Dec 12 2011
Jennie’s Best of 2011 List
2011 does not stand out as one of my more memorable reading years; many books fell in the okay/mediocre range, with a whole lot of B range books and a handful of C range books. Only one D, and no Fs! – which I guess is a good thing, though I feel oddly nostalgic about the notion of reading a Really Bad Book. Following are the best 2011-published romances (or romance-y books) I read this year.
- Mr. Bishop and the Actress, Janet Mullany, A (my review)
- When Beauty Tamed the Beast, Eloisa James, A-, (my review)
- A Lady’s Lesson in Scandal, Meredith Duran, A-, (my review)
- Silk is for Seduction, Loretta Chase, A-, (Jane’s review)
- What I Did for a Duke, Julie Ann Long, A-, (Janet’s review)
- Slice of Cherry, Dia Reeves, B+, (Janine’s review)
- Cat’s Tale: A Fairy Tale Retold, Bettie Sharpe, B+, (mine and Lazaraspaste’s reviews)
- The Last Time I Saw Paris, Lynn Sheene, B+, (my review)
- The Second Duchess, Elizabeth Loupas, B+, (my review)
- The Lantern, Deborah Lawrenson, B+, (my review)
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Dec 12, 2011 @ 13:01:59
Of these, I’ve only read Silk is for Seduction, but I really enjoyed it. It was such a great change of pace to have a businesswoman as the heroine of a historical. Frankly, it’s not that common to have a serious, ambitious businesswoman as the heroine of a contemporary*, and as a business chick myself, I’d love to see more of it.
*Unless, of course, said businesswoman realizes at the end that she’s too driven and cold and mean and moves to an idyllic small town to run a bakery while the hero does manly things. Ugh.
Dec 12, 2011 @ 14:17:46
I agree that What I Did For a Duke was terrific. I purchased Meredith Duran’s, A Lady’s Lesson in Scandal and hope to read it soon.
Dec 12, 2011 @ 17:11:36
Glad you enjoyed my CPs works this year, Jennie. Besides those, I’ve read the Chase, the Long and the Reeves and enjoyed the first two. The Reeves had a lot going for it but was just too violent and disturbing for me. I couldn’t connect that much to the main characters, though I loved her first book, Bleeding Violet. I think it was my favorite book of the year last year.
Of the other five, I have all but the Lawrenson TBR. Still need to read the Loupas, the Sheene, the James and the Mullany! But I look forward to them all the more now.
Dec 12, 2011 @ 21:44:05
Thanks so much for including Mr. Bishop and the Actress tho if this means it’s jinxed in the Ritas, you and I will have to have a little chat.
Dec 13, 2011 @ 00:15:02
@Janet Mullany: Duly noted. :-)
Dec 13, 2011 @ 00:18:53
@Janine: I’d be curious to know what you think about the Lawrenson if you ever felt inclined to read it. Particularly how you feel about the prose.
Dec 13, 2011 @ 11:57:28
@Jennie: Will let you know if I get around to it.