Angie said: I was asked to write a blog post on what I read vs. what I write, I had to really think… I write reviews! I review what I read… and why I do it, is because I am opinionated and love having an audience. There – that could easily be this entire blog post in one line… But because I like to write and talk, I will share more about why I read, what I read and what motivates me to review a book or even an author’s entire line of books.
I have been reading for nearly my entire life – from the Berenstain Bears to Nancy Drew, I have always had a book in my hand. Growing up, I was LOVE with Sweet Valley and the twins, I started out on the Twins series and moved on to Sweet Valley High and then Sweet Valley University with all of the spin offs. One of the biggest trauma’s of my childhood was learning that Francine Pascal was only the creator of the series, not the author. This is what led me towards reviewing, having my idol brought down a notch left me wanting more from books – I wanted to learn about the person behind the words coming from a page. If the twins in Sweet Valley were not real, maybe the author was? It was not to be, but I kept coming back for more! I suspect if I walked in a book store and found a new series created by Ms. Pascal; it would be on my bookshelf in a heartbeat!
As an adult, I tend to lean towards romantic suspense and mystery when picking up a book, yet like every area of my life, nothing falls into one category. Favorite books sometimes end up being the one I would have never dreamed I would fall in love with – one of my current favorite series is D.P. Lyle’s ROYAL PAINS. This is the draw of reviewing, I get books I wouldn’t pick up on normally and sometimes they hit me so hard, I cannot wait for more! I would have never thought I would ever fall in love with a “fan” novel, but yet, I wait impatiently for each one to be released. I love the characters from the show – which I had never seen before I picked up the first book!
I tend to love series of books keeping the same characters. I am very character driven in my reading, I want to feel like I just made a new friend, and to keep them forever... My biggest disappointment in a book is often that it ends. I love a happy ending like any other reader of romance, yet I don't want to lose my new found friends.
On a note from a reader and not a reviewer, books I wait impatiently for and MUST buy as a pre-release are Janet Evanovich’s Stephanie Plum Series and ANYTHING by Brenda Novak. These two women make my life complete. I cannot live without them. I recently discovered Kate White and her mystery lines – she is quickly making my top 5 authors list… I am slowly working my way through her back list and waiting for more!
* * * * * **
You can read some of Angie's reviews at the Love Romances and More blog http://loveromancesandmore.blogspot.com/
And she will be continuing our tour with us, sharing her insights from a reviewer's perspective for the next few weeks. Next week she will be at Sue Roebuck's blog:
Susan Roebuck - http://lauracea.blogspot.com
And you will be able to find me at Love Romance's Blog talking with Angie!
