Hosted by The Broke and the Bookish, Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly feature that helps book lovers like myself connect with other bloggers as we list the books we love. This week’s topic:

Top Ten Books I Recommend The Most!

This is a great topic for me, as I spend most of my day recommending books both online and at the bookstore (I usually end up catering my suggestions to each person’s needs, often giving them a book I think they’ll like the most, not necessarily the one that I liked most). The books I’ve chosen for the list are my personal favorites spanning multiple genres and starting points for every conversation beginning with “So, what’s a good book?” to which I reply “Have you read this yet?”

#1 Fablehaven: Let’s face it, everybody who was going to read Harry Potter has already done so at this point, so recommending that is redundant. I’ve discovered that not everybody has read the Fablehaven series, however. I always start with this one in the children’s department because it’s my favorite. If the person has read it and liked it, I know we’re going to get along.

#2 Partials: This is a fun one to recommend because it hasn’t had a chance to catch on quite like Divergent or Matched yet. As this was my favorite book published last year, I can always sell it with confidence (but only to people who respond “yes” to “did you like the hunger games?). Read full review

#3 Survival: This author is by far my favorite science fiction writer. Her books are witty and creative, and I always come away feeling like I want to reread them right away. The only reason I picked them up initially is because my favorite artist painted the covers (Luis Royo). I figured any writer who was good enough to convince the publisher to splurge for Royo cover art was worth my time!

#4 Graceling: My favorite teen love story, I just adore this book. It’s a sweet read and not too much for people new to the fantasy genre to handle. If the customer doesn’t like dystopian or paranormal novels (thereby limiting my recommending power in half these days), I hand them this book. Read full review

#5 Moon Called: One of the best urban fantasies out there, Briggs is not quite my favorite, but she’s close. She does happen to be the author that I think a lot of people will like, which is why she passed up Keri Arthur and Kim Harrison in my recommending repertoire. She has great characters, great adventure/paranormal encounters, and an excellent love story without being too gushy.

#6 Magician Apprentice: I’ve mentioned before that when I take someone to the fantasy section, I always ask the question: “have you read Feist?” He’s been my go-to for so many years, but I’m starting to find that most people have already read him. For those who haven’t I find it a hard sell. Not because of story, or anything related to the content. Nope, the reason I have a hard time with this one now is the colossally boring cover. The one featured here is actually the first edition cover, and I dont’ know about you, but it made ME want to pick it up. Covers are a lot more important than people think when selecting a book, so I sincerely hope the next edition is more compelling. Read full review

#7 Joust: One of my favorite dragon books, and one that I throw in with any recommendation spiel to see if it sticks. My all-time favorite dragon book is Dragon Weather by Lawrence Watt-Evans, but I recommend these first because they are my second favorites and more accessible to the average reader. They’re a lot like Eragon but I enjoyed them so much more.

#8 Succubus Blues: I geek out whenever I find a customer open to the more, say, risky side of urban fantasy. These are by no means clean books, so I have to be careful to preface that when talking to customers. They are, however, some of the best books I’ve read, and part of the reason why Mead is my favorite author. The story, the humor, the romance –  they have everything I expect out of a good book.

#9 The Name of the Wind: This book is another one I read last year that I’m raving about. It has everything I hope to find in a book adventure, humor, characters development, education (I love it when characters learn things) and a love story. To top it all off, it’s written beautifully. I will be rereading this for years to come! Read full review

#10 Assassin’s Apprentice: Hobb is my go-to author for when I just need a guaranteed good read. I can devour 50 pages in a sitting, then not pick it up again for weeks but can still get right back into the story as if no time elapsed. The’s aren’t the quickest of reads, but they are powerful. The end of Fool’s Fate (which is book 9, chronologically) is partially responsible for inspiring this blog. It was amazing. Read full review