A little bit of a delay (my fault), but the Summer Blogger Promo Tour continues here on the blog...
Today my guest is the lovely Michelle from Bookaholic Banter!
Michelle is going to share with us some book recommendations!
10 Books You Need to Read
Hi everyone! Thanks for taking the time to visit Jennifer's blog and read my post this week. I want to also thank Jennifer from having me. I am excited to share some of my favorite books with you. All of these books will not be YA. Some of them are Adult Fiction. If they are YA I will state it. These books are ones that don't get a lot of attention and they really deserve more! They are books that I think every bookaholic like myself can appreciate. I think if you give them a chance that you will love them too. I would love to hear from you and know if you have read any of these books or which ones you plan on adding to your TBR after reading my post. I hope you enjoy. Here they are in no particular order...
YA That Deserves The Spotlight...
All These Things I've Done (1st Book in the Birthright Trilogy ) by Gabrielle Zevin
This book is from one of my all-time favorite YA series. This dystopian series is about a futuristic world where coffee & chocolate are illegal. It's original, and unlike any other series I have read. It was interesting, and a lot of fun to read.
Synopsis:
In 2083, chocolate and coffee are illegal, paper is hard to find, water is carefully rationed, and New York City is rife with crime and poverty. And yet, for Anya Balanchine, the sixteen-year-old daughter of the city's most notorious (and dead) crime boss, life is fairly routine. It consists of going to school, taking care of her siblings and her dying grandmother, trying to avoid falling in love with the new assistant D.A.'s son, and avoiding her loser ex-boyfriend. That is until her ex is accidently poisoned by the chocolate her family manufactures and the police think she's to blame. Suddenly, Anya finds herself thrust unwillingly into the spotlight--at school, in the news, and most importantly, within her mafia family.
Add to Goodreads
2. The Testing ( 1st Book in The Testing trilogy) by Joelle Charbonneau
Another one of my favorites. I don't hear people talking about this one enough. If you loved the Hunger Games or Divergent series you will defintiely love this one as well. It was so good! I think I might have to add this to my re-read list. It has been almost three years since I read this one. I need to revisit it.
Synopsis:
Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Isn’t that what they say? But how close is too close when they may be one and the same?
The Seven Stages War left much of the planet a charred wasteland. The future belongs to the next generation’s chosen few who must rebuild it. But to enter this elite group, candidates must first pass The Testing—their one chance at a college education and a rewarding career.
Cia Vale is honored to be chosen as a Testing candidate; eager to prove her worthiness as a University student and future leader of the United Commonwealth. But on the eve of her departure, her father’s advice hints at a darker side to her upcoming studies--trust no one.
But surely she can trust Tomas, her handsome childhood friend who offers an alliance? Tomas, who seems to care more about her with the passing of every grueling (and deadly) day of the Testing. To survive, Cia must choose: love without truth or life without trust.
For Horror Lovers...
3. Brother by Ania Ahlborn
This was one of the creepiest, most wrong stories I read last year. This horror/thriller was twisted, scary, and I loved every moment of it. Move over Stephen King!
Synopsis:
Deep in the heart of Appalachia stands a crooked farmhouse miles from any road. The Morrows keep to themselves, and it’s served them well so far. When girls go missing off the side of the highway, the cops don’t knock on their door. Which is a good thing, seeing as to what’s buried in the Morrows’ backyard.
But nineteen-year-old Michael Morrow isn’t like the rest of his family. He doesn’t take pleasure in the screams that echo through the trees. Michael pines for normalcy, and he’s sure that someday he’ll see the world beyond West Virginia. When he meets Alice, a pretty girl working at a record shop in the small nearby town of Dahlia, he’s immediately smitten. For a moment, he nearly forgets about the monster he’s become. But his brother, Rebel, is all too eager to remind Michael of his place…
For the Love of Zombies...
4. The Enemy by Charlie Higson ( 1st Book in The Enemy series )
This is a YA horror series about zombies that is unlike any other. It is the BEST zombie series I have ever read. It keeps you turning the pages constantly. It is easy to read, fun, and original. The kids survived and the adults are the zombies. It makes for such an interesting read.
Synopsis:
Charlie Higson's The Enemy is the first in a jaw-dropping zombie horror series for teens. Everyone over the age of fourteen has succumbed to a deadly zombie virus and now the kids must keep themselves alive.
When the sickness came, every parent, police officer, politician - every adult fell ill. The lucky ones died. The others are crazed, confused and hungry.
Only children under fourteen remain, and they're fighting to survive.
Now there are rumours of a safe place to hide. And so a gang of children begin their quest across London, where all through the city - down alleyways, in deserted houses, underground - the grown-ups lie in wait.
But can they make it there - alive?
Don't Pass This One Up...
5. Whiskey Sour ( 1st Book in the Jack Daniels series) by J. A. Konrath
If you love mysteries, this series is a MUST read! My second all-time favorite series! Jack ( Jacqueline) Daniels is a cop. She chase down some of the most sinister killers in this book. Honestly, some of the most psychotic killers I have ever seen in a mystery series. The originality, suspense, and humor, and a little romance in this series kept me turning pages like crazy. The book will grab you from the very first page. Joe knows how to hook you on his books. The chapters end so you will keep on turning those pages. The characters are impossible not to fall in love with. PLEASE let me know if you read these. I have been dying for someone to talk to about this series.
Synopsis:
Lieutenant Jacqueline 'Jack' Daniels is having a bad week. Her live-in boyfriend has left her for his personal trainer, chronic insomnia has caused her to max out her credit cards with late-night home shopping purchases, and a frightening killer who calls himself 'The Gingerbread Man' is dumping mutilated bodies in her district. Between avoiding the FBI and its moronic profiling computer, joining a dating service, mixing it up with street thugs, and parrying the advances of an uncouth PI, Jack and her binge-eating partner, Herb, must catch the maniac before he kills again....and Jack is next on his murder list. Whiskey Sour is full of laugh-out-loud humor and edge-of-your-seat suspense, and it introduces a fun, fully drawn heroine in the grand tradition of Kinsey Millhone, Stephanie Plum, and Kay Scarpetta.
Laugh Out Loud Fun...
6. One For the Money ( Stephanie Plum series ) by Janet Evanovich
I know, I know, the movie was horrible. You have no idea how long I prayed this series would become a television show or movie. When I found out the first book was being made into a movie I screamed with joy so loud my husband thought something was wrong with me. I had to wait in anticipation for a year for it to come out, then when it did it totally flopped. The movie was not done any justice whatsoever. It was one of the most saddening days of my life and I was so angry. I am still holding out hope that maybe the entire series gets picked up for a television show. One For the Money was a little slow but the series gets better and better with each and every book. Ok, so anyway....if you haven't already guessed this is my #1 favorite series of all-time. I own almost every single book in the series. The ones I don't own I will be buying as soon as I can. I have read up to book 18 or 19. I love every single book in the series. Stephanie, Joe, Lula, Grandma Mazur, and hotty Ranger are my favorite book charcters of all-time. I stumbled across this series by dumb luck years and years ago in the library. There is not one single this I don't like about this series. This book series was the first one I ever read that had me continually laughing out loud when I read it. I would be reading these books in public and cracking up and people would always want to know what I was reading. There was only one other book that has ever made me laugh out loud and I will get to that book soon. If you want a book with all the elements you have to read this series. EVERY woman should read this series. Best series ever!
Synopsis:
Pestered by her close New Jersey family, Stephanie Plum offers to catch high-school crush Joe Morelli, cop turned bail jumper, for her cousin Vinnie's company. She questions "working girls" to find the missing girlfriend of vicious prizefighter Benito Ramirez while Joe secretly watches her back. Ranger mentors her and supplies vehicles when hers explode.
7. Life Laughs by Jenny McCarthy
Seriously! I never laughed harder in my life than while reading this book. Jenny is an aquired taste. Her sense of humor can be a little dirty and crude. I was already a fan of hers and found her hilarious when I picked this book up. She did not disappoint me at all. I recommend this book to everyone I know when they are looking for something funny to read. Jenny tells it like it is. She says what the rest of us are thinking but don't always have the guts to say. She doesn't hold back. You cannot read this book and tell me that you didn't ever think at least one thing she was saying in this book. I promise you, this book will make you laugh.
Synopsis:
Life Laughs: The Naked Truth about Motherhood, Marriage, and Moving On
Books on Books...
8. The Reading Promise by Alice Ozma
I loved this book so much! I think anyone who has had a reading relationship with either of their parents can appreciate this book. It was sweet and touching. A beautiful reading relationship between a Father and Daughter.
Synopsis:
When Alice Ozma was in 4th grade, she and her father decided to see if he could read aloud to her for 100 consecutive nights. On the hundreth night, they shared pancakes to celebrate, but it soon became evident that neither wanted to let go of their storytelling ritual. So they decided to continue what they called "The Streak." Alice's father read aloud to her every night without fail until the day she left for college.
Alice approaches her book as a series of vignettes about her relationship with her father and the life lessons learned from the books he read to her.
9. The End of Your Life Book Club by Will Schwalbe
This story was so beautiful! Inspirational! I loved this one. I also came away from this one with more books to add to my tbr.
Synopsis:
“What are you reading?”
That’s the question Will Schwalbe asks his mother, Mary Anne, as they sit in the waiting room of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. In 2007, Mary Anne returned from a humanitarian trip to Pakistan and Afghanistan suffering from what her doctors believed was a rare type of hepatitis. Months later she was diagnosed with a form of advanced pancreatic cancer, which is almost always fatal, often in six months or less.
This is the inspiring true story of a son and his mother, who start a “book club” that brings them together as her life comes to a close. Over the next two years, Will and Mary Anne carry on conversations that are both wide-ranging and deeply personal, prompted by an eclectic array of books and a shared passion for reading. Their list jumps from classic to popular, from poetry to mysteries, from fantastic to spiritual. The issues they discuss include questions of faith and courage as well as everyday topics such as expressing gratitude and learning to listen. Throughout, they are constantly reminded of the power of books to comfort us, astonish us, teach us, and tell us what we need to do with our lives and in the world. Reading isn’t the opposite of doing; it’s the opposite of dying.
Will and Mary Anne share their hopes and concerns with each other—and rediscover their lives—through their favorite books. When they read, they aren’t a sick person and a well person, but a mother and a son taking a journey together. The result is a profoundly moving tale of loss that is also a joyful, and often humorous, celebration of life: Will’s love letter to his mother, and theirs to the printed page.
10. The Sleepwalker's Guide to Dancing by Mira Jacob
This book was sent to me for review two years ago. It was her debut novel, and a wonderful one at that! I hope yo see more from her. Delightfully Wonderful! This debut novel was full of quirky, fun, loveable characters. Characters full of color and depth. The characters were brought to life and I felt as if I knew them. Very memorable characters that will be very hard for me to forget. It was never boring. I enjoyed reading every page from beginning to end. I absolutely adored this story!
Humor, Self-discovery, love, family, heartbreak, loss, adventure, culture, what didn't this book have? The story was beautifully woven!
This novel makes you stop and reflect on your own life.
Synopsis:
Spanning India in the 70s to New Mexico in the 80s to Seattle in the 90s, The Sleepwalker's Guide to Dancing is a winning, irreverent debut novel about a family wrestling with its future and its past.
When brain surgeon Thomas Eapen decides to cut short a visit to his mother's home in India in 1979, he sets into motion a series of events that will forever haunt him and his wife, Kamala; their intellectually precocious son, Akhil; and their watchful daughter, Amina. Now, twenty years later, in the heat of a New Mexican summer, Thomas has begun having bizarre conversations with his dead relatives and it's up to Amina-a photographer in the midst of her own career crisis-to figure out what is really going on. But getting to the truth is far harder than it seems. From Thomas's unwillingness to talk, to Kamala's Born Again convictions, to run-ins with a hospital staff that seems to know much more than they let on, Amina finds herself at the center of a mystery so thick with disasters that to make any headway at all, she has to unravel the family's painful past.
I hope you enjoyed my Must Read List. If you want any more suggestive reading I have plenty! I would love to hear your opinions on these books. Let me know if you have read any of them, or whether you plan to. Had so much fun, thanks for reading. :-)
--Michelle
Website |Facebook | Instagram
Thank you so much, Michelle! I have found several books to add to my TBR and I'm sure my readers have as well!
Everyone go show Michelle some love over at Bookaholic Banter!
No comments:
Post a Comment