A Christmas Reading List
By Cardyn Brooks
Christmas, Festivus, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa or Winter Solstice, whichever is being observed, the inhabitants of Romancelandia and its overlapping genre territories invite readers to celebrate love stories ranging from sweet warmth to Habanero combustion during the season of winter holidays. Exciting new releases, established favorites, comforting rereads, and long-overdue #OwnVoices love stories entertain, amuse, inspire, and challenge readers to support everyone’s right to love and the HTN or HEA of their dreams.
Here is an assortment of noteworthy titles — quick reading snacks to full-course installments from binge-able series, newest releases first. Contemporary, historical, speculative; literary, commercial or mass market, mostly holiday-themed fiction, all deliver the joy of reading a tale well told.
Samplers/Anthologies:
Eight Kisses, Eight All-New Tales of Holiday Romance
Mindy Klasky, Lou Ann Bailey, et al
Peabridge Press, 2019
Holiday Smut, An Anthology of Sexy Christmas Stories
Lori Perkins, ed.
Riverdale Avenue Books, 2014
Lauriat, A Filipino-Chinese Speculative Fiction Anthology
Charles A. Tan, ed.
Lethe Press, 2012
Brown Sugar, A Collection of Erotic Black Fiction, Vol. 1
Carol Taylor, ed.
Plume, 2001
Snacks/Novellas:
Calluna, A Christmas Present for Klaus (Silver Springs Spell Library Bonus)
Jewels Arthur
Paranormal romance & horror
December 23, 2020
American Christmas, A Multicultural Christmas Romance (Dreamers #5)
Adriana Herrera
Contemporary romance
Carina Press, November 2020
Can’t Escape Love (Reluctant Royals Novella)
Alyssa Cole
Contemporary romance
Avon Impulse, 2019
The Christmas Rivalry
Beverly Jenkins
Contemporary romance
Harlequin, 2019
Once Ghosted, Twice Shy (Reluctant Royals Novella)
Alyssa Cole
Contemporary romance
Avon Impulse, 2019
Wrapped, A FIT Adjacent Christmas Novella (FIT trilogy #4)
Rebekah Weatherspoon — author & publisher, 2017
Contemporary romance
A Christmas at Seaside Inn
Susan Donovan
Contemporary romance
Intermix, 2016
Naughty Little Wishes (Birthday Dare #2)
Nina Crespo
Contemporary romance
Entangled Brazen, 2015
A Scarlet Christmas — A FemDomme Christmas Carol
D. L. King
Contemporary erotica
Riverdale Avenue Books, 2015
Have Yourself a Curvy Little Christmas (Perfect Fit Holiday Novella)
Sugar Jamison
Contemporary romance
St. Martin’s Paperbacks, 2013
A Kiss for Midwinter (Duchess War #1.5)
Courtney Milan — author & publisher, 2012
Historical romance
Main Courses/Novels:
The Persistence of Memory Book 4: W.I.S.E. Men
Karen Janowsky
Speculative
Mill City Press, December 15, 2020
Red Hunter (Red August #3)
H. L. Brooks
Supernatural romance
Weatherhill.pub, October 2020
Finding Her, An LGBT Prose/Poetry Romance for Women Who Love Women
Kamari Talley — author & publisher, 2019
Puppy Christmas (Forever Home #2)
Lucy Gilmore
Contemporary romance
Sourcebooks Casablanca, 2019
Royal Holiday
Jasmine Guillory
Contemporary romance
Berkley, 2019
If I Were Your Girl
Meredith Russo
Contemporary YA romance
Flatiron Books, 2018
The Kiss Quotient
Helen Hoang
Contemporary romance
Berkley, 2018
Relations
Pamela D. Beverly — author & publisher, 2018
Contemporary romance
Bourbon Chase (SanFrancisco Mystery #1)
Alexi Venice
Contemporary romance thriller
eBookIt.com, 2017
A Christmas Carl, A Gay Retelling of A Christmas Carol
Ryan Field
Contemporary romance
Riverdale Avenue Books, 2016
Silent Night (Lady Julia Grey #6)
Deanna Raybourn
Historical mystery romance
Mira, 2015
A Christmas Tail, Book Four of the Masters of Cats Series
Trinity Blacio
Paranormal romance
Riverdale Avenue Books, 2014
Her Land, Her Love
Evangeline Parsons Yazzie
Historical fiction
Salina Bookshelf, Inc., 2014
Eternal Lovers (Sekhmet’s Guardian #1)
V. S. Nelson — author & publisher, 2013
Speculative
Pride and Joi
Gay G. Gunn
Contemporary (circa 1990s) romance
Different Drummer, 2013
Lady Louisa’s Christmas Knight (Windham #6)
Grace Burrowes
Historical romance
Sourcebooks Casablanca, 2012
An Affair Before Christmas (Desperate Duchesses #2)
Eloisa James
Historical romance
Avon, 2009
Buying Time (Dre Thomas and Angela Evans #1)
Pamela Samuels Young
Contemporary suspense
Goldman House Publishing, 2009
Death’s Favorite Child (Lizzie Stuart Mystery #1)
Frankie Y. Bailey
Contemporary romantic suspense
Overmountain Press, 2000; Speaking Volumes, 2017
The Color of Love
Sandra Kitt
Contemporary romance
Signet, 1995; Open Road Media Romance, 2013
Comix:
(H)afrocentric Comic Book Vol. 1–4
Juliana “Jewels” Smith with Foreword by Kiese Laymon; Ronald Nelson, illustrator; Mike Hampton, colorist
2016-present
Faith’s Winter Wonderland Special #1
Marguerite Sauvage, author & cover artist; Francis Portela & M. J. Kim, artists; Paulina Ganucheau, Sibylline Meynet & David Lafuente, cover artists
Valiant Entertainment, 2017
Year-round Gifts of Pleasure:
Ultimate Guide to Sex After 50, How to Maintain — or Regain — a Spicy, Satisfying Sex Life
Joan Price
Cleis Press, 2015
Ultimate Guide to Sex and Disability, For All of Us Who Live with Disabilities, Chronic Pain, and Illness
Miriam Kaufman, Cory Silverberg, Fran Odette
Cleis Press, 2007
