The Last of the Best of 2016

 

As this is the last weekend of the month, we will finish up our Best of 2016 and leave that year behind.  So here’s the last of our Best of Lists of 2016.  We are well on our way to accumulating our lists for 2017.  I know that Blood Stained Tea (The Yakuza Path #1) by Amy Tasukada and There’s This Guy by Rhys Ford are already on my list for this year.  Wow.  That’s a great start!

Our Contest ends tonight so there’s plenty of time still to get your list in:

STRW 2016 Best of Giveaway

We will pick one random reader who leaves a comment with their year end Best of (along with their email addresses) to receive a $10 DSP gift card.   Contest ends January 29, at midnight.  Must be 18 years of age or older.

Paul and I are up today.  So let’s hear from PaulB next on his favorites from 2016:

PaulB’s Best of the Year 2016

From Paul B: I am going to cheat a bit here.  Normally these lists are top ten kinds of affairs.  However, since a lot of the books that I read and review are from series, I’m going to abbreviate my list and group books in series together if they were released this year. 

Top Books/Series of 2016

• Wolfsong by TJ Klune—After poking fun at the shifter genre in Who We Are, Klune writes a shifter book that cannot be ignored.
• The Executive Office series by Tal Bauer—Politics, romance and intrigue that was a lot more exciting than the real presidential race
• Broken Prince and Mismatched Eyes by Layla Dorine—Two broken men from different kingdoms need each other not only for their kingdoms but each other
• Element of Dragons series by Hannah Walker and Jessica McKenna—Three young men must help dragons return to their age of glory
• Lightning Struck Heart audiobook by TJ Klune (author) and Michael Lesley (narrator)—Mr. Klune spins a tale about an apprentice wizard, his knight crush and a put upon wizard mentor
• A Nice Normal Family by John Terry Moore—A young man with learning difficulties ascends to the highest elective office in Australia, thanks to his friend and future husband
• The Wolves of Daos 5 by Rebecca James—Loner Michael finds out not only he is half wolf shifter by also another plane of existence on Earth

Best Covers of 2016

 

 

 

 

 

~📚~

• Wolfsong  by TJ Klune, Cover Artist Reese Dante—The simple paw prints on a black background sets the mood of the book
• Highland Dragon series by Charlie Richards, Cover artist Angela Waters—Ms Waters never fails to create stunning covers for this fantasy series set in Medieval Scotland
• Running Blind by Kim Fielding and Venona Keyes, Cover artist Anna Sikorski—The two arms linked together by a cord sums up the book perfectly
• Demon Elite series by April Kelley, Cover artist Latrisha Waters—Simple cover always captures the essence of the title characters of the books.
• Executive Office series by Tal Bauer, Cover artist Natasha Snow—Gorgeous Washington settings with perfect representations of the main characters

MelanieM’s Favorite’s  of 2016

Favorite Covers of 2016

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All the Covers of The Tales of the Forest by Blaine D. Arden – Cover art by Simone

Until September by Chris Scully, Cover art by Lou Harper

Fantasy for a Gentleman (A Planet Called Wish #2) by Caitlin Ricci, Cover art by Caitlin Ricci

Circus of the Damned by Cornelia Grey, Cover art by Kanaxa

Devil at the Crossroads by Cornelia Grey, Cover art by Jared Rackler

Out of Nowhere by Roan Parrish, Cover art by Angsty G

Dormant Heart by Lane Swift, Cover art by Anna Sikorska

Under a Sky of Ash by Brandon Witt, Cover Art by Anne Cain

Do-Gooder by J.Leigh Bailey, Cover art by Aaron Anderson

The Unlikely Prospect (States of Love) by Lex Chase, Cover art by Reese Dante

 

 

 

 

 

With special nod to the stylized covers of Will and Patrick Get Married, yes all of them.  Just a delight!  I don’t know who the artist is.  If you do, please let me know.

 

Unlike my covers, most of which had a lush artistic look, my favorite books ran the complete spectrum of fictional genres from contemporary to supernatural to fantasy to science fiction.  Three were series finales, four actually if you include Full Circle.  If you haven’t read any of these trilogies/series, start now!

Favorite Stories of  2016

• Full Circle (Tales of the Forest) by Blaine D. Arden
• The Music of the Spheres by Chase Potter
• Strength of the Rising Sun (The Borders War #5) by S.A. McAuley/series finale
• The Winter Prince by R Cooper
• Treasure for Treasure by R Cooper
• Dormant Heart by Lane Swift
• Candy Land (Hidden Gem #3) by Lissy Kasey/ series finale
• Blood and Milk by N. R. Walker
• A King and a Pawn by Liv Olteano /series finale
• Undercover Boyfriend by Jacob Z. Flores
• Flying Fish (Sword and Silk Trilogy #1) by Sedonia Guillone
• Connection Error (#gaymers #3) by Annabeth Albert
• Re-Inventing Love by Storm Grant
• Mad Lizard Mambo (Kai Gracen, #2) by Rhys Ford (both books)
• Once Upon a Time in the Weird West Anthology (yes an entire anthology)
• The Weight of It All by N.R. Walker
• Reading the Signs by Keira Andrews
• The 12 Days of Hipster (The Avona Tales #2) by Raine O’Tierney
• In Enemy Hands by M.A. Church
• Chosen Pride (L’Ange #3) by Mary Calmes 
• Catch and Release (The Release #3) by B.A. Tortuga (in fact the entire series to date)
• The Unlikely Prospect (States of Love) by Lex Chase

Our readers still commented with their favorites.

From Our Readers:

Thanks for sharing your lists! I loved a lot of those same books. Here is my list from last year:

Fallow by Jordan L .Hawk
A Family for Christmas by Jay Northcote
Symptoms of Being Human by Jeff Garvin
Golden Boy by Abigail Tarttelin
Hexworld series by Jordan L. Hawk
The Weight of It All by NR Walker
A Place Called Winter by Patrick Gale
Wolfsong by TJ Klune
The Mermaid Murders by Josh Lanyon
Trailer Trash by Marie Sexton
Strong Signal by Megan Erickson & Santino Hassell*
Inversion Point by Jenn Burke & Kelly Jensen
Phase Shift by Jenn Burke & Kelly Jensen
Dirty Heart by Rhys Ford
Foxes by Suki Fleet
King’s Rising by C.S. Pacat
Dancer of Death by Jordan L. Hawk
Nightingale by Aleksandr Voinov
Cold Fusion by Harper Fox

Thanks for sharing your list, I saw quite a number of titles I haven’t read, so this really help me to add more to my TBR. My own best of 2016 is not much; Jordan L. Hawk’s Fallow & Hexmaker, Josh Lanyon’s So This Is Christmas, Lloyd A. Meeker’s Stick & Stones.

Keep those lists coming!

Announcements

Wilde City will be closing its doors in 2017.  They were another wonderful press and will be greatly missed. From their authors and stories to their amazing covers, Wilde City Press was a class act! From Ethan and Wilde City Press, their announcement:

To all our friends, readers, reviewers and fans of our authors,

Due to various personal reasons it is with a heavy heart that we have decided to close Wilde City Press. We have enjoyed every moment of our journey over the past four years, and want to thank everyone who has been a part of our adventure.

 

Over the next few months we will be ensuring that everyone who has worked with Wilde City will be paid in full and have their rights returned to them. We are very proud of the work our authors and editors have given to the world, and we hope these books will be published again to be enjoyed for many more years to come. For members of our book club, we will give you plenty of time to back-up any files you have purchased through our site so you don’t lose anything.

 

We want to say a sincere thank you to all the authors who put their faith in us, the readers who have supported us and the incredible friendships we’ve made over the years. Rest assured we are not disappearing from our beloved industry; Ethan and Geoff will continue writing as authors, Adrian will continue to design amazing book covers, and all of us will forever be a part of this cherished tribe of book lovers.

 

From your friends at Wilde City Press,

Ethan, Geoff, Tracy and Adrian

So long, Wilde City Press!  We will miss you!

This Week At Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

Sunday, January 29:

• Release Blitz – Cristina Bruni’s Seven Days
• A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review: Undertow: A Whyborne & Griffin Universe Story by Jordan L Hawk
• The Last of the Best of 2016 and This Week at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

Monday, January 30:

• DSP GUEST POST Ki Brightly on Trust Trade 
• Release Day Blitz The Visionary by Charli Coty
• RIPTIDE TOUR Making Love by Aidan Wayne
• Review Tour – Watching and Wanting by Jay Northcote
• A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review: Watching and Wanting (Housemates 4) by Jay Northcote
• A VVivacious Release Day Review: Making Love by Aidan Wayne
• An Ali Review: Falling into Darkness by LM Brown

Tuesday, January 31:

• Blog Tour: Adrift by Isabelle Adler (excerpt and giveaway)
• In the Spotlight: Soothsayer by Cari Z (excerpt and giveaway)
• Release Blitz: Rick R Reed’s A Face without a Heart
• A Lila Review:  Soothsayer by Cari Z.
• A MelanieM Release Day Review: A Face Without a Heart by Rick R. Reed
• A Paul B Review:  Descent of Kings: Books BUNDLE by Maria Albert
• An Ali Review:  Soothsayer by Cari Z.
• An Ali Review: Stallions and Ice by Stephani Hecht

Wednesday, February 1:

• RIPTIDE TOUR: Rogue Magic by Kit Brisby
• Cover Reveal for Secrets of You by Skylar M. Cates
• “Spell Fall” by Jacob Z. Flores tour and giveaway
• An Alisa Review: Rogue Magic by Kit Brisby
• A Jeri Release Day Review: Thick & Thin (THIRDS #8) by Charlie Cochet
• An Alisa Review: American Telepath (Dragons Schooled #2) by Emily Carrington
• A MelanieM Release Day Review: The Worst Best Man by M.J. O’Shea
• An Alisa Release Day Review:  Inheritance by Sean Michael

Thursday, February 2:

• Blog tour  for COZZI COVE: STEPPING OUT by Joe Cosentino (guest post)
• DSP GUEST POST Sean Michael on Inheritance
• A Caryn Review: The Star of Versailles by Catherine Curzon & Willow Winsham
• A Lila Review:  The Visionary by Charli Coty
• An Ali Audiobook Review: Crime Wave by Adam Carpenter narrated by Joel Leslie
• An Alisa Review:  Silent Night by Shawn Bailey

Friday, February 3:

• DSP GUEST POST Z. Allora on The Craving
• BLOG TOUR The Black Sheep and The Rotten Apple by K.A. Merikan
• Terrible Twos by Megs Pritchard tour and giveaway
• A MelanieM Review: Happy Medium (Club Raven #1) by Julia Talbot
• A VVivacious Release Day Review: The Craving by Z. Allora
• An Alisa Audio Review: Redesigning Max (Foothills Pride #2) by Pat Henshaw and David Ross (Narrator)

Saturday, February 4:

• The Fire Trilogy – RJ Scott Tour
• A Paul B Review: For a Dragon’s Control (Highland Dragons #10) by Charlie Richards
• A MelanieM Review: Wishful Thinking (Club Raven #2) by Kiernan Kelly