Top Ten Tuesday Seventy One

Top Ten Best Books of 2016

Top ten tuesday is a weekly feature/ meme hosted by The Broke and Bookish.  Despite these posts have been few and far between on my blog recently, I decided that this was one topic I could not miss out on as there was no way I was missing out on the opportunity to talk about some of my favourite books I read this year.  Although my reading year was definitely not a good one in the number of books I read, that doesn't mean it wasn't an amazing one for the quality of exceptional books I did manage to read over the last 12 months.  And so, enjoy!

I decided to pick this one up mid way through the year as my reading slump was just beginning to take hold, and I'm so glad I did as not only was it an amazing and addictive story, but made me fall in love with fantasy.  Everything about this book was just so detailed and beautifully written, with characters that were flawed and realistic and plot twists that I never saw coming. 

One of my main goals for this year was to read more classics, so when I had to read this for my english class it gave me the perfect opportunity to finally do so.  I instantly fell in love with the story and the gorgeously poetic writing and narration that along with the phenomenal atmosphere of the 1920's in America means I can safely say I will almost definitely be rereading this one for years to come.  

For a book I picked up super spontaneously, this is not one I ever expected to love as much as I did, let alone to be one of my favourites from the entire year.  This story just transported as soon as I started it, and was one of the most addictive books I read all year - I honestly could not put this down!

2016 was not only the year when I discovered my undying love for fantasy, but also the year I finally read and loved one of the most talked about books in YA.  I honestly can't believe how long it took me to finally jump onto the bandwagon with this one, but I am so glad I have now discovered the beauty and perfection that is this book, and can now join in with the hype that is constantly spread about this series.

Throne of Glass wasn't the only huge series I started this year, as I also finally decided to give The Raven Boys another go at the start of the year.  This time, I managed to push through and really get into the story, so much so that I ended up loving this book, plot and particularly the amazing characters that make this book as good as it is.

If there was one book that I was most excited about being released this year, it was this one, so I can't tell you how happy I am that this lived up to all my hopes and expectations and more.  The story, writing and characters were all just as, and possibly even more beautiful than in We All Looked Up, and I think its safe to say Zelda has become one of my most memorable characters of the year as well.  

Finally, one of the biggest releases of last year became one of my favourite reads of this year after I decided to join the hype surrounding this early this year.  Everything about this book was just so amazingly unique, from its completely different format to its bold and individualistic characters and plot, that it was almost impossible not to adore this exceptional novel. 

What were some of your favourite books of 2016?  Have you read any of these - what did you think?