We had well over 3,000 votes in the first two rounds of this poll – wow! We knew you all were passionate about romance, but wow! We’ve now taken the top 150 books from both rounds and presented them here. This combines the starter nominations provided in Round One and the write-ins from Round Two and we ask you to vote for as many in this top 150 as you like. Every book you think belongs on a Reader Poll Top 100, tick that box!
From this, we’ll take the Top 100 and that will be our list. We’ll give you all one more chance to decide the ranking of the top 10 in the next round (Four), but this round is what determines the overall list. So, please – share it far and wide!
I am very happy with this list. Let the readers weigh in!
I am pretty stunned no Anne Stuart books made this list. That seems very odd.
There are quite a few authors I am surprised aren’t on it and some like Tessa Dare that I didn’t realize were so popular. I always find these lists really fascinating. Thanks again for all the hard work you all put into this!
No Stella Riley!? Can’t be right!
I’m shaking my head along with you on that one.
She’s not that well-known across the pond……
Yeah, sorry Caz, I’ve never heard of her!
Impossible!
Outrageous!
I really like this list, as it features a nice balance between older and newer romances.
I too was disappointed that Anne Stuart is missing as she is a longtime favorite, but perhaps there is not one single title that really stands out to readers. I think there was only one Meredith Duran here, and her _At Your Pleasure_ didn’t make the list, which is disappointing as I adore that book. I wish too that Elizabeth Kingston’s _The King’s Man_ made it. No Susanna Kearsley either.
On other other hand, my three favorite contemporaries, Penny Reid’s _Dating-ish_, Sally Thorne’s _The Hating Game_, and Lucy Parker’s _Pretty Face_ are all here along with lots of my favorite historicals. Can’t wait to see the final list soon.
Two Meredith Durans, thank heavens.
A Lady’s Code of Misconduct and The Duke of Shadows–her first and her second most recent. I do wonder if the Anne Stuart absence is somewhat attributable to the fact that she writes series. But no Black Ice? Or Reckless? Color me shocked.
Other authors I think were perhaps stunted by the series problem–Jill Shalvis and Kristan Higgins. They are huge sellers but both are known for multiple books.
There you go… Next in line? Top 20 Romance Series. 😉
We are actually planning that!
Did I miss Judith Ivory, or were there no Judith Ivorys on the list? And only one Kinsale?
I know! The lack of more Kinsales on the list is sad.
I too am very sorry to see Judith Ivory fading in popularity. She is still one of my favorites. _Untie My Heart_ is still in my Top 10. Happy though that _Flowers from the Storm_ is still in the mix.
You’re right! I absolutely loved “Dance”.
There are a lot of new authors in the list, which is great, but I still miss some of the original ladies. I found odd there’s not a single Lindsey in the list.
Interesting mix of books. I was pretty happy that some of my favorites were on there. I almost voted for Anne Stuart’s Reckless in the earlier voting, but for whatever reason I just didn’t.
I don’t see Alice Clayton’s Wallbanger on the list. It’s a fun read with good humor and one of my favorites to reread.
Here is the list:
A Court of Mist and Fury – Sarah J. Maas
A Duke of Her Own – Eloisa James
A Gentleman’s Position – K.J. Charles
A Hope Divided – Alyssa Cole
A Hunger Like No Other – Kresley Cole
A Lady Awakened – Cecilia Grant
A Lady’s Code of Misconduct – Meredith Duran
A Princess in Theory – Alyssa Cole
A Promise of Fire – Amanda Bouchet
A Rogue By Any Other Name – Sarah MacLean
A Seditious Affair – K.J. Charles
A Summer to Remember – Mary Balogh
A Week to Be Wicked – Tessa Dare
Act Like It – Lucy Parker
Ain’t She Sweet – Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Almost Heaven – Judith McNaught
An Extraordinary Union – Alyssa Cole
An Unnatural Vice – K.J. Charles
Angels Blood – Nalini Singh
Any Duchess Will Do – Tessa Dare
Anyone But You – Jennifer Crusie
Archangel’s Enigma – Nalini Singh
Beard Science – Penny Reid
Bet Me – Jennie Crusie
Blue Eyed Devil – Lisa Kleypas
Bollywood Affair – Sonali Dev
Burn for Me – Ilona Andrews
Dark Lover – J.R. Ward
Dating-ish – Penny Reid
Devil in Spring – Lisa Kleypas
Devil in Winter – Lisa Kleypas
Devil’s Bride – Stephanie Laurens
Devil’s Cub – Georgette Heyer
Do You Want to Start a Scandal – Tessa Dare
Dragon Bound – Thea Harrison
Dream a Little Dream – Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Dream Man – Linda Howard
Dreaming of You – Lisa Kleypas
Duke of Midnight – Elizabeth Hoyt
Duke of Sin – Elizabeth Hoyt
Eleanor and Park – Rainbow Rowell
Flowers from the Storm – Laura Kinsale
Forbidden – Beverly Jenkins
Frederica – Georgette Heyer
Hate To Want You – Alisha Rai
Heart of Obsidian – Nalini Singh
Heaven Texas – Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Him – Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy
His at Night – Sherry Thomas
It Had to Be You – Susan Elizabeth Phillips
It Happened One Autumn – Lisa Kleypas
It Happened One Wedding – Julie James
Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte
Kingdom of Dreams – Judith McNaught
Kiss an Angel – Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Kiss of Snow – Nalini Singh
Knight in Shining Armor – Jude Deveraux
Kulti – Mariana Zapata
Lady Sophia’s Lover – Lisa Kleypas
Lord of Scoundrels – Loretta Chase
Lord Perfect – Loretta Chase
Love Hacked – Penny Reid
Love in the Afternoon – Lisa Kleypas
Love Irresistibly – Julie James
Lover Awakened – J.R. Ward
Mackenzie’s Mountain – Linda Howard
Magic Binds – Ilona Andrews
Married by Morning – Lisa Klepas
Marrying Winterborne – Lisa Kleypas
Match Me If You Can – Susan Elizabeth Philips
Mine ‘Til Midnight – Lisa Kleypas
Miss Wonderful – Loretta Chase
Montana Sky – Nora Roberts
More than a Mistress – Mary Balogh
Mr. Impossible – Loretta Chase
Mr. Perfect – Linda Howard
Naked in Death – J.D. Robb
Natural Born Charmer – Susan Elizabeth Philips
Neaderthal Seeks Human – Penny Reid
Never Judge a Lady by Her Cover – Sarah MacLean
Nine Rules To Break When Romancing A Rake – Sarah MacLean
Nobody’s Baby But Mine – Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Not Quite a Husband – Sherry Thomas
Once and Always – Judith McNaught
One Good Earl Deserves a Lover – Sarah MacLean
Outlander – Diana Gabaldon
Paradise – Judith McNaught
Persuasion – Jane Austen
Pretty Face – Lucy Parker
Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen
Private Arrangements – Sherry Thomas
Radiance – Grace Draven
Ransom – Julie Garwood
Ravished – Amanda Quick
Ravishing the Heiress – Sherry Thomas
Rock Hard – Nalini Singh
Romancing Mr. Bridgerton – Julia Quinn
Romancing the Duke – Tessa Dare
Sea Swept – Nora Roberts
Secrets of a Summer Night – Lisa Kleypas
Simply Love – Mary Balogh
Slave to Sensation – Nalini Singh
Slightly Dangerous – Mary Balogh
Smooth Talking Stranger- Lisa Kleypas
Something about You – Julie James
Something Wonderful – Judith McNaught
Spectred Isle – K.J. Charles
Sylvester – Georgette Heyer
Tempest – Beverly Jenkins
The Black Hawk – Joanna Bourne
The Bride – Julie Garwood
The Countess Conspiracy – Courtney Milan
The Duchess Deal – Tessa Dare
The Duke and I – Julia Quinn
The Duke of Shadows – Meredith Duran
The Forbidden Rose – Joanna Bourne
The Governess Affair – Courtney Milan
The Grand Sophy – Georgette Heyer
The Hating Game – Sally Thorne
The Heiress Effect – Courtney Milan
The Iron Duke – Meljean Brook
The Last Hellion – Loretta Chase
The Legend of Lyon Redmond – Julie Anne Long
The Luckiest Lady in London – Sherry Thomas
The Madness of Lord Ian Mackenzie – Jennifer Ashley
The Magpie Lord – K.J. Charles
The Rake – Mary Jo Putney
The Raven Prince – Elizabeth Hoyt
The Secret – Julie Garwood
The Spymaster’s Lady – Joanna Bourne
The Suffragette Scandal – Courtney Milan
The Thing About Love – Julie James
The Viscount Who Loved Me – Julia Quinn
The Wall of Winnipeg and Me – Mariana Zapata
The Witness – Nora Roberts
Then Came You – Lisa Kleypas
These Old Shades – Georgette Heyer
Think of England – K.J. Charles
Unlocked – Courtney Milan
Venetia – Georgette Heyer
Welcome to Temptation – Jennifer Crusie
What I Did for a Duke – Julie Anne Long
When a Scot Ties the Knot – Tessa Dare
When Beauty Tamed the Beast – Eloisa James
When He Was Wicked – Julia Quinn
White Hot – Ilona Andrews
Whitney, My Love – Judith McNaught
Wicked Intentions – Elizabeth Hoyt
Wildfire – Ilona Andrews
Wrong to Need You – Alisha Rai
No Michelle Martins, Carla Kellys or any of the older trads. Woe!
No Carla Kelly shocked me, too, along with no Anne Stuart.
I think Carla Kelly is someone that suffers from not having one book that everyone agrees upon. She has a lot of different books that are peoples favorites but not one breakout, runaway favorite. I had a hard time choosing just one of hers as a write in on my ballot as there are several of hers I dearly love.
Shaking my head. This is so sad… No Judith Ivory or more books by Laura Kinsale? No Anne Stuart, Charlotte Brontë, Marsha Canham, Karleen Koen, Jennifer Donnelly, Jean Webster, Stella Rilley, Julianne Donaldson, Lavyrle Spencer, Judith Merkle Riley, Eva Ibbotson, Victoria Holt, M.M. Kaye, Laura Florand, Sharon Shinn, Susanna Kearsley, Robin Schone, Suzanne Brockmann, Jojo Moyes, Sarra Manning, Sophie Kinsella, Patricia Briggs. Karen Marie Moning, Laura Griffin, Sandra Brown…
I’m sorry but this is a mediocre list.
The NPR Best 100 Romance Novels list is the best of all.
I agree with you, not necessarily about the authors left out but about the lack of variety overall. If a novice romance reader were to tackle the books on this list they would come away with a pretty narrow impression of the genre. Do we really need that many titles by Quinn, Milan, Balogh, Charles, etc? I guess people vote how they vote, but the methodology seems flawed somehow if this is what it comes up with.
I’m from Spain. Maybe our standards about this topic are different here. No offence but IMHO this list justifies mental laziness and robbing readers of the true delights of ambitious fiction in the romance genre. I prefer to read a romance where the characters bring more to the table than just passion and sexual frustration. It’s time we stopped this pretence that mediocrity is equal to genius and that applies to the 85% of this list.
And yes, the methodology seems flawed but since I can’t take this list seriously, I couldn’t care less for the final outcome.
Have a look at the NPR top 100 Romances. It’s a great list.
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Take all you need my dear. Like Volatire once said: I may not agree with what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it…
By all means, share with us your far superior Spanish list.
You don’t have to like her opinion, but you should try to respect it. If you have a differing opinion, then great! While we should embrace our own opinions; we should also embrace the fact that everyone has different ones.
I agree with her. This list is awful. Top list my ass.
@Jill – It’s not her opinion that I take issue with. It’s her condescending, superior attitude that offends me. I don’t have to respect anyone who doesn’t respect others.
>Check’s NPR’s List
>List Overlaps AAR’s by about fifty percent and includes Suzanne Brockman’s mostly mediocre Troubleshooters series, Joanna Lindsay’s terrible Warrior’s Woman and at least one erotic romance.
>??
This is a list that is voted for by anyone who cares to take the time to press a button, so of course it’s going to have a number of currently popular choices. It’s not a “Siskel and Ebert” top 100 of anything by a professional reviewer. It’s a populist list. The point of it is to put a finger on the pulse of what romance buyers and readers like. There are tons of lists chosen by “experts” in the writing or romance field all over the internet if that is what you are looking for.
But thanks I guess for taking the time to post “you just don’t care”?
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Charlotte Bronte is on the list.
As well she should be. 😀
“Jane Eyre” was written by Charlotte Bronte. She’s on the list.
I didn’t see it at first. I can sleep peacefully now.
I’m so happy for you…..
Brockmann, Kinsella and Donaldson are mediocre, I’ve never heard of Florand or Shinn and Kearsley and Spencer were on the first top one hundred, which will be combined with this list.
I highly recommend Florand and Kearsley — two of my favorites. (Sorry, I’ve not read Shinn.) Please give them a try. They might end up on your top 100 list.
This is the list that is combined with the first two polls. From this list will come the Top 100. There will be a final poll to determine the top ten.
Ok, I hate to be the pedantic grinch here, but titles that begin with A, AN, or THE should always be alphabetized by the first letter of the second word; as in: DEVIL’S CUB, THE. There are just too many titles that begin with those articles to make alphabetizing by them feasible. (Sorry—twenty years in the tech-writing/copy-editing world die hard.)
Also, I’ve decided that my favorites are apparently not the favorites of my romance-reading sisters. No Anne Calhoun, Jill Sorenson, Jackie Ashenden? Oh dear.
This is the auto-sort by the high-end survey program we used. But we hear you.
I’ve read 57 of the titles on the list. At least I think so – I read most of those long ago when I could still find historicals I liked, and the irritatingly generic titles of series romance novels all blend into each other so that for some of them I’m not entirely sure if I’m remembering the right book. (I didn’t love any of those enough to vote for them so it wasn’t worth looking them up to check.)
I actually voted for 18, and some of those with misgivings since I don’t know how they would stand up to a reread now. But I loved them once, and nothing has come along to outshine them in my memory, so I suppose that counts for something. Certain authors like Julia Quinn and Mary Balogh get on my last nerve now, so I voted for my most fondly remembered of their books, from before I became jaded, or they did…..
I wonder if other readers are like me and vote for the recent reads that I know I love right now, plus old favourites that may be benefiting from rosy nostalgia?
Twinsies.
I agree with Dabney’s comment that some authors were disadvantaged by the series issue. I suspect many consistent authors who have several good series to their names will have their votes scattered among the series and, within a series, among individual titles. It could be that onlywhen voters focus in on say the first title in a series eg Naked in Death by J.D. Robb does the author attract sufficient votes to make the list. Perhaps we could have a blog discussion about various authors eg Nora Roberts, Mary Balogh etc and which series of theirs are the best. I always find it interesting to read people’s ideas about which are the best series by particular authors. If nothing else it gives me a suggested starting point for a new (to me) author.
It’s nice to see Judith McNaught hasn’t been forgotten since she hasn’t published anything new in years. Susan Elizabeth Phillips and Lisa Kleypas are a given on most “best” lists, but I’m also glad to see authors such as Julie James, Meredith Duran, Sherry Thomas & Joanna Bourne recognized.
I’m a little surprised that there aren’t more of Julie Anne Long’s books on the list. She has so many really good ones. I don’t think it’s because she writes series books; most stand on their own.
Yeah, with apologies, I would definitely not consider this list a true representation of the top authors and/or books in this genre, especially since so many very good writers have been left out and others have multiple books on the list, which must mean they’re work is more representative of the best. I have nothing against these ladies, but five Tessa Dares, four Sarah MacLeans, eight SEPs, twelve Lisa Kleypas?! Meanwhile, only one Kinsale and no Kearsley? My!
I think this always happens when it’s lists voted on and open to anyone. No matter what the subject. People who have read only one or two romances so far in their life but really liked them can vote for them. It’s like comparing “best restaurant” lists between profession food reviewers or bloggers or ones where anyone can vote. The populist lists often times find things like Olive Garden winning “Best Italian Restaurant” for the area and people get mad. But for a lot of people that’s what they know and like and that’s how they vote. I think this poll is really interesting and valuable but it’s like comparing the People’s Choice Awards or MTV Movie awards to the Oscars.
^^ This!
Maybe the title should be changed to the 100 romance people’s choice for this year and not the top 100 romances (of all time) … because, seriously, it really is not. Not even close.
We have used that term every time we’ve done this over the past 20+ years. We can have a discussion about what top means to each of us–is it what is most popular? best selling? best known? most lauded by academics? most likely to change the world? most loved? In this poll, top means the ones thousands of romance readers picked as the ones they felt justified being called “Top.”
no apologies necessary, Sandylynn! whether it’s a true representation or not, it’s what the readers are saying are the top of the genre. they wrote in their picks and they are voting for those titles in every round. lots of currently popular reads, others maybe just voting for favourite authors (of which, yes, there are multiples!), some cult faves, and lots of nostalgia factor. it’s been interesting to watch!
As someone who’s been reading romance since the 1970’s, I don’t know. I might have put about 20 of these books on my top 100 list and that’s being generous. It’s okay. I know what I like, but I’m just a little sorry that new romance readers aren’t getting a list that includes more really good authors instead of 12 books by one author, for example.
Marianna Zapata has two books here in this 3rd round. I haven’t read her books yet but I definitely want to change that.
That surprised me–but she sells super well. Now I need try out one of her books.
Several of hers are on Kindle Unlimited at the moment. I remember when Wall of Winnepeg came out there was a lot of buzz about it and love for it. I just rented it myself in light of it being on the list
I just recently bought a couple of her books, so I was definitely surprised and intrigued to find her on this list. Her books are relatively lengthy, so at some point, I’ll surface and give those who care my views on them. LOL!
Bluntly, this is a disappointing list for all the hullaballoo about it on twitter and clearly I’m not the only one who thinks so. Fans of particularly popular authors have clearly voted in droves resulting in a very monolithic list that does not in any way provide the sort of broad, diverse list of titles that you would expect to see when invited to view the top 100 books of ANY particular genre. I must admit that I’m always sceptical of such lists as they rarely reflect a truly objective view, but this is worse than usual. Nothing against the over-represented authors in question who individually probably deserve to be represented here, but not in a way that takes up almost half the list with, what, 7 or 8 historical romance authors? And at a point in time when there’s literally never been more diversity of subgenre and representation than ever before? I’m disappointed so yeah, I can’t say I much care about the results either.
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Are you saying that certain authors’ fans skewed the results somehow by repeat voting? Isn’t it more likely that across the board some authors have just sold more books and are more broadly popular?
There are also authors that are extremely popular (but so prolific) like Nora Roberts, that based on their total sales numbers, are probably underrepresented on the poll.
If there was an open poll of the top 100 movies voted on by the average person would you expect films like Citizen Kane or The Manificent Ambersons to be in the top ten? Or would it more likely include a bunch of James Cameron movies and all the Star Wars films?
*nods* Yep, that’s exactly what happens. One of the main UK TV channels used to do a regular “Top 100” (or “Top 50”) of various things – films, TV shows, songs, musicals, etc. etc. and I remember that the top film was Star Wars. Now, I love Star Wars (although I think we can all agree that The Empire Strikes Best is the best of the lot!) but would I put it above Citizen Kane, Casablanca, The Third Man. etc? No. These things are usually a snapshot of what’s popular at the time.
Respectfully, I disagree re Star Wars. In terms of cultural and industry impact, few films can equal this movie. While Cutiz’s Casablanca and Welle’s Citizen Kane were excellent depictions of what can be accomplished by following industry standards, what makes Star Wars exceptional was that it changed the standards. Films such as Return of the King (an Academy Award winner) would not have been made had Lucas not paved the way. The technology of film has changed completely thanks to the great public demand for sci-fi and fantasy films and the public interest in movies has changed as well. With the exception of Gone with the Wind and Wizard of Oz, many films prior to SW failed to capture the national/international imagination but SW is such a cultural phenomena that people of all ages and classes and nationalities can quote lines and describe scenes from the films. I love old movies and quality movies. When my son was a teenager, we began working our way through the AFI top 100 film lists because I wanted him to get a feel for what the genre could accomplish beyond Spiderman and Batman begins.. Now in college, he often sits in rooms with people who haven’t even seen the Godfather movies (this should be criminal negligence on the part of the parents) much less Citizen Kane. He aced his History of Cinema class thanks to me! My love of the old, though, doesn’t keep me from embracing the new and acknowledging when such things take genres in whole new directions. Star Wars did that and deserves to be in the top ten of any best of post, and probably, in the top five.
In that, Maggie, you’re right and it’s something I have pointed out in the past – that SW really revolutionised cinema and cinema going – especially for families – in the late 70s and that its impact has been felt far and wide. It’s a great movie and I love it, but the dialogue? Ouch.
No question it deserves a place in anyone’s top ten or top five – but I suspect the polls I was talking about weren’t ones that put it there because it of the issues you mention.
We watched all three Godfather movies with our youngest son last year–the first one is still extraordinary. I think every generation has movies that stir them–I watched Casablanca and The Bridge over the River Kwai with my parents when I was in junior high and can still remember my parents’ reverence for those films. I have little patience for the idea that there’s always been some kind of dividing line between art/entertainment. Dickens, Shakespeare–they were the SEPs, Rowlings of their day.
I wasn’t dumping on Star Wars, I still love the original trilogy and am old enough to remember my excitement at going to see Star Wars (before it became “A New Hope” or whatever) when it was first released and twisting my hair up in Leia buns for Halloween. I just meant even the lousy “prequels” would have been voted in the top ten at the time they were released- Jar Jar Binks and all.
My point was that popular culture and critical opinion sometimes coincide as with The Godfather or Goodfellas or they can be really far apart.
How many top book lists voted on by the general public would have had novels like The Da Vinci Code, 50 Shades of Grey and Twilight on them at the height of those books popularity?
I know people who only read books that go viral like 50 Shades or Gone Girl. There are romance readers who only buy novels off the racks at Walmart or the supermarket.
I think its silly for people (and I don’t mean you at all I’m just adding this in my comment here) to come here angry at AAR because the average reader isn’t exposed to the most diverse material and the newest publications. Like I said elsewhere, its like being mad or surprised people like Olive Garden or Cracker Barrel when they are some of the most prolific restaurants.
@Chrisreader I agree that people are being silly re the lists. AAR Top 100 is fan driven and the books fans like are the books they like. Caz had mentioned that Star Wars always won fan polls and I was just pointing out that in that particular case there is a strong argument for it being one of the best ever. It should be on all the lists. 🙂
@Nadia – I do agree with you that more diversity within the romance genre in general exists now than in the past. When I look back at the 2013 AAR list though, I can see just from a quick look that LGBTQ books are represented here (7, I think) and they really weren’t before. That seems reflective of our societal shift in popular opinion regarding gay marriage and love. There are many of the same authors representing conventional gender roles, such as SEP, Kleypas, Garwood, etc., However, there are more feminists writers included here than in the past. That seems in line with the changes in our society, especially with the #metoo movement. Feminist authors like Penny Reid and Alisha Rai overtly explore mental health issues in sensitive and conscientious ways. A number of the authors here write biracial love stories and that seems to be a welcome change from the past. This list does have more authors of color than in the past and that is a welcome change too. Is it enough? No! Romance genre writing is invested in whiteness and cis-gendered characters as a standard, even with the growing diversity in the field. But there are competing tensions among the readership, just as in our culture in general, and this list looks a bit better to me than past ones — maybe it’s just. a glass half full approach,. Popular culture polls such as this one are interesting though because they do shed light on the larger social attitudes.
I know, as a reviewer at AAR that this poll has been done with the greatest amount of work and integrity you can ask of anyone or group. Reviewers top 10, readers top choices, lists voted on by readers. No shenanigans and no data mining or Cambridge Analytica!
I am disappointed with the list because the majority are heterosexual historical romances. I saw someone complain about KJ Charles being on the list, well thank goodness or there would be no LGBTQ representation or English writers writing English historical romances, with the exception of Austen and Bronte.
KJ Charles quite rightly makes this list as she is a wonderful writer, a very accurate writer and historical researcher. There has been an awful lot of very strong comments on site, twitter / FB about representation, diversity and own voice authors. However, the lists can only show what readers write in and vote for.
So, rather than complaining about the lists, which represent readers’ choices, maybe readers should expand their horizons. Read less American white authors, writing about white straight MCs, in English historical romances instead of moaning when the best of lists are stuffed with them.
Let’s just accept that people love what and whom they will.
Exactly. And even more so, people often tend to read what they know. Or what seems familiar or appealing. I freely admit as I have gotten older I cannot take many 19 year old heroines and find myself eye rolling through more Kristen Ashley novels at times simply because she will often write older heroes and heroines.
To understand in general who the “romance reader” is, I found this very interesting.
http://www.nielsen.com/us/en/insights/news/2016/romance-readers-by-the-numbers.html?afflt=ntrt15340001&afflt_uid=gGRwjHjN4NY.f4HKcy9KYGGZan6XoGVU4fHYP0kmvbSB&afflt_uid_2=AFFLT_ID_2
Great post and completely agree, BJ. Sarina Bowen & Elle Kennedy’s _Him_ is m/m romance that also made this list. I haven’t read Charles but plan to fix that soon.
Oh, I love it so much!
You may be referring to me as the K J Charles complainer, so just to clarify, I love her writing and in fact voted for some of her books on the list. I just referred to her as one of the authors with multiple entries to show how this list is kind of misleading when so many great authors didn’t make the cut. Probably Kleypas and SEP would have been better examples since they dominate even more.
And I so agree with you about the preponderance of American-written hetero historical romance. That’s why I said the list would be unhelpful to a novice reader. In the first round of voting I nominated some other M/M, New Adult contemporary and American historical romances that didn’t make the final list.
I also acknowledged that people vote how they vote; there was no intended criticism of AAR. If the list generates discussion about what else should have been on it, that’s still helpful for people seeking good books.
When someone brought up the NPR list, I was curious so went to look at it. I very much liked it, but it overcomes several problems that exist in this list from AAR by dividing into genres and by choosing favorite series instead of spreading “votes” among multiple titles by the same author. Thus I don’t think it really “fair” to compare the two lists as the methodology in creating them was so different.
I’m with the several of the commenters here, in that I haven’t read many of the books on this list, and I find it missing quite a few older books that are my favorites (some of which didn’t survive to this round). I’m going to be quite interested to see if any of my votes from this list make the top ten.
I appreciate the time and energy put into this project by the volunteers at AAR. I would be curious to know how many commenters voted in the first and second rounds. Thanks for all your hard work!
I’ve voted in every round. I was disappointed with the initial list although I think I understand it’s intent. I was relatively pleased that the second list managed to include several of my older favorites. Thx latest list not so much. But yes I voted anyway.
The first two rounds had about 3500 votes.
It’s a good list, but I will admit I was surprised at the amount of Kleypas books. I voted only for one, Devil in Winter. The omission of Jo Beverly was surprising, I loved Devlish and was surprised to see the mediocre Devil in Spring where it IMO should of been.
Having been a pollster on the last three AAR Top 100 lists and many, many, many AAR annual polls, I have learned that people vote for their favorite books — period. They don’t try to make sure they choose a representative choice of every genre and/or every author. They choose their favorite books. The titles with the most votes rise to the top. That’s it.
Well said, Lee.
You perfectly sum up my view on the voting Lee! Well said.
So many books I adore aren’t on this list – but with 3500+ votes from the diverse readership of romance, that’s to be expected. I will still shout loudly and proudly for books I love – to anyone and everyone who cares to listen.
**And if you’re listening, Helen Hoang’s June debut, The Kissing Quotient, is BRILLIANT.**
I can’t recall the last time I’ve been looking so forward to a book — and a book from a completely new-to-me author!! June can’t get here fast enough.
I think the only way to avoid the problem where things that are currently popular aren’t disproportionately represented would be to only allow books on the list if they were published more than five years ago (sort of like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but counting from the end rather than the beginning), but oy, if they had done it that way, a lot of people would still be pretty upset. I’d be kind of interested to see a poll for authors like that, though, where the author’s first date of publication by some criteria determines eligibility.
The list doesn’t thrill me (cf. above for my woe at the omission of Ivory), but hey, it’s still fascinating to see what made the list, and we picked these ourselves, so. Thanks to all the hard work from the AAR staffers.
When does the voting close for round 3?
On Friday.
Thankyou AAR staffers for all the work you have put in to providing we readers with an opportunity to have our say about which romance books we think are the best.
I think LeeB is correct when she says people vote for their favourite books. We readers don’t think about some theoretical balance of historical vs contemporary vs paranormal romance. We look at the list you initially proposed, check the books on our ereaders and bookshelves and then vote for or nominate those we think are outstanding.
The annual lists staff members and reviewers nominate as the “ best of the year “ are interesting but this reader, for one, appreciates the opportunity to nominate or vote for books I think are worthy of inclusion in a “ best of “ list. It is disappointing when a book/ author I think deserves inclusion doesn’t make the cut but the lively discussion re authors who should or should not have made the cut shows we are all passionate about the world of romance reading.
I look forward to the proposed future discussion about the top romance series. I would be equally interested in reading people’s thoughts regarding the top contemporary romance authors/ books, top sci-fi romance authors/ books, top historical western romance authors/ books etc.
Great comment!
This is my favourite poll, as it is made by readers and it has been very useful for me for many years, in order to discover books and authors that I now love. So Thank you, than you, thank you.
Yes, some of my favourite authors are not in these 150 books, BUT many of them are here, so I am quite happy. It’s obvious that my personal taste is not very original, as I’ve read 116 books of these last 150. The majority of the remaining 34 books belong to the paranormal subgenre, which I don’t like. But I think I’m going to give them a try, anyway.
I would like to echo Bona and Frances. Thanks to all who have worked to produce this list for readers to vote on. AAR stated from the beginning that no poll would be perfect. NPR’s top books counted a series as one choice, so actually had way more than 100 books. This poll will be a great way to find new books to investigate. Thomas, Long and Bourne are auto buys for me, but I’m always on the hunt for more. Again thank you for a job well done!
via GIPHY
Well while the start of Meljean Brooks series made the list (“The Iron Duke”) I can’t believe “The Kraken King” did not make it since IMHO it was the best romance of the whole series (and one of my All Time Top 5 Romances) but the fact it was released in serial format first then as a whole novel might have had some effect on it.
Douglas C. Meeks
Amazon Top 500 VINE Reviewer, Goodreads Top 1% Reviewer, Reviewer for Paranormal Romance Guild, Wicked Scribes and Kindle Book Review
Upset that none of Johanna Lindsey’s books are on here!!
Oh. Lorraine heath my favourite. Didn’t make it.
I don’t think readers’ criticism of the poll results should be dismissed as “silly” or delegitimized as ineffective “complaining”/whining, particularly with regard to underrepresentation of AOC. Because representation matters. Especially when the leader of our nation has made clearer than ever that he doesn’t consider some POC human. I think it’s a completely valid emotion to be unhappy with the disproportionate lack of AOC in the lists, and to express that dissatisfication. Please don’t devalue readers’ reactions to the poll, especially if they have self-identified as marginalized and you have more privilege. If you feel their reactions are irrational or unfair, please try considering the situation from their perspective and at least acknowledge the validity of their emotions.
I understand one of the main arguments against my POV is the assertion that reader choice must be accurately represented, even if that means keeping votes for openly racist authors who harmfully represent POC in their books. I hope we can at least agree that this is not a completely innocent position to defend, even if it’s believed to be the “right” one in order to preserve the accuracy of reader votes. Because it privileges a large number of readers who are fortunate enough not to feel harmed by racist writers, over marginalized readers who do feel harmed seeing such writers showcased.
Lastly, I’m not completely sure how closely this poll really represents what romance readers in general believe. More than 3000 people participated, but there are millions of romance fans, and this is not a statistically random sampling of reader choice. At the same time, I don’t think readers who are critical of the poll results should be dismissed as “silly” for taking issue with a poll that’s just supposed to be fun, when so few AOC have been on the list in any of the rounds.
I agree on the repeated use of the word “silly” from a handful of readers here. It is absolutely valid to examine poll results and try to come to some conclusions/observations about them. If whiteness is over-represented here, and it is, it is definitely worth noting that AAR readers who voted did so overwhelmingly for white, hetero authors and mainly for stories about white hetero characters. That is a fact. Now, what do we collectively interpret from that fact? The marginalizing of race in our entertainment choices, whether done consciously or not, can tell us that racial divides remain in place in the romance reading community. More reviews from authors of color and more stories about people of color, biracial characters, and interracial love stories can over time impact how readers feel about those books as legitimate, “entertaining” choices. I have found though that since the last poll more books representing diversity are being reviewed here, and so I feel that there has been a step in the right direction, Same is true LGBTQ books.
I’m also not at all persuaded by the “people like what they like” argument and find that at best an example of circular logic (i.e. logical fallacy). There is no evidence to prove it other than to keep saying that people like what they like because they like what they like because…. On the contrary, I would argue that people like what they like for very complex personal AND social reasons. There is so much evidence indicating that people absorb important social values and cues from reading, and that reading (and any art form), is indicative of cultural customs. Maybe readers don’t have access to diversity in their reading materials. But if that’s the case, that too is important because it shows us that access issues continue to perpetuate whiteness as a standard.
And I guess too that when people find the discussion about race or sexual orientation or gender equality silly, that may be the time to just sit back and listen. More people have posted about this poll than I’ve seen in years here at this site. People obviously have concerns and insights to share. Nothing silly about that.
We will release the top 100 later this weekend. It’s an interesting list.
Since you have jumped on Griffina’s bandwagon of selecting words from what I post and willfully misrepresenting them make your own arguments I will repost what was actually posted above.
**I think its silly for people….to come here angry at AAR because the average reader isn’t exposed to the most diverse material and the newest publications.”
No one said examining the results, being unhappy with the results or looking for more diversity was “silly”. Beating up AAR and the pollsters with a lot of negative and sometimes nasty comments is because you are unhappy with how OTHER PEOPLE VOTED.
Also “silly”: cherry picking words at random and misquoting people when you don’t agree with what they post.
I stand by my post. I do not think that the word “silly” is appropriate in this conversation when aimed at readers who have a right to be upset over the lack of diversity in the romance reading community. That is a legitimate conversation to have and an important one too, and that is the conversation I hope we continue to have going forward.
You are clearly being deliberately obtuse and dishonest in your post but if you want to “stand by it” that’s fine.
Silly was referring to people rudely lashing out at AAR because they don’t like how other people voted, -something AAR has zero control over unless people expect AAR to dishonestly tamper with peoples votes.
Nothing was ever posted about people not having a right to be unhappy with the voting. Griffina (yet again) took words out of context and you happily jumped on the bandwagon in order to manufacture some kind of controversy. So be it.
I addition to all the authors and books you don’t approve of who AAR should just remove from the voting, you can include a list of vocabulary words that aren’t allowed in the comment section either. That should certainly lend itself to “legitimate” and “important” conversation.
I think it’s worth noting that readers like Chrisreader aren’t official staff nor do they seem to represent AAR’s pov on this poll. I haven’t seen any AAR staff call these feelings ‘silly’.
I also don’t believe any of the final authors have such representations in their books. . Your original argument was about Linda Howard’s inclusion on the list and her real-life racism when it came to her actions within the RWA.
As for the sample size of the audience, I don’t think it’s meant to be a definitive genre-wide list – just one for people who read at the site. It would require at least five million to six million responses to gather a definitive sample size for the millions who read romance. Even the sample size The Ripped Bodice gathered for their diversity in romance poll wasn’t as big as I’d have liked it to be.
I like BJ’s statement above – I hope that readers will continue to be inspired to read diversely. I read, support, nominate and vote diversely. I’m only one person trying to make a difference, but I do what I can.
With respect to Linda Howard, I have not seen racism portrayed in her books, and I have not written about that as others have here. I am though aware of the Twitter feuds between her and other romance writers on this issue. Here on AAR, I have instead written quite a bit about Howard’s ugly depictions of a transgender character in Mr. Perfect and, in my opinion, her troubling depictions of non-consensual sexual acts in other books such as Mackenzie’s Mountain or After the Night. Again though, I am not advocating for Howard’s removal as others have. I instead firmly believe that any author’s public fictional representations are subject to an open debate and examination.
AAR’s Maggie used the word “silly.”
And yes, BJ’s post was wonderful. The responses to it were disappointing though, as I do not believe that “people just like what they like” provides an accurate understanding of why readers embrace some forms of entertainment over others.
I didn’t recall the transphobia in Mr. Perfect but yes, I definitely recalled the forced seduction scenes in most of her books.
I will take Maggie’s comment in the spirit of the early-post controversy (about the poll not bein genre encompassing enough) being silly versus the diversity discussion that had happened in the previous two posts on Twitter and over the past couple of days. The NPR list comparisons are actually silly and the only silly part of the conversation.
@chrisreader – In your last paragraph you suggest that I personally want authors removed. I do not, though that sentiment may have been expressed by others. I think instead racist/sexist authors, just as an example, should be publicly critiqued rather than silenced. I find open and respectful conversations about these issues potentially productive and removal just a band-aid on a much bigger problem in our country. Removal of “words’? Again, no. Instead, I am a big advocate for critiquing language. Important distinctions here.
As far as the issue of diversity, some readers mistakenly, in my opinion, blame the “methodology” of the poll for the low numbers of people of color and authors of color represented. The anger over diversity and representation, however, has been clearly present in nearly all of the debates over the past weeks. I was going to try to explain one more time right here why readers are angry, but I have written several times over the past two weeks and, more importantly, many others who feel their realities are under-represented have written. We have all had access to these ideas and so the writings are all above for anyone willing to listen.
I think this might be the best method to cover the middle ground between satisfying Grifffina’s desire for a more questioning attitude toward racist/sexist authors and the owner’s desire for full freedom of expression, Blackjack.
I don’t really see it as an anger over diversity or representation – but maybe a frustration from others who don’t understand why a poll that was completely open to adding any book or author in the genre in the first round was misinterpreted. Voters are angry that they weren’t given diverse examples to go by, and site users are frustrated because other voters aren’t using their voting power to help move change with them.
I personally voted diversely, deliberately so and nominated that way as well, but if others don’t show up to back up my votes they won’t and don’t make a dent in the face of a three thousand person monolith. That’s the big problem – people have to show up and vote in the poll instead of boycotting it. If you boycott the poll, the voice of the people becomes even less diverse. I still think organization is key.
Perfectly stated, Anon, and I completely agree! I can see some important steps that need to take place, and I actually have seen AAR make these steps in recent years. More authors of color are being reviewed and more books populated by characters of color are being reviewed. More non cis-gendered books are being reviewed. All of this potentially creates interest and access, and very importantly, ligitimacy, for readers who only see whiteness/heterosexuality/patriarchy etc. in their entertainment choices. I have also said this a few times here in this forum, but I’ll repeat: a comparison between 2013’s AAR Top Reader Poll and this 2018 AAR Top Reader Poll indicates to me that changes are taking place. That doesn’t mean readers who are concerned or frustrated or angry for exclusion should be satisfied, and I do not in any way want to diminish their feelings, but I do see some progress.
So, in the hopes of moving the conversation to a more productive place, let me just say that I had the great pleasure of reading a wonderful, biracial romance, Eleanor & Park, just days ago after seeing the title appear here on the AAR voters’ list. I had heard of Rainbow Rowell but had not ever read any of her books. If the book had not shown up here on this list, I may not have ever found my way to it. It reminded me once again of the importance of diversity in books. It’s just an absolutely lovely romance and one with important things to say about race and gender in contemporary America. I wish I could go back and vote for it, but since I had already voted, I’m crossing my fingers and toes it makes it to the Top 100. I couldn’t find a review of it here on this site but if there isn’t one, I hope someone can review it.
Indeed, progress is coming, slowly but surely.
Actually, I found Eleanor and Park to be rather racist, with an almost fetishized portrait of the lead male character. Just my opinion!