Today is the release day for 2 amazing books -- Sweet Venom and Vanish.
To celebrate this, Tera Lynn Childs and Sophie Jordan are here today to share some of their favorite romantic novels.
Favorite Romantic Novels Favorite Romantic Books by Tera Lynn Childs
Romantic books have been such a big part of my life and my career, it’s hard to narrow this down to a manageable list. I have about fifty romances on my forever keepers shelves. But if I have to pick some favorites, here goes:
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I first read this in my freshman Lit Hum class at Columbia and it turned my world upside-down. Here was a book I loved—swoon, Darcy, swoon—and it was considered important enough to be studied in an Ivy League literature class. This is the moment that I realized a book can be both popular and important. And a romance novel, to boot.
The Magic of You by Johanna Lindsey. When I first decided to try this whole writing thing, I literally devoured the romance section at my local bookstore. Johanna Lindsey was my first auto-buy author. She is the master of The Moment, that line that just takes your breath away. In this book, it’s Warren (after Amy’s been chasing him the entire book) saying, “You can’t give up on me!”
The Duke and I by Julia Quinn. I cannot begin to describe in a few sentences how much I love this book. It is just one of the most powerful romances I’ve ever read. Julia Quinn is genius at creating characters who absolutely cannot possibly make it work, and then making it work. Simon and Daphne are a close second to Darcy and Elizabeth for my favorite romantic couple of all time. I dare anyone to read this book and not cry a dozen times. I always do.
Favorite Romantic Books by Sophie Jordan
What’s my favorite romantic book!?!?! Wow – that’s like asking a food junkie to pick her fav dish (which would be tough for me, too)! There are just so many choices – especially since romance has been my favorite genre for so long. Okay, here’s my list: The Magic of You by Johanna Lindsey. It’s a historical romance featuring one of the strongest, take-charge heroines ever! It’s really a stand-out historical romance. When I first read it years ago it felt so new and fresh. And when I reread it now, I can still say the same thing. It has that universal, timeless appeal.
Second choice would probably be … Gentle Rogue by Johanna Lindsey. Another historical romance. The books are connected, too. I just love the tension of a girl disguising herself as a boy. Oh, the fireworks when the truth is revealed! Hm, contemporary romance would have to go to Susan Elizabeth Phillips’s Nobody’s Baby But Mine. It features an outrageous premise … but is an amazingly emotional and very “real” story. My favorite romantic suspense novel is Linda Howard’s Open Season – it has the perfect balance of suspense and romance, but at its core it’s an ugly duckling story. I know these qualify as my favorites because they’re all books I’ve read multiple times. That’s always my gauge.
As for young adult novels … hm, there are so many where the romance is really strong and at the core. They might as well be called a young adult romance. I’ll choose The Body Finder by Kimberly Derting and Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins. Both books have some hot boys and empathetic, likeable heroines. But it’s no easy road to a happily ever after for these characters. Just like in the adult romance books I listed above, you get tons of agonizing conflict. And in the meantime tons of tension and steamy chemistry that sizzles on every page. These are the titles that pop in my head right off the bat … but ask me a year from now and I’m sure I’ll have new titles to add.
Vanish by Sophie Jordan
Publisher: HarperTeen (September 6th, 2011)
Reading Level: Young Adult
Hardback: 304 pages
Series: Firelight #2
To save the life of the boy she loves, Jacinda did the unthinkable: She betrayed the most closely-guarded secret of her kind. Now she must return to the protection of her pride knowing she might never see Will again—and worse, that because his mind has been shaded, Will’s memories of that fateful night and why she had to flee are gone.
Back home, Jacinda is greeted with hostility and must work to prove her loyalty for both her sake and her family’s. Among the few who will even talk to her are Cassian, the pride’s heir apparent who has always wanted her, and her sister, Tamra, who has been forever changed by a twist of fate. Jacinda knows that she should forget Will and move on—that if he managed to remember and keep his promise to find her, it would only endanger them both. Yet she clings to the hope that someday they will be together again. When the chance arrives to follow her heart, will she risk everything for love?
In bestselling author Sophie Jordan’s dramatic follow-up to Firelight, forbidden love burns brighter than ever.
Sweet Venom by Tera Lynn Childs Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books (September 6th, 2011) Reading Level: Young Adult Hardcover: 352 pages Series: Sweet #1 Grace just moved to San Francisco and is excited to start over at a new school. The change is full of fresh possibilities, but it’s also a tiny bit scary. It gets scarier when a minotaur walks in the door. And even more shocking when a girl who looks just like her shows up to fight the monster.
Gretchen is tired of monsters pulling her out into the wee hours, especially on a school night, but what can she do? Sending the minotaur back to his bleak home is just another notch on her combat belt. She never expected to run into this girl who could be her double, though.
Greer has her life pretty well put together, thank you very much. But that all tilts sideways when two girls who look eerily like her appear on her doorstep and claim they're triplets, supernatural descendants of some hideous creature from Greek myth, destined to spend their lives hunting monsters.
These three teenage descendants of Medusa, the once-beautiful gorgon maligned by myth, must reunite and embrace their fates in this unique paranormal world where monsters lurk in plain sight.
Sophie and Tera Lynn’s upcoming tour stops:
September 7 @ 7 PM Blue Willow Bookshop Houston, TX September 8 @ 7 PM Books & Co Dayton, OH September 9 @ 7 PM Magic Tree Bookstore Chicago, IL October 1 Austin Teen Book Festival Austin, TX
The next blog tour stop: Thursday, September 8 – The Bookish Brunette About the authors:
Tera Lynn Childs (Authora neo) is a newly discovered species of author fish who always dreamed of being a mermaid, but never got closer than a career as a competitive swimmer. She loves to spend as much time as possible in and around water (right up until her fingertips turn all pruney) in the vain hope that one day her legs will magically turn into fins. When stuck on land, Authora neo can be found writing in coffee shops across the country, prowling for cool mermaid gear on Etsy, and spending way too much time online. Visit her at http://teralynnchilds.com. Sophie Jordan grew up in the Texas hill country where she wove fantasies of dragons, warriors, and princesses. A former high school English teacher, she's also the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of Avon historical romances. She now lives in Houston with her family. When she's not writing, she spends her time overloading on caffeine (lattes and Diet cherry Coke preferred), talking plotlines with anyone who will listen (including her kids), and cramming her DVR with true-crime and reality-TV shows. Sophie also writes paranormal romances under the name Sharie Kohler. Visit her at www.sophiejordan.net.