The Cake Book Tag

Cait @ Paperfury said that if I liked cake, I could consider myself tagged. It just so happens that I do like cake, very much, because no one with a sweet tooth as large as mine would ever turn down a good-looking piece of baked genius. Combine cake and books and I can't imagine many things better. So I am quite pleased to be doing this tag.

No, seriously, I mean, come on, does this or does this not look fantastic?

Yes, it does, and if you think otherwise, well . . .I don't know what has come over you. I can't imagine what would cause someone such as yourself to not like the idea of eating that.

Ehem. Anyway. 

Flour
A book that was a little slow to start off with but really picked up as you went along.

I love Brandon Sanderson. He's probably my favorite fantasy author ever. But The Rithmatist, at least for me, felt like it had a sort of slow, unexciting start. It was hard for me to get involved in the first third or so of the book, even though Sanderson did hint at the coming escalating conflicts. I probably should have been hooked - probably would have been if I wasn't so busy doing things that stop me from reading. The later portion of the book though - yes. Just yes. It was exciting and fast-paced and intriguing and made me scratch my head in a good way. 

Butter
A book that had a rich, thick plot.

Haha, I don't even have to think about this one:

This was the most intense book I have ever read. I don't usually read high/epic fantasy and I'll admit that I had a hard time getting into this one just because the world was so detailed (right from the start) and one of the characters annoyed me at first. But as I got further in the character no longer annoyed me, I fell in love with another (Kaladin <3), I felt like the pages were pulsing with the life of the imaginary world, and the plot just got more intricate and complicated and multi-layered. and JUST READ IT. The one-thousand pages are SO. WORTH IT.

And yes, it was Brandon Sanderson. 

Eggs
A book you thought was going to be bad but actually turned out to be quite enjoyable.

I first picked Nobody up nearly a year ago, probably. I read a couple chapters and was bored, so I put it back down. Then I went and read Barnes's The Naturals and decided to give Nobody another chance. I am very happy I did, because I loved every minute of it. I loved the idea that some people cannot really be noticed by others, and that some actually force others to notice them. It seemed like a exaggeration of wall-flowers and popular people. Plus, there was action, moral debate, a little bit of romance, missions to save kids, evil organizations with guns, and everything else good. Plus one of the main characters is named Nix. Is that not the coolest name ever? I assume it is a spin on "nox," a Latin word for night. I love Latin. It looks awesome.

Sugar

A sweet, sugary book.

Errr . . . ummm . . . hold on, I know I can think of one . . .

This is probably as close to sweet and sugary that I read. And it isn't really all that sweet, even. It's just written in a much more lighthearted, ridiculous sort of tone than I usually go for (talking idiot English miniature dinosaurs and rutabagas and characters named after prisons included). Alcatraz is a fantastically sarcastic, straight-faced narrator and makes a few digs at authors (which I very much appreciated) and the whole book just made me laugh. So it made me feel sugary and sweet even if it sort of wasn't . . . if that makes any sense at all. 

Icing

A book that covered every element you enjoy about a book (funny moments, action moments, sad moments, etc.)

                           

Catalyst: I love this book and its two predecessors. Tom is a great main character, even though he makes me cringe - repeatedly - with the stupid stunts he pulls. I sit there wincing wondering when mean old Blackburn is going to come and give Tom a real earful (and possibly more than that). Plus the tech is cool, and I love how Kincaid explores just what sorts of weaknesses and problems could come with computers implanted in a brain. The humor was amazing, the plot wrapped up exquisitely, and the sad moments were . . . well, incredibly sad. But I call that good writing, because not many books actually make me feel that way. And A+ for characters. I already mentioned Tom, but I also just love Vik and Wyatt and Yuri. They're all to die for. 

Mistborn: The Final Empire: I'm pretty sure I've talked about this one before. But I couldn't not mention it because it was phenomenal, along with its successors. Vin was deep, complex, troubled - everything that makes a good character. Kelsier was interesting, and I never knew what to expect from him. Breeze is hysterical. Spook was curious. Ham was a amateur philosopher and pro warrior who lived to puzzle Breeze. They were all brilliant and I love them all so much. But I also love how Sanderson (yes, another Sanderson book, just go read them all) manipulates the relationships of the characters so realistically. Especially between Vin and Elend. Nothing feels unrealistic. Also, the world was extraordinary, as I've come to expect from Sanderson.

Sprinkles

A book series that you can turn back to for a little pick me up when you're feeling down.

The Ranger's Apprentice is one of my favorite series from before I was a teenager. I've read the first book about eight times, read all of them at least twice, and have reread portions more times than I can count. I can always count on them to make me laugh. Halt was my mentor is learning how to properly raise my eyebrow. I think my family wishes I hadn't learned that particular facial expression. :D

The Cherry on Top

Your favorite book(s) of the year.

THE AFOREMENTIONED WAY OF KINGS BY BRANDON SANDERSON. Also:

Look at that clever cover art. DNA strands in her hair? Love it. I read Uninvited because it has a similar premise to my WIP Shadows and Light, so I was curious what it would be like. (Thankfully) it is totally different from what I'm working on. It was excellent, too! I loved it all. The book rolled along at a decent clip, the character relationships were always shifting, and every time the main character got comfortable with a change in her life another change came whacking into her and she had to adjust to survive. It was a great read. :)

There is my book-cake. Cait @ Paperfury, who I mentioned and linked to above, said if you like cake you can consider yourself tagged, so I'll just pass along that message. Go check out her post, because I think she likes cake more than I do and she had some interesting books listed.

What about you? Have you read any of these? Any that you now want to read? What flavor of cake is your favorite? Comment away, darlings.