Romance of the Year? What’s your pick?
If AAR readers were picking the Goodreads Readers Choice Award for best romance of 2020, you’d pick The Switch by Beth O’Leary. (It’s currently beating Boyfriend Material by two votes in our poll.)
But many of you weren’t wowed with your options and said there were other books, not on the list, you loved more.
So, what’s your ONE choice for romance of the year? It must have been published in 2020 and have an HEA/HFN. And why did you pick it?
Go!
Wow. This won by a solid 10K margin. I’m… startled.
https://www.goodreads.com/choiceawards/best-romance-books-2020
I didn’t even know she was a romance author. I’m so out of the loop.
I saw that and was very surprised as well. It feels like it came out of nowhere. And I know we’ve had a long discussion on negative reviews lately (smile) but there is a reviewer on GR named Sophie who does an hysterical 1 star review which I have a feeling might be more entertaining than the book.
The reviewers name is Sophia, sorry.
Thanks, Carrie G, for this, I am in love with Sofia – going to go for her reviews to see what else she has to say.
Hilarious!
I’m never going to read the book, but her review of it is amazing.
Here it is for those inquiring minds!
Sofia’s review of From Mud and Trash (her words)
Thank you Dabney for posting the link, and a big thank you to Carrie G for sharing it in the first place!
That was the laugh I needed today! Hilarious!
That review is the best. Thank you for pointing it out!
I started reading Love Lettering by Kate Clayborn on the 31st of December 2019 when it appeared on my Kindle so I figured it didn’t count. Perhaps I took the instructions too literally, but that’s why I didn’t even consider it for the best contemporary romance of 2020. It certainly would have been a strong contender had that not been the case.
Contemporary romance: Can’t Help Falling by Cara Bastone. I really enjoyed the author’s debut novel, Just A Heartbeat Away, but I think I might have enjoyed the next in the series Can’t Help Falling even more. I don’t think it’s a stronger book, necessarily, it’s just that I was frustrated with both leads of Just A Heartbeat Away at times, whereas with Can’t Help Falling there weren’t that kind of moments at all. What made the book so very good for me is that even though it starts with a total communication mess-up, I found it to be such a wonderful ode to the importance of communication. Communication with yourself, with your friends, with your potential partner, and in the hero’s case with his much younger sister who he barely knows and whose guardian he has suddenly become. The hero and heroine communicate and keep communicating and it bears fruit. It is just lovely.
Historical romance: I’ve read 10 historical romances which were released this year. They were all pretty good, actually. My favorite was The Lord I Left by Scarlett Peckham. I found it to be a thematically refreshing book that touched me in a way that few other books this year have. Both Alice, a whipping house apprentice and Henry, a Methodist minister tasked with writing a report on how to deal with London’s sex workers, are compelling and sympathetic characters. They are opposites in many ways, and as they travel through the countryside in a forced proximity situation brought on by conspiring circumstances, they both end up affecting each other profoundly. Especially Henry goes through a lot of soul searching, but it does go both ways, and it’s deeply moving to witness. I found myself relating to Alice’s grief and worry as there’s been a lot of loss in my life in the last ten years or so, and the scene
The whole Secrets of Charlotte Street series is great, but this is my favorite of the trio.
The Roommate by Rosie Danan. I reread it and am looking forward to her next book also.
Contemp: Take A Hint, Dani Brown. It was a really strong year for contemporary romance though.
Historical: Confessions in B-Flat, The Care and Feeding of Waspish Widows, Uncovering the Merchant’s Secret.
YA: Daughters of Jubilation and These Violent Delights. YA ALSO had an extremely strong year, a stunning one.
Novels with romantic elements: Mexican Gothic, The Last Bathing Beauty
This is why I asked Dabney if my Top Ten list for the year could be a top 15 :p
I adore this time of year at AAR because all sorts of good stuff that has somehow slipped by me bubbles up to the top in the lists and comment sections. So yay!
It’s been a great reading year for me and there isn’t a single read that stands out as clearly “the best” but if I have to pick one it’s Boyfriend Material. It’s serious. It’s light. I’m still thinking about it months later. I’ve read it more than once this year. I’m thrilled that diverse characters are being read by mainstream audiences and Boyfriend Material is a great example for why. . . . but so are many of my “best of” choices this year:
Blue on Blue by Dal Maclean
Hazard & Somerset various 2020 titles by Gregory Ashe
Trouble with You by Sajni Patel
If I Never Met You by Mhairi McFarlane
Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall
Same Breath by Gregory Ashe
One to Watch by Kate Stayman-London
Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade
I have to say that vanilla contemporary romances (as opposed to romantic suspense or lgbtq?) have never been at the top of my lists generally but this year I really enjoyed several. Again, maybe it’s the diversity of the characters? And while I generally really love historicals, they’ve not been what I picked up to read this year e.g. I’ve yet to read the Mia Vincy or Evie Dunmore titles this year. So I’m busy making a list of everyone’s suggestions.
Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Quite a few of those are on my list as well :)
I enjoyed the storyline of Spoiler Alert but it was my first book by this author and for some reason I found it sometimes a little hard to follow along. I guess this means I am challenged by her writing style? For this reason, I have been hesitating to buy her previous books. I got Spoiler Alert from the library and might wait and check out the next in the series via library first (when it comes out).
I just read Gentleman Jim by Mimi Matthews and loved it. I am a big fan of hers. Not every book is an A read but IMO always a good read. I don’t think she has been reviewed here but is anyone else a fan?
It was reviewed here and received a C+ but the reviewer (Lisa) had love for Ms. Matthews’ smarts and writing style. I’m looking forward to reading it!
Yep, I gave it a C because I didn’t really like the hero. To each their own!
I also reviewed it & it hasn’t posted on the site yet. My grade is higher; I’m a fan. I loved Gentleman Jim!
Bench Player by Juliana Keys. It’s got the best combo of sports, sex, jokes, and chemistry.
That’s a good one!
I’d adored the first book, Team Player, of the Charleston Thrashers series, so this was a highly anticipated book for me. Fortunately it didn’t disappoint. It is excellent.
“Headliners” by Lucy Parker – London Celebrities #5
I forgot to explain why, so… I chose this one, among my 5 stars readings of this year, because it’s a lovely enemies to lovers story and I would re-read it any time. I also loved A heart of blood… by Milla Vane, but I would not re-read it. So, Headliners is my winning book this year. It was published in January, so I guess not many people would remember it.
I usually vote for my favorite funny romance as my favorite romance.
At the moment, with a month of reading left in the year, I have nothing at 5 stars and four 2020 releases tied at 4 stars:
Real Fake Love by Pippa Grant (contemporary)
Badger to the Bone by Shelly Laurenston (paranormal contemporary)
Headliners by Lucy Parker (contemporary)
First Comes Scandal by Julia Quinn (Georgian historical)
I really loved After Felix by Lily Morton. It is the third in a series and there were glimpses of the 2 main characters (Max and Felix) throughout the other 2 books that indicated that the two had been in a relationship that had gone wrong. After Felix was in 2 parts and we got to see what happened previously in part 1 then part 2 was about a second chance and building up the relationship again. Both characters showed a lot of growth along the way. I have read this book so many times now!
For any fans of Ms. Morton, she has a holiday book called Merry Measure coming out on Dec 2. Don’t know if is is full length or a novella but I will take any of her writing that I can get!
I loved After Felix too. It’s on my current Top 11, but is not in top spot!
IMO it’s the best of her interlinked 9 books.
I think After Felix is my #2 as I adore Rule Breaker. I also have a soft spot for Oz as it was the first book of hers that I read.
I think Merry Measures is a full length book (I’ve got a review copy so watch this space).
Hi Manjari, is it possible to read After Felix without reading the other two books? I love Lily Morton, but don’t think I have the time to read a whole series.
It can stand alone but I think the experience is richer if you read the other 2 books first (Best Man and Charlie Sunshine). Best Man was good but not great. Charlie Sunshine was so charming but not as angsty as After Felix, which I think was the best of the three.
Oh I’ve read Charlie Sunshine – which I found super sweet! Thanks for your help:)
I don’t even look at the publisher year when I read books,so I honestly have no idea how many books I’ve read this year that were published this year. Maybe I’ll do that next year so I can participate! LOL!
For one contemporary I know was published this year: I did just finish BOYFRIEND MATERIAL on audio and it was wonderful.I was a little surprised at the amount of heavy stuff that gets handled in this very funny book. Both the leads have some messed up stuff to deal with, and it’s handled with grace and humor. The narration by Joe Jameson was incredibly nuanced and his timing and delivery were perfect.
For historical romance I absolutely loved A DANGEROUS KIND of LADY my Mia Vincy, again on audio,and narrated by Kate Reading. I’m not usually a fan of tension and angst,but somehow Vincy kept the tensions high in this book while keeping the character development and the plot moving along at a good clip. The dialog was crisp and witty. The internal struggles went straight to my heart. Kate Reading has never been better than her narration of this book,and that’s saying something.
So far my favorite romance of the year is “Love Lettering” by Kate Clayborn. For my taste (YMMV), it had a bit too much detail about fonts, but I adored Reid. He is a quant, a numbers person, to Meg’s visual arts and letters, who opens him up to the beauty and history that surround them in NY. He is so intense and focused, both at work and with Meg, so protective and honest. When he reveals how alone he is other than his family, your heart breaks for the little boy pushed ahead in school but left without friends because he is so much smarter and younger than his classmates. And then you discover what’s going on in the background, and I only admired him more. Sigh.
I have this on my tbr list and I may go ahead and bump it up. Thanks for the recommendation.
In the Goodreads Readers’ Choice, I voted for Beach Read, although I really like Boyfriend Material as well. But, I really liked Love Lettering too and am torn between that and Beach Read.
Want to add. I think Love Lettering would’ve been even better if it was a bit more multi-media, playing up the fonts and such. Maybe including a map.
“Love Lettering” was definitely my favorite book of the year. One of those books that I read and when I finished it, I just started reading it again. I loved Reid. And reading about his loneliness just broke my heart. I just loved everything about this book.
I didn’t have a problem with the details about fonts as I deal with fonts in my job, so reading a romance with fonts just made me smile (though I can see how someone would think it was too much). The author definitely did her homework.
I could never read too much about fonts. I wanted the characters together a little more but not at the expense of the fonts!
Also, I’ve just made my Best of 2020 List and seven out of the ten books are historical romances. I think it was a pretty good year for them!
I actually kept a list this year – which should make compiling the best of easier but probably won’t…
oh, i’m excited to see your list! all the HR i read this year are mostly older – I fell down a Pennyroyal Green hole that I’m not ashamed of.
I’m so excited to see this list! I’m always looking for more good, very good, and dare I hope, great, historical romances.
I love Ten Things I Hate About The Duke and it is my pick for best historical romance of the year. But my best romance read this year is The Last Wolf by Maria Vale. The sheer imagination in that book combined with a kickass romance still resonates with me months after bingeing the series.
My top HR of the year is the Chase as well. It’s so good.
I just put it on hold at the library!
I loved The Last Wolf. It was so different and compelling. Our library has the series on ebook, so I’m planning to read more.
I found the overall series to be very satisfying.
This is one of the first years my favorite appeared on a GR poll and I was shocked, but my answer really is “Boyfriend Material” by Alexis Hall. It hits every single button for me – I read it in one sitting and loved every second. I can see that for some people it’s too much – too contemporary, too laden with pop culture, etc – but Luc and Oliver’s journey has my heart.
Same here – I raced through it and loved every minute!
Yes, it’s the first time that I’ve ever even cared about the Goodreads Romance category! I also thought Boyfriend Material was the best I’ve read this year (although I also liked KJ Charles’ Slippery Creatures a lot).
Two Rogues Make a Right by Cat Sebastian
Why? It’s just a lovely character-based story without a plot being shoehorned into it. I love my hurt/comfort sweetness, which a lot of this book is. Plus, Cat Sebastian is an exemplary romance writer. Something about her writing style feels just right in terms of tone and pacing.
I wouldn’t say the book is perfect as there was at least one little thing I could tell felt obligatory, namely
But other than that, I have no complaints.
I agree – I think I read that article as well, and was nodding my head. I listened to a book recently by a debut author and in my review (for AG) said that it was as though she was writing the sex scenes to a check-list.
Was that The Vicar and the Rake by any chance? If so, I couldn’t find it on AudioGals. Do you have a link? I would love to hear your thoughts.
Yes, it was. And my review of that one hasn’t run yet – there’s a bit of a delay at AG (I write LOTS of reviews!) so it might not be up for a couple of weeks or so. In a nutshell, my thoughts were pretty damning!
Thanks for the clarification, Caz. I look forward to reading your thoughts.
It really is a shame because I don’t want debut authors to be dispirited by bad reviews. But I really couldn’t believe Carina Press published this one as-is. The only thing it really had going for it was the author’s fun, breezy writing style and some clever turns of phrase in the first 10% of the book. Other than that, I couldn’t find anything in it to recommend.
The Same Breath/The Same Place by Gregory Ashe. Even though he writes mysteries/suspense with romances in them (he said in an interview recently that he’s incabable of writing anything without a romance in it!), I don’t think I’ve read anything as romantic as those books this year, or in recent years. They have everything and work on every level – they’re clever, they’re funny, they’re poignant, they’re superbly written, the characrers are fully rounded, three-dimensional people and the central relationship is complex and messy, wonderfully satisfying and deeply romantic in a beautifully understated way.
Each book ends on an HFN (but there will be an HEA in book 3).
I second all of this.
IF I was going the more traditional, historical route, however, I might be tempted to name 10 Things I Hate About the Duke by Loretta Chase. I had an early ARC and reviewed it at GR. I think maybe it’s out next month? Excellent stuff.
Caz and I both think it’s the best HR out this year. Just delightful. Our review runs soon!
I cannot wait for this book – so good to know you all three liked it!
My enthusiastic review (https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2698510920) if you’re curious!
OMG, you just increased my anticipation level for this book to unbearable level. This is one of my most long awaited books, and when Loretta Chase said on her blog that it’s been a tough book to write, I went “Uh oh!”. Phew, your comment put me at ease.
I adore Loretta Chase and was worried when she said she had problems figuring out quite what to do with this latest Duke. Looks like this book will be one of my holiday presents to myself.
I keep reading and Em gushing over these and I’m tempted to try them based on y’all alone! The summaries do *nothing* for me at all, though so I’m nervous.
There’s no need to be nervous – just jump in and you’ll be hooked!
I’ve mentioned it before and perhaps I’m cheating a little because it’s a trilogy, but it does tell one continuous story about one couple’s journey, so I’m choosing N.R. Walker’s MISSING PIECES trilogy: PIECES OF ME, PIECES OF YOU, and PIECES OF US. It’s a lovely story of two men in a long-time relationship and what happens when their world is turned upside-down by a terrible accident that wipes out one partner’s memory. A beautiful story about ordinary, decent people facing extraordinary challenges.
The Lost Love Song by Minnie Drake
“If I Never Met You” by Mhairi McFarlane.
YES! This is in my top 10 for sure.
This was my first Mhairi McFarlane book and I thought it was fantastic. The only criticism I have has nothing to do with the book itself – it’s just that I feel like it was weirdly misleadingly marketed. Or at least I wouldn’t call it ”utterly hilarious” or ”the funniest feel-good romcom of 2020”. I had to seriously adjust my expectations after starting the book, but once I’d done that, I loved it. I am delighted that the book has been translated to Finnish – I’ve already bought it as a Christmas gift for my grandmother, the only person in real life I know who reads romance novels.