Books I Didn't Expect to FALL in Love With

Yes, that was a lame reference to autumn in the title. But I'm happy because it's October!

Anyway, on to the post! 

Fall always gets me in a sentimental mood, and also in even more of a reading mood (chilly evening + cup of coffee + good book = happy Emily). In this post I'm going to share some books (or series) that I fell in love with immediately and are now some of my favorites. 

(Disclaimer: I purposely excluded things like Chronicles of Narnia and Lord of the Rings because those would take up THE WHOLE LIST if I allowed them on here, so.)

THE ANOMALY TRILOGY by Krista McGee

I bought the first book of this trilogy on a whim, just to try something new, and it hooked me. (I mean, come on. The opening lines are "Fifteen minutes and twenty-three seconds. That's how long I have to live." !!) I'm pretty sure it was the first dystopian book I'd ever read, so it was also very different for me.

And then the second and third books in the trilogy were pretty intense. And it was great.

I also love the faith-based aspect of the trilogy, how God is the One that makes Thalli feel emotion after living in a sterile, heartless environment her whole life.

When I reread this trilogy I noticed that some of the writing/story wasn't as strong as I remembered it from when I first read it with starry eyes, but I think it's still a great trilogy.

FAIRYTALE RETELLINGS by Melanie Dickerson

I'm cheating here because this includes, like, ten books and they're not all even in one set. But it's fine.

I bought the first three Hagenheim books to occupy myself on a long road trip and they were just so enjoyable! I don't even really read romance that often, but I just really love these books. They're so sweet, plus there's the fairytale aspect and also some action thrown in here and there!

I'm more partial to the Hagenheim series, but I think the Thornbeck books are better, in a way? Particularly The Huntress of Thornbeck Forest. The first time I read it I was just kind of surprised by how good it was, and Odette is probably one of my favorite female characters.

AMONG THE HIDDEN by Margaret Peterson Haddix

I first read this book when I was... nine or ten, maybe? It's the first book I remember absolutely grabbing me and taking me on an emotional ride, and also the first book I remember reading in one day. I think I almost cried at the end.

I like the rest of the series too, but I only chose the first book to put on the list because it's my favorite and the only one that really blew me away. Plus I was kind of disappointed with the end of the series, but maybe that's just me.

(Also, this spot almost went to Haddix's The Missing series. Also super great books. So, honorable mention to that.)

WHINNIES ON THE WIND SERIES by Angela Dorsey

I got these when I was a part of a horse-lover's book club years ago, and they were some of my favorites when I first read them. I reread them a year or two ago, and I just love the magical feel, with Evy living in the middle of nowhere with her horses and being able to communicate with them. Plus a couple of the books take place in the dead of winter in the Canadian wilderness and it's so cozy in Evy and her mom's cabin and the snow just adds to the magic and ahhh. They're just lovely books.
Sadly the last one of the series that I've read is Winter of Sinking Waters... I really want to get around to reading the last few.

THE FARWALKER'S QUEST by Joni Sensel

Look how pretty it is!

This book.

This was a library impulse-read. Just a random fantasy that I thought might be cute. What I didn't expect was to take an emotional journey with this character whose life I was suddenly very invested in. All the characters were great. And by the time I was done, I felt like I had just gone through everything Ariel had, right along with her. And because of that... I don't know, I'm just realllyyy attached to this book.

Also, I reread it earlier this year, and I was prepared to not be as impressed with it the second time (kind of like what I said about Anomaly above). But I actually ended up enjoying it even more! I mean, I kept thinking about it and itching to go home and read it-- and I already knew how it ended! So. Major bonus points. (I feel like not everybody would have as high an opinion of this book as I do, because it is such a simple story and geared toward younger audiences... but I just love it.)

The rest of the trilogy is good too. I like the second book almost as much as the first one, and the third a little less. I have to be honest and say I was disappointed by the ending of this trilogy, too. I just felt like there was some really good potential for an amazing finale and it just wasn't handled the way I would have liked to see it. But the writing is consistently great all the way through, and I do still like the whole series, so it's definitely still worth reading.

Well, there you have it-- five books/series that I fell in love with! Makes me want to curl up with a cup of coffee and read. ;)

Have you read any of these books? What's a book or series that you didn't expect to fall in love with?

Thanks for reading! Also, in my next post I'll be sharing about my NaNoWriMo novel, so stay tuned!