Friday Fiction Fiend #3- Meet Rachel

I'd like you all to meet the lovely Rachel. She is in my writing group & I can not help but be endlessly grateful that get to associate with & be a part of her genius. You guys, the novel she is working on is unbelievable & I read a lot so I know what I'm talking about (and I'm not bias at all). I can not wait for it to be published so you all can read, sob, laugh, & fall in love like I have.

You all should stop by her blog- one read & you'll be hooked too. She does posts on writing, and life, and her music recommendations are fabulous. I implicitly trust her taste in books & so I was excited to see what she could pick for her "Friday Fiction Fiend" post.

I hope you guys enjoy her picks as much as I did (& you can read the past posts here).

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i read all genres of books. novels, non-ficiton, biographies, young-adult, picture books. i love them all. but to be a favorite, i am like lady gaga. i want your ugly, i want your disease, i want your psycho. what i mean is i want to see a real struggle, something i can really root for. all my favorite books have this in common.

also, i want beautiful writing. the story must be gripping, but if the writing is not artful and subtle and filled with well-placed phrases that make me sigh then it won't be a favorite.

i'm demanding like that.

that being said, i'm thrilled to share a few favorites with you.

1. DAUGHTER OF SMOKE AND BONEby Laini Taylor

Set in Prague, intricately plotted, well-crafted prose, themes of belonging and changing your fate and making your own magic, achingly romantic. This one will stop your heart. At least it did mine.

2. THE FAULT IN OUR STARSby John Green

Perfect capture of the teenage voice. The absolute right way to write about hard things without a touch of melodrama. Read if you're in the mood for the perfect mix of quirky characters, hilarity and mix of cry-your-tears-dry tragedy. Stunning.

3. ARCHANGELby Sharon Shinn

If my book publisher presented this cover, I would cry and then in a spoiled-brat rage cancel my contract. Horrible cover aside, It's rare to find a book that has everything I love in it. This one does. Epic and grand world building, with a sweeping, rich love story that left me with a warm, satisfied glow as I closed the book. Lyrical, subtle, emotional, suspenseful, and above all, uplifting, this is one to add to my own personal library. I end with a favorite quote from the book: Only the strongest are put through the fire...And the forge creates things of great strength and beauty.

4. FROI OF THE EXILESby Melina Marchetta

You can read this without reading the first in the series, FINNIKIN OF THE ROCK, but why in the world would you? Two excellent books that rekindled my love of epic fantasy and left me only wanting to read that genre for the rest of my life. This book is wondrous strange, VERY dark, epic and heart-wrenching. It's long, but it felt like there wasn't a single wasted word. If I were to pick any book that I WISH I had written, it would be this one.

5. BEAUTIFUL BOYby David Sheff

Intensely emotional memoir of a father's unconditional love for his son. I could not put it down. It was raw, yet tender and achingly familiar. I loved Sheff's use of words, as well as all the many quotes from Shakespeare to Cobain and the way he weaved them into his story. I grieved for Sheff as I grieve for my family and every family whose lives are ripped apart by the insidiousness of addiction.