My Favourite 10(ish) Books of ALL TIME
So there are some books that I'm continuously reading and rereading whenever I need a familiar book or one that I know is going to be a really good read... even if I've read them hundreds of times already! This morning I decided to make a list of them because well why not and I thought I'd share that list with you guys!!
I did a post back in 2014 (I'll link it at the end in case you're interested) but that was my favourites at the time of writing it... all of them are still very good books but not many at all have made this list.
So here we go!
Note: these aren't in any particular order, just the order I happened to find them on my very unorganised bookshelf while making this list... I just felt like without numbers it would be wrong....
1) Love, Rosie - Cecelia Ahern (By the way, this was originally published as When Rainbows End then renamed when they brought the movie out.) I picked this up because it was cheap and it looked sort of good and I'm SO glad I did!! I love this story of Rosie and Alex, two best friends for whom life doesn't really seem to fall into place quite right. It starts from when they are 5 and ends when they're 50 so you get their entire lives and it's such a great story of their very complicated lives and what I like best is it's a little different because instead of being a narrative the book entirely consists of letters, notes, emails, messages etc. but it doesn't detract from the story and allows Ahern to show so much of their lives... it's so clever! I'd really recommend this to anyone who likes romance/drama type novels but there's a lot more to it than that. I always go to this book when I just need a laugh and a nice happy ending!
2) Hothouse Flower - Lucinda Riley Okay I love her books! This is my favourite though, and it's again a very clever one because it weaves in the past with the present revealing family secrets and the lives of so many. I love diving into the world of Julia, Kit, Elsie, Olivia, Harry, Lidia and more and I love the setting, Wharton Park. It's amazing to imagine the story unfolding in a beautiful countryside mansion! You need to read this one if you're into romance/historical fiction/drama/books because it is just that good. I've read this so many times... and every time the sympathy I feel for Olivia and Harry is just too much....
3) The Lady's Maid - Dilly Court I mentioned this in the top ten book posts and also one of my Cornwall posts (Again, I'll link them at the bottom). This is a historical fiction following the lives of Miss Josephine Damerell and Katherine Coggins, two best friends but their social standings prevent them from getting what they truly want out of life. Some real twists for a first-time reader (ie. not me anymore D:) and again the setting makes it that bit better. So much happens in just under 500 pages and the plot is so complicated yet so simple whilst reading, so if you asked me to explain the plot I'd be able to give you basics but I'd miss entire plotlines because there's so much! That's why I love her books, so much happens yet it'd not confusing to the reader in the slightest. Definitely recommend this and so many times I sought the pages of this book... I can never get enough of Kate, Josie, Sam and Harry's adventures and dramas!
4) A Mother's Courage - Dilly Court This is another Dilly Court book (I love hers! These are my two favourites though) that I've read countless times. It follows Eloise Cribb, a young widow desperately trying to care for her two children, Beth and Joss. The trials she has to go through simply to ensure her children are close to her and the sacrifices she has to make form a book I enjoy reading every time even if I know exactly what is going to happen! Again, so so much happens within just over 500 pages that I honestly couldn't explain much of the plot apart from the main parts despite the many, many times I've read it! It's definitely worth a try if you like Historical Fictions.
5) Harry Potters - J.K. Rowling and this is why it's 10ish books because this is techincally 7... or more if you count the cursed child, fantastic beasts etc but they couldn't be left out and really they deserve like an entire other blog (not even a post or two would cover my love for them) because my entire childhood is summed up in the pages of these books! If I'm ever feeling sad/insecure/unsure/any other emotion I always (hehe) know that these will make me feel so much better! Most my life lessons and morals are shaped by these and whenever I have a tough decision I look to Harry Potter for guidance... they're literally my bible! (and I am a Christian...) I can quote so many pages and my copies are covered in post-its and memories... ever since my Uncle bought me the first two when I was like 7 (random number alert because I have no memory) my life has been shaped by this amazing series!
6) The Last Days of Rabbit Hayes - Anna McPartlin This is the story of Mia (Rabbit) Hayes who is in a hospice with terminal cancer. The story of her life unfolds as she remembers her childhood in her last moments and her first love Johnny Faye whilst her family has to deal with her passing and work out how to carry on after she's passed. Every single time I read this I cry the entire way through right from about 20 pages in to the very last page! I personally didn't like The Fault in Our Stars (again, another story) and I recommend this to anyone who did like it because this is so much a better book! Although the ending will have you crying, then smiling, then crying some more, then laughing and your emotions will be messed up for days because its so sad but happy but sad but really happy but.... AHH yeah I love this book!! If you don't like sad books this probably isn't for you then but if you don't mind them you really should read this because it's just so good!
7) Safe Haven - Nicholas Sparks I must confess I haven't really read many of his apart from this one although I LOVE this book! I really should try some more.... Safe Haven tells the story of Katie, a girl with a very troubled past as she meets Alex, a single father running the local shop and trying to look after his two children, Josh and Kristen (Lexi in the movie). I love the ending, makes me cry every time, and I've read this countless times! It is a romancey novel but there's so much more to it than that and one I'd definitely recommend.
8) The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown If you haven't read this and you like crime/mystery/etc then... go read it right now! Seriously! The plot is unbelievably clever and will have you questioning your entire biblical knowledge (even if you have no faith, it's not a religious book!) and your entire life in fact... it's genius. No other way to describe it! Every time I'm amazed (and I have a gorgeous illustrated copy... hehe best £1.50 I ever spent! (gotta love charity shops)) so seriously go grab a copy if you haven't read it already. In fact, even if you have, do anyway!! I think I might read it again now....!! (Although my vicar wasn't happy I read it. Tip: Don't mention this book in Church...) Yeah enough said. This makes the list because it really is one of the best books of all time and one that every single person should read at some point in their life, so go tick it off your list now!
9) Twelve Days of Christmas - Trisha Ashley Okay I KNOW this is a Christmas book but to be honest it's a good book and there's more to it and... okay I love Christmas stop judging. I have read it on the beach in the middle of Summer (normal if you're Australian I guess...) which got me some strange looks but it is so good! I have so many Christmas books but the problem is that if you take the Christmas out there's nothing left at all whereas this is a good book that just happens to have an extra Christmassey bonus! It follows Holly Brown when she house-sits at a big countryside manor for Christmas but family dramas and family secrets get in the way of her peaceful non-Christmassey Christmas. It's great and whenever I need a happy feel-good book I find myself in the middle of this, no matter what time of year it is!
10) Entangled - Cat Clarke Okay this is not for everyone for many reasons. It is very teen-fictiony (thats a word sure) and potentially has a lot of triggers because it contains a lot of sensitive topics such as depression, self harm and suicide. However it really is an incredible read and full of twists!! It follows 17 year old Grace, who on the night she plans to kill herself gets kidnapped and wakes up to find herself in a strange white room with nothing but a bed and a table and chair with pens and paper on it. So she writes her life story down whilst trying to work out where she is and who the mysterious Ethan who kidnapped her is. Very intense and emotional but it's incredible, it seems like every time I read it I find something else in it I've never noticed before!
So there we go! 10(ish) books that I've loved for years and will continue to love for years to come I'm sure.... I don't think I'll ever fall out of love with these ones!
By the way: There are many more books I could have included and series but these 10 are sort of the ones I go to for comfort and expanding it would change that. For example, The Book Theif, the Mortal Instruments series and many, many more are books/series that I LOVE but they didn't quite make this list for that reason!
Thanks for reading this far... let me know what you think of them if you've read any of them! (tweet me, leave a comment etc etc etc many methods these days!)
KellyKat :) x
Links:
Top Ten Books: http://thekellykat.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/top-10-books.html
St Michael's Mount in Cornwall (Reminded me of The Lady's Maid): http://thekellykat.blogspot.co.uk/2016/04/st-michaels-mount-cornwall.html
I did a post back in 2014 (I'll link it at the end in case you're interested) but that was my favourites at the time of writing it... all of them are still very good books but not many at all have made this list.
So here we go!
Note: these aren't in any particular order, just the order I happened to find them on my very unorganised bookshelf while making this list... I just felt like without numbers it would be wrong....
1) Love, Rosie - Cecelia Ahern (By the way, this was originally published as When Rainbows End then renamed when they brought the movie out.) I picked this up because it was cheap and it looked sort of good and I'm SO glad I did!! I love this story of Rosie and Alex, two best friends for whom life doesn't really seem to fall into place quite right. It starts from when they are 5 and ends when they're 50 so you get their entire lives and it's such a great story of their very complicated lives and what I like best is it's a little different because instead of being a narrative the book entirely consists of letters, notes, emails, messages etc. but it doesn't detract from the story and allows Ahern to show so much of their lives... it's so clever! I'd really recommend this to anyone who likes romance/drama type novels but there's a lot more to it than that. I always go to this book when I just need a laugh and a nice happy ending!
2) Hothouse Flower - Lucinda Riley Okay I love her books! This is my favourite though, and it's again a very clever one because it weaves in the past with the present revealing family secrets and the lives of so many. I love diving into the world of Julia, Kit, Elsie, Olivia, Harry, Lidia and more and I love the setting, Wharton Park. It's amazing to imagine the story unfolding in a beautiful countryside mansion! You need to read this one if you're into romance/historical fiction/drama/books because it is just that good. I've read this so many times... and every time the sympathy I feel for Olivia and Harry is just too much....
3) The Lady's Maid - Dilly Court I mentioned this in the top ten book posts and also one of my Cornwall posts (Again, I'll link them at the bottom). This is a historical fiction following the lives of Miss Josephine Damerell and Katherine Coggins, two best friends but their social standings prevent them from getting what they truly want out of life. Some real twists for a first-time reader (ie. not me anymore D:) and again the setting makes it that bit better. So much happens in just under 500 pages and the plot is so complicated yet so simple whilst reading, so if you asked me to explain the plot I'd be able to give you basics but I'd miss entire plotlines because there's so much! That's why I love her books, so much happens yet it'd not confusing to the reader in the slightest. Definitely recommend this and so many times I sought the pages of this book... I can never get enough of Kate, Josie, Sam and Harry's adventures and dramas!
4) A Mother's Courage - Dilly Court This is another Dilly Court book (I love hers! These are my two favourites though) that I've read countless times. It follows Eloise Cribb, a young widow desperately trying to care for her two children, Beth and Joss. The trials she has to go through simply to ensure her children are close to her and the sacrifices she has to make form a book I enjoy reading every time even if I know exactly what is going to happen! Again, so so much happens within just over 500 pages that I honestly couldn't explain much of the plot apart from the main parts despite the many, many times I've read it! It's definitely worth a try if you like Historical Fictions.
5) Harry Potters - J.K. Rowling and this is why it's 10ish books because this is techincally 7... or more if you count the cursed child, fantastic beasts etc but they couldn't be left out and really they deserve like an entire other blog (not even a post or two would cover my love for them) because my entire childhood is summed up in the pages of these books! If I'm ever feeling sad/insecure/unsure/any other emotion I always (hehe) know that these will make me feel so much better! Most my life lessons and morals are shaped by these and whenever I have a tough decision I look to Harry Potter for guidance... they're literally my bible! (and I am a Christian...) I can quote so many pages and my copies are covered in post-its and memories... ever since my Uncle bought me the first two when I was like 7 (random number alert because I have no memory) my life has been shaped by this amazing series!
6) The Last Days of Rabbit Hayes - Anna McPartlin This is the story of Mia (Rabbit) Hayes who is in a hospice with terminal cancer. The story of her life unfolds as she remembers her childhood in her last moments and her first love Johnny Faye whilst her family has to deal with her passing and work out how to carry on after she's passed. Every single time I read this I cry the entire way through right from about 20 pages in to the very last page! I personally didn't like The Fault in Our Stars (again, another story) and I recommend this to anyone who did like it because this is so much a better book! Although the ending will have you crying, then smiling, then crying some more, then laughing and your emotions will be messed up for days because its so sad but happy but sad but really happy but.... AHH yeah I love this book!! If you don't like sad books this probably isn't for you then but if you don't mind them you really should read this because it's just so good!
7) Safe Haven - Nicholas Sparks I must confess I haven't really read many of his apart from this one although I LOVE this book! I really should try some more.... Safe Haven tells the story of Katie, a girl with a very troubled past as she meets Alex, a single father running the local shop and trying to look after his two children, Josh and Kristen (Lexi in the movie). I love the ending, makes me cry every time, and I've read this countless times! It is a romancey novel but there's so much more to it than that and one I'd definitely recommend.
8) The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown If you haven't read this and you like crime/mystery/etc then... go read it right now! Seriously! The plot is unbelievably clever and will have you questioning your entire biblical knowledge (even if you have no faith, it's not a religious book!) and your entire life in fact... it's genius. No other way to describe it! Every time I'm amazed (and I have a gorgeous illustrated copy... hehe best £1.50 I ever spent! (gotta love charity shops)) so seriously go grab a copy if you haven't read it already. In fact, even if you have, do anyway!! I think I might read it again now....!! (Although my vicar wasn't happy I read it. Tip: Don't mention this book in Church...) Yeah enough said. This makes the list because it really is one of the best books of all time and one that every single person should read at some point in their life, so go tick it off your list now!
9) Twelve Days of Christmas - Trisha Ashley Okay I KNOW this is a Christmas book but to be honest it's a good book and there's more to it and... okay I love Christmas stop judging. I have read it on the beach in the middle of Summer (normal if you're Australian I guess...) which got me some strange looks but it is so good! I have so many Christmas books but the problem is that if you take the Christmas out there's nothing left at all whereas this is a good book that just happens to have an extra Christmassey bonus! It follows Holly Brown when she house-sits at a big countryside manor for Christmas but family dramas and family secrets get in the way of her peaceful non-Christmassey Christmas. It's great and whenever I need a happy feel-good book I find myself in the middle of this, no matter what time of year it is!
10) Entangled - Cat Clarke Okay this is not for everyone for many reasons. It is very teen-fictiony (thats a word sure) and potentially has a lot of triggers because it contains a lot of sensitive topics such as depression, self harm and suicide. However it really is an incredible read and full of twists!! It follows 17 year old Grace, who on the night she plans to kill herself gets kidnapped and wakes up to find herself in a strange white room with nothing but a bed and a table and chair with pens and paper on it. So she writes her life story down whilst trying to work out where she is and who the mysterious Ethan who kidnapped her is. Very intense and emotional but it's incredible, it seems like every time I read it I find something else in it I've never noticed before!
So there we go! 10(ish) books that I've loved for years and will continue to love for years to come I'm sure.... I don't think I'll ever fall out of love with these ones!
By the way: There are many more books I could have included and series but these 10 are sort of the ones I go to for comfort and expanding it would change that. For example, The Book Theif, the Mortal Instruments series and many, many more are books/series that I LOVE but they didn't quite make this list for that reason!
Thanks for reading this far... let me know what you think of them if you've read any of them! (tweet me, leave a comment etc etc etc many methods these days!)
KellyKat :) x
Links:
Top Ten Books: http://thekellykat.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/top-10-books.html
St Michael's Mount in Cornwall (Reminded me of The Lady's Maid): http://thekellykat.blogspot.co.uk/2016/04/st-michaels-mount-cornwall.html