Monday 20 June 2011

The Favourite Book Challenge Blogfest!


It's that time and here I am to talk about 5 of my favourite books. Let me tell you it wasn't easy to narrow it down from my original shortlist of 20, and those last few on the end were agonising to have to chop! Also, this may look like a weird list to most of you out there, but what can I say - I've got my reasons. And I guess I'm meant to share them with you, right?

So without further ado, these are the requirements of the Blogfest:

1. Pick your top five favorite books
2. Between Jun 20 and 22, write one line of what each book is about and then write one line of why you liked it. Think of it like a twitter pitch for other people’s work. Semi-colons are cheating, but you can use them anyway.
3. Go to other blogs and discuss the books.
4. If you do not keep a blog, put your challenge in the comments on the day of the event. - Teralyn Rose Pilgrim


1. Firestorm: The Zagor Chronicles (Book 1) - Livingstone, Ian & Sargent, Carl
A young wizard is destined to become the "top gal"
on the magical island of Sanctuary, after killing off
lots of evil demons and stuff; good thing she's got a sexy warrior
and some other cool friends to help her in her quest!
I loved this book (and the rest in the 4-book series) because
I fell in love with the characters and because my little mind
would NOT let the ending lie, so I just had to make believe that
two of my favourite characters did NOT get killed off...


2. Twilight Eyes - Koontz, Dean
Slim McKenzie was born with "the twilight eyes",
as his grandmother called them, meaning that he can see
that some ordinary-looking people have "goblins" living inside them;
he runs away from home after a traumatic incident which
alienates him from his family, and meets a bunch of new friends
including a stunning but troubled woman with dark secrets of her own.
I loved this book to absolute bits because of the awesome
concept of the "goblins" and Slim's gift,
and also because I totally ADORE the characters
(this book really felt to me like it could've been the start of a series...
and I still lament the fact that it wasn't).

3. Jane Eyre - Brontë, Charlotte
Jane Eyre grows up to be a governess in the home of brooding
Mr. Rochester, and falls in love with him only to find out he's got
a pesky secret that stands in the way of their unlikely love!!
I loved this book 'cause a) Jane wasn't a complete dolt who
sold her integrity down the river for a dude and b)
it all worked out in the end, awwww and c) Mr. Rochestor = yummo.

4. The Sword of Shannara - Brooks, Terry *
Shea and his brother (whose name I can't remember. Gahhh, the shame!)
leave home on a quest and what an epic quest it is too
(I know, that was a crap 'pitch'...hehe).
What I love about this book (and much of the Shannara series too)
is the absolute epic-ness of it, and the fact that I really do
love the characters (so sue me).

5. Pride and Prejudice - Austen, Jane

Elizabeth Bennett is known for being headstrong,
but it turns out she's pretty prejudiced too,
against the sexiest man in the history of literature
(wait, did I say that aloud? and am I thinking only of Colin Firth here...?).
Yeah, basically I loved this book because it was funny
AND I love how it ends, and I damn well love Mr. Darcy dammit.

49 comments:

  1. The Sword of Shannara - was the brother's name something like Flick? And yeah, I love the series too (although I haven't read it in a LONG time now).

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  2. Yes, that was his name Lynda! Thanks. :) and yeah, it's been YEARS since I read any Shannara. Though more recently I read the Word & Void series. Anyway...not a huge fan of the more recent Shannara, but apparently the latest ones aren't too bad?

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  3. Great teasers! I haven't read Firestorm: The Zagor Chronicles (Book 1), but I'm definitely checking it out! :)

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  4. I have only read Jane Eyre and P&P but those are two of my favourite books.

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  5. Ohh these are some good books....I will have to add them to my reading list...

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  6. @Amy - thanks. :) Firestorm is definitely for middle-grade/YA level, probably the former, but hey adults can love it too! hehe. those books are very quick reads.

    @Clarissa - I love them too! I thought of what books I'd take to a deserted island & those two stood out.

    @Savannah - if you remember, let me know what you think when you read any of them :) are you on GoodReads??

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  7. Ah yes... Mr. Darcy. I love him too. Jane Eyre has been in my TBR list for almost 5 years. I really have to read it in the near future. :-)

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  8. AWESOME!!! And I've been curious about that Koontz book!!

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  9. Fantastic, new books to add to my reading list.

    Pride and Prejudice I've read of course, or they would have drummed me out of my English graduate program. My favorite of Jane Austen, with Emma a close second.

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  10. Another JE and P&P fan here. I've read some Koontz, but never Twilight Eyes. Guess it's time for a few new additions to my TBR pile!

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  11. LOVE all your picks! All I read in high school was Koontz and Stephen King.

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  12. Pride and Prejudice is really cool!! this is the only book among your picks that I know!!

    I think, I should grab TWILIGHT EYES!!

    with warm regards
    Another Author

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  13. Sounds like you're enjoy a range of stuff. Since school (what feels like 100 years ago), I've been meaning to re-read Jane Eyre and Pride & Prejudice. Haven't managed it yet though.

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  14. I used to read Dean Koontz, but stopped after Tick Tock for some reason. And now I have K$sha's bloody song stuck in my head. Anyhoo... Maybe I'll check out Twilight Eyes.

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  15. I read the Shannara series in college and fell in love with them. I'd dream about the characters even.
    And of course P&P is one of my all time faves. Someday I'll get around to reading Jane Eyre.

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  16. I love pretty much anything Dean Koontz writes. What a fun idea for a blogfest!

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  17. yay for P&P!
    My favorite koontz is a tie between Phantoms and Watcher

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  18. To those wanting to check out "Twilight Eyes" - DO IT!!! NOW! :P Seriously a very awesome story. Of course not everyone will agree with that, but maaaan I love that book.

    Thanks to everyone who stopped by :) Seems we all have at least something in common with my list :D

    @Jolene - weirdly enough, I have only read one Stephen King book (well, aside from the Dark Tower series...they're kinda a stand-alone thing, at least in my mind :P). That was "The Stand". I really have to get reading the rest!

    @Samantha - yeah, I haven't read much Koontz in recent years (except re-reading old stuff). Wasn't a huge fan of some of his more recent stuff.

    @Sarah - I've read those I think but can't really remember them. There are other Koontz books I adore but "Twilight Eyes" is #1.

    @PK - LOVE Shannara :) and I definitely recommend Jane Eyre!

    @J.L. & Stephanie - I never had to read those classics in school, as I did just English, not English Lit. so yeah...took me ages to get around to them. ;)

    @Misha - go for it!! :) and mmm, Mr. Darcy. heart!

    @Christina & AMP & VR - read it! NOW! hehe

    @Susan - it's a great blogfest idea, you're right! :)

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  19. Boy I used to read Koonz a ton. If I had time to read outside of my genre I still would. Love his books!

    Angela @ The Bookshelf Myse

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  20. I haven't read any of these! They sound like some great picks.

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  21. @Angela - well if you ever take a break and want to read one book, I'd definitely recommend "Twilight Eyes" :)

    @Kari M. - Yep, well I do have a broad taste but I love all these ;)

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  22. ohhh I'm doing this blogfest, too. You definitely added some things to my TBR list. I'm actually thinking this blogfest is dangerous. I JUST ordered off bookdepository. I fear I will be making another order after reading everyone's lists.

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  23. Cool choices! I now have sudden urge to reread Jane Eyre.

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  24. I've read Jane Eyre and Pride & Prejudice - both lovely classics. I totally love your enthusiasm - I'll have to check out your other selections. Thanks for the reviews.
    P.S. I'm a new follower :)

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  25. I almost added The Sword of Shanarra to my list. Read it a few months ago and could not put it down. I'm a huge Dean Koontz fan (met him and gave him a copy of my book) but have not read twilight Eyes. I'll definitely check it out. Thanks for the reviews.

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  26. Great picks! Pride and Prejudice almost made my list, and I was a little sad when I decided not to include it. Narrowing it down to five is hard!

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  27. @Lana - gotta check out your list! :) I know what you mean...added a fair few to my TBR list already ;)

    @Liz - thanks! And yeah, I wouldn't mind re-reading Jane Eyre sometime either. I've only read it once!

    @Gwen - thanks for following, will check you out too :)

    @Stephen - yeah, Shannara is awesome, one of my all-time faves for sure (as makes sense, since it's in this list :P).

    @Heidi - Oh yeah, it was quite torturous narrowing down my final list. Missed out on MANY faves.

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  28. Awesome blurbs! This sounds like an awesome blogfest! I love giving praise to my faves!

    And I used to be a huge Dean Koontz fan - this makes me want to pick one of his up again!

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  29. I love Koonz! I have all his books, I just haven't been reading outside the genre that I write lately. (I made the exception with Davin's book.) But I need to reread them. Yeah, what a writer. :-)

    Sweet blurbs there, Trisha.

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  30. @Alison - it was fun for sure! hehe. If you do pick up some Koontz again, try the one on my list!!

    @Robyn - understood. I guess you can still look back fondly on when you did read his books. Hehe.

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  31. I haven't read any of the latest Shannara series, so I couldn't say.

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  32. I adore Pride and Prejudice, Trisha, and nearly included it on my own list. But it didn't quite meet the scope I settled on. It was really funny, the characters are eccentric and/or wonderful, the theme is excellent and the story is gripping. The BBC production with Jennifer Ehle and Colin Firth follows almost word for word and gets the characters and locales spectacularly right, making it one of the only truly satisfying adaptations I've seen.

    Thanks for the list!

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  33. Oh, small note about Koontz; Lightning also almost made it to my list - after reading a good many of his books, that is the best story I've found of his. His characters are always pretty thin, but that one has such an amazing and audacious plot that it's well worth it.

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  34. @Lynda - yeah me either. oh well...may get around to it someday. hehe

    @Jessie - I too loved "Lightning", though I NEVER got over the Danny plotline...how that ended. BAH! hehe. Still, "Twilight Eyes" is another one with really well developed characters (I think, anyway). I also love "Strangers".

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  35. Well, I definitely would not have anything by Jane Austen on my list. But I loved seeing Jane Eyre.

    I haven't read a lot of Dean Koontz novels but I think I actually did read Twilight Eyes. The premise sounds familiar. =)

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  36. I love Bronte and Austen as well. Don't know the others. I'll have to look them up.

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  37. P&P is on my list and I liked Jane Eyre - I will have to check out your other ones as I have not heard of them. :)

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  38. I'm starting to wish I put Jane Eyre on my list. It was sooooo good. Thanks for participating!

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  39. Dude! You are eclectic! I love it!

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  40. Love your mix of books! I'm totally going to take a looksie at Twilight Eyes now. Sounds very interesting, and from your pitch, it totally sounds like it could be a series starter!

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  41. @M.J. - I haven't read a lot of Koontz LATELY, but he was a definite high school staple :)

    @M Pax & Jo - there's a bit of a range of genres here! ;)

    @Teralyn - agreed, but hey we can't choose every book we adore right? Only 5!! Was not easy :P

    @ali - Yep, I don't have any genre I refuse to read. Like to mix it up.

    @Krispy - do it, doooo iiiit! hehe. I lurve it.

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  42. I like how eclectic your reading is. You and I have the Shannara series in common. :)

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  43. Gosh I only know two of those, the classics: Jane Eyre and Pride and Prejudice.
    I'm intrigued by the fact that using semi colons is cheating as used appropriately they should be ;O)

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  44. @Madeleine - I kind of ignored that part. Yeah, I cheated. Big time. LOL

    @Akoss - awesome!! Love that series :)

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  45. Trisha~

    I hope you have time for a game of Blog Tag, because "tag," you're it!!

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  46. Excellent picks!! Jane Eyre and Pride & Prejudice are a couple of must-read classics, I must admit. :) Twilight Eyes sounds really good!

    I have loved participating in this blogfest. :D

    ~TRA

    http://xtheredangelx.blogspot.com

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  47. @Gwen - will check it out :) Thanks!

    @TRA - it is, so go and read it! hehe. Or add it to your list anyway :)

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  48. Hey great to find a fellow Aussie. I'm slowly catching up with my getting through this blogfest and also thanks for checking out my kangaroo blog. I only know JE and P&P but others sound fascinating. Great to find another Aussie so will follow. Cheers

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  49. Hey Cheryl, nice to meet you! :) I know a few Aussies around and about here - have you found Denise at L'Aussie Writing? Also Sari Webb is in Melbourne. And nindogs is a young writer from umm Sydney I think. They're all great! And no doubt I'm missing more but I'm short of time right now. hehe

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Thanks for your words, me hearties! and don't forget to leave a link to your blog somewhere I can find it!