In case you didn’t know, I absolutely love rereading books. There’s just something so comforting about revisiting your favorite stories and characters. While I love rereading a favorite book and knowing exactly how things will play out, there are some that I wish I could read again for the first time.
If We Were Villains by M.L. Rio
When If We Were Villains was released in 2017, it immediately hit my radar. As we know, I am a sucker for a good murder mystery, then you add in some Shakespeare? I’m immediately sold. Truly, nothing will compare to how it felt to read this book for the very first time. I laughed, I cried, I screamed, I cried some more. It was an experience. Every time I read this book I find myself fully immersed in the story – and that’s while knowing exactly how everything plays out! Reading this book for the first time was an absolute roller coaster ride in the best way and I 100% would love to experience this masterful story again for the first time!
If you would like to know more of my thoughts you can read this post that I wrote last year – it contains major spoilers though, so I would recommend reading the book first and then checking out the post.
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
If there is a book that feels like a warm hug from your favorite person, it’s Little Women. This has been one of my favorite stories since childhood and I revisit it often. In fact, Cossette and I are currently rereading it. Whenever I’m feeling stressed or down, I’ll pick up this book, read random parts of it, and instantly feel comforted and safe. I was so young when I first read Little Women – I was maybe around 10 – at this point it’s just a part of my personality. If I could, I would absolutely go back in time and relive reading this book and falling in love with this story for the first time.
These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong
I was super lucky to receive my pre-order a few days before These Violent Delights released and once it arrived, I quite literally dropped everything I was doing to read it. I have a full review of the book that you can read here – but that first read was a wild wild ride! There was a lot of gasping and shouting and sitting there with my jaw hanging open. I expected certain things to happen because of the Romeo and Juliet inspiration and yet was still surprised. Everything about my first time reading These Violent Delights is why I love reading so much and if I could experience it for the first time again I absolutely would.
Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
Without a doubt, Ace of Spades was one of my favorite books I read last year and one of the best dark academia books that I’ve ever read. From the first line this book drew me in and I could not put it down. It was a roller coaster of emotions and I felt exhausted after I had finished it because I was so on edge the entire time. Reading Ace of Spades for the first time is an EXPERIENCE and what an experience it was at that! If you haven’t read this book yet, please do yourself a favor and pick it up immediately.
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Without a doubt, this is one of the most magical books that I have ever read. One of my friends bought me this book as a Christmas gift in college and I was so excited because I had heard great things about it. I love everything about this book. I just finished a reread and it was just as magical as I remembered it being, but I do wish I could go back and experience that magic for the first time again because this book is simply so captivating.
The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid
I had heard so much hype for Seven Husbands that I was a little worried it wouldn’t live up to expectations, but oh my goodness it did! I love absolutely everything about this story – the characters, the plot twists, the romance…just everything is so well done. I loved reading about Evelyn’s life and the big twist at the end definitely surprised me the first time around. Every time I read this book I’m completely captivated, but that first read was really something special.
Fat Chance, Charlie Vega by Crystal Maldonado
About 5 pages into reading Fat Chance, Charlie Vega for the first time, I texted Mary and Cossette to tell them that I was already crying. That’s when I knew that this book would be so special to me. I read the majority of this book in one sitting because I simply couldn’t put it down. I felt so seen and understood by Charlie, I had an instant connection to her. This book means so much to me, and if I could, I would go back to that evening to experience this book again for the first time. You can read my full review here.
A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series by Holly Jackson
Holly Jackson’s A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder series is my favorite murder mystery series in recent years. I remember reading the first book, A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder, and being absolutely blown away by the storytelling, characterization and the mystery itself. The books got better and better as the series went on and the final book in the series, As Good As Dead, was astonishing (you can read my full review here). I recently finished a reread of this series, and it had me just as intrigued as it did the first time. If I could read the series for the first time again I wouldn’t even hesitate to do so.
There you have it! A few of the books that I wish I could go back and read again for the first time. Truthfully, I could add many many books to this list, but then this would be a very long post. Let me know in the comments what books you would go back and read again for the first time if you could!
