Tuesday, August 29, 2017

Top Ten Tuesday


Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Today's Topic: Ten Hidden Gem Books in X Genre. Since it's Utah Book Week I thought I'd list the top ten books by Utah author's you all need to be reading!


The Hollow City by Dan Wells
This is the number one Utah book I push on people. Why people don't pick it up and read it already is beyond me. It's unique and engaging and just plain entertaining as hell!



Once Was Lost by Sara Zarr
If you haven't read a Sara Zarr book you need to. But which one? Any of them but I always recommend Once Was Lost. It's issuey and sad but so, so, so beautiful!


Glimpse by Carol Lynch Williams
This author writes a lot of verse novels and they're sad and heartbreaking and REAL. I love them.


Blackmoore by Julianne Donaldson
This Utah author has only given us two books so far but if you love Regency romances and haven't read one of her books you need to! I loved Blackmoore just a titch more so I'm recommending it.


Austenland by Shannon Hale
Speaking of loving Regency romances. Jane, the MC of Austenland, has just a tiny, tiny obsession with them. Watching her obsession play out in this one is a treat.


The Princess and the Hound by Mette Ivie Harrison
If you love fantasy, this is the fun beginning to a series. I've only read the first one so far so I can't vouch for the whole series.



Elevated by Elana Johnson
This contemporary verse novel blew me away. I thought it was going to be a cute romance and was surprised with a much deeper story that moved me to tears.



Stitching Snow by R.C. Lewis
A scifi retelling of Snow White that was both inventive and delightful. If you think Marissa Meyer and her Lunar Chronicles has the monopoly on sci-fi retellings you'd be horribly wrong. Read this one. You'll see.


Transparent (Transparent #1) by Natalie Whipple
I read this one a few years ago for Utah book month and was not expecting anything great. I ended up loving it...and really need to get my hands on book two. What's up with that?



My Ridiculous Romantic Obsessions by Becca Willhite
This cute little romance is perfect for anyone who might just have a few too many fanciful, romantic ideas about love.



And that's just some of the lesser known Utah books that I read and loved. There's tons of books by Utah authors that you've probably read and loved and books that I haven't even read yet. Yep, I have to admit it. Utah has some pretty awesome authors. Am I right?!

22 comments:

  1. I didn't realize TTT was back! I will have to get on a post!

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  2. Fun list! I love THE HOLLOW CITY. In fact, it's probably my favorite Wells book. Sara Zarr is hit and miss for me, but one of my favorite books of all time is her HOW TO SAVE A LIFE. I also really enjoy Becca Wilhite. Did you know she FINALLY has a new one coming out? It looks super cute.

    Happy Top Ten Tuesday!

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    1. I did see Wilhite has a new one coming out. I'll have to keep my eyes open. The Hollow City is my favorite Wells book too!

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  3. I love your list even though I've only read a couple of them. :D But, the others are on my TBR.

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    1. You'll get to them someday, right? You have to read My Ridiculous Romantic Obsessions. You'll like it.

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  4. This is such an interesting interpretation of the prompt! I never pay attention to where authors are from. Austenland sounds right up my alley-- I'll have to give it a try.
    My TTT

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    1. Thanks. My local blogger community hosts this week for all bookish things Utah so I thought I'd use this prompt to my benefit.

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  5. Austenland looks fun, and Once Was Gone does too even if not's my kind of read, it looks good.

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  6. Great list! I'll be looking for some of these. :)

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    1. I hope you like them if you do read them.

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  7. Fun way to spin the topic. :) I read Blackmoore back when it released, and Austenland has been on my TBR for a looong time. Since I really like the film, I should (at some point) read that one. (Plus, it's really short, so I should be able to spreed read it.)

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  8. Pretty sure I own both Elevated and Transparent but just haven't gotten to them yet. (Story of my life. And so many others lol.) I'll have to check them out soon.

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    1. Yeah, my tbr list is always one day I'll get to that. Sigh!

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  9. I like your spin on this week's topic. I'll have to check out Austenland, Blackmore, and The Princess and the Hound. They all sound good. Here is our TTT

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  10. I've been meaning to read Blackmoore and I've read Austenland. Good book!

    Utah authors are a special breed of good and I finally know why, as of recently. They have had access to a particularly good fiction writing instructor who taught at BYU named David Farland. Now Brandon Sanderson teaches the class, since Farland retired. Farland is known for turning more than a few of his students into mega-best selling authors. ;)

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    1. I saw you'd read that book. I'm sure the kids would have done better under Farland. Sorry. Not a Sanderson fan...at all.

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