Five Monster Romance Works That Made My 2024
It was a good year to read.
I did not read as much this year as the previous one. The biggest issue is that I was in the middle of bringing a whole human being into the world, so it is understandable. That being said, this was a good year for reading. These are far from the only good books I read, but they stood out from the pack.
As an irrelevant side note about this list, if I had a nickel for every new favorite series that is a Sci-Fi Alien Romance that leans on the Mail-Order Bride trope, I'd have two nickels. Granted, that isn't a lot, but wow, it feels specific.
Cowboy Colony Mail-Order Brides Series By Ursa Dax
The Lowdown: In this Sci-Fi Western Romance series, mail-order brides arrive at an alien penal colony populated by only male aliens in an environment covered with ranches and an alien Old West-like environment. In this rustic and dangerous world, couples learn how to thrive and find love.
What Made It Stand Out During This Year of Reading: As a Firefly fan, I am a sucker for a Sci-Fi Western. More importantly, Dax keeps coming up with interesting characters. So far, we have a woman on the run paired with a grumpy cinnamon roll, another escaping an abusive family life who gets herself a golden retriever of a partner, and a sweet romantic who fell for a moody single dad who she wasn't supposed to be paired with. It isn't just the series premise. It is the premise and stories she's putting in them, and I cannot get enough.
Shadow Zone Brotherhood Series By Dalia Davies
The Lowdown: In this "Mars Needs Women" Scifi series set on the planet Isia, human women are matched with Sian men with unique superpowers to combat monstrous threats. However, the nature and origin of those threats become increasingly suspicious.
What Made It Stand Out During This Year of Reading: We need more suspense and mystery in monster romance, and Davies is doing that for me. Don't get me wrong. Fluffy is fun, but suspense is sexy. There are plenty of spicy tropes that the monster romance community will eat up. In the meantime, I need to know what the heck is going on with this Company organization and if they are tied into the unusual activity seen from the crater the MMCs are supposed to be guarding.
Cottonmouth by Naomi Lucas
The Lowdown: Cottonmouth is the sixth installment in Naomi Lucas's Sci-Fi Romance Naga Brides series. The story follows a naga warrior who, after being abducted by humans, unexpectedly encounters a captivating female who he soon discovers is supposed to be his enemy.
What Made It Stand Out During This Year of Reading: There were several moments while reading this book when I thought to myself, "Oh wow. Lucas went there." This book gets dark and worrisome. I lost sleep because I needed to finish it. It was that exciting, and I think it was well done. The payoff is awesome for those who can handle it (and be sure to check those content warnings just in case!).
Bull Moon Rising by Ruby Dixon
The Lowdown: This latest romantasy from Dixon follows Aspeth Honori, a noblewoman determined to save her family's estate by joining the Royal Artifactual Guild. Facing gender restrictions, she enters a marriage of convenience with Hawk, a surly minotaur guild member. As they navigate their unconventional partnership, they uncover ancient artifacts and unexpected feelings for one another.
What Made It Stand Out During This Year of Reading: Most readers know of Ruby Dixon for her Sci-Fi work, but those of us nerds who have read almost her entire backlog have known she is capable of writing compelling Fantasy as well. This book proves my point. It feels almost like Indiana Jones meets DnD. I'm half-expecting an RPG coming out if this series continues to grow. If so, I will be seeking out a gaming group to join.
Keeping the Human's Heart by Lyonne Riley
The Lowdown: Esme, a human deserter, unexpectedly finds sanctuary in enemy trollkin territory with Drazak, an orc, and Han'zir, a troll, on their farm. As Esme integrates into their lives, she becomes the center of a complex relationship, navigating the challenges of war and personal bonds.
What Made It Stand Out During This Year of Reading: Riley is one of my spiciest favorite authors, and here I felt she was doing several things that are hard to do all at once: write a true standalone novel in a series, build an emotionally compelling and balanced MMF, and nurture an actual slow burn. Just doing one of these well is hard, and Riley is over here juggling all three like the badass she is. Also, I highlighted so many spicy scenes that if you are just here for that, here's your sign to get this.
Five Other Things I Read in 2024, Which Stood Out
The Nightmare Before Kissmas by Sara Raasch
The Lowdown: In a world where holidays have royalty, Nicholas "Coal" Claus, heir to Christmas, is thrust into an arranged marriage with his best friend, Iris, the Easter Princess. However, when Hex, the enigmatic Prince of Halloween, enters the scene, Coal's plans and life will never be the same.
What Made It Stand Out During This Year of Reading: This book is the reason I cackled to myself without context while making Christmas cookies and wrapping presents. I'm probably gifting it next year because more and more people in my life want Romance recommendations from me, and I need to expand my repertoire without lowering my story-crafting standards.
Evicted: Poverty and Profit in the American City by Matthew Desmond
The Lowdown: Desmond follows eight families in Milwaukee as they navigate the harsh realities of eviction, revealing how housing instability fuels poverty and inequality. This book cracks open the core issues fueling the housing crisis in America, highlighting the human cost of this haunting and growing problem.
What Made It Stand Out During This Year of Reading: If I'm not reading Romance, I often read nonfiction. It is often heavy nonfiction. This book is recommended reading to dig into why the American housing situation is utterly broken for our most vulnerable populations. I also recommend having a "chaser" book to switch back and forth from this book to help you get through it. I cried a lot. I got angry a lot. I needed some Ursa Dax and Ruby Dixon to power through.
How to Protect Bookstores and Why: The Present and Future of Bookselling by Danny Caine
The Lowdown: Caine writes a love letter to the independent bookstore and raises the call to preserve them in the face of growing corporate dominance and digital monopolization. Caine is a bookstore owner, making for a perfect guide to these spaces' vital role in fostering community, culture, and creativity.
What Made It Stand Out During This Year of Reading: Caine and I are on the same team. Independent bookstores are a morally good thing for communities. But they are struggling—badly. So what's to be done? What I appreciate about Caine's work here is that he's trying to address the problem concretely on both systematic and individual levels. You need both to work, and I would strongly recommend this book to anyone in the bookselling business.
Jesus and John Wayne by Kristin Kobes Du Mez
The Lowdown: Here is a compelling (and occasionally damning) examination of how the American evangelical movement has embraced a distorted idea of masculinity, shaping the political and social views of millions of evangelical Christians. With a historian's attention to detail and research, this book systematically analyses how evangelical, aggressive, patriarchal ideals have led to deep divisions in American culture.
What Made It Stand Out During This Year of Reading: Like Evicted, this was a heavy read, achieved with several Romance novels I read between chapters. This is written by a historian, and I feel like her main audience is those outside of the conservative world. As someone who was raised in it, I had several epiphany moments about my childhood. It's good, heartbreaking stuff.
Save the Cat! Writes a Novel: The Last Book On Novel Writing You'll Ever Need by Jessica Brody
The Lowdown: This book is a class for good reason. Brody offers a practical, step-by-step guide for writers of all levels. This book gives a flexible framework and concrete examples of how to work it.
What Made It Stand Out During This Year of Reading: I may be editing my own monster romance novel as I send this out. When that happens, y'all will be informed because depending on whether the author thing is for me, I will have to evolve or retire this newsletter for the sake of my ethics. I do have to say, though, that regardless of how that works out, this book didn't just help me map out a story. It also helped me be a better reader.
Housekeeping
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My TBR is getting longer by the second!