Favourite Authors
I know, I know, one should never pick favourites. And, honestly, I'm grateful for every author's work that I've ever read for the wonderful entertainment they've provided me. I often feel guilty, actually, over the massive difference in the time it takes to write a book vs reading a book. That something that often takes months or even years to painstakingly create takes me only on average two days to demolish.
Sorry?
However, there are some authors whose worlds I just never wanted to leave. Whose characters I became completely obsessed with. Whose scenes and dialogue I read and reread with such intense fervour, that I felt they belonged on some sort of pedestal. So here they are, in no particular order, my favourite authors.
Kim Harrison
Kim Harrison is best known as the author of the New York Times #1 best selling Hollowsseries, but she has written more than urban fantasy and has published over two-dozen books spanning the gamut from young adult, thriller, several anthologies, and has scripted two original graphic novels. She has also published traditional fantasy under the name Dawn Cook. Kim is currently working on a new Hollows book between other, non-related, urban fantasy projects.
My thoughts:
It's actually funny how obsessed I became with Kim's The Hollow's series since it really was a slow starter. I only gave book one 3 stars, lol. Little did I know the pain I'd be in once I was further into the series, obsessed over the world, the characters and the will they/won't they romance and in complete torment over having to wait months for each new instalment. With just a couple of books that weren't quite as good for me, including the slow-starting book one and any books where a certain character was absent for far too much of the book, it is definitely a 5 star series for me.
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Karen Chance
Karen Chance is the author of two New York Times bestselling series, plus a number of novellas and short stories, all set in the Cassandra Palmer universe. A full-time writer since 2008, she was previously a university history teacher, which comes in handy when writing the time-travel aspect of Cassie’s crazy adventures. She loves Las Vegas, the main setting for her novels, but currently lives in Florida near her family home.
My thoughts:
I know a few people who haven't been able to cope with Karen's writing. It was too fast, too complicated, too much. But this is precisely the reason I love her so much. Have you ever met someone whose mind seems to operate at a million miles per minute? Karen has to be one of those people. The urban fantasy world she created here in the Cassandra Palmer series and the equally wonderful Dorina Basarab spinoff series is just one of a kind. Truly. The cleverness of the time travel elements and the genuine development the main characters undertake is second to none. And this series also has a crazy will they/won't they going on which, apparently, I'm a sucker for because it's a big part of the driving force of my love for the series but by no means the only one. It's outstanding. I highly, highly recommend it.
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Ilona Andrews
“Ilona Andrews” is the pseudonym for a husband-and-wife writing team. Ilona is a native-born Russian and Gordon is a former communications sergeant in the U.S. Army. Contrary to popular belief, Gordon was never an intelligence officer with a license to kill, and Ilona was never the mysterious Russian spy who seduced him. They met in college, in English Composition 101, where Ilona got a better grade. (Gordon is still sore about that.)
Gordon and Ilona currently reside in Texas with their two children and many dogs and cats.
They have co-authored several bestselling series, including the #1 NYT bestselling urban fantasy of Kate Daniels, rustic fantasy of the Edge, paranormal romance of Hidden Legacy, and Innkeeper Chronicles, which they post as a free weekly serial. For complete list of their books, fun extras, and Innkeeper installments, please visit their website at Ilona-andrews.com.
My thoughts:
What Urban Fantasy mega fan's list of favourite authors would be complete without the power-couple that is Ilona Andrews? I'd call you a fraudster and a liar if they were not there. The Kate Daniels series is yet another wholly unique world with incredible characters and, guess what? A slow-burn romance. And funny! Oh my gosh, I sometimes forget just how hilarious the dialogue is in their books!
A couple of events that always stick in my mind about this series: the "misunderstanding". I think it's at the start of book 4. Oh. My heart. It literally and physically hurt. I've read it twice and it hurt both times. The second is the "hot tub" scene. Not a sex scene as you might be assuming, but a fabulous heart-stoppingly intense scene all the same.
I was equally taken with their newer Hidden Legacy series and also The Edge series is well worth a read.
Karina Halle
Karina Halle is a screenwriter, a former music & travel journalist, and the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, and USA Today bestselling author of Darkhouse, The Pact, A Nordic King, and Sins & Needles, as well as sixty other wild and romantic reads.
She, her musician husband, and their adopted pit bull, Bruce, live in a rainforest on an island off the coast of British Columbia during the summer, and in Los Angeles in the winter.
My thoughts:
I have to include the blonde bombshell that is Karina Halle on this list although I confess to having only read one particular side of her writing; the horror, ghosty side. Although I'm aware more recently she's known better for her gritty, contemporary romances. She came onto my radar by recommendation. Specifically, I was told, "you have to meet Dex." Well, colour me intrigued. The Experiment in Terror series is a wonderful mix of creepy ghost and/or supernatural stories with a slow burn romance. Think Supernatural if it wasn't about two brothers but instead a snarky young woman paired up with a very sexy, sometimes grumpy and always mysterious guy.
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To be continued...
