The kids over on TikTok are doing this thing where they list books they'll accept no criticism on, and I thought I'd bandwagon. Now, I'm not saying everyone isn't entitled to their own opinions. You totally are. It's perfectly fine for you to dislike any of the books I'm about to list. But if you do, just know that I'm not going to listen. Like, at all. Because to me, these books are perfect, just as they are:  

If you've loved the runaway bride trope since the 1999 Julia Roberts/Richard Gere movie (or, if you're a little more, um, mature than that and have loved it since Sally Field ran to Burt Reynolds in Smokey and the Bandit back in  1977), then THIS is the list you've been waiting for: 

I'll admit that I'm not normally an activity book kind of person. But this book...this book is PERFECTION. With the world in the state that it's in (*gestures to, well, EVERYTHING*), I've had trouble with my attention span. I'm finding it difficult to sit still through television and movies, and even books. So, when this activity book came along, it was like the author (Lucy Eden, who is FABULOUS and I totally recommend her romance novels, too) was reading my mind and delivered exactly what I needed, exactly when I needed it. It's a perfect escape that let's you indulge in your love of the romance genre without having to commit large chunks of time. It has romance novel themed word searches, cross words, coloring and mad libs. I'm only halfway through the book and I've already had soooooooo much fun with it. So, do yourself a favor and grab your copy of this little gem RIGHT NOW.  Where else can you get hours of entertainment and clever activities for less than you probably paid for lunch? (Probably A LOT less, considering the price of groceries and all. But I digress.) Trust me. You won't regret the purchase. 

Look, no shade to the author of this tweet (she did eventually remove it and apologize for unintentionally insulting the genre), but if you think the only authors of great, fun, good quality, hot contemporary romance are Talia Hibbert (who is admittedly awesome) and Emily Henry, then you need to branch out and read more. Specially, maybe step out of traditional publishing, because there are amazing indie and self-published authors out there writing books that readers can't get enough of. So, for today's list, I'm going to divide them up by categories. (Authors, see Sophia directly to collect your winnings) Here we go: 

So, you've just binge read everything Lucy Score has to offer, and now you're wondering what to do with your life until her next book comes out. Fear not--I've got you. I can give you enough recommendations for hot, hilarious, quirky romances that give off plenty of Lucy Score vibes to hold you over until it's new release time. Here are just a few:  

Look, real life is horrible. We all know that. So, it should surprise NO ONE that monster romance is rising in popularity. I mean, who wouldn't want to read about a relatable heroine getting her happily ever after with a sweet, attentive monster who treats her like a queen and makes human men look like scum? With that in mind, here are some of my favorite can-do-no-wrong monster romance heroes who are too sweet (like precious, delicious cinnamon rolls) for the real world:  

The premiere of The Last of Us on HBO was probably the best premiere of I've ever seen. It was soooooo good. And I've been obsessed with the show ever since it aired. It was my love for the show that made me go down a rabbit hole looking for great post apocalypse/zombie/dystopian romances and sadly, I found a lot of stuff that was kinda terrible. BUT, I was lucky enough to also find some real gems. Here are my faves: 

I only recently discovered that warm, low-angst romances that radiated nothing but joy and good vibes and had very little strife between protagonists had an official name. Those romances are now called cozy romances, and I ADORE them. Here are a few (only a few, because I have TONS) of my faves: 

2022 was...not always great for the bookish community. I'm hoping that 2023 will be MUCH better. So, with that in mind, here's some stuff that if it were to disappear, would make 2023 the best bookish year yet:  

You know all those "best of" lists that are nothing but Colleen Hoover books with a few Nicholas Sparks reads thrown in? This isn't one of those lists. Not that there's anything wrong with CoHo and Nicholas Sparks (if you're into that kind of thing). I'm just sick and tired of every list everywhere being dominated by them when there are a TON of great reads out there that deserve more love every day. Here are but a few of my favorites from 2022:    

Don't know what the weather is like where you are right now, but here in the US Midwest, we're in the middle of Snowmaggedon, complete with subzero temps and wind chill factors that will kill you if you're outside more than a few minutes a time. So, with that in mind, here are some hot holiday romances you can curl up with to help you get through whatever crappy winter weather you're experiencing at the moment: 

Noticed that the Fated Mates podcast did a twins in romance discussion the other day, and realized I hadn't yet done a list of twin romances, which is super weird, because I've always loved that trope! (Except for when it happens in soap operas and no one realizes there's an evil twin and good twin. But I digress...) Many of the books on their list also make MY list, because obviously they have great taste in novels. But anyhoo, here are my top picks for twin romances: 

Look, I know the logical time for a monster romance list would've been at Halloween. But hey, October (and fine, November) got away from me, so here we are. And frankly, the world is no less awful now than it was in October, so can't we all use a little monster romance escapism right about now??? (That's my story and I'm sticking to it) Anyhoo, here are some cool monster romances. You know...if you're into that kind of thing. (If you know you know):   

I didn't know I needed a hot Frankenstein's monster in my life until I read this book, y'all. Now I know...

There are few things I love more in romance novels than quirky, weird, wild heroines and the stoic, brooding, often grumpy heroes who inevitably fall for them. With that in mind, here are some of my all-time faves in contemporary romance and rom coms: