Friends in Rising Places

So, I'm part of this little book club. It's sort secretive and exclusive, but yet not. Well, especially not secretive now that I told the whole internet about it. I know, I ramble. Basically, not just anyone can join and you have to be handpicked by people who are already members. It's really a true honor.

One of the best parts of the book club, besides the fact that it is the sole reason my to-read pile is no longer a pile but rather a mountain, is that I get to rub [virtual] elbows with some of the best authors around. No, those authors are not people like Stephanie Meyer, Suzanne Collins, or Stephen King - those authors have no clue I even exist. *pause for a small tear to fall*  Rather, the authors that I so proudly consider my friends are self published authors that, honestly, I was oblivious to until I got my Kindle. Thank you Amazon for creating this wonderful piece of technology!

I really wish that I had room in this post to mention each and every one of those authors. They all rock and I would highly recommend their books to anyone, as I often do when someone asks for a book recommendation. However, to keep this post short enough so that people might actually read it, I will limit my mentions to 3 special people whose books are so amazing that they are currently ranked within the top 100 Kindle books on Amazon.com.

 
Tracey Garvis Graves
Tracey is the author of On the Island.  This extraordinary book is about a teenager in remission from cancer and his adult tutor who find themselves stranded on an uninhabited island after their plane crashes.  They must struggle to survive, finding food, water and shelter as days turn to weeks and then months. As time passes and this teenager turns from boy to man, the couple must also struggle with their feelings as their companionship also seems to blossom into more.

On the Island is currently sitting at #10 in the Amazon Kindle Best Sellers list and has been within the top 100 for 30 days!  At the bargain price of only $2.99 for the ebook, this contemporary romance novel should be a must read on everyone's list.





Jaime McGuire
Jaime McGuire's book Beautiful Disaster is so addictive, I read it in one sitting.  Thanks to my husband, my children were well cared for during this time and a call to child services was avoided.  Beautiful Disaster is about good girl Abby Abernathy and bad boy Travis Maddox.  Intrigued by Abby’s resistance to his charms, Travis tricks her into his daily life with a simple bet. If he loses, he must remain abstinent for a month. If Abby loses, she must live in Travis’ apartment for the same amount of time. Either way, Travis has no idea that he has met his match. 

Beautiful Disaster is currently sitting at #38 in the Amazon Kindle Best Sellers and has been within the top 100 for 20 days.  This book is also bargain priced at $2.99 for the ebook but worth way more than that.  Jaime is also currently working on writing Beautiful Disaster from Travis' point of view and all BD fans, myself included, are anxiously waiting for it.




E. L. James
Ms. James' books have been all over the press lately.  Her erotic novel Fifty Shades of Grey is about virgin college student, Ana, who is pursued by rich, successful entrepreneur Christian for a dominate/submissive relationship.  Christian is so intrigued by Ana, that he uncharacteristically makes sacrifices in his demands to keep Ana around. "Erotic, amusing, and deeply moving, the Fifty Shades Trilogy is a tale that will obsess you, possess you, and stay with you forever." [taken from book summary on Goodreads.com]

Fifty Shades of Grey is sitting at #1 on the Amazon Kindle Best Sellers list and #1 on the New York Times Bestsellers list.  Number one!!  That is phenominal!  And to top it off E. L. James has also been named as one of Times 100 most influential people.



This post is my way of personally congratulating these 3 authors on their much deserved success.  I am very honored to be able to call them my friends, friends who are rising to high places, and to thank them for sharing their literary works of art with us.

If you have not read these books yet, you should most certainly look into doing so in the near future.