Top 5 Must Read Books

Who has time to read anymore?! That's right! A procrastinating college student! Check out some of my favorite reads down below!

Ok, ok. I know what you're thinking. Yes I still manage to do my homework, take my corgi out, AND read. Truthfully, the only time I am procrastinating homework is when I'm reading. Not reading the overpriced textbooks they make us buy, but actual books. You know, with like, words and pages and all that jazz. My tastes in books are more or less all over the place; I've read Tolkien and Rowling, indisputably well known authors, and I've read books that seemingly no one else knows about!

1: Fallen, by Lauren Kate

I'm a sucker for a reincarnation romance trope, and this is exactly what Lauren Kate has to offer. Luce is a young girl who experiences strange shadows, one shadow in particular that ends up killing someone. Ending up at a boarding school, she meets Daniel, a beautiful and mysterious boy who seems all too familiar to her. I'm not going to spoil anything, but the main plot of this book is about fallen angels and forbidden love. And it's AMAZING. Seriously, I rather underestimated just how good young adult novels were. It's an easy read, with three more books in the series, and I was seriously sad when it ended.

2: Timeless, by Emma Eliot

Remember what I said a few sentences back about reading books almost no one has heard of? Yeah, this was the book I was referring to. I found this book on a weekly escapade to my local bookstore, tucked away in a shelf, almost invisible. Something about the simplicity of the book really drew me in. The cover of the book had what looked like a gas giant in space, and coupling that with star-crossed lovers (pun intended) I knew I had to get this book. Emily St. Clair is a young girl who begins having strange dreams-dreams of a young knight named Damien, a terrible witch and a fear of water. I did as much research as I could, and found that this book had been self published (I think) and was devastated that I couldn't find a hard copy of the second book. This is honestly my favorite book now-I loved the dream aspect, of her running away with her knight and fighting the witch while dealing with her own personal turmoil. This book is available on Kindle-and please keep an eye out in your local bookstore for it. HIGHLY recommend.

3: Bear and the Nightingale, by Katherine Arden

Last summer I found myself reading more and more fantasy novels that took place in Russia-and I loved it. Bear and the Nightingale was one of the first books I read that took place in Russia. Lets just get this out in the open-I love a good Hades/Persephone-esque romance. You know, the type where there's this young girl who is whisked away by this slightly older and attractive man and they end up falling in love. While that is not the main point of this book, it was an aspect that I really loved. Vasya is a young Russian girl who can see Domovoi, or spirits who help with household chores. Then there's Morozko, the Winter Demon, and together, while dealing with familial issues and cruel stepmothers, defeat his brother, who takes the form of a giant bear. This book was so well written and kept me guessing until the very end. There are some wonderful redeeming arcs for characters and a brief, yet passionate kissing scene that I literally highlighted because I was like (FINALLY!)

4: Uprooted, Naomi Novick

Anyone else remember that story of a dragon guarding a princess in a tower? Yeah, me neither. This story takes a little bit different take on that. Every ten years, girls are chosen to be taken by the Dragon-no, not a literal dragon, and then brought back years later, adorned with riches and knowledge. Agnieszka is chosen-much to her surprise, and is then whisked away by the Dragon-a handsome young wizard. Their relationship is tumultuous at first, with him mostly ignoring her, and her wandering around the tower. Again, I won't spoil it, but there are many twists and turns, and a wonderful ending.

5: Spinning Silver, Naomi Novick

It's no surprise that Novick wrote another amazing novel. Seriously, this book was amazing. Miryem is a young girl coming from a family of money lenders and they are very poor. Tired of her fathers weak will, she takes it upon herself to take over her fathers job as the money lender. When her grandfather loans her a purse of silver pennies, she brings it back full of gold. After that, she had the reputation of turning silver into gold. Miryem's luck runs out when she encounters the Staryk-cold and cruel creatures. Think Wights from Game of Thrones, but like, attractive. Like Thranduil in the Hobbit movies. Yeah, that works. He takes her away, threatening to marry her if she does not turn all his silver into gold. I really, really loved this book. I was sad when it ended, even though I personally loved the ending.