Smart Bitches, Trashy Books

Classic Romance - Which One First? Carla Kelly Edition

Last week I reviewed The Wedding Journey by Carla Kelly - which I loved reading - after highlighting a few of Kelly's books that have been digitally re-published at $2.99. Susan, a guest reviewer, reviewed My Loving Vigil Keeping last year, also. Susan is a reader who followed Kelly as she started writing inspirational romances.

After the discussion in the sale post and in my review for The Wedding Journey, Susan contacted me with a suggestion: 

Most (if not all—I have lost track) of Carla Kelly’s books are out or coming out as ebooks, including the new inspirationals. With Her Hesitant Heart ( A | BN | K | S | ARe | iB ) being released this week it would be cool to do a reader recommends/where to start for her books. There are about 30, including an ebook collection of short stories that appeared in themed anthologies. Almost all are good but I am sure everyone has their favorites.

This is a very good idea! So of… read more »

Classic Romance - Which One First? Nora Roberts Recommendations

Time to compile the list of recommendations from everyone about which Nora Roberts should be among the first a new reader picks up. With Roberts, there's a little of everything, too. There's contemporary romance, romantic suspense, futuristic romantic mystery (in Death) and ParaNoras. There's something for everyone... unless you like vikings. And I don't think Roberts has written a post apocalypse YA with a heroine in a prom dress, either.

For some their favorite is the one they started with, and for others it's the book they re-read most. This represents the books most-mentioned as favorites in our thread.

A word about the romantic suspense: I can't read violence, especially violent sexual assault or entrail-laden descriptions, and when Nora writes realistic men, that includes assaulting creepy ass bad guys. So I stay away from the romantic suspense because, as wonderful as the main characters are, those are the scenes that get recorded into my memory to resurface when it's dark and I'm trying to be sleepy. 

There was… read more »

Classic Romance - Which One First? Nora Roberts Edition

Back in 2006, I fielded a question for Lovely Salome, better known as Carrie Lofty, asking which Nora Roberts novel she should read first. A sort of precursor to the "Which One First?" feature, done six years ago.

Now that Nora Roberts has written approximately 14,576,469,354.7 books since then, I think it's time to update that list. Another reader is asking for help. Meet Jordan:

I've really loved all the the "What Should I Read Next" of old school romance posts you have done! As a recent convert to the romance genre (Hi, my name is Jordan and I've been a Romance reader for 5 years now. *Hi Jordan*), those have been really helpful since digging through authors who've been publishing for a while is pretty intimidating.

I would love to see more of those, and personally I'd love one for Nora Roberts. I'm a hardcore J.D. Robb fangirl, probably because I slowly migrated from scifi/fantasy and mystery over to romance, but Roberts'… read more »

GS vs STA: She’s Turning 12 and Hunting Good Books

I received this letter from Barbara, who is looking for books to share with her daughter: 

Hi! I vividly remember my first romance book experience -- I swiped one of my mother's Harlequin romances shortly before I turned 12 and there was no holding me back from the genre after that glorious and eye-opening introduction to Greek millionaires and the shy British virgins they woo, etc! Now my daughter will be turning 12 in a few months (gasp! how did THAT happen?) and I'm trying to figure out what to gently suggest to her to bring her over to the romance-reading side of things... She reads at a high school level (at least that is what her teachers tell me) but she's not ready for anything too explicit sex-wise as she's still rather mortified by the whole idea. I give her another year until that becomes a compelling factor in reading choices...she loves mysteries, history and mythology. She is not a huge fan of the vampire genre (holy crap is there a lot of vampire-y YA stuff out there!) and… read more »

Classic Romances: Which One First? Teresa Medeiros Recommendations

Which Teresa Medeiros titles are among the Bitchery's most recommended? Let's have a look! Time to compile the recommendation list - and this time we had a landslide recommendation. So many people love this book, it's kind of amazing. 

Yours Until Dawn

First, this book's digital edition is on sale currently, and is anywhere from $3.79US to $3.99US right now, depending on the retailer. And with coupons at retailers like Kobo, such as "Bargainmoose40" you can get 40% off that price now that HarperCollins is no longer using agency pricing.

Y'all love this book a LOT. TaraR says she still re-reads this book from time to time. RJ says this is the book that made her glom all of Medeiros' historicals. Steph, Jules, and Mojostables also commented that this is their favorite.

MKthor says, "the one that's stuck with me the most is Yours… read more »

Classic Romance - Which One First? Teresa Medeiros Edition

Time for another Classic Romance: Which One First? recommendation-a-thon-a-ganza! It can be intimidating to look at an author's back list and try to figure out where to begin - especially when a selection of them are on sale.

Teresa Medeiros is one author whose backlist I'm somewhat familiar with, and six of her books are on sale digitally right now, so it seemed a good time to discuss: which Medeiros book would you recommend a new reader try first? 

I'm personally a happy-sigh fan of her fairy-tale retellings, especially  Charming the Prince (A | BN | K | S) and The Bride and the Beast (A | BN | K | S).

I wasn't mad about The Devil Wears Plaid, though I enjoyed it, and alas I didn't enjoy Goodnight Tweetheart at all. Her historicals are definitely my favorites. 

What about you? I'll compile your recommendations in about a week for those who are curious. Which Medeiros books do you recommend for first-time readers?

Romance Recommendations Needed: All That’s Best of Warm and Bright

Elizabeth wrote to me and asked for a comfort reading list, which is something we've talked off and on about here for years:

I think I speak for a lot of people (and given your "silly stuff" post yesterday, you as well) when I say that we need something, ANYTHING, to take our minds off of this horrifying tragedy, and the actions and reactions (for better and worse) of the media and those around us.

I admit, I'm reading a lot this week, and have even started to buffet my books, reading three at the same time in case one turns dark or scary. It's definitely a comfort to me to be reading. And so many of us have books we re-read and enjoy each time, though the reasons those books are so comforting can very by person. 

With apologies to Lord Byron, I think what Elizabeth is looking for is the best of warm and bright comfort reading -- as she put it, "funny, heartwarming romances" -- books that aren't just comforting because they are familiar, but because they inspire the… read more »

Hanukkah Extravaganzah, Part the Sixth - The Winner!

Time to announce the winner of the Kindle Paperwhite for the sixth night of our Hanukkah Extravaganzah! 

The winner is: Kanchb, who said that the Beautiful Creatures book series was first on the reading list. Awesome! 

Please email me at sarahATsmartbitchestrashybooksDOTcom to claim your winnings!

There's still more Hanukkah madness - today we're giving away another nook Simple Touch with GlowLight. Good luck! 

And Happy Hanukkah! 

GS vs STA: Tudor Romance

Kyra and I were emailing regarding her review, and I asked her what Tudor romances she recommends as the "best ever." She says, "I don't have a "best ever" Tudor romance or author yet ... I'm only recently embracing the sub-genre, which is still a rare cat compared to Regency."

The devil you say!

I remember reading more Tudor romances years ago, but then, Blaze Wyndham (SB Grade: B+) was one of two books I brought with me to Spain as an exchange student -- both times. Oh, exchange students with your digital books, I envy you.

Anyway, Blaze Wyndham is my bar for Tudor romance, both in the complete overwhelming crazysauce of some of the antics of Blaze and her sisters, and in the full immersion into Bertice Small's version of Henry VIII's court (and speaking of crazysauce, boy howdy).

But when I think of other Tudor romances I've read, there aren't many (Blaze must have cast a long shadow) and they weren't particularly memorable in a good way.

So I thought to ask y'all: which… read more »

GS vs STA: Unexpected Love

I had an interesting inquiry for recommendations from Jen, and I've been struggling with how to title it - it's not quite "last chance" at love, but it's more than "surprise, you have FEELINGS." Jen writes: 

I am looking for a book I've never read and don't know exists. I am totally into the idea of lonely people finding each other. Either or both are lonely. And the writer does an excellent job of making the reader feel the loneliness and bleakness of their future.

Oh, and the romance when they find each other has to be pretty fucking hot. Any recommendations?

I asked for clarification, and queried as to whether Jen was "looking for stories wherein the heroine or hero has given up on ever finding anyone, and WHOOMP, there s/he is" and she replied, "Yes...but I would like to allow flexibility around the definition so I might have many books to look into. But, yes, essentially I would like to read… read more »

GS vs STA: Ghosts, Witches, and Magic Romances

Time for Good Shit vs Shit To Avoid, where we build a recommendation list based on reader inquiry. This email comes from Jill: 

As Autumn weather and Halloween approach, I find myself craving romantic reading with similar setting. Does the all-powerful Bitchery have any suggestions? Books featuring magic and Autumn\Halloween would be greatly appreciated. Paranormal stories featuring ghosts are welcome as welll.... If there's anyone I can turn to to find good romantic reading of any sort, it's you intrepid ladies.

Ghost stories would be great, as well as stories involving Witches and Magic in general. Every October I work my way through the works of Sarah Addison Allen and while it's not 'bibbidi bobbidi boo!' style magic, it has an inherent magical quality to the daily lives of the characters. Along similar lines (more traditional magic) is Annette Blair's The Scot, the Witch and the Wardrobe and Patricia Coughlin's Wedding Magic (haunted house). I'd love input from the Bitchery on all of these genres to sustain me through autumn and Halloween.

There are a TON of books… read more »

GS vs STA: Transgender Romance

 Christine sent me the following email, and I confess, I have drawn a total blank in trying to answer her query: 

Can you recommend a well done transgender romance? Not an erotica, but something well-crafted and with well-rounded characters? I'd like to read something that makes me feel all fuzzy happy about the world. 

I wrote back to clarify, and Christine confirmed she was looking for romances with a transgender individual as a hero/heroine of the story. 

I am all in favor of the "fuzzy happy about the world" feeling, but I am genuinely sad that I have no ideas about any quality transgender romances to recommend. So I'm asking for Christine as well as for myself. Do you have any to recommend?

Classic Romance - Which One First? Loretta Chase Recommendations

The votes were pretty evenly split among a few books by Loretta Chase, with some very hearty recommendations as well. If you're looking to try a Loretta Chase book, Bitchery readers are here to help (seriously, y'all know pretty much everything).

If you're not sure where to start, here are the Chase series in order:

The Carsington Brothers: Miss Wonderful Mr. Impossible Lord Perfect Not Quite a Lady Last Night's Scandal

The Fallen Women Series: Your Scandalous Ways Don't Tempt Me

The Dressmakers series (in progress) Silk is for Seduction Scandal Wears Satin

Other historical novels: The Lion's Daughter Captives of the Night Lord of Scoundrels "The Mad Earl's Bride" The Last Hellion

Of the Chase books in print, three were the top recommendation by commenters:

Classic Romance - Which One First? Loretta Chase Edition

There's a few Loretta Chase books on sale every now and again, and it can be daunting to figure out if the one on sale is the one you want - or if you want all of them! To quote Jane Litte in a recent podcast, "Loretta Chase can't write a bad book," and even if the storyline isn't to your liking, you can usually count on the writing to be supremely enjoyable. Chase is skilled and imaginative, and her books often find their way onto many "My Ultimate Favorites No You May Not Borrow It" lists. 

So which Loretta Chase should someone start with, if they've never read her? Lord of Scoundrels ( A | BN | K | S | ARe ) or something else? Which book would you recommend for a reader who has never enjoyed a Chase novel? 

GS vs STA: Epistolary Romances

Elizabeth sent me an email asking about epistolary romances - romances told in the format of letters: 

I was wondering if there have ever been any successful epistolatory romance novels, or really any romances that play with form beyond telling the story in the first person. I have read first person narrative romances, but they didn't seem to work as well as standard third person storytelling. Perhaps the third person narrative is a core generic convention? Does anyone care about this besides me?

I had to think about it after I read her email. I know of two that are told via email exchanges nearly entirely, but epitolary romances were harder to think of. There are some with strong romantic elements - or mild romantic elements - including some of my favorite books, but I wouldn't call them "romances" per se.

Several pieces of classic literature are epistolary, though in terms of defining romances that use this structure, I am sticking with the more modern (contemporary? recent?) concept of the romance novel. That said, according to the Wikipedia article, "It is thought… read more »