I know, I know, I’ve already written two posts this week about the Romance Writers of America Annual Conference, but I really need to write this one, too. Basically, meeting up with authors and bloggers and talking nothing but books was an excellent reminder that there are so many romances I’ve been meaning to read for ages but still haven’t managed to get to yet. So I’m putting together this list as a reminder to myself, but it’s also a list of awesome romances that should be on your radar if they aren’t already!

Topaz by Beverly Jenkins

Seriously, I was so impressed with Indigo when I read it in January and am completely obsessed with how wonderful Beverly Jenkins is, so it’s a crime that I haven’t read anything more of hers since. I’ve been meaning to read Topaz for ages, and speaking with her again at The Tattered Cover is the reminder I needed to get to it! Topaz is the story of a newspaper reporter and a marshal described as a “daring black knight,” and it’s considered one of Jenkins’ classics. I can’t wait to pick it up!

Take the Lead by Alexis Daria

You guys, I bought an ebook of Take the Lead at the beginning of the year and still haven’t read it yet. And that’s despite hearing so much hype for this book and meeting the author at a Galentine’s Day event in February. What is wrong with me? The fact that she just won the RITA Award for Best First Book means that I really need to get my shit together and read this book. If you’re a fan of Dancing with the Stars, you won’t want to miss this TV celebrity dance competition romance.

Acting on Impulse by Mia Sosa

Acting on Impulse is another book that has been on my kindle for months and that I desperately need to read already, especially after getting a chance to meet her at The Tattered Cover! The blurb promises a serious case of mistaken identity and a bearded hero, so definitely be sure to check it out if that sounds like your thing.

Hurts to Love You by Alisha Rai

How have I not read Hurts to Love You already?! I’m a huge fan of Alisha Rai’s and really enjoyed the first two books in this trilogy, so I really couldn’t tell you why I haven’t picked up the finale just yet. It involves a woman falling in love with her older brother’s friend, which is always a fun trope, plus I’m pretty sure the wedding referenced in the blurb is for Livvy and Nicholas from the first book!

The Unsung Hero by Suzanne Brockmann

I’ve been familiar with Suzanne Brockmann’s name for a long time, but it wasn’t until I read Off the Grid by Monica McCarty that I realized I enjoy the occasional Navy SEAL book. One of my fellow book club members mentioned that she really enjoyed Brockmann’s Troubleshooters series, so it’s been on my radar ever since. But it was Brockmann’s amazing speech when she accepted her Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award (you can watch it here) that made me go out and buy a copy of the first book in the series, The Unsung Hero! I don’t even know what it’s about other than that it involves Navy SEALs, but after that speech, it really doesn’t even matter.

A Bollywood Affair by Sonali Dev

Speaking of amazing speeches, Sonali Dev’s killer speech at the Librarians Day Luncheon made me want to immediately run out and buy all of her books. They handed out copies of her latest release, A Distant Heart, at the end, but I’m debating going back to the beginning and starting with her first book, A Bollywood Affair, about a child bride who emigrates away from her husband to the US, only to fall in love with her husband’s Bollywood director brother years later when he seeks her out to solicit a divorce on behalf of his brother. It’s quite the set up!

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I know I just brought a zillion books home to read and I’m trying to work towards a zero TBR, but these are books I’ve been meaning to read for a while, and RWA was the perfect reminder to get my act together and get on it already!

Have you read any of these books? Let me know in the comments which one I should start with!