The Questions that Matter #5: What’s on the Shelf?

Today we got our first submission for the Questions that Matter via email!  Thanks for the interesting question, Tracey!

I’ve found everything that you wrote, but what do you read?  What authors inspire you?

So, I’m only going to answer for myself this time, and guess at what Nevi likes.  (But after being together for 17 years, I think I’m pretty much the expert on everything Nevi, so you can trust that my answers are pretty accurate!)

So, Nevi is very much inspired by Stephen King, Anne Rice, and Edgar Allen Poe.  She loves horror novels (not so much movies) and high intensity psychological thrillers.  Recently, we both fell in love with Neal Shusterman (the Unwind books, to be exact) and she’s looking forward quite a bit to reading all of his catalog.  She also reads tons of manga.  Just literal tons of it.  It’s all over the house and she loves it so much.  It combines art with words to tell stories in an amazing way (and was the natural progression from her previous obsession with comic books.)

And as for myself?  Well, I have a special love for Anne Rice and Stephen King as well.  But my real hero of literature is Laura Antoniou.  She’s amazing.  Just wow.  Her Marketplace books changed everything when I read the Slave back in high school.  (And did I mention that Nevi and I have a short story in her upcoming Anthology, No SafeWords 2?  *squeal*flail*hyperventilate* Really, it’s true.  I’m so stoked for it to come out later this year!!)

Anyway, back to my collection of books.  I adore Anne Bishop, Richelle Mead, and was heavily influenced by Jean Auel’s Clan of the Cave Bear books.    I’ve just finished reading the Steampunk London series (by Bec McMaster) earlier today and I was not disappointed! I’ve had to fight not to tear through it one after another! I like to drag out the series I love for a little longer if I’m able. I get a little sad when I’m done with a good story and have to leave those characters behind. I know, i know. I can re-read them anytime (and this is a series I will come back to time and again) but it’s never as good as the first time.

Starting the Dark Swan series (Richelle Mead) and working my way through the Unwind books (Neal Shusterman).  Looking forward to breaking into Cecilia Tan’s Magic University books soon.  And after that? Who knows.  I have a huge collection of to-be-read books and try not to think too hard about what’s coming up next.  It hurts my brain.

So, yeah.  I rambled a bit but I hope that you enjoyed my answers!  And if anyone else has any questions for this blog series, please don’t be shy about hitting me up on Facebook or via email (hermitstarbooks@outlook.com)