(M MG M) Top Ten MG Villains

Villains! The bad guys. The dastardly dudes. The vile vixens. The characters you love to hate or hate to love. I LOVE villains, especially MG villains. Every hero and heroine needs an awesome villain to contend with, right?! Here are ten of my favorite MG villains (and yes, three are from Harry Potter...what can I say? J.K. Rowling created some awesome bad guys)...

Lord Voldemort  from the Harry Potter series

He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is one of the most brilliantly crafted villains evah! That face alone is terrifying, right?!

The White Witch from The Chronicles of Narnia

Brrr! I love the newer Narnia movies, but The White Witch from the BBC movies always gave me the shivers.

Captain Hook from Peter and Wendy  

I always loved how Hook was sort of a bumbling villain...tick tock!

Dolores Umbridge from the Harry Potter series

This woman is just so easy to loathe, what with her racist like ways, her punishment methods and her ghastly wardrobe *shudders*

Queen of Hearts from Alice's Adventures in Wonderland 

(not to be confused with the Red Queen from Through the Looking Glass)
I love how very crazy and nonsensical this Queen is...off with her head!

Count Olaf from A Series of Unfortunate Events

Olaf is definitely one dastardly dude!

Kronos the Titan from the Percy Jackson & the Olympians series 

Kronos is a cunning and cruel villain...I mean he killed his own father and ate his own children. Eww

The Trunchbull from Matilda 

When I was little, I was terrified that one day I'd have a principle like Ms. Trunchbull who would toss me around by my hair!

The Grand High Witch from The Witches 

Roald Dahl's Grand High Witch is so wonderfully wicked!

Dementors from the Harry Potter series 

Not sure if the Dementors are actually considered villains, but they do scare the beejeezus outta me! Always carry chocolate people :P

What are some of your favorite MG villains?! 

Don't forget to stop by the March MG Madness home post and enter the month long giveaway! You could win a box of MG books and/or signed swag!

My Favorite Reads of 2011

As I prepare to say a fond farewell to 2011 and a cheery howdy to

I've been looking back at ALL the books I've read this year and realized I've had the pleasure and joy of reading some flippin' awesome and fantabulous books this year!

And, as I sit here trying to come up with a top ten list of my favorite reads I've realized that that is an almost impossible task O_O

But, I did it...sorta. I did come up with a top ten list, but I kinda cheated by only counting certain series as one book :P

Oh and I had to do two list: one for YA and one for MG.

But hey, I did do it! So here they are...

Top 10 YA Reads of 2011

*these are books I've read in 2011 but may not have been published in 2011*

In absolutely no particular order:

1. Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

2. Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake

3. Daughter of Smoke and Bone by Laini Taylor

4. Whirl by Emma Raveling

5. Obsidian by Jennifer Armentrout

6. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer by Michelle Hodkin

7. Warm Delicacy Series by Megan Duncan

8. The Protectors Saga by P.M. Dooling

9. The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

10. A Song of Ice and Fire Series by George R.R. Martin

Top MG/KidsLit Reads

in no particular order

Scary School by Derek the Ghost

Liesl & Po by Lauren Oliver

The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan

Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes by Jonathan Auxier

Honorable Mentions

(Did I mention I've read A LOT of great books this year?!)

The Waking Grove by E.S. Lark

The Soulkeepers Series by G.P. Ching

Hunted by Cheryl Rainfield

The Faerie Ring by Kiki Hamilton

Open Minds by Susan Kaye Quinn

So, what do ya think of my lists? What were your favorite reads of 2011?! 

I can't wait to do this again a year from now...ya know, unless that whole 2012 Apocalypse, end of the world thingie happens ;)