Another month on its way out. Another Whatcha Reading post in the bag. It’s time to talk about all the good stuff (hopefully it’s all good stuff) we’ve been reading this month.
I’m currently reading Meredith Duran’s Lady Be Good ( A | K | G | AB )! The heroine is a former thief who is stuck (hopefully) doing one last job for her uncle – he’s also the hero in the next book. And the hero is a scarred veteran trying to protect his family from the man who injured him. It’s my first historical that I’ve went out of my way to buy and read in years, so I feel like I’m having first date anxieties. Am I having a good time? Is it just me? Will there be a second date?
Redheadedgirl:
Tall, Dark, and Wicked by Madeline hunter. Lawyers and crime and math and I love it.
Oh I’m also listening to Wuthering Heights ( A | BN | K | G | AB | Au | Scribd ), and Jesus Christ these people.
Carrie: HAHAHA *Bitter laugh*
Here and There by Joshua Scher. I was afraid it would be hard to get into because it’s long and cerebral and involves multiple voices giving hints at a mystery, but it’s actually very hypnotic.
Sarah: I’m still reading Slaying Dragons ( A | K | AB ), and am about to start Forever Your Earl ( A | BN | K | G | AB ). But my real life is so busy right now, I haven’t had much time to read. Which is SO NOT FUN.
Oh – based on Meka’s recommendation from an upcoming podcast, I’m going to listen to the audiobook of Dragon Bound by Thea Harrison.
Elyse: I just finished The Fold by Peter Clines. It’s a fun sci-fi thriller in the same vein as Michael Crichton or Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child, and the end is deliciously ridiculous.
I’m currently reading Friction by Sandra Brown ( A | K | G | AB | Au ).
Tell us what you’re reading! What did you love? Anything that you hated?
Shopping note:
After a Whatcha Reading? discussion, Lisa M emailed me to ask if I could link the books mentioned in the comments to the various retailers to make shopping a little easier. I wish I could! But I can drop some retailer links for you right here, so that if you feel like shopping, you can select your preferred retailer.
Some of these links are affiliate-enabled, and SBTB receives a percentage commission from purchases made. If you use them, many thanks. If you don’t want to us them, no worries, mate! (And if your preferred retailer isn’t here, let me know and I’ll add it for you if I can!)
I went on an Amy Jo Cousins binge – I read 3 out of 4 of her Bend or Break queer NA series. My favorite by far is The Girl Next Door and OMG you guys – its m/f with a bi heroine and I LOVED how she was portrayed. She’s secure in her identity, she has a queer community, sleeping with a man doesn’t turn her straight or make her question her identity, and there are no icky bi stereotypes. (Ok, there is a threesome, which may bug some readers, but it seemed completely in line with her personality, so it worked for me). It’s not a perfect book, but I’m SO happy to have read a romance about a genuinely bi woman dating a man that I don’t really care about the minor problems – although I would have liked to get her pov, it’s all from the hero’s deep 3rd person pov. (DreadPirateRachel – have you read this one yet? Curious what you think).
I finally read a Bujold – after years of being intimidated by the complicated backlist. But my book group is discussing Ethan of Athos next month so I read it and I really enjoyed it.
Speaking of catching up with the rest of the reading world, I read my second Pratchett – Wyrd Sisters and I enjoyed it. I think I may be coming to them a little too old / late to completely love him the way so many of my reading friends do, but I am enjoying Discworld so far.
Also read Alex as Well by Alyssa Brughman, an Austrialian YA about a trans* and intersex 14 year old girl. As a cis reader, I enjoyed it, although a couple things made me vaguely uncomfortable, (which often means that they will make other more informed readers hulk smash rage-y).
Almost forgot Amy Rae Durreson’s In Heaven and Earth – free mm sfr novella that really blew me away. Human – android pairing. (I think he’s an android and not a cyborg)
Just finished Whiskey Beach which is pretty standard Nora. Which is to say, it’s good and I liked it but it is not my favorite of her books.
Before that, The Gamble by Joan Wolf who I continue to enjoy. In this Regency, the heroine finds her father was a blackmailer and uses the information he had to attempt to provide for her sister. There is peril and a damaged hero who has to learn to believe that he is worthy of love. Trigger warning: one of the men being blackmailed is a pederast though it is not a very detailed part of the plot. And we do see a little of the dark under-belly of London.
I also read books two and three of the Mortal Instruments trilogy at the urging of a number of teen girls I know. Spent the time looking for the fan fic components – doubt I will read any more of her books.
I’ve had more reading time than usual this month, so I’m catching up on SF&F. This week I read THE THOUSAND NAMES by Django Wexler, HALF A WAR by Joe Abercrombie, and I’m currently reading SORCERER TO THE CROWN by Zen Cho. In between those books I’ve been reading Tiffany Reisz’s Rita award winner THE SAINT. Whew! Lots of books consumed.
Have read Bone Rider by J. Fally (m/m, sexy/sweet/funny and a really enjoyable book), Archangel’s Enigma by Nalini Singh (loved Andromeda), The Viscount Who Lives Down The Lane by Elizabeth Boyle (enjoyed the first part of it, but got turned off by the viscount who was constantly going from hot to cold when around the heroine), and Rescuing Dr MacAllister by Sarah Morgan (good).
My best romance-genre find in the last month: “A Rational Arrangement” by L. Rowyn. This is an odd one–almost Jane Austenish drawing room setting (but set in an alternate-world 19th century) with our heroine looking to make an advantageous arranged marriage. But traditional it is not! First, she seems to be on the autism spectrum. Second, this isn’t a girl-meets-boy, it is a girl-meets-boy+boy. Explicit content.
Old but good: I’ve been reading alot of fantasy lately and came across “The War for the Oaks” by Emma Bull, which came out in the mid-1980s. Indie rocker girl gets caught up in the midst of a faerie war. If you’ve ever wondered what it would be like to have adventures with a pookah, this is the book for you.
Congrats Laura! And yay for the shout outs to Trollope and Clarke.
I am loving the NPR list overall. Uprooted and The Serpent Garden are awesome, Ember is great good fun, and I’m deep into the Inheritance trilogy.
I try to stay wholly positive, but this month I feel compelled to issue some warnings. And as these are potentially spoilery, a warnings warning.
So.
I love Higgins, but her latest has two story lines and I wish I had known one of them is *not* a romance. I adore the crazy sauce that is Karen Robards, but I wish I had known going in that this latest serial killer ghost hero book is the last one. And I desperately want to discuss the quartet now. Am I the only one who stuck with it?
Also, the Robin Schone book from the NPR list made me so angry, like fire breathing, hulk smashing, incoherent frothing angry. It is not OK. Hateful, narrow minded anti gay rhetoric that made me actually turn around and thoroughly enjoy some Amy Jo Cousins, because even though the constant after school special teaching moments nature of YA and NA makes my teeth hurt, it is apparently still fucking necessary.
@Taffygrrl: Julia Quinn’s When He Was Wicked. I didn’t totally love the book, but the premise is exactly what you’re looking for and more (Dead husband was the new suitor’s beloved cousin, so both H & h have to go through the guilt)
@Laura: Wow, CONGRATS!! A million HEAs to you.
@Francesca: Yaoi manga? You are of my fujoshi people! I originally started reading Embracing Love ten years ago, when it was being published by Be Beautiful Manga. I was so stoked that SuBLime got the license and started publishing it again – the series is 13 volumes long but only 5 were published before BeBeautiful went down with the mother ship, Central Park Media, in 2007. I’ve been harassing different yaoi publishers to snag the license ever since! June Manga published some other Youka Nitta titles under both June and the 801 labels, too. I am anxiously awaiting the next volume of The Tyrant Falls In Love right now!
Also Congrats to Laura!
I read Bourbon King by J.R.Ward. I really liked it but like all her books ends on a question instead of a standalone story. I also read Brown eyed girl by Kleypas which I really liked. I buzzed through Ice Planet Barbarians and Barbarian Aliens which were a lot more fun than I thought they would be. I also really liked Tessa Dare’s When a Scot Ties the Knot. The Meh for me was In Love with a Wicked Man (L. Caryle), Beguiled by J. Chambers. Also Afflicted by Brandon Shire (I did like the premise of a blind hero). Also read Love at Stake by V. Davies and it was an average story with better than average story teller. Now for the bad. I really disliked Penelope by Ana Wylde. I tried so hard but the heroine acted mental and was supposed to be quirky and funny…but wasn’t. Also The Bear’s Unwanted Baby. I knew with a title like that it would be cracktastic or Not. Not. I read and liked Mayhem by Jamie Shaw so I picked up Chaos and Riot to finish it out. I also picked up Hollywood Dirt and Him by Serena Bowen.
@Lizabeth, I’m so glad you mentioned you read Devoted in Death! I forgot it came out already, which is a first for me. I just went and downloaded it from amazon.
Thanks, everyone! The wedding was fantastic 🙂
I’ve read some great Harlequin Presents. This month, as been off with the charts stressfest. The category reads have the only thing that I can focus on. Laura, congralations
My recs are:
At the Greek Tycoon’s Bidding by Cathy Williams
The Bedroom Business by Sandra Marton
I’m reading Catalyst by SJ Kincaid, the final book in the Insignia trilogy, which was a little slow getting going, but once it got moving, it got moving. I’ll probably finish it today. I also recently read Indigo by Beverly Jenkins, and it was SO good. It gave me serious happy noises, and I’ll definitely be tracking down more of her books. I also recently read The Fixer by Jennifer Lynn Barnes, which hit all of my huge fan of Scandal buttons. There were a few others too, Blood of My Blood by Barry Lyga (mindscrew, in a good way), and Lair of Dreams by Libba Bray (LET ME LOVE YOU). I also listened to Devil In the White City by Erik Larson, and now I’m listening to In the Garden of Beasts. Really, it’s been a very good reading month.
@Taffygirl: if you’re looking for books with widowed H/h with good memories of the decease spouse, I would recommend Kristen Ashley’s “At Peace” where the heroine is a widow.
Also, Jessica Topper’s “Louder than Love”, “Deeper than Dreams”(a novella epilogue to the first book), and “Softer than Steel”— I just read the last two yesterday and today — fantastic books about washed out ’80s British heavy metal band members. Both the heroine of the first book and the hero of the second book lost their first spouses.
Has anyone else read Alessandra Torres’ “Hollywood Dirt”? Great book about a Hollywood star making a movie in a Southern town– funny and touching with a enemies to lovers story full of witty banter. Loved it!
More Congratulations to @Laura on her marriage-it cracks me up that she was checking in with SBTB on her wedding day. Then again, why wouldn’t she?
@Kate-Elizabeth Chadwick is one of my favorite authors, I really love her-even more than Philippa Gregory. William Marshall is my historical crush-have your read The Scarlet Lion? Love her books on Eleanor of Aquitaine-I think she is an amazing writer.
Things I read this month:
Print the Legend: The Life and Times of John Ford by Scott Eyman. I think this author is excellent, his book on John Wayne was awesome.
Villa America by Liza Klaussmann-this was a really good book, populated with real life characters like F. Scott Fitzgerald, Hemingway, Monty Wooley. Plus the family it is about were also actual people, who I had never heard of before.
The Cinderella Deal and Agnes and the Hitman by Jennifer Crusie-I forgot how much I enjoy this author, very much enjoyed reading her again.
The Royal We by Heather Cocks and Jessica Morgan-fun read, and I loved the kind of behind the scenes of royal romance.
We Never Asked for Wings by Vanessa Diffenbaugh-I loved her Language of Flowers, and read this pretty much in one sitting. I really like her writing.
All The Single Ladies by Dorothea Benton Frank-I think this is the first book I have read of hers, I love the protagonists were older women. Boy, I was hungry after I finished though, she talks about food ALOT, and I am all for it, but I really wanted a Krispy Kreme doughnut!
I am supposed to be reading Dracula for my October Book Club, I am page 2 😉 Better get on that!
@Taffygrrl: Mrs. Drew Plays Her Hand by Carla Kelly. The heroine is a young widow and mother who loved her first husband very much.
I’ve gotten my reading groove back this month, after having to spend far too much time dealing with a move this summer. I read “Only a Kiss” after reading Elyse’s review here. I prolonged reading it because I didn’t want it to end. I haven’t read many of Mary Balogh’s newer books, though I’ve read a bunch of the old Signet Regencies, and now I have to start the Survivors Club series from the beginning.
Then I read “When a Scot Ties the Knot” and enjoyed it in a totally different way; I gobbled it down in one day. Finally, I just finished “The Governess Affair” after preordering the Brothers Sinister box set. I read other books this month, too, but those were the romances.
I’ve ended up reading more by theme than author or genre this month.
– Ally Carter’s Gallagher Girls series was a cute, quick fun read for my commute that I became surprisingly invested in. The MC Cammie is a 14 yr old spy in training attending an elite school for girl spies, her parents are CIA and like her peers she’s a girl genius but clueless about boys. I’m waaaay older than the target demographic so I wasn’t surprised that bits of the POV made me roll my eyes, but after book 2 the boy crazy aspects fade out and an overarching conspiracy plot kicked in that made it very readable. By the time I finished the last book as Cammie was an 18 yr old graduate I felt sad the series was over and desperate for sequels of her college years.
– The Squad and Perfect Cover by Jennifer L Barnes promised similar shenanigans but with a squad of cheerleaders as undercover CIA operatives. I like JLB and devoured The Fixer and loved it, but I couldn’t get into the premise of these. It was nowhere near as fun as Gallagher Girls: JLB’s heroine was a sneery too cool for school Mary Sue, her team-mates were too caricatured and the missions bored me.
– Desperate Duchesses by Eloise James were awesome.So.Much.Catnip!! I started with When the Duke Returns, and loved the main characters relationships with each other, their servants and friends. The sideplots about ducal privileges and privies were surprisingly fascinating. I devoured Harriet and Lord Strange’s book: cross-dressing masquerading, the hero’s funny feelings about the new chap, empowered ugly ducklings – plot moppet be damned gimmme gimmme gimmme! I quite enjoyed Duchess of Mine considering I don’t normally enjoy rekindled marriage plots. I desperately want Villiers story now.
– His by Aubrey Dark was an interesting psychological thriller: a girl ends up falling for a serial killer with a code when he has to abduct her to keep his secret. It’s probably lazy of me to describe it as a Dexter erotica novel, but it was reminiscent. Lots of trigger warnings in it, but a surprisingly good romance/relationship is built up.
– Luckiest Girl in the World was another psych thriller. A woman who seems to have it all but is still rocked by her past. Massive potential triggers but so worth reading. The dual narration is great, I really cared for the main character despite her initially shallow and unlikeable front.
– Her another psych thriller was solid, but suffered some slack pacing. The creepy but oddly fascinating narrator develops an obsession with a female customer and uses social media to find out everything about her and get closer to her. There was a very good character twist that really made me want to reread and see how it changed my perspective. This was probably the closest I’ve read in tone to Gone Girl.
-Room by Emma Donahue was IMHO gimmicky and massively overrated. The child narrator and his mother live their existence in a single room, the mother having being kidnapped off the street years before and held captive, having given birth to her abductors child. It picked up once they were in the outside but the child narrator voice became grating very quickly.
– The Martian was my favourite book this month and worth struggling through the science for. I can’t wait for the film.
– Make Me by Lee Child because I adore Reacher. It followed the standard shenanigans Reacher drifts into a small, hostile town like a cross between the Littlest Hobo and Clint Eastwood and stuff goes down in a satisfying and skull cracking way. I think Child’s best is waning, it has gotten formulaic. Yes, Reacher is officially a bit too old for this malarkey now, his super manly pheromones attract yet another special agent female to assist with crime solving and bed warming, I miss the days where we got more insight into the bad guys and why they did things, but at least he pans to the fireplace now instead of cringey sex scenes, plus there is some welcome physical vulnerability too.
@Maureen – I have not read The Scarlet Lion yet, but it is on my Kindle, so I’ll read it soon! Have yet read Sharon Kay Penman? She writes about the Plantagents too, and is actually blurbed on Chadwick’s books. I LOVE Penman’s stuff.
Also, if you want more about Sara & Gerald Murphy, I’d recommend their joint biography, “Everybody Was So Young” by Amanda Vaill.
I read Fall with Me by Jennifer Armentrout/J. Lynn which I think was featured here (on sale or as a new book?) It was good though I don’t read a lot of NA typically. I also finished The Girl on the Train for my book club and am almost done with The Spy who Tamed me by Kelly Hunter, which is very different than the typical HP.
Felicitations, Laura!
Had a good reading month, thanks to taking sometime off for a bookation.
Just finished “Across a Star-Swept Sea” by Diana Peterfreund. Liked both this one and “For Darkness Shows the Stars” which I read last month.
Read “Court of Fives” by Kate Elliott and loved it! Lots of interesting possibilities for the sequels.
“Perfect Touch” by Elizabeth Lowell – meh. Rather formulaic and short compared to her other books – big margins and wide line spacing. Glad I got this from the library and didn’t spend my valuable book $$ for it.
“Siren’s Call” by Jayne Castle. I’m still hanging in there with this world/series. But it was close on this one.
“Say Yes to the Marquess” by Tessa Dare. Enjoyed the hijinks, but wanted more history, I think. Which I shouldn’t put on the book, since I know what it is.
The Sarah Tolerance books (Point of Honor, Petty Treason, and The Sleeping Partner) by Madeleine E. Robins. Nom, Nom, Nom – alternate history Regency, with our heroine Sarah as an inquiry agent who wears men’s dress occasionally to get the job done. Great twists of history – women who are Ruined are cast from society on a fairly regular basis, Queen Charlotte as the Regent – which lead to great mysteries and an earned romance. LOVE THIS SERIES!!!!
I’m reading the new October Daye, “A Red-Rose Chain” by Seanan McGuire (taking it slow, but I love to reread this series!), and finished “Archangel’s Enigma” by Nalini Singh (love this series and this book kept the love growing!).
Also read another alternate history romance duology – “Native Star” and “Hidden Goddess” by M.K. Hobson. The twist is magic in 1880s America (starts in California and moves to New York). Nicely done, especially the romance.
Finally, I’m just about finished with “Asking for It” and have started “Begging for It” early (didn’t want to cry on the bus this am), both by Lilah Pace. Absolutely fabulous. Really hoping for a HEA.
Also up for finishing shortly is “Rivals In The City” by Y.S. Lee (the fourth book in The Agency series) and “Calico Palace”, which was mentioned by SBTB. Having a hard time with these two – I like them both, but I’m putting them down a bit too easily.
It was quite a dry spell in July and August, so I was saving up!!
I am in book despair. That’s what happens when a reading rut lasts for several months. Even some of my favorite authors/series have failed to lift me. I’ve tried to mix things up, and have had a few brief glimmers of hope (some cozy mysteries, space opera, a couple of Josh Lanyons), but it didn’t last. I’m going to go thru everyone’s posts here, as well as “shopping” thru Mt. KilimanTBR, and see if I can find the magic mix.
On a happier note, I’ve had far better luck with my listening. I’m currently listening to Book 9 of the Cal Leandros series–so I’ll be ready for the release of Book 10 on Dec. 1. The narrator for Books 2-9, MacLeod Andrews, is fabulous. I’m truly amazed at how he nails the characters’ personae. I want to listen to everything he’s ever narrated now.
@Susan, I am so sorry. I can’t begin to imagine the place you are in right now. May I recommend a truly wonderful book that defies any category as it has so many elements: magic; Regency; paranormal; romance. It is “This Crumbling Pageant” by Patricia Burroughs. I loved it and gave it a four-star review which is something I never ever do.
Thank you, Gloriamarie. I checked Amazon and saw that I bought this back in March (Mt. KilimanTBR delivers!) so I’ll give it a try.
@Kate-Sharon Kay Penman is my queen for medieval historicals. Elizabeth Chadwick is really good, too.
@Mara-Lordy, the Psy-Changeling series. I’m officially a junkie for that series. #7 is sort of slow, but I still love them.
The past year has been a lot of paranormal, starting with Kristen Callihan’s Darkest London series and Bec McMaster’s London Steampunk series. Both are quite good and original, I think. Follow that with the Black Dagger Brotherhood, and Fallen Angels series by J.R. Ward (The Shadows made me ugly-cry several times), and so many other series-Dark Hunters, Lords of the Underworld, and the Fever series by Karen Marie Moning.
I just finished HorrorStor last night, and I’m keeping my distance from Ikea for awhile. I just started Tangle of Need Psy-Changeling #11 this morning on my commute. I have #12 and #13 on hold right now.
@Susan, you are quite welcome. The second volume in the series is due December, 2015. I can hardly wait. This Crumbling Pageant is a wonderful story beautifully written and I am so eager for Vol2, I can’t tell you. Of course, as soon as I’ve read it, I’ll want vol 3 immediately.