Who are the Best Authors?

I was in a bookstore browsing through the new arrivals. A serious, and rather intense woman, approached me with a book clutched against her coat. "I'm doing some Christmas shopping and I am looking for something for my nephew," she said. I was standing only a few feet from a display listing the current Bestseller list. "Oh, I have already seen that," she said, "but I heard you talking to the sales lady, and I thought a writer might have an idea or two of his own about some of the really good books."

Ah! I thought. An opportunity like this doesn't come along very often in one lifetime. I wished I could have carried her down the long row of bookshelves in my office where I have collected some of the best books written over the last 40 years or so. I don't have an argument with the New York Times bestseller list, for they are right on target most of the time. There are a lot of other books and authors who may or may not have been on a bestseller list. Who are some of my favorites? The next time you are in a bookstore consider the following authors:

Lisa Scottoline, Steve Martini, Morris West, Janet Daily, Nora Roberts, Lawrence Sanders, Jeffery Deaver, Nicholas Sparks, Belva Plain, Robert Crais, Fanny Flag, Dick Francis, LaVyrle Spencer, Richard North Patterson, Jack Higgins, Stuart Woods, Richard Paul Evans, John Jakes, Robin Cook, Sidney Sheldon, Barbara Nickolae, Barbara Delinsky and Ken Follett.

Don't, however, limit your search to the above list. I am actively searching for new writers. Many of them have an astonishing amount of talent but have not reached the bestseller status. Here are some writers I have recently added to my reading list:

Terry Odel author of Finding Sarah, Starting Over, and What's in a name. These books are available from Cerridan Press.

Felicia Donovan author of The Black Widow Agency series available at Amazon.com.