The week for Top Ten Tuesday the ladies at The Broke and the Bookish have asked us to think about books we love that maybe get short shrift on the blog or in real life. Sometimes the right discussion to include these great reads just never comes up. This fate usually befalls books I read at least a year ago, or even before I started the blog. So today these neglected titles get to be in the spotlight! They all come with a high recommendation from me. Give them some love!
The Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich: I've read every single one of the Plum books and I'll keep on reading 'til the end, even though the books are sometimes painfully tired and recycled these days (which, really, is to be expected after 26 novels about the same handful of characters). But the first 13 or so books are awesome! If you need something light and fun and want the perfect mix of mystery, humor and romance, the Plum books are a must-read!
//
The All Souls trilogy by Deborah Harkness: Until the Red Rising books by Pierce Brown came along, Deborah Harkness's vampire/witch/magic/time travel trilogy had the honor of being my favorite. I was super-excited to hear last month that "A Discovery of Witches" is being turned into a TV show! ("A Discovery of Witches" review; "Shadow of Night" review)
My Life in France by Julia Child: Julia's autobiography -- half of the inspiration for the movie "Julie and Julia" -- is full of mouthwatering food and amazing descriptions of French life, plus the saga of cookbook writing and Julia and Paul's enduring relationship. (review)
//
Half Broke Horses by Jeanette Wall: In this fact-based novel, Jeanette enthralls readers with the life story of her fascinating grandmother, Lily. (review)
The Passage by Justin Cronin: Zombie-vampires run the apocalypse in this amazing page-turner that was my favorite book of 2013! (I still need to read book 2, though. Shame on me.) Incidentally, "The Passage" was my first e-book! (review)
//
Moloka'i by Alan Brennert: I read this gripping and heartbreaking novel about the leper exile colony on the small Hawaiian island of Moloka'i when we lived in Hawaii and we actually got to take a mule ride down the cliffs to visit Kalaupapa. The experience was enhanced infinitely because I read this book first. (review)
The Secret Keeper by Kate Morton: This was my first Kate Morton book and I absolutely adored it. Typical of Kate, it centers on long-buried secrets finally revealed, and it's a dual narrative split between present day and WWII England. (review)
//
Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons From the Crematory by Caitlin Doughty: This memoir -- about what on earth would possess a twentysomething girl to take a job in a crematory -- has continued to stick with me. It really opened my eyes about death practices in America, how much things have changed in the past 100 years, and how we're so very much more distanced from death than our ancestors. It also got me thinking about my own death and burial, and influenced me to decide I want some type of green burial -- an option I didn't even know existed before reading Caitlin's book. (review)
The Help by Kathryn Stockett: This was one of my pre-blog reads and it doesn't come up very often, but who didn't love "The Help"? What a great read, and an important one. (Plus I love Skeeter because she's a journalism grad like me!)
//
The River of No Return by Bee Ridgway: I'm desperately hoping for a sequel to this novel, which, as the cover proclaims, features romance and time travel to Georgian England. It's a totally under-recognized book and I urge any historical fiction fans to pick it up! (review)
Bookmarking this post! I am head into non-fiction reading right now , but I guess it's time to get back to good old fiction! Thank you for the reviews!
ReplyDeleteIf you want more non-fiction, you should check out "Smoke Gets in Your Eyes" from this list! It'll answer all your morbid curiosity questions, teach you a bit about the death industry and make you think.
DeleteI loved The Help too! I was all about the Stephanie Plum novels for a while. I made it through 20. I tried 21 and couldn't do it anymore lol. I did love them though. I will have to check out Half Broke Horses. I have been meaning to read a Kate Morton book. Soon hopefully! Great list!
ReplyDeleteYes, definitely check out Kate Morton! I read "The Lake House," her newest release, last year and thought it was pretty good, but definitely not as amazing as "The Secret Keeper." "The Forgotten Garden" is another really popular one of hers -- and I keep meaning to read it myself!
DeleteWonderful, wonderful post! I also read first 13 of the Steph Plum series and loved them. They just got a bit tired as you say, and I gave up on them.
ReplyDeleteI loved Discovery of Witches but wasn't as enthralled with book 2 and didn't finish it, but eventually will go back to it. I loved The Glass Castle but didn't get to Half Broke Horses yet. Loved The Passage, it's on my list today, and I forgot about The Help, I really liked that book and movie.
The River of No Return and Smoke Gets in Your Eyes going on my wishlist now. Thanks again!
I think other people struggled a bit with "Shadow of Night" too, but I remember loving it. I really enjoyed the time travel element! I can't wait to see how the trilogy translates to a TV show. I hope you like "River" and "Smoke"!
DeleteI read Glass Castles by Jeanette Walls back in high school, and I didn't know she had another memoir out! I need to go find it on Amazon now :)
ReplyDeleteMy TTT.
I haven't read "Glass Castles" but I saw it on several TTT lists. I'll have to make a point to read it!
DeleteI just love My Life in France! It's one of my favorites and I'm due for a reread. My husband and I both enjoyed The Passage and its sequel (The Twelve). We're looking forward to the third book coming out in May, I believe. And, of course, how can you not love The Help? It's such a good one! And, a rare case where I enjoy the movie as much as the book and find them equally delightful!
ReplyDeleteI still need to read "The Twelve"! It's been so long since I read the first book that I might need to read some reviews and blurbs to get a refresher! I was really surprised how much I liked "My Life in France." Other than watching "Julie and Julia," I hardly knew anything about Julia Child!
DeleteGreat list! Moloka'i is one of my all time favorite books!!!! It's absolutely fantastic. I also loved A Discovery of Witches!!
ReplyDeleteI have a Discovery of Witches sitting on my shelf! i just need to get around to reading it already!
ReplyDeleteGreat post!
Emily @ www.rabbitholereviews.com
I loved it -- and the whole trilogy! If you think it starts off slow, just push through. I had a slightly hard time getting into it, but ended up absolutely racing through once the story picked up.
DeleteMoloka'i made my list this week too. I have so much love for that book. I really enjoyed A Discovery of Witches too. One For the Money was so fun!
ReplyDeleteI would really like to read The Passage and The Help at some point.
Great list, Lindsay!
"The Passage" was awesome -- my favorite book of 2013! And yet... somehow I haven't gotten around to reading the sequel. Must do that soon, because the last look comes out this year!
DeleteMoloka'i was so wonderful! It's on my list too. He has another book called Honolulu, which I also loved a lot.
ReplyDeleteI read The Twelve when it came out, but it was so hard to remember The Passage by then (I still loved it though). I'm a little worried about City of Mirrors for the same reason. I'd like to think I'll re-read the first two before attempting the third, but that seems so unlikely because of everything else I want to read.
The All Souls Trilogy and The River of No Return - YES! And one of these days I want to read Kate Morton. Wonderful list - I'll check out a few of the others to see if I should add them to my TBR list, too.
ReplyDelete