The Romancies: Part 4 - Favorite Quote

 

*The books eligible could be published in any year, they simply had to be read by me in 2021. 

Clicking on book cover brings you to my review if I wrote one or GoodReads page if I didn't.

Nominees:

1.  A Lady Awakened by Cecilia Grant

Honey-colored hair, just on that border between blonde and brunette. The kind of hair that went luminous under sunlight, but kept its secrets indoors. 

This is an example of some of that gorgeous writing I've been talking about in this book and gah, I could talk about this line and description all day. I want to live in this sentence.

2.  Night in Eden by Candice Proctor

"I despair," said Bryony quietly. "Yes. But you don't give way to it."

This quote maybe needs a little context to really feel it, Bryony was sentenced for murdering her husband and sent to Australia where numerous horrors happen to her as a woman convict.  It was a quote that had you feeling her anguish and strength all at once and just hit upon that inner core that woman have.

3.  An Unlikely Governess by Karen Ranney

He breathed against her ear. She turned her head and brushed her lips against his bristly cheek. He'd traveled all night to be with her. He traveled in the darkness like a demon, and in the dawn light, he offered her a hint of depravity. Dear God, she wanted it so.

I live for the tension between the leads and the last part of this sentence delivers on that fraying rope feel that wild horses couldn't pull my attention from.

4.  Lumberjack by Jenika Snow

Jake now sat across from me, cleaning and sharpening the blade of his ax. Maybe doing that should have scared me, because it was intimidating watching him do it, but I wasn’t afraid of him.  

I was wet for him.

I never want anyone to forget about my pervy side and the "I was wet for him" had me laughing and delighting in the delivery of this line. Like, YES. So glorious in it's this story gets down to business vibes.

5.  To Catch an Earl by Kate Bateman

“I want you again, Emmy Danvers. And I want to take my time.” 

Classier in it's perving? Who cares, we love it all here at WhiskeyintheJar Romance. I do know that this line is make you shiver out of your panties delightful. 

He's going to take his time. 

Damn.

6.  The Last Confession by Regina Madrigal

“I suppose there can be only two outcomes to our friendship; you will save me or I will damn you.”

A little context for this one, the story is about a courtesan and a priest. Hits differently now doesn't it?

7.  Payback's a Witch by Lana Harper

She tipped her sleek head toward me, lazy grin glinting like a blade's edge. “Enter the final member of our vengeance coven.”

VENGEANCE COVEN. I will sign up every time for a story that has it's characters in a vengeance coven (added bonus that two in the coven fall in love!).

8.  The Last True Cowboy by Kathleen Eagle

Ok, this is a long one and some might think it should have been in Favorite Scene but, to me, it's one long quote. It encapsulates the tone of the story I loved, a trailed finger, Texas drawl slow burn of a book. 

If you remember back to Favorite Scene and me talking about "girls had try", you'll also catch why I liked this quote so much, K.C. appreciates our try.

“I like women,” K.C. said, thinking about the one who had just greeted him with a sassy slap on the ass. Pretty little redhead, couldn’t remember her name. “I like them very much.” 

Weslin nodded, smiling like he got the message, loud and clear. “She left her mark on your face.”

K.C. laughed and went after the lipstick with a cocktail napkin. 

“What do you like about them?” Weslin asked, and when K.C. gave him an incredulous glance, he shrugged it off. “No, I’m serious.” 

“Hell, I like their spirit, their heart.” 

Weslin looked at him as though he found the answer to be intriguing. K.C. decided to take the reaction at face value; he’d said something interesting. If Weslin had been a woman, K.C. would have known better. Women weren’t interested in what he said so much. It was more the way it was said. That and the way he listened. K.C. glanced at the dance floor. Watching people dance always made him tap his toe, itching to get out there and enjoy the music with some sweet partner. He leaned across the table. “A woman’s heart is different from a man’s. It’s not a matter of soft, even though there is that softness about some women. It’s more like extra room, maybe a secret chamber. They always seem to have a little hope in reserve.” 

“Heart.” Weslin seemed to be turning the word over in his mind, like a questionable coin. Finally he smiled. “That’s not the part most men would name.” 

K.C. shrugged as he sipped his whiskey. “I generally just say I’m a leg man and let it go at that, but you did say seriously.” 

“And I don’t threaten you.” 

“Threaten me?” 

“Seriously.” Weslin chuckled, sat back sipping on his bourbon and water. He was a good-looking cowboy, a little on the thin side with slender, elegant hands, but the kind of a guy a woman would surely notice. “My life is full of women, too,” he said, as if he’d read K.C.’s mind. “Women I love. Women I hate. Women I hate to love. I know just what you mean by a woman’s heart. There’s a gentleness about them that scares some men, I think. You’ve got it just right, though: gentleness and stamina. Unbelievable combination, but there it is.” 

K.C. raised his glass in fraternal agreement. “If we were talking about horses, we’d call it try. Some guys don’t appreciate that, either. They say they do, but the first thing they wanna do is break her, break her in, which means break her spirit.” 

“And when that doesn’t work out, they come to you.” 

“We talking about women or horses now?” 

Weslin smiled. “We’re talking about soft hearts and gentle creatures. Do you ever get tired of trying to make amends for other men’s mistakes?” 

“It’s probably fifty percent of my business, ”K.C. said. As for women, he figured it wasn’t possible for one man to make amends for the mistakes of another. He’d gotten himself in trouble over it a time or two and given up trying. Thought he had, anyway. He sure as hell meant to.  

“You’re the kind of man a guy wants to introduce to his sister.”

9.  Devil's Daughter by Lisa Kleypas

Muttering beneath his breath, he paced away from her, swung around, and returned to her with heightened color and a scowl. “I’m haunted by you,” he said brusquely. “I can’t seem to stop looking for you everywhere I go."  

A scowl and fan yourself line! I mean, I'm haunted by you. *Wheezes*.

10.  After Dark with the Duke by Julie Anne Long

She didn’t even precisely know what she wanted from him. Apart, perhaps, from being seen.

Probably my favorite thing about romance stories, two people being seen and loved for their true selves and to have a character come out and verbalize this want, gah, broke my heart. 

Winner:

I'M HAUNTED BY YOU

Just, gahalkjidoaihgah!!!!!

2020 Winner

2018 Winner

2017 Winner

2016 Winner

2015 Winner

2014 Winner

What's a quote you read in 2021 that still lingers in your mind?

Next time Favorite Leads.....