Books that Surprised Me

So I have a surprise.

A really big, exciting surprise that’s been literally over five years in the making.

I’m announcing it later this month, but in honor of my surprise, I wanted to talk about some books that have surprised me—for various, sometimes strange, reasons.

1. Shadow Frost by Coco Ma

This book surprised me, not because of its plot per se, but because of the author. I was amazed, in awe that Coco Ma wrote Shadow Frost—a young adult fantasy that follows a princess and a ragtag group of friends, as they hunt a demon that’s destroying their kingdom—when she was only fifteen years old.

Surprising, right?

Check out my book review to learn more about the book and this amazing author. 

2. These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong

Wow, this book. So many people are talking about it, and it deserves all the hype. Romeo and Juliet retelling set in Shanghai? Yes, please.

This may be on me for not reading the book synopsis, but I was so surprised at the monster in These Violent Delights. Right from page one, the monster is key to the plot, and for some reason, I didn’t expect it to be as central (or as gross) as it was.

Let me know if you’ve read this and if the monster surprised you as much as it surprised me.

3. Sawkill Girls by Claire Legrand

If you didn’t know, Claire Legrand is one of my all-time favorite authors. So I don’t know why I had trust issues going into Sawkill Girls.

Again, there’s a monster, but I didn’t really believe there was a monster going into it. I thought there would be a twist.

Well, Claire Legrand proved me wrong.

Have you read a book that has some fantastical or paranormal element, to find at the end that there’s some explanation? Help me out. There’s a reason why I second guess book synopses, right?

4. Watch Over Me by Nina Lacour

Yet again, another book and author I thought were lying to me.

The protagonist in Watch Over Me leaves the foster system after graduating from high school to take a teaching job on a farm. However, this farm is haunted by ghosts. 

Did I believer there would actually be ghosts? No. Were there actually ghosts? Yes.

Again, despite how ridiculous, I was shocked. Surprised. Another author that didn’t lie to me.

So those are some books that surprised me. Let me know in the comments some books that have surprised you, and make sure you follow me on social media and my blog so you don’t miss my upcoming surprise♥