I'm an avid reader and always has been. College can be a tricky time to read for leisure, but if I go to long without doing so, I definitely start to notice. I may go one month without reading anything more than the Syllabus for my Italian Renaissance Art History course and another month devour three novels back-to-back-to-back. 

I was thrilled when Zakiya of Book, TV, and Me contacted me with this post idea since books are something I always find myself wanting to blog about, but somehow never get around to. Some of these books are ones I've also been wanting to get my hands on and the ones I didn't know about before, Zakiya has fully convinced me into investigating a little further. 

So here are some of Zakiya's favorite books so far this year!

__________________________________________________________________________________________________

This year was great for books and it’s only going to get better from here. I’ve lost count on how many book reviews I’ve done this year but it’s been plenty. I’ve been reading non-stop, every chance I get it. Here’s my top five of this year. Most have been released by now but one hasn’t yet. Take a look.

1. The One and Only by Emily Giffin

I’ve loved Emily Giffin’s writing since I read Something Borrowed years ago. She has this incredible ability to write love stories that challenge your thinking but also make your heart race. This novel focuses around Shea Rigsby a thirty something year old who’s life is thrown upside when her best friend’s mother dies. Shea is forced to think about her life choices and forced to wonder if she’s really doing what she wants or if she’s just stayed in her hometown of Walker, Texas because it’s safe. Shea begins to revaluate everything in her life and starts to figure what she really wants for herself in her career and in her love life. Such a good read!

2.  Opposition by Jennifer L. Armentrout

I’ve been obsessed with this series since I read the first book a year ago (I think). I own every single one and have been caught rereading them all from time to time. If you’ve never heard of the Lux series before it’s centered on a girl named Katy who moves to this new town after her father dies from cancer. Katy’s next-door neighbors, Daemon and Dee, are hiding a secret that Katy is determined to find out. Especially after Daemon saves her life. What Katy doesn’t realize is once she knows the truth it will change her life forever. Great sci-fi drama and of course there’s a great romance as well. This is the last book in the series and it was a fantastic ending.

3. Silver Shadows by Richelle Mead

I love this series! I loved the Vampire Academy series and although I still love those books more I absolutely fell in love with its spin off series. Richelle Mead is great at creating these intense, drama filled love stories where you have no idea how it’ll ever work but when it does you’re so excited. This book came out last month and it’s the second to last book in the series. If you’ve never heard of this series before it’s centered around a girl named Sydney Sage who is an Alchemist which is a human who’s sole job is to keep vampires and dhapmirs (half vamp, half human) a secret from humans. Although Sydney is at first down with the Alchemist cause, as the series progresses she rebels more and more from their ideals leading her into a heap of trouble. This was my favorite of the series so far.

4. Rumble by Ellen Hopkins

I’ve read almost every one of Ellen Hopkin’s books and she has yet to disappoint me. Although her books can get very dark they’re told in such a poetic way (she literally writes her books like poetry) that they’re not hard to get through. Her latest novel focuses on a teenage boy, Matthew, who lives in a town where religion is the epicenter but he doesn’t believe. Matthew’s younger brother was bullied into suicide and Matthew no longer has time for a religion that is filled with what he feels is hypocrisy and hate. As a Christian myself I found this novel to be very interesting and thought provoking but in a great way. I thought Hopkins did a very good job of handling a touchy subject that is highly publicized right now. Definitely a must read. Release date: August 26.

5. The Secret Diary of Lizzie Bennet by Bernie Su and Kate Rorick

The Lizzie Bennet Diaries is a YouTube show based off of Jane Austen’s novel, Pride and Prejudice. The Secret Diary is the book companion to the show and it’s brilliant. I listened to the audio book because I wanted to hear Ashley Clement’s (Lizzie on the show) voice read the book. It just made it feel more authentic that way. It was great. Although some fear it’ll be just like the show it’s not. Of course there are some scenes that come straight from the show but there’s also so much revealed that we never saw on the show and that explained some things. Definitely a great read but if you haven’t watched the show yet definitely watch the show first. Also, there will also be a Lydia diary released soon so there’s even more to look forward to. Yay!

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

Thanks again for this awesome guest post Zakiya. Also, you can catch more books/tv talk on her blog!