Ohhhh, You’re on My List All Right… By Ripley Proserpina

This is going to be a list post… but when writing the title of the post, I started thinking about “all right” vs. “alright.” I do this. I come up with a theme, and then get sidetracked by grammar. It happened last when when I needed to make the 80s band, Wham!, show possession. So as this week’s aside, it’s “all right,” not “alright.” But I wish “alright” was a thing. I have no problem with the word, but I also love “irregardless,” so I may not be the best grammar judge.

IRREGARDLESS….

2017 was the year of books for me—both in terms of publishing and reading. But I read more books than I published, and I love talking about books I’ve read, so in no particular order except up and down, here are some of my favorite books I read in 2017, released in 2017.

Playing for Keeps by Autumn Reed.

Autumn Reed is a new adult, contemporary author, and this reverse harem romance, solidified her place in my happy-to-read pile. This is the second book in her series. The first book, Raising the Stakes, started with me bemoaning the tired state of my closet as I compared its contents to her main character’s, and ended with me gasping and clutching my pearls, “NO! They DIDN’T!”

Emma, the heroine, meets three guys in a club in Vegas. They approached her with this line, “You look really intelligent.” (Because that’s what guys look for in a club, girls they can talk to…) Still, Emma gives them a chance. Turns out, they’re all buddies, and in the grand tradition of Vegas— (I won’t spoil it).

The first book could have stood alone. It wrapped up, and I was left with a happy glow for days. The second book, however, that’s where Autumn shines. I love books that take a happy ending, and go a step farther. What happens after the curtain closes? Real life. And real life in a reverse harem romance is seldom neat and tidy. For all that, though, Autumn knows how to build a story up, taking you along for a ride that speeds by. You reach the destination without realizing how much time has passed.

Lost Hope, Tradition Be Damned by Rebecca Royce

Rebecca Royce is a master of dystopian romance. I read the first book in the Lost Hope series, Tradition Be Damned, in hours. Not because it wasn’t long, but because I inhaled it. Her story starts after the world has ended. For the people in this universe, there is no last minute reprieve from the demons that have flooded from the underworld and taken over. Nope. It’s all over. Humans have lost, and now it’s just a matter of time until they’re all gone.

Or is it?

I love that Rebecca Royce took the end of the world past the end. This story is a romance, and I’ve rarely met a female lead I’ve liked as much as I like Anne. She has magic in her blood, and when she truly realizes her power, it changes everything. My favorite part about this character is she’s strong, but filled with self-doubt. She’s been raised to believe there’s no hope for the world, so when she finds her magic, and falls in love (did I mention this is another reverse harem?) Anne has to redefine everything.

Treasures of the Abyss by Tiffany Roberts

I don’t usually judge a book by its cover, but when I saw this one, I had to read it. I mean, the dude was coming out of the ocean, and he had tentacles.

Maybe you thinking this is some weird, creature-feature? Nope. It’s a completely unique, beautifully written, see-beneath-the-surface (see what I did there? The surface? Of the ocean AND the skin? B minus in Interpretation of Literature, my butt) romance.

I adored the world in which this book was set. It came alive. From the rocky shores to the underwater city, it lived and breathed. I read this one in hours, and I may have cried a little. But probably not, because my heart is stone. Stone, I tell you!

I’m so glad I read this book, I feel like a better person for having done so.

Stolen by the Alien by Amanda Milo

Amanda’s since changed the cover of her book, but here’s another one that sucked me in with the way it stood out from the alien romance crowd. Initially, her cover was a lovely pen and ink portrait that resembled a comic book panel. It’s beautiful now as well, but it was this comic-look that caught my eye.

Amanda writes science fiction romance, and her worlds are intricate and complicated. She weaves together gladiators, royalty, space pirates, slavery, and politics in this book, but at the same time, keeps the budding romance at the forefront. This book knocked my socks off—I’d never read anything like it, and with each subsequent book in this series (Amanda’s written three so far) I find myself bowing at the alter of Amanda’s originality.

Denial by RM Walker

There are few authors who are as well-versed in history, magic, and mystery as RM Walker. She is a modern-day Daphne Dumaurier. Her characters are flawed, beautiful, and struggling. Lily, the heroine from RM’s first book, continues her story in Denial.

What I loved about this book is how Lily reacts to learning she has magic. RM’s world is full of English countryside fairies and folktales. I love to put myself in the character’s shoes, and if I was Lily? I’d be all over the magic. I’d be cursing people, and hexing them until my little black heart swelled, but not Lily. She wants no part of it.

And that’s where RM gets you. Her characters never do what you expect, and you end up being so glad they didn’t. Her third book is due to release soon, and I can barely stand the anticipation.

Magpies and Moonshine by Heather R. Blair

Freaking Minnesota. I’ve been lucky to get to talk to each one of these authors, and ask them questions about their books, but this last one in Heather’s Toil and Trouble series was everything I didn’t know I wanted in a book.

Like—more Minnesota.

I have crazy respect for people who live in frozen fjords, so I was doubly (get it? Double double, Toil and Troub…nevermind) excited about a book that used the setting, its history, native people, immigrant people, and the mythology associated with both, to build a world.

Each sister in Heather’s series has gotten a book, and I’ll admit I was really really excited for Carly’s.

Mostly because of Styx.

Styx.

Le Sigh.

I don’t want to give anything about Styx away, but he’s a god, and if Heather wrote an entire series that was Styx’s backstory, I’d preorder it tomorrow. (Hint hint, Heather). Magpies in Moonshine is heavy on the adventure, and the romance. A perfect combination if you ask me.

So there it is. My list of 2017. Each of these books sort of defined the beginning, middle, and end of the year, which I think, is the best way to judge a year.

Or at least, it’s a lot less depressing.

Happy 2018, everyone.

Ripley

Filed under: Ripley Proserpina, romance, romance novels, Writer's Life, writing life