Coincidentally, it’s also the day the first of my holiday guests begins arriving….
So, in an effort to clear my calendar such that I may properly get “in the holiday spirit” (i.e., ebrius funditus,) I hereby declare:
Yea
verily, another year is officially gearing down, flipping on it’s bright yellow
turn signal, and aiming its scrunched up little nose towards the exit ramp for Auld Lang Syne.
And as the year
careens around the late December cloverleaf of festivities, I want to take you
back through The Rainbow Reader reviews, and bestow the Very Best of 2012 Awards.
However, before we jump into the good stuff, I want to mention that in the last twelve months, I had the honor and privilege of
reviewing 25 books; and was fortunate enough to post Guest Reviews from four
amazing and talented authors – Kate Christie, Susan X. Meagher, Barrett,
and Ann McMan. Additionally,
fellow reviewer, Cat from Good Lesbian Books, stopped by to post her thoughts
on one of her favorite pieces of historic lesbian fiction. And, last but not
least, avid reader and budding humorist, Michelle Brooks donned her sparkly peep toe slingback Louboutin’s
and took TRR out for a quick spin around the block.
Not a bad run for a twitchy little dyke and her
super cool partners in crime, eh?
But seriously, as a reviewer, my most sacrosanct goal is to cover the full spectrum of
lesbian literature, such that authors have an expanding platform to showcase their
work, and readers can consistently find books and stories that they love.
To that end, in 2012 TRR took on a few mainstream books, a comic book, a couple of frisky
whodunits, an award-winning blog opera, and a handful of humor, romance, erotica,
social justice, and period works of fiction.
Heck, I even reviewed books about a zombie
apocalypse, sorority girl vampires, and a pack of post-menopausal werewolves
just to cover all the Lesfic bases.
And, much as I did last year, I want to extend special and sincere thanks
to each and every one of my Victims (i.e., the brave and valiant authors) for having the guts, grit, and
determination to make your work available. It takes an amazing amount of
talent to write a book, and it takes a constitution of steel to voluntarily
become vulnerable to a world of readers and reviewers, and our myriad, sketchy
opinions.
I also want to thank you, The Readers, for stopping by to
read my reviews. Many of you have left comments on this blog, which I
appreciate. Many others have sent me emails or contacted me on Facebook,
and I want to thank each of you for letting me know what you think. Well, except maybe for
that one reader who hijacked one of my social media sites, questioned my ethics and
credentials, and referred to me as (lower case) “the blogger”—that was a wee
bit of an exaggerated response and it felt a skosh too personal.
But, them's the breaks in the glamorous world of Lesbian Literature.
So, with no further ado, I present The Rainbow Reader’s Very Best of 2012 Awards
Book Title
|
Author
|
Publisher
|
Award
|
After the Night
|
Rachel Dax
|
Self Published
|
Ida Lupino Award for Best
Women’s Prison Romance of 2012
|
Aftermath
|
Ann McMan
|
Bedazzled
|
Stanley Tools Award for Most
Innovative Use of a Pry Bar in Literature
|
Almost Heaven
|
Susan X. Meagher
|
Brisk Press
|
Hazel Dickens Award for the
Plot Advancing Use of Satellite Dishes in Mountaintop Literature
|
Batwoman
|
J.H. Williams III, Greg Rucka,
W. Haden Blackman
|
D.C. Comics
|
Peppermint Patty Award for
Excellence by a Lesbian Comic Book Character
|
Beebo Brinker
|
Ann Bannon
|
Gold
Medal Books Naiad Press
Cleis
Press
|
Gale Wilhelm Award for Near
Miss Happy Endings in Period Pulp Fiction
|
Being the Steel Drummer
|
Liz Bradbury
|
Boudica Publishing
|
TRR Special Award for Use
of “Shall” as an Auxiliary Verb in a Bondage Scene
|
Better Off Red
|
Rebekah Weatherspoon
|
Bold Strokes Books
|
Victoria’s Secret Award for Best
Use of Moist Lace Panties
|
Camptown Ladies
|
Mari SanGiovanni
|
Bywater Books
|
Sholem Aleichem Award for
Richest Rooftop Dialogue in Lesbian Fiction
|
Carry the One
|
Carol Anshaw
|
Simon & Schuster
|
TRR Special Award for
Innovative Use of Elementary Mathematical Concepts in Mainstream Literature
|
Clara’s Story
|
Doreen Perrine
|
Bedazzled Ink
|
Lesbian Psychiatric Association (LPA) Award for Best Therapist Named Gary in a Lesbian Romance
|
Come and Go
|
Lee Harlem Robinson
|
Self Published
|
International Lesbian Temperance Union Award for Blog Opera Excellence in The City That Opium Built
|
Eat Your Heart Out
|
Dayna Ingram
|
BrazenHead
|
TRR Special Award for Pioneering
Use of a Cheating Ex-Stripper Girlfriend-Cum-Gun-Wielding Warrior Babe in a
Zombie Apocalypse
|
Everything Pales in Comparison
|
Rebecca Swartz
|
Bella Books
|
Thomas Nashe Award for Best
Use of the Red Herring Plot Device in a Romantic Thriller, Eh?
|
Faithful Service, Silent Hearts
|
Lynette Mae
|
Regal Crest
|
Tyne Daley Award for Best
Tough & Chewy Butch with a .50 Caliber, Fully Automatic Rifle Loaded with
Armor-Piercing-Incendiary-Tracer Ammo
|
Hidden Truths
|
Jae
|
L-Book e-Publisher
|
Bureau of Labor Statistics Award for the Highest Concentration of Lesbyterians Per Square Mile
in 19th Century Oregon
|
In One Person
|
John Irving
|
Simon & Schuster
|
TRR Special Award for
Softest Breasts on a Transgendered Librarian
|
L World
|
Taryn Rose
|
Ravenous Romance
|
Readers Award for Most
Vagina Euphemisms in a 300 Page Book—Ever
|
Open Water
|
Pol Robinson
|
Bella Books
|
2012 Oolala Award for Use
of “Repechage,” the Sexiest Word in
All of Lesbian Fiction
|
Oranges and Lemons
|
Liz Bugg
|
Insomniac Press
|
Galdys Mitchell Award for Best Smokin’ Hot Love Interest
with a Sketchy Past and Tantalizingly Firm Breasts
|
Pennance
|
Clare Ashton
|
Self Published
|
Praelatura Sanctae Crucis et Operis Dei Award for Most Effective Use of Self-Flagellation in a Modern Gothic
Romance
|
Piper’s Someday
|
Ruth Perkinson
|
Spinster’s Ink
|
TRR Top Dog of 2012—Awarded
Posthumously to River the Amazing Tripod
|
Rhapsody
|
KG MacGregor
|
Bella Books
|
2012 Walk The Talk Award
for a Happy Ending with a Flashing Neon Caveat
|
Sarah, Son of God
|
Justine Saracen
|
Bold Strokes Books
|
Vasily Zvyozdochkin Award
for Best Gender Bending Nested Thriller of 2012
|
Seminal Murder
|
Mary Vermillion
|
Regal Crest
|
TRR Special Award for
Ballsiest Use of Semen as a Main Character in Lesbian Fiction
|
Silver Moon
|
Catherine Lundoff
|
Lethe Press
|
Maude Findlay Award for Best
Ever Menopausal Storyline in Lesbian Fiction
|
Strangers
|
DeJay
|
Regal Crest
|
Ain't No Mountain High Enough Award for Greatest Incidence of Emotional Demons in Dramatic Fiction
Featuring a Car Wash
|
The Girl’s Club
|
Sally Bellrose
|
Bywater Books
|
Barbara Barrie Award for use
of “The Dreaded Bowel Disease” as a Non-Speaking Main Character
|
The Indelible Heart
|
Marianne K. Martin
|
Bywater Books
|
Pittmann Puckett Award for
Addressing Social Conscience in Lesbian Fiction
|
The Sea of Light
|
Jennifer Levin
|
Plume Books
|
Esther Williams Award for
Multiple Ah-Ha Moments In and Out
of the Pool
|
The Way
|
Kristen Wolf
|
Crown Publishing
|
Orlando Award for
Intense Consideration of Nature and Gender Roles
|
Touch Me Gently
|
D. Jackson Leigh
|
Bold Strokes Books
|
Charles Francis Xavier Award
for the Promethean Use of Exploding Light Bulbs During Hot Lesbian Sex in a
Southern Novel
|
Well, that's it for TRR in 2012—here’s wishing each and every one of you a safe, happy, healthy,
and festive holiday season, and a 2013 full of joy, love, and wonder!
And, as always, thanks for stopping by The Rainbow Reader.
