Summer presents a lot of great things for college students. There's no more school work, you now have free time to go to the beach or get a job or travel, the weather is warm and sunny, and you go back home where you no longer have to fend for yourself but can be babied just a bit by mom and dad (who may have missed you during the school year). There are also several challenges that summer presents. You have all this free time, but what are you to do with it? If you're like me and went to school somewhere far away from home, you're now nowhere close to any of the people who spent time with or any of things you would do for fun. There's so much you could do this summer, but then again there's only so much you can do. So what to do with that extra time? Instead of Netflix all day long, you could pick up a book and read. To help get you started on some things to read, here's my list of books you should read this summer:

1. "Zoo"- James Patterson

This book is number one because A. it's awesome and B. James Patterson is one of my all-time favorite authors. If you like animals and view them as cute, innocent, little fluff balls- maybe don't read this. If you like animals but can realize that some of them are dangerous, read on. In this thriller, animals have finally had enough of humans being at the top of the food chain. Jackson Oz is the first one to realize this trend and sets out to save the human race. Will he succeed? Go get your copy of "Zoo" and find out. This book has also been made into a pretty good show that's on Netflix, if you're interested.

2. "The Testing Trilogy"- Joelle Charbonneau

If you liked books like "The Hunger Games" or "Divergent", you'll probably like "The Testing". In Charbonneau's dystopian society, the nation's top high school graduates are selected to go to the government run university. If you're chosen, attendance is mandatory. Students go through a series of mysterious tests to see who deserves to stay. Those who don't succeed may or may not cease to exist. Cia Vale, against all odds and her parents' wishes, has made the cut, but you have to read on to see if she can stay alive. The trilogy continues with "Independent Study" and "Graduation Day"

3. "The Leviathan Trilogy"- Scott Westerfeld

Set in an alternate World War I, Westerfeld's story follows Aleksander (son of Franz Ferdinand) and Deryn (a Scottish girl with dreams of joining the RAF). In this alternate war, it's "Clankers" who use mechanized war machines versus the "Darwinists" who create new animals using genetics. There's an interesting mixture of real characters, like Franz Ferdinand and Winston Churchill, in addition to the fabricated alternate universe. The story is a bit quirky, but that's what makes it so hard to put down.

4. "Legend"- Marie Lu

In another dystopian trilogy, The Republic (Western United States) is a nation that is elitist, commandeering, and always at war. Lu's story follows June, a wealthy child prodigy being groomed for high military success, and Day, the nation's most wanted criminal from the slums. Their paths cross when Day becomes the top suspect in the murder of June's older brother (her last living relative). June is sent by the government to capture Day, but what she discovers along the way about herself, Day, and her government might just change everything. Legend is followed by two sequels ("Prodigy" and "Champion") and a prequel ("Life before Legend").

5. "Riders"- Veronica Rossi

I'm a bit of a Revelation fanatic. I'm not into the destruction of the world as much as I find the confusing imagery interesting. So I gravitated towards "Riders," a book about the four horsemen of the apocalypse. In it, Gideon Blake dies fighting in the army, but comes back from the dead as the horseman War. With the three other horsemen, they set off to try to save the world...and they fail. So now Gideon has to convince the world of its impending danger.

6. "The Graceling"- Kristin Cashore

The "Graced" or "Gracelings" are people who have extreme competency in one specific skill. For Katsa, niece of the king, her gift is actually a curse. She's graced with the gift of killing, making her uncle use her as his personal thug. But when she meets Po, a prince graced with combat skills, her world starts to change. She discovers a shocking secret about her own grace and a secret that could destroy the realm. "The Graveling" is followed by "Fire" and "Bitterblue".

7. "Redemption"- Karen Kingsbury

Karen Kingsbury is another one of my favorite authors. I started reading her redemption series and quickly fell in love with the rest of her books. Kari Baxter Jacobs finds out that her professor husband is having an affair with one of his students and he wants a divorce. She knows that love is a choice and decides to continue to love her husband. This book is the first of five in a miniseries about the Baxter family. The whole series itself is extremely good and well worth the read.

8. "Confessions of a Murder Suspect"- James Patterson

James Patterson is an absolutely amazing writer and thrillers are what he's best at. I'm normally pretty good at at least guessing the suspect in a murder book or show, but Patterson wrote this one so well that I had almost no clue till the end. When Malcolm and Maud Angel are found dead, their four children are the prime suspects. With the parents perfectionist expectations, all the kids are a little quirky- and maybe superhuman due to daddy dearest's mad science experiments...? Patterson adds on three more murder mysteries in the series after this one.

9. "Ender's Game"- Orson Scott Card

Ender's Game follows a young boy, Ender, who is taken to outer space to train to be a soldier in preparation for an alien invasion. While there, Ender reveals his tactical genius. The officers attempt to mold and shape him into a ruthless leader they can use. Ender remains persistent to try to stay true to himself and find peace. But with all of humanity depending on him to be capable to destroy the aliens, Ender makes bigger sacrifices than he knows. The movie adaptation of "Ender's game" came out in 2013. I haven't seen it, but the book is good.

10. "The 5th Wave"- Rick Yancey

Who knew this was a book before being a movie? So most people know the basic premise due to the movie: Aliens kill off most of earth's population through natural disasters and disease, invade earth, and then proceed to kill off the rest of humanity. Cassie has to save her little brother from the aliens and along the way stumble into Evan- who may or may not be an alien. I haven't seen the movie, but I bet you the book is probably better.

11. "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime"- Mark Hadden

I haven't actually read this book, but I saw the play while in London and it was superb. The story follows Christopher, a boy who has autism and is extremely brilliant. He perceives the entire world in a strictly logical sense. When his neighbors dog, Wellington, is found dead, Christopher becomes determined to solve the mystery and find the killer. What he discovers along the way reveals some shocking twists that will threaten his carefully and logically constructed world.

Hopefully this list will get you started on some great reads this summer. Reading is a great way to experience different worlds and gain new perspectives. It also doesn't hurt that it helps to keep your mind sharp because summer does have an end to it somewhere off in the distance. This list is just to get you started on your summer reading adventures. Who knows, maybe you'll find a new favorite.