This month, my recommendation is historical romance (and occasional contemporary romance) author Elizabeth Hoyt. I mentioned her Maiden Lane series on last week’s Feminist Romantic podcast, and if you have any interest in historical romance, you should definitely read that series. Her other books are good, too, but Maiden Lane is her magnum opus (so far, anyway!).

One of the things Hoyt does better than almost any author I’ve ever read is crafting real, vulnerable heroes and heroines. She takes what should be completely unlikable heroes and makes readers fall in love with them along with her heroines. I didn’t think it was possible for one particular character later in the series to be redeemed, and she somehow pulled it off–in spades.

The first book in the Maiden Lane series is Wicked Intentions, and I absolutely recommend starting there and reading the series in order. Sometimes with romance series it’s possible to start on book four or ten, but with this one, you’d miss something if you pick up midway through. Hoyt layers characters throughout the earlier books in the series who later become main characters in their own stories, and although Hoyt gives the essential details of backstory in each book, there are nuances and layers that are best peeled away and revealed by reading in order.

But if the thought of twelve books and a few novellas is daunting, she also has two shorter series: the Princes Trilogy (three books and a novella) and the Legend of the Four soldiers (four books). They are also great reads, starting with The Raven Prince and To Taste Temptation respectively.

Hoyt also has a few contemporary romance books written under the name Julia Harper. I’ve only read Hot, but it was rollicking good fun and I’m looking forward to reading the other two books, For the Love of Pete and Once and Always once I finish the new (and sadly, last) book in the Maiden Lane series, Duke of Desire.

Have you read the Maiden Lane series? Tell me your favorite character in the comments. And if you haven’t read Hoyt yet, happy reading!