Tuesday, March 26, 2013

Top Ten Books I Recommend the Most

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted over at The Broke and the Bookish!

Oh, this post is going to be easy-peasy for me to write. Because I only talk about a few books, ever.

The Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews
Recommended for you if:
- urban fantasy is your cup of tea
- you enjoy world-building so thorough it's almost too much...almost
- your panties get in a twist over the sexual tension between a snarky woman and a fiercely devoted (though occasionally adorably oblivious) Alpha

The Jessica Darling series by Megan McCafferty
Recommended for you if:
- you ever felt like you didn't fit in among your peers
- you appreciate snarky humor
- you think Holden Caulfield is a pain in the a** but still like teenage angst IF IT'S DONE WELL

The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas
Recommended for you if:
- you appreciate the classics
- you are interested in reading a classic, but don't know where to start
- the idea of plots so elaborate and twisted you can't believe a human being actually made it up sounds appealing

Among Others by Jo Walton
Recommended for you if:
- you enjoy books from various genres
- you are a lifetime readers, longtime diarist, and/or aspiring writer
- you think my book pimping is effective, haha

Crown Duel by Sherwood Smith
Recommended for you if:
- books by Tamora Pierce, Gail Carson Levine, Patricia Wrede, Caroline Stevermer fill your "Favorites" shelf
- the phrase "light fantasy romance" is a turn-on
- you have Mr. Darcy on your list of most eligible fictional bachelors

Anne of Green Gables (and subsequent books) by L. M. Montgomery
Recommended for you if:
- you understand the value of good children's literature
- you think the word "feisty" is fantastic
- at any point in your life, you felt that having red hair would be great--but only if it's the right shade

Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta
Recommended for you if:
- you love books that challenge typical notions about what a novel can and does accomplish
- you aren't afraid to be a little confused at the beginning of a story, not if the ending pays off big-time
- you appreciate authors who can string common words together like they're singlehandedly writing the entire realm of emotions into existence

The WVMP Radio series by Jeri Smith-Ready
Recommended for you if:
- the mention of "vampires" still makes a little spark of hope stir in your chest
- you've read every single book that Ilona Andrews wrote and are going crazy waiting for the next one
- you think True Blood is hot but Sookie is seriously lacking in character



I've noticed that, with the exception of Among Others, the other books on my list are ones that I read several years ago. It's not that I haven't read anything recommendation-worthy since then, but I guess my thinking is that books that can retain my regard even after a century in publishing time are definitely worthy of recommending. How about you? Are your most recommended books generally stand-by favorites, or do you like recommending your most recent great finds more?

20 comments:

  1. Great list of books, Steph! I'm glad that I've read quite a bit of those!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I definitely have to get into the Kate Daniels' bandwagon :)

    my TTT

    ReplyDelete
  3. I love Tamora Pierce so I'm going to have to check out Sherwood Smith (is that *really* her name? *ponders*)! And I adore the Kate Daniels series. So fantastic.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Interesting list! The Anne of Green Gables series is a favorite from my childhood; I recently started the first Jessica Darling book, and Jellicoe Road is an inspiration for my own writing. It was your conversation with Lenore on Jellicoe Road that got me to read that wonderful book.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Haha, I don't remember this conversation that I had with Lenore but that's GREAT that it made you pick it up! What do you think of Sloppy Firsts so far?

      Delete
    2. I'm only a few chapters in, but Sloppy Firsts sounds too familiar, but that might be because McCafferty inspired this sassy trend and was a victim of a plagiarism scandal. I was interested in the series since it follows the MC into early adulthood, like Anne of Green Gables. I prefer the lyrical writing in Montgomery's series, but it's fun enough to keep reading the first book. I have a bad habit of reading too many books at once.

      Delete
  5. Yay for Jellicoe Road! I do always warn people about what a hard read it is though so they don't give up. I read Sloppy Firsts years ago. I should really reread it.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Yay for CROWN DUEL.

    And the third recommended for you if on THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO made me laugh.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Yes to Kate Daniels, Crown Duel and Jellicoe Road! All of those are in my list of favorites as well. I'm glad I have a copy of Among Others here with me, I just have no idea when I'll get to read it. I also have Wicked Game but it's back home in Manila.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I have to check out the Jessica Darling series as I've heard nothing but good reads. Teen angst isn't my cup of tea, even though I love Catcher in the Rye, and don't mind it if it's done well. (After all, it is a natural part of being a teenager. It's when it borders on selfishness that I don't like it.) I've heard Jellicoe Road is great, as well.

    ReplyDelete
  9. I just saw the first Kate Daniels cover in my bloglovin feed and I was ready to do a little happy dance. Also, I never even considered the WVMP Radio series, but the way you describe it makes it clear it's a perfect read for me. I'm off to see if I can get a copy right now.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. If you love Kate Daniels, you have to give the WVMP Radio series a try! Hope you like. :)

      Delete
  10. So many of the lists I've seen today contain books that are already beloved favorites to me, but this list has actually given me some great new recommendations, so thanks! Very excited to give Among Others, Crown Duel and the WVMP Radio series a try now.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Okay, you're about the 5...00th person to mention Kate Daniels so I will push that up my list. Snarky woman + an Alpha... Sign me up! I got Crown Duel from my book club Secret Santa and it looks great. The cover alone is amazing. Anne + Jellicoe... my heart. This line is gorgeous and perfectly describes Marchetta --> "singlehandedly writing the entire realm of emotions into existence." So great, Steph!

    -Maggie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. You might be the first person to say they like the Crown Duel cover, haha. I like it now; I now associate it with the book, of course. Hope you enjoy both of those books!

      Delete
  12. Jellicoe Road is one of my all-time favourites. I think a re-read is in store for me soon, in fact! Love that book. I recently listened to Anne of Green Gables on audio, and I fell in love almost immediately. I'm on the third book now and can hardly wait to get stuck in. Brilliant list, Steph! I like that your choices are a little less predictable than most people's have been today. :)

    ReplyDelete
  13. I love the Kate Daniels series, and really anything that Ilona Andrews comes up with. I'm looking forward to getting current with Kate before the next book comes out.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Yes! I love Kate Daniels, Sloppy Firsts, Count of Monte Cristo, and Jellicoe Road to pieces! Actually, regarding the Jessica Darling Series, did you enjoy Books 3-5. I read the first two, but there have been so many mixed reviews about the rest of the series that I'm a little apprehensive to continue. Anyway, I still need to read Anne of Green Gables (I KNOW!) and Crown Duel, so I'll hopefully get to those two soon! Great list, Steph! :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. I've been wanting to read Count of Monte Cristo, and adore Anne of Green Gables!

    The series I always, always recommend is The Queen's Thief by Megan Whalen Turner (it's my favorite of favorites). However, I know not everybody likes the series, especially if they find Gen annoying.

    ReplyDelete

Hello! I'm so excited to read what you have to say. Due to high amounts of spam, I'm forced to disabled anonymous comments for the time being. Sorry for any inconvenience this causes, and I hope you can understand and still appreciate the content here!

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...