Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the lovely Jana @ That Artsy Reader Girl. Each week a new theme is suggested for bloggers to participate in. This week’s prompt is Characters from Different Books Who Should Team Up (or date, be friends with, etc.) (Submitted by Cathy @ WhatCathyReadNext). But as you can see, I’m going rogue.
Hello Readers! Today’s topic is a great one, but once again my rubbish memory is making it too hard to tackle. Once I finish a book, most of the small details only stick with me for a few days, or at the most a few weeks. And I feel like to do this topic justice, I would need to dedicate real time to it. However, I’m in the midst of a readathon, and I need all that extra time to read. 😃 So today I thought I’d share ten hyped books that I DON’T have on my TBR, but every time I see them somewhere, I wonder if I should. I figured who better to ask than YOU!
Let me know if I should read these hyped books!
(Link to Goodreads synopsis through book title.)
- Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston – The book that inspired this list, with the new adaptation, I’m seeing this romance everywhere. But the royalty trope is one of my least favorites, so I haven’t paid it much attention. I’m thinking I should just watch the adaptation and skip the book. Convince me I’m wrong!
- A Little Life by Hanya Yanagihara – The cover of this one is so recognizable, but the little I know about this novel is that it’s E-MO-TION-AL. I’m not sure I can handle it.
- Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel – I finally read Station Eleven last year, and while it was well-written, the subject of a pandemic was almost too much, too soon for me. I actually enjoyed the adaptation more and felt like I could have skipped the book. (Hence my feelings about number 1.) Which means I’m unfairly judging this book by the same author that may have nothing to do with a pandemic.
- I’m Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy – Whew! This is another one that I know will be such a hard read. Gutting and uncomfortable. And I’m not sure I’m emotionally ready for it.
- Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin – I recently read my first book by this author, The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry (My Review), and I adored it up until the ending, so I’m afraid to be hoodwinked again. Ha!
- The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware – I’m so intrigued by this mystery, but I’ve seen so many mixed reviews. I don’t read much in the genre, though, so I’m easily entertained. I’m not sure if that would work for or against me with this book.
- The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue by V.E. Schwab – Despite having several books by this author on my tbr, I’ve yet to read a book by her. I see this one everywhere, but I’ve also seen mixed reviews. Give me your thoughts!
- Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus – Another book that I’ve been seeing everywhere AND it also has an adaptation coming soon, this one has been compared to The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, which I loved. But do I need to read the book?
- The Guest List by Lucy Foley – Like I said before, the mystery genre is not my go-to, but I do enjoy them occasionally, and this sounds like one I’d like. I think there’s even an adaptation planned??
- Yellowface by R.F. Kuang – Sometimes I don’t add subsequent books by an author until I’ve read the books I already own by them; I want to make sure they’re an author I enjoy. And I have Babel waiting on my shelf. But so many of you are raving about this one. Should I go ahead and add it?
Should any of these be on my TBR? Let me know in the comments!
Happy Wandering!
I really ended up enjoying Tomorrow x3. I must-read is Lesson in Chemistry!
Oooh, thank you!
Well, this is a fun topic! One I should borrow next time I need something different. 🙂 I think I’ve seen some of Lucy’s around the book world or on a store shelf, but never read any. I’m intrigued now!
Feel free to borrow! 😉
The only book I can comment one is The Woman in Cabin 10. A friend of mine let me borrow a copy, I gave it back a couple of days later, because it was a DNF for me. I struggled to connect with the characters after a couple of chapters.
Pam @ Read! Bake! Create!
https://readbakecreate.com/the-bs-have-it-ten-titles-starting-with-b/
Hmm. That’s what I keep hearing. It’s too bad. It sounds like such a great premise.
Most of these are already on my TBR, I have to admit – but I have read and utterly loved Invisible Life of Addie LaRue. Definitely worth the hype, a beautifully written, heart-wrenching and adorable and and left me wanting more.
A vote for Addie! Thank you for your thoughts!
I couldn’t get into Yellowface, but I hope you have better luck with it. 🙂
Here is my Top Ten Tuesday post.
Ah ok. I’ll probably hold off adding it until the shine wears off. 🙂
You have a lot of great books listed here! I’ve read a number of them.
The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue: Fabulous. I don’t read a lot of fantasy but this one was so good,
the story of a woman doomed to be forgotten by everyone she meets, with a bit of romance and female empowerment thrown in. Interestingly enough, it reminded me of a Blake Lively movie called The Age of Adaline.
Lessons in Chemistry: I recommend reading the book before you see the adaptation so you can fully grasp the main character’s backstory. This is one of those books I couldn’t put down, I would have read it if it was 5x as long and so wish the author would write a sequel so I can spend more time with the characters.
A Little Life: For me, this book can be described in one word: bleak. It’s extremely tough to read and there are many triggers in it. I had to read it for my book club or I would have never finished it – it’s spending 832 pages witnessing one character’s ongoing, unrelenting clinical depression due to the actions of sadistic men.
Another vote for Addie! Sounds like I’ll be adding that one. And I should probably add Lessons in Chemistry. It sounds like one I’d enjoy, for sure! I had no idea A Little Life is 832 pages!! That’s reason enough to skip it. 😃 Thank you so much for the advice, Leslie!
I read three of these. Lessons in Chemistry was the highest rated, and I loved it. Elizabeth was a compelling characters, I love science, and there was something special about the way the characters’ lives were connected. Tomorrow X 3 was bleak, but so well written. RW&RB was cute. I didn’t go as gaga as many other readers, but I liked it.
Sounds like I’ll be adding Lessons in Chemistry, for sure. And I’ll probably hold off on Tomorrow and RW&RB and take another look when the hype has died down. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, Sam!
A few of these are also on my TBR so I’m interested to see others’ responses. The only ones I can comment on are Addie LaRue, which I found to be just okay, and The Guest List, which I DNF’ed within 20 pages because I found the characters so irritating. All of them. Although, I’ve been told that’s the point and it gets really good when the mystery/thriller part really picks up. So it’s one I’m planning on giving another shot.
Oh wow, the first ‘just okay’ for Addie. I like it, though. Keeps my expectations real. 😉 And that’s a good tip about The Guest List. If I go into a book knowing the characters are irritating, I can usually enjoy it more.
I can provide input on two of these—The Woman in Cabin 10 and The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue—but the short answer is “maybe.” 😉
Woman in Cabin 10: read if you want a thriller set on a cruise ship that aims for creepiness instead of realism. There are a few things that seem to be included in the plot only because of plot reasons without being handled properly. It’s a potato chip thriller; quick to read and quick to forget, but maybe entertaining in the meantime.
Addie LaRue: read if you want a slow-burn story with a MC with questionable morality. (Completely understandable given her situation, but she steals a lot because people forget her so she can’t hold down a job. Centuries of that will change a person’s ethics.) There’s a lot of neat ideas in here and some good quotes, but it’s also very much not a book for everyone. I enjoyed it, but not as much as the hype led me to expect.
My TTT: https://bookwyrmknits.com/2023/08/15/top-ten-tuesday-crossover-book-friendships/
These are great tips, Nicole! Sounds like maybe Woman in Cabin 10 would make a good beach read, something you wouldn’t have to think too hard about. I’m not sure if that’s really me, though. Ha!
And I’m getting definite mixed thoughts on Addie, but that’s great to manage expectations. Thank you for sharing yours!
The Guest List is one I want to read, too. I liked Foley’s Paris Apartment, so I’m hoping this one is equally good. And I was underwhelmed by The Woman in Cabin 10. The premise reminded me of a Hitchcock movie, and I felt there were some timeline issues with it, too, but it does read fast and I know a lot of people who really liked it. If I hadn’t guess the main plot twist so early on maybe I would have liked it better, too.
Great tips, Lark! I just need to give Foley a try, I think. And sounds like maybe I should skip The Woman in Cabin 10. 🙂
Good topic. I unexpectedly LOVED Red, White, & Royal Blue, but DNF-ed Lessons in Chemistry.
Oooh, ok! Maybe I need to try reading excerpts for these two. It sounds like it depends on the reader, for sure. Thank you!
Definitely depends on the reader. I was impressed in Red, White, Royal that they took time in a responsibly presented s– scene to use “protection”. I’ve never, ever encountered that in a man/woman scene yet magically no one ever gets pregnant or acquires an STD. More than that I liked the “boys”–they were cute
There are several here that I’ve read and really enjoyed:
Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus
Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow by Gabrielle Zevin
Sea of Tranquility by Emily St. John Mandel
Great! Thank you for sharing!
I’m Glad My Mom Died was sad and disturbing but worth the read. I DNF’d the audiobooks of Lessons and Chemistry (darker than my mood wanted) and Tomorrow x3 (hard time following), but so many people love them.
That’s what I hear about I’m Glad My Mom Died. I have a feeling I’ll tackle it someday! I’m getting so many mixed thoughts on Lessons in Chemistry and Tomorrow x3. Sounds like they really must depend on the reader. Maybe I’ll try excerpts for them?? Thank you for your thoughts Deanna!
I’ve only partially read Addie Larue and despite setting it down due to being in a reading slump whilst being slammed by schoolwork, I actually highly recommend it. It’s an incredibly atmospheric read and it’s also very moving and the themes are a lot about lonliness and legacy.
The only book I’d recommend skipping is A Little Life only because I’ve seen other disabled reviewers discuss how it’s incredibly ableist and how Yanagahara has actually *bragged* about not researching mental illness and diability before or during the process of writing a tragic book all about those two things (which is poor writing to say the least and harmful and offensive to the marginalized communities portrayed to say the most).
I also have heard Tommorow And Tommorrow And Tommorrow is incredibly ableist in its portraryal of disbility/chronic illness, but I know less about the details.
Great tips, Lila! Those are definite reasons for me to skip A Little Life and Tomorrow x3. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts!
I’ve read three of these but I admit that almost all of the others are on my TBR. I admit that I’m not feeling particularly keen to read Yellowface for some reason—that’s one hyped title for which the hype hasn’t really been able to get to me. Maybe cos the characters sound so awful and that in itself is so off-putting! 😂
That makes sense, Dini! I know absolutely nothing about the book, other than seeing the cover everywhere. 😃
The only one of these I’ve read is Addie LaRue and I enjoyed that one so I’d definitely recommend it, but then I’m a big Schwab fan so I would recommend most of her books!
My TTT: https://jjbookblog.wordpress.com/2023/08/15/top-ten-tuesday-433/
Oh ok! Another vote for Addie. I do want to read something by Schwab soon!
I hope you enjoy whatever you decide to read!
I have read I’m Glad That My Mom Died and it sure was emotional, but I’m glad I read it. The Woman in Cabin 10 was the first Ruth Ware book I read. I liked it, but I liked some of her other books better. Nice twist on this topic, Dedra.