It's here! Slayers: Friends and Traitors!

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There's something about dragons that makes geeks like me geek-out. I have absolutely no idea why we so adore giant flying lizards known to roast virgins for lunch, but, well, we do. Probably because they're imaginary. I can't see us holding the same love if our loved ones started getting barbecued on a regular basis.

The Slayers series by Janette Rallison CJ Hill proves my point: dragons might be pretty and sort of awesome, but when if you're ever given a chance to meet one... run. Run fast. Actually, better if you can fly. (Not that that will save you.)

I was lucky enough to receive an ARC of Slayers: Friends and Traitors and I. LOVE. IT! It's the perfect continuation from book one, with teenagers acting like teenagers would if they had superpowers and were instructed NOT to contact anyone from camp over the school year. Also, if the danger they thought they had years to prepare for was happening... oh... NOW. Lots of awesome high-flying action sequences and on-the-ground intrigue. And high-flying intrigue. And on-the-ground action.

Have I mentioned that you can't grow up with the name of a bird without loving all things that can fly?

One of these is for a giveaway. Both are awesome.

I asked CJ for a character interview, so she, um, attempted to interview Jessie, one of the hot guys you can see on the cover of Friends and Traitors, the book up there on the right. He was kind of squirrely, but can you blame him?

CJ: So I’ve had requests for a blog where I interview my characters and I thought it would be fun to try. I’ve got Jesse here with me today. He’s captain of the Slayers’ Team Magnus. (I shuffle through my papers because I’m disorganized and can never find what I’m looking for the first time around) Okay, Jesse, here’s my first question: How do you feel about having superhero powers?

Jesse: (looking squarely back at me) I don’t know what you’re talking about.

CJ: You know, the power of flight . . . the extra strength . . . night vision . . .

Jesse: You must have me confused with someone else.

CJ: I’m pretty sure I don’t. After all, I did create you. I’m your author.

Jesse: (shifting uncomfortably in his chair) I’m just an average teenage guy.

CJ: Except that you fight dragons.

Jesse: (sending me one of his intense glares) Look, if you’re really the author, you know that certain facts about me are supposed to be kept secret.

CJ: But . . . I mean . . . being a Slayer isn’t really a secret. You’re on the cover holding a weapon . . .

Jesse: Would you want me telling your secret identity to everyone?

CJ: I don’t have a secret identity.

Jesse: Really CJ, or should I call you Janette Rallison?

CJ: That’s a pen name, not a secret identity.

Jesse: Pen name, alias, secret identity—it’s all pretty much the same. It means you’ve got something to hide.

CJ: (putting my papers down) Um, okay. I guess that concludes my interview with Jesse, the average teenage guy, who isn’t necessarily a descendant of the knights who killed off most of the dragons during the Middle Ages. Can I at least say that dragons are coming back and a dragon lord is using them to take down the government?

Jesse: You can say it, but no one will believe you.

CJ: Right. Thanks for coming, Jesse. (To myself) Next time I’m so interviewing Tori instead.

I'm going to have to catch Tori's interview, too.

Anyway, Janette has been one of my favorite authors for years and years, and I was thrilled when she branched out in to urban fantasy. I'm loving the Slayers series and honestly still can't decide which guy I want Tori to end up with. Just when one seems obvious.... Ah, I'll just stop there and let you read them yourself.

To that end, Janette has given me a copy of Slayers to pass along to one lucky blog reader. I'm sort of torn about it, though. I mean, I HAVE a copy of Slayers, of course, and it's personalized and everything, but it has the old cover with the egg on it. And I love that cover, but this one has a DRAGON on the front! But, well, the letter that came with it said I had to give it away, so I guess I will. Unless there are no entrants. Then I'm keeping it.

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Don't Start

As part of LDStorymakers, I participated in Publication Primer. My group was led by the awesome Janette Rallison, who endowed us all with her phenomenal wisdom over six wonderful hours while we tore our group's first chapters to itty bitty pieces. In return for this service, we are now all sworn to blurb Janette's books when we, ourselves, are famous authors. That's going to be an amazing hardship, of course, but somehow I'll find a way to survive having my name associated with one of her splendiferous future books.

I bring this up because of one of the (obviously wise) comments I made on one of my group members' chapters. This chapter was a great start to a very fun story, but the author made some awful, awful mistakes. Observe:

She also began to check out [genre] movies....

and

A warm glow started bubbling up....

Do you see it? My brilliant (come on, you can admit it) advice was that "The beginnings of actions are rarely as exciting as the actions themselves." See how smart I am? I suggested changing them as follows:

She also checked out [genre] movies....

and

A warm glow bubbled up....

You see how much better that is? How the beginning of the action is implied by the fact that she acted at all? Boy I'm a good editor.

Which came in handy when I was going through my completed manuscript in advance of sending it off to an agent who requested the full at the conference. (!!!) I've recently done some cutting and pasting and rearranging, and was just making sure that it still all flowed as it ought.

Imagine my surprise when I ran across:

Concentrating on the gland behind her heart, she started pushing Black pixie dust through her body.

Whaaaa? How'd that get there? And on my first page, no less! The most highly edited page in my book! Well, of course, I changed that sucker right away. It is now the much more respectable:

Concentrating on the gland behind her heart, she pumped Black pixie dust into her bloodstream.

Whew. Glad I caught that.

Just for curiosity, I did a quick search. If you're at all squeamish, you may want to skip this next part.

Page 2: The other students, pixies and humans, were starting to stop and stare....

Page 3: She’d stood there, stunned, until one of them had started licking her wing....

Page 14: Brina turned the knob and started to pull the door open.

Page 23: Brina turned right and started walking.... 

Page 24: London turned away and started back toward the closet.

Page 26: London’s wings started flapping....

Page 33: When Jim started walking back....

Page 34: ...one of the huge garage doors started to roll upwards...

... and I'll stop there.

Apparently, it really is easier to see the flaws I, myself, manifest.

If you happen to be an agent stopping by my blog and you happen to read this post, please feel free to assume that each and every one of the lines listed above--as well as all their little friends--are now as perfect as can be. Also, if you'd been wondering why I didn't send the full within a day of the request... you're welcome.

Also, you should know that Janette Rallison signed two books for me at the conference. Observe:

"To Robin: I know one day you'll be signing a book for me!"

"To Robin--who is an awesome writer!"

If Jeanette says it, it must be true. Despite any alleged evidence to the contrary.

So what's on your list of things-to-check-before-sending-to-agents?

100 Posts! Recommendations for Everyone!

This is my 100^thblog post!!!! Party!!! Confetti!! Cookies for everyone!

I haven’t posted for a week, because I just couldn’t think of anything cool enough to put in my 100^thpost. How does one manage to choose such things?

I wanted to do a give-away, but, dang it, I’m poor, and can’t finance anything big enough. Maybe for my upcoming blog-i-versary.

So I decided to give you all a list of my 100 favorite books from the last three years. The ones I’d love to recommend to you—and frequently do recommend to those who ask. I’ve been logging my reading since April of 2008, so I had over 500 books to choose from. I went through and weeded out the ones I didn’t feel good about recommending. Those I couldn’t remember, or wasn’t all that impressed by. I also weeded out many that I really do love, but knew would get easily cut from the top 100. I was left with over 200. *Sigh*

Of the over 200 finalists, most were part of a series. If I were to list each series as a single entry instead of multiple entries, I’d be under 100. Bother.

So we’re left with the following categorized list of books I would like to recommend to you, depending on your tastes. There are many more amazing books out there that I’ve read in my life, including classics and more modern novels. These are just my favorites from the last three years—since I decided to become a novelist myself. Some I’ve broken down into series, and some I’ve listed by author. This is a long post, so feel free to skip forward to your favorite genre—or the genre you’d like to try out—and see what I’m recommending there. To help you decide where to start, I’ve listed my top choice first in each category. UPDATED to add pictures, so you know the cover to look for. :)

General disclaimer: not all of these books are PG-rated. If you prefer PG-rated books, proceed with caution, and feel free to contact me for specifics on each book. Everyone’s tastes and sensibilities are different: I promise not to judge you if you promise not to judge me. :)

Also, I was going to link to each author, but that’s too much work, so I’m linking to my top author in each category and trusting that you can get Google to help you find the rest.

YA Low / Urban Fantasy

These books take our world and add magic. This is my favorite category, so I’ve read a lot of books in it. Harry Potter isn’t listed only because I haven’t read him recently.

Top Recommendation: Everneath by Brodi Ashton –it comes out in January 2012, but I read an ARC a few weeks ago. You’re going to want it. Pre-Order it now. You’ll thank me later. My full-ish review will be up here on October 26^th.

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer (yes, I still love the books)
2. Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare, beginning with City of Bones—and don’t forget the spin-off prequel series: The Infernal Devices
3. Vampire Academy series by Richelle Mead
4. Wings series by Aprilynne Pike
5. My Fair Godmother series by Janette Rallison (with another UF series to come under the pen-name CJ Hill)
6. The Dark Divine series by Bree Despain
7. Artemis Fowl (thanks, Shelly) series by Eoin Colfer (I’ve only read the first, but it was very fun)
8. Need series by Carrie Jones
9. Faeriewalker series by Jenna Black, beginning with Glimmerglass
10. Darkest Powers series by Kelley Armstrong, beginning with The Summoning
11. Paranormalcy series by Kiersten White
12. Wicked Lovely series by Melissa Marr
13. The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

YA / MG High Fantasy

These books are about a different world than ours, with magic and mystery.

Top recommendation: The Books of Bayern by Shannon Hale, beginning with The Goose Girl. While you’re at it, read her other fine, award-winning YA books (and her adult books). I love Shannon’s lyrical writing, and the way her characters lean on their friends to succeed. Also the romance. J

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. Anything by Jessica Day George, especially Princess of the Midnight Ball (which is really about a boy)
2. Graceling by Kristin Cashore
3. The Glasswrights' Apprentice series by Mindy Klasky (though I haven’t finished it yet)
4. Far World Series by J. Scott Savage, beginning with Water Keep
5. The Shifter series by Janice Hardy
6. The Black Magician Trilogy by Trudi Canavan, beginning with The Magician’s Guild

YA Dystopian      

Everybody’s utopia is someone else’s dystopia. I like to diss this category, but there are still lots of books I like in it.

Top Recommendation: Hunger Games series by Suzanne Collins. I’m not sure I’ll ever be brave enough read it again (or see the movie), but it’s a brutal, dazzling, and haunting ride. Definitely a must-read.

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. The Maze Runner series by James Dashner (final book due out in 10 days!)
2. Matched Ally Condie (book #2 is due out November 1)
3. Uglies series by Scott Westerfeld (excluding Extras—I just couldn’t finish it)

YA Contemporary Romance

Our world, with romance and no magic. What’s not to love?

Top Recommendation: Any number of books by Janette Rallison. Especially try My Double Life and Just One Wish. Normal teenagers with mostly normal problems. Janette is quirky, profound, hilarious, and an all-around treat to read. (And she’s starting a new YA UF series under the pen name of CJ Hill!)

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins (sooo looking forward to reading Lola, too!)
2. Back When You Were Easier to Love by Emily Wing Smith
3. The Princess Diaries series by Meg Cabot
4. Sweethearts by Sara Zarr

Adult Low / Urban Fantasy

Our world, magic, few teenagers. “Adult” doesn’t mean X-rated, but some of them are a bit graphic—in blood and / or in sex. Know your sensibilities and choose wisely.

Top Recommendation: I have to go with Patricia Briggs. I’m so in love with her Mercy Thompsonseries (starting with Moon Called), I went back and read everything she’s ever written. You should, too. (Some of it is high fantasy.) Mercy Thompson also has a great spin-off series called Alpha and Omega. Read that, too.

Can’t-help-it Runner-up: Ilona Andrews, especially her Kate Daniels series, beginning with Magic Bites. There’s a bit of post-apocalyptic in this one, but it’s an amazing world and a wonderful what-if. Ilona (who is really a wife-husband writing team) also has a great UF series called The Edge—starting with On the Edge.

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category (and, really, I keep re-arranging the first 4):

1. The Hallows series by Kim Harrison, beginning with Dead Witch Walking
2. Women of the Otherworld series by Kelley Armstrong, beginning with Bitten.
3. Jane Yellowrock series by Faith Hunter, beginning with Skinwalker
4. The Night Huntress series by Jeaniene Frost, beginning with Halfway to the Grave
5. Sookie Stackhouse series (the inspiration for TruBlood on HBO) by Charlaine Harris, beginning with Dead Until Dark
6. Harper Connelley series by Charlaine Harris, beginning with Grave Sight
7. Allie Beckstrom Series by Devon Monk, beginning with Magic to the Bone
8. Undead series by MaryJanice Davidson, starting with Undead and Unwed (vampire chick-lit)
9. The Walker Papers series by C.E. Murphy, beginning with Urban Shaman
10. The Negotiator series by C.E. Murphy, beginning with Heart of Stone
11. Broken Heart series by Michele Bardsley, beginning with I'm the Vampire, That's Why
12. Girl's Guide to Witchcraft series by Mindy Klasky
13. Stormwalker series by Allyson James

Adult High Fantasy

Think Lord of the Rings—which isn’t on the list only because I haven’t read it in the last three years

Top Recommendation: Anythingby Brandon Sanderson. The Mistborn series, Elantris, Warbreaker, The Way of Kings—all excellent, mind-blowing, and depressingly discouraging to a wanna-be like me. (One of my wanna-be friends threw Elantris across the room when he finished it because it was so good. How can we hope to measure up to that?) I’m even tempted to wade through the whole Wheel of Time series because Brandon is writing the end of it! (Also, Brandon is coming to Authors’ Advisory on October 5 to talk about Magic Systems!!)

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. Kingkiller Chronicles by Patrick Rothfuss, beginning with The Name of the Wind (though, honestly, I’m waiting until the series is complete before I read past #1—three year lag times are a bit much for me)      
2. Rogue Mage series by Faith Hunter, beginning with Bloodring
3. The Tide Lords series by Jennifer Fallon, beginning with The Immortal Prince (sadly, I haven’t yet read the last book)
4. Mad Kestral by Misty Massey

Steampunk (YA and Adult)

Take historical times and pretend they were as smart about science as they thought they were. Steam-powered gadgetry a must.

Top Recommendation: the Alexia Tarabotti series by Gail Carriger, beginning with Soulless. This is actually Victorian Fantasy Steampunk with a healthy dose of romance. Ever wonder how tiny little England took over the world? They had werewolves in their military, of course. And those strange Victorian fashions? Vampires. Absolutely hilarious books, with a YA spinoff in the works.

Close Runner-Up: Scott Westerfeld’s Leviathan series. A commoner girl pretending to be a boy falls in love with a royal boy who doesn’t know she’s a girl, while they ride around on a flying whale fighting elaborate machines in a rewritten version of World War I. The third book, Goliath, just came out, and I’m so excited to read it!!

Horror

Stephen King is the master at this. Take one relatable, mostly ordinary hero, pit him against something terrifying, and raise your reader’s pulse.

Top Recommendation: I Am Not a Serial Killer series by Dan Wells. #2 is Mr. Monster. #3 is I Don’t Want to Kill You. If the titles don’t convince you, they’re about John Wayne Cleaver, a 15-year-old diagnosed sociopath who is obsessed with serial killers… but doesn’t want to become one. He has rules to keep him from going down that path (i.e. No Stalking People)—and they’re working just fine until a serial killer comes to town. John decides he can stop him… he’ll just have to break some of his rules.

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. The Odd Thomas series by Dean Koontz
2. The Frankenstein series by Dean Koontz, beginning with Prodigal Son         
3. By the Light of the Moon by Dean Koontz
4. The Meridians (Ebook) by Michaelbrent Collings (who writes a lot like Dean Koontz) :)

           

Sci-Fi (Adult and YA) 

Playing with possibilities in scientific advancement, space travel, and alien life forms.

Top Recommendation: The Host by Stephenie Meyer. It’s simply amazing. The body-snatcher “Souls” are wonderfully kind and utterly perplexed about why these few “wild” humans are still resisting. The Souls unquestionably improve the societal structure on every planet they conquer. They eliminate poverty, sickness… and human consciousness—at least, until the Soul Wanderer takes over Melanie’s body. This heart-wrenching love story is told from Wanderer’s perspective, but is intimately woven with the perspective of the woman still hanging onto her mind—and her memories of a lost love.

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. Across the Universe by Beth Revis (book two coming soon)
2. Sirantha Jax series by Ann Aguirre, beginning with Grimspace

Adult Contemporary Romance

If you need an endorphin fix, a Happily-Ever-After, or just a reason to believe that things really can work out in the end, this is the genre for you. Unless you’re under 18 or squeamish about sex in novels. Then ask your parents first.

Top Recommendation: Anything by Robyn Carr. And not just because she’s my mentor. Her recent Grace Valley and Virgin River series about tiny towns nestled in gigantic mountains are the ultimate in comfort food. Beautiful women, manly men (mostly ex-marines), and (fictional) tight-knit communities so real you’ll be calling your realtor.

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. Anything by Susan Elizabeth Phillips, especially What I Did For Love
2. Anything by Jennifer Crusie, especially Bet Me, where the overweight girl still gets the hotty guy—and you’ll actually believe it!
3. Almost anything by Loretta Chase, especially Lord of Scoundrels
4. Traitor series by Sandra "my first-cousin Noreen" Grey (Though I haven’t read past the first book yet. Bad cousin. No cookie.)

           

Adult Contemporary

Present day. Not romance, not fantasy, not horror.

Top Recommendation: The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo series by Stieg Larsson. They can be disturbingly graphic, but if you’re not turned off by that sort of thing, the books are heart-pounding, gut-wrenching, and leave you rooting for the girl with weird hair, piercings, and tats. Who just happens to be a genius. And a hacker. And not half as incompetent as she’s been declared. And the toughest waif you’ll ever meet. It’s no wonder us Americans wanted our own set of films.

Other amazing books I’ve read recently in this category:

1. Nadia Stafford series by Kelley Armstrong, beginning with Exit Strategy—female ex-cop hit-man… er woman
2. Thursday Next series by Jasper Fforde, though I’ve only read the first one: The Eyre Affair

           

Writing Craft Books

Yeah, I really should read more of these. Most of my writing education lately has been from blogs, though, and blogs (as everybody knows) have excellent information on them. Still, these books are great, too. Even though I can’t pick a favorite.

On Writing (A Memoir of the Craft) by Stephen King—this is sort of a must-read for a genre writer. See King’s journey from dirt-poor scribbler to world-renowned author. Also, lots of solid (and some take-it-or-leave-it) advice on how to follow in his footsteps.

The Key: How to Write Damn Good Fiction Using the Power of Myth by James N. Frey—a wonderful description of the Hero’s Journey, the various characters, the steps along the way, and why readers love this structure again and again and again.

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Whew! You’re still here? You skipped, didn’t you? That’s okay. Come back whenever you’re wondering what to read next. :) I've specifically mentioned 77 books and/or series, so you should have enough to keep you busy for a while. 

So do our tastes match? Is your favorite missing? (If so, keep in mind that I might have read it over 3 years ago.) See any you want to try next? 

Finally, thanks so much to all my followers / readers / friends / family. Blogging wouldn't be half as much fun without you!

Why I love Janette Rallison

I've blogged before about the benefits of dark themes in YA. I truly believe that dark stuff can teach us something about life and how to survive it intact.

But what if we're not in the mood to learn about darkness, no matter how beneficial? What if we prefer lighter fare? What if we just want to feel good?

Enter Janette Rallison (and others like her). Janette deals with tough issues--don't mistake me here. Her books (her 18th comes out this October) deal with addiction, death, and betrayal--but always with a light-hearted spin. They make me laugh, they make me cry, and they make me feel good about life.

Oh, and they're always romantic. :) That's very important. Especially since Romance, Romance is the topic of Janette's Authors' Advisory Conference Call tomorrow night. She's going to tell us how to create a romantic story line--whether it's the main story or a subplot--and what the important elements of such a story line are.

As a special bonus, Janette has volunteered to give away two of her books as part of her conference call! I'm not going to tell you more right now--details will be discussed on the call. Call in, ask questions, and WIN!

"Which of Janette's fabulous books can I win?" I'm glad you asked.

How to Take the Ex Out of Ex-Boyfriend is about Giovanna, who has a really cool boyfriend Jesse... who agrees to support the mayor's son in his student body president campaign against her twin brother. Of COURSE she has to dump him, right? Ever hear of loyalty? Only, being Jesse's ex-girlfriend isn't as fun as the alternative. But how do you get your boyfriend back in the middle of a down-and-dirty election when you're on opposite sides of the war?

My Fair Godmother is about a normal girl. With normal problems. In the normal world. Who makes a normal wish for a princely prom date. Only she happens to be assigned a very ABnormal godmother-in-training for three of her wish-fulfillment needs. She signs a contract without reading it (gasp!!), ends up as a series of fractured fairy-tale princesses, and dooms the boy she likes to the middle ages until he can figure out how to become a prince. Fer reals. In a plan that involves dragon-slaying. This is the first in an ongoing series about the exploits of Chrysanthemum Everstar, who only scored a "fair" on her fairy godmother test. I've read the first two and eagerly await more.

You want to win them, don't you? Call in tomorrow night, starting with an informal Q&A at 8:45 EDT, to find out how. See the Authors' Advisory site for details.