Tuesday Top Ten-Favorite Percy Jackson Characters

October 8, 2013October 7, 20133 Comments

Happy The House of Hades Release Day! I am so happy! I can’t wait to go diving into this novel! I’ve been waiting SO anxiously for this book to release ever since I finished The Mark of Athena last year. Such a cliffhanger.

Now, dosage to celebrate the awesome release of this book, information pills I have decided to have a Percy Jackson themed Tuesday Top Ten today.

I honestly thought this was going to be an easy Top Ten and I was soon proven to be completely wrong. But all ten are awesome, stuff and all the characters not on the list are STILL awesome.

10. Sally Jackson

Sally Jackson is a seriously awesome character in the novel. I think most middle grade/young adult heroes or heroines tend NOT to have parents. Its that orphan status that gives them the innocence and the drive to do the things they need to do. It also gives them the ability to do all these crazy things. There’s no authority there to watch them, really. But Percy is different: he has a mother, and a super loving and caring and sacrificing mother, and I think its awesome. Sally LOVES Percy, and does everything she can to make sure Percy is happy and safe. She marries gross and cruel Gabe in order to keep Percy safe for so many years. That right there is intense dedication. I also think its cool how, even though she loves and cares for him so much, she realizes who he is and what he needs to do, and knows that he can take care of himself. Plus there’s all the blue food. Any mom who goes out of her way to make all this food blue, because a jerk said something mean, is awesome!

9. Apollo

Okay, so this isn’t at all what I picture Apollo to look like BUT I couldn’t find good fanart of him, so this is what we’re stuck with. I freakin LOVE Apollo. I love when he shows up with his convertible, bringing the sun with him every day. I think he’s like a ridiculous frat boy, or that boy in school that drives you crazy because he’s clowning around all the time. Or he even reminds me of my brothers, when they’re driving me insane. I like that he is joking around a lot. His ridiculous poetry, and his bursting into songs randomly. Please tell me that this made other people crack up too? Its like, this guy is a GOD. The SUN god. He brings the SUN everyday. Plus he annoys the heck out of Artemis and is always making moves on her Huntresses and its just all fun. I love that Rick will yank you from heartbreak to humor, and I love the humorous moments with Apollo. They never fail to make me smile.

8. Rachel Elizabeth Dare

You know why I like Rachel Elizabeth Dare? Okay, one is that her middle name is Elizabeth and that’s my middle name, which automatically equals cool factor. But I think I really like her because she’s so brave, and she’s so strong and she’s just a regular human (at first). You know, most people would meet Percy Jackson, and the situations he’s in, and FREAK out but she takes it in stride, helps him out, and then just continues to be there. I admit, I was a little frustrated when she was hitting on Percy, because I’ve been a Percabeth shipper from the beginning, but I love her as a character, and as a best friend for Percy Jackson. When she steps up to be the Oracle, and she continues to be a part of the world, I’m super stoked. I think she’s one of the best and strongest characters, because she’s a human. Its been confirmed that she’ll make an appearance in The House of Hades, which I am SO excited for!

7. Grover Underwood

Aw, who doesn’t love good ‘ol Grover. I like Grover because he isn’t the obvious hero. He’s bumbling, and he’s klutzy and he gets nervous and starts chewing on soda cans and paper, and he doesn’t always believe that he can do it. He is determined to find Pan, and to follow Pan’s mandate, and there are times when he can’t believe it, and its hard for him, but no matter what happens, he pushes on. He’s a great friend to Percy and Annabeth too. Both Percy and Annabeth are super brave and kind of crazy and reckless and Grover just kind of sucks it up and follows them. But on their journeys, he always has importance and he always kind of surprises everyone and prevails. He’s a strong character, and he’s intelligent and he’s Percy’s protector and he’s determined to do that. And he’s just so adorable too. Apparently he’ll have a slight appearance in HoH too, so yay!

6. Leo Valdez

Leo! You know why I love Leo. Okay, well there is a lot of reasons why I like Leo. One, I like that he’s kind of the loner in this group of couples, and I swear, I don’t mean that in a mean way. I know its hard for him, and that’s why I like him. I can understand that. I can understand being lonely and being the third wheel again and again and again, and not feeling like he’s important enough. But I think there’s a lot to Leo and I hope he can find someone. I think he’s extremely intelligent and the abilities he has with his hands, to build things, and to fix things is awesome. Its not as obvious as Percy controlling water, or Jason being able to fly. Its like a talent that is just reinforced by his parentage, from his dad, Hephaestus. I think its one of the best talents amongst the demigods that we get to know, because its not like he magically fixes things. He still has to tinker and figure it out, and he’s good at it. I also think he has a great heart, and its going to be great to see what happens next for Leo, and to see how his story evolves. And come on, Rick, let’s give him a girlfriend, okay? Haha.

5. Piper Mclean

Piper! Yes, I do like Piper, and I like her more than Hazel, which you will notice because Hazel isn’t on the list. (Though I do love Hazel, don’t get me wrong). I like Piper because her god parentage, and her powers, are so opposite of what she would want. She is the daughter of Aphrodite and can transform herself into perfection, and can charm speak anyone. And all of this is VERY begrudging to her at first. She does NOT like this at all. And I think that’s what endears me to her. I think if I found out that Aphrodite was my mother, and my power was beauty and persuasion, I’d be like, “how did I end up with the short end of the stick?” It just doesn’t seem like a great power, and because she hasn’t ever really displayed an obsession with her appearance before, she is just less than thrilled. I do love that she uses her persuasion to just get things like cars and such. That cracks me up. But I love that she learns to use this to her advantage. She doesn’t take advantage of people, but she uses it to gain the upper hand, to control situations and she’s good at it. So I love Piper. I love Piper because she has to build her confidence, unlike most of her siblings who just seem born with that confidence.

4. Tyson

I LOVE Tyson, and honestly that’s helped along that Douglas Smith, who portrays him in Sea of Monsters, is just plain adorable. But I really do like Tyson, and I think that comes from what he teaches everyone and thats the idea of acceptance, tolerance and even friendship. Percy is totally fine with Tyson for a long time, until Poseidon claims him as a son, and its very annoying and frustrating to Percy. Then you have Annabeth and her fear and hatred of Tyson, and all Cyclops. Eventually his personality and loyalty and dedication wins everyone over, and its a learning experience for both Percy and Annabeth. Plus I think you’re apt to think Tyson is useless because he’s a Cyclops and he doesn’t talk very well, but he proves again and again how worthy he is to be claimed as a son of Poseidon.

3. Zoe Nightshade

Zoe! I miss Zoe. Zoe was one of my favorite characters probably because I tell myself all the time that I would not be a demigod, but instead I’d like to be a Huntress of Artemis’s and I would love to be the leader. I think Zoe is amazing, strong, brave, but still learning after all this time. Plus her grudging hatred of men, and her slow build in trust of Percy is just fun to watch. It goes back to that idea that people can change, and they can learn new things from each other. But more than that, she’s brave and so loyal to Artemis and she fights hard, so hard to get her back, and will do anything to get back. I like that she’s stubborn too, and that she is stuck in her old fashioned ways and says things like “thou” and “thee”. One of my favorite parts in all of the books is when they’re at the Hoover Dam, and keep saying things like “dam water fountain” and “dam tshirt” and Grover, Thalia and Percy are cracking up, and Zoe is so confused. I love that they mention it again in The Mark of Athena.

2. Percy Jackson

PERCY! I adore Percy, and yes, that is in part because Logan Lerman plays him, and he’s adorable and he was SO super sweet when I met him a few months ago. But Percy is the hero of the whole series, and one of the heroes in Heroes of Olympus series, and he’s a great character. Its his humor from page one of The Lightning Thief that really captures you into the entire series. No matter what is going on, he’s making you laugh. His sarcasm and humor keeps me addicted from page one to the very last page. And sure, his fatal flaw is his loyalty to his friends, but I love it. I love how loyal he is. He risks everything all the time for his friends and for his family, and even for people he barely likes such as Clarisse. I like that he fights so hard, and risks so much, and he does it all with such sarcasm and humor, and that he’s willing to push buttons. And I love his dedication to Grover and Annabeth, especially Annabeth. He really believes in her, and trusts her, and she’s the only person who scares him, which is how it should be ;)

1. Annabeth Chase

Annabeth is the best character in the entire novel because she’s so STRONG and FUNNY and WITTY and just plain awesome. I love that her strength is her cleverness and her ability to strategize. I love that she keeps up with the boys all the time, and its not like she’s a girl, she’s an equal with everyone else. She’s stubborn and hopeful and she is so determined. I always thought it was kind of funny that Annabeth is blonde, and that sort of “dumb blonde” connotation but she’s incredibly smart. I also like her hat, even though its a Yankees hat, and just…no haha. But she’s prideful and stubborn and can be judgmental but she always eventually realizes her judgements and her pride, and she does the right thing. Plus, she’s really nerdy with her obsession with architecture. And her relationship with Percy, the way she’s so in love with him, but she doesn’t let it control her, and she’s totally in control, and Percy can be SUPER scared of her, is just great. Percabeth for life.

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Hope you enjoyed this edition of the Top Ten! I hope all of you have your copies of The House of Hades. I have to go enjoy mine now!

Happy Reading!

Tuesday Top Ten-Top Authors that Deserve More Recognition

September 17, 2013September 16, 20134 Comments

One thing that I’ve really appreciated about being a book blogger is coming to expand my bookshelf immensely. In the last year, ask I have discovered so many new authors, I can’t even begin to think of all the authors I’ve discovered. I’ve immersed myself so deeply into the world of books that those authors that you may not notice right off the bat are coming out of the woodwork for me, and I’m discovering authors that are truly truly wonderful.

And I feel like, as a book blogger, it is one of my jobs to tell you all about these! One of the questions that I probably get more than anything is, “what do you recommend?”

Now you guys know some of my favorite books are Harry Potter and The Mortal Instruments and Infernal Devices and Percy Jackson and Divergent and Hunger Games…but these authors, they don’t need more help really in finding readers. Most of those have movies and they’re bestsellers and they just don’t really need me talking about them all the time.

So I spend most of my time recommending the authors that I believe are absolutely brilliant and just don’t get enough attention or readers, and so that was the inspiration for this week’s Top Ten.

Each and every single one of these authors are absolutely brilliant, and I find most people that I meet do NOT know who they are, and I find that to be very disappointing. I’m hoping this week’s Top Ten encourages you try some of these authors out and to explore new authors when you go to the book store.

So here we go.

11. Neal Shusterman

Yes I realize this is a top eleven and not a top 12. You can just deal with it haha.

I first discovered Neal Shusterman a couple months ago, and I recognize that he isn’t an unknown author. However, now that I’ve discovered his Unwind series, I want to share it with everyone and it doesn’t seem to be a ton of people out there who know him and this series. So that is why he makes it on to this list. I absolutely love this series and I think it is due to the fact that it makes me think. The Unwind trilogy takes an issue that is very highly debated right now (pro-life vs pro-choice) and he makes it so real, and he makes us really take the time to look at it. In the book, a second civil war has occurred between the pro-life and the pro-choice, and a compromise is reached: abortion in the womb is illegal, but a parent can have the option to have their child between the ages of 12 and 18 “unwound”, and all of their parts harvested to be donated to other bodies. In this compromise, it is said that there is no death, because the child continues to live, in a “divided state”. It is heartbreaking and raw and beautiful and its an addicting book series that makes me laugh and cry and it makes me think more than a lot of other books have. I think there would be a ton of people that would avoid this book because its not like other YA books, but that is EXACTLY the reason that you should read it. Do it.

You can read my review of Unwind here.

10. Jennifer Bosworth

I had no idea who Jennifer Bosworth was until I attended the Ontario Teen Book Fest back in May (which you can read about here). She was part of the panel with authors like Jessica Brody, Morgan Matson, Marie Lu and Leigh Bardugo, which ended up being one of the best panels I’ve ever been to. This is where I really discovered Jennifer. One, she is SO pretty, and two, she really caught my interest with her book, and sort of the back story behind it. Struck is about a girl named Mia who lives in Los Angeles after it was hit with a huge earthquake disaster, and she has this addiction to lightning. The only problem is, in the wake of this disaster, there have been several religious cults, one in particular, that have sprung up and would do anything to have Mia on their side. Again, like with Neal, it really causes you to think and to question some of the things you know. I think that Jennifer tends not to get a lot of notice because her books are not your “typical” YA novels. She really makes you think, and her book has an anti-religion message in there and I think most people would avoid that, instead of reading it, and taking it as a book that challenges the way you think. She’s not trying to CHANGE the way you think, but she does want you to question, question, question and I think that’s beautiful. She writes a beautiful book, with a great story but she really makes me think, and I can’t wait for her novel, The Killing Jar, to come out.

You can read my review of her book, Struck, here.

9. Jessica Brody

Jessica Brody is one of the FUNNEST authors that I’ve had a chance to meet this year, and discover, and I seriously get all fangirlish every time she recognizes me. (She saw me in the Cassandra Clare CBS interview and tweeted me. I nearly died). I saw her book, Unremembered at Barnes and Noble, read the inside cover, and decided to buy it. Then at WonderCon, I wanted to go to the panel “Writing for Teens and Tweens” because, well, that’s what I want to do, and she was there. She made me laugh, and she really impressed me with the things she said. I stopped by her signing booth and talked to her for a bit, and when I told her I was trying to be a writer, she said, “Don’t try to be a writer, just be one.” That really stuck with me, and I raced home to finish this book. I’ve since then met her several more times, and have read more books by her, and I seriously love her. She has a great sense of humor, and her book Unremembered (which is the first in a planned trilogy) is a real action packed book that was so different than anything else I had read in YA so far. Seriously, think The Bourne Identity but with a teenage girl instead of Matt Damon. I really love this book, not only because of the characters and story, but because of the uniqueness of it. I LOVE Jessica, and its hardly ever that I find someone who has read her books, which is why I’m telling you, please please read Unremembered. SO good.

You can read my review of Unremembered here.

8. Marie Lu

Marie Lu is NOT an unknown author. Her book series has already exploded onto the scene, and the first book of her Legend trilogy, Legend, was optioned as a movie before it was even published. It is a brilliant series. The reason that I have her on here as an author that deserves more recognition is because I think she gets shuffled under the rug because of series like The Hunger Games and Divergent. I am a HUGE fan of both of those series, definitely, but I can say, with confidence, that Legend is, in my personal opinion, better than both of those. The thing about Marie Lu’s dystopian trilogy is that its so believable and its almost scary in that its so believable. I also think its better because its dual point of view, and the two different points of view are SO different. You have someone completely enveloped in this society, and believes it to the very core, and then you have someone who has been fighting against it, to keep himself and his family alive, for so long, and the clash of those two people together really is awesome. In Hunger Games and Divergent, you always know who the “bad guy” is, but in Legend, you’re always questioning because you get these two points of views. I also admire Marie a lot because she’s one of the only series I’ve read, dysptopian wise, who talks of other countries outside of the United States. She recognizes the rest of the world, which causes an even more solid story, in my opinion. Its an amazing series, and I can’t wait for the third and last book in November.

You can read my review of Legend here.

7. Rae Carson

In a little more than a week, I’ll be heading to Las Vegas to meet this author…which is roughly about a four hour drive away from my suburb town in Orange County, California. That is how much I love this author. This will be the farthest I’ve driven to meet an author and I honestly don’t think that I’ll regret it in the slightest. When I first read The Girl of Fire and Thorns, I couldn’t get into it; I was really confused at first. But I think it was about 50 or so pages in when it just hit me and it grabbed me and I raced through it, and then immediately bought A Crown of Embers on my Kindle, because I couldn’t wait until the book store opened the next day. I felt VERY lucky to be able to receive an ARC of the last book of the series, The Bitter Kingdom. Its an amazing series. I think that maybe people avoid this series because of the epic fantasy that it is. I think fantasy tends to be really popular…when its recognizable, which is why all the urban, contemporary fantasies seem to do better than epic fantasies. But I’m an epic fantasy lover more than anything and I think Rae Carson is a fantastic story teller and a great world builder. And my absolute favorite part of her novels? Her main character, Elisa? She’s fat. Over the course of the books, she becomes less fat but she’s not a perfect, beautiful, skinny character and I absolutely love that.

You can read my review of The Girl of Fire and Thorns here.

6. Jen Calonita

I absolutely adore Jen Calonita, because she writes very realistically without having to be ridiculously tragic. Not that I don’t like books with tragedies but sometimes I think people forget the trivial problems we had as teenagers that felt like the absolute end of the world. I like Jen Calonita because she’s fun, and because her books are extremely sweet and because they remind me that we don’t always have to be setting the weight of the world on our shoulders and its okay to worry about how we look that day, or whether we’re going to pass our math test. I love that there are books out there that make me think, and that make me more aware of the economy or history, or world affairs but sometimes I just need a break from the world, and Jen’s books are great for that. Her Secrets of My Hollywood Life series is about Kaitlin Burke, a young Hollywood star on a hit TV show, who wishes nothing more than to find a balance between the job she loves doing and her desire to be a normal girl. Her Belles series follows Izzy, a girl who grows up in a small community until her grandmother gets too sick to take care of her anymore, and she goes to live with family she never knew existed in the ridiculously rich town of Emerald Cove. She also has two standalone novels, Reality Check and Sleepaway Girls. I love these books because they are the kind of YA that you don’t have to question, because there’s sort of younger YA and older YA. I think you can enjoy this at any age. They’re funny and cute and I think they’re really enjoyable books to read. I wish more people would notice her, and I think because she tends to have happy endings, without any tragedies, she doesn’t get a lot of notice, and that makes me incredibly sad. Her books are great, and you should definitely check them out. Also, her Secrets of My Hollywood Life series was incredible help for my book, A Little Less than Famous!

I unfortunately have not reviewed any of her books for this site yet!

5. Andrew Smith

I had no idea who Andrew Smith was until the Ontario Teen Book Fest, and even then, I still had no idea who he was or any of that. Carrie Arcos (author of Out of Reach) actually pointed him out to me, and said that his book, Winger, was coming out that Tuesday and that it was already going to be featured in the New York Times. That caught my interest quickly. After talking to him throughout the day, and learning what a really cool guy he was, I added it to my “To-Read” list, and hoped to read it soon. I’ve only read Winger, I haven’t had a chance to read his other books YET, but I already think that he is an absolutely amazing author. I read Winger in the span of a few hours and was immediately sold on the book and on Andrew Smith. There was so many layers to this novel. Part school story, part coming of age, part humor, part tragedy, even part comic book, it tells the story of Ryan Dean and his adventures at boarding school. There is just so much about the book that is great. Like I said, its funny and sad, and its full of adventure and romance and its just a great book, and it keeps popping up everywhere, earning recognition and recommendations, but I don’t know of many people who have actually READ it, in my circle of readers and bloggers. Lately, when people ask for a recommendation, this is one of the ones I say right off the bat. I will push this on anyone and everyone and I think its an essential read. I am happy every time I do see someone reading it. Let’s just say this: CNN made a list of must-read books for the summer, and Winger was the only YA book to make it on the list. That shows you how good it is.

You can read my review of Winger here.

4. Tammara Webber

I discovered Tammara Webber when I first purchased a Kindle a few years ago. I was looking for something new to read, and Amazon suggested the book, Between the Lines, which was fairly inexpensive, maybe only 5 dollars. I decided to give it a try, and I was hooked so fast. I was blazing through the next two books in the series, eating it up. Then I decided I needed them in actual hard copy. That’s when I really discovered the awesomeness that is Tammara Webber. Because most people tend to consider her books “new adult”, which is kind of a wacky age group/classification that is still not quite found its place, she was having a really hard time selling her novel. So she has worked her butt off, self-publishing her novels in ebook format, and her Between the Lines series has garnered her a bunch of attention. Then Tammara wrote her standalone novel, Easy, which highlights the dangers of rape, especially acquaintance rape, and that too has garnered a lot of attention and a lot of high praise for it. Her series and her standalone novel are both fantastic, and I admire her immensely because of her drive, her determination and her ability to make herself successful because of those.

You can read an interview between me and Tammara here.

3. Morgan Matson

Morgan Matson is one of the more brilliant authors in contemporary young adult fiction and the fact that I have gotten to meet her three times this year has made me incredibly happy. She has written two novels: Amy and Roger’s Epic Detour and Second Chance Summer. And while I’ve noticed a TON of Morgan Matson love on the interwebs and on most blogs about books (because we knows whats up!), I don’t see a lot of book readers outside of blogs that really know who she is. That makes me incredibly sad. Her two novels that have been published so far easily would make my top list of books, especially Amy and Roger’s Epic Detour. As a debut novel, it just shines. Its a beautiful work of contemporary YA lit; it recalls Sarah Dessen, for sure, but Morgan Matson has a voice on her own and it seeps into her characters, Amy and Taylor. Plus her novels are SO summer, and I just love summer. Okay, maybe not the ridiculous temperatures that we can get here in Southern California but I adore everything else about summer, especially that I get to curl up and read, read, read, and I always make sure to read Amy and Roger’s, because its so worth a summer read and more. I’ve been able to meet her a bunch this year, and I *think* she recognizes me now and I seriously get SUCH a kick out of that. She is such a sweetheart and she helps me to believe that I can be a writer too. Seriously, read her books.

You can read a review of Amy and Roger’s Epic Detour here.

2. Tamora Pierce

Tamora Pierce has been writing books since the 1980s, the EARLY 1980s, and she hardly needs help getting recognition. So why do I have her on here? Because its all fine and dandy that she has a strong fan base and that she’s been recognized in several different countries, and a TON of different associations and had honors bestowed upon and she CONTINUES to write magnificent books, BUT, I think its time to introduce her to the new generation: you guys. I have found that most of my followers tend to be younger than me, and have absolutely no idea who she is and that saddens me! In this world where young adult literature is at the highest I’ve ever seen it, and where fantasy is HUGE, and young, strong, smart, amazing female characters are incredibly popular, why isn’t she? Because her books are older, shorter, what? I can’t understand it so I continue to talk about her all the time, to rebuild her and her absolutely wonderful books. Her first series? About a girl who hides her gender in order to become a knight, as good as the boys. Her second series? A girl who discovers she has the rare power of wild (animal) magic and she can use it for so much, and to help the kingdom. Her third series? About a girl who tries for her knighthood after its legalized that a girl CAN do so, but is it any easier? Her fourth series? About a girl kidnapped to a foreign country who finds her niche, and helps a group of oppressed people take back their country. I mean, I could go on and on. She’s a brilliant writer, a brilliant storyteller and her world building is flawless. Please, read her; you won’t be disappointed in the SLIGHTEST.

You can read my review for her very first book, Alanna: The First Adventure here. You can also check out my Fandom Friday about Tamora Pierce, as well, here.

1. Cinda Williams Chima

This is one of my more recent discoveries and it is a discovery that I made so gladly. I somehow randomly came across Cinda’s book, The Demon King, last fall and immediately went sprinting through the rest of the series. Its absolutely brilliant, an epic fantasy that has great characters, from the main characters of Han and Raisa, to the smaller characters as well, and a great world that you find yourself immersed in. Raisa is a princess struggling to become a better ruler, for the day that she takes over as queen, and Han is a former criminal, who discovers a secret about himself, and its a secret that is going to change his life forever. The two of them are so far apart, and yet their lives start to intersect and they both become so instrumental to the well-being of the queendom. Her Heir Chronicles series is a contemporary urban fantasy, following different people but the first book follows Jack, who discovers he has special powers after he stops taking his medicine one day, and he finds out he is a warrior in a society full of enchanters and sorcerers, wizards and more. Wizards are in control and they need a warrior for their tournament, a tournament that includes a fight to the death. She creates beautiful fantasy worlds, with great characters, a ton of action with a nice balance of the romantic and steamy and her books are written SO well. I’m meeting her in a couple weeks and I have to make sure that I don’t faint in excitement!

You can check out a review of The Demon King here, my exclusive interview with Cinda here, and also a full post on my urging you to read her books here.