Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. They’d love to share their lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

All blurbs provided in this Top Ten are taken from Goodreads.com I have also marked all YA and MG fiction mentioned in this list, anything not marked with [YA] or [MG] should be considered aimed at “adults”.

This weeks Top Ten topic is:

Top Ten Tuesday Freebie (whatever topic you’d like)!

So for inspiration I’ve looked back at past Top Ten Tuesday topics I’ve not participated in and decided to pick:

Top Ten Books That I Am Dying To Read (That Are Already Published [in the UK], but I haven’t got a copy of yet)

1. Uncommon Criminals (Heist Society #2) by Ally Carter [YA]

Katarina Bishop has worn a lot of labels in her short life: Friend. Niece. Daughter. Thief. But for the last two months she’s simply been known as the girl who ran the crew that robbed the greatest museum in the world. That’s why Kat isn’t surprised when she’s asked to steal the infamous Cleopatra Emerald so it can be returned to its rightful owners. There are only three problems. First, the gem hasn’t been seen in public in thirty years. Second, since the fall of the Egyptian empire and the suicide of Cleopatra, no one who holds the emerald keeps it for long – and in Kat’s world, history almost always repeats itself. But it’s the third problem that makes Kat’s crew the most nervous, and that is…the emerald is cursed. Kat might be in way over her head, but she’s not going down without a fight. After all, she has her best friend — the gorgeous Hale – and the rest of her crew with her as they chase the Cleopatra around the globe, dodging curses and realizing that the same tricks and cons her family has used for centuries are useless for this heist. This time, Kat’s going to have to make up her own rules…

I really enjoyed the first book in this series, so I’m really looking forward to getting my hands on this. If the first book is anything to go by, this should be awesome!!

2. The Golden Lily (Bloodlines #2) by Richelle Mead [YA]

The second thrilling installment in Richelle Mead’s Vampire Academy spinoff series

Tough, brainy alchemist Sydney Sage and doe-eyed Moroi princess Jill Dragomir are in hiding at a human boarding school in the sunny, glamorous world of Palm Springs, California. The students–children of the wealthy and powerful–carry on with their lives in blissful ignorance, while Sydney, Jill, Eddie, and Adrian must do everything in their power to keep their secret safe. But with forbidden romances, unexpected spirit bonds, and the threat of Strigoi moving ever closer, hiding the truth is harder than anyone thought.

Populated with new faces as well as familiar ones, Richelle Mead’s breathtaking Bloodlines series explores all the friendship, romance, battles, and betrayals that made the #1 New York Times bestselling Vampire Academy series so addictive. In this second book, the drama is hotter, the romances are steamier, and the stakes are even higher.

Yeah, I’ve probably mentioned this book in the past on a Top Ten Tuesday or a Waiting on Wednesday but I haven’t managed to get hold of a copy. Yet. I will, because I adored Bloodlines to my utter surprise. Sydney is one of my favourite characters and I’m looking forward to meeting her in Mead’s Vampire Academy series.

3. Sins of the Angels (Grigori Legacy #1) by Linda Poitevin

When homicide detective Alexandra Jarvis is assigned a new partner in Aramael, a Guardian Angel who doubles as a hit man, they have only one thing in common: a fallen angel hell-bent on triggering the apocalypse. Now they have no choice but to work together-relentlessly, fearlessly, intimately. Because only they can stop the rogue angel from ushering in the end of days.

I have heard great things about this book, both from the author in a Twitter chat and from people who have already read this book. It sounds really interesting and like it has some great potential.

4. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins [YA]

Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris – until she meets Etienne St. Clair: perfect, Parisian (and English and American, which makes for a swoon-worthy accent), and utterly irresistible. The only problem is that he’s taken, and Anna might be, too, if anything comes of her almost-relationship back home. As winter melts into spring, will a year of romantic near – misses end with the French kiss Anna – and readers – have long awaited?

This is another book I have heard good things about, this time from other bloggers. I want to try a contemporary romance, but romance isn’t always my thing so I’m a little excited/nervous to get my hands on this.

5. Shooting Stars by Allison Rushby [YA]

Meet Josephine Foster, or Zo Jo as she’s called in the biz. The best pint-sized photographer of them all, Jo doesn’t mind doing what it takes to get that perfect shot, until she’s sent on an undercover assignment to shoot Ned Hartnett—teen superstar and the only celebrity who’s ever been kind to her—at an exclusive rehabilitation retreat in Boston. The money will be enough to pay for Jo’s dream: real photography classes, and maybe even quitting her paparazzi gig for good. Everyone wants to know what Ned’s in for. But Jo certainly doesn’t know what she’s in for: falling in love with Ned was never supposed to be part of her assignment.

This just sounds super fun to me, and a little different too. I also really like the cover – it looks like lots of fun!

6. Tiger’s Curse (The Tiger Saga #1) by Colleen Houck [YA]

Passion. Fate. Loyalty.

Would you risk it all to change your destiny?

The last thing Kelsey Hayes thought she’d be doing this summer was trying to break a 300-year-old Indian curse. With a mysterious white tiger named Ren. Halfway around the world. But that’s exactly what happened. Face-to-face with dark forces, spellbinding magic, and mystical worlds where nothing is what it seems, Kelsey risks everything to piece together an ancient prophecy that could break the curse forever.

Tiger’s Curse is the exciting first volume in an epic fantasy-romance that will leave you breathless and yearning for more.

I found about this book/series because of the lovely Jenna @ Making the Grade. She is absolutely passionate about this series, and hearing her talk about it on numerous vlogs and blog posts made me decide to check it out. I am really looking forward to getting my hands on this, as it sounds like it will be super awesome!

7. Deadlocked (Southern Vampire Mysteries #12) by Charlaine Harris

With Felipe de Castro, the Vampire King of Louisiana (and Arkansas and Nevada), in town, it’s the worst possible time for a body to show up in Eric Northman’s front yard—especially the body of a woman whose blood he just drank.

Now, it’s up to Sookie and Bill, the official Area Five investigator, to solve the murder. Sookie thinks that, at least this time, the dead girl’s fate has nothing to do with her. But she is wrong. She has an enemy, one far more devious than she would ever suspect, who’s out to make Sookie’s world come crashing down.

I really enjoy reading the Southern Vampire Mysteries. There’s just something about Sookie that keeps me coming back for more.

8. Pretty Crooked (Pretty Crooked#1) by Elisa Ludwig [YA]

Willa’s secret plan seems all too simple: take from the rich kids at Valley Prep and give to the poor ones.

Yet Willa’s turn as Robin Hood at her ultra-exclusive high school is anything but. Bilking her “friends”-known to everyone as the Glitterati-without them suspecting a thing, is far from easy. Learning how to pick pockets and break into lockers is as difficult as she’d thought it’d be. Delivering care packages to the scholarship girls, who are ostracized just for being from the “wrong” side of town, is way more fun than she’d expected.

The complication Willa didn’t expect, though, is Aidan Murphy, Valley Prep’s most notorious (and gorgeous) ace-degenerate. His mere existence is distracting Willa from what matters most to her-evening the social playing field between the have and have-nots. There’s no time for crushes and flirting with boys, especially conceited and obnoxious trust-funders like Aidan.

But when the cops start investigating the string of burglaries at Valley Prep and the Glitterati begin to seek revenge, could he wind up being the person that Willa trusts most?

I love the idea of a “female Robin Hood” figure.

9. The Hero’s Guide to Saving Your Kingdom by Christopher Healy, Illustrated by Tod Harris [MG]

Prince Liam. Prince Frederic. Prince Duncan. Prince Gustav. You’ve never heard of them, have you? These are the princes who saved Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella, Snow White, and Rapunzel, respectively, and yet, thanks to those lousy bards who wrote the tales, you likely know them only as Prince Charming. But all of this is about to change. Rejected by their princesses and cast out of their castles, Liam, Frederic, Duncan, and Gustav stumble upon an evil plot that could endanger each of their kingdoms. Now it’s up to them to triumph over their various shortcomings, take on trolls, bandits, dragons, witches, and other assorted terrors, and become the heroes no one ever thought they could be.

Debut author Christopher Healy takes us on a journey with four imperfect princes and their four improbable princesses, all of whom are trying to become perfect heroes–a fast-paced, funny, and fresh introduction to a world where everything, even our classic fairy tales, is not at all what it seems.

I heard about this book thanks to the wonderful Misty @ The Book Rat. I saw it first on one of her many vlogs, and then she featured it and Christopher Healy during Fairy Tale Fortnight. How could I NOT want to read this book?! I’m hoping I will be able to get my hands on it real soon!

10. Shadow Bound (Unbound #2) by Rachel Vincent

If you live in the dark long enough, you begin to forget the light… 

Kori Daniels is a shadow-walker, able to travel instantly from one shadow to another. After weeks of confinement for betraying her boss, she’s ready to break free of the Tower syndicate for good. But Jake Tower has one final job for Kori, one chance to secure freedom for herself and her sister, Kenley, even if it means taking it from someone else…. 

The job? Recruit Ian Holt-or kill him. 

Ian’s ability to manipulate the dark has drawn interest from every syndicate in the world, most notably an invitation from Jake Tower. Though he has no interest in organized crime, Ian accepts the invite, because he’s on a mission of his own. Ian has come to kill Tower’s top Binder: Kori’s little sister.

 Amid the tangle of lies, an unexpected thread of truth connecting Ian and Kori comes to light. But with opposing goals, they’ll have to choose between love and liberty….

I am a HUGE fan of Rachel Vincent, and I loved the first book in this series so of course I’m looking forward to picking up the second. The only reason I haven’t done so, is I haven’t done any book buying since May 😦 This will definitely be in my basket when I do get around to book buying!

So, that was my Top Ten Books That I Am Dying To Read. Do you have any thoughts? What is your Top Ten pick this week? Please leave a comment below and I will have a look at your Top Ten and, of course, comment back.

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. They’d love to share their lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

This weeks Top Ten topic is:

Top Ten Books On My Summer TBR List

The list is going to be in no particular order, and the books I’m putting in this list are books which are published or going to be published between Friday 1st June 2012 and Friday 31st August 2012.

1. Shadow Bound (Unbound Series #2) by Rachel Vincent [Published: 1st June 2012]

I am really looking forward to getting my hands on this. I’ve heard some good things . . .

2. The Golden Lily (Bloodlines #2) by Richelle Mead [Published: 19th June 2012] (YA)

I adored the first book in this series and I have been really looking forward to getting my hands on this. I’m hoping it lives up to expectations, as I haven’t really heard much about it (mostly by choice).

3. Team Human by Justine Larbalestier and Sarah Rees Brennan [Published: 3rd July 2012] (YA)

I’ve heard some mixed things about this book, but I’m hopeful it will be a good read.

4. Before I Wake (Soul Screamers #6) by Rachel Vincent [Published: 6th July 2012] (YA)

I’m really enjoying this series – I’m only up to book 3 – and I can’t wait until I catch up so I can read this in July. It sounds really interesting.

5. Thirteen (Women of the Otherworld #13) by Kelley Armstrong [Published: 24th July 2012]

I am so sad that this is going to be the last book in the series 😦 I can totally understand why Armstrong is ending it here, but I really adore the characters in  Women of the Otherworld. Still, there are the YA book . . .

6. Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas [Published: 24th July 2012] (YA)

I think this sounds like it could be a really interesting book, and I’ve heard some good reviews. Can’t wait to find out for myself though.

7. Biting Cold (A Chicagoland Vampire Novel #6) by Chloe Neill [Published: 9th August 2012]

This is one of my favourite vampire series at the moment, and I cannot wait to see how this book turns out 🙂

8. The Cavendish Home For Boys and Girls by Claire Legrand [Published: 28th August 2012] (YA)

Don’t you just love the cover?! Or maybe that’s just me . . .

9. Starling (Starling #1) by Lesley Livingston [Published: 28th August 2012] (YA)

This I think sounds interesting. I can’t wait to see how Livingston handles the Norse Gods – it should be really interesting, me thinks.

10. Unspoken (The Lynburn Legacy #1) by Sarah Rees Brennan [Published: 30th August 2012] (YA)

I am a HUGE fan of Sarah Rees Brennan’s The Demon’s Lexicon, so I am really looking forward to getting my hands on this series. The blurb sounds really interesting and the cover looks amazing. Hopefully it will be good.

So, those are my top ten summer to be read books – what are yours?

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. They’d love to share their lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

This weeks Top Ten topic is:

Top Ten FIVE Books Written In The Past 10 Years That I Hope People Are Still Reading In 30 Years

Women of the Otherworld series by Kelley Armstrong

Okay. . .  so this is a bit of a cheat, but I really love this series. Seriously, I do – you just need to look at my challenge entries to tell that. This has so many wonderful characters, and I love the world that honestly I would be a little heart-broken if people forgot it.

The Curse Workers trilogy by Holly Black

This too is a bit of cheat, but if you read one book of this trilogy you’ll find yourself reading them all. I’m hoping that this will still be around in 30 years because Holly Black has created such a wonderful world. The characters are brilliant. And the humour in the narrative just makes me smile.

The Demon’s Lexicon trilogy by Sarah Rees Brennan

Anyone starting to sense a theme?

But seriously, this is an awesome trilogy. It made me LOL – seriously! If you’ve not tried this trilogy then you should. Each book is narrated from a different POV, but that’s part of what makes it so awesome. Also I think everyone should meet Nick, well not meet him meet him but you know get to know him through the pages – I think meeting him in real life might be a little scary.

Abandon trilogy by Meg Cabot

I’m going to make a confession here – I’ve only read the first book, but I’m sure the next two will be just as awesome if Meg Cabot’s other series are anything to go by. I REALLY enjoyed this book and its take on the Persephone myth. It would be really cool to see it in 30 years time and to read some of the critical thinking on it – okay so I’m an English Lit nerd 😛

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein and Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys

I’ve linked these two together because they are both about war, in particular WWII. I’m a HUGE proponent of George Santayana’s two most famous sayings:

Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.
–  Reason in Common Sense (1905), volume 1 of The Life of Reason

[O]nly the dead have seen the end of war.
– Soliloquies in England and Later Soliloquies (1922), number 25

I would like these books – or at least other books about this subject – to exist in 30 years time. I think they need to exist in 30 years time because if we can destroy the world now what on Earth will we be able to do 30 years in the future?!

Apart from this, I think these books deserve to be remembered in 30 years time because they are heartbreakingly beautiful.

—

I know this is supposed to be a Top Ten list, but I can only think of 5. I hope you enjoyed it, and I’d love to hear which books you think will still be around in 30 years.

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. They’d love to share their lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

This weeks Top Ten topic is a free one (I am choosing to ignore the reality TV options as I don’t watch any reality TV), so I’m going to pick:

Top Ten Books to Take With You to a Desert Island

I’m also going to change it up a little. Coincidentally Misty from The Book Rat is holding a Book Chat where the topic is Desert Island Books (for more details click here). So I’m going to do both this week – 10 books total, but 5 of them are going to be used towards Misty’s challenge. I’m also going to cheat a little bit and assume that I can get complete series in one book.

1. A book I’ve read before but want to re-read.

Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

I always enjoy re-reading Pride and Prejudice. It’s like as soon as I start reading it, I forget what’s going to happen next because I become so engrossed in the story.

2. A book I’ve never read but have always meant to read.

The Annotated Brothers Grimm

I have always enjoyed reading fairy tales, and fairy tale re-tellings so I should probably at some point get around to reading the Brothers Grimm.

3. A childhood favourite.

Fleabag and the Ring Fire by Beth Webb

I have always enjoyed reading this. There is just something about Fleabag . . . My copy’s a little well-worn.

4. A favourite series.

The Song of the Lioness Quartet by Tamora Pierce

This has one of my favourite heroines in it. Although truth be told, I would quite like to take all of Pierce’s Tortall books in one volume with me to this desert island but that really would be cheating. Still, it’s nice to dream 😉

5. A book that has been recommended a lot but I haven’t read it yet.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

I have heard great things about this series, and the first book is currently in my TBR pile. I really enjoyed watching the film, so I would quite like to read this book. It sounds like it should be interesting.

6. The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien

How could I not take a nice thick book like this to a desert island with me? It’s a book to become absorbed in. Okay it can be a bit boring at times, but Tolkien is awesome at descriptions and the poems and riddles within the book are brilliant.

7. The Chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis

This is one of my favourite series from childhood, and I adore re-reading it. I just get absorbed in the world. I also like the simplicity of the world – it’s kinda nice to only have black or white, and not complex shades of grey. Besides, this book will probably remind me of home so it will probably be a really good idea to bring it with me, or a really bad one.

8. The Belgariad by David Eddings

There’s just something about David Edding’s writing that I adore reading. Yes, if you’ve read one series you’ll have a pretty good idea what happens in the other ones, but . . . But he has created some of the most brilliant characters, and I really enjoy reading about them. I had a hard time choosing between this and The Redemption of Althalus which Eddings wrote with this wife. However, there are six books – plus a couple of extras – in this series so it should keep me entertained on the desert island.

9. Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter by Laurell K. Hamilton

This is a LONG series and it’s an incomplete one – so could I get a self-updating edition of the book, so I can keep up to date? K, thanks. Now that that’s sorted . . . There are times when this series really frustrates me, but somehow I’ve fallen in love with Anita and her world. And with the fact that Hamilton generally writes one book a year for the series, I don’t think I would run out of anything new to read for a while so it would be great on a desert island.

10.  Women of the Otherworld by Kelley Armstrong

I adore this series, and quite honestly I can’t imagine not being able to re-read it. As long as the thirteenth and final book is included in my edition before I am cast away then I will be a very happy girl indeed.

Honourable mentions (those books I’d try to sneak with me): The Curse Workers by Holly Black, The Demon’s Lexicon Trilogy by Sarah Rees Brennan, The Hollows by Kim Harrison, Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs, and Bloodlines by Richelle Mead.

So, there are the top ten books I’d take with me to a desert island – though honestly, if I knew I was going to be stranded on one unless I could have a computer with internet access and shelter and food provided indefinitely I would be running for the hills.

What did you choose to do your top ten on this week? Leave a comment and a link and I will check them out.

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. They’d love to share their lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

This weeks Top Ten topic is:

Top Ten Favorite Quotes From Books

Because I don’t really think about quotes in books I particularly love, I am going to tweak the topic a little bit and instead do:

Ten Quotes From Books I Love

The quotes are given in no particular order. I’ve tried to make sure that none of the quotes constitute as spoilers, so even if you haven’t read any of the books all my quotes should* be safe to read.

*I hedge, because life doesn’t come with guarantees, but I’ve tried hard not to include spoilers.

‘I like the cover,’ he said. ‘Don’t Panic. It’s the first helpful or intelligible thing anybody’s said to me all day.’

– Douglas Adams, The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy: A Trilogy in Five Parts (William Heinemann, 1995), p. 47.

I’ve watched the film, read all five books (I think) and heard the BBC radio play (well, some of it). I think this is a brilliantly funny series. There’s nothing quite like it.

Sabriel followed Mogget’s instructions, then watched with resigned condescension that rapidly changed to surprise as the cat crouched by the square of paper, his strange shadow falling on it like a dark cloak thrown across sand, pink tongue out in concentration. Moggest seemed to think for a moment, then one  bright ivory claw shot out from a white pad – he delicately inked the claw in the inkwell and began to draw.

– Garth Nix, Sabriel (Collins, 2003), p. 121.

Mogget is an awesome secondary character. I like his cunning and cleverness and wit.

She began to walk forward, crunch-crunch over the snow and through the wood towards the other light. In about ten minutes she reached it and found it was a lamp-post. As she stood looking at it, wondering why there was a lamp-post in the middle of a wood [. . .]

– C. S. Lewis, The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (Collins, 1980), pp. 13-14.

I fell in love with this series as a child, and I still have a soft spot for it. I know a lot of people don’t like it because of the ‘obvious’ Christianity in it, but to be honest it’s never bothered me. And I think Lewis expresses some interesting ideas within the chronicles.

All of it sometimes seemed to be happening to someone else, someone she was still getting to know. Never in a million years would she have considered the idea that a sleepy beach town somewhere in the South would have been filled with so much more . . .

– Nicholas Sparks, The Last Song (Sphere, 2010), p. 294.

I saw the film before I ever read the book, and I just fell in love. There were certain scenes in the narrative that I related to, and I like going back and re-reading it. I also like the idea that the film existed before the book.

Life at The Burrow was as different as possible from life in Privet Drive. The Dursleys liked everything neat and ordered; the Weasley’s house burst with the strange and unexpected.

– J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Bloomsbury, 1998), p. 37.

What sort of list would this be if I didn’t include a Harry Potter book, in some form. There’s just something about the Boy Wizard that really appeals me to me in the early books – not so much in the later ones. Harry gets to visit (and eventually live) in a world as a child I would have liked to have inhabited – I’d like to stop in for a visit even now. I like the contrast between Harry’s two ‘families’, and also his two worlds that this quote highlights.

He raised an eyebrow. “Do you plan on joining the Players, then?” he asked mildly. “Take up dancing, or some such thing?”

Aly dropped her pretence and removed her veil, the embroidered cloth band that held it in place, and her wimple. Her hair, once revealed, was not its normal shade of reddish blonde, but a deep, pure sapphire hue.

George looked at her. His mouth twitched.

“I know,” she said, shamefaced. “Forest green and blue go ill together.”

– Tamora Pierce, Trickster’s Choice (Scholastic Children’s books, 2003), p. 5.

I had to include Tamora Pierce’s work in this list. She creates such vivid worlds, and brilliant characters.

The forest was hidden under a fog. It was like looking down to a sloping cloud-roof from above. There was a fold or channel where the mist was broken into many plumes and billows; the valley of Withywindle. The stream ran down the hill on the left and vanished into the white shadows.

– J. R. R. Tolkien, The Lord of the Rings (HarperCollins, 1995), p. 126.

Tolkien’s use of language is, at times, utterly brilliant. So, I had to include a passage from his book in this meme. The trouble was, most of my favourite scenes are somewhat spoiler-ish, so I couldn’t include them. However, I think this exerpt gives a little taste.

“We have a serious problem,” Mae told him, now looking angry rather than appreciative.

Nick came in, idly swinging his sword, and took a seat on the other end of the sofa. “I’m sorry to hear that,” he said. “And I’m still hungry.”

“I’m sorry about him,” Alan put in, glaring. “He get’s cranky.”

Nick raised his eyebrows. “I’m only cranky when I’m not fed.”

– Sarah Rees Brennan, The Demon’s Lexicon (Simon and Schuster, 2009), p. 18.

Sarah Rees Brennan writes some of the funniest lines, and I like how she writes her characters. I’m sad that this series is finished, but looking forward to starting her next one.

On the way to the car, Phillip turns to me. “How could you be so stupid?”

I shrug, stung in spite of myself. “I thought I grew out of it.”

Philip pulls out his key fob and presses the remote to unlock his Mercedes. I slide into the passenger side, brushing coffee cups off the seat and onto the floor mat, where crumpled printouts from MapQuest soak up any spilled liquid.

“I hope you mean sleepwalking,” Philip says, “since you obviously didn’t grow out of stupid.”

– Holly Black, White Cat (Gollancz, 2011), p. 31.

Reading Holly Black makes me smile. I also like the way she looks a the world. I particularly love her world in The Curse Workers.

It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.

– Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice (Oxford University Press, 2004), p. 1.

How could I not include this opening line?

So, that was my Ten Quotes From Books I Love. What are yours?

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. They’d love to share their lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

This weeks Top Ten topic is:

Top Ten All Time Favorite Characters In Books

This is actually quite a broad topic. I’m tempted to specify – maybe top ten all time favourite characters in YA books – but in some ways it would be too easy. So, here are my top ten all time favourite characters in books listed in no particular order.

* Alanna the Lioness & Faithful from the Song of the Lioness quartet by Tamora Pierce (YA)

As I mentioned in last week’s TTT, Alanna is one of my top five kick-ass female heroes. She absolutely rocks. I particularly love her interaction with her cat Faithful. Faithful is quite a funny character, and he usually ends up making me smile.
* Cassel Sharpe from the Curse Worker Trilogy by Holly Black (YA)

Cassel also made it onto last week’s TTT, and he’s on this weeks for pretty similar reasons. There is just something that is infinitely likeable about Cassel. I haven’t managed to read Black Heart yet, so I’ve still got my fingers crossed for him.
* Puck from A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare

What can I say about Puck?! He is probably my absolute favourite character ever. I love reading about Trickster characters, and Puck is definitely a Trickster.
* Elena Michaels from Women of the Otherworld series by Kelley Armstrong

Elena rocks. She is kick-ass and fights for what she believes in (and she was also on my TTT last week). She is one of my favourite characters because she is so strong, she never gives up.
* Katy Carr from the Carr Family series by Susan Coolidge (YA/MG)

Katy is the kind of character I really enjoy reading about. She’s got a very strong personality and she puts on a front, but underneath that there is a heart of gold. She cares very deeply for her family, and I really enjoy reading her journey.
* Nick Ryves from The Demon’s Lexicon Trilogy by Sarah Rees Brennan (YA)

Nick . . . what can I say about Nick? There is just something about Nick that really appeals to me. He’s really difficult to describe, and in him I think Sarah Rees Brennan has created an absolutely brilliant character. There’s no-one quite like him, which all things considered is probably a good thing.
* Julian from The Forbidden Game Trilogy by L. J. Smith (YA)

I think Julian was one of my first literary crushes.  I still think he’s brilliant. Julian is the perfect mix of bad boy and love interest. L. J. Smith writes these types of characters quite well, you just have to look at Damon from Vampire Diaries and Nick from The Secret Circle, but with Julian in The Forbidden Game I think she excels.
* Fleabag from The Fleabag Trilogy by Beth Web (YA/MG)

I have a thing from Fleabag because he is a talking cat. I think Beth Webb has managed to capture the qualities of a cat quite well, and I love hearing Fleabag’s thoughts – he’s not always easy to get along with. Then there’s the air of secrecy that hangs around him – there is definitely more to Fleabag than there seems.
* Mercy Thompson from the Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs

There’s no character quite like Mercy. I love the way she doesn’t quite fit in with the typical female lead in an Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Romance – she’s a car mechanic, and she turns into a coyote. What is not awesome about that?! She keeps all the other characters on their toes – my kind of girl 😉
* Merry Gentry from Meredith Gentry series by Laurell K. Hamilton

From the moment I read the first page of the first book in the series I knew that Merry Gentry would be one of the characters that would stay with me. There’s just something about Merry. She wants to do what is best for everyone, and yet at the same time she can be incredibly selfish. I like the dichotomy of her.

 

So that was my list, what are your top ten all time favourite characters?

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. They’d love to share their lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

This weeks Top Ten topic is:

Top Ten Tips For New Book Bloggers

I still consider myself a bit of a newbie in book blogger terms – this blog has only just had it’s one year birthday – so I don’t really feel I can (or should) answer the question. So instead, I am going to do:

Top Five Female Heroes

5. Raksha Keller from Witchlight (Night World #9) by L. J. Smith (YA)

Raksha is one of my top five female heroes because she is totally kick-ass. She is a very strong female lead, and knows her duty – and is prepared to do her duty at all costs. She is also very brave. I really enjoyed reading about her in Witchlight and am looking forward to seeing if she’ll appear in Strange Fate (whenever it is published).

4. Rose Hathaway from Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead (YA)

I’ve only read Vampire Academy so far, but I’m really loving Rose as a character. She’s really strong. She’s someone who lives in the now. She’s brave and I think totally awesome. I also like that she has a strong sense of duty. I’m looking forward to reading more about her 🙂

3. Elena Michaels from Women of the Otherworld series by Kelley Armstrong

Elena rocks. She does, trust me. She’s a very strong and caring character. She knows what she wants. She is also very loyal – she’ll do just about anything for those she loves. She’s also quite fun and she doesn’t let anyone boss her around. She has brute strength but she also uses her brains, and I like that. I also love her banter with Clay, but that’s for a totally different list 😉

2. Anita Blake from Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter by Laurell K. Hamilton

Anita Blake is kick-ass. She’s powerful and she can shoot, so who seriously would want to mess with her?! She’s also very moral, and dislikes hurting those weaker than her. She can’t stand bullies. She may doubt herself from time to time, but when the bullets start firing or the magic starts she’s there trying to solve the problem. I really admire that about her.

1.  Alanna the Lioness from The Song of the Lioness quartet by Tamora Pierce (YA)

Alanna has to be my number one female hero. Her quartet was the first series I can remember reading that had an awesome kick-ass female lead, that could stand up to AND beat her male contemporaries. The girl has backbone – she trains to become a knight when only men can become knights. She knows her duty and is very loyal. She is good with a sword and with sorcery. What more could you want from a female hero – she can protect the people she loves.

Top Five Male Heroes

5. Althalus from The Redemption of Althalus by David and Leigh Eddings

I have a soft spot for characters that don’t really fit the typical hero characteristics, and Althalus is definitely one of those characters. He’s a professional thief, about as far away from a typical hero as you can get. Yet Althalus is very definitely a hero. He just uses his cunning rather than a sword to win his fights.

4. Cassel Sharpe from The Curse Worker Trilogy by Holly Black (YA)

In many ways Cassel is almost an anti-hero, but he is very definitely a hero – he can’t help doing the right thing. Cassel cares about people, particularly those closest to him. Yet Cassel is very much a con artist – he likes skirting the letter of the law. So why have I included him in a list of heroes? Because when it comes down to it, when all the cards are down, there is a definite moral streak in him. He does what’s right, even if it costs him. And I admire that.

3. Wizard Howl from Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones (YA)

Howl isn’t what most would consider a typical hero. He can appear selfish, self-absorbed, cavalier and dishonest. But there’s more to him than there appears. There’s something very likeable about him, and I think heroes should be likeable.

2. Harry Potter from Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling (YA)

How could I have a list of male heroes and not include the Boy Who Lived?! The answer is, I could not. Harry is definitely a hero. He’s brave and he doesn’t give up. He relies on his friends and is very loyal. He tries to see the best in people (though not all the time, and not with every person). He doesn’t see himself as special – but he is.

1. Aragorn son of Arathorn from The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien

Aragorn has to be my number one male hero. He knows and does his duty, even when it costs him. He is very loyal to those he trusts. He doesn’t give up. He’s brilliant with a sword and he knows how to look after himself. I wouldn’t want to meet him across a battlefield.

What are your tips for new bloggers? Who are your top ten heroes? Please comment below with either your list of a link, as I would love to hear your thoughts.

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. They’d love to share their lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

This weeks Top Ten topic is:

Top Ten Books To Read In A Day

The books in the list are in no particular order, and all blurbs are taken from Goodreads.com

Bitten (Women of the Otherworld #1) by Kelley Armstrong

Elena Michaels seems like the typically strong and sexy modern woman, She lives with her architect boyfriend, writes for a popular newspaper, and works out at the gym. She’s also a werewolf.

Elena has done all she can to assimilate to the human world, but the man whose bite changed her existence forever, and his legacy, continue to haunt her. Thrown into a desperate war for survival that tests her allegiance to a secret clan of werewolves, Elena must recon with who, and what, she is in this passionate, page-turning novel.

When I first read this book I devoured it in a day, and I have done the same ever since. I just cannot put this down until I’ve finished – I have to know what happens next.

Howl’s Moving Castle (Castle #1) by Diana Wynne-Jones

In the land of Ingary, where seven-league boots and cloaks of invisibility do exist, Sophie Hatter attracts the unwelcome attention of the Witch of the Waste and is put under a curse. Determined to make the best of things, Sophie travels to one place where she might get help — the moving castle which hovers on the hills above Market Chipping.

But the castle belongs to the dreaded Wizard Howl whose appetite, they say, is satisfied only by the hearts of young girls…

I adore this book. I saw the film first and loved it, but the book is just awesome. There’s just so much going on and with just over three hundred pages I just cannot stop myself reading this.

Trickster’s Choice (Daughter of the Lioness #1) by Tamora Pierce

Alianne has an oppressive heritage. She is the daughter of Alanna, Lady Knight and King’s Champion – the foremost warrior of Tortall. After a stormy argument with her mother, Aly runs away, but she gets more than she bargains for when she is kidnapped by pirates and sold as a slave in the Copper Isles.

I’m a HUGE fan of Pierce’s work, and I find it difficult to make any of her books last more than a day. But this particular book – the whole duology in fact – is just so interesting, and I love the characters that I cannot put it down.

Ironside: A Modern Faery’s Tale (The Modern Faerie Tales #3) by Holly Black

In the realm of Faerie, the time has come for Roiben’s coronation. Uneasy in the midst of the malevolent Unseelie Court, pixie Kaye is sure of only one thing — her love for Roiben. But when Kaye, drunk on faerie wine, declares herself to Roiben, he sends her on a seemingly impossible quest. Now Kaye can’t see or speak to Roiben unless she can find the one thing she knows doesn’t exist: a faerie who can tell a lie.

Miserable and convinced she belongs nowhere, Kaye decides to tell her mother the truth — that she is a changeling left in place of the human daughter stolen long ago. Her mother’s shock and horror sends Kaye back to the world of Faerie to find her human counterpart and return her to Ironside. But once back in the faerie courts, Kaye finds herself a pawn in the games of Silarial, queen of the Seelie Court. Silarial wants Roiben’s throne, and she will use Kaye, and any means necessary, to get it. In this game of wits and weapons, can a pixie outplay a queen?

Holly Black spins a seductive tale at once achingly real and chillingly enchanted, set in a dangerous world where pleasure mingles with pain and nothing is exactly as it appears.

This is an amazing world. The characters are brilliant. This is my favourite book in the series (though I’ve not read the first one – oops!)

Dead Until Dark (Sookie Stackhouse #1) by Charlaine Harris

Sookie Stackhouse is a cocktail waitress in small-town Louisiana, but she keeps to herself and doesn’t date much because of her “disability” to read minds. When she meets Bill, Sookie can’t hear a word he’s thinking. He’s the type of guy she’s waited for all of her life, but he has a disability, too–he’s a vampire with a bad reputation. When one of Sookie’s coworkers is killed, she fears she’s next.

These books are a lot of fun. They’re easy to read. The plot leaves you wanting to know what happens next. And, I think Sookie has a unique and interesting way of looking at the world.

What Katy Did (Carr Family #1) by Susan M. Coolidge

Gangly, quick-tempered Katy always means to be beautiful, beloved, and as good as an angel one day, but somehow her resolutions get forgotten or go horribly wrong. When an accidental fall from a swing seems to threaten her hopes for the future, Katy struggles to overcome her difficulties with the vitality and good humor she admires in her cousin Helen.

One of my favourite books from my childhood. I never did get to complete the series, but I really enjoyed (and still do) reading the first three books in the series. I ALWAYS want to know what happens to Katy, so I can never walk away from the book and have to finish it in a day as I can’t stand waiting.

Everything and the Moon (The Lyndon Sisters #1) by Julia Quinn

It was indisputably love at first sight. But Victoria Lyndon was merely the teenaged daughter of a vicar. . .while Robert Kemble was the dashing young earl of Macclesfield. Surely what their meddlesome fathers insisted must have been true, that he was a reckless seducer determined to destroy her innocence. . . and she was a shameless fortune hunter. So it most certainly was for the best when their plans to elope went hopelessly awry.

Even after a seven-year separation, Victoria–now a governess–still leaves Robert breathless. But how could he ever again trust the raven-haired deceiver who had shattered his soul? And Victoria could never give her heart a second time to the cad who so callously trampled on it the first. But a passion fated will not be denied, and vows of love yearn to be kept. . . even when one promises the moon.

This is definitely a book to sit and read in a day. I don’t think there’s any other way to read it (at least for me). It is VERY entertaining, although not very accurate (in my opinion). It is a very fun read.

Sabriel (Abhorsen #1) by Garth Nix

Sent to a boarding school in Ancelstierre as a young child, Sabriel has had little experience with the random power of Free Magic or the Dead who refuse to stay dead in the Old Kingdom. But during her final semester, her father, the Abhorsen, goes missing, and Sabriel knows she must enter the Old Kingdom to find him. She soon finds companions in Mogget, a cat whose aloof manner barely conceals its malevolent spirit, and Touchstone, a young Charter Mage long imprisoned by magic, now free in body but still trapped by painful memories. As the three travel deep into the Old Kingdom, threats mount on all sides. And every step brings them closer to a battle that will pit them against the true forces of life and death — and bring Sabriel face-to-face with her own hidden destiny.

With “Sabriel,” the first installment in the Abhorsen trilogy, Garth Nix exploded onto the fantasy scene as a rising star, in a novel that takes readers to a world where the line between the living and the dead isn’t always clear — and sometimes disappears altogether.

There is just so much going on in this book, that every time I read it I find myself unwilling to put it down.

Stardust by Neil Gaiman

Stardust is an utterly charming fairy tale in the tradition of The Princess Bride and The Neverending Story. Neil Gaiman, creator of the darkly elegant Sandman comics and author of The Day I Swapped My Dad for Two Goldfish, tells the story of young Tristran Thorn and his adventures in the land of Faerie. One fateful night, Tristran promises his beloved that he will retrieve a fallen star for her from beyond the Wall that stands between their rural English town (called, appropriately, Wall) and the Faerie realm. No one ever ventures beyond the Wall except to attend an enchanted flea market that is held every nine years (and during which, unbeknownst to him, Tristran was conceived). But Tristran bravely sets out to fetch the fallen star and thus win the hand of his love.

Another fun and easy read. It’s a little darker than the film, but shows Gaiman at his best.

Blue Bloods (Blue Bloods #1) by Melissa de la Cruz

Schuyler Van Alen is confused about what is happening to her. Her veins are starting to turn blue, and she’s starting to crave raw meat. Soon, her world is thrust into an intricate maze of secret societies and bitter intrigue. Schuyler has never been a part of the trendy crowd at her prestigious New York private school. Now, all of a sudden, Jack Force, the most popular guy in school, is showing an interest in her. And when one of the popular girls is found dead, Schuyler and Jack are determined to get to the bottom of it.

Schuyler wants to find out the secrets of the mysterious Blue Bloods. But is she putting herself in danger? Melissa de la Cruz’s vampire mythology, set against the glitzy backdrop of New York City, is a juicy and intoxicating read.

I think Schuyler is a brilliant character. The world shown is very different from mine, and I love taking a peek into it. There’s just so much going on that I can’t stop reading until I’ve reached the end of the book.

So that’s my top ten, what are your Top Ten Books To Read In A Day?

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists at The Broke and the Bookish. They’d love to share their lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

This weeks Top Ten topic is:

Spring Fever: Top Ten Books I’d Play Hooky With

These books are in no particular order and all the blurbs are from Goodreads.com

1. Alanna: The First Adventure (Song of the Lioness #1) by Tamora Pierce

From now on I’m Alan of Trebond, the younger twin. I’ll be a knight.”

And so young Alanna of Trebond begins the journey to knighthood. Though a girl, Alanna has always craved the adventure and daring allowed only for boys; her twin brother, Thom, yearns to learn the art of magic. So one day they decide to switch places: Disguised as a girl, Thom heads for the convent to learn magic; Alanna, pretending to be a boy, is on her way to the castle of King Roald to begin her training as a page.

But the road to knighthood is not an easy one. As Alanna masters the skills necessary for battle, she must also learn to control her heart and to discern her enemies from her allies.

Filled with swords and sorcery, adventure and intrigue, good and evil, Alanna’s first adventure begins — one that will lead to the fulfillment of her dreams and the magical destiny that will make her a legend in her land.

I’d play hooky with this book (the whole series in fact) because Alanna is such an awesome character. I first read this back in the late nineties, and just fell in love with the world. This is the first fantasy book I remember reading that had a kick-ass female lead who could do what her male friends did – she didn’t need to wait to be rescued.

2. A Kiss of Shadows (Meredith Gentry #1) by Laurell K. Hamilton

My name is Meredith Gentry, but of course it’s not my real name. I dare not even whisper my true name after dark for fear that one hushed word will travel over the night winds to the soft ear of my aunt, the Queen of the Air and Darkness. She wants me dead. I don’t even know why.”

Meredith Gentry, Princess of the high court of Faerie, is posing as a human in Los Angeles, living as a P.I. specializing in supernatural crime. But now the Queen’s assassin has been dispatched to fetch her back–whether she likes it or not. Suddenly Meredith finds herself a pawn in her dreaded aunt’s plans. The job that awaits her: enjoy the constant company of the most beautiful immortal men in the world. The reward: the crown–and the opportunity to continue to live. The penalty for failure: death.

I had a hard time  try to decide between Merry and Anita, cause I think they’re both awesome. But in the end, I think I’d prefer to play hooky with Merry because she’s not as serious as Anita. I think Merry is a pretty brilliant character. I also find her world incredibly fascinating, so I really enjoy re-reading the books.

3. The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien

Sauron, the Dark Lord, has gathered to him the Rings of Power – the means by which he will be able to rule the world. All he lacks in his plans for dominion is the Ruling Ring, which has fallen into the hands of the hobbit Bilbo Baggins.

In a sleepy village in the Shire, young Frodo Baggins finds himself faced with an immense task, as the ring is entrusted to his care. He must leave his home and make a perilous journey across the realms of Middle-earth to the Crack of Doom, deep inside the territories of the Dark Lord. There he must destroy the Ring forever and foil the Dark Lord in this evil purpose.

(from the blurb of the 1995 Harper Collins edition)

This is actually a cheat on my part, because I can’t just choose one book of this epic.

I’d play hooky with this book because it is an awesome (if long) read. And okay, so it’s not perfect, but that’s to be expected considering when it was written.  But there are some brilliant ideas in it.

4. Bitten (Women of the Otherworld #1) by Kelley Armstrong

Elena Michaels seems like the typically strong and sexy modern woman, She lives with her architect boyfriend, writes for a popular newspaper, and works out at the gym. She’s also a werewolf.

Elena has done all she can to assimilate to the human world, but the man whose bite changed her existence forever, and his legacy, continue to haunt her. Thrown into a desperate war for survival that tests her allegiance to a secret clan of werewolves, Elena must recon with who, and what, she is in this passionate, page-turning novel.

I came to this book (and series) when I was heavily into the vampire side of the horror/paranormal genre (before Paranormal Romance and Urban Fantasy came along) and instantly feel in love with Elena and Clay.  I periodically try to come back and re-read this, and Elena and Clay are still my favourite characters to read about in the series.

I’d play hooky with this book because Elena is awesome, and I love the way her relationship with Clay is written. I find it very entertaining. Plus Elena seems to have nack for finding trouble, so something interesting would definitely happen . . .

5. Dead Witch Walking (The Hollows #1) by Kim Harrison

Forty years ago a genetically engineered virus killed half of the world’s human population and exposed creatures of dreams and nightmares that had, until then, lived in secret alongside humanity.

Rachel Morgan is a runner with the Inderland Runner Services, apprehending criminals through out modern-day Cincinnati. She is also a witch.

Used to confronting criminal vampires, dark witches and homicidal werewolves, Rachel’s latest assignments – apprehending cable-stealing magic students and tax-evading leprechauns – have prompted her to break her thirty-year contract with the I.S. and start her own runner agency.

But no one quits the I.S.

Marked for death, Rachel is a dead witch walking unless she can appease her former employers and pay off her contract by exposing the city’s most prominent citizen as a drug lord. But making an enemy of the ambiguous Trent Kalamack proves even more deadly than leaving the I.S.

I’d play hooky with this book because I think Rachel is a brilliant character. Also, Jenks and Ivy wouldn’t be too far away and they are just awesome. Plus I like the way Harrison writes Rachel’s interaction with Trent and Al. It is awesome. Plus Rachel also has a knack for finding trouble, so hanging out with her would definitely be interesting.

6. My Sister’s Keeper by Jodi Picoult

Now a major film. Sara Fitzgerald’s daughter Kate is just two years old when she is diagnosed with a rare form of leukaemia. Reeling with the helpless shock of it, Sara knows she will do anything — whatever it takes – to save her child.

Then the tests results come back time and again to show that no one in their family is a match for Kate. If they are to find a donor for the crucial bone marrow transplant she needs, there is only one option: creating another baby, specifically designed to save her sister. For Sara, it seems the ideal solution. Not only does Kate live, but she gets a beautiful new daughter, Anna, too.

Until the moment Anna hands Sara the papers that will rock her whole world. Because, aged thirteen, Anna has decided that she doesn’t want to help Kate live any more. She is suing her parents for the rights to her own body.

This book really stuck with me.

I think Anna is a brilliant character, though she seems super mature for a thirteen year old (but this is probably a reflection of the situation). I think she’d be really cool to hang out and play hooky with. Her brother would be too. I’m not so sure about Kate though . . .  I also liked Anna’s lawyer (sorry I can’t remember his name and I don’t have the book to hand), I thought he was funny 🙂

I read the book before I saw the film, and just fell in love. I enjoy re-reading this.

7. The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks

Seventeen year-old Veronica “Ronnie” Miller’s life was turned upside-down when her parents divorced and her father moved from New York City to Wilmington, North Carolina. Three years later, she remains angry and alienated from her parents, especially her father… until her mother decides it would be in everyone’s best interest if she spent the summer in Wilmington with him. Ronnie’s father, a former concert pianist and teacher, is living a quiet life in the beach town, immersed in creating a work of art that will become the centerpiece of a local church. The tale that unfolds is an unforgettable story about love in its myriad forms – first love, the love between parents and children – that demonstrates, as only a Nicholas Sparks novel can, the many ways that deeply felt relationships can break our hearts… and heal them.

I saw the film first before I read this. I enjoyed it, so I thought I’d give the book a go. I was not disappointed. It added another level to the film.

I would play hooky with this book because I really enjoyed reading it and I think Ronnie is an interesting character. I kind of wish there was more about her. I think she’s very brave and it would be cool to hand out with her and play hooky.

8. The Demon’s Lexicon (The Demon’s Lexicon Trilogy #1) by Sarah Rees Brennan

Sixteen-year-old Nick knows that Demons are real.

Magicians call up demons in exchange for their power. The demons can appear in any shape, show you marvels, promise you anything – until you invite them in and receive their mark.  What happens next? First you get possessed. Then you die.

Nick’s been on the run his whole life, ever since his mother stole a charm from the most feared magician of them all, and the only person he trust is his brother Alan. Alan’s just been marked by a demon. Only Nick can save him, but to do so he must face the magicians – and kill them. The hunt is on, and Nick is going to discover things he never dreamed were out there . . .

This is an awesome book, and an awesome trilogy. Sarah Rees Brennan rocks. So, of course, I would want to play hooky with this book. It’s only natural.

I’m not so sure Nick would want to play hooky with me (or almost anyone really), but I enjoy him as a character and think he would be interesting  – and I mean that in many different ways – to hang out with.

9. White Cat (Curse Workers #1) by Holly Black

Cassel comes from a family of curse workers — people who have the power to change your emotions, your memories, your luck, by the slightest touch of their hands. And since curse work is illegal, they’re all mobsters, or con artists. Except for Cassel. He hasn’t got the magic touch, so he’s an outsider, the straight kid in a crooked family. You just have to ignore one small detail — he killed his best friend, Lila, three years ago.

Ever since, Cassel has carefully built up a façade of normalcy, blending into the crowd. But his façade starts crumbling when he starts sleepwalking, propelled into the night by terrifying dreams about a white cat that wants to tell him something. He’s noticing other disturbing things, too, including the strange behavior of his two brothers. They are keeping secrets from him, caught up in a mysterious plot. As Cassel begins to suspect he’s part of a huge con game, he also wonders what really happened to Lila. Could she still be alive? To find that out, Cassel will have to out-con the conmen.

Holly Black has created a gripping tale of mobsters and dark magic where a single touch can bring love — or death — and your dreams might be more real than your memories.

This is one of my absolute favourite books – and series – so of course I would play hooky with it. How could I not?!

The world Holly Black has created for this series is absolutely amazing. There are so many possibilities. I’m kinda sad that it’s only a trilogy.

I adore Cassel. There’s just something about him. He has a really interesting way of looking at the world – completely different from my own mindset. I think it would be quite fun to play hooky with him and his friends.

10. Fleabag and the Ring Fire by Beth Webb

The Queen is dead and no one knows who is to succeed her. Many have tried to prove their worth, but none is destined to be the true monarch. The country is given a year and a day to find the ring that confirms leadership. After that, the Ringfire will fade and the kingdom will fall.

Fleabag the cat is one of my all-time favourite characters, so of course this book would make the list, because how else would I play hooky with him if I didn’t play hooky with this book?

This is one of the few books from my pre-teen days that I’ve kept hold of. The story has stood the test of time, and I really enjoy reading it 🙂 Gemma is a cool character too, but Fleabag really does steal the show.

There are of course other books I’d play hooky with that never made it to the list, like the Harry Potter series, Howl’s Moving Castle, The Shifters series, The Belgariad, The Blue Bloods and Chicagoland Vampires novels just to name a few . . . 😉

What books would you play hooky with?