Top Ten Tuesday: Authors I’ve Read the Most Books From

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

~Top Ten Authors I've Read the Most Books From~

JK Rowling: 9

HARRY POTTER HARRY POTTER HARRY POTTER

Maddy Hunter: 9

The Passport to Peril series is one of my favourite series ever. These cozy mysteries are each set in a different place (Switzerland, Ireland, Italy, Hawaii, Australia, Norway, Holland, Scotland, and France, respectively), and not only are they hilarious, but even after 9 books, I've never been able to figure out the mystery. Plus they stir up my never-ending wanderlust, and I get to live vicariously through Emily.

Cecelia Ahern: 8

Ahern is best known for PS I Love You (gaaah my feels), but she also writes fantastic magical realism. I haven't loved her newer books as much, and I even DNF'd One Hundred Names (it just about killed me to do it because I loved her older books so much, but I was bored senseless). She has a few newer ones I haven't read, and I'm going to take a chance and give them a try sometime soon. If you haven't read any of hers but want to, I'd recommend starting with Where Rainbows End (also known as Rosie Dunne or Love, Rosie), If You Could See Me Now (also known as A Silver Lining) or A Place Called Here (also known as There's No Place Like Here). PS I Love You and The Gift are also personal favourites, but be prepared to be punched in the feels.

 

Sarah Dessen: 6

One of my favourite authors since I was about 15. I hate to admit that despite owning all but two of her books, I still haven't read them all!

Sarah Addison Allen: 5

Another author who writes incredible magical realism. The Sugar Queen is one of my all-time favourite books, and I absolutely love Garden Spells. I re-read it recently, and loved it even more than I did the first time.

Veronica Rossi: 5

THIS SERIES. Gah. Perry, Aria, and Roar are characters that will never, ever leave me.

Lilly Avalon: 5

Lilly is a good friend of mine, plus one of my critique partners (and I happen to design her book covers), so I've read pretty much everything she's written!

Stephanie Perkins: 4

Anna and the French Kiss is another of my all-time favourite books. I adore this whole series, plus Stephanie's contribution to the My True Love Gave to Me anthology was adorable and lovely. 

 

Lia Riley: 4

The Off the Map series is amazing beyond description. I adore Talia and Bran, and Lia's writing is fantastic. These books are honest, bold, sexy, emotional, and totally swoonworthy.

AC Gaughen: 3

ROBIN HOOD. These books turn the Robin Hood legend on its head, with "Will Scarlet" actually being a girl in Robin's band. Tons of action, adventure, heartache, swoons, and feels.

Who are some of the authors you've read the most books from? If you did this week's TTT, feel free to leave your link and I'll visit you in return!

Blog reminders: the cover reveal for my 7th book, Something in the Air, is August 20th, and sign-ups are currently open. I also have 3 giveaways open right now: a wishlist giveaway to celebrate the new design of my blog, plus 2 giveaways from Lilly Avalon!

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Review: First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen

First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen

Series: Waverley Family #2

Published: January 20th, 2015

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press

304 pages (eARC)

Genre: Contemporary women’s fiction/magical realism

Acquired this book: From the publisher NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

Warning: May contain spoilers

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Read my review of Garden Spells (Waverley Family #1)

 It's October in Bascom, North Carolina, and autumn will not go quietly. As temperatures drop and leaves begin to turn, the Waverley women are made restless by the whims of their mischievous apple tree... and all the magic that swirls around it. But this year, first frost has much more in store.

Claire Waverley has started a successful new venture, Waverley’s Candies. Though her handcrafted confections—rose to recall lost love, lavender to promote happiness and lemon verbena to soothe throats and minds—are singularly effective, the business of selling them is costing her the everyday joys of her family, and her belief in her own precious gifts.

Sydney Waverley, too, is losing her balance. With each passing day she longs more for a baby— a namesake for her wonderful Henry. Yet the longer she tries, the more her desire becomes an unquenchable thirst, stealing the pleasure out of the life she already has.

Sydney’s daughter, Bay, has lost her heart to the boy she knows it belongs to…if only he could see it, too. But how can he, when he is so far outside her grasp that he appears to her as little more than a puff of smoke?

When a mysterious stranger shows up and challenges the very heart of their family, each of them must make choices they have never confronted before. And through it all, the Waverley sisters must search for a way to hold their family together through their troublesome season of change, waiting for that extraordinary event that is First Frost.

Sarah Addison Allen’s Garden Spells is one of my favourite books, so I was excited when I found out First Frost was a continuation of the Waverleys story. While First Frost can be read as a standalone, I recommend reading Garden Spells first. Not only is Garden Spells an incredible book, but it will also help the reader understand more about the Waverleys and how they got where they are.

I loved the Waverley women in Garden Spells, so it was nice catching up with Claire, Sydney, Bay, and Evanelle a decade later. Claire and Sydney have flourished in the last decade. They’re both happily married with successful businesses, and they’ve become a strong unit - the kind of close sisters they weren’t while growing up. Bay has grown into a smart teenager who embraces her Waverley magic, and the fact that she’s different. Each of the characters has something they’re dealing with, something keeping them from true happiness.

Like with Garden Spells, First Frost moved from character to character, giving each Waverley woman the spotlight in turn, and also featuring a few side characters. Even though the book went back and forth between characters, I was surprised that the majority of the story seemed to be about Bay. As women’s fiction, I wasn’t expecting a good chunk of the story to be about a teenage girl. I love young adult fiction, though, so despite my surprise, I enjoyed it, especially since I thought Bay’s part of the story was the most compelling. I enjoyed the overall messages about belonging, acceptance, family, friendship, and love.

While a good book, I didn’t enjoy First Frost as much as I did Garden Spells. I was completely enchanted by Garden Spells, engrossed every second of the story, and bewitched by the magic the Waverleys possessed. Even though returning to Bascom felt like coming home in a way, and even though I still loved these characters, I felt their stories weren’t really enough to warrant a sequel. The main conflict seemed out of place and anticlimactic, and the entire story lacked that engrossing, enchanting feeling that Garden Spells had. Allen’s writing is still lovely, and the story did have moments that captivated my heart and imagination, but it was lacking in many ways. I’d recommend First Frost for fans of Allen’s books, especially those who have read Garden Spells and are curious what happened to the Waverleys. However, if you haven’t read any of Allen’s previous books, I wouldn’t suggest starting with this one. 

3.75 stars

 

"Was it really that simple? Choosing a life? Maybe you don’t have to be led into the future. Maybe you can pick your own path. Maybe you don’t fall in love. Maybe you jump. Maybe, just maybe, it’s all a choice."

~94% of ARC of First Frost by Sarah Addison Allen

 

   

Have you read First Frost? What did you think? If you haven't read it, do you plan to? Have you read any of Sarah's other books? What are some of your favourite magical realism books? Let's talk here or on Twitter!

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Review: Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

Garden Spells by Sarah Addison Allen

Series: Waverley Family #1

Published: January 1st, 2007

Publisher: Bantam

286 pages (hardcover)

Genre: Contemporary women’s fiction/magical realism

Acquired this book: From the library

Warning: May contain spoilers

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The women of the Waverley family -- whether they like it or not -- are heirs to an unusual legacy, one that grows in a fenced plot behind their Queen Anne home on Pendland Street in Bascom, North Carolina. There, an apple tree bearing fruit of magical properties looms over a garden filled with herbs and edible flowers that possess the power to affect in curious ways anyone who eats them.

For nearly a decade, 34-year-old Claire Waverley, at peace with her family inheritance, has lived in the house alone, embracing the spirit of the grandmother who raised her, ruing her mother's unfortunate destiny and seemingly unconcerned about the fate of her rebellious sister, Sydney, who freed herself long ago from their small town's constraints. Using her grandmother's mystical culinary traditions, Claire has built a successful catering business -- and a carefully controlled, utterly predictable life -- upon the family's peculiar gift for making life-altering delicacies: lilac jelly to engender humility, for instance, or rose geranium wine to call up fond memories. Garden Spells reveals what happens when Sydney returns to Bascom with her young daughter, turning Claire's routine existence upside down. With Sydney's homecoming, the magic that the quiet caterer has measured into recipes to shape the thoughts and moods of others begins to influence Claire's own emotions in terrifying and delightful ways.

As the sisters reconnect and learn to support one another, each finds romance where she least expects it, while Sydney's child, Bay, discovers both the safe home she has longed for and her own surprising gifts. With the help of their elderly cousin Evanelle, endowed with her own uncanny skills, the Waverley women redeem the past, embrace the present, and take a joyful leap into the future.

 

I don’t often re-read books, especially ones I read before I started book blogging. Since I started the blog, my tastes have changed so much, plus I’ve become a much more critical reader. I’m always afraid books I loved a few years ago won’t hold up in my mind and it’ll taint the way I once felt about them.

When I heard Sarah Addison Allen had written a sequel to Garden Spells, a book I read and loved several years ago, I was excited. I remembered Garden Spells fondly, and decided to reread it before First Frost came out, despite my fear of it not holding up. I loved this book as much now as I did when I first read it. Beautifully written, romantic, bittersweet, and full of magic and whimsy, Garden Spells remains one of my favourite books.

Everyone in Bascom, North Carolina, knows there’s something strange about the Waverleys. They’re drawn to them as much as they’re repelled. Each Waverley has her own kind of magic, although most people don’t see it as magic, they see it as something peculiar. Claire has a special way with food; Sydney has a gift with hair; Evanelle has to give people things they’ll need, even though she doesn’t know why they’ll need them; and Bay instinctively knows where things (and people) belong. I love how the characters stories were woven together, and how we even got glimpses into other side characters’ lives when they were affected by the Waverley women.

Magical realism is still something that fascinates me. Garden Spells is contemporary - set in our world with real people going through real things - but there are these bits of magic woven throughout. And what’s amazing about that magic is that it’s done in a way that’s completely believable. I think it helps if you have an active imagination and an open mind, but I never questioned Claire’s gifts or Sydney’s or Bay’s or Evanelle’s. Sarah Addison Allen has a magic of her own with her ability to write things that are fantastical but also believable.

This book explores love in its many forms. It shows the gritty, painful side of family, but also the unbreakable bonds that come from truly understanding yourself and your kin. You get to see the triumphs and failures people experience, the difficult parts of life, as well as the good parts. Garden Spells is the perfect book if you’re looking for an escape from reality. This enchanting and unique book draws you in, tugs on your heartstrings, and makes you believe in magic. 

   

Have you read Garden Spells? What did you think? If you haven't read it, do you plan to? Have you read any of Sarah's other books? What are some of your favourite magical realism books? Let's talk here or on Twitter!

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Top Ten Tuesday: Books I Want to Reread

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

This week's TTT is a rewind where we can pick any previous topic we want. I've chosen...

Top Ten Books I Want to Reread

1. Someone Like You by Sarah Dessen
This was my favourite book as a teenager, and I read it two or three times. I've been wanting to reread it for awhile, but I've been putting it off because it was my favourite book and I was so tied to it for emotional reasons that I'm afraid of how I might feel about it now as an adult (I talked more about it in February in my To Reread or Not to Reread discussion post). I'll be reading it soon as part of the Spring of Sarah Dessen Reading Challenge.

2. Amy and Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson
This is in my top 5 - maybe even top 3 - contemporary YA books ever. Funny, romantic, and emotional, with great characters, fantastic little extras (the drawings and playlists are classic), and a super fun road trip, I've been wanting to reread this book ever since I first read it in 2011.

3. Splintered by AG Howard
I just read this one a few months ago, but it was an instant favourite, and I had to buy it after reading the ARC because I knew I'd read it again. I'll likely wait until closer to the next book comes out before rereading this one - if I can wait that long!

4. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares
I read this one in my teens, along with the next two books. Now I want to reread them and then read the final two books. This was on my summer reading list last year but I never got around to it, so I'm hoping for this summer!

5. The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen
A pre-blogging favourite, and my introduction to Sarah Addison Allen, who is now one of my favourite authors. This book was so amazing and I want to reread it so I can finally write a review.

6. The Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis
Next to Harry Potter (which I was going to put on this list, but if you know me at all, it's probably obvious, since I talk about Harry Potter all the time, plus I've already read them several times, and it feels like a given that I'll read them again), the Chronicles of Narnia is probably my favourite fantasy series. The seven books aren't that long, so I figure it shouldn't take me too long to reread them, and I'd really love to be able to write reviews for them.

7. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
Another pre-blogging favourite, and another favourite series. I read these just before I started blogging, and I seem to have forgotten quite a bit, so I'd like a refresher. 

8. Zel by Donna Jo Napoli 
My favourite fairytale retelling. I read this book a couple times in my late teens/early twenties and have been wanting to reread it again (re-reread?) for awhile. I don't think any of my blog friends have read this book and it's a shame because it's so beautiful and dark and haunting.

9. On Fortune's Wheel by Cynthia Voigt
I read this one in high school and I honestly don't remember anything about it except that it rekindled my love of reading at the time. I own it and have been wanting to reread it for years, and I'm determined this is the year!

10.Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
I read this shortly after the movie came out several years ago. I don't normally see a movie before reading the book, but I wasn't reading much at the time, so when I fell in love with the movie I knew I had to read the book.

What are some books you want to reread?

If you're participating in Top Ten Tuesday this week, be sure to leave a link below and I'll stop by and see your TTT rewind!

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The Daydreamer's Ramblings: To Reread or Not to Reread

The Daydreamer’s Ramblings is a semi-regular feature here at Ramblings of a Daydreamer. It ranges from discussion posts to rants to raves.

 
Late last year as I was going over my TBR list and mentally thinking of the books I wanted to read in 2013 - plus some of the requirements of challenges I'd signed up for - I realized there were several books I wanted to reread. Some are favourites that I've been wanting to reread for a long time, some are books I really enjoyed and want to be refreshed on certain aspects, and others are classics I enjoyed that I want to reread. 

Then I got thinking...there are so many new books I want to read - and by new, I don't necessarily mean new releases, just books that I haven't read yet. There's also the fact that I'm a pretty slow reader. This made me wonder if I should spend time rereading books when I could (should?) be reading new books and review books. 

I'm kind of torn. There are a few I know for sure I'll take the time to reread, but then others I'm not so sure about. The plus with rereading books is that almost all the ones on my list are books I read before I started blogging, so at least I'll get to write reviews for them this time around. That makes me feel a little less like I'm 'wasting time'. 

Some of the books on my reread list for 2013:

• The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen  - I read this several years ago and loved it. I intended to reread it in November or December 2012, but still haven't gotten around to it. 
• Anne of Avonlea by Lucy Maud Montgomery - the second book in the Anne of Green Gables series. I reread Anne of Green Gables last year, and I want to reread Anne of Avonlea (which I read in my teens) before continuing on with the series. 
• Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants, The Second Summer of the Sisterhood, and Girls in Pants by Ann Brashares - I loved these when I read them several years ago, and I want to reread them before I read the final two books in the series.
• That Summer, Keeping the Moon, and Someone Like You by Sarah Dessen - Someone Like You was one of my favourite books as a teen (I read it a few times, and was convinced Sarah Dessen had written it about my best friend and me - it was just one of those books), and I read the other two in my mid-teens, but can't remember what they're about. I'm planning on doing a Sarah Dessen reading challenge this spring, and I want to read/reread all her books. 
• Zel by Donna Jo Napoli - an incredible retelling of Rapunzel that I read a couple times in my teens; it feels like it's time read it again. 
• On Fortune's Wheel by Cynthia Voigt - another book I read in my teens and loved, but I honestly can't really remember what it's about now. 
• The Iron King by Julie Kagawa - I bought the boxed set of Iron Fey books in 2012 and I have the novellas, so I want to reread the first book and then read the rest of the series.

 How do you feel about rereading books? Do you think it's a waste of time, or do you think of it as revisiting favourite characters and worlds? Do you reread previous books in a series before reading new installments? Is there something specific about a book that makes you want to reread it? What are some of the books you plan to reread this year? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

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Book Haul/Stacking the Shelves ~ January 12th, 2013

Stacking the Shelves is hosted by Tynga's Reviews

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WON:

Signed hardcover of The Diviners by Libba Bray from Midnyte Reader

BOUGHT:

Hounded by Kevin Hearne {GoodReads}

Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater {GoodReads}

Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi {GoodReads}

The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen {GoodReads}

Sweetly by Jackson Pearce {GoodReads}

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi {GoodReads}

Keeping the Moon by Sarah Dessen {GoodReads}

The Truth About Forever by Sarah Dessen {GoodReads}

Fallen Too Far by Abbi Glines {GoodReads}
The Warlord Wants Forever by Kresley Cole {GoodReads}

What books did you get this week? Tell me in the comments below or post a link to your Stacking the Shelves/Book Haul/In My Mailbox/Showcase Sunday, etc. Happy reading! <3 

 

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Top 10 Tuesday: Cover and title lovin'

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. It was created because of their love of lists and books, and since I love those things too, I thought it'd be a fun meme to participate in!

Top Ten Books Whose Titles Or Covers Made Me Grab it From the Library

I have a strange method of picking books: I go into the library, wander around, pick books at random if I like the cover or title, and don’t read the synopsis. I almost never know what a book is about before I read it, because I don’t read the synopsis 95% of the time. I don't necessarily judge books by their covers - I've read some great books with terrible covers and some terrible books with great covers - it's just how I operate. This strange and screwy method has only steered me wrong once or twice in the last few years (with one example below), so this question is actually perfect for me, and fairly easy to answer. The clickable ones lead to my reviews; the rest are ones I read before I started blogging.

1. The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen. For this one, it was the cover and title that hooked me. A couple years ago, I went into the library, and had planned to only get the books on my list since I’m totally OCD at the library and always get more books than I can possibly read. I made the mistake of pausing at the new releases, and my eye was automatically drawn to The Sugar Queen. I put it back, got the books on my list, but couldn’t stop thinking about The Sugar Queen, so I grabbed it on my way out…and it ended up being one of my favorite books ever. It’s actually on my re-read list for this winter.

2. The Year of Living Famously by Laura Caldwell. This was another book I happened upon at the library, and another favorite.

3. Nocturne by Syrie James. I love the cover of this one, and since I like vampire books, I gave it a try. This was one of my very few misses. It was alright, but not great.

4. The Irish Princess by Karen Harper. I’m obsessed with all things Irish, so the title caught my attention, as did the pretty girl's flaming red hair and the castle on the cover lol

5. Amy & Roger’s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson. Plain and simple: love the title, love the cover, one of my favorite books of 2011.

6. Moonglass by Jessi Kirbi. I was intrigued by the title, and the cover is so pretty. Another favorite of 2011. 

7. Falling in Love With English Boys by Melissa Jensen. Just as I love all things Irish, I also love all things English, so between the cute title and even cuter cover, I had to read this one.
 

8. The Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison Allen. As a rule, I read everything that Sarah Addison Allen writes because she’s brilliant. That rule wasn’t in effect at the time I picked this book up (loved the title and cover), but it was afterwards!

9. A Place Called Here by Cecelia Ahern. Cecelia’s books are the same as Sarah’s – she writes them, I read them. This was one of the first books of hers I read, and it was because the title intrigued me.

10. Ghost Walk by Heather Graham. The title of this one, along with the eerie cover, caught my attention; it was the first Heather Graham book I read, and after reading it, I quickly read almost all the other books she’d written.

So, what are your top 10 books that you bought (or, if you're like me, got from the library) based on their covers or titles?

Top 10 Tuesday: Books I want to reread

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. It was created because of their love of lists and books, and since I love those things too, I thought it'd be a fun meme to participate in!

Top Ten Books I Want to Reread

I read most of these books awhile ago, but some of them are recent reads. 

1. All of the Harry Potter books by JK Rowling. I've read 1-5 numerous times, 6 a couple of times, and 7 once. These are books I will continue to reread probably for the rest of my life.

2. The Chronicles of Narnia by CS Lewis. I read these books a few years back, loved them, and definitely need to read them again.

3. The Circle Trilogy by Nora Roberts (Morrigan's Cross, Dance of the Gods, Valley of Silence). Nora Roberts is one of my favorite authors and this trilogy was quite possibly what really got me hooked on paranormal books - there are witches, sorcerers, vampires, demon hunters - it's amazing.

4. The Sugar Queen by Sarah Addison Allen. One of my favorite books ever. EVER. I want to read this one again just for pure pleasure, but also so that I can review it now that I'm a book blogger. Hardly anyone I know has read this book, and I'd love to bring more attention to it.

5. Amy & Roger's Epic Detour by Morgan Matson. I just finished reading this book a couple days ago, and already I want to reread it. I loved it so much, and for so many personal reasons, I haven't been able to write my review yet. I'm hoping to have it up by Thursday though.

6. U2: At the End of the World by Bill Flanagan. Ok, so if you've visited my blog before, chances are you know I'm U2 obsessed. This book is known among U2 fans as the U2 bible - an insider's view of the boys during the early 90s, the good, the bad and the ugly. I love this book and I've been saying for years I'm going to reread it, but haven't gotten around to it yet.

7. The Iron King by Julie Kagawa. I read this one just a few months ago and know that I'll definitely reread it at some point - probably once I've read the entire series, I'll go back and start again.

8. On Fortune's Wheel by Cynthia Voigt. I read this book in my early-to-mid-teens and remember loving it. I even own it, plus the first book in the series, Jackaroo, which I still haven't read. I didn't realize OFW was the second book in a series, but I've been saying for a long time that I'd read Jackaroo and then reread On Fortune's Wheel to see if I enjoy it as much as an adult.

9. PS I Love You by Cecelia Ahern. Well, basically anything by Cecelia Ahern because I love all her books, but PS I Love You is the first one that comes to mind, possibly because I love the movie so much (mmm, Gerard Butler). 

10. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series by Ann Brashares. I really wanted to reread this series this summer and then read the new book, The Last Summer, but I ran out of time. I'm still planning to read it eventually and buy the last book so my collection is complete.

What are some of the books you want to reread? Have you read any of the books on my list? All comments are welcome, and I always try to visit back - if you participate in this meme, be sure to leave a link!