Last Year's Resolution

Last year, I posted my New Year's Resolution on this blog, which was to try a bunch of new writers during 2009 -- authors with only one or two books out and authors who were new to me. It was part of my send good vibes out into the universe thing, as I'm a new author and am hoping that readers will take a risk on my books as well. So, ater a year of trying out some new faces-- or should I say pens-- these are some of the best ones I found:

Jay Asher's 13 Reasons Why: The narrator receives a box of tapes (yes, tapes and not cds) on his doorstep one day. He opens them to find there are 13 of them, one for each person on the list. Each tape lists a different reason why that person helped cause the suicide of the girl he liked-- in the girl's voice. A whole new way to reach out of the grave, I suffered along with the narrator as he tried to figure out what he'd done to hurt her so badly that he'd earned a place on her list.

Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl's Beautiful Creatures: the newest major YA from Little, Brown and a hell of a book. One of my favorite lines comes from the prologue: "There were no surprises in Gatlin County. At least, that's what I thought. Turns out, I couldn't have been more wrong. There was a curse. There was a girl. And in the end, there was a grave." Oooh, it still gives me goosebumps.

Kristin Higgins's Just One of the Guys: A dear friend of mine loaned me this book and I really liked it. I admit to being put off by the little dogs on each of her covers (I'm a big dog kind of girl) but once I got beyond that, I fell in love with the characters-- and of course, have since gobbled up her other books as well.

Sherry Thomas's Not Quite a Husband: I know, I know. You've all heard me wax on about this woman and her fabulous books at one time or another, but seriously, if you are a fan of steamy, intelligent historicals with kick-ass heroines, she is the writer for you. Of her three books, this is definitely my favorite.

Julie James's Practice Makes Perfect: If you like romantic comedy, this woman is for you! I found her with her first book, Just the Sexiest Man Alive, which was absolutely fabulous. This second book, however, is one of my all-time favorites and probably my favorite book from this year. When two lawyers-- with an old enmity and an even older attraction-- vie for the same partnership, the result is disastrous and fall-on-the-ground funny. I can't tell you how much I loved this book.

Jill Sorenson's Crash Into Me: I picked this book up because it takes place in my old stomping ground, the shores of La Jolla, California. I read the book in one night because I couldn't put it down. Jill does a fabulous job of creating two damaged, flawed characters who find each other against the odds-- and her secondary romance is just as intriguing. A beautiful book that I really, really enjoyed.

Beth Kery's Daring Time: This is a fabulous contemporary turned historical turned time travel erotic romance. I've become a fan of Beth's over the last year, but this book is my favorite of hers. The plot is intriguing and the love scenes are some of the hottest I've ever read-- there's even a time-travel through the mirror one ...

Lauren Dane's Laid Bare: This book has a gorgeous cover and Lauren is such a fabulous lady that I had to pick it up. And I loved it. It was a beautiful, completely realistic love story with a heroine who survived hell and managed to come back from it to find her HEA.

So, how about you? What new authors have you read this year that you loved and can't wait to tell the world about? I'm all about the recommendations.