Top Ten Tuesday is hosted over at the other blog I write for, The Broke and the Bookish.

Can you believe we’ve passed the halfway point of 2013? I sure can’t! What better topic to have today, than a re-cap of the first half of a year of great books! Links lead to my reviews!

1. Through the Ever Night by Veronica Rossi (Read December 24, 2012 – January 4, 2013)
Creativity, character growth from the first book, heart-stopping ending. If you loved Under the Never Sky, this book will NOT disappoint you!

2. Just One Day by Gayle Forman (Read January 5 – January 7, 2013)
This is THE DAY I want to have happen to me, and it reawakened the wanderlust within me (although, it really hadn’t been asleep for long). Allyson let her life behind, got totally lost, and was changed. PLUS she fell in love with a cute Dutch boy! The story is beautiful.

3. Scarlet by Marissa Meyer (Read January 21 – February 8, 2013)
I LOVED Cinder, and Scarlet is just as, if not more, amazing! Cinder is back, but now we’ve got Scarlet too. And she’s amazing! I love Marissa’s strong female characters, and how her books showcase them rather than whiny little spineless girls. And I love Wolf! The characters say some laugh out loud things, yet there’s some serious stuff going on. TONS of stuff happens, and I love this futuristic looks at Paris.

4. Unremembered by Jessica Brody (Read February 8 – February 11, 2013)
I love mysteries and I love survival stories. Unremembered is both, plus a little science fiction.

5. Touching the Surface by Kimberly Sabatini (Read March 21 – April 2, 2013)
I’m not usually a fan of afterlife-type novels, because I don’t usually like an author’s take on Heaven/Hell, Angels, God, and the afterlife in general. For this reason, I almost did not accept this book for review. Something about it, though, drew me right in and I decided to give it a chance. I am SO glad I did, because this book is a new favorite of mine! I really loved it, and it made me think about my life.

6. Of Triton by Anna Banks (Read April 3 – April 5, 2013)
Mermaids!! It’s funny, has amazing characters, I loved the dual perspectives, I loved Anna’s take on mermaid and Greek mythology, I loved the intense moments, I loved the writing style and the gorgeous underwater descriptions, and the ending killed me! Oh, and you get to learn SO much more about the Syrena in this one!

7. Instructions for a Broken Heart by Kim Culbertson (Read April 5 – April 19, 2013)
I was sold when I found out about Jessa’s coming-of-age journey through Italy! Jessa is so down-to-earth and normal. She’s on a trip to Italy with her newly ex-boyfriend, and she gets to watch him hang all over the girl he cheated with. That takes guts. And she kicks her heartbreak in the butt. Plus, the Italy scenes! SO GREAT.

8. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo (Read April 19 – April 25, 2013)
AMAZING. The world, people. THE WORLD. You just HAVE to read this even if you think Fantastical futuristic Russia, sexy male leads, a kick-butt heroine, and feeling is not for you.

9. Meant to Be by Lauren Morrill (Read May 3 – May 5, 2013)
A quirky heroine, breathtaking scenes of London, breaking rules, mysterious suitors, culture, bookishness, witty banter, and a slow-burning swoony romance? Yessssssss! I LOVE this one.

10. Heist Society by Ally Carter (Read May 7 – May 8, 2013)
Good YA mysteries are hard to come by, and this one involves thieves and art! Plus, we get to do a lot of traveling with a bunch of awesome, charming characters. There’s action and suspense, and it’s all wrapped up in cuteness! Can’t WAIT to read the rest of this series.

So, tell me what you think! Have you read and loved these, too? Read and hated them? Leave links, and I’ll come see! I can’t wait to see what you recommend. :)

While you’re here, make sure you enter my birthday giveaway!

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted over at the other blog I write for, The Broke and the Bookish.

I LOVE books featuring travel! I seek them out, and read them furiously, because traveling is my very favorite thing in the entire world. Needless to say, I’m over the moon about this topic!

Cars

Amy and Roger’s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson
Carries Goes off the Map by Phillipa Ashley

Airplanes

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith
Instructions for a Broken Heart by Kim Culbertson

Trains

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins
You know… Katniss and Peeta travel by train to the Capitol!

Ships & Boats

Decked with Holly by Marni Bates
Takes place on a cruise ship headed to Mexico during Christmastime.

Girl at Sea by Maureen Johnson
Takes place on a luxury yacht.

Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
Some of it takes place on a space ship!

Catherine and the Pirate by Karen Hawkins
Takes place on a pirate ship!!

Backpacking

Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard

So, what are some of your favorite books featuring travel? I am SO excited to come visit all your posts, so I can build my TBR lists! Make sure to leave your links in the comments. :)

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted at my other blog, The Broke and the Bookish.

I’m really excited that today is a freebie, because I’m TOTALLY in the mood for some warm, summery books to read poolside, on deck, and in the sun.

I absolutely love light, happy reads that leave you with smiles and giggles. Mostly they take place on beaches, on vacation, by the lake, or during summer. Check out my favorites! They are all romantic, and they are all contemporary. And I love them ALL.

Girl at Sea by Maureen Johnson
Unbreak My Heart by Melissa Walker
The Summer My Life Began by Shannon Greenland

Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
Wanderlove by Kirsten Hubbard
From What I Remember by Stacy Kramer and Valerie Thomas
Just One Day by Gayle Forman
Carrie Goes Off the Map by Phillipa Ashley

My Ridiculous, Romantic Obsessions by Becca Wilhite
Boys, Bears, and a Serious Pair of Hiking Boots by Abby McDonald

So, have you read any of these ones? What are some of your favorite summery reads? I need lots of recommendations!

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted over at the other blog I write for, The Broke and the Bookish.

I am so excited that this week is a freebie, because that means we get to choose anything we want! I decided to highlight some of my favorite quotes from my favorite books!

Have you read any of these books? Do any of these quotes speak to you like they do me? Leave me a link, and I’ll come stop by your TTT! I’m super excited to visit, and see what you chose for today!

Thanks for dropping by! While you’re here, be sure to enter to win my $50 Amazon gift card giveaway! The link is in my sidebar.

I really love this week’s topic! I totally get crushes on boys in books, even if I would be 6-10 years older than some of them in real life. But we won’t think about that! Honestly, boys are just better in books. Sadly, I have found this to be true.

Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
I kid you not, this man will end up on 80% of all the lists, and we all know why. I don’t even have to explain it to you. And if he wasn’t swoony enough before, we all saw Colin Firth in the BBC Pride and Prejudice, right?

Dash from Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
He’s a bookish, hipster nerd whose biggest wish in life is to own his own 22-volume Oxford English Dictionary. COME ON. Plus, he hangs out in The Strand and writes in Moleskine notebooks. And he’s not gay.

St. Clair from Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins
I love this boy. This is not a crush. It’s loooove. I can’t say one bad thing about him.

Lieutenant Treynor from Honor Bound by Brenda Novak
Ok, not many know this about me, but I have this secret love of pirates and men who run ships in historical romance novels. It’s a guilty pleasure. This guy is described as being nothing short of a Greek god. He came from a very difficult background and ran away to join the Royal Navy at a very young age. He climbed the ranks, and gained a ton of respect from the people he works with. He has an incredible sense of duty and he respects women, going to great lengths to protect them. He’s also very gentlemanly and well-spoken. Ship men are not usually like this in historical romance novels, and I developed the biggest crush on him.

Galen from Of Poseidon by Anna Banks
Can I please have my very own Syrena prince? He’s the tall, dark, handsome, sweet, jealous-but-not-smothering type. And oh, he sure loves Emma!

Alex from Delirium by Lauren Oliver
Come on. This boy will make you believe that love is not a disease.

Wolf from Scarlet by Marissa Meyer
Wolf is sexy and swoonworthy, and exactly the kind of bad boy this story needed. His sensitive nature and core instincts make him both a ticking time bomb and the most loyal companion you could ask for.

Sam from Incarnate by Jodi Meadows