Tuesday, January 15, 2019

Top Ten Tuesday: Authors Whose Work I’ll Read Again






Top Ten Tuesday is hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl. This week’s topic is ten authors who I discovered in 2018. I was impressed with all of these authors and will happily read more books by them.












Authors Whose Work I’ll Read Again





10. Meredith Russo




Yes, her debut novel is a romance. Yes, I’m aware that I dislike romance. Yes, I’m admitting that I enjoyed a romance book. If I Was Your Girl feels fresh. I haven’t read a novel like this one before. The author is a trans woman who wrote about a trans protagonist. I appreciated seeing a traditional teenage romance plot from a new perspective.


For as long as I could remember, I had been apologizing for existing, for trying to be who I was, to live the life I was meant to lead. – If I Was Your Girl








9. Kim Liggett





I love horror, but I struggle with young adult horror because it’s usually too tame for me. Kim Liggett’s The Last Harvest is not tame. The plot is bizarre, and the body count is high. She has another horror series that I should probably check out soon.








8. Kekla Magoon




*Sigh,* book community, why are we sleeping on How It Went Down? The plot and themes are similar to The Hate U Give, but it’s better written and more nuanced. Can we please scream about this book? It deserves some screaming. Also, the author has written a ton of other books, so that’s bad news for my must-read mountain.


People make mistakes. They look at the surface of things and see what they want to.How It Went Down








7. Danielle McLaughlin




Dinosaurs On Other Planets is the best short story collection I read in 2018. McLaughlin’s stories are slow, quiet, atmospheric, and extremely realistic. They’re iceberg stories: a lot is left unsaid, and you have to read between the lines to figure out what’s going on. I don’t think I could read a whole novel written this way, but if the author publishes another story collection, I’ll be first in line to throw my money at Amazon.


Life, after all, was mostly the art of salvage.Dinosaurs on Other Planets








6. Maureen Johnson




I’ve followed Maureen Johnson on Twitter for years, but I haven’t read any of her novels because they don’t sound like my kind of thing. In 2018, I read her novella, The Jubilee Express. Guys, this story is hilarious. I had to laugh quietly because I read it in the middle of the night (as you do). I’m tempted to try her other books, even though they’re not very “me.”


There is nothing about a bad situation that fourteen hyper cheerleaders can't worsen.The Jubilee Express








5. Kate DiCamillo




Can I call myself a children’s book lover if I’ve only read 1 Kate DiCamillo book? Probably not. She’s written a billion books and won pretty much every award ever. Out of all the Newbery novels I read last year, The Tale of Despereaux was my favorite. A few of her other books are on my to-read list. I’ll get to them eventually.


Love, as we have already discussed, is a powerful, wonderful, ridiculous thing, capable of moving mountains. And spools of thread.- The Tale Of Despereaux








4. Janet Ellis




This author is actually an actor in the UK. I’m glad I didn’t know that before I picked up the book. It might have made me hesitate because I’ve had bad luck with “celebrity” novels. I was impressed with Janet Ellis’s debut, The Butcher’s Hook. It’s a blend of my three favorite genres: literary, historical, horror. It’s quite gross and gory. You need a strong stomach to read it. If the author’s next book is similar, I’m here for it.


Every girl hopes to find love and situation neatly bundled. It is hardly ever so. The Butcher’s Hook








3. Kimberly Brubaker Bradley




As soon as I finished The War That Saved My Life, I added the sequel to my must-read list. It’s one of the best middlegrade books I read in 2018. Unlike a lot of kids’ books, it isn’t sweet. It’s hopeful, but the characters have huge problems that aren’t neatly solved at the end of the novel. I’m interested to see where the story goes next.


I wanted to say a lot of things, but, as usual, I didn't have the words for the thoughts inside my head. The War that Saved My Life








2. Patricia Highsmith




This author has been dead since 1995, so I’m behind the times with this one. In 2018, I read over 100 books. Most of them sank into the murk at the bottom of my mind, but one that stuck with me is The Talented Mr. Ripley. I think it stuck because of the character development. Tom Ripley is a messed-up dude. He seems like an average college student, but he has murderous tendencies. I’m excited to read the Mr. Ripley sequels.


He remembered that right after that, he had stolen a loaf of bread from a delicatessen counter and had taken it home and devoured it, feeling that the world owed a loaf of bread to him, and more. The Talented Mr. Ripley








1. Mackenzi Lee




I read 4 Mackenzi Lee books last year. Two of them made my “Best Books of 2018” list. Obviously, I’m in love with this author’s work. Her novels are fun, escapist adventures. If I’m awake at 2 AM, it’s probably because I’m reading a Mackenzi Lee book and want to know how the characters are going to get themselves out of the ridiculous messes they make. I’m impatiently awaiting her next novel.


God bless the book people for their boundless knowledge absorbed from having words instead of friends. - The Gentleman’s Guide To Vice And Virtue






Which amazing author did you discover in 2018?







51 comments:

  1. I've read Blood & Salt by Liggett and enjoyed it but there was a TAD more romance in it than I wanted. It had a very Children of the Corn feel though which I liked. I have "The Unfortunates" out from the library right now by her. I loved This Monstrous Thing and enjoy seeing Lee on any list here. I always thought that book should have gotten more attention but her new series is quite popular.

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    1. YES! Why are we not talking about This Monstrous Thing? It’s so good. If a book has a Children on the Corn vibe, I’ll probably love it. I need to look into that series.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  2. I might have read Maureen Johnson, can't remember. Glad that you found her book hilarious. I'll have to check it out.

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    1. It was so funny that I didn’t even mind that it was a romance. I usually really dislike romance-focused books.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  3. The Last Harvest intrigues me. How gory was it?

    This is my Top Ten Tuesday post.

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    1. Less gory than a lot of adult horror, but much more gory than typical YA horror.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  4. I keep meaning to read Patricia Highsmith....

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    1. I said that for years. I’m glad I finally picked up one of her books.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  5. Great list! I love Mackenzi Lee, her Gentleman's Guide and Lady's Guide books are so fun. If I Was Your Girl is going straight on my TBR, and I'm definitely going to check out Kim Liggett and Kekla Magoon, too.

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  6. I LOVE that quote from Gentleman's Guide, and just the book in general, and Mackenzi. She's great! I've read a few books by Kate Dicamillo I believe. The first was Because of Winn Dixie when I was young and The Tale of Desperaux is one I read in grad school and I just adored. I really need to read The Talented Mr. Ripley. And I've read one or two books by Maureen Johnson. She's fun, and makes me laugh usually.

    -Lauren
    www.shootingstarsmag.net

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    1. Gentleman’s Guide was one of my favorite books last year. I somehow acquired an MFA in Children’s lit without reading a Kate DiCamillo book. Oops.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  7. Mackenzie Lee was new to me last year. I’d heard of This Monstrous Thing but didn’t know her name. It wasn’t until The Gentleman’s Guide that she really came on my radar. That one was so much fun and such a good time - I’ll definitely read more from her.

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  8. Lots of new names on this list, and a few favorites! Kate DiCamillo is awesome, glad to see her here. I remember my third grade teacher reading Because of Winn-Dixie to us and I just loved it. I'd like to check out some books by Maureen Johnson as well. Great list!

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    1. I will read Because of Winn-Dixie someday. A lot of people mention that book when I blather about The Tale Of Despereaux.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  9. How It went down does look great, happy you put it on my radar!! It sucks when great books are overlooked because they are similar to others.
    Tori @ In Tori Lex

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    1. I’m sad that How It Went Down got lost in the THUG hype. More people need to read it.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  10. Several of these authors I've never heard of so I'm excited to look for their books. Great list!

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  11. Ahh I very much agree with Maureen Johnson! I read an enjoyed The Name of the Star (and need to finish that series) and have heard good things about her newer one, Truly Devious! Glad you found quite a few good new ones!

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    1. I need to pick up more of her books. They don’t sound very “me,” but maybe I’m wrong.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  12. I just picked up a Kekla Magoon middle grade novel at the library, which I'm pretty excited about. And yes, the sequel to War that Saved My Life shows that Kimberly BB is the real deal. I also read her book Jefferson's Sons which is about the slave children of the president.

    I've only seen the Matt Damon movie, but I did recently use Mr. Ripley to explain to someone why "protagonist" and "hero" are not interchangeable.

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    1. Yeah, Mr. Ripley is definitely not a hero! I hope the Magoon book is good. I’m on a waitlist for the sequel to The War That Saved My Life, but the list doesn’t seem to be moving.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  13. Here's why you don't hear people screaming about How It Went Down - timing. THUG was released at the right time and it got a LOT of media attention.

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  14. I think all of these authors are new to me, but I'm glad you found some new favorites this year!

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  15. I love that quote from The Jubilee Express! I just discovered Maureen Johnson this past year w/ Truly, devious. I will definitely read more of her stuff!

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    1. Yeah, that quote is very true. They hyper cheerleaders in the story did not make things easier.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  16. Mackenzie Lee is on my to read list. I will have to add How It Went Down.

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  17. I need more Mackenzi Lee in my life... :)

    Lauren @ Always Me

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  18. I'm glad you enjoyed If I Was Your Girl! I don't like romance, either, but I liked this one. I guess because it was more than the stereotype romance I have in my head when I think "romance book"?

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    1. I’m glad you liked it, too. I was hesitant to read it because romances usually don’t appeal to me, but I liked seeing a teenage love story from a different perspective.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  19. I'm only familiar with Patricia Highsmith. I love the Ripley character in the first three books. I didn't read the other two as the plots sounded poor. The second book was my favourite despite me having no interest in art!

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    1. I’m going to pick up the second book as soon as I get my TBR down a bit. I need to read my own books before I get more.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  20. You are always introductions new authors, to me anyway. They are all women... I will have to think of the new authors I read last year, but I read more non-fiction so I do read new authors more frequently.

    www.thepulpitandthepen.com

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    1. Fiction authors tend to write A LOT of books, so it’s easy to get stuck reading familiar authors. I love nonfiction and need to read more of it.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  21. I've not read any of them, so I will now go and google them!

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  22. I am a HUGE Kim Liggett fan! I loved the first book in her series, and The Last Harvest. I still have to read the second book in the series, and also her newest book, The Unfortunates. I have got to read some Mackenzi Lee, too- I hear so many good things! Definitely need to read Kekla and Meredith's books, too!

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    1. It’s possible that I learned about The Last Harvest from your blog. I know you read it first. Yes! You need to read Mackenzi Lee books. They’re really good.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  23. I've yet to read any of these... But I like how you and other bloggers keep me better informed on what's out there being published.

    www.thepulpitandthepen.com

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    1. I’m happy to help. Keeping up with publishing is a challenge. I follow around 1000 blogs, and I’m still constantly finding great books that I’ve never heard about.

      Aj @ Read All The Things!

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  24. Now Janet Ellis is an unexpected blast from my past! She was a presenter on a pretty straight-laced kids tv programme, Blue Peter, who then had a baby Without A Husband!! It was very shocking all those years ago :-/
    The only one of these authors I have read is Kekla Magoon. She's great!

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  25. I haven't read any of these yet. I have heard good things about Mackenzi Lee.

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  26. oh wow I dind't know about any of these authors! I'll keep them in mind! My fav discovered in 2018 was Rebecca Podos :)

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  27. I can see how The Talented Mr Ripley would stick out among the 100+ books read in 2018 - he is a memorable character, so wonderfully crafted. Good to hear you enjoyed your reading experience of Patricia Highsmith.

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  28. I've only read one book Maureen Johnson before and I thought it was okay, but I want to try some of her other books. And YAS to more Mackenzi Lee. Same!

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  29. Sound like some wonderful authors. I am not sure how many I have read a book by so I will have to check. This is a great post!

    Mary

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  30. Meredith Russo has a new book coming out next month. I've pre-ordered a copy. My weekly updates

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  31. I have added How It Went Down to Goodreads. 👍✨

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