I had taken a leap—from childhood comics and abridged classics to the top league—without the intervening teenage books. Mills and Boon? I don't even remember those.

It's possible I have omitted some of the great authors of that time, and if so, I apologize.

I have always been a reader, never a collector. So, I don't have a physical library. But having moved to e-books and audiobooks, a library automatically builds up over time.

I would like to mention some of the modern-day authors, taking the period from 2001 onwards. The first name that comes to mind is Tom Clancy, with his penchant for minute details. After him, I found Jack Carr, one of the latest sensations, who writes with such meticulousness. All his books in the *Terminal List* series are 5-star rated, at least in the Audible version. I haven't checked the ratings for Kindle and hard copy versions.

My sons introduced me to John Grisham, and I've read almost all his books—a mix of legal thrillers, mainly interspersed with books based on sports, like *Playing for Pizza*, *Sooley*, and a few others. His *A Time to Kill* is one of the all-time greats. Since moving to Kindle and audiobooks, I have had the pleasure and opportunity of exploring a wide variety of books and authors. Of course, Dan Brown is another master storyteller whose entire works I have read, and I am eagerly waiting for his next.

I took to Ken Follett after reading one of his first and top-sellers, *Eye of the Needle*, a thrilling spy story. Most of his books are lengthy, like the *Kingsbridge Trilogy*, which starts in the Middle Ages, and *The Century Trilogy*, which covers World War I, World War II, and the Cold War. These are works of historical fiction, which sparked my interest in the genre. Then came the *Millennium Series* by a Swedish author, which was a great hit—a trilogy again. And there was the trilogy of *The Hunger Games*, whose concept I liked.

With the advantage of viewing the ratings of a wide variety of books, I stumbled upon the *Year One* series by Nora Roberts. Among other things, it had elements of magic, touching the borders of the esoteric. Just read the series and see how it relates to the pandemic!

I always had my eye on David Baldacci, and once I started reading his books, I was drawn to him as a regular author of mine.

And Jeffrey Archer—which era should I place him in? He still writes. One of his greatest works and an epic was *Kane and Abel*. In the last few years, he has come out with two series, *The Clifton Chronicles* and *The Inspector Warwick Series*. A little bit of 'masala' here and there, but easy-to-read and enjoyable stories.

Among psychological thrillers, I would recommend *The Silent Patient* by Alex Michaelides, who I believe is also a movie director, and one of Lisa Jewell's latest books, *None of This Is True*. You'll keep thinking about the ending for quite a while.

Going back to an earlier era, I forgot to mention Stephen Leacock, the Canadian professor and great satirist.

There are many such authors, and it's up to us to browse and dig up these jewels.

And before ending this post, I must mention one of my all-time greats, Agatha Christie. Even now, I read her books and enjoy them.

To be continued... 18. Concluding Bookishly Speaking - Part 8