Books I Loved But Never Reviewed: Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together.

This is such a perfect prompt for me because over the past few months I read many books that I absolutely loved but never wrote a full review on! I would write something short on GoodReads but never analysed them like I normally do. Most of them are because I stayed so long past reading them that I didn’t have the same passion when I finally did sit down and try to write something.

Li Lan, the daughter of a respectable Chinese family in colonial Malaysia, hopes for a favorable marriage, but her father has lost his fortune, and she has few suitors. Instead, the wealthy Lim family urges her to become a “ghost bride” for their son, who has recently died under mysterious circumstances. Rarely practiced, a traditional ghost marriage is used to placate a restless spirit. Such a union would guarantee Li Lan a home for the rest of her days, but at what price?

Night after night, Li Lan is drawn into the shadowy parallel world of the Chinese afterlife, where she must uncover the Lim family’s darkest secrets—and the truth about her own family.

Reminiscent of Lisa See’s Peony in Love and Amy Tan’s The Bonesetter’s Daughter, The Ghost Bride is a wondrous coming-of-age story and from a remarkable new voice in fiction. 

This book has a special place in my heart because I travelled to Malacca a few days before I got this AND this was buddy buy with my good friend E. when I was finishing up my higher studies in Malaysia. We even watched the Netflix show because of how much we hyped it up for each other! But yep, a review never happened… the excitement distracted me so much!

A Maiden…

Chosen from birth to usher in a new era, Poppy’s life has never been her own. The life of the Maiden is solitary. Never to be touched. Never to be looked upon. Never to be spoken to. Never to experience pleasure. Waiting for the day of her Ascension, she would rather be with the guards, fighting back the evil that took her family, than preparing to be found worthy by the gods. But the choice has never been hers.

A Duty…

The entire kingdom’s future rests on Poppy’s shoulders, something she’s not even quite sure she wants for herself. Because a Maiden has a heart. And a soul. And longing. And when Hawke, a golden-eyed guard honor bound to ensure her Ascension, enters her life, destiny and duty become tangled with desire and need. He incites her anger, makes her question everything she believes in, and tempts her with the forbidden.

A Kingdom…

Forsaken by the gods and feared by mortals, a fallen kingdom is rising once more, determined to take back what they believe is theirs through violence and vengeance. And as the shadow of those cursed draws closer, the line between what is forbidden and what is right becomes blurred. Poppy is not only on the verge of losing her heart and being found unworthy by the gods, but also her life when every blood-soaked thread that holds her world together begins to unravel.

Who doesn’t know about this book? FB&A was a surprise release by Armentrout that sort of took over Bookstagram when it came out! As soon as I saw this new JLA release, I jumped onto Amazon and ordered myself a copy! I loved this book! It was good in so many ways and I was enthralled from the start till the end! But once again, I was so excited about it once I read it that I just couldn’t get myself to write a coherent review!

I’m not your typical girl. I’ve been running away from the memories that haunt me for so long that depression has become my only comfort. I was content in the darkness…until Wes Michels offered to be my light.

I didn’t know that time wasn’t my ally — that every second that ticked past was one step closer to the end of something that was beginning to mean the end of myself. He tried to warn me. He promised me all he was able to offer–each moment as it came–but it would never be enough.

Sometimes when you think it’s the end, it’s only the beginning. Wes thought he could save me, but in giving me everything, he ruined me. Because after one kiss, one touch, I couldn’t–I wouldn’t ever be the same.

And from that moment on, his heartbeat became my own.

This story ruined me… in a good way! There were great plot twists, great characters, a great romance in it, and I still couldn’t review it! Initially, I was expecting a bad boy-good girl romance but it was none of that. I remember I even teared up once while reading if I remember right. And I really need to read the sequel Toxic because how can we not love Gabe?

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In the instant New York Times bestseller that started the Dark Elements series, one kiss is enough to kill…

Layla just wants to fit in at school and go on a date with Zayne, whom she’s crushed on since forever. Trouble is, Zayne treats Layla like a sister—and Layla is a half demon, half gargoyle with abilities no one else possesses. And even though Zayne is a Warden, part of the race of gargoyles tasked with keeping humanity safe, Layla’s kiss will kill anything with a soul—including him.

Then she meets Roth—a demon who claims to know her secrets. Though Layla knows she should stay away, it’s tough when that whole no-kissing thing isn’t an issue. Trusting Roth could ruin her chances with Zayne, but as Layla discovers she’s the reason for a violent demon uprising, kissing the enemy suddenly pales in comparison to the looming end of the world.

Oh. My. God! I regret not having reviewed this series when I gobbled up all three books in one go! I had so much to say and my brain just turned to mush! I quickly moved on the to spin-off Harbinger series and forgot all about reviews. That’s how excited I was during this read. Totally and absolutely consumed by it! 100% recommend it to everyone out there!

What about you? Any books you loved but never reviewed? Let’s chat in the comments below!