Top Ten Tuesday

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created at The Broke and the Bookish. This is one meme I can get on board with - I LOVE lists! I'll show you mine if you show me yours!

Top Ten Words/Topics That Instantly Make Me Buy/Pick Up a Book

1. New Adult - It's no secret that my latest obsession is the New Adult genre. I have a weekly feature dedicated to it, for crying out loud. So, whenever a book is described as "new adult," my interest is piqued right away. Examples:  Easy, Slammed, Walking Disaster

2. Vampires - I forcefully avoided vampire books for years because I was annoyed at all the Twilight hype. But, since I also can't stand not knowing what everyone else is talking about, I eventually gave in. And, while I had mixed feelings about that particular series, I did develop a penchant for the fanged. Now, some of my most favorite series of all time are all about vampires. Examples:  The Night Huntress series, The Chicagoland Vampires series, The Immortal Rules

3. The Beach - This is a weird one. See, I don't particularly like the beach myself. I hate jellyfish, feeling fat in a bathing suit and getting sand in my crack (and everywhere else). But, for some reason, books that take place at the beach always seem so romantic and exotic. It's my favorite way to experience the beach. Examples:  Fallen Too Far

4. Academy/School/Institute - I love books that take place at boarding-type schools. Usually there's some sort of paranormal aspect, and most seem to involve a bad ass chick in training. I love these books, because there always comes a point where our heroine has to put what she's learned into practice, and that culmination is always so, so sweet. Examples:  Vampire Academy series, Covenant series, Mythos Academy series 

5. Mythology - Mythology - particularly Greek mythology - has been of great interest to me ever since high school. It's so awesome that men came up with such amazing stories so many thousands of years ago, and they're still alive today. And now, we put cool modern twists on them. Even better. Examples:  The Goddess Test series, The Heroes of Olympus series

6. Scotland/The UK - I love to travel. I've been to Europe twice (Spain and Italy), but I've never been to the UK. It's on my bucket list. Until then, I love to read about books that take place there. The locales, the accents, the fun phrases ("Sod off, wanker!") - they make me smile. Examples:  On Dublin Street, Outlander

7. Werewolves/Shifters - I will read most anything having to do with weres and shifters because I absolutely LOVE the pack aspect of the story. There's something so awesome about a group of people who are bonded so closely that they would give their lives for one another. The dominant alpha males are pretty hot too, right? Examples:  The Mercy Thompson series, The Phoenix Pack series

8. Time Travel - Perhaps it's the Trekkie in me, but I do love a story that stretches the boundaries of the space/time continuum. Although they can get a bit mired in detail, the plausibility is intriguing. Examples:  Outlander, The Hourglass series, The River of Time series

9. Assassins - Especially FEMALE assassins. This goes along with the whole I-love-bad-ass-chicks thing I got going on. There's just something so empowering about reading about a girl who puts a serious smack down on a bunch of bad guys. Rawr. Examples:  Throne of Glass, Grave Mercy, Dark Triumph

10. Dual POV/Male POV - I love getting in the guy's head so much. Guys are typically not very vocal about their feelings, so getting to read about their feels as they run through their heads is so satisfying. I love the back-and-forth of the dual POVs, but the all-male POVs are just as awesome. Examples:  The Collector, Elixir, Pushing the Limits