As a young child, during rainy days on my great uncle’s mountain farm, I’d huddle in a corner with one of the many books from his library. Always fiction. And always a classic. Those were my true loves. I reveled in losing myself to some fantastical realm and shutting out the rest of the world. Even when I didn’t have a book, I lived in my imagination. My first grade teacher told my parents how I’d lose my head in the clouds. Now I get to write the tales that lived my imagination. It’s been a great privilege to meet these characters and I love writing their stories.
Although The Host doesn’t quite fit in the classics list, it touches a place in my heart: it’s the novel that inspired me to write. I loved the depth of the characters and the intense emotions that the book brought out in me. Not only did The Host lead me to explore my own writing, but the plot drew me along so much that I read the book several times for the pure enjoyment of it.
Now in the trade paperback edition: New Bonus Chapter and Reading Group Guide, including Stephenie Meyer's Annotated Playlist for the book.Melanie Stryder refuses to fade away. The earth has been invaded by a species that take over the minds of human hosts while leaving their bodies intact. Wanderer, the invading "soul" who has been given Melanie's body, didn't expect to find its former tenant refusing to relinquish possession of her mind.As Melanie fills Wanderer's thoughts with visions of Jared, a human who still lives in hiding, Wanderer begins to yearn for a man she's never met. Reluctant allies, Wanderer and…
I believe The Hunger Games is a must-read for all fans of young adult and/or dystopia. I became so invested in the main character, Katniss Everdeen, that I felt real fear when she found herself in danger and real hope for her family. Although I didn’t base my novel on The Hunger Games or its world, I found that it had some influence on the plot.
Sixteen-year-old Katniss Everdeen regards it as a death sentence when she is forced to represent her district in the annual Hunger Games, a fight to the death on live TV. But Katniss has been close to death before - and survival, for her, is second nature. The Hunger Games is a searing novel set in a future with unsettling parallels to our present. Welcome to the deadliest reality TV show ever...
Correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m not sure you can call yourself a reader unless you’ve read the Harry Potter series. The world! The characters! The story! Oh, I loved it all! I ate up every bit—over and over. For me, like The Lord of the Rings, a world without Harry Potter is no world at all. It’s an honor to have read the books.
The fifth adventure in the spellbinding Harry Potter saga - the series that changed the world of books forever
Dark times have come to Hogwarts. After the Dementors' attack on his cousin Dudley, Harry Potter knows that Voldemort will stop at nothing to find him. There are many who deny the Dark Lord's return, but Harry is not alone: a secret order gathers at Grimmauld Place to fight against the Dark forces.
Harry must allow Professor Snape to teach him how to protect himself from Voldemort's savage assaults on his mind. But they are growing stronger by the day and…
At ten years old, I read The Lord of the Rings and it was the first major novel I’d gotten to read—after The Hobbit, of course. So, I could never write a favorites list without adding it. Like Harry Potter, the world, characters, and plot of The Lord of the Rings coalesce to make it a hit for me. This story drew me into a long love of fantasy novels and made me become a ferocious reader.
One Ring to rule them all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them
In ancient times the Rings of Power were crafted by the Elven-smiths, and Sauron, the Dark Lord, forged the One Ring, filling it with his own power so that he could rule all others. But the One Ring was taken from him, and though he sought it throughout Middle-earth, it remained lost to him. After many ages it fell by chance into the hands of the hobbit Bilbo Baggins.
Although Jane Eyre doesn’t quite fit the ‘modern’ era of classics, it is a classic and still has the ability to enamor the modern reader. I think we love it because we can all identify with love and loss, and no one escapes this life without facing difficulties. I felt such empathy for the younger Jane. I loved the intensity of her emotions throughout the book. I find the story somehow grounds me.
Introduction and Notes by Dr Sally Minogue, Canterbury Christ Church University College.
Jane Eyre ranks as one of the greatest and most perennially popular works of English fiction. Although the poor but plucky heroine is outwardly of plain appearance, she possesses an indomitable spirit, a sharp wit and great courage.
She is forced to battle against the exigencies of a cruel guardian, a harsh employer and a rigid social order. All of which circumscribe her life and position when she becomes governess to the daughter of the mysterious, sardonic and attractive Mr Rochester.
It’s a cruel and dark mystery that laces Petriville, the town that saved Cassidy Jones and her family from the meteorite strike. While Earth perished they thrived in a blissful utopia, orbiting Earth within the town’s indestructible sphere. Now Cassidy is sixteen and Gina, Petriville’s founder, reveals Cassidy's assigned mate. But instead, Cassidy meets an alluring hologram, Eric, who leaves her unnaturally intoxicated—a passion that intensifies when they share a virtual kiss. Eric leaves her with something else—he warns of Gina’s plans.
Cassidy yearns to meet Eric in person. But Eric is still on Earth, and Gina means for him to follow the rest of Earth's citizens—into the grave.
My favorite fantasy novels tend to be rather complex. Winding plotlines, mysteriously interconnected characters, whimsical settings, and intricate, thoughtful worldbuilding combine to create immersive stories that stick in the mind like overworn folklore. Time travel or interworld travel lend additional layers of intrigue and mystery, forcing the inescapable contemplation of a more thrilling, alternate reality. And if it’s all packaged in artful, breathtaking prose that breeds full-color images, audible noises, indelible flavors, nose-crumpling odors, and tangible textures, I will happily lose myself in the pages, truly forgetting about the strictures of everyday life… at least until I get hungry and remember I need to consume more than books to survive.
An Heir of Realms tells the tale of two young heroines—a dragon rider and a portal jumper—who fight dragon-like parasites to save their realms from extinction.
Rhoswen is training as a Realm Rider to work with dragons and burn away the Narxon swarming into her realm. Rhoswen’s dream is to Ride, but her destiny will pit her against her uncle and king, who have scorned her since before her birth.
In the Exchange, the waystation between realms, Emmelyn fights the G’Ambit, a gambling ring with members more intent on lining their pockets than protecting the realms—or their own lives.
Realm-devouring parasites threaten all existence. The Exchange is desperate to destroy them. But could their radical plans endanger the realms, too?
Soul-sucking parasites are overwhelming the realms.
Rhoswen of Stanburh is of age to train as a Realm Rider—a defender of the realms. Riders and their dragons work together to burn away infiltrating Narxon as they swarm in through tears in a realm’s fabric. But it’s not an easy battle: the mere touch of the smoky, dragon-like adversaries can reduce the lively winged beasts—and their Riders—to ash.
Becoming a Realm Rider is Rhoswen’s dream, but she carries far more responsibility…
