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This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at TAMU chapter.

I have always been a bit of a bookworm to be honest. I don’t know when it happened, but I always loved reading and being able to experience so many lives through my books. I mainly read fiction books, specifically romance or fantasy books. I dream of owning my own library, but it’s not a library until you have more than a thousand books, so until then here are my top ten favorite books of all time. 

Side note: I am including the first books of the series, however, I love the entire series as a whole. Sorry I did mostly series, but they are all so amazing. 

  1. To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee

To Kill A Mockingbird, TKAM, is one of my favorite books I have ever read. I read it when I was in middle school for the first time and it has stuck with me ever since. If you liked TKAM, then you need to make sure you read the second one, Go Set A Watchman. I read both of these and the second one really changes the meaning of the first. I recommend reading this classic if you haven’t already.

  1. All The Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

Netflix made this into a movie, but it does not do this book justice. I cried on my couch hugging this book the first time I ever read it. I literally didn’t move for an hour just processing what had just incurred over the course of the story. Genuinely such a great book. All The Bright Places does a great job of discussing mental illness in teenagers and the effect of the death of a loved one. Trigger warning for this one though, there is heavy mental illness issues covered in the book and mentions of suicide. 

  1. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare

This is the first book in one of my favorite series. It is by the same author of the Mortal Instruments series. I read this book after I had read Mortal Instruments, so it surprised me how much more I preferred it. I love the spin on a love triangle. I think it has a good amount of both action and romance that I love to see in fantasy books like this. I recommend The Infernal Devices Trilogy if you are looking for a quick fantasy series. 

  1. The Virgin Suicides by Jeffrey Eugenides

I am going to admit that I did see the movie before I read the book. I loved the movie so much, it was such a good psychological thriller. The Virgin Suicides movie along with Girl, Interrupted are some of my favorite movies that depict mental illness. I really love books that make you think. I love the symbolism throughout the book, the attention to such small details is incredible. 

  1. Icebreaker by Hannah Grace

I know it’s a basic choice, but I swear it’s so good. I genuinely could reread this book any day. I hate a lot of the books that were popularized by BookTok, but I genuinely loved this hockey romance book. A good hockey romance is a staple to a girls shelf, and you can’t go wrong with Icebreaker. When the author is a swiftie, how could it not be a great book? Wildfire is also amazing and follows some characters you meet in Icebreaker.

  1. Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Another classic YA series. If you haven’t read this already, what are you doing? I would never lie to you and I recommend this series to anyone who wants to venture into more fantasy or magical types of books, but keep romance prevalent. It is one of the best series and the slow burn plot line is unreal. I swear you won’t get the hype at first, but trust me, you will understand eventually.

  1. If He Had Been With Me by Laura Nowlin

So. Sad. I mean so sad. It literally had me questioning going to the bathroom to cry in the middle of class. One of the only books that I didn’t guess the plot before it happened. I will say that I always forget she wore tiaras everyday to high school. I am not judging, but I personally would not do that and do find it a little strange. But, pop off queen. Just forget that plot point and you have a top tier read. I just bought the second one, If I Only Had Told Her, and am so excited to see how this plot continues.

  1. Truly Devious by Maureen Johnson

I devoured this trilogy. It was my first introduction to a murder mystery of sorts and I loved it. After reading this series, there was nothing I wanted more than to be in Vermont. I don’t know why that is what my takeaway was, but I still would love to go to Vermont. This book series is similar to my next one, but instead of just one girl boss, there are so many more. Everyone in this book is so intelligent and written so complexly it is amazing. 

  1. A Good Girl’s Guide To Murder by Holly Jackson

Truly Devious actually made me finally read this. I also saw this on TikTok. I love a good girl boss, so it’s no surprise that I loved this series. I read the entire thing, and I have never been more wrong in guessing than in those books. I don’t think I ever guessed the ending right. The overarching plot of the entire series is amazing and I love how each book is tied to the previous and the plot doesn’t fully unravel until the final book. I recommend this to people who like a fluffy side romance murder mystery. 

  1. The Inheritance Games by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

Obviously, I went on a bit of a streak of murder mysteries. The Inheritance Games is less murder mystery and more why did I just win the lottery? I loved this series, because it took place in Texas, automatically making it the best series. I also wish I could inherit millions of dollars and an enterprise. I thought the love triangle was super interesting and I really enjoyed the side plots and puzzles. I don’t think I could have figured out a single one of the puzzles though.

Lainie Parker is a second-year member of Her Campus at the Texas A&M Chapter. She is a part of the Events and Writing and Editing Committee. In these committees, she writes articles and helps plan gatherings for our chapter. She is excited to write articles about her favorite books, must-watch movies, and personal experiences in college. Lainie was born and raised in a town in East Texas called Lufkin. She graduated from Hudson High School with honors. Lainie is currently continuing her education as a freshman at Texas A&M University. She is currently an English major with a Sociology minor. With her undergraduate degree, Lainie hopes to work in publishing. Lainie is a reader, cook, baker, movie enthusiast, and cat mom who loves to try new things. Some fun facts about her are that she can say the alphabet backward and has an encyclopedic knowledge of most mainstream book series. Lainie loves to hang out with friends when she isn’t napping between classes. Lainie is the epitome of an Aries and loves to learn more about her astrological chart.