Lately I’ve been craving a few things: hot tea, a particular wool blanket that my husband’s late grandmother made, and contemporary romance. The first two mean it’s fall, but the last one I’ve been puzzling over.
Usually, when I’m in need of some comfort reading, I reach for historicals. A few good petticoats, some stays and cravats tossed on the floor, maybe even a rogue pelisse in inclement weather, and I feel much better. But the past few weeks, I’ve been more tired than usual, and to my surprise I’ve been looking for the spark and zest of contemporary romance. I want current settings, modern dialogue, and spicy attraction – almost as if I’m looking in the book for energy that I don’t have right now.
Then, the other evening, after a particularly good dinner, when the house was quiet and I was very content, I was all “Ooh, historical, please.” Historical romance literally was my cup of tea, the hot beverage after my meal that made me all warm-bellied and satisfied. It’s almost like mood reading reversal – not that I’m complaining. I just find it curious.
Do you have mood reading? Which genres match your moods?
Thinking more about this, sometimes it isn’t a mood as it is a kind of Mental Flavor Craving.
Like when you want strawberry ice cream bad enough to get dressed and go to the store. I often put aside a book I am looking forward to reading until I get the craving on. Simon Tolkien’s Final Witness (JRR’s Grandson) is one of those. When the British mystery bug hits, I am ready.
When I feel bad, I tend to go back to books I loved when I was about 15.
My first choice is usually LM Montogomery.
I like to enter the world of good old PEI and say hello to a wonderfully imaginative little redhead and two crotchety old ladies.
This was the first story that made me want to go up to the characters and shake them thoroughly so that they make the right decision…
Mood reading is one of the main reasons I got an e-book reader. I have some fast favorites that I just like to read passages from, even if I don’t read the whole book over again. Some of my warm fuzzies come from historical’s but most of my favs are the old standards, Austen, Bronte, Loretta Chase. I read The Thorn Birds (am I the only fan of this book?), and the Mists of Avalon every year at around the holidays and have been known to pick up Little Women or A little princess once a year as well. So, I keep them on the Kindle, and when I feel the urge, they are there.
Haha now I’m all nostalgic
Oh I almost forgot, I have a beat up 1978 hardcover copy of Phillipa Carr’s The Love Child that my mom gave me. I think I have read that a million times by now. It may have been on of my first romance books.
I find myself reaching for the paranormal romances when it’s been a trying day. Lately, though, I’ve been craving fantasy romance and historicals. I’m guessing it’s because I’ve been gorging myself on romantic erotica and the like.
I love The Thorn Birds too. When I was younger I used to read it at least once a year, now that I’ve rediscovered romance (I spent 10 years from I was 18 until I was about 28 not really reading “hardcore romance” so to speak), I have a whole load of comfort reads.
Terry Pratchett is great, and usually never fails to cheer me up. Loretta Chase and Julia Quinn, not to mention Georgette Heyer are also great comfort reads for me.
When I was a teen back in the eighties, colds demanded regencies and Harlequins—the more chaste, the better. I can still picture myself with 4 or 5 books next to me in bed, sick but content.
Today I follow politics a lot and read some fairly serious books. Every couple months this sends me into overload, and all I want are Samhains or Ellora Caves. I will then read them for several days before having the strength to cope. During this period, anything can happen on the world stage and it would be news to me.
Definitely Terry Pratchett for laughs and sheer joy in wordsmithing. Julia Quinn, Lisa Kleypas and Laura Kinsale for comfort reading when I’m in the mood to cocoon. JR Ward when I’m a dark mood. Charlaine Harris is a nice medium between dark and comfort reading. I tend to jump between genres myself. Marjorie M. Liu is another good one. I love her Dirk & Steele series. My current comfort read is Love is Blind by Lynsay Sands. And I worship at the alter of Elizabeth Hoyt. I’m working on my second copies of the entire Prince series.
When I’m feeling..frisky, there are many titles from Ellora’s Cave that work for me. Lora Leigh’s breed series, but not her bound series. I’m not against menage in any way, but I loath that series for some reason. Lisa Marie Rice, Sarah McCarty’s Promise series…
I’ve not seen too many votes for american/western historicals. I cut my teeth on Johanna Lindsay and her fabulous-Fabio covers. His Second-hand Wife by Cheryl St. John never fails to feel like a literary fuzzy blanket to me. Ditto for the Wife Lottery trilogy by Jodi Thomas.
I’m more of a “phase” person – I have these periods where I want to read a particular genre and then all of a sudden, I’ll want something different so I’ll glom onto something different for a while. It was contemporaries earlier in the month and now, much to my surprise, it is paranormals. I haven’t read any for months and months and now I’m all about “where the next Nalini Singh novel?”.
In some ways its a bit of a pity because I have all these great historicals in my TBR pile but I know if I read them “out of phase” I won’t enjoy them the same way….
Just means my TBR pile gets more and more massive!
When my children were babies and toddlers, I’d alternate Georgette Heyer with Louis L’Amour, like going from sweets to savoury and back. It helped that the books were about the same size—good if you’re breast-feeding.
I re-read Bujold nowadays, especially the Chalion books, when I need a sense of hope and persevering. LOTR and Eddings are good re-reads, and Dorothy Sayers.
And being39 is a memory.
My mood reads are never romance. Perhaps that’s because I’m fairly new to the genre (and thank you for that. You guys are solely responsible. I became hooked on this site due to book cover contest and never turned back. Lord of Scoundrels? OMG? Brilliant.) Anyhoo. wWhen I’m bereft, I always, I mean always, read Imaginative Qualities of Actual Things by Gilbert Sorrentino. When I’m just cranky, any book of short stories by Angela Carter hits the spot. Often read aloud, to no one, because they just work better that way. In happier times, there’s nothing like a good Loretta Chase (again, kudos).
It’s funny, but I only like contemporary romances when things are pretty good. I get too impatient with the characters otherwise. If things are marginally crappy, give me a Regency. When I’m really miserable and feeling sorry for myself, I reach for the Narnia books, start with The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe and go all the way through to the end of The Last Battle. They never fail.
Bad winter weather is the time for Lord Peter Wimsey, Roderick Alleyn, dense Gothics like Victoria Holt, really scary paranormals and Possession.
When I’m feeling bruised by life and generally cynical, Robert Parker is just the ticket.
And let’s not even talk about comfort DVDs—
Jenny Crusie never disappoints. You fall in love with her characters all over again with each re-read.
Some more recent additions to the comfort reading stack:
Sherry Thomas (Private Arrangements, Delicious, Not Quite a Husband)
Kresley Cole (the Immortals After Dark series—feels as if you’re hanging out with Buffy and the Scooby Gang)
Jacqueline Carey (although I know that “comfort” and “Kushiel” wouldn’t seem a likely pair)
most of my comfort reads are historicals- both in the romance genre and in YA fiction….though nowadays, I’m more in the mood for contemporaries. I read Emily Giffin’s “baby proof” last week and had also been rereading snippets of This Heart of Mine this week. I wish I was in a more historical mood- I had finally borrowed Lisa Kleypas’ Seduce me at Sunrise (I know I’m behind in the series) from the library when my mood shifted. Maybe I’ll save that and the newest one until the Hathaway brother gets his book (I was mostly looking forward to his book and Beatrice’s).
I usually have two or three books that I’m reading, and I’ll switch between them depending on mood and circumstance. I have a book in my purse, an e-book on the laptop, and a couple of books going from the stack in the bedroom, so I can switch from heavy to light as the modd strikes. (Yes, this IS why I would be a good candidate for an e-reader, if I wasn’t so cranky about pricing and format issues.)
I have series of books that I curl up with. Eve and Roark, Miles and his Free Rangers (Bujold), Janielle and Sadi (Anne Bishop), Both werewolf series by Briggs, Kim Harrison’s Hollows series, Brockmann’s TS series, Novik’s Temeraire series, and Stephanie Plum series are all in my audio format (though I am still getting the Bishop and Briggs as they are released). When I am in the mood for a particular genre I know where to load my ipod. What I find interesting is that In Death, Troubleshooters, Vorkasian all fall into my listened so many times that if they were cassetts they would be dead category. They are great when I am doing yard work, or cleaning around the house, or going grocery shopping.
I do prefer to save ‘new’ stories for long car rides. The Thanksgiving trip home to my folks for instance will have the next In Death Novel playing. *You have to plan these things in advance or you might not have a good book to listen to…and then will have to pay attention to the music/squabbles that happen around you. But a good story…and orders that you are listening to that story, and distribution of Ipods to others saves you from that horror.
When I’m down I reach for Julie Garwoods medieval scottish books, or Honours Splendour with the feet warming scene. They make me feel all warm and toasty inside.
When I’m cranky it’s paranormals with lots of alpha males and fated mates fighting stuff. Too perfect.
I’ve always been a reader of Historicals.Right now I’m Loretta Chases’ Lord of Scoundrels.
When I want to laugh I’ll read books by Julia Quinn.
edieharris, I’m right with you! Sometimes I’m JUST in the mood for A Rose in Winter, that’s one of the first romances I ever read and it’s stuck with me ever since.
To ease a dark mood or a bad day at work, I will echo the calls for a classic Nora Roberts, any of the JD Robbs or a Janet Evanovich (by the numbers or even her old Loveswept, I believe they were, reprints). For really broody moments, though, a Mary Balogh will do the trick.
This piece of writing is surely very eye catching .the whole idea of mood reading is what it attracts a reader to stop and give his or her attention towards it.there are people like the writer who can not make out or judge what they want to read .this will actually help them to chalk out their interest areas.
A good mystery book always works for me. It’s my comfort food. I love no genre more than a well written crime/detective book. Robert Skinner, Cara Black, Judith Smith-Levin & Grace F. Edwards are a few of my favorite authors.