So… Valentine’s Day!  Am I right?

There’s certainly something in the air this time of year, some element missing from the periodic table of emotions.  Element Lv, whose smoochtacular properties are unrivaled. You know.  Vitamin L.

I’m talking about Love, here, people.  With a capital L-U-V.

It’s almost Spring, when, as Tennyson once said, “a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love.”  Kinda feels like the planets are aligning, doesn’t it?  Like conditions are right… to read a romance novel.  Or fourteen!

They say that you should never judge a book by its cover, but here is an exception.  In a genre that explores close relationships, it could be argued that the cover needs to scream: “Passion!  Undulating landscapes!  Romantic feelings!  Fluttering eyelashes!  Mushy and/or gushy!”

Also, “Man-chest.”

Here are some specimens that we think get the point across in no uncertain terms!  All of which, I deign to mention, include free shipping worldwide in order for you to share the love in a global kind of way.

Got a favorite, or an even better one?  Let us know in the comments.  And have a happy, bodice-ripping, glasses-fogging Valentine’s Day.

If the first words that come into your mind when you think of February 14th are any of the below:

• “Ugh.”
• “Pffffffft.”
• “Bleaeaearrararrghgh.”

…then you have arrived at the correct Blog Post.

Fie on Valentine’s Day.  For real. If you consider the history, Valentine’s Day has more to do with decapitation than osculation.  How did we get from religious martyr to winged baby causing people to get googly-eyes when struck by armor-piercing projectiles?  All that lovey-dovey mush is for the birds.

So go ahead, sheeple!  Go prostrate yourselves at the altars of Godiva and Victoria’s Secret.  SOME of us will be home with a book.  A good book.  But most importantly, an opposite-of-Valentine’s-Day kind of book.

Perhaps some Poe is in order.  Maybe King or Lovecraft, to purge my mind of the hollow mewling of the truffle-wielding masses.  “Be mine,” indeed!

What are YOU reading on this Non-acknowledged Holiday?  Let us know in the comments.  Whatever it is, I hope you enjoy it.  Good day to you, reader.

I said good day!

From the editors of the New York Times bestseller Not Quite What I Was Planning comes another collection of terse true tales—this time simple sagas exploring the complexities of the human heart. Six-Word Memoirs on Love & Heartbreak contains hundreds of personal stories about the pinnacles and pitfalls of romance. Brilliant in their brevity, these insightful slivers of passion, pain, and connection capture every shade of love and loss—six words at a time.

2. WHY HIM?  WHY HER?  Finding Real Love by Understanding Your Personality Type

by Helen Fisher
Why do you fall in love with one person rather than another? In this fascinating and informative book, Helen Fisher, one of the world’s leading experts on romantic love, unlocks the hidden code of desire and attachment. Each of us, it turns out, primarily expresses one of four broad personality types—Explorer, Builder, Director, or Negotiator—and each of these types is governed by different chemical systems in the brain. Driven by this biology, we are attracted to partners who both mirror and complement our own personality type.
Dr. Fisher was featured on 20/20 about two weeks ago and here in our office to talk to earlier this week.  I’ll be posting my podcast with her shortly!

3. Love The One You’re With by Emily Giffin

How do you know if you’ve found the one? Can you really love the one you’re with when you can’t forget the one who got away?

Emily Giffin, author of the New York Times bestselling novels Something Borrowed, Something Blue, and Baby Proof, poses these questions—and many more—with her highly anticipated, thought-provoking new novel Love the One You’re With.

4. DESSERT FOURPLAY: Sweet Quartets from a Four-Star Pastry Chef by Johnny Iuzzini & Roy Finamore

Whether you’ve sworn off the whole dating game or you have someone to share it with…there is no love like the love of sweets.

Far from the conventional slice of cake at the end of a meal, Johnny’s seasonal creations—four mini desserts in a quartet of complementary flavors and textures—are a culinary adventure. In Dessert FourPlay, he shares his secrets and inspirations, delivering standout recipes for incredible desserts that can be served alone or combined into his signature fourplay groupings, creating the perfect sweet finale for any meal.

5. LOVE by Toni Morrison

No list of books about love would be complete without Toni Morrison.

May, Christine, Heed, Junior, Vida–even L: all women obsessed with Bill Cosey. The wealthy owner of the famous Cosey’s Hotel and Resort, he shapes their yearnings for father, husband, lover, guardian, and friend, yearnings that dominate the lives of these women long after his death. Yet while he is either the void in, or the center of, their stories, he himself is driven by secret forces–a troubled past and a spellbinding woman named Celestial.

This audacious exploration into the nature of love–its appetite, its sublime possession, its dread–is rich in characters, striking scenes, and a profound understanding of how alive the past can be.

6. THE FIVE LOVE LANGUAGES by Gary Chapman

Are you and your spouse speaking the same language?

While love is a many splendored thing, it is sometimes a very confusing thing, too. And as people come in all varieties, shapes, and sizes, so do their choices of personal expressions of love. But more often than not, the giver and the receiver express love in two different ways. This can lead to misunderstanding, quarrels, and even divorce. Quality Time, Words of Affirmation, Gifts, Acts of Service and Physical Touch.  Dr. Gary Chapman identifies five basic languages of love and then guides couples towards a better understanding of their unique languages of love.

7. LOVE MATTERS by Delilah

Delilah opens her heart to explain why love is, truly, what matters most…

Delilah dominates nighttime radio with her mesmerizing voice and unique offering of popular music, superb storytelling and sympathetic listening.

In this unforgettable book Delilah presents her favorite listener stories compiled from the thousands she receives every week.

8. THE GHIRARDELLI CHOCOLATE COOKBOOK

The cover photo on this book is enough to make me not need another date for quite some time.  Yum!

America is experiencing a chocolate renaissance, and the epicenter is in the San Francisco Bay Area, where Ghirardelli has long been the standard-bearer for great chocolate.  The experts at Ghirardelli are back with a revised and updated collection of classic cookies, bars, cakes, and drinks. The recipes range from simple sweets to show-stopping desserts, with a special section on hosting a chocolate party.

9. AskMen.com Presents THE GUY’S GUIDE TO ROMANCE by James Bassil
The Guy’s Guide to Romance is an indispensable handbook filled with fundamentals that every man can use to enter into or maintain a happy, healthy relationship. Divided into 11 rules, The Guy’s Guide to Romance helps you cater to your girlfriend’s wants and needs and teaches you how to get her to do the same for you.

10. LOVE by Ferdinand Protzman

Universally desired and uniquely experienced, love finds expression in every land and culture. This enchanting new book celebrates the depth and diversity of love—at many moments in history, and at every human age—in an exquisite collection of photographs from National Geographic’s famous archives and beyond. Each picture tells a tantalizing story and captures an intimate, unforgettable glimpse of love’s many facets, from courtship to friendship to charity and more.

No worries Charlie, no Golden Geese or Oompa-Loompas were harmed in the production of this chocolate surprise. Divine Chocolate comes from the Kuapa Kokoo co-op in Ghana, West Africa. From their site:

Divine indeed. Will you get a golden ticket?

Hope you’re all getting cozy with your loved ones, but if you’re like me then hopefully you’re getting all cozy with a book and a cup of tea.  For the old school take on love try some Jane Austen or the (soon to be movie!) Love in the Time of Cholera (yes guys, it’s an excellent book.  Seriously).

If you’re looking for love with a twist try on the latest effort from the hilarious Christopher Moore: You Suck: A Love Story.

Do yourself a favor and read one less Hallmark card that sounds like it was written either by a 7 year old or by someone your age (but in 1950 maybe) and try on some actual literature.  You won’t be disappointed.  After all, what girl wouldn’t wilt as you leave her on the balcony and say:

“‘Good night, good night! Parting is such sweet sorrow,
That I shall say good night till it be morrow.’
Oh wait, I left my keys, can you throw those down?”    (we can’t all be perfect!)