Quirkies' Favorite Valentines

Valentine's Day is right around the corner! I just mailed some cool Victorian Valentine postcards to Mom and Dad, my daughter Natty is dreaming about chocolate every night (well, actually, she pretty much dreams about chocolate 365 nights a year!), and I'm expecting a gorgeous bouquet of flowers from hubby dearest. The best part of this lovely holiday? Reading a lusty, heart-wrenching, super romantic tale. Here are some of The Quirky Ladies' favorite Valentines....

Victoria Morgan: The Reef by Nora Roberts still tops my favorite list after all these years. It's like two wonderful love stories in one. We follow Tate Beaumont and Matthew Lassiter's story as they first fall in love in their young twenties, and after tragedy separates them, we get to see them come together again when they are older and more mature. It also has adventure, treasure hunting, hot sex and Nora's great dialogue to keep the pages turning.

(Woa, Vick, this sounds great. Thanks for the hot tip.--Penny)

Tara Truesdale: I'm going with Angel Falls by Kristin Hannah. You jump into the story of Liam and Michaela "Mike" after they have been married a few years and are raising their daughter and son. Mike has an accident that leaves her in a coma, and Liam, a small town doctor, is a gentle, strong hero who nurses her back to health only to have her wake up with retrograde amnesia. She thinks she is still in love with her first husband, the complete antithesis of Liam, and the story unfolds with Mike picking up the pieces of her life, realizing that Liam is her true love, memory or no memory.

You know me...I love soap opera type books. I was a Days of Our Lives junkie for decades.

(That sounds angsty. I was a General Hospital fan myself....go Luke and Laura!--Penny)

Dalton Diaz: Brace yourself for a surprise: LaVyrle Spencer, Twice Loved. The love, the history (both physical and emotional), the angst...this book has it all, and it's so beautifully written. Sweet Memories, Home Song and Bygones do it for me, too, but Twice Loved is the winner by a nose.

(Ha! Our naughty Quirk has a secret love for true romance. I knew it!--Penny)

Sam Wayland: I'm going to choose Gaps In Your Soul by Shayla Kersten. It's just a Quickie Erotica, but in 55 pages, the author manages to make you fall in love with not one but two men, so that in the end, you genuinely believe they fill the gaps in each other's souls. Oh, and it's smoking hot. :)

(Soul mate sex. Doesn't get better than that, baby.--Penny)

Michelle Polaris: My choice is Rough Canvas by Joey W. Hill. I love this book because the heroes are so in love with one another it hurts down in their souls. And although they each carry terrible personal burdens, it's clear from almost the first page that they complete one another and if they can only find a way to fit together the love will be everything for ever and ever.

(Ohhhh, Michelle. That sounds incredibly romantic! And I love Joey Hill.--Penny)

Kate Macarthur: I just read If He's Sinful by Hannah Howell and I loved it! It's got fabulous characters in tough situations that you desperately want them to conquer so they can be together. And all that with a little paranormal thrown in to keep things fun and even more interesting.

(A pinch of paranormal is always welcome in a romance novel.--Penny)

Penny Watson: I was just thinking about the most romantic scenes I've read, and one stands out. When Zsadist, the big hulking, horribly tortured hero of Lover Awakened (JR Ward) shyly shows Bella that he has learned to read and write, and he scribbles "I love you" in a childlike scrawl for her to see, I am moved to tears. I've read that scene many, many times, and I still cry. It is such a romantic gesture from this scary-looking vampire, I just love it!

We'd love to hear about your favorite romance novels and Valentine traditions. Let us know!

Happy Valentine's Day to All!

Love, The Quirky Ladies