Top Ten Tuesday - #22: Top Ten Books For People Who Like Richelle Mead

{ ++ } Hosted by the girls over at The Broke and the Bookish, this meme features a different theme every week, and hey, it's Tuesday - we've got the rest of the week ahead of us.  We all need a little fun, and who doesn't love the challenge of ranking their top 10 anything...especially when it comes to books?!  I know I do, hence why I thought it'd be fun to participate, and spice things up a little!

July 3: 

Top Ten Books For People Who Like Richelle Mead

Boy, did I struggle to pick an author to highlight!  I almost went with something broader, like a genre.  But then I thought back on the authors who I credit with getting me into YA, and Richelle Mead is definitely one!  My good friend Suz at A Soul Unsung sent me a copy of Vampire Academy a few years ago, and that, along with Twilight and The Hunger Games are the books/series that really piqued my interest in YA novels.  So...thank you!

Today, I want to give a shout out to other YA paranormal novels and/or novels that feature heroines - TRUE heroines - who are just as brave, kick-ass, and loyal as Rose Hathaway! 

 
{ 1 } Hemlock by Kathleen Peacock.  (I promise I'm not just saying this because I LOVED LOVED LOVED this book.)  Mac is very courageous in her own way, even if yes, sometimes I wanted to shake her for being so brave and selfless and thinking of others first. 

{ 2 } The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins.  I don't think anyone could EVER dispute that stubborn, feisty Katniss Everdeen, despite being a reluctant heroine, is one hell of a fighter, and definitely would probably respect Rose, even if I'm not sure if they'd get along. 

{ 3 } Grave Mercy by Robin LaFevers.  This one isn't paranormal but LaFever's main character, Ismae absolutely stole my heart within the first few chapters.  She's headstrong and opinionated and definitely a fighter.  I think she and Rose would actually possibly be good friends!

 { 4 } Nightshade by Andrea Cremer.  Calla is fierce and fiercely loyal to her friends, family, and pack mates.  She made some bad choices along the way in the name of that loyalty, but I really, greatly admire her. 

{ 5 } Delirium by Lauren Oliver.  I know this may seem like a strange choice, considering as far as action goes, Lena didn't DO a whole lot in Delirium but she's really brave to me...because she fell in love in a world when doing just that goes against everything she was ever taught. 

{ 6 } Hourglass by Myra McEntire.  If you've read this book, then you KNOW what Emerson goes through, what she survives and endures, and that she doesn't let it break her.  She is a true heroine, and someone who puts others first and tries to always do right by them. 

{ 7 } Sweet Evil by Wendy Higgins.  I know that Anna seems like a "goody-goody," and IS in a lot of ways, but I think it says a LOT about the type of main character Higgins has created when her greatest struggle is to hold onto something pure and good in a world as crazy as ours is!

{ 8 } Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo.  (Yes, this one is going to make it onto ANY Top 10 I can squeeze it onto!)  Alina is like Rose in that she's self-aware of who she is, but she's also able to rise above herself and her situation to look out for those she cares about, like Mal, and she puts the good of others before her own needs. 

{ 9 } A Want So Wicked/A Need So Beautiful by Suzanne Young.  Charlotte/Elise is a different type of heroine than Rose, but there's just as much heart and soul in these two books as there was in the VA series! 

{ 10 } Half-Blood by Jennifer L Armentrout.  At first I saw ONLY the similarities to the VA series - between Alex and Rose, between Alex and the love interests.  But then I fell really hard for JLA's world and characters, and while I would still wholeheartedly recommend this series to anyone who liked the VA series...it IS a great world all on its own, and Alex is a fantastic heroine!


What about y'all?  Leave me links to YOUR Top 10!  I want to see what authors/genres/etc you chose and the books you'd recommend based on that.  And...happy reading!