What Is Your Favorite book..or Author?

My all time favorite is Patricia Cornwell- she writes crime/drama books and they are great! I also like the series from Janet Evanovich- they are about a female bounty hunter- lots of girl humor in these books, very fun to read.

I have a new favorite and I'm not even finished reading it yet! Major Pettigrew's Last Stand. It's about a widow in England who's very big on manners who falls in love with a Pakistani shopkeeper in his town (also widowed). It's just really cute and well-written :)

My favorite author ever is Nora Roberts. She writes romance, but without being so smutty about it. (there is still sex, but not that will make you blush) She writes a lot of mini-series, and plenty of single books. She has 'normal' romance, paranormal (witches, ghosts, etc) and a couple sci-fi (time travel) She also has another name (JD ROBB) that is all one long series, set in the future. It's romance/mystery. LOVE THEM ALL!!! lol.

I read A LOT!! And really don't stick with one particular author. In all honesty, since I am in a book club, there have been a couple of my favorites, I probably would not have picked up on my own. Such as "Pillars of the Earth" by Ken Follett, then couldn't wait to read the next one "World without End." I also probably would have never picked up the Steig Larsen Trilogy ("The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo" serious" if it hadn't been for my book club, but whizzed through all 3 books!

I see someone has already mentioned "The Help." I'd also recommend "The Women" by TC Boyle. One that really surprised me was "Life List." I don't have the author right in front of me but it is a true story about a woman on a mission to see all 8000 or 9000 species of birds in the world. I know, doesn't sound appealing, but it was interesting!

If I had to pick a couple of authors that I can guarantee I'll be hooked from the first few pages, I'd pick Janet Evonovich and Jodi Piccoult. Two totally different genres and writing styles but I can sit and read their books within a few days.

Good Luck.

The Help (already recommended, I see!) was very highly rated in my book club. So was Beneath a Marble Sky (John Shors) - historical fiction, building of the Taj Mahal. Jodi Picoult is great, I've enjoyed most of her books a lot, and they really make me think about my stance on certain issues (there's always some kind of moral/justice issue at the core). Phillippa Gregory is great if you enjoy British historical fiction (LOVED The Other Boleyn Girl and The Constant Princess). Mysteries - I enjoy Harlan Coben quite a bit. James Patterson is really popular, and I often enjoy his stuff...but it does get a bit cookie cutter after awhile. I have to have some time in between his novels (same with Mary Higgins Clark, IMO).
Christian fiction - I've yet to find a Christian author who I like as much as Francine Rivers. Her "Mark of the Lion Series" is fantastic and life changing.

You have a lot of reading to do! ;) Enjoy.

I loved "The Help" and "Cane River"...and anything by Augusten Burroughs (he is raunchy, but hilarious!)

I love Patricia Cornwell, and anything by Dr. Mehmet Oz

The Glass Castle - Jeanette Walls

Anything by Anita Shreve or Jodi Piccoult

Love Dan Brown and Michael Crichton. I also enjoy the classics too--Jane Eyre, Tale of Two Cities, Wuthering Heights.

Ray Bradbury is my favorite author, although Mary Stewart and Robin McKinley are close seconds. My "classic" answer is Portrait of a Lady by Henry James (favorite novel) and I still love his writing, but for something post-Victorian I like the others. I read a lot and love lots of different writers and styles.

My favorite is Diana Gabaldon and her Outlander series. It has adventure, fantasy, romance & historical information, and a the romance is a very small part of the whole story. The plot is what is so interesting. hope this helps. Oh I just read a book on ibooks by Nicky Charles called The Mating, and the next one was The Keeping & the third is coming soon as The Finding. It is a werewolf novel.

My favorite author is Jane Austen...love ALL of her books. If you haven't read her I would strongly recommend it.

Also loved the Stieg Larson Trilogy. Just finished the Help...very good in a makes you think kind of way.

My favorite author is Mary Higgins Clark, I can't even pick a favorite book from her I've read many and loved them all! James Patterson is also good, along with Nora Roberts. Also a very good book is The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown, it started a little slow but once you get into it you get hooked!

SciFi

Anne McCaffrey - Dragonriders of Pern, Crystal Singer, Petaybee, Decision at Doona, etc.

Robert Heinlein - Stranger in a Strange Land, Friday, I Will Fear No Evil, etc.

Harry Harrison - Stainless Steel Rat - Space Age Criminal / James Bond

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Mystery

Elizabeth Peters - Amelia Peabody, turn of the century egyptology. 1st half of the books are easy to set down / so so; 2nd half and it's 3am and you can't put it down.

Rex Stout - Nero Wolf, 1930's-60's NYC (super fun to watch how gender roles change / value of money / when dinner is eaten over 40 years, because Wolf & Archie never age, each book is written in the present, and our values and mores change with Archie, although Wolf is a confirmed misanthrope the entire series)

Janet Evanovich - Stephanie Plum (aka worst bounty hunter on the planet, comedy)

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Fiction

Jean M Auel - An odyssey of a love story / history from the neolithic spanning thousands of pages

Jane Austin - Love stories again; Pride & Prejudice, Emma, etc.

Rudyard Kipling - poems and stories

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Fantasy

David Eddings - The Belgariad & Mallorean (5 books each)

Charlaine Harris - Sookie Stackhouse (books inspiring TrueBlood), vampires.

Stephanie Meyer - Vampires

Mercedes Lackey - full out fantasy in every fantasy sub genre (guilty reads, the covers look like a 13yo girl's bedroom).

Andre Norton - scifi/fantasy

soo many..
Barbara Kinsolver ~The Bean Tree, Poisonwood Bible
David Sedaris ~ Me talk Pretty , Dress your family in Courdaroy
Ron McClarty ~ The Memory of Running (has nothing to do about running)
Katherine Howe ~ The Physick Book of Deliverence Dane
Jan Karon ~ The Mitford Series of books..

The Help
The Dome by Stephen King

Right now I am reading the Mark Twin Autobiography and wish I had a Kindle.. the print font is about a 6 and the book weighs a ton. .I have to read the book on my desk, with a bright light..

Anne Tyler. Barbara Kingsolver. John Irving. And read Life of Pi - amazing. And Time Travelers Wife. Ahh, good books.

Depends on what you like, but I've been really enjoying Kelley Armstrong's Women of the Otherworld series.

I just read the book Room by Emma Donoghue it's a really good book, about a mom and her boy. Lots of more details obviously but you should check it out.

Deborah Smith - 'Blue Willow'

I loved anything by Janet Evanovich and Jan Karon so those are both fantastic selections. I would also suggest reading any of the classics that you may have missed as a youth. Some suggestions, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, As Separate Peace, Animal Farm, 1984, Wuthering Heights, A Brave New World, Tom Sawyer, etc.....there are so many. I know this is something I need to do! Good luck.

Gabriel Garcia Marquez anything he has written. The Kite Runner the Good Earth. I could go on but those are all good.

I LOVE Danielle Steel! They're like the best chick-flicks in a book! Soooooooo good!

2nd fav: Nicholas Sparks. Author of "The Notebook", "Nights in Rodanthe," and "The Last Song"

Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time fantasy series; The Hunger Games series (well-written but sad); The Virginian (by Owen Wister) - a really old classic.

The Help is such a great book.

I am suprised that no one mentioned Debbie Macomber. I love her books. the one series that I really liked was Cedar Cove. All of her books have been great.

I just finished reading The Hunger Games and the second and third (Catching Fire and Mockingjay) in the trilogy by Suzanne Collins - soooo good! They are quick reads and bring up a lot of interesting discussions. Definitely hard to put down!