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laura-lee-guhrke.jpgRITA-winning Laura Lee Guhrke shares with us 12 of life’s necessities… 

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12 Historical Romance Novels Every Lover of the Genre Should Read

Book Cover 1. The Shadow and the Star by Laura Kinsale. Ok, yes, I admit I skip the Ninja stuff. But the interaction between Samuel and Leda is amazing.

Book Cover 2. Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. Dare I say it does have flaws? BUT the sparkling wit and the smoldering Darcy are irresistible.

Book Cover 3. Devil’s Cub by Georgette Heyer. Because it’s just so good.

Book Cover 4. Morning Glory by Lavyrle Spencer. One of the finest romance novels ever. Hell, one of the finest novels ever, period.

Book Cover 5. Wuthering Heights by Emily Brontë. Yes, the ending sucks, but that’s so we can each write it our way. Dozens of romance writers I know (including me) say this was the book they threw across the room, shouting, “I can write a better book than that!” after devouring every luscious word.

Book Cover 6. Jane Eyre by Charlotte Brontë. Because I love governess stories, and this one’s the best.

Book Cover 7. Son of the Morning by Linda Howard. Oh. My. God.

Book Cover 8. Dreaming of You by Lisa Kleypas. Even though I always get distracted by the hero’s surname, he is so smokin’ hot I don’t care.

Book Cover 9. The Outsider by Penelope Williamson. A gunfighter who really is a gunfighter, but ends up a hero. Superb.

Book Cover 10. Sleeping Beauty by Judith Ivory. Because I don’t like courtesan heroines, but I love this book.

Book Cover 11. Flowers From The Storm by Laura Kinsale. Because she had the chops to write a hero who’s had a stroke and can’t talk, and because she pulled it off.

Book Cover 12. To Love and To Cherish by Patricia Gaffney. A vicar hero who is hot. Amazing. (I would have put To Have and To Hold on here, too, but my list is only 12 books. Sorry, Pat!)holly.jpg