk… Amazon.com – Documentary/travel
• The People of the Sea (4*)… Amazon.co.uk… Amazon.com – Folklore
• The Fountains of Paradise (3*)… Amazon.co.uk… Amazon.com – Science fiction
• The Avenging Saint (4*)… Amazon.co.uk… Amazon.com – Crime
• The Boat of a Million Years (5*)… Amazon.co.uk… Amazon.com – Science fiction
• The Sins of Soldiers (4*)… HNS Review… Amazon.co.uk… Amazon.com – Historical fiction
• The Buried Giant (4*)… Amazon.co.uk… Amazon.com – Historical fiction / Fantasy
• Britannia’s Spartan (5*)… The Review Group review… Amazon.co.uk… Amazon.com – Historical fiction
• A Fall of Moondust (4*)… Amazon.co.uk… Amazon.com – Science fiction
• Star Rangers (5*)… Amazon.co.uk… Amazon.com – Science fiction
• Ender’s Game (5*)… Amazon.co.uk… Amazon.com – Science fiction.
• The Threat in the West Indies (3*)…Amazon.co.uk… Amazon.com – Historical fiction
• Napoleon in America (4*)… Amazon.co.uk… Amazon.com – Alternate history