Top Ten Tuesday - Books I recommend

So I've been trying to get into one of the many weekly book blog themes, and today I've decided to bite the bullet and do it! There are many, many books that I would recommend, but here's my top ten at the moment...

1. Glass Houses by Rachel Caine

I totally fell in love with the Morganville vampires - I came to this series after reading Twilight and getting back into YA, and I have to say Morganville is everything that Twilight isn't. It's kick-ass, full of action, with enough lurving to satisfy the romantics amongst you. The series is coming to a close at the end of this year, and with 15 books there's enough to keep you going for a while!

2. Saving June by Hannah Harrington

If you don't dig the paranormal/supernatural/fantasy/dystopia aspect of YA fiction, then Saving June is exactly what you need to read. A wonderful road-trip book full of emotion and great music! Read my review here.

3. Shiver/Linger/Forever by Maggie Stiefvater

Warning - do not attempt to read this trilogy without having them all to hand - you'll regret it if you finish Shiver and can't start on Linger right away! Stiefvater's writing is sublime. This is a werewolf legend with a difference, so beautiful it will linger in your heart forever. Read my review of the Wolves of Mercy Falls trilogy.

4. Die for Me trilogy by Amy Plum

Just gorgeous. I've been waiting impatiently for the final book in this heart-rending trilogy for what seems like forever. Full of evocative Parisian scenes and sexy revenants, this is a zombie love story that will totally reconfigure your take on zombies! Die for Me review.

5. The Iron King by Julie Kagawa

I'm not always a huge fan of fairies/faeries/fey/whatever you want to call the winged critters, but Julie Kagawa's Iron Fey series totally sucked me in. Her characters are so strong, you can't help but fall for them. Grimalkin is quite possibly the best character ever. I've reviewed The Iron King here.

6. Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton

Lots of the books I recommend are trilogies or series, which is great in a way - more to read is always a good thing, but sometimes a stand-alone story is kind of refreshing. Technically Blood Magic is the start of a series, but I'm counting it as a stand-alone as it doesn't leave you hanging. No freaky monsters here, but a very believable and quite scary kind of magic. It's dark, thrilling and very interesting. Read my review of Blood Magic.

7. Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

Werewolves again, but awesome ones! Another trilogy that I advise you procure before you start reading, because once you start you really won't want to stop. A brilliant cast of characters and the ultimate love triangle. Check out my review of Nightshade.

8. Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn & David Levithan

This is a brilliant Christmas present to give someone who enjoys YA fiction. A book for book lovers, a charming love story and just an all-round beautiful Christmas tale. Review of Dash & Lily's Book of Dares.

9. The Sweetest Dark by Shana Abe

If you're looking for a brand new book, give this one a go - it's out on April 9th. A gorgeous story with a romantic first world war setting, and an intriguing paranormal element. Read my review of the rather wonderful Sweetest Dark here.

10. Sorry I don't have time right now!

I'll think of no. 10 later! Or even better, let me know what you think number 10 should be!

Review: Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton

Okay so it's been an absolute age since I posted anything, my bad. I've been either too ill to do anything, or too busy to post. But enough about me. I indulged myself by spending ages in Waterstones the other day, and even allowed myself to buy a book! I get most of my books online these days, and I'd forgotten what absolute bliss it is to lose myself in a bookshop and leave with a piece of literary magic, jittering with impatience as I can't wait to start reading.

I'm really into YA fiction at the moment - I've always had a bit of a penchant for it, but since reading Harry Potter and Twilight I decided to throw off the pretence and just give in to my urge to lose myself in a world of teen romance and action. The problem is, as a 34 year old woman, a story has to be pretty special to capture me. Not for me the million vapid Twilight wannabes out there. Alright, so vampires are sexy and werewolves are cool, but there needs to be more inentive to read than that. That's why I absolutely love the Morganville Vampires, but can't get on with the Vampire Diaries. I want characters with... well, with character! Romance is good, but action is essential, and it has to be infused with atmosphere and dark enough to make me feel a little wild.

So after reading the backs of a ton of books and discounting them, I felt something inside me leap when I came across Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton. Not a vampire in sight, no werewolves or were-anythings, and thankfully no faeries (you need to be really careful if you're going to go down the faery route). What it does have is buckets of blood, magic that could be real, and an atmosphere so thick and dark that I found myself completely drawn in.

So many teen books leave me following the story from the sidelines, interested but deteched, but Tessa Gratton drew me right into her world. With her poetic descriptions and lyrical dialogue, Gratton pulls the reader along with a thread of magic. I was right there in the forest, spilling my blood and shivering with the thrill of the magic.

Gratton is a friend of Maggie Stiefvater, and you can see the Shiver author's influence in the depth of detail and fearless realism intertwined with Grimm-esque fairytale elements. This is a book for book lovers, a story for everyone who fell in love with books at a young age and still hasn't got over it. I only hope that Gratton won't be as hit-and-miss as Stiefvater is with her writing.

Unusually these days, Blood Magic stands alone as a story. It is the start of a series, but it doesn't leave the tale half-finished with the reader tearing their hair out for the next year until the next installment is released. I usually like the chunky promise of a good trilogy - more to get my teeth into - but I found the completion of this story refreshing. The ending is left just open enough that you wonder if you'll be reading more about Silla and Nick in the future, but happy to leave them to their fictional lives if not. It's long enough that I wasn't left feeling unfulfilled or short-changed, and the rewarding feeling from finishing a book and finishing the story at the same time was a welcome change from the slight depression that always affects me when I have to leave a set of characters in the middle of their lives and wait for the follow-up.

So many teen books are all about the romance, which is fine if you're a dewey-eyed teenage girl dreaming about her first love. Silla and Nick's relationship is an integral part of the story, but it doesn't take over everything else - Gratton has found a great balance between Silla's relationships with her family and friends. She doesn't come across as a green young thing who's never been kissed, which can get a little boring, and you know that at seventeen she's old enough to know what she's doing when it comes to boys. In spite of this, we're not teased with the whole will they/won't they scenario - it's more like her relationship with Nick progresses at a healthy pace for a young couple, and just like any relationship in real life it has its ups and downs. Romance has to take a back seat to the dark and dangerous magical events going on, and our couple are aware of this and a little frustrated by it. As a reader, there was just enough intimacy to make my old romantic heart flutter, but it stays well behind the lines of saccharine-sweet,  lovey-dovey, make-you-puke lurve.

Moving away from romance and on to a word of warning - this book is not for the feint-hearted. It seems a prerequisite for good YA fiction to include some element of death and destruction, and Blood Magic is no different. Where it does differ though, is that Blood Magic is a step closer to reality than the usual supernatural yarns. It would be all too easy for a young, impressionable teen to take this tale to heart and get obsessed with it, believing they have the power in them to do blood magic themselves. I hope that anyone reading this book has the strength of character to know when they are reading fiction, and to let it stay fiction. I think the magic Gratton creates might just be strange and unbelievable enough to save her from an army of damaged fans. Strangely, it is this element of danger that makes the book so readable and captivating for the older reader.

If you want supernatural with a healthy dose of realism, romance that will make your breath catch but not take centre-stage, and a serving of gore to put you off ketchup for a few days, Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton is definitely for you.

Buy Blood Magic on Amazon