**I write this post yearsssss ago. Not sure why I never posted it. My guess is I wrote it in 2012 or 2013.
1. J.K. Rowling
2. David Sedaris
3. Janet Evanovich
4. Deanna Raybourn
5. Meg Cabot
6. Mary Higgins Clark
7. Ernest Hemingway
8. Jennifer Crusie
9. Agatha Christie
10. F. Scott Fitzgerald
Of those ten authors, my favorite books that they have written:
1. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (gun to my head ... that's really the only way I could choose. And ask me tomorrow and I'll choose "Deathly Hallows." And on Wednesday, I'll choose "Half-Blood Prince." And on ... well, you get the idea.)
2. Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris (This may be the easiest choice on the whole list. All his books are brilliant, but this one is genius.)
3. One for the Money by Janet Evanovich (I remember when I began this series I thought they were the most original books I'd ever read, Stephanie Plum was the most original heroine, and Evanovich was the most hilarious author.)
4. Silent in the Sanctuary by Deanna Raybourn (but they are all gold. I've been saying for about the last year or two that she is truly my favorite author.)
5. Boy Meets Girl by Meg Cabot (but reeeeaally hard to choose!!! My favorite young adult book is probably "All-American Girl." Or perhaps a classic like "The Princess Diaries.")
6. Weep No More, My Lady by Mary Higgins Clark (I lied about #2. THIS was the easiest choice on the whole list. I have read this book upwards of twelve times.)
7. In Our Time by Ernest Hemingway (So this is actually a collection of vignettes, not a novel. If I were to choose a novel I'd choose "The Sun Also Rises" which ranks as one of my top five classic novels. But "In Our Time" was the first Hemingway I read so it introduced me to his style and his sneak-up-and- punch-you-in-the-gut- sudden-poignant-lump-in- the-throat-for-reasons- you-can't quite- understand style of writing, so it has a special place in my heart.)
8. Welcome to Temptation by Jennifer Crusie. (Easy.)
9. Why Didn't They Ask Evans? by Agatha Christie (Definitely not her most clever novel, but my absolute favorite. I think I prefer her "adventure" mysteries over her "detective" mysteries, if that makes sense. Best choice for a new reader is definitely "And Then There Were None." Definitely.)
10. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald (No surprise there. Highly recommend "Winter Dreams," the short story he wrote first and later revamped into "The Great Gatsby." My second favorite novel though is "Tender is the Night."
Other Favorite Novels:
1. Rebecca by Daphen Du Maurier
2. P.B. Ryan's Nell and Will series
3. The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare
4. Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason by Helen Fielding
5. Persuasion by Jane Austen
