Books I Didn't Expect To Love
May 13, 2020
Sometimes I pick up a book because everybody is talking about it and I really don't expect to love it all that much. I've found that often this is when i've read some of my all time favourite books!
I love it when a book surprises you.
When you've heard mixed reviews and you end up being one of the few who loved it.
Or when a book really doesn't sound like your cup of tea but it blows you away!
When you've heard mixed reviews and you end up being one of the few who loved it.
Or when a book really doesn't sound like your cup of tea but it blows you away!
So in this blog post I thought I would share some books that I really did not expect to love. I'm going to talk about why I didn't expect to love them and what it was about them that just hooked me in!
The Cruel Prince - Holly Black
Before picking this book up I had heard SO much about it, not all of it good. I'd heard that the political aspect of the book was boring and that all the characters were horrible people. Up until now, i'd always shied away from books that had morally grey characters because I didn't think I'd enjoy it but this book definitely proved me wrong and introduced me to a whole world of fantastic books that contain morally grey characters. (I'll talk more about that later in this post ;)).
Another reason I was hesitant about this one was that I had previously read a couple of Holly Black's books and really not enjoyed them. However, those books hadn't contained faeries and after reading this book I really think that faeries are what Holly Black does best!
Whilst reading the cruel prince I was a little intrigued. I definitely didn't hate it but I really couldn't tell where it was going. Then the book hit the halfway mark and i became obsessed. And there really wasn't any going back from there.
I devoured the rest of the book and couldn't read anything else until my copy of the wicked king came through the post. Then the AGONISING wait for Queen of Nothing to be released.
I ended up loving every single book in this series. The characters were wonderfully complex and the world building was impeccable. I just loved it so much.
I definitely don't think this book is for everyone but I think if it's something that sounds somewhat interesting to you, you should give it a go and see for yourself.
Full Review | Goodreads | Book Depository
Six of Crows - Leigh Bardugo
This was a recent read for me and I absolutely ADORED it. I have previously tried to read Six of Crows three times and have never got past chapter two. That second chapter is SO hard to read and just dumps a load of names on you. Honestly, I still hate it. But anyone who feels the same way as me you absolutely MUST push through because this book is amazing.
Not only had I failed to finish this one before, but I'm really not a big fan of heist books. I always find them kind of boring so i really didn't have high hopes for this one.. However six of crows had enough variety and drama and i found it really entertaining.
It was told from plenty of points of view which I liked because every character was so different it was fantastic to hear from them all. Also, Leigh Bardugo through in lots of flashback scenes where we learn about the characters pasts and what led them to them becoming who they are. I really liked this because it broke up the action sequences a bit and made for a really intriguing read.
Goodreads | Book Depository
One of Us is Lying - Karen McManus
I expected to enjoy One of Us is Lying but not half as much as I did. I often find that two things happen for me when i'm reading a murder mystery:
(a) the characters aren't interesting
(b) the solution is way too far fetched
So I was a little hesitant to start this one.
But neither of these things happened in this book. I found all the characters to be engaging and interesting and I really cared about them by the end of the book. The solution was plausible and could be worked out from the clues (i didn't work it out at the time though). I found that i just could not stop reading this one!
Another worry I had with this book was that it has four, first person P.OV'S! (I really hate book with more than two first person P.O.V's). However, this book is the exception to the rule. Point of view was utilised really well in this one. Each character had a distinct voice and I definitely think it was necessary to hear from the P.O.V of all four characters.
This one is definitely a fantastic mystery that really surprised me! (I also loved book two btw - so if you've read this one and haven't read book two then go read it!!)
Goodreads | Book Depository
Vicious - V.E. Schwab
There were a few things that made me initially hesitant to read this one.
First of all, there was NO ROMANCE. I absolutely love romance in books, it's one of the things that gets me invested in a book very quickly. One of the reasons I wanted to pick this up is because I wanted to try and read a little out of my comfort zone and go for something that didn't have romance. I'm really glad I did because this book definitely didn't need romance to get me invested. I was pretty much hooked from the first page and the platonic character dynamics in this one are absolutely fantastic.
Secondly, this was another book with morally grey characters and I was pretty sure it was gonna be a lot darker than the cruel prince. I was absolutely right about that one but I think it really added to my enjoyment of this book as well. Neither of the main characters in this book were morally clean, but they both had their reasons for what they did and both of them thought that what they were doing was right.
I think that aspect of the book really made for an interesting read because it was definitely up to the reader to decide for themselves who the "villian" of the story was.
Unfortunately I was a little disappointed with the sequel of this one because I really expected to love it as much as Vicious but it was a little bit slow for my liking.
Full Review | Goodreads | Book Depository
Come talk to me! Have you read any books that you really didn't expect to like?
I think for me it just goes to show that sometimes its good to go outside of my reading comfort zone <3
Six of Crows - Leigh Bardugo
This was a recent read for me and I absolutely ADORED it. I have previously tried to read Six of Crows three times and have never got past chapter two. That second chapter is SO hard to read and just dumps a load of names on you. Honestly, I still hate it. But anyone who feels the same way as me you absolutely MUST push through because this book is amazing.
Not only had I failed to finish this one before, but I'm really not a big fan of heist books. I always find them kind of boring so i really didn't have high hopes for this one.. However six of crows had enough variety and drama and i found it really entertaining.
It was told from plenty of points of view which I liked because every character was so different it was fantastic to hear from them all. Also, Leigh Bardugo through in lots of flashback scenes where we learn about the characters pasts and what led them to them becoming who they are. I really liked this because it broke up the action sequences a bit and made for a really intriguing read.
Goodreads | Book Depository
One of Us is Lying - Karen McManus
I expected to enjoy One of Us is Lying but not half as much as I did. I often find that two things happen for me when i'm reading a murder mystery:
(a) the characters aren't interesting
(b) the solution is way too far fetched
So I was a little hesitant to start this one.
But neither of these things happened in this book. I found all the characters to be engaging and interesting and I really cared about them by the end of the book. The solution was plausible and could be worked out from the clues (i didn't work it out at the time though). I found that i just could not stop reading this one!
Another worry I had with this book was that it has four, first person P.OV'S! (I really hate book with more than two first person P.O.V's). However, this book is the exception to the rule. Point of view was utilised really well in this one. Each character had a distinct voice and I definitely think it was necessary to hear from the P.O.V of all four characters.
This one is definitely a fantastic mystery that really surprised me! (I also loved book two btw - so if you've read this one and haven't read book two then go read it!!)
Goodreads | Book Depository
Vicious - V.E. Schwab
There were a few things that made me initially hesitant to read this one.
First of all, there was NO ROMANCE. I absolutely love romance in books, it's one of the things that gets me invested in a book very quickly. One of the reasons I wanted to pick this up is because I wanted to try and read a little out of my comfort zone and go for something that didn't have romance. I'm really glad I did because this book definitely didn't need romance to get me invested. I was pretty much hooked from the first page and the platonic character dynamics in this one are absolutely fantastic.
Secondly, this was another book with morally grey characters and I was pretty sure it was gonna be a lot darker than the cruel prince. I was absolutely right about that one but I think it really added to my enjoyment of this book as well. Neither of the main characters in this book were morally clean, but they both had their reasons for what they did and both of them thought that what they were doing was right.
I think that aspect of the book really made for an interesting read because it was definitely up to the reader to decide for themselves who the "villian" of the story was.
Unfortunately I was a little disappointed with the sequel of this one because I really expected to love it as much as Vicious but it was a little bit slow for my liking.
Full Review | Goodreads | Book Depository
Come talk to me! Have you read any books that you really didn't expect to like?
I think for me it just goes to show that sometimes its good to go outside of my reading comfort zone <3
1 Comments
I really want to read Vicious! And I am the biggest SoC fan!
ReplyDelete