Crying while reading: I’m doing it

I’ve seen posts recently about books that have made us cry, and for the most part, I’ve kept my mouth VERY shut on the subject. Mostly because the past few months my reading experience has been skewed by the fact that I have raging pregnancy hormones. So now that I’ve told the world I’m knocked up, I feel it’s also time I come clean about something else… those pregnancy hormones are a bitch, and they make me cry – ALL THE TIME!

At dinner last week with Lorelie Brown, the two of us laughed hysterically as I shared some of my new mommy-to-be horrors, and she suggested I write this post after telling her that all I wanted to do for MONTHS while writing reviews was say: “It was wonderful, it made me cry.” But then I realized that the reasons WHY I would burst into tears probably isn’t normal for non-hormonal people… So here it is, a list of SOME of the books that have made me cry since finding out I was pregnant, and the ridiculous reasons behind why I would spontaneously burst into tears.

Barefoot in the Sand by Roxanne St. Claire – I was an absolute WRECK while reading this book. Between the hurricane in the beginning and the damn unicorn stuffed animal I was an inconsolable waterwork. I must have cried a million times during this book, with Clay’s rocky relationship with his father and Lacey doing anything and everything to fight for her dream I was in Hallmark card heaven. The crying stopped toward the end of the book, when the angst levels shot up, but by then I’d already gone through almost a whole roll of toilet paper, and added Kleenex to the grocery list.

Frog by Mary Calmes – Holy hell. The tears that flowed while reading this took me by absolute surprise. I’d only read one very short Calmes book before, and I hadn’t been that impressed, so I wasn’t expecting much. Instead I got a sensitive cowboy who longs for more, a successful doctor who only wanted a chance, and a couple of kids thrown in the mix that had waterfalls pouring out of my eyes. The romance, the self-doubts, the coming together despite all their circumstances. *sniff* I’m getting all misty just thinking about it.

Summer Days by Susan Mallery – While this wasn’t my favorite Fool’s Gold book, I’m not a stranger to crying during a good romance novel. I’m actually 100% positive Mallery has reduced me to tears in the past. But with this book, it wasn’t the crying that took me off guard – it was the reason. I couldn’t keep my eyes dry because of the damn goats. I don’t even really like goats, but I kept imagining what would happen to the goats in Heidi lost her land, and let me tell you, homeless goats in my hormone induced delirium was not a pretty picture…

The Edge of Courage by Elaine Levine – I think, pregnant or not, this book would have made me cry regardless. Either way, the hero who was so incredibly tortured with PTSD and the pain of his time overseas killed me this way and that. I don’t think I got through one single chapter without a tear rolling down my face.

Cynful by Dana Marie Bell – Who would have thought a healing Spirit Bear and a snarky tattoo artist would turn me into a blubbering idiot? *raises hand* I love romances where the hero has to chip away at the heroines defenses. And poor Julian had to chip and chip and chip through almost the whole story. It could have been the romance, or the humor, but either way… Crying was involved.

Melt Into You by Roni Loren – Ah, my favorite: smutty BDSM romance. What’s not to love, and what is there to cry about? Well, for me, apparently the fact that Jace and Andre go through will fulfilling Evan’s kinky cop fantasy was just enough smokin hot smexing and emotional entanglement to turn on the waterworks. Seems a little ridiculous right?

Forever and a Day by Jill Shalvis – Last, but certain not least, was my sneak peak into the next Lucky Harbor book. I love the small town vibe and the big romance. The combination of the toddler aged son of Josh who literally popped up everywhere, the angry sister stuck in her wheelchair, and the CRAZY sexual tension between Josh and Grace with a dash of small town love at the very end had me wiping slobber off my husband’s iPad.

So there you have it, the condensed list of books that have caused me to break down into a sniveling mess – at work, at home, and in the doctor’s office waiting room. I’m not holding out hope that the next five and a half months will go any easier. So when you see me mention on Twitter that a book made me cry… please don’t make TOO much fun of me. 🙂