Top Ten Tuesday (Secondary/Minor Characters Who Deserve More Love)

August 10, 2021 ~ Becca ~ 12 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. This is my first Top 10 Tuesday post, and this week the theme is: Secondary/Minor Characters Who Deserve More Love

Hi Guys! It’s been a while since I did a Top Ten Tuesday but I’m on holiday this week so have a bit more time to make some blog posts. This theme is really hard for me! So I might cover characters that aren’t protagonists, not just secondary and minor characters. What does that even mean haha? Here we go.

1) OK so we have Sabran from The Priory of the Orange Tree. She’s actually a pretty big character but doesn’t have her own point of view. I love her so much (and this whole book to be honest).

2) Skadi in The Witch’s Heart is one of my favourites! I loved everything about this book and it’s messy characters where you can’t quite work out their motivations.

3) All of Meddy’s aunts and her mum in Dial A for Aunties. Absolutely loved this book, it left me in stiches the whole way through. Highly recommend it for a good laugh, if you can get past how wild it is.

4) OK, so the ghost of the grandmother in Black Water Sister is also amazing, and definitely provided some great humour intermingled with the more series topics in this book. I love Zen Cho and everything she put into this book.

5) The Boyfriend Project gave us London and Taylor as the protagonist Samiah’s new best friends after they’re all being cheated on by the same guy. Honestly this was such a good book for positive friendships between women and I am here for it, hence London and Taylor making this list.

6) Just about every character in Becky Chambers’ wayfarers series is wonderful and cute. I am obsessed with them all, I can’t even name them. I think Sissix is my fave in The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet.

7) Having just finished Under the Whispering Door by T.J. Klune, I think I’ll bring up the grandfather character again! Such a caring man, delaying passing to the other side to care for his grandson. We stan Nelson!!!

8) So Second First Impressions gave birth two two ninety something year old retirement home women named the Parlonis and I loved these icons with all my heart. These novels that include character interactions between generations really have my heart.

9) I love an eccentric mentor character and Jiang Ziya from The Poppy War is just that. Can’t believe he made Rin run up a mountain carrying a pig, but there we go.

10) Finally…Fire by Kristin Cashore. Hanna is Brigan’s daughter, she’s only 5 and I love her a lot as a minor child character. She has had a tough life but she’s also so strong, and I really felt for her not getting along with the other kids. At least she stands up for hersef!

There we go, 10 side characters I thought I’d give a shout out. What do you think? I definitely cheated a bit because I have an awful memory. What side characters are your favourites? Let me know!

Top Ten Tuesday (Valentine’s Day & Love)

February 9, 2021 ~ Becca ~ 4 Comments

Hi Guys! It’s been a while since I did a Top Ten Tuesday but I couldn’t resist the chance to talk about my favourite romance novels. I will make clear which of the books I’m talking about are adult and which are YA, and I wouldn’t recommend adult romances to under 18s but everyone matures at different paces.

1) I can’t resist the chance to talk about my new favourite romance novel – Act Your Age, Eve Brown by Talia Hibbert. I connected so much to Eve and absolutely adored the romance. (adult)

2) Something to Talk About by Meryl Wilsner is a great sapphic romance that I absolutely adored even with a slightly big age gap. (adult)

3) The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa is another favourite of mine, about a wedding planner who gets stood up on her wedding day only to end up working with her ex’s brother in a competition against her ex. (adult)

4) A Duke by Default is a great grumpy and sunshine book that I really enjoyed. I really loved the rural Scotland setting and the lead characters were just perfect. (adult)

5) The Boyfriend Project by Farrah Rochon is definitely up there with my favourites because it centres on a woman in STEM. Also loved the financial investigation plot, so cool! (adult)

6) Well Met by Jen DeLuca is another one I love to bits. It’s enemies to lovers and the setting involves a renaissance faire! What more could you want? (adult)

7) A Pho Love Story by Loan Le is the first YA I’m featuring on this list. I read it recently and it really touched my heart as it mixes interesting family dynamics with a rival family style romance. (YA)

8) Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid is a book that challenges the notion of ‘the one’ and I really loved this take on parallel lives. Taylor Jenkins Reid is one of my favourite authors of all time so of course I highly recommend this book.

9) A book that strongly features dogs? Count me in. Morgan Matson’s novels are all fantastic romances but I think this is one of my favourites. (YA)

10) OK so I wouldn’t call The Switch by Beth O’Leary a romance per se, but I loved it to pieces and it does have two cute romances in it. Mostly it’s a book about learning from different generations and it’s honestly one of the best contemporary books I’ve ever read (adult).

There we go, 10 romances that I absolutely love. have you read any of these books? Have you got any romances to recommend? Let me know in the comments!

Top Ten Tuesday (Books I Hope Santa Brings)

December 22, 2020December 22, 2020 ~ Becca ~ 2 Comments

So I’m going to cheat a bit on this one because I already know some of the books I got for Christmas through Secret Santa, my friends and from my Mum.

1) Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez. This is one of the gifts I got from my book club Secret Santa! I love it so much. I only had an eARC copy and I’m so glad I get the hardcover now.

2) Something to Talk About by Meryl Wilsner. Same as above – and my friend sent me an American paperback which will be so nice and floppy to read!

3) Strange Planet by Nathan W. Pyle. OK so this has been on my wish list for like a year – it contains loads of adorable comics. My friend Linaria picked this out for me and I read it with my boyfriend immediately!

4) The Dragon Republic by R.F. Kuang. I have this series on Kindle but recently got The Poppy War paperback when I did my re-read. So I asked my Mum to get my The Dragon Republic, and maybe next year I can get a paperback of The Burning God.

5) Now to the books on my wish list that I won’t get for Christmas! The Midnight Library by Matt Haig. I’ve heard nothing but amazing things about this book so I will probably pick it up in 2021.

6) Girl, Woman, Other by Bernadine Evaristo. This is a book I’ve read on kindle but would love a physical copy of because I really enjoyed it. Again, one for 2021.

7) Grown by Tiffany D. Jackson. Another book I’d love to read soon but don’t own yet! Sounds really good and one of my friends really likes Tiffany’s other books.

8) Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens. I had a copy of this but I gave it to my Nan and I’m not sure if I’ll get it back haha…it was so good I just have to own it again.

9) The House in the Cerulean Sea by T. J. Klune. This is one of my friend’s favourite books of 2020 so I have to get my hands on it at some point. It doesn’t have a UK publisher yet so can be quite expensive at the moment.

10) Ah, the last one. Who I Was With Her by Nita Tyndall. I don’t know a lot about this book but Paragraphs and Pages gave it five stars and I definitely trust their opinion a lot.

There we go, 10 books I have received for Christmas or would like. I’ll probably get them all in 2021 anyway hahaha.

Hope you all get some great books for Christmas this year!

Top Ten Tuesday (Book Titles that Would Make Great Song Titles)

November 10, 2020November 10, 2020 ~ Becca ~ 12 Comments

1) You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson. Could you imagine this song by a female solo artist or a girl band? I can!

2) Maybe in Another Life by Taylor Jenkins Reid. Break-up song anyone? Funny because this book is actually debunking the whole idea that there is The One out there.

3) Something to Talk About by Meryl Wilsner. Can I have a gay love song please??

4) The Deep Blue Between by Ayesha Harruna Attah. I feel a country song with this one!

5) Every Heart a Doorway by Seanan McGuire. I really love this title and feel like it would make a great song too.

6) 99% Mine by Sally Throne. I feel like this one could be a cool song too!

7) Throne of Glass by Sarah J Maas. A ballad perhaps?

8) When the Stars Lead to You by Ronni Davis. Feeling another cute love song.

9) Pizza Girl by Jean Kyoung Frazier. Not sure why I thought of this one! Just could imagine a fun song.

10) If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane. Yep, another break up song. Or perhaps a sappy love song?

What do you think of these choices? I had a lot of fun with this prompt! Feel free to share your posts with me in the comments.

Top Ten Tuesday (Non-bookish hobbies)

November 3, 2020November 3, 2020 ~ Becca ~ 12 Comments

OK, so I’m not sure I have ten hobbies, even including reading. But I’ll talk about what I like doing here!

1) Hiking – I really like going on mini adventures with my boyfriend, especially in the mountains in new countries. Here is an old pic of me in Mallorca, climbing my first mountain in 2018. Funny – now I have a pixie cut in progress and here I could actually tie my hair up.

2) Animal Crossing New Horizons – I love this game so much. I played Wild World growing up, and New Leaf once I left university. I love the updated graphics on New Horizons. Here’s a pic of my character in the kitchen. Feel free to visit my dream address DA-0980-1589-2211, or check out my acnh insta: beccainbellview.

3) Dogs – OK this isn’t exactly a hobby but I walk two standard wire-haired dachshunds for an elderly neighbour. Meet Dora and Peggy! They are adorable little cuties. I can’t wait to have my own dog some day.

4) Pokémon – OK so the other Switch game I like playing is Pokémon Shield (but Gen 3 is ultimately my favourite era! Here’s my character – it actually looks and dresses like me, I love the customisation options.

5) Listening to music – I love listening to music when I’m driving or working. I don’t play any instruments and I’m definitely an awful singer, but I do love singing in the car. My favourite artists are Taylor Swift, Gabrielle Aplin, Birdy, Little Mix. I mostly enjoy female singers.

Okay so this is to have to be a Top 5 post because I don’t have that many hobbies. Reading actually takes up most of my non-work time as I find it helps me switch off.

What are your hobbies? Let me know in the comments!

Top Ten Tuesday (Freebie – Contemporary YA novels)

October 27, 2020 ~ Becca ~ 9 Comments

1) Meat Market by Juno Dawson. A grim look at the fashion industry and its treatment of models, this is one of my favourite books of all time.

2) The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis. I mentioned this in my last Top 10 but honestly it’s so unique. It’s one of the best YA books out there, but it’s very dark.

3) A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson. Again, this one hasn’t changed from last week. I read it recently and loved it – it’s a great YA thriller that I have a lot of love for.

4) Sadie by Courtney Summers. Another that I love! A friend gifted me this and it’s so heartbreaking!!!

5) There’s Something About Sweetie by Sandhya Menon. This book is incredible, I love the culture, the romance and the characters.

6) With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo. I love this perspective on teenage motherhood. Emoni is one of my favourite protagonist (and this book has such amazing descriptions of food).

7) You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson. Ah this one is so much fun I swear! Liz Lighty is an amazing protagonist and I am in love with this book.

8) Furia by Yamile Saied Méndez. One of the most level-headed protagonists I’ve ever read in YA, Camila is a joy to read about. This is the only book I’ve read that is set in Argentina and I really loved it!

9) Radio Silence by Alice Oseman. Ah, one of my first loves of reading contemporary YA books. This is a book that captured academic pressure and choices perfectly for me. Highly recommend it.

10) Break the Fall by Jennifer Iacopelli. This one is for all the gymnastics fans out there. I really liked this book – it links closely to what’s happening in USA gymnastics today and after the last few years. This one will always be close to my heart.

There we have it, ten of my top YA contemporary novels. There are a lot more I could have put on this list but I could only choose ten! What are your fave YA contemporary books? Let me know in the comments.

Top Ten Tuesday (Recommended To Me!)

October 20, 2020October 20, 2020 ~ Becca ~ 4 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. This is my first Top 10 Tuesday post, and this week the theme is: Books I Read Because Someone Recommended Them to Me (tell us who recommended them, if you want!)

1) Honor Among Thieves by Rachel Caine and Ann Aguirre. This one was recommended to me by Jaye @ The Book Berrie. I was sceptical because it sounds bizarre, but this is a really amazing trilogy that I adore.

2) The Female of the Species by Mindy McGinnis. Sam @ Esoteric Elixir recommended this one and it’s honestly wonderful. I have rarely read books like this, I highly recommend it.

3) A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson. My friend Linaria @ Linaria’s Library read this one first and because of her rating I finally picked it up. It’s a really great YA thriller set in the UK that made me nostalgic for sixth form and kept me guessing.

4) Sadie by Courtney Summers. Another heartbreaker recommended to me by Janel @ Janel Allison. I really liked the format of this book given it’s told in a variety of ways (transcripts, interviews etc). I’ve heard the audiobook is really awesome too!

5) The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern. When Meaghan @ Paragraphs and Pages recommends a book to me after they read the arc, I know I’ll probably love it too. The Starless Sea is gorgeous, but you probably already know that!

6) Bel Canto by Ann Patchett. This one is a book I’d have never picked up if not for my boyfriend. It’s one of his favourites and he gave me his copy when we started dating (clearly knew we would be sharing bookcases in the future, hey?). It’s a really good story that had me pleasantly surprised. It also has some amazing quotes.

7) Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler. Another recommendation from my boyfriend – he tried to get me to read this for years. I finally picked it up when we shared kindle libraries. This book and its sequel are amazing and very very relevant in current times despite their age.

8) A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki. My sister doesn’t read a lot anymore but she recommended this one after picking it up in a charity shop. I was really surprised by how much I related to it.

9) From Lukov with Love by Mariana Zapata. I can’t remember who in The Book Coven recommended this to me but I absolutely love all of Mariana Zapata’s sports romance books now. I really like the way Marianna writes female characters, and the slow burn is gorgeous.

10) Queen of Coin and Whispers by Helen Corcoran. Nikki @ Books and Lemon Squash recommended this one to me. Saw her amazing review and thought this is a book I have to try. It’s a beautiful fantasy with a f/f romance. Great stuff!

It’s always cool to be recommended good books. I’m really lucky to get loads of amazing recommendations from The Book Coven discord server. Why don’t join too and get in on the book talk?

Top Ten Tuesday (Super Long Book Titles)

October 13, 2020October 13, 2020 ~ Becca ~ 9 Comments

1) The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V. E. Schwab

2) A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder by Holly Jackson

3) The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

4) The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid

5) The Long Way to a Small Angry Planet by Becky Chambers

6) The Loneliest Girl in the Universe by Lauren James

7. You Should See Me in a Crown by Leah Johnson

8) A Song of Wraiths and Ruin by Roseanne A. Brown

9) A Boy and His Dog at the End of the World by C.A Fletcher

10) The Woman Who Rides Like a Man by Tamora Pierce

Can’t believe I found ten books that I’ve actually read with what I consider long titles. I actually enjoyed the majority of these too, which is a win. There’s some really good covers mixed in here – particularly love the Wayfarer’s series ones by Becky Chambers.

Got any other fave long titles? I like A Quiet at the End of the World by Lauren James too.

Top Ten Tuesday (Covers with fall vibes)

October 6, 2020October 6, 2020 ~ Becca ~ 5 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. This is my first Top 10 Tuesday post, and this week the theme is Book Covers with Fall Colors/Vibes (or spring if you live in the southern hemisphere)

1) The Deathless Girls by Kiran Millwood Hargrave. I reread this book recently (review here) and the cover has such autumn vibes with it’s reds, oranges and greens. Definitely gorgeous.

2) Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo. I’m not sure why this one gives my fall vibes, I think it’s because it has that lovely brown snake and a horror / Halloween feel? Anyway, it’s a great book that I’m reading right now as I write this.

3) The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon. Again it’s definitely the orange that gives me all the autumn feels. I also tend to read this book in autumn. I met Samantha and got my book signed in October last year.

4) Kingdom of the Wicked by Kerri Maniscalco. This is another book for spooky system with a great cover! I read an ARC recently and it was a really good fit for Halloween his year!

5) Uprooted by Naomi Novik. It’s probably the mushrooms giving me a fall feeling! Also I love forests in autumn.

6) With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo. This one has gorgeous autumnal colours! It’s also a really amazing book that you should absolutely check out sometime.

7. The Empire of Gold by S.A. Chakraborty. The conclusion to an amazing trilogy that I’m still not really over. Please read so we can cry together.

8) The Bone Witch by Rin Chupeco. Spooky witchy vibes? Yes please. I love this cover, it’s absolutely gorgeous. It’s a beautifully written book too.

9) The Familiars by Stacey Halls. This is a really heart-breaking book that an old friend recommended to me. I really loved it, I think I’ll re-read it soon. Look at all those leaves. And the cute fox. Such beautiful cover art!

10) The Betrayals by Bridget Collins. More autumn colours. I rated this ARC 5 stars but I’m still debating whether I liked one of the plot twists or not! Anyway, we have to agree the cover is gorgeous – and my Waterstones special edition pre-order has sprayed edges. There’s still time to pre-order!

There we have it, some autumnal covers. It was harder to do this than I thought it would be! I’ve gone for some Halloween vibes, some autumn leaves vibes, some colour vibes. What do you think? Feel free to link your posts below!

Top Ten Tuesday (Favourite Quotes)

September 29, 2020September 29, 2020 ~ Becca ~ 7 Comments

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. This is my first Top 10 Tuesday post, and this week the theme is Favourite Book Quotes (these could be quotes from books you love, or bookish quotes in general).

I’m not one to make notes of quotes I like so this is going to be difficult. I will do my best to pick some good ones.

1) Record of a Spaceborn Few by Becky Chambers

“The only way to really appreciate your way is to compare it to somebody else’s way. Figure out what you love, specifically. In detail. Figure out what you want to keep. Figure out what you want to change. Otherwise, it’s not love. It’s clinging to the familiar–to the comfortable–and that’s a dangerous thing for us short-term thinkers to do. If you stay, stay because you want to, because you’ve found something here worth embodying, because you believe in it. Otherwise…well, there’s no point in being here at all, is there?”

2) The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab

“Because time is cruel to all, and crueler still to artists. Because visions weakens, and voices wither, and talent fades…. Because happiness is brief, and history is lasting, and in the end… everyone wants to be remembered”

3) Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor

“And that’s how you go on. You lay laughter over the dark parts. The more dark parts, the more you have to laugh. With defiance, with abandon, with hysteria, any way you can.”

4) Strange the Dreamer by Laini Taylor (again)

“Life won’t just happen to you boy, he said. You have to happen to it.”

5) The Starless Sea by Erin Morgenstern

“Be brave,’ she says. ‘Be bold. Be loud. Never change for anyone but yourself. Any soul worth their star-stuff will take the whole package as is and however it grows. Don’t waste your time on anyone who doesn’t believe you when you tell them how you feel.”

6) Fire by Kristin Cashore

“Brigan was saying her name, and he was sending her a feeling. It was courage and strength, and something else too, as if he were standing with her, as if he’d taken her within himself, letting her rest her entire body for a moment on his backbone, her mind in his mind, her heart in the fire of his.
The fire of Brigan’s heart was astounding. Fire understood, and almost could not believe, that the feeling he was sending her was love.”

6) The Poppy War by R.F. Kuang (there are definitely more sophisticated quotes in this book but this one made me laugh in a very dark book)

“Sir?” Kitay asked. The magistrate turned to look at him. “What?” With a grunt, Kitay raised the crate over his head and flung it to the ground. It landed on the dirt with a hard thud, not the tremendous crash Rin had rather been hoping for. The wooden lid of the crate popped off. Out rolled several very nice porcelain teapots, glazed with a lovely flower pattern. Despite their tumble, they looked unbroken. Then Kitay took to them with a slab of wood. When he was done smashing them, he pushed his wiry curls out of his face and whirled on the sweating magistrate, who cringed in his seat as if afraid Kitay might start smashing at him, too. “We are at war,” Kitay said. “And you are being evacuated because for gods know what reason, you’ve been deemed important to this country’s survival. So do your job. Reassure your people. Help us maintain order. Do not pack your fucking teapots.”

7) Ninth House by Leigh Bardugo

“Not every flower belongs in every garden.”

8) Radio Silence by Alice Oseman

“Every time I thought I’d worked out what I really enjoyed, I started to second-guess myself. Maybe I just didn’t enjoy anything anymore.”

9) Bel Canto by Ann Patchett

“Some people are born to make great art and others are born to appreciate it. Don’t you think? It is a kind of talent in itself, to be an audience, whether you are the spectator in the gallery or you are listening to the voice of the world’s greatest soprano. Not everyone can be the artist. There have to be those who witness the art, who love and appreciate what they have been privileged to see.”

10) The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

“I saw my life branching out before me like the green fig tree in the story. From the tip of every branch, like a fat purple fig, a wonderful future beckoned and winked. One fig was a husband and a happy home and children, and another fig was a famous poet and another fig was a brilliant professor, and another fig was Ee Gee, the amazing editor, and another fig was Europe and Africa and South America, and another fig was Constantin and Socrates and Attila and a pack of other lovers with queer names and offbeat professions, and another fig was an Olympic lady crew champion, and beyond and above these figs were many more figs I couldn’t quite make out. I saw myself sitting in the crotch of this fig tree, starving to death, just because I couldn’t make up my mind which of the figs I would choose. I wanted each and every one of them, but choosing one meant losing all the rest, and, as I sat there, unable to decide, the figs began to wrinkle and go black, and, one by one, they plopped to the ground at my feet.”

There we go. 10 of my favourite quotes. There are many, many more but I struggle to remember them. I am really looking forward to my re-read of The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue because that book absolutely spoke to my soul.

Share with me some of your favourite quotes! Really interested, I love emotional quotes.