17. Gorky Park - Martin Cruz Smith

One of the most haunting endings I've read - especially with some plaintive Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan music in the background.

16. The Forever War - Joe Haldeman

Found it good, but was expecting much more from a Hugo and Nebula winner though. Should read it again sometime in the future.

15. Farewell, My Lovely - Raymond Chandler

My second Marlowe. Doesn't beat The Big Sleep though. And Hammett is better than Chandler !

14. A Canticle For Leibowitz - Walter M. Miller, Jr.

An amazing novel from start to finish - never a dull moment. Plus I could connect more due to its Catholic motifs. The best scifi read so far.

On a side note it's almost mid December and I'm not even 2/5th done. :(

13. The Spy Who Came In From The Cold - John LeCarre

Purported to be the definitive cold war spy novel, I kind of enjoyed it. Was a much easier read than Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy (which I couldn't get past the 50 page mark due to reasons unrelated to the quality of the book).

12. The Big Sleep - Raymond Chandler

A book that I thoroughly enjoyed. And the fact that a friend told me that this was the weakest Marlowe novel only made me infinitely excited. Can't wait to read the rest ! But still Hammett > Chandler :)

11. Altered Carbon - Richard Morgan

Was expecting a fast paced futuristic hard-boiled thriller. It was most of that, but for some reason I found the book boring.