Today is the first of the Joyfully Jay Best of 2012 posts. Over the next two weeks, each of our reviewers will be sharing their favorites books from this year. Enjoy!
What a spectacular year for great books in every genre from historical to fantasy! I have read so many great books and series this year that it is hard to even begin to narrow down the list, although I have tried. What makes a book great for me? So many things, that it needs its own list.
The books I listed here are ones that moved me to tears and made me laugh out loud. They took me to places I have never been to see sights fantastic, miraculous, and awe inspiring. I have watched dragons soar and seen twin suns set over alien worlds. Through these wonderful authors I have met people who continue to stay with me through the power of their stories and the connectedness that I feel with each of the characters I have read about. Sometimes the books have taught me something about myself and how I looked at others or just gave me a deeper appreciation for my fellow beings.
I have grieved with men who have lost their soul mates, been with them as they worked through the trauma and loss, and celebrated as they moved forward with their lives. I watched men fall in love, whether it be with shifters, wizards, or just a man they met on the side of the road. Love lost, love found, or lovers rediscovering the best about each other…that seems to know no boundaries as far as who you are and what world you inhabit. It doesn’t even matter whether the story is set in the past or goes far into the future. The authors and books listed here are ones that I cherish and return to often to visit with them once more. If you haven’t already read them, I hope you will add them to your list of must reads, as they are surely mine.
Oh, and by the way, this list is not complete. There are some wonderful books still to be released in the last two weeks of December, and there are some that I just missed from my own reviews. Really there is something for everyone here. Happy reading!
Favorite Historical
- All Lessons Learned series by Charlie Cochrane
- The Celestial by Barry Brennessel
- The Mystery of Ruby Lodeby Scotty Cade
Favorite Short Story
- Eight Days by Cardeno C
- Fair Puckled by Bella Leone
- Lily by Xavier Axelson
- Leather Work and Lonely Cowboys by BA Tortuga
- Too Careful by Half by BA Tortuga
Favorite Contemporary
- A Foreign Range by Andrew Grey
- Acceleration by Amelia C. Gormley
- But My Boyfriend Is by KA Mitchell
- Chase the Stars by Ariel Tachna
- Cherish by Tere Michaels
- Fall Into the Sun by Val Kovalin
- Fallout by Ariel Tachna
- Frat Boy and Toppy by Anne Tenino
- Full Circle by RJ Scott
- Good Bones by Kim Fielding
- Hope by William Neale
- Inherit the Sky by Ariel Tachna
- Legend of the Apache Kid by Sarah Black
- Marathon Cowboys by Sarah Black
- Mine by Mary Calmes
- Play It Again, Charlie by RC Cooper
- Second Hand by Heidi Cullinan and Marie Sexton
- Scrap Metal by Harper Fox
- Shattered Glass by Dani Alexander
- Sidecar by Amy Lane
- Stars & Stripes by Abigail Roux
- The Cool Part of His Pillow by Rodney Ross
- The Journal of Sanctuary One by RJ Scott
- The Melody Thief by Shira Anthony (also Best Series)
- Who We Are by TJ Klune
Favorite First Novels
- The Cool Part of His Pillow by Rodney Ross
- Shattered Glass by Dani Alexander
- Inertia by Amelia C. Gormley
Favorite Paranormal
- A Token of Time by Ethan Day
- Crucible of Fate by Mary Calmes
- Druid Stone by Heidi Belleau and Violetta Vane
- Ghosts in the Wind by Marguerite Labbe
- Hawaiian Gothic by Heidi Belleau and Violetta Vane
- Life After Death by Andrea Speed
- Prey by Andrea Speed
- Riot Boy by Katey Hawthorne
- The Gravedigger’s Brawl by Abigail Roux
Favorite Science Fiction
- Emerald Fire by A. Catherine Noon and Rachel Wilder
- The Trust by Shira Anthony and Venona Keyes
Favorite Fantasy Books/Fantasy Series
- A Sky Full of Wings by M. Raiya
- Black Magic by Megan Derr
- Lost Gods series by Megan Derr
- Magic’s Muse by Anne Barwell
Favorite Series (with new books this year)
- A Matter of Time series by Mary Calmes
- A Change of Heart series by Mary Calmes
- Blue Notes series by Shira Anthony
- Cambridge Fellows series by Charlie Cochrane
- Cut & Run series by Abigail Roux (and Madeleine Urban)
- Faith, Love & Devotion series by Tere Michaels
- Infected series by Andrea Speed
- Jewel Bonds series by Megan Derr
- Knitting series by Amy Lane
- Lost Gods series by Megan Derr
- Sanctuary series by RJ Scott
- Sci Regency series by JL Langley
- Wick series by Megan Derr
Favorite Anthologies
- Animal Magnetism
- Lashings of Sauce
- Making Contact
- Two Tickets to Paradise
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