Top Ten Tuesday - Top Ten Books I Recommend the Most

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish

The topic this week is - 

 Top Ten Books I Recommend The Most

1. Into the Darkest Corner by Elizabeth Haynes

Quite simply a marvellous, chilling psychological thriller debut which I have recommended countless times to many readers, none of whom, as far as I know, have been at all disappointed.

2. The Secret History by Donna Tartt

One of the few novels I've read more than once, a clever and gripping tale of murder and obsession.

3. The Outcast by Sadie Jones

One of the best debut novels I've ever read, a personal favourite, I read it in a weekend and couldn't stop thinking about it, beautifully written, very moving and will continue to happily recommend it to others. Brilliant.

4. Case Histories by Kate Atkinson

I've bought this one as a gift for several friends to get them started on this author and on the Jackson Brodie series, and also because it is set in Cambridge which appeals. 

5. Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates

I was so impressed by the way searing emotions and damaged relationships are captured in this novel. A wonderful writer. The film version is good in and of itself, but it misses so much of what the book offers, so please do read it.

6. Winter in Madrid by C. J. Sansom

I thought this was a really good read, I was intrigued by the Spanish Civil War aspects and gripped by the mystery, and I find myself recommending it fairly regularly. 

7. The Observations by Jane Harris

Another book that I adored when I read it and would recommend as a really entertaining and well written historical novel with a very engaging spirited heroine for a lead character.

8. The Eyre Affair by Jasper Fforde

I read the Thursday Next series from the early days when they first came out and loved the clever inclusion of so many literary references and witty ideas that Fforde comes up with. A good read for well read book lovers. I'd recommend the series in general but this is the first one so a good place to start!

9. Untying the Knot by Linda Gillard

This was one of my first reads on my Kindle, and it's an atmospheric and very moving story of a couple who seemingly can't survive with each other, but can't be apart either, with the lead male character suffering from PTSD. I would, and indeed do, recommend all the novels by this author that I've read so far, but if I had to pick one just now, it would be this one. 

10. The Mayor of Casterbridge by Thomas Hardy

Some readers love his books, others don't get on with them at all. I'm firmly in the first camp, and this is my favourite of his novels. A brilliant character study of a man and his treatment of those closest to him. Yes it's bleak and dark and cruel, and I love it.

~~~~~

A word on the covers - I've used the image of the covers of the editions I own and read as far as possible here. Some books have had so any versions of the covers, but sometimes I find that part of the memory of the novel for me is attached to the particular cover too, if that makes sense.

Which book or books or authors do you find yourself recommending to someone else to read most often?

Life After Life - Kate Atkinson

‘Don’t you wonder sometimes,’ Ursula said. ‘If just one small thing had been changed, in the past, I mean….surely things would be different.’

I admit I am a big fan of Kate Atkinson’s writing, having read most of her previous novels, with a particular fondness for the Jackson Brodie stories, my favourite probably being ‘When Will There Be Good News?’. I was therefore so excited to hear about a new novel coming from her and filled with great anticipation upon starting to read.

Life After Life didn’t disappoint me; I think this is a very special book in many ways. It is imbued with the sparkling prose and the dark humour that is so often evident in Kate Atkinson’s works. But this book features something rather clever and wonderful in terms of the structure and storyline.

The main character, Ursula Todd is born in 1910, during a heavy snowstorm, but sadly dies immediately, there’s no time for the doctor to reach her. Then we read that Ursula Todd is born in 1910 during a heavy snowstorm, and lives. She has another chance, another start at life, and this pattern, this unique quality, stays with her as she lives, and lives again, and changes the direction of her life, having chance after chance to get it just right. What a premise!

We accompany Ursula as she lives through many of the major events of the twentieth century, with her personal highs and lows recounted, then changed, as she has another chance at her life, and then another. She takes a different route, and a different course is set. Kate Atkinson writes of the personal experiences of one woman in a way that makes for compelling reading. I loved Ursula’s family and thought they were also all vividly brought to life, in particular her mother Sylvie. However clever the structure, I never felt distanced from Ursula as a character, as a woman. She endures some of the hardest times, the saddest events, and the reader grows close to her and hopes for better next time.

I wasn’t sure quite what to expect in terms of how this novel would work, but I gave myself time to get into the novel, through the early, often very short episodes as Ursula begins to find her way. I was soon drawn into Ursula’s life, her family, the events, and I was keen to return to them every time I picked the book up, little knowing what would await me.

When Ursula lives again, sometimes very little has changed, sometimes a lot is different. There are some thrilling moments, dramatic and tragic; then the reader realises that there is another chance at the story and can breathe again – it’s quite an experience reading this book. Usually after another go, things are better, but Ursula’s life demonstrates that there are always hard choices, difficult relationships; there is always some sadness, even when she has had more than one chance to live through a particular time. It’s a powerful and emotional experience to read this story.

This is by turns a surprising, unnerving, moving and rewarding read and it sets itself apart with a clever structure to the narrative and a distinctive main character who we live through different experiences with, over and over again, as we read. It’s a fascinating and fantastic concept that really made me think as I read. What does this mean for fate? What if we could all change things, or go back and have a second chance? 

Published by Doubleday on 14th March 2013

Thanks very much to the publisher for kindly sending a copy of this novel to read and review.