Today’s Theme as per The Broke and the Bookish is “Top Ten REWIND” where we can go back and do a topic we missed over the years or recently or a topic we really want to revisit. Therefore, since I have only been a Top Ten Tuesday participant since February 16, 2016, they have lots of great topics that I have missed, and so I have chosen to do “Ten Books I Just HAD to Buy . . . But Are Still Sitting on my Bookshelf”.

A fellow writing friend suggested I read this. She really feels it’s a great book for writers to read, so I purchased it with every intention of reading it “soon” (about a year ago), and still haven’t made the time to read it. I did pick it up and begin it one time, and I didn’t stop because there was anything wrong with it or because it didn’t hold my attention; it’s just that I was reading something else at the same time, and I just haven’t gotten back to it yet.

2.  

I heard Sue Thomas speak in April 2016 and was so impressed with, amazed and inspired by this woman that I had to have the book that tells me more about her life story, but it still waits.

3.  

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9 & 10. 

I gave this book two spots because it is the first book in a series that consists of 12 books plus a cookbook and I bought the whole entire series (used and from a discount online bookseller) because I had seen one episode of the TV series based on this book series. I visited with my mom when she was in rehabilitation in a nursing home two years ago after heart surgery, and she had the TV on. When the show signed off and I saw the credit about it being based on this book series, I decided I would buy the book series to read because we don’t have TV, and in my opinion, the books are always better than a TV series or movie anyway.

Today’s Top Ten Tuesday list as suggested by The Broke and the Bookish is probably the easiest one I’ve ever done!  The hard part will be stopping at just 10.  🙂      The list is the “Top Ten Books I’d Buy Right This Second if Someone Handed my a Fully Loaded Gift Card”.

Of course, I love to read fiction, but there are times I need to or choose to read nonfiction. Now, most of my nonfiction usually has something to do with writing, and because I have and use Scrivener, but not anywhere close to completely, I really want the last book on this list so that I can use Scrivener to its fullest. I could have made a list of top ten fiction books as well as a list of top ten nonfiction/writing books I would buy right this second with a really loaded gift card!  😀

How about you? Do you prefer fiction or nonfiction and why?

It’s time again for my TTT list.  The Broke and the Bookish suggested a list of the Top Ten Books I Enjoyed that have Under 2,000 Ratings on Goodreads.  I was quite surprised when I went to my Goodreads account in search of this information, and I hope that some of you will help increase the number of Ratings for these on Goodreads.

I thought this book was fantastic!  I know that Betsy is a fairly new author, and she’s an indie, so read this book and rate it on Goodreads.  This book is an incredible love story.  It touched my heart deeply and left a lasting impression in my mind.  It is absolutely unforgettable and worth the read.  I was shocked to see that this book has less than 300 Goodreads ratings.

2. 

This is a good read as well.  It begins with gladiators, includes a love story and the loss of a city.  It currently has less than 700 Goodreads ratings.

3. 

This was one of the ones that really surprised me because Tosca Lee is a well-known successful author.  She has co-authored some works with Ted Dekker, and yet this book currently has less than 1,700 ratings on Goodreads.  I liked this story quite a bit.  It was interesting to take a well-researched, yet also imaginative, journey into the story of Adam and Eve of the Bible.  Since the Bible couldn’t possibly tell us everything about the lives of all of the fascinating people it teaches about and their time periods, it’s very interesting to think about what more of their lives may have been like, and Tosca Lee does this well within the structure of what their time and lives may well have been like due to her in depth research.

4.     and    

These are two great books for those of you who like suspense filled with weird or otherwordly things.  If you’ve never read any of Mike Dellosso’s books, you don’t know what you’re missing.  If you like Dean Koontz’s works, you’ll like Mikes Dellosso’s stories as well. So, go ahead, read a Mike Dellosso novel and boost those Goodreads ratings.

5. 

This is the first book in the “Amazing Tales of Max and Liz” series by Jenny L. Cote.  Technically, these books are written for kids, but if you are an animal lover, you will love these stories not matter your age.  They are a great series for parents to read aloud to their kids or to enjoy as a family.  I read this one on my own first, then I read it to my 11 year old son, who absolutely loved it.  We just started reading the second book in the series and have already fallen in love with one of the new animal characters Jenny introduces in it.  This book currently has less than 300 Goodreads ratings.

6.  

My favorite books have always been romance and love stories, and in recent years if they have history included, all the better.  This is a wonderful story about Emma Chambers and a rash decision she makes so that her brother may be free from worrying about her.  At first she believes she may face an unhappy future because of her decision, but things eventually change for the better.  This is the first book in the “Beacons of Hope” series by Jody Hedlund.  This book currently has less than 1, 400 Goodread ratings.

7.  

Yes, I am a big Mike Dellosso fan, and so I would love to see more people reading and rating his books.  This one has been touted as “his best yet”, but  there is a sequel to this that just came out — Kill Devil which is getting great reviews on Amazon.  These two books are full of suspense and have been compared to the Bourne series by Robert Ludlum. Centralia currently has less than 200 Goodreads ratings.

8. ,     and  

This series by Eliot Pattison is a story about mysterious killings that take place in Colonial America.  I love history and have always been fascinated by the American Indians and disgusted with the European immigrants’ treatment of them, so I enjoyed these books.  Currently, Bone Rattler as less than 1,300 Goodrreads ratings, Eye of the Raven has less than 300, and Original Death has less than 200.

9.  , , ,  and 

Yes, this is an historical romance series.  It is set in the Old West.  The books are short, easy reads and are quite enjoyable, especially when you want a good read but don’t have a lot of time.  Also, Colleen Coble is a well-established author, who wrote this series sometime ago, and just recently re-released it.  A Heart’s Disguise has less than 270 Goodreads ratings, A Heart’s Obsession has less than 210, and the last three books of this series each have less than 200 Goodreads ratings.

10. 

Dauntless is the first book in the Valiant Hearts series by Dina L. Sleiman, and it recently was in the finals for the Young Adult category in the Carol Awards.  It’s a great book that includes history, action and adventure and romance!  Yet it has less than 1,000 Goodreads ratings.  Also, the third book of this series, Courageous, releases tomorrow!

Of course, I have rated all of these on Goodreads and you can also find my book reviews on them here on my blog under the Book Reviews category.

Today’s Top Ten Tuesday as suggested by The Broke and Bookish is to be Top Ten Favorite 2016 Releases So Far this Year.

Since I do not read only new releases, my list will not have a full ten books on it.

I have not read all nine of the novellas in this book yet, but the three or four that I did read were wonderful.  They had well-developed characters and great story lines.  I enjoyed the ones that I read and look forward to reading the rest of them soon.

2. 

I LOVED this story!  You can read my book review on it here.

3. 

This was also a very enjoyable read.  You can read my book review on it here.

4.  

I did buy this book, but I have not read it yet.  However, I am looking forward to reading it and I expect a great story because Terri Blackstock has never failed to deliver.

I hope you have found something of interest in my very short list.  Happy reading!