Top Reads of 2020

Let’s face it, everyone. 

2020 was NOT our year. 

Our world changed within an instant, and what we’ve always known as normal, quickly diminished into the unthinkable. 

More than ever, we needed an escape from our everyday stresses, and when we craved some type of normalcy, reading became our safe haven. 

These books were our saviors, because for a fleeting moment, they made us forget and brought out feelings other than sadness and pain. 

These stories made us laugh, had us swooning, and blew our minds!! 

Without further ado, we give you our favorite reads of 2020!

The Darkest Temptation 

by Danielle Lori

                        

Favorite Mafia Romance

I savored every single letter on the pages of this book! I drug out my reading experience as long as I possibly could, because I knew the more indulged myself, the closer I was to the inevitable. 

Milah and Ronan stole my heart! Their incredible banter, chemistry, and the overwhelming sexual tension pouring from the pages captivated me completely. Each moment of this story is perfection. 

Danielle Lori is one of the most talented authors I've ever had the pleasure of reading. If you still haven't picked up one of her books, what are you doing with your life? Go read this entire series now. You can thank me later!

Read my full review here. 

-Jessica

                                                         

Am I The Only One 

by E. K. Blair

I needed something a little bit different other than the full romantic swoon worthy romance and this book gave it to me. This was the old school E.K Blair and boy did I miss her!!  Am I the Only One took me on a thrilling conniving journey that was filled with lies, betrayal, more, lies and a twist so shocking, I had to exit my reading app to just make sure I was still reading the same book! How far would you go for money? This book showed us the desperation, the privileged lives,  self-sabotages, and just how far someone would go to get what they want. If you’re looking for a little psychological thriller, then I highly recommend this one. 

Read my full review here

-Sonya

The Five 

by Lily White 

Best Mindfuck 

Wow. 

That's the only word I could think of when I finished this book. 

If you're a fan of dark stories, READ. THIS. NOW. 

I promise you'll be left with your mouth hanging open, and your brain in fragments on the floor. Your feelings will be so fucked up you won't know what to do with yourself, and if you're like me, you'll love every minute of it!

Don't read any reviews. Even the slightest thing could give away something important that will ruin the book. Just know that this story is dark, gritty, fucked up, graphic, twisted, and a MUST READ!

Read my full review here. 

-Jessica

When one of my blog sisters highly recommends an author and her book, YOU GET THE DAMN BOOK! Holy smokes, this book was twisted in the best way ever. It was unlike anything I have EVER read before. A completely mindfuck. A book I devoured within HOURS of receiving. One of the best books I read in 2020 and I cannot thank my blog sister for highly recommending this book because it truly was so mind blowing!! When you take a look at my review on good reads, LITERALLY COULDN’T SAY A THING BECAUSE I WAS SPEECHLESS and STILL AM! 

Read my FULL review here! 

- Denise

                                                               

Hell Hath No Fury

by R.C. Boldt

I’ve read a lot of books with some pretty fierce heroines but I have to say that for this book, this chick topped everyone!! After suffering through an unimaginable tragedy, nothing says moving on than a crazy thirst for revenge and this heroine did it in spades. She was a bad ass, she was strong, and she knew exactly what she wanted. If youre looking for a strong heroine with a killer storyline, this book is for you.

Read my review here

-Sonya

Liar 

by Fiona Cole 

Age-gap, forbidden romances ARE MY JAM! So let me tell you, once I found out that Fiona Cole was coming out with this book... I WAS GAME! I have and always been so enticed by her Voyeur series and I love this addition to it! She has a way of bringing intense, sensual, and steamy romance and making it HER OWN! I am always taken by her words and she continuously has me begging for MORE of these characters, their stories, and this series! I can never get enough! 

Read my FULL review here! 

- Denise 

A King So Cold

by Ella Fields

                             

 

                                  

A King So Cold is a fantasy romance which is a completely different subgenre than we usually get from this unicorn. If you want to know if it's as amazing as everything else you've read by this author, the answer is yes!

Everything you love about Ella Fields is present in this novel. It has an intriguing storyline, complex and interesting characters, exquisite writing, angst, and a complicated but beautiful romance! The story fucks with your head and your heart, and the hero and the heroine make you want to kiss them and beat them with a shovel depending on what point in the story you've reached. It's unlike any other fantasy romance I've read, and I can't recommend it enough!

Read my full review here.

-Jessica

Sweet Dandelion 

by Micalea Smeltzer

Talk about a real slow burn forbidden romance that just gives you all of the feels. Sweet dandelion is not only about a forbidden attraction between two people who were never meant to be together, but this is actually a story about a young woman’s journey and self discovery. I will admit that this is a very long book but if you have the time, this story is so worth it!! 

Read my review here

-Sonya

Teacher 

by Fiona Cole

It’s no surprise to me that this book has ended up in my favorites of 2020 because it’s written by the one and only, Fiona Cole! Again, she delivers a book that truly CAPTURES your attention, word by word! I love the way that she is able to take her characters and take you on a rollercoaster ride of their story, which makes you GO BACK FOR MORE! This book is absolute perfection and the whole series... ONE OF MY FAVORITES! You can read each book as a stand-alone, no need to read any book in order! But for the most ultimate reading experience, I highly suggest reading ALL of her Voyeur series books! Fiona Cole is one of my unicorn authors, HANDS DOWN! 

Read my FULL review here! 

- Denise

Ruthless Knight 

by A. Jade

Ashley Jade fucked me up! She ripped open my chest and kicked me in my gut! My heart fell out onto the floor, and she stomped on that shit! The feelings she made me feel were real and deep. 

This story is packed with so much more than your average new adult romance. Days later, I was still thinking about this book. I couldn't get it out of my head or my heart. If you're an NA fan, and you haven't started this series, do yourself a favor and rectify that immediately! 

Read my full review here.

-Jessica

                                                                

Evil Love 

by Ella Fields

Teenage angst, enemies to lovers, heartbreak, what more do you want when it comes to an Ella Fields book? With quick witty banter that will leave you giggling your butt off one minute and feeling stabby the next, Evil Love delivered a signature well played enemies to lovers romance that will make you want to read it over and over again.

Read my review here 

-Sonya

Degradation

by Stylo Fantome 

Favorite Kinky Read  

This shit is wild, y'all! 😂

If you're looking for swoon factor or a romantic man that melts your heart, you're looking in the wrong place! 

This book is not for everyone.

Kane and Tate have a complicated, out of the box "relationship" that works for as long as it does largely due to their personalities and unconventional beliefs. They're both people who are used to not wanting more than physical gratification from others, and they get off on things that would have most other people in a jealous rage. 

If you have issues with open relationships or women being degraded and/or consensual violence during sex, you should just skip this one. If that sentence did the opposite of turn you off, this one's for you!

Read my full review here. 

-Jessica

IOU 

by Kristy Marie

Best Romantic Comedy

I adore Maverick and Ainsley! He's broody, mysterious, and alpha af. She's quirky, sassy, and fucking hilarious! Together, they're nothing short of perfection!

IOU is the kind of book we all desperately needed to read in 2020. It's a book that makes you feel GOOD. In a year that brought us copious amounts of stress, anxiety, heartache, and bullshit of every flavor, it's the fresh breath of the feels, love, and humor we deserved!

Romantic comedy fans and everybody coming out of the year from hell, this one's for you!

Read my full review here. 

-Jessica

Nightfall 

by Penelope Douglas

Favorite Farewell

Nightfall is more than just one couple's story. It's the end of a complex storyline that has spanned across over 2,000 pages, four books, and a novella. A story that is intricate, layered, and intriguing from start to finish!

Each installment is well-written, engaging, and enthralling, but the characters will forever be what I love most about this series. Their personal battles, emotional scars, and multidimensional personalities are what have stolen my heart time and again. The family this author created amongst these individuals is one I'll never forget. 

Angsty, unconventional, complicated, and incredibly beautiful, the romance in this series is everything you could for! The Devil's Night Series is one of my favorite dark romance series of all time. If you're a fan of the sexy and twisted, this series is for you!

Read my full review here. 

Now or Never 

by Stella Rhys

Spectacular Steam 

Ian and Holland are explosive together. The chemistry between them is palpable! The sexual tension is so intense I found myself holding my breath at times while reading. Stella Rhys excels at sex, and this might be her hottest book yet! Grab your man, your b.o.b, or both, because you're going to need them when you're done! 

Now or Never has to be one of my favorite novels from this author to date! She always delivers the most enjoyable escapes from reality I could ask for. There is a surprising amount of depth and emotion woven into her stories that makes me fall in love with the characters and their creator even more. That's why Stella is and will always be one of my unicorns. If you've never tried one of her books, you're truly missing out!

Read the full review here. 

-Jessica

Liar 

by Tate James

Tate James is becoming one of my go to new adult/reverse harem authors, so I'm not surprised she made the list! 

The Madison Kate series has it all! Secrets, murder, lies, angst, drama, violence, twists and turns, sex, a sassy heroine, and not one but three hot alphas! If that sounds like a series you would enjoy, dive on in with the first book, Hate! You won't regret it!

-Jessica

Fire Night 

by Penelope Douglas 

Favorite Novella

I love the characters in the Devil's Night series deeply, and I was devastated to see them go in Nightfall. Penelope Douglas did us all a real solid by publishing this fantastic novella!

If you've read this series, and you're wondering if this novella is worth the read, the answer is hell yes! It gave me everything I wanted! It's an atmospheric, nostaligic short story that treats us to sex, suspense, friendship, family, romance, and violence. On top of that, we got to see more of the couples as parents, and two of the children were a big part of the storyline! 

If you're a Devil's Night fan, you don't want to miss this one!

Read my full review here.

-Jessica

Hearts and Thorns

by Ella Fields 

Favorite Taboo Romance

Ella Fields rips your heart out and beats you with it, punches you in the stomach, and stomps on your soul! She earned her "Queen of Angst" nickname honestly. If you're not sweating, sobbing, cursing, contemplating throwing things, breaking shit, and ending lives, it's not an Ella Fields novel!

The emotions I felt while reading this had me an absolute mess! I felt all the feelings! My chest hurt. My eyes welled with tears. I laughed, threatened murder, and swooned! Any book that can pull all of that out of you is a damn good one! Period.

Hearts and Thorns is a must read for any fan of Ella Fields or angsty new adult romance! Get your tissues, your Kindle protectors, and your alcohol ready! It's going to be a bumpy ride! 

Read my full review here. 

- Jessica 

The Cruel Prince 

by Holly Black

Favorite YA Fantasy

Best YA heroine

Before I read the Cruel Prince, all I ever heard about was Cardan.   

Cardan is hot.

Cardan is mean.

Cardan is everything!

After reading it, I'm like, Cardan who?! 

Jude is the clear star of the show! She's intelligent, cunning, courageous, ambitious, and bad fucking ass! I love her strength and her willingness to work with what she has to achieve her goals. She's an imperfect, complex character that's a bit morally gray. In other words, my favorite kind of heroine! Fuck Cardan! Read the book for her!

Read my full review here. 

-Jessica

Special Mention

Authors of the Year 

2020 was a hard year for us all. It was unrelenting in it's ability to catch me off guard, tear me down, and put me through the emotional ringer. I prayed more this year than I probably have my entire life. For the first time in my life, getting lost in books became difficult. 

When I was going over my list of book I read this year, I couldn't help but notice that they're were a few authors that carried me through these tough times. I want to give a special and sincere thank you to the following authors that helped me through one of the most difficult times of my life by giving me so many of my 5 star reads and some of my favorite books of all time. 

-Jessica

Cruelest Chaos and Boy of Ruin

The Unsainted Series

by K.V. Rose

 

Favorite Dark Romance Author

The Unsainted series is dark, twisted, and all kinds of fucked up! The characters are flawed and complex, and the relationships are passionate, toxic, emotional, and filled with drama. Reading these books make my stomach hurt at times, because of  all of the intense emotion they make me feel! Obviously, I fucking love it, and if you love the crazy, you couldn't ask for a better series!

Unorthodox 

by K.V. Rose

Most Fucked Up Anti-Hero

Max is cruel, ruthless, abusive, and feels like a straight up villain for majority of the book. I wanted to cut his balls off and spit in his face, but somehow by the end, the author  made me actually FEEL for this monster of a man. 

The ending broke my fucking heart, and I cried for him. I cried for this angry, brutal, twisted human being. That's some damn good writing, y'all!

If you have any triggers at all, run the other way, but if you're a fan of dark reads with multifaceted, morally bankrupt heroes, go in with an open mind, and give this one a try! It's captivating, suspenseful, steamy, and fucked up in pretty much every way! I loved it!

Read my full review here. 

-Jessica

Ecstasy 

by K.V. Rose

Craziest Read 

Insane. 

That's the word that comes to mind when I think of this book. It's like a roller coaster and a train wreck all in one! A wild, intriguing, captivating, dark, and steamy ride! 

  

Heavy drug use, violence, murder, hot sex, and self sabatoge, this book has all the crazy you could ask for! The characters are all out of their minds, and their relationships are toxic. The ending is more bittersweet-ish than happy, but if all of that doesn't scare you away, THIS IS YOUR SHIT!!!

Read my full review here. 

-Jessica

Ruthless Boys of the Zodiac Series

Dark Fae, Savage Fae, & Vicious Fae

by Caroline Peckham 

& Susanne Valenti 

Best PNR Reverse Harem Series 

Best Book Boyfriends

Favorite Reverse Harem Authors

The Ruthless Boys of the Zodiac series is my favorite paranormal reverse harem series EVER! 

Caroline and Susanne created such an intriguing story set in a dangerous magical world full of gangs, a myriad of supernatural beings, and murder. The characters in this series, the friendships, and the romances are some of my favorites of all time. The character development over the course of these novels individually and within the group is phenomenal, and I have never been gifted with a more fantastic group of book boyfriends! 

If you're a paranormal RH fan, you simply cannot miss this series. It would be utterly tragic!

- Jessica 

Brutal Boys of Everlake Prep Series

by Caroline Peckham 

& Susanne Valenti 

Most Unexpected Obsession 

Best Bully Romance Series

Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti are my new unicorns. Everything I've read from them is amazing. The Brutal Boys of Everlake Prep are no exception! I'm completely obsessed with this series! I will be truly sad when it's all over. 

I've grown to love Tatum, Blake, Kyan, Monroe, and Saint....yes, even Saint 😂...so fucking much! The way this author duo develops characters and character relationships over time astounds me. I feel so deeply for each of them, and I FEEL the connection between every single one of them. I don't just mean Tatum's relationship with each of the guys either. I mean all of the friendships between the guys too. The group bromance is one of my favorite things about the series!

RH Bully Romance Fans, run to Amazon now! Your next obsession is waiting for you!

-Jessica

Devil's Pass and Sinners Playground 

The Harlequin Crew Series
by Caroline Peckham 

& Susanne Valenti 

These are my latest reads from this author duo, but I'm already fully invested! Our heroine literally crawls her way out of a grave at the beginning of book one. There's gangs, strippers, steam, violence, betrayal, fractured friendships, and a big second chance romance between the heroine and all four of the main male characters. If you like your RH with action, suspense, and a huge dose of hate to love, you need this in your life!

- Jessica 

Flock and Exodus

The Ravenhood Duet 

by Kate Stewart

Duet of the Year

Most Emotional Read

By now you’ve heard of this duet already and if you haven’t, you need to take a break from reading this post and go and buy these books!!! I truly believe that this author was trying to kill us with this series! I was damn near chugging pepto bismol and chewing on antacids like they were candy the whole time I was reading this. I was NOT ready for this series. My body was not ready for this series. My mind was not ready for this series and my heart?? It’s currently being held together with band aids and duct tape!! What the hell was this fucked up goodness? Who did this to our hearts? Kate Stewart that’s who. Learn her name ladies and gentleman and get really acquainted with this woman because she definitely changed my 2020 reading experience.

Read my review here

-Sonya

There are no words that seem adequate enough to describe what this story made me feel. 

By the time I was finished, my eyes were swollen and burning. My nose was stuffy. My heart had been shredded and pieced back together. There's still a couple of gaping holes that haven't been repaired to this day! 

I was in love, and I was heartbroken. I was happy, and I was devastated. I felt so many things at once.

The Ravenhood Duet is like nothing I've ever read. It blew me away, and I don't say those words often. I will never forget this story, and neither will you.

Kate Stewart, you're a motherfucking unicorn. I've read less than a handful of books in my entire life that have pulled this level of emotion out of me. Thank you for sharing your talent with us.

Romance fans of all kinds, this one's for you!

Read my full review here. 

-Jessica

From Blood and Ash & Kingdom of Flesh and Fire

Blood and Ash Series

by Jennifer L. Armentrout 

Book of the Year

Favorite Adult Fantasy

Favorite Couple

Favorite Heroine

Favorite Hero 

Best Banter

From Blood and Ash introduced me to two of my favorite characters of all time, and Kingdom of Flesh and Fire deepened my love for them. Separate they're pretty great but together, they're fucking magnificent! I couldn't pick just one. Both of these books tied for my favorite book of the year. 

Poppy is THAT BITCH! She's strong, smart, skilled, witty, passionate, powerful, and a total badass. This isn't a case where we're told the heroine is all of those things. No, we see it for ourselves on every single page of these books. 

Hawke is sarcastic, sexy, charming, intelligent, loyal, brave, and hilarious. He's protective, but he treats Poppy as his equal at all times. Hawke empowers her and pushes her in the best possible way, but he never holds her back. I literally can't think of anything I dislike about this man. He's the ultimate book boyfriend! 

Everyone should read these books. The beginning of the books are on the slower side, but it's necessary and absolutely worth it. The world building is incredible! We've got action, adventure, friendship, lies, secrets, betrayal, vampires, zombies, gods, royalty, magic, mystery, suspense, and a beautiful fucking romance!

If you're a fan of fantasy, this author, or just amazing, well-written stories, this series is for you!

The End 

Did you see any of your favorites on our list? 

Are there any books on your favorites list that you think we need to read?

Did you find any new books for your tbr? 

We would love to know! 

Feel free to tell us in the comments!

Thank you so much for reading! Until next time! 💋