You know how sometimes you hit a reading lull, where no book that you pick up manages to hold your interest and everything you read feels just…. BLAH. But then, other times, you find yourself on a reading streak, falling in love with every book you pick up and wondering what could possibly top it, only to fall in love again with the next book, and the next.
Well, this last quarter was definitely the latter. SO MANY great books. AMAZING books. Many have already become perennial favorites.
But as I have to choose my #1 favorite read of the year so far, I think I have to go with the very first book that I read, which even three months later is hanging around me:
PLUS ONE by Elizabeth Fama
When I heard that Elizabeth had a new book coming out, I instantly begged my editor for an advance copy (we share a publisher), as I loved her last book, MONSTRUOUS BEAUTY, so very much.
The ARC came.
I started reading that day, and couldn’t put it down.
The next day I emailed my editor again and asked if she could ask Elizabeth’s editor if I could maybe possibly blurb it, because I LOVE IT SO MUCH.
This was the first blurb I’d written in over a year.
So I’ll just paste here what I wrote for that blurb, because it pretty much sums up my feelings:
PLUS ONE enthralled me from the first sentence as gutsy, quick-witted Sol Le Coeur launched herself into an adventure filled with political intrigue, family dramas, and a romance that gives a whole new meaning to “star-crossed.” The finale left me in the best sort of book daze. This book spares no emotion, and Sol’s story will linger long after the last page is turned.
Okay. Enough gushing. *deep breaths*
Plus One will be out in THIS TUESDAY, and you should all go buy it. That’s all I wanted to say.
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I also wrote a blurb for WINTERSPELL by Claire Legrand last quarter, a book that is a dark and haunting retelling of “The Nutcracker Ballet,” so I wanted to share that one too. This one doesn’t come out until September, but you should definitely add it to your GoodReads list now. I think Lunar Chronicles fans are really going to love this one.
What a mesmerizing whirlwind of a story! I was simultaneously horrified and enchanted by the land of Cane, with all its passion and mysteries, magic and mechaniks. Claire Legrand’s writing has the grace of a ballet, but this is definitely not your grandmother’s Nutcracker tale.
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And… and…. I really want to just rave about every YA book that I read in the last three months, because they were all just brilliant. There isn’t one on this list that I wouldn’t recommend. So if you’re in need of recs, go forth!!
My full reading list follows:
First Quarter
1. Plus One, by Elizabeth Fama
2. The Connected Child, by Karyn Purvis, David Cross, and Wendy Lyons Sunshine
3. Fool, by Christopher Moore
4. Fangirl, by Rainbow Rowell
5. Winterspell, by Claire Legrand
6. Star Cursed, by Jessica Spotswood
7. Eleanor & Park, by Rainbow Rowell
8. Splintered, by A.G. Howard
9. Revolutions for Fun and Profit, by Ryan Shattuck
10. Under the Never Sky, by Veronica Rossi
11. Through the Ever Night, by Veronica Rossi
12. Into the Still Blue, by Veronica Rossi
13. How to Talk So Kids Will Listen & Listen So Kids Will Talk, by Adele Faber and Elaine Mazlish
14. My Life as an Experiment, by A.J. Jacobs
15. Passionate Persuasion, by Rosemary Clement-Moore
16. Also Known As, by Robin Benway
17. Writing and Illustrating the Graphic Novel, by Daniel Cooney
18. Baby’s in Black: Astrid Kirchherr, Stuart Sutcliffe, and The Beatles, by Arne Bellstorf (graphic novel)
19. Zahra’s Paradise, by Amir & Khalil (graphic novel)
20. Dorothy Must Die, by Danielle Paige
21. A Monster Calls, by Patrick Ness
What have YOU read and loved so far this year?