Top Ten Tuesday: New to me Authors 2016

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and Bookish where we get a new topic for a top 10 list.

2016 has been a good year for me in terms of reading books by new to me authors. I had heard of a lot of the books and this was the year I finally picked up the books and read them.

1. The Weight of Feathers by Anna-Marie McLemore: This book was a pleasant surprise. I knew it had a Romeo and Juliet vibe in a magical realism setting and I was absolutely blown away by the book. It’s simple but beautiful and the writing is captivating. 

2. Wolf by Wolf by Ryan Graudin: I’d heard a lot of buzz about this book last year and I finally picked it up and now I understand the immense hype. This duology is one hell of an addictive read and the setting is both fascinating and terrifying. Just imagine living in a world where Hitler won the war. The exploration of identity was incredible and while I’m still reeling from Blood for Blood I can safely say I’ve found a permanent book boyfriend in Luka. 

3. Play On by Michelle Smith: 2016 was the year I jumped on the sports contemporary bandwagon. Play On had a lot of qualities I love in a book. The romance, the exploration of that small town community, baseball and a whole lot of heart. 

4. Air Awakens by Elise Kova: This series has been making waves in the past year or so and I can definitely understand the hype. The book covers alone are enough of a selling point for me but it also helps that the story is equally as fascinating. I’ve not finished the series yet but it is on my immediate to-do list.

5. Half a King by Joe Abercrombie: I blame Joey for this one. He’d hyped up this book for me and thankfully it delivered. Half a King is the ultimate underdog story and now that I’ve gotten a taste of Abercrombie’s books I can safely say I’ll be picking up the rest of his books. 

6. The Deal by Elle Kennedy: This book kicked off my current addiction to sports contemporary romances. The Deal is the complete opposite of the angsty NA dramas we’re so used to seeing. In it’s place we have a lot of laughter, banter and a sizzling romance that’s grounded in friendship. 

7. Salt to the Sea by Ruta Sepetys: 2016 was also a great year for historic fiction. I’m making it my mission to read all of Ruta Sepetys’ books because Salt to the Sea was a hauntingly tragic and beautiful read. It packs a lot of punches and it’s a story that will stay with me for a long time.

8. The Wrath and the Dawn by Renée Ahdieh: Another book with a lot of hype surrounding it. I was nervous to read this book but thankfully I had Summer on hand to fangirl over all those glorious shippy moments. Khalid and Shazi are one of my ultimate OTP’s.

9. More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera: Why I waited so long to read this book, I do not know. More Happy Than Not was raw and emotional and so worth the hype. I urge you all to read it.

10. Bittersweet by Sarina Bowen: After reading this book all I wanted to do was hop on a plane to Vermont and track down my own Griffin Shipley. The True North series were just what I needed after reading a slew of high fantasy books, that were full of death and destruction. 

Those are the books I read by new to me authors in 2016.
Who made it to your list?