📚 Denise’s Top Picks of 2021 💖

2021 was a year full of change in the Sprung Family … a year that found me personally struggling at times to find my groove … especially my reading groove…

Much of the later part of 2021 has me traveling to see my boys.. that travel brought me some of my favorite reading time … airplane reading time…

                           

Here is my WHY for each selection…

• Loving Liam by Melanie Moreland was such an amazing read! From the moment we got a glimpse of Liam Callaghan, his glances at Paige, and adorable interactions with her daughter Lucy in Finding Roman’s Heart I NEEDED his book! Liam is so much of what I adore in a hero… a man who sees what he wants and works for it.
• Shelter by Kristen Proby – Proby has the rare gift of crafting worlds that pulls the reader in. …. Cunningham Falls, MT is one of those real feel worlds … a world where you want to see the characters grow up and where you want to see their lives unfold…. In this case, readers are in for a TREAT as the story really takes the series full circle….  want to know what I mean … well meet Seth the angry tween in Loving Cara! is the HERO in Shelter.
• Code Name: Tiara by Sawyer Bennett – Camille is such a wonderful character …..a rare combination of smarts, vulnerability, and independence… all while trying to get Jackson to see her attraction to him! Though romantic suspense is not usually “my jam” I adore the Jameson Force Security series as Bennett ensures the romance is front and center and as is her style makes it clear the attraction the couple has for each other runs deeper than the circumstances.
• The Things We Leave Unfinished by Rebecca Yarros is one of those rare books that reminds me while I read and blog for that book that has me wanting to scream from the rooftops READ THIS BOOK!  As a reader, I think you go into this one early on knowing you will shed a tear but wow the way this one unfolds will have your heart pounding out of your chest as the tears stream down your face – pure literacy genius.  This is such a beautiful story on so many levels and forget formula…. Yarros tells the reader a story… well two actually, maybe three pure, love stories that will sit in your soul long after you finish reading.  This story belongs on the big screen…. because WOW just WOW…..
• Only One Regret by Natasha Madison is one of the best friends-to-lovers romance books I have ever read. Cooper Grant is WOW ……  kind of hero you want to hug and probably wish the person you share your life with would “borrow” some characteristics from.
• Waylaid by Sarina Bowen  was a truly amazing story…. this book is more than a love story… as a matter of fact I think it is more of work of art with a love story written into it. I am struggling to write this review…not for LACK of LOVE of this story… but because I do not want to give any part of this story away…. From the moment I caught a glimpse of Ricky in a prior book in the series… Bowen had me wanting to know more… and WOW… just WOW… the author hints there was a story behind this young man and his ink… but WOW…. his story is so much more than I could have even imagined
• A Kiss for a Kiss by Helena Hunting was an amazing LOVE story…. untraditional and yet again proof that Helene Hunting is a master at her craft!
• Tie Me Down by Melanie Harlow is a wonderful friends to lovers, single mom romance so wonderful! Beckett and Maddie lived across the street from each other and were good friends growing up…. the backstory shares there was a spark but does an amazing job at allowing the reader to understand why neither acted on it back them
• From The Embers by Aly Martinez proves yet again this author is a master storyteller; there is a formula here; the reader is told a story that will keep them glued to their kindle completely engaged. I am not going to give away anything more than the blurb does because you need to LIVE this story as it was written in its pure literacy genius!
• Crashing East by Aly Stiles blew me away, this author continues to amaze me with her unique storylines laced with deep emotions.
• The End Game by Riley Hart this story… WOW… you truly live in the connection these two are building.. the banter… the emotions…. so…. please READ THIS BOOK. Weston and Anson’s story kept me glued to my kindle and forcing myself to savor every word and read slowly as this story slowly unfolds.
• Could Have Been Us by Corinne Michaels is the kind of book that had me trying to put my finger on what makes a book GREAT; what elements provide the reader with an easy, engaging read even when the subject matter is heavy…. and despite days of searching for the right words to describe my love of this story and this author being a must-read for me… and I can come with is READ THIS BOOK!
• Heartscape by Garrett Leigh is not my first book by this author…. but I had forgotten how much I enjoy Leigh’s writing style! From almost the moment Tanner entered the story in Featherbed (this book almost made the list as well) I knew I wanted to know more about this mysterious new bartender…… and WOW…. this story did not disappoint. ….. I freaking loved the story, Tanner and Jax.
• The Bluff by Devney Perry writing as Willa Nash was such a great read and one I wanted to read since closing Book 1 in the Calamity Montana series, The Bribe as it ended with the reader wanting to know what the heck is going on with Everly and Hux….
• Extra Whip by L.A. Witt is a truly amazing m/m/m read that allows the reader to really understand the WHY. WOW… read the book…. because though most readers would never think of bringing someone into the bedroom… remember the story is about having the reader UNDERSTAND why Will and Aaron did and well Witt does a truly epic job at that; you really understand the dynamic and what it gives each man!