Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish. The feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists over at The Broke and the Bookish.

Each week they will post a new top ten list that one of our bloggers at The Broke and the Bookish will answer. Everyone is welcome to join. All they ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a great way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

The Top Ten Books with Amazing Settings

I did my own take on this prompt this week. Rather than settle for just one type of setting, I'm going with allllll of the amazing settings we're offered in the genres we read...and there are a lot. So, without further ado. Here are my favourite books with absolutely epic settings.

1. The Harry Potter Series - Let's be really, really honest here, guys. Does it get better than Hogwarts, Diagon Alley, The Burrow, the Ministry of Magic, The Forbidden Forest...yeah, the list goes on. Let me answer you. No, it doesn't get better.

2. The Raft - It takes a really, really strong novel to have a book with one main setting and one sole character on said setting to make it work so well. The raft and the island were terrifyingly realistic - and awesome - places to be.

3. The Lightning Thief - Despite my initial hesitance to become invested in this series, I couldn't help but fall in love with it. I really would give my right leg to go to Camp Half-Blood.

4. Across the Universe - There's something about a novel set in space that makes it a zillion times more awesome. That's not even an approximate. That's just a real number, my friends. Plus, the good ship Godspeed is both awesome and scary. Love.

5. The Diviners - New York City? Check. The roaring 20's? Check. Really wish I had a time machine? Yeah, check, check, check. Seriously, how awesome would it be to experience the amazing backdrop of this book in person?

6. Graceling - Well, technically, there are seven different kingdoms in this novel, which gives us a whole lot to choose from in terms of settings. I loved the Middluns though. It was very medieval, and it was totally alive.

7. Raw Blue - Who doesn't want to read about life on a beach in Australia? Carly's world is one of breaking waves, sunshine and sand, and it's our immersion in her world that brings light into her very dark and painful past.

8. 172 Hours on the Moon - But really, like I said before, guys. Space. It's vast, it's empty, and it's a whole lot of nothingness filled with incredible mystery and terror. Give me that any day, and I'm sold.

9. The Forest of Hands and Teeth - In a very character-driven novel, the Forest of Hands and Teeth actually feels like a character in its own right in this novel. It's a terrifying possibility, and the probability is even that much better.

10. Carnival of Souls - Though I wasn't the biggest fan of this book, I have to say that Melissa Marr succeeded in bringing the City of Daimons alive. Dang, that place is brutal. I don't know that I'd want to go, but it's sure awesome to explore through the pages.

Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme created by The Broke and the Bookish. The feature was created because they are particularly fond of lists over at The Broke and the Bookish. They'd love to share their lists with other bookish folks and would LOVE to see your top ten lists!

Each week they will post a new top ten list that one of our bloggers at The Broke and the Bookish will answer. Everyone is welcome to join. All they ask is that you link back to The Broke and the Bookish on your own Top Ten Tuesday post AND add your name to the Linky widget so that everyone can check out other bloggers lists! If you don't have a blog, just post your answers as a comment. Have fun with it! It's a fun way to get to know your fellow bloggers.

Top Ten Settings In Books (All those real or imagined locations/worlds you loved reading about):

1. The World of Harry Potter (Harry Potter) - No, I'm not talking about the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios (though I want to go there, too, if someone wants to pay for me). Honestly, if I could live at Hogwarts, or Diagon Alley, or even The Three Broomsticks for a day, my life would be complete.

2. Camp Halfblood (Percy Jackson & The Olympians) - Well, it's a camp of quirky people with amazing powers, centaurs who teach and pretty much unlimited access to Greek mythology. Sold? So am I.

3. Pemberly (Pride & Prejudice) - If you've seen the newer movie, they've pretty much plucked the image of Darcy's estate straight from my brain. It's gorgeous and decadent while still a tad simple, plus, it would totally be a bonus if Darcy was there. I'm jussayin'.

4. The Spaceship, Godspeed (Across the Universe) - I'm solidifying my status as a geek forever by saying this, but I was a bit of a trekkie growing up. Oh wait, I still am. Honestly though, who wouldn't want to be on a ship millions of miles above the Earth amidst the stars?

5. The Capitol (The Hunger Games) - Before you say anything, no I'm not a sadistic fool wanting to live in a greedy city where they thrive on games that kill children. I want to see the crazy hair, and the colours, and the clothes, and heck, if I could run into Cinna while I'm there, I'd be golden.

6. Hecate Hall (Hex Hall) - I've always been fascinated by the idea of witches and their witchy cool powers. I think it would amazing to spend a day in a creepy little house that has rooms to suit a person's taste and emotions.

7. Redwall Abbey (Redwall) - If you haven't read the books, you're seriously missing out. That castle sounds amazing, and they have so many feasts and celebrations that I don't think I'd ever go hungry. Another bonus? Warrior mice.

8. Blackwood Academy (Wildefire) - Who hasn't wanted to stay at a boarding school at least once in their life? The remoteness of the location, the crazy students and the fun activities remind of college...only more tame.

9. Selkie Island (Sea Change) - Obviously, I have a thing for the water, and the island sounds so beautiful and quaint. Plus, the descriptions of the coves, the beaches (uhhhh the mermaids?!) and the old-fashioned houses make me long for a little Southern charm.

10. Winter Harbor, Maine (Siren) - I moved to New England this past fall because I love the little coastal towns THAT much. The sound of the cliffs, the dense forests and the peace that Vanessa feels by the ocean just sing to me.

Title: Across the Universe
Author: Beth Revis
Publisher: Razorbill
Published: January 11, 2011
Genre: YA, Dystopian, Sci-Fi
Pages: 398
Source: Personal Copy

A love out of time. A spaceship built of secrets and murder.

Seventeen-year-old Amy joins her parents as frozen cargo aboard the vast spaceship Godspeed and expects to awaken on a new planet, three hundred years in the future. Never could she have known that her frozen slumber would come to an end fifty years too soon and that she would be thrust into the brave new world of a spaceship that lives by its own rules.

Amy quickly realizes that her awakening was no mere computer malfunction. Someone-one of the few thousand inhabitants of the spaceship-tried to kill her. And if Amy doesn't do something soon, her parents will be next.

Now Amy must race to unlock Godspeed's hidden secrets. But out of her list of murder suspects, there's only one who matters: Elder, the future leader of the ship and the love she could never have seen coming.

Amy is just a mere piece of the puzzle and cargo on board the Godspeed, a ship of hundreds of people held in a cryostatic sleep until they reach a new planet for their new lives 300 years in the future. Something goes wrong though, and Amy wakes up, far earlier than she should have. It’s supposedly a computer malfunction, but it becomes apparent that someone was actually behind it. She wasn’t meant to live. She was supposed to die. Now Amy’s on a ship of thousands of inhabitants with a life or death mystery on her hands. Someone’s after her, and they might be after her next. Who can she trust, and how will she know she can trust them?

Across the Universe is one of those books that has been hyped from day one. I’ve heard SO much about it, and part of the reason I held off reading it was because I didn’t want it to fall short of the rave reviews. Beth Revis has created a gorgeous, haunting and oddly beautiful and terrifying world within Across the Universe. She has a flowing writing voice – easy to follow and fluid, taking you from event to event in a harrowing plot filled with twists and turns that kept me guessing the whole time.

While I definitely agree that the world within Across the Universe is incredible, weaving an amazing background into the forefront of the story, even though it’s in a future and somewhat sci-fi realm. I felt like I was onboard the Godspeed with Amy, and I loved that I could put myself in her shoes. She’s definitely a relatable character. I also really enjoyed the dual perspectives between Elder and Amy. It let me so the story from two angles, providing more depth and adding tension to the mystery. I also really appreciated a hint of humour that was added by Harley, adding a nice lighthearted touch. That said though, I guess I was expecting a little more romance in Across the Universe, and I felt that it was pretty flat in that department. I also felt a little unsatisfied with the end – in fact, I kind of felt hollow when it was done.

All in all, Across the Universe is a well-written debut with great characters and a plot that moves well – all of which temper the pretty significant flaws. I enjoyed it for the most part, and I give it a high 3.5 out of 5. I’d recommend Across the Universe to fans of YA, sci-fi and dystopian stories.

In My Mailbox is an amazing weekly meme hosted by Kristi from The Story Siren that features the books we have received during the week. It's so much fun because we get to see what our fellow bloggers stumbled upon this week and add even more to our piles of books! Without further ado, this week I received the following books:

For Review:
The Darlings Are Forever by Melissa Kantor (Thank you, Hyperion)
No Going Back by Jonathan Langford (Thank you, Jonathan)
Shrouded Secrets by Joel McGrath (Thank you, Joel)

Bought:
Across the Universe by Beth Revis

What did you get in your mailboxes this week? Leave me a link, and I'll be sure to check them out!