Top Ten Tuesday: Books That Took Me Completely By Surprise

Top Ten Tuesday was originally hosted over at The Broke and The Bookish and is now over at Jana’s blog, That Artsy Reader Girl.

This weeks topic is all about the books that took us by surprise, and it was left to us to choose whether it would be in a good or a bad way.

We pick up a book because we want to enjoy it, we want to connect with the characters and the journey they embark on. Sometimes a book takes us by surprise because we love it so much, and that has happened on a few occasions for me. There have been times when I went into reading a book and didn’t expect too much, only to be blown away by the story telling.

Below are all the books that wormed their way into my heart and took me completely by surprise.

1. The Language of Thorns by Leigh Bardugo

I had never read any of Leigh Bardugo’s books before, so I figured a great place to start would be her collection of dark fairy tales set in the Grishaverse that she created. It was the best decision I’ve made. I was completely blown away by the writing, the vivid descriptions and the characters. I read the whole thing in less than 24 hours, something I haven’t done in a very long time. Now I am reading Shadow and Bone, the start of her trilogy, and I’m already loving it.

2. To Kill A Kingdom by Alexandra Christo

A debut novel that I received from NetGalley, and one that took me by surprise. While I was in a slump reading this, it didn’t take away from the fact that I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. The characters were amazing, the dialogue was natural and the action sequences were fast paced and easy to follow. This book had everything for me and found a place in my heart.

3. The Belles by Dhonielle Clayton

Another 2018 debut novel that I fell head over heels for. This book was incredibly vivid, full of beautiful descriptions, unique ideas and a dark undertone that I loved. Dhonielle Clayton created a fantasy world that was bright with colours and I could see everything clearly. While I was given this book to review from NetGalley, I would head out and buy a copy for myself to keep.

4. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

I went into this book carefully because I had heard so many amazing things, but I didn’t want to get my hopes up and in the end I loved it. I was a little surprised it lived up to the hype (hype can be dangerous) and then proceeded to buy the rest of the series. I’ve read the first three in the series and cannot wait to continue with it in the near future.

5. Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

I had no idea that this book series would mean so much to me when I first started reading them. I have only read them once (a re-read is in order) and I couldn’t get enough of the characters, the story and the world that Mead created. It is still one of my top ten series and I hope it stays that way, although there are some amazing books coming out, and series that I still need to complete.

6. Everless by Sara Holland

The third and final debut novel of 2018 on this list (there are so many amazing books this year). Everless is based on such a unique idea with characters that you root for and plot twists that take your breath away. I can’t wait until I can enter this world again in the second book when it comes out.

7. The Girl on the Train by Paula Hawkins

I don’t read thrillers often and, in fact, this was my first book of that genre and I loved it. I was hooked from the beginning, trying to guess everything and I just kept turning the pages until I found out. I surprised myself with how much I enjoyed this book, so much so that I went on to read her second novel, Into the Water.

8. A Darker Shade of Magic by V. E. Schwab

I picked up this book because of PeruseProject over on YouTube after she mentioned it in quite a few of her videos. I had no idea what to expect, but I ended up loving this incredible fantasy world and it has made me want to read the rest of her books. I have the second instalment sitting on my shelf, waiting for me.

9. Three Dark Crowns by Kendare Blake

It had been a while since I read a book by Kendare Blake, but since I enjoyed her Anna Dressed In Blood duology I figured I would give Three Dark Crowns a go. Well, this series just blew me away, the second book is definitely my favourite so far and I am super excited to see where the series will go when the next book comes out later on this year.

10. The Cruel Prince by Holly Black

Another book that was seriously hyped up. I went into this hoping I would like it and I ended up loving the dark and twisted tale. It had been a while since I read a book about faeries and I loved Black’s spin on the folklore and the mingling of humans with the race. Now that the cover for the second has been released, I am counting down the days until I can read it.

I’m sure there will be more books in the future that surprise me, in good and bad ways, and I can’t wait to discover the ones that will become my favourites. What would be in your top ten?

Top Ten Tuesday: Books I’m Thankful For

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly event hosted by The Broke and The Bookish. This weeks topic is all do with the American holiday, Thanksgiving. While I don’t personally celebrate it as I live in the UK, I hope all my American followers will have a great day when it comes around. There is always something to be thankful for in life and I have a lot at the moment.

When it comes to choosing the books I am thankful for I had to think long and hard about it. I had to ask myself why am I thankful for them? Once I asked myself that question it became relatively easy to rattle them off. So here we go…

1. Twilight by Stephenie Meyer

I have chosen this as my first book because without them I never would have gotten into reading YA. They were so new and different to anything I had read before and it was a turning point for me, especially when it came to growing up. You can read more about it in my blog post The Book That Made Me A Reader.

2. The Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead

This series of books is by far my favourite and I am so thankful that I read them. They are all incredible in their own way and the characters are so easy to fall in love with. I am actually planning on re-reading this series in 2018 at some point because it has been a while, but I will never forget the way they made me feel (I even cried at some points).

3. The Magicians’ Guild by Trudi Canavan

I am thankful for this series in particular as it was the first that I read which was purely fantasy. While it is definitely not the best fantasy book I have read, it was the one that opened my eyes to a genre that has become my favourite. I may revisit these in the future and see it with some new perspective.

4. The House Of Night Series by P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast

There seems to be a lot of vampire books on this list, but I am thankful for these in particular as they introduced me to other P. C. Cast books. The Goddess Summoning series were some of the first Adult novels that I read and I remember loving them, especially because they were based on Mythology.

5. Half-Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Speaking of mythology, I am thankful to this series because it made me fall more in love with Greek mythology and books to do with them. They were so different when they came out and that was what I loved about them. Although, I never did finish off the series so a re-read may be in order so I can buy the rest.

6. The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern

Ever since I picked this book up, it has been one of my favourites and I am so thankful for that because it made me aspire to be that amazing at writing. It was magical, with the most breathtaking descriptions and I just know I will be reading it again now I am older. It seems to be the perfect book to read around Christmas time.

7. The Girl On The Train by Paula Hawkins

This book deserves a place on my list because it introduced me to thrillers. I had never thought much of them before reading The Girl On The Train, but it hooked me from the beginning and didn’t let me go. Hawkins is an incredible writer and knows how to keep you guessing, definitely worth reading!

8. Anna Dressed In Blood by Kendare Blake

I chose this book due to the fact that it showed me you can have a male POV and it can work, really well might I add. It was the first book I read where there wasn’t a female protagonist POV and it was a horror too, something I don’t normally read (but I do love horror movies). As well as this, it also made me love Kendare Blake’s writing and her latest series, Three Dark Crowns.

9. The Vampire Diaries by L. J. Smith

I read this series after I started Twilight (I was into vampires at the time, but, having been published in 1991 it was around long before Twilight) and it was way before it was turned into the TV show that everyone loves. My reason for being thankful for this is that it led me to watching the show (even though there are so many differences between the two) and it is easily my all-time favourite show. Reading these books were an introduction, although I only read this series in full and the first in the Return series (There are 5 different series in total).

10. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I, like everyone else, loved this series when it came out and couldn’t get enough! My reason for being thankful is that it introduced me to the dystopian genre, something that had an influence over one of the novels I wrote when I was younger. It was so different and unique, as well as daring and original. While I may not have agreed with who they chose to play the characters in the movies (they weren’t like the ones in my head) I will always love these books.

I really hope you enjoyed reading my top 10 this Tuesday and if you have your own then leave a link below, I would love to check them out!