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Wednesday, May 29, 2024
Top Ten Tuesday: And There They Still Sit...
7:41 AM
I'm a little late to the party, but I'm here. Happy TTT (on a Wednesday)!
I don't know about you, but I have a bad habit of getting excited about a book, acquiring said book, and then totally forgetting the book exists in the world, let alone right there on my bookshelf or Kindle. Sound familiar at all? Today's TTT topic is all about this weird, inexplicable phenomenon: Top Ten Books I Couldn't Wait to Get My Hands On and Still Haven't Read. This is another one of those prompts that could have been a Top One Hundred list, but ain't nobody wanna read that, so I'll restrain myself and stick to the assignment. While I definitely have older examples, the volumes on my list are the first ten that caught my eye while I was perusing my bookshelves.
As always, Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by the lovely Jana over at That Artsy Reader Girl.
1. Homecoming by Kate Morton—This is the first book that came to mind for this topic. I adore Morton and get excited every time she publishes. Extra so this go around because I didn't love her last novel. (There's a first time for everything, I guess.) Homecoming has gotten great reviews. I just need to read it already. The story is about a journalist living in England who returns to her native Australia to care for her elderly grandmother. While poking about in the older woman's attic, she discovers intriguing clues that propel her to investigate a 60-year-old unsolved murder that, shockingly, seems to have ties to her family.
2. The Wager: A Tale of Shipwreck, Mutiny, and Murder by David Grann—Like all buzzy books, this one had a long waitlist at my library, so I bought myself a copy...which has been gathering dust on my bookshelf ever since! It's the nonfiction account of a British ship that wrecked in 1742. Two groups of survivors arrived home at different times and in separate cobbled-together vessels. With wildly different stories about what happened to them, the question became: What really happened aboard the Wager?
3. Our Missing Hearts by Celeste Ng—I'm always up for a unique dystopian novel and this one caught my attention as soon as I heard about it. I even bought a copy to enjoy at my leisure, although I planned to get to it sooner rather than later. Hasn't happened yet. It's about a young Asian American boy living in a tumultuous new world that is trying to regroup following years of economic chaos and angry violence. The government says that anything "unpatriotic" (including the poems his mother wrote before she abandoned him) should be eradicated. When he gets a mysterious letter with only a drawing on it, it sends him on a daring journey to find the mother he hasn't seen in three years.
4. Hester by Laurie Lico Albanese—This historical novel tells the reimagined story of the woman who inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne's most famous character, Hester Prynne. I really should pick it up one of these days!
5. Fly Away by Kristin Hannah—After loving Hannah's most recent novels, I wanted to read some of her backlist ones. I purchased this one only to later realize it was the second book in a duology. Oops! Once I read Firefly Lane, I'll get to this sequel, which continues the story of the great friendship between Tully Hart and Kate Ryan.
6. How to Keep House While Drowning by K.C. Davis—While my housekeeping skills can always use refining, I hear this slim self-help book really isn't about cleaning at all. Lots of my busy mom friends have recommended this to me as a guide that helped them feel better about all they're doing and get rid of the shame and guilt they feel over not being able to accomplish as much as they want to in their long, crazy days filled with constant cleaning, cooking, childcare, etc.
7. The Silo trilogy by Hugh Howey—Dystopian novels have always been my jam. I loved Wool when I read it, so much so that I bought a boxed set of the three-volume series. Have I read Shift or Dust? No, no I have not. The story is about apocalypse survivors who have been living through the fallout underground. Tired of the confinement, some of them want to bust out and take their chances on the outside. They get their wish, for good or ill...
8. Daughter of Moloka'i by Alan Brennert—Moloka'i is an impactful historical novel that I still think about even though it's been years since I read it. Since I liked it so much, I purchased the sequel. I feel like I need to re-read the first book to remember who's who and what's what before I move on with the story, but I've yet to actually do it because as much as I may have enjoyed a book, I'm not much for re-reading.
9. What the Wind Knows by Amy Harmon—Of the three books I've read by Harmon, I adored two of them (Where the Lost Wander and A Girl Called Samson). This time-slip novel is one of her most well-loved. It's about a woman grieving the death of her beloved grandfather, who always regaled her with stories of his childhood in Ireland. Sucked back to that time period, she finds herself the unwitting guardian of a young boy. Even if she could return to her time, could she bear to leave the child she is coming to love as her own?
10. The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn—I feel like the last hist-fic lover on the planet that hasn't read anything by Quinn. This is the book of hers I most want to read. Based on a true story, it's about a bookish student who is forced to take up a gun and defend her native Ukraine from Hitler's oncoming invasion. She soon becomes a proficient killer, a national hero, and a friend of Eleanor Roosevelt. Then an old enemy comes calling...
There you go, ten books I was really excited to read and still haven't gotten to. What's on your shelf of shame? I'd love to know. Leave me a comment on this post and I will gladly return the favor on yours.
Happy TTT (on a Wednesday)!
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I can (sadly) relate to this week's topic all too well. I have SO many books on my shelf this applies to, and like you, I'm sure I could have pulled MANY more to feature. I go through mine once a year or so (though currently it's been longer) and get rid of some either by selling or donating them, and always hope whoever buys/finds them will enjoy them which is more than I can say for them sitting on my shelf! ;) Thanks so much for visiting my website today!
ReplyDeleteWhat the Wind Knows in another by Amy Harmon that I have yet to read. I have really fallen behind with her last 2-3 releases! My husband just recently read The Wager and really enjoyed it. Fly Away was pretty good, but I really loved Firefly Lane. Hope you will get to these sooner rather than later. :)
ReplyDeleteI've heard great things about The Wager!
ReplyDeleteYes, Homecoming is better than the one before! I’m on the fence about Wager. He’s a great writer but the subject matter isn’t calling to me. Diamond Eye is good but the idea of an assassin is a bit troubling. I remember enjoying What the Wind Knows. Lots of great possibilities here! ~Carol @ ReadingLadies
ReplyDeleteGreat list, Susan! I've never read What the Wind Knows and A Girl Called Samson, but I adored Where the Lost Wander. I read Hester, and it was good too. Happy Wednesday!
ReplyDeleteWhat the Wind Knows is my favorite by the author, if you loved the others two, you will love that too, is amazing
ReplyDeleteI could have listed more than 10 too 🤣
ReplyDeleteI hope that you enjoy them when you get to them. In the meantime they make great decorations for your shelves 😂
Have a great week!
Homecoming and Hester are ones that I could have added to my list too.
ReplyDeleteThe Wager is a book I definitely would like to read. I get so mad at myself when I go ahead and buy a book available (though with a long waiting list) at the library.
ReplyDeleteI have only read one book from Hannah, but she is so loved by readers. I feel like you can't go wrong pushing that one up your list.
ReplyDeleteYou have picked some amazing books for this list! The covers are all incredibly beautiful!
ReplyDeleteNice list, these all look good. You've reminded me I have Firefly Lane on my shelves too. I added The Wager to my wishlist when it first came out. Happy reading when you get to these!
ReplyDeleteOur Missing Hearts was so good, and it really hit very close to home for me. The Silo trilogy was also really good! I hope you enjoy all of these books!
ReplyDeleteDamn girl, it's like you pulled half of these from my list of books I was excited for the release of, but never actually acquired a copy of the book or followed up on reading it after release. I did read Our Missing Hearts and adored it, and Hester is outstanding as well. But you've reminded me about so many books on my TBR that I forgot about and need to read!
ReplyDeleteWe have such similar reading tastes... even if you only consider the books we HAVEN'T read. :) Molokai has been on my shelf for more years than I can count, and still haven't read it -- and now that Daughters of Molokai exists too, I really need to make it happen!
ReplyDeleteThis happens to me more often than I care to admit haha. The Wager and Celeste Ng's latest both fall into this category for me too. I'd also add in Dolly Alderton's Good Material as a newer release that is still waiting for me. I think my oldest would be Tea Obreaht's The Tiger's Wife. I bought that one over a decade ago, and still haven't read it!
ReplyDeleteTotally understand your pain. I buy books right away so I don't forget about them and then they sit until I have time to read them. By then, other books have come out.
ReplyDeleteHow to Keep House While Drowning sounds great. Hope you get to read these soon.
I've read Firefly Lane ages ago and I didn't even know there was a sequel! I might check it out in the future after I reread the first book 😊
ReplyDeleteHappy TTT (even though I'm a bit late and it's Friday 😂)
That shelf of shame seems to grow and grow, doesn't it? Maybe someday we'll get around to reading all the books we own. Right? ;D
ReplyDeleteI don't know how I'll ever catch up to mine but that's okay!! haha. Hester was actually a really great read! I hope you get to some of these soon! :)
ReplyDeleteI have read one book by Kate Morton (The Clockmaker's Daughter) which I quite liked. So, I am looking forward to seeing what you think of this one.
ReplyDeletethis phenomenon is really inexplicable. Why do we not read the books we were yearning for? The ship wreck book appeals to me. I'll search for it. thanks for visiting my blog and leaving the link. Sorry for the delay in visiting.
ReplyDeleteI’ve heard good things about Hester.
ReplyDeleteThank you for stopping by earlier!
Lydia
I've been wanting to read Kate Quinn and Amy Harmon books forever. Hope you'll love all of these, no matter when you get to them!
ReplyDeleteI finally got around to reading Homecoming this year and really enjoyed it and I've only read one Kate Quinn but I desperately want to read more. I have How to Clean House While Drowning on my TBR. I think I could have made a list of 100 on this topic!
ReplyDelete