I'm really excited that I'm starting T5W with this topic because I read a lot of great books! I'm mentioning the books I read during the year (whether it's from 2015 or not) and not the books that I've read that only came out in 2015.
It has been such a great year because it was when I finally started reading more and buying more books. I used to read quite a few when I was little but then I stopped completely and I don't really remember why (probably because I discovered the world of tv shows and got obsessed?). I began to read again during high school because it really helped me get through it. However, 2014 and (especially) 2015 were the years that I finally found my love for reading and now I can't live without it. It makes me happy that I finally found something I'm really passionate about and hopefully this will stay with me forever. I usually read all of my books in English so it helps a lot with the vocabulary (English is not my first language).
Like I already mentioned, I bought and read a lot of great books this year and it's really hard for me to write a top 5. With that being said, I'm going to count series as 1 book (is that cheating? oops):
1.
Throne of Glass Series by Sarah J. Maas
(read in 2015: Throne of Glass, Crown of Midnight and Heir of Fire)
This was my favourite read of 2015, hands down. There are so many reasons why this is my favourite series of all times! It introduced me to fantasy and I couldn't be more grateful and happy that it did. I'm so glad I decided to start reading fantasy by reading Throne of Glass first.
I was always very intimidated by fantasy. I tried to avoid it and read mainly contemporaries but I always felt the need to try fantasy because everyone loved it. I told myself that if others could read it then so could I! I bought my first fantasy book (which was Shadow and Bone - we'll get to that later) but the first actual fantasy book I read was Throne of Glass. THANK YOU SARAH J. MAAS FOR WRITING SUCH A BEAUTIFUL BOOK THAT MADE ME FALL IN LOVE WITH FANTASY. I wish I could meet her and tell her that in person (because let's face it: she's the queen of everything).
In my opinion, this is one of the best series in case you want to start reading fantasy! The first book is more soft and it has a bit of everything - action, adventure, mystery, romance and much more. The next books become more complex but you're already acquainted with the characters and the story so it gets much easier to read then. As you're reading, you get less and less intimidated by fantasy and your love for it will grow - at least that's what happened to me - and you won't want anything else.
2. Saint Anything by Sarah Dessen
This was my first Sarah Dessen book and I loved it so much. It really
hit home for me! I completely understood the main character's mind and
how she felt. I loved the friendships and how the romance was also in
this book (and how everything happened. It was one of the best starts of a
relationship in a book) but it wasn't more important than the
friendships nor her personal problems. It was such a beautiful story and
a very fast but meaningful read. This book will stay with me forever,
especially because I could see myself as the main character. Her
feelings were my feelings.
3. Every Last Word by Tamara Ireland Stone
Again, I relate to this book so much because of what the main character goes through. The anxiety and OCD are so well portrayed in
this book that at times I felt like the author was talking about my own
experiences. I decided to read this because everyone was talking about it as soon as it came out and I'm so so glad I decided to listen to everyone and pick up this book. I will forever treasure it.
4. Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo
Like I mentioned earlier, Shadow and Bone was my first fantasy book I bought (well, not the first fantasy book I bought
ever, but the first I bought this year, as I got into reading again)
. I planned on reading it as soon as it arrived from the bookdepository, but university got in the way. I only read it when I bought Six of Crows and decided that I wanted to read The Grisha Trilogy first.
Let me just tell you that I read this book in 2 days because of how awesome it was!!! I don't know why it took me so long to pick up this book because it's so amazingly epic! So much happened and you only notice that once you're already at the end of the book. It was fantastic! So fast paced and so different from everything I had ever read. It's a dark fantasy inspired by 1800's Russia - how awesome is that? I was always fascinated by Russia and it's culture (and politics - my International Relations nerdiness is showing, sorry not sorry). As I was reading this book, I felt like I was the main character. I can't explain it without spoiling you so I'm just going to say that the book pulls you in until you're obsessed with it and in need to read all the books. And you should.
5. The Bronze Horseman by Paullina Simons
I feel like I loved this book A LOT when I finished reading it, but I don't fell like I love it as much now as did back then. Maybe it was because I was so invested in this story when I was reading it and now that excitement and love have faded. It has been a while since I read it (January) so that's probably the reason why. Still, I think it's so, so beautifully written. The history itself is epic and there are a lot of romantic, tragic and heavy scenes.
This is an historical fiction set in Leningrad. It's about a girl named Tatiana and a boy named Alexander. She is a naive and innocent teenage girl and he is a 22 year old soldier from the Red Army. The fall in love but it's complicated (of course). It's also 1941 - the year Nazi Germany breaks the non-aggression pact and invades USSR
. This story focuses on the romance between Tatiana and Alexander and the Siege of Leningrad.
What are your favourite books of 2015? Let me know in the comments!
I wish you all a happy New Year and I hope 2016 is everything you expect it to be! Thank you all for reading my posts and following me on my social media - it means a lot! I will hopefully upload more in 2016 (and read even more, hehe).
THANK YOU!
