Welcome to the Love Bytes Reviewers’ Best of 2021
Another year has passed in which books have brought all of us a much needed escape and sense of comfort. Our Love Bytes team reviewed approximately 1,300 LGBTQ+ books in 2021, from contemporary romance to fantasy, paranormal, historical, adventure, mystery, comedy and everything in between. Each day for the next few weeks, we will feature one of our reviewers’ top picks from books and audiobooks published in 2021. These lists highlight how diverse our tastes in reading are, and offer something for everyone. With thousands of fantastic new books each year, written by hundreds of creative and talented authors, it’s so difficult to narrow our lists down. We all have many favorite authors not featured here and wish we could acknowledge them all.
Taylin’s 2021 Favorites
The Case of the Boy in Blue by Amanda Meuwissen
The Case Of The Boy In Blue is a shortie but a goodie. At a mere 33 pages, it’s a pocket rocket of a detective story and a shining example of what can be achieved in a short space. Leonard Quill’s thoughts and dialogue were a joy to read. The 30’s vibe, tone, ambience, and sultry feel of Watchmen’s Rorschach-come-Kojak voiceover is there from the first sentence. The bad guy isn’t someone who can be taken down easily as he has everyone in his pocket. The strong man and the geek, Leonard and Westley, team up to fight for good, alongside an incredible team, one of which is Roxanne – a deadly viper wrapped up like My Little Pony. For me, this was a perfectly paced story whose plot had unexpected twists with drama in all the right places. I finished reading it with a smile on my face.
Rare Vigilance (Whitethorn Agency #1) by M.A. Grant
This foray into the paranormal is via the first book in the Whitethorn Agency series. An ex-marine needs answers to his nightmares, and this novel gives them to him in an unexpected way. The concept of the story is simple – business empire, family feuds, a tug of hearts and more. The plot kept me turning the page, and although a revelation or two were not unexpected, the stories craftsmanship kept my heart in my mouth. The action scenes, too, were well thought out and executed. The plot has just the right number of twists that kept me interested without getting me lost. Secrets get revealed, personalities develop, people are misjudged, and mistakes are made. Awesome. At times, I couldn’t read fast enough, and I cussed at having to put the book down to go to work.
Commitment Issues (Silver Foxes #1) by Ali Ryecart
Commitment Issues is the first in the Silver Foxes MM Romance series. Freddie and Elliot are emerging from relationships where their hearts have been crushed. Neither is ready for any commitment nor are they willing to give away their hearts without a battle – regardless of the palpable chemistry between them. Elliot and Freddie are thinking men. Therefore, when head and heart are locked in battle, their spoken agreement is the fallback position. Set in the UK, local phrasing was a pleasure to read alongside the British humor that not all nationalities get, but I was on home soil and lapped it up. Brutal honesty reined with a hefty dose of caring. Yet, underneath it all, there’s that element of insecurity and self-deprecation that was endearing. The backgrounds of Elliot and Freddie also allowed for varied world-building and scenarios. In a nutshell, this was a crackin’ story to read.
Descent of Ravens (Bel’s War #1) by A.C. Andrews
During his waking hours, night dreams and tales of vampires cause the medical priest, Rio, concern. Nevertheless, Rio can see many viewpoints and offers a prayer. He didn’t expect any prayers to be answered. Nor did he dream of becoming a vessel for the goddess, Astara, Goddess of light and mercy – Holy Mother of the order he served, or the adventure she had in store for him. This was simply a story where I happily lost myself to the world created. The first of the series, Bel’s War contains something special that got under my skin, which encouraged me to read a 128k novel in two days – I just couldn’t put it down. The story contains a world of vampires, mage’s, healers, priests, clans, and followers where war isn’t pretty. There are executions, loss of faith, combat, multiple faiths, death, ghosts… and more. It’s a veritable buffet of the paranormal that I didn’t expect to like so much – it was a wonderful surprise.
The Depths of Time by Lori Fayre
Familial connection to the HMS Titanic set Luke on a career course that brings him to the wreck of the ship almost a hundred years from the day it sank. By a twist of something paranormal, Luke is transported back in time to the Titanic. Onboard, Luke faces troubling questions regarding saving the ship, relatives in his timeline, and how to return to his own time. From the very first lines, I was hooked – needing a box of tissues for the tears that freely flowed. All I wanted to write for the review was a page filled with ‘READ IT’. The story is beautifully written. The atmospherics and world-building expertly transported me to the decks of the great ship. The way all the characters were written made the reading experience very personable and divine – one that gets into the soul. The pain and anguish over falling in love on a doomed ship was phenomenal. By the last page, I’d finished the box of tissues but also wanted to read more because I didn’t want to say goodbye. I preferred this story to the movie.
Beyond The Ruby River (Immortal Jewels #3) by Lee Colgin
Mahu lives to exist without really enjoying living – until the demon, Daka, enters his life. But, given they live in Ancient Egypt where Osiris is among the many worshipped Gods, can Daka trust Mahu with his demon secret? Beyond The Ruby River is the third book in the Immortal Jewels Series, can be read as a standalone, and the one I enjoyed the most. Mahu is the kindest of gracious souls but not the kind that gets on your nerves. He accepts life and death in all its forms, and I absolutely adored him. This story contains some beautiful depictions of life in Ancient Egypt, including the gods’ influence in daily life. Couple that with the realization that demons exist and what centuries of existence does to a man once they’ve grasped true love, and I was left with a story that made me smile, cry and transported me back to an era of history that I adore.