Top 5 Books that Cast a Spell on Me I Want to Read

This Top 5 series started back in October and I kind of lost motivation for making it every week. But it’s back! This is a series of books that I want to read that all have a common theme. Previously on the blog I have focused on witches, werewolves, thrillers, faeries, fairy tale re-tellings, high fantasy and many more. I am going to try and bring this series back for every Saturday.

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The Upcoming Schedule Is:

10/5/19 — Books with the Scariest Covers

10/12/19 — Books that Cast a Spell on You

10/19/19 — Creepy Books

10/26/19 — Trick or Treat (Pick your own topic!)

I know that I’m late on getting the schedule out, but I’ve been really busy this month. Hopefully for future months I can get the next month’s schedule out mid-month instead of the last week of the month.

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Rules!

• Share your top 5 books of the current topic– these can be books that you want to read, have read and loved, have read and hated, you can do it any way you want.
• Tag the original post (This one!)
• Tag 5 people

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Books that Cast a Spell on You

This weeks prompt is really open to interpretation, so you can take it any way you want really. You can talk about witchy books, books that you’re really excited for, books that you gave 5 stars and “cast a spell on you” because they were so good. This week I’m talking about books that cast a spell on me the second I saw them. Every one of these books I knew I wanted them from my very first impression.

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A Darker Shade of Magic by V.E. Schwab

Kell is one of the last Antari—magicians with a rare, coveted ability to travel between parallel Londons; Red, Grey, White, and, once upon a time, Black.

Kell was raised in Arnes—Red London—and officially serves the Maresh Empire as an ambassador, traveling between the frequent bloody regime changes in White London and the court of George III in the dullest of Londons, the one without any magic left to see.

Unofficially, Kell is a smuggler, servicing people willing to pay for even the smallest glimpses of a world they’ll never see. It’s a defiant hobby with dangerous consequences, which Kell is now seeing firsthand.

After an exchange goes awry, Kell escapes to Grey London and runs into Delilah Bard, a cut-purse with lofty aspirations. She first robs him, then saves him from a deadly enemy, and finally forces Kell to spirit her to another world for a proper adventure.

Now perilous magic is afoot, and treachery lurks at every turn. To save all of the worlds, they’ll first need to stay alive.

Schwab’s books have been recommended to me over and over again, yet I still haven’t read any of them. This is the one that I knew I would love the second that I saw it and read the synopsis. I picked up a copy at Penfield Library’s Used Book sale for 50 cents. I can’t wait to read this book now that I finally have a copy.

 

Compulsion by Martina Boone

Three plantations. Two wishes. One ancient curse.All her life, Barrie Watson has been a virtual prisoner in the house where she lives with her shut-in mother. When her mother dies, Barrie promises to put some mileage on her stiletto heels. But she finds a new kind of prison at her aunt’s South Carolina plantation instead—a prison guarded by an ancient spirit who long ago cursed one of the three founding families of Watson Island and gave the others magical gifts that became compulsions.

Stuck with the ghosts of a generations-old feud and hunted by forces she cannot see, Barrie must find a way to break free of the family legacy. With the help of sun-kissed Eight Beaufort, who knows what Barrie wants before she knows herself, the last Watson heir starts to unravel her family’s twisted secrets. What she finds is dangerous: a love she never expected, a river that turns to fire at midnight, a gorgeous cousin who isn’t what she seems, and very real enemies who want both Eight and Barrie dead.

Way back before I ever had a blog I found a blog tour for this book. I read a excerpt, paid attention to the cover reveal and tried so hard to win the giveaway. I wanted a copy of this book so bad. But after the blog tour I feel like this book fell off my radar. At the Penfield Public Library’s used book sale I found a copy and I snatched it up SO fast. Now that I have a copy I can’t wait to read it.

Unnatural Magic by C.M. Waggoner

A “brilliant and terrifically fun”* debut novel brings an enchanting new voice to fantasy.
Onna can write the parameters of a spell faster than any of the young men in her village school. But despite her incredible abilities, she’s denied a place at the nation’s premier arcane academy. Undaunted, she sails to the bustling city-state of Hexos, hoping to find a place at a university where they don’t think there’s anything untoward about providing a woman with a magical education. But as soon as Onna arrives, she’s drawn into the mysterious murder of four trolls.
Tsira is a troll who never quite fit into her clan, despite being the leader’s daughter. She decides to strike out on her own and look for work in a human city, but on her way she stumbles upon the body of a half-dead human soldier in the snow. As she slowly nurses him back to health, an unlikely bond forms between them, one that is tested when an unknown mage makes an attempt on Tsira’s life. Soon, unbeknownst to each other, Onna and Tsira both begin devoting their considerable talents to finding out who is targeting trolls, before their homeland is torn apart…
*Kat Howard, Alex Award-winning author of An Unkindness of Magicians

A while ago I had read the Trylle series by Amanda Hocking and ever since then I’ve wanted more books about trolls. This book cast a spell on me as soon as I saw the cover, but when I read the synopsis I knew that I needed a copy. I got a physical ARC and it is SO beautiful I am so excited to read it. I hope that this book winds up being as amazing as I think it will be.

Ink in the Blood by Kim Smejkal

A lush, dark YA fantasy debut that weaves together tattoo magic, faith, and eccentric theater in a world where lies are currency and ink is a weapon, perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo and Kendare Blake.

Celia Sand and her best friend, Anya Burtoni, are inklings for the esteemed religion of Profeta. Using magic, they tattoo followers with beautiful images that represent the Divine’s will and guide the actions of the recipients. It’s considered a noble calling, but ten years into their servitude Celia and Anya know the truth: Profeta is built on lies, the tattooed orders strip away freedom, and the revered temple is actually a brutal, torturous prison.

Their opportunity to escape arrives with the Rabble Mob, a traveling theater troupe. Using their inkling abilities for performance instead of propaganda, Celia and Anya are content for the first time . . . until they realize who followed them. The Divine they never believed in is very real, very angry, and determined to use Celia, Anya, and the Rabble Mob’s now-infamous stage to spread her deceitful influence even further.
To protect their new family from the wrath of a malicious deity and the zealots who work in her name, Celia and Anya must unmask the biggest lie of all—Profeta itself.

I’ve had my eye on this book for months now. It looks like it’s going to be a pretty big release and somehow I got a physical copy. This book looks dark and like it could be amazing. There is no way I’m waiting until 2020 to read my ARC, but I will hold my review.

The Seventh Sun by Lani Forbes

The sun of the Chicome people has been destroyed six times. First by water, then by storm, fire, famine, sickness, and beasts. After each apocalypse, the creator goddess allowed one of her divine children to sacrifice themselves to save civilization. The gods paid their blood as the price for the lives of the people, and the people owed them blood in return.

Mayana is a noble descendant of the water goddess and can control water whenever her blood is spilled. She has always despised the brutal rituals of her people — especially sacrifices. She can’t even make it through a routine animal sacrifice without embarrassing her family. Prince Ahkin has always known he would be emperor, but he didn’t expect his father to die so suddenly. Now he must raise the sun in the sky each day and read the signs in the stars. But the stars now hint at impending chaos and the sun has begun setting earlier each evening. Ahkin fears he might not be strong enough to save his people from another apocalypse. And to add to his list of worries, he can’t truly become emperor until he selects a wife.

Mayana and six other noble daughters are sent to the palace to compete for Ahkin’s hand. She must prove she is a true daughter of water and face the others who have their own magical gifts from wielding the elements to the control of animals, plants and healing. And in a society centered on rigid rituals, Mayana must conceal her traitorous beliefs because if she doesn’t make Ahkin love her, she will become a ceremonial sacrifice to bless his marriage. But darker forces are at play and it won’t matter if Mayana loses if the world ends first…

Rich in imagination and romance, and based on the legends and history of the Aztec and Mayan people, The Seventh Sun brings to vivid life a world on the edge of apocalyptic disaster.

I actually know very little about this book, but I as soon as I saw it I knew that I really wanted it. I know that it’s based on Aztec and Mayan myths, which is an aspect that fascinates me and I know it’s an intricate fantasy. Something about this book just cast a spell on me. I already have an ARC so hopefully going into this book semi blind will pay off for me.

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Tagged!

Brenda, Lindsay and Norma @ Two Sisters Lost in a Coulee

Donna @ Donna’s Book Blog

Kelly @ Sassy Book Lover

Lindsay @ Singer of Stories

Stephanie @ Adventures Thru Wonderland

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Check out other book bloggers top 5!

Susan @ Novel Lives — Five Books To Come That Cast A Spell Strong Enough To Break The Moving Curse

Leelynn @ Sometimes Leelynn Reads — Top 5 Saturday: Books that Cast a Spell on Me

Dini @ Dinipandareads — Top 5 Saturday: Books that Cast a Spell on Me!

Kitty Marie @ Kitty Marie’s Reading Corner — Top 5 Saturday: Books that Cast a Spell on You

Becky @ Becky’s Book Blog — I Put a Spell on You, and Now You’re Mine! Top 5 Saturday.

Nen & Jen @ Nen & Jen — Top 5 Sat: Books that Cast a Spell on Us

Michael @ Book Lover’s Sanctuary — Top Five Saturday: Books That Cast a Spell on You

Lili @ Lili’s Blissful Pages — 5 Books That Cast A Spell on Me

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Let’s Chat!

Do you love witchy books? What book cast a spell on you immediately? Should I move any of these up my TBR? Do you have any recommendations for November topics? Make sure to comment below so we can chat about books that cast a spell on you!