Top Ten Tuesday (82)

Top Ten Favorite Reads of 2013…So Far

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. It’s awesome. Every week, the lovely ladies over there post a topic so that book lovers like you and me can pour over our shelves and MAKE A LIST. WORD.

Oh yes, friends. Top ten books I’ve read so far this year? Quite possibly the easiest list I’ve put together in ages. Usually when I’m getting my Top Ten Tuesday set up, I have to check Goodreads or my reviews or something, just to spark my memory or remind me of something that’s slipped my mind. Not this week. These ten books came to me in a flood, and I can promise you, you’ll see a good number of them at the end of the year when I get to list my top ten favorite books of 2013. In no particular order…

The Caged Graves by Dianne K. Salerni

I just finished reading this one over the weekend for my reading recommendations challenge, and I loved it. The town of Catawissa, PA, and the characters–especially Verity Boone and Nathaniel McClure–are stamped onto my brain. And those caged graves are SO INTRIGUING! As much as I loved this fictional story based on the real ones, it just makes me that much more curious about the TRUTH of why they were constructed, which remains a mystery.

Siege and Storm: Grisha Trilogy #2 by Leigh Bardugo

I’ve been shouting out this book lots lately, but that’s only because I loved it. I’ve been taken with this world since I read book 1, and Leigh Bardugo does a really great job of upping the drama in lots of ways, including intensifying the politics and introducing new characters, like Sturmhond. GOOD TIMES. Except, you know, not *actually* good times. Not very much happy going on here.

Daughter of the Forest: Sevenwaters #1 by Juliet Marillier

Yes, I know that I’m insanely late to this series, but I’ve read two books so far and LOVED them both. So much my kind of story, and they’re so beautifully written and sad and lovely. Thankfully I have my girl, Alyssa, to read them with and die over.

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell

Friends, I am beyond grateful to have discovered Rainbow Rowell this year. I’ve got her adult book, THE ATTACHMENTS, and an ARC of her second YA book of the year, FANGIRL, from BEA this year, and I just can’t even wait for both. That’s just based on the other-wordly levels of awesome in ELEANOR & PARK, an emotional, sweet, love story that deals with some really difficult issues as well.

Prodigy: Legend #2 by Marie Lu

I just realized that this is a teensy bit of a cheat because I actually read an ARC of this last fall, but I reread it again when it came out in January, so it counts! This is one of my favorite series out right now and Marie Lu has become one of my insta-read authors with just two books. (Frankly, she was insta-read with just LEGEND.) But things for Day and June are getting worse before they get better, guys, and I am just about DYING for CHAMPION already.

Bitterblue: Graceling Realm #3 by Kristin Cashore

I have to admit that I was wary going into BITTERBLUE because a number of people had a hard time with it. I, however, really enjoyed it quite a bit. I loved how it showed us beloved characters from GRACELING and FIRE in a new light while introducing new faces that fleshed out the world more. I’d read more of this series in a flash.

Lovely, Dark and Deep by Amy McNamara

This is a book that I bought solely based on two things: the synopsis and the cover (it’s mostly white!). The story itself, though, is what makes me one of my favorite books of 2013 so far. Gorgeous, kind of sad, and emotionally intense, the story of Wren and her struggle with the death of her high school boyfriend is one of those that just hits me RIGHT THERE. Also, the guy in Wren’s new, bittersweet life, Cal, is special. If I had to pick one book I’ve read so far this year that needs more attention, it would be this one.

Days of Blood and Starlight: Daughter of Smoke and Bone #2 by Laini Taylor

HOLY CRAP, Laini Taylor’s books make me die. They’re so BEAUTIFUL and emotional and fraught with all this heartbreaking drama. Akiva and Karou are living dangerous, sad, devastating lives right now, and they struggle with their INTENSE feelings for one another. Plus, the world-building in these books is so vibrant and evocative, made even more clear in my mind by Laini Taylor’s exquisite writing, and I loved getting to see more of Eretz in this one.

Just One Day: Just One Day #1 by Gayle Forman

You guys know why I loved this book so hard? As much as it’s about the romantic, spontaneous relationship between Lulu (Allyson) and Willem, it’s also about Allyson (or Lulu…her names aren’t really that confusing in the book) and her own growth, and the way her firecracker relationship with Willem affects her own perceptions of herself. But don’t think that she uses him to define who she is. Not really. More like she sees MORE of herself from spending just one day with him, and it makes her think and take stock and make changes. Don’t get me wrong, though: that one day is pretty amazing, and I can’t wait to read about Willem’s side of things later this year.

Dark Triumph: His Fair Assassin #2 by Robin LaFevers

I don’t know how much I can say about this book without sounding like an idiot, that’s how much I adored Sybella and Beast. This is one my favorite series out right now, virtually bar none, and even though this installment was darker and more upsetting, it was just as captivating and heart-squeezing. Dear Robin LaFevers, I love you for creating this world and these characters. You are my favorite. Love, Amy. Seriously. So good.