Welcome to Smugglivus 2009 – Day 7!
Throughout this month, we will have daily guests – authors and bloggers alike – looking back at their favorite reads of 2009, and looking forward to events and upcoming books in 2010.
Today’s Guest: Julie James, author of the most awesome Contemporary Romance novels. Her books are love letters to old screwball comedies full of strong female characters and great, witty repartee. Her first book was Just The Sexiest Man Alive, reviewed by Ana.
Recent Work: Practice Makes Perfect, reviewed here. You can read the author’s article about the inspiration and influences behind writing the book, here.
Dear all, Julie James:
***********
Relatively speaking, I’m a newcomer to romance.
As I’ve mentioned before, I began reading romantic fiction when Berkley bought my first book and my editor told me that I had, in fact, written a romance. (With a writing background in screenplays, I’d described Just the Sexiest Man Alive as a “romantic comedy.”) So for the past two years, I’ve been doing a lot of catch up. What a pleasure it has been to have found my way to this wonderful genre.
So as I sit back now and think about the books I’ve read this year, I realize that picking my favorites is nearly an impossible task. 2009 was a great reading year for me, and I know that as soon as this blog posts, I’ll remember a book—or several—that I forgot to mention. But here are a few that really stood out to me:
Angels’ Blood by Nalini Singh: Newbie that I am to romance in general, I’m even more of a newbie to paranormal romance. But this book instantly turned me into a Nalini Singh fan. The world-building. The details. Just the descriptions of the angels’ wings alone are incredible. The hero. (Oh yeah, he’s an archangel.) And the climax. . . so visual and breathtaking, I think I was reading with my jaw on the floor. The next book in the series, Archangel’s Kiss, comes out in February and I can’t wait.
Fragile by Shiloh Walker: Dark, intense, and utterly compelling. Shiloh took the heroine and hero on one heck of an emotional roller coaster in this book, and I was right there with them. The hero’s twin brother’s book, Broken, comes out this March and—confession time—I’ve read it and think it’s just as gripping and suspenseful as Fragile. And it features a brooding, angst-y hero who definitely deserves a HEA.
Daring Time by Beth Kery: I’m such a fan of Beth Kery’s writing. Wicked Burn was the first erotic romance I read, and I was sold on Beth’s books after that. What I enjoy so much is that the stories, while sizzling hot, are incredibly romantic. The hero in Daring Time travels through time to save the heroine—what could be more devoted than that? Framing the story is a richly detailed setting—turn of the century Chicago—that made the book enjoyable on every level for me.
Lord of Scoundrels by Loretta Chase: I know, I know, what hole have I been in that I just read this in 2009? I thought this book couldn’t possibly live up to all the hype. It did. The scene—and I’ll be vague here for the last two people in Romanceland who haven’t read it—with Jessica and the gun? Priceless.
Beyond the Night by Joss Ware: Okay, so I’m cheating a little with this one, since it doesn’t come out until January 2010. But a little birdie slipped me an early copy of this book and I can’t help but include it in my favorite reads of the year. The world-building is, in a word, incredible. Post-apocalyptic romance with zombies and a Heroes-like twist. Ha—if I had a dime every time I read that. I stayed up late to finish the book because I simply couldn’t put it down. For something off the beaten path, yet still romantic, this is a series worth checking out.
In addition to the above, there are two non-romance books that have to be included in my favorite reads of 2009. First, The Help by Kathryn Stockett—a poignant, sometimes bittersweet, but ultimately rewarding and uplifting story about three women from different walks of life who find unexpected strength in each other, and more important, in themselves. This is one of those books you want to tell all your friends about after finishing it.
Second, Labor Day by Joyce Maynard. Frankly, I wasn’t expecting much from this book. I got it for free at the RWA conference and picked it up on whim over Labor Day weekend. How glad I am that I did. It’s a quick read about love and adolescence and the human need to connect with others and, in the end, is sweetly romantic. This book is probably the one that surprised me most this year because it turned out to be so much more than I expected.
Which leads me to my question. . . of the books you read this year, which one surprised you most? (Hopefully one that surprised you in a good way.) In the spirit of Smugglivus, I’ll give away signed copies of both Practice Makes Perfect and Just the Sexiest Man Alive to one random commenter.
Happy reading!
Julie’s next book, Something About You, will be released by Berkley on March 2, 2010. To read an excerpt, visit Julie’s Website.
Thanks Julie!!
********
Giveaway details:
Go forth and comment! The contest is open to EVERYONE and will run until Saturday, December 12 at 11:59pm (PST). To enter, simply leave a comment here. ONE entry per person, please! Duplicate and/or multiple entries will be disqualified. Good Luck!
sharing is caring
73 Responses to Smugglivus Day 7 – Guest Author (And Giveaway): Julie James
Leave a Reply
Subscribe
Meredith Duran’s novels surprised me the most this year. I didn’t think they could live up to the hype but I was proved wrong, well and truly! Loved them.
This sounds like a series that will intrest my book club, which has recently discovered romantic comedy/chic lit.
enyl(at)inbox(dot)com
Hi Julie!
One book that really surprised me was Catching Fire, I couldn’t believe how good it was or that I read it start to finish in one evening, really blew me away!
Thanks for sharing some of your finds and for a great giveaway!
Dottie
Someone else mentioned this above…but the books that suprised me the most were the Vampire Academy. I thought it was just going to be another vampire book that was like all the rest. However they were amazing! I thought they were new and original and I love them now!
I know this one has been mentioned already but my most surprising book of the year was The Hunger Games. It sat in my TBR pile for so long because despite the good reviews I’d read I still wasn’t sure if it was something I wanted to read. When I finally did pick it up it wasn’t long before I finished it. It’s definitely gripping.
The book that surprised me was Sugar Daddy by Lisa Kleypas. I love her historicals and didn’t think I’d like her contemporary books but I was so wrong!
The book that surprised my most was The Winter Sea by Susanna Kearsley – so good, right from the first page! If I was going to pick another one it would have been The Hunger Games. All that hype doesn’t necessarily mean that I would love the book, but I did!
Thanks for the chance!
The one book that I read that surprised me most was Something Borrowed. I didn’t really think it was my kind of book. But it turned out to be very good, and I’m glad that I read it. Please enter me. Thanks!
ayancey(at)dishmail(dot)net
Patricia Briggs’ Hunting Ground surprised me; I wasn’t expecting it to be part of a series, and I found it so compelling I had to immediately search for the other ones to buy.
I was surprised that I thought Lisa Kleypas’s Smooth Talking Stranger was only okay. I liked the first two books in the series, but number 3 missed the mark.
I read a Christmas anthology and I loved it! What suprised me was the fact that I loved it, because I’m not usually an anthology person.
The book that surprised me the most this year is Graceling by Kristin Cashore. Normally, I stay away from books like that (which are heavy with fantasy elements) but I just fell in love with this book!
Thanks for the giveaway! I would love to win Julie James’ books – they look fun fun fun!
I have a deplorable habit of judging books by their covers… and ebooks seem to have worse covers than most. So I was pleasantly surprised by a great read in The Polyamorous Princes by Melodee Aaron.
Thank you for the giveaway – Miranda
Kim Harrison’s “White Witch, Black Curse,” was the book that surprised me most this year. Harrison’s series is one I read and enjoy quite a bit. This is her best one to date. The way she solved a major plot question was surprising, and both satisfying and gut-wrenching. Good question. Thanks for the contests.
It was definitely The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. I had read some buzz online about it but didn’t really pay attention. Then, when I did read it, I was blown away. This is one of the best YA series out there at the moment. Much better than the Twilight Saga, IMO.
The House of Night books by Cast surprised me. I picked them up not expecting much except for a quick read and ended up devouring the entire series.
Hurrah!
I was hugely surprised by RJ Anderson’s ‘Knife’, which I thought would be a sweet but fairly simple story and turned out to deal with some pretty huge questions – I read it six months ago and I still keep thinking about the ending and what it means.
Annie Solomon was a new author for me and I really enjoyed Dead Ringer.
Mistborn by Brian Sanderson was a welcome suprise to me. I usually have a hard time reading fantasy, but was intrigued from the start!
Thanks,
Robyn
Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson was a welcome suprise to me. I usually have a hard time reading fantasy, but was intrigued from the start!
Thanks,
Robyn
[...] Can you figure out what the amorphous holiday cookies at Julie James’ blog are supposed to be? Guess by 8 pm CST, December 13, for your chance to win a $25 B&N gift certificate. Speaking of Julie James, she’s over at the Book Smugglers, too – comment by 11:59 pm PST, December 12, for your chance to win signed copies of her excellent romances, Practice Makes Perfect and Just the Sexi…. [...]
I can’t believe you’re not planiyg with me–that was so helpful.