As many of you have probably heard, Samhain Publishing is winding down operations and will be closing. It hasn’t been a great year for small publishers, and each one is a loss. But the Samhain situation is hitting me particularly hard. They are a publisher I have always adored. And more than that, a publisher who I could always rely on. When a book came out from Samhain, I could pretty much guarantee it would be a quality story with good editing and a well done cover. I still remember when the blog got big enough to make it on to their reviewer list. I was so thrilled and I gobbled so many books that they published.
Now just to clarify, Samhain is still open and will continue to publish books that are in their pipeline. But they are winding down operations and won’t be taking on anything new. So please keep checking out their books and don’t stop buying. I know the authors and the folks at the publisher really appreciate the sales.
So in the spirit of celebrating this publisher and all the joy their books have given me over the years, I have decided to share some of my absolute favorite Samhain books with you. Like I said, there is still time to purchase these. Just seeing them all is making me sad, but these are such wonderful stories I want you all to be able to enjoy them to. So here are some of my favorites. And click here to see all our reviews of Samhain books.
- Love Lessons series by Heidi Cullinan (and Clockwork Heart, and the Minnesota Christmas series, and Carry the Ocean, and the Special Delivery series, and A Private Gentleman. It is impossible to overestimate how many wonderful books this author has written with Samhain)
- So many things by Harper Fox! Some favorites include Cold Fusion, Brothers of the Wild North Sea, and Scrap Metal
- Enlightenment series by Joanna Chambers (plus The Dream Alchemist)
- Bend or Break series by Amy Jo Cousins
- Bad in Baltimore series and Florida series by K.A. Mitchell (including my all time favorite of hers, Collision Course)
- All the things by K.J. Charles, including the amazing A Charm of Magpies series, plus Jackdaw, and Think of England
- Adder by Ally Blue
- How to Train Your Dom in 5 Easy Steps by Josephine Myles (and the Hot Floor, and Handle With Care, and Barging In)
- Out of Focus by L.A. Witt
- Sanguine series by Lou Harper (and Last Stop)
- Men of Honor series by S.E. Jakes
- With or Without Him and Every Move He Makes by Barbara Elsborg
- The Tooth and Claw series by L.A. Witt
- Distance Between Us series by L.A. Witt
- Fall Hard by J.L. Merrow (and Hard Tail and Muscling Through)
- Forever in One Second by Finn Marlowe
- Family Man by Heidi Cullinan and Marie Sexton
- Sci-Regency series by J.L. Langley
- The Psychic and the Sleuth by Bonnie Dee and Summer Devon
- EPistols at Dawn by Z.A. Mayfield
These are only the tip of the iceberg of all the wonderful Samhain books I have read. I encourage you to check these out and to look at all our reviews of their books.
And if you have any favorites I missed, please share them in the comments!
That is sad news. And, yes, you’ve named a number of books and series that I’ve truly enjoyed. Thanks for passing along the news.
I just pre-ordered two more books and I’ve been waiting for the next AM Arthur book to be available for pre-order too. So sad for the company and the authors. I have loved many of their books over the years.
So many good books! And really beautiful print editions as well! I’m going to miss Samhain a lot!
If you love sci-fi, you need to get “The Song of Navigator” by Astrid Amara as well…
Oh yes, I haven’t read it but I have heard great things.
I’ll also mention folks here have loved AM Arthur’s Cost of Repairs series and books by Kaje Harper.
I am reading “The Song of the Navigator” now – halfway through and it is fantastic. Some really rough stuff happens but the writing, story, characters are great.
/It’s not only sad but also shocking. Samhain Publishing had been there since I first started reading M/M books back in 2007/2008 so it’s weird to think that they’re bowing out. On the positive side, it’s good that they’ve given notice long enough for people to continue buying the books they’ve published.
BTW, I just noticed that A LOT of those books are 40% off over at their site. (I think my wallet just gave me the stink-eye).
Yes! They are having a 40% off sale today. Just sayin’…
I agree with your comments that when you buy a Samhain book, it will be quality work.
I have taken advantage of their 29 February 40% offer today but will also be keeping this list handy to have a look at some of the titles I havent got
Oh noes! That is terrible news. Very sad to hear this! I love this publisher and their quirky product warnings.
Yes me too. So sad. I felt pangs when making this list, thinking of all the great books!
I agree that Samhain has always meant quality…some of my favorite books are from them. And beyond the sadness for all of us to lose a wonderful publishing company, it frightens me. Because if a quality producer like Samhain is having to close down, what does that mean for the genre in the future?
Oh no! I’ve bought many of their titles over the years. One of my favorites that I just re-read the other day is “Handyman” by Claire Thompson. Also “The Rebuilding Year” (and the sequel) by Kaje Harper is one of my all-time favorites. Good point about Samhain books being quality stories and well edited. I really can’t stand a book that’s not well edited–it’s so distracting and frustrating.
Oh yes, I have heard wonderful things about Kaje’s series. I am not familiar with the Handyman. I’ll have to check it out.
That is so sad. You already named a lot of my favorites but I want to recommend some others in addition : Kate Sherwood – Marc Of Cain, Cooper Davis – Boys Of Summer Series, Alex Beecroft – Shining In The Sun plus Captain’s Surrender, A.M. Arthur – Cost Of Repairs. Those are all 5 star reads in my opinion.
Thanks for sharing. I know Crissy adored the Cost of repairs books. FWIW, Boys of Summer is actually one of the giveaway books!