I found a blog post that asked this question of readers... What are the best five books that you've read this year and why are they at the top of your list? Here is what I posted...
Hmmm...let's see. There may be other novels that would make my list that I simply haven't read yet, so I don't know if I would bump other books to slide them onto this list or not. Regardless, of the 104 books I have so far read this year my top five would be... tada...
Deeply Devoted by Maggie Brendan (Revell)
A Heart Revealed by Julie Lessman (Revell)
Dance of the Dandelion by Dina L. Sleiman (Whitefire)
The Heiress by Susan May Warren (Summerside)
Bathsheba by Jill Eileen Smith (Revell)
What do they have in common? Well, they are all historical fiction for one. It's my favorite genre. There are three of the five that are published by Revell. I love most of their historical romances, but not all (three I didn't care for) so I tend to love their historical novels. I can't help it. There is something about historical fiction that just grabs me. Also, the books listed above were all daring. Each story delved into an area that is not typically touched on in Christian fiction. Ironically four of the five touch on domestic violence, now that I think about it. All but Bathsheba.Not that I thought about it until just now. They all deal with issues pertaining to sexuality. All of them. Desire that is somehow forbidden or for some reason seems wrong even though it seems right, too. They also deal with guilt. Major guilt. And a sense of unworthiness. Bottom line? I think this is what many people feel at times (even Christians) but so few books truly touch upon.
6 comments:
First of all, um ... WOW. 104 books already this year?? This is when I proudly cling to my dyslexia as a delightful excuse. ;) Or try to shove some children's titles in there to inflate my numbers.
Second, I also enjoyed "Heiress" by Warren! I have two of your other top five ("Bathsheba" and "A Heart Revealed") on my Kindle but haven't gotten to them yet. Soon!
I'm keeping pace with you. I have books 103 & 104 underway. :)
I'd say my top five have been
Heiress by Susan may Warren
The Deal, the Dance and the Devil by Victoria Christopher Murray
The Edge of Grace by Christa Allan
Pearl in the Sand by Tessa Asfar
Reclaiming Lily by Patti Lacy
Funny, since I consider myself not a huge fan of historicals, but 3 out of 5 on my list are historical too, and 4 out of 5 deal with sexuality on some level. Just as you found, they all are daring in some way and very well crafted which makes for a great read.
I am not brave enough to pick a book to read without a Book Review. I like your description of these and I am going to try them. Thank you.
WOW, MICHELLE -- 104 BOOKS ALREADY??? And HOLY COW -- I made the top five??? Well, you just made my day, my friend, so THANK YOU!!
I think it's really interesting that all are historical fiction when you write contemporary, but I am not a bit surprised that all deal with "desire that is somehow forbidden," because as an edgy romance author (my favorite kind!!), you deal with that all the time in your books, right? :)
Anyway, I LOVED Maggie Brendan's Deeply Devoted as well, along with Dance of the Dandelion (hard to believe this is a debut book!), and I have Bathsheba waiting on my desk. I have heard nothing but great things about The Heiress, so that will be a given for me, of course.
Thank you AGAIN, my friend, for your incredible support and word of mouth -- few do it better!!
Hugs,
Julie
Michelle, you made my day too :) For anyone interested, Dance of the Dandelion is only $3.03 for kindle right now.
And...I guess I need to get on the ball. I'm only on Julie's 4th book. And I haven't read any of the other authors yet, although I love stories about Bathsheba and have been wanting to check out that one. I have a short story about her in my upcoming nonfiction release.
I confess, I'm not a fast reader. Plus I've been reading lots of unpublished manuscripts for WhiteFire.
Speaking of which, Walks Alone by Sandi Rog was definitely one of my top five this year. It will release from WhiteFire in early 2012. And oh edgy romance lover ladies, you are going to love this one. LOL.
well... I'm feeling a bit behind here especially when I see Patricia with Pearl in the Sand on her list and I actually have had that one for awhile and haven't gotten to it yet.
I need to get Julie's new one, and Patti's. Looking forward to some great reads.
Thanks for the heads up on Walks Alone, Dina!
The Heiress seems to be a must read!
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