It's time for Top Ten Tuesday and this weeks topic is:
I love looking back on the year so far at all the amazing books I have read. Some of my absolute favourites don't even make this list because they aren't 2016 releases. There have been some really wonderful 2016 releases, and so many more due to come out at the end of the year. Here are my favourite ten of the year so far.
Gemina by Jay Kristoff & Amie Kaufman
This book was so fucking good, I can't even describe it. I absolutely loved Illuminae, and I didn't see how they could top it or even come close. But they exceeded every single one of my expectations. I loved getting to know our new characters. I thought the action, suspense and twists and turns were all superb, I couldn't bring myself to put this book down. If you enjoyed the first book then you will LOVE Gemina, this is definitely my top read of the year and I am not sure how any other book could top it.
I will admit to being super nervous to read this book. When I first read ACOTAR, I had absolutely loved it and was really nervous that she would ruin it with this second book. I honestly had nothing to worry about, Maas has given me one of my top reads of the year, possible one of my favourite books of all time. I just loved everything about this book, from the character devlopment, to the action, to the romance. It was all so good! I especially loved that we had a young adult/new adult book that finally showed that controlling relationships aren't romantic! I am fed up of books where the guy gets to control everything the girl does and then say it is because they love her, and know what's best. Thank you, Maas, for not doing that! REVIEW
Morning Star by Pierce Brown
If I was nervous about reading A Court of Mist and Fury then I was basically shitting myself when it came to this book. I know what Pierce Brown is capable of, I wasn't going to give him the benefit of the doubt. I knew he could quite happily kill all his characters, probably laughing like a maniac as he does it. And I was petrified, these are characters I have come to love and I wanted my precious babies to make it out of this alive. Pierce Brown delivered a final book that was action-packed, shocking, heartbreaking, and also completely satisfying. I finished this book and wanted to hug it, it was that good! REVIEW
This one is so hard for me because it broke my heart into a million tiny pieces. It has been a few months and I am still not over it. Seriously, this book crushed all my feels, stomped on them and then set them on fire. But I still loved it. There was action, there was heartbreak, and there was also utterly adorable, squishy romance which gave me life. Overall I absolutely loved this, despite the mess of a human being it reduced me to. Seriously, after reading this I both loved and hated Sally Green. Ultimately, I felt this was a glorious end to the series and I felt Sally Green knew how she wanted this series to end, and didn't let fan opinion sway her. REVIEW
My Top 2016 Reads of the Year So Far
I love looking back on the year so far at all the amazing books I have read. Some of my absolute favourites don't even make this list because they aren't 2016 releases. There have been some really wonderful 2016 releases, and so many more due to come out at the end of the year. Here are my favourite ten of the year so far.
Gemina by Jay Kristoff & Amie Kaufman
This book was so fucking good, I can't even describe it. I absolutely loved Illuminae, and I didn't see how they could top it or even come close. But they exceeded every single one of my expectations. I loved getting to know our new characters. I thought the action, suspense and twists and turns were all superb, I couldn't bring myself to put this book down. If you enjoyed the first book then you will LOVE Gemina, this is definitely my top read of the year and I am not sure how any other book could top it.
I will admit to being super nervous to read this book. When I first read ACOTAR, I had absolutely loved it and was really nervous that she would ruin it with this second book. I honestly had nothing to worry about, Maas has given me one of my top reads of the year, possible one of my favourite books of all time. I just loved everything about this book, from the character devlopment, to the action, to the romance. It was all so good! I especially loved that we had a young adult/new adult book that finally showed that controlling relationships aren't romantic! I am fed up of books where the guy gets to control everything the girl does and then say it is because they love her, and know what's best. Thank you, Maas, for not doing that! REVIEW
My feelings towards Maas on finally seeing an abusive bastard being called out!
Morning Star by Pierce BrownIf I was nervous about reading A Court of Mist and Fury then I was basically shitting myself when it came to this book. I know what Pierce Brown is capable of, I wasn't going to give him the benefit of the doubt. I knew he could quite happily kill all his characters, probably laughing like a maniac as he does it. And I was petrified, these are characters I have come to love and I wanted my precious babies to make it out of this alive. Pierce Brown delivered a final book that was action-packed, shocking, heartbreaking, and also completely satisfying. I finished this book and wanted to hug it, it was that good! REVIEW
This one is so hard for me because it broke my heart into a million tiny pieces. It has been a few months and I am still not over it. Seriously, this book crushed all my feels, stomped on them and then set them on fire. But I still loved it. There was action, there was heartbreak, and there was also utterly adorable, squishy romance which gave me life. Overall I absolutely loved this, despite the mess of a human being it reduced me to. Seriously, after reading this I both loved and hated Sally Green. Ultimately, I felt this was a glorious end to the series and I felt Sally Green knew how she wanted this series to end, and didn't let fan opinion sway her. REVIEW
Whenever I even think about Half Lost:
I loved this book, although I have loved all of Lord's books so far and should have known she wouldn't let me down. This one is a contemporary, that deals with grief and mental illness. I felt it handled both of those beautifully. I think I also just really connected to this book because of my own experiences with both those things. I thought the characters were funny, but complex and that the topics were handled so well. I just loved this book so much, it was just one of those books I instantly connected to, one of those books that just seems to speak to you personally. Absolutely loved this! REVIEW
I didn't know what to expect from this book, I know I wasn't expecting to love it as much as I did. This book centers around five teenagers who return home, after going missing eleven years before. Six of them went missing, but only five of them return. And none of them can remember where they were or what happened to them. The mystery element to this just really sucked me in and I was interested to see where it was going, as I knew the explanation would not be simple. I think I loved this one so much because I just adored the writing so much. Tara Altebrando really knows how to grip her readers, and I will definitely be reading whatever she writes next.
This was such a brilliant end to the series! I love this series, mostly because I adore Arin and Kestrel as characters, and ship those too so hard. This book was one where I couldn't guess what was going to happen, I wasn't sure what to expect. I loved watching Kestrel and Arin having to fight. Kestrel isn't good with the physical element of fighting, she's a strategist and I love that side to her. This book was such a satisfying end to one of my favourite series.
Imperial Russia fascinates the crap out of me, and I completely blame that on the children's film Anastasia. Can we just take a moment to appreciate how amazing that movie is... Okay, moving on. This is set in an alternate Imperial Russia where there is magic... like that Anastasia film. I was sold straight away. I don't care what this is about, give it to me now!!!! And I wasn't disappointed. It wasn't a 5/5 read for me, or exactly what I was expecting, but I thoroughly enjoyed it. I loved the beautiful descriptions of Russia, and especially loved the mouthwatering descriptions of food. The ending is the kind that has you desperate for the next book, so I know this is a series I will continue.
I haven't quite hit ten, but that is because some of my top reads of this year aren't 2016 releases, so they don't get to be included on this list. But the above books are all ones I have read this year and loved.
What has been your top read of the year so far? Which book are you most anticipating this Autumn/Winter 2016?
