My Most-Read Authors

I was inspired to write this post by Kristi of The Story Siren, who wrote one first. It was such an interesting idea, I had to copy it!

Thanks to Kristi, I learned there is a place on Goodreads where you can see your "Most Read" Authors. That is, the authors of whom you have read the most of their books. I was really surprised by how some of my favorite authors aren't even on this list, while so-so authors are.

I'm not sure this is entirely accurate, since often, especially with series, I neglect to mark all of the books as read- something I've been trying to fix, but I may have missed a few!

1. Suzanne Collins

8 books. No surprise there... she wrote two of the best series ever, The Hunger Games and Gregor the Overlander, which I've read all the books in both of those series.

2. J.K. Rowling and P.C. and Kristin Cast

7 books each. I bet you can guess which ones J.K. Rowling's were. And for P.C. Cast, that would be her vampyre series, House of Night, in which I have read all but the most recent installment, Awakened.

3. Scott Westerfeld

6 books. Includes the Uglies series (one of my favorites), plus a few of his other books, So Yesterday and Leviathan.

4. Stephenie Meyer, Melissa de la Cruz, Rick Riordan

5 books each. A vampire series, another vampire series, and a Greek God series. I am surprised by how many of these authors on this list have written vampire series! The only one left I need to read it Vampire Academy, which I've heard is awesome.

5. Cassandra Clare and Anna Godbersen

4 books each. Cassandra Clare... I love her Mortal Instruments and Clockwork Angel series. And I've read all 4 Luxe books by Anna Godbersen, which are great historical fiction.

6. Cornelia Funke, Christopher Paolini, Gail Carson Levine, Libba Bray

3 books each. I find it funny that all four of these authors were ones I read LONG before I started blogging. Mainly books I enjoyed in elementary/middle school.

I'm stopping there, because I have TON of authors whose books I've read only 2 or 1 of. Here's the weirdest thing I've learned from this: Every single author on this list, with the exception of Melissa de la Cruz, I started reading before I started blogging. I think this is because now I read so many more Debut authors and review copies than getting into series the way I used to.

The other thing I've learned is that I need to read more! I really just should and that's all there is to it.

Waiting On Wednesday: Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton

"Waiting On" Wednesday is a weekly event, hosted by Breaking the Spine, that spotlights upcoming releases that we're eagerly anticipating.

This week's pre-publication "can't-wait-to-read" selection is:

Blood Magic by Tessa Gratton

This book releases on May 24, 2011.

Goodreads Summary:

For Nick Pardee and Silla Kennicot, the cemetery is the center of everything.

Nick is a city boy angry at being forced to move back to the nowhere town of Yaleylah, Missouri where he grew up. He can’t help remembering his mom and the blood magic she practiced – memories he’s tried for five years to escape. Silla, though, doesn’t want to forget; her parents’ apparent murder-suicide left her numb and needing answers. When a book of magic spells in her dad’s handwriting appears on her doorstep, she sees her chance to unravel the mystery of their deaths.

Together they plunge into the world of dark magic, but when a hundred-year-old blood witch comes hunting for the bones of Silla’s parents and the spell book, Nick and Silla will have to let go of everything they believe about who they are, the nature of life and death, and the deadly secrets that hide in blood.

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Why I'm Anticipating:

2011 Debut... plus Tessa Gratton writes with Maggie Stiefvater and Brenna Yovanoff at Merry Sisters of Fate... both of whom are amazingly talented writers! I have no doubt Ms. Gratton will be just as talented and amazing in her debut. I can't wait!

Book Review: Ink Exchange by Melissa Marr

Title: Ink Exchange
Author: Melissa Marr
Series: Wicked Lovely #2
Release Date: May 1 2008
Publisher: HarperTeen
Previous Books In Series:
Wicked Lovely
My Source: Library (audiobook)

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Goodreads Summary:

To 17-year-old Leslie, the tattoo is a thing of indescribable beauty, a captivating mark that she must make her own. But this subtle web of eyes and wings brings with it a transformation that no sweet young girl would ever imagine or welcome. Like its predecessor, this stand-alone sequel to Wicked Lovely plunges its youthful heroine into a faery world of almost constant peril. A tantalizing urban fantasy that won't let go.

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My Review:

I listened to this book on CD, but I don't believe that affected my review or perception of the book. It was a good choice of a book to listen to- the narrator's voice wasn't annoying at all, and it was easy to follow, so I would recommend the audiobook, if you prefer to listen to books rather then read them (something I rarely do).

This is the second book in the Wicked Lovely series. I read the first book, Wicked Lovely, over two years ago, and I don't even remember most of it, though I didn't really love it, I didn't hate it either. I've been meaning to pick up the second one ever since then, and now I finally have.

This book is strange, not a typical YA romance story at all, which I really liked. The plot focuses around Leslie, who has a terrible past that always haunts her. She chooses to get a tattoo that draws her to Irrial, the king of the dark faery court. Figuring out how the faery courts work was a little confusing, probably since it's been a little while since I read the first book. I definitely recommend reading that one first even though this is a companion novel, not a sequel. It deals with some pretty intense stuff. I felt like Leslie was only a pawn in the true plot, she had no real say in anything that happened, except the ending. The conflict is really about Irial, the king of the Dark Court, and Naill a faery of the summer court whose alleigences are tested once he finds himself assigned to guarding Leslie. Naill was easily my favorite character, he was tortured and confused, but powerful too. I loved what happened at the end with Naill.

I would caution that this book is very dark, and I would not recommend it to anyone looking for a lighter faery read. It seems like there's no moral standard in the faery world, and this proves quite disturbing at times. There was no resolved feeling by the end of all the drama either. It was like the end came and Melissa Marr said, neither side is good or bad, nobody wins, the end. I get the point, but I like having more of a resolved feeling.

It's difficult to explain, I just feel like nothing really happened with the plot- most of the book was the same things happening repeatedly. It became predictable and sometimes boring. I didn't love any of the characters enough to make the tensions worth it. The romance was flat too- I didn't see why Irial, or Naill, was ever really attracted to Leslie. And she was such a messed-up girl, it just worked weirdly.

Overall, I just wasn't really impressed, but in that way, it was a lot like Wicked Lovely. If you enjoy darker paranoraml fey stories, this is a decent series. I'll probably get the 3rd book on CD also.

3 out of 5

Cover: 3.5/5 Pretty standard, not hugely attention grabbing, but decent.

In My Mailbox (18)

In My Mailbox is a weekly meme hosted by The Story Siren.



Recieved:
Nomansland by Lesley Hauge
Firelight by Sophie Jordan

From the Library:
Past Midnight by Mara Purnhagen
Torment by Lauren Kate
Something, Maybe by Elizabeth Scott (see my review)

I didn't mention in the video, but I also got an e-book of In The Storm by Karen Metcalf for review.

Thanks to:
Amelia at The Authoress
An Unknown Person... (Watch the video for explanation!)

Happy Reading everyone!

Why the Love Triangle?

I was tempted to call this post "In Defense of the Love Triangle" but I thought that might turn some people away. In all honesty, I'm not defending the Love Triangle, but I'm looking at it from maybe a different angle. It just seems like everybody complains about them- which I completely understand. Anyway, on to the post...

Love 'em or hate 'em, they're always there, in the books we hate and the books we love. And I've seen plenty of bloggers complain- er, talk about- the overuse of the love triangle. But does anybody ever question WHY the love triangle is so popular?

Did it start with Twilight? That's what a lot of people like to think. While Twilight capitalized on the love triangle, I'm pretty sure Stephenie Meyer didn't invent it.

A little while ago, I came across a blog post on this very subject by Carrie Ryan, author of a fantastic series The Forest of Hands and Teeth which contains a love triangle. She does a great job of explaining the real purpose of a love triangle. I'll share just a little bit of the post, though I encourage you to check out the whole thing if you've read her books and don't mind the spoilers you'll find there:

To me, that's the essence of a love triangle -- each man is a viable choice for the heroine but each speaks to a different part of who she is. The heroine isn't choosing between two men, she's choosing who SHE wants to be and that will dictate who the right match is.

There you have it, thanks to the fabulous Carrie Ryan! I think this is why love triangles are so popular in YA- they allow the heroine to choose between who she wants to be in the end, and allow for that side of her character to grow.

I'm not saying they aren't overused, though. It would still be really nice if authors could start coming up with new ways to grow and change their characters, without involving the choice to be between two boys. But I'm also pretty sure you can't claim you HATE books with love triangles. They can be an awesome asset to a book.

Having said that, I hesitate more to pick up a book when it's clear there's a love triangle from the summary. (Example: Unearthly by Cynthia Hand. I've heard so much about the love triangle, that I'm not all that interested because it seems so generic.)

And sometimes I think there's a love triangle when there doesn't need to be. Example, Personal Demons by Lisa Desrochers. I'm one of those people who LOVED Luc, but couldn't even understand why Frannie was ever even attracted to Gabe with Luc around. Sure, I get the point was making the choice between Heaven and Hell, but while reading the book, I didn't feel like Gabe or Luc represented either on of them, actually. And a lot of people wished for Gabe's POV, while I just wished he would leave! This might just be me, though! It was still a great book, I just wish it didn't have a love triangle, it would've been even better.

But on the other hand, I could make a decent size list of books that are good because of the love triangle. The Hunger Games and Nightshade are two prime examples.

It's also frustrating as a reader to have to make the choice between two great guys (à la Nightshade) but it's even worse to see the guy who doesn't get chosen be left off on their own. I am so sad for characters like Simon in City of Bones and Oliver in Blue Bloods- I hope both of them get some of their own romance in the upcoming installments of their respective series!

Bottom line: When it comes to love triangles, they're WAY overused, but... I still like a lot of books with them anyway, because it's hard to deny they usually make for a great plot device and source of choice and growth for the heroine.

Please, share your thoughts! I'd love to hear them. :)

Book Review: Something, Maybe by Elizabeth Scott

Title: Something, Maybe
Author: Elizabeth Scott
Series: None
Publisher: Simon Pulse
Release Date: March 24, 2009
My Source: Library

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Goodreads Summary:

Everyone thinks their parents are embarrassing, but Hannah knows she's got them all beat.

Her dad made a fortune showcasing photos of pretty girls and his party lifestyle all over the Internet, and her mom was once one of her dad's 'girlfriends' and is now the star of her own website.

After getting the wrong kind of attention for way too long, Hannah has mastered the art of staying under the radar . . . and that's just how she likes it. Of course, that doesn't help her get noticed by her crush. Hannah's sure that gorgeous, sensitive Josh is her soul mate. But trying to get him to notice her; wondering why she suddenly can't stop thinking about another guy, Finn; and dealing with her parents make Hannah feel like she's going crazy. Yet she's determined to make things work out the way she wants only what she wants may not be what she needs. . . .
Once again, Elizabeth Scott has created a world so painfully funny and a cast of characters so heartbreakingly real that you'll love being a part of it from unexpected start to triumphant finish.

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My Review:

I've read one other book by Elizabeth Scott, Living Dead Girl. Needless to say, that book and Something, Maybe couldn't be more different. While I loved and was terrified by Living Dead Girl, I knew Something, Maybe was a completely different genre and style. So I was nervous and excited to read more by Elizabeth Scott. I hate to say, I don't think this nearly lived up to her previous book, though it still had the some of the same awesome writing stuff.

Hannah, for having such non-normal parents as can be, is a very real character. She goes through quite a transformation in the course of the book, and it was great to watch. Unfortunately, I was really annoyed with her character for the first half of the book, because it really felt like she wasn't opening her eyes to stuff that should be obvious all around her. By the end, I liked her a lot more, but even then, she still annoys me a bit. I get that she was the worst dad in the world and a mother who loves her but is very non-traditional or motherly, but that doesn't mean she has to be so closed off to looking pretty, having friends at school, or being noticed by anybody. I get that she changed over the course of the book, but it really drove me crazy in the beginning.

Josh is the guy for 3/4 of the book Hannah calls her "soul mate". Yeah, this annoyed me too, when there was another guy (Finn) who was actually her friend and actually obviously liked her, it just took the whole book for her to see it. The love triangle was extremely predictable, even though there was one minor twist towards the end, it was easy to see coming.

But Finn, oh how I loved Finn. Even though so much of this book drove me crazy, I really, really, really love him. He was simply the perfect guy- that's all there was to it. But this made me dislike Hannah even more- he was so perfect for Hannah but she never noticed him throughout the whole book, she was just focused on Josh for no reason! But the end was very, very cute.

The plot about her father, Jackson James, was predictable too. I get why she hated him, but I guess I felt like nothing really happened there, either. She didn't really learn anything new about him by the end.

Well, this book was pretty short and a very easy read. It wasn't boring, just kind of annoying. I still liked it, but nothing more than that, and probably only because of Finn. I think I'm going against the grain with my semi-dislike. A lot of people loved this book a lot more than I did. I would recommend it for contemporary teen romance fans (a genre I unfortunately rarely read anyway).

3 out of 5 stars

Cover: 4/5 Simple, but pretty! Love the colors.

What's Happening...

First of all, I want to apologize for my lack of presence in the blogging community in the past few days... It might continue for a couple more days, but I promise I'll be in full swing once the weekend comes, and I'll schedule a bunch of posts and be on top of everything again. I've been out of town, and busy, so yeah. I haven't even finished a book in the last week. So sad I know!

But I wanted to share that starting today, I will be participating in the Loving the Reviews Challenge, hosted by Blokosiner's Book Blog and Sniffly Kitty's Mostly Books. What you do is review books all through the month of February, and subsequently enter giveaways. That's it!

I'm pretty excited to start! Anybody else participating?