2015 YEAR-END REVIEW: Tracy

It’s that time of the year! When we review 2015’s reading experience…

TRACY

FAVORITE BOOK OF THE YEAR: 

“The Secret Casebook of Simon Feximal” by KJ Charles

Wonderful and riveting paranormal yarn with delicious tension between the MCs. I wouldn’t mind another journal by Robert Caldwell turning up to reveal a few more adventures…

4.5 & 5 STAR BOOKS READ IN 2015:

UNDERHYPED BOOK OF THE YEAR

(Why haven’t more people read this?):

I would say Family of Lies: Sebastian which was a very original, very overflowing fantasy novel, but it’s one that I think is not for every fantasy fan. It really reminded me of Diana Wynne Jones, but with more men kissing men. It’s is quite stuffed to the brim with characters, which may be a turn-off for some, but I found it quite the ride once I got into it. Safe Passage was also a delightful lesbian romance novella that I found light and fun.

OVERHYPED BOOK OF THE YEAR

(What’s all the fuss about?):

For me, it’s two books by two authors I heart dearly. I’m a die-hard Josh Lanyon fan, but Jefferson Blythe, Esquire was not my fave of her releases, partially because I had a hard time empathizing with the young (and IMO) clueless narrator who at times obsessed more about a kiss than the murderers chasing him. I think I’ll stick to Lanyon’s beyond New Adult characters (although The Ghost Wore Yellow Socks’ young Perry is still one of my fave Lanyon heroes.)

Two, would be A Fashionable Indulgence by KJ Charles (the author of my fave book of the year.) I like gay regency, but this one felt less fiery and had less tension than some of her other works, and I got stuck in the middle. That said, I am looking forward to book 3…

BEST SURPRISE OF THE YEAR

(didn’t know what to expect or the story caught you off guard or anything that just…surprised you…):

Fanfic was probably the biggest surprise since I found myself so busy in 2015, it was so hard to allow myself to sink into a relaxing story, and surprisingly, fanfic provided the calm respite my mind was looking for. I dove into the small collection of Jeeves and Wooster fanfic (some faves by TheHoyden, Blackletter, and brief_serendipity) as well as some good Inception titles (the very AU Next Big Thing, and more from TheHoyden.) TheHoyden is a great writer and I kind of wish I could prod them into writing original fiction (unless they already are….)

It was also nice to see some more asexual romances come out this year. This GoodReads list is slowly growing!

AUTO-BUY AUTHORS

(I’d buy anything these authors write, without a doubt):

Astrid Amara
KJ Charles
Megan Derr
Ginn Hale
Lou Harper
Nicole Kimberling
Josh Lanyon
Jordan Castillo Price

MY READING EXPERIENCE IN 2015:

For me, it was a very light reading year. Not counting fanfic, I did not make my goal of 60 books—I also started a bunch of books that I didn’t finish. I had a hard time concentrating and relaxing and really sinking into a good book. This month, I started to pick up reading more published works, and it’s been nice to relax and reacquaint with the love of reading a good romance. :-D

The other big part of my experience this year was organizing the 2015 Gay Romance Northwest Meet-Up for its third year, and one of my personal highlights was to meet fellow writers from BioB, including the amazing Susan, who is a national treasure and was part of the 2015 keynote address “Read with Pride.” It was a joy to meet everyone, and connect with readers and writers from across the LGBTQ romance genre. (You can read some of what people shared that day over at Queer Romance Month.) I feel so lucky to have met so many wonderful people who share the joy of books and reading. It was really inspiring!

What I’m looking forward to in my 2016 reading journey:

More relaxed reading and catching up on my large, endless backlog of books on my Kindle. :-) A few upcoming titles I’m looking forward to are Heidi Cullinan’s Clockwork Heart (yay steampunk!), KJ Charles’ Rag and Bone, and Dirty Heart, the last in Rhys Ford’s Cole McGinnis series.

And I’m looking forward to whatever stories come out in the first GRNW LGBTQ romance story anthology. If you are interested, submissions are due March 31, 2016, and we’re aiming to publish by late summer 2016! :D