Five-Star One-Word-Title Books

Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. This week's topic is Top Ten One-Word-Title Books.

Turns out that I have eleven one-word-title books that I've rated 5 Stars.

1. Twilight (Twilight, # 1) by Stephenie Meyer
2. Confess by Colleen Hoover
3. Truest by Jackie Lea Sommers
4. Linger (The Wolves of Mercy Falls, # 2) by Maggie Stiefvater
5. Sinner (The Wolves of Mercy Falls, # 4) by Maggie Stiefvater
6. Hopeless (Hopeless, # 1) by Colleen Hoover
7. Push by Claire Wallis
8. Easy (Contours of the Heart, # 1) by Tammara Webber
9. Slammed (Slammed, # 1) by Colleen Hoover
10. Divergent (Divergent, # 1) by Veronica Roth
11. Persuasion by Jane Austen

Which one-word-title books are your favorites? Let me know!

Top Ten Books My Daughter Needs to Read

Top 10 Tuesday is a post hosted by The Broke and the Bookish and this week's topic is Top Ten Books My Daughter Needs to Read.

1. A Walk to Remember by Nicholas Sparks
2. Anne of Green Gables (Anne of Green Gables, # 1) by LM Montgomery
3. Six Months to Live (Dawn Rochelle, # 1) by Lurlene McDaniel
4. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
5. Persuasion by Jane Austen
6. Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers
7. The Power of a Praying Woman by Stormie Omartian
8. Captivating: Unveiling the Mystery of a Woman's Soul by John & Stasi Eldredge
9. Harry Potter & The Sorcerer's Stone (Harry Potter, # 1) by JK Rowling
10. The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran

This is excluding the obvious (The Bible). And I'm sure there are so many more books that I'm not thinking about right now. But I know that these are all books that shaped me, and I hope that my daughter(s?) will one day read them too. Are there any that I should add to this list? Let me know!

Top Ten Fictional Crushes

Top 10 Tuesday is a post hosted by The Broke and the Bookish and this week's topic is Top Ten Most Intimidating Books.

Well...see...I've already done this one. You can see that post here. So I decided to choose Top Ten Fictional Book Crushes! I thought I'd done this one before too, but I couldn't find it, and hey...why not do it a second time even if I have????

1) My all time favorite and top book boyfriend is Dimitri Belikov from Vampire Academy by Richelle Mead! First off, I tend to go for older men--especially wise ones. Not to mention that Dimitri's fighting skills are uber hot!

2) Gotta pick my classic next. Fitzwilliam Darcy from Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Anyone who can internalize criticism and come out a better person because of love is a character worthy of my love.

3) Because love isn't always broken by time, Captain Wentworth from Persuasion by Jane Austen.

4) Because I can't help but fall for a guy with talent in the arts. Will Cooper from Colleen Hoover's Slammed blows all of my requirements for a book boyfriend out of the water. He's older...check. He's talented...check. He's wise...check check. Love him!!!

5) A new addition to the fictional crushes is Perry from Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi. Along with having a talent he didn't actually choose, Perry knows how to survive in the wild. This is definitely a must have for my fictional boyfriend.

6) Oh Will...Will Herondale from The Infernal Devices by Cassandra Clare. Will has the attitude and the snark that I love. He's self-sacrificing in the right kind of way. And he makes me laugh and cry all at the same time. Love me some Will H!

7) Ryan from Dare You To and/or Noah from Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry. Both of these guys make the list for completely different reasons. Ryan is just an all-around good guy trying to do the right thing. Noah is a bit of a bad boy who's also trying to do right by the people he loves. I heart them both.

8) Another one with talent...Sam from The Wolves of Mercy Falls by Maggie Stiefvater. Sam's heart is so big. Plus the singing, guitar playing, and poetry combination pricks my heart strings.

9) Guys I'm noticing a trend for real...adding another artist to the list, but a different kind, add Ed from Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley.

10) Not quite an artist, but talented nonetheless, Sean Kendrick from The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater has to make the list. Any character with as much love for his horse as Sean fills my heart with gooey goodness.

You guys know I can't follow the rules and stick to ten...

11) Another character that is self-sacrificing in the best of ways--Peeta from The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. You guys...any time a guy literally tries to save the life of the female MC, I'm all over that. Plus he's so patient with Katniss.

12) Because this is literally the kind of guy you want to marry, Michael Hosea from Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers is the perfect fictional crush for serious women and serious relationships. We all know that I love a good bad boy, but Michael Hosea is as good as they come, and nothing is hotter than that.

Since we just specified fictional and not specifically book related...I've got two more...

Damon Salvatore from the TV version of Vampire Diaries based off the book series by LJ Smith and Dean Winchester from Supernatural.

That's it for me and my fictional character crushes...What do you think? Who are your character crushes? Let me know!

Persuasion - Review

Persuasion

By: Jane Austen

Published: first published December 1817

308 pages

Genre: Classic, Historical Fiction

Source: Own/Personal Library

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Goodreads description--Twenty-seven-year old Anne Elliot is Austen's most adult heroine. Eight years before the story proper begins, she is happily betrothed to a naval officer, Frederick Wentworth, but she precipitously breaks off the engagement when persuaded by her friend Lady Russell that such a match is unworthy. The breakup produces in Anne a deep and long-lasting regret. When later Wentworth returns from sea a rich and successful captain, he finds Anne's family on the brink of financial ruin and his own sister a tenant in Kellynch Hall, the Elliot estate. All the tension of the novel revolves around one question: Will Anne and Wentworth be reunited in their love?

Jane Austen once compared her writing to painting on a little bit of ivory, 2 inches square. Readers of Persuasion will discover that neither her skill for delicate, ironic observations on social custom, love, and marriage nor her ability to apply a sharp focus lens to English manners and morals has deserted her in her final finished work.

I'm hesitant to review a classic such as Persuasion, but I will anyway. 5 Stars.

This is actually my second time reading Persuasion. I've found that the beginning of every Jane Austen book that I've read has had a slow start--not so much so with Pride and Prejudice. I think she just gives a lot of background information on several of the main characters up front and sometimes that can make for a boring start. However, I thoroughly suggest pressing through because once you get into the story, the story itself is well worth it. When Jane Austen's on a roll with her writing, she's on it for sure and it is beautiful. This is exactly the case with Persuasion. The entire story is build up to the last section. But the climax is perfect--in my humble opinion.

Anne is one of my favorite of Austen's female leading characters. Having turned down Captain Wentworth eight years prior, Anne has some life experience that most of Austen's main characters do not have. I love how Anne carries the regret of her past mistakes. She has to live with the possibility of watching the one man she has always loved fall in love with someone else. While Anne once put more stock into her friend and father's opinions, she has since learned to think for herself and follow her heart.

Though Captain Wentworth has had his heart broken and ego bruised by Anne, he doesn't come out too jaded. He is intent on ignoring Anne and moving on with his life. But sometimes life has a different plan.

I feel like the words I have to say about it really don't do the book justice. I love Jane Austen. And I love this book.

*Updated: September 6, 2013