What do you read? -- And Roni (romancebookscene.com) Wins!

I mostly read fantasy and science fiction (not hard science) and a little romance.  Can I ask to describe your idea?

Just about anything except books with lots of violence and gore and gratuitous sex.  I do read mystery and romantic suspense and intrigue of the kind published by Harlequin and I read pure romance.  I don't read historicals either however.

And while I no longer read the back of cereal boxes I sure use to when I was a child.  Now there are toooooo many books in the house to have to resort to cereal boxes.

Karen, I just recently finished, THE FAMILY HE WANTED, amazing! I loved this book.

What else do I read. Mostly romance of various lines, but I also read some sci fi-fantasy, but I have to have zero books in my TBR and no time to get to the book store or library to read it. LOL, my poor dh keeps trying to convert me. But there just is not enough romance in the books. I enjoy paranormals on occasion, again the focus has to be on the romance. 

Hi Karen, 

I read broadly.  Sometimes I read 2 or 3 books at a time, rarely the same genre.   I'm also one of those people who used to read the the back of boxes if they were left on the table.  I never got so far as reading the phone book, but I know someone who did!

Hi, Karen--Interesting topic. I read fiction, mostly, including romance, women's fiction and whatever my book group chooses. Not much of a paranormal reader, and no sci fi, although I love the JD Robb books. I like romantic suspense, don't usually pick up a straight mystery or thriller, unless it's come highly recommended and doesn't have gore. I think I use up my word allotment by the end of the workday, so I don't read as much as I used to.

Susan 

I read SSEs, fantasy, paranormal, women's fiction, the occasional erotic romance novel, now and then an historical--romance or not.  And I like a lot of non-genre fiction by women.  I love Sue Miller, Anita Shreve, Margaret Atwood.  And some horror.  I used to adore horror.  Stephen King was, for years, my all time fave author.  Not so much anymore, though.  But I did love Joe Hill's (yes, he happens to be SK's son) Heart-Shaped Box.  Same with SF.  Used to read it voraciously.  Marion Zimmer Bradley, Ray Bradbury, a host of others.  But not so much anymore.  Might be good to try a little SF again...

karen

I read mostly romance books for the past sixteen years. Mostly Harlequin and Silhouette. Special Editiions, American Romance, Intrigue, SRS, Superromance and Desire.

I just got though reading your  the family he wanted. Just loved it.  cant wait to read more of the series.

patsy

I had to come and comment purely on the basis of the reading-the-back-of-cereal-boxes statement! Nothing with words on it is safe around me: HAVE to read it. If I am out and need to stop for lunch, I always stop and grab a book, too. I used to work for a book club and had to write blurbs for each one in the magazine. I was the slowest writer there as I used to stop to read every book I was writing about instead of just writing a line or two based on the info from the book jacket!

I am a big romance fan  - more contemporary stuff or absolute classics such as Jane Austen etc; and I'm a sci fi fan as well. Also love fantasy and paramormal stuff. Basically anything that fits under the "speculative fiction" tag. I enjoy a bit of crime, too, and mysteries.

To be honest though, if it's a good story, or it's got interesting characters, that's enough for me - it doesn't matter what genre it is. As long as it's not nailed down, I'll read it. Although to be honest, even if it is nailed down... I'll probably find a way. Once those words have grabbed me, curiosity will get the better of me and I NEED to know what happens... 

Best of luck with the new book!

I read romance almost exclusively in the fiction genre. Otherwise, I read biographies and war histories, especially the Civil War.

The question for me, like many other responders is, What don't I read?  The short answer is, when it comes to various fiction genres, not much.

I started collecting ~ years and years ago ~ Agatha Christie mysteries... and the ones that I loved best featured romances.
I also read ~ and still love ~ L. M. Montgomery's series and books... All of 'em.
Then I found Sci-fi, primarily Isaac Asimov; suspense / thrillers ~ Alistair MacLean and Robert Ludlum ('cause my dad read 'em and they were always around).
Dorothy Gilman's Mrs. Pollifax series and her single title books, especially The Clairvoyant Countess and The Tightrope Walker (that I first read in a RD Condensed volume).

What I don't read:  Horror and Gore, although there are a few ~ very few ~ Stephen King books that I have and love. 

Not big on non-fiction... I have a few biographies ~ Michaelangelo & Charles Darwin ~ but if I'm reading non-fiction then it's a gardening / plant book. 

I actually have a rather incomplete list of my books here... and since I've been participating in the eHarlequin challenges my borders have expanded a fair bit... all those reviews y'know!

And yes, I've been known to read the back of the cereal box ~ or indeed any box that happens to be where I am .... without a book.

How could I forget my LM Montgomery collection?  Its been over 6 years since I read them, but I wouldn't part with the set for anything.  And historical fiction, not just romance - Jean Auel's Clan of the Cave Bear series, John Jakes American series.  Got into those by reading Jean Plaidy in my youth.  And while I tend to avoid non-fiction now as an adult, I can remember reading Thor Heidel's (sp?) book of the Kon Tiki before I was 10 and being absolutely fascinated.

I read primarily paranormal romance, urban fantasy, and fantasy. I do enjoy a good romantic suspense or thriller. Contemporary Romance I rarely read outside of the various Harlequin/Silhouette lines. I'm not a huge historical romance fan except certain authors and/or time periods. I usually stick to medievals but I love when authors venture into a time period not usually covered in historical romance. I also read horror. I rarely read erotica unless it is a specific author i already know from something else.

Lately I find myself gravitating towards buying more inspirational romance and/or contemporary women's fiction. Notice I said buy, not read. LOL I DO read them but I seem to buy a lot of them yet the get put on the back burner alot for my old standby of paranormal romance. I think I stated buying more though because it botehrs me that even "regular" romance is getting closer and closer to erotica and the sex is getting more gratuitous, which I do NOT enjoy. So I buy more of the stuff that is sweeter in tone to make up for it. I find it endlessly fascinating that while erotica is on the rise, inspirational romance is very close tokeeping up to it. talk about two opposites! I often wonder if that is because of people like me who don't ant the really hot stuff.

I also buy a lot more YA stuff now. So much of it sounds SOOO good! I can't help but wonder where that stuff was when I was growing up! LOL

I rarely read non-fiction but sometimes i do enjoy it, depending on my mood. I've bought Michael J Fox's books (haven't read yet though) because I find him inspiring in how he doesn't let his disease set him back on what he relaly wants to do. I've also bought several of Tom Brokaw's books he wrote centered around "The Greatest Generation." Read part of some of them but some of the stories get to me a little too emotionally. LOL

But then, Ihave my first loves in reading though I often will try something completely different if it really grabs me. I've got several of my Dad's books that I saw when I was home visiting or on vacation. They sounded good so I borrowed them. It's kinda funny because every time I do that he looks at me in amazement, like he can't imagine I actulaly enjoy some of the same books he does. LOL He knows i read a lot of romance and fantasy, but I guess he still thinks of me as his little girl and is surprised I want to read a thriller or action/adventure book of his. Dad is how I got started on James Rollins actually. Borrowed a couple that sounded good and they were excellent. I don't go much for the spy stuff or Tom Clancy or Robert Ludlum that he reads but every once in a while I'll pick up one of his Clive Cusslers or other such author that sounds appealing. I've also tried a couple other new to me authors through dad that I enjoy now.

(An aside here... dad LOVES Clive Cussler and two Christmases ago, he was in Dallas for a book signing and I called dad to see if he wanted an autographed copy. He was shocked I was meeting Clive Cussler and surprised i wanted to go for his (Dad's) sake and not my own. That was Dad's first ever autographed book. He was so funny when I gave it to him because he didn't read it right away and seemed to think I'd be offended by that. Kept apologizing to me for it at the same time he kept thanking me for doing that for him. Then last year Clive Cussler was here again and I got Dad another signed book.)

I'm another cereal box reader but not limited to such reading.  I've read dictionairies, instruction books, telephone books and anything else available if there is no book available.  In the last few years my reading habits have change.  Although I' ve read Harlequin Historicals and Intrigues for well over 10 years and am still reading them I have widened my reading interests especially in the last 3 years with the Harlequin blogging.  I don't read biographies or non-fiction but my Luna, Rogue Angel, Silhouette Romantic Suspense and Nocturne, Harlequin Intrigue, Historical and Present - Extras and few Mira and HQN  for good measure gives me more than enough reading material.  Then the bloggers who recommend books have also expanded my boundaries beyond the Harlequin.  Now I have nattered on but need to say there is very little I don't read other than what's noted above.  I just like to vary the mix as I'm reading as I don't like reading the same type of story continually.

Joan

I just finished The Family He Wanted and parts of it had me in tears.  I felt so sorry for both Jana and Sam.    I need to go through my TBR pile and find Their Second-Chance Child  and read it.  It's there somewhere but when I had to move a bunch of books around I don't know which box it went into sooooooo time to start unpacking boxes or at least going through them.

I'm an avid romance reader and can be found reading on my coffee and lunch breaks, over the breakfast table and mostly in the evenings while everyone else is watching TV or playing video games. I'll give anything a try once and then maybe give them another chance if I see something that catches my eye. If I had to choose a fav it would probably be werewolf/paranormal stories. I also like the cowboy/ranch themed stories. 

What is so wonderful is that now-a-days there is such a vast array of authors and books available on the market that readers don't get the chance to be bored. All they have to do is go out and find their favorite genre and dig in. 

Lynne, I read the Kon Tiki Expedition when I was around 15 and loved the flow of the story! Thanks for jogging a pleasant memory. There was also a non-fiction story that I read around the same time about a husband and wife photographer/explorer team that was an excellent read. I have hunted through my library looking for my copy and can't find it - would like to read it as an adult. Anyone remember a story like this? The title was something like "My Life (Adventures?) With..." I'll have to keep looking through my boxes of stored books.

Shewolf, if you like the male writers you should give Ken Follett a try - he is excellent, especially "Jackdaws", "The Hammer of Eden", "The Pillars of the Earth", "A Place Called Freedom" and its sequel "World Without End". All excellent reads!!

Anne of Green Gables fans: I am blessed to live on Prince Edward Island and experience LMM's inspirational scenery and people everyday. Glad you are enjoying the books!

I read mostly romances.  I love the SSE, Supers Kimani, and Romance lines.  There are a few historical authors that I love, but otherwise I don't buy too many of those.  I also have certain authors that I like for single title.  Of course, I love it when single titles are connected to one another.

I used to love horror, like Stephen King and Dean Koontz, but now I won't touch them.  Every now and then I like a good detective story.  No blood and guts and the hero can never be in too much danger.  I don't want to be nervous.

I don't read much non-fiction, but when I do, I prefer autobiographies.  THE LIFE AND TIMES OF FREDERICK DOUGLASS is probably my favorite.  I also like cookbooks with pictures.  I love reading the recipes and pretending that I'm going to cook some of the dishes.  I'm not.  I don't like cooking.

Kathleen

Congrats!!

I just finished The Family He Wanted and absolutely loved it.  This is high praise, I assure you.  My first book of yours to read and I am eager to find some backlisted ones.

I mostly read mysteries, historical romance, and light hearted romance.  I have recently gotten into paranormal a bit thanks to Gena Showalter.  I also have a spot on my shelf for the Desire and Presents style books-- sometimes a gal just needs to be taken away to a foreign place and surrounded by luxury!

Best wishes with your new writing endeavors!