What are you reading for the challenge?

[Katie]

Talk about what you're reading for the challenge!

[Mireille Duval]

I'm currently reading the first two Mediator books by Meg Cabot, would you put that in Paranormal > Ghosts or Young Adult? (Or both since I'm not a speed-reading wizard like you? Kidding.)

[Katie]

Haha, I was thinking about, though. Some books DO qualify for two! (OR MORE.)

I'd probably go ahead and stick it in paranormal romance. Not that this list isn't long enough already, but they could've added more YA categories. Because there's certainly a variety of those! (And I'll probably use YAs for some of these.)

[Mireille Duval]

Allegiant counts for tattooed, right?

[Jess]

I don't think it qualifies as contemporary though. Since it's a dystopia.

(Also, you really just don't want to read that book.)

[steph]

I'm reading the Sum of All Kisses by Quinn for Historical since it has been sitting on my to read pile for months now and I am thinking of reading His Very Own Girl for WW2 (hey can any of you all lend it to me for my Kindle? please) and maybe the first Psy-Changeling for Paranormal >Other>Werewolves. Is that what you all would put it under, I looked at the synopsis and that is what I got. Or maybe shape shifters? I DON'T KNOW WHICH CATEGORY IT FALLS UNDER.

[Jess]

I would go with shape shifters since there aren't any actual werewolves.

[Jess]

Oh! Katie, judgment call. Can I use one of the Julia Spencer-Flemings for a cop romance???

[Katie]

(Also, you really just don't want to read that book.)

Hahahahaha. But yeah, I concur with Jess on both that it's not contemporary and you shouldn't read it in general. :P

Steph, huh, I must have lent it to someone already. I don't have the option.

Also, if I were making this list, I would TOTALLY break down the shapeshifters a lot. Wolves! Bears! Tigers! (But, yes, shapeshifters for Psy-Changeling.)

Oh! Katie, judgment call. Can I use one of the Julia Spencer-Flemings for a cop romance???

I think that's fine! The romantic element is really strong.

[Mireille Duval]

Haha yeah I focused too much on the tattoo thing. Anyway I want to first read the stuff I already bought that fits, and then buy new things.

[Katie]

Steph, Saving Grace for medieval and . . . SOME GARLAND FOR MEN IN KILTS, BUT WHICH ONE?

(That . . . probably didn't need to be in caps.)

[steph]

Katie, The Secret. When I was looking them over the other day that was the one that jumped out at me. I really liked that. I actually might read that one too for this category. Does it count as a first read if its been 5+years since I last read it?

[steph]

Sorry I cant link you to it. On my phone atm but I'm excited for to try Saving Grace. Be forewarned its alpha!male hero but I still adore it. This is what happens when you read it at 16yrs old. lol

[Katie]

Yay, thanks! Someone needs to tell me what I think of alpha heroes because I can't figure it out, but it's not a dealbreaker for me, at any rate.

So elsewhere we said you were allowed three re-reads, but maybe we can work an exception for those kinds of cases because (at least for me) it basically IS a new read after that long.

[Katie]

Debating counting The Blonde as my spy romance. I'm not done yet, but the romance is Marilyn Monroe/JFK, which, uh, probably doesn't have a happy ending.

[Mireille Duval]

HI. Here are the things I'm planning to read. They're all stuff that's wasting around in my kindle or kobo accounts. I have a problem.

I'll admit I tried to make certain books fit the categories because I want to read them and clear them off my shelves, but if some of you read them and know they don't fit, please tell me. Otherwise I'll WASTE MY TIME with unrelated books, haha.

Contemporary > Straight Contemporary : Recklessly Royal (or a thousand others)
Contemporary > Cowboy : Ride of Her Life by Paige Tyler (lol)
Contemporary > Cop : Getting Rid of Bradley by Jennifer Crusie
Contemporary > Sports : Rush Me
Contemporary > Tattooed : Satisfaction by Sarah Mayberry has a tatooed guy on the cover???
Contemporary > Other (Food) : Lessons Learned

Historical > Regency: The Governess Affair
Historical > Roman: Lavinia
Historical > Middle Ages : Lord of Danger by Anne Stuart or His Forbidden Touch by Shelly Thacker
Historical > WWII: The Bronze Horseman
Historical > Pioneer / Cowboy / 1800's American West : Blue Moon Promise (it's set in Texas though, which isn't the West?)

Paranormal > Shapeshifters : The Gathering or Stolen by Kelley Armstrong
Paranormal > Vampires : Team Human
Paranormal > Demons : Underworld by Meg Cabot (??? Maybe Ancient Gods?)
Paranormal > Other (Superhero) : Aphrodite's Passion by Julie Kenner (UNLESS YOU GUYS LET ME COUNT SMALLVILLE FANFICTION, just kidding)

Romantic Suspence > Contemporary : Against the Wind by Anne Stuart
Romantic Suspence > Other (Historical) : Prince of Swords by Anne Stuart

Young Adult : Going Vintage

New Adult > Stir Me Up by Sabrina Elkins

Other > Christmas : Kissing Santa Claus (part of Christmas in Lucky Harbor)
Other > Science Fiction: Oryx and Crake
Other > Time Travel : Love Beyond Time



I have a Steampunk Novel but it's not romantic suspense... What to do!
Steampunk > Kiss of Steel by Bec McMaster

[Katie]

Otherwise I'll WASTE MY TIME with unrelated books, haha.

READING, EW. ;)

Haha, I'm commenting out of order, but I was planning to read Kiss of Steel for my steampunk, so GO FOR IT. (I'd put steampunk with the paranormal, if it were my list.)

Oh! I might copy you on Getting Rid of Bradley for cop! I was thinking of Mr. Perfect for that, but, uh, that's really romantic suspense, LOL.

The hero of Satisfaction owns a tattoo parlor, so I think that works for tattooed!

And ohhhhh. I didn't think of The Bronze Horseman being WWII, but I might have to finally read that! Might copy you on Lavinia, too.

Texas works for American West--America wasn't as big then, so it was west! (It looks like it could also count for your Inspirational > Regular Christian, if you want to count it there instead.)

I'd say Underworld is probably more Ancient Gods.

I don't have my list with me, but I'll post it later!

[Mireille Duval]

Most cop books do seem like they'd be romantic suspense. Which I mostly dislike, sigh. Could cop also include bodyguard, btw? Not that Bradley doesn't work for me, just wondering.

The Bonze Horseman seems soooooo looooong though, haha. Not sure about Lavinia being romance, but 17 dear souls tagged it as such, so why not.

Thanks for the geography lesson! I'll see if I find another inspirational or another cowboy, might have to switch things around. I do have a time travel cowboy book...

Many of the paranormal categories annoy me. Fae? At least it's going to be a chance to check out the angel genre, I was never super interested in it but it seems big-ish. & would "Dragon" imply a romance with a dragon? À la "taken by the T-Rex"? ;)

[Katie]

Hmmm, I think we could probably allow bodyguard. It seems to fit the same intent.

I know! This is why I haven't read it, haha. Yeah, Lavina seems like it has romantic elements, anyway.

Haha, well, I'm planning to read Dragon Bound for dragons. And The Iron King for fae.

Nalini Singh's other series is angels, so I'll probably do that.

[Jess]

I think there are cop romances that are suspense-lite. For instance, the third book in Jill Shalvis's Lucky Harbor book, the hero is a cop and the suspense part of the book is pretty minimal. I'd actually put bodyguard as more heavily suspense, because they usually involve stalkers and thus more suspense-like elements.

That series also has vampires, Katie. If that's a category. I can't remember. But I might use the new Bloodlines book for that because it totally counts.

[Katie]

And it's not like it's totally wild for romances in general to have suspense elements. You know, those kidnappings at the end of historicals and such.

It is! AND THAT DOES. I was thinking of Hearts at Stake for that category, but Bloodlines has the advantage of I KNOW I'm going to read it.

Oh wait, Angelfall was what I was going to use for angels. But Singh is probably more "true" romance.

[Mireille Duval]

Are all angels books about evil angels??? What about angels that are, you know, angelically good? (Dazzingly clever, divinely beautiful?)

[Jess]

Western AND Fae. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...

I AM GOING TO READ IT AND IT IS GOING TO BE TERRIBLE. (The sequel involves Hollywood, Katie!!!)

Hm, books where angels are good. Well, they're not all evil in Singh's books. The books are building to a war between archangels, but an archangel is the main hero of the series. I will have to think on that.

[Katie]

My favorite thing about this is how many of my friends have already read it. (Well, okay, two friends. MORE THAN I EXPECTED.)

See, now I'm just thinking a lot about Touched by an Angel.

You know, there are a TON of YA angel books. I liked Unearthly a lot. It's angels were mostly human, so to speak. Both good and bad.

[Katie]

Okay, books I'm planning to read that I haven't mentioned yet.

Military -> Full Measures
Sports centered -> The Game of Love
Tattooed ->Suddenly You
LGBTQ -> Out in the Field

Middle Ages -> Saving Grace
Victorian -> Tempting the Bride
Men in Kilts -> The Secret

Shape-shifters -> The Mane Event
Other (trolls) -> Stolen Songbird

Amish -> The Choice
Regular Christian -> To Win Her Heart
Other (YA) -> There You'll Find Me647131]

Contemporary romantic suspense -> Now You See Her

YA -> On the Fence

Christmas -> Christmas Bride (That's My Baby! Christmas Arch Treatment)
Science Fiction -> Academy 7
Fantasy -> Heart of the Dragon's Realm
Time Travel -> Mariana
Other (novella) -> Turning Up the Heat

[steph]

So can someone tell me what Historical Romance > Asian is? Like books that take place on the continent of Asia? Books in which one of the leads is Asian? (which is iffy because that incorporates a lot of ethnic groups) I'm really confused by this and I need clarification so I can pick a book.

HELP.

[Mireille Duval]

I understood it as books that take place in Asia, the continent, before, IDK, the last fifty years. So, samourais, or WWII, or anything. Apart from like, Memoirs of a Geisha, I don't have any suggestions though. I'm actually reading a YA trilogy set in historical Japan right now but the romance isn't a focus :(

[Jess]

I am going to read Jeannie Lin! I have one on my to-read shelf, Steph.

[Katie]

I'm not sure what to do! I already read a bunch of Jeannie Lin and ended up not really liking her full length books.

But yeah, I read it as historical romance set in Asia.

[steph]

Ok thanks guys. I'll look around and see what I can find (including that author you just mentioned). It's a shame Loretta Chase hasn't written any historicals set in Asia.

[Jess]

Which would also encompass some of Russia, if you could find a Russian historical.

[steph]

I found this for the ones set in Asia: http://dearauthor.com/book-reviews/re...

[Katie]

Ooh, thanks!

Huh, I haven't read the Sherry Thomas one that's listed yet. That almost feels like cheating since I think it's still really Victorian romance, but maybe . . .

[Mireille Duval]

Would any historical set in Scotland work for Men in Kilts..? I'm thinking about Scotsmen Prefer Blondes... This challenge's main draw for me is cleaning up the to-eread shelf, so I'm trying to fit a lot of things where maybe they don't fit, which is why I have a lot of questions like this! Do tell me if it doesn't work, because it sure seems to be just another regency romance, haha.

[Katie]

Looking at the reviews, it sounds like it'll fit fine! Sounds like it's set in Scotland.

[Mireille Duval]

All right! I wondered if it had to be full of jacobites or actual kilts. At worst I do have some later Outlander books on the shelves...