The Annual Poll Results for Books Published in 2014 are in!
Yes, the results of the Reader Poll for Best Romances of 2014 are in. Click here to see the list of winners and go to the accompanying article to see author comments.
The Annual Poll at AAR is a cooperative endeavor between readers and staff, and this year’s poll is no exception. Largely based on reader comments, we tinkered with the categories for this year’s poll. We separated two former categories into three: Science Fiction, Paranormal and Fantasy. We dropped the Best Chick Lit/Women’s Fiction category and added Best LGBT Romance. We’re happy with the results for all of these new categories, and you’ll see them again in next year’s poll.
This year’s poll had 24 different categories. On average, readers voted in 12 categories, but 5 percent of you voted in 20 or more of the categories. The most popular category was Best Romance Novel, with 90% of you submitting a title. But over three-quarters of you also voted for Favorite Hero and Favorite Romance Couple.
We frequently receive comments – either in the forums, the blog posts, or in the actual poll – that readers do not like the “Best Kick-Ass Heroine” category, suggesting it should be dropped. This year over 70 percent of readers cast a vote in this category, suggesting that while some dislike the category (or the label), many readers know exactly what the category means, and have a ready choice for a winner.
At this point in our polling history we can safely say we have created enough categories to cover the paranormal/sci-fi/fantasy genre. In previous years there were many overlapping titles when we just had two categories but this year, with three categories opened, there was little if any overlap. Approximately 65% of readers cast a vote in at least one of the three categories, while 19 percent of readers voted in all three categories. We did receive a few comments about Steampunk romances, expressing either uncertainty about which category the book fits into, or asking for a separate Steampunk category. We’ll try to clarify the situation next year.
Two of the new categories last year – Best Young Adult Romance and Best New Adult Romance – each received a vote on approximately 30 percent of your ballots this year.
We appreciate your thoughts on the poll, and included a place for you to list your comments along with your ballot. Many of you simply thanked us for running the poll, or expressed your enthusiasm for the process; we love the poll as well and appreciate your comments.
Some readers suggested changes to the poll, or the polling process, and we would appreciate your thoughts. One reader suggested,
“For the Best Historical Romance set in the U.K., could you break this into two categories: Best Regency Romance and Best Romance set outside the Regency time period?”
Several other readers noted that they miss the Best American Historical/Frontier category and asked if we would bring it back. The category was dropped several years ago both in an effort to streamline the poll, and to eliminate categories that generated relatively few votes. Is it time to reconsider this category?
We were delighted to see many first-time voters submit a ballot this year. But after polling at AAR for over 10 years, we’ve also come to recognize, and appreciate, the efforts many longtime AAR readers make in entering the various polls at AAR. Nearly 20 percent of the voters noted that they have voted in AAR’s annual Reader Poll for five or more years. Thank you!
As always, we look forward to hearing your thoughts on the poll. Look for another poll next year at about the same time.
Cindy, LeeB, and LinnieGayl
Hope you enjoy them! And sounds like I need to get around to reading Ellen O’Connell :-)
Yuri, I agree Janice Kay Johnson’s Cop By Her Side was great and I believe I voted for it as best category romance so maybe it got 2 votes, you and me. JKJ is an autobuy for me and I have never been disappointed. She has ventured into self publishing alongside her Harlequin titles and I can recommend both Shroud of Fog and See How She Runs . I haven’t read your other choices but now you have inspired me to explore them.
Blackjack1, I share your enthusiasm for Ellen O’Connell’s Without Words and now I am keen to try those other books you mentioned which I haven’t read.
Perhaps I should rescind my request for some blogs on books that readers nominated that didn’t make the cut, I can see that my TBR pile is going to be out of control as it is.
A list or a blog of books that garnered one or two votes would be very interesting – true buried treasures I imagine.
I doubt for instance anyone else voted for some of my picks: Portrait of Scandal by Annie Burrows, The Turning Season by Sharon Shinn, Cop by Her Side by Janice Kay Johnson, Impossible Things by Kate Johnson or There Will Be Phlogiston by Alexis Hall!
I am totally stoked that six of my choices won their categories and two of my choices received honourable mentions. I really loved Julie James’ It Happened One Wedding and thought it was very funny, very sexy with a terrific cast of characters and, IMO, only one glitch ( the scene in NY where she ran up the street in her wedding dress ). It was great to see established authors Mary Balogh and Jayne Ann Krentz not be overlooked because they are so reliable and newer author Jackie Ashenden receive just deserts. I too think Ellen O’Connell’sWithout Words is one of the best books from 2014 and hoped it would receive an honourable mention at least. I liked Frederica from The Suffragette Scandal ( I doubt Courtney Milan has ever written a dud book) but didn’t think of her as a kick-ass heroine in the Eve Dallas/ Kate Daniels mould but, upon reflection, I can see she was in a less physical but equally mentally strong way. I think the poll is a great idea as it introduces us to new authors and books other readers have loved. Would you please consider doing a few blogs about books nominated for various categories as a reader/ readers must have loved it sufficiently to nominate it and I am sure most of your readers are like me and always on the look out for a good read. Thankyou AAR for another successful year of reading and trusting 2015 will be just as good.
Which is part of the reason why it’s worth celebrating. While historical heroines being “” kick-ass”” may be a rarity although there are exceptions in the historical record, there’s no reason why heroines in contemporary romance or romantic suspense can’t be physically capable so it’s notable that they’re still unusual.
Yes, I’m in agreement with all of that. My hesitation was just around the word “”kick-ass,”” as it doesn’t seem to convey clearly enough, for me anyway, what I think it’s supposed to. Iconoclastic females? Feminist? Mentally tough and strong? Physically tough and strong? All of the above?
I think when the Kick-Ass Heroine and Most Tortured Hero categories were introduced the norm was Tormented Heroines and strong physically capable Heroes and these categories, like the non-UK category, were about celebrating the best of the exceptions for people who wanted to read something a bit different.
I think the Tortured Hero is pretty much standard these days (and I love them) but the Kick-Ass heroine, which I read as a woman able to physically defend herself and others (although possibly by other means), even though she abounds in urban fantasy, is still a rarity in romance and definitely worth celebrating. So nice to see a winner that is from within the capital ‘R’ Romance genre which hasn’t always been the case.
That makes sense and thank you for the clarification. I try to vote in as many categories as possible each year, but I’ve tended to assume that “”kick-ass”” is more of a physical trait than a mental one and so I place it more as a paranormal, or as you state, urban fantasy characteristic.
I liked _It Happened One Wedding_ though it was more of a “”B/B+”” read for me as well. I have to admit that I’m not overly drawn to Julie James’s novels in general, but this was one of the better ones I’ve read.
I’m curious that Joanna Bourne’s _Rogue Spy_ hasn’t drawn more attention. It was a little bit of a letdown for me, but I had thought I may have hyped it too much in my mind since it had been so long in coming. Still, it didn’t get as much attention as a Bourne book usually does.
I want to read _Having Her_ and _A Grave Matter_! I may decide to read Eloisa Jame’s _Three Weeks with Lady X_ though her books haven’t worked for me in the past.
Loved seeing Cecilia Grant’s “”A Christmas Gone Perfectly Wrong”” voted as best short story. That seems well-deserved. I really liked Sherry Thomas’s _My Beautiful Enemy_ and Courtney Milan’s _The Suffragette Scandel_.
I’m not ever really sure what a “”kick-ass heroine”” category means, though I vote in it anyway. Emotionally tough? Physically tough like a street-fighter? Both? Also, where is the kick-ass hero category, or are females the only ones that get this honorary title? :)
I had not heard of the debut author Sonali Dev.
Disappointed not to see Ellen O’Connell’s wonderful _Without Words_ represented anywhere here.
Definitely want to go back and read Meredith Duran’s _Fool Me Twice_ again. For some reason, Alastair de Grey did not occur to me as a “”most tortured hero”” when I filled out my ballot, but I can definitely see why he fits well in that category. I really liked that book!
Good list overall.
Maybe we could just have an “”Unusual Historicals”” category, which could include non UK and / or non Regency / Victorian romance?
Not sure that we need a specific American / Frontier romances as well as the non-UK setting but maybe I’m wrong. 2012’s Defiant seems to be the only Frontier romance to win this category since 2009, and if I’m counting correctly four of the last six winners have been at least partially set in the UK.
Congrats to all of our winners and honorable mentions! I, too, loved It Happened One Wedding. It is nice to see some new names mixed in with established favorite authors as well. I’m pleased to say that I have several of these in my TBR, so I have plenty to look forward to.
I’m currently reading The Hook Up and enjoying it as well. :)
I was very happy to see Julie James It Happened One Wedding win this. When I gave it DIK status in my review several people mentioned it was only a B read for them. It’s very reassuring to know I wasn’t alone in thinking it a top quality read.
I have only two winners, Ashenden’s Having Her and Huber’s A Grave Matter.
I think that the only winner I voted for is Sherry Thomas’s My Beautiful Enemy (along with The Hidden Blade, it’s one of my favorites in any category this year). But I’m pretty sure that I was the one who first suggested adding the LGBT category, so I’m very happy with my contribution overall :)
As for different historical categories, there do seem to be quite a few American-set novels these days, so that might be a category worth bringing back. I don’t feel that the UK-set category needs to be split based on time period, however.
Thanks, Yulie. I’ve noticed a number of American-set historicals as well lately and was wondering about it. I do appreciate the thoughts on the UK-set category as well.