The best books if you seek a peculiar romance

Warm Bodies is probably my one exception when it comes to zombie books. It’s unique to see a first-person narration in this genre, since these sorts of stories are usually about humans striving to survive. But there’s so much freshness here. We get to see inside the mind of a zombie attempting to recapture his own humanity, and stumbles upon this intricate romance with an uninfected girl. The writing is lush and poetic, and touches on so many philosophical questions regarding what it means to truly be alive.

I’m amazed that more people aren’t talking about this book. It falls in line with the vampire romance genre so effortlessly, and yet it is egregiously overlooked. I remember reading it years ago when I was a teenager and being totally entranced. There’s this beautiful lilt to the writing, and the plot is so richly complex. It deals with the subject of immortality in such an interesting way, comparing the endless life of this vampire to the swiftly expiring life of this girl’s mother. The romance itself is actually refreshing as well. There’s this soft, sweet gallantry that you don’t see a lot in modern work, in my opinion.

This is another one that I read years ago that has stayed lodged in my brain. I enjoy a young romance that is handled complexly, instead of following typical trope guidelines. In this case, two teens meet on an island in New England, one is deaf and one is not. It is very rare to find disabilities represented in Young Adult Literature, despite the genre usually striving for diversity. And this is a very cute story. I love the idea that the girl, Amanda, has to break out of her comfort zone and learn how to connect with someone vastly different from herself. And we get to see the patience from the guy, Jake, who teaches her sign language and overall how to be more down to earth. Really lovely read. 

So this is actually the sequel to another amazing book called The Hazel Wood, but we get to see more romance blossoming in this one. I adore this author. She has that rare ability to completely suck in a reader and paint the inside of their mind. There’s a delicious bleakness to the writing, the plot relentlessly dark and challenging. It covers so many enduring themes such as sacrifice and normalcy versus the extraordinary. And the romance is so atypical as well. There’s no true linear journey, and their feelings are compromised by these big divisive issues. Such as ending certain worlds to save other worlds.

This is a really cool novel. As far as Mystical Being protagonists, this is the first book I’ve read to utilize fallen angels. And the author uses that theme extremely well throughout the story. And I really enjoy the main character, Nora. She is this lovely strong, snappy girl, devoid of the usual tropes of imperfection and self-doubt that you generally get with the lead girl. Then there’s Patch, her hot, ethereal counterpart. He’s dangerous and dark, but also very sassy, which is fun for a male lead.