I love [almost] nothing more than a nice 'n' warm bath bomb bath, a steamy favorite mug of caffeinated hot chocolate, and a good [e]book in hand. Of course, I must add "almost" because I have a husband, children, and additional family whom I love more than anything ever. But only first to the bath bombs, books, and mugs of hot chocolate (this magical caffeinated kind), oh and... mustn't leave out writing... because I'm an author by trade.
In any given year, only a select number of books make it into my top favorites. What better time to reflect than right before we embark on a new year with new reading resolutions! If you haven't yet, now is a great time to add these recommendations to your To-be-Read list. Let's start, shall we? P.S. To jump right to the Amazon List, click here!
My Favorite Personal Works: Her Reverse Genus (Books 3 and 4)
I'm going to kick it off by sharing a series that's near and dear to me. The very one I wrote. These books are certainly a labor of love -- the products of sheer strong will and determination amidst the hardships I faced in 2019. Books three and four in my Her Reverse Genus series published in 2019, and I can share with confidence that of all the books I've written, these two are my current favorites. I grew as an author in 2019 and unlocked certain achievements, so to speak.
Expendable (Book Four) contains some of my strongest writing and story execution. And Resistant (Book Three) marks the "fun and games" portion of the otherwise tense overarching series plot. Both elements making these two my top personally-penned picks for 2019.
Favorite New One-Click Author: Ivy Fox
Ivy started as a traditional M/F romance author before she decided to cross over into the Reverse Harem Romance genre. From there, she quickly found her trope specialty -- breaking hearts and ruining sleep with her gripping, angsty love stories.
After reading Rotten Girl, the first book in her Rotten Love duet, I knew she was a writer I wanted to follow. It only took a couple more books to hook me to her style for good.
Get ready to add her to your one-click list!
Favorite New-to-Me Series: The Witch's Rebels
The dreaded "book slump" hit me hard in 2019. Seemed most books I picked up just didn't grab me or the writing wasn't on par with the quality I prefer. So I reached out to a few of my favorite reader friends and asked for help. Sarah Piper's The Witch's Rebels series was one of the many recommendations.
What sold me on trying the series, though, was a negative review where the displeased reader stated that the author often used flowery language to describe things like eye color, etc. To which I translated a different way and said to myself "Yes! Please 'show' me what type of brown eyes he has instead of simply telling me they're brown." Brown comes in a slew of shades after all. Amirite?
Sarah Piper did. not. disappoint. Her writing is on point. Her characters are delicious. The plot is gripping and engaging.
Most of all... I didn't lose interest after a few books.
The entire series is complete! Go grab 'em all!
Favorite Completed Series: Curse of the Gods by Jaymin Eve and Jane Washington
This series jumpstarted my love **obsession*cough*obsession** with Reverse Harem Romance. Imagine my excitement -- or, rather, debilitating sadness -- when the final book in the series released.
Jaymin and Jane did an amazing job with the finale. The series remains -- and likely will always remain -- my favorite Reverse Harem Romance to-date. As my induction into the genre, and the very reason I started writing, it will always hold a special place in my heart.
Not entirely sure what Reverse Harem Romance is? Like clumsy, silly heroines and delicious book boyfriends? I highly recommend this series!
Hidden Gem Favorite: All We Want by Anita Maxwell
Anita Maxwell is an indie author who I've been friends with from "across the pond" since I started my writing journey back in 2017. Even though we'd been friends -- both trying to build indie author careers in such a booming industry -- I hadn't read any of her books. Be it due to time restraints, or just being a terrible friend, I don't know. It just didn't happen. Until it did... and I was floored.
Such a fun, sweet, sexy "slow burn" Reverse Harem Romance read. Anita is an amazing writer, both mechanically and with her prose. The character story arcs are intricate and skilfully executed. The relationships are believable.
This book hits all those important things on my "All We Want" in a book checklist. Who knows, it might tick off your requirements too. Give it, or some of her other books a try!
Favorite Currently Ongoing Series: The Veil Diaries by B.L. Brunnemer
Ah yes, one of the most popular slow-burn Reverse Harem Romance series on the market right now. B.L. Brunnemer has won many readers' hearts over with her debut series, The Veil Diaries. Action-packed, sweet, and full of engaging twists and turns. My favorite thing, though, is not only experiencing the growth of the characters with each book, but witnessing the author's growth as well!
When the Dead Have it Easy is my favorite of the series so far. And the fact that I'm on the seventh book, and I haven't dropped the series, is another good indicator that it's one worth reading. That, plus B.L. promises the transformation from Young Adult to New Adult beginning in this seventh installment. And, in case you haven't figured it out yet, I'm all about that steam!
BONUS FAVORITES!
Reasonable Doubt was the only traditional male/female (not Reverse Harem, in other words) romance book that made it onto my favorites list this year! It's angsty. It's intense. It's delicious. It's also a serial, which is ultimately what drew me to one-click.
A lot of books talk about food. Maybe the heroine and her date go out to a fancy restaurant and there's mention of the dish they selected. Or perhaps one of the characters is a chef or a bartender.
Several Reverse Harem Romance authors came together in this unique cookbook anthology, where you can find the recipes for dishes and drinks mentioned in our books! What's even better, all proceeds go to Action Against Hunger!
Check the shopping grid below for a couple bonus-bonus writing-related books that I favored this year, too!
Well, "that's all she read" (heh, see what I did there?) for 2019. Actually, I read more than that. So, rather, "that's all she read and deemed worth of creating a blog post for."
I hope you find something new to try! Don't forget to let me know your thoughts in the comments. Did you like any of these books this year? Will you be trying any? What was your favorite 2019 Reverse Harem Romance read? Happy reading!