Top Ten Books On My Historical Romance 101 Syllabus

This Week's Topic:

Top Ten Books On My Historical Romance 101 Syllabus

I only started reading historical romance 3 years but its now my favorite genre to read and its almost becoming the only thing I read. I never tire of it and I've made my way through the classics musts and newer releases so I do consider myself an expert! Let us begin:

01.  Lisa Kleypas

We will begin the semester by reading The Empress of Historical Romance, to get a feel of the amazingness to come. There are plenty of amazing series to choose from, Wallflowers, Hathaways, Gamblers, Bow Street Runners, so much rich material!

02. Loretta Chase

Next we need to establish something early on: heroines. Heroines with agency who do things and who are so amazing they outshine the hero. Also, looking for a historical romance set outside a London ballroom? Loretta Chase is the perfect example.

03. Julie Anne Long

Want a long complex series with two rival families to lose yourself in and want to get invested in EVERY SINGLE COUPLE? The Pennyroyal Green series is your best friend.

04. Sherry Thomas

Lets get back to studying heroines shall we? Sherry Thomas also pushes boundaries with her heroines and the amazing research that goes into her books. 

05. Jennifer Ashley

Switching it up by going for Scottish Hunks, Jennifer Ashley's MacKenzies and McBrides series brings the hot, sexy and the highlands!

06. The Leopard Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt

Moving away from aristocrats and titled hero, how about a lady of a ton who falls for her steward? Yes please. 

07. Nearly a Lady by Alissa Johnson

Are you looking for a  tomboy heroine in an era where such a thing was taboo? This is your book.

08. A Lady Awakened by Cecilia Grant

Are you looking for bad sex? Or a book that shows romance needs more than automatic and guaranteed excellent sex to bring a couple together? This is your book.

09. Yours Until Dawn by Teresa Medeiros

Read it and find out why *wink*.

10. Confessions from an Arranged Marriage by Miranda Neville

Hate-to-love is an excellent trope and this is how it's done right! 

Did I nail it or forget someone? Leave me your list below!

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Racquel's Top Ten Auto-buy Authors

This Week's Topic:

Top Ten Auto-Buy Authors

This topic is similar to last week's but I'll never pass up the chance to push my favorite author's on people!

01.  Lisa Kleypas OF COURSE

She writes it, I read it. Whatever the genre is. Historical, contemporary, magical realism, grocery store list, I'll read it and LOVE it. There is a reason she's my favorite author in the universe!!

02. Ellen O'Connell

Holy slow burn romance!! O'Connell writes historical western romance and the sexual tension is riiiiiiiiidiculous. I'm currently anxiously waiting for any news about a new release for her. I seriously cannot recommend all her books enough. Slow burn swoon is the best swoon!

03. Sarah Ockler

Excellent, thought provoking, emotional and always moving contemporary YA? Big fat yes anyone? Her latest, The Summer of Chasing Mermaids is beyond excellent.

04. Carrie Arcos

Arcos only released two books but they're two of my all time favorite books and I'll pant after her new books and auto buy them like crazy. She writes subtle YA that packs a PUNCH.

05. Julie James

I wait 364 days a year for JJ's alpha heroines then I read the book, fall in love and spend the next year rereading her books until the new one coms out. Smart novels anyone? Alpha heroins? Sexy heroes? Urban setting? HERE FOR IT.

06. Sarah Dessen

Queen of contemporary, which is how I like my YA. Plus Sarah Dessen is pretty much why I read, write, blog. HERE FOR HER BOOKS.

07. Jennifer Echols

Echols writes the best ladies in YA and I can't get enough of them. Dying wishes is more girls in YA like how Echols write them: messy, complex, complicated, multi dimensional. Yes please.

08. Julie Anne Long

Her Pennyroyal Green series is 10 books long and just keeps getting better. She is my ultimate favorite historical romance author.

09. Sherry Thomas

No one writes heroines like Sherry Thomas does in the historical romance genre AND her novels are beyond smart. Queen.

10. Jennifer Ashley

Who will NOT auto buy Victorian sexy Scottish heroes? WHO?

Let the buying commence! Do we share any auto buy authors?

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Racquel's Top Read Authors

This Week's Topic:

Top Ten Authors I've Read The Most Books From 

01. Her Majesty the Empress, Lisa Kleypas, 19 books

Favorite book: Blue-Eyed Devil & everything else

Bow down to the historical and contemporary empress, rocking the scene since 1987!! and writer of true rakes.

It's no secret to anyone that Lisa Kleypas is my favorite author! I talk about her books on Twitter & in real life too ALL THE TIME. I've read 19 Kleypas books and I've loved Every. Single. One. Of. Them. LOVE! Not liking them... LOVING THEM! I still have 19 books left to read by Kleypas but after binging the Wallflowers & Hathaways series, I slowed down because I want to save some LK books for the apocalypse. Or something. 

02. Richelle Mead, 12 books

Favorite book: Shadow Kissed & The Indigo Spell

Love me some vampires, forever and always, amen!!

I love me some Dimitri & Adrian Ivashkov and they're definitely ultimate book boyfriends but man I am HERE FOR ROSE HATHAWAY AND SYDNEY SAGE! I love that she has these two very different girls, one with agency and one without and we see Rose OWNS her agency while Sydney grows to reclaim her agency and it's just beautiful to read about. Rose and Sydney, forever and always.

03. Julie Anne Long, 11 books

Favorite book: What I Did For a Duke

Julie Anne Long AKA Queen of Epic Series! 

Companion family/friend series are The Thing in romance and JAL is The Queen. Her Pennyroyal Green series follows two families that hate each other and the series alternates between the Everseas and Redmonds. Every time I start a new book by her I tell myself to lower my expectations because no way this new book will beat the one before but it is always as amazing and romantic. Her writing is just so magnificent, not overly flowery, but you'll read passages over and over. There are 10 books so far in the Pennyroyal Green series are none of them are the same. Each one of them is fresh but you can expect beautiful writing, amazing characters and a beautiful romance from all of them. This is BIG for me to say because Lisa Kleypas is first and last love, but JAL's historicals rival LK's.

04. Ruthie Knox, 9 books

Favorite book: Making it Last

Hello, sexy and honest romance books! 

Making it Last is a follow up novella to How to Misbehave, also a novella. Making it Last is set 14 years after we met and read about Amber and Tony falling in love. We're ten years into their marriage which just hit a bump and we all know marriage in trouble is my favorite thing to read about EVER. 

05. Julie James, 8 books

Favorite book: All of them!

ALPHA HEROINES!!! 

Julie James is the queen of this list because she's the only one on here who I've read every single one of her books! I am here for smart and sexy romance withOUT a power imbalance between the hero and heroine. Julie James' heroines are successful before the hero came to the picture and YESYESYES. Her books are also all set in Chicago (with the exception of Just the Sexiest Man Alive, set in Los Angeles) and I love this urban setting because I'm very iffy and picky when it comes to small town romance books *shudder*.

06. Sarah Dessen, 8 books

Favorite book: The Truth About Forever & Just Listen

Go to YA contemporary.

Sarah Dessen introduced me to YA and I was in a Sarah Dessen fandom that sparked my love for writing and eventually led me to the book community after a few detours. I love her books because they're subtle, focus and family and friendship and her love interests are NICE! More of these, please!

07. Laura Florand, 7 books

Favorite book: The Chocolate Kiss

Sweet, delicious (French!) romance.

Laura Florand's books are usually set in either in Paris or South France. She writes setting so well and will transform you there. Her writing is absolutely gorgeous, her romance always sweet and swoony and she wrote THREE marriage-in-trouble/marriage novellas so she's clearly a favorite.

08. Elizabeth Hoyt, 7 books

Favorite book: The Leopard Prince

Harry. Pye.

So Elizabeth Hoyt excels at romance, especially forbidden ones! Even though her books always future a mystery/suspense/kidnapping sub-plot which is not something I'm a fan of in historical romance, I still love her books. I'll also be forever grateful to her for The Leopard Prince and Harry Pye and Georgina. Forever and always. A working hero, yay!

09. Sherry Thomas, 7 books

Favorite book: Not Quite a Husband & Private Arrangements

Alpha Heroines. Married Couples.

Sherry Thomas is a rockstar who writes super smart romance books AND THE BEST COMPLEX HEROINES IN LIFE!!!! Heroines are my favorites but she also writes my other favorite thing! Marriage in trouble or good ol' married couples. Seriously, every single Sherry Thomas book speaks directly to my soul.

10. Jennifer Ashley, 6 books

Favorite book: All of them!

Victorian Scottish Highland Heroes!

I love Scottish historical romance but most tend to be medieval and I have to take it slow with that sub-genre because a lot of the books blend together so I'm always looking for Regency or Victorian Highland books and this series DELIVERS. It's so addictive, it always leaves me in an epic book hangover when I reread. And OH HEY, did I mention this series has a lot of married couples (which I've already mention a trillion times) who are my FAVORITE!!!

So, do we have any authors in common? Have you tried any of these authors out or need a nudge?

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Racquel's 2015 Favorite Books So Far

This Week's Topic:

Favorite Books of 2015 so Far

Racquel's picks: top 10 lololol I ain't about the narrowing down life AT ALL since I really believe that a favorite is a favorite, whether you have 3 favorites or 300. I have to share them all! Beware, this is an amazing list except for one fact: 2 YA book. I'm so far behind on reading YA and I vow that this summer I'm going to read a ton of YA to make up for it!!

01. The Chocolate Kiss by Laura Florand: hands down my favorite book of the year! The writing is absolutely stunning, the setting is Paris and you'll feel like you're there, the romance is an honest to god hate-to-love which is my favorite, it has a hint of magical realism which I LOVE, and finally, macaron and chocolate heaven.

02. Graceling by Kristin Cashore: why didn't anyone tell me Grcaeling is what dreams are made of?! Super romantic, the ultimate OTP, feminist and awesome fantasy? Unbeatable.

03. Say Yes to the Marquess by Tessa Dare: my first book of the year set a high standard! It was so delightful and feminist. I loved it.

04. The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson, narrated by Julia Whelan: This is one of the most beautiful books I've ever read and listening to it on audiobook has turned an already amazing book to an extraordinary experience. I can relisten to this audio for everyday of my life. If you take one thing from this blog or me let be this: Read Dangerous Girls and listen to The Sky is Everywhere. The audio just makes the book even more emotional and journey even more beautiful. I am OBSESSED with the audiobook.

05. The Master by Kresley Cole: I'm on my third read of the year of The Master which has the best and hottest opening scene I've ever read. Plus the heroine is hella feisty AND it's female sex positive. Hell yeah. Here's the 7 chapter excerpt that hooked me from page 1 (literally. This is by far my favorite opening chapter/opening scene in the history of all of books).

06. Ruining Mr. Perfect by Marie Hart: I didn't even want to read this book because I wasn't looking forward to the couple and I only read it to read the book after it but NEVER DOUBT because now Ruining Mr. Perfect is my favorite of the McCauley Brothers series! Funny how life works that way.

07. The One in My Heart by Shery Thomas: Sherry. Thomas. 'Nuff said. This is her first contemporary and it's unique because it has some historical romance themes but it works so well!! So emotional like  you'd expect from The Queen.

08. Brown-Eyed Girl by Lisa Kleypas: I've been waiting for this book for almost FIVE years. I'll never in my life be as excited for a book again! So much of who I am and what I love is shaped up by Kleypas and specifically this series so I can't believe it has come to an end! Good thing Lisa Kleypas never lets me down so I was not disappointed.

09. Suddenly One Summer by Julie James: I've wanted this book for 2 years and after Lisa Kleypas, JJ is the other author that never lets me down. Another smart, funny and sexy read from the Queen of Contemporary!

10. Blamed by Edie Harris: even though this is romantic suspense, it's out of the world ROMANTIC. I mean pure swoony romance. It was heaven. It's really hard for me to find super romantic books. Not sex wise, but straight up romance that make you clutch your heart and happy sigh.

11. Kiss of Steel by Bec Master: okay whatever this is a steampunk romance but I didn't want it to be all by itself! Anyways, I love me some vampires so I was all over this. I love me some steampunk even more, and what I really really, realllllly love is SLOW BURN and holy moly, this was an epic slow burn!!

12. The Shadow and the Star by Laura Kinsale: The MOST unique historical romance I've ever read. I'll never read another romance like this one and I'm still in awe of the research that went into it. Absolutely breathtaking. Also, shoutout to my boy Fabio!

14 The Seduction of Elliot McBride by Jennifer Ashley: my second favorite historical romance series after the Pennyroyal Green series! I LOVE the fact that it's has VICTORIAN Scottish heroes! It's so sexy AND romantic and the big family dynamic is just spectacular. I always love these books.

15. First Comes Marriage by Mary Balogh: it took me a few chapters to get into this but omg when I did I never wanted it to end! Marriage stories will forever by my favorite.

16. Private Arrangements by Sherry Thomas aka QUEEN: one of my new ALL TIME FAVORITE historical romances!! Gigi and Camden hate each other but they have so much chemistry and ugh they're so snarky with each other and it's just BEAUTIFUL to see their journey!!

17. Duke of Midnight by Elizabeth Hoyt: thank you Alyssa for this awesome super forbidden romance!! Who doesn't love a good forbidden romance? and in true Hoyt fashion, it was the perfect mix of epic and swoony.

2015 in two words: LAURA FLORAND. The Chocolate Kiss is my favorite book of the year which I've already reread multiple times and pushed on countless people but the whole series is fanfuckingtastic. I was worried about reading The Chocolate Rose because how can it live up to my favorite book of the year? But it did! It's set in south France and it had all the beautiful elements that Florand SLAYS at. Beautiful setting, mouth watering descriptions, amazing chemistry, amazing romance and swoon for days. The exact same thing for The Chocolate Touch which takes us back to Paris. Another 5 star jackpot. As for Turning Up the Heat, it's a marriage in trouble novella so you know I went into it already loving it because I've said this a million times: I LOVE MARRIAGE STORIES!

So have you read and loved/hated any of these? As always, any similar books I should know about? 

Encore: bae forever&ever.

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