Saturday, January 14, 2012

Building my TBR list!

My favorite books at the moment are VERY different from one another. So, I really do like all types of literature.

I am absolutely, positively obsessed with The Hunger Games trilogy and have always loved The Perks of Being a Wallflower. 


If you've followed along my very new blog at all, you know that I've taken a recent dive into YA fiction. I've plowed through seven books so far this year (The Hunger Games, Catching Fire, Mockingjay, The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Matched, Crossed and City of Bones). 


Since I'm SO new to this genre, I was hoping some of you could share your FAVORITE book with me and just a quick blurb about why you recommend it. I see a lot about newer books that are hitting the shelves, but would be interested to hear about some older faves as well. I'm behind the bus! Thanks in advance!

25 comments:

  1. My favorite books:
    Unearthly by Cynthia Hand is an angel book and the writing is amazing.
    If I Stay & Where She Went by Gayle Forman are both quick reads and beautifully written.
    Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta has mystery and romance.
    Nevermore by Kelly Creagh, if you like creepy books, this has Edgar Allan Poe references.

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  2. I'd recommend anything by John Green, I've loved all the books of his I've read.
    I second If I Stay and Where She Went. :)
    Wither was a great dystopian, and beautifully written.
    Warm Bodies by Isaac Marion was a great zombie book, but it's like, zombie romance? Not really that gory, haha.

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  3. My favourite so far is Divergent. If you haven't read I say go for it. Also, The Maze Runner series and The Vampire Academy series are all great reads! Welcome to the YA world.

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  4. Shatter Me, Delirium, Hush Hush, Crescendo, Silence, Hex Hall, Demon Glass, Beautiful Creatures, The Heist Society, Cross My Heart and Hope to Spy... that should hold you for a while. :)

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  5. Thanks for emailing me- I have so many favourites it's hard to narrow them down! Can I just second the opinion on the comments above- Unearthly and If I Stay are AMAZING books, and one of my favourite series of all time is the Vampire Academy series. Divergent is such a great book too if you like dystopians.
    Two of my absolute faves from last year were Tiger's Curse by Colleen Houck and Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor. Both of them are so romantic and so completely different from anything else out there.
    Also brilliant (I read them years ago and still remember them fondly), Noughts and Crosses by Malorie Blackman and Northern Lights by Phillip Pullman.
    I knew I wouldn't be able to narrow it down to just one book recommendation!

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  6. I agree with a lot of titles already mentioned, like Delirium, Shatter Me, Daughter of Smoke and Bone. Also The Girl of Fire and Thorns (one of my favorites last year) and Firelight... so many options... its hard to pick, I know but there are great YA fiction books totally worth reading ;)

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  7. I loved Perks of Being a Wallflower too! Read it so long ago and it's nice to see it resurface! :)

    Hmm YA-wise.. Definitely gotta read Delirium, Shatter Me and Clockwork Angel.
    I've got a bunch on my TBR list too that I've heard great things about, so these are based on everyone telling ME I have to read 'em - and passing it along to you! LOL..
    - Daughter of Smoke & Bone
    - Anna Dressed in Blood
    - Wither
    - The Name of the Star
    - Divergent

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  8. Other than Clockwork Angel and Clockwork Prince I haven't read a whole lot of YA to date. The Host by Stephenie Meyer is a bit older but it's a good Sci Fi read.

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  9. I think I'm going to be repeating a lot of what others have said so far...maybe come up with something new:

    Definitely Gayle Forman's If I Stay and Where She Went
    Wither by Lauren DeStefano
    Dearly, Departed by Lia Habel
    Angelfall by Susan Ee
    Slumber by Samantha Young
    (I haven't gotten to them yet - still in my TBR pile - but I hear Divergent and Delirium are awesome)

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  10. Oh there are so many great Y.A. books! Some of my personal favorites are The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare, The Body Finder series by Kimberly Derting, and Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. Anything by John Green and Sarah Dessen are also very good. If you want more suggestions feel free to email or check out my goodreads profile. Happy Reading!

    Becky @ L'amour Books
    You can find my email and the link to my goodreads page at http://lamourbooks.blogspot.com/p/about-me.html

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  11. first of all thanks for stopping by my Wow post! and now to my favorite books!
    it totally depends on if you have an e-reader or not
    my favorite e-reader books because they are just awesome!
    Callum & Harper by Fisher Amelie (if you are feeling more of the contemporary side)
    Significance by Shelly Crane (if you are feeling more Paranormal)
    available in paperback on Amazon but not bookstores
    Abbi Glines is a fabulous author (she has wonderful contemporary and paranormal out)

    I made a whole list on my blog of my favorite books of 2011~here is the link http://tessmw.blogspot.com/2012/01/happy-new-year.html

    as for published books...i don't read much of them because they are so much more expensive and i am a college student but some of them are worth it
    Eve by Anne Carrey ( kind of like The Hunger Games)
    Sarah Dessen is a great contemporary author I just read Along for the Ride and it was great

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  12. HI! I recently took a dip back into YA too. I hadn't touched YA since I had been a YA myself and had cleaned out my library's YA section ;)

    I recommend The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater - it's about man-eating horses and there's nothing out there like it. I also loved Wither by Lauren DeStefano. It's very, very creepy and girly at the same time.

    Oh and it's not YA but I just finished The Sisters Brothers by Patrick Dewitt and I LOVED it.

    ~ Farah @ Broken Penguins

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  13. Thanks for stopping by my review! :)

    First welcome to the genre! I love Perks of Being a Wallflower and The Hunger Games as well. Those are definitely some of my favorites!

    I'll list some of my other favorite YA books. Many of the books have been suggested above so a few may be repeated cause they are definitely worth checking out.
    Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi, Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, Divergent by Veronica Roth, Nightshade Series by Andrea Cremer, Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor, Infernal Devices Series by Cassandra Clare, Dearly Departed by Lia Habel, Vampire Academy Series by Richelle Mead, Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin, Across the Universe Series by Beth Revis, The Body Finder Series by Kimberly Derting, Catching Jordan by Miranda Kenneally.

    Hope you enjoy!

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  14. Oh gosh. This is so hard! I could recommend you hundreds haha. Hmm definitely Divergent. If you love THG, I think you'll really enjoy this. It's amazing with such a well developed romance, action, thrills, twists and an explosive finale!! Ooh and Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor. Oh gosh. That book is beautiful. Both the story and the absolutely breathtaking prose. Seriously, one of the BEST romances I have read *sigh* And the worldbuilding is ... wow.

    Ahhh and there's Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi which was one of my favourite reads of 2011! Vampire Academy series, Anna Dressed In Blood, Delirium, The Scorpio Races (or anything Maggie Stiefvater writes), Sarah Alderson's books - Hunting Lila and Fated are SUPER addictive. Legend by Marie Lu, Maria V. Snyder books (which also have adult crossover appeal), The Iron Fey series, The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer (total mind-bender!!). And okay, I really should wrap this up, so I'll finish with my absolute favourite contemporary romance writer - Stephanie Perkins. Her books leave you on SUCH a happy high!

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  15. I agree with everyone who said Divergent. It is sooo good! The Hunger Games trilogy is my all time favorite reads ever!

    Other favorites that I'd highly recommend:

    Firelight by Sophie Jordan
    Hourglass by Myra McEntire
    The Forest of Hands & Teeth by Carrie Ryan
    Brightly Woven by Alexandra Bracken

    All are YA, but still very different from one another.

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  16. I'm sure some of these novels I'm about to mention have already been added, but I've decided to give my two cents worth... lol. In no particular order, here's some novels that have made an impact on me or I really enjoyed reading:

    *Die For Me -- Amy Plum
    *Supernaturally series-- Kiersten White
    * Vampire Crush-- A.M. Robinson
    * Haven -- Kristi Cook
    * Anything by Simone Elkeles
    * The Mythos Academy series -- Jennifer Estep
    *Dead Beautiful-- Yvonne Woon
    * The Hex Hall series -- Rachel Hawkins
    * A Need So Beautiful -- Suzanne Young
    * The Body Finder series-- Kimberly Derting.

    These are just a few. Most of these are paranormal stories, which I've enjoyed reading in the past. Hope that helps!

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  17. Ok remember you asked for this!

    *Hex Hall series by Rachel Hawkins(The second book is much more awesome than the first!)
    *Half Blood by Jennifer Armentrout- Only $3.99 on amazon.THIS ONE IS AWESOME!
    *Touch by Jus Accardo .
    *The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan(READ ANY book by this author! HE IS ABSOLUTELY amazing!)
    *My Soul To Take by Rachel Vincent
    *Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marrr
    *The Host by Stephenie Meyer
    *Artemis Fowl(Middle Grade actually but it's too awesome)

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  18. Hmmmm, let's see....I could be here all day if I recommended all the books I love, but here we go.

    Series:
    ~The Mortal Instruments--I know you're not too sure about these, but keep going and hopefully you'll like them more :)
    ~Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead--this was the first series that I really "loved" and remains and all time fave.
    ~Bloodlines by Richelle Mead--This is Vampire Academy's spin off series and is SO good too. Make sure you read VA FIRST though, otherwise you'll ruin things.
    ~The Infernal Devices--again, The Mortal Instruments spin-off, only it's a prequel series. Same world, different characters.
    ~The Iron Fey by Julie Kagawa--this is the best Faerie series I've ever read and is incredible.
    ~Poison Study series by Maria V. Snyder--I count this as my fave stand alone book even though it's a series and if I could only read one book for the rest of my life this'd be in. Not exactly YA, but YA-ish and is perfect if you love Fantasy!
    ~Darkest Powers by Kelley Armstrong--I love this series and honestly believe it's underrated. It's about a girl who's a necromancer and perfect if you want a love interest who's not your typical male lead, yet will still make you think, awwww.
    ~Perfect Chemistry by Simone Elkeles-- OMG---<3 <3 Love these brothers!!! And you will too. Swoon-worthy Latinos.
    ~Intertwined series by Gena Showalter--a series you either love or hate....I love it and recommend!

    First books:
    ~Jessica’s Guide To Dating On The Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey--a fantastic vampire tale--one of the best out there!
    ~Hunting Lila and Fated by Sarah Alderson---as I mentioned in my review, Sarah is a new author to watch. Her books are to die for!
    ~Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi--think X-men and romance! <3
    ~A Need So Beautiful by Suzanne Young--quite possibly the best "angel" book I've ever read, read with caution....bring tissues!
    ~Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor--I don't know if there are words for this book. So unique and incredible.
    ~Girl In The Steel Corset by Kady Cross---steam-punk at its absolute best! <3 <3 <3

    Alright, so there's A LOT of books there. Hope you give some of them a go and love them--I'll be on the lookout for your reviews :)

    Rachel @ The Rest Is Still Unwritten

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  19. Welcome to the blogosphere, Ashley!! I'm glad we found each other! I think that it's such an awesome place to be, and I hope you love it as much as I do! <3 :)

    Books to recommend... Oh my gosh, this is SO HARD. LOL! There are way too many books to choose from! But here are some that I absolutely LOVED and you might too:

    -Hunting Lila by Sarah Alderson (AN AMAZING BOOK! I just read it recently and fell in love with everything about it! <3)
    -The Iron Fey series by Julie Kagawa (This is such an awesome series! My absolute favourite faery one out there!)
    -Divergent by Veronica Roth (This is just awesomeness! And it was voted best book of 2011 on Goodreads, so you know it's not just my own bias.)
    -Unearthly by Cynthia Hand (Oh my goodness, PLEASE start this series! The first book was a little hard to get into at first yet it was still amazing, but the second book blew my socks off! It was SO GOOD!)
    -Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins (This is my favourite contemporary novel in the WORLD, and overall one of my fave books ever!)
    -Everneath by Brodi Ashton (This comes out later this month, but it's absolutely STUNNING! And has one of the most gorgeous covers ever!)
    -Nevermore by Kelly Creagh (Love this book to pieces!!)

    I have a whole bunch more that I could recommend, but I don't want to overwhelm you LOL! Still, just let me know if you need more books to read or if you just need help figuring out the ropes of blogging in general, and I'll be happy to help you out! :)

    Have an amazing day, Ashley!

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  20. Hi! Welcome to the blogosphere! There are so many amazing YA books out there and it looks like, from the comments above, you've got a great list to choose from so far--I'd just be echoing most of what they've already listed. I'll add just a few, though:
    Amplified and Harmonic Feedback by Tara Kelly
    Sean Griswold's Head by Lindsey Leavitt
    Enclave by Ann Aguirre
    Happy reading!

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  21. Divergent by Veronica Roth! You should definitely read it, it's an amazing dystopian, right up there with The Hunger Games!
    A few others you should check out:
    The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
    Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
    Cinder by Marissa Meyer
    Unearthly by Cynthia Hand
    Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly
    Legend by Marie Lu
    Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi
    These are all high on my favorites list :)

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  22. My favourites:
    Before I Die by Jenny Downham (It was heartbreaking but STUNNING!)
    *I see that you're reading Clockwork Angel; I would definitely recommend Clockwork Prince*
    Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
    The Iron Fae by Julie Kagawa (the whole series!)
    Die for Me by Amy Plum
    I really liked/loved all of these.

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  23. Wow, look at all the great responses, I hope you are making a list! I think you are off to a great start with The Hunger Games, The Mortal Instruments, and The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Like some of the other comments, I would highly recommend anything by John Green (An Abundance of Katherines is my personal fave) and Melina Marchetta (I've only read two of hers, starting a third soon. Saving Francesca is my fave.) But to break it down a little I would say:

    Dystopic: Divergent, Delirium, and Blood Red Road

    Paranormal/Urban fantasy: Clare's Infernal Devices Series, Black's Curse Worker's series, as well as Habel's Dearly Departed and Taylor's Daughter of Smoke and Bone

    Contemporary (my new fave genre): Anything by Stephanie Perkins, anything by Simone Elkeles, and anything coauthored by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan.

    Oh and check out Neal Shusterman. He's awesome:)

    One of my fave "older" books isn't technically YA, it's more New Adult I think, Robin McKinley's Sunshine. It's sort of a fantasy/ alternate world with vampires. Bad vampires (and a really awesome one named Constantine:)

    Enjoy all the great book recommendations!

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  24. Actually I would recommend everything I'd read, but to single out a few:

    - Divergent by Veronica Roth
    - anything by Holly Schindler
    - anything by Maggie Stiefvater
    - The Host by Stephanie Meyer
    - Beautiful Creatures series by Margaret Stohl and Kami Garcia
    - Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead
    - anything by Sherrilyn Kenyon
    - House of Night series by the Casts
    - The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin
    - anything by Julie Kagawa
    - The Pledge and anything by Kimberly Derting
    - Fallen series by Lauren Kate
    - Hush, Hush series by Becca Fitzpatrick

    I couldn't list them all as it'll take a day, but these books are awesome in their own way.

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  25. I don't want to repeat what others said so:
    Rot and Ruin by Jonathan Maberry
    The Girl in the Steel Corset by Kady Cross
    Darkest Powers series by Kelley Armstrong
    Paranormalcy by Kiersten White

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