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Recommended reading
These are the books that I personally recommend. There are many reasons why a book (or a series) will end up here. Click the images to be taken to their Amazon Kindle page.
I picked up this book because of the cover. I loved the simplistic look of it, and the back blurb was an interesting idea. I love a good dystopian Young Adult novel. I had no idea who Michael Grant was at the time.
This series took place over six books and followed the adventures of a small group of children. Suddenly, every person over the age of fifteen is gone. There is no communication with anyone outside of their town - the internet and phones don't work, and the city has been covered in a giant dome-like structure.
Babies need to be cared for, food needs to be found, and some of the kids are starting to show strange abnormalities. Mutant powers that are only helping the kids fall apart. Civil war is approaching quickly, and Sam and Astrid struggle to remain in control of their town.
Gone Series
The Mortal Instruments Series
The back blurb caught my attention. Reading the first chapter meant I needed to read the rest. Finishing this book series has left me inspired in a way few other books have.
It isn't the plot that catches you. It is quite routine. Nice and normal Clary discovers she is part of a secret society, charged with killing demons. She follows a beautiful boy down the rabbit hole. It is the characters and the unique history of the Shadowhunters that draws you in.
There is nothing ordinary about Clary, Jace, Simon... I could list every single character as a unique voice placed in a mundane world (oh the pun - read it and you will understand). The intricate pacing of the story is perfect for the older audience, and Clare has successfully merged YA fiction into something akin to Harry Potter.
Finish the series, and then enjoy the expansion novels.
gone girl
I went and saw the film without knowing the book. I really did not even know that much about the story. I walked out of the cinema and into a bookshop to buy the book.
After reading it, I was still a firm believer that I prefer the movie version over the novel - although I wasn't expecting the opposite. This isn't my usual genre - but I still think the novel was worth reading.
It is a great example of pacing, and when to reveal more to the audience. You spend much of the book sympathising for Amy, and when tat is taken from us it is almost enough to force you to re-read the beginning because you wonder how could you ever be duped so successfully.
The book and film do have their downsides, but overall I believe this book is a great learning tool for authors looking to creating convincing plot twists and diabolical characters.
The hunger games
Everyone knows these books. If somehow you managed not to witness this awesome trilogy, I strongly suggest you do. The movies do a decent job, but the books offer so much more (like all good source materials should)
The reason I put these books on the list is because never have I ever had such a strong reaction to a character's decision than I did while I was reading these. I literately threw the book across the room and sat there stunned before meekly retrieving the book so I could finish it.
The Hunger Games was also the first series I could not manage to wait before getting the next book. I prefer paper books, and bought the first one on a whim. After finishing it., I couldn't get back to the shops so I had to buy the ebook version. There are not many books that I felt so strongly compelled to finish.
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