Top Ten Books I've Read So Far in 2013

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. There is a new subject each week and this week's topic is "Top Ten Books I've Read So Far in 2013"

While I'm waiting on the publication of several books I've been anticipating like The House of Hades by Rick Riordan, Allegiant by Veronica Roth, and United We Spy by Ally Carter, here are some of my favorites so far this year:

Tell the Wolves I'm Home by Carol Rifka Brunt

Every once in awhile, I read a book for book discussion group and end up loving it.  Even though I saw a lot of positive reviews for this book last year, I had no interest in reading it just for fun. It didn't sound appealing to me at all. Then when my group voted for it and I started reading it, I realized right away what I would have missed out on otherwise. I loved the writing style and the characters and it was a story with emotional impact.

On Sal Mal Lane by Ru Freeman

I knew I wanted to read this book because it was about Sri Lanka but I ended up loving it because of the characters too. Now I want to read the author's other novel, A Disobedient Girl, and I'm hoping one of my book groups will be able to read and discuss On Sal Mal Lane.

Golden by Jessi Kirby

I was a big fan of Moonglass but I was only sort of interested in reading this book at first. I ended up really liking it because of the main character and the issues it explores. I thought it was a really good look at the emotions and stress that teens have to deal with when they are getting ready to graduate and go out into the "real world".

Les Miserables by Victor Hugo

Les Miserables is an intimidating book in a way because of its size. I also thought it could use some editing to focus on the story more instead of historical details about the Paris sewer system, etc. Watching the movie helped spur my decision to tackle this book and I'm glad I persevered because in the end I found it to be rewarding. 

Looking For Me by Beth Hoffman

I loved Saving CeeCee Honeycutt, the author's debut novel that is similar to The Help and The Secret Life of Bees. This book is set in a different time and looks at family relationships. I enjoyed it for all the details about furniture restoration as well as the setting (partly set in Charleston). It reminded me a little bit of some of Mary Kay Andrews's books (she also uses details about the protagonist's career to add to the story).

The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay

I didn't think I'd like this book though I ended up requesting it for review after seeing a lot of positive reaction from other bloggers. I misunderstood what the book was about so I had lower expectations and ended up really enjoying the story, the characters, and the development of the romance. It reminded me of Katie McGarry's Dare You To and Pushing the Limits and I think fans of Simone Elkeles and Jennifer Echols would also like it.

Dare You To by Katie McGarry

This is another book that took me by surprise. I liked book one, Pushing the Limits, but wasn't sure about this one since the main character is Beth who I didn't like very much in the first book. The author made Beth a really sympathetic character however and I also liked that the love interest was basically a nice guy.

The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley

Susanna Kearsley is one of my favorite authors. Her books usually feature either some kind of time travel or a dual story line where one part takes place in the past and one part takes place in the present. I also like that the books are usually about Scotland in some way. While The Firebird is set partly in Russia, it looks at the lives of Jacobites living abroad there. My favorite part however was the relationship between Nicola and Rob.

Poison by Bridget Zinn

This was a really cute debut novel that had humor and romance. I wanted to read it when I first heard about it but didn't expect I'd enjoy it as much as I did. 

Edenbrooke by Julianne Donaldson

Edenbrooke got my attention when it was nominated for a Goodreads Choice Award. It is a sweet Regency romance though it wisely doesn't try to ape the writing style of Jane Austen. I found the love story to be very satisfying and hope the author writes more.