Hello readers, before I jump in with the Top Ten list, I want to share an update on my surgery, which I had Friday for a compressed disc in my lower back. It was an outpatient procedure but a very long day. Recovery is going well, and I haven’t had to take a lot of pain meds, just rest and Advil mostly. The challenging part is I can’t bend, lift or twist for 6 weeks, and that will take a lot of discipline once the stitches heal. Mr CG has been great all around, though this means a lot more housework for him. We ordered from a meal delivery service so he doesn’t have to cook and clean every day. I bought this kit at Target for people who get hip or knee surgery – it’s got one of those long grabber tools, a long handled shower scrubber, a long shoehorn, and this plastic gadget that helps you put your socks on. While I feel about 100 years old, it’s all really useful, and I admit the grabber is kind of fun to use. This is one of those times where putting on your own socks feels like a huge accomplishment. Aside from getting myself dressed, the hardest part is not being able to pick up or feed our cats.
For my friends and readers who are federal employees, I hope you’re doing okay. The last three weeks have been nightmarish. I’m so happy to have two weeks off to get away from the madness, but I know the madness isn’t stopping any time soon.
As I’ve been ordered to rest, I’ve had lots of reading time! I’ve been reading a lot of nonfiction. I finished a book by Emma Dabiri on black hair history and culture, which I’m excited to share with you. I also finished a memoir by Anderson Cooper and his mother, Gloria Vanderbilt. And I finished the new book by Eowyn Ivey, which I’ll review soon since it’s an ARC.
Favorite Love Stories:
Today’s topic at Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl, is a “love freebie”, so I’m writing about some of the best love stories I read in the last year (January 2024 through today). Valentine’s Day is generally a quiet affair in our house, and this one will certainly be less romantic as I have my follow up doctor’s appointment that day and neither of us is eating as much these days. It’s also a holiday designed to get people to spend money and one that makes a lot of people sad, so I’m not a huge fan.
But I’ve always loved romance novels, from the bodice-rippers of the 70s and 80s to the more empowered novels of today. I don’t review them too often on the blog, since romance novels can be pretty personal and there isn’t much to be gained from dissecting them.
Some of these aren’t romance novels in the traditional sense, but they are books I found romantic. What I generally like in a romance are real-life, complicated stories with a lot of character development. The relationship shouldn’t be too easy or perfect but the barriers also shouldn’t feel too contrived. My go-tos are Mhairi McFarlane, Katherine Center, and Emily Henry, but I didn’t love the ones I read last year by Center and McFarlane, and I’m way behind on Henry’s books.
- You Are Here by David Nicholls — one of my favorite books last year, Nicholls tells love stories like no one else. This one checked all my boxes. It’s got two great characters, and I love books about travel and walking.
- The Wedding People by Allison Espach — this is not a romance novel but it had a fantastic love story. I liked everything about it.
- Tom Lake by Ann Patchett — this is also not a romance novel, but Patchett’s tale of a woman telling her family how she found love – sort of – in a theater group one summer is incredibly romantic.
- Eddie Winston is Looking for Love by Marianne Winston — my second book by this author, I loved this story of grief and romance and friendship.
- The Lily of Ludgate Hill by Mimi Matthews — I like a good slow romance, and this one fit the bill. This book has been compared to Persuasion by Jane Austen, about two people who almost married when they were young but have been apart for years. This whole series is excellent, and if you’re not looking for a lot of action, I recommend this.
- Slow Dance by Rainbow Rowell — I hadn’t read one of Rowell’s books in years, but I loved this story of two best friends who never got their timing or their communication right. Similar to Lily of Ludgate Hill, a “second chance” romance is hard to write well, but this one felt understandable given the characters’ complicated lives. I also liked the subplot about the mother needing to go into assisted living, since I’ve gone through that myself.
- Kiss Her Once for Me by Allison Cochrun — I really need to read more by this author. This book is very loosely based on the movie While You Were Sleeping, one of my favorite rom-coms and holiday movies. I loved the story and characters.
- The Seven Year Slip by Ashley Poston — I didn’t like this novel at first. I didn’t care for the main character and the story at first felt contrived and unethical. But as the story unfolds and the characters developed, it really came together.
- Isn’t It Bromantic? by Lyssa Kay Adams — I love this whole series, but I didn’t expect to fall in love with “The Russian”. This ended up being one of my favorites. I recommend this series by audio as the narrator is fantastic.
- Love You a Latke by Amanda Elliott – I’ve never read a Hanukkah-based romance novel before, and I loved the romance as well as all the references to Judaism, and the difficult family issues. This would be a great book for the Jewish Genre Challenge.
These are some of the most romantic or best romance-focused books I read in the last year. There were some other books I considered where romance isn’t the main focus of the story, like Sandwich by Catherine Newman, the Emily Wilde books by Heather Fawcett, and The Road to Roswell by Connie Willis.
I also really liked I Owe You One by Sophie Kinsella, What the River Knows by Isabel Ibanez, How to End a Love Story by Yulin Kuang, and You, with a View by Jessica Joyce. For fun and fantasy, I love the Pirate series by Tricia Levenseller (Vengeance of the Pirate Queen) and the Mead Mishaps series by Kimberly Lemming (That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon and That Time I Got Drunk and Yeeted a Love Potion at a Werewolf).
What are some of your favorite love stories?