Monday, May 18, 2009

Happy or Sad?

My novels are kind of like my children. Can't say which I like more. They're different and each has its own special qualities. At a recent book signing, a reader was reading the blurbs and asked, "Which one will make me cry? I love a good tear-jerker." Well, the answer was simple - The Kitten Club. I even cried every time I edited one particular scene and that is the book that gets me more fan mail than any other.
So, I started asking readers when they approached me - "Do you want to laugh or cry?" You see, Compromising Positions is pretty funny. My third book, Falling Star is somewhere in the middle. You want sexy? That would be my Red Sage novella, Captured. But this got me thinking about what I like to get out of a read.
My favorite books are those that make me laugh, but also touch me deeply. I've been reading books I collected at RT for the past couple weeks. So far, I've finished Lora Leigh's Maverick, which was very sexy, although it didn't make me cry or laugh. Then I read a craft book, Angela Knight's Passionate Ink, which was very worthwhile. I'm now a couple chapters into Cynthia Eden's Midnight Sins, a paranormal, which so far is very suspenseful and well written. Next I will delve into some of the Red Sage Secrets Anthologies, hundreds of which publisher Alexandria Kendall so graciously gave out at RT.
So what about you? Do you stay in a particular reading rut or do you venture out there into different genres? What good books have you read lately?

3 comments:

Katie Reus said...

I read all over the place. Any blurb or excerpt that catches my eye, I'll probably pick up no matter the genre. I've read quite a few good books recently, but Jill Sorenson's Crash Into Me was amazing. It's a character driven suspense with a sub plot of two teenagers falling in love. Many of those scenes touched me b/c growing up is freaking hard and the author really tapped into everyone's struggles and emotions. All of the characters were so real it was hard not to root for everyone to get their HEA.

Terry Odell said...

I'm in a pretty deep rut for books I buy, but I'm usually willing to branch out and try authors or sub-genres to see if I like them. I've been reading mystery and romantic suspense a lot lately - John Sandford's "Prey" series had me hooked on his character even though the writing style is very different from what I'm used to. Just goes to show that if you've got compelling characters, there's a lot of leeway.

I, too, have a lot of books from RT that are not my normal choices, so I'll be giving them a try.

Chudney Thomas said...

I'm like Katie as long as it catches my eye I'll read it. I do so look bargain books.
Though I do tend to get into ruts. Right now I find I'm diving into my already read pile, rereading my favorite hero's.
Good book outside of the romance genre: "Brick Lane" by Monica Ali.
Hot book: Katie's, "Dangerous deception."