Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten "Gateway" Books/Authors In My Reading Journey

I'm participating in Top Ten Tuesday today, hosted by The Broke and the Bookish.

Here's today's topic: 
Top Ten "Gateway" Books/Authors In My Reading Journey

I thought this was kind of a fun topic to discuss, so I thought I'd join TTT today.
Here are my books (in no particular order):

1. Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomerey. This was one of the first books I read on my own when I was young and loved. I read all the books in the series and watched the movies multiple times. It was my first introduction to romance.

2. The Scottish Chiefs by Jane Porter. This book opened up so many new possibilities for me. I got completely absorbed in it when I read it and it started me off on a reading binge for some of the classics, such as Robin Hood, Treasure Island, Kidnapped, etc. It also was my first tragedy.

3. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. If you can believe it, I didn't read P&P until I was married. I had read a bunch of other books and many classics, including Jane Eyre, but somehow missed this one. This was my go-to book during my husband's first year of law school. :)

4. David Copperfield by Charles Dickens. I just LOVE this book! I remember going with my dad on a date when I was a pre-teen to the book store and this was the book I chose. It was the first Dickens I read and it was a great one to start with! This book started me off on wanting to read more of his works, but also more books from his era and more classics all around. I need to re-read it.

5. A Bride in the Bargain by Deeanne Gist. Another favorite. This was the first Christian Romance I read. I've been addicted to the genre ever since. I don't know how long I would have continued to not read these types of books if it wasn't for A Bride in the Bargain.

6. Nine Coaches Waiting by Mary Stewart. This was the first suspense I had read in ages, such as in since childhood, when I picked this up from the library a couple of years ago. It got me started into wanting to read more suspense.

7. Twilight by Stephanie Meyer. Shocking, I know. Is there anyone left who hasn't read this series? I have always read a lot, but during college I didn't read all that much for pure enjoyment for obvious reasons. Then I got married and still didn't pick it back up. I had a bunch of friends and bloggers I followed who all loved Twilight and I finally decided to give in and see what all the buzz was about. I picked this up during my husband's third year of law school, I think. It kick-started my reading in a big way. I began mostly reading YA and reading as much as I could, including re-reading this series four times. Let me tell you, I needed something to relax to at night when my three little ones were finally in bed and my husband wouldn't be home until late every night. We kind of joke around that I was a single mom for four years during law school. I mostly was. He basically slept at our house and we saw him on Sundays. Books are such life-savers!

8. What the Doctor Ordered by Sierra St. James. This got me into reading LDS Romance. It's cute, funny, heartbreaking, romantic, and just good. You might know the author better as Janette Rallison or C.J. Hill.

9. Austenland by Shannon Hale. This was one of the first Adult titles I read. It showed me that there were authors that wrote clean Adult Romance. It also totally cracked me up. It's probably one of the reasons I continue to read books from that genre once in a while. I'm always looking for another clean and fun chick-lit.

10. These Is My Words by Nancy E. Turner. Most of this book is written through letters, or Epistolary in nature. It's the first book that I read written that way. It's another Adult book that let me know there was more out there in that genre for me to enjoy.

What books have been a part of your journey?