Top Ten Tuesday

Posted April 18, 2017 by Nicky in General / 10 Comments

This week’s theme is ten things that immediately make me want to read a book. I’m pretty eclectic, so there’s a lot…

Cover of Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone Cover of Assassin's Apprentice by Robin Hobb Cover of Lifelode by Jo Walton

  1. A really pretty cover. I was hooked by the idea of Three Parts Dead by Max Gladstone just from that cover.
  2. A unique-sounding magic system. Or combinations of magic systems that feel different, like Robin Hobb’s the Wit and the Skill.
  3. Genetics. Mostly if we’re talking non-fiction, but a good fiction plot around the topic works too.
  4. Non-traditional heroes. Like Kamala Khan as Ms Marvel, or the Jewish gay Billy Kaplan as Wiccan (originally Asgardian). Same goes outside comics, but they were the examples that sprang to mind.
  5. Non-traditional family structures. Like in Jo Walton’s Lifelode, for example.
  6. Not entirely humanoid aliens. Like the people on Winter in Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness, with their temporary genders and non-constant breeding cycles. I love it when aliens are genuinely alien in some way, even if it’s only a small twist.
  7. Found family. I’m thinking of Cherie Priest’s Bloodshot and Hellbent, but also the Phryne Fisher books and… goodness knows how many others. It just gets me, people making a family out of whatever they have, whoever they can find.
  8. Dead gods. Something about that concept just… intrigues. I’m reading Ben Peek’s The Godless at the moment, for example.
  9. Dragons. Because, uh, dragons!
  10. Mixing genres. A spec-fic spy thriller? Gimme! Noir robot detective? Yes please!

Cover of Dead Man's Chest by Kerry Greenwood Cover of The Godless by Ben Peek Cover of Bloodshot by Cherie Priest

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10 responses to “Top Ten Tuesday

  1. A lot of Indie books I read have drab covers so when I see some really nice ones I get excited! Bloodshot is a good example of a cover that really caught my eye browsing for books in Waterstones a few years back! Nice list!

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