Whatcha Reading is here again! It always seems to creep up on you. This is where we talk about the books we’ve been reading. Maybe we’re enjoying them. Or maybe not so much. We hope you’ve knocked out some books on your TBR pile too!
Elyse: I just started Whiskey Beach by Nora Roberts ( A | BN | K | G | AB | Au ). I hope it perks me up because I’m in a bit of a reading slump.
Sarah: I just started By the Currawong’s Call by Welton B. Marsland ( A | BN | K | G | AB ), a m/m historical set in Australia in 1891. Matthew is an Anglican priest sent to lead his first church in a very small town, where he becomes fast friends with the police sergeant, Jonah.
The first chapter establishes the town, the land, and Matthew’s faith and personal excitement with emotion and elegance in the writing, so I’m very excited to keep reading. The last book I tried was boring the hell out of me so starting Currawong was a very welcome experience.
I just finished From Here to Eternity by Caitlin Doughty, which is nonfiction about funeral rites and ways different cultures around the world process death and interact with the dead – in some cases literally. It was absolutely fascinating. (And big thanks to Montgomery County Public Libraries for ordering a digital copy so I could borrow it.)
Amanda: I’m reading The Last Wolf by Maria Vale ( A | BN | K | G | AB ) and it opens with a flashback of a female Alpha trying to save her Pack from encroaching humans in 17th Century, England. She’s not the heroine in this book, but Vale does a great job setting up worldbuilding. Shifters are enemies to Werewolves within the book’s mythology and it’s also really gritty so far. It has a bit of freshness to the usual paranormal romance genre.
Sarah: What’s fresh about it?
Amanda: Well I liked that it already introduces a female who runs a pack. Typically, it’s dudes. Her Beta questions her decision and she throws him overboard off a ship. I like how Shifters are seen as enemies and untrustworthy because they can “choose” how and when they shift, and they’re more likely to work and scheme with humans.
Redheadedgirl: I am almost done with the Jane the Virgin tie-in, Snow Falling. I am also cheerfully chewing through It Ended Badly: Thirteen of the Worst Breakups in History ( A | BN | K | G | AB ). It’s very funny and I can’t wait to see what shit Norman Mailer pulled.
I also just got Maya Rodale’s It’s Hard Out Here for a Duke ( A | BN | K | G | AB ).
Amanda: Also..I will say that The Last Wolf is probably not a book for Sarah?
Sarah: Shit, I wanted to read it.
Amanda: There isn’t SUPER graphic detail, but there is mention of a pack being clubbed to death and decapitated. So…
Sarah: Jesus.
And bugger Currawong is declining in my estimation.
Carrie: I’m just about to start River of Teeth, by Sarah Gailey, which imagines an 1890s America in which the bayous of Louisiana are largely populated by hippos.
Amanda: I’ve heard good things about these hippos!
Carrie: I’m only on page 22 but I have high hopes!
Amanda: My hold for Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant just came in, so I’m excited to pick that up too! ( A | BN | K | G | AB )
Redheadedgirl: Nice!
Amanda: I went to pick up my hold and What Happened by Hilary Clinton ( A | BN | K | G | AB ) was waiting for me. When I put it on hold, I was number 342.
Sarah: WHOA!
What have you read this month? Anything you absolutely loved? Tell us all about it!
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I’ve read a lot of romance this month! Something about the cold and it getting dark by 4:30 makes me want to read about people finding happiness.
Faves
– HAMILTON’S BATTALION by Rose Lerner, Courtney Milan, & Alyssa Cole – Novellas that convince me of a romance are a gift, and all of these did exactly that. The stories are diverse and queer, funny and sweet. Loved it.
– GLITTERLAND by Alexis Hall – I really appreciated how this book handles mental illness and how it can affect others. He always writes characters from deep within their POV and the emotions just punch you in the gut. I do wish both POVs were there, but still excellent.
– FURIOUSLY HAPPY: A HILARIOUS BOOK ABOUT TERRIBLE THINGS by Jenny Lawson – Lawson always, always makes me laugh, even as she talks seriously and thoughtfully about her mental illnesses and struggles.
– THE MURDERS OF MOLLY SOUTHBOURNE by Tade Thompson – What a weird novella. I don’t even want to describe the plot because that would just kill the surprise. If you like weird horror and dark humor, check it out!
– ROMANCING THE WEREWOLF by Gail Carriger – Biffy and Lyall finally have their happy ending!!!
– NINE COACHES WAITING by Mary Stewart – I finally got to read this book!!! And it had all those gothic elements with a sheen of ‘50’s glamour that I was hoping for. Glad I bought five of her books in one go.
– WHAT HAPPENED by Hillary Rodham Clinton – Well-written, thoughtful, angry, even funny.
– NEVER LET ME GO by Kazuo Ishiguro – this made me furious and made me cry. Might have read a bunch of romances after. Worth it, though.
– THE BANDS OF MOURNING by Brandon Sanderson (audiobook) – I love these “era two” westerns. Love the worldbuilding, love the characters, love the narration. OH! And this one develops the marriage of convenience into a true romance with humor & adult communication! Love a good MOC.
– TRADE ME by Courtney Milan – I avoided this because of the New Adult label b/c I didn’t “get” that genre designation. Well, turns out New Adult is just a contemporary romance with leads in their early 20’s? Loved how this handled the billionaire romance and fake relationship tropes. Emotions were real.
– CHILLING ADVENTURES OF SABRINA #6, #7, #8 by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa & Robert Hack – man, these are great. Messed up but great.
– BITCH PLANET, VOL. 1: EXTRAORDINARY MACHINE by Kelly Sue DeConnick & Valentine De Lando – I’ll admit to being a little lost in the beginning, characters and story are just thrown at you, but I got a handle on it and loved it by the end.
– BEHIND A MASK OR, A WOMAN’S POWER by Louisa May Alcott – written before LITTLE WOMEN, when Alcott was writing gothic thrillers, this story of a governess out for revenge is a crazy, delightful ride.
Good
– FIRST POSITION by Melissa Brayden – f/f romance with battling ballet dancers! Could not ask for anything more.
– A LINE IN THE DARK by Malinda Lo – a YA thriller (something I’ve never tried before) with queer women and creeping drama. Would have been a fave for me had it not been for one last thing.
– DAUGHTER OF THE FOREST by Juliet Marillier – my first Marillier, I couldn’t stop reading this, even if the characters didn’t exactly win me over.
– THE MYSTERIOUS AFFAIR AT STYLES by Agatha Christie (audiobook) – one of Christie’s first novels and the first in her Hercule Poirot series, this was funny with lots of twists and turns. Loved the narration.
– THE SMALL AND DOLLY by Susan Hill – a bind-up of two of Hill’s spooky gothic novellas. Classically spooky!
– RAT QUEENS, VOL. 4: HIGH FANTASIES by Kurtis J. Wiebe & Owen Gieni – a “soft reboot” of the series, the story was stronger here than in Vol. 3, but there’s still something missing from the characters.
– A CIVIL CONTRACT by Georgette Heyer – my first Heyer and okay, okay, I KNOW! But, even though the writing itself was warm and funny, it ends with SUCH A DOWNER for Jenny. It may be realistic but it is not, NOT a romance. And not the kind of marriage of convenience I’m looking for. Plus, there are at least two instances of racism and, like, come on, Heyer. It was 1961! I am glad to have read it though, since I plan to read Bujold’s A CIVIL CAMPAIGN soon.
Currently Reading
– GHOST STORY by Jim Butcher – my library’s Overdrive selection doesn’t have the James Marsters narrated version of the audiobook, so ebook it is!
– MEMORY by Lois McMaster Bujold (audiobook) – Miles’s (kinda dark) adventures continue!
@SB Amanda – my hold for the Mira Grant book just came in, too!
I literally just had a conversation with 3 massive Heyer fans who all agreed the only reason to read A Civil Contract is as a companion to A Civil Campaign. Please read Sylvester or Frederica next to show you what we are raving about!
Okay, now I need to know how these posts are put together. (At first, I was confused by Sarah’s evolving opinion on Currawong, because I thought it was somehow in reaction to Amanda’s reveal from The Last Wolf. Then Amanda teleported to pick up her library hold and I realized…oh. Time passing here.)
Loved
WHITE HOT and WILDFIRE by Ilona Andrews – I could have done without such weak “other women” shadowing Nevada and Connor’s relationship in Wildfire. (Look, Nevada Baylor rocks. She doesn’t need to be positioned against gauche or dependent women to highlight how awesome she is.) But nothing could undermine the exciting storyline and delightful Baylor family. I do hope the authors return to this universe and give me more Michael Latimer. (Also, how bad am I at reading fantasy? I have no memory of what Latimer’s ability is.)
THE HATING GAME by Sally Thorne – I loved this so damn much. It’s a year old and a hugely popular contemporary example of the enemies-to-lovers trope, so it’s probably not worth the time to point out all the things that make it wonderful. I did find it a bit disconcerting that the book was edited to alter the example of ableist language called out in the SBTB review.
Liked
NINE RULES TO BREAK WHEN ROMANCING A RAKE by Sarah MacLean – This is “well-bred heroine breaking all the social rules without publicly ruining her reputation” done right. I love that Callie’s brother is the one to instigate her adventuring (though he had no idea how far she would take it), and that all the sibling relationships are loving and supportive. I didn’t like the title, which — while memorable — seems to position courtship as the goal of the rule-breaking. Callie’s list is about (over)compensating herself for a life of dull respectability, not about acquiring a mate. Also, the backstory for the hero’s emotional constipation re: falling in love fell flat for me, but that may be a result of all the JAK re-reading I’ve been doing lately.
…enh?
DUKE OF DESIRE by Elizabeth Hoyt – It’s unfortunate that the last full novel in the Maiden Lane series should be so disconnected from the world that makes Maiden Lane so special. I missed the broad family of characters that bound the series together.
FORBIDDEN by Beverly Jenkins – This was my first Beverly Jenkins and my hopes were high because of the regard I see expressed here for her works. The prose in the first chapters was so plodding that, if I hadn’t been reading the book because *Beverly Jenkins*, I wouldn’t have bothered finishing it. The flow did seem to improve when the focus switched from a narrative of events to relationships, but the characters never overcame my mediocre introduction to them. I will definitely give Jenkins another chance — I’m thinking Indigo or Night Hawk — but my library fails me, so I’ll need to wait for a sale price.
CONFESSIONS FROM AN ARRANGED MARRIAGE by Miranda Neville – Enemies to married sex partners to friends to lovers…this would totally have been my catnip if there had been more romance in the narrative. I will confess that I didn’t read the three books leading up to this, but I don’t think that really affects my level of emotional engagement (or lack thereof). Given the theme of the series, I do wonder if the hero’s problem was foreshadowed in the earlier books.
THE DUELIST’S SEDUCTION by Lauren Smith – A young woman dresses up as her twin brother in order to take his place in a duel. When the truth is discovered on the field, her brooding opponent blackmails her into becoming his very temporary mistress. This novella’s adventuresome premise lured me, but the hero suffered from inadequate character development, which made his turnaround after a single day in the heroine’s company unbelievable. Then there’s some incomprehensible logic applied when the hero’s friend (and second in the duel) reappears to dissuade him from marrying her. The friend’s passionate insistence was so startling I thought he might be a secret villain, but no. He’s actually the hero of the sequel.
DNF
ALL THE WAYS TO RUIN A ROGUE by Sophie Jordan – Another historical with an ahistorical tone. I hope the previous book in this series offers some context for the well-bred heroine’s presence in a high-end gaming/sex club, where she challenges a group of men to strip poker. But even an adequate explanation for that scene wouldn’t compensate for the pettiness of the h&h’s verbal interactions. And speaking of petty: what is up with the heroine’s caricatures? She seems to take such pride in them, but all she does is drop single works off randomly in public places to be found? Let’s assume that not everyone in 19th century London was an asshole, and some people simply destroyed the sketches rather than circulating them. Find a publisher, girl. Broadsheets.
In light of current events, I decided to take a large step away from the internet this month when I found myself morbidly following all the drama going on.
I finished my reread of Anya Seton’s Katherine and followed it up with Royal Road to Fotheringhay by Jean Plaidy. I still love Plaidy as much as I did when she was my introduction to historical fiction and reread a few of her books every year.
Rich people behaving badly/sex and shopping books are among my guilty pleasures so when Penny Vincenzi dropped a new book, A Question of Trust, I snapped it up and enjoyed immensely. I am now currently rereading her Windfall. Her stuff isn’t for everyone, but I love huge, sprawling books with dozens of characters, families in disarray and detailed descriptions of clothes and houses I cannot afford. I also reread Past Imperfect by Julian Fellowes. It probably wouldn’t make fans of Downton Abbey very happy, but I enjoyed his introspective hero, ruminating on the changes in the English class system (for better and worse, in his opinion) from the late 60s to the early 2000s.
Although she’s marketed as YA nowadays, I love Eva Ibbotson. She still can make me giggle or tear up and very happily reread A Countess Below Stairs. I think it’s sold today under the title The Secret Countess. Some of her language is a bit problematic by today’s standards (i.e. referring to a kitchen maid as simple), but given the time of writing and context, it’s not an insurmountable complaint.
I also finally rescued Lucy Parker’s Act Like It from Mount TBR. I enjoyed it but… I don’t quite get all the love thrown its way here. It was cute and funny and well-written, but the characters didn’t really click with me and thought the final plot device to bring our lovers together was ridiculously contrived. Having said that, I just want to express my gratitude to Sarah and the rest of this community for maintaining this safe space where I can state my opinion, knowing I won’t get a flood of replies along the lines of, “U didn’t like it. Then u r a moron.” I’ve withdrawn from several online communities in the past month because I felt like I was being poisoned by the toxic attitudes that prevail. I’m too old and life’s too short to give my head space over to that sort of stuff.
Thank you for keeping this place warm and supportive and civil.
@KateB: I also recently read A Civil Contract and it was my first Heyer, too. My reaction was similar to yours – while the quality of the writing kept me reading, I hated that it was almost exclusively from the hero’s point of view and the ending really did not satisfy my expectations of warm fuzzies when reading romance.
Now I’m left wondering, would I enjoy other novels by Ms Heyer, or is this a case of “of you hated this one, you’ll probably hate them all”?
I’m so annoyed I lost my reading notebook again! I love the idea of cute little bullet journals, but I know myself well enough to know nor to invest in one.
Is anyone else finding it hard to read romance right now in this post Harvey Weinstein world? I’ve got to be honest, I love “rake and spinster” “good girl bad boy” type stories. I know it’s not for everyone, but that stuff is my jam. But when the story jumps to the male POV and in the first scene he’s doing things like fantasizing about backing her up against a wall or how he’s going to manipulate her work situation (!) so he can see her more my brain shrieks and I put the book down. It’s such a delicate balance and I’m never sure if the author will pull it off or not. 🙁
Picky reader is picky. I guess that’s why I’m gravitating towards “slow burn” romances when I see them.
That being said, I read –
“Malice at the Palace” in the Lady Georgiana by Rhys Bowen. This was cute and I thought it was a big step up from the last one set in Hollywood. I figured out who the murderer was right away and didn’t care.
“The Four Tendencies” by Gretchen Rubin and enjoyed it, even though I skimmed a lot. It felt padded, but a lot of self help books do to me and I got it from the library so, no harm, no foul.
“Winter Solstice” by Rosalind Pilcher. This was such a nice, cozy slow read about some people creating a “found family” at Christmas time in a Victorian house in Scotland during a snow storm. Nothing earthshattering goes on, but the perfect book to keep in my purse.
“Ms. Marvel”, first in the newish series by G. Willow Wilson. This was just what I needed. Fast, satisfying, with a strong central female character.
I’m currently reading “Face the Fire” by Nora Roberts and “The Brightest Day” anthology. They’re both good, but I haven’t gotten far in either yet.
I’ve got tons of library books, including “Artemis” by Andy Weir. I just need to sit down and read them.
Audioreads
“Y is for Yesterday” but Sue Grafton. Decent, but I’m finishing this story more out of commitment than deep love. I will say the ending was both suspenseful and implausible. I feel like Sue Grafton forgot something about the 80s (saying more is a spoiler), but maybe I just didn’t read it closely enough?
“My Brilliant Friend” by Elena Ferrante. I’m listening to this at 3/4s speed in Italian, which is always interesting. I was actually listening to this the night of the election last year (I couldn’t go to sleep) and I couldn’t listen to it again for a long time. It’s good, but I think a lot of subtleties are sailing over my head.
This past month I read new (and new-to-me) books by some of my favorite go-to writers:
I read Melanie Harlow’s FROM THIS MOMENT and Julianna Stone’s THE CHRISTMAS HE LOVED HER back-to-back for a comparison-contrast because they have an identical plot line: a widow falls in love with her late husband’s twin. (Am I the only one who finds a certain ick factor in this from-brother-in-law-to-lover trope?) FROM THIS MOMENT does a good job of presenting the crushing aspects of grief and the guilt of moving on but suffers from too many negative cliches of women, including the heroine’s old friends (whose text messages read like they were written by junior high school mean girls) and her passive-aggressive mother-in-law. The ending felt rushed, especially the suddenly-supportive m-i-l. There’s one character I really liked—a forty-year-old mother of three the heroine meets in a widows’ support group. I’d love to see her in her own book. In the battle of the falling-in-love-with-my-late-husband’s-twin books, I’m giving the edge to Stone’s THE CHRISTMAS HE LOVED HER. First, the twins in question were fraternal not identical as they were in FROM THIS MOMENT—that lessened some of the eeuuuwww element for me. In addition, I felt Stone did a better job of describing the escalating sexual tension and emotional see-sawing that went back-and-forth between the hero and heroine.
I read books six and seven in Amy Gamet’s HERO FORCE series, about a group of former Navy Seals who now work in a shadowy quasi-military capacity. In TARGETED BY THE SEAL, the hero infiltrates a doomsday cult, led by a David Koresh-like “prophet”, to rescue a senator’s daughter, a journalist working undercover to expose the cult. The hero and heroine have a shared past, which only ratchets up the tension. In KIDNAPPED BY THE SEAL, the hero is in coastal North Carolina, investigating his sister’s suspicious suicide, as a hurricane approaches. He teams up with the widow of his sister’s former boss and they have to ride out the hurricane in the hero’s apartment. Hello, enforced proximity!
Sarina Bowen’s BOUNTIFUL is the latest in her True North series (and there’s some crossover with characters from her Brooklyn Bruisers hockey series). The heroine is a single mom from a big, boisterous family. She reconnects with her child’s father (a hockey player who did not know about the baby). The couple stumble toward their HEA. One quibble: the only people shown to be in a mismatched/unhappy relationship are lesbians (one of whom is a secondary character in previous True North books). Why can’t the gay couple be happy too?
Then I jumped into more billionaires from Jackie Ashenden: I read two books in her Tate Brothers series—THE DANGEROUS BILLIONAIRE and THE WICKED BILLIONAIRE (the third book, THE UNDERCOVER BILLIONAIRE, is scheduled for publication next March). These are about three Navy Seals who were adopted as children by a cold (and, as we gradually learn through the books, morally-compromised) oil tycoon. The tycoon’s death—and subsequent revelations—drive the plots. THE DANGEROUS BILLIONAIRE has the title character falling in love with a young woman who was also adopted by his father. Ashenden goes to great lengths to explain that the two are not biologically-related, were not raised together due their age difference, and never viewed each other as siblings, but this is still a creep-factor plot point. THE WICKED BILLIONAIRE was much more my catnip: the title character is trying to protect his late friend’s widow from some really bad guys. Protection involves hiding out in the hero’s apartment. More enforced proximity! The heroine in WICKED is an artist and there are some interesting scenes of her trying to capture certain colors, images, and feelings on canvas that I thought worked particularly well (I am not an artist, so ymmv). There is some crossover between characters in the Tate books and characters in Ashenden’s Billionaire Fairytale books. I think UNDERCOVER BILLIONAIRE will pull strands of both series together.
I had misgivings about trying another Jill Sorenson book after last month when I was shocked by a scene in RIDING DIRTY (the first Sorenson book I’d read) where the hero sexually assaults the heroine. But the book had otherwise been so well-written, I gave Sorenson another chance. I’m glad I did. SET THE DARK ON FIRE takes place in a dusty southern California desert town near both tribal lands and a wildlife preserve. The heroine is a biologist who teams up with the town sheriff when a local woman is mauled by a mountain lion. I like the way Sorenson pulls together the cultural strands of her story—whites, Hispanics, and Native Americans all intertwined, living and working closely together, often connected by marriage and/or blood. Although the heroine is white (and the hero’s mother is white), I didn’t feel there was any cultural imperialism or appropriation in the story. I also like Sorenson’s matter-of-fact tone about sex, bad decisions, the long effects of family dysfunction, all the ways people can hurt one another, and the ways decent people will act decently even when it might not be to their advantage.
And then it was back to my new best friend, Anne Calhoun. I read the five books in her IRRESISTIBLE series. Although all different in tone and storyline, each one has Calhoun’s trademark intelligent and competent heroes and heroines, angst that never becomes melodramatic, hot sex scenes, and well-earned HEAs:
AFTERNOON DELIGHT, the first book in the series, is about a chef who relocates from San Francisco to New York City and begins a relationship with a workaholic paramedic. But be forewarned: don’t read this book when you’re hungry; the luscious descriptions of food, ingredients, cooking, tasting, and eating will have you running to the fridge…or the nearest restaurant.
TRANSCENDENT, the second book in the series, consists of two interconnected short stories, TRANSFIXED and TRANSFORMED: a dominatrix and her sub move their relationship from highly-stylized bdsm scenarios to something less formal and more personal. The stories are pure erotica and hot, hot, hot!
THE LIST, the third book in the series, had a surprisingly melancholy tone. The story opens with a couple in marriage counseling. The wife—a British ex-pat who owns an upscale Manhattan stationery store—wants a divorce; the husband—an FBI agent—doesn’t. The book then goes back in time to unwind how they got to this place.
I found it difficult to warm up to the hero in EVENING STORM, the fourth book in the series, because he continued to date (and apparently have sex with) other women after he met and admitted feelings for the heroine (a woman who creates luxurious lingerie and sells it in her high-end boutique). There are scenes where the hero (a Wolf of Wall Street type) tells the heroine (in great detail) about these sexual encounters with other women, which seemed to me to be both in bad taste and not in keeping with Calhoun’s usual standard of reliably-honorable heroes. Eventually the situation is somewhat ambiguously resolved, but I still felt the heroine deserved better. A rare misstep for Calhoun, imho.
I really liked THE MUSE, the fifth book in the series, about two damaged people trying to work through overwhelming loss and grief. The heroine, a self-effacing old-money New Yorker, loses almost everything when her father and brother are arrested for running a Bernie Madoff-level Ponzi scheme. The hero is a former Marine who takes care of everyone else so he does not have to confront his own terrible traumas. Drawing, painting, and using each other as artistic inspiration begins the healing process for both of them.
I just finished Georgette Heyer’s Devil’s Cub (in translation). Which was fun, and weirdly hit the spot that one of my favourite fan fic pairing hits, but in a f/m pairing.
I just started House on Mango Street.
Let’s start with my least favorite thing is I ended up adding Brom Stoker’s Dracula to my Official DNF pile. It’s the essentially Gothic novel and Mina is awesome, but being written in the age it was, the formal writing style was too hard for me to get into.
I then read Before she Ignites by Jodi Meadows despite the minor controversy tied to it regarding the cover. In was pretty good, although i’m not sure whether i’ll Read the rest of the series. The characters in it were solid, especially the heroine and her extremely well written anxiety and OCD. The world was also interesting, but the author spent a little too much time setting everything up and we really didn’t get into the Government conspiracy plot until the Last Third. I not sure how else the author could have approached it since the world is pretty massive, but I thing we could of gotten into the plot a little sooner.
After that I started 3 books at once, none of which I’ve finished yet .
1.Joanna by Roberta Gellis is good, but a little slower paced than the other books i’ve Read and the h/h aren’t quite as interesting as the other couples i’ve Read about so far. It is also the heaviest politically , so a lot of people probably wouldn’t want to read it ( who haven’t already ) right at the moment , but still a solid book that i’ll Eventually finished .
2.Clockwork Planet is a Japanese light novel i’m Reading at the moment since I’ve always been curious about the genre. It’s all right at best and the translation i’m (Legally) reading isn’t perfect , but it definitely draws my interest into the genre since it’s so different. It’s also super animesque so it’s not a genre for everyone.
3. Lastly, I’m Reading Renegades which is a superhero story by Marissa Meyer. My other two books are basically on hiatus cause this book is excellent. If you’re unfamiliar with Marissa Meyer she wrote the Lunar Chronicles which is one of my favorite series of all time. This book is just as good if not better than that series(so far). It ‘s set in a world that has just recovered from a period run by villains a.k.a Anarchists called The Age of Anarchy thanks to a group of superheroes called The Renagades. Naturally, the world is revealed to have a lot more nuance than just heroes good, villains bad. This is made clear by our heroes-Nova, a female anarchist: alias Nightmare and Adrian, a Renegade, who being the impatient teenager created his on alias called Sentinial who is a vigilante so Adrian can go where the heroes won’t for moral reasons.
I don’t want to go into any more detail because spoiler but it is a really good book if you don’t mind some grayer morality.
@KateB and Katty – I just read A Civil Contract recently, and it is not typical Heyer. I’d suggest Frederica if you are willing to try again. Her novels usually have a more upbeat love story. A Civil Contract had too much resignation in it to be romantic.
I’ve been reading Christmas stories, for some reason. Maybe it’s easier to get in the Christmas mood right before the stress of the season begins? I read Mary Balogh’s A CHRISTMAS PROMISE and Carla Kelly’s MARIAN’S CHRISTMAS WISH. I enjoyed both of them, but I mentally aged up the heroines. I can’t read about teenage heroines anymore, possibly because my own kids are teens. The Balogh novel starts out slow, in a very dark place, so it might not be for everyone. It has a lovely second half, though, with very fun secondary characters.
I am currently reading another Christmas story by Balogh, A CHRISTMAS BRIDE, which is good so far. The heroine is in her mid-30’s, which is a huge relief after reading two books with very young brides. I’m also trying a Connie Willis Christmas story collection, but it’s not working for me. I find Willis very hit or miss, and most of these stories have been a miss.
Before the Christmas mood hit, I read and loved my first Sarina Bowen book, KEEPSAKE. I’ll definitely be trying more of her novels. I wish there had been more emphasis on what the hero was going through, as he had a very interesting back story that probably affected him more than we saw, but it was an excellent story even with that quibble.
I also read Jaci Burton’s HOPE FLAMES, which was fine; THE UNFORTUNATE DECISIONS OF DAHLIA MOSS, which didn’t quite work for me for reasons I can’t figure out; and Penny Reid’s BEARD IN MIND, which may be my favorite of her beard stories.
I can’t believe that it’s almost Thanksgiving. I feel like I am running out of time to read the holiday romances on my TBR pile, like Chasing Christmas Eve by Jill Shalvis. I’m also looking forward to Moonlight Over Manhattan by Sarah Morgan, which comes out later this month.
I also have a bunch of Jessica Jones and other comics on my TBR pile that I’m hoping to read soon.
@DiscoDollyDeb: totally with you on the Anne Calhoun adoration…In fact, it was her blurb-y support for the Blank Canvas Series by Adriana Anders that got me excited to plunge right in. The series isn’t for everyone, probably. The characters have to face violence, both past and present. But there’s also depth, inner transformation, and psychological liberation to be had–along with sex scenes that are specific, erotic, and tender.
I feel like I’ve been on a reading slump this entire year, with a few exceptions. This month was no different and I kept picking books up and then putting them down. I ended up re reading quite a bit.
Re Reads
Lisa Kleypas Mine Till Midnight- I didn’t exactly love this one the first time I read it and I loved it even less now. Annoying managing, stubborn type heroines that refuse to accept any help like Amelia make me gnash my teeth. I also still hold a grudge against Kleypas for not pairing Cam with Daisy so that may play a role in my dissatisfaction. C
Lisa Kleypas Seduce Me at Sunrise
Another re read and one I remember really enjoying the first time I read it. This time though I thought Merripen was a selfish jerk. His hot and cold act went on much too long. C
Mary Balogh’s More Than a Mistress
This was a keeper for me the first time I read it and I loved it just as much this time. I love the haughty rake and prim plain spoken heroine trope. I haven’t read Balogh in years since I burned myself out after reading her backlist some years ago. I’m on the prowl for her newer stuff now. A+
Lara Adrian’s Lady of Valor
I read this one some years ago and really enjoyed the whole series. This is the third book and the story of a bastard Knight known as Blackheart. He’s tasked with guarding an important keep and the widow that resides in it until King Richard has time to marry her off. I love medievals and there just isn’t enough of them being written nowadays. This one is pretty good. B+
Aside from re reads I read a few newer books. The bad:
Cambria Herbert’s #nerd
I’ve been on a NA bender this year. This one reminded me of all the things I dislike about NA. Insta lust/ love, possessive jerkish hero, needless drama, and no character development. D- just because I love the nerd heroine/popular hero trope.
Jackie Ashenden’s The Billionaire’s Virgin
I am so there for a Cinderella re telling but I was left disappointed in this one. The hero was a generic by the numbers rich dude with family issues. The heroine was so pitiful with virtually no character development. It was insta everything. This was a short book, maybe slightly longer than a novella, I felt there wasn’t enough room for everything the author was trying to do. I really hope the next books improve because I have them all TBR. C
The only new read I really enjoyed this month was Kristen Callihan’s The Hot Shot- I just love this series and Callihan’s heroes. Her heroines are hit or miss for me though, and Chess annoyed me to no end with her inability to use her words and her intransigence. Overall this was a great addition to the Game On series and I can’t wait for more. A-
I had a pretty good reading month and I’ve been loving my free trial of Audible-R. Here’s what I read:
WRITTEN ON HIS SKIN by Simone Stark: This is a novella where the heroine sends a letter to any soldier as a way to support the troops and she and the soldier end up falling for each other. The falling happens basically the instant the hero opens the letter which takes some suspension of disbelief, but if you can accept that you’re in for a sweet, sexy story with some fun banter. The heroine has some self-esteem issues due to being a curvy girl and the hero is super hot, romantic and Cajun.
TILL DAWN TAMES THE NIGHT by Megan McKinney- This is an old-school romance and does have a forced seduction. Despite this, I really enjoyed it. It had a fun pirate storyline and the banana scene was priceless.
THE LANGUAGE OF THORNS by Leigh Bardugo- A beautifully illustrated book of original, but loosely based on classic, fairy tales. Bardugo’s writing is lovely.
CITY OF LIES by Victoria Thompson- I got this as a Penguin First to Read book. It was decent. I liked the setting and the characters, but it was not a mystery like it was billed. It was a tale about a con-woman on the run who eventually changes her life.
EMMA IN THE NIGHT by Wendy Walker- This is a mystery about two sisters who disappear one night and it starts with one of the sisters coming home after two years. It then changes between the returned sister’s first-person perspective and the third-person perspective of the FBI agent who had been assigned the case. It examines the messed-up family dynamics that led to the girls’ disappearance and what actually happened that night. I decided to read the first chapter fairly late one night and ended up reading a fourth of the book before forcing myself to go to bed. The story and writing really pull you in.
THE SCANDALOUS FLIRT by Olivia Drake- I received an arc of this from a Goodreads giveaway. My arc actually was incomplete, it ended a few pages early so I had to ask a Goodreads friend to confirm what I assumed I missed. The book was predictable and a little blah. There was nothing really wrong with it, but nothing really special either.
COLD COMFORT FARM by Stella Gibbons- I liked this one but I think I’d have enjoyed it more had I read some of the books it parodied. It actually reminded me of Jane Austen’s Emma which is never a bad thing.
69 MILLION THINGS I HATE ABOUT YOU by Kira Archer- This is an enemies to lovers story. The heroine wins the lottery and decides to give her demanding boss, the hero, a hard time instead of just quitting her job. I liked the humor in this one and thought it handled the problematic trope of boss and employee well.
YOU CAN SAY IT FIRST by Susan Mallery – I liked the writing and the heroine’s journey in You Can Say It First, but never felt any chemistry between the hero and heroine so the romance didn’t work.
Audiobooks listened to with Audible-R subscription:
HOLD ME by Courtney Milan: Since I’m only buying books on sale to try to cut down my out of control TBR (newsflash: it’s not working), I didn’t buy this one right away. I really loved it. Note to self: Courtney Milan is exempt from all buying moratoriums from now on.
GOODBYE, PARADISE and HELLO, FOREVER by Sarina Bowen- Both solid, engaging romances but nowhere near my favorites by her.
DEFENDING HEARTS and HOMECOMING by Shannon Stacey- I was disappointed by DEFENDING HEARTS, the hero and heroine lacked chemistry and the story was lackluster. Luckily, HOMECOMING was more what I expect from Stacey. The hero and heroine had great chemistry, the supporting characters really added to the story, and there was just enough conflict.
THE KNOCKED UP PLAN, THE HOT ONE, and JOY RIDE BY Lauren Blakely- Blakely always delivers a solid, funny, low-conflict romance.
A MACKENZIE CLAN CHRISTMAS by Jennifer Ashley- It was fun to revisit the Mackenzie Clan and the mystery was solid.
ARM CANDY by Jessica Lemon- I’d put this on the same level as Lauren Blakely books. It was fun, sexy, and low conflict. Enjoyable while reading (or listening), but not one that will really stick with you.
Right now I’m reading Susan Mallery’s SECOND CHANCE GIRL and it’s reminding me of why I used to love Mallery’s books. I’m also reading ALIAS GRACE by Margaret Atwood for my reading challenge and I’m liking it so far. As usual I have a million books I want to read next and at least five I want to buy after reading this post with more to come I’m sure. I do have ARTEMIS and RENEGADES from the library and RENEGADES counts toward my reading challenge so that’s probably up next.
I’ve been burning through Mary Balogh’s backlist after picking up SOMEONE TO WED after reading the review here. I really enjoyed that one, but not quite as much as I’ve adored the Survivors series (ONLY A KISS, oh wow) and A SUMMER TO REMEMBER, which is going to be on the reread list for sure. It’s a welcome departure from my usual SFF reading because I’m writing in that genre for NaNoWriMo. I’d not read any recentish Regency romances at all, just Austen and a lot of fantasy romance crossovers like Mary Robinette Kowal’s books, but this was a really good place to start.
I finished off Lois McMaster Bujold’s THE HALLOWED HUNT, which wasn’t as good as PALADIN OF SOULS, but I preferred it to CURSE OF CHALION. (I liked Caz, but found all the women except Ista pretty two-dimensional.) THE HALLOWED HUNT had some absolutely standout moments, but it wasn’t consistent and I thought the pace was very off. The romance is almost insta-love, done very well, but it’s not a focus and it’s pretty underdeveloped.
Not romance, unless you count my own huge crush on Dalinar, but I’m holding off on Brandon Sanderson’s OATHBRINGER until I can buddy read it with my one friend who’s also a Stormlight fan and is a bit swamped with work right now. It’s probably a good call, because I think it will consume my waking hours and I still need to be churning out 1500 words a day to finish on time for NaNo!
Just two nights ago I stayed up way, way too late with WATCH POINT by Cecilia Tan – it’s a M/M romance with a former Navy SEAL, a revenge plot, off-the-charts hotness, and a surprisingly sweet pairing despite it all. Definitely recommended!
Also just read Elizabeth Hoyt’s ONCE UPON A MAIDEN LANE – a decently long novella dealing with Mary Whitsun, one of the orphans from the orphanage with the overly long name that I can’t recall right now 😉 Mary is a delight in the opening scene, with her outright dislike of the charming, handsome Lord Blackwell.
Let me gallop ventre à terre to rescue you Heyer newbies… Read The Talisman Ring, you won’t regret it. It’s a romp. With a mystery. Containing two romances. You’ll better know how you feel about Heyer after reading it.
(LMB’s Memory is one of my most-often-reached-for rereads. I’ve been reading and rereading snippets of it lately. So satisfying. The mystery is great and all, but Miles’ relationships and maturation process are deeply satisfying to sink into. (Too bad the narrator mispronounces Kosti and Galeni, or I’d listen to the audiobook more often.))
I’m almost done with Cecilia Tan’s Magic University: The Complete Series, only one more book to go. When SPTB episode 244 mentioned it, I wildly pounced on the bundle with a greedy “gimme!” Harry Potter but with sex? Of course I want to read it! …I’m not disappointed. There’s sex magic out the wazoo. Or in the wazoo. Whatever cranks someone’s tractor, or is necessary for the spell. Hot hot hot. (There’s nothing like sex magic to make you forget it’s 2017.)
The Smart Knitters Trashy Books (we’re on Ravelry, come join us… we have books and yarn! Crocheters welcome!) monthly challenge has been helpful in making me search through my TBR to find treasures I was excited to grab, but too busy to read. My latest read was Charlie Cochet’s Hell & High Water, the first in an m/m paranormal series. Of course, I grabbed the second book (it’s a freebie on kindle) and a couple more because of reduced prices, so it doesn’t really help my TBR. Oh, well. New series to glom!
I somehow got sucked into a reread of Wen Spencer’s Ukiah Oregon series, because Wen Spencer. ‘Nuff said. It’s sort of UF science fiction mystery action adventure, the way WS bends and mashes genres. Crack. Fascinating worldbuilding. I need to get back to rereading book 3.
I was in the mood for some Amanda Quick, so I grabbed ‘Til Death Do Us Part as it was at a reasonable price. Just what the doctor ordered, but that “’til” bothers me. Shouldn’t it be “till”? …(Merriam-Webster is OK with either. Fine then. It still bothers me.)
Pamela Clare’s Close to Heaven is full of bitchery catnip. Snowed in. Twenty years of attraction and yearning, but he’s her boss so no touching—not even thinking. Generosity. An actual real-life unicorn—that is, a non-alphahole billionaire with morals and a conscience. Fascinating historical research. Yeah, loved it.
Nalini Singh’s Cherish Hard got glommed so fast that I need to reread to catch all the details—and wallow in the warm fuzzies. Sweet and heartwarming. I might need to reread the T-Rex and Charlie-mouse story now.
Lois McMaster Bujold completed her “Penric’s romantic mini-arc” with The Prisoner of Limnos. Oh, yeah. *happy sigh*
Other recent satisfying rereads:
Vivian Arend’s Wolf Nip
LMB’s Penric’s Fox
Alisha Rai’s Cabin Fever
Patricia Briggs’ The Hob’s Bargain
Jayne Castle The Lost Night (audiobook)
Jayne Castle Deception Cove (audiobook)
Robin D. Owens Hearts and Swords (Eep! Heart Sight releases soon!)
I think that’s about it. Huh, I do find the time to read, even though it doesn’t feel like it. So yay!
We all have metric tons of free digital books from lesser-known or self-published authors on our devices. Have any of you read one you were (a) totally gobsmacked at how good it was or (b) compelled to immediately buy the rest of the author’s books, if available?
Sometimes I look at all these titles languishing in my TBR and despair of cracking it at all. You’d think just grabbing a free one and reading it would be easy, but I don’t want to spend time hate-reading.
Can the Bitchery help a Bitch out?
Ugh, it occurs to me that this may not be the right place to ask such a question. Please feel free to disregard. Sorry.
I’m currently reading A Lady Awakened by Cecilia Grant, but it’s too soon to have a strong opinion.
I read 69 Million Things I Hate About You by Kira Archer, which Cayenne recommended in the comments of a different lottery book reviewed here. It was fun while the heroine was torturing her obnoxious billionaire boss as she awaited her lawyer’s arrangements for sensible lottery claiming, but it stopped working for me as soon as they hooked up, which, fortunately, was near the end. Three rounds of sex in 24 hours wasn’t enough of a transition between gleeful antagonism and “I love her so much, I won’t even show her my silly prenup.” Dude, she doesn’t know you well enough to know your sister isn’t your mistress, so could you date for, like, A MINUTE before booking the wedding venue?
I slogged through a horror anthology that reminded me to stop buying anthologies. It must be a law that only the first and last stories in any anthology can be any good and everything in between is the filling in a disappointment sandwich. (I want to edit an anthology that’s just the first and last stories from other anthologies so they’re all good, and I don’t care if they send me to prison for it.)
I blabbed at length about Alissa Johnson’s A Gift for Guile elsewhere (podcast post, maybe?). She’s a former thief. He’s a private detective. She’s capable of fending for herself but knows she’s not invincible. He’s protective but does a decent job acknowledging her competence. They seemed well suited, which is less common than “and they lived happily ever after because the genre says so.”
Still not getting as much reading done as I’d like, between work stress and reality stress turning into general exhaustion.
I happen to adore Heyer’s A Civil Contract, melancholy tone and all. It has some great supporting characters, and I love Jenny. I agree that Frederica is one of the easiest Heyers to love.
I reread Anne Calhoun’s Liberating Lacey, still excellent the second time around. I went on to try one of her series with less success, so I should take up the ones recommended in this thread.
Stephanie Burgess’s novella Snowspelled wasn’t quite as good as I hoped – it felt like its own prequel, if that makes sense – establishing everything for sequels more than having a lot of story in itself. But I’m looking forward to seeing what comes next, and if you’re the kind of person who one-clicks on “Regency fantasy” a la Kowal’s Glamourist Histories or Cho’s Sorcerer to the Crown you may want to take a look.
I finally got around to reading Daniel Abraham’s fantasy A Shadow in Summer. This is the first in a tetralogy by one-half of SF writing duo James S.A. Corey of The Expanse series. This book is a first novel, and not a fast-paced read, but it has great world-building, with real economics, not just “we have to stop the Dark Lord from becoming king of the world.” The plot of this book revolves around disruption of the magic that lets one city dominate the cotton trade, and – no, come back, it’s really cool!
My favorite read of the month was an anthology of classic (1910s-1960s?) British crime stories, The Long Arm of the Law, edited by Martin Edwards. Most of the authors were less familiar to me, and I made notes to look up further work by several. I particularly valued Edwards’ capsules for each author, which gave me an idea of whether further reading was available. This installment is due to be published in January in the US, but it’s part of a series, British Library Crime Classics, and other volumes with various themes are out now.
@Darlynne I don’t even count freebies in my TBR unless it was a book that was in my wishlist or by an author I like. I’ve read some I’ve enjoyed, but I do basically only get around to reading ones I see recommended or are by authors I like.
As for Georgette Heyer, it seems like people vary so widely on what they like by her. I hated THESE OLD SHADES which many love, don’t really remember A CIVIL CONTRACT but apparently rated it 4 stars, and I don’t really care for her lighter romps either. I tend to like the ones with first names as the title, ARABELLA, FREDERICA, and VENETIA the best.
I didn’t love Wilde in Love by Eloisa James, and I fully expected to. I love her style of writing. And I did love some of Wilde: the friendship between the heroine and her bestie, and the pet, a baby — no, I won’t spoil it! But what I didn’t love was that there was a woman with a false allegation against the hero, that he had slept with her when she was fourteen. And to make this more problematic reading for me, the woman was clearly mentally ill. At times, I felt that her disability was used comedically. I won’t go into details of what happens, but she is also a character who is violent. So. I am not here for reading about false allegations and I am not here to read about disability from an ableist point of view.
To Hair and back: My Journey Toward Self-love One Strand at a Time, a memoir by Rhonda Eason: I couldn’t put this well written memoir down.
The Ruin of a Rake by Cat Sebastian: I loved this — there was something so endearing about the characters and how they found one another and made their rocky path to a HEA.
The Duchess Deal by Tessa Dare: Happy sighs and heart-eyes all around, loved it.
The Jane Austen Project by Kathleen A. Flynn: Oh, please someone tell me the author will tackle the Brontes next! Loved it.
Starfish by Akemi Dawn Bowman: While I didn’t finish this YA novel, it is so worthy of mention. It’s definitely on my TBR I just needed lighter fiction.
Someone to Wed by Mary Balogh: Such a beautiful book, I loved it.
What @CelineB said about freebies and TBR.
I separate my TBRs into print and digital, and the digital into freebies, have-read-before/own-in-another-format, and get-to-it. The last contains it all, though I do tag them as kindle, other-ebook, audible, and such. (So I know where to search for them…)
I’ve taken to making a note for myself in my wishlists (both on GR and on Amazon) about who recommended said book, where, and why. (I add links if possible.) GR keeps the note when I move it from wishlist to TBR, so it helps with both buying and when choosing what to read next. (I don’t quite trust Amazon wishlists to keep my notes after I buy. Paranoid and prepared, it me. o_O So far, so good.)
@Deborah: Regarding the timeline! Sarah usually asks us what we’ve been reading on the Monday before the post goes up, so we have about five days to talk about our books.
My month of reading:
The Chalk Pits — by Elly Griffiths. This series set in the salt marshes of Norfolk has really grown on me. I had to get used to the present tense voice, but I’ve started to get really invested in the characters and the protagonist is an archeaologist, which leads for some interesting mysteries.
A Study in Scarlet Women — by Sherry Thomas. I finally read this and although the start felt slow, it picked up steam and am looking forward to the sequel.
Glass Houses — by Louise Penny. I’m a longtime fan of these mysteries where the small town in Canada is as much of a character as the people. This one hit the spot. I tend to dislike plots that involve giant conspiracies rather than individual murders, and this one veered a bit in that direction, but managed to avoid some of the grandiosity and self-conscious adoration of Gamache that has bugged me in the past.
Wait for it — M. Zapata. After loving the Wall of Winnipeg, I got truly sucked into the story of Diana. Charming kids, offbeat characters, and loved that the longer length allowed me to get really into the story.
Accidentally on Purpose — Jill Shalvis. Liked it, didn’t love it. She’s a property manager, he is a former cop who runs a security service. He saved her ass while he was a cop and she thinks it ended his career. I liked the heroine’s circle of friends and their rapport, but the constant push-and-pull of hero and heroine wasn’t doing it for me.
Ways to be Wicked — Julie Ann Long. Sylvie is a ballerina who gives up her lush, glamorous life in Paris to come to England to find her lost sister(s). She loses all her money on the mail coach and ends up performing in a burlesque-type show, where she becomes fascinated with the owner. Liked the setting, which was obvy very different from the usual drawing-room style historical.
Wilde in Love — Got some amazon credit and picked this one up. I can’t tell if it is taking a while to get going, or if I am reading it while distracted. But I love Eloisa James so I’m sure it will start moving.
Because my book club does not read romance, I sometimes end up reading things I’d never otherwise pick up. This month, I ended up reading three such books and all were quite good. I started with ALL THE UGLY AND WONDERFUL THINGS, a LitFic by Bryn Greenwood. This book was both compelling and repelling. The writing and storytelling were fantastic, focusing on a young woman who has a horribly abusive home life and forms a relationship at age 8 with a young man around the age of 20 who also came from an abusive background and who works occasionally for her drug-dealing father. Although the relationship starts out as a familial one, it turns inappropriately sexual when she becomes a teenager. I literally could not put it down or look away, even though the subject matter was so deeply disturbing.
The second book I read for the bookclub was HILLBILLY ELEGY by J.D. Vance. There’s been a lot of talk about how this book tries to provide a look into the minds of people from Appalachia and why they voted the way they did in the last election. Many people who have read it with that in mind were disappointed with the book because that really isn’t its purpose (it was written well before the election). I read it as just a memoir and on that basis, I felt that it succeeded. I enjoyed it, thought that it was interesting and engaging and gave me a glimpse into a culture (at least as the author experienced it) that I really don’t know anything about.
Finally, I read COMMONWEALTH, a LitFic by Ann Patchett, which follows 6 children who end up in a “blended” family in the 1970’s after their parents divorce and remarry. As a child of divorce in that particular time period, so much of the book rang true to me, but I think that if you come from an intact family, it would seem pretty foreign to you.
A better reading month in terms of both quality and quantity for me, but I have to reach the sad realization that there is absolutely no way I will reach my book goal for the year of 100 as I just finished number 67.
Excellent:
None
Very Good:
Matterhorn by Karl Marlantes – this is a novel about the Vietnam war told from the POV of a young officer in the Marines. I read this for my book club with my dad – he was a Marine (although not an officer) in Vietnam in the late 1960’s. The main storylines about the fear of combat, the disconnect between the “grunts” on the ground and high command and the sadness of losing your friends were excellent and rang very true. There were other threads involving race relations and class differences within the corps that while good did not always ring so true and some of the plot dealing with those parts felt forced. However, I greatly enjoyed reading this and then discussing with my dad to hear his stories and what he thought of the book.
The Magicians by Lev Grossman – I read this one to discuss with one of my close friends (it was her turn to select the book) and this is billed as literary fantasy. The world building was very good and the book was compulsively readable (I stayed up late two nights in a row reading it), but as with much literary fiction today the main characters were highly privileged white people (the only “diverse” character was gay) who were bored with their lives and faced existential crises as a result – “we’re rich, talented, privileged and smart, but the world is boring to us and we are depressed as a result – please feel sorry for us” (not to say that rich and smart people can’t be depressed of course, but I am very much over the literary fiction trope of the successful yet inwardly dead white suburbanite). The reason I rated it as very good is because the world was interestingly written and I kept reading to find out what happened next, but the characters (with one exception) were a hot mess.
The Case of the Missing Servant by Tarquin Hall- this is the first in the Vish Puri series of mysteries set in modern day India. I have read all four published so far because India (and Indian food) is such a vibrant character in the books. I re-read this one for a mystery book club I am. There are actually three different mysteries in the book (the man character is a private detective) and each of them reaches their own satisfying conclusion at the end. In addition, the main character is tough and smart, but also full of compassion and sympathy.
Good:
The First American: The Life and Times of Benjamin Franklin by H.W. Brands – the life of Benjamin Franklin is fascinating, but, for me, the author just packed in too many details and sidetracked a few too many times. This one took me months to finish.
The Ghost and Mrs. Mewer by Krista Davis – the second in the cozy Paws and Claws mystery series, this one was set at Halloween which was good for fall reading. The mystery was on the weak side, but I love the town in which the story is set. The town remade itself into a pet-friendly vacation destination. The main character co-runs a bed and breakfast with all sorts of amazing pet amenities.
The Bad:
None
This time of year is so busy and stressed with work and life, I usually lean toward reading novellas and category-length titles. I need more HEAs, faster. One a night would be ideal.
I picked up the gritty contemporary BIG BOY by Ruthie Knox, a novella that had originally been published in a Samhain anthology (now out of print) titled STRANGERS ON A TRAIN. I loved it so much, I tried to buy the other titles, but they hadn’t been re-released yet as single ebooks by the authors so I actually hunted down and bought the paperback anthology USED just so I could read the other stories (includes novellas by Donna Cummings, Serena Bell, Samantha Hunter and Meg Maguire–AKA Cara McKenna). BIG BOY is still the standout title IMO–actually read it three times–but I enjoyed all of the stories.
Since I’d been clueless (why did I not know this?) that Meg Maguire was Cara McKenna, I then picked up a few of Maguire’s books (the Wilinski series in particular) which I enjoyed. And I finally read McKenna’s BRUTAL GAME, her sequel to WILLING VICTIM. It had a fairly satisfying conclusion, considering it had to follow the perfect potency and magic of the first book. I wouldn’t recommend reading it without having read WV though.
Also working my way through the volumes of Entangled contemporaries that went on sale last summer for 99 cents apiece. Clearing the palate for a pile of nostalgic regencies, which I tend to enjoy more during the winter holidays, our Christmas tree lighting up the room.
I’ve had a hard time concentrating on new reads lately. So I’ve been catching up on a lot of kickass female lead tv shows and re-reading old favorites from over the years.
Mostly I’ve been checking out lots of graphic novels and audiobooks. I’m so very grateful that my library offers Hoopla because I’ve borrowed tons of things that I’ve really enjoyed.
I’m working my way through the audiobooks for Shelly Laurenston’s Pride series and her G.A. Aiken Dragon Kin series. The narrators do a fantastic job of giving the characters distinct, individual voices. I’m alternating back and forth between both series.
For graphic novels, I finished the DC Bombshells series through vol 5. I hadn’t read many DC comics before these and I really enjoyed them. So many amazing female characters and really gorgeous artwork.
I also grabbed I Hate Fairyland vols 2-3 on Hoopla. I adore this series! I may even have to pick up the coloring book to get me through winter. When I read it I always think it would make a great animated series with Amy Poehler as Gertrude.
My re-reads have been mostly the historical novels that brought me to the romance genre. 90s Amanda Quick and Julie Garwood books. Also, Stephanie Lauren’s beginning Cynster novels. I grabbed her newest Cynster Trilogy, Devil’s Brood, at the library. I’ve also been listening to the audiobook versions from Hoopla. It’s interesting to see why I liked the first books in the series, while also being reminded why I stopped reading her books.
At the library, I also picked up Alice Hoffman’s Practical Magic along with the new prequel novel, The Rules of Magic. I’ve never read Practical Magic but love the movie, so I’m excited about these two.
And I finally picked up Tessa Dare’s The Duchess Deal but I’m saving it for the last book of my Goodreads challenge. I started the year glomming Tessa Dare, so I want her latest book to be my cherry on top. But at a recent library book sale, I picked up her Wanton Dairymaid Trilogy for $.25 each. I haven’t read this series yet, so have those to tide me over.
In the past month, the books I have loved are DARK PROMISES by Winter Renshaw and HOLLYWOOD DIRT by Alessandra Torre. The ones I have liked pretty well: THE DUKE by Katharine Ashe, and MISTER HOCKEY by Lia Riley. And, the ones that were just ok were CHASING CHRISTMAS by Jill Shalvis, MAYBE THIS CHRISTMAS by Jennifer Snow, CHANGING LINES by RJ Scott and VL Locey, THE WICKED HEIR by Elizabeth Michels, and BLINDFOLDED INNOCENCE by Alessandra Torre. I have also done a re-read of HIM by Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy because I just love it soooo much! I am currently reading THIRD SON’S A CHARM by Shana Galen.
I sort of finished Grave Peril (The Dresden Files #3) last night. I say sort of because I got halfway through, realized I was really just not enjoying it (Harry is TSTL in this one!), and skipped to the last 2 chapters. I can’t decide whether to add that to my DNF shelf on Goodreads or not.
I’m hoping to start NK Jemisin’s The Stone Sky (The Broken Earth #3) today or tomorrow. I’ve loved the first two books, and if not for *sigh* responsibilities, I’d have started it already. The Broken Earthy trilogy is absolutely amazing, and I cannot recommend it highly enough!
I haven’t read all the comments, because I am supposed to be cleaning my house for Thanksgiving!! But I did want to respond to something Francesca said…
@Francesca said-“I just want to express my gratitude to Sarah and the rest of this community for maintaining this safe space where I can state my opinion, knowing I won’t get a flood of replies along the lines of, “U didn’t like it. Then u r a moron.”
Wow-I couldn’t agree more!! Readers are so diverse, and I love to hear what people think about books I’ve read, whether I agree with them or not! Back in 2010-the American Library Association had a t-shirt for sale during their Banned Books campaign-the slogan was “Think for Yourself, and Let Others Do the Same.”. I really loved that, and I wore my t-shirt till it fell apart.
Real quick, some books I’ve read lately are the Joanna Bourne historical spy series. The review of Beauty Like the Night was here on SBTB-so I read that one, and bought all the others. I really enjoyed them! I also discovered Rachel Gibson, and I must have gotten a few on kindle unlimited, because I’m not seeing the titles on my kindle right now. I loved her Rescue Me and Run to You, and I think there is one more in the series? I love her heroines, and the books are so sexy and funny. I think I read almost everything else of hers that was reasonably priced for kindle, but I can’t remember the names! Anyway, she writes awesomely engaging heroines!
One of my New Years goals is to keep a reading journal. I’ve done it periodically through the years, but I’ve never been consistent. Hopefully I will be more organized for 2018 Watcha Reading posts.
Oh-I read most of Vanity Fair for my book club-after a fairly slow start I really got into it. BUT…you can tell this book was published as serial, lots of filler.
Back to the housework!
The best books I’ve read lately were mysteries – three by Christine Carbo (starting with THE WILD INSIDE) – all set in Glacier Natl Park in Montana, and all somewhat dark and violent. Drug use, domestic violence, grizzly bear attacks, forest fires, and murder.
I did enjoy THE LOVE EXPERIMENT, by Ainslie Paton, but the editing/writing was kind of awkward sometimes. Loved the setting in a Chicago newspaper suffering from internet-inspired layoffs.
STILL LIFE WITH STRINGS by L.H. Cosway started out fabulous and strong (romance between a bartender & concert violinist in Dublin), but halfway through the story took a weird mystical/mystery turn that I did not like at all.
INTERMEDIATE THERMODYNAMICS by Susannah Nix was enjoyable – I actually liked it a lot more than REMEDIAL ROCKET SCIENCE (her first book in the women in STEM series).
I’m currently into SEVEN LETTERS FROM PARIS, which is a memoir about a woman re-connecting with a French man she had a fling with in college twenty years previously. I’m not loving it, though reading about France is fun. It’s not a DNF, at any rate.
And of course I’m still only 20% into Chernow’s HAMILTON and the library re-claimed it from my kindle. About 600 pages left…..
Been on a bit of a Mary Stewart binge (thanks, Smart Bitches. Read Madam, Will You Talk – good story and David is more than just a plot moppet. Now on Touch Not the Cat.
Did some comfort reading. Nalini Singh’s Rock Redemption – forced proximity, friends to lovers, second chance, dark secrets – yeah, all my catnip. Hot Money by Dick Francis – love him and have a couple that I re-read all the time. He does tend to have just a bit of romance in his books, too.
Pretty good reading the last few weeks. Favorite would be ETCHES IN BONE the latest (PLEASE not last!) Others book. I can not express the pure reading joy this series is giving me. They touch my heart (Skippy!) and make me sigh and laugh cry and just laugh out loud.
Took RHG’s req and picked up AN EXCESS MALE. Like A HANDMAID’S TALE, it tells the story of people marginalized and persecuted by government policy in a totally believable near future. Not my usual read, but the characters and the journey were very compelling.
AN UNKINDNESS OF MAGICIANS was another excellent req from a previous post. Really interesting world building.
@Katrina and, well, everybody: I’m willing to give Heyer another go. I really did enjoy the quality and liveliness of her writing, so I’ve just put FREDERICA on hold! Fingers crossed!
@CelineB: EMMA IN THE NIGHT looks so good!
@Marci: just grabbed I HATE FAIRYLAND off Hoopla!
:::hobbles in to the sounds of “Hard Candy Christmas, the only acceptable Christmas song prior to Thanksgiving:::
I had knee surgery late last month, and you have this idea prior to surgery that you’re going to get so much reading done, because what else can you do? The reality is, nope. You have plenty of time to read, that much is true, but you spend the first several days of recovery embracing the nap life, especially once those opioid painkillers kick in. It took a few days before the reading and TV watching was really a thing.
I finished Pillars of the Earth, which I mentioned last month, but it took awhile. It was 1000 pages, and I was on painkillers. I took a break from it the day before my surgery and read The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, Vol. 1 by Robert Aguirre-Sacasa. I was never a big fan of the Archie comics, but I like Riverdale (even though I’m a season and a half behind, I watch a lot of things, it’s easy to get behind). It was not at all like the Archie or Sabrina comics of old, nor the TV show from the 90s. It was graphic and violent, and really pretty scary in parts, and the art was top-notch. Apparently, they are thinking about spinning off Riverdale to do this iteration of Sabrina and yes, please. I tend to hug the historical romances kind of close for times when I don’t feel great, and I had been holding on to Duke of Desire by Elizabeth Hoyt for just this purpose. The chemistry between the leads was great, but trigger warning for childhood sexual abuse, and what it does to the psyche of the purpose who experiences it. Just be careful; Hoyt is an excellent writer, and it went to some scary places, which I respect, but if that is something in your history, it could take you to a not-great place. Then my brain completely rejected historical anything for the next bit and I read Leia: Princess of Alderaan by Claudia Gray. I had read Bloodline by her previously (along with several of her non-Star Wars books), and she really gets Leia. This time Leia is sixteen, and is undergoing the trials to prove her fitness as the future leader of Alderaan. She’s brave and smart and very cagey, but she’s still sixteen, and mistakes are made as she figures out the Rebellion, her parents’ role in it, and how to play her part. She learns from those mistakes and we see how she becomes the smart, independent spy we meet in A New Hope. Also, we get a scene where Leia uses the Force, even though she doesn’t know that’s what she’s doing. The very last line of the book was completely wrenching, as were a few other parts, because we know what Leia doesn’t, and Gray uses that knowledge to cut the reader a bit, which is just smart writing. Then I burned through Chasing Christmas Eve by Jill Shalvis, which was a quick, fun read with neat characters. The next day (it should be noted, this was two weeks into my recovery, and I can’t drive, so reading a lot) I burned all the way through Moxie by Jennifer Mathieu, which was so good. It was about a girl that gets fed up with the sexist atmosphere at her Texas high school (dress code checks that only focus on girls, boys playing feel-up games in the hallways, and in one case, an attempted rape by a football player that the school just wants to sweep under the rug)) and starts publishing an anonymous ‘zine to address these issues. She gets the idea from the fact that her mom was a riot grrrl in the 90s, and has a box labeled “My Misspent Youth” that the girl pores through and uses as inspiration. It was excellent, and both fun and hopeful, in a way. After that, I started Wilde In Love by Eloisa James. It’s a bit slow getting going, but the characters are fun and I love the Regency house party tropes. It’s picking up a bit, and frankly, James knows how to write.
I’ve been doing a lot of rereading this month as I’ve been busy with fact-checking and preparing for Yuletide.
The big thing I did at the start of the month was finally start the Maiden Lane series and read the first three: Wicked Intentions, Notorious Pleasures, Scandalous Desires and then Dearest Rogue. The two I liked the most were Scandalous Desires and Dearest Rogue because they didn’t feel as rushed. Though after reading all four, I found myself wishing for heroes that weren’t all huge and impossibly masculine men. Do any of the later books have heroes with other body types?
That set me to rereading a Heyer and some of my favorite Loretta Chases along with a Diana Wynne Jones.
I also read and loved Leia, Princess of Alderaan by Claudia Gray and I’m more than halfway through Bloodline. So far Bloodline is good, it reminds me of some Clone Wars episodes. Also a lot of the political beats in it feel far too familiar at the moment.
Next up I have A Certain Point of View and probably more rereading.