Top Ten Tuesday (December 11) – 2012 New-to-Me Authors

Welcome to Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by The Broke and the Bookish! This week’s topic is easy, because nearly every single book I read in 2012 was a new-to-me author. I branched out a lot. It was splendid.

Here are the ones who stood out (and yes, some of them I only read one of their books, or they only have one book…but that one book was really good).

Also, some are on here because I did read their book in 2012, and they are new to me, but mostly because I met them and I think they’re just fabulously awesome people. If you get a chance to meet them, you should.

Disclaimer: There are a lot of Nashville/Southern authors on here. If you live near me, so do many of these ladies! Read their books! Go to their events! You’ll be glad you did!

Top Ten Favorite New-To-Me Authors I Read In 2012 (in no particular order, because that is way too hard)

Ruta Sepetys

First book I read in 2012: Between Shades of Gray

Why she’s awesome: Everyone told me to read Between Shades of Gray for MONTHS before I did, and they were totally right. Her writing is beautiful and moving, the story she told was incredible. Seriously. Everyone should read it. But aside from that, Ruta is one of the sweetest, most genuine people I’ve had the privilege to meet this year. She’s even lovelier than her writing. If such a thing is possible. Rest assured, her personal awesomeness combined with how much I loved her debut means I won’t be putting off reading any of her books in the future.

Myra McEntire

First book I read in 2012: Hourglass

Why she’s awesome: Myra was at the very first author event I went to, and I’ve been to several more of hers since then, because she is delightful. Not only are Hourglass and Timepiece amazing books, which I tend to shove into people’s hands to force them to read, and then they yell at me because I didn’t bother to tell them that the series isn’t finished and the next book isn’t out yet (P.S. Everyone loves them anyway), but Myra is hilarious and fun and is responsible for my decision to start watching Doctor Who, for which I am eternally grateful. She’ll be one of my favorites forever.

Lauren Oliver

First book I read in 2012: Delirium

Why she’s awesome: I haven’t actually met Lauren (YET), but Delirium was one of the first books I read after finishing The Hunger Games, and it made me realize there’s a whole genre of fiction out there that I want to discover. Also, her writing is gorgeous, which was also evidenced in Before I Fall, a novel that was just enough of a contemporary for me to realize maybe I wanted to read contemporary too. Requiem is one of my most anticipated reads for next year, and I hope to one day be able to tell Lauren how much I enjoy her books.

Veronica Roth

First book I read in 2012: Divergent

Why she’s awesome: Another author I haven’t met yet, which will hopefully be remedied someday. Not only are Divergent and Insurgent great fun (can’t wait for the third one!), but Veronica’s blog is one of my favorites. She chronicled her journey to publication and her life as a writer in terms I really understand. I think our brains work similarly. Which I mean as a good thing.

C.J. Redwine

First book I read in 2012: Defiance

Why she’s awesome: First off, Defiance is amazing. It’s a great mishmash of genres, full of action and adventure and romance and intrigue. I am ready for #2 ASAP. Also, I’ve had the opportunity to meet C.J. several times, and she is hilarious and my kind of people. Also, she’s the one who yelled at me to read Anna and the French Kiss, for which I am eternally grateful. I’m eternally grateful to many people for many things.

Rae Carson

First book I read in 2012: The Girl of Fire and Thorns

Why she’s awesome: I love that I discovered several new fantasy series this year, and Rae’s series is one of the best. She writes amazing characters (Hector is one of my favorites) and intricate worlds. I am on the edge of my seat for The Bitter Kingdom. Again, haven’t met her yet, but hoping to remedy this someday.

Sarah Maas

First book I read in 2012: Throne of Glass 

Why she’s awesome: I actually met Sarah before I read her book, and realized pretty quick that her epic love of all things geeky also makes her my kind of people. One thing I never realized before I started book blogging was how many authors like the same sorts of nerdy things I do. It’s fabulous. After getting to spend some time with Sarah, I read Throne of Glass, and it was incredible. I know she has big plans for the series, and I can’t wait to read all of them.

Stephanie Perkins

First book I read in 2012: Anna and the French Kiss

Why she’s awesome: I dragged my feet on reading Anna because I just don’t think of myself as a contemporary romance kinda gal. But once I finally got around to reading it, I loved it. I met Stephanie once at a multi-author event, and she is delightful. I’ve definitely got it on my agenda to read more of her books next year.

Kat Zhang

First book I read in 2012: What’s Left of Me

Why she’s awesome: What’s Left of Me is unique and thoughtful and intriguing, and I loved the fascinating world Kat created. I’ve also gotten to spend time with her on several occasions, and she is a genuinely sweet person. I always am happy when I see her at an event, and I’m really curious about how she resolves Eva and Addie’s dilemma in her books.

Sharon Cameron

First book I read in 2012: The Dark Unwinding

Why she’s awesome: Sharon is another author who I met before reading her book, and at the risk of sounding creepy, I just love her. She’s down-to-earth and funny and easy to talk to, and — yet again — my kind of people. As happened with several authors on this list, I liked her so much, I bumped her book up my list of to-be-read titles, and I loved it. Her writing is gorgeous, her story is fascinating, and I adored the way everything unfolded. I can’t wait for the next one.

Well, now that I’ve gushed (possibly too much) about my favorite author discoveries from 2012, I hope you acquaint yourself with some of these lovely ladies (or at least their writing). Who are some of your favorites?

Top Ten Tuesday (September 18) – Bookish People I Want to Meet

Welcome to another Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by the people over at The Broke and the Bookish! After last week’s Super Heavy topic (which, granted, didn’t have to be Super Heavy, but it was for me), I’m glad this week’s is a bit lighter.

On a related note, I realized this week that I’ve been blogging almost six months now! This calls for some sort of celebration, or at least a dessert item of some kind. Preferably of the tiramisu variety.

And in that short/long time (depending on your perspective), I’ve met some truly amazing people. So many, actually, that I had a hard time with this week’s topic, simply because I’ve already met so many of the amazing bookish people who would have been on this list six months ago. They include Myra McEntire, C.J. Redwine, Amy Plum, Sharon Cameron, Kat Zhang, Ruta Sepetys (seriously people, Nashville rocks so hard), and a whole bunch of fabulous Tennessee bloggers. If you ever have a chance to meet any of these ladies (even if you haven’t read their books yet — which, confession time, I haven’t read all of them yet), I’d highly recommend it.

Some of these I stand a decent chance of encountering someday. Others fall solidly in the “one day if all my dreams come true and are sprinkled in fairy dust” category. You can decide for yourself which is which.

Oh, and disclaimer: I haven’t read all of these authors’ books yet either. Some of them are on here because while I’ve heard their books are great, I know they are pretty awesome from following them on Twitter. (Although some of them aren’t on Twitter, and are on here entirely because of their books). And of course, not all of them are authors at all.  This disclaimer is getting confusing. I should stop.

These are numbered so I can keep track of how many I have, but are in no particular order.

Top Ten Bookish People I Want to Meet

1. J.K. Rowling – You know she’s got to be on everyone’s list, because who wouldn’t want to meet the woman who created Harry Potter?

In related news, I dreamed last night that I was Harry, and Voldemort had agreed to have a nice little diplomatic chat with me, but halfway through our chat he figured out the twist ending. Guys, it is never good when the bad guy figures out the twist ending. I was really glad to wake up.

2. Suzanne Collins – In the same vein, I want to meet the woman who created The Hunger Games and singlehandedly brought about this crazy dystopian wave that we’re still surfing. And I would also like to thank her for creating Peeta, who may be my favorite YA male character ever. Or at least one of my top 3.

3. Lauren Oliver – She wrote Before I Fall and the Delirium series, and her writing is just so pretty. I just want to wallow in it.

4. Robin Hobb – No big deal, only the author of my favorite fantasy series of all time. I compare all other fantasy (and books in general, really) to this series, and while some are really, really good, her books stand superior.

A week or so ago, I opened my mailbox to find an autographed copy of the first book in the series, courtesy of Sarah, who had picked one up for me at Dragon*Con. I may have screeched right there at the mailbox.

5. Jessica Khoury – Her debut, Origin, just came out and I haven’t read it yet. I have an ARC (that I won in one of her contests, actually), sitting on my shelves begging to be read, but my life lately has not been conducive to reading. Hopefully I will remedy this soon. But she runs the best, most creative contests ever, PLUS she loves Robin Hobb’s books, and therefore I have decided we must meet someday.

6. Jodi Meadows – Her critique partners are Myra McEntire and C.J. Redwine. Considering how much I adore their books, I figure that loving Jodi’s books is pretty much a guarantee. And although I regret to admit that I’ve had Incarnate sitting unread on my shelf for months now (although sometimes I just have to gaze at the pretty cover), I know when I finally do sit down to read it, I’ll be in for a treat. Plus, I’m rather addicted to Jodi’s blog. And she is the one who introduced me to Lindsey Stirling videos. So I think we’d get along.

7. Veronica Roth – While Divergent was not my favorite book ever (although Insurgent was better), I love Veronica’s blog. I’ve spent so much time browsing her archives. She is responsible for a large percentage of my knowledge of the publishing industry (I’m not sure how vast that knowledge is — probably not very — but what there is, she planted). I would love to hear her speak and pick her brain.

8. Tahereh Mafi – Another author whose books I haven’t read yet (confession: I’m waiting until I can get them with the new cover, because I’m not a fan of the original Shatter Me cover), but her Twitter makes me laugh more than any other author. And anyone who can make me laugh that much is someone I want to meet.

9. Lori at Pure Imagination – She’s the only one of the Tennessee bloggers I regularly communicate with that I haven’t met yet. (Which is funny, because she was actually the first Tennessee blogger I started talking to when I started blogging). Thus far our interaction has consisted entirely of Twitter and blog comments. This needs to be remedied.

10. Sarah at Breaking the Binding – Sometimes you “meet” a person (and I put “meet” in quotes because as of yet, we have not actually met) and you just have to shake your fist at the sky and say “WHY WERE WE NOT RAISED TOGETHER FROM INFANCY?” And such is the case with Sarah. It is sad that we live in two different states, because if we were in the same town, I’m pretty sure great things would happen. Based on the sheer volume of cyber-communication that currently passes between us on a daily basis (a large percentage of which is geeky Tumblr links), I think we’d have no shortage of things to discuss.

Honorable Mentions (since limiting it to 10 is just…no):

Jennifer Nielsen, Rae Carson, Victoria Schwab, James Dashner, Julie Kagawa, Shannon Messenger

Top Ten Tuesday (July 17) – Top Ten Books For People Who Like The Hunger Games

Welcome to another Top Ten Tuesday, brought to you by the masterminds over at The Broke and the Bookish!

This week, we’re picking book recommendations for people who liked a certain book, and while I’m sure my choice is going to be popular, I’m doing it anyway because when I finished this book, I could have used a list like this. Don’t get me wrong — this list exists, all over the Internet, and I’m sure many more versions are going to pop up today. But the ones I found led me wrong. They suggested books I didn’t like. So I’m making my own.

Warning: I’m going to genre-hop a bit.

Top Ten Books for People Who Like The Hunger Games Series…

…for the Action

The Maze Runner by James Dashner.

…for the Dystopian Setting

Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi

…for the Action AND the Dystopian Setting

Divergent by Veronica Roth

The Immortal Rules by Julie Kagawa

…for the Strong Heroine

The Girl of Fire and Thorns by Rae Carson

Defiance by C.J. Redwine

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

…for the Plot

Battle Royale by Koushun Takami

[Disclaimer: I have not read this book, but I hear the plot is very similar to Hunger Games. I’ve also read interviews with Suzanne Collins where she said she didn’t know this book existed prior to her writing HG, and I believe her. Sometimes people just have similar ideas. It’s happened to me. It could happen to you. But I also think this list would be incomplete if it didn’t include the book that Hunger Games is most often compared to.]

Happy reading everyone!

Top Ten Tuesday (June 12): Beach Reads

Welcome to another Top Ten Tuesday, a weekly meme hosted by the fabulous folks over at The Broke and the Bookish!

In celebration of summer and sun and flip-flops, this week’s topic is:

Top Ten Books I’d Recommend As Good Beach Reads

Of course, I live in a completely land-locked state, so I’m going to have to think of these as pool reads instead of beach reads, but the concept is the same. Minus the sand and the salt.

Also, please forgive me for being a bit dense, but I’ve never understood the concept of “beach reads.” I will personally just take whatever book I’m currently reading to the beach and continue reading it. My reading environment plays a very small role in my reading selection.

So, that said, I tried to think of books that I enjoyed, and that I wouldn’t be embarrassed to be seen reading in public, in a bathing suit. Because being in a bathing suit in public…that’s enough. I also tried to pick books that wouldn’t evoke any serious freak-outs, like ugly-crying. You could possibly do a dignified single-tear-trickle with a couple of these, but that’s not so bad in public.

I’m kind of all over the place with this list, genre-wise. We’re going to assume that’s okay.

 

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver

The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen

Gifted by Liz Long

The Help by Kathryn Stockett

The Host by Stephenie Meyer

Hourglass by Myra McEntire

The Princess Bride by William Goldman

The Selection by Kiera Cass

The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

Water for Elephants by Sara Gruen

Do you have books you designate as “beach reads?” And what does that mean? Please help me clear up this mystery.


Feature & Follow #99 – Fictional Character Blind Date

Welcome to the Feature & Follow Hop, hosted by Parajunkee’s View and Alison Can Read!

If you’re new to my blog, I’d love if you would follow via one of the subscription options in the sidebar (LinkyFollowers, Networked Blogs, RSS or Email). Be sure to let me know in the comments how you’re following so I can return the favor!

This week’s question (which was MY SUGGESTION, by the way) is:

You are a matchmaker — your goal, hook up two characters from two of your favorite books. Who would it be? How do you think it would go?

Okay, I know I suggested it, but this is actually hard. So many characters in books are already paired off! I don’t want to pull someone out of a “perfect” pairing, which leaves relatively slim pickings. BUT, I can do it. So.

I’m starting with the guy: Kent McFuller from Before I Fall. Poor Kent. He’s so sweet and kind and loyal, and he really gets the short straw in that book.

I mean…other than Sam, who has to die every night for a week. That’s probably a slightly worse hand than what Kent is dealt. But still. I love Kent, and he’s the one I walked away thinking about when the book was finished.

Anyway. Now to pick a lovely lady for him.

I pick Marlee from The Selection.

She’s sweet, she’s gentle, she’s kind, she’s beautiful, she appears to be universally loved, and she’s admitted she’s not that into Prince Maxon. And you know why? Because she should be with Kent. I imagine it would go something like this: