Books that push me to be a better writer

I admit that if a book or movie is over-hyped, I tend to be disappointed by it. My expectations are set sky high and then the experience doesn't quite live up to it. I'm reading an ARC right now that has had so much buzz, it made me a little hesitant to pick it up. I'm halfway through it and all I can say is: holy flippin' cow. I haven't liked a book this much since The Hunger Games/Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins. This book has met and exceeded all my expectations. In fact, I don't even want to write this blog post because I want to go find out what happens next (sshhh...don't tell me if you've already read this ARC). The book is Matched by Ally Condie.  The awesome cover looks like this:

From the back of the book:
In the Society, Officials decide. Who you love. Where you work. When you die. Cassia has always trusted their choices. It’s barely any price to pay for a long life, the perfect job, the ideal mate. So when her best friend appears on the Matching screen, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is the one . . . until she sees another face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black. Now Cassia is faced with impossible choices: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she’s known and a path no one else has ever dared follow—between perfection and passion.

If you read or write dystopian fiction, you'll LOVE this book! Since I write YA, books as amazing as this one push me even harder to be a better writer--once I get past the initial "I suck compared to this" phase. This is one reason why I think reading is so vital to being a good writer. When you read a great book, it serves as an inspiration--you see how something works when it's done well.

What about you? What book have you read that inspired you to be a better writer?

Book Love

One of the cool things I learned from your awesome feedback in our 300 Followers contest was that plenty of people who follow our blog don't write--but love to read. I'll keep doing posts involving writing tips, etc. but wanted to take a moment to shout out my book love for the week. Here's what I started reading this morning and won't go to bed tonight until I finish because it's REALLY THAT GOOD! I don't usually like contemporary YA as I'm more a ghosts, freaks, and things-that-go-bump-in-the-night kind of girl, but this book is amazing! Seriously, if you haven't read this yet, you should!

 

A fresh, urban twist on the classic tale of star-crossed lovers.
When Brittany Ellis walks into chemistry class on the first day of senior year, she has no clue that her carefully created “perfect” life is about to unravel before her eyes. She’s forced to be lab partners with Alex Fuentes, a gang member from the other side of town, and he is about to threaten everything she's worked so hard for—her flawless reputation, her relationship with her boyfriend, and the secret that her home life is anything but perfect. Alex is a bad boy and he knows it. So when he makes a bet with his friends to lure Brittany into his life, he thinks nothing of it. But soon Alex realizes Brittany is a real person with real problems, and suddenly the bet he made in arrogance turns into something much more.
In a passionate story about looking beneath the surface, Simone Elkeles breaks through the stereotypes and barriers that threaten to keep Brittany and Alex apart. 

So, tell me, what's your book love of the week?