Skip to main content

Top Ten Tuesday: Books When You Need Something Light and Fun


This is my first time participating in Top Ten Tuesday. I didn't discover it until after I already started doing the once a month My Favorite Things posts. Once I discovered TTT I would see topics I would love to participate in. As that keeps happening I decided to occasionally participate when the topic is one that I really love. I will still do my own Favorite Things posts too.

This week's TTT topic is Top Ten Books When You Need Something Light and Fun

The MG Choices:

 
The Kat Books by Stephanie Burgis: Regency England and magic. It doesn't get any better than that. There is a lot of mystery, adventure, and romance thrown into the mix too. 

The Penderwick Books by Jeanne Birdsall: This series about four sisters and their adventures and friendships is perfect lighthearted fun. I sometimes read the end of Gardam Street whenever I need a scene that will just make me smile at the end of a long day.

The Contemporary YA:
  
Meant to Be by Lauren Morill:  London and the type of romance I adore most, the bickering in denial kind. Sigh.

Going Vintage by Lindsey Leavitt: This book portrays the sort of family dynamics I like and does it with a lighthearted touch. Oliver is also a perk.

Fun Fantasy:

The Sherwood Ring by Eizabeth Marie Pope: You will never have as much fun with a ghost story as you will with this one.

Howl's Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones: Howl is one of the most infuriating and enduring characters in print. And I love his interactions with Sophie oh so much.

Adult Romance:

Romancing Mister Bridgerton by Julia Quinn: Julia Quinn is an auto-buy author for me, because she writes such witty dialogue and her books are often hilarious. This one is my favorite. I love Colin and Penelope and how their relationship's development is so tied to words and writing.

The Chocolate Thief by Laura Florand: I have never read an adult contemporary romance I have enjoyed as much as this one. Chocolate and Paris. You can't go wrong.

Not so Much LIGHT but still FUN:

To Say Nothing of the Dog by Connie Willis: Sleep deprived time travelers who are racing between their own time, WWII, and Victorian England with lots of Dorothy Sayers references thrown in. Words can not do my love for this book justice.

The King of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner: I think this is the volume of the series that I have the most fun reading. It is almost like the reader is a co-conspirator by this point.

Comments

Adriana C said…
I haven´t read any of those books, but I just add some to my TBR list. thanks for sharing.
Here is My Top 10 Tuesday
Anonymous said…
I love how you divided your list by genre. So happy to see The Chocolate Thief in this list! And that it's has become a favorite contemporary romance novel for you. Also yes to Howl and Gen. :) So obviously I need to read the Dorothy Sayers books sitting on my shelf right now and then follow that up with To Say Nothing of the Dog.
melissa @ 1lbr said…
I like the diversity of your list (I could only think of MG). And how could I forget Kat, Incorrigible! I've got Going Vintage on my shelf waiting so patiently and now I'm excited to get to it.
Brandy said…
Hope you enjoy the ones you added!
Brandy said…
I read To Say Nothing of the Dog before I read Gaudy Night. It made me want to read it even more. Either way both books are amazing.
Brandy said…
Going Vintage is so good. Enjoy!
Of these, I've only read Going Vintage, but I thought that one was really cute and fun, and the family elements were perfect. :)
Brandy said…
Yes, it was cute and fun.

If you like The Scarlet Pimpernel you would probably enjoy the Queen's Thief series too. And The Sherwood Ring.
aimee can read said…
The only book I know here is Meant to Be and I haven't read it yet! Well, I read one chapter then I quit. :( I'll get back to it soon though :) Great list!
Brandy said…
I hope you give MTB another shot and enjoy it. I really do love Jason and Julia.
Anonymous said…
But I want to get the references when I read To Say Nothing of the Dog! :P In any case, I have the three remaining Lord Peter and Harriet books plus To Say Nothing of the Dog here with me in Singapore.
Brandy said…
Lucky you! All those great books to read for the first time.
Jennifer said…
Your post is reminding me that I need to read Turner's Thief series. I also want to read Meant to Be and Going Vintage. Yay for Romancing Mr. Bridgerton! Thanks for sharing!
Brandy said…
YES! You do need to read the Thief series. It is beyond amazing.
Brandy said…
The Sherwood Ring is so much fun. And has a truly excellent wine poisoning scene. What more is there to want?
Wendy Darling said…
I've only read the first Penderwicks book, but I adored it! And I really need to read Meant to Be and the Chocolate series too, so many friends have raved about those. Nice list!

Wendy @ The Midnight Garden
Brandy said…
The Penderwicks on Gardam Street is actually my favorite. It focuses on the oldest sister and she is the one I identify with most.

Meant to Be is so much fun. You should give it a try. I need to read the rest of the Chocolate series but I REALLY enjoyed the first one.

Popular posts from this blog

Serafina and the Black Cloak

Serafina and the Black Cloak  by Robert Beatty is a thrilling tale of mystery and adventure set at the Biltmore Estate in Asheville, NC in 1899. Having lived in Asheville and visited the house several times, there was no way I was going to pass up a chance to read this. (Also it's MG fantasy, always a bonus for me.) Serafina lives in secret in the basement of the Vanderbilt's spacious vacation home. She has lived there most of her life. Her father worked on the house as it was being built and is the mechanic who runs the massive generator and keeps the electricity going. Serafina is the chief rat catcher, slipping through the halls of her massive home secretly and quietly. She is light on her feet, sees well in the dark, and is quick enough to catch the vermin and keep them out. Serafina knows she if different and strange. Her father insists she stay hidden. But all that changes when one night Serafina witnesses a horrible crime. A little girl, a guest in the house, is fleein

Shorter Musings MG Fantasy

Here are some shorter musings on recent MG fantasy reads. Anya and the Dragon   by Sofiya Pasternack This book is fun. It is a book full of adventure, an obvious bad guy, some more complicated morally gray area characters, and a strong, brave heroine. It is also a book about friendships, community, and fighting for what is right. All things that usually work for me really well. While I enjoyed this, I did feel it was a little overlong and there were certain plot points at the end I didn't love. However, there were things I thought were done really well, such as Anya's Jewish faith and the idea that power needs to be challenged. In the end it was a middle of the road read for me, but it is one I will certainly be recommending to dragon and fantasy adventure lovers I know! R is for Rebel   by J. Anderson Coats This is tough because I usually really like Coats's books. I had such a hard time with this one though on so many levels. It's difficult to get into because t

Favorite Kissing Scenes

When thinking of a favorite things post I could do for February I decided it would have to be kissing. I've already done couples and I was feeling in the mood to do something fluffy and Valentine's related. So kisses it is. I read more MG than YA, and the YA I read tends to not focus on romance so this was actually harder than I expected it to be though a few jumped into my head right away. (And one of my choices does actually come from a MG book. One is adult. Gasp!) The actual scene from the book is quoted followed by my thoughts. The king lifted a hand to her cheek and kissed her. It was not a kiss between strangers, not even a kiss between a bride and a groom. It was a kiss between a man and his wife, and when it was over, the king closed his eyes and rested his forehead against the hollow of the queen's shoulder, like a man seeking respite, like a man reaching home at the end of the day . - The King of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner Turner doesn't write the

Shadowshaper

Shadowshaper  by Daniel José Older is everywhere. Best of lists. Award buzz. Blogs everywhere. It's one of those books everyone is reading and talking about. I had it on my TBR but decided I definitely needed to read it before the year was out just so I could weigh in on one of the most talked about books of 2015 if asked. It is deserving of every good thing said about it. Every. One. Sierra was looking forward to a relaxing summer break. Her plans involved hanging out with her friends and painting. They did not involve being chased by zombie like creatures and threatened by a magical power connected to her family's heritage she has never heard of. When murals begin fading all over her Brooklyn neighborhood, Sierra is perplexed. When her grandfather, who had a stroke, begins to apologize and starts repeating strange phases and insisting Sierra get the help of a boy she barely knows to help her finish her mural, Sierra is concerned but mostly about her grandfather. Then at a

The Field Guide to the North American Teeanager

The Field Guide to the North American Teenager by Ben Philippe is a book I picked up on a whim at the bookstore when it first came out. I liked the cover. I thought it had an engaging premise. I went into it with a healthy does of trepidation because the execution could have gone so terribly wrong. Fortunately, Philippe is an excellent character writer, and I thoroughly enjoyed my time spent reading about Norris's adventures in Texas and high school. High school junior Norris Kaplan's life is ruined by his mother when she takes a job that requires them to leave the only home he has ever known in Montreal, Quebec. Moving is always hard, but Norris knows for him it will be harder than it's ever been for anyone else. Norris is moving to Texas. He will be a Canadian living in Texas. Not just a Canadian. A French Canadian who speaks fluent French. And not just your average run-of-the-mill French Canadian. A black son of Haitian immigrant parents French Canadian. If Norris has