We’re past halfway through the year. So here are my favourite books of the first six months of 2012 in chronological order, with links to reviews where possible:

Frank Bill, Crimes in Southern Indiana (William Heinemann)

Shalom Auslander, Hope: A Tragedy (Picador)

Ron Rash, The Cove (Canongate)

Kevin Barry, Dark Lies the Island (Jonathan Cape)

Kathleen Jamie, Sightlines (Profile)

Ewan Morrison, Tales From The Mall (Cargo)

Megan Abbott, Dare Me (Picador)

Gillian Flynn, Gone Girl (Weidenfeld & Nicolson)

David Vann, Dirt (William Heinemann)

Bonnie Campbell, Once Upon A River (Fourth Estate)

Some brief stats:

7 Americans, 2 Scots, 1 Irish

7 novels, 2 non-fiction, 1 short stories

6 men, 4 women

If I was to pick a favourite at this point it would be Gillian Flynn’s Gone Girl, a quite remarkable literary thriller. Read the review if you want something slightly more eloquent.