Today’s Topic: Books I Enjoyed That Are Outside of My Comfort Zone
Hosted by: That Artsy Reader Girl
Hmm…it’s not often that I wander outside of my preferred genres or reading comfort zones. So I tweaked this week’s prompt a bit. Instead I’m sharing books that I took a chance on.
Basically, these are books that I didn’t know much about. Books I chose because I fell in love with the cover or maybe the back blurb caught my interest. Generally, they are by authors I’d never read before or I had not read any reviews about them prior to picking them up.
My choices for this Top Ten are recent reads that I really enjoyed. No sense including those that were a bust, right?
Fairchild – The cover sold me. And then the less than stereotypical story and characters won me over. Plus, I particularly loved the humor and the family relationships in this book.
Glitter Baby – Susan Elizabeth Phillips has been around a long while and I’ve read a few of her books. I just never really connected with them. But I took a chance on this one and got more emotionally entangled with the characters than I ever have before.
The Secret of the India Orchard – This is another one where the cover intrigued me and then the back blurb really sold me. Apparently, I enjoy books that explore the historical relationship Britain had with India. Because I’ve unintentionally read several books lately with this theme.
I Have Never – I can’t remember how this ended up on my radar. But I certainly enjoyed this rom-com work place romance. I found the premise about a rule follower who decides to tackle her list of all the things she vowed never to do absolutely adorable.
In Spite of Lions – Ok, I’ll be honest. I actually read some reviews on this one and that is why I read it. Otherwise I probably would have passed it over. It’s a fascinating fictional account of missionary David Livingston and his family’s work in Africa. And it features one of the most memorable and historically real character’s I’ve ever “met” in a book.
Dear Adam – I think this one was a Kindle sale and since I’m a fan of pen-pal romances I took a chance. It featured a star-crossed, inter-racial couple and I love how it tackled stereotypes.
The Girls in the Picture – Given my fascination with classic films and movie history, this choice was a no-brainer. Not to mention it centers around real female Hollywood pioneers actress/director Mary Pickford and her friend writer Frances Marion. Definitely one of my favorite books this year.
Trouble the Water – Umm, this is another one which grabbed my attention due to the cover. Too, I found the synopsis interesting with its’ Charlestonian setting prior to the Civil War. And I also really loved the title. I’m always a sucker for unique historical time settings.
A Fallen Lady – This is well within my comfort zone being a historical romance. But I loved how it continually bucked the genre stereo-types. And I think it gives the most honest depiction of the after-effects of rape that I’ve ever come across in fiction which I really appreciated.
The Girl Who Chased the Moon – This is not as recent a read as others on the list, but I HAD to mention it because it introduced me to the magical writing of Sarah Allen Addison! The cover totally lured me in. I didn’t even read the synopsis.
What are some books that you took a chance on? What are your criteria for reading new books?
The Girl Who Chased the Moon sounds so interesting.
My TTT.
It’s a quirky, charming little story.
I picked up “Dear Adam” a while back because it sounds SO cute. Glad to know it’s a fun read. 🙂