“Top 10 Tuesday” is a weekly meme by The Broke and the Bookish
This week’s Top 10 Tuesday topic was a lot of fun because it gave us the chance to push some of our favorite books on you and especially those who are rather unknown or underrated and definitely deserve more attention and more bookish love. So if you haven’t read or even heard of the books listed below then you should go get them asap – they’re absolutely worth it!
The Lost & Found – Katrina Leno
This was one of my favorite books last year, and I don’t understand how it only has 99 reviews on Goodreads. Everyone who appreciates the friendships they’ve made on the internet (everyone reading this, hopefully) will fall in love with Frannie and Louis’ story. Both they and the side characters were so relatable. Also, the wide range of diversity in the book makes it even better.
14 – Peter Clines
After reading The Fold, Sebastian and I were desperate for a sequel. Instead, we found 14, which is a sidequel to The Fold. I’ve seen quite a bit of buzz about the latter, but for some reason, no one seems to have heard of the former. That’s unfortunate, because 14 is even better. It has the same mysterious elements and the same laugh-out-loud humor, but the best part is the fantastic cast of characters — the one thing The Fold lacks.
A Killing Winter – Tom Callaghan
I have Sebastian to thank for introducing me to this book, otherwise I never would have heard of it. A Killing Winter is definitely not one to read if you’re in the mood for a happy-go-lucky story, but for those who enjoy depressing, brutal murder mysteries, I highly recommend it. The author has actually lived in Kyrgyzstan, so I’d like to think his portrayal of life there is fairly accurate. The sequel is almost as good, and I’m definitely looking forward to the last two books in the series.
Isles of Glory trilogy – Glenda Larke
I’m grateful to Terri for introducing me to Glenda Larke, a fantastic and shockingly underrated Australian fantasy author. A lifelong fantasy fan (and the daughter of a lifelong fantasy fan), I still can’t believe I’d never heard of her before. The Isles of Glory trilogy is perfect for binging, and I recommend it to anyone looking for a unique and diverse fantasy series with characters whose lives you can’t help but get invested in. I also recommend Glenda Larke’s Watergivers trilogy, once you’ve finished this one.
The Water and the Wild – K.E. Ormsbee
I don’t usually read middle grade novels, and I have to admit, I won this in a giveaway that I entered entirely because of the book’s cover. To my surprise, I ended up loving The Water and the Wild, which is beautiful inside and out. Kathryn Ormsbee’s YA debut, Lucky Few, is just as good, and I can’t wait for her next YA novel, featuring an asexual main character. I really hope Kathryn Ormsbee gets more attention in the blogging community this year, because she and her books deserve it.
The Flight of the Silvers – Daniel Price
I’m not getting tired of pushing this book on every possible occasion so of course it was the first book that came to my mind when I was looking for underrated books. If you’re only slightly interested in science fiction with great worldbuilding and interesting characters then you just have to give Daniel Price’s epic alternate earth/time manipulation story a try!
The Yard – Alex Grecian
I’m a huge fan of historical crime fiction, especially when it’s set in the Victorian London, and Alex Grecian’s Murder Squad series probably triggered my love for books set in this era. The books not only provide gripping cases and an intense dark atmosphere but also fantastic characters that make this series so special and one of my absolute favorite crime series.
The Manual of Detection – Jedediah Barry
I admit that this book is pretty weird and probably might scare away a few readers with its rather slow pace, the odd protagonist and the surreal atmosphere but if you think that a crime novel that could be described as a mix of Lewis Carroll’s „Alice in Wonderland“, Michael Ende’s „Momo“ und Christopher Nolan’s „Inception“ sounds pretty interesting then you should definitely take a closer look at Jedediah Barry’s very unique and intriguing novel.
Six Four – Hideo Yokoyama
I’ve mentioned this book quite a few times on this blog already and won’t stop until I see more people actually read this massive crime novel set in Tokyo. Yes, it might be a bit challenging because the pace is quite slow, there’s no typical investigation going on and the Japanese names can be quite confusing BUT it’s definitely worth the effort and patience because this mystery is really unique and has one of the best plot twists I know and also because it’s really interesting to see how the police system in this story is influenced by the Japanese culture.
Devil’s Cape – Rob Rogers
A superhero story set in a rotten and corrupt city that was once founded by pirates – this should already be enough to make you want to read the book but if you need more details then picture a superhero story with the atmosphere of Watchmen or Sin City, surprisingly believable characters and a complex and epic plot. What are you still waiting for? Go read this book!
I’ve been reading a lot of sci-fi lately so maybe I can squeeze 14 or The Fold in now, too. A Killing Winter also sounds interesting mainly because it’s set of winter in the title haha.
I definitely want to read Six Four and I really do not mind slow-paced books unless they start to really drag on. Devil’s Cape sounds just like my kind of a book so I’m interested in that, too and hopefully, I can finally get around to reading The Flight of the Silvers this year. Also, whenever I visit your blog, I always end up wanting to read more crime novels haha.
Yesss, please don’t get my hopes up about 14 and FotS for nothing! ? I think you’d like A Killing Winter, both because of the setting and because of how brutal it is.
Six Four is great! And have you seen the print copy? *____*
„14“ OR „The Fold“? You should definitely read BOTH! 😛 I think „A Killing Winter“ could be especially interesting for you because its setting is rather close to where you live?
Please read „Six Four“, we really need to successfully push this book on more readers 😀
I can’t believe you still haven’t read „The Flight of the Silvers“, that’s so disappointing 😛
And of course I will never disagree about reading more crime novels ;D
I hope I’ll be able to read The Lost & Found someday. Of course, the libraries don’t have it. I remember when you first read it, and how much you loved it.
You seem to have such good luck with giveaways. I really like the cover for The Water and the Wild. Maybe it’s just me, but middle grade always have the neatest covers.
I still want you to read All in Pieces and Tell Me Three Things, which I think are underrated. I know you’re not into YA right now, but keep those in the back of your mind for when you’re ready to return. XD
I really hope you do! I don’t know if one of the libraries would order it as an ebook or not. Can you request physical books at your library?
I won so many in 2014! That lucky streak is over though, lol. But it was definitely nice while it lasted.
I also really like the covers for the MG books Pax and Some Kind of Happiness.
Does the library have those as ebooks? Keep reminding me, and I’ll get to them eventually!
Let’s hope I’m doing this correctly and actually replying to your comment.
Hmm. I’m not sure if I can request physical books. I’ve looked on their website before and couldn’t find anything. Maybe there will be an eBook sale for it someday, and I’ll snag it then :D.
Yes, the library has both. Don’t you worry, I’ll bug you until the end of time. 😉
It worked!
I requested the ebook, so fingers crossed! Or maybe I’ll just have to get it for you for Christmas this year, lol.
Good! 🙂
You both have amazing lists. I definitely will have to check out 14. The Alex Grecian novel sounds awesome too. I have so many books on my TBR now and I don’t know that I’ll ever get to all of them. Thanks for sharing your lists and for visiting my blog!
If you liked The Fold, there’s no way you won’t love 14! I hope you get a chance to read it soon. The Yard is definitely worth reading as well, but of course a series is a bigger commitment, haha.
I’m pretty sure that „14“ won’t disappoint you after enjoying „The Fold“ and Grecian’s books absolutely deserve more attention, so I would be happy if you gave them a try! 😉
Thanks for visiting us! 🙂
Love the sound of The Lost & Found. Looks like such a sweet story. I’ve never heard of Glenda Larke, but you had me at fantasy author. Great list!
You really should read it, Alicia! I’m sure you’d love it as much as I did. Glenda Larke’s books are harder to find in the U.S., but I did manage to find two of her series at my library. And, of course, everything’s available online. 🙂
I 100% knew Maraia was going to mention The Lost & Found. *awards self for psychic knowledge* ? And I’m so excited for Lucky Few! If my reserve ever gets in from the library. It’s not like I mind waiting 9000 years or anything. Ahem. And hopefully the library will get in The Water And the Wild too. Because clearly I need it, yes? 😉
The Manual of Detection sounds really awesome! I’m loving the comparisons!
HOW COULD I NOT? TL&F made all my lists this year, lol.
I can’t wait to hear what you think of Lucky Few! And maybe you should just buy The Water and the Wild. You really do need it for your bookstagram account. 😉
I haven’t read The Manual of Detection yet, but it does sound perfect for you. Maybe there’s an audio version.
I don’t know anyone else who has read „The Manual of Detection“ so I would be really excited to hear a 2nd opinion! The book is just really hard to describe because it’s so weird and unique so I’m glad the comparisons helped 🙂
I wasn’t familiar with any of these books but they certainly look intriguing. 🙂
I hope you want to try some of them one day! Thanks for the visit! 🙂
The Isles of Glory and The Water and the Wild sound like they’d be right up my street, and the covers are really pretty too!
I hope you get a chance to read them! I’m sure you’ll love them. 🙂
I haven’t read ANY of these! Which can only mean one thing: I need to go and add these to my to-read list immediately. I mean, the descriptions all sound incredible! Superhero story in a city founded by pirates? Yes. Crime novel in Tokyo? Yes. Historical crime fiction? Yes.
Woohoo, I’m glad you find the recommendations appealing, those books really deserve more readers and it would be fun to discuss them! 🙂
Oooh we have The Water and The Wild in the book club collection! I must see if anyone has read it yet, and perhaps borrow it myself! 😀
Love this post, I’m definitely going to try and seek out some of these titles! Loving your joint posts 😀
Ooh, you should definitely check it out. Which cover does it have?
Thanks! They’re really fun to write together, so I’m glad you like them. ?
I’m also a huge fan of historical crime fiction so I’m going to have to check out Alex Grecian’s series!
They’re really great. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed! 🙂
Yay, I hope you’ll end up liking the books and especially the characters! 🙂