I receive many, many requests from readers for recommendations of authors who write books like mine. I hope nobody writes like me! - or me like them - so that is a very hard question to answer. However, I certainly have books that I love, authors whom I adore, and classics that have impacted my life. Below is a list of my all-time favorite books and authors. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!
FAVORITE BOOKS
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1 All-Time Favorite!
Roman history in all of its blood and glory,
a seductive 3000 year old vampire, and an extremely likeable woman who is prostituted
by her politically ambitious husband. Combining a riveting story with the best
writing I’ve ever read, Blood Games by Chelsea Quinn Yarbro is my favorite
book of all time. It even has some very sexy love scenes!
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It’s very difficult to name second favorites, third favorites, etc., so I am simply going to list the rest of my favorite books in alphabetical order by author.
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Anne Bishop is one of the most amazing writers to be printed in the 20th century. I have never before nor since read an author who writes with the level of intensity that Anne Bishop does in Daughter of the Blood. Daemon, Lucivar and Saetan -characters in a fantasy world where the line between good and evil is thin indeed - will live inside me forever.
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I’ve read The Sun Dancers by Barbara Faith so many times the book is falling apart. It is a literary crime that it is now out of print. The hero is an ex-matador; the heroine is a young American woman, who - always second best in her mother’s busy life - sets her heart on becoming a matador. With the hero’s help, she succeeds. But he must battle his own demons: while she runs with the bulls he, with his crippled leg, must watch on the side-lines.
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Thomas Harris created the craze for “FBI Hunting Serial Killer” books, and Red Dragon is the best. The electrifying story and compelling writing - along with the killer’s surprise love interest - makes this book unput-downable.
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Aztec. The title says it all. In Aztec Gary Jennings writes one of the most ambitious works of historical fiction to ever be written. There simply are not words to describe the depth of the research or the richness of the characterization in this book.
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I loved Richard Preston’s best-selling non-fiction book, The Hot Zone. But The Cobra Event completely blew me away! It has a fast-paced mystery, sympathetic characters, and a deadly virus that has no respect for human life. The first chapter should be required reading for all aspiring writers.
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I have always been fascinated by ancient Egypt, hence my love of “mummy” horror movies. In The Mummy Or Ramses The Damned by Anne Rice, both my loves were satisfied - I got lots of ancient Egyptian lore, and a real, live “mummy” who is awakened in Edwardian London. The heroine’s reaction at seeing the “mummy” come to life was priceless. Aside from which, I wouldn’t mind having my very own mummy if he was anything at all like Ramses! Great story, great writing.
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I was fifteen years old when I read Katherine by Anya Seton. It is a fictionalized account of John of Gaunt and his common-born “lemen” whom he married later in life. The day-to-day and epic history of 14th century England is skillfully woven around the two disparate lives.
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Adora by Bertrice Small is the story of a girl who is sold into marriage by her father, the King of Constantople, and her struggle to find happiness and love in the Ottoman Empire where a woman’s sole worth is in her ability to bear sons. History, passion, tragedy, and triumph.
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Anne Stuart broke the mold with Moonrise, a contemporary romantic suspense novel. The heroine is the daughter of a powerful CIA agent; the hero is a former Irish terrorist who was recruited and personally trained by her father to kill, something which he does very well. This is one of my mother’s favorite books, too.
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The Wolf And The Dove by Kathleen Woodiwiss takes place in Saxon England in 1066. I love the history of the time, and the writing in this book captures the period perfectly. The daily struggles between the conquering Normans and the conquered Saxons were written with great sensitivity.
Favorite Authors
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I have every single Regency and Edwardian romance book that Marion Chesney ever wrote. That’s a lot of books. Let’s just say they number well into the 60s! They are my #1 comfort reads. I love her terse, descriptive writing style, and her bawdy, slapstick humor! The Ghost And Lady Alice is prime Chesney!
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Tess Gerittsen has written some of my favorite medical thrillers. She’s not afraid to include gore when needed. A strange comment, perhaps, but I really feel cheated when I read a mystery/thriller book that includes grisly murders but doesn’t describe a single drop of blood. It’s kind of like reading an erotic book that has no sex.
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Laurell K Hamilton is another 20th century marvel who has continued her style well into the 21st century. A mind-boggling imagination. Action-packed with irrepressible humor. Incredible characterization. These are all LKH hallmarks. Not to mention, some pretty erotic sex!
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I cut my reading teeth on Gothic romances, and Victoria Holt is the reigning queen! King of the Castle is my personal fav. It has a plucky English spinster, a darkly handsome, brooding French compte complete with castle, and writing that is to die for.
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Linda Howard writes the best novellas of any other romance author I’ve ever read. She has also written some incredible, incredible full-length romances! Her love relationships are dynamic. As are her sex scenes! Don’s favorite book by Linda Howard is Dream Man.
Favorite Classics
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As some of you may have already figured out, I have very, very strong feelings when it comes to women and their sexual and reproductive rights. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood both appalled and frightened me, because I think we women could so very easily have our rights stripped away here in America, where it’s okay to buy a gun at Walmart’s but it’s “obscene” to show a woman’s nipple on television.
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The Time Before This by Nicholas Monsarrat inspired so many “What ifs” questions. What IF there had been a civilization of humans before us? What IF that civilization had been far more technologically advanced than ours? What IF they, too, had depleted their resources? What IF I stumbled upon such a city, frozen underneath a glacier? How would that discovery impact my life?
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I love the simplicity of Animal Farm, and how George Orwell slowly turns an idyllic, cartoon-like situation into a living nightmare. He shows the slippery slope of freedom, and how a few may control the majority by manipulating the basic needs for food, comfort, and a sense of belonging.
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1984 by George Orwell. Big Brother is watching us. But who’s watching Big Brother?
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Obedience To Authority by Stanley Milgram changed my life. Not immediately, of course, but over a period of time, as I learned first hand that the voice of authority is not always right, and that to question it is not only advisable, but necessary.