Hi everyone!
I don't know about you, but the current lockdown situation in the UK has given me a lot of time to peruse social media, and I've seen a lot of book recommendations that I've definitely chosen to add to my ever-growing 'to-be-read' list.
One of the things I see most in discussions about books, is the uncertainty of reading a book because of the reputation or reviews it has. Even more so because of the misconceptions people have about a particular book or author before they open it. I myself am guilty of this too; I often stay away from really popular books because I convince myself that they cannot live up to the hype. However, I'm trying to be a little more open-minded about the books I read, and not judge a book by its cover!
Along this theme, I had a little look at my bookshelves, and have put together a few books that I wasn't sure I would enjoy, but really did. These books put me off at first, either because they were related to a particular book or series that I thought they could never live up to, or because I had negative misconceptions about the genre or story.
So, I hope you enjoy my list of books that I wasn't expecting to enjoy, but did! Make sure to let me know if there are any books that you're surprised you enjoyed too!
Book 5: The Monogram Murders - Sophie Hannah
Hercule Poirot's quiet supper in a London coffeehouse is interrupted when a young woman confides to him that she is about to be murdered. She is terrified – but begs Poirot not to find and punish her killer. Once she is dead, she insists, justice will have been done.
Later that night, Poirot learns that three guests at a fashionable London Hotel have been murdered, and a cufflink has been placed in each one’s mouth. Could there be a connection with the frightened woman? While Poirot struggles to put together the bizarre pieces of the puzzle, the murderer prepares another hotel bedroom for a fourth victim...
Blurb taken from Goodreads.
Anybody who knows me knows just how much I love Agatha Christie. I believe she really deserves the title 'Queen of Crime', and I especially love the Hercule Poirot novels. Poirot is eccentric, amusing, and ridiculously intelligent and intuitive, and he's definitely my favourite detective. When it was announced that Sophie Hannah had been authorised by Agatha Christie Ltd, and Christie's own grandson, to put together an original Poirot novel... Let's just say that I was more reluctant that excited to read it. Christie was able to make Poirot insufferable whilst at the same time endearing; a task that I know was probably not easy to achieve! Not to mention that Christie's mysteries are perfectly balanced, lighthearted while at the same time dark. Although I've read some of the Sophie Hannah's other books, I couldn't imagine another author, even her, replicating this to the standard I would want, and I put off reading Hannah's first Poirot book, The Monogram Murders, for quite some time.
I really needn't have worried. The Monogram Murders is probably double the length of the traditional Christie novel, but this only added to the book. It was fun and exciting, whilst still retaining the integrity of a really good, classic murder mystery. The plot was a little more convoluted that I would have expected, which I think was Sophie Hannah's attempt at putting in the amount of detail that is typical of Christie's work. The character of Poirot was handled well, and I really enjoyed the book.
I would recommend this book to any fans of the traditional Christie novels, but would advise you to be a little more open-minded. Sophie Hannah has stayed faithful to Christie's character and style, but she has also put her own spin on the story. However, if you can read this one, I think Hannah's later attempts at Poirot novels, Closed Casket and The Mystery of Three Quarters respectively, are even better. They keep more to the simplicity of Agatha Christie's most popular novels, and I'm now a huge fan of Sophie Hannah's work.
I really needn't have worried. The Monogram Murders is probably double the length of the traditional Christie novel, but this only added to the book. It was fun and exciting, whilst still retaining the integrity of a really good, classic murder mystery. The plot was a little more convoluted that I would have expected, which I think was Sophie Hannah's attempt at putting in the amount of detail that is typical of Christie's work. The character of Poirot was handled well, and I really enjoyed the book.
I would recommend this book to any fans of the traditional Christie novels, but would advise you to be a little more open-minded. Sophie Hannah has stayed faithful to Christie's character and style, but she has also put her own spin on the story. However, if you can read this one, I think Hannah's later attempts at Poirot novels, Closed Casket and The Mystery of Three Quarters respectively, are even better. They keep more to the simplicity of Agatha Christie's most popular novels, and I'm now a huge fan of Sophie Hannah's work.
✼
Book 4: A Monster Calls - Patrick Ness
An unflinching, darkly funny, and deeply moving story of a boy, his seriously ill mother, and an unexpected monstrous visitor.
At seven minutes past midnight, thirteen-year-old Conor wakes to find a monster outside his bedroom window. But it isn't the monster Conor's been expecting - he's been expecting the one from his nightmare, the nightmare he's had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments. The monster in his backyard is different. It's ancient. And wild. And it wants something from Conor. Something terrible and dangerous. It wants the truth.
Blurb taken from Goodreads.
For Christmas, my partner got me three books from the website Blind Date With a Book, which is a website where you can choose your books based only on a few words that describe it. It's a great idea, and one that really means you don't judge a book by its cover! One of the parcels that I received, with descriptive words such as 'healing', 'truth', 'profound fantasy' and 'young adult', was A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness.
I was a little concerned that I wouldn't enjoy it at first, mainly because I'd previously read the Chaos Walking trilogy by the same author and didn't find it my cup of tea. I loved the concept, but it was just one of those stories that I didn't enjoy as much as I thought I would. That, combined with the fact that I'd seen A Monster Calls online repeatedly put me off reading it. Sometimes, the more you see something, the more keen you are to avoid it.
A Monster Calls is quite a short book, and because it typically falls into the young adult genre, I picked it up when I needed something quick and easy to read. I quickly surprised myself with how much I enjoyed it. It's a very simple story, about a young boy who is struggling to come to terms with the reality of illness and loneliness. The monster shows up to help him accept truth and honesty, and I honestly think a lot of the lessons relate to everybody in the modern day.
It's a quick read, but a very powerful one, with messages about pain and the way humans process it. Although I wasn't initially keen to read the book, now I've finished it, it's one that I would encourage everybody to read.
If you've already read the book, and want to read my full review of A Monster Calls, you can find it here.
I was a little concerned that I wouldn't enjoy it at first, mainly because I'd previously read the Chaos Walking trilogy by the same author and didn't find it my cup of tea. I loved the concept, but it was just one of those stories that I didn't enjoy as much as I thought I would. That, combined with the fact that I'd seen A Monster Calls online repeatedly put me off reading it. Sometimes, the more you see something, the more keen you are to avoid it.
A Monster Calls is quite a short book, and because it typically falls into the young adult genre, I picked it up when I needed something quick and easy to read. I quickly surprised myself with how much I enjoyed it. It's a very simple story, about a young boy who is struggling to come to terms with the reality of illness and loneliness. The monster shows up to help him accept truth and honesty, and I honestly think a lot of the lessons relate to everybody in the modern day.
It's a quick read, but a very powerful one, with messages about pain and the way humans process it. Although I wasn't initially keen to read the book, now I've finished it, it's one that I would encourage everybody to read.
If you've already read the book, and want to read my full review of A Monster Calls, you can find it here.
✼
Book 3: Eligible - Curtis Sittenfeld
Liz is a magazine writer in her late thirties who, like her yoga instructor older sister, Jane, lives in New York City. When their father has a health scare, they return to their childhood home in Cincinnati to help and discover that the sprawling Tudor they grew up in is crumbling and the family is in disarray.
Youngest sisters Kitty and Lydia are too busy with their CrossFit workouts and Paleo diets to get jobs. Mary, the middle sister, is earning her third online master's degree and barely leaves her room, except for those mysterious Tuesday-night outings she won't discuss. And Mrs. Bennet has one thing on her mind: how to marry off her daughters, especially as Jane's fortieth birthday fast approaches.
Enter Chip Bingley, a handsome new-in-town doctor who recently appeared on the juggernaut reality TV dating show Eligible. At a Fourth of July barbecue, Chip takes an immediate interest in Jane, but Chip's friend, neurosurgeon Fitzwilliam Darcy, reveals himself to Liz to be much less charming. . . . And yet, first impressions can be deceiving.
Blurb taken from Goodreads.
Eligible was written as part of the Austen Project, where a few years ago, authors were paired with popular Austen novels to recreate their stories and bring them to a new audience. Eligible is the novel that Curtis Sittenfeld wrote as a modern day Pride and Prejudice.
Pride and Prejudice just so happens to be my favourite novel. I've loved it since I was young, and I reread it regularly. You can imagine that I was a little dubious when I heard that there was going to be a modern retelling of the novel.
Nevertheless, I decided to give Eligible a chance. It's been a few years since I actually read it, but I remember whizzing through it in no time at all. As with most retellings, you have to take it with a bit of a pinch of salt if you're going to enjoy it, but it was really fun. It was nice to read about the characters that I'd grown to love in a new, lighthearted way, and seeing how they'd fare in a modern day world was interesting.
I'd definitely recommend this for anybody who loves a bit of lighthearted chick lit, regardless of whether or not you're a fan of Austen's work.
✼
Book 2: The Casual Vacancy - J.K. Rowling
When Barry Fairbrother dies in his early forties, the town of Pagford is left in shock. Pagford is, seemingly, an English idyll, with a cobbled market square and an ancient abbey, but what lies behind the pretty façade is a town at war.
Rich at war with poor, teenagers at war with their parents, wives at war with their husbands, teachers at war with their pupils ... Pagford is not what it first seems. And the empty seat left by Barry on the parish council soon becomes the catalyst for the biggest war the town has yet seen.
Who will triumph in an election fraught with passion, duplicity and unexpected revelations?
Blurb taken from Goodreads.
When I was thinking about the books I was going to include on this list, I knew The Casual Vacancy had to appear on it. I remember when it was released, it received a mountain of critique purely because it has J.K. Rowling's name attached to it.
I'm among the minority that will admit to liking The Casual Vacancy. I too am a massive Harry Potter fan, but I can accept that this falls under a very different genre, and should be treated as such. You can definitely see Rowling's style of writing and attention to detail, as the book follows multiple different storylines at the same time. However, I really enjoyed it. I thought Rowling did a good job dealing with the host of adult characters, and I liked the fictional village of Pagford a lot.
This definitely isn't a book for everybody, but I wouldn't be put off just because of the author; by itself it's a very intriguing novel.
I'm among the minority that will admit to liking The Casual Vacancy. I too am a massive Harry Potter fan, but I can accept that this falls under a very different genre, and should be treated as such. You can definitely see Rowling's style of writing and attention to detail, as the book follows multiple different storylines at the same time. However, I really enjoyed it. I thought Rowling did a good job dealing with the host of adult characters, and I liked the fictional village of Pagford a lot.
This definitely isn't a book for everybody, but I wouldn't be put off just because of the author; by itself it's a very intriguing novel.
✼
Book 1: The Vampire Academy (series) - Richelle Mead
Lissa Dragomir is a Moroi princess: a mortal vampire with a rare gift for harnessing the earth's magic. She must be protected at all times from Strigoi; the fiercest vampires - the ones who never die. The powerful blend of human and vampire blood that flows through Rose Hathaway, Lissa's best friend, makes her a dhampir. Rose is dedicated to a dangerous life of protecting Lissa from the Strigoi, who are hell-bent on making Lissa one of them.
After two years of freedom, Rose and Lissa are caught and dragged back to St. Vladimir's Academy, a school for vampire royalty and their guardians-to-be, hidden in the deep forests of Montana. But inside the iron gates, life is even more fraught with danger... and the Strigoi are always close by.
Rose and Lissa must navigate their dangerous world, confront the temptations of forbidden love, and never once let their guard down, lest the evil undead make Lissa one of them forever...
Blurb taken from Goodreads.
This is definitely one of those series that I definitely assumed the worst about with absolutely no reason to. I have to admit, I used to be pretty against vampire fiction as a rule. I just didn't really gel with it, and assumed that all vampire based books would follow the same trend.
Then, bored one evening, I stumbled across the film adaptation of Vampire Academy on Netflix, and surprised myself by really enjoying it. It was sassy and sultry and I actually loved the main character of Rose. After a little bit of internet researching, I decided that I would stretch to checking out the book series too, on the off-chance I enjoyed that as well.
Six books later, I was in love with the series. I think what I loved the most was following Rose, our feisty female protagonist, as she attempts to navigate the supernatural world that she lives in. I also think that allowing yourself to be totally enveloped by a completely new fictional world is such a special feeling, and this was such a deeply crafted world that I escaped into it happily.
If you love a long series in a fantasy world, this is definitely one for you. If you've already read the books, you can read my full review of the series here.
Then, bored one evening, I stumbled across the film adaptation of Vampire Academy on Netflix, and surprised myself by really enjoying it. It was sassy and sultry and I actually loved the main character of Rose. After a little bit of internet researching, I decided that I would stretch to checking out the book series too, on the off-chance I enjoyed that as well.
Six books later, I was in love with the series. I think what I loved the most was following Rose, our feisty female protagonist, as she attempts to navigate the supernatural world that she lives in. I also think that allowing yourself to be totally enveloped by a completely new fictional world is such a special feeling, and this was such a deeply crafted world that I escaped into it happily.
If you love a long series in a fantasy world, this is definitely one for you. If you've already read the books, you can read my full review of the series here.
✼
So there we have it; 5 pieces of fiction that I didn't expect to like, but did. This includes crime, modern retellings, young adult fantasy, and more. Although I know that not all readers enjoy the same things, I'm hoping that I may have eased any concerns you may have had about reading some of the above books, or introduced you to some new fiction that you never thought of trying!
Make sure to let me know if there are any other books that exceeded your expectations!
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