Top 5 books that lived up to the hype!

Hype is a touchy subject with me. It’s helped me find some really amazing books that I never would have read otherwise, but, at the same time, it sometimes creates unrealistic expectations. Publishers and social media have gotten SO GOOD at spreading the word about new releases and it sometimes feels like playing roulette – is the book really going to be as good as they say it’s going to be? There is that rare unicorn though. The book that is hyped up so much that you think there isn’t a snowballs chance in hell the book can live up to it, yet it does!! Here are 5 books that I thought would be good but couldn’t possibly live up to the hype:

Top 5 Tuesday is a weekly meme where I explore different topics. If you are interested in participating I would love to have you! Here is a list of my Upcoming topics in March – please remember to ping back a specific post of mine so I get a notification and I will add you to the participants list!

THE HATE YOU GIVE by Angie Thomas

If there was ever a hyped book – it’s this one. It’s easy for people within the book community to be exposed to hype. But when literally everyone is hearing about a book, even people who don’t read, you know the hype was real. I will admit that I almost didn’t read this book because of how much exposure it was getting. It was so big that I thought there was no way it could really be that good. Then, once day, on a whim, I picked it up. It was one of the best written and most impacting books that I’ve ever read! Yes it was good for the reasons that it was being talked about (the black lives matter movement) but it was just such a BIG story! All of the small elements that brought it together. Finding your identity, strength to speak up for justice, fear, family support and love…. and SO much more! This book went above and beyond the hype which doesn’t seem possible!

THRONE OF GLASS by Sarah J Maas

I feel like I was last to the Sarah J Maas party. Everyone had been talking about it for years but, for some strange reason, I assumed I wouldn’t like them. They had been everywhere for so long and so many younger kids were reading them (like in the 14 year age range) and I kind of assumed that I was too old for them. WOW was I wrong! The synopsis sounded interesting but it didn’t sound like it would be as exciting as people made them out to be. The whole assassin thing had been done before and I was getting a little bored of that angle. But this series took it to a whole other level!

NEVERNIGHT by Jay Kristoff

It’s not a proper post until I talk about this guy lol! But seriously, just like in Throne of Glass, the assassin thing had been done so many times before and I wasn’t sure that this could be that good. Please keep in mind that this was before I realized the true genius of this author! Everyone was raving about how he took this story to heights never seen before and that he made this story/world so dark. It’s easy to claim that a book is dark… this is promised all the time! But almost every time I’m let down. Apparently my mind is REALLY dark and twisted, making it hard to impress me. But this book kept up with its claims and promises!

THE BOOK THIEF by Marcus Zusak

This was a little bit of a weird one. The hype slowly crept up until it was everywhere and no one was willing to say anything specific as to why it was just so amazing. I’m thankful that people kept it a secret though! I think it’s very important for people to uncover the emotions all on their own. When the movie was being released, I had literally everyone asking me if I’d read it. Friends, family, strangers – yes, even strangers! They would see me with a book in my hands and excitedly ask me if I’d read it. It was crazy! Thankfully, the book was able to live up to the hype and even exceed it!

READY PLAYER ONE by Ernest Cline

When I first started watching BookTube videos and following book blogs, this is the book that everyone talked about. I would say it was the book that literally every single person had read, no matter their preference in books! That’s what I found so interesting! People that wouldn’t normally reach for a book like this were raving about it. It seemed interesting to me but I was afraid I would’t be able to get into it. But since so many people seemed to enjoy it I thought I would give it a shot. Thank god I did because it was amazing! It seemed to open up a whole new world of books for me!

TOP 5 TUESDAY PARTICIPANTS:

• Sarah – Weaving Life
• Paige – The Girl With All The Books
• Malanie – Malanie Loves Fiction
• Many Things Bookish
• Birdie Bookworm
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• Hanna – Hanna Reads
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• Sophie – Beware of the Reader
• Lola – Lola Et La Vie
• Lauren – Books Are Only The Beginning
• Nia – Shades Of Paper
• Rose – Stuck In Fiction
• Robyn – Robyn Reads Books

This list could literally go on forever. Like I said in the beginning, hype has become such a large part of the book community, especially when it comes to social media. There are books out there that disappointed me, but in general, there are so many that impressed me and deserved every bit of hype it got!

Until next time, happy reading!