While my sister and I are related, our reading style is completely different. Because of what ended up on her list (*cough* Twilight *cough*), I wish to acknowledge that this is not a list I can endorse. So without further adieu,
Danylle's Top Ten Tuesday!
1. UnWholly by Neal Shusterman, sequel to UnWind. I found the
story line to UnWind very interesting, thought provoking, and a little
controversial. I wasn't sure what more could be done, but was intrigued
enough to read UnWholly. This book knocked it out of the park for me
and, if possible, went further into interesting, thought provoking, and
controversial.
2. Midnight
in Austenland by Shannon Hale, sequel to Austenland. For anyone who
has fallen for Mr. Darcy or any of the Austen heroes, Austenland is
awesome and fun. Midnight in Austenland adds a murder mystery to the fun! That's definitely something that's right up my alley!
3.
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling, book #3 in
the Harry Potter series. Out of all 7 books, I enjoyed Prisoner of
Azkaban the best. I love the little twists and the creativity that went
into making this story great. Definitely, my favorite Harry Potter
book.
4. Grip of the Shadow Plague by Brandon
Mull, book #3 in the Fablehaven series. I can't mention Harry Potter
without giving props to Fablehaven. One of the most creative and fun
children's series aside from Harry Potter. Brandon Mull is a very
talented writer and Fablehaven creates another world but doesn't go
nearly as dark as the Harry Potter series goes. Just like the Harry
Potter series, Fablehaven's book #3 is my favorite. It has twists and
fun characters that make the story something amazing.
5.
Shadow of Night by Deborah Harkness, sequel to A Discovery of Witches.
I really enjoyed A Discovery of Witches, but I tend to like plots
involving supernatural characters and humans developing a strong
connection. After finishing the first book, I realized the sequel would
take place in the past, 1590 to be exact, I wasn't exactly thrilled. I
thought some of what drew me to the story would get boring or changed
being in the past. I was pleasantly surprised to find I liked the
sequel even better. The characters already established got more depth
and new characters were introduced that quickly became my favorites.
The mystery continued to ebb and flow with some questions being
answered and more questions popping up. I was very happy with this
sequel.
6. Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins,
sequel to The Hunger Games. I loved The Hunger Games! To me Catching
Fire built on the first book and added much more depth to the trilogy.
Some of my very favorite characters are introduced in Catching Fire. I
found The Hunger Games a great start to something and Mockingjay held
the more dark and depressing ending. Catching Fire was exciting and
intriguing and left you ready for more!
7. The
Moor by Laurie R. King, book #4 in the Mary Russell/Sherlock Holmes
series. I've loved how Laurie King has portrayed Sherlock Holmes in his
later life with his younger wife Mary Russell. She handles the
character of Sherlock Holmes well and makes the mysteries fun and
exciting. The Moor is the fourth book and takes place in the Devonshire
moors where Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's The Hound of the Baskervilles took
place. It was very well done and was a great addition to the series
while also paying homage to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's original work and
characters.
8. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra
Clare, book #1 in The Infernal Devices series and spin-off from the
Mortal Instruments series. My hat off to Cassandra Clare who wrote a
prequel series to her popular series Mortal Instruments and staggered
the release of books from both series to create a mystery all its own.
I happen to be a fan of The Infernal Devices series and like most of
the characters from that series better than the characters in the Mortal
Instruments series. I love how she was able to keep key favorite
characters in both series and create family trees for other characters.
So you could read about great, great, grandson and great, great,
grandfather in their perspective timelines. Very well done and a very
way of doing things!
9. Breaking Dawn by
Stephenie Meyer, book #4 in the Twilight series. Forgive me for those
who hate Twilight and the hype that surrounds it, but I can't do sequels
without mentioning Twilight. I did like the series, I'm not big on the
hype though. My favorite book in the series was the last book,
Breaking Dawn. I felt that through the whole Twilight series, Bella was
kind of pulled around and leaned on many of the other characters. In
Breaking Dawn, Bella comes into her own and takes control of her own
actions. She makes things happen, she does things on her own,
and she protects her family instead of being the one everyone protects. I
loved the turnabout. I loved the way things ended and how well things
worked out. Breaking Dawn was definitely my favorite in the series
(since I usually skip the bulk of New Moon......but that's a topic for
another time.....).
10. This may be taboo so
please forgive my unorthodox ways. But my last sequel is Jacob T.
Marley by R. William Bennett, meant as a sequel companion to A Christmas
Carol by Charles Dickens. Yes, two different authors and one is a
classic, I'm probably going to hell. BUT I truly loved Bennett's
insight to a character that takes up a few pages in this well-loved
classic. Who was Jacob T. Marley? Why didn't he get a second chance?
R. William Bennett's Jacob T. Marley enhanced my love for A Christmas
Carol with his spin on these characters.
Again, I would like to thank my sister for her help in completely this week's Top Ten Tuesday! Thanks Dany!
Oooh, Midnight in Austenland was a good choice. I liked that one better than the first too, because it had all of those delightful Northanger elements!
ReplyDeleteThis is a fun list! I love the Deborah Harkness books -- and also thought the 2nd might be boring, but was pleasantly surprised. I've been wanting to read the Fablehaven books, and I think my son is finally old enough to enjoy them as well!
ReplyDeleteLisa
I love your mix of books here :D I haven't actually read most of them >.> *fail*
ReplyDeletePrisoner of Azkaban is my favorite in the Harry Potter series too!
ReplyDelete