Meet Reviewer Stephanie Ford

About Me Favorite Romance Novels

From the moment I learned to read I could be found with my nose in a book at every waking moment.  Books were such good friends to me that when I was naughty my punishment was that my books were taken away and I was forced to go out to play with other children.  I soon worked my way through the Babysitters’ Club and Sweet Valley books, and by the time I was a freshman in high school I’d already worked my way through most of the classics in the curriculum for the 9-12th grades.  It was in reading those classics that I developed a mad love for Shakespeare and theatre in general.

I went to college (Universite de Paris X, Nanterre) in France where I earned the equivalent of a BA in Theatre.  I then did a year of graduate Theatre studies at Trinity Collge in Dublin, Ireland.  Now I’m living in New England where I work for a radio station. I’m currently 25 and single. And the only heros I’ve found so far are within the pages of my books!

Absolute Favorites

Paradise by Judith McNaught

Favorite Classic

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Favorite Short Stories

The Wise Virgin (The Brides of Christmas) by Jo Beverley

Personal Reading Tastes Favorites by Sub-Genre

What I’m a sucker for in a book: If a book is well-written I can look past storylines that would otherwise drive me up the wall, but I’m a sucker for “secret baby” stories, heroes who are rich and noble (both by birth and by action!), Cinderella stories, and books that are either very funny or dark and Gothic.

What I don’t particularly care for in a book: Paranormals, vampires, Old West stories (though if the writing is compelling enough I’ll give it a whirl!).  I don’t really like books that are jam-packed with a huge cast of characters so that I can hardly keep the characters straight.

What drives me absolutely nuts in a book: Cowboys, ranchers, small-town sheriffs, cops, Navy Seals, firemen, CIA, etc.-type heroes. Not my cup-o-tea!  Heroines that are TSTL, characters that act in the way no real person would, cute and meddlesome children/servants, and authors who spend more time setting up the next book in their series than writing the one I’m currently reading.

Favorite Romance Authors

All-Time Favorite Romance Authors

Judith McNaught
Jo Beverley
Gaelen Foley

Best Discovery/Buried Treasure Authors

Liz Carlyle

My Biggest Glom

Jo Beverley
Teresa Medeiros
Liz Carlyle

Contemporary:

Paradise by Judith McNaught

Frontier or American Historical:

The Raider by Jude Deveraux

European Historical:

The Viscount Who Loved Me by Julia Quinn
Almost Heaven by Judith McNaught
The Duke by Gaelen Foley

Traditional Regency:

Dedication by Janet Mullany

Medieval:

Lord of My Heart by Jo Beverley
Kingdom of Dreams by Judith McNaught

Alternate Reality:

Touch of Enchantment by Teresa Medeiros

Favorites by Mood

Comfort Reads:

Anything by Judith McNaught
Anything by Gaelen Foley

Most-Hanky Reads:

The Shattered Rose by Jo Beverley

Guilty Pleasure:

Anything by Bertrice Small
Whitney, My Love by Judith McNaught

Favorite Characters Favorites by Plot Type

Favorite Hero

Robert, Duke of Hawkscliffe, The Duke by Gaelen Foley
Mr. Darcy, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Favorite Heroine

Jane Eyre, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

Most Tortured Hero

Mr. Rochester, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
Marquess of Rothgar, Devilish by Jo Beverley

Strongest Heroine

Jane Eyre, Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
Daphne Bridgerton, The Duke and I by Julia Quinn

Favorite Couple

Belinda Hamilton and Robert, Duke of Hawkscliffe, The Duke by Gaelen Foley
Kate Sheffield and Anthony Bridgerton, The Viscount Who Loved Me by Julia Quinn
Lizzie Bennett and Mr. Darcy, Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen

Cabin or Road:

Perfect by Judith McNaught
His Wicked Kiss by Gaelen Foley

Suspense:

Someone to Watch over Me by Judith McNaught

Funny:

Anything by Julia Quinn
How to Treat a Lady by Karen Hawkins

Sexy:

All the Sweet Tomorrows by Bertrice Small
Hellion by Bertrice Small
Again the Magic by Lisa Kleypas

Least-Favorites

Most Disappointing Books

Lady in Red by Karen Hawkins

Worst Books

The Enchanted Land by Jude Deveraux

 

Purple Prose-iest Book

The Flame and the Flower by Kathleen E. Woodiwiss
A Year and a Day by Virginia Henley

Authors I Have Given Up On

Karen Hawkins
Christina Dodd

Authors Others Love That I Don’t

Nora Roberts
Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Mary Balogh

Most Annoying Lead Character

Imogen Maitland, The Taming of the Duke by Eloisa James

Non-Romance Favorites

Favorite Author

Elizabeth Peters
Kurt Vonnegut
Robin McKinley

Favorite Book

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë

Favorite Classic Novel

Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë
The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

Favorite Mystery

The Labours of Hercules by Agatha Christie
The Murder of Roger Ackroyd by Agatha Christie
A Study in Scarlet by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Favorite Fantasy

Elfquest graphic novels by Wendy and Richard Pini
Imzadi by Peter David

Favorite Women’s Fiction

Shopaholic series by Sophie Kinsella

Favorite YA Book

The Giver by Lois Lowry
A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray
The Hero and the Crown by Robin McKinley

Favorite Set of Connected Books

Malloren series by Jo Beverley
A Company of Rogues series by Jo Beverley

Book Most Often Reread

Beauty by Robin McKinley
Deerskin by Robin McKinley
Paradise by Judith McNaught

Favorite Nonfiction

Freakonomics by Steven Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner