Top Ten Tuesday: Going to the chapel… books with “wedding” in the title

Posted in Top Ten Tuesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Setting the mood with a song…

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Books with the Word “[Insert Word Here]” in the Title, with the prompt: Choose a word and find ten books with that word in the title.

I’m in countdown mode until a family wedding at the end of May, so that’s what’s been on my brain, and that’s the word I’m going for! Here are ~~ten~~ eleven books — most of which I’ve read, plus one releasing in May that I can’t wait to read — with WEDDING in the title:

Death at a Highland Wedding by Kelley Armstrong — May new release!
The Wedding People by Alison Espach (my review)
Amanda’s Wedding by Jenny Colgan — on my TBR
On the Way to the Wedding by Julia Quinn (my review)
An Island Wedding by Jenny Colgan (my review)
The Wedding Setup by Sonali Dev
The Wedding Date by Jasmine Guillory (my review)
The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle by Jennifer Ryan (my review)
Three Holidays and a Wedding by Uzma Jalaladdin and Marissa Stapley (my review )
Four Aunties and a Wedding by Jesse Q. Sutanto (my review)
My Big Fat Supernatural Wedding edited by P. N. Elrod

I originally had ten, but couldn’t resist adding #11 because the title makes me laugh every time I see it!

What word did you choose for this week’s prompt?

If you wrote a TTT post, please share your link!

In case you’re interested in quick links to buying sites for the books mentioned above:

Note: These are affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission at no cost to you.

Death at a Highland Wedding: Amazon – Bookshop – Libro
The Wedding People: Amazon – Bookshop – Libro
Amanda’s Wedding: Amazon – Bookshop – Libro
On the Way to the Wedding: Amazon – Bookshop – Libro
An Island Wedding: Amazon – Bookshop – Libro
The Wedding Setup: Amazon
The Wedding Date: Amazon – Bookshop – Libro
The Wedding Dress Sewing Circle: Amazon – Bookshop – Libro
Three Holidays and a Wedding: Amazon – Bookshop – Libro
Four Aunties and a Wedding: Amazon – Bookshop – Libro
My Big Fat Supernatural Wedding: Amazon – Bookshop

22Apr2025

Top Ten Tuesday: Books that surprised me

Posted in Top Ten Tuesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Books that Surprised Me (in a good or bad way).

I’ve decided to embrace positivity! I’m going to talk about books that provided me with surprises that made me happy, intrigued, or otherwise amused and delighted.

My top 10 are:

Cue the Sun: The Invention of Reality TV by Emily Nussbaum

What surprised me: I picked up this book just to read the chapters about Survivor… and ended up reading the whole thing, start to finish. I did not expect to be that fascinated by a book about TV!

Amazon – Bookshop.org
My review

The Blind Side by Michael Lewis

What surprised me: Everything! I am not a sports fan. At all. I picked this book up, way back when, after hearing an interview with the author. I did not expect a book about football to interest me in the slightest, but I just couldn’t put it down.

(And yes, this is my 2nd non-fiction book in a row… I am not usually a non-fiction reader, so any time I enjoy a non-fiction book, it’s pretty surprising!)

Amazon – Bookshop.org

The God of the Woods by Liz Moore

What surprised me: I was under the impression that this book would be more “literary fiction” than what I enjoy, so I disregarded it whenever it popped up on my recommendations list. Once I finally gave it a try, I was immediately hooked.

Amazon – Bookshop.org
My review

Jane and Dan at the End of the World by Colleen Oakley

What surprised me: I misread the synopsis for this book and had a completely wrong impression of what it would be about! It worked out fine — I ended up loving the book — but seeing what the plot actually was was definitely a surprise for me.

Amazon – Bookshop.org
My review

The Goblin Emperor by Katherine Addison

What surprised me: The intricacy of the language and world-building. The Goblin Emperor is one of my favorite books, but the first time I read it, the storytelling style was not at all what I expected in a fantasy novel. The use of language itself as a key part of the story was one of the biggest surprises. This book is a masterpiece, and I had no idea before I picked it up and started reading it.

Amazon
My review

Fingersmith by Sarah Waters

What surprised me: It’s been many years since I read this outstanding book… but I still remember how I gasped out loud at some of the plot twists!

Amazon – Bookshop.org

Better Than Fiction by Alexa Martin

What surprised me: With the main character described as someone who hates books, I was prepared to dislike this book (which I got as a “blind date with a book” — otherwise, I probably never would have picked it up). It turns out, the book is delightful, and the issue around hating books is more nuanced than it might seem. And anyway, this is a sweet, upbeat romance — in a bookstore!! — that’s just so much fun.

Amazon – Bookshop.org
My review

Sunrise on the Reaping by Suzanne Collins

What surprised me: I was skeptical — did we need another Hunger Games prequel? Surprise! The answer is yes. The story of Haymitch and the 50th Hunger Games pulled me in right away and was impossible to put down.

Amazon – Bookshop.org
My review

When the Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi

What surprised me: I suppose I can’t really say this one surprised me — whenever I pick up a John Scalzi book, I know it’ll be amazing. And yet, before reading this one, I just couldn’t imagine how a book about the moon turning to cheese could possible work. But it does! In totally fabulous ways.

Amazon – Bookshop.org
My review

My Roommate Is a Vampire by Jenna Levine

What surprised me: Based on the cover, I thought this book would be a bit on the corny side… but it was actually really fun and endearing. I was surprised by how much I liked it!

Amazon – Bookshop.org
My review

And there you have it — ten books that surprised me in all sorts of good ways!

What books have surprised you?

If you wrote a TTT post this week, please share your link!

Note: This post contains affiliate links. If you click through and make a purchase, I may earn a small commission at no cost to you.

15Apr2025

Top Ten Tuesday: My Unpopular Bookish Opinions

Posted in Top Ten Tuesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is My Unpopular Bookish Opinions.

That’s hard! But I’m up for giving it a try. Maybe these opinions are more popular than I realize, but here goes my attempt:

The Twilight series is actually better than people think. If you read them when they came out, then you remember how all-consuming and impossible to put down these books were. Sure, we can (and do) poke lots of fun at the more ridiculous plot points… but these books were an amazing read at the time.
Wuthering Heights will never appeal to me. I can’t see why this book is so beloved… and believe me, I’ve tried!
Many “classic romantic couples” are dysfunctional as hell. Romeo and Juliet, I’m looking at you… not to mention Heathcliff and Catherine, and many more.
Zombie fiction has passed its peak. Enough, already.
Assassins and killers are not compelling protagonists. Books about killers seem to be all the rage, and I’ve actually read a couple of good ones — but no matter how you dress it up, I still can’t get behind having a murderer (no matter how great the cause!) as a lead character we’re supposed to root for.
Grumpy love interests would just be jerks in real life. Romantic fiction is amazing, and I know people love the grumpy-sunshine trope… but I think so many of these guys would be actually insufferable if you met them in person.
Fourth Wing is nonsense. Don’t throw rocks at me! I know I’m in the minority on this — but to me, this book is a weird mash-up of a [insert any YA about a special school here] + death + sex + dragons. It doesn’t work.
Sprayed-edge books aren’t special anymore. I do love when there’s a gorgeous edition of a book I love, and I’ll happily buy one, but it seems like it’s becoming more and more standard for new releases to have the painted edges, no matter what it is (but especially in fantasy/romantasy). It’s starting to feel like too much of a good thing (and/or, just another excuse to raise prices for a new book).
Reading stats can have a negative effect on reading. I’m guilty of falling into this trap: We set a reading goal to read xx number of books in a year, then plan our reading to make sure we meet that target. I think readers (again, including myself) who focus on the numbers, page counts, etc often end up avoiding longer or more challenging books out of fear of missing their targets.
Celebrity books clubs are good for readers and the book industry. Don’t scoff! I have a post coming soon about celebrity book clubs in general, but my quick take is that there are some really great books that get attention because they’re book club picks, when they might have totally gone unnoticed otherwise. I think these type of clubs overall do a great service for the reading community.

I’ll just wrap things up with what I think should be a POPULAR opinion: People should read whatever they want! Read what makes you happy! That’s it, that’s all that matters.

What are your unpopular bookish opinions?

If you wrote a TTT post this week, please share your link!

8Apr2025

Top Ten Tuesday: Books with Springy Covers

Posted in Top Ten Tuesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is Books with Springy Covers. When I think of springy covers, I think of light colors, flowers… and the occasional cupcake too.

So here we go — my top ten books that give me spring vibes:

Pat of Silver Bush by L. M. Montgomery
Battle of the Bookstores by Ali Brady
The Jane Austen Society by Natalie Jenner
Ready or Not by Cara Bastone
Say You’ll Remember Me by Abby Jimenez
The Little Beach Street Bakery by Jenny Colgan
Jane in Love by Rachel Givney
Cotillion by Georgette Heyer
All’s Fair in Love and War by Virginia Heath
A Cuban Girl’s Guide to Tea and Tomorrow by Laura Taylor Namey

What books make you think of spring?

If you wrote a TTT post this week, please share your link!

1Apr2025

Top Ten Tuesday: Just foolin’…

Posted in Top Ten Tuesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is April Fools Day-themed — officially, it’s Books You’d be a Fool Not to Read. That didn’t really call to me, so I’m taking a simpler approach and highlighting ten books with “fool” in the title.

First, a bunch that I’ve read:

1) Fools and Mortals by Bernard Cornwell: A terrific novel set behind the scenes in Shakespeare’s time. (review)

2) Fool Moon by Jim Butcher: The 2nd book in the Dresden series. This is one of the books that made me realize — yup, I’m hooked!

3) The Queen’s Fool by Philippa Gregory: My first book by this author. I loved the way a Jewish woman serves as a viewpoint into the court of Queen Mary.

4) Fool by Christopher Moore: A brilliant (and super funny) King Lear retelling! Still one of my favorite Moore books.

5) The Autobiography of Henry VIII: With Notes by His Fool, Will Somers by Margaret George: One of the first Tudor novels I ever read. I remember being totally immersed.

6) Fool’s Paradise by Dale Walker: Non-fiction travelogue about Saudi Arabia. I read this so long ago that I barely remember it — but I do know I enjoyed it at the time.

And to round out my list, a few more that fit my foolish topic:

7) Bloody Fool for Love by William Ritter: It’s a ~~Buffy~~ Spike prequel! How can I resist? I hope to read this later this year, maybe as a nice summer diversion.

8) A Fool and His Honey by Charlaine Harris: This is the 6th book in the Aurora Teagarden series, which I haven’t read… but I’ve been meaning to give it a try, since I’ve enjoyed so many other of her books.

9) Fools Rush In by Kristan Higgins: A few bookish friends have recommended this author over the years, and this book looks especially cute!

10) Gimpel the Fool and Other Stories by Isaac Bashevis Singer: I feel like I should have read this story already! I know I’ve heard about it, and we definitely had books of stories by this author in my house growing up.

Happy April Fool’s Day! Do you have any other “foolish” books to recommend?

If you wrote a TTT post this week, please share your link!

End note: Since I mentioned Buffy… Fool for Love is one of my favorite Buffy episodes (season 5, episode 7), and since it fits the theme, I thought I’d end with a little photo montage!

18Mar2025

Top Ten Tuesday: Top ten books on my TBR list for spring 2025

Posted in Top Ten Tuesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, featuring a different top 10 theme each week. This week’s topic is about our spring 2025 reading plans. Earlier in the year, I shared a post on my most anticipated new releases for the first half of 2025 — all of which remain books I’m eager to read (or have read already!).

With that in mind, I’m going to try to avoid repeats — so here are 10 additional books I’m looking forward to this spring:

Swept Away by Beth O’Leary
Run Away with Me by Brian Selznick (I really don’t know much about this one, except it seems to be a novel told with illustrations, and his previous books like this were amazing!)
Totally and Completely Fine by Elissa Sussman
City of All Seasons by Oliver K. Langmead and Aliya Whiteley
The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon (an upcoming book group book!)
The Poppy Fields by Nikki Erlick
Vera Wong’s Guide to Snooping (on a Dead Man) by Jesse Q. Sutanto
The Love Haters by Katherine Center
The Griffin Sisters’ Greatest Hits by Jennifer Weiner
It’s a Love Story by Annabel Monaghan

What books will you be reading this spring? Do we have any in common?

Share your links, and I’ll come check out your top 10!

11Mar2025

Top 5 Tuesday: Top 5 books with a place in the title

Posted in Top Ten Tuesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Top 5 Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Meeghan Reads — check out the next batch of upcoming topics here.

This week’s topic is Top 5 books with a place in the title, with the prompt: Any location or place in a title is fine — just share your top five with us. I did a TTT post last year with a similar theme, so I’m going to do my best not to repeat myself.

Here are a few from my shelves that fit the theme:

1: The Princess of Las Vegas by Chris Bohjalian: A twisty thriller about a Princess Diana impersonator who gets caught up in a shady, dangerous crime operation. (review)

2: Advika and the Hollywood Wives by Kirthana Ramisetti: I didn’t actually love (or even like) this book (the author’s previous book, Dava Shastri’s Last Day, was amazing!), but it kept my attention, and it fits the prompt! (review)

3: The Bookseller of Inverness by S. G. MacLean: A book club pick! We really enjoyed this historical novel set in 18th century Scotland. (review)

4: Malibu Rising by Taylor Jenkins Reid: TJR’s books are always a great read! Malibu Rising doesn’t quite rise to the level of some of her other books (Daisy Jones and Evelyn Hugo, my two favorites), but it’s still really entertaining and worth checking out. (review)

5: Tokyo Ever After by Emiko Jean: The first in a fabulous duology! I loved both books. (review)

What are your favorite books with place names in the titles?

4Mar2025

Top 5 Tuesday: Top 5 books with a pronoun in the title

Posted in Top Ten Tuesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Top 5 Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Meeghan Reads — check out the next batch of upcoming topics here.

This week’s topic is Top 5 books with a pronoun in the title, with the prompt: Find all of your he, she, they, we or you books and then shout them from the rooftops!! Or just on your blog page.

Here are a few from my shelves that fit the theme:

1: She Persisted by Chelsea Clinton: Not actually on my home shelves at the moment, but I borrowed this from the library a while back, and thought it was wonderful. A terrific children’s book highlighting women who made a difference. (And don’t miss the companion back, She Persisted Around the World)

2: He, She, and It by Marge Piercy: This 1991 sci-fi book made a huge impact on me back when I read it ages ago, and it’s one I’d love to get back to and read again at some point.

3: The Things They Carried by Tim O’Brien: A modern classic set during the Vietnam War. A must-read… and another one that I really should read again.

4: The Last Thing He Told Me by Laura Dare: A more recent book — this one had a ton of buzz, and is definitely worth reading. (Here’s my review, if you want to know more.)

5: We Love the Nightlife by Rachel Koller Croft: If you’ve never read a book about disco vampires… well, have I got a book for you! Seriously, this book is awesome. (Review)

What books with pronouns in the title do you have on your shelves?

25Feb2025

Top 5 Tuesday: Top 5 books I want to buy in 2025

Posted in Top Ten Tuesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Top 5 Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Meeghan Reads — check out the next batch of upcoming topics here.

This week’s topic is Top 5 books I want to buy in 2025, with the prompt: Is there a book coming out in 2025 that you absolutely want to buy? Even if you don’t want to read it straight away. Maybe it’s a special edition version. Or maybe a fancy cover! Tell us all about it!!

Easy-peasy! The hardest part of this week’s topic is sticking to just five! I’ve been much better about being selective when it comes to buying physical books, but there are always some — whether by a favorite author or an especially beautiful edition — that I just can’t resist.

My five must-buys for 2025 are:

1: The Sirens by Emilia Hart: I have a hardcover edition of this author’s previous novel, Weyward, and it’s so pretty! The cover for The Sirens looks just as gorgeous. (March)

2: When the Moon Hits Your Eye by John Scalzi: This author’s books are auto-buys for me, and I love having the hardcovers! I’ve yet to be able to attend one of his book tour events, but I keep hoping it’ll work out eventually, because I’d love to get a signed edition. If not, though, I’ll be buying the book anyway! (March)

3: The King’s Messenger by Susanna Kearsley: I love Susanna Kearsley’s books, and I always want to read her new releases… but once I saw the deluxe paperback edition, I knew I needed a physical copy rather than just the e-book. (March)

4: Death at a Highland Wedding (A Rip Through Time, #4) by Kelley Armstrong: This is such a terrific series, and since I already own hardcovers of the previous books, this one will be a must for me as well. (May)

5: The Wicked King by Holly Black: I already own hardcover editions of the Folk of the Air trilogy, and then bought the special black velvet edition of the first book, The Cruel Prince, when it was released in 2023. This year, the 2nd book will get a matching edition, and I have to have it! (October)

What books do you plan to buy in 2025?

18Feb2025

Top 5 Tuesday: Top 5 books I want to reread in 2025

Posted in Top Ten Tuesday by Lisa @ Bookshelf Fantasies

Top 5 Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Meeghan Reads — check out the next batch of upcoming topics here.

This week’s topic is Top 5 books I want to reread in 2025, with the prompt: Are you planning to reread some favourites in 2025? Maybe that classic you read back in school. Or maybe there’s a new book coming out in a series, and you want to remind yourself what happened in the last book. Whatever it is, let’s share all of our reread plans!!

I have at least two rereads that I’m firmly committed to, and while there are a bunch that are maybes for me, I’ll share a few that seem most likely.

My five are:

1: Dracula by Bram Stoker: This is my most recent Classics Club spin book, and I’m committed to reading it by April. I originally read this book back in my school days, but that was eons ago!

2: The Hobbit by JRR Tolkien: My book group will be reading this book in April, prior to launching into a lengthy group read of the Lord of the Rings trilogy. I’m excited to read The Hobbit again! I’ve read it several times, most recently with one of my kids, and I’m looking forward to experiencing it all over again.

3: Wolfsong by TJ Klune: It’s no secret that I adored the Green Creek series when I read it recently, and I’ve been wanting to do an audiobook reread. I’m not sure that I’ll get through the whole series right away, but I’d like to at least listen to the first book.

4 & 5: Two October Daye books: Sleep No More and The Innocent Sleep by Seanan McGuire: Books 17 and 18 in this phenomenal series — telling the same story from two different perspectives — were released one month apart in 2023. Now, finally, the next book is on the way! Book #19, Silver and Lead, will be released in September 2025. It’s been my habit to reread the previous books before each new release in the series, and especially with two years in between installments, I think it will be absolutely essential this time around!

Read in 2024: