I can’t believe it’s that time again when we look at everything we’ve read and come up with our favourites! If you’re anything like me, you’re still frantically trying to catch up on all the 2017 releases. It’s interesting looking back at our mid-2017 favourites list to see if anything has changed. Each of us will be picking our top 4 favourites each – let’s see how much we overlapped this year!
Jeann
1. Godsgrave by Jay Kristoff | My Review
Godsgrave built upon the brutal assassin school in Nevernight and delivered an even more epic story featuring gladiator fights, mystical creatures and more twists and turns than you can poke a stick at.
2. Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor | My Review
The whimsical fantasy story featuring an alchemist, a librarian and a blue-skinned goddess of death was fantastical, memorable and unique. I adored reading this beautiful book!
3. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas | My Review
The Hate U Give opened my eyes when it came to the Black Lives Matter movement. Starr’s dedication to her family and community and standing up for what she believes in was incredibly inspirational.
4. Scythe by Neal Schusterman | My Review
One of the most profound books I’ve ever read, I loved this dystopian world about reapers delivering people’s deaths through random selection.
Check out the rest of my Top 10 Favourite Reads on my latest youtube video!
Runners up:
- A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi
- This Mortal Coil by Emily Suvada
- When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandya Menon
Jenna
1. Moonrise by Sarah Crossan | My Review
Written in verse, this book explores family and grief and I absolutely loved it. It was impossible for me not to connect with this story, even though it’s not something that I’ve ever gone through. Sarah Crossan’s poetry is beautiful and never fails to make me cry.
2. The Secret of a Heart Note by Stacey Lee | My Review | Aila’s Review
This was cute and sweet with a sprinkle of magical realism. If you’ve ever wanted to read about love potions in a non-cringeworthy setting, this novel is the one for you.
3. Lord of Shadows by Cassandra Clare | My Review
A great continuation of Lady Midnight, this sequel doesn’t fail to deliver. It was full of all the wonderful things that are always in Cassie Clare’s books: friendship, family and lots of romance and unresolved tension.
4. The End of Our Story by Meg Haston | My Review
I was blown away by this second-chance friendship/romance story. It touches on serious topics and is executed in a very tasteful and sensitive manner. I absolutely loved the characters and thought the romance was A+.
Runners up:
- A Silent Voice manga by Yoshitoki Oima
- Always and Forever, Lara Jean by Jenny Han
- Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor
Aila
Most of the fave books I’ve read have been in the early 2017’s due to my lack of reading when college started, so they’re pretty familiar books! Also, this is in no particular order because they’re all so amazing and 110% recommended. 😀
1. Dear Martin by Nic Stone | My Review
One word: INSPIRING. Dear Martin just tugged at all of my heart strings, from the awesome main character Jus to his inner turmoil and his developing relationships at home and in his community. I recommend it for any and all readers.
2. The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas | My Review
Another recommendation for any and all readers. The Hate U Give is empowering and necessary – I admit, I cried a couple of times while reading due to emotional overload. Teens living in the USA need this, and I can’t wait for the movie.
3. The Epic Crush of Genie Lo by FC Yee | My Review and Fanart!
This book has a special place in my bookshelves despite its cheesiness. The inspiration from Journey of the West is never done before in YA, and the main character Genie just GETS me.
4. A Crown of Wishes by Roshani Chokshi | My Review and Fanart!
Love, love, LOVEEE this book. Chokshi’s atmospheric writing and grand love story puts this book close to my heart, making it even more of a favorite than its predecessor. I will literally read anything this author writes.
Runners up:
- Forest of a Thousand Lanterns by Julie C Dao
- The City of Brass by SA Chakraborty
- When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandya Menon + Fanart!
So that’s our favourites from 2017 – what a fabulous reading year! I’m excited to see that Aila and I loved a lot of similar books, including Crown of Wishes, THUG and When Dimple Met Rishi. Because I’m feeling festive, this will be our last post of the year! We’ll see you in the new year with plenty more books to look forward to.
Thanks for your ongoing support everyone! Whether you celebrate this festive season or not, we hope you have a Happy Holiday season and a wonderful New Year!
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All the books are very Nice. I read 1st books in Dubai City Tour.and other in Singapore the story of the books are very nice
So many fabulous books here! The Hate U Give has been on so many lists for this year, and that makes me so happy. It’s such an incredible and emotional book and it deserves all the hype it’s received. And When Dimple Met Rishi was absolutely adorable too. xx Thanks for sharing girls and, as always, fabulous choices! <3
Zoe @ Stories on Stage recently posted…Predictability in Mysteries
I completely agree, I adored THUG! So glad to hear that you enjoyed them both xx
[…] Jeann @ Happy Indulgence […]
I can’t wait to get to Strange the Dreamer and I’m so glad it made your list because I love Laini Taylor! I loved her Daughter of Smoke and Bone series so much. Her writing works well for me.
Oh my gosh, I think you’d love Strange the Dreamer then! It’s sooo good!
Happy holidays ladies 🙂 I have read NONE of these books, however I really do need to check out some Jay Kristoff next year I think. It’s nice to see an Aussie author doing so well!
Wattle recently posted…Top 5 Wednesday #2
Yessss I’m so happy that Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff have really taken off after Illuminae! They’ve definitely done well 🙂 Hope you’ve had a lovely start to the year!
Happy holidays to all you gals! It’s been a poor blogging year for me in 2017 (and I had to lower my Goodreads challenge) but I’m happy with how much I did manage to get through, and being able to step back and tell myself that “no, I don’t need to just read review books…pick the books YOU want to read”.
Safe to say I haven’t been keeping up with many of 2017’s biggest releases, but I wholeheartedly agree that Godsgrave is definitely up there as my top five of the year!
Hope you all have a wonderful break — and hopefully I will be dropping by more often next year! xx
I was excited to see you post a blog the other day though Joy! I’m happy you’re still sticking with it despite not having a lot of time to do so. So excited that Godsgrave is on your favourites as well!
These are fabulous choices! I agree with Scythe like, a million percent hah. And THUG of course was phenomenal! Strange the Dreamer was also really good. And This Mortal Coil for sure! I really need to read City of Brass and ACOW (and you know, start Nevernight hahah) so I am super excited that these made your lists too!
Shannon @ It Starts at Midnight recently posted…2018 TBR Explosion
Oh my gosh, you’re one of the ones who convinced me to read Scythe and I absolutely LOVED it! I’m waiting for my physical copy to appear so I can re-read it before heading into Thunderhead (I’m just that obsessed). I’m going to read City of Brass too!
Ahh this is so so great! And I have a lot of favourites on your lists too. Omg Lord of Shadows was AMAZING and completely rude to the feels. And I loved THUG and Dear Martin (why is Dear Martin so underrated though!? It was so powerful) And STRANGE THE DREAMER. That book hurt it was so beautiful ahhhhh. I also haven’t read Scythe and Godsgrave yet (shh Jeann forgive me) but they’re top of the to-do list for 2018 I promise.
Cait @ Paper Fury recently posted…10 Reasons Why Bookworms Panic At The End of The Year
Yessss I haven’t heard much hype about Dear Martin but I’ve heard it’s amazing! CAIT YOU HAVE TO READ SCYTHE AND GODSGRAVE NOW WHAT ARE YOU DOING. This is like Gemina all over again.
Ugh, I regret not reading the last Lara Jean book! But I guess we have next year.
And I can’t wait to read others like Strange the Dreamer and others.
The Lara Jean books are so cute and fluffy, I find them an easy read to fit in! I hope you’ve had a wonderful start to the year.
I love these end of the year posts. I haven’t read ANY of the books you’ve listed, but I’ve heard of all of them, of course! I hope to get to a few in 2018.
Ali recently posted…Book Line-Up: The Holidays are Here!
Oh my gosh, I hope you do get to them Ali they are sooo good!
Oh this is such a great list, I love all of your choices! I have read and loved The Hate U Give and so want to read The Secret of a Heart Note, seeing that one on your list makes me so eager to get to it <3 <3
Marie @ Drizzle & Hurricane Books recently posted…Review: This Savage Song, Victoria Schwab
Thank you so much Marie! I adored THUG too and I have to pick up Secret of a Heart Note!
I haven’t read any of these books, but I heard great things about all of them! I just bought ACoW even though it haven’t arrived yet, but I’m really excited to read it! <3 Happy holidays for you all! <3
tasya @ the literary huntress recently posted…12 Days of Blogmas // Day 10: Books I’d Love to Find Under the Christmas Tree
Yay, happy holidays Tasya! I hope you enjoy ACOW, one of the stand outs this year.