Monday, June 27, 2011

fave reads of 2011 ~ the characters


[please forgive (or righteously shake your fist at) bloggers wonky formatting. argh.]


1. best female POV
i can't really choose here (what was i thinking, inventing this category !!?!). anyways, i am going with one girl who was just so authentic to the teen voice, utterly flawed but still heart-breakingly lovable and completely got under my skin:


Sydney from EVERY LITTLE THING IN THE WORLD. i found her utterly engaging and all her little sentiments about the world just gorgeous and quietly sigh-worthy.
(although i love my hilarious narrators too)

2. best male POV

this was hard (understatement). but i completely LOVE Mason from C K Kelly Martin's book. every thing about him is just gorgeous ~ i also found him refreshing, just so effortlessly likeable, and quite distinct in his personality and vibe. my (very very close) runners-up were Jace from SPLIT (in 2nd place) and Adam from WHERE SHE WENT.

3. Best couple <3 
  • for soul mates and history (regardless of their ending ~ no spoilers): Adam and Mia in WHERE SHE WENT
  • for loving watching these two together: Clara and Tucker in UNEARTHLY
  • for antagonistic slow-burning attraction & chemistry ;) Jake and Harper in SAVING JUNE
(these aren't necessarily my fave couples, just undeniably done well couples ;)

4. who i so want to be best friends with
Chelsea from PAST PERFECT love her like mad. 
(three shout-outs):  
  • Leigh from PSYCH MAJOR SYNDROME (although she is perhaps a little too similar to me, LOL). 
  • I would definitely LOVE to hang out with Kyra from THE CHOSEN ONE. she needs a friend 
  • and Georgia from ANGUS THONGS, (etc) I heart you xx Nomes
5. who i fell completely in love with (new literary crush)
okay ~ so there's been plenty of fine boys between the pages this year. so sticking to my absolute absolute faves and i have it down to my top two (oh, i know, impressive!)



Nathan from PSYCH MAJOR SYNDROME and Jake from SAVING JUNE

one good boy and one (maybe not so) bad boy. both particularly swoon-worthy
(weirdly, they both sing, play guitar and run around shirtless... i'm sensing a theme here ... *cough* nic *cough*)

i was going to list my runners-up but things were getting COMPLETELY (sheepishly, foolishly) out of hand. so i'll just leave it there for now ;)
6. worst (best) villian

Brand from BURN BRIGHT (eeeevil and smart)
the elders from THE CHOSEN ONE ~ completely foreboding and genuinely fear-inducing. also, layered. 

AND the villains (?) in NEVER LET ME GO. it's hard to work out who they are the whole way through. and even harder to see them all black and white. so many shades of grey ~ which is perfect for villains. in the end, they are a blend of the villainous and also, weirdly, saviour-like beings (from the other perspective) expertly done, IMO.
7. best character twist (who you loved then hated or vice versa)

Christian in SPLIT (Jace's older bro). i mean, i never hated him, but he swung ambiguously on that pendulum of like/dislike, get over yourself/man-up/you're breaking my heart/aww, man ... etc (not so much a character twist ~ more just flawed and ambiguous and realistic)
8. best kick-arse female
Elsha from WINTER OF FIRE and Gabi from WATERFALL ~ they are both feisty and determined and courageous.
9 best kick-arse male
i'll be honest ~ i don't have a STRONG obvious pick for this BUT i really do like Carrie Ryan's flawed boys ~ and they certainly have their knight in shining armour moments.



so i pick both Eli and Catcher from THE DARK AND HOLLOW PLACES.

10. broke your heart the most

Jace from SPLIT. aww :'(

 11. best/worst character names
(this is the part where i hope i don't offend anyone who has these names in real life. or, awkwardly, someone who chooses these names as 'best' haha




worst: those kids in FORBIDDEN. lochan, maya, willa, kit and tiffin. argh. it's just too "daytime drama". not for me (especially lochan, it's like the awkward version of lochlan)

also, not overly fond of Mclean (WHAT HAPPENED TO GOODBYE). it just gets me thinking of my Macleans toothpaste, you know, haha

and Milo from FALL FOR ANYTHING. i did get past it, but there's no denying that Milo really is a dog kind of name ;)

best: i am not fazed about best names, i guess i get more attached to the character and then the name becomes synonymous with the awesome. when i was thinking about my fave character names, they all just ended up (sheepishly) being the names that belong to my fave characters.




I like Leigh (who has a secret real first name that you find out later in the book, which made me like her even more. her real first name is kind of awesome) from PSYCH MAJOR SYNDROME. 

and Sydney from EVERY LITTLE THING IN THE WORLD ~ i already liked Sydney from ALIAS though ;)

OH! and Harper from SAVING JUNE <3 (v v cool)

and it should be mentioned that the name Patrick (FIXING DELILAH) has never let me down ;)


and randomly, i really ended up liking the name No (from the gorgeous, sublime French YA: NO AND ME) even though at first it seemed like an odd name, No? LOL


* I wish I had also had a few categories for best siblings, best parents, best friends ~ i didn't think of it until later (and to be honest i was getting carried away with categories anyways. i think i could endlessly think up awards, LOL. i'll add in these when i do it again at the end of the year ;)

BONUS: 5 fave covers (from books i have read)

SLICE: so summery and blue and smiley and vibrant. with lovely title font

EVERY LITTLE THING IN THE WORLD: i unabashedly LOVE this cover. it's full of life, and just screams out at me to be picked up. i also LOVE the cover model for Sydney <3

PAST PERFECT: so this cover has NOTHING to do with the actual book (!?) but it's still undeniably awesome <3


THE DARK AND HOLLOW PLACES: LOVE our Aussie edition. it's dark and textured and kind of haunting. matches the tone and atmosphere of the whole series


ALASKA: much more gorgeous in person, it's bronzey and shimmery and has a wrap-around dust jacket picture.

BURN BRIGHT: it's only after reading the book that i love the cover so. it's dynamic and vibrant and dark and a little bit unusual = perfect.

here's a linky to link-up (and WOW thanks to everyone who has joined in so far O.o ~ it's been unreal reading all your nominations.) am a bit flat out today but will pop over in the next couple of days to check out any posts i haven't seen yet :D)

I'm posting part three on Thursday, the last day of June (click on sidebar icon for categories for #3)



31 comments:

  1. Never let me go is a tough one to choose from because they are all so hopelessly torn and flawed. Dark but fascinating book though. Okay you have convinced me that I need to read Saving June. Seriously!

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  2. I totally picked Brand as my villain too!

    And we have some of the same picks with Harper, Jake and Adam :)

    I haven't read Forbidden but I totally agree they are bizarre names :S

    Thanks again for making up these lists Nomes xx

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  3. The Aussie The Dark Hollow Places is a beautiful cover. I have the UK (I think) don't like it as much.

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  4. man do I want to read Saving June!

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  5. I need to read FIXING DELILAH and SAVING JUNE. They sound so good! And I really really really love this whole idea. <3 both times you've posted I ran {figuratively} and pounded the keys {literally} in a rush to pump out my own list. Bravo, Nomes!

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  6. Wow, love your picks, Mel. I forgot what an awful name Milo was. :)

    I'm really irked by the Dark and Hollow places cover. It looks exactly the same as the Forbidden cover! What gives?

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  7. Oh, I love your list! It gave me tons of books to check out. I think I've only read one of the ones in your list - Where She Went.

    :D

    I'm just waiting for my list to go up to add my linky

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  8. Awesome list! I've been hearing so much about Jake from Saving June. I must read it soon! And I absolutely agree with the "villains" in Never Le Me Go.

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  9. Gorgeous Nomes! I love this series of posts! Plus it gives me stuff to put on my reading list:)
    ps - I love the aqua tyepwriter too

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  10. That's what I was thinking for the 'Past Perfect' cover -- I love it! But... what does it have to do with the book? Haha, so confused.

    I can't wait to read 'Saving June'! I loveeee the slow-burn romance.

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  11. I want to stay up late finishing up my list because I was gone all day ;p LOVE your list! I want to steal Christian, omg, he fits so perfectly in that category. and JACE <333 I want to meet NATHAN! anyways, super awesomesaucity going on :)

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  12. We got a few the same for Past Perfect, Psych Syndrome, Saving June and Slice! YAY!!!!!

    And yes I know what you mean about guitar playing, singing, shirtless hotties. Jake and Nathan were on my list too! Wait until you see my list I had to pick 6 and provide pictures of course LOL.

    I must read Every Little Thing in The World if Sydney is your favourite female character this year so far. Awesome list Nomes.

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  13. Haha I made the same comment about Mclean, I would have changed my name to Liz if I were here too!

    You should definitely do the best sibling etc at the end of the year.

    So many books on here that i want to read ~ also how many books have you read this year!! I'm kind of in awe.

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  14. Psych Major Syndrome and Saving June seem really good! I really have to read these two books. I am waiting for the coming of November, the released of Saving June in US. But actually, I prefer the aussie cover of Saving June than the US version. I also want to read Burn Bright. Awesome list!

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  15. I'm deffinteley going to have to read past perfect, Psysch major syndrome and every little thing in the world!
    The alaska cover is so gorgeous, it is at the top of my wishlist.
    And i'm liking Tucker and clary as your fav couple.
    great list as always :)
    looking forward to the next post!

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  16. I need to read Saving June! I just can't seem to track it down and it's driving me insane!!

    Never Let Me Go is one of my favourite books. It haunts me still!

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  17. Great list!...but is it just me or does the cover for DARK AND HOLLOW PLACES look like a FORBIDDEN knock-off?

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  18. Nomes,

    Categories for best siblings, best parents and best friends would have been awesome. Oh, well, maybe at the end of the year?

    And yes, I felt so awkward picking worst names because I was terrified to offend. I kept thinking, my name is pretty common and plain so who am I to say anything? LOL

    I completely forgot how much I hated the names in Forbidden or I would have listed them all on my list. Grrrr

    And I really can't wait to read Split. And I really want to meet Mason, plus I love the name. :)

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  19. oopsies! I posted the wrong link. can you delete #20? I'll repost the correct link

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  20. You didn't tell us the exact days you were posting at first, but I chose the same dates! So of course my final post is on Thursday as well!

    Clara & Tucker!!! Gosh! Cowboys and Angels!

    We both picked a C.K. Kelly Martin book for MPOV! :)

    I didn't like the names in Forbidden either, Lochan made the list!

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  21. Nomes,

    this whole faves of 2011 idea is the best thing since air conditioning in Texas. You laugh now, but I will have you know that currently it is 102 degrees in my car (I'm not joking. I wish I was) plus humidity. So that is a huge complement.

    I freakin' love you and your book reviewing genius. I am so kicking myself in the butt for not picking up Every Little Thing In the World when I had the chance. LOL

    ♥ Trish

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  22. Haven't read any of the books in this list and I want to read all of them!

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  23. Nomes, I am loving this:) I smiled at you loving the Past Perfect cover despite it having nothing to do with the book, loving the name Sydney because of Alias (me, too!) and you and Nic lovin' all over Psych Major Syndrome (and the swoonworthy guy in it) made me pick it up today.

    xo Flann

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  24. I my interest was kinda piqued by SAVING JUNE at BEA but I talked myself out of getting a copy (I couldn't justify braving the craziness at the Harlequin booth - so disorganized for a book I didn't know I'd like). Now regretting it. I'm going to have to get my hands on a copy.

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  25. This was such a great idea. And I'm laughing because your WORST names really do sound like names form a day time soap or drama. Now I'll have to check some of these titles out you listed!

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  26. hey! I wanted to say in reply to your comment on my The "What If" Guy review - the book is on NetGalley! If you don't use NG, I'd try contacting the pub (Entangled). They're new and seem really open about working with bloggers, so I bet they'd send an egalley! :)

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  27. I've got lots of new books to look for after reading your list! But I'm glad to see the love for Clara and Tucker in Unearthly.

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  28. Nomes- very cool list(s)! I love seeing what you pick. :0)
    I wasn't able to play along, but I love reading yours.

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  29. Yup, definitely need to read Psych Major syndrome. These lists are great!

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  30. Phew all done on the Characters! This is seriously hard seeing as I made myself pick only one for each! Great fun though, thanks again for the awesome list. You got list skills!

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  31. I think knowing the characters might be my favorite part of reading. This was such a hard list to make, but I did the best I could!

    My Favorite Characters of 2011

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Thanks for the commenty love :)