It's time for me to share my favorite reads of the last three months! I've been writing like a crazy person, but I try to always be deliberate about putting in as much creativity as I'm putting out. I don't want my creative well to run dry. So, here are a few of my favorite reads that have been fueling me along.
Aurora Rising - By Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff
It's no secret I'm a little obsessed with fairy tales. But one of my recent favorite authors is Amie Kaufman. She has futuristic fairy tales that are absolutely thrilling. I just read Aurora Rising, which was like Guardians of the Galaxy meets Sleeping Beauty, and it was action packed fun. The team she built was epic, and I loved how she re-invented a lot of the sleeping beauty elements in a fun and sci-fi way. I've also read her Illuminae files which was formatted SO creatively. Next, I'm dying to get my hands on a copy of "The Isle of the Gods."
eSkyward - By Brandon Sanderson
I LOVED this story! Brandon Sanderson has been a favorite author for a long time. My husband and I read Elantris together back in college, and we've been hooked ever since. I heard Sanderson explain that this story was like the boy and his dog trop, but flipped to a girl and her spaceship. It was really a lot of fun. It felt like Enders Game meets Top Gun. The characters were feisty, dynamic, and courageous. It was such a fun story and I can't wait to read book 2!
Daughter of a Pirate King - by Tricia Levenseller
This book was a lot of swashbuckling fun! Though pirates are questionable and capable of any nefarious act, I never worried for Alosa being put in a triggering situation because she was such a strong character and I had full confidence she could handle her own.
(Content breakdown: they often allude to all the horrible things pirates are capable of, but don’t go into graphic detail. So it’s honest to what the life was like without being gratuitous. There is significant violence, a sweet amount of kissing romance, and a little bit of language.)
Alosa was genuinely awesome, using her wit and intelligence to get her out of scrapes, then her strength and training if she got into rougher situations, and finally pulling out a secret weapon when things got even more intense. I was genuinely entertained by the way she handled herself and had full confidence in her. It was very refreshing to see a character who wasn’t crippled by self doubt. Who was able to look at her traumatic past and gather strength from what she had learned instead of try to push her memories into the shadows. I really enjoyed this book and can’t wait for the next one!
These were easily my top three reads of the spring. And they definitely were part of my market research for my upcoming project, A Sky of Salt and Stars. I only hope I can give readers the same kind of experience these books offered me! Books are amazing.
What were your favorite books that you read this spring? Drop them in the comments!
Happy reading.
-Rachel