I actually have more than one. In no particular order:
Scott Westerfeld, So Yesterday. I adore everything Scott Westerfeld. I have yet to read his Midnighter's series, but it's on my list. I just find his young adult writing fresh and current and relevant. *sadly shaking head*
J.K. Rowling, Harry Potter. And not for the reason you think. I think she's brilliant, of course, but the reason why I find myself shaking my head sadly is because she "gets" boys. She doesn't try to make Harry a girl. As a woman author, I find this beyond awesome. And I marvel every time I read a scene where she captures the boyness of Harry. *stewing on how to know how a boy would react to things when I am not a boy*Then The Book Thief, for reasons I already pontificated on in the post on Monday.
So that's it. I'm opening the comments from now until midnight Sunday, April 5, so you have about 72 hours to figure out which authors and books have you sadly shaking your head. Cuz I want to do that, too.
What will you get? I have a couple of books that had me shaking my head. Looking for Alaska by John Green and Wicked Lovely by Melissa Marr. Or I'll take a critical look at the first ten pages of your book. You choose.
R.A. Nelson - BREATHE ME. Holy Schnikes that guy makes my brain hurt. This was one of the few books I sat down with at 8PM, and by 3AM I was finished. Not only is he able to capture the true essence of a teenage girl - some I still struggle to do and I was one - but he also nails her torment/grief from her abused past. He's amazing.
ReplyDeleteI would love to be able to write with the voice of Richelle Mead in Vampire Academy, or Meg Cabot in Airhead. That being said, the set of books that has really made me shake my head is The Hallows series by Kim Harrison. Her intricate plotting is mind boggling.
ReplyDeleteI'm reading the Hunger Games right now and I'm just completely blown away. It's made of awesome and I'm so jealous that I didn't write it.
ReplyDeleteAnd on the non-YA end of things I'm obsessed with Marisa de Los Santos. Love Walked In is one of my favorite books of all-time. It's one of those books where you have to mark pages because the prose is so beautiful.
Anything written by Jodi Picoult.
ReplyDeleteI love the way she weaves her words.
I'm a classics girl. There's a reason they're classics. Do they count? Because THE GREAT GATSBY always has me shaking my head. The man is sheer genius. :D
ReplyDeleteTad Williams - Otherland series. This was a truly interesting series, well written and leaving me anxious to get the next book. I knew I was enjoying it when I finished the first one in just a couple weeks (quick reading for me, since I rarely have enough time to read). This is a definite must read.
ReplyDeleteAnything by Patricia McKillip. Her prose is poetic without being over-the-top, and she has an original take on fantasy.
ReplyDeleteMan, I'm so excited to read all these new authors! I've heard of one or two of the books and/or authors, so there's tons of new stuff for me! Thanks guys!
ReplyDeleteHmm...I agree with your JK Rowling pick however I am also in love with C.S. Lewis and his works, especially the chronicles of Narnia, the ending was so perfect and beautiful I cried. Even now with the movies I still know tons and tons of people who have not read ALL of the books in the chronicle and you cannot truly appreciate the work until it is done. He was brilliant and still is.
ReplyDeleteI seriously have too many to name, but one of my faves is Diana Gabaldon's Outlander series. I have read each of those 1000+ page books several times and I fall in love with them every time. I read the first three books in 4 days. What really kills me is that she wrote the first book just for practice, because she had never written fiction before and wanted to see if she could. I'm stunned by her awesomeness.
ReplyDeleteSteven Lawhead: The Song of Albion series - As far as fantasy mixed with the real world goes, I'm not usually a fan, but I absolutely loved this series! I also would recommend the King Raven Trilogy. In the mystery category, I love Mary Higgins Clark and Agatha Christie and I'm a huge fan of the classics! Thomas Hardy's Tess of the D'Ubervilles. Anything by Jane Austen makes me shake my head sadly and wish I had written it (or lived it. Take your pick)!
ReplyDeleteOkay, I had every intention of just mentioning Lawhead, but once i go going, well... I have decided it's impossible for me to leave a short comment.
Tamora Pierce - All of her books. Especially Wild Magic. I've lost track how many times I've read that book. Sometimes I'll read it through once and then just go ahead and start it again right away. I'd love to be able to make a reader want to do that.
ReplyDeleteAnne McCaffrey - Pern Series. She is awesome in all aspects of her writing.
Oh yeah, I read the Hunger Games too. Very awesome book.
I'm sure there are more, many more, but I just can't think of them at this moment in time.
Without a doubt Suzanne Collins in Hunger Games. Wow! If I could suck in a reader the way she does, for page after page after page, then I would be happy.
ReplyDeleteCassandra Clare--I love her Immortal Beloved Series. The world that she built was awesome.
An old one, but amazing nonetheless:
ReplyDeleteThe Thief of Always
Clive Barker
Liz
Patricia McKillip. I adore her style. The way she weaves poetry out of words. I've often heard of books that have lyrical writing, but I've never met another book with writing as lyrical as McKillip's. She takes lyrical to a whole 'nother dimension.
ReplyDeleteAnd then there's her sense of humor--even if the book is serious in parts. Really serious. She has the ability to make me snort with laughter over a few, well chosen words.
And her stories?! Wow! I love that you can read the stories to enjoy, but you can also read them to learn. That's one of my favorite things about any story: the themes and messages beneath the surface of the story.
Riddle-Master is my favorite book of all.
Time Traveler's Wife
ReplyDeleteby Audrey Niffenegger
I could read this one again and again!
Bernard Cornwell hands down. He is by leaps and bounds my favorite author. He doesn't write fantasy or romance per se, which is more my genre, and I kind of stumbled on to his work. In fact, I feel like he's a 'man's man' sort of author. But his protagonist is always so breathtakingly human that I have to shake my head. His MC's are always male (which is fine) but they are the most complex creatures. Hard, soft, caring, unfeeling, proud, humble, right and wrong. He has a way of writing emotion that I only wish I could write.
ReplyDeleteAnne Rice is another author who makes me shake my head. I find the shear passion of her writing staggering. It's like a piece of her soul is branded on each and every word. Also, she's the queen of description. I can almost smell the flowers she writes about!
I know this is way late to be commenting on this post, but I'm re-reading Cold Mountain and that has some gorgeous writing in it. Great use of language and imagery that is easy to understand, but still awesome. Part of me would absolutely love to write (or be able to write) like Frasier does in this book (and I wouldn't turn down a nice little National Book Award either). But then I remember that you're supposed to write what you read and, to be honest, the books I can't put down aren't quite so literary, or writerly. Does that make sense? Anywho...
ReplyDelete