Top Ten Tuesday - #24: Love This, Love That

{ ++ } 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 17: 

Top Ten Books For People Who Like Shadow and Bone

 This Top Ten Tuesday, I wanted to highlight a book that I loved this year, then recommend to y'all some books that are also stand-outs in that genre for me, or that share similar elements, a writing style, or pairing.   One of my favorite books of 2012 (to the point that I sobbed more than once!) is Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo.  I'm a HUGE fan of fantasy books, and in fact, fell in love with that genre as a teen when I went looking for something new and different to read.   If you have read and loved S&B, or if you're looking forward to reading it, give these other books a try!



{ 1 } Medalon by Jennifer Fallon.  This is an adult fantasy book, but it was really unique, and features a different sort of mythology than any others I've run across.  Kinda like how Bardugo blends a lot to bring the Grisha mythos to life! 

{ 2 } Defiance by C.J. Redwine.  I just finished this one, and while the societies are really different in this and in S&B, they're equally fascinating and different.  The emphasis on power is definitely present in both books. 

{ 3 } Dragonsbane by Barbara Hambly.  This is one of the very first sci-fi-/fantasy books I read, and in a way, the wildness of it reminds me of Shadow and Bone.  They've both got that darker, old-fashioned, feral vibe going on in their magics. 

{ 4 } Cinder by Marissa Meyer.  Cinder is technically sci-fi, and a fairy-tale re-imagining, but for some reason, I LOVED loved loved the world-building to it, the more that I look back on the book.  There's a thriving culture here that's also in Shadow and Bone - two very different cultures, but both impressive in how much time the author took to develop them. 

{ 5 } The Wayfarer Redemption by Sara Douglass.  I vividly remember reading this book probably oh...8 years ago or so, and just falling in LOVE with the unique mythos Douglass created.  To this day I'm still a bit creeped out by the original trilogy and the monsters and magic she created! 


{ 6 } Switched by Amanda Hocking.  I haven't read the other two books in this trilogy, but this first one captivated me.  Both Wendy and Alina are searching to find out who they are when their entire worlds change, and I loved that they both stay true to themselves. 

{ 7 } Daughter of the Blood by Anne Bishop.  (Oh c'mon.  Y'all KNEW this one would be on the list, right?)  There's a VERY sensual vibe to this book and books, just like there is to Alina and the Darkling in Shadow and Bone. 

 { 8 } Half-Blood by Jennifer L Armentrout.  If you haven't read this book, then GO GET IT!  JLA has developed a fascinating Greek mythology, blending some traditional in with her own style.  It's just a lush and captivating as the Grisha society is! 

{ 9 } The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan.  This is the first book in an epically awesome series that I have yet to get back to (*SIGHS*) and I miss.  Jordan passed away a few years ago, but not before he poured his heart and soul into building the world of the Wheel of Time series, with a few amazing cultures, including the Aes Sedai (which remind me a LOT of the Grisha) and the Aiel. 

{ 10 } Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi.  If my review doesn't convince you to read this one, then there's no helping you.  LOL.  Seriously though, even though there are a few more sci-fi than fantasy elements to V's debut book, it's a tremendously well-built and dangerous world, just like the Grisha society.  Plus, I think Alina and Aria would get along great, since they're similar characters in some way.