Top Ten Tuesdays #7 - REWIND!

Welcome to another edition of Top Ten Tuesdays! This is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they present a topic, and bloggers from all around share their thoughts. 

This week is a rewind week for Top Ten Tuesday, which means we can pick any past topic. I missed out a couple weeks ago with this one, so here we go with Top Ten Characters I Would Crush On If I Were Also A Fictional Character.

I'm sure there are lots I've missed (or forgotten), and I'm positive most of these fine men's significant others would kick my ass if I even looked at their men. But a girl can dream, right? :)

1. Roarke - In Death series, J.D. Robb
2. Morelli - Stephanie Plum series, Janet Evanovich
3. Ranger - Stephanie Plum series, Janet Evanovich
4. Clayton Danvers - Otherworld series, Kelley Armstrong
5. Atticus O'Sullivan - Iron Druid Chronicles, Kevin Hearne
6. Jericho Barrons  - Fever series, Karen Marie Moning
7. Nathan Lockton - No Attachments, Tiffany King
8. Reyes Farrow - Charley Davidson series, Darynda Jones
9. Han Solo - Star Wars  (books and movies)
10. Frost and/or Doyle...maybe Mistral , too - Merry Gentry series, Laurell K. Hamilton

So what do you think? Did I do okay here?  :)

Top Ten Tuesday #6 - Top Ten Books I Recommend The Most

Welcome to another edition of Top Ten Tuesdays! This is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they present a topic, and bloggers from all around share their thoughts. This week's topic - Top Ten Books I Recommend The Most! As always, these are in no special order. :)

Fantasy, urban fantasy, paranormal:

The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling

The Dresden Files by Jim Butcher

The Five Hundred Kingdoms series by Mercedes Lackey

The Valdemar books (all of them!) by Mercedes Lackey

The Women of the Underworld series by Kelley Armstrong

The Charley Davidson series by Darynda Jones

The Walker Papers (Urban Shaman series) by C.E. Murphy

The Iron Druid Chronicles by Kevin Hearne

Mystery/Suspense:

The In Death series by J.D. Robb

Just for fun:

The Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich

I could totally come up with about twenty more for this list, but these are longtime favorites that I love to recommend!

So, what are some of your recommendations? 

Top Ten Tuesday #5 - Top Ten Books I HAD To Buy...But Are Still Sitting On My Shelf Unread

Welcome to another edition of Top Ten Tuesdays! This is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they present a topic, and bloggers from all around give us their lists. This week's topic - Top Ten Books I HAD To Buy...But Are Still Sitting On My Shelf Unread!

Most of these were impulse buys - I was in the mood for a certain type of book, found something that looked or sounded great for my Kindle, and there they live. :)

1.  The Lord of the Rings  trilogy - I actually broke down a few months ago and bought the Kindle version when it was on sale. Still haven't started it. This has been on my TBR for...most of my life.

2.  Feast of Souls  (The Magister Trilogy #1) by CS Friedman

3.  Assassin's Curse  (The Witch Stone Prophecy #1) by by Debra L. Martin & David W. Small

4.  A Brush of Darkness  (Abby Sinclair #1)by Allison Pang

5.  Priceless: A Sexy Urban Fantasy Mystery  (Rylee Adamson #1) by Shannon Mayer

6.  Touch of Power (Healer #1) by Maria V. Snyder

7.  Between  (The Between #1) by Kerry Schafer

8.  Inhale  (Just Breathe #1) by Kendall Grey

9.  Guardians of Stone (The Relic Seekers #1) by Anita Clenney

10. Halfway to the Grave (Night Huntress #1) by Jeaniene Frost

Maybe I'll finally read a few of these...soon. <3

Top Ten Tuesday #4: Top 10 Series I'd Like To Start But Haven't Yet

Welcome to another edition of Top Ten Tuesdays! This is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they present a topic, and bloggers from all around give us their lists. This week's topic - Top Ten Series I'd Like To Start But Haven't Yet.

1. Lord of the Rings  by J.R.R. Tolkien ~ A classic, I know. And one I've always planned to read. I even have this version in my Kindle! 

2. The Darkest Powers  Trilogy by Kelley Armstrong ~ I've read every single book in the Women of the Underworld  series (some multiple times!), but I haven't gotten around to this one yet.

3. The Kinsey Millhone series by Sue Grafton ~ I've always heard good things about this series. I think the fact that she's almost through the alphabet is a little intimidating.

4. The Kate Daniels series by Ilona Andrews ~ Another series I've heard wonderful things about.

5. The Riftwar Cycle books by Raymond E. Feist ~ Another long-lived series...another daunting task. Someday :)

6.  The Jane Yellowrock series by Faith Hunter

There are so many others out there, it would take me days to list them all. :)  What do you think? Which of these should I get on soon? 

Top Ten Tuesday # 3: Top Ten Favorite Characters in Urban Fantasy

Top Ten Tuesdays is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they present a topic, and bloggers like me wrack their brains to come up with a list.  Well, maybe I'm the only one who wracks her brain.  :)  This week's topic - Top Ten Favorite Characters in "X" Genre!

As usual, these are in no special order.

1)  Rachel Morgan (The Hollows,  Kim Harrison) ~ What can I say about Rachel?  She is amazingly awesome.

2)  Mercy Thompson (Mercedes Thompson,  Patricia Briggs) ~  As I mentioned in a recent Waiting on Wednesday, Mercy is one of my favorite characters.  She has developed over the course of several books, and I continue to look forward to her adventures.

3)  Atticus O'Sullivan - and Oberon (Iron Druid Chronicles,  Kevin Hearne) ~  One might think that a 2,100 year-old druid might be boring or stuffy.  Nope.  Atticus freaking rocks.  The conversations between Oberon and Atticus often made me laugh out loud.

4)  Joanne Baldwin (Weather Warden,  Rachel Caine) ~ Another series that I enjoyed very much.  Joanne went through SO much, and I admired her strength...and her fun powers!

5)  Harry Dresden (The Dresden Files,  Jim Butcher) ~  Ah, Harry.  Chicago's only professional wizard.  So much can be said about him.  I. Love. Harry. Dresden.  The man has been through many, many unspeakable things, and yet he sticks to his convictions.  They may have shifted a bit, but he hangs in there.


6)  Karrin Murphy (The Dresden Files,  Jim Butcher) ~  A "mere" mortal who becomes friends with a very magical man. Karrin may be tiny, but she kicks some serious ass.  She's been there for Harry through quite a lot, and their friendship has been a bright spot in some dark times during the series.

7)  Alex Jarvis (The Grigori Legacy,  Linda Poitevin) ~  At first, Alex was a bit hesitant about what was happening, but she has since embraced the strangeness and fought as hard as she could for the survival of the human race.  I can't wait to see what happens next!

8)  Joanne Walker (The Walker Papers,  C.E. Murphy) ~ Joanne is another (initially) reluctant heroine, but she has stepped up and shown strength many didn't believe she had.  With each book she grows even more, which is a fantastic thing in my opinion.

9)  Charley Davidson (Charley Davidson,  Darynda Jones) ~ Which brings us to the Grim Reaper with attitude.  Charley is a nice change of pace from most heroes and heroines - she's known about her ability most of her life.  More importantly, she's embraced it.  To see what Charley sees when someone passes through her would take a lot of strength, which she has.  She's also got attitude, which makes her loads of fun!

10)  Elena Michaels, Clayton Danvers...just about every character in the series (Women of the Otherworld,  Kelley Armstrong) ~ An amazing series all the way from Bitten through Thirteen.  Every single book had strong characters that you either loved or hated - or both.  *wink*

I have laughed, cheered, screamed, and cried with all of these characters over many books (and many years).  They are truly some of the best out there.

 Do we have any in common?  Who should I have on this list?  <3

Top Ten Tuesday #2 - Top Ten Favorite Romances

Top Ten Tuesdays is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they present a topic, and bloggers from all over share their Top Ten lists.  This week's topic - Top Ten Favorite Romances!  

When I first saw this week's topic, I started thinking about some of my favorite fictional couples,  Here, in no special order, are some of my favorites.

1. Roarke and Eve (In Death,  JD Robb) ~ From the first time they met in Naked in Death,  I knew that this would be a fun relationship.  And I was right. 
2. Georgina and Seth (Georgina Kincaid,  Richelle Mead) ~ They were such a great couple.  The obstacles and struggles they went through made them real for me.
3. Stephanie and Morelli (Stephanie Plum,  Janet Evanovich) ~  An absolutely fun couple.  When they're 'on', they are great.  When they're 'off', they are even more fun!
4. Jamie and Nat (Modern Witch,  Debora Geary) ~  Jamie & Nat are the first couple to hook up in the series, but not the last.  The beginning of their relationship was sweet, and they have grown into a strong couple in Witch Central.  
5. Harry and Ginny (Harry Potter,  JK Rowling) ~  Even though they don't become a 'couple' until toward the end of the series, it's still a sweet romance to me.
6. Ron and Hermione (Harry Potter,  JK Rowling) ~ While you could see this one coming early in the series, it was written so well that you couldn't help but cheer for them.
7. Adam and Mercy (Mercedes Thompson,  Patricia Briggs) ~  Their relationship may have started and a bit...rocky, but they have become a solid couple in a fantastic series.
8. Elena and Clay (Women of the Underworld,  Kelley Armstrong) ~ Not the only couple to hook up during the series, but certainly the most entertaining.
9. Jaenelle and Daemon (Black Jewels,  Anne Bishop) ~  Seeing what they went through, both separately and together, made them very special as a couple.
10. Elspeth and Darkwind (Valdemar: Mage Winds, #1  Mercedes Lackey) ~  The early Valdemar books are some of my all-time favorite fantasy stories.  This relationship was special for so many reasons, and is still one of my favorites.

There you have it - some of my favorite romances from some of my favorite books.  Happy Valentine's Day, everyone!  <3

TTT #1 - Top Ten Most Frustrating Characters Ever

Top Ten Tuesdays is a weekly feature hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. Each week they present a topic for a list.  This week's topic - Top Ten Most Frustrating Characters Ever!

1. Bella Swan - Twilight:   This girl frustrated me so much in Twilight  that I only read half of New Moon.   I just couldn't finish them.
2. Albus Dumbledore - Harry Potter  series:  Please don't get me wrong here.  This is one of my all time favorite series.  I cried like a baby during Half-Blood Prince.  But there were many times, even before finishing all seven books, that I wanted to smack Dumbledore.  
3. Sookie Stackhouse - Sookie Stackhouse  series:  For someone who can read minds, she can be so damn clueless.
4. Diana Bishop - A Discovery of Witches:  There were just so many things about this woman that annoyed me.  
5. Eugenie Markham - Dark Swan  series:  I read this entire series, even though Eugenie continually got under my skin.  
6. Kiyo - Dark Swan  series:  He was such a little jerk.
7. Anita Blake - Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter  series:  I still read every new book in this series, mainly hoping that Anita will get it together and start remembering that she didn't want nine bazillion men in her life.  The first several books were wonderful.  Every time they add another man to her harem, I die a little inside.
8. Asher - Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter  series:  Asher has been alive (or undead) for a very long time.  He needs to grow the hell up.
9. Richard Zeeman - Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter  series:  I don't even know what to say about Richard.  He's another jerk.
10. Betsy Taylor - Undead  series:  It was a fun series when it started.  But it's become a chore to read these with Betsy's narcissistic self.  I made it halfway through the most recent one, and set it aside for other reads.

What about you?  Do we have any in common?  Did I miss any?