Kate Clayborn

Best Books to Read Now - January 2020

Reminder/ Caveat/ Disclaimer: This is my (hopefully) monthly list of books I’ve read and enjoyed. These are not reviews, I do not include books I didn’t enjoy because life is too short to speak badly of books!

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Welcome to the Best Books to Read Now Book Club! My (hopefully) monthly blog featuring my reading list, my TBR pile and the books I think you and your best friends should be reading. 

If you’re not sure whether you’ll agree with  my recommendations, check out my blog post on My Reader Wheels and my podcast, Women With Books . Those should help you decide if you’re going to be into my recommendations.

The best book club recommendations for you and your friends!

The best book club recommendations for you and your friends!

I want to cry, y’all.

First, take a moment to look at those books. The past few months have been a GOOOOOOOD time to read books.

So there’s that. These are all awesome books and there’s a genre here for everyone.

But then I realized.

Lauren.

Mia.

Julia.

Kate.

These women… well, I might be slightly presumptuous to call them all friends but I. KNOW. THEM. I’ve hung out with everyone but Mia and only because she lives very very far away. But I’ve talked to Mia (here) (And Julia HERE) (and Kate HERE) (and Lauren HERE) and I can tell you these women are LEGIT.

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They have it all. They’re talented, intelligent, funny, interesting and DAMN GOOD AUTHORS.

Don’t believe them. They TOTALLY KNOW ME.

Don’t believe them. They TOTALLY KNOW ME.


A Beastly Kind of Earl - Mia Vincy
Amazon || Apple Books

The MUCH anticipated second book from Ms. Vincy, it’s loosely connected to her award winning debut last year, A Wicked Kind of Husband. This book was also charming in UN-anticipated ways, funny and bright and sparkling, in a refreshing Beauty and the Beast take.


Love Lettering - Kate Clayborn
Amazon || Apple Books

What can I say about this book that hasn’t been said? It’s a romance, but it’s also a book about friendship and New York City and discovery. And the beauty of letters. It’s sweeter than you expect and understatedly sophisticated, but that’s Kate Clayborn for you.

The Whispers of War - Julia Kelly
Amazon || Apple Books

Now I think I CAN call Julia a friend, since I’ve helped her remove a hedgehog from her laundry room. I mean, if that doesn’t say ride or die, what does? This is also a MUCH anticipated book, the second historical fiction from Ms. Kelly. Once again, she takes a smaller, unknown story about women from World War II and brings it to life in heartbreaking and heartwarming ways.

Marriage on Madison Avenue - Lauren Layne
Amazon || Apple Books

IT IS HERE! I just included the 2nd book in this series in November and the third installment is here! This is a friends to lovers romance, which (to be 100% honest) is NOT my usual catnip. BUT Ms. Layne surrounds the couple with enough external conflict (and has made us wait for this story for SO LONG) that it worked for me!!

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I love this life. I love my JOB! I get to befriend fabulous women who are ALSO amazing authors and then I get to tell everyone to buy their books?!

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And now for a completely different note. I’ve mentioned it on Instagram briefly but I made a quarterly resolution to NOT BUY ANY MORE BOOKS.

I know.

Yes, I’ve been examined by doctors. Several, in fact.

But I bought A LOT of books in the last few months of 2019. And people keep sending them to me! And last month I just looked at my TBR pile and I said, I want to focus on all the amazing books I have stored up.

I’m not saying it won’t be hard, but I’m really really excited by this. So for the next three months (because my March reads might be in April’s BEST BOOKS BLOG), you should only see older releases OR the books I’ve been sent by publishers to review/ blurb.

Me snuggling up with my TBR pile!!!

Me snuggling up with my TBR pile!!!

As always, I’ll be talking more about the books I don’t finish and why I think they didn’t connect with me in my newsletter this month.

Do you like books on sale?
Make sure you’re following me on Facebook because that’s where I post great books on sale!

And what about you?
I’d love to hear what you’ve read and loved lately or what you’re looking forward to reading next!  If you want these book recommendations (and a sneak peek at my TBR list and advanced reading copies) sent straight to your inbox, remember to sign up for my newsletter where I’ll be including all the best book club recommendations throughout 2020!

Looking for a Great Read?

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Argh! Because of my responsibilities judging RITA entries, I wasn’t able to get together my usual Best Books list this month.
 

So I thought I’d highlight some of the books I’ve been talking about on the Women With Books podcast.  Almost all my recent guests (and some more distant ones) have had new releases and/or sales.

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Kate Clayborn’s award winning BEGINNER’S LUCK is on sale for $.99!  Try out the book that was nominated for Romantic Times 2017 Book of the Year! 

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Megan Frampton’s  LADY BE RECKLESS which we talked about in the most recent episode of WWB has just released, if you're in the mood for a historical romance series loosely based on the Bennet sisters.

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Alyssa Cole’s A PRINCESS IN THEORY, which we discussed in Chapter 16 is earning raves everywhere. If you are craving more modern royal romance, check it out.

 

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Past superstar guest Penny Reid has a new book out this week: Marriage of Inconvenience!  I'm pretty sure it's a marriage of convenience story, though, so be warned. ;-)

 

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And the lovely Tessa Dare has her LARP-ing historical romance book on sale: ROMANCING THE DUKE (the reason why we talked about LARP-ing and fan-fic on her episode)

And if you’re looking for more recommendations, as always, check out the books recommended by Women With Books guests on my  Goodreads Women With Books Bookshelf. I love that my guests bring a huge diversity of recommendations to the pod, from classics to science fiction and erotic romance. There's something for every book lover, for sure. 

Next month, I will be back with more of my personal list. Until then, keep reading!

 

Best Books to Read Now - October 2017

I didn’t post a list of books last month because for several strange reasons, I was overlapping a bunch of these – hence a bunch of books to recommend in October! WHeee!

 

The Look of Love – Julia Kelly

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I was very lucky to get to read an early copy of this and once again, I’m blown away by Julia’s sweet, smart, sexy prose in the first book of this new historical romance series with a MATCHMAKER in SCOTLAND!! (I know, you just one-clicked that, right?)

Buy THE LOOK OF LOVE at Amazon || iBooks

King of the Sea – Madame de Boudoir

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Out today! This is a paranormal erotic romance novella that made me gasp and laugh, too. Madame’s voice is fresh, intoxicatingly creative and the start of what should be an unforgettable new series featuring mermaids/ mermen and their loves through history.

Buy KING OF THE SEA at Amazon || iBooks

The Alice Network – Kate Quinn

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Pretty much a non-fiction book disguised as fiction with effortless, suspenseful, thrilling prose. I’m obsessed with lady spies and recommending this to everyone.

Buy at Amazon || iBooks

Beard in Mind – Penny Reid

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Another Winston Brothers installment, this time featuring the good-looking and good-natured Beau and the surly and sexy mechanic Shelly. We caught a glimpse of this couple in Cletus’ book and their story of overcoming illness to find love and family will kill you in a good way.

Buy at Amazon

 

Beginner’s Luck – Kate Clayborn

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A debut that left me laughing, crying, and with a hurting tummy (from nerves! Were these two crazy kids going to work out?). For those who love STEM heroines, HGTV home renovation shows and real, fun contemporary romance. I’ve got Kate coming up on Women With Books next week so make sure you subscribe to hear our very cool conversation.

Pick it up at Amazon || iBooks

Unfortunately, I also had a DNF (did not finish) this month. It broke my heart to do as it’s not in my essential nature to give up on a book.  Do you ever stop reading before a book is over? Or are you a push-through-til-the-end kind of reader?

And have you read any of the books that I’ve recommended? If you have (or do) please let me know what you think – either on my Lindsay Emory facebook page or my Women With Books podcast page. I’d love to discuss books and what makes you read til the very end.