Welcome to Book Beat! Think of Book Beat as Hide Your Wallet, Part Two!
In Hide Your Wallet, we talk about books coming out in a particular month that we really want to read. But there’s more to good books than just new releases!
Book Beat aims to highlight other books that we may hear about through friends, social media, or other sources. We could see a gorgeous ad! Or find a new-to-us author on a list of underrated romances! Think of Book Beat as Teen Beat or Tiger Beat, but for books. And no staples to open to get the fold-out poster.
We hope you find something new to read through Book Beat, and please let us know what books you’ve discovered recently!
#FashionVictim
Author: Amina Akhtar
Released: September 11, 2018 by Crooked Lane Books
Genre: Mystery/ThrillerA darkly thrilling take on the fashion world, #FashionVictim is Heathers meets The Devil Wears Prada..
Fashion editor Anya St. Clair is on the verge of greatness. Her wardrobe is to die for. Her social media is killer. And her career path is littered with the bodies of anyone who got in her way. She’s worked hard to get where she is, but she doesn’t have everything.
Not like Sarah Taft. Anya’s obsession sits one desk away. Beautiful, stylish, and rich, she was born to be a fashion world icon. From her beach-wave blonde hair to her on-trend nail art, she’s a walking editorial spread. And Anya wants to be her friend. Her best friend. Her only friend.
But when Sarah becomes her top competition for a promotion, Anya’s plan to win her friendship goes into overdrive. In order to beat Sarah…she’ll have to become her. Friendly competition may turn fatal, but as they say in fashion: One day you’re in, and the next day you’re dead.
Source: Twitter
Always trust in the excitement of the Fug Girls!
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As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
We also may use affiliate links in our posts, as well. Thanks!After the Gold
Author: Erin McRae
Released: June 12, 2018 by Avian30
Genre: Contemporary Romance, RomanceFor over a decade, world-champion ice skaters Katie Nowaki and Brendan Reid have been partners in every way but one. But now that their electric on-ice chemistry has led them to Olympic gold, they’re retiring from competition.
As they cross America on an exhibition tour with their fellow athletes, Katie and Brendan’s always volatile relationship becomes more turbulent than ever as they face down the media, their fans, and their increasingly nosy teammates.
When Katie realizes she wants to go back to the farm she grew up on, leaving Brendan behind in the city where they trained, their fairy tale seems destined to end.
But will Brendan be able to convince her to trust him with the off-ice intimacy that only spelled disaster in their past?
Source: Twitter
Still going through Winter Olympics withdrawals? Have a figure skating romance!
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As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
We also may use affiliate links in our posts, as well. Thanks!Belle
Author: Beverly Jenkins
Released: March 1, 2018 by NYLA
Genre: Historical: American, Romance, Young AdultBelle Palmer is finally free! Separated from her father on the harrowing escape, Belle is lost and alone until she finds shelter with the Bests, the first free family she’s ever known. For the first time in her sixteen years, Belle can speak her mind—except for her feelings for a certain dark-eyed young man—The Beau.
Educated and handsome, at eighteen, Daniel Best is engaged to the prettiest (if a little spoiled) girl around. So when the bedraggled girl his parents take under their wing suddenly turns into a vibrant, lovely young woman, his attraction to her is a complete—and complicated—surprise.
That the two belong together is undeniable, but caught between conscience and attraction, could it possibly happen?
Source: Twitter
Did you know Beverly Jenkins previously published YA historicals? They’ve been reissued!
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As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
We also may use affiliate links in our posts, as well. Thanks!Cinnamon Blade
Author: Shira Glassman
Released: May 7, 2018
Genre: LGBTQIA, Novella, Romance, Science Fiction/FantasyEvery time Cinnamon Blade, crime fighter making up for a bad past, rescues the sweet and nerdy Soledad Castillo from bad guys, the two women’s chemistry grows stronger. Now that she’s finally asked Soledad out, sparks fly — but is a normal date even possible in a city threatened by aliens and vampires on a regular basis?
High-heat f/f romance starring a bi Jewish superheroine, coming soon!
Source: Twitter
A lesbian superhero romance with a bisexual, Jewish heroine!
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As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases.
We also may use affiliate links in our posts, as well. Thanks!Savannah’s Secrets
Author: Reese Ryan
Released: March 1, 2018 by Harlequin Desire
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Romance
Series: The Bourbon Brother #1Falling for the boss, or taking him down?
Savannah Carlisle had the perfect plan. By infiltrating the Abbott family’s Tennessee bourbon empire as their events manager, she’d be one step closer to claiming half of the business they stole from her grandfather. Now she’s not so sure. Because sexy Blake Abbott, heir to it all, is simply intoxicating. He’s supposed to be the enemy. But after one long, stormy weekend, she’s pregnant with his child…
Source: Twitter
Sarah said someone was talking about this cover on a recent podcast episode! Also, I’m loving the heroine’s dress.
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Savannah’s Secrets lost me at “Tennessee Bourbon.” It’s Whiskey. We make Whiskey in Tennessee. Bourbon is made almost exclusively in Kentucky and southern Indiana.
I really liked Savannah’s Secrets. The hero was a nice guy which was refreshing. Didn’t catch the bourbon mistake though.
Re Savannah’s Secrets:
Real life history — the Jack Daniels company has acknowledged that a slave named Nearis Green taught Jack Daniels how to make whiskey, and they’re revising their tour information, etc to show that. A researcher has become passionate about Green’s story, and with the help of the company, is writing a book. Although this article doesn’t mention the woman who is researching — I’ll go find another one about that (I think I read about it in a home remodel article, because she had bought a historic home near the distillery and remodeled it to be her office while she researched … )
https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/the-slave-who-taught-jack-daniel-how-to-make-whiskey/
Here it is in the Wikipedia article – the author Fawn Weaver has set up a foundation, and the original distiller was Nathan “Nearest” Green. It’s super interesting history. I have no idea if any of this history made it into the book – but we all like to spend time on the internet so enjoy the links! (And by the way, if you have NY Times access, their version of the Seattle Times article above had more photos and interactive links than the Seattle version so more ways to click).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathan_%22Nearest%22_Green
There are other bourbon distillers in the US but the majority are in KY making it Kentucky Straight Bourbon (about 85% of the worlds bourbon is made in KY.) Awhile all Bourbons are whiskey not all whiskey is Bourbon. So a bourbon distillery in TN isn’t necessarily unusal. Having taken many bourbon distillery tours here in KY – I’m hoping the author actually identifies in the book what are the federal standards behind classifying bourbon as bourbon in the US. The are actually Federal standards – 1- must be made in the US, with at least 51% corn grain, matured in new charred oak barrels, free of any additives other than water, mash must be distilled at 160 proof or less and put in barrel at 125 proof less and if you want to call it straight bourbon must be aged at least 2 years and if shorter than 4 years it must be on the label.
Also while JD isn’t a Bourbon whiskey – it’s Whiskey and is manufactured in similar ways to Bourbon, there are differences – mainly in the mellowing where it’s filtered through maple charcoal chips or pellets prior to transfer to casks for aging.
BTW- love the cover of the book and now I think I will buy it.
OT: For UK Amazon customers, Jasper Fforde’s Thursday Next series is on sale, each of the seven titles is .99.
I did the Jack Daniels distillery tour last year and the tour guide that I had didn’t come right out and say that he was taught by a slave. Instead he instructed everyone to look closely at a picture of him and his original workers. The gentleman standing next to him is clearly African American and the tour guide noted that this was thought to be the man who taught him the craft. The tour guide also noted that this gentleman’s descendants were highly trusted employees and continue to work for the distillery right up to the current day. I was pretty annoyed that they didn’t come right out and say it, but I’m hoping they are being more open now.
After the gold – wow seems like a bit of a riff on the Scott Moir and Tessa Virtue “are they-aren’t they” thing that they have going on. It makes me a little reluctant to buy. I got a bit disturbed by one of Victoria Holts books where the hero is almost a dead ringer for a real life hockey player right down to the lips and the butt and it’s kind of put me off reading more of her books
I thought the Beverly Jenkins description sounded familiar. It is part of a series: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/17258.Avon_True_Romances and used to be called Belle and the Beau! I wonder if the others in the series are going to be reissued?
Following up to my own comment, it looks like Beverly Jenkins’s other entry in that series is available as “Josephine” (lopping off “And the Soldier.”) Meg Cabot’s two titles in this series have also been reissued.