**I dip my biscuit in my cup of tea. It’s still warm, but fall is coming upon us. I think about my trip to the shops and the books that I bought that I already read, and start to think about all of the books that have surprised me over the years. There are times you go into a book, thinking that you won’t like it, but end up really enjoying it. I wonder which ones have given me that feeling before.**

Welcome or welcome back to bookishcore! One of the posts that I wanted to make was about books that surprised me. We all have books that we thought we would love, but were heavily disappointed by, and ones that we had low expectations for that we ended up loving. So, today I wanted to talk about a few of the books that really shocked me by how much I enjoyed them. Enjoy!

The Books:

The first surprise is The Lost by Natasha Preston. I read this one in 2021, but it was actually my second book by her, after reading The Cellar back in 2016/2017. I did not like that book, and found it too dark, especially at that time since I wasn’t reading thrillers. I picked up this one since it was a gift but had low expectations, and ended up loving it! It’s a thriller about teens going missing and different torture rooms. It was very unique and I have been reading her books since.

The next book that really surprised me was Stalking Jack the Ripper by Kerri Maniscalco. I got the first two books as gifts, and had this first one since probably 2017 and it sat on my shelf until 2021. Part of that was because of my reading slump at that time, but also because the book begins with an autopsy. I don’t like gore and was nervous going into it. I ended up reading it and wasn’t the biggest fan, but I had the second book, Hunting Prince Dracula already, so I just read it. I ADORED the second book. I don’t know what changed, but I really loved this book, and it made this series one of my all time favorites.

This next book is actually another one that I didn’t think I would like that turned out to be one of my all time favorite series. That book is A Curse So Dark and Lonely by Brigid Kemmerer. I had seen this book and didn’t care to read it, but a friend of mine read it and said she liked it, so I decided to try it out. I loved this book. I loved the characters, the world, the story, and basically everything about it. The world reminded me of a classic fairytale and I have never felt that before. I have been making my way through Brigid Kemmerer’s books since.

Another surprise for me was Starflight by Melissa Landers. I was watching the show Lost In Space around this point and I apparently thought a book set in space was just what I needed, even though it was different from what I normally read and I honestly had no interest in reading it. When I finally read this maybe two or three years later, I really enjoyed it. It has morally grey characters, a space setting, and space pirates. It was a book I didn’t know I needed.

This next book was not one I had low expectations for but it was still a surprise, which was Our Crooked Hearts by Melissa Albert. This was a gift and I didn’t know anything going into it. I read this and really enjoyed it. There’s a dual timeline and magic and kind of reminds me of a dark fairytale. It was such a great book and definitely a surprising one.

Another of my surprises was In My Dreams I Hold a Knife by Ashley Winstead. I heard some good things about it, but with my preference for ya I didn’t think anything of it. This book was actually really good. It’s dual timeline with a group of old friends at a college reunion unravelling a murder that happened in college. I really enjoyed this one and highly recommend it.

There are plenty more that I could add, but we’re going to leave it there. If you have read any of these, let me know, or if you have any surprises of your own. I always love when a book truly shocks you and you end up loving it.

xoxo,

Just another reader