"Romance" novel thread

[fivi2]

I don't actually have time to post right now, but thought I'd get the thread started. This is for the more, ahem, adult novels some of us have recently admitted to reading.

Any genre (paranormal, historical, or whatever), but tell us what the genre is, please. You might give a level of the action (mild to wild), or anything specific you think people want might to know.

Start recommending! (I will post some later, but have to run. seriously ;)

[tmahanes]

Contemporary - Lauren Dane's Brown Siblings Series, Erin McCarthy's Fast Track Series

Contemporary Western - Lorelei James' Rough Riders

These are just a few series I like

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[AngB]

Contemporary - Lauren Dane's Brown Siblings Series, Erin McCarthy's Fast Track Series

Contemporary Western - Lorelei James' Rough Riders

These are just a few series I like

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Love ALL of those, though I think I'm a few books behind for Lorelei James.

[AngB]

I just got caught up on Maya Banks KGI series http://mayabanks.com/books/main.php#connected-kgi, I really liked it, not as hot as her erotica books, more along the lines of romance- hotter romance. She has the latest for the series out at the end of the month. It is romantic suspense, her most recent 2 had a little bit of telepathy but not really paranormal. (I really don't like paranormal and it didn't bother me at all.)

I also am a big fan of Olivia Cunning's Sinners' series http://www.oliviacunning.com/sinnersontour.html, about a band, contemporary romance/erotica (it's kinda between the two, too spicy to be just romance I think.)

And I also have recently read and liked Jaci Burton's athlete stories (loosely a series), http://jaciburton.com/books/connected.php#play also contemporary romance.

[Simon]

JD Robb (pen name for Nora Roberts). The main character is female and a homicide cop in NYC, set in the near future (2058+). She is married, very good at her job, and has a good relationship with her husband. A mix of murder mystery and romance. They may be too formulaic plot-wise for some people, but I think it has decent character/relationship development. Pretty hot reading at times.

Historical romance I like Johanna Lindsay and her Malory series. A large, rich, noble family in England. These are more relationship based with fewer sex scenes scattered through the books.

[tmahanes]

I just got caught up on Maya Banks KGI series http://mayabanks.com/books/main.php#connected-kgi, I really liked it, not as hot as her erotica books, more along the lines of romance- hotter romance. She has the latest for the series out at the end of the month. It is romantic suspense, her most recent 2 had a little bit of telepathy but not really paranormal. (I really don't like paranormal and it didn't bother me at all.)

And I also have recently read and liked Jaci Burton's athlete stories (loosely a series), http://jaciburton.com/books/connected.php#play also contemporary romance.

Love both of these too :)

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[crl]

Nalini Singh's psy, changeling series (paranormal)
Patricia Brockman's SEAL books
Meljean Brooks' Iron Duke and subsequent books (steampunk)
Ilone Andrews' Magic series (paranormal)

Nothing kinky (for lack of a better word) in any of them, but except for Andrews' they are pretty steamy IMO. They are definitely romance, not erotica. I tend to go for characters I like and I find the characters in these books likable.

Catherine

[tmahanes]

JD Robb (pen name for Nora Roberts). The main character is female and a homicide cop in NYC, set in the near future (2058+). She is married, very good at her job, and has a good relationship with her husband. A mix of murder mystery and romance. They may be too formulaic plot-wise for some people, but I think it has decent character/relationship development. Pretty hot reading at times.

Historical romance I like Johanna Lindsay and her Malory series. A large, rich, noble family in England. These are more relationship based with fewer sex scenes scattered through the books.

I also love theses series too. Especially the "in death" series but they are definitely way more tame than the book listed above. The JD Robb series is my absolute most favorite series that I own. I am always excited for Feb and Nov because those are the months she normally releases a new book in this series.

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[AngB]

Love both of these too :)

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Sounds like we have similar taste! If you haven't read Olivia Cunning yet, you are in for a real treat! A lot like Lorelei James as far as erotica-ish, with good storylines.

[♥ms.pacman♥]

great thread, will be watching . i've never gotten into romance reading, and i when i heard so many other moms IRL rave about 50 Shades of Grey i figured i'd get that...well i absolutely hated it (couldn't finish it) but i figure there must be better stuff out there!

[tmahanes]

Sounds like we have similar taste! If you haven't read Olivia Cunning yet, you are in for a real treat! A lot like Lorelei James as far as erotica-ish, with good storylines.

I will have to check her out! :) thanks!

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[tmahanes]

great thread, will be watching . i've never gotten into romance reading, and i when i heard so many other moms IRL rave about 50 Shades of Grey i figured i'd get that...well i absolutely hated it (couldn't finish it) but i figure there must be better stuff out there!

Everything listed here is levels and levels above 50. It was okay not good or great!

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[crl]

great thread, will be watching . i've never gotten into romance reading, and i when i heard so many other moms IRL rave about 50 Shades of Grey i figured i'd get that...well i absolutely hated it (couldn't finish it) but i figure there must be better stuff out there!

I hated 50 Shades of Grey. Belch.

Catherine

[egoldber]

I like series with recurring characters.

Robyn Carr Virgin River series - contemporary romance set in a fictional small town in Northern California, most heroes are ex military. Sort of crunchy heroines including a midwife who does a lot of home births, an ex tech exec who starts an organic farm, etc.

Susan Mallery Fools Gold series - yet another contemporary romance set in Northern California. I don't like this as well as Robyn Carr, but they are entertaining.

Julie Garwood - romantic suspense author. Most involve a family of brothers named Buchanan who are in various branches of law enforcement.

Some I mentioned on the other thread are Suzanne Brockmann, Marliss Melton, Linda Howard, and Cindy Gerard. These are all romantic suspense, most centering around military or CIA/FBI.

These are all relatively mild on the sex-o-meter. ;)

[karstmama]

i love jennifer crusie for moderately hot romances with great dialogue. i mean, stuff you wish you were quick enough to come up with that still sounds so real! plus they're funny.

i love angela knight (though less the 'magiverse' ones. they got pretty silly to me.) for really hot verging-on-erotica. my favorite is 'jane's warlord' which is set in the present but has time traveling and aliens, my next favorites are her vampire stories which are definitely on the erotica side.

i've just started the 'rough riders' and 'wild riders' series, but so far so good. and *boy* did i love johanna lindsey in high school! yeah, they seem a teense silly now with everyone over-the-top beautiful/handsome, but i loved them anyway. excellent escapism!

ooh, forgot to mention shannon mckenna, another good one. hot but not kinky, not that there's anything wrong with that...

[doberbrat]

I love Jennifer Cruise as well. Millie Criswell, lessley Kelly and Carly Phillips are also favorites. good steamy reads but a decent plot as well. Millie Criswell also tends to be romantic comedies.

I just read Animal attraction by Jill Shalvis. I LOVED it. It was actually a plausible story. Its the 2nd book in the series - I requested the first from the library to see if I like that as well.

WOW Finally a book thread I can participate in! ;) -I'm a romance novel addict.

[Mom to Brandon and 2 cats]

My latest romance obsession is Carpathians series and Ghostwalker series from Christine Feehan. Both are paranormal romance, but in a really cool way (nothing too kinky, but the sex scenes are pretty hot).

I'm also a sucker for super strong man (like military man having to protect a woman who's in some sort of trouble). I've been reading a couple of Maya Banks books (KGI series), and they seem pretty good.

[JBaxter]

Brides of the Kindred < Alien/paranormal> Evangeline Anderson
Demonica Series < Demons run an underground hospital> Larissa Ione
New Species series Laurann Dohner
Rough Rider cowboys & black top cowboys Lorelei James
BDSM < MUCH MUCH better than 50 shades> Shadowlands series Cherise Sincliar
Black Dagger brotherhood < Vampire> JR ward

[karstmama]

mom to brandon, 'jane's warlord' is right up your alley if you haven't tried it yet!

[khalloc]

I second the Jill Shalvis Animal Attraction series. The 2nd book was the best I think.

Also, Jill Shalvis' Lucky Harbor series. The best book is The Sweetest Thing. Very good!!!!!

[Pinky]

Great thread...

[fivi2]

+1 for Demonica series. (but not her second series about the 4 horsemen)

Didn't like the Black Dagger one that I tried, but her writing is better than others I have tried. I just didn't like it.

Somebody Aiken has a Dragon series that I thought was/is kind of fun. The sex scenes really aren't that well done, and sometimes it was kind of jarring (like I had forgotten it was a "romance" book and just thought I was reading fantasy and then there was a crude reference out of nowhere). But, aside from the sex scenes, I thought the books were kind of funny. I tried another one of hers under a different name and found it unreadable, though.

I have tried a few others, but haven't found anything that I thought was fantastic. (I will check my Kindle for a list).

I did buy one of Anne Rice's sleeping beauty ones, and it wasn't for me at all. I didn't even like her writing, which was odd because I used to read all her vampire and mayfair witch books.

(sorry for all the typos - in a rush)

[KHF]

I read the same stuff as JBaxter and crl.

Demonica (http://larissaione.com/blog/books/#demonica) and the Lords of Deliverance (http://larissaione.com/blog/books/#Lords) Series - Larissa Ione
New Species (http://www.lauranndohner.com/new-species.php) series - Laurann Dohner
Black Dagger Brotherhood (http://www.jrward.com/bdb/) and Fallen Angels (http://www.jrward.com/fallenangels/)- JR ward
Breed (http://www.loraleigh.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=49&Itemid=61) - Lora Leigh (similar to New Species, editing is atrocious, but I liked a lot of the stories)
Lords of the Underworld/Angels of the Dark (http://members.genashowalter.com/page/books) - Gena Showalter
Scanguards Vampires (http://www.goodreads.com/series/48835-scanguards-vampires) - Tina Folsom
Undead (http://www.maryjanicedavidson.net/the-undead-series-betsy/) - MaryJanice Davidson (think Chick Lit with Fangs)


Less romance, more urban fantasy series I like are:
World of the Lupi (http://eileenwilks.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&layout=blog&id=3&Itemid=18) series - Eileen Wilks
Kate Daniels (http://www.ilona-andrews.com/kate-daniels) and Edge (http://www.ilona-andrews.com/the-edge) Series - Ilona Andrews
Mercy Thompson and Alpha/Omega (http://www.patriciabriggs.com/books/) - Patricia Briggs
Otherworld Series (http://www.kelleyarmstrong.com/books/) - Kelley Armstrong
Cassie Palmer and Dorina Basarab Series (http://www.karenchance.com/books.html) - Karen Chance
Psy-Changeling (http://www.nalinisingh.com/psy.php) and Guild Hunter Series (http://www.nalinisingh.com/guildhunter.php) - Nalini Singh

I'm reading the Psy-Changeling series now and really like it! I read all the Guild Hunter books before embarking on the 26 book/novella oddysey that was the Breeds series. I finished the New Species series in about 3 days. I really loved that series...and there is a new book coming out soon :)

[lizzywednesday]

Thanks twowhat? for starting this thread!

I'm finding now that talk about "s-e-x" doesn't embarrass me so much anymore, I'm more than a little interested in romance/erotica.

And thank you to everyone who's sharing suggestions!

As a follow up, may I ask if you're suggesting a series to link the 1st book?

[AnnieW625]

I like Nora Roberts. Her Born in series is my favorite, Born in Ice is probably my favorite trilogy book from her.

I also really like a lot of the really early Danielle Steel, although it is not really that steamy IMHO.

I have read a couple of Julie Garwood books before and they are good. Along the same lines I really like Barbara Taylor Bradford (Dangerous to Know), and Elizabeth Adler (Secret of the Villa Mimosa--I loved the two main characters in the book and have always wanted her to write a sequel to it).

As cheesy as this sounds whoever writes the Castle books for ABC is a pretty good ghost writer. I am just finishing the first book, Naked Heat.

Thanks for all of the recommendations. I am still intrigued by 50 Shades of Grey, and I hear they are casting the movie. Just from the little excerpt I have read (in Time Magazine.com) I am thinking of Ryan Gosling as Grey, and Katie Cassidy as Anastasia (I guess because I have been watching her in season 4 of Gossip Girl this past month), and apparently she is being considered for it.

[fivi2]

This (http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/789244-favorite-vaginal-fantasy-books-list-em-here) is a thread on that Felicia Day book group someone posted about. This thread has a lot of recommendations. (a lot). It looks like some are pretty tame, but I see some authors that are mentioned here. I haven't had a chance to go through the thread, but it seems like a good list!

[tmahanes]

Thanks twowhat? for starting this thread!

I'm finding now that talk about "s-e-x" doesn't embarrass me so much anymore, I'm more than a little interested in romance/erotica.

And thank you to everyone who's sharing suggestions!

As a follow up, may I ask if you're suggesting a series to link the 1st book?

I will try to post book in the series later :cool:

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[MelissaTC]

I love historical romance novels. My absolute favorite series has been the Skye O'Malley series by Bertrice Small. They are definitely formulaic but wow. They have a lot of romance and I adore the historical setting. (And they are smutty too, lol.) I always wished they would make the first into a movie. Catherine Zeta Jones would have been a good choice, back in the day.

[JBaxter]

I read the same stuff as JBaxter and crl.

Demonica (http://larissaione.com/blog/books/#demonica) and the Lords of Deliverance (http://larissaione.com/blog/books/#Lords) Series - Larissa Ione
New Species (http://www.lauranndohner.com/new-species.php) series - Laurann Dohner
Black Dagger Brotherhood (http://www.jrward.com/bdb/) and Fallen Angels (http://www.jrward.com/fallenangels/)- JR ward
Breed (http://www.loraleigh.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=49&Itemid=61) - Lora Leigh (similar to New Species, editing is atrocious, but I liked a lot of the stories)
Lords of the Underworld/Angels of the Dark (http://members.genashowalter.com/page/books) - Gena Showalter
Scanguards Vampires (http://www.goodreads.com/series/48835-scanguards-vampires) - Tina Folsom
Undead (http://www.maryjanicedavidson.net/the-undead-series-betsy/) - MaryJanice Davidson (think Chick Lit with Fangs)


Less romance, more urban fantasy series I like are:
World of the Lupi (http://eileenwilks.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=section&layout=blog&id=3&Itemid=18) series - Eileen Wilks
Kate Daniels (http://www.ilona-andrews.com/kate-daniels) and Edge (http://www.ilona-andrews.com/the-edge) Series - Ilona Andrews
Mercy Thompson and Alpha/Omega (http://www.patriciabriggs.com/books/) - Patricia Briggs
Otherworld Series (http://www.kelleyarmstrong.com/books/) - Kelley Armstrong
Cassie Palmer and Dorina Basarab Series (http://www.karenchance.com/books.html) - Karen Chance
Psy-Changeling (http://www.nalinisingh.com/psy.php) and Guild Hunter Series (http://www.nalinisingh.com/guildhunter.php) - Nalini Singh

I'm reading the Psy-Changeling series now and really like it! I read all the Guild Hunter books before embarking on the 26 book/novella oddysey that was the Breeds series. I finished the New Species series in about 3 days. I really loved that series...and there is a new book coming out soon :)

First Scanguards book is FREE on amazon http://www.amazon.com/Samsons-Lovely-Scanguards-Vampires-ebook/dp/B003O2SH60/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1344620585&sr=1-2&keywords=scanguards+vampires+series

[newg]

Love Unscripted by Tina Reber.....It's contemporary romance. Not as steamy as some others I've read, but one of the best written (with actual character development and plot development!).....the second in the series is coming out at the end of the month for e-reader and I can't wait!
The Marriage Bargain by Jennifer Probst - contemporary

I've got a few "samples" on my kindle I haven't read yet.....they were on a list of "if you like 50 shades then read this!"
Bared to You: A Crossfire Novel by Sylvia Day
The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty by Anne Rice I think this is part of a series and def. on the erotic side

[Momit]

No one has mentioned the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon? It's sort of romantic historical fiction I guess. Good stories, likeable characters, and the first few were quite steamy!

[AKMom]

Love Unscripted by Tina Reber.....It's contemporary romance. Not as steamy as some others I've read, but one of the best written (with actual character development and plot development!).....the second in the series is coming out at the end of the month for e-reader and I can't wait!
The Marriage Bargain by Jennifer Probst - contemporary

I've got a few "samples" on my kindle I haven't read yet.....they were on a list of "if you like 50 shades then read this!"
Bared to You: A Crossfire Novel by Sylvia Day
The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty by Anne Rice I think this is part of a series and def. on the erotic side

My cousin talked me into Bared to You and I'm almost finished after just 2 days. I think it's a lot better than 50, but has a lot of similarities. Still not superbly written, but a good, steamy read.

[AKMom]

No one has mentioned the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon? It's sort of romantic historical fiction I guess. Good stories, likeable characters, and the first few were quite steamy!

I seriously love these books so much! Jamie totally eclipses any guy in any other book I've ever read!

[Twoboos]

First Scanguards book is FREE on amazon http://www.amazon.com/Samsons-Lovely-Scanguards-Vampires-ebook/dp/B003O2SH60/ref=sr_1_2?s=digital-text&ie=UTF8&qid=1344620585&sr=1-2&keywords=scanguards+vampires+series

For free, the price is right, will give it a shot. Thanks for posting!

[lizzywednesday]

...
The Claiming of Sleeping Beauty by Anne Rice I think this is part of a series and def. on the erotic side

Yes, it's the first of 3, written under the pen-name "A. N. Roquelaure" (from "roquelaure" which is French for "cloak" during the early 80s.

With the hubbub over the 50 Shades of Grey, now seems like a prime time for their re-release.

[azazela]

I seriously love these books so much! Jamie totally eclipses any guy in any other book I've ever read!

Oh Jaime :love-retry: (insert a *thud* smiley here)

I LOVE the following blog post (http://www.dianagabaldon.com/2012/07/how-to-write-sex-scenes/) Diana Gabaldon posted recently about how to write sex scenes.

And this reader comment that Diana posted on FB page:


BEST READER COMMENT OF THE DAY (from "Sandra" on Goodreads":

"You write these scenes so well because you don't act as though your readers have no idea how sex physically operates. I don't need a manual. I want an experience."

[azazela]

Gabriel's Inferno (http://www.amazon.com/Gabriels-Inferno-ebook/dp/B008R25E0Y/ref=sr_1_1_bnp_1_kin?ie=UTF8&qid=1344629102&sr=8-1&keywords=gabriel%27s+inferno) and Gabriel's Rapture (http://www.amazon.com/Gabriels-Rapture-ebook/dp/B008R25C5G/ref=pd_sim_kstore_1) were pretty good.

[AKMom]

Oh Jaime :love-retry: (insert a *thud* smiley here)

I LOVE the following blog post (http://www.dianagabaldon.com/2012/07/how-to-write-sex-scenes/) Diana Gabaldon posted recently about how to write sex scenes.

And this reader comment that Diana posted on FB page:

Thanks for the link! I completely agree with the comments! I hope that they manage to capture the feeling of her written sex scenes correctly when they film.

[valeriec]

Thanks for all of the recommendations! I have added a ton of books to my wish list.

Some books I have loved recently not already mentioned are:

Liberating Lacey by Anne Calhoun

Sweet as Sin by Inez Kelley

The Witness - Nora Roberts

Pamela Clare's I-Team series (romantic suspense). The first is Extreme Exposure.

Masters at Arms, Nobody's Angel, and Nobody's Hero by Kallypso Masters (BDSM)

On the Island - Tracey Garvis-Graves

[Pinky]

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