With monthly periodicals folding by the dozen on a near-daily basis, we should be falling over ourselves to support the likes of Esquire, GQ, Vanity Fair, Maxim and something called Ralph.

They’re the rags that really put out in a big way this year, showing off the finest female specimens from around the world, sometimes naked, other times in trench coats, other times in ink (like this July 2009 cover of Bar Refaeli covered in Stephen King’s dirty words), but always looking hotter than a fireplace in hell.

Keep reading for our full rundown of the sexiest magazine covers of 2009, and feel free to stare.