There were ups and downs but here are the highlights and favorites of the romance books I read in 2022!
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Books Mentioned (all links are affiliated):
DICK FIGHT ISLAND by Reibun Ike – https://amzn.to/3L5MLdv
THE LADY’S GUIDE TO CELESTIAL MECHANICS by Olivia Waite – https://amzn.to/3dBd2DJ
I MARRIED A MINOTAUR by Regine Abel – https://amzn.to/3MmHBcC
THE HALF ORC’S MAIDEN BRIDE by Ruby Dixon – https://amzn.to/3KWezjp
WHEN SHE’S LONELY by Ruby Dixon – https://amzn.to/3GNIqtc
UNDER ONE ROOF by Ali Hazelwood – https://amzn.to/3vfSqb0
STORM ECHO by Nalini Singh – https://amzn.to/3E1RYP0
BOOK LOVERS by Emily Henry – https://amzn.to/3EdmjKk
LOVE ON THE BRAIN by Ali Hazelwood – https://amzn.to/3L7FBVB
YOU MADE A FOOL OF DEATH WITH YOUR BEAUTY by Akwaeke Emezi – https://amzn.to/3dq2UxW
GO HEX YOURSELF by Jessica Clare – https://amzn.to/3xwqYVo
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ListsLikeWhoa has entered the chat and we’re here for it 👏🏽
1:31 It’s artistic smut with a thinly veiled title. #TitularItems
Gay Culture is mostly erotic but also interestingly wholesome lol Jk
3:15 Portrait of a Lady on Fire but with Astronomy.
5:49 The Dongle Dilemma, as it were.
8:15 I may have forgotten about it but have you read ‘The Flatshare’? There’s a TV Show Adaptation of it.
Moral of the Story: Ruby Dixon and Nora Roberts have you in a chokehold.
You had such a great Romance lineup. Great titles 👏🏽
I read all of Emily Henry's romance books this year and really enjoyed Book Lovers And People We Meet On Vacation while I didn't love Beach Read which seems to be an unpopular opinion.Hard agree on Ali Hazelwood.Yeah they're all kinda samey but my fangirl fanfic heart really enjoys them.
Bah!!! Nonono!!! Strike out. So many UGHS and right now so desperate for happy reads. Sigh. OK. Dragging out the Hazelwood. Eyes Up. Forward.
Yes, Regine's "I married a …" series has been really good. I liked the Minotaur installment a lot. Ruby Dixon ♥ I like the Risdaverse and Corsair stuff best. I think I liked Mathias' story the best, but the Risdaverse installments were good as well. I'm more of a guild hunter girl than psy-changling, but her last couple books in that series have Not been my favorites. Aodohan and Bluebell, you were done wrong. 😏 I just can't with Hazelwood and Henry. 🤨 Honestly, I'm Not someone who likes contemporary romance in general though as it pretty much all reads the same to me. It's like there's 3 "main stories" and then the characters get different names in different towns-like a Hallmark movie (which I also Do Not Watch) but in book form. 🤷♀️ I know Jessica Claire is another Dixon pseudonym, but her "Claire" alter ego is my least favorite. I do agree with you that it was slimmer pickings in the romance column this year. I would probably put Ruby Fever and Sweep of the Heart as my faves. I know, I know they also fit into the fantasy/sci-fi columns. That's what makes them so good though. They wear all the hats 🧢 👒🎩🎓 and they wear them well. 🤣😂
Go Hex Yourself gave me so much of those cozy Charmed vibes, I am so excited we're getting more in that series
I would still like to read the half Orc one from Ruby Dixon.
I love how much you love your favorite authors, I’m the same lol.
Been wanting to read D*ck fight island but that cover scares me 😂
I need to read Ruby Dixon. I just read my first Ilona Andrews series, Innkeepers Chronicles and loved it. I wish there were more books. I love long series. Loved this video
Sold me on the half orc's maiden bride lmfao gonna give it a go
Levi is the superior book boyfriend of the year for me. Whenever Bee annoyed me a bit, I just fell back on how much I loved Levi. Also loved Charlie from Book Lovers but Levi has been to therapy! He has a cat named Schrodinger!
If you’re looking for a historical romance that is serious but definitely doesn’t have the clear patriarchy problems of many historical romances, then I would recommend The Craft of Love by EE Ottoman. You have two craftspeople who fall in love with each other while working on projects in trade and some great queer rep with a trans male hero ❤
This list was so interesting! I’m trying to find more romance that is my taste and your explanations of your own tastes helped 👍😊 I read two contemporary/rom com romances this month that were mentioned in booksandlala’s recent romance reading project that I loved— ‘The Wedding Crasher’ by Mia Sosa and ‘Fool Me Once’ by Ashley Winstead.
I had a hard time with You made a fool…
It was a very stark feeling of "Yeah, there's nothing wrong here, but it's just not my fantasy." I agree that it was not true cheating, but certainly adjacent. Since the characters felt weird about, so did I…it became a bit icky. For some reason almost all of the romance books I read this year had and underlying grief/recover plot – this one being the most central and I think I just got exhausted by it. Glad that you liked it though!!
I loved You Made a Fool of Death With Your Beauty! One of my favourite books of the year and I appreciated all of the messiness!
Love, Love, Love this year end series from you! I have favorited quite a few for 2023. Looking forward to another New Year of content with you!
I appreciate your reading and analysis of romance novels. As a long time reader of the genre, I think what might be the problem in your finding many good books to read in that genre is that, I've noticed, that you stick to the same authors and the same types of books. I know you said you like romance to be light and fluffy and a palate cleanser, but as such you're missing out on a lot of good new authors (to you) and good romances. They don't have to be too serious. I've read plenty of dramatic comedies that are very enjoyable. Just venturing out of the authors you usually read might open up the genre to you and be much more rewarding.
I have read Emily Henry and Ali Hazelwood and am looking forward to their new releases.
Go Hex Yourself was also a fun read and I am eagerly waiting the sequel.
A Lady for a Duke is a good historical romance with a Trans heroine! I really liked it, it was a little long but still good
I love your lists because they are very “I just like this-it works for me!”
Great list Mara. Some titles I’ve really enjoyed (You Made a Fool of Death, Book Lovers…) and others that I want to pick up (Go Hex Yourself and the Nalini Singh series). Happy reading.
You might give Part of Your World by Abby Jimenez a try. I really liked that one and I've seen several positive reviews for it.