Tuesday, March 17, 2015

Top Ten Books on My Spring TBR List

It's been a while since I've done a Top Ten Tuesday, or much reliable blogging at all, if we're being honest, so I'm ready to dive right back in with this week's lists of the top ten books on our Spring TBR lists.  There are a ton of books I want to be reading this spring, and these ten barely scratch the surface, but here's a quick look at what I hope to be reading this spring!

If you want to check out more lists or link up your own, head on over to The Broke and the Bookish to join in the fun.

1. The Reluctant Midwife by Patricia Harman - I read and enjoyed a review copy of Harman's The Midwife of Hope River back when it came out and really enjoyed it.  I'm looking forward to making a return to Harman's richly set Depression-era West Virginia.

2. Trigger Warning by Neil Gaiman - If you know me, I don't go in for a whole lot of short storying, but if Neil Gaiman writes it, exceptions can be made.

3. In a World Just Right by Jen Brooks - In a World Just Right was on my Top 10 Most Anticipated Debuts list from a few weeks ago.  When Jen wrote to offer me a review copy, I was delighted to say yes.  Looking forward to reading this one very soon!

4. The Martian by Andy Weir - I was excited to find this one under my Christmas tree since I'd heard so much good stuff about it.  I definitely have to read this one before its movies version comes out.

5. The Illusion of Separateness by Simon van Booy - This one was on my Christmas list, too, but I ended up buying it for my own self after the holiday.  I'm super-stoked to read another van Booy after having quite liked Everything Beautiful Began After.

6. Girl Underwater by Claire Kells - I hadn't heard of this debut at all until a listing of Dutton's spring titles showed up in my e-mail box.  It's about a girl who survives a plane crash with a guy she's been avoiding.  Sounds really interesting.

7. The Boy Who Drew Monsters by Keith Donohue - I loved Keith Donohue's The Stolen Child, and this new one of his about a boy whose drawings of monsters "take on a life of their own" sounds like it might well evoke the same kind of eerie magical realism that The Stolen Child did.

8. The Chronicle of Secret Riven by Ronlyn Domingue - I read and quite loved the first book in the series, The Mapmaker's War, around Thanksgiving.  I'm eager to return to Domingue's thoughtful fantasy world.

9. Where All Light Tends to Go by David Joy - I spotted this Appalachia-set debut on someone's else's anticipated debuts list, so I was excited to snag an early copy.  They're calling it Winter's Bone meets "Breaking Bad" about a guy who has to choose between his father (and the meth ring he runs) and leaving the life he was born to.

10. The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah - I'm pretty excited about this one, too.  World War II historical fiction that includes a woman who joins the French Resistance?  I'm in.

What are you excited to be reading this spring?

15 comments:

  1. Wow--I never heard of most of those before! Make a prediction--how many of those do you actually think you'll read this spring? Will it be most of them? Just curious, because if I made a list like that, it would likely be the surest way to make sure that some other book that's not on the list would always be more shiny at the moment it's time to start a new one. I'm sure I'm not alone it that, but I'm also sure there's people who could really stick with a list like that. Which are you?
    Btw, I've missed you! :)

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    1. LOL, Debi, you've kind of found me out. In general, when I make lists like this it's kind of like the "serving suggestion" picture on a frozen dinner. I'm about as likely to read all these books this spring as I am to ladle a Lean Cuisine onto a plate and accent it with a sprig of parsley. In a perfect world, I would be goal-oriented and not totally contrary, and these books would all get read. In the real world, I hope for at least one or two. ;-)

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  2. That's a nice mix of books that you're looking forward to reading this spring. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed The Nightingale.

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    1. Glad to hear The Nightingale is as enjoyable as I hoped. I found myself a lot more excited about it than I expected to be when a copy landed on my doorstep!

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  3. I liked the Martian a lot and I'm with you on Neil Gaimen. I finally got around to reading his The Ocean at the End of the Lane and I loved it.

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    1. The Ocean at the End of the Lane is near the top of my list of favorite Gaimans. Glad to hear you enjoyed it too! :)

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  4. I love the idea of making a TBR list for spring! I'm going to make my own list! The Boy Who Drew Monsters is a book I recently checked out. I have the same hopes for it as you do. Donohue is so talented when it comes to magic realism.

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    1. He definitely is. I'm not a re-reader by nature, but The Stolen Child is definitely a book I can picture myself re-reading. Hope The Boy Who Drew Monsters is just as good!

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  5. I need to pull The Martian off my nightstand and get to it!

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    1. My copy is glowering at me from the floor of my bedroom. I don't think it will stand to wait much longer... ;-)

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  6. I won a copy of The Nightingale in a giveaway recently and am looking forward to reading it.

    Where All the Light Tends to Go sounds like it will be good. I really enjoyed Winter's Bone when I read it, but haven't seen (nor want to) Breaking Bad.

    Donohue is an author I have been wanting to read. I have his Stolen Child in my TBR shelf. Have for years.

    The Illusion of Separateness is so good! I hope you do get a chance to read it and love it as much as I did.

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    1. I was skeptical about Breaking Bad, but then I ended up loving it as much as everybody else seemed to. Definitely get to The Stolen Child soon - it's one of my favorites! And I'm glad to hear your praise for The Illusion of Separateness. I definitely need to make that one a priority!

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  7. You've got some good ones here. I want to read several of them - THE NIGHTENGALE, THE MARTIAN. I saw GIRL UNDERWATER somewhere too and thought it sounded interesting. Good luck!!

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  8. I really want to read The Martian sometime too. Sadly, it hasn't quite made it to my immediate TBR pile.

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  9. I haven't read any of these, but pretty much all of them are on my TBR mountain chain. The midwife books look especially intriguing to me.

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