You know those books, the ones that make you feel something and really think about life after your done reading them? Don't you love those? What about those ones that make you laugh so hard you almost pee your pants? Don't you love those, too? Or how about those books that make you cry your eyes out and make you use half a box of tissues while reading it? Those are the best, right? I have a ton of "favorite books", but there are a few that really stand out to me. The ones that I'm constantly thinking about, or comparing other books to. The ones the I've reread countless times. I want to share those few with all of you, so these next three Fridays are going to be some of my favorite books from young adult, new adult, and adult contemporary romance. I'm not really going to go into too much detail about why I love each book so much. Because as I've said above they're the ones that have made me laugh, cry, and want to do it all over again, so without any more introduction, here are my favorite YA books of all time!
(NOTE 1: This is subject to change, as authors are constantly writing amazing new books and I'm constantly reading new and amazing books, so I'll probably be able to update this eventually ;) ).
(NOTE 2: These are my favorite YA standalones, if you would like to know what my favorite series are, then please feel free to comment below!)
(NOTE 3: You can click on the book cover if you would like to visit it's corresponding Amazon page!)
- The Sea of Tranquility by Katja Millay. This book is the only one that this author has written and all I've got to say is that it's PHENOMENAL and Ms. Millay needs to write more ASAP! I would also say that this may even be considered New Adult, but I feel like mature teens could read this, as there are some sex scenes.
I live in a world without magic or miracles. A place where there are no clairvoyants or shapeshifters, no angels or superhuman boys to save you. A place where people die and music disintegrates and things suck. I am pressed so hard against the earth by the weight of reality that some days I wonder how I am still able to lift my feet to walk.
Former piano prodigy Nastya Kashnikov wants two things: to get through high school without anyone learning about her past and to make the boy who took everything from her—her identity, her spirit, her will to live—pay.
Josh Bennett’s story is no secret: every person he loves has been taken from his life until, at seventeen years old, there is no one left. Now all he wants is be left alone and people allow it because when your name is synonymous with death, everyone tends to give you your space.
Everyone except Nastya, the mysterious new girl at school who starts showing up and won’t go away until she’s insinuated herself into every aspect of his life. But the more he gets to know her, the more of an enigma she becomes. As their relationship intensifies and the unanswered questions begin to pile up, he starts to wonder if he will ever learn the secrets she’s been hiding—or if he even wants to.
The Sea of Tranquility is a rich, intense, and brilliantly imagined story about a lonely boy, an emotionally fragile girl, and the miracle of second chances.
- The Secret Year by Jennifer R. Hubbard. This is an older YA book, that I read my senior year of high school and I fell completely in love. It's a short book, not even 250 pages I think and it's just such an amazing story and I would highly recommend it!
Take Romeo and Juliet. Add The Outsiders. Mix thoroughly. Colt and Julia were secretly together for an entire year, and no one,not even Julia's boyfriend, knew. They had nothing in common, with Julia in her country club world on Black Mountain and Colt from down on the flats, but it never mattered. Until Julia dies in a car accident, and Colt learns the price of secrecy. He can't mourn Julia openly, and he's tormented that he might have played a part in her death. When Julia's journal ends up in his hands, Colt relives their year together at the same time that he's desperately trying to forget her. But how do you get over someone who was never yours in the first
place?
- Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell. I'm sure you've heard of this book a thousand times, but it's such a great read. I was a little skeptical at first, but once I got into it I fell head first in love with the writing and the characters! It's a definite 5+ stars read!
Two misfits.
One extraordinary love.
Eleanor... Red hair, wrong clothes. Standing behind him until he turns his head. Lying beside him until he wakes up. Making everyone else seem drabber and flatter and never good enough...Eleanor.
Park... He knows she'll love a song before he plays it for her. He laughs at her jokes before she ever gets to the punch line. There's a place on his chest, just below his throat, that makes her want to keep promises...Park.
Set over the course of one school year, this is the story of two star-crossed sixteen-year-olds—smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try.
- Whatever Life Throws At You by Julie Cross. This is a great bridge between YA and NA. It's funny and a little steamy and heartwarming and I really enjoyed myself when I was reading and rereading it!
Life loves a good curveball…
Seventeen-year-old Annie Lucas's life is completely upended the moment her dad returns to the major leagues as the new pitching coach for the Kansas City Royals. Now she's living in Missouri (too cold), attending an all-girls school (no boys), and navigating the strange world of professional sports. But Annie has dreams of her own—most of which involve placing first at every track meet…and one starring the Royals' super-hot rookie pitcher.
But nineteen-year-old Jason Brody is completely, utterly, and totally off-limits. Besides, her dad would kill them both several times over. Not to mention Brody has something of a past, and his fan club is filled with C-cupped models, not smart-mouthed high school “brats” who can run the pants off every player on the team. Annie has enough on her plate without taking their friendship to the next level. The last thing she should be doing is falling in love.
But baseball isn't just a game. It's life. And sometimes, it can break your heart…
So, there you have it! Four of my favorite YA books of all time! I really enjoyed this and as I mentioned earlier, if you would like to see a list of my favorite series of all time, then comment below!
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So, if you have been reading my blog for a little while, then you know how obsessed I am with Jay McLean's books. I love them so much and have reread her More Series countless times, way more than any other book series or standalone. I just love her writing and the way she can make you fall in absolute and irrevocable love with her characters. So, that being said, when she told all of the members of her MoreMunity on Facebook that she had decided to not publish her novel, Combative, we were crushed. Devastated. Just plain sad. But through it all we came to understand her reason. She wasn't happy with the way it had turned out. And why would you want to publish something, share something with tons of people, if you weren't 100% sure it was the best it could be? The answer, you don't. Jay then began to release a chapter or two at a time on the website Wattpad. Then, boom! I get a notification on facebook from the MoreMunity group saying that Jay McLean had posted something. Me, being curious I click on it. Then my whole world lights up with fireworks because she had just shred the link to be able to buy the entire first book in the Combative Series on Amazon. I bought it no questions asked and immediately stopped reading the book I had been reading at the time to begin devouring this one. And all I've got to say its, I'm not quite sure what she thought was so wrong with this book, because it was freaking fantastic. 
It's a little different than her other books. There's more mystery in Combative than there was in the More Series, Where the Road Takes Me, and Boy Toy Chronicles Vol. 1. It had situations, such as organized fighting (like Fight Club style) in it. This is something that Jay hasn't explored before and I feel she did an amazing job at. I only had one problem with this book, but it wasn't enough of an issue for me to dock any stars off. My problem was that I felt like Madison and Ky's relationship started really quick. It was kind of insta-lovey and I would have liked to see it a bit more strung out. However, as I thought about it more while reading, it seemed like their relationship wouldn't have been able to start out any other way. As you got to know the characters more you realized that they were the type of people that couldn't just skirt around a relationship. They're the all or nothing kind of people. This is the first book in a series and it ends on a huge cliffhanger. I'm super excited to see what book two will bring and I definitely need answers to my many, many questions. 
