Top 10 Books/Authors I'm Thankful For

Top 10 Tuesday is a post hosted by The Broke and the Bookish and this week's topic is Top Ten Books/Authors I'm Thankful For.

I'm loving this topic! I've definitely been in a spirit of thankfulness lately. I've been posting one thing each day (as many others have) that I'm thankful for on FB, but I'm also reading One Thousand Gifts by Ann Voskamp which focuses on thankfulness. It's been really good for me, so I'm glad I have an opportunity to let this spill over onto the blog.

1) Twilight by Stephenie Meyer - This series re-sparked my love for reading. There are a lot of anti-Twilight people out there. I won't begin to try to convince them that they should love it as much as I do, but I won't be ashamed for loving it either. Thank you Stephenie Meyer for this series, for sparking my passion again--and not just for me, but for so many other new readers out there as well. Thanks to fellow blogger and my sister-in-law, Holly @ Words Fueled by Love for telling me to read this series and for loaning me this book for the first time.

2) Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen - I love this book for so many reasons. It's one of the first stories I read that I came away proud to be female because of how strong Elizabeth Bennet was. Jane Austen also wrote during a time period when female authors weren't in abundance. Thank you to Jane Austen for pursuing her passion and creating some characters that I love to read about over and over and over again.

3) The Dead-Tossed Waves by Carrie Ryan - I fell in love with Carrie Ryan's writing with The Forest of Hands and Teeth, but The Dead-Tossed Waves really blew me away. Being a rules follower myself, I totally connected with Gabry and her fear. Carrie Ryan's writing style is still probably my favorite single style ever. Thank you, Carrie Ryan. Also, thanks to husband for picking The Forest of Hands and Teeth out for me to read in the book store one day.

4) Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater - Maggie Stiefvater has a unique writing style as well. It's so lyrical. And despite not being the biggest poetry fan in the world, she makes me wish I read more poetry. I also fell in love with these characters...Sam and Grace, Cole St. Clair, Isabel. Great characters and an original twist on werewovles. Thank you Maggie Stiefvater.

5) Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead - Richelle Mead has such a talent at storytelling. She knows her entire story from beginning to end before she begins and every piece ties in to each other perfectly. It's more than the events that take place that she's pieced together perfectly, it's the emotions that motivate the characters' actions that are perfectly placed and move the story from one moment to the next as well. Thank you Richelle Mead. Thanks again to Holly for loaning me this book and getting me hooked on this series and Richelle Mead.

6) Harry Potter by JK Rowling - If Richelle Mead has the ability to tie all pieces of a story together and plot the beginning of a story to the end perfectly, JK Rowling is the master. I'd watched the movies and really enjoyed the series, but for some reason, I never actually thought to read these books until a friend told me about JK Rowling's talent in tying everything together so well. So I checked them out. Thank you JK Rowling for never letting Harry go. And thank you Lacy for facilitating my new addiction into the wizarding world of Harry Potter.

7) Stephanie Plum by Janet Evanovich - This series has made me laugh more than any other series that I've ever read. And I can never be too thankful for laughter. Janet Evanovich has something special with this series and these hilarious characters. Thank you Janet Evanovich. And thank you to my sister, Melissa, for insisting that I listen to this on audiobook. Thank you also to Lorelei King for reading these characters in the audiobooks so well.

8) Lurlene McDaniel - I've read so many Lurlene McDaniel books that I don't even know how to bring this down to one book or series. Six Months to Live and The Angels Trilogy are some of my favorites. But I started reading Lurlene McDaniel around 10 years old and I completely loved her books, seeking out any and every book I could find by her. Thank you Lurlene McDaniel for being at the beginning of it all for me. Thank you again to my sister for reading these first, and thank you to Mrs. Godwin for having these in her classroom library for me to devour.

9) Lois Duncan - Lois Duncan was the 2nd author I came across that I felt confident that I would love anything she wrote. I read her books around the age of 13 and they were my first experience with the paranormal. I learned about ESP and astral projection from Lois Duncan. Thank you Lois for opening new doors for me.

10) Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry - This book blew me away. I loved these characters and their stories. And I'm so looking forward to the next book. Thank you Katie McGarry. Pushing the Limits came at a time when I getting really frustrated with the YA genre and Pushing the Limits totally redeemed the genre for me when I needed it the most. Also, thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Teen for allowing me to read this one.

And I'm sorry, but I can't end this list without this last author and book.

11) Slammed by Colleen Hoover - Slammed and Point of Retreat both blew me away. This was another book that I completely loved and connected with these characters. I couldn't put either of these down. Colleen Hoover showcased such emotion in these two books and I can't wait to read her new stand alone book, Hopeless, as soon as I can get my hands on it. Thank you Colleen Hoover. You also redeemed the YA genre for me. And thank you again to NetGalley for allowing me access to these books!

Ultimate thanks goes to the original Author, the Finisher of my faith, my heavenly Father. All thanks goes to Him!

So that's my Top 10 11 Books/Authors I'm Thankful For. Truly there are so many more authors and books that should receive thanks for existing and pressing on through the struggles to make it to print. And thanks to the publishers and everyone who had faith in these stories and authors to bring them to the public. What books/authors are you thankful for? Let me know!