My Book Resolutions

I'm making some book goals for 2013 that I am hoping to meet this coming year.

First, I would like to put more content on this blog. I've had it up and running for several weeks and quickly discovered how fun and challenging it is to maintain it. I hope to see it grow and attract more readers.

I read from several genres already and I'm hoping to keep reading from multiple genres and even more outside of my normal reads.

I want to read more indie books. Last year I discovered Kristen Ashley's books and lucked out.
The Gamble is one of my favorite romance.

I want to continue and finish up a few series such the In Death series by Nora Roberts and the Black Dagger Brotherhood series by J.R. Ward.

I want to try more new authors, especially male authors.

Most importantly, I want to enjoy what I read. Since all the books I read, review and talk about here are acquired by me that should be easy to accomplish :) Even with that said I won't pressure myself to read what everyone is buzzing about unless I want to read it and think I'll like it.

What are your book goals for 2013?

Notable Books in 2012

Now that 2012 is nearing the end and we are gearing up for a new year, I wanted to take a look back at some of the books that stood out in 2012, not necessarily because they were good or bad but that these books had people reading and talking about. This list is subjective and I know I can't possibly recall ALL the books that have been popular but it does say something that just writing this post the books still come to mind. I haven't read them all, and I can't say I would enjoy them all but maybe you will? Or, perhaps you have read them all?

Adult:

The Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy by E.L. James



The Crossfire series by Sylvia Day



 Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn



The A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R.R. Martin



The Walking Dead series by Robert Kirkman and Charlie Adlard



On the Island by Tracey Garvis Graves



On Dublin Street by Samantha Young



Iced by Karen Marie Moning

Young Adult:

The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins



The Fault in Our Stars by John Green



The Age of Miracles by Karen Thompson Walker

New Adult:

Slammed and Point of Retreat by Colleen Hoover



Beautiful Disaster by  Jamie McGuire



Easy by Tammara Webber



Love Unscripted and Love Unrehearsed by Tina Reber




So, it looks like this was a year of trilogies. It could be the books are so popular because just as one book in a trilogy is released, a few months later another installment comes along and etc.

Also, readers and publishers seem to be taking note of the official/unofficial New Adult genre. Somewhat related to this I have seen many indies (largely New Adult titles) being being re-published traditionally.

Many popular series are being turned into TV episodes or is it the other way around? I think this trend is going to stick around into the new year.

I wonder what next year will have in store?

Review: Kiss an Angel by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

When I need a funny and romantic read, I know I can always turn to Susan Elizabeth Phillips's books. She can make me really care for the characters and enjoy seeing them fall in love. One of my favorite books by her is Kiss an Angel. The heroine, Daisy is so friendly, though a bit too soft but it's a nice contrast to the hero, Alex, who is very much jaded and bitter. Ah, you can definitely see the potential for entertaining dialogue here! I also found the story entertaining in other ways. There's a circus on hand, some adorable animals and a couple you'll want to root on. In this setting I met a lot of unusual characters and learned a thing or two about the circus business. It's a hard life and one Alex is determined to introduce to Daisy. Thankfully, she continually surprises him and herself. It is a very heart-warming story.

Kiss an Angel by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

Genre: Contemporary Romance

How did pretty, flighty Daisy Devreaux find herself in this fix? She can either go to jail or marry the mystery man her father has chosen for her. Alex Markov, however, has no intention of playing the loving bridegroom to a spoiled little featherhead with champagne tastes. As humorless as he is deadly handsome, he drags the irrepressible Daisy away from her uptown life and sets out to tame her.

Except it won't be as easy as he thinks. This man without a soul has met a woman who's nothing but heart. Will vows spoken in haste shatter . . . or offer the promise of love everlasting?

20 Free Romances

Check out these romances!


When We Touch (A Whiskey Creek Novella) by Brenda Novak
Jenna's Cowboy: A Novel (The Callahans of Texas) by Sharon Gillenwater
Heartfire (Search for Love) by Karen Rose Smith
Love in Bloom by Karen Rose Smith
Shades of Honor (Grayson Brothers) by Wendy Lindstrom


Cowboy Dad by Cathy Mcdavid 
Baby Bonanza (Silhouette Desire) by Maureen Child
Irresistible Forces (Kimani Romance) by Brenda Jackson
The Italian's Inexperienced Mistress by Lynne Graham
A Very Special Delivery by Linda Goodnight


Hired by the Cowboy by Donna Alward
The Inconvenient Duchess by Christine Merrill
In the Garden of Temptation by Cynthia Wicklum
In Too Deep (Hidden Cove Series) by Kathryn Shay
Double Dare by Rhona Nelson


A Dark Kiss of Rapture (Renegade Angels) by Sylvia Day
Kiss Me Deadly (Silhouette Nocturne) by Michele Hauf
The Billionaire Wins the Game by Melody Anne
Exotic Indulgence (Bandicoot Cove) by Vivian Arend
A Gentleman of Her Dreams (A Ladies of Distinction Novella) by Jen Turano

 

Best Books to read in the Winter

When the snow is falling, when it's cold, all I want to do is stay indoors, keep cozy and read a good book. I've read and enjoyed all these books. I would enjoy them all year round, but because they are set during the Winter season it's that much better. Are there good winter reads that you recommend?

          The First Love Cookie Club by Lori Wilde

Series: Twilight, Texas #3
Genre: Contemporary Romance

On Christmas Eve, if you sleep with kismet cookies under your pillow and dream of your one true love, he will be your destiny."

The townsfolk of Twilight, Texas, believe the legend, but not Sarah Collier--not since she was a pudgy teenager, running down the church aisle on Christmas Day in a jingle bell sweater and reindeer antlers, trying to stop Travis Walker from marrying someone else. She may be grown-up, slimmed-down, bestselling children's book author "Sadie Cool"now, but Sarah will never forget that day. And she'll never fall foolishly in love again!

But when a letter from a sick fan brings Sarah back to Twilight, she's shocked to discover that Travis is the little girl's father--unattached and hotter than ever. His smile still makes her melt, but Sarah knows that ship has sailed. Travis, however, might have different ideas.

This story truly brought home the message of the miracles of the season. I was rooting for Sarah and Travis from the sweet. I couldn't resist the sweet girl who needs her own personal miracle. Very sweet and it left me with a good feeling.

Snowfall at Willow Lake by Susan Wiggs

Genre: Contemporary Romance
Series: Lakeshore Chronicles #4

Can a single moment change your entire life?

International lawyer Sophie Bellamy has dedicated her life to helping people in war-torn countries. But when she survives a hostage situation, she remembers what matters most—the children she loves back home. Haunted by regrets, she returns to the idyllic Catskills village of Avalon on the shores of Willow Lake, determined to repair the bonds with her family.

There Sophie discovers the surprising rewards of small-town life—including an unexpected passion for Noah Shepherd, the local veterinarian. Noah has a healing touch for anything with four legs, but he's never had any luck with women—until Sophie.

Snowfall at Willow Lake speaks from the heart about all the loves that fill a woman's life, and all the ways that love is tested and made to grow. It's the story of what comes after a woman survives an unspeakable horror and finds her way home, to healing and redemption and a new chance at happiness.

I love this series, and this book is one of my favorite of it. It can be read standalone. Features a handsome and vet, who I believe is younger then the heroine. Sophie has a dark past and definitely needs a change of pace, which small-town living brings. I could tell right away that Noah was just what she needed.

Blackberry Winter by Sarah Jio

          Genre: Fiction
   

In 2011, Sarah Jio burst onto the fiction scene with two sensational novels--The Violets of March and The Bungalow. With Blackberry Winter--taking its title from a late-season, cold-weather phenomenon--Jio continues her rich exploration of the ways personal connections can transcend the boundaries of time.

Seattle, 1933. Single mother Vera Ray kisses her three-year-old son, Daniel, goodnight and departs to work the night-shift at a local hotel. She emerges to discover that a May-Day snow has blanketed the city, and that her son has vanished. Outside, she finds his beloved teddy bear lying face-down on an icy street, the snow covering up any trace of his tracks, or the perpetrator's.

Seattle, 2010. Seattle Herald reporter Claire Aldridge, assigned to cover the May 1 "blackberry winter" storm and its twin, learns of the unsolved abduction and vows to unearth the truth. In the process, she finds that she and Vera may be linked in unexpected ways...

There are two storylines, one of Vera from the 1930s and of Claire from the present. The mystery was very intriguing. I felt so much for Vera and Claire. It's interesting the similarities between their lives. Claire finds there is so much more to Vera's story and discover it's closer to her life than she imagined.

Devil in Winter by Lisa Kleypas

Genre: Historical Romance
Series: Wallflower #3

A devil's bargain

Easily the shyest Wallflower, Evangeline Jenner stands to become the wealthiest, once her inheritance comes due. Because she must first escape the clutches of her unscrupulous relatives, Evie has approached the rake Viscount St. Vincent with a most outrageous proposition: marriage!

Sebastian's reputation is so dangerous that thirty seconds alone with him will ruin any maiden's good name. Still, this bewitching chit appeared, unchaperoned, on his doorstep to offer her hand. Certainly an aristocrat with a fine eye for beauty could do far worse.

 But Evie's proposal comes with a condition: no lovemaking after their wedding night. She will never become just another of the dashing libertine's callously discarded broken hearts -- which means Sebastian will simply have to work harder at his seductions...or perhaps surrender his own heart for the very first time in the name of true love. 

One of my favorite of the Wallflower series! You have to meet this family. They're each a bit eccentric but with a lot of love to give. The unlikely hero, previously a villain in another book definitely needs some of that love. Two opposites attract in a wonderful way.