A Few Favorite Books from 2012

I had a great year in reading. I became a writer because I am an avid reader. My BFF, Michelle Sandlin, recently sent me a slew of old pictures where I either had a romance novel in front of my face or strategically placed in the picture which means I only put the book down for a few minutes. There was an episode of Seinfeld where Jerry is negotiating with Elaine and Puddy to get back together so he’ll still get a good deal on his car. Elaine has to agree to attend one of Puddy’s softball games and NOT read a book. I realized that was me! I’ve read a book walking the dog, getting ready for a party, cooking dinner, watching TV with the family.  Or at least I used to. Writing takes so much alone time along with reading and editing what you wrote, I just didn’t feel like I had time for pleasure reading. But then I realized I wasn’t fully being me or tapping into the thing I needed most: the pleasure of getting lost in a story.

So I decided to make reading a goal. I started out with the intention of reading 50 books in 2012. Fifty, interesting? And yes, I read that and I liked it. I kept thinking, he’s not really going to spank her with serious spanking intent, is he? Imagine my surprise. But I love to be surprised. And I am happy to say I found several new authors I absolutely fell in love with last year. Here are the standouts from so many good books. Oh, I ended up reading 64 books. I went on reading vacations. I began to let my husband know that I would be reading all day. I balanced my reading vacation days with doing that other stuff, like walking the dog, working– which is writing for me, doing semi-occasional laundry, making regular dinners, and being present while with others. I’m making my reading goal this year 52 books. Only fiction novels count. And it must be for pleasure which has led me into so many great new authors. I also read friends’ work for input, marketing books, and research stuff, but I didn’t count that because my writing goal was more about nurturing my desire for creativity and story in a medium I loved unconditionaly before I labeled it as work.

So here are some amazing authors I’d never read before that I discovered last year. Not all were published in 2012.

One of the books that blew me away last year was Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase. Lord of Scoundrels came out in 1995 and has become a classic. I had heard of Loretta Chase and how good her books were but for some reason, I had never read her. I must have seen someone’s all time favorite historicals and found Lord of Scoundrels. Loved the characters. The hero really had a huge arch. Historical romance fans should not miss this.

I don’t usually read romantic suspense because it’s a bit stressful. I’m trying to avoid anxiety causing emotions at all cost, but I loved Jill Sorenson‘s novel Tempted by her Target and Stranded with her Ex. The edginess and sexual tension with Tempted blew me away. I loved Tempted so much I had to read Stranded with her Ex though I wasn’t sure about a divorced couple reuniting. Well, Jill really brought it with a heart breaking yet hugely uplifting novel, great setting and a happy ever after that I was rooting for. Tears were shed.

The big surprise of the year was my addiction to New Adult novels. I haven’t been in college in quite a while, but I was just awed by Tammara Webber ‘s EASY. Great girl power story and a beta hero I fell for.

And last but not least, I really enjoyed The Price of Innocence  by Susan Sizemore. It’s a historical romance set in Victorian England and features an American heroine paired with an Earl with a pirate past. The story starts with a flashback and is told in the present and in the past. That would usually lose me from the start but Susan does it so well. Gripping story with interesting secondary characters.

Hope you get a chance to read some of these. I’m looking forward to another great reading year and many more new discoveries. And a special thanks to all the readers who have been enjoying my books and stopping by my blog. It means the world to me to know readers are getting sucked into my stories like I have so many other great authors.

Happy Reading! For those who are interested, I’ll be posting about my writing schedule for 2013 soon. Look for The Pirate and the Puritan in late February. Maybe sooner, but I’m doing more editing than I expected. I’m amping up the pace and the sexy stuff!

Here is a Maroon Song 5 that inspired me to pick up my guitar and strum along.