Tuesday, August 18, 2015

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Auto-Buy Authors


This week's topic from The Broke and the Bookish is my Top Ten Auto-Buy Authors.  I don't actually buy too many new books but I do when I have too!  These are the authors that when I see a book by them I am going to get - either request, put on hold on the library, track down used, or actually buy new.

Non-Fiction

1. J. Maarten Troost - A few years ago an acquaintance and I were talking books and I mentioned that I really enjoyed travel type books.  She all but clapped her hands and said you've got to try J. Maarten Troost!  Then when she was telling me a little bit about the books she started laughing.  I went and hunted down The Sex Lives of Cannibals and spent half my time laughing and half my time rereading bits outloud to my husband who was intrigued enough that HE read it and enjoyed it as well.  I've read several books by him now and continue to enjoy his books.

2. Tony Horwitz - I discovered Horwitz kind of by a fluke.  My grandmother (and number one book pusher) was getting rid of a bunch of books and she had put Baghdad Without a Map in a pile of books she thought I'd like.  I think it sat on my shelf but when I finally picked it up and I laughed till I cried through portions of it and promptly went out to find all his other books.  I've loved all of them with the exception of Confederates in the Attic.

3.  Rebecca Barry - Earlier this summer I got stuck in a bit of a reading rut where I just couldn't settle on anything until I stumbled on Rebecca Barry's Recipes for a Beautiful Life.  It was funny, and poignant, and so easily relatable that I loved reading it and it knocked me out of my rut.  

Mystery

1. Jen McKinley - I started with McKinley's cupcake series because I'm a big fan of cupcakes and combining cupcakes and murder was too good to pass up.  Then I discovered her Library Lover's series and was really hooked.  She has a hat shop series too that takes place in London but I'm ridiculously behind on my TBR shelf and haven't gotten to them yet.  

2. Sheila Connolly - Sheila Connolly is an author I just click with for some reason.  The mysteries aren't perfect but I always really enjoy the read.  Something about how she does her writing style, her characters,and her settings just really works for me.  I've really enjoyed her Irish series though I've only read the first one.  Her Apple Orchard series is probably my favorite though I do enjoy her museum series as it reminds me of my days working in a museum.

3. Deborah Crombie - Crombie's first Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James mystery, A Share in Death, was published in 1993.  I'm not sure when I first read it but it probably wasn't too long after that.  This is a series that has really grown in the best of ways.  At the beginning the mysteries were a bit more straight forward police procedurals but as time has gone on the relationships have deepened but not gone off the deepened.  If I was making a Top Ten list of authors who I'd like to completely reread their books, Crombie would be at the top.

Romance/Fiction

1.  Nora Roberts - I always enjoy a Nora Roberts book.  It may not end up being a favorite but I know I'm in for a good story and interesting characters every time I pick up a book with her name on it (well except for her more early books but we're pretending those don't exist).  Some of my favorites are Jewels of the Sun, Tears of the Moon, The Witness, Blue Dahlia, and Key of Knowledge though there's plenty of others that I've enjoyed.

2.  Sabrina Jeffries - Back about 15 years ago, when I first started reading romances Sabrina Jeffries was one of the authors that I discovered.  I loved her books and read everything that the used bookstore had in stock.  Then I kind of forgot about her.  Probably 3 or 4 years ago I decided to reread some of my favorite romances from the beginning.  Most didn't fare so well but the Jeffries book was an exception.  Since then I've been trying to catch up on her books that I've missed and have been enjoying them - especially the Duke's Men series.

3.  Susan Wiggs - Susan WIggs is another author I used to read and when I first got my Kindle one of the first books I checked out from my library's site was The Apple Orchard.  I fell in love and have been trying to catch up ever since!

4.  Jill Shalvis - I love pretty much anything Shalvis writes.  Her characters are fun, entertaining, interesting and other than the fact that all the males are ridiculously good looking, very different.  While I've enjoyed the Animal Magnetism series my favorite is still Lucky Harbor.  I'm still in a bit of denial that the series ended.  So much in denial that I've actually just started the final trilogy which came out a year ago.  I just don't want it to end!

There are so many other authors I could mention but these were the first 10 that came to mind.  I could probably do a Top 20 or 30 on this topic without any problem!  Who are your auto-buy authors?

20 comments:

  1. Sheila Connolly is an author that I keep meaning to try out but haven't got around to yet. And everyone seems to love Jill Shalvis, so she is definitely on my must-read-soon list too. Like you I have tonnes of authors on my auto-buy list, I think Colleen Hoover and Tana French are the authors whose books I most anticipate at the moment though.

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  2. You've got some good mystery authors listed here. I love Deborah Crombie and will read anything she writes. I've enjoyed the cupcake mysteries and the apple orchard mysteries. Have not read further with either author, but intend to. And I do love Nora Roberts and I especially love her J.D. Robb books. I really must check out The Sex Lives Of Cannibals. That wins for best title. LOL

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  3. I have never read any of these authors but I always wanted to try to read a Nora Roberts book. Thanks for sharing your list this week.

    My TTT: http://rachelwritesthings.blogspot.com/2015/08/top-ten-authors-i-auto-buy.html

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  4. I can't believe I haven't actually read any Nora Roberts yet! But definitely a big yes to Sabrina Jeffries!! Lovely list, Katherine!

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  5. I have only read one Deborah Crombie book, and I loved it. I want to go back and start her series from the beginning. I imagine she will be an author whose books I read all of. Jill Shalvis is another one I have read and enjoyed and hope to read more of at some point.

    This topic was easier than I thought it would be. I can't say I have all the books for the authors on my list, but eventually I will read them all if I have my way.

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  6. The first memoir sounds interesting. I do like reading memoir sometimes. You get a glimpse of another kind of environment and life.

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  7. Added three of Susan Wiggs' and two of Jill Shavis'.

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    1. Susan and Jill I found on the Overdrive catalog. Found two of Sabrina Jeffries' paperbacks in the library catalog and requested them.

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  8. Jill Shalvis is on my list, too. Her books are so much fun. I have read so many Nora Roberts books, but I don't read them so much any more. I do love Jewels of the Sun, though. That's with the woman who moves to Ireland, right?

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  9. Yup, my auto-buy author list is long. There are way to many authors books I need upon release day. Do I read all of those books upon release day though? Not so much.
    I've not read a single book for any author on your list. But I have Susan Wiggs and Jill Shalvis books waiting to be reviewed. Whenever that happens...
    Nora Roberts has like 100 published novels. She must be a machine. Lol
    Happy reading!
    Brittany @ This is the Story of My(Reading) Life

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  10. Ooo Shalvis and Jeffries are on my list too. And Nora as her JD Robb ones. So many awesome reads out of those ladies!

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  11. Your mystery authors are going on my TBR list & I love all your romance authors! Great list!! :) My TTT

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  12. That travelogue looks awesome. I went over and read a bit of it at amazon and laughed several times- love the humor. I think we all associate the south Pacific with tropical paradise, but apparently that's not always the case!

    And Jenn McKinlay's books have caught my eye since I started reading cosys...

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  13. Wow, I think I have only read two authors on your list..lol...Nora Roberts and Sabrina Jefferies. One of my auto buys is Molly Harper..lurve her books. :)

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  14. I love Tony Horwitz. He always makes me laugh!

    readerbuzz.blogspot.com

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  15. There were so many authors that came to mind this week, I think my initial list was about twenty names long. So many great authors out there and many on your list I must try!

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  16. Roberts and Jeffries are on my list, as well as King, Graham and Krentz

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  17. Troost is really great on audio as well! I've only listened to Sex Lives of Cannibals but have a few others in the queue and look forward to listening to them (Simon Vance could read me a grocery list and I'd be absorbed). Fun list!

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  18. Nora Roberts is also on my list, at the very top!

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  19. That Troost book looks absolutely hilarious. :D

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