**if you're looking for my book reveiws (and don't want to leave my blog) go here. if you don't mind leaving the blog, go here.
**i will frequently update this page as i read new books that i feel are worth sharing. check back often!!
**i will frequently update this page as i read new books that i feel are worth sharing. check back often!!
lately a few of you have been asking for book recommendations and i've been thinking about doing a post like this for awhile now, but just haven't gotten around it to it. BUT since you asked, i'll be happy to oblige. now, i read a lot of books, but these are the ones that i'd recommend over anything else i've read because of their amazingness. these are absolutely must read books. (these recommendations are also assuming you've already read the Twilight, Harry Potter and Hunger Games series which is why none of those are on the list. if you haven't read any of those series, then please, do yourself a favor and do so.)
now for the RATING SYSTEM.
as an avid user of goodreads.com (you can friend me here i review everything i read on my goodreads account) i'll be using their rating system which is as follows:
5 *'s = it was amazing
4*'s = i really liked it
3*'s = i liked it
2*'s = it was okay
1 * = i didn't like it (which, quite frankly, why would i recommend a book i didn't like?...)
okay. lets get started:
Divergent
book 1: Divergent (you can read my full review here.)
book 2: Insurgent (due out spring/summer 2012)
book 3: untitled (spring/summer 2013)
author: Veronica Roth
genre: YA, science fiction, dystopian literature, fantasy, futuristic
synopsis: Beatrice Prior loves her family and yearns to be seen for who she really is. When the ways of her carefully ordained society demand that 16-year-olds make a dramatic decision that will determine the rest of their lives, Beatrice becomes torn between betraying those she loves and listening to her own inner voice; her unexpected choice surprises everyone-including herself. But Tris's bold decision soon leads to terrifying questions, bold truths and a life threatening secret about what exactly her "perfect society" has become.
rating: *****
if you liked: Matched, The Hunger Games, Anthem, or Uglies you'll like this book.
series title: the Books of Bayern
book 1: Goose Girl
book 2: Enna Burning (*this one if my favorite one in the series and my favorite book of all time. enna is a character that i so closely connected with and felt i understood more than any character i've ever read.*)
book 3: River Secrets
book 4: Forest Born
author: Shannon Hale
genre: young adult, fantasy
synopsis: (only the synopsis of book one will be given to avoid spoilers) Crown Princess Ani is shipped off to a neighboring kingdom as a bride but her journey is cut short when a bloody mutiny occurs and she is betrayed by some of the people she held closest to her heart. barely escaping with her life, Ani is forced to go into hiding and disguises herself as a goose girl on the royal estate. fighting to remain hidden, but knowing she has to take a stand, Ani befriends others that work with the animals, learns more about herself than she ever expected and plots her revenge on those that betrayed her.
rating: *****
(other recommended books by Shannon Hale: Austenland and The Princess Academy which is another one of my all time favorite books.)
Paranormalcy
book 1: Paranormalcy (read my review here)
book 2: Supernaturally
book 3: Endlessly (due out 2012)
author: Kiersten White
genre: urban fantasy, young adult fiction, paranormal romance
synopsis: Weird as it is working for the International Paranormal Containment Agency, Evie’s always thought of herself as normal. Sure, her best friend is a mermaid, her ex-boyfriend is a faerie, she's falling for a shape-shifter, and she's the only person who can see through paranormals' glamours, but still. Normal.
Only now paranormals are dying, and Evie soon realizes that there may be a link between her abilities and the sudden rash of deaths. Not only that, but she may very well be at the center of a dark faerie prophecy promising destruction to all paranormal creatures.
So much for normal.
rating: ***
series title: Fablehaven
book 1: Fablehaven
book 2: Rise of the Evening Star
book 3: Grip of the Shadow Plague
book 4: Secrets of the Dragon Sanctuary
book 5: Keys to the Demon Prison
author: Brandon Mull
genre: middle grade, fantasy
synopsis: one summer Kendra and her brother, Seth, get sent to stay with their grandparents, whom they barely know, where they find themselves seeing things they never thought existed and getting involved in an ancient battle that seems almost impossible to win. these books come complete with secret societies, traitors, spells, curses, dangerous journeys and so much more.
rating: ****
if you liked: Harry Potter, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Pillage or The 39 Clues
series title: Percy Jackson and the Olympians
book 1: The Lightning Thief
book 2: The Sea of Monsters
book 3: The Titans Curse
book 4: The Battle of the Labyrinth
book 5: The Last Olympian
author: Rick Riordan
genre: middle grade, fantasy, action/adventure (wikipedia says its young adult, but i really wouldn't classify this series as young adult...)
synopsis: while attending a troubled youth school, Percy Jackson is confronted with the fact that he might not actually be "normal". when he finds out he's actually a demi-god, fathered by one of the most popular Greek gods of all time, his world is turned upside down and his days get weirder and weirder.
rating: ****
if you liked: Harry Potter, Fablehaven, The 39 Clues, Artemis Fowl, or The Kane Chronicles you'll like this series.
series title: The Mortal Instruments
book 1: The City of Bones (you can read my review here.)
book 2: The City of Ashes (you can read my review here but beware of spoilers.)
book 3: The City of Glass (you can read my review here but beware of spoilers.)
book 4: The City of Fallen Angels (you can read my review here but beware of spoilers. -- it is advised that you read The Infernal Devices: Clockwork Angel before reading this book.)
book 5: The City of Lost Souls (due out May 2012)
book 6: The City of Heavenly Fire (due out September 2013
author: Cassandra Clare
genre: young adult, urban fantasy, supernatural
synopsis: Clary Fray's world is turned upside down after witnessing a murder and then finding out she's more like those murderers than she ever imagined. she soon learns that everything she thought she knew isn't quite as it seems and that even the people who are closest to her can't always be trusted. when she's thrust into the world of Shadowhunters, Downworlders and Jace Wayland, Clary learns that her past; the past her mother tried so desperately to keep hidden from her is her inevitable and seemingly bleak future.
rating: *****
if you liked: Twilight, Wings, or Harry Potter you'll like these.
series title: The Infernal Devices
book 1: Clockwork Angel (it is advised that you read the first three books of The Mortal Instruments series before reading this book)
book 2: Clockwork Prince
book 3: Clockwork Princess
author: Cassandra Clare
genre: young adult, urban fantasy, supernatural
synopsis: before there were the Mortal Instruments, there were the Infernal Devices. when Tessa Fray is summoned to London by her brother Nathaniel, it isn't until she arrives that realizes something is very wrong. after being kidnapped and thrown into a world she never even knew existed, Tessa is forced to become something she never knew she had inside her in order to push along a war that she doesn't even know she's a part of. after she is rescued by the easy going Jem and mysterious Will, Tessa learns more about her past than she ever thought she would; a past that could so greatly affect the rapidly approaching future.
rating: ****
Matched
book 2: Crossed (due out nov 2011)
book 3: untitled (due out nov 2012)
author: Ally Condie
genre: YA, dystopian literature, futuristic, science fiction
rating: ***
synopsis: In the Society, Officials decide. who you love. where you work. when you die.
Cassia has always trusted their choices. it’s hardly any price to pay for a long life, the perfect job, the ideal mate. so when her best friend, Xander, appears on the Matching screen, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is the one… until she sees another face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black. now Cassia is faced with impossible choices: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she’s known and a path no one else has ever dared follow — between perfection and passion. (synopsis taken from the Matched website.)
if you liked The Hunger Games, Uglies or Delirium, Twilight, Wings, or The Mortal Instruments you'll like this book.
p.s. read the book already? go here for extras and fun. get Matched yourself!
author: Victoria Forester (tell me her site isn't whimsical btw!)
genre: MG, fantasy
rating: ****
synopsis: Piper Mcloud can fly. that's why her parents send her off to what they all believe to be a safe institute for children with extraordinary powers like Piper. things don't exactly go according to plan though when Piper realizes that the institute might actually be the exact opposite of what she originally thought it was: safe. when the sugary sweet Dr. Letitia Hellion finally shows her true colors, Piper and her friends embark on a rebellion to escape the institute and save a few other helpless creatures along the way.
i'd recommend this book to anyone who is looking for something fresh and new to read. something outside of the mold. don't let the target age scare you from reading this. it truly is a wonderful story.
(you can read my review here)
author: Neil Gaiman
genre: MG, fantasy, horror
rating: ****
synopsis: the graveyard book is about a young boy (Bod) who is nearly killed as a baby and then taken in by a ghost couple and raised in a graveyard. it follows his life and all that he learns growing up in the land of the dead all the while trying to solve the mystery of who his would-be-killer is and why he wanted to kill Bod in the first place.
Wings
book 1: Wings
book 2: Spells
book 3: Illusion (due out: may 3rd)
book 4: untitled (due out: release date unknown)
author: Aprilynne Pike
genre: YA, fantasy, supernatural, romance
rating: *** 1/2
synopsis: Laurel's life changes a lot when she's pulled out of home schooling, which she's done her whole life, and thrust into a public school in a new town. what she doesn't know is that her life is about to change even more than that. when she begins sprouting wing like flower petals, Laurel begins to learn things about her secret past that even her parents don't know about her. soon she is involved in an ancient battle between good and evil and is caught up in a complicated love triangle between her best friend, David, and the mysterious Tamani who comes from her past.
author: Dan Brown
genre: adult fiction, action, thriller, suspense
rating: *** 1/2
synopsis: Harvard professor Robert Langdon and the beautiful police cryptographer, Sophie Neveu, set out on a thrilling treasure-hunt-like mission to help solve the mystery that is the murder of Sophie's grandfather, Jacques Sauniere. before his death, Jacques left behind a series of clues for Sophie and Langdon to decipher in hopes they would learn the secret he's kept hidden for so many years.
(sequels: Angels and Demons, The Lost Symbol)
series title: the Inheritance Cycle
book 1: Eragon
book 2: Eldest
book 3: Brisingr
book 4: Inheritance (due out: nov 2011)
author: Christopher Paolini
genre: YA fiction, fantasy
rating: ****
synopsis: in Eragon's world, Dragon Rider is just a legendary term heard in bedtime stories and fairy tales. that is until Eragon finds and hatches his own dragon, Saphira, and claims her as his own. realizing there is more to the life of a Dragon Rider than Eragon thought, he embarks on a dangerous journey to find others like him, properly train as a Dragon Rider and to save his home land, Alegasia from destruction.
(you can read my review here)
author: cornelia funke
genre: MG, fantasy, adventure, suspense
rating: *** 1/2
synopsis: this story takes place in Venice where two boys, Bo and Prosper, run away from their aunt find refuge in an abandoned theatre and form friendships with some of the most unlikely of people. when they get caught up in a risky job thieving for a sinister character, Bo and Prosper realize they may have gotten in over their heads.
why: because its a fun story that allows one to escape the real world for a day or two and get caught up in the lives of run-away and orphaned children who take their lives into their own hands.
author: Lucy Maud Montgomery
genre: YA, humor, romance, fiction
rating: ****
synopsis: Anne Shriley, an orphaned is accidentally adopted by brother and sister Marilla and Matthew Cuthburt. learning to be a proper lady and hold her temper, Anne embraces her new life in her new home. she finds kindred spirits in the unlikeliest of places and has a few adventures along the way.
book 1: The Magician's Nephew
book 3: The Horse and his Boy
book 4: Prince Caspian
book 5: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
book 6: The Silver Chair
book 7: The Last Battle
author: C.S. Lewis
genre: MG, action, adventure, fantasy
rating: ****
synopsis: children from "our world" travel to the fanatical land of Narnia and are enlisted to rule as kings and queens, fight in battles and save other royalty previously in rule.
author: Ayn Rand
genre: dystopian fiction, action, science fiction
rating: ****
synopsis: Equality 7-2521 lives in a society where everything is controlled. one is told what to eat, how to dress, what career path to choose and even who to love. but Equality 7-2521 wants to think for himself. and so he does. in doing so he catches the eye of the evil government and the beautiful and mysterious Liberty 5-3000.
happy reading!
