Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature/meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. This week’s topic is Top Ten Beach Reads. Since I’m not much of a beach-goer, I’m going to do what I did last year and call this one Top Ten Summer Reads. And since I did the same topic last year, I’m going to rule out those books (which were some of my all-time favorites) and pick ten newer ones. As always, these are in no particular order.
The Wise Man’s Fear (Kingkiller Chronicle #2; Patrick Rothfuss). Picaresque epic fantasy. If you’re a Rothfuss fan, you already know why this series is so incredibly amazing. Rothfuss’s writing inspires awe and praise even from fellow authors, and he is a consummate storyteller. The worldbuilding rivals Tolkien’s or Herbert’s for depth, imagination, and believability, and his characters are so real, it’s hard at times to remember you’re reading a novel. If you’ve already read The Name of the Wind, summer vacation is the perfect time to tackle the even longer Wise Man’s Fear. Otherwise, start with The Name of the Wind. And be prepared not to surface for several days. (Review of The Name of the Wind)
Shadow of Night (Deborah Harkness). Historical fantasy? Paranormal time travel romance? Shadow of Night defies categorization, but I loved it. Witches, vampires, conspiracies, mysteries, and intrigue, all set in late Elizabethan England, France, and Prague (with brief digressions in the present.) The danger is sometimes less imminent, the pace a little slower than in the first book in the series, A Discovery of Witches. But that’s all to the good in my opinion, since it allows you to savor the skill with which Harkness immerses you in another era. Shadow of Night has just been released in trade paperback, just in time for summer reading. If you haven’t yet read A Discovery of Witches, start there. (Reviews: A Discovery of Witches; Shadow of Night)
The River of No Return (Bee Ridgway). Historical fantasy. Another recent book that wowed me, this one also involving time travel. Like Harkness, Ridgway is a scholar, a historian, and a wonderful writer. After he leaped forward in time to avoid his own death in battle, soldier and baronet Nick Falcott learns to adjust to life in the 21st century with the help of the mysterious and powerful Guild. There is no return,” he is told. But when the Guild decides it needs his help to thwart the Ofan, whose actions threaten to reverse or destroy the flow of time, Nick does indeed return to the 19th century. His former neighbor Julia, meanwhile, is slowly discovering her own relationship with time. The River of No Return blends fantasy, historical fiction, and romance (as well as more than four centuries of literary allusions) into a rich novel for the thinking adult. (Review)
Love Saves the Day (Gwen Cooper). General fiction. Love Saves the Day explores the lives and relationship between an estranged mother and daughter, as seen through the mother’s eyes in the past and the daughter’s in the present. Wound throughout the book and binding everything together is Prudence the cat, endearing and wise in a quintessentially feline way. Cooper’s compassion and sensitivity toward her characters are evident on every page, but it’s Prudence who really captured my heart. (Review)
The Maggie Hope series (Susan Elia MacNeal). Historical mystery/spy novels set during World War II. American Maggie Hope becomes a typist for Winston Churchill, and eventually a secret agent for the British. There are plots within plots and secrets within secrets, some of which thread through the entire series thus far. The series in order: Mr. Churchill’s Secretary, Princess Elizabeth’s Spy, and His Majesty’s Hope. (Reviews: Princess Elizabeth’s Spy; His Majesty’s Hope)
The Sweetest Dark (Shana Abe). YA romantic fantasy, told in Abe’s lyrical, almost luminescent prose. An orphaned girl, a handsome gardener’s boy, and the son of an eccentric duke (none of them quite what they seem) are drawn together in WWI-era Britain. By turns seductive and heartbreaking, The Sweetest Dark will linger in your mind long after you finish reading it. (For fans of Abe’s adult novels: yes, this is a book about the drakon.) (Review)
The Last Dragonslayer (Jasper Fforde). MG/YA fantasy. Young Jennifer Strange, who runs an employment agency for wizards, discovers that she is the last dragonslayer. But what if she doesn’t want to kill the dragon? Marvelously quirky and humorous, The Last Dragonslayer will enchant children and adults alike, and would be wonderful for reading aloud. (Review)
The Apple Orchard (Bella Vista #1; Susan Wiggs). General fiction or women’s fiction, with romance. Heirloom locator Tess Delaney discovers she has a grandfather and a half-sister she never knew — along with a share in the family orchard. But her grandfather is in a coma, and the orchard is about to be foreclosed, unless Tessa and Isabel can find a way to stop it. Set in both the present and the past, The Apple Orchard is a warm and wonderful novel about identity, memory, truth, and family. (Review)
The Ocean Breeze trilogy (Sherryl Woods). Light and heartwarming, these contemporary romances featuring the Castle sisters will please fans of Woods’ Chesapeake Shores and Sweet Magnolias series. And the setting, a small coastal Carolina town, makes them perfect for beach reading. Series titles: Sand Castle Bay, Wind Chime Point, and Sea Glass Island.
Stardust (Neil Gaiman). Fantasy. I don’t even know where to start. I had never read Stardust before this spring, and it took my breath away. Magical, beautiful, enchanting — those words apply as much to the writing as to the story itself. Gaiman set out to write a fairy tale, and succeeded brilliantly. If you haven’t read Stardust, treat yourself this summer. If you have, treat yourself to a re-read — or better yet, listen to Gaiman read the audiobook.
Heidi@Rainy Day Ramblings
Your beach reads are a lot more complex than the ones I have seen, I like that! I need to read Shadow of NIght still but I think it is going to be an audiobook read. I was lusting over the new Neil Gaiman book releasing soon. Have you seen it?
Lark @ The Bookwyrm's Hoard
I like “fluff” books as much as the next person, but on vacation, I tend to alternate fluff books and somewhat more complex ones. Nothing very dark and gloomy, though!
I think I’m going to wait for more reviews before reading the new Neil Gaiman. He’s an incredible writer, but his books are not always comfortable, nor comforting. Right now, I need books that lift me up. I may need to put it on my list for later.
Teddyree
Great list, quite a few of your picks are on my TBR stack. I loved The Sweetest Dark, can’t wait to read book 2. I’ve heard good things about The Apple Orchard and I love Neil Gaiman … I listened to The Graveyard Book, narrated by Neil, he’s got a voice like warm honey 🙂
Lark @ The Bookwyrm's Hoard
I have an ARC of Sweetest Dark book 2 sitting on my e-reader, and can’t wait to start it (but I have to get to some others first.) Totally agree with you on Neil Gaiman’s voice! I love it when authors read well and read their own material.
Kimberly @ Turning the Pages
I love how eclectic your list is! But I’m ashamed to say I haven’t read a single one of these (Though I’m pretty darn sure that they’re all on my HUGE TBR List).
I guess this means I have some reading to do this summer 🙂
I’m really curious about Patrick Rothfuss since I think I have one or two of his novels on my book case but you’re the first person I know who has read his stuff.
What should a newbie to his writing expect?
–Kimberly @ Turning the Pages
Lark @ The Bookwyrm's Hoard
He’s only written two novels so far — but what novels they are! A newbie should expect:
1. To be very patient through the long first part of the book. It may not make sense at first. You have to relax and let the world slowly take shape. Rest assured, it will eventually — though some things will probably not be clear until book three.
2. To have your socks blown off by the incredible writing. O.M.G.
3. To be surprised when you realize that the first mammoth tome only gets you to Kvothe’s 16th year or thereabouts. Maybe 17th.
4. To be gobsmacked by the detail of the worldbuilding. Myths, religion history, geography, systems of magic, cultures, even currency.
5. To be amazed by the depth. I had the advantage of listening to these with my daughter, who had already read them several times AND had gone through the Name of the Wind re-read on Tor, with masses of discussion. This is one of those books where small things turn out to be important later on, where there are clues and hints that you don’t even realize are clues and hints. Before the next book comes out, I plan to look at the re-read stuff over at Tor.com. I know that even with my daughter’s help, I probably missed a lot.
6. If you like audiobooks, the reader for these is really, really good. But they are LOOOONG!
Have fun!
Krystianna
The Sweetest Dark sounds so good! The cover is absolutely gorgeous too. 🙂
Krystianna @ Downright Dystopian
Lark @ The Bookwyrm's Hoard
It was wonderful, even if it did make me cry. Thanks for stopping by!
Jan
I missed your Top Ten Tuesday post this week. I did one and then started moving my blog. I only resurfaced yesterday!
I like your picks. Both the Patrick Rothfuss and Deborah Harkness are books/series I’ve been meaning to start. I keep forgetting about them, but I may need to add them to my summer reading list, too.
Lark @ The Bookwyrm's Hoard
I look forward to hearing about your blog move! I’ve been considering that myself — I’ve already bought the domain name, but I’m intimidated by the whole moving process.
Rothfuss and Harkness are very different, but both well worth reading.