Sharing the Awesome Awards: Day Two
This is more of the fun listy award thingie from inkcrush's blog.
Day Two: The Characters
1. best female POV - Esme, from Sister Mischief, by Laura Goode
She's smart, poetic, vulnerable, and she tells it like it is. She's a self-described "word nerd". She also sounds like a real teenager.
2. best male POV - tie between Sam, from Hold Me Closer, Necromancer, by Lish McBride; and Cassel, from the Curse Workers series by Holly Black
I love both of these male narratives so much, despite their differences. Sam is a decent, well-meaning, sweetheart of a guy with a sharp sense of humor who will always be there to take care of his friends. Cassel is a devious con artist always looking for the angle and unsure of whether to trust emotions he wishes he didn't have. One will always do the right thing; the other you can only hope his better instincts win out. At their heart, though, both strive for decency in a world that is often moving against them.
3. best couple <3 - Clara and Tucker in Unearthly, by Cynthia Hand
Their slow, realistic falling in love was one of the best romances in a YA paranormal I've seen.
4. who i so want to be best friends with - Taggle, from Plain Kate by Erin Bow; and Esme, from Sister Mischief
It might be hard to be best friends with a talking cat, but Taggle could always be counted on to bring his unique perspective to any problem, as well as offer unconditional love and support (even in the midst of criticism). Esme is just a real person that I could see myself hanging out with in high school (except that she would probably be too cool for me), one of those friends you always remember for challenging you but again, offering love and support when you really need it.
5. who i fell completely in love with (new literary crush) - Sam, from Hold Me Closer, Necromancer
Of course, my eternal literary crush is Eugenidies from Megan Whalen Turner's Queen's Thief series, but since we're doing books I read in 2011 only and it seems unfair to use those again (even though I have reread them in 2011), I have to pick Sam, who is such a close second behind Eugenidies anyway that I don't feel guilty. Sam is awesome. I think Sam and Eugenidies could hang out.
6. worst (best) villain - Linay, from Plain Kate and Lord Ido from Eona by Alison Goodman
Both of these villains have substance, intriguing back stories, and motivations that you can understand, and they aren't ALL evil, which is what makes them the best kind of villain, because they're more like real people stuck in bad circumstances and doing even worse things to get out of them.
7. best character twist (who you loved then hated or vice versa) - Eona and Lord Ido, from Eona
I loved them, I hated them, back and forth, over and over in the book, whether they were together or apart. They're both awesome and infuriating. I won't spoil it by telling you any more.
8. best kick-arse female - Karou, from Daughter of Smoke and Bone
Telling you everything about why Karou is kick-ass would spoil the book, but suffice it to say she has a way with knives, but that's not all she can do.
9 best kick-arse male - Four, from Divergent; Fade, from Enclave
I can't think of that many men that kick more ass than these two. I mean, kicking ass is mostly what they are all about, with their strength, stealthiness, intelligence, weapons skills, scars, and mysterious pasts. Plus, even their names are bad-ass.
10. broke your heart the most - Kurt and Danny from Leverage by Josh Cohen
Everything about this book broke my heart.
11. best/worst character names -
Best: Briony, from Chime; September, from The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland
I just love the name Briony, and it really fits her story, too. September as a name makes for a lot of interesting wordplay opportunities, and it fits well within the fairy tale kind of story she finds herself in.
Worst: Taffeta, from Like Mandarin by Kirsten Hubbard; Evensong Sparkling Morningdew, from This Girl is Different by JJ Johnson
Of course, in both books, these names are supposed to be bad, like you're supposed to feel sorry for the characters for their names, but they are still two of the worst names I can think of.
Day Two: The Characters
1. best female POV - Esme, from Sister Mischief, by Laura Goode
She's smart, poetic, vulnerable, and she tells it like it is. She's a self-described "word nerd". She also sounds like a real teenager.
2. best male POV - tie between Sam, from Hold Me Closer, Necromancer, by Lish McBride; and Cassel, from the Curse Workers series by Holly Black
I love both of these male narratives so much, despite their differences. Sam is a decent, well-meaning, sweetheart of a guy with a sharp sense of humor who will always be there to take care of his friends. Cassel is a devious con artist always looking for the angle and unsure of whether to trust emotions he wishes he didn't have. One will always do the right thing; the other you can only hope his better instincts win out. At their heart, though, both strive for decency in a world that is often moving against them.
3. best couple <3 - Clara and Tucker in Unearthly, by Cynthia Hand
Their slow, realistic falling in love was one of the best romances in a YA paranormal I've seen.
4. who i so want to be best friends with - Taggle, from Plain Kate by Erin Bow; and Esme, from Sister Mischief
It might be hard to be best friends with a talking cat, but Taggle could always be counted on to bring his unique perspective to any problem, as well as offer unconditional love and support (even in the midst of criticism). Esme is just a real person that I could see myself hanging out with in high school (except that she would probably be too cool for me), one of those friends you always remember for challenging you but again, offering love and support when you really need it.
5. who i fell completely in love with (new literary crush) - Sam, from Hold Me Closer, Necromancer
Of course, my eternal literary crush is Eugenidies from Megan Whalen Turner's Queen's Thief series, but since we're doing books I read in 2011 only and it seems unfair to use those again (even though I have reread them in 2011), I have to pick Sam, who is such a close second behind Eugenidies anyway that I don't feel guilty. Sam is awesome. I think Sam and Eugenidies could hang out.
6. worst (best) villain - Linay, from Plain Kate and Lord Ido from Eona by Alison Goodman
Both of these villains have substance, intriguing back stories, and motivations that you can understand, and they aren't ALL evil, which is what makes them the best kind of villain, because they're more like real people stuck in bad circumstances and doing even worse things to get out of them.
7. best character twist (who you loved then hated or vice versa) - Eona and Lord Ido, from Eona
I loved them, I hated them, back and forth, over and over in the book, whether they were together or apart. They're both awesome and infuriating. I won't spoil it by telling you any more.
8. best kick-arse female - Karou, from Daughter of Smoke and Bone
Telling you everything about why Karou is kick-ass would spoil the book, but suffice it to say she has a way with knives, but that's not all she can do.
9 best kick-arse male - Four, from Divergent; Fade, from Enclave
I can't think of that many men that kick more ass than these two. I mean, kicking ass is mostly what they are all about, with their strength, stealthiness, intelligence, weapons skills, scars, and mysterious pasts. Plus, even their names are bad-ass.
10. broke your heart the most - Kurt and Danny from Leverage by Josh Cohen
Everything about this book broke my heart.
11. best/worst character names -
Best: Briony, from Chime; September, from The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland
I just love the name Briony, and it really fits her story, too. September as a name makes for a lot of interesting wordplay opportunities, and it fits well within the fairy tale kind of story she finds herself in.
Worst: Taffeta, from Like Mandarin by Kirsten Hubbard; Evensong Sparkling Morningdew, from This Girl is Different by JJ Johnson
Of course, in both books, these names are supposed to be bad, like you're supposed to feel sorry for the characters for their names, but they are still two of the worst names I can think of.