Lucy’s last TBR post with us did so well, we invited her back to talk about her 2020 TBR. Lucy’s new book Headliners releases next week. I’ve already read it and it was delightful and you should definitely add it to your TBR.

---

I’m personally confused as to how it’s already 2020 at all, but despite the fact that 2019 disappeared in the blink of an eye, it brought some incredible books, and I’m so excited for what new additions I’ll have this year for my keeper shelf and my much-cherished comfort-rereads. The past month or so has been so whirlwind busy that I’ve got behind with my reading, which is what usually keeps me centred and grounded however chaotic or difficult the world around me is, and I’m hugely looking forward to being able to curl up with a book, dive into some new worlds, and fall in love with the fictional people who might be strangers now but will likely take up a forever place in my heart soon.

I’m not even going to pretend that the following is anything like my complete TBR list for the year, but as you, kindly reading this, probably don’t want to sit here until approximately April, scrolling through the complete guide to what I’ll be emptying my book budget on, I’ll stick to just a glimpse. :-) Some of these titles are already out (yay) and some I’ll have to be patient and keep looking forward to.

In no order whatsoever:

LOVE LETTERING by Kate Clayborn (available now). I cannot say enough about how much I love Kate Clayborn’s writing. Her books include some of my absolute favourite romance prose; I think the way she puts words together is art. Which makes it fitting that LOVE LETTERING focuses on a character who also turns writing into art, leaving secret messages in her calligraphy that sexy taciturn heroes might later manage to decode. This book sounds like a love letter to words, to art of all kinds, to a city, to a genre, and I’m very excited to read it.

A FAKE GIRLFRIEND FOR CHINESE NEW YEAR by Jackie Lau (available now). Jackie Lau is another author of whom I’m a huge fan. Her writing is warm and witty, and she has a knack for depicting both the excitement and fear of falling and love, and the often complicated dynamics of families. I’m always in for a fake-relationship romance and this friends-to-lovers story of a high school teacher determined to avoid his parents’ matchmaking sounds wonderful.

HOW TO CATCH A QUEEN by Alyssa Cole (publication date: May 26). I always look forward to a new Alyssa Cole release; her books without fail combine skilful, strong, elegant writing with incredible storytelling, and her characters stay with you for a very long time after closing the cover. HOW TO CATCH A QUEEN is a marriage-of-convenience romance, with the hero and heroine having to navigate both their roles leading a country — with apparently a lot of contention — and their private roles to and for each other. 

YOU HAD ME AT HOLA by Alexis Daria (publication date: July 7). Maybe don’t look this one up unless you have about twenty minutes to spare, because you’ll probably be staring at the gorgeous cover for at least that long. I can’t wait to read this romance between soap opera and telenovela actors, as they start steaming things up on and off screen. I fully expect it’ll be as engrossing and totally delightful as everything Alexis Daria writes.   

DEAR ENEMY by Kristen Callihan (publication date: March 31). Kristen Callihan has written some of my all-time favourite books, so naturally I’m counting the days until her next one. She’s a master of writing characters who come alive on the page and spark with chemistry. Bonus points, really, that DEAR ENEMY is apparently an enemies-to-lovers, forced-proximity story. 

THE MARRAGE GAME by Sara Desai (publication date: June 9). Speaking of the forced-proximity trope… Sara Desai’s THE MARRIAGE GAME sounds and looks terrific. Set in San Francisco, the heroine is forced to share the office space above her father’s Michelin-starred restaurant with a CEO who was looking for a quiet refuge, not to have to deal with a constant stream of the heroine’s blind dates. 

REAL MEN KNIT by Kwana Jackson (publication date: May 19). A man fighting to keep the neighbourhood knitting store of his adoptive mother open, and finding love, friendship and family bonds along the way. YES, PLEASE. Another beautiful cover, too.

ALPHA NIGHT by Nalini Singh (publication date: June 9). A new Psy-Changeling book is always a big highlight of my year. To be honest, I’d be excited regardless of who this book was about, but I’m very happy to journey back into the wolf packs. Nalini is an absolute master of world-building, and it continues to be staggeringly impressive, the intricate on-going plot that she weaves deeper with every title, but she never fails to deliver on the romance side either.

MAKE MY WISH COME TRUE: A #romanceclass Christmas Anthology (available now). I will happily keep the festive feels going a bit longer while I read this. #RomanceClass, an amazing collective of authors from the Philippines, is packed full of talent, and this anthology contains seventeen different stories, and sounds like it would be ideal for both readers familiar with #romanceclass books already or those who are about to have that particular happiness boost.

What books are you most looking forward to this year?

---

About the Book

Title: Headliners, London Celebrities #5 by Lucy Parker, available Jan 20, 2020

Book Description: He might be the sexiest man in London, according to his fan site (which he definitely writes himself), but he’s also the most arrogant man she’s ever met.

She might have the longest legs he’s ever seen, but she also has the sharpest tongue.

For years, rival TV presenters Sabrina Carlton and Nick Davenport have traded barbs on their respective shows. The public can’t get enough of their feud, but after Nick airs Sabrina’s family scandals to all of Britain, the gloves are off. They can barely be in the same room together—but these longtime enemies are about to become the unlikeliest of cohosts.

With their reputations on the rocks, Sabrina and Nick have one last chance to save their careers. If they can resurrect a sinking morning show, they’ll still have a future in television. But with ratings at an all-time low and a Christmas Eve deadline to win back the nation’s favor, the clock is ticking—and someone on their staff doesn’t want them to succeed.

Small mishaps on set start adding up, and Sabrina and Nick find themselves—quelle horreur—working together to hunt down the saboteur…and discovering they might have more in common than they thought. When a fiery encounter is caught on camera, the public is convinced that the reluctant cohosts are secretly lusting after one another.

The public might not be wrong.

Their chemistry has always been explosive, but with hate turning to love, the stakes are rising and everything is on the line. Neither is sure if they can trust these new feelings…or if they’ll still have a job in the New Year.

About the Author

Lucy Parker lives in the gorgeous Central Otago region of New Zealand, where she feels lucky every day to look out at mountains, lakes and vineyards. She has a degree in Art History, loves museums and galleries, and doodles unrecognisable flowers when she has writer’s block.

Her interest in romantic fiction began with a pre-teen viewing of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice (Firth-style), which prompted her to read the book as well, and the rest was history.

Author Links

Website: http://www.lucyparkerfiction.com/ 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/_lucyparker 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lucyparkerauthor/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/LucyParkerAuthor/ 

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/14182530.Lucy_Parker 

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Lucy-Parker/e/B017GQ99QG