We did it last year, and we’re doing it again: it’s time to look back fondly and with misty eyes and husky voices at the reading that was in 2006.
We’ll use some of the same questions, but we’re adding new ones, too.
Best author you discovered this year (Up to 3)
Best new book you read this year (again, top 3)
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead.
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch.
Most overrated book.
Most underrated book.
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise.
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to? (Feel free to -gasp!- pimp your own, but please don’t link as the HTML often wonks the comments)
Now, you have to understand that I live in terror of these kinds of entries because I have Worst Memory Known To (Wo)Man – (do you want to know how many times Candy has told me, “YES you HAVE read a Gaffney romance, you git!”) and a horrible case of mind-goes-blank when asked to pimp something I really enjoyed. I fear leaving someone out!
It’s easy enough to look back over a year’s worth of SBTB reviews, but the books I read on this site that stand out in my mind are Major Crush 
I still dig any and all PC Cast novels, as well as CJ Barry (review forthcoming) and a whole slew of really good vampire, future-set, and demon romances.
However, aside from what I liked, I will tell you what I didn’t: I fell behind on reviewing, so I feel like I owe y’all a Bitch Ass Apology. I promise for 2007 to get back on the reviewing, and to review more current books to boot. Just so long as y’all keep reading, recommending, and writing the good stuff.
Best author(s): Loretta Chase
Best book(s): The Time Traveler’s Wife (Audrey Neffenegger)
Skip it: His Wicked Kiss (Galen Foley)
Cover: I don’t care anymore—my friend made me a book cover, so they’re all safely invisible and powerless now
Over/underrated: can’t tell—I’m so behind on my TBR pile that I miss the hype/find authors years late (Chase)/go read stuff that’s been trashed already (Foley)
Trainwreck: More dirt about the 2005 RWA conference
2007: Chase have installment #4 of the Carsington brothers maybe? Other than clearing off my TBR shelf (HA!) that’s all I can think of…
Best new author: Stuck in rut (no pun intended) and haven’t liked any of the new authors I’ve tried.
Best new books: Drop Dead Gorgeous by Linda Howard, Born in Death by JD Robb and Dark Celebration by Christine Feehan.
Don’t pay enough attention for over/underrating of books. Try to avoid looking at the covers as well, unless you two are snarking them.
The Brits being all torqued off because McEwan plagiarized a (delicate shudder—that stiff British upper lip thingy at all times) a romance author.
Being a book slut, I am looking forward to 8 or 9 books coming out this year—La Nora is starting a new trilogy I believe in Dec, 2 new in Deaths, a new LH or two. Just a reader, can’t hawk my book.
Best author you discovered this year (Up to 3)
I’ve only just (as in, two days ago) discovered that Bertrice Small is crack in print form.
Best new book you read this year (again, top 3)
Like I can remember which ones I read were new and which were old…Probably the newest Robin D Owens one from her Celta series. If that came out this year. I do know I’ve already re-read the entire series in the past three weeks and am drooling for more.
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead.
I didn’t buy it, but I did waste a significant number of hours on it—The Thirteenth Tale (sorry if you loved it, but it was just too twee for me.)
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch.
Oh, there are so, so very many…. I don’t tend to buy them, and if I do I put them under cover pdq.
Most overrated book.
I don’t pay attention to what other people around me are reading or pushing, frankly, unless I need something new to read. And then I avoid the uber-hyped books; they tend to either bore or depress me. I ask friends, and in that category—that Dr. Strange and Mr. Norrel doorstop sucked for me. Brought back very bad memories of Hawthorne and Senior Lit.
Most underrated book.
See above. I’m not even sure which books I read were underrated!
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise.
Do personal ones count? 😉 Although the rumors of the Laurel K smack down were my favorite public scandal.
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to? (Feel free to -gasp!- pimp your own, but please don’t link as the HTML often wonks the comments)
Hmmm. I love Jayne Ann Krentz in romance (I know, I know, lots of people here have little respect for Jayne, but I love her books,) and she’s got a new one due in January, and I’m even more drooling over the newest Lincoln Child (suspence, not romance, although his sex scenes have vastly improved with time) book that comes out January 30. Whoo-ee! That’s some good readin’ coming out in January!
Just a heads up—the link to your review of Major Crush isn’t working.
Thanks for kicking off the retrospective of the year in reading. I love reading what everyone else thought was great or not so great in the past reading year.
Best Author: Laura Kinsale and Nora Roberts (wtf…I know, I know. An English degree so got in the way)
Best Book: The key trilogy by Nora Roberts
Skipped: The two Amanda Quick things I got: Mischeif and something else that actually became the first books I threw.
Crotch punch worthy: I’m playing catch up and buying some of the older stuff of authors I like, so it’s been a good year to not be riding the bus into school.
Underrated: I didn’t hear much about the wallflower quartet by Kleypas and thought they were quite good. Solid, warm, funny and very romantic.
Best author you discovered this year:
Minda Webber – very quirky and fun
Best new book you read this year: I don’t know where to begin I read 10-20 books a week sometimes, things get a bit mushy after a while
Book you wish you’d skipped: ebook – Contract Bride -A Amorelli – it was a train wreck, if I could take back my $5 I would and ask for interest.
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch: There have been a few WTF? But whats up with everyone using that one image of a guys chest with a girl on his back like she his personal humpback? It’s everywhere! Oh and the EC winter quickies cover, pulease!
overrated: Anything LKH
underrated: I have to agree with the Wallflowers vote, I liked that series. Minda Webber’s books, and there was another one, but I can’t think of her name.
trainwreck: The whole Baumbach/RT thing was a bit of a hoot.
What book coming out in 2007: Of course I’m going to pimp my own – watch out for Tea for Three coming from Loose Id sometime midyear 🙂 and I’m hot to see what happens next to Sookie
Best author you discovered this year (Up to 3)
Nalini Singh
Mary Balogh
JR Ward
Best new book you read this year (again, top 3)
Lover Awakened
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead.
Oh God, there are so many.
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch.
Any of Deirdre Martin’s covers. I hate that cartoon shit!
Most overrated book.
Into the Storm by Suzanne Brockmann. Stupid, stupid, stupid.
Most underrated book.
Huh. I got nothing.
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise.
Oh by far, the Anne Stuart kerfuffle. And Jenny Cruisie’s beautifully delivered bitch-slap.
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to?
Both of JR Ward’s releases
Warlord by Elizabeth Vaughan
Best newly discovered authors: Liz Carlyle, Eloisa James, Shana Abe
Best New Books: Pleasure for Pleasure (EJ), The Smoke Thief (SA), The Taming of the Duke (EJ)
Skip It: In the Bed of the Duke by Cathy Maxwell. I didn’t want to be set up for the next book—I wanted to read the ending for THAT one, dammit!
Book with the Crotch-Punch Cover: Eloisa James, The Taming of the Duke. Something about those hands, that shirt, and that mullet should have been a red flag for the folks at Avon, but oh well.
Most overrated book: Linda Howard, Mr. Perfect. It’s not new, but if that wasn’t the dumbest reason to become a serial killer…
Most underrated book: Suzanne Enoch’s Flirting with Danger. A titled billionaire, a spunky thief, spiffy B&E tips, and artwork. What more could a girl ask for? (Hey, Nora Roberts isn’t writing a sequel to Sweet Revenge, so I’ve got to get my kicks from somewhere.)
Favorite Romance-related trainwreck: LKH drubbing. I was once an Anita Blake fan until Anita started humping everything that moved.
Waiting for with bated breath in 2007: Aside from Harry Potter 7, Natural Born Charmer by Susan Elizabeth Phillips.
Best author you discovered this year (Up to 3)
Madeline Hunter, Liz Carlyle, Loretta Chase
Best new book you read this year (again, top 3)
The Rules of Seduction
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead.
The Stolen Bride by Brenda Joyce. (shudder)
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch.
Lord of Scoundrels
Most overrated book.
Anything by Kasey Michaels
Most underrated book.
Anything by Madeline Hunter.
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise.
Anita Blake!
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to?
The follow-up to The Rules of Seduction
Best Discoveries this year:
Cameron Dean– her Candace Steele books kick major butt!
Renee Bernard– she moderated a few panels at RTcon this year and I enjoyed her personality so much that I wanted to hear her written “voice”. Historical + erotica = VERY happy reader!
Best New Book This Year
Darkfever by Karen Marie Moning. Hands down the BEST.
Runner-up (and, yes, I’m prepared for the rotten veggies tossed my way) Mistral’s Kiss by LKH
Book I wish I’d skipped because it was a total waste of time and money
Lord of the Beasts by Susan Krinard. Shame on you SK! It’s almost unheard of for me to completely dis a book but even the boring characters internal dialogue was flat and lifeless. You can (and have done) MUCH better! This was a great storyline…What happened?
Books with covers that made me want to scrub my eyeballs… with bleach!
So, so many. But the most recent was Fey Born by R. Garland Gray. So disturbing that I was compelled to bring it to Candy’s attention.
Most looking forward to:
Bloodfever by KMM book two of Mac’s journey that started in Darkfever. This series may turn out to be in the top five of my all time favorites.
Bertrice Small’s book 3 in the world of Hetar that started with Lara and A Distant Tomorrow. Ms. Small is a goddess!
The Harlequin by LKH. Edward comes back to town, flamethrowers are involved. ‘nuff said.
A Lick of Frost by LKH. The next Merry Gentry book will hopefully be released next December.
This was all that popped quickly into my head. So I reserve the right to add on to this list later.
*holds umbrella in front of her to shield herself from the rotten veggies being lobbed at her*
May I suggest another catagory? Author websites, best & worst.
Off to compile my lists also.
WARNING: SHAMELESS SELF-PROMOTION TO FOLLOW.
Since everybody’s so hooked on major print titles—somewhat understandable, I suppose, considering so many ebooks have fallen flat on their literary-aspiration asses—I must pimp my Acts of the Saints, a novel unwisely published through Samhain (unwisely, because it ain’t yo mama’s traditional boinka-boinka-boinka love story and was doomed to languish in the cellar of this “can’t believe we contracted for it” sensual-romance publisher).
But it is a love story…and not just one about romantic and/or carnal love. So if you’re broadminded enough to explore the flip side of the “Left Behind” series and have ever thought about life in a theocratic America; if you don’t quail at the thought of politics and religion messing with the realization of your longings…well, consider checking it out. Acts of the Saints is now available (through Samhain and Amazon) in both electronic and print formats.
I’m pitching it because a.) it’s a worthy book, b.) as of today, I still owe my publisher over $90 on my advance, and c.) I’m in desperate need of new glasses and don’t have insurance.
(This is humiliating beyond description. But, hey, an opportunity is still an opportunity.)
Best authors discovered this year:
Suzanne Brockmann
Nalini Singh
Jo Beverely
Best new books:
Lover Eternal, JR Ward
Lover Awakened, JR Ward
Slave to Sensation, Nalini Singh
Book I should have skipped:
Where to start? Micah, LKH
Most overrated book:
A Hunger Like No Other, Kresley Cole
Most underrated book:
Kitty Goes to Washington, Carrie Vaughn (love the radio talk show banter)
2007 book(s):
Lover Revealed and Lover Unbound by JR Ward, hands down
Best Authors: Loretta Chase, Linda Kinsale and JR Ward [I know- I Can’t BELIEVE I hadn’t read Chase or Kinsale before now]
Best Book- Lover Awakened by JR Ward, Kushiel’s Scion by Jacqueline Carey, The first Sharing Knife book by Bujold.
Most-overrated: Anything by Sherrilyn Kenyon. She manages to be as bad a writer and as popular as LKH. It’s a mystery.
Most looking forward to: Kushiel’s Justice and the second Sharing Knife, I already have them on pre-order and they don’t come out till July.
Best Authors this year: Sherrilyn Kenyon and Gaelen Foley
Best Book: Lord of Fire
Best author you discovered this year (Up to 3)
Lisa Kleypas
Best new book you read this year (again, top 3)
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by JK Rowlings
• Although the Harry Potter books are not considered romance novels, there certainly were some great romantic plots in this one so I am putting it on this list.
Anything I could get my hands on by Lisa Kleypas
• Kleypas creates wonderful story twists and memorable characters. She has a unique voice and the dialogue is never boring.
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead.
The Gilded Web by Mary Balogh
• I didn’t realize until after I brought the book that this was one of Balogh’s early efforts, maybe from about 20-30 years ago. I know Balogh is a much better writer than this. I’ve read other recent books that I’ve really liked. Unfortunately, she should never have let this book be re-released. My biggest problem was that all the main female characters, including the heroine, were described as being very boring and plain to the point I wondered how the hero could even get his dick up. Example: The hero has several early sexual encounters (before he meets the heroine) where he’s sleeping with a middle aged widow who never has an orgasm and just lays there. Literally! The heroine, the way she was described, didn’t sound much better. I had to quit after the first couple of chapters.
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch.
Gah! There are so many. I think the foreign covers for Nora’s Death series books had the worst impact on me. I absolutely loved those books and some of those covers were an insult to the great stories inside.
Most overrated book.
The Gilded Web by Mary Balogh
Most underrated book.
I’d like to say that the Harlequin Blaze and Silhouette Desire stories are actually pretty darn good for the most part. I was at a garage sale late last year and bought two big brown bags full of these books. This past year, I read one or two every couple of weeks. I think the publishers and authors have sometimes received less than their due respect because they pump out a lot of books and people assume there is a cookie-cutter approach. Well, there are certain elements that remain the same from book to book, but I have to be honest in that I’m very impressed by the variety and creativity shown in those books. There are actually a number of them that have been just as good or better as the single titles I’ve seen pumped out by other New York publishers.
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise.
The whole RWA final presentation from 2005. I’m amazed at how easily it happened but very impressed by how the organization realized there was an issue and then worked hard to fix the problems and work to prevent them from happening in the future. However, this train wreck is closely followed by the teenager who received a huge advance for what later was realized as a plagiarized book. That whole thing just made me feel sick. It’s not the money that she received that bothers me, it was the fact that she so blatantly took another person’s work and then acted as if it were a total accident. What bullshit.
– Best author you discovered this year:
Turns out they’re all EBook authors. Samantha Kane. She wrote Love Under Seige and The Courage to Love for Ellora’s Cave. Aside from the fact that the menage aspect of her books is SCORCHING HOT, she truly writes a great love story. You really feel for the characters and their struggles. Evangeline Anderson. Her book The Assignment for LooseID was HOT. But more importantly, she’s another one who makes me truly feel for the characters. MA Everaux. She seems to have a great future.
– Best new book you read this year:
Dark Celebration. Not b/c it was technically the best written, but b/c it put me back on board Christine Feehan’s Carpathian series, after yrs of disappointment.
– Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead:
Amanda Ashley’s Desire After Dark. So bad I was shocked. The heroine is TSTL, and the big bad hero vampire is completely innocuous. I was 2/3 thru the book when I asked myself, “Wait a minute? Are the hero and heroine even together? Are they a couple?” It was that bad.
– Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch:
Too many EBook covers to pick one.
– Most overrated book:
I’m sure many will disagree but Lover Awakened. I was disappointed.
– Most underrated book:
I think EBooks in general don’t get enough credit.
– Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise:
The JR Ward board dust up was interesting to read about. So was the Mary Janice Davidson stuff.
– What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to:
Lover Unbound. Don’t care so much about Butch’s story (Lover Revealed) but I do want to read V’s book.
Thanks to SB recommendations, I’ve read alot of good books this year! I could tweek this list for a week and still not be content with it, but here goes…
Best author I discovered this year…
Gail Dayton (hands down)
Rob Thurman
Susan Lyons
Morgan Hawke (Star trilogy by Loose ID)
Best new book read this year…
The Barbed Rose, Gail Dayton
Dark Fever, Karen Marie Moning
The Sharing Knife, Lois McMaster Bujold
Book I wish I’d skipped…
Dressed to Slay (Bombshell by Harper Allen), OMG immature, dumb, and just plain baaaaad.
Edge of Danger, Cherry Adair
Book with worst cover…so many possibilities. Covers are the primary reason romance books have a bad reputation…I’m with Kaite, cover them pdq
Most overrated…
Warsworn, Elizabeth Vaughan
Minstral’s Kiss, Laurel K. Hamilton. Very flat when compared to others of this series & Merry is naked the entire book until the final scene.
Most underrated…e-books (particularly Loose ID & EC)
Favorite trainwreck…DC area transit ads
Most anticipated 2007 releases…
The Eternal Rose, Gail Dayton (#1)
The Sharing Knife #2, Lois McMaster Bujold
Moonshine, Rob Thurman
Blood Bound, Patricia Briggs
Kitty Takes A Holiday, Carrie Vaughn
Bloodfever, Karen Marie Moning
For a Few Demons More, Kim Harrison
Linnea Sinclair & Laura Kinsale?
So many more good authors this year: Nalini Singh, Cameron Dean, Charlaine Harris, Jory Strong, Patricia Briggs, Tara Jantzen, Stephanie Meyer, Maria V. Snyder
Hey SB Sarah, thanks for the shout out! This morning was just like the morning in July when you posted the review of Major Crush: I got up at 4:30, made coffee, wandered into my office to start my *real* job, but went online first to see what the Bitches had been up to overnight…and what a lovely surprise!!! I value the opinion of the Bitches very highly, so I still feel like I’ve won a Rita just by getting an A-.
Best author you discovered this year (Up to 3)
Anjali Banerjee
Naomi Novik
Megan Whalen Turner
Best new book you read this year (again, top 3)
Born Confused by Tanuja Desai Hidier
His Majesty’s Dragon by Naomi Novik
The Sharing Knife: Beguilement by LMB
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead.
Crazy Love by Tara Janzen. What a disappointment. The first few Crazy books were okay, but Skeeter and Dylan were the most intriguing things about the books. Their book did not live up to the build up, unfortunately.
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch.
I don’t pay that much attention really.
Most overrated book.
Secret Society Girl by Diana Peterfreund
Warsworn by Elizabeth Vaughan
Drop Dead Gorgeous by Linda Howard
Most underrated book.
I’m blanking on this one.
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise.
The Holly Lisle-DA thing. And the plagiarism by Viswanathan and “borrowing” or whatever he’d call it by Ian McEwan.
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to?
Liz Valdez’s Patience
The next Temeraire book
Wry Hag:
Just a little note about the benefits of shameless promotion. I recently bought myself an eBookwise and have been looking all over for ebooks to download. Yours sounded intriguing. So I just went and bought it. Samhain even had it in just the right format, which is rather uncommon.
I hope this helps alleviate a little of your humiliation. 🙂
Best authors discovered this year:
Bonnie Dee
Lydia Joyce – as much as I disliked Whispers of the Night (as noted below), Music of the Night really impressed me.
Best new book read this year:
Bone Deep by Bonnie Dee. I read it as an ebook, but I guess it’s now also out in paperback (for considerably more $$).
Books you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead:
Whispers of the Night by Joyce
Devil in Winter by Kleypas
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch:
The Knight Before Christmas by Evie
Most overrated book:
In direct contrast to other commenters, I heard a lot of hype about the Kleypas Wallflowers quartet and was vastly disappointed in the two that I could bring myself to read. Not at all on par with other Kleypas titles I’ve read.
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to? Beau Crusoe by Carla Kelly
I’ll second the first part!
Best author you discovered this year:
Turns out they’re all EBook authors. Samantha Kane. She wrote Love Under Seige and The Courage to Love for Ellora’s Cave. Aside from the fact that the menage aspect of her books is SCORCHING HOT, she truly writes a great love story. You really feel for the characters and their struggles.
But (The Assignment) was pretty bad actually. I’m gay and I just could not buy “the setup” for one minute.
Best author you discovered this year
I enjoyed several great books by Marie Treanor and Kyla Logan.
Best new book you read this year
New book? Hmmm…I’ve been reading the classics it seems lately. Viola Grace’s “Nakedella” series are a hoot and a half and super hot, too. 🙂
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead.
Anything published by Harlequin Enterprises. Well, not those books written by my friends there, but you get the drift. E-books are infinitely cheaper and there are such a variety of authors, stories and publishers to choose from, too. 🙂
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch.
Too many to list! There are some truly awful covers out there. Luckily, my vampire erotic-romance from Liquid Silver Books (Help I’m Falling for the Vampire Next Door) isn’t one of them. The cover is superb. And I really like the cover for my novella, Santa’s Big Little Helper, too. 🙂
Most overrated book.
Anything by a NYT perennial best-selling author probably.
Most underrated book.
All of mine. I’m extremely underrated but my few loyal fans keep me writing. I do think my comedy/sf erotic-romance series, Brandi Whyne and Her Incredibly Erotic Adventures, will eventually take off. 🙂
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise.
Hmmm… As in “kaboom”? I’d have to go with Brad and Angelina. You wonder sometimes if becoming a Hollywood movie star makes you lose your morals and mind all in one fell swoop.
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to?
All of mine that are scheduled… My second book in the “Paranormal Lovers of Saint Louis” (Hanging with a Time Surfer) is scheduled for a spring release at Liquid Silver Books. I’m hoping it will make a splash or something.
Here’s to more trashy, fun reading in the new year, y’all! 🙂
Best author you discovered this year (Up to 3):
Nalini Singh
Morgan Hawke
Joey W. Hill
Best new book you read this year (again, top 3)
Slave to Sensation
Interstellar Service & Discipline Trilogy (Okay, it’s not new, but I discovered it this year).
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead.
Um, I have a stack of them, but I’m going to narrow it down to three:
Blue Smoke by Nora Roberts
Pink Jinx by Sandra Hill (WHY? WHY?)
The Slightest Provocation by Pam Rosenthal (I just…couldn’t)
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch.
*Sigh* There are too many eBook covers I HATE to only mention one. The good ones are few and far between.
Most overrated book.
Cold as Ice by Anne Stuart. So disappointing
Most underrated book.
Huh. Can’t come up with anything.
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise.
Dara Joy. Wow…off the deep end.
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to? (Feel free to -gasp!- pimp your own, but please don’t link as the HTML often wonks the comments)
I have a short list:
Visions of Heat by Nalini Singh
Demon Angel by Meljean Brook
The Vampire Queen’s Servant by Joey W. Hill
I’m looking forward to seeing what everyone else is excited about so I can add to my list!
Best author you discovered this year (Up to 3)
Marjorie M Lui
Lynn Viehl
Judith Ivory
Best new book you read this year (again, top 3)
Hard one. I guess Lyn Veihl’s books although my two favourite books were written on 2003 (We Need to Talk about Kevin by Lionel Shriver) and 1955 Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov.
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead.
Killing Time by Linda Howard. One of the silliest books I’ve ever read.
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch.
Too many to mention (including mine)
Most overrated book.
Probably JR Ward’s books. A little to boyo for my tastes.
Most underrated book.
Hmm. Can’t think. Although I read some good categories including some Nora reissues.
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise.
I’m bored with all that.
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to?
Anything by SEP, Jacqueline Cary, JD Robb. And of course three débuts from Aussie historical authors Anna Campbell and Christine Wells as well as Silhouette Desire author Paula Roe. Go gals!
Best author you discovered this year (Up to 3)
Stephanie Meyer
Rachel Caine
Also, not by any means new, but I’m taking this Courtship in the English Novel class, and I really liked Belinda by Maria Edgeworth. I bet you can even get it online for free from Project Gutenberg or something.
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead:
Carolina Isle by Jude Deveureux. I’ve never read a book that made less sense. The character’s motivations made no sense, the whole evil island think was just plain strange and parallel universey, and the switcharoo between the two identical cousins frankly unbelievable. I just laughed my way through the whole book, it was that bad. My first and only Deveureux.
Most overrated book.
Don’t look Down, by Jenny Crusie and Bob Mayer. Don’t get me wrong I LOVE Jennifer Crusie, and was therefore expecting great things from this novel. Instead it was just *meh*. Completely forgettable. This made me so sad.
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise.
I really enjoyed the bitchfest on the Anita Blake novels. I felt so vindicated and validated.
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to?
Susan Elizabeth Phillip’s new book! hurrah!
Sara, I like Belinda, too! And I loved Evelina by Fanny Burney.
Oooh, I got pimped on SMTB! How very cool. Thanks MaryKate, Darlynne, dl and shuzluva. 🙂 🙂
I have to admit I also have a really bad memory but one new author that stuck in my head this year was Naomi Novik.
The book I’m probably most looking forward to in 07 (aside from my own *g*) is the next JD Robb. Can’t get enough of that series.
Hmmmm, my best new discovery, author-wise has to be Sarah Monette. She writes dark fantasy. I read both her fantasy novels back to back while on vacation. Highly recommend them but then again, they are not for everybody.
I didn’t really read that many books this year, so the few that stood out for me was All Mortal Flesh by Julia Spencer-Fleming (mystery) and oh yes, The Sandman series, Vol.1, by Neil Gaiman was pretty good.
Best New Author: Going for the ebooks. I have to pimp up my beloved CP, Anna J Evans, whose books seriously rock. She gets amazing reviews but nobody knows who she is, it seems. And as her first novels came out this year with EC and Liquid Silver, I feel safe in pimping her as new.
Also Evangeline Anderson. And in print Jackie Kessler.
Best new book: Enchanted by Anna J Evans; Hell’s Belles by Jackie Kessler
“Soul Haven” by Sonja Baines.
Book I wish I’d skipped: There were a couple of mysteries that were total wastes of my time, and one romance ebook whose stain will never disappear from my poor head.
Bad Cover: Mine, snarked a couple of months ago. There have been worse covers, but that one was mine so it made me cry. Seriously, yall, it’s a good book. It deserved better.
Overrated: “Forbidden Magic” by Cheyenne McCray. I hate to say it because she’s a really nice woman, but I didn’t think it was particularly erotic or exciting, and I’m sick of the witchcraft cliches.
Underrated: Death by Seduction by Anna J Evans (Liquid Silver Books). Fantastic reviews, everyone who reads it loves it…nobody’s buying it.
Trainwreck: The horror that LKH has become. The constant sniping about how reviews have to be “nice” never fails to get my blood up, too.
2007 books: Aside from Harry Potter, yeah, mine. My book The Black Dragon just came out—after its release being announced and delayed three times, which was great fun when I went to do promo chats without a book to give away. I have two releases in January as well, an erotic fantasy and a short story in a “Best of” collection, and hopefully the book my CP and I cowrote and sold to EC’s Tarot series will be released this year—it’s a paranormal menage we’re both really proud of.
Also, “Broken Angel” by SW Vaughn.
Best author you discovered this year (Up to 3)
—Robin Schone
Julia Quinn
Stephanie Laurens
Best new book you read this year (again, top 3)
—I’m lucky to remember a quarter of the books I read, as I can easily top 30-40 books a week, so here are the newer ones I’ve read.
Awaken, My Love by Robin Schone
Kushiel’s Dart by Jacqueline Carey
The Fairy Godmother by Mercedes Lackey
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead.
—Midnight Pleasures, by Eloisa James. Good God, what a stupid book that was. “Oh, I can’t possibly let the hero know how smart I am because my stupid mother who has an extraordinarily fucked-up love life SAYS so!” Stupid, stupid, stupid. I wanted to so smack the author for writing it.
Sadly, I also hated the newest Hundred Kingdoms book by Mercedes Lackey, One Good Knight. Boring, erratic plotline with uninteresting characters. Rent Shrek. It’s much better.
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch.
—Hee! I picked up my old copy of Tender Rebel by Johanna Lindsey this weekend. It’s really bad. Sadly, so are most of the couples pics on Julia Quinn’s stuff. Most of the time, I could just imagine the couples making bargains with each other. “Pull up my dress, and I’ll get you a shirt.” “Get me a shirt, and I’ll get you a dress that doesn’t fall off in under two minutes.”
Most overrated book.
—Hands down the one I know is most overrated on-line is Kleypas’ Again the Magic. What a lousy, evil main character the heroine is. She’s a conniving manipulative whiny bitch, whose sole good point is having a moral and kindly sister. Why anyone would read this for anything but the secondary characters, Livia and Gideon, I can’t understand. Yet I’ve seen people praising it all over. Why? Why do they do this to me?
Most underrated book.
—I really, really, really liked Stephanie Laurens’ second Bastion Club book, A Gentleman’s Honor. It got an F at AAR. I don’t know why. It seems perfectly believable to me that British men, being largely introverted, would want a place to hide away from extroverted events and people, yet somehow their reviewer finds that unbelievable. I don’t get it.
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise.
—Missed all of them, sadly, though the one that influenced me the most was the revelation on here that Janet Dailey was a no-good thief. So I’ve avoided picking up any of her stuff.
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to? (Feel free to -gasp!- pimp your own, but please don’t link as the HTML often wonks the comments)
—Seventh Harry Potter, naturally. I also hope for more Lackey goodness (One Good Knight was … well, certainly one, but not good at all) and perhaps to explore the phenomenon that is Liz Carlyle. I’m also glad to see that some people on here liked Samantha Kane. If I can find real-world copy of her stuff, I may buy it.
Best author you discovered this year:
Andrea Barrett
Elizabeth Graver
Barry Hannah
Best new book you read this year
Claire Messud, “The Emperor’s Children”
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead:
“Dark Lover,” JR Ward (I got it for free but resent the time spent reading it & feel I should have been paid an hourly rate for getting through it)
Most overrated book: “Dark Lover,” JR Ward
Most underrated book: “The Slightest Provocation,” Pam Rosenthal
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise: The civilian Amazon reviewer who wrote panning the romance with an opening scene featuring a hospital patient who had inserted a rodent into his rectum
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to?: None. Surprise me, authors.
Best author you discovered this year
Gail Dayton, I think. I haven’t finished the Compass Rose yet.
Jeff Lindsey who doesn’t write romances but whose darkly comedic books about a serial killer with rules has made me fan.
Best new book you read this year (again, top 3)
Darkly Dreaming Dexter and Dearly Devoted Dexter
Fanny Burney, A Biography by Claire Harmon (very interesting glimpse into the era)
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead.
Magic Study by Snyder. At least I managed to get all the way through Poison Study. Magic Study lost me in the first half hour.
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch.
Aside from the ones I’ve seen here, Phyllida and the Brothers of Philander or whatever it is. I have a friend who makes me get it out so she can laugh at it.
Most overrated book.
Last Laura Kinsale book.
Most underrated book.
Grave Surprise by Charlaine Harris—not nearly as bad as people keep telling me it was.
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise.
So many to choose from—LKH probably because of what she did to Anita Blake
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to?
A Confederation of Valor by Tanya Huff
Deliverer by C. J. Cherryh
(both already on order)
Best author you discovered this year (Up to 3)
Jenny Crusie (so embarassing that I waited this long)
Georgette Heyer (another embarassment)
Judith McNaught (v. eye opening year)
Best new book you read this year (again, top 3)
Cold As Ice
The Vampire Who Loved Me
Lord Perfect
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead.
Lie By Moonlight
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist—in the crotch.
Too many to choose from . . .
Most overrated book.
JR Ward – enjoyed them, but they weren’t quite as good as they were made to be.
Most underrated book.
Lord Perfect
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise.
Plagiarism with Ian.
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to? (Feel free to -gasp!- pimp your own, but please don’t link as the HTML often wonks the comments)
SEP’s Natural Born Charmer
Suzanne Brockmann’s Force of Nature
Best Authors Discovered This Year:
M.T. Anderson (Feed)
Laurie Halse Anderson (Speak)
Meg Rosoff (How I Live Now)
Best New Books Read This Year:
Something Borrowed, Emily Giffin (I don’t think this is new…)
Everything I just listed under favorite authors…
Most Underrated Books:
The Book of True Desires, Betina Krahn
Rumble on the Bayou, Jana De Leon
Dirty Little Lies, Julie Leto
What Am I Looking Forward to in 2007:
The Rest Falls Away, Colleen Gleason, which is out like two days ago, but oh well
Surviving Demon Island, Jaci Burton (ditto)
Venus Envy, Shannon McKelden (ditto)
Magic’s Child, Justine Larbalestier
Tairen Soul, Cheryl Wilson (I was lucky enough to read this book in pre-pub, and it’s AMAZING!)
Everything I Need to Know About a Girl, I Learned From Judy Blume, Ed. by Jennifer O’Connell (I’m involved in this antho, but completely objectively, I can’t wait to read the others!)
Okay, December, you pimped it (Anna Evans’ book) and I bought it since it was available at Ebookwise on sale 🙂
Best author you discovered this year (Up to 3)
Hm. Naomi Novik, Lilith Saintcrow, Maria Snyder
Best new book you read this year (again, top 3): Slave to Sensation by Nalini Singh, Her Majesty’s Dragon by Naomi Novik, Working for the Devil by Lilith Saintcrow and Poison Study by Maria Snyder
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to? I actually read this book last summer after I got an ARC at BEA—Pornology by Ayn Carillo-Gailey. It doesn’t release until spring this year, but what a funny, funny book! Also: Warlord by Elizabeth Vaughn, The Mane Event by Shelly Laurenston, anything by JD Robb. I HATE waiting in between for these books, they’re like crack for me. I’ve got ARCs for a bunch of books I’ve been anticipating including Nalini Singh’s, Keri Arthurs three next releases and Lara Adrian’s debut books so I’m just anticipating a free moment to read them 🙂
Wow, thanks Angela!
I like your blog!
Wow…I’ve been pimped here and someone actually bought my book! I’d like to thank my CP, who is the sweetest woman in the world, and anyone else who heads on over to Fictionwise to grab a copy of “Death by Seduction” for 20% off.
Then…go to the EC site and buy some of the books full price, hookers!! Just kidding, I’m just thrilled to see my name somewhere. I feel like I exist :).
I would join in all the book discussion, but I have a 2, an 8, and a 12 year old and I don’t think I’ve had time to read enough this year to be productive. I will say that I really enjoyed Sasha White’s “Bound”. It was a steamy read that I recommended to my DH straight away, lol.
My CP, December Quinn, is also a gifted writer, though her cover that was snarked was um…pretty damn ugly. But hey, it could be worse, as we all see from some of the other covers snarked here, lol. (Mine was snarked too, Dreams of the Oasis Volume 2…I felt really, really exist-y that day.)
Have a wonderful end of the year everyone!
Anna J. Evans
Best authors you discovered this year—Pamela Aidan, Shanna Swendson and Loretta Chase
Best new books you read this year—Anyone But You by Jenny Crusie (it was new to me) and Enchanted Inc. by Shanna Swendson
Book you wish you’d skipped over and spent that $9 on a pair of Payless shoes instead—Reprint of Gambler’s Woman by Jayne Ann Krentz
Book with the cover that made you want to punch the cover artist in the crotch—Too many to list here. 🙂
Most overrated book—Blue Smoke by Nora Roberts
Most underrated book—Suzanne Enoch’s Sam Jellicoe trilogy, maybe?
Favorite romance-related trainwreck, on-line or otherwise—Miss Snark takes on Anne Stuart, and gets bitch-slapped!
What book coming out in 2007 are you most looking forward to? Loretta’s new Carsington book and Shanna Swendson’s Damsel Under Stress