Rebecca’s Top 5 Romance Reads, 2018
It’s that time again! Every year, I go through my bookshelf, my Goodreads account, and my Kindle to put together a list of my top read this year. I have a couple rules:
-Chosen from the books I read this year—not necessarily published this year.
-Cannot be written by authors I know personally (If I know someone and I read and liked her book, I’ve probably already recommended it!)
-Subject to additions. Last year, I made a second version of my list because I had forgotten so many. This year I’m hoping v 1.0 will be enough…
#5 Most Valuable Playboy by Lauren Blakely. Lauren Blakely is one of the authors I go back to, again and again, and I’ve been trying to figure out why. I think it’s the kisses. And the heroes. ;) The books are always fast-paced, sexy, and funny, and this one is no expection. Plus—bonus—it takes place in San Francisco!
because, well, there are a lot of ways to go wrong when writing a romance set in South Sudan. But Rachel Grant’s deft handling of the awful war conditions and of the characters who are trying to navigate them make for a spectacular read.
#3 Ashwin by Kit Rocha. 2018 was the year of the bodyguard romance for me. Because my DARE series is about an elite bodyguard firm, I went out of my way to read a ton of these. I read/reread a bunch in Lori Foster’s series, loved fellow DARE author Jackie Ashenden’s Make You Mine (with a female guard/male client pairing!), but Ashwin was my absolute favorite. From my Goodreads review: “But for me, the most compelling piece of the story is Ashwin's very real struggle with his genetically engineered cold nature and the risks of "destabilization" as he falls for Kora once again. Love, love, loved it.” Full review here.
#2 Hate to Want You by Alisha Rai. First love story, now enemies to lovers with a tattoo artist heroine and an a$$hole businessman hero. Just beautiful. I actually cried a little toward the end, which so rarely happens with a romance.
#1 Disorderly Conduct by Tessa Bailey. I’ve found my new favorite author, and I’ve been gobbling her books up since I found Disorderly Conduct this summer. Her books are well written, and they’re a great balance of dirty and funny and addictive fun. She seems to like dirty talk and police officers a lot, which is just fine with me. :) Note: I really didn’t like the kiss mark on the cover—enough to make me hesitate to read the book. The dude comes off as a little smarmy in the photo, but he’s fantastic in the book!
*****
Thanks for reading my top 5 list for 2018! I hope you find some new books to try from this list. Any suggestions? Please pass them on!
P.S. You can friend/follow me on Goodreads if you want to peek at my bookshelf throughout the year!
