Over on tumblr, I get a fair few questions about book recommendations, and I can't help but sort of push certain underrated books onto people. Whether these people actually listen to me or not, I still mention the same books over and over again.
I'm a pusher. A sad old book pusher.
Without further delay, here is my list of 'books I think are great but no one really talks about them let's change that shall we?'!
This book tops my list of underrated books. And I don't know why?!? Awaken is a YA dystopia set in the not too distant future, and it is so realistic of what our world is actually turning into, that it's scary.
In this book, society has been driven inside. No one leaves their homes except when necessary. You can go to school on your computer. Meet new friends on your computer. Draw pictures on your computer. Exercise on, what? You guessed it: your computer. It has become abnormal to participate in activities outside of your home. It is against the rules to fight this system, and more and more, the old natural ways of living are slowly fading away.
The story centers around Maddie, a young girl whose father invented 'Digital School'. Maddie longs for more human contact, and rebels against the current way of living. She goes to football (or soccer, to you Yanks) practices, and even - gasp! - face to face study groups. It's at one of these groups that Maddie meets the enigmatic Justin, keen to uproot the system and lead people into a more natural way of living.
This story is wonderfully written, as is it's sequel, Middle Ground. Katie Kacvinsky has a wonderful way of describing things and creating images in the readers mind. The way Maddie learns things that seem so trivial to us is so interesting. The characters are complex and intriguing, each one, no matter how minor or major.What I find most enthralling about this book is how so close to this version of the future we are. Technology has really taken over the planet, in more ways than one. Here I am, right now, using technology to type out my thoughts on a book that demonstrates how dangerous it could be if we shut ourselves in with our home comforts and stop living.
This is one of the most realistic dystopians I've read. It's a complete page-turner, and I am eagerly awaiting the final book in the trilogy: Still Point.
Shout out to the UK authors out there! I am a huge fan of Sarah Alderson.
I first picked up Hunting Lila a while ago, when I was sick in bed. This book picked me right up.
If you want a book that ticks a lot of boxes, pick. This. Up.
Mystery? Check. Action? Check. Supernatural? Check. Romance? Check. Kick ass heroine? Check. A plot that's somehow both heavy and light at the same time? Check, check, check.
Hunting Lila is about a young girl that discovers she has the power to move objects with her mind. When an incident in London drives her back home to the States, and her brother and his best friend, things begin to unravel and truths are revealed. Lila discovers things she never knew: who her brother really works for. Who is the man that killed her mother, and that she's not alone.
Once again, I have to praise the writing and the characters in this book and its sequel, Losing Lila. I'm a girl who loves a character driven story, and the characters in these books are so diverse and different from one another; it fed my reading taste buds. A couple of characters in particular are laugh out loud funny, which I think is pretty hard to convey through books well.
Note: You guys should also check out Sarah's Fated series. That's it. Just do it.
Trois: Half-Blood by Jennifer L. Armentrout
Most of you may know of Jennifer L. Armentrout from her Lux series, however, the first books I read by her were the Covenant books.
Half-Blood had been on my TBR list for a long time, mostly due to it's gorgeous cover. When came the time that I decided to get it done and read, I did a quick skim of the comments section of its Goodreads page. It seems that a lot of, for lack of a better word, controversy, has arisen over the similar plot structure of Half-Blood, to that of Vampire Academy. And I'm not going to deny that structurally, the books share similarities, however, the series' are actually very different to each other.
Half-Blood is the story of a girl named Alex, who is learning to become a Sentinel, training to hunt and kill daimons. If Half-Bloods, such as Alex, don't become Sentinels, then their only option is to serve the superior Pure-Bloods for the rest of their lives.
Alex's mother has just been killed by daimons, and so she returns to the Covenant, a school for would-be Sentinels and Pure-Bloods, after disappearing for three years. Alex will stop at nothing to make sure she isn't placed into servitude, and becomes the Sentinel she's always dreamed of.
I've got a soft spot for reckless, impulsive characters, and Alex ticks both of those boxes and more. She completely owns herself, unapologetically. Also a bonus if, like moi, you have a thing for forbidden love, one character will ruin you: Aiden St. Delphi. Damn.
These books will also get you going if you love Greek mythology, which the very basis of the plot stems from. As the series goes on, the mythology infused in them gets stronger, and I loved learning about all these different things I'd never known.
There are five books in the Covenant series, including two novellas.
I hope you all enjoyed these books I picked out! It's likely I'll do another 'Underrated Books' post, as I read so many deserving books that need more recognition!
Have a great weekend, and I'll see you soon!
Find all these books on Amazon & The Book Depository
Katie Kacvinsky on her official website & Twitter
Sarah Alderson on her official website & Twitter
Jennifer L. Armentrout on her official website & Twitter
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