Top Minds Read Top Books: Peter James (part 1/2)

@PeterJamesUK

The international best-selling crime thriller novelist has kindly put some time aside to reveal his all-time 5 favourite books.  

My 5 favourite books...

Brighton Rock - Graham Greene
"Quite simply, this is the book that made me want to be a crime writer. Set in my home town, where I set my Roy Grace series of crime novels, Brighton Rock is a wonderfully gripping dark book about the criminal underbelly of Brighton, about religious faith and about human nature. And it has one of the darkest and most poignant endings to a novel I have ever read.  My dream is to, one day, write a novel that comes even remotely close to being as good as this book.


"

Get Shorty – Elmore Leonard


"They say he is the man and you just have to read him to understand why. Characters, characters, characters. Elmore Leonard’s characters are just so vivid, so engaging, you don’t even need plot. You could have a group of his characters reading the phone directory for three hundred pages and you’d still be gripped. And this is the favourite of his novels."




The Hound Of The Baskervilles – Arthur Conan Doyle
"

I started reading Sherlock Holmes as a teenager, and instantly wanted to be writer of detective novels. Another thing I admired about Conan Doyle was his lifelong interest in the paranormal – something I share. This book exquisitely combines the detective story with the supernatural – or so you think ... Without ever resorting to any deus-ex-machina stunts pulled on the reader, and a brilliant twist at the end.
" 



Slaughterhouse Five – Kurt Vonnegut Jnr


"I first read this book when I was 23, and it changed both my perception of the world, and my perception of the boundaries of the novelist. Paradoxically this insane, insanely funny novel is the default book I return to whenever I feel the world – or my world – has gone mad!"

Rosemary’s Baby – Ira Levin


"This is the most beautifully written scary novel ever – a gem. It is a masterpiece of spare, economical writing, of characterisation, emotion and quiet understatement. There is no horror on the pages, Levin puts it all straight into your mind."

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Peter James has joined The Pen Factor team as a guest judge for our June 2015 competition. Read Peter's review of our winner's story, The Rock Fortress, here.

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Top Minds Read Top Books: Brian W. Aldiss

@BrianAldiss

The Science Fiction Grandmaster's distinguished writing career began decades ago. In the 1960s his friend, C. S. Lewis, bought a copy of Brian's newly published Hothouse to present to J. R. R Tolkien. "Tolkien kindly wrote to me to say how much he enjoyed my novel. I was delighted. A month or two later a second letter arrived saying he had just reread Hothouse and liked it even more a second time."

Brian has many favourite writers. The author recently gave me his thoughts on the subject of books, writing and getting published. 

"Do you hope for a book that will sell hundreds of thousands? Or do you long to get your teeth into a subject and to hell with anything apart from the sheer delight of creation? I know the answer to this and am certain that you do too."

"I've always read, always written. I keep an elaborate hard-cover journal, A5, hand-written, illustrated. Pretty well covers a lifetime. It's my great work in a sense."

"At present I'm writing a series of short profiles about writers from whose work I have benefitted: Thomas Hardy, H. G. Wells, Solzhenitsyn, Tolstoi, Marie Bashkirtseff, Zola, Franz Kafka. All kinds of scientific books. Art books. Travel."

Peter James reviews The Pen Factor June 2015 Winner, Ryan Glasgo

We are honoured to have received a spectacular review of our June 2015 winner's work from Peter James. Our winning story is The Rock Fortress by Ryan Glasgo. Ryan was one of six outstanding finalists shortlisted by our online algorithm for review by the judging panel.

"What talent this Ryan has - I was really, genuinely blown away. It was a treat to read it." — Peter James

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The Pen Factor is delighted to welcome international best-selling writer of crime fiction Peter James as its guest reviewer. Peter has written 26 novels, including the highly acclaimed Roy Grace crime thriller series, which have been translated into 36 languages and which have sold millions of copies worldwide.

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Top Minds Read Top Books: Joanne Harris

@JoanneChocolat

The best-selling author recently shared her all-time favourite book with The Pen Factor... 

"Victor Hugo's Les Misérables. Because it's human; timeless; true."

June 2015 Winner Announced - Ryan Glasgo

Congratulations, Ryan Glasgo!

It's with much delight that we announce the winner of our June 2015 Pen Factor Writing Competition. The Rock Fortress was one of the six outstanding finalists shortlisted by our judging panel. Ultimately it was guest judge, Nicholas Shakespeare, who had the final say in selecting our winner, although it was a very close competition.
The warming story of a mischievous boy on a Sri Lankan train was vivid, engaging and beautifully written. 

Ryan Glasgo receives his award from The Pen Factor

"Thanks for all the support, the contest was a fantastic and rewarding experience for me! Really nice of the team to come over to Oxford. Such a pleasure." — Ryan Glasgo 

Ryan was presented with his award by James, our Pen Factor representative in the UK. Next, Ryan will receive a full professional feedback service from the chosen consultancy, as well coaching on how to advance his writing career from here. We would like to extend our warmest congratulations to Ryan and our finalists for their brilliant pieces of writing.

Read Ryan's story here: The Rock Fortress

Our other finalists:
Pink Panties, Chocolate Pudding, and a Proposal by K. M. Zahrt
The Sea Pool by Sharon Moore 
A Communion in Solitude by Shane Humpherys
A Good Drying Day by Mary Rogan
Black Ink Guilt by Sarah Kee

Read a review of The Rock Fortress by best-selling author Peter James here.