What I've Read in 2017

Because I adjusted my reading goal last year, I decided to keep the number low this year. 65 seems like a good enough number. One that won't stress me out since I hope to reach it well before Dec 31st. Guess we'll find out, though, huh?

FYI: Year in parenthesis is the year of copyright.

Here's what I've read in 2017:

January:
1. "The Surrender Gate" by Christopher Rice (2015). 247 pages. Finished 1/4/17. Paranormal romance. First book in the Desire Exchange series. Slow start, but picked up once Marcus showed up (swoon). Paranormal elements not explained so much, but a good read.
2. "Wicked Ride" by Rebecca Zanetti (2015). 278 pages. Finished 1/11/17. Paranormal romance. First book in The Realm Enforcers. Kellach and Alexandra's story. Love those witches. Look forward to reading the rest of the series.
3. "Notorious" by Allison Brennan (2014). 401 pages. Finished 1/18/17. Mystery. First book in the Max Revere series. Reminds me of Veronica Mars. Very enjoyable.
4. "Thankful for You" by Joanna Sims (2016). 217 pages. Finished 1/24/17. Contemporary romance. The Brands of Montana series. Nick & Dallas' story. Nick kind of fell flat in the hero category for me.
5. "Rogue: Sons of Sangue" by Patricia A. Rasey (2016). 385 pages. Finished 1/26/17. Paranormal romance. Sons of Sangue #4. Anton and Kimber's story. I loved their scenes together and the scenes with Kimber and her friends. Sexy read!
6. "One and a Half Regrets" by J. A. Coffey (2016). 176 pages. Finished 1/27/17. Contemporary romance. Love by the Numbers #1. Beth and Liam's story. This is a secret baby story and I'm not fond of them to begin with. Plus, it's in first person, present tense for both characters (ugh). Turned out to be an okay read, though.

February:
7. "Change of Heart" by Claire Boston (2016). 213 pages. Finished 2/3/17. Contemporary romance. The Flanagan Sisters #2. Carly and Evan's story. Boring. Story moved slowly and the romantic conflict seemed forced.
8. "Full Blaze" by M.L. Buchman (2014). 317 pages. Finished 2/4/17. Romantic adventure/suspense. The Firehawks #3. Cal and Jeannie's story. You don't have to have read the others in this series to enjoy this wild adventure. Romance is pretty good, too.
9. "Where Nothing Ill Can Dwell" by Christa McHugh (2016). 274 pages. Finished 2/8/17. YA Sci-Fi Romance. Bard Nebula series. Miranda and Ferdinand's story. Four points of view, all told in first person. Story was fine, but it lacked an emotional punch.
10. "Eleventh Grave in Moonlight" by Darynda Jones (2017). 310 pages. Finished 2/11/17. Urban fantasy. #11 in the Charley Davidson series. Not fond of the cliff-hanger ending, but loved the book. So much fun to read. Can't wait until the next one.
11. "Desperate Acts" by Stella MacLean (2016). 217 pages. Finished 2/13/17. Romantic suspense. Neither romantic nor suspenseful. Disappointed read.
12. "Secret Lies and Online Dating" by Sylvia McDaniel (2016). 282 pages. Finished 2/15/17. Women's fiction. I was led to believe this is a romance and it is not. Other than that disappointment, I did enjoy the story.
13. "Bound by Moonlight" by Donna MacMeans (2008). 257 pages. Finished 2/20/17. Historical paranormal romance. #1 in the Bound By series. Loved the sexual tension and had a hard time putting this book down. Great romance.
14. "My Song for You" by Stina Lindenblatt (2016). 224 pages (est--no page #s). Finished 2/21/17. New Adult Contemporary Romance. Pushing Limits #2. Jared and Callie's story. Another secret baby story (ugh), but and enjoyable read.

March:
15. "Huntress Moon" by Alexandra Sokoloff (2012/2014). 364  pages. Finished 3/1/17. Thriller. The Huntress/FBI Thrillers Book 1. Nice page-turner, but story left unresolved. Then again, it is the beginning of a series.
16. "Bite Me" by Shelly Laurenston (2014). 375 pages. Finished 3/9/17. Paranormal romance. Book 9 of the Pride Series. Vic and Livy's story. Crazy-funny (wasn't expecting that). Having not read the other books in the series, I kind of got lost in the sea of characters. Still a good read.
17. "Hunt the Dawn" by Abbie Roads  (2016). 329 pages. Finished 3/12/17. Romantic suspense (horror?). Fatal Dreams #2. Lathan and Evanee's story. Read this fast. Lots of dark and spooky stuff with a couple I wanted to be together.
18. "No One Left To Tell" by Karen Rose (2012). 518 pages. Finished 3/19/17. Romantic suspense. #13 in Romantic Suspense series, #2 in Baltimore series. Grayson and Paige's story. Lots of twists and turns in a monster of a book that spans only 5 days. Lovely romance, great suspense. Good read!
19. "Wolf Tales 9" by Kate Douglas (2010). 246 pages. Finished 3/23/17. Erotic paranormal romance. #9 in the Wolf Tales series. Mostly a recap of how previous couples met with LOTS of sex!
20. "How to Tame a Beast in Seven Days" by Kerrelyn Sparks (2017). 394 pages. Finished 3/29/17. Fantasy romance. First book in The Embraced series. Leo and Luciana's story. Magic and ghosts! Read like a historical, but not set in our world. Very enjoyable.
21. "The Education of Dixie Dupree" by Donna Everhart (2016). 299 pages. Finished 3/31/17. Fiction (a coming of age story). Dixie is a very interesting young girl, but this story contains dark and disturbing subject matter that might trigger some people.

April:
22. "Thrown by a Curve" by Jaci Burton (2013). 329 pages. Finished 4/5/17. Erotic romance. #5 in the Play-by-Play series. Garrett and Alicia's story. Another hot and steamy read with a couple I enjoyed getting to know.
23. "Immortal Unchained" by Lynsay Sands (2017). 369 pages. Finished 4/7/17. Paranormal romance. #25 in the Argeneau Vampire series. Domitian and Sarita's story. Nice twist, a la The Island of Dr. Moreau. This series is still going strong. Love it.
24. "Make Them Pay" by Allison Brennan (2017). 390 pages. Finished 4/8/17. Suspense. #12 in the Lucy Kincaid series. I'm addicted to this series, no doubt about it. I love Lucy and Sean! Kane and Siobhan are pretty good, too.
25. "Trial Junkies" by Robert Gregory Browne (2012). 369 pages. Finished 4/10/17. Mystery/thriller. First book in the Trial Junkies series. If you like whodunnits where you don't have a hint of whodunit until the end, then you'll enjoy this book. I certainly did!
26. "Wicked Edge" by Rebecca Zanetti (2015). 249 pages. Finished 4/14/17. Paranormal romance. The Realm Enforces #2. Daire and CeeCee's story. Wickedly entertaining. I loved CeeCee. Oh yeah, Daire wasn't so bad, either (snicker, snicker).
27. "Wolf Tales 10" by Kate Douglas (2010). 277 pages. Finished 4/19/17. Erotic paranormal romance. #10 in the Wolf Tales series. Liana's story. Not my favorite, but still lots of hot, sexy scenes.
28. "Compulsion" by Allison Brennan (2015). 446 pages. Finished 4/22/17. Suspense/thriller. #2 in the Maxine Revere series. Titled appropriately. Every time I put the book down, I was compelled to pick it back up. Great read! I'm already loving this series.
29. "Raging Heat" by Richard Castle (2014). 290 pages. Finished 4/24/17. Mystery/suspense. #6 in the Nikki Heat series. I do love some of Rook's lines in this book. Had me laughing.
30. "The Black Lily" by Juliette Cross (2017). 237 pages. Finished 4/27/17. Paranormal/fantasy romance. Tales of the Black Lily #1. Marius and Arabelle's story. Love me some vampires!
31. "My Cousin Rachel" by Daphne du Maurier (1951). 387 pages. Finished 4/30/17. Gothic. Intriguing story. Look forward to the movie more now.

May:
32. "Saving Mercy" by Abbie Roads (2017). 302 pages. Finished 5/7/17. Romantic suspense with paranormal elements. Fatal Truth Series #1. Cain and Mercy's story. Dark, disturbing, but kind of thin. Still a good read, though.
33. "Beautiful Bastard" by Christina Lauren (2013). 305 pages. Finished 5/11/17. Erotica romance. Beautiful Bastard #1. Bennett and Chloe's story. Bennett's a douche and it took a lot of determination for me to continue reading. More than half-way through I was finally rewarded with a story I had trouble putting down.
34. "The Chosen" by J. R. Ward (2017). 521 pages. Finished 5/18/17. Paranormal romance. #15 in the Black Dagger Brotherhood series. Xcor and Layla's story. Lots of storylines left unresolved, but the main one wraps up just fine. Will anxiously await the next book.
35. "Wicked Burn" by Rebecca Zanetti (2016). 266 pages. Finished 5/22/17. Paranormal romance. The Realm Enforcers #3. Nick and Simone's story. I've liked Simone for a long time now. Nice to see her finally get her own book. And it was super good, too! :)
36. "Talen" by Rebecca Zanetti (2016). 77 pages. Finished 5/23/17. Paranormal romance novella. Dark Protector series (tie-in with the Realm Enforcers series). Talen and Cara's story (again). Talen still isn't my favorite character, but I enjoyed the story (and seeing Garrett & Logan).
37. "Wild Man's Curse" by Susannah Sandlin (2016). 276 pages. Finished 5/26/17. Romantic suspense. Wilds of the Bayou #1. Gentry and Ceelie's story. Good read. Ordered the next book in the series.

June:
38. "Dragonborn" by Jade Lee (2008). 354 pages. Finished 6/11/17. Fantasy romance. The Jade Lee Romantic Fantasies #1. Kiril and Natiya's story. Interesting story, but the couple was apart for too much of the book for me to enjoy their relationship.
39. "Hot Head" by Damon Suedo (2011). 310 pages. Finished 6/19/17. Erotic M/M romance. Griff and Dante are two hot firemen, but this story is so sweet. With hot sexy scenes! Thoroughly enjoyed it!
40. "A Shot With You" by Teri Anne Stanley (2017). 165 pages. Finished 6/23/17. Romantic comedy. #2 in the Bourbon Brothers series. Brandon and Lesa's story. Quick, fun read, with some sexy scenes.
41. "Deadly Silence" by Rebecca Zanetti (2016). 362 pages. Finished 6/28/17. Romantic suspense. #1 in the Blood Brothers series. Ryker and Zara's story. Lots of suspense! Lots of romance! Lots of sexy scenes!! This is a spin-off of the Sin Brothers series and I love it!!!

July:
42. "Wolf Tales 11" by Kate Douglas (2011). 298 pages. Finished 7/6/17. Paranormal erotic romance. #11 in the Wolf Tales series. Lots of sex but a drawn-out storyline.
43. "Avenge Me" by Maisey Yates (2014). 264 pages. Finished 7/9/17. Contemporary romance. #1 in the Fifth Avenue trilogy. Austin and Katy's story. Very steamy (bordering on BDSM), enjoyable story. But the other two books are written by different authors and they don't sound all that good.
44. "UNSUB" by Meg Gardiner (2017). 366 pages. Finished 7/17/17. Suspense/thriller. Great read and hard to put down.
45. "The Aggrieved" by Brett Battles (2017). 323 pages. Finished 7/25/17. Suspense/thriller. #11 in the Jonathan Quinn series. Still enjoying the series, but I want to hug Nate.
46. "Wolf Tales 12" by Kate Douglas (2011). 366 pages. Finished 7/31/17. Erotica. Last book in the Wolf Tales series. Nice ending to the series. Enjoyed this better than the last couple of books.

August:
47. "Pretty Girls" by Karin Slaughter (2015). 573 pages. Finished 8/9/17. Suspense/thriller. Lots of grisly twists and turns in this one. Highly suspenseful--kept me riveted.
48. "The Sumage Solution" by G.L. Carriger (2017). 305 pages. Finished 8/22/17. Paranormal (M/M) romance. First book in the San Andreas Shifters series. Lack of world building slowed it down for me, but it was an entertaining read.

September:
49. "Tyranny" by Gemma Brocato (2016). 182 pages. Finished 9/5/17. Paranormal romance. Goddesses of Delphi #1. Jax and Clio's story. I liked the couple, but had a small issue with the storyline.
50. "Darkest Before Dawn" by Maya Banks (2015). 378 pages. Finished 9/14/17. Romantic suspense. #10 in the Kelly/KGI series. Hancock and Honor's story. I liked the story over-all, but the pacing dragged a bit more than I usually like.
51. "Tempting the Light" by Bonnie Gill (2016). 263 pages. Finished 9/27/17. Paranormal romantic comedy. L.A.M.P.S. #1. River and Abby's story. A light-hearted, crazy-humorous story.

October:
52. "I Know a Secret" by Tess Gerriten (2017). 314 pages. Finished 10/4/17. Suspense. #12 in the Rizzoli & Isles series. Highly entertaining. Still enjoying this series.
53. "Dark Legacy" by Anna DeStefano (2009). 307 pages. Finished 10/14/17. Paranormal romance. Legacy series #1. Maddie and Jared's story. Book did not have a satisfying ending because it basically didn't end. I won't bother reading the next one.
54. "Immortally Yours" by Lynsay Sands (2017). 367 pages. Finished 10/21/17. Paranormal romance. Argeneau Vampire series #26. Scotty and Beth's story. I do so love this world. And her books are always entertaining. Even after 25 books!
55. "The Magic Root" by T.S. Hottle (2017). 65 pages. Finished 10/26/17. Sci-Fi Space Opera. Compact Universe #1. Gave this book a try because I know the author, but unfortunately, it's not my thing. A little confusing for me.

November:
56. "Mortal Sin" by Allison Brennan (2014). 426 pages. Finished 11/3/17. Paranormal romance. Seven Deadly Sins #3. Wrapped up a lot of story lines, but left it with a minor cliff-hanger. Hmmm...
57. "Love Voodoo" by Alyssa Breck (2016). 52 pages. Finished 11/4/17. Paranormal romance. Luca and Collette's story. Too short for my taste, but a very sexy book.
58. "Undiscovered" by Sara Humphreys (2017). 353 pages. Finished 11/14/17. Paranormal romance. Amoveo Rising #1. Zander and Rena's story. Ahhh... just the romance I was looking for. And it has dragons.
59. "The Trouble with Twelfth Grave" by Darynda Jones (2017). 289 pages. Finished 11/20/17. Urban fantasy. Charley Davidson #12. Just found out that the next book is the last. Waaaaa! **sniff, sniff**
60. "Lucky Strike" by Cate Beaumont (2017). 194 pages. Finished 11/28/17. Contemporary romance. Lucky, Kentucky #1. A typical contemporary romance with some funny incidents.

December:
61. "Write Naked" by Jennifer Probst (2017). 225 pages. Finished 12/1/17. Non-fiction/writing. Very good and something I will revisit many times, I'm sure.
62. "Abducted" by Tarah Scott and Evan Trevane (2015). 300 pages. Finished 12/8/17. Romantic suspense. Texas Rangers Special Ops #1. I might have enjoyed it more if I didn't keep wanting to edit it. Decent romance and suspense. Story kept me turning the pages.
63. "Tempted by Midnight" by Lara Adrian (2014). 99 pages. Finished 12/13/17. Paranormal romance. Midnight Breed #12.5. Lazaro and Mel's story. Loved getting back into this world.
64. "Stroke of Midnight" by Lara Adrian (2015). 89 pages. Finished 12/14/17. Paranormal romance. Midnight Breed #13.5. Jehan and Seraphina's story. Very historical romance-ish, but enjoyable all the same.
65. "Midnight Untamed" by Lara Adrian (2016). 69 pages. Finished 12/15/17.  Paranormal romance. Midnight Breed #14.5. Savage (Ettore) and Arabella's story. This one works the best as a novella--the couple already know each other as it's a second chance at love.
66. "Love's Portrait" by Monica Burns (2005/2011). 155 pages. Finished 12/17/17. Historical romance. One sexy little story.
67. "Midnight Crossroad" by Charlaine Harris (2014). 349 pages. Finished 12/28/17. Urban fantasy. Midnight, Texas #1. I expected more paranormal/supernatural stuff (because of the TV series), but it was still an interesting story and I'll continue with the series.


Ahhh... Lookee there. I finished the year exceeding my goal. Yay me!!