Tuesday 17 January 2017

Top Ten Hidden Gems of 2016

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted at The Broke & The Bookish. You can find a list of past and future topics here

1) Sorcerer to the Crown by Zen Cho
Sorcerer to the Crown (Sorcerer Royal, #1)
This one does not get enough attention! Not only is it an incredibly well written and engaging fantasy it's also a Diverse read and has one of the most genuinely beautiful covers I've ever seen.

2) City of the Lost by Kelley Armstrong
City of the Lost (Casey Duncan, #1)
Kelley Armstrong is very well known so this seems like a strange pick but it doesn't have a lot of ratings on goodreads! Whilst I wouldn't say this was my favourite Kelley Armstrong novel it's the start of an interesting new series with some great characters.

3) How Not to Disappear by Clare Furniss
How Not To Disappear
This book was so much more than I ever expected it to be. It was emotional but funny and I thought the ending was really well done. The main character Hattie has just found out that she's pregnant and then the great-aunt her family never knew existed shows up in the early stages of dementia and determined to go on a road trip to revisit her past. It was a tough read at times but well worth a go.

4) The Vatican Princess by C.W. Gortner
The Vatican Princess
I've mentioned this book quite a lot I feel - because I really love it! It felt real and believable and never dry - I was immersed in Lucrezia's story right up to the end! This book deserves so much more love!

5) Lost Among the Living by Simone St. James
Lost Among the Living
I am a huge fan of Simone St. James and whilst I would say that this was probably my least favourite of her books - that still sets the bar pretty high. Her writing is beautiful and her mysteries are compelling.

6) Love, Lies and Spies by Cindy Anstey
Love, Lies and Spies
This one did get a lot of hype and I've seen it on a lot of TBR's but I don't know many people who have read it and it has so few ratings on goodreads. If you have this book then I definitely recommend picking it up soon - it's such a quick and engaging read.

7) Radio Silence by Alice Oseman
Radio Silence
Alice Oseman is an auto-buy author for me. I think Radio Silence was even better than Solitaire. I love her characters and her writing and I can't wait for more from her!

8) Imprudence by Gail Carriger
Imprudence (The Custard Protocol, #2)
A lot of people know (and have read) the Parasol Protectorate series but this sequel series is great and doesn't get so much attention! I adored this book and was very excited to find the series isn't finished (for some reason I had thought it was a duology)!

9) Assassin's Heart by Sarah Ahiers
Assassin's Heart (Assassin's Heart, #1)
The more I think about Assassin's Heart the more I like it. I definitely want to re-read it to see what I would think a second time around. This is another one with a lot of hype that just sort of fizzled out. The characters were pretty great and the revenge plot stayed as a revenge plot!! Which I was nervous about because the blurb almost made it sound more romance than assassin-ing! There is a sequel/companion novel coming out this year that I definitely want to pick up but this works as a standalone really well.

10) In the Month of the Midnight Sun by Cecelia Ekback
In the Month of the Midnight Sun
Cecilia Ekback's writing feels so unique to me. I love that the mountain and the land itself has such a presence. I read Wolf Winter in either early 2016 or late 2015 and then picked up In the Month of the Midnight Sun in late 2016 and I think it is a much easier to read and faster paced novel.

You can also find us on Goodreads (Ann and Clare) to keep up with what we are reading

26 comments:

  1. City of the Lost is the book I discovered Kelley Armstrong with and I loved it. The remote setting and the characters, just the whole deal. And Radio Silence I agree with, I haven't read it but it came out and I never really saw any blog reviews or much on it. I did do a Cover Spotlight on it because I liked the cover (different version) but it sounded good too!

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    1. I discovered her with the Women of the Otherworld series which I loved but her books are basically auto-buys at this point!
      Alice Oseman deserves so much more attention - both of her books are amazing!

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  2. Assassin's heart was in my last week's TTT. So glad to see it this week. I have that book I will read it soon!
    My TTT.

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    1. I definitely recommend it! I loved the setting and the characters!

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  3. I have love lies and spies, radio silence and assassins heart on my TBR :-) great list :-)

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    1. They're all great!! Hope you get to read them soon! :)

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  4. I've heard a lot of good things about Radio Silence! I need to get a copy of that one. I loved Kelley Armstrong's YA series. I need to check out City of the Lost as well. Great list!

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    1. Radio Silence was great! And Kelley Armstrong's YA series is one of my favourites! I need to re-read it soon!

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  5. I've not heard of this series by Kelly Armstrong, will definitely have to check it out, I love her books! Thank you for sharing :)

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    1. Only one book is out so far - I think the second book comes out either this month or next month! But I am looking forward to it - the first book was promising!

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  6. I just added The Vatican Princess to my TBR! I love historical fiction, and that cover is GORGEOUS...So it's a win-win for everybody, right? Great list :)

    My TTT

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    1. Yay!! I genuinely love that book - I feel like I talk about it constantly! Hope you enjoy it!

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  7. These are all new books to me and many of them look good to me!!

    Here's my TTT post for this week: http://captivatedreader.blogspot.com/2017/01/top-ten-tuesday-ten-underratedhidden.html

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    1. They're all great! This week's topic was very good for discovering books we've never heard of!

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  8. Excited to see Love, Lies and Spies on this list especially since I just picked it up. It looks like a fun read. Also, Imprudence and Gail's books in general are books I'd really like to read soon. Oh! And Radio Silence is one that looks interesting too. :)

    Thanks, as always for visiting Finding Wonderland, Clare. :)

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    1. Gail Carriger is such a fun writer - I always zoom through her books and then I'm left impatiently waiting for the next one! Hope you enjoy Love, Lies and Spies!! :)

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  9. Sorcerer to the Crown is the one I'm most interested in from this list! I've been keeping my eye on that one for awhile. I haven't read anything from Alice Oseman yet, but I feel like I would be into her stories.

    Thanks for visiting my blog! :)

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    1. Sorcerer to the Crown was a full on cover buy for me and then I was delighted to find it was a beautiful story as well! And I definitely recommend anything by Alice Oseman!

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  10. Assassin's Heart is on my TBR, glad to hear you liked it!
    My TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2017/01/17/top-ten-tuesday-92/

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  11. There are several on here that are on my radar and that I'd like to read so glad to hear them getting some love! I'd really like to read a Kelley Armstrong book and thanks for the advice on the Cecilia Ekback - Wolf Winter caught my eye last year but maybe I'll start with In the Month of the Midnight Sun first. Finally, St. James! OUt of curiosity - what is your favorite of hers? I've really liked the two I've read.

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    1. Wolf Winter and In the Month of the Midnight Sun take place in the same location but about a hundred years apart so you can definitely read them in any order! Wolf Winter was a slower novel more about the atmosphere and In the Month of the Midnight Sun was more character driven!
      I think my favourite St. James is either The Haunting of Maddy Clare or Silence for the Dead but it's so hard to choose!

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  12. I just bought myself Sorcerer to the Crown. I cannot wait to read it! Great list :)

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  13. Love Lies and Spies sounds like it could be great! :)

    Lauren @ Always Me

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    1. It really is! I definitely recommend it! :)

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