Top Ten Books I Recommend The Most

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature created by The Broke and the Bookish. Every Tuesday has another topic and different bloggers give their top ten. I love making lists, so here's mine for this week!

This week's topic is 

Top Ten Books I Recommend The Most

It's never really easy making these Top Ten's, but this one is so hard! There are so many awesome books out there I loved and would recommend. But I tried my hardest and narrowed it down to ten. They're not really in a particular order. I think they're all amazing!

 1  Pushing the Limits / Dare You To by Katie McGarry

I'm counting these as one. You don't want to miss out on both of them!

 2  Legend by Marie Lu

I just finished this one yesterday and let me tell it's as amazing as everyone says it is!

 3  The Elemental series by Brigid Kemmerer

Yes, I know, I cheating a bit again. I could just pick the first book in the series, but you'll want to read the other books in the series then anyway. It's that amazing!

 4  The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

This book left a huge impression on me and I cried so hard while I read it. A beautiful story that really makes you think.

 5  Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Tahereh Mafi's writing style is so amazing you should read this book just for that.

 6  Can You Keep A Secret by Sophie Kinsella

This book has made me laugh so hard! It was almost embarrassing.

 7  Glow by Amy Kathleen Ryan

I never thought I would say that I love a science fiction book, but this one is absolutely amazing.

 8  The Last Song by Nicholas Sparks

All his books have made me cry, but this was one of the best.

 9  Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

One of the best dystopian books out there. 

10 Harry Potter by J.K. Rowling

As long as there are people out there that haven't read this series yet I'll keep recommending it!

What books do you recommend the most?

Review Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

Title: Under the Never Sky
Author: Veronica Rossi

Published: January 3rd, 2012 (HarperCollins)

Pages: 268

Source: bought
Series: Under the Never Sky #1

Rating: 5 stars

Synopsis from Goodreads: Aria is a teenager in the enclosed city of Reverie. Like all Dwellers, she spends her time with friends in virtual environments, called Realms, accessed through an eyepiece called a Smarteye. Aria enjoys the Realms and the easy life in Reverie. When she is forced out of the pod for a crime she did not commit, she believes her death is imminent. The outside world is known as The Death Shop, with danger in every direction.

As an Outsider, Perry has always known hunger, vicious predators, and violent energy storms from the swirling electrified atmosphere called the Aether. A bit of an outcast even among his hunting tribe, Perry withstands these daily tests with his exceptional abilities, as he is gifted with powerful senses that enable him to scent danger, food and even human emotions.

They come together reluctantly, for Aria must depend on Perry, whom she considers abarbarian, to help her get back to Reverie, while Perry needs Aria to help unravel the mystery of his beloved nephew’s abduction by the Dwellers. Together they embark on a journey challenged as much by their prejudices as by encounters with cannibals and wolves. But to their surprise, Aria and Perry forge an unlikely love - one that will forever change the fate of all who live UNDER THE NEVER SKY.

This was the first ebook I've ever read. I was a bit skeptical at first. I was afraid it wouldn't feel as holding an actual book. I had to get used to it, but I couldn't have started with a better book! This is a couple of months back, even before I started blogging. So that's why I never wrote a review. When I was picking the books for my 200 followers giveaway I noticed that and thought it was time to change that!

For some books it's really hard to write a review after such a long time, but this book stayed with me! It's so amazing! 
Especially the world setting. It's a beautiful combination of the past and the future. Aria, who lives in the virtual realms has always been afraid of the outsiders, or she's said to be afraid  So when she's put into the wild for a crime she didn't commit she's terrified and certain her death will come soon. That's where we meet Perry. He's an outsider and he can't stand Aria. But for her to be able to survive he has to help her and he feels obliged to. 

At first Aria is naive and she believes anything, especially the things her 'people' told her, but throughout the story she grows to stand on her own feet and to think for herself. I liked Aria at the beginning of the story and I understood where her naivety came from, but I loved her at the end. She really becomes a kick ass kinda girl and I can't wait how she'll turn out in the second installment. 

The story is told from two perspectives, alternating chapters, Perry's and Aria's. I'm not always a fan of multiple perspectives, but here they worked. Through Aria you learned more about her world and through Perry about his. And you get to know two sides of both: as they see themselves and how the other sees them. This was fascinating. 

There were so many amazing things about this book, it's almost impossible to write them all down. I was most intrigued by the gifts of the outsiders. Some people were 'marked' and they were gifted with enhanced senses. Perry is a Seer and a Scire, so he can see really well and smell emotions and tempers. It made the relationship between him and Aria different than others. The part where Aria realizes Perry can smell her emotions is so funny!
Definitely a book I would recommend and I can't wait to read Through the Ever Night!

Best Books This Year (So Far)

I saw this post on some other blogs and I really liked them, so here's my version! I just came back from a lovely week on Rhodes, so I'm rested and have read some amazing books. But deciding what books I thought were the best this year was pretty hard. I totally love Goodreads for giving me a nice overview of all my reads and ratings. So I stared at all those pictures (68 so far!) and tried to make up my mind. 
And here's what came out:

1. Glitch by Heather Anastasiu (review)
I finished this book just before I left for my holiday and I haven't stopped thinking about it. This is one of the books you HAVE to read this year!

2. Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi
The most amazing thing about this book is the writing style. Just for that you have to read this book. It's one of a kind. 


3. I Heart London by Lindsey Kelk
I read this book on Rhodes and it's definitely the best Chick Lit I've read this year. This books makes you laugh!


4. Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi
Dystopians are totally hot right now and this might be one of the hottest! I thought it was amazing. 

5. Bunheads by Sophie Flack
Another one of my vacation reads. I love books about dancing and this is one of the best I've ever read. 


6. The Iron King by Julie Kagawa (review)
Why didn't I read this sooner?! When am I going to learn?


7. The Curse Girl by Kate Avery Ellison (review)
An amazing retelling of Beauty and The Beast. One of the books that really took me by surprise!

8. Stealing Phoenix by Joss Stirling (review)
I love this series. The world setting is just so good. It makes me feel happy. 


9. A Witch in Winter by Ruth Warburton (review)
I love books about witches and this is a very good one! I'm going to start in the second book soon!


10. Emerald Green by Kerstin Gier
The third book in this series already got published in Dutch and let me tell you: it's a perfect ending. This books makes you laugh out loud!


What are the best books you've read this year?

Cover Love

Don't judge a book by it's cover, but in the end we all do. Well, I do. Call me shallow, but do you pick up a book when the cover doesn't appeal to you? To be clear I'm talking about picking up books you hadn't heard of before seeing it. Or maybe you make your choice based on something else? Of course, if I heard great things about a book, there's not much that can stop me from reading it, especially not an unappealing cover. I've even gone as far as reading books without liking the synopsis, just because the reviews were that good. 
This post is mostly about covers and a bit about the books behind them.


Beautiful covers, amazing stories

These are just two examples of many. I've read Under the Never Sky recently and I loved it. His Dark Materials I read a while ago, like two years, but I mostly choose this book for it's cover. In The Netherlands this isn't a book every child has read, so I didn't discover it until the movie The Golden Compass came out and I didn't really like it, but when I saw this cover I just couldn't stop thinking about it. So I bought it, read it and now it's one of my all-time favorites. 


Unappealing covers, beautiful stories

Another one of my all-time favorites: The Time Traveler's Wife, what an amazing story. I have cried for hours after finishing this book. It's so beautiful, complex and well written. But I never really liked the cover. The same with Finding Sky. The story is good, but that cover is just a bit weird. But luckily that didn't stop me from really loving these books, so hopefully I'm not that shallow after all. 


Beautiful covers, disappointing stories

And there's the other way around. I couldn't wait to read these books, especially Switched. I had only seen the cover and I just wanted to read that book! With The Betrayal of Natalie Hargrove I already knew the Fallen series by Lauren Kate, but I loved this cover as well. And the stories were so disappointing. I had high hopes for the latter, and it just wasn't as great as Fallen. But Switched was so bad. When I started reading I liked it, but when I finished the first part it just got worse and worse. Beautiful covers can definitely be misleading!

Let me know in the comments what covers you love/like/dislike!

Cover Reveal (1)

I always get really excited when I see a beautiful cover, especially when the book isn't published yet. And I like to share my joy! So here's my first Cover Reveal. 

Through the Ever Night

Title: Through the Ever Night

Author: Veronica Rossi

Expected publication: January 8th, 2013 (HarperCollins)

Series: Under the Never Sky #2

I loved Under the Never Sky's cover, and this one is just as beautiful! The guy is amazing! I'm going to read as fast as possible and then just stare at the cover. 

What do you think about this cover?