Top Ten Tuesday - Top Ten Books I'd Recommend to X Person

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted at The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's topic is Top Ten Books I'd Recommend to X Person.  Who's the target of my recommendations?  I'm going to go with Boys (or YA Fans Who Want A Break From Female Protagonists).  There are so many books out there these days, but the YA and MG markets don't seem to reflect the fact that boys make up 50% of the population.  So here are some books I'd recommend that would appeal not just to the female segment of the market:

10. The Thief (The Queen's Thief #1) by Megan Whalen Turner - This is one of my all-time favourites.  Gen is a fun character and a great narrator... and just the sort of fellow you'd want to go on an adventure with.

9. Warm Bodies (Warm Bodies #1) by Isaac Marion - One of the most enjoyable zombie novels I've read, this one really lets you get inside a male character's head... even if that guy is technically dead.

8. Draw the Dark by Ilsa J. Bick - This is one of the better male-narrator YA novels I've read.  It's creepy and dark, but with an interesting storyline that's a bit different.

7. Tiger Moon by Antonia Michaelis - While the framing device in this story uses a girl, most of the action in this story revolves around a young man named Farhad and his adventures with a talking white tiger.

6. Peter and the Starcatchers (Peter and the Starcatchers #1) by Dave Barry & Ridley Pearson - It's Peter Pan, a bunch of little boys, and some manly sailors!  You can't have much more guy appeal than that...

5. Dogsbody by Diana Wynne Jones - Quite a few of Diana Wynne Jones's books are suitable for boys, but I remember this story being particularly un-girly.

4. Ship Breaker (Ship Breaker #1) by Paolo Bacigalupi - This is a somewhat dark, near-future adventure with a strong male protagonist.

3. The Magic Thief (Magic Thief #1) by Sarah Prineas - This was a fun first novel in a series that would appeal to younger fans of Harry Potter.

2. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Miss Peregrine #1) by Ransom Riggs - A male narrator, fascinating old photographs that tie into the story, and some really creepy goings-on make this a great choice for boys who may be reluctant readers.

1. The Giver (The Giver Quartet #1) by Lois Lowry - There doesn't seem to be a ton of recent YA or MG dystopian fiction that's suitable for boys as well as girls, so I had to include The Giver on this list.  It was one of the first dystopian books I can remember reading, and it whetted my appetite for more in that genre.

Top Ten Tuesday - Top Ten Sequels I Can't Wait to Get My Hands On

Top Ten Tuesday is hosted at The Broke and the Bookish.

This week's topic is Top Ten Sequels I Can't Wait to Get My Hands On.  Let me preface this by saying that I'm not really feeling much love for sequels at the moment.  I've been disappointed too many times lately, so I'm not exactly itching to read any second (or third or fourth) books in a series.  That said, here are some sequels that I wouldn't mind reading (and that I hope I would enjoy):

10. The Dream Thieves (The Raven Cycle #2) by Maggie Stiefvater - The Raven Boys wasn't the best book I've read all year, but it wasn't the worst.  And I do kind of want to find out what happens, and if a certain plotline will eventually be played out (or if it will continue to be ignored).

9. The New Hunger (Warm Bodies #0.5) by Isaac Marion - Okay, so this is technically a prequel, but I didn't know about it until after I'd already read Warm Bodies.  There is going to be an actual sequel to Warm Bodies, but not for a while; it doesn't even have a title yet!

8. Under the Light (Light #2) by Laura Whitcomb - This one came out back in May, and I've yet to read it.  The first book, A Certain Slant of Light, is one of my favourite books, and Laura Whitcomb seems to be a dependably good writer, so I really want to read this particular sequel!

7. The Fox Inheritance (Jenna Fox Chronicles #2) by Mary E. Pearson - I really enjoyed The Adoration of Jenna Fox, so I'd like to find out what happens in this next chapter, which sounds like it focuses on Jenna's friends.

6. World After (Penryn & the End of Days #2) by Susan Ee - It was a little cheesy and I'm almost embarrassed to admit that I enjoyed Angelfall... but I do want to find out what happens next!

5. Days of Blood & Starlight (Daughter of Smoke & Bone #2) by Laini Taylor - Do I really have to explain this one?  That was one intense ending in Daughter of Smoke & Bone; of course I have to see how it plays out!

4. Dreamquake (The Dreamhunter Duet #2) by Elizabeth Knox - The first book, Dreamhunter, had a really different feel to it, and I found that refreshing.  I'd like to find out what happens to the characters and the intriguing world that Knox built.

3. Frozen Heat (Nikki Heat #4) by Richard Castle - I'm a little bit behind on my Nikki Heat reading.  I've been hesitant about this one because the ghostwriting seemed to change (for the worse) in the third book, and I don't know if I have it in me to slog through all that mediocre writing.  Probably the main reason why I would consider it is because of how the third book, Heat Rises, left off...

2. Jessica Rules the Dark Side (Jessica #2) by Beth Fantaskey - I have this one sitting in my TBR pile, and I just haven't gotten around to reading it yet.  So many books, so little time...  I found Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side to be a delightful surprise; I hope Book #2 lives up to my expectations!

1. Hollow City (Miss Peregrine #2) by Ransom Riggs - I thought Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children was deliciously creepy and pretty unique, so I'm definitely interested in reading a sequel... especially if it turns out to be as good as the first book!