Top 5 books I wish I could read for the first time again

Hello bookworms!! Welcome to Top 5 Tuesday!! This week’s Top 5 Tuesday is top 5 books I wish I could read for the first time again. Which is quite a mouthful, but I’m so tired and I can’t think of a better way to phrase it!!

If you missed the April topics post, please click here!! Top 5 Tuesday was created by Shanah @ Bionic Book Worm, and is now being hosted here @ Meeghan reads.

Top 5 books I wish I could read for the first time again

You know those books that cast that magical spell on you when you read them? The ones that have that vibrancy, and even if you read them 20 more times, there was just something special about the first time? Those kinds of books are always my favourites. And these are 5 of the ones I wish I could read again for the first time.

The Raven Boys – Maggie Stiefavter

Why hello. If you’re not new here, then you might realised it’s actually been quite some time since a Stiefvater book has made my list. You might even be alarmed that it’s not THE Stiefvater book that I scream about constantly. But as much as I think I would like to read The Scorpio Races for the first time again, I actually find it rather soothing to read slowly, leisurely, knowing everything that is about to happen.

The Raven Boys is a different story though. I love this series so much, but I’d be lying if I said that figuring out all the little hidden secrets along the way wouldn’t be tempting. Trying to pick when and why and how they act the way they do. Discovering all the small quirks lead to obvious, but not, plot lines. This series is definitely one that I’d want a redo for. To be able to fall in love with these characters again would be wholesome bliss.

Neverwhere – Neil Gaiman

Full disclosure: Neverwhere is still the only Gaiman book I’ve ever read. I think my problem with it is that it’s so perfect that I doubt any others will ever live up to my expectations. So the rest of them just sit on my bookshelf unread.

See, Neverwhere has this special kind of magic about it. I am someone who adores fairytales, and this book is literally a brand new fairytale for adults. It’s set in modern day London, and is a cautionary tale about treating those who have fallen between the cracks of society. It’s quirky and dark, and the characters are no nonsense types, for the most part. You’ll see famous landmarks turned into mystical people, and the entire underground of London becomes more of a playground.

I honestly didn’t think I would love this books as much as I did. And as keen as I am to revisit this world, I would love nothing more than to visit it from a stranger’s point of view.

The Rook – Daniel O’Malley

If you have ever read a thriller, murder-mystery book, then you should know why I want to read this again for the first time. It’s partly not knowing who did it. But it’s also because the suspense and not knowing is half the fun of reading.

The Rook is technically an urban fantasy / sci-fi, but it’s also part spy-thriller. And part humour. And it’s just as much a murder-mystery as it is anything else. In fact, it’s all of these things wrapped up in a silvery, glittering bow, that likely has very sharp teeth. I still vehemently disagree with the quote on the cover. If you can’t read it, it says “Welcome to MI5… for wizards”. I would change it to “Welcome to MI5… for mutants” which is far more accurate to the story.

Regardless of how I would package it, I still think it’s one of my absolute favourite books, and not just because I happen to live in the same city as the author. It’s such a clever story, with a fascinating spin on our world. And it’s such a suspensefully fun and thrilling read!!

The Shepherd’s Crowns – Terry Pratchett

I could wax lyrical about the very poetic reasons that I wish I could read The Shepherd’s Crown for the first time again. But ultimately it comes down to one thing. This book is Terry Pratchett’s last novel, published posthumously. And it makes me cry every single time I think about picking it up.

I don’t cry just because it’s his last story. I cry because the plot of this one makes me think that he knew it would be his last book. Sir Terry Pratchett passed away from Alzheimer’s disease in March 2015. Even though he had been diagnosed with this much earlier (he announced his diagnosis in 2007), Pratchett continued to write books. In fact, between 2007 and 2015, he published over 20 books, consisting of 5 Discworld books, the first 4 Long Earth books co-written with Stephen Baxter, 2 standalone novels, some short stories, and no less than 9 companion novels for the Discworld. His diagnosis may have changed the way he wrote, but it never stopped him from writing completely.

But even from the first chapter of The Shepherd’s Crown, this story felt like a goodbye. It’s the reason that I haven’t been able to read it again, and I would very much like to.

The Foxhole Court – Nora Sakavic

I don’t have a good reason for wanting to read this series again for the first time. Apart, of course, from the pure magic I got from reading it, that I would like to experience again. I read this whole trilogy in just under 60 hours when I read it the first time. I remember that I was home, sick, from work. Maybe I was on a course of prednisone (steroids) and I couldn’t sleep. Whatever it was, once I started the books, there was no stopping me.

The Foxhole Court gripped me with such ferocity that I found it difficult to let go. Despite this series being a contemporary one, the magic is still there. Maybe not in the story or as part of the plot, but it’s definitely in the pages themselves. The characters are the kind that will rip your still-beating heart out of your chest. But they’ll also keep it locked up safe for you when you’re ready to have it surgically put back in your empty chest cavity. And that’s not something a lot of books can offer.

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PARTICIPANTS

Happymess Happiness
Jillian the Bookish Butterfly Blog
The Punk Theory
Evelyn Reads
A Fictional Bookworm
Zezee with Books
Gemini Book Nook
DB’s Guide to the Galaxy
Bookish Bron
Alexiophiles
Kira Jeanette

What are your top 5 books you wish you could read for the first time again?