While I have respect for authors who do well to achieve this honor, unfortunately, it doesn’t do anything for this reader to see the RITA on the cover of your book. I’ve been burned a few times with books labeled as RITA award winners. What stood for excellence for some, represented something else for me: avoid, AVOID, avoid.
My first RITA awarded book was by Mary Jo Putney, it was a historical novel, Dancing on the Wind. While I’ve enjoyed many of Mary Jo Putney’s books and a few sit on my keeper shelf, this was my least favorite.
I find such awards politically motivated to a degree. Everything is relative. Does handing out these awards improve quality? I don’t think so. I do think if you had Romantica as a category and the authors were recognized - they’d give your other straight romance authors a run for their money. I’m just saying. Shelby Reed is outstanding. She’d get my vote, hands down.
Many times, looking over the nominees, I know I stand alone because more than half are authors who either a)make the list every year and b) anonymous to moi. Besides, I don’t really read much straight romance these days — -too boring. So, I don’t envy the job of the judges of these things. I read somewhere they have to read up to 100 pages of each contest book. That explains a lot, thank you to whoever posted that. I have no proof if it’s veracity, sorry. But if perception is truth, then I tend to believe that one.
What I find interesting is the dust up over whether or not another category should be created to encompass romantica. I felt that Lisa Valdez should have been nominated for Best First Book Finalists myself, but that’s just me. Maybe reading the first ten pages was a put-off for some. I don’t know. The book was well written and the characterizations were pretty decent. However, the feeding frenzy over it’s graphic sex scenes pretty much had this book shut off from garnering any type of award.
Contemporary finalists read like humor/slapstick and chick lit to me. I don’t read much of those. I hope sincerely that Cheryl Reavis nabs Best Long Contemporary for Blackberry Winter. She’s the only finalist I’ve read and enjoyed on a consistent basis.
Rakes still dominant the Best Long Historical Romance category, why am I not surprised. I don’t read those anymore either. It’s just something about that if you’ve read one, you’ve read them all. And the Paranormal Category - haven’t read not one but I do have Dark Lover by J.R. Ward that Sybil’s been pimping. That book was a given to be in that category despite varied reader response.
One thing puzzles me, you can create a category for Romantic Suspense and another for Novels With Strong Romantic Elements but not have another category for romantica? Give Me a Break. A few categories could be eliminated too like Novels With Strong Romantic Elements, Best Traditional Romance (WTF?), Best Short Story Contemporary, I’d lump that one with Best Long Contemporary Finalists (series, not single title) and change it to Best Series Romance (Short/Long). If there’s support for such a category of Romantica, it’d be there.
Anyway, congratulations to those who were nominated or stunned to be nominated. I know I was as unsurprised and uninspired as usual. Here is the list. Enjoy.
Dennis Lehane's next published novel is a major publishing event. 
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
May 05.31.06 at 8:43 am
I agree with you over what you said about the finalists, but not about the Romantica category.
I remember somebody saying something to the effect of, “Do you want to your book to be judged on the number of sex scenes it has?”
Keishon 05.31.06 at 3:35 pm
All my ramble was meant to say was this: the RITA Awards do nothing for me, as a reader with a pocketbook. It is neither a draw nor an incentive for me to buy the author’s work based on “RITA award Winner” on the cover blurb. It does the exact opposite. Sorta screens out all the books that I might possibly think are boring, straight romances.
LFL 06.01.06 at 12:58 am
I found one great book because it won a RITA — Merely Married by Patricia Coughlin. There have been a lot of other RITA winners I’ve enjoyed; authors like Laura Kinsale, Judith Ivory, LaVyrle Spencer, Patricia Gaffney, Kathleen Gilles Seidel, Tom and Sharon Curtis, Patricia Ryan, Mary Jo Putney, Carla Kelly, Megan Chance, Barbara Samuel, and others. In more recent years there have been fewer authors I’ve known who have won.
I can think of about four new authors I’d put ahead of Valdez for Best First Book, and none of them were nominated either, but since I haven’t read the nominated books, I can’t say that they deserve to be there any less.
May 06.01.06 at 11:52 am
Sorry Keishon, I misunderstood.
Keishon 06.01.06 at 5:23 pm
May, no need to apologize. Did I come off too strongly? I appreciated your feedback, I really did. I know I’m only frog in the pond with this opinion but apology not needed.