Because I only pressed “publish” on the 18th Jan for the final book in my non-fiction cookbook series, I started out the year a little slow…. although I still set myself a goodreads reading challenge for 100 books this year (we will see how it goes – but I’m optimistic…. if I could manage 39 books last year, then I’ve got a good feeling about this goal this year:-).
Anyway, let’s get on with it… So in this 100 book reading challenge I’ve set myself some extra mini goals:
- Update my reading in my favourite genres and the genres I write in
- Continue to read widely, and to read genres I don’t usually read
- Read some of the classics I’ve had on my shelf for years (not sure how many of these I’ll get through, e.g. Rebecca)
- Read more indie authors and support my fellow indies.
Ok, so lets get onto the January reading…
Romance
Lemon Drops and Love by Angela Stevens.
I really enjoyed this book, and am half way through the next book in the series. If you’ve read a lot of series and single title romances in the past from the major romance publishers, you’ll like these books. The characters are believable. This particular story deals with the confronting issue of rape, but it’s ultimately a story of hope with a happy ending. I found the book compelling.
Very very steamy romance (e.g. erotica)
Big Gun by Dani Stowe
So this book fits in the “pushing myself outside of my usual comfort zone of reading” category, and after really enjoying Lover’s Catch by Dani Stowe (see below), I thought I’d give this book a go. The book has explicit sex scenes so if that’s your thing, you’ll love it. If you prefer sweet romances, and books that leave a lot to the imagination, this author isn’t for you. This book is fast-paced and easy to read. The characters were strong, and so were their motivations. I enjoyed the way the author wrote about the themes of family, age-differences and power. I also enjoyed the different insight into the military lifestyle. I prefer books which have love scenes which don’t walk the line with pleasure and pain so closely (I’m not a fan of pain -especially in sex scenes), but putting my personal bias aside, the book is well written, fast paced, emotionally intense and the sub plot with Carrot Top was sweet and made me cry.
Contemporary Fantasy with steamy romance
Lovers Catch by Dani Stowe
I really loved the concept of this book, it’s a reverse take on the little mermaid and it’s really cool (although, if you don’t like steamy sex scenes, then it might not be for you). The characters are interesting, the world building is really well done too. I’ve never read a merman book before and I liked the way the mythology and the physiology was dealt with too. A good read! I’m definitely intrigued about book 2 in the series.
