Top Ten Books Read SO FAR in 2015!

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish.
Every once in a while I participate in this one when I either
1) Like the theme, and/or 2) Have the time!

This week's topic:

Top Ten Books Read SO FAR in 2015!

This is always one of my FAVORITE topics.

In 2012, I discovered one of my all-time favorite fairy tale retellings, KILL ME SOFTLY by Sarah Cross, because another blogger listed it in this topic. I never would have known this book was a fairy tale based on the cover/title if it hadn't been for this TTT. 

It's a super-special topic for me, and I love discovering great new books every year based on everyone's lists!

I hope that this year, you find a great book you haven't read but will love off of my list! ^___^

In No Particular Order...

1) A COURT OF THORNS AND ROSES by Sarah J. Maas

Beauty and the Beast retellings are always favorites of mine. This book battles HEART'S BLOOD by Juliet Marillier for the spot of all-time favorite B&B retelling. I really loved it! I felt so blessed to attend Sarah's book launch for this title!

My Review


2) ALL THE LIGHT WE CANNOT SEE by Anthony Doerr

This book is in the gray area between 2014 and 2015, since I started reading it at the end of December and didn't finish until January. It was on my Best of 2014 list, but it also counts for 2015. Wow, what a lucky book!!! Anthony Doerr spent 10 years writing this novel, and it hit almost every Best Seller and Best of 2014 List imaginable, as well as won major awards such as the Pulitzer Prize, an ALA Alex, and a National Book Award Finalist award! This isn't my normal type of fare at all. The book is set during World War II. It's not a typical WWII book, however, and doesn't even focus on the Holocaust, which was a refreshing change. It focuses on the bombings and evacuations in Paris from the POV of a blind girl who escapes with her father, who may or may not have a replica of a very expensive jewel that people would go to great lengths to achieve. It also focuses on a brilliant boy who doesn't want to die in the mines like his father did, but isn't allowed to learn math and science...until he helps out a higher-up in the army and is enrolled in school...with the catch that he will grow up to be one of Hitler's Youth. The book is just...AMAZING. I can't say enough good things about it!

My Review
 


3) ONCE UPON A CLOUD by Claire Keane

This is my favorite picture book of 2015 so far. Claire Keane did illustrations for Disney's Tangled and Frozen. Those pictures that Rapunzel draws all over her tower? Thank Claire Keane for that! Her father was Glen Keane, who created iconic Disney characters such as Beast, Ariel, and Aladdin. If that isn't enough of a pedigree, her grandfather was Bil Keane, the creator of the Sunday comic strip Family Circus. Talk about a talented family!!! I'm super-obsessed with Claire Keane's artwork. This book is SO PRETTY. Plus, I love the story about going off on an amazing adventure and having tea with the sun and dancing with the stars, all while trying to find the perfect gift for your mother!

Don't believe me about how pretty this one is? Check out my YouTube Design Vlog:

YouTube Link

 My Review


4) THE ORPHAN QUEEN by Jodi Meadows

In had such HIGH expectations for THE ORPHAN QUEEN because I loved Jodi Meadows' NewSoul trilogy so much. I wasn't disappointed!! If you love fantasy, runaway princesses, masked crusaders, romance, and kingdom politics, then, oooohhhh, you're missing out if you don't pick this one up! I was super lucky to travel to NYC for the launch party of this one, and it was wonderful!
(Um, and unless miracles happen and other amazing books come along, this has one of my Top 3 Favorite YA Kissing Scenes of 2015 so far!)

My Review

5) INTERSTELLAR CINDERELLA by Deborah Underwood, 
with illustrations by Meg Hunt

I cannot WAIT to talk about this book with you next Thursday. I am so obsessed and in love with this picture book. I don't care if you're "too old" for picture books. Read it to a kid. Or heck, just read it because you love fairy tales. This is NOT a rip-off of CINDER by Marissa Meyer like some people feared, oh, not at all!! It is an amazing story of GIRL POWER. Why CAN'T a girl be awesome with tools? Why CAN'T a girl save a prince? This picture book turns old ideals about what girls can and can't do and turns them all upside down in a way that creates a strong empowering message for children!

My Review is Coming NEXT WEEK on A Twist in the Tail Thursday!!! (And will include a Vlog! ^_^)
 

6) TRACKED by Jenny Martin

I read TRACKED this month and fell instantly in love. It reminded me in small ways of STITCHING SNOW by R.C. Lewis, which I absolutely loved last year. I'm not a huge sci-fi person, but the intergalactic setting helps make this book so intriguing. There's a prince, sci-fi-style Nascar racing, and a deadly plot to conquer a world. It was so hard to put down! This book got some great early buzz on social media by bloggers I trust, so I was excited to read it, but I haven't heard much about it since then. So you should all read it so we can create some buzz together because it's awesome, mmm'kay? ^.~

My Review is Coming This Summer! ^_^ (I only just read this, sorry!!)

7) THIS IS WHERE IT ENDS by Marieke Nijkamp

Out January 5, 2016

This book doesn't come out until early January, so it probably shouldn't count for 2015, but it WAS one of the best books I read so far this year, so it still counts. This book is chilling and haunting and absolutely captivating. It's also a horrifying living nightmare. A disillusioned student locks the entire student and educator body into the auditorium after a school-wide assembly and opens fire. It's told from multiple perspectives, including those of a few students outside the doors, and it's just...so good. And so hard to read. But so good!!!

 You're Gonna Love Me Spotlight Post (A full review will come closer to the book's launch!)

8) TRUTHWITCH by Susan Dennard

Out January 5, 2016

I can't wait to whisper secrets about this book You're Gonna Love Me style next week! Nothing spoilery, just FUN!!! If you're a fan of shows or books such as Avatar: The Last Airbender that deal with elemental magic, you're going to be completely hooked on this action-packed new series!

You're Gonna Love Me Spotlight Post Coming Next Week!!! (Again, I only read this one recently, so I need to catch up to myself!)

9) THE HEART OF BETRAYAL by Mary E. Pearson

Out July 7, 2015

This book comes out NEXT WEEK!!!! Ahhhhhhh! I read this one way back in January, and am SO EXCITED to finally be talking about it with you! Last year, THE KISS OF DECEPTION was one of my favorite YA novels of the year, and I was sooooooo anxious for the sequel! I cannot WAIT to talk about it. If you're a fan of fantasy, you're going to love the world-building in this series. There are princes, assassins, runaway princesses, kingdoms at war, and so much more! Plus, the first book has an awesome double-blind!
(Um, and unless miracles happen and other amazing books come along, this has one of my Top 3 Favorite YA Kissing Scenes of 2015 so far!)

My Review is Coming in July During My Blog Tour Stop!!!

10) AN EMBER IN THE ASHES by Sabaa Tahir

Everyone is buzzing about this debut novel--and for good reason!! For one thing, it's GORGEOUS. For another, DIVERSITY. For a third, WORLD-BUILDING. Oh my goodness, the power struggles at play in this book!! There is a rebellion, and the stakes are SO high. The book alternates between two worlds, and you get so invested in both characters, that you don't want to see the POV flip back to the other because you want to keep reading the current storyline. Only, you also DO because you can't wait to get back to the other storyline!! This one is unputdownable!

 My Review+Design Vlog



     What were your favorites of 2015? Please link me to your posts, or comment with your favorites if you don't do TTT, because I want to read ALL THE BOOKS!!! ^_^