Happy reading new year, everyone! It’s time for our monthly thread of discussion and book purchase, where we share what we’re currently reading and then buy at least 2/3 of what other people are reading because you all have marvelous taste and temptation is tempting.
Woo!
Sarah: I’m reading The Immortals: Olympus Bound by Jordanna Max Brodsky, and I was not expecting to like it as much as I have been. It has a LOT of the things I dislike a lot – there’s human sacrifices involved, there’s some animals as well, there’s fighting and bloody messes and entrails — all the stuff I dislike to read about.
And yet I’m still reading.
I spent most of last Sunday in my bathrobe, beyond delighted to be reading this book. I did try to read it before bed this week, and wow, was that a mistake – nightmares most pernicious. The plot and the pieces of it are making my brain very happy, especially the heroine, who is Artemis, the Greek goddess, immortal and substantially weaker than her former existence as a goddess. She’s cold, ruthless, and ferocious, and even with all the things I dislike reading about, I’m still following her around.
I’m going to need the romance equivalent of six fluffy blankets and a foot warmer when I’m done, though. Yeesh.
RedHeadedGirl: I am working my way slowly through Bleak House ( A | BN | K | G | AB | Au | Scribd ) (trying to find a Dickens I actually LIKE reading) (NO ONE SAY GREAT EXPECTATIONS I HATE THAT BOOK WITH A LOT OF HATERADE).
I just finished The Truth About Leo by Katie MacAllister, which is Danish Princess needs English husband to leave Denmark, hilarity ensues and then there’s a bunch of frustrating characters.
And I’m about to start The Notorious RBG ( A | BN | K | G | AB | Au | Scribd ).
Carrie: I am alternating between The Last Man by Mary Shelley ( A | BN | K | G | AB | Au | Scribd ) and The Witches of Cambridge by Menna van Praag.
Elyse: I’m reading Passenger by Alexandra Bracken ( A | BN | K | G | AB | Au ), which everyone already knows because I’ve been pimping it relentlessly.
Amanda: Right now, I’m reading Dare to Run by Jen McLaughlin. I have a weakness for any contemporary romances set in Boston and any main character who’s a bartender. Don’t ask me why I love bartender characters because I have no idea.
I also just bought Risking It All by Tessa Bailey ( A | BN | K | G | AB ), which we featured this week as part of our Books on Sale. I loved Bailey’s Broke and Beautiful series and I’ve been meaning to go through her backlist. Seeing the books dropped to $1.99 is a perfect excuse to stock up.
What about you? What books are you enjoying right now? Anything you recommend?
By request, since we can’t link to every book you mention in the comments, here are bookstore links that help support the site with your purchases. If you use them, that’s most excellent, and if you’d prefer not to, no worries at all. We are always glad you’re here hanging out with us. Yay, reading!
Started the new year with an SFR series by Anna Hackett, which is a fun Romancing-the-Stone-in-Space set of stories.
Also, just finished Megan Crane’s darker post-apocalyptic Edge of Obssession. Lots of internal monologue, but so well-written with thorough world-building. Definitely reading the next book, though I don’t know when it’s coming out. Sad face. The story was hot!
Mostly, trying to get through some older titles on my Kindle, tapping into authors’ work I’ve bought over time but never gotten around to reading. Just finishing up Alice Clayton’s Wallbanger sometime today and planning to continue with next title.
My Amazon ebook account is out-of-control. Wish they had a better system of organizing the library on the cloud. Too many titles to carry around on the device, hard to see what’s online (only shows by date purchased, alpha author or alpha title, not by categories).
I just finished listening to Sweetest Scoundrel by Elizabeth Hoyt, narrated by Ashford McNab. They are a perfect pairing! I loved it so much that I was tempted to listen to again right away. I also just finished The Diabolical Miss Hyde by Viola Carr…interesting steampunk mystery with a bit of romance.
The book that I read this month that made the biggest impression was Silver on the Road by Laura Anne Gilman. A coming of age road trip set in an alternative Old West. Or, alternatively, a young woman goes to work for the devil and meets interesting people and creatures. And fights some of them. Really good. Not a romance.
Hero by Night by Sara Jane Stone, nice romance, heroine has PTSD after service related injury. Beta hero. Nice, some steam.
Secrets of the Red Box by Vickie Hall. A married woman with the perfect life and a box full of secrets that ruin that life. An interesting look at World War II America. Worth a read.
Re-reading the Duchess War by Courtney Milan and, sad to say, got so into it that I didn’t notice when the half-time break was over at my grandson’s basketball game. Bad grandma!
The Hidden Girl by Louise Millar. A couple buys an abandoned house in rural England and their lives begin to unravel. Interesting and some suspense.
Now off to check Amazon and Scribd for all the books the rest of you have mentioned.
Forgot to add that I enjoyed David Copperfield as an early adolescent and loved Great Expectations with a burning love. I read it five times as a teen and re-read it a couple years ago and found that it held up. OTOH, if Dickens is not for you, don’t push it. He is wordy and they are huge books. Read something you love.
marjorie – Try Rai’s “A Gentleman in the Street.” You will not be disappointed. And I’m adding my voice to yours so far as recommending Written in Red.
The funny thing is, I think Forever Your Earl could have been a great book if the author had just gone full Anne Bishop with it…
My local library has Honey Girl and I’ve also added it to my wish list. If I had been born 20 years sooner and in California, I am pretty sure I would be Gidget. My inner surfer girl thanks you, Heather S.
@ CelineB, Finding Christmas by Jeannie Moon was my favorite contemporary read over the holidays. The conflicts were real and Maggie broke my heart at the beginning of the story. In Historal World, I loved the Christmas in Duke Street and hope the ladies write many more! To Wed His Christmas Lady by Christi Caldwell was another favorite.
Just finished reading The Flame and the Flower by Kathleen Woodiwiss for the Old School Romance Book Club on Facebook. I loved how Woodiwiss depicted how love grew between Brandon and Heather despite their misunderstandings. However, after reading a few more violent scenes than I cared for, I needed something way different. I am currently reading Nuts by Alice Clayton and am thoroughly enjoying it. My husband and I are local food enthusiasts and buy a Community Supported Agriculture share, so I am feeling the love for farmer Leo and Maxwell Farms. Up next is Listen to the Moon by Rose Lerner.
Just finished Big Rock by Lauren Blakely…was better than I expected! A funny friends to lovers, engagement of convenience story! And yes, the cover is what made me buy it
I’m reading the Curse of Lord Stanstead by Mia Marlowe. Only in 1st quarter or so of the book, so I’m reserving judgement a bit still. It’s Regency X-Men, as SB Sarah said in her review. And I’m not extremely into superheroes, but I am into people with magical talents.
Over the Christmas holiday I read Act Like It (which was my Christmas present to myself) and really enjoyed it. Then, I read A Banquet of Consequences, which is the most recent Lynley mystery by Elizabeth George. It was a Christmas gift. I have the other books in hardcover and wanted to continue the set. I liked this installment better than the last — but the books get longer and longer and my attention span seems to get shorter as I get older.
This January, I am working on cleaning out my TBR shelf and my TBR folder on Kindle. I started with the Last Runaway by Tracy Chevalier. It was a little slow in parts, but it is set in Ohio in the 1850s and has Quakers, quilts and the Underground Railroad. Overall, I enjoyed it. Then, I read Size 12 is Not Fat, which I actually bought on sale because of SBTB rec, several years ago. I enjoyed the heroine’s sense of humor, but the book seemed a little dated (sometimes a problem with contemporary books). Next, I finally finished Blamed by Edie Harris. I bought this on sale and tried to start it several times, but the author flashes back and forward several times in the first few chapters and I kept getting confused. Fortunately, I had a long train ride, so I was able to sit still and get through the first 4 chapters. Then, I was hooked and enjoyed it. I took a break from my TBR book resolution to read Sebring (which I had pre-ordered). I was not sure that Kristen Ashley could redeem Nick, but she managed to redeem him to my satisfaction.
Now, I am reading It Started with a Scandal by Julie Anne Long (also in my TBR folder) and also A Death in the Small Hours by Charles Finch (which is a hard cover). I think that I will need to go back and re-read some of Pennyroyal Green books before I finish it Started with a Scandal, because I am a little confused about some of the characters. The Finch book is #6 in a series of mysteries set in England in the late 19th century. I usually read two books at once, an ebook while commuting and standing in line and a hardcopy book at home. Next up in hardcopy is either Named of the Dragon by Susanna Kearsley or Somewhere in France by Jennifer Robson. On Kindle, either the Boomerang Bride by Fiona Lowe or maybe I will start Louise Penny’s Inspector Gamache series. I think I have the first 2 books.
Happy reading!
So far this month, I’ve read Loretta Chase’s newest, Dukes Prefer Blondes, which I think may be her best one in years (I didn’t really like the first two Dressmaker books), Radiance by Grace Draven (which was lovely and such a sweet romance), Act Like It by Lucy Parker (which I keep thinking back to and liking more and more – thanks for the recommendation, Sarah!).
Now I’ve finally started Sarina Bowen’s Ivy Years series and devoured The Year We Fell Down, moving quickly on to The Year We Hid Away. I can see why all my online romance reading friends were so excited about these books when they were reading them last year.
I stand by my fondness for Dickens *ducks*. Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell had a very Dickensian vibe to it, imho, as did Salman Rushdie’s Midnight’s Children, which I read years ago and enjoyed. On the rec of a friend who also liked Midnight’s Children I just read NOS4A2 by Joe Hill, who happens to be Stephen King’s son. The writing is very good and the premise is cool, but I was a bit disappointed in the ending (and trigger warning: a pet is killed).
I loved The Night Circus! Wish I could find something similar. Strange & Norrell is often recommended but even though it’s a good book, it doesn’t have that same dreamy magical quality.
Currently reading and loving the first Pennyroyal Green book, The Perils of Pleasure, inspired by the recent chronic pain podcast (great episode, btw). Also recently read Diary of an Accidental Wallflower and am looking forward to the new one in that series.
I’m making my way through the Hathaways and am counting down the days til Forbidden releases
@Kate – (twins!) Have you read “Stardust” or “The Ocean at the End of the Lane” by Neil Gaiman? His writing overall is fairytale-ish, but these two have that dreamy quality of “The Night Circus”.
Oh! Also! “Uprooted” by Naomi Novik! I do not recommend the audiobook, but the book itself is great and totally what you’re looking for.
@Kate – I thought of another rec! “The Bell at Sealy Head” by Patricia A. McKillip. It leans into the fairy tale of it all more than the others, but it has that same dreamy quality.
I just read Kristan Higgins’ latest “Anything for You”. It took me a while to get around to it because I’d feared that I had outgrown KH, ESL with her recent venture into ” Women’s Fiction”, but I was plseantly surprised that “Anything for You” was emotionally engaging and conflict-filled as it was. It may be my favourite of hers since “Catch of the Day”.
I just finished Radiance by Grace Draven last night and it was as wonderful as the reviews have said. I loved the banter between the hero and heroine. I am in a bit of a manga binge right now so I’m making my way through the ten-volume Emma by Kaoru Mori (Victorian England with a maid and a gentleman who fall in love). I have also had a 5 star read already this year with Rose Lerner’s latest, Listen to the Moon (valet/maid romance). Currently, I’m reading All’s Fair in Love and Scandal by Caroline Linden (fun novella) and an eARC of Beverly Jenkins’s Forbidden. This is my first Jenkins romance and I am just enamored with her writing style.
Now I’m reading Uprooted by Naomi Novik, as I’ve seen it’s one of those favourites of the year by several bloggers. A fairy tale inspired by Polish folklore. And yesterday I ended Astrid Amara‘s Song of the Navigator MM Sci Fi that I just loved.
Well, I finished A Thousand Pieces of You and want to read Ten Thousand Skies Above You, but I’m trying to cut down the already fearsome TBR before I allow myself to go HAM on my Amazon birthday money. And by that time, I might have persuaded the library to buy it, because weirdly, they listen to me there and often buy what I ask for.
I fired up Act Like It, which I bought a couple months back after it was glowingly reviewed on this site. I was saving it for a rainy day, and it rained last night, so why not? I also started Nimona by Noelle Stevenson, which my 9 yo daughter is also interested in, so we’re going to do this one together, I think. It pretty much had both of us at, “Look, I’m a shark!”
Nimona is the beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeest!!!!!!! FWIW my 11-year-old also loves Lumberjanes (available in comic book form and in two or three compilations), though my teenager and I are less enamored of it than we are of Nimona.
I have been reading all of Kristan Higgins books-I just bought the last one to read on Kindle-I really love her books.
We are reading The Secret Garden for my Feb book club-I have an edition with a beautiful cover, but I can’t find it-so I will have to search my house for it.
Crystal, that is so awesome your library buys your recommendations!!
Currently reading:
The Brothers Sinister series by Courtney Milan. On “The Heiress Effect”–Love it so far! Really liked the prequel novella “The Governess Affair” (Love an unconventional hero–AKA non-rich, non-titled), and love the heroine of “The Duchess War” (wish the hero had been fleshed out a bit more, but still, a delicious story.)
Recently finished “When a Scot Ties the Knot” by Tessa Dare. I’d give it a B-. A bit “meh” but enjoyable.
Also recently finished “Forever Your Earl” by Eva Leigh. Technically a DNF. Hated it. The dialog was endless. I kept thinking about the hero and heroine, “You’re still talking?!!? About _______?!!? Why!??!” I wanted to shove a rag soaked in something sour into both their mouths. Seriously. They could not. shut. up. Also, it seemed there was 97% “telling” and 3% “showing.” Aaaarrrrrgggghhhh.
Which brings me to the happy part: I’m so glad I’m not the only one who DESPISES Dickens with a wicked measure of hater-atude. Seriously hate his characters, his looooooooooooooooong pointless descriptions of said hated characters, and his long pointless descriptions of the crap they say and do. Thank goodness for Austen and Fitzgerald and Gaskell and others to rescue me.
@Kate, yes I loved Stardust! Read it in the graphic novel format first. I haven’t yet read Ocean at the End of the Lane, and will def check out The Bell at Sealy Head–Patricia A McKilip is totally new to me. Thanks for the recs! Have you read Jonathan Carroll?
@Heather S, if you want to read more about the early days of surfing in Hawaii, I highly recommend “Barbarian Days:A Surfing Life” by William Finnegan. It starts off with him as a young teen, as the only white kid surfing with a bunch of natives on Oahu, and one of the most amazing things about it, though it goes unsaid, is the extreme free-range parenting of those days. Can you imagine an 8th grader today, just heading off alone into the ocean with his board at dawn, to get some rides in before school?
And at that point he already had a few years of surfing under his belt.
I am still having problems reading longer books, and have been disappointed by authors that used to be autobuys. I just borrowed “The Rogue Not Taken” from the library, because I hated the previous MacLean book. Once burnt, twice shy. “When a Scot Ties the Knot”, also ‘meh’ for me. The best historicals I read this month were HQNs. I really liked “The Gentleman Rogue” by Margaret MacPhee. The heroine comes from an upper class family that has fallen into poverty, and when she meets the hero, he thinks she is working class, and she thinks he is too, and they form a real connection. But when she scrabbles her way back up to being a lady’s companion(a big step up from serving food in a tavern) they meet again in society, and she discovers he’s actually very rich and was just slumming it. The spark and affinity between them is well done and believable. Another HQN I enjoyed, “In Debt To the Earl” by Elizabeth Rolls, also had a heroine who was in dire straits, due to her father’s gambling. Both of these books had some insightful treatment of class differences during the Regency, from the totally downtrodden, the working class, the wealthy merchant class, to the nobility.
I also read JAK’s “Secret Sisters”, it’s her typical formula, but one I never get tired of. Her romantic suspense goes down easy, without any extremely graphic violence, and this one had a secondary romance too. There was one particular scene that tickled me so much, because it describes the hero cooking a meal for himself, in such detail that for a minute I thought I was reading one of Robert Parker’s Spencer books.
Sympathy for the Dickens haters. He was probably ruined for life for me, by being forced to read “Great Expectations” in high school. About 10 years ago I told myself I should try him again, got a copy of “Bleak House” and still haven’t read it.
@Anne, thanks for “The Last Runaway” rec. The reviews seem to be mixed, but with quilts, the Underground Railroad and Quakers, 3 of my favorite things, I’m definitely going to try it! I see it’s set in Ohio, an epicenter of the UR. I even visited The Underground Railroad Museum in Ashtabula once, and they had a quilt exhibit when I was there.
@RHG: How about Dickens’ “Our Mutual Friend”? I loved it way back in the day.
“Gentleman Prefer Blonds” (stupid title) was wonderful. I loved how Lady Clara “dresses to the nines” when she visits the girls at The Milliner’s Society. It reminded me of the Duchess Catherine and how so many people expect sartorial perfection.
Chase has such a nice flow to her writing…no one compares. Now I’m listening to the audio, Kate Reading is sublime.
Didn’t like “The Rogue not Taken”. Couldn’t stand the heroine. Daft.
I read all of Grace Burrowes’ “Lonely Lords” last month. She is Stephanie Laurens all over again! Didn’t care for them, a few were better than others, but “David” was truly awful. I will say I have read and enjoyed her latest series with Nick’s sisters. GB’s writing is much better than in the beginning, but still too modern for a historical which drives me crazy!
@Kate- I have not heard of Jonathan Carroll! I looked up his work and it seems “The Land of Laughs” was a cult classic, in Sweden? I’ve added it to my TBR, it’s totally up my alley!
I read ‘What a Rogue Desires’ by Caroline Linden, and started ‘A Rake’s Guide to Seduction’ on the train this morning. They’re fabulous. Usually, I can’t abide historical fiction because all the details are wrong, wrong, wrongity, wrong and I spend more time being pedantic about that than enjoying the story. BUT! Even though these are also preposterous, they’re so sweetly gorgeously preposterous that I forgive them. So there.
I also recently read Jay Crownover’s ‘Built’ and thought it was excellent – I am a sucker for large, tattoed men with pasts. I bought her whole ‘Marked Men’ series (as a set) expecting to love them, too, but had a massive ‘meh’, and didn’t finish any of them except ‘Rome’ (large, troubled ex-soldier, which I am also a sucker for). The rest (and ‘Rome’ too, really) were a bit juvenile and heavy on the melodrama, and also heavy on very long descriptions of tattooes and body modification/piercings (including willies which are more metal than willy). Not my thang. In fact, even ‘Rome’ drove me a bit batty because (massive spoilers!) they get pregnant after knowingly having unprotected sex a month or so into their relationship. As in, they have unprotected sex, go ‘oh noes! we had unprotected sex’ and then just sit around and wait to see whether she gets pregnant. Have these people never heard of the morning after pill? What is wrong with them? Why are they so stupid?
I just finished Sleeping with her Enemy by Jenny Holiday. It’s an Entangled category romance – – like an HP Extra I would say. @Amanda might be interested to know that the heroine uses Tinder for dating (though not to meet the hero).
I am planning to read “Falling Stars” by Loretta Chase soon – it’s one of her short stories from a Christmas anthology of the early 90s and was just made digitally available in the last couple of months.
@ Jennifer – I agree. Listen to the Moon is a five-star read. I am down to the last two chapters and reading very, very slowly because I’m not ready to let John and Sukey go.