6 Jun 2016

Discussion: Top Books I've Read in 2016...So Far!

We are halfway through the year so I thought I would update you on the top books so far this year that I have read and LOVED and will forever gush about! This may be a Top Ten Tuesday prompt but I do not have time for those right now so I am telling it to you now!

THE SERPENT KING

Author: Jeff Zentner
Publisher: Crown Books For Young Readers
Publication Date: March 8, 2016
Rating: 5/5 stars
Review!
Summary:
Dill has had to wrestle with vipers his whole life—at home, as the only son of a Pentecostal minister who urges him to handle poisonous rattlesnakes, and at school, where he faces down bullies who target him for his father’s extreme faith and very public fall from grace.

He and his fellow outcast friends must try to make it through their senior year of high school without letting the small-town culture destroy their creative spirits and sense of self. Graduation will lead to new beginnings for Lydia, whose edgy fashion blog is her ticket out of their rural Tennessee town. And Travis is content where he is thanks to his obsession with an epic book series and the fangirl turning his reality into real-life fantasy.

Their diverging paths could mean the end of their friendship. But not before Dill confronts his dark legacy to attempt to find a way into the light of a future worth living.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/22752127-the-serpent-king
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THE SCORPIO RACES

Author: Maggie Stiefvater
Publisher: Scholastic Press
Publication Date: October 11, 2011
Rating: 5/5 stars
Review!
Summary:
It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die.

At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them.

Puck Connolly is different. She never meant to ride in the Scorpio Races. But fate hasn’t given her much of a chance. So she enters the competition — the first girl ever to do so. She is in no way prepared for what is going to happen.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/10626594-the-scorpio-races
Purchase:

FROZEN TIDES

Author: Morgan Rhodes
Series: Falling Kingdoms #4
Publisher: Razorbill
Publication Date: December 15, 2015
Rating: 5/5 stars
Review!
Summary:
Rebels, royals, and monsters wage war over the Mytican throne in the shocking fourth book of the Falling Kingdoms series, from New York Times bestselling author Morgan Rhodes.

CLEO: Reeling after a bloody showdown in Limeros ending with Amara’s abduction of the water crystal, and a vacancy in the Mytican throne, Princess Cleo must cast aside her feelings and look toward her kingdom with the eyes of a Queen.

MAGNUS: With the kingdom in chaos, Princess Lucia still missing and quite possibly in danger, and a shocking realization about Cleo, the steely prince is once again torn between love and duty, leaving him wondering whether he’s strong enough to rule his people.

LUCIA: The young sorcercess has had her vengeance after the cruel death of her first and only love. Heartbroken and unable to trust anyone, she allies with the awoken Fire god, who also seeks revenge.

JONAS: After escaping death by the skin of his teeth, the defeated rebel—along with a mysterious stranger–leader reunites with Princess Cleo, only to find himself a mere pawn in a dangerous hunt for the elusive Kindred.

KING GAIUS: Abandoned by Melenia and betrayed by his own children, Gaius flees Mytica and sails to Kraeshia, where he attempts to ally with the famously brutal emperor across the Silver Sea.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/17342701-frozen-tides
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EARTH'S END

Author: Elise Kova
Series: Air Awakens #3
Publisher: Silver Wing Press
Publication Date: February 11, 2016
Rating: 5/5 stars
Review!
Summary:
A woman awoken in air, a soldier forged by fire, a weapon risen from blood.

Vhalla Yarl has made it to the warfront in the North. Forged by blood and fire, she has steeled her heart for the final battle of the Solaris Empire’s conquest. The choices before Vhalla are no longer servitude or freedom, they are servitude or death. The stakes have never been higher as the Emperor maintains his iron grip on her fate, holding everything Vhalla still has left to lose in the balance.

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/26760091-earth-s-end
Purchase:

VICIOUS

Author: V.E. Schwab
Series: Vicious #1
Publisher: Tor
Publication Date: September 24, 2013
Rating: 5/5 stars
Review!
Summary:
Victor and Eli started out as college roommates—brilliant, arrogant, lonely boys who recognized the same sharpness and ambition in each other. In their senior year, a shared research interest in adrenaline, near-death experiences, and seemingly supernatural events reveals an intriguing possibility: that under the right conditions, someone could develop extraordinary abilities. But when their thesis moves from the academic to the experimental, things go horribly wrong. 

Ten years later, Victor breaks out of prison, determined to catch up to his old friend (now foe), aided by a young girl whose reserved nature obscures a stunning ability. Meanwhile, Eli is on a mission to eradicate every other super-powered person that he can find—aside from his sidekick, an enigmatic woman with an unbreakable will. Armed with terrible power on both sides, driven by the memory of betrayal and loss, the archnemeses have set a course for revenge—but who will be left alive at the end?
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/13638125-vicious
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YOU WERE HERE

Author: Cori McCarthy
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Publication Date: March 1, 2016
Rating: 4/5 stars

Summary
Grief turned Jaycee into a daredevil, but can she dare to deal with her past?

On the anniversary of her daredevil brother's death, Jaycee attempts to break into Jake's favorite hideout—the petrifying ruins of an insane asylum. Joined by four classmates, each with their own brand of dysfunction, Jaycee discovers a map detailing her brother's exploration and the unfinished dares he left behind.

As a tribute to Jake, Jaycee vows to complete the dares, no matter how terrifying or dangerous. What she doesn't bargain on is her eccentric band of friends who challenge her to do the unthinkable: reveal the parts of herself that she buried with her brother. 
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/25679559-you-were-here?from_new_nav=true&ac=1&from_search=true
Purchase:
Amazon | Chapters | TBD  

WILD SWANS

Author: Jessica Spotswood
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Publication Date: May 3, 2016
Rating: 5/5 stars

Summary:
The summer before Ivy’s senior year is going to be golden; all bonfires, barbeques, and spending time with her best friends. For once, she will just get to be. No summer classes, none of Granddad’s intense expectations to live up to the family name. For generations, the Milbourn women have lead extraordinary lives—and died young and tragically. Granddad calls it a legacy, but Ivy considers it a curse. Why else would her mother have run off and abandoned her as a child?

But when her mother unexpectedly returns home with two young daughters in tow, all of the stories Ivy wove to protect her heart start to unravel. The very people she once trusted now speak in lies. And all of Ivy’s ambition and determination cannot defend her against the secrets of the Milbourn past….
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/27015393-wild-swans?ac=1&from_search=true
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What have been your best reads of 2016 so far?

6 comments:

  1. I've been meaning to read a V.E. Schwab book for so long since she's so popular but I've been so busy! Thanks for sharing your top picks with us, lovely! <3

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  2. You've got a few books on here that I want to read (The Scorpio Races and Vicious)! I need to hurry up and read them!

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  3. I've only read Earth's End so I've definitely got some catching up to do! I really want to read Vicious and will add Wild Swans to my TBR- I haven't heard as much about it. Thanks for sharing Jamie <3

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  4. I've heard lots of praise for The Serpent King... I feel like I should definitely bump it up my TBR!

    Some of my fave books I've read this year so far are Sarah J. Maas's A Court of Mist and Fury, Maggie Hall's Map of Fates, Catherine Doyle's Inferno, and Alwyn Hamilton's Rebel of the Sands! :)

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  5. I've only read You Were Here and Vicious. I adored You Were Here, but Vicious was probably my least favorite of all of Victoria's books. I bought a bunch of the Falling Kindgoms books so I can binge read them. I will start the Air Awakens series soon!

    My favorite books I've read this year are Blackhearts, My Lady Jane, and the couple Chronicles of Nick books I read. I am sure there are more favorites out there, but that is what I can think of off the top of my head.

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  6. so many great looking books - The only one of these I've read was the Scorpio races and I loved it! I'll be sure to check out the others though :) Thanks for sharing!

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