Top Ten Tuesday | Books By My Favorite Authors That I Haven’t Read Yet

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, where book bloggers are invited to share their top ten lists centered on a certain theme.

This week’s theme was books by my favorite authors that I haven’t read yet. This was such a fun topic, because I’m always finding new favorite authors and adding all of their books to my TBR!

Here’s my top ten:

1. The Five Stages of Andrew Brawley by Shaun David Hutchinson

We Are the Ants blew me away and is probably one of my absolute favorite books; Shaun’s most recent novels, At the Edge of the Universe and The Apocalypse of Elena Mendoza were stunning, and I’m so glad I have a few of his earlier ones that I can enjoy while I wait for his next one! I have a copy of The Five Stages of Andrew Brawley on my shelf that I’m hoping to finally read soon.

Goodreads summary: “Andrew Brawley was supposed to die that night. His parents did, and so did his sister, but he survived.

Now he lives in the hospital. He serves food in the cafeteria, he hangs out with the nurses, and he sleeps in a forgotten supply closet. Drew blends in to near invisibility, hiding from his past, his guilt, and those who are trying to find him.

Then one night Rusty is wheeled into the ER, burned on half his body by hateful classmates. His agony calls out to Drew like a beacon, pulling them both together through all their pain and grief. In Rusty, Drew sees hope, happiness, and a future for both of them. A future outside the hospital, and away from their pasts.

But Drew knows that life is never that simple. Death roams the hospital, searching for Drew, and now Rusty. Drew lost his family, but he refuses to lose Rusty, too, so he’s determined to make things right. He’s determined to bargain, and to settle his debts once and for all.

But Death is not easily placated, and Drew’s life will have to get worse before there is any chance for things to get better.”

 

2. Side Effects May Vary by Julie Murphy

Ramona Blue is one of my favorite books last year. I absolutely adored Dumplin’ and am so excited for the movie adaptation (with music by Dolly herself!). I’ve quickly become a huge fan of Julie Murphy and I definitely need to read Side Effects May Vary.

Goodreads summary: “When sixteen-year-old Alice is diagnosed with leukemia, she vows to spend her final months righting wrongs. So she convinces her best friend, Harvey, to help her with a crazy bucket list that’s as much about revenge as it is about hope.

But just when Alice’s scores are settled, she goes into remission, and now she must face the consequences of all she’s said and done.”

 

3. When I Was the Greatest by Jason Reynolds 

Jason Reynolds should be literally everyone’s favorite author. I swear, he could write a single sentence about a fish and make it sound poetic and breathtaking. I’m on a mission to read all of his books, and When I Was the Greatest is one that’s still on my list.

Goodreads summary: “In Bed Stuy, New York, a small misunderstanding can escalate into having a price on your head—even if you’re totally clean. This gritty, triumphant debut captures the heart and the hardship of life for an urban teen.

A lot of the stuff that gives my neighborhood a bad name, I don’t really mess with. The guns and drugs and all that, not really my thing.

Nah, not his thing. Ali’s got enough going on, between school and boxing and helping out at home. His best friend Noodles, though. Now there’s a dude looking for trouble—and, somehow, it’s always Ali around to pick up the pieces. But, hey, a guy’s gotta look out for his boys, right? Besides, it’s all small potatoes; it’s not like anyone’s getting hurt.

And then there’s Needles. Needles is Noodles’s brother. He’s got a syndrome, and gets these ticks and blurts out the wildest, craziest things. It’s cool, though: everyone on their street knows he doesn’t mean anything by it.

Yeah, it’s cool…until Ali and Noodles and Needles find themselves somewhere they never expected to be…somewhere they never should’ve been—where the people aren’t so friendly, and even less forgiving.”

 

4. History Is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera

I love sad books and Adam Silvera does sad books better than anyone else. Books about grief are always my favorites!

Goodreads summary: “When Griffin’s first love and ex-boyfriend, Theo, dies in a drowning accident, his universe implodes. Even though Theo had moved to California for college and started seeing Jackson, Griffin never doubted Theo would come back to him when the time was right. But now, the future he’s been imagining for himself has gone far off course.

To make things worse, the only person who truly understands his heartache is Jackson. But no matter how much they open up to each other, Griffin’s downward spiral continues. He’s losing himself in his obsessive compulsions and destructive choices, and the secrets he’s been keeping are tearing him apart.

If Griffin is ever to rebuild his future, he must first confront his history, every last heartbreaking piece in the puzzle of his life.”

 

5. Pointe by Brandy Colbert

Little & Lion was another 2017 favorite for me, and I also enjoyed Brandy Colbert’s recent novel Finding Yvonne. Pointe sounds so different than those two and I know it’s one of those books I won’t be able to put down.

Goodreads summary: “Theo is better now.

She’s eating again, dating guys who are almost appropriate, and well on her way to becoming an elite ballet dancer. But when her oldest friend, Donovan, returns home after spending four long years with his kidnapper, Theo starts reliving memories about his abduction—and his abductor.

Donovan isn’t talking about what happened, and even though Theo knows she didn’t do anything wrong, telling the truth would put everything she’s been living for at risk. But keeping quiet might be worse.”

 

6. Suffer Love by Ashley Herring Blake

I’ve read and absolutely loved all of Ashley Herring Blake’s other novels. I know that Suffer Love will be just as moving and heartbreaking.

Goodreads summary: ““Just let it go.”

That’s what everyone keeps telling Hadley St. Clair after she learns that her father cheated on her mother. But Hadley doesn’t want to let it go. She wants to be angry and she wants everyone in her life—her dad most of all—to leave her alone.

Sam Bennett and his family have had their share of drama too. Still reeling from a move to a new town and his parents’ recent divorce, Sam is hoping that he can coast through senior year and then move on to hassle-free, parent-free life in college. He isn’t looking for a relationship…that is, until he sees Hadley for the first time.

Hadley and Sam’s connection is undeniable, but Sam has a secret that could ruin everything. Should he follow his heart or tell the truth?”

 

7. Blackbird Fly by Erin Entrada Kelly

Erin Entrada Kelly is probably my favorite middle grade author. I love how much charm and humor she brings to her stories, plus Filipinx rep! Blackbird Fly is the only of hers I haven’t read yet, but I just downloaded the ebook on my Kindle, so hopefully I’ll read it soon.

Goodreads summary: “Future rock star, or friendless misfit? That’s no choice at all. In this debut tween novel, twelve-year-old Apple grapples with being different; with friends and backstabbers and following her dreams.

Apple has always felt a little different from her classmates. She and her mother moved to Louisiana from the Philippines when she was little, and her mother still cooks Filipino foods, makes mistakes with her English, and chastises Apple for becoming “too American.” It becomes unbearable in middle school, when the boys—the stupid, stupid boys—in Apple’s class put her name on the Dog Log, the list of the most unpopular girls in school. When Apple’s friends turn on her and everything about her life starts to seem weird and embarrassing, Apple turns to music. If she can just save enough to buy a guitar and learn to play, maybe she can change herself. It might be the music that saves her . . . or it might be her two new friends, who show how special she really is.”

 

8. Everything Leads to You by Nina LaCour

Nina LaCour is one of the most talented contemporary writers in YA. Her books have such a dreamy quality and I know this one is probably just as beautiful as her others!

Goodreads summary: “A love letter to the craft and romance of film and fate in front of—and behind—the camera from the award-winning author of Hold Still.

A wunderkind young set designer, Emi has already started to find her way in the competitive Hollywood film world.

Emi is a film buff and a true romantic, but her real-life relationships are a mess. She has desperately gone back to the same girl too many times to mention. But then a mysterious letter from a silver screen legend leads Emi to Ava. Ava is unlike anyone Emi has ever met. She has a tumultuous, not-so-glamorous past, and lives an unconventional life. She’s enigmatic…. She’s beautiful. And she is about to expand Emi’s understanding of family, acceptance, and true romance.”

 

9. The Only Thing Worse Than Me Is You by Lily Anderson

Lily Anderson easily won a spot on my favorite authors list with Undead Girl Gang (plus, she’s a librarian! And she likes Buffy!). Her books are all on my TBR list now.

Goodreads summary: “Trixie Watson has two very important goals for senior year: to finally save enough to buy the set of Doctor Who figurines at the local comic books store, and to place third in her class and knock Ben West–and his horrendous new mustache that he spent all summer growing–down to number four.

Trixie will do anything to get her name ranked over Ben’s, including give up sleep and comic books–well, maybe not comic books–but definitely sleep. After all, the war of Watson v. West is as vicious as the Doctor v. Daleks and Browncoats v. Alliance combined, and it goes all the way back to the infamous monkey bars incident in the first grade. Over a decade later, it’s time to declare a champion once and for all.

The war is Trixie’s for the winning, until her best friend starts dating Ben’s best friend and the two are unceremoniously dumped together and told to play nice. Finding common ground is odious and tooth-pullingly-painful, but Trixie and Ben’s cautious truce slowly transforms into a fandom-based tentative friendship. When Trixie’s best friend gets expelled for cheating and Trixie cries foul play, however, they have to choose who to believe and which side they’re on–and they might not pick the same side.”

 

10. When the Moon Was Ours by Anna-Marie McLemore

Anna-Marie McLemore really surprised me with Wild Beauty because it was so different than the kind of books I normally read but so gorgeous. I recently read her story in the wonderful anthology Toil & Trouble: 15 Tales of Women & Witchcraft and it was definitely one of my favorites. I will definitely be reading all of her books someday!

Goodreads summary: “To everyone who knows them, best friends Miel and Sam are as strange as they are inseparable. Roses grow out of Miel’s wrist, and rumors say that she spilled out of a water tower when she was five. Sam is known for the moons he paints and hangs in the trees, and for how little anyone knows about his life before he and his mother moved to town. But as odd as everyone considers Miel and Sam, even they stay away from the Bonner girls, four beautiful sisters rumored to be witches. Now they want the roses that grow from Miel’s skin, convinced that their scent can make anyone fall in love. And they’re willing to use every secret Miel has fought to protect to make sure she gives them up. ”

 

Do you have any books by your favorite authors that you haven’t read yet?