I think I was still a teenager the first time I saw the Romance Writers of America’s RITA award for the first time, and a dream was born. I remember feeling awe, desire, and a burning belief that if I worked hard enough, I could have one, too. Epic want.
So when those conversations come and go regarding the award’s meaning, its validity and so on, I tune most of it out. Some writers dream of the NYT list, I dream of RITA. I was a little suprised not to see an announcement of the winners of such a prestigious industry award here, so let’s do it!
The 2008 RITA Awards for…
Best First Book—Dead Girls Are Easy by Terry Garey
Best Contemporary Series Romance—Snowbound by Janice Johnson (Harlequin Superromance)
Best Contemporary Series Romance:
Suspense/Adventure—Treasure by Helen Brenna (Harlequin Superromance)
Best Contemporary Single Title Romance—Catch of the Day by Kristan Higgins
Best Historical Romance—Lessons of Desire by Madeline Hunter
Best Inspirational Romance—A Touch of Grace by Linda Goodnight (Steeple Hill Love Inspired)
Best Novel with Strong Romantic Elements—Silent in the Grave by Deanna Raybourn
Best Paranormal Romance—Lover Revealed by J.R. Ward
Best Regency Historical Romance—The Secret Diaries of Miss Miranda Cheever by Julia Quinn
Best Romance Novella—“Born in My Heart” in Like Mother, Like Daughter by Jennifer Greene (Harlequin NEXT)
Best Romantic Suspense—Ice Blue by Anne Stuart
Best Young Adult Romance—Wicked Lovely by Melissa
Marr
I still despise the new category divides, but I was thrilled by Kristan Higgins’s win. All three of her books have knocked my socks off. I was a little surprised a Superromance won the Best Category Series: Suspense/Adventure award. I haven’t read it (yet), but I expected an Intrigue or a Silhouette Romantic Suspense to take it. I’ve read Snowbound and Lover Revealed, and really enjoyed them both. Now it’s time to hunt down the others.
How about you? Do you read the RITA winners, knowing the authors achieved a level of excellence a panel of their peers deemed worthy of recognition? If you’re a writer, do you try to learn from them? If you’re reader, do you seek them out? If you follow the RITAs, how do you think the new categories worked out?
And just for grins, last year I left my suggestions for category romance divisions in the comments of Karen Templeton’s blog:
Best Series Romance Featuring Dead People
Best Series Romance Featuring Naked People
Best Series Romance Featuring Pews
Best Series Romance—Everybody Else
Related posts:
Last year, I used the entire finalist list to buy some books I otherwise wouldn’t have known about. This year, the TBR shelves are already groaning and money is tighter, so I don’t seek out as many random books.
Aren’t there historical category romances, too? Best Series Romance Featuring Garden Tools.
(Rakes, in the likely event that was so lame only I would get it…)
I don’t pay attention to the Ritas, except when a favorite author, like Linnea Sinclair, is nominated. Her novels are the only ones I’ve read that they’ve nominated. I have to assume my tastes are quite different.
Love Karen Templeton’s categories!
Here are mine:
Best Romance Featuring a Blood-Sucking Dead Guy
Best Romance Featuring ‘Wicked’ in the Title
Best Romance Featuring ‘Dark’ in the Title
Best Romance with Cover Art Featuring Washerboard Abs
Best Historical Featuring a Kilt or a Cowboy Hat
(Groaning at Kerry’s Rake joke)
Not really into awards
and the Ritas…
well, my crazy tastes never jive up to what is on the list.
I HAVE read the two historicals on the list
(I average a historical romance a day).
They are good, solid reads.
I don’t know that they add anything
groundbreaking to the genre
which is usually how I see
award winning books.
‘Course the very innovative reads
are in eBook
and (scanning the list),
it doesn’t look like they were included.
Oh, forgot to add mine…
Best Romance Featuring A Cross Species Relationship
Best Romance Featuring A Cowboy Or A Baby Or Preferably Both
Best Romance With Billionaire, Virgin, Or Sheikh In The Title
ROFLMAO!
Oh, you Kimbers, you slay me!
Oh, gosh, yes. I read them, and I dream of one day being one of them. *g* Don’t we all?
I always pay attention to who is nominated for a Rita and who wins. I’ve “discovered” some amazing storytellers that way.
It’s always fun to see your friends names in the RITA line up. I do buy some of the books if I see them, and remember they were a RITA winner…:-)
Regardless of the award won, I am more likely to notice a book that won an award, if only because I feel like I’m more likely to hear about it than random book X. Award winning novels have the advantage of more press (be it however minor or major). That said, I thumb through a book before I ever by it, so it’s the content that catches me more than anything else.
Oh, I love following the list and the winners. I don’t always buy the books, but I dream of RITA too. It’s so much worse for your imagination when you’ve been to the ceremony, lol. You can flesh out your fantasies with the slow walk up to the stage and the flashing lights of cameras and your picture up on the big screens…
Darn it, now I’m going to wake up in the middle of the night blowing kisses and crying, “Thank you!”. Again.
Dee
Great new categories!
I don’t manage to get ALL of them each year, but I do make an effort to read the RITA winners. Good stuff to be learned there.
Dee, my imagination has already drafted the 367,982nd draft of my thank you speech, but I’m not so sure about the face on the Jumbotron. If I should ever be so lucky as to snag one, my speech will probably be an OMGOMGOMGOMG from behind the nearest potted plant.
I was thrilled Kristan Higgins won too. She’s great!.
Kimber An,
I contacted Linnea Sinclair
about something I’m working on
and wow, simply wow.
She is the nicest, most generous person
(well, Margaret Moore might give her
a run for that title,
oh, and Kelley Armstrong
and you
and… okay, there are a lot of
nicest, most generous people
in my world).
[...] the genre of romance, members of the Romance Writers of America have selected their 2008’s RITA winners. Winning the category for Best Historical Fiction for her novel Lessons in Desire is Madeline [...]