Romance Writers of America · award year

RITA Awards 2012

The 2012 RITA Awards went to First Grave on the Right by Darynda Jones (Best First Book), Doukakis's Apprentice by Sarah Morgan (Contemporary Series Romance) and Soldier's Last Stand by Cindy Dees (Contemporary Series Romance: Suspense/Adventure), with winners in 9 more categories. 88 books were finalists across 12 categories.

Winners

Best First Book

  1. First Grave on the Rightsource (opens in a new tab)

Contemporary Series Romance

  1. Doukakis's Apprenticesource (opens in a new tab)

Contemporary Series Romance: Suspense/Adventure

  1. Soldier's Last Standsource (opens in a new tab)

Contemporary Single Title Romance

  1. Boomerang Bridesource (opens in a new tab)

Historical Romance

  1. The Black Hawksource (opens in a new tab)

Inspirational Romance

  1. The Measure of Katie Callowaysource (opens in a new tab)

Novel with Strong Romantic Elements

  1. How to Bake a Perfect Lifesource (opens in a new tab)

Paranormal Romance

  1. Dragon Boundsource (opens in a new tab)

Regency Historical Romance

  1. A Night to Surrendersource (opens in a new tab)

Romance Novella

  1. I Love the Earlsource (opens in a new tab)

Romantic Suspense

  1. New York to Dallassource (opens in a new tab)

Young Adult Romance

  1. Enclavesource (opens in a new tab)

Finalists

Best First Book

  1. Beautiful Disastersource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Hourglasssource (opens in a new tab)
  3. How to Marry a Dukesource (opens in a new tab)
  4. I'm Not Hersource (opens in a new tab)
  5. The Darling Strumpetsource (opens in a new tab)
  6. The Devil in Disguisesource (opens in a new tab)
  7. Warpedsource (opens in a new tab)

Contemporary Series Romance

  1. A Bravo Homecomingsource (opens in a new tab)
  2. A Mother's Homecomingsource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Donovan's Childsource (opens in a new tab)
  4. How a Cowboy Stole Her Heartsource (opens in a new tab)
  5. I'll Catch Yousource (opens in a new tab)
  6. Rancher's Twins: Mom Neededsource (opens in a new tab)
  7. The Texan's Bridesource (opens in a new tab)

Contemporary Series Romance: Suspense/Adventure

  1. Cooper Vengeancesource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Nothing But the Truthsource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Stranded with Her Exsource (opens in a new tab)
  4. Taken to the Edgesource (opens in a new tab)
  5. The Doctor’s Deadly Affairsource (opens in a new tab)
  6. The Man from Gossamer Ridgesource (opens in a new tab)

Contemporary Single Title Romance

  1. At Hidden Fallssource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Black Ties and Lullabiessource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Heartstrings and Diamond Ringssource (opens in a new tab)
  4. Silver Sparkssource (opens in a new tab)
  5. Slow Dancing on Price's Piersource (opens in a new tab)
  6. Summer at Seaside Covesource (opens in a new tab)
  7. The Welcome Home Garden Clubsource (opens in a new tab)

Historical Romance

  1. Always a Temptresssource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Heartbreak Creeksource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Scandalous Desiressource (opens in a new tab)
  4. Silk Is for Seductionsource (opens in a new tab)
  5. The Danger of Desiresource (opens in a new tab)
  6. The Many Sins of Lord Cameronsource (opens in a new tab)
  7. Unveiledsource (opens in a new tab)

Inspirational Romance

  1. Deadly Pursuitsource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Katie's Waysource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Love on the Linesource (opens in a new tab)
  4. My Foolish Heartsource (opens in a new tab)
  5. Save the Datesource (opens in a new tab)
  6. The Christmas Childsource (opens in a new tab)
  7. The Ladies' Roomsource (opens in a new tab)
  8. To Win Her Heartsource (opens in a new tab)

Novel with Strong Romantic Elements

  1. Death Magicsource (opens in a new tab)
  2. First Grave on the Rightsource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Goodnight Tweetheartsource (opens in a new tab)
  4. Shadow Walkersource (opens in a new tab)
  5. Song of the Nilesource (opens in a new tab)
  6. Spider's Revengesource (opens in a new tab)
  7. The Dark Enquirysource (opens in a new tab)
  8. The Rose Gardensource (opens in a new tab)

Paranormal Romance

  1. Archangel's Bladesource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Changeling Moonsource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Envysource (opens in a new tab)
  4. Lord of the Abysssource (opens in a new tab)
  5. Nightfallsource (opens in a new tab)
  6. The Lostsource (opens in a new tab)
  7. The Restorersource (opens in a new tab)

Regency Historical Romance

  1. Heiress in Lovesource (opens in a new tab)
  2. How to Marry a Dukesource (opens in a new tab)
  3. How to Seduce a Scoundrelsource (opens in a new tab)
  4. Lady Sophie's Christmas Wishsource (opens in a new tab)
  5. The Devil in Disguisesource (opens in a new tab)
  6. To Seduce an Angelsource (opens in a new tab)
  7. When Beauty Tamed the Beastsource (opens in a new tab)

Romantic Suspense

  1. Hidden Awaysource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Hot Zonesource (opens in a new tab)
  3. Hushsource (opens in a new tab)
  4. Secrets of Bella Terrasource (opens in a new tab)
  5. True Colorssource (opens in a new tab)
  6. True Shotsource (opens in a new tab)
  7. Where All the Dead Liesource (opens in a new tab)

Young Adult Romance

  1. Flawlesssource (opens in a new tab)
  2. Hourglasssource (opens in a new tab)
  3. I'm Not Hersource (opens in a new tab)
  4. Touch of Frostsource (opens in a new tab)
  5. Warpedsource (opens in a new tab)

About the RITA Awards

Year is the year awarded (winners named at the RWA national conference each July; finalists announced that spring, for books published the year before). The RITA ended after 2019; none was given in 2020, and RWA replaced it with the Vivian. Finalists come from RWA's own finalist pages for every year 2006-2019, read from archive.org snapshots (rwanational.org for 2006-2010, rwa.org for 2011-2019) because rwa.org no longer hosts them. Winners come from RWA's live Past RITA Winners page (rwa.org/past-rita-winners); each winner is marked on its finalist row. Repair: that page leaves out the 2009 Contemporary Single Title winner, Not Another Bad Date by Rachel Gibson, so that row cites RWA's archived 2009 winners page. All book categories are kept under the names on each year's finalist page, so names shift as RWA re-cut categories (e.g. Contemporary Single Title, Contemporary Series, Contemporary Romance: Long/Mid-Length/Short, Regency, Traditional, Novel with Strong Romantic Elements, Mainstream Fiction with a Central Romance, Inspirational, Romance with Religious or Spiritual Elements, Young Adult, Erotic, Romance Novella); 2008 'Best Paranormal' and 'Best Young Adult' are written as Paranormal Romance and Young Adult Romance. Golden Heart (unpublished manuscripts) is left out. Novellas published on their own stay in; novellas listed as one story inside a larger book ("Story" in Anthology) are left out, 44 rows across 2006-2019, including the novella winners of 2006-2011. A book that was a finalist in two categories appears once per category. Pen names are given as published (w/a or 'writing as' forms keep the pen name). Expected counts are the book rows on each year's finalist page after those novella exclusions.

Organization: Romance Writers of America. Years are award years, which can differ from publication years. Official site (opens in a new tab)

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