Chachic's Book Nook

I Need Some Wow Books – Part II

26 Comments

Lately, I’ve been feeling the need to read more books that will leave me feeling like this:

Purpose

Image from Anything about nothing

What are some of the books that have made you feel like that? Books that have left you with a book hangover? I asked the same question on Twitter the other day and got a couple of suggestions but I wanted to do it on the blog as well so it would be easier for me to keep track of recommendations. If you’re wondering about the title of the post, I’m just recycling something that I found in an old post. I was also asking for recs back then. I’m always curious about other readers’ favorite books, especially when I feel like we have the same taste in books. What are some of the titles that you’ve recently loved? Is there a particular novel that you’ve been dying to recommend? Based on what you’ve seen me read and review, do you have a book that you think will work really well for me? I’m open to suggestions! I didn’t even get to read this weekend because I was busy meeting up with friends, catching up on chores and I also couldn’t decide what to read next.

Author: Chachic

Welcome to Chachic's Book Nook! I'm a Filipino book blogger currently based in Singapore. My blog features all sorts of books that I read from various genres (fantasy, contemporary romance, young adult fiction). Click on About Me to learn more and check out my Favorite Books page for a list of books that I love. Thanks for dropping by! Chachic /ˈtʃɑːtʃɪk/ is pronounced with hard “ch” sounds. The first syllable is pronounced like the dance cha-cha while the second syllable is like chick (baby chicken).

26 thoughts on “I Need Some Wow Books – Part II

  1. I think you’re the type who will read anything. I like the Tom Clancy type.

  2. I have read some books I loved this year, Generation V and Iron Night by M.L. Brennan and A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan (two different authors, despite the names!). After those, my favorite is Black Dog by Rachel Neumeier, but I know you’re already read that. :) I also just read Saga, Volume 3 and that was quite good.

    None of those left me with a book hangover, though. The last book I read that did was Warchild by Karin Lowachee, and The Silvered by Tanya Huff didn’t quite achieve it but was very close.

    • So I already thanked you on Twitter for giving me the heads up about Saga Volume 3 but thanks again for mentioning that. :) I still need to find a copy! Generation V is already on my wishlist but I have to check out A Natural History of Dragons. I believe I have Warchild in my wishlist because you enjoyed it so much. If that was the last book that gave you a book hangover, then I should really look it up.

      • Let me know what you think of Saga Volume 3! I wasn’t sure if I was going to like it as much as the first two after starting it, but I ended up liking it just as much.

      • I was planning to read it today but ended up doing so many other things that I didn’t have time to read!

  3. Honestly, this year, the book series that has given me the STRONGEST book hangover is the Fire and Thorns series by Rae Carson. It’s a solidly written fantasy series, with great characters, a swoony romance and an excellent story. I think you’d like the series too!

    • I read The Girl of Fire and Thorns because we discussed it for YAckers but unfortunately, I did enjoy it as much as I was expecting. I just wasn’t as invested in the characters and the story as I wanted to be. I can barely remember what happened in the book. It makes me sad that I wasn’t into it because other blogging buddies have loevd it. And it was also blurbed by MWT.

  4. I agree with Fire and Thorns, even though I’ve only read the first book.

    I think you’ve read the Talking to Dragons series by Patricia Wrede, but have you ever read Sorcery and Cecilia? Or Mairelon the Magician? You’ve read the Demon’s Lexicon by Brennen, right?

    And, hey, thanks, Kristen!

    • See my reply above regarding Fire and Thorns. Yep, I’ve read Wrede’s Talking to Dragons series and I think that’s a good series for kids. I have read Sorcery and Cecelia, I think I enjoyed it but didn’t love it? Like with The Girl of Fire and Thorns, I can’t remember much about the story. Yes, I’ve read the first two Demon’s Lexicon books but not the last one. I liked Unspoken a lot more! Haven’t read the sequel though, I was thinking of waiting for the third book so I can read them together.

  5. Have you read Eleanor & Park yet, Chachic? I finished it a couple of days ago and it gave me the most amazing book hangover. Like wow.

  6. Oh definitely Eleanor & Park. Really really really. And then Fangirl.

  7. Oh, I’ve got one! Have you read the contemporary THE SKY IS EVERYWHERE? *There* is a wow book.

  8. Someone, I think it was maybe Sherwood Smith, recommended Intisar Khanani in a post somewhere. She has one novella out and one full length novel (Thorn – a “Goose Girl” retelling). I don’t know if they are available in paper – she may be a self-published ebook type. So impressive when done well, right? I don’t know that it necessarily left me hungover – but it gave me happy good-new-author-hope-she-writes-fast squees. The one that stuck with me this year was Andrew Smith’s “Winger.” I just bought “Grasshoper Jungle” but am waiting for the right moment to read it.

    • Intisar Khanani? This is the first time I’ve heard of her! The name sounds so intriguing. Definitely curious about Thorn now because the only other Goose Girl retelling that I’ve read (and loved) was The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale. Yes, it really is impressive when self-published novels or novellas are done well. I’ve read a couple that I really enjoyed. Thanks for the recs! :D I’ll look up Winger and Grasshopper Jungle too.

  9. Chachic’s, I found your blog a few months ago after following a link about Megan Whalen Turner (who is one of my favorite authors) and have been lurking since then.

    A number of years ago I had several Wow books within a couple of months. One of those you already know, The Thief. The other two that really impressed me were Becoming Rosemary by Frances M Wood and The China Garden by Liz Berry. I’ve read other. Ooks by these two authors but none gave me the wow feeling like these two did.

    If you can find them I think you will like them too.

    • Janet, thank you for delurking! Always nice to connect with a fellow MWT fan. :) Isn’t it awesome when you find a fellow reader who loves the same books that you do?

      Becoming Rosemary seems like it’s out of print so it may be difficult to find a copy of it. I’ve had The China Garden on my wishlist for a while now, maybe I should try and get a copy of it soon.

      • Chachic I checked on Alibris and Abebooks and found used copies of both titles. I don’t know if they ship to Singapore or not but it’s worth a try if you can’t find them anywhere else.

        Thanks for welcoming me; I’ve been looking for new to me authors too and you’ve given me several to check out. :)

        (Also, an old favorite Sci-Fi author of mine is Zenna Henderson who wrote The People stories. They were written between the 40’s and 60’s but I loved the idea of people with special powers who were stranded here on Earth after their planet was destroyed.)

      • They probably ship to Singapore but the shipping fee would be more expensive than the book. :P I’ll keep that in mind though when I feel like buying the book.

        Let me know what you think if you ever get to try any of my recommendations. :D

        Hmm this is the first time I’ve heard of Zenna Henderson, I would have to look her up.

  10. Pingback: Want Books: Thorn | Chachic's Book Nook

  11. I was trying to remember an author’s name I think you would like so went back through my book journal and ended up with a couple more suggestions if you are interested.

    The author I was looking for is Donna Jo Napoli. She has written a lot of books but the ones I read were Zel and Beast. Both are retellings of fairy tales. Zel is from Rapunzel and Beast is from Beauty and the Beast.

    Another author I came across is Sherryl Jordan. The two I liked from her are Winter of Fire and A Time of Darkness.

    An oldie but still goodie is The Perilous Gard by Elizabeth Pope and one of my current favorites is Troubled Waters by Sharon Shinn. I like it better than the sequel Royal Airs although RA is perfectly readable. I would have preferred TW to be a standalone but that’s just my opinion.

    I’ll stop here so you won’t get annoyed…!

    • I’ve read Donna Jo Napoli’s books! I remember reading both Zel and Beast because I love fairy tale retellings but sadly, I didn’t love them as much as I was expecting. She also has a Cinderella retelling, right? I think it’s called Bound.

      I’ve also read The Perilous Gard, that’s a book that keeps being recommended by fellow bloggers. I enjoyed reading it but it’s not exactly a favorite. Oooh I haven’t read Troubled Waters yet. I’ve read Sharon Shinn’s Samaria and Twelve Houses series though.

      Oh no need to worry, I’m not annoyed at all. :D Book discussions are always fun.

  12. I agree with you; I liked the Donna Jo Napoli books, but I didn’t love them. I did (and still do ) love Sharon Shinn’s Trouble Waters and since I mentioned them, am considering re-reading the Zenna Henderson books again. I like to let some time pass before re-reading old favorites so they don’t become stale. I hope you can find copies of them so you can decide for yourself.

Comments are like chocolate. :) Maraming salamat / thank you! I try my best to reply to all the comments on my blog.

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