I tend to read about 35 books a year for the past few years. This past year, I read and especially enjoyed:
- The Jaguar Knight by Ann Aguirre
- Clean Sweep, Sweep In Peace, and One Fell Sweep by Ilona Andrews
- Enemy Storm by Marcella Burnard
- Only Bad Options by Jennifer Estep
- The Lotus Palace and The Jade Temptress by Jeannie Lin
- Hunt the Stars by Jessie Mihalik
- Once Upon a Marquess by Courtney Milan
These were all genre novels: paranormal, Victorian historical, science fiction in space, and Tang dynasty historicals. Not in that order. I already knew I mostly remember novels that aren’t in simple popular genres, especially within romance. Some heavy topics show up in these books: torture, assault, temporary disability, and the Opium War. I like pure fluff sometimes, but less in my novels than in webtoons, it seems.
Last summer, I fell down a webtoon rabbit hole. I practically inhaled these, and wow they were tropey and fluffy. Good for when I needed a distraction, but also gave me good feelings. Here are the ones that stayed with me beyond the reading:
- Another Typical Fantasy Romance
- Marriage of Convenience
- Marriage and Sword
- Pick Me, My Queen
- The Not-Sew-Wicked Stepmom
- Straight to the Red Carpet
- Roxana
- Villainess in Love
These are all swords and sorcery with lords and ladies. Some of them have light novels but the art makes things go right down. My substitute for television, really.