Between rain and staying home with His Furriness his final weeks, and some much needed down time at the end of the month, I got a lot of reading done this month.

And some of it was even NEW books!

One of my favorite books this month was a re-read. In fact, I specifically picked it up because I knew it would immediately pull me in.

Countess Conspiracy by Courtney Milan is one of my favorite books, even though it has boinking. The main character in this historical romance is a scientist. I mean, right there, what is not to love? From the same series was also The Suffragette Scandal. Actually, all the books in the series are very good, they just aren’t as perfect as The Countess Conspiracy. Also excellent is The Brimstone Deception by Lisa Shearin, which is another addition to her SPI files. If you’d like a change from heroines with supernatural ass-kicking powers, here is a heroine who is glad to stay out of the way when going into dangerous situations, because she knows others are better able than her to handle things. Mind you, I like heroines who kick butt, but this is a very nice change of pace.

And as a whole, I also recommend Anna Lee Huber’s Lady Darby series. She is the widow of an anatomist, and what her husband forced her to do gave her a unique set of skills she learns to use to help solve murders. I like the historical setting and the main characters, and although there is a romance brewing between the main characters, they have very real issues to work out (as opposed to manufactured issues, like SOME mysteries (ahem)) and those issues do a very good job of reminding us just how different the past was (and how glad I am to live in the future).

Historical Romance

The Brothers Sinister
The Duchess War (2012) Courtney Milan (8.5/10)
A Kiss for Midwinter (2012) Courtney Milan (8.5/10)
The Heiress Effect (2013) Courtney Milan (8.5/10)
The Countess Conspiracy (2013) Courtney Milan (10/10)
The Suffragette Scandal (2014) Courtney Milan (9/10)

The Turner Family
Once Upon a Marquess (2015) Courtney Milan (8/10)

Historical Mystery

Lady Darby
The Anatomist’s Wife (2012) Anna Lee Huber (6.5/10)
Mortal Arts (2013) Anna Lee Huber  (8/10)
A Grave Matter (2014) Anna Lee Huber  (8/10)
A Study in Death (2015) Anna Lee Huber  (8/10)

Lady Emily
And Only to Deceive (2005) Tasha Alexander (7.5/10)
A Poisoned Season (2007) Tasha Alexander (7/10)
A Fatal Waltz (2008) Tasha Alexander (7/10)
Tears of Pearl (2009) Tasha Alexander (6/10)
Dangerous to Know (2010) Tasha Alexander (6/10)

Supernatural Fantasy

The SPI Files
The Brimstone Deception (2016) Lisa Shearin (9/10)

This month I read 16 books, with six of those being re-reads. (Although they were mostly earlier books in a series where I wanted to go back before reading new-to-me books.)

Genre-wise, it was 10 mysteries, 6 romances, and one supernatural fantasy.

Gender-wise, no male authors made an appearance this month, so for the year, it’s 77% female authors. I expect this rate to change, but perhaps not until I finish my Courtney Milan kick.