1: Dance of a Lifetime by Don Lockwood Don Lockwood (aside from being a fictional silent film star), is a terrific writer and this is probably my favorite story of his. Chockful of compelling characters and dramatic situations, Sophia and Warren's story, and their triumphs and success against all odds is an amazing read. There is heartache, but also plenty of feel-good moments in this tale. A must-read if you're a fan of Figure Skating, but even if you're not, you should read this story! You won't be sorry. That being said, you should read the tags of any story I recommend.
2: Drive For Excellence by Douglas Fox Douglas Fox knows his football and his coming of age/maturity stories (especially the almost score of those tales found in his excellent "A Life in Paradise" series). "Drive for Excellence" is one of his best. If you like realistic, descriptive football action, Douglas Fox is second to none (with a shoutout to G Younger, who is also in that class). Douglas populates his Paradise with interesting and compelling characters, particularly the Martin family. This is really the story of Kyle, who along with his friends finds love, lust, and football in Paradise, PA. It's simply a great read The story is preceded by two short novels about Kyle's early high school exploits, "Finding Balance" and "Finding Answers." It might be good to read those first. There is also a long sequel "Lost & Found," which picks up Kyle's life in college. Highly recommended.
3: Heroes by Don Lockwood Another gem off of the pen of Don Lockwood. At times, this is a sweet and funny tale, despite its dark subject matter. Ginny discovers a life she never could have imagined after making a desperate choice that does not go as planned. As always, the author creates interesting, complex, and relatable characters with plenty of heartbreak, but lots of joy too. Simply wonderful. Highly recommended.
4: In the Navy by Argon Argon has a knack for historical fiction and this is one of his best. The adventures of Anthony Carter in the novel "In the Navy," is a worthy entry in the pantheon of Napoleonic naval stories, led by the C.S. Forester's Horatio Hornblower stories and Patrick O'Brian's "Master and Commander" (and other Jack Aubrey novels). Like Hornblower, Tony Carter is an enduring and more-than-capable hero, who rose from humble origins to naval greatness in the British Royal Navy. The story not only spawned an excellent sequel ("Ellen Trilby") but a whole universe of amazing stories (including "Sea Fencibles" and "The Return of Thomas Grey"). A must-read for fans of historical fiction, nautical stories or if you simply like a great tale.
5: John and Argent by cmsix I could list a bunch of cmsix stories (and eventually, I probably will), but this is and "The Nanovirus" are probably his best-known tales. Basically, modern man, John is shifted to a prehistoric world by aliens and builds a life for himself in this new place.
What is wonderful about cmsix's characters are that are all funny, intelligent rednecks who don't suffer fools and foolishness. This story has inspired several other novels by other authors. While it is incomplete, it is extremely long and really could have ended more than a dozen times. Despite that fact, I was happy that it didn't. It's not great literature, but it is a fun, escapist tale that is really enjoyable. Highly entertaining
6: Lost & Found by Douglas Fox This the sequel to "Drive For Excellence" and it's equally as good. It clocks in at a whopping 1,345,220 words, but don't let that discourage you. You'll be wishing it was longer by the time you finish it. While DFE was a "coming of age" story "Lost & Found" is at heart, a "coming of maturity" story. We follow Kyle Martin to Penn State, where he continues his football career as a top-tier Wide Receiver. This epic gives a realistic view of the college experience for high-level college athletes and captures the experience of attending college in "Happy Valley." It also follows Kyle's life after he leaves college. Like with DFE, the football action is realistic and there is plenty of sex (and other college activities). Highly recommended.
7: Mural by aroslav Aroslav's "Model Student" series is simply amazing. I selected "Mural" because it is the first story, but once you have read this amazing story, you should read the other five novels and novellas. For some reason, The first three volumes were split into separate novellas (as they were originally just one novel entitled "Model Student"). Regardless, the adventures of Tony, Lissa, Melody, Kate, et al, are a wonderful marriage of art and racquetball and the story is a wonderful coming of age tale. There are good times and bad, but Aroslav has crafted a wonderful tale populated by compelling characters that are fun to root for and enjoyable relationships between these characters. High recommended.
8: The Outsider by Jay Cantrell I'm a sucker for sports stories (especially baseball stories) and "coming of age" stories. Jay Cantrell's compelling novel "The Outsider" is an excellent example of these genres. The protagonist, Brock Miller's perseverance, and exceptional character overcome some horrid obstacles that life has dealt him. As per the norm with Mr. Cantrell, the story is well written and populated by interesting, well-crafted characters. This tale is followed by an outstanding sequel, "A Rough Diamond." Highly recommended.
9: Stupid Boy by G Younger Another great story about sports and "coming of age" by another talented author. This is the first novel of a series of nine so you get the chance to See David Dawson at his humble beginnings. The series full of sports, action, romance, sex (yeah, plenty of that), glitz, and glamor. It is well written and a lot of fun. It will keep you entertained for hours and hours. Highly recommended (the whole series).
10: Thomas Grey and the Year Without Summer by Argon Another gem about the life of Thomas Grey from the "Anthony Carter (In the Navy)" Universe. As always, Argon captures the time and setting perfectly and creates well-drawn and interesting characters. Although you don't need to read every AC story, you should read the other Thomas Grey stories first. Never fear, because they are equally as good as this one! A must-read for fans of historical fiction. For everyone else, merely highly recommended.
