Top Ten Tuesday- Best Books I've Read in 2017 So Far

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's topic is: Best Books You've Read in 2017 So Far.

So far this year I've read 27 books and I've enjoyed a lot of them but I've decided to keep this post simple and list my favourite five.

Solanin by Inio Asano 

Lord of Shadows (Book 2 of The Dark Artifices trilogy) by Cassandra Clare

History Is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera 

A Court of Wings and Ruin (Book 3 of the ACOTAR series) by Sarah J Maas

Lies We Tell Ourselves by Robin Talley 

What are some of your favourite books of this year so far?

My Summer TBR 2017

It's already a few weeks into summer but I thought I'd do a post about the books I plan to read for the rest of the summer.  I didn't read many of the books I planned to read in my spring tbr so hopefully my summer tbr goes better.

Proof of Forever by Lexa Hillyer

Atlantia by Ally Condie

Dreamin' Sun Vol 1 by Ichigo Takano

Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven

Am I Normal Yet? (The Spinsters Club book 1) by Holly Bourne

What books are you planning to read in summer?

Top Ten Tuesday- Series I've Been Meaning to CONTINUE But Haven't Yet

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

The week's topic is: Series I've been Meaning to Start but Haven't.  But instead I'm changing it to: Series I've been Meaning to Continue but Haven't yet.

Cainsville series by Kelley Armstrong - 

I've read the first two books in this series (Omens and Visions) but I really need to get around to continuing with this series.

The Darkest Minds trilogy by Alexandra Bracken - 

I read the first book in this trilogy a few years ago but I still haven't picked up the next book in the series.

Fever series by Karen Marie Moning-

 I've read the first six books in this series and I've really enjoyed them but for some reason I haven't read the 7th book (Burned) yet.  I do have the book on my kindle so I hope I can get around to it soon.

Psy-Changling series by Nalini Singh - 

I've read the first two books in this series.  It's quite a long series so maybe that's why I've been slow to continue with it.

Age of Legends trilogy by Kelley Armstrong - 

I've read the first two books in this trilogy but I haven't picked up the last one.  Part of the reason for me not continuing is that I've kind of forgotten what happened in the first two books and this trilogy doesn't really leave a lasting impression on me so I don't really know if I do want to finish this trilogy or not.

Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon - 

I've read the first four books in this series and I really like this series but I'm not too sure if I want to continue with it or not.

Mistborn series by Brandon Sanderson- 

I've read the first three books in this series and I know some people choose to stop there and not continue with the series as the first three books are their own story and it concludes that story arc in the third book.  But I have read the blurb for the fourth book and the premise sounds really interesting so I am looking forward to reading the rest.

The Chronicles of Ixia/Study series by Maria V Snyder - 

I've read the Poison Study trilogy and I've also read the 4th book in the series (the first book in the Glass trilogy) and although I enjoyed the Poison Study trilogy I found the 4th book to be just okay.   

The Others series by Anne Bishop - 

This is a series I've decided to take my time with.  I've read the first three books in the series but I need to pick up the fourth book.

Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs- 

I really like this series and I've read the first 8 books but I haven't gotten around to reading the 9th or 10th that are out but I really should because I feels like I haven't read these books for a long time.

What series have you not got around to continuing yet?

   

Book Review: Burn for Me (Hidden Legacy #1) by Ilona Andrews

Book: Burn for Me
Series: Hidden Legacy book 1
Author: Ilona Andrews
Genres: adult, urban fantasy, paranormal romance

Nevada Baylor is faced with the most challenging case of her detective career—a suicide mission to bring in a suspect in a volatile case. Nevada isn’t sure she has the chops. Her quarry is a Prime, the highest rank of magic user, who can set anyone and anything on fire. 

Then she’s kidnapped by Connor “Mad” Rogan—a darkly tempting billionaire with equally devastating powers. Torn between wanting to run or surrender to their overwhelming attraction, Nevada must join forces with Rogan to stay alive. 

Rogan’s after the same target, so he needs Nevada. But she’s getting under his skin, making him care about someone other than himself for a change. And, as Rogan has learned, love can be as perilous as death, especially in the magic world.

My Rating: 4/5 STARS
My Review:
I love the Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews so I was really interested to read another new urban fantasy by the same authors.  Burn for Me has been out for a few years now but the second book was just recently published so I decided to (finally) start this series.  And I'm glad I did because I really liked this book.

In Burn for Me magic is passed down through generations after the government created a special serum that gave people magical powers and I liked how that was explained, it was really interesting.

I really liked the main character, Nevada, and one of my favourite things about Burn for Me was Nevada's family and the relationship they have with each other.  Nevada runs an investigation company with her family, which includes her mother, grandmother, her sisters and her cousins.  It was so much fun to read about their family dynamics and I loved how protective they were of each other.

I really enjoyed the overall storyline, it was exciting and fact paced.  I found Mad Rogan (the main male character and love interest) interesting to read about.  How his character and his background are described makes me want to read more about him to try to figure him out.  I really liked the relationship between Rogan and Nevada although I would've preferred the romance side of their relationship to go more slower.

Overall I really enjoyed this book.  I liked the characters and I thought the storyline and world was exciting and fresh.  I think if you're looking for a new urban fantasy/paranormal romance then you should definitely check out this series as it does not disappoint.
   

Oldies but Goodies #1

I decided to do a new feature on this blog called 'Oldies but Goodies'.  It's just a post I'll be doing every so often (it might end up being a weekly thing) where I showcase a book or series that I read years ago. Not that books that have been out more than 4 years are old but I think sometimes we end up prioritising new releases instead of books that have been out a while.  So this feature is just to talk about some of the forgotten books that I feel are still relevant.  I know a lot of people have already done posts like this but I just thought it'd be fun to do as well (also I might end up changing the title).

Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld

Blurb: Tally is about to turn sixteen, and she can't wait. In just a few weeks she'll have the operation that will turn her from a repellent ugly into a stunning pretty. And as a pretty, she'll be catapulted into a high-tech paradise where her only job is to have fun.

But Tally's new friend Shay isn't sure she wants to become a pretty. When Shay runs away, Tally learns about a whole new side of the pretty world-- and it isn't very pretty. The authorities offer Tally a choice: find her friend and turn her in, or never turn pretty at all. Tally's choice will change her world forever...- Quoted from Goodreads

I read the Uglies series back in 2010, so it's been 7 years since I read these books but this series still really stands out in my head.  This series has great action scenes, an exciting plot with a lot of moral dilemmas for the characters and a world that really makes you think.

Have you read the Uglies series? What are some books you read years ago that you think people should read these days? 

May 2017 Wrap Up

In May I read four books.  Here is a list of the books I read and some of my thoughts on them.

The Well of Ascension (Mistborn book 2) by Brandon Sanderson - 4/5 STARS

I felt like I grew a lot more attached to the characters of this series in this book and I was really interested in each characters journey.

A Court of Wings and Ruin (ACOTAR book 3) by Sarah J Maas - 5/5 STARS

I loved this book and I can't wait to read more books set in this world.  The characters in this series are so fun to read about.

Paper Girls Vol 2 by Brian K Vaughan and Cliff Chiang - 4/5 STARS

I really enjoy this comic book series.  I love the story of it and I find the plot to be really exciting.  And the artwork of the series is beautiful.

The Hero of Ages (Mistborn book 3) by Brandon Sanderson - 4/5 STARS

I really liked this book and how it concluded this trilogy.  I thought it was a really great ending to the trilogy.  

I had a great reading month in May.  I don't know if I want to continue with the Mistborn series since the next books are set in a different time and are about different characters but the blurb of the next book (4th in the series) does sound interesting, so if you've read the next books in the series how do you feel they compare to the original trilogy? 

I watched The 100 in May and I have to say this series is one of my all time favourite series'.  Each new episode is so exciting, the acting is great and there is a great balance of emotional scenes with action scenes (in my opinion).  Besides The 100 I haven't watched much else.  I have a long list of anime and kdramas to watch so I might get to watching them this month.

What books did you read in May?