Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Fantasy Authors

Top Ten Tuesday is a meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish where a new topic is given each week by the host blog and participants write up a corresponding list of ten things. Simple, fun, and great for those obsessed with lists. This week's topic is: Top Ten Favorite Authors In X Genre (Ex- Top Ten Favorite Science Fiction Authors, Top Ten Fave Contemporary YA authors).

Was there ever any doubt that I would choose fantasy?

(1) Tamora Pierce - How could she not be the first author on my list? Tamora Pierce INTRODUCED me to fantasy. My now favorite genre. She, this amazing woman, is the one who got me hooked.

Read: The Immortals Quartet and Trickster's Choice

(2) Laini Taylor - A new favorite and just as worthy of being included on the list as any of the other authors. Her novel Daughter of Smoke and Bone was hands down my favorite novel of 2011. FAVORITE. I mean, seriously, there was no competition.

Read: Daughter of Smoke and Bone

(3) Kristin Cashore - One of those trilogies were each novel progressively gets better. Graceling was amazing, Fire was awesome, and Bitterblue was mind-blowing. Definitely a talented author and I can't wait to see what she comes up with next.

Read: Graceling, Fire and Bitterblue

(4) Shannon Hale - Her novels read like fairy tales. Incredibly beautiful, awesome, amazing, stupendous fairy tales. The kind of novels that you will pass along to your children. Timeless stories.

Read: Books of Bayern and Princess Academy

(5) Maria V. Snyder - I have only read one of her novels and it was enough to land her on this list. ONE NOVEL. Poison Study was that amazing. I found no fault. RARE. Brilliant fantasy. I eagerly await the time in which I can devour ALL of her novels.

Read: Poison Study

(6) Sherwood Smith - I have read a few of her stories and none of them have had the same impact on me as the first, but the first was so impressive a tome that I had to include her on the list. Its one of my go-to fantasy novel recommendations. Magic, court intrigue, and a hint of romance. And I love the cast of characters!

Read: Crown Duel

(7) Rae Carson - Oh wow. So many emotions. So much mind-blowing. So much insanity. AND THE CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT, oh the character development. It was intense. I..I am speechless.

Read: The Girl of Fire and Thorns

(8) Krystal Wade - A new author I only discovered in the last few months and the two novels in her current series were AWESOME. I feel privileged to have gotten to read both on Netgalley and am impatiently checking for the third in the trilogy on a daily basis.

Read:  Wilde's Fire

(9) Alexandra Bracken - I hate that it took me so long to find her. If I hadn't won a giveaway for her book from another blogger who had favorited her I might never have known of her amazing existence. I cannot wait to see what her mind comes up with next and can just about guarantee I'll have it on my shelves.

Read: Brightly Woven

(10) P.C. Cast - I tried to get into her House of Night series, I really did, but it just didn't do it for me. Which makes me incredibly sad. I came across her other series, Partholon, by complete chance at my library sale. IT HAS CENTAURS. Love, love, love.

Read: Partholon Series