Thursday Thirteen, and a contest!

Thirteen Favorite Books of 2006

This was a great year for reading, in my opinion. So many excellent authors, so many fabulous books! So below I'll be listing my favorite 13 books of the year. (Believe me, it was tough to narrow down.)

And to celebrate great reading, I'm adding a contest to this Thursday Thirteen post! All you have to do is post your favorite books of 2006 (don't worry, you don't have to come up with thirteen), and you'll be entered in to a drawing to win a copy of Beginnings: A Samhain Anthology, which includes my time travel romance, Ritual Love, as well as five more fabulous stories! The winner will be drawn on Sunday, January 7, so get your comments in soon!

Here's my list -- I'm looking forward to seeing yours!

The Smoke Thief, by Shana Abe -- a mesmerizing combination of paranormal and historical that absolutely captivated me.

Just For Kicks, by Susan Andersen -- I love her showgirls, and she writes kids better than anyone!

The Hunt, by Allison Brennan -- a great, tight, suspense-filled thriller.

Into the Storm, by Suzanne Brockmann -- I want to be Suz when I grow up.

Tempt Me, by Caroline Cross -- Part of her Men of Steele series, this sexy Silhouette Desire title blew me away. And i just discovered while finding a link for it that the next book in the series is out now! Woo-hoo!

Long Strange Trip, by Vicki Gaia -- A great sixties-set novel that made me smile.

Unleash the Night, by Sherrilyn Kenyon -- I discovered the Dark-Hunter series a little over a year ago, and have devoured all of them. Loved Wren's story, though Nick is breaking my heart.

Devil in Winter, by Lisa Kleypas -- Part of the Wallflowers series. I had no idea how Ms. Kleypas was going to redeem Sebastian, and was thoroughly delighted with the results!

Nauti Boy, by Lora Leigh -- Yes, I was one of the lucky ones who bought this from Samhain on release day, before Berkley got their hands on it. Yes, I know everyone else has to wait for it to come out in paperback in March. Yes, I'm gloating.

Take Me, by Lucy Monroe -- A wonderful conclusion to her Selwyn family historical trilogy.

and ABLE, by Lucy Monroe -- Yeah, two by Lucy. Sue me. :) Another great conclusion to a trilogy, this time to her mercenaries series.

On the Way to the Wedding, by Julia Quinn -- I read and loved the entire Bridgerton series this year, but OTWTTW was the most recently published, so I narrowed it down. :)

Impulse, by JoAnn Ross -- I'd read a grocery list by JoAnn. She's that good.

I could go on and on, but I'll defer to the comments section for more titles (and I wouldn't be surprised to see more than a few end up on my TBB list!!). Don't forget, everyone who posts is eligible to win!