During this past year I read some really great books; so when Maria, Melanie and I decided to name our top three favorite romances for 2011 I had a hard time picking only three. Looking through the books I read this year I was drawn to the books that had the most emotional impact.
The Dark Age Dawning trilogy by Ellen Connor is one of the best series I’ve read this year. Starting with the first book, Nightfall, I was captivated by the world and mythology. Midnight (Dark Age Dawning Series #2) and Daybreak (Dark Age Dawning Series #3) are equally compelling. This series blew me away with the juxtaposition of its beautifully written and lyrical passages to describe a gritty, harsh and cruel post-apocalyptic world. Each character is a dynamic force that propels the story forward. This series is not about why the world has become an unforgiving place, but how to survive in it. At its essence this series is about human behavior. How survival at any cost is not really survival at all because ultimately being the best you can possibly be in a bad situation, living with hope, and surviving with your soul intact is what is required to create a better world.
J.D. Robb’s New York to Dallas is another book at the top of my list for 2011. The In Death series has been going strong since the first book Naked in Death was published in 1995. Every time I read a new book in this series I feel as if I am coming home. Getting to know more about each character book by book has been an amazing reading experience. Sixteen years later I still feel there is more to know about the quirky, exciting and remarkable characters that inhabit this world. I’m particularly enamored of Eve and Roarke. Each book reveals yet another glimpse into the dynamics of their complex and interesting relationship. And at the core of that relationship is their abiding and unshakeable love for one another. In New York to Dallas this awe inspiring love is at the forefront, and watching them work through and support each other during the emotional upheaval that comes into Eve’s life makes this couple one of my favorites in romance.
Lover Unleashed (Black Dagger Brotherhood Series #9) by J.R. Ward is also at the top of my list and features two couples, Manny and Payne and Vishous and Jane. It’s the latter two that put me through a maelstrom of emotions and kept me reading long into the night. Author J.R. Ward continually unnerves me by taking her characters through hell fire and back again before they finally get their happily ever after. But what she does in Lover Unleashed goes beyond the usual story arcs in romance novels. Here we get an up close and personal look at how Vishous and Jane have fared after their happy ending in Lover Unbound (Black Dagger Brotherhood Series #5). We experience what happens after the first glow of romance has faded and the relationship moves into the phase of living together day in and day out. Sometimes it’s not always a bed of roses, and Jane and Vishous deal with issues that would try the best of lovers. Watching them work through the pain of hurting each other, grapple with trying to communicate their feelings, and then, finally, listening to each other with love instead of judgment was mesmerizing. I was spell bound by the way they fought for their relationship. I don’t think there is anything more romantic than two people working through the hard times and sticking it out to make a relationship work.
Of course I read many other great books this year and I would be remiss if I didn’t mention some of the other books that stole this reader’s heart.
Kiss of Snow (Psy-Changeling Series #10) by Nalini Singh
Breaking the Rules by Suzanne Brockman
In Bed with a Highlander (McCabe Trilogy #1) by Maya Banks
Between Sinners and Saints by Marie Sexton
Living Promises by Amy Lane
I'm curious, what were some of your favorite books this year?
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