Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme that currently resides at The Artsy Reader Girl and features bloggers sharing lists on various book topics.  In this week’s Top Ten Tuesday, participants are tasked with listing their favourite books that have either covers or titles with things found in nature, be that plant, trees, animals, woodland features, or bodies of water.  Since I’ve done a few lists with similar topics in the past, I decided to place a bit of a handicap on myself and focus this list entirely on books with plant themed titles.  This resulted in an interesting list filled with some great books that I had an awesome time reading.

To qualify for this list, the book had to have some form of plant related word or theme in its title, such as trees, flowers, or other plant terms.  I made sure to especially focus on those titles where the plant reference had some relevance to the plot of the book, as that made their inclusion even more important.  This proved to be a bit of a hard list to come up with as I apparently have not read as many books that featured plants in the title as I had hoped.  However, I was eventually able to come up with ten excellent books to include on this list, including a few releases from some of my favourite authors.  So let us see what has made the cut.

Top Ten Tuesday:

Silverthorn by Raymond E. Feist

Let’s start this list off with a true classic, Silverthorn by Raymond E. Feist.  The sequel to Feist’s iconic debut novel, Magician, Silverthorn is a complex and powerful read that masterfully continues the great story started in the first book.  The title, Silverthorn, refers to a magical plant which the protagonists need to find to save a princess from dying.  An amazing read and a great first entry to this list.

Amazon

 

The Lion: Son of the Forest by Mike Brooks

An outstanding piece of Warhammer 40,000 fiction that saw a legendary figure return when humanity needs him most.  The forest featured in the title has some interesting and symbolic implications on the plot, and I was glad I got to feature this book on this list.

Amazon

 

Desert Star by Michael Connelly

One of the latest books from legendary crime fiction author Michael Connelly, Desert Star is an outstanding later addition to his Ballard and Bosch combo series, that followed two of his best detective characters as they investigate several cold cases.  Desert Star refers to the flower of the same name, which appears near the desert graves of the book’s victims, which makes it a pretty killer title.

Amazon

 

Son of the Poison Rose by Jonathan Maberry

One of the first books I thought of when I came up with this list was Son of the Poison Rose by Jonathan Maberry.  The sequel to the epic dark fantasy novel Kagen the Damned, Son of the Poison Rose was an outstanding book, loaded with action, revenge and some truly dark moments.  A highly recommended read with a compelling title behind it.

Amazon

 

The Grove of the Caesars by Lindsey Davis

I just had to include The Grove of the Caesars by Lindsey Davis on this list.  An outstanding part of the Flavia Albia historical murder mystery series, The Grove of the Caesars had a gripping plot about a series of murders taking place in the titular grove.  This was one of Davis’ best mysteries, and I loved how well she explored the historical grove and featured it within the novel.

Amazon

 

Usagi Yojimbo: Grasscutter by Stan Sakai

A particularly impressive entry in the always amazing Usagi Yojimbo comic series.  Grasscutter is a major volume, that sees various figures from the Usagi Yojimbo world fight over the legendary lost royal sword, Grasscutter.  I’m slightly cheating here by including the name of a sword rather than a specific plant, however, I feel that it should count, especially considering how the sword got its iconic name.

Amazon

 

The Priory of the Orange Tree by Samantha Shannon

A classic and powerful fantasy novel with a unique title.  I am sure that many fantasy fans are featuring The Priory of the Orange Tree on their lists this week.

Amazon

 

The Ghost Orchid by Jonathan Kellerman

One of the latest books I’ve read that was eligible for this list.  The Ghost Orchid was the most recent Alex Delaware novel by Jonathan Kellerman and featured a brilliant and complex murder mystery plot.  The ghost orchid referenced in the title had some interesting and symbolic implications on the plot, and it proved to be a great inclusion for this list.

Amazon

 

Bloody Rose by Nicholas Eames

An awesome fantasy novel I had the pleasure of reading a few years ago, Bloody Rose is a pretty damn epic book about a group of celebrity mercenaries.

Amazon

 

The Lion and the Rose by Kate Quinn

The final book on this list is the compelling historical fiction novel, The Lion and the Rose by Kate Quinn.  Another book that features the rose in its title, The Lion and the Rose was a gripping read that followed members of the infamous Borgia family, and the people who got caught up in their schemes.  An exceptional read and a fantastic inclusion for this list.

Amazon

 

 

Well, that’s the end of this list.  As you can see, I have read some pretty amazing books that feature plants or plant references in their titles.  All the above books come highly recommended, and I really appreciate how well their plant themed titles perfectly reflect key elements of the books.  Make sure to let me know what your favourite book with a plant title is in the comments below.