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Showing posts with label Claire LaZebnik. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Claire LaZebnik. Show all posts

Top Ten Tuesday (#127) (03/22/16) Ten Books I Really Love But Feel Like I Haven't Talked About Enough

3/22/2016

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.
 

Ten Books I Really Love But Feel Like I Haven't Talked About Enough


I'm pretty vocal about my love of certain books/authors, such as my love of Sarah Dessen and Jason Reynolds. I will also go on and on about my love of some of the best books I've read in any given year.  However, there are some books that I have featured on some lists, but I just don't end up on these lists over and over.  Here are some of those books:


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8728403-amy-roger-s-epic-detour

I rate books as soon as I finish them. I always like to put down my first impression, before I let time or other outside influences affect how I feel about a book. I rarely go back and change my star rating on Goodreads.  The downside of that is that sometimes I over rate books and within a few months of reading a book that I've rated pretty high, I can't remember a darned thing about it.  Then there are those that I rate well and just stick with me where I can't get them out of my head and I probably should have rated them higher.  This was definitely one that should have been rated higher.  It was a story that hasn't left me since the moment I read it years ago.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1629601.The_Disreputable_History_of_Frankie_Landau_Banks

I know I've mentioned my love of E. Lockhart books in the past, but I've generally focused on the Ruby Oliver books. This one is pretty amazing though. I read it and never really mentioned it again, but I love it. 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11518089-epic-fail

This book is hardly going to win any awards, but it's so adorable, sweet, cute, and innocent that it's stuck with me for years.  This is not great literature by any means, but it's readable and it made me happy. 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4570679-going-too-far


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13572862-love-and-other-perishable-items



https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7958702-not-that-kind-of-girl



https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8492251-playing-hurt

Another book that I've mentioned a few times, but it's often hard to find lists where I can fit this book. I check ebooks out from the library a lot, and this book was one of the few that as soon as I finished reading it, I went out and bought it.  Something about this book worked for me, and it remained one of my favorites.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7963255-the-sky-is-everywhere

I used to mention this book more, but it's been a while.  I'll Give You the Sun gets much more love, and deservedly so, but this book is equally as beautiful and memorable.  I  read it years ago and the beauty in the writing and the story have stuck with me.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17235448-the-wrong-side-of-right

This is a relatively new book so I think that may be why I haven't included it on many lists or mentioned it much on this blog, but it easily made my Top 10 from last year list. As I mentioned in that post, there are so many books that get politics wrong, and this one just got it SO right. 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/21469068-i-ll-meet-you-there

This book really just touched me. It was so well written and while it also made my Top 10 from last year, I don't know that I've mentioned it in any of my other posts.  If you like contemporary fiction, I highly recommend this book.


Top Ten Tuesday (#102) (08/04/15) Ten Fairytale Retellings I've Read

8/04/2015

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.
 
Top Ten Eight Retellings I've Read


I love a retelling, not just fairytales, I love a retelling of classic literature as well.  However for some strange reason I haven't read a lot of them.  I've read a lot that I didn't love, so I didn't want to include them on my list.  I also have about 50 waiting on my TBR pile, I just haven't gotten to them yet.  Even so, here are my favorites.


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18798983-the-wrath-and-the-dawn

So far my favorite book of this year.  This is a fabulous retelling of A Thousand and One Nights.  There are definitely differences, but it was really well done.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9266776-epic-fail

I was very surprised at how much I adored this retelling of Pride & Prejudice. Enough that I pretty much own all of the authors other books.  It was just cute and well done.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8428195-entwined

I really enjoyed this retelling of the 12 Dancing Princesses.  It wasn't groundbreaking, but it was sweet and well done.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13541909-nameless

A very lose retelling of Snow White, but I found it to be very interesting and different. 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/11235712-cinder

I adore this retelling of Cinderella and really all of the other books in this series, be it Little Red Riding Hood (Scarlett) or Rapunzel (Cress), I can't wait to read the final book in the series.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9413044-everneath

A retelling of the Persephone myth, I really adored this series.  I just found the books very readable and memorable.  I was never a huge mythology fan, but then I didn't have books like this to read.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8306761-for-darkness-shows-the-stars

 Confession, I've never read Persuasion which is what this book is based on, so I can't really compare.  I just really enjoyed this story, and always loved the cover.


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12022765-when-you-were-mine

Romeo and Juliette from a totally different perspective.  I enjoyed this book, and I thought it was a really interesting concept.


Top Ten Tuesday (#80) (02/10/15) Top Ten Things I Like/Dislike When It Comes To Romances In Books

2/10/2015


Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.
 
I actually had to sit and think about what makes a romance work for me, or not work for me.  I looked at some of my favorite romances, to find out what made me love them.  Here are the things I like and I dislike.


Like:

1. The full story/The slow burn


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4374400-if-i-stay

Where you get a full idea why the characters love each other, scene after scene of the love growing. 

2. Friends First


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/15745753-eleanor-park https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6936382-anna-and-the-french-kiss https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/51737.The_Truth_About_Forever

Much like the one above, when they are friends first, it's easy to see why they fell in love and it's easy to root for them.

3. Saving each other

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8492251-playing-hurt https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4570679-going-too-far

This one may be a bit controversial, but I like it when the male and female character come together to help each other get over an issue.

4. Converting the skeptic


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22205.This_Lullaby

I like a romance where the main character, be it male or female doesn't believe in true love, and yet the see maybe there is a chance for them.


5. Opposites attract


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/16140841-perfect-couple

There is something great about couples who come together that don't seem like they would be a good fit, but it somehow works.

6. Sugary Sweet




One of my favorites.  I just like a sweet, sweet romance with not a lot of drama.

7.  The Really Hot/Sweet Guy


https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/12294652-my-life-next-door

Who can resist the hot, yet sweet guy?



Dislikes:

1.  Instalove

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6487308-fallen https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/6339664-hush-hush

On a rare occasion it works.  But it's really, really rare.


2.  The annoying triangle


Once again, sometimes the triangle works, but usually there is absolutely no point in it. 

3. The control freak




Controlling, stalkery guys make me a little crazy, and not in a good way.