How in the world is it the second Saturday in June already? Is summer in full swing for you yet? New England is still figuring things out.
We hope you all have been reading some great things and we want to hear about ALL THE BOOKS!
Elyse: I started watching Chernobyl on HBO so I’m reading Midnight in Chernobyl by Adam Higginbotham ( A | BN | K | G | AB ). It’s really fascinating.
I’m also reading Rebel Hard for our book club!
Carrie: I’m almost done with Always Never Yours by Emily Wibberley and Austin Siegemund-Broka ( A | BN | K | G | AB ).
Amanda: At BLC, I got some great tips on increasing my audiobook listening since I don’t really have a commute. Now, when I’m winding down in bed at night and playing phone games, I’ll pop in my headphones and play an audiobook. I’ve been listening and enjoying Dragon Bound by Thea Harrison ( A | BN | K | G | AB | Au ), which is part of the Audible Romance Package.
Sarah: I really liked that one!
Where did you get these tips? That’s a great one.
Amanda: Nita from Hachette Audio! I had a meeting with her about audiobooks and she was awesome.
I’m also reading The Friend Zone by Abby Jimenez ( A | BN | K | G | AB ). I have high hopes for this one and I’m curious to see how the heroine’s situation regarding fertility will shake out.
Also…it looks like they might be redesigning the Elder Races covers.
Sarah: Nita is brilliant.
Alas…I’m not reading anything at the moment. I’m listening to some things, though!
Amanda: TELL US ANYWAY
Sarah: I just finished listening to My Year of Rest and Relaxation (review to come) which was powerful and weird and terribly absorbing, but definitely something I need to listen to and not read.
Amanda: That’s Ottessa right?
Sarah: Yes. WOW is it weird and transfixing.
Amanda: She writes some weird stuff. I read Eileen by her.
Sarah: You’re on first name basis?
Amanda: HAHA! Yeah, Ottessa and I are BFFs.
Sarah: I just landed off the hold list for Stress Less, Accomplish More: Meditations for Extraordinary Performance ( A | BN | K | G | AB ), which, I’m not sure where I learned about it but Past Sarah makes neat choices for Future Sarah’s hold requests!
What books have kicked off your reading month? Any winners?
By request, since we can’t link to every book you mention in the comments, here are bookstore links that help support the site with your purchases. If you use them, we greatly appreciate it, and if you’d prefer not to, no worries. Thanks for being a part of SBTB and hopefully, you’ve found some great books to read!
Great books so far this month, total upswing.
– THE CONFESSIONS OF FRANNIE LANGTON by Sara Collins – a former slave from Jamaica, now in England, is accused of murdering her employer and his wife. Definitely for fans of Sarah Waters and ALIAS GRACE. I read almost the whole thing by the pool and have the sunburn to prove it!
– RED, WHITE, AND ROYAL BLUE by Casey McQuiston – so cute! Total sexy romcom! Lots of romantic emails with quotes from historic queer love letters!
– PRIEST by Sierra Simone – blame FLEABAG season 2. I enjoyed this, even if the very immediate lust was a little much. Also, watch Fleabag on Prime!
Currently Reading
– A GAME OF KINGS by Dorothy Dunnett (audiobook) – the audiobook was just released last month and although this is technically a reread for me, audio has definitely helped me enjoy it more and has made me want to read Book 2.
– THE YEARS BETWEEN: 1939-44 by Cecil Beaton – the second volume of Beaton’s diaries, this covers his activities during the war. Everything from war photography to snarky Bloomsbury weekends.
PASSION ON PARK AVENUE by Lauren Layne. A new series of three women who have unknowingly slept with the same man. The heroine definitely has issues in the “Just tell him” variety.
This is closed door sexual encounter, I believe her first time doing that. I noticed that THE MAGNOLIA CHRONICLES by Kate Canterbary and maybe UNHONEYMOONERS by Christina Lauren are also closed door non descriptions. They, of course, can write what they want. Are they wanting to be more Chick Lit? Or just tired of writing sex scenes?
Layne and Canterbary are both very good writers and write fun and often complex characters. I don’t have to have a sexual description, but I realize I found both books a bit flat because when they omitted the sex scene, they omitted layer of interaction that could enhance who they couples were. How were they in bed? Was it fun, clumsy, sweet, rough. (I doubt it would ever be described as just okay) How did they both react? Was there post-coital chit chat? I don’t need a play by play (though I do enjoy a well written one) but the “I can’t believe I woke up next to him” and moving on just doesn’t tell me much about a big part of a relationship.
I don’t have to have sexual descriptions in my books. I don’t know if there was an expectation since Layne and Canterbary both had in the past, Or maybe I just wasn’t into either book from writers I have enjoyed more in their previous books.
Oh, after my rant, I forgot that I am listening to CIRCE by Madeline Miller. Retelling of Circe’s story that is so much compelling than I would have thought. The audio edition is great!
Oh guys, I’m still doing pretty woefully on reading.
I feel like such a curmudgeon, but I do *not* like alternating first person in romance. I feel like unless you have 2 super distinctive voices it doesn’t work for me. I’m fine though first person for women’s fiction, YA, or mystery. One character voice or even just very, very different characters in one book.
Also not particularly crazy about present tense for anything longer than a short story. Sometimes I’ve read a book where it flows smoothly enough I don’t notice till I’m well into the book. Most of the time,
I keep mentally editing back to simple past. It just feels affected and annoying.
I did just finish rereading “The Ghost Belonged To Me” by Richard Peck. It’s a middle grade book, set in the midwest around 1913. Alexander, an ordinary young teenage boy finds a ghost in his family’s barn and has to deal with his eccentric neighbor, Blossom Culp. I love these books (it’s a series). They’re funny and written in a great, relaxed voice. I especially love Blossom who is scrappy and determined and doesn’t let poverty or lack of conventional beauty stand in her way.
Elyse – I just started Midnight in Chernobyl yesterday. It is really absorbing. I’d love to see Chernobyl, but I don’t have HBO.
It’s surreal reading the book when you know what happens. I’m still at the beginning, but I want to yell at the characters – Wake up! You are about to have a global disaster!
I can’t believe it’s already the second Saturday in June either. This month is flying by! Now onto the books
Read: ONLY BELOVED by Mary Balogh
This book was good, but I don’t think it was one of the strongest in The Survivor’s Club series. While I appreciate the older protagonists, I don’t think Dora nor George were interesting enough to be protagonists and the book put too much emphasis on the fact that Dora is older. Instead of simply saying Dora is beautiful just because the book kept saying she was beautiful because of her age and it just got old. Lastly, it didn’t bother me too much, but I will warn that besides one scene the stakes stay pretty low, as does the conflict and content warnings for mentions of suicide and child death in the hero’s past.
Reading: EMPIRE of SAND by Tasha Suri.
I’m only about 2 chapters into this book and so far it’s just okay. It’s a really slow-paced book with a typical YA protagonist and supporting characters( yes I know the story is technically an adult fantasy novel, but it reads very YA).However, the set-up is interesting enough that I’ll most likely keep reading to find out what happens.
I’m currently reading THE PRIORY OF THE ORANGE TREE, by Samantha Shannon. Hopefully, I’ll have finished it by the second Watcha Reading? post.
@LMC, I know what you mean. I think the most important thing is expectations need to be clear going on. A friend and I read a series where the author dropped love scenes half way through the series and we found it very jarring.
For years, we made fun of the transition words “some time later-” from the book which went where we both expected a love scene to be. It could have been new “yadda, yadda, yadda” (for those of use who remember Seinfeld).
I just started EVERY LAST BREATH by Juno Rushdan. I recently binged season 3 of BERLIN STATION (which was really interesting) so I’m in the mood to read some spy thrillers.
I’m also looking forward to WAITING FOR TOM HANKS by Kerry Winfrey, which comes out next week.
I can’t believe it’s the middle of June already. I had all these wonderful plans to read a bunch of books for fun this summer, and it’s just been one work project after another. Sigh. Oh, well. At least I can come here and see what everyone else is reading/enjoying. LOL.
School’s out, reading’s in. TBR mountain, prepare to be reduced to TBR hill! (Yeah, right.)
The entire first third of Katie Porter’s incredibly sexy and well-written INSIDE BET is an extended scene of two people who meet unexpectedly at a wine tasting, flirt with lots of witty verbal banter and double-entendres, gamble at a Las Vegas casino (where their connection becomes decidedly more physical), and then spend the subsequent 24 hours together in a hotel suite at the Palazzo having wildly imaginative sex. Here’s an exchange that occurs as the hero and heroine stand at a gambling table. The hero speaks first:
“I want you to pick a safe word.”
“I need a safe word to play roulette?”
“You need a safe word to play with me.”
Sexy, flirty, with a dark undercurrent—very much like the book itself (the second in Porter’s Vegas Top Guns series). One of the things I immediately liked about this book is the intelligence and self-awareness of the main characters; they know what they want and are unafraid to pursue it. The hero is a fighter pilot from a wealthy family, the heroine is an accountant and somewhat older than the hero. Both of them have past experiences that make them cagey about getting too close emotionally and this results in a near-constant battle for control and dominance (not always in a sexual way). They continue to have incredibly hot encounters (the hero wasn’t kidding about needing that safe word, although everything they do is completely consensual), but neither of them wants to admit to their growing emotional attachment—so there will be wrenching angst before they can achieve their HEA. INSIDE BET, with its emotionally-nuanced story and erotic writing style, is an “adult” book in the very best sense of the word. Just like Porter’s HARD WAY (which I read last month and is from the same series), INSIDE BET is one of my favorite reads of the year so far. Highly recommended.
Although not quite as good as INSIDE BET, Porter’s HOLD ‘EM (the third book in the Vegas Top Guns series) is still a great read. The hero and heroine are both fighter pilots. Years ago, they had a brief fling, but later lost touch. When the hero is assigned to the heroine’s squadron, they reconnect. This time, the hero has had enough sexual experience to know that he is a sub; the heroine has no actual domme experience, but she quickly discovers she likes being the top in the power exchange of a D/s dynamic. They also have to consider their behavior in the workplace, where the heroine outranks the hero and is responsible for assessing his flying skills. What I really enjoyed about this book is the idea that it often takes time to discover what we want and even longer for us to find a partner who can share it with us. The HOLD ‘EM couple wouldn’t have worked for long when they were young and unsure; with the seasoning of time and life experience, they meet at just the right point to be each other’s “the one.”
BARE KNUCKLE is the fifth and final book of the Vegas Top Guns series. I liked it, but it took me some time to warm up to the fighter-pilot hero who was, frankly, a bit of a caveman/jerk when he appeared as a supporting character in the previous books. At the beginning of BARE KNUCKLE, he is still recovering from the bad crash that happened toward the end of HARD WAY and he bears both physical and emotional scars. He is also desperate to make enough money to keep his drug-addicted younger brother in a rehab facility and out of jail, so he turns to unsanctioned, off-the-Strip boxing bouts to supplement his military income. He meets the heroine (a Vegas show dancer) when she is the “Ring Girl” at one of his bouts. They discover how neatly their kinks dovetail: he has voyeuristic tendencies, she leans toward exhibitionism. With each other, they can be free: he stops worrying about his brother, she can finally get up the courage to disconnect from her horrible “momanager” who has been pushing her since the child pageant circuit. (The heroine is also bi, which plays a part in the story: there is an F/F/M ménage scene.) I liked how, in a story about “looking” on so many levels, the hero & heroine each find someone who truly “sees” them.
[One caution: A background element of BARE KNUCKLE is the heroine’s constant monitoring of her food intake—perhaps understandable, given her line of work, but still rather discouraging to read. She chastises herself for any “slip ups” (such as eating TEN french fries) and is always concerned with staying thin. I’m not sure if her relationship to food would be considered disordered, but I would not recommend this book to someone with food/eating issues because of the heroine’s ongoing focus on her weight.]
[POSSIBLE SPOILER: I’ve tried to avoid spoilers ahead, but I do discuss plot points that might be “spoilery.”] Until about the 85% mark of Kylie Scott’s REPEAT, I thought the book might be a favorite read of the year; its a second-chance romance with a heroine/narrator suffering from…dut-dut-dum…AMNESIA! (Traumatic retrograde amnesia, to be precise, the result of a head injury she sustained when she was mugged.) Scott does a wonderful job of writing from the POV of a woman whose episodic memory is gone—she can’t remember the people, events, or history she experienced prior to her injury—but whose “muscle memory” is fine (for example, she knows how to make coffee, but has no idea if the person she’s making it for takes cream or sugar), and who, as a result of her injury, has impulse control and social filtering issues—leading her to frequently blurt out whatever she’s thinking. In an effort to reconstruct her past, the heroine contacts the tattoo artist with whom she broke up just a month before her attack. He’s naturally reluctant to see her again (they had a bad breakup), but when it appears the heroine’s attack might not have been a random robbery and her life may still be in danger, he invites the heroine to stay with him. Enforced proximity ensues. I liked this part of the story as the h&h take tentative steps toward getting to know each other and falling in love again. But then the mystery of who attacked the heroine is revealed and the culprit is quite obvious. I think that if a writer is going to mix mystery elements with romantic ones, the mystery shouldn’t be given short shrift. Up until that big reveal, however, I very much enjoyed the book. I recommend REPEAT for its second-chance romance, a subplot involving a bookstore & romance novels, and a very good dog, but the mystery is meh to say the least and flattened my opinion of the book as a whole.
“No one had ever trusted me to take care of myself,” is the key quote from Sybil Bartel’s FEARLESS, the latest in her Miami-based Alpha Bodyguards series. The heroine is the daughter of a very wealthy banking family. She’s in her mid-twenties, but seems younger because of her overprotected upbringing. However, she’s far from TSTL—when she’s kidnapped by a cartel kingpin who wants her father to launder drug money, she does her best to fight back before the bodyguard hero arrives to rescue her. Unlike her family, he doesn’t coddle her—he respects her strength and intelligence and knows she’ll do what is necessary to assist in their escape. As is par for the Bartel course, the hero is a former Marine, the violence level is very high, and the sex is of a D/s variety. I didn’t enjoy this book quite as much as the previous book, RUTHLESS (which is one of my favorite reads of 2019), because the time frame is very compressed and the hero smokes (the cover model is also smoking a cigarette), but it works as a good opposites-attract story and adds some more characters to the ever-expanding Bartel universe. I also found I liked the characters more as the book progressed, especially in the epilogue where the heroine assists the (now non-smoking) hero in finally laying to rest some ghosts from his past. [Fun fact: the heroine of FEARLESS is named Ludeviene, which sounds pretty but I would have sworn is a made-up name; but the interwebs assures me it is actually an alternate spelling of the name Ludivine which means “friend of the people.”]
Because the hero & heroine of Katee Robert’s DESPERATE MEASURES (the first in her new Wicked Villains series) are named Jafar and Jasmine, I anticipated the story would be an erotic “reimagining” of Aladdin. It’s not. It’s a contemporary crime romance with mob boss’s daughter Jasmine “claimed” by Jafar when he deposes her father and takes over his crime syndicate; only their names and middle-eastern ancestry connect them to the world of the Arabian Nights. However, the book is very much on the erotica side of the Katee Robert scale: there are scenes at a bdsm club, ddlg games, public play, ménage, D/s sex, and safe words. I’m all for “consensual non-consent” stories when they’re done right, but there’s also an “old skool” vibe to the book, especially in the beginning when Jasmine is completely at Jafar’s mercy: every time she expresses her understandable rage at being essentially imprisoned in Jafar’s home, he smiles indulgently and calls her a “brat”—I fully expected him to utter something along the lines of, “You’re cute when you’re mad”—the sort of patronizing bodice-ripping dynamic that went stale a quarter-century ago. Initially, Jafar holds all the cards and the deck is stacked so clearly in his favor that, no matter how hot the sex is, nothing is even slightly equitable the relationship. As with FEARLESS, I liked the book more as I read further along; the power imbalance equalizes as Jasmine takes charge of her own destiny and Jafar realizes he has underestimated her courage and intelligence.
Although there are M/F/M and M/M/F permutations (including making inventive use of sex toys) in JA Huss’s IN TO HER, wild three-way action isn’t what propels the story. Instead, it’s the the juxtaposition of hot sex against an encompassing sense of sadness and loss; and the fact that each character has an ulterior motive for being where they are and each of them try to play the other two to get their own desired outcome. Huss does a good job of writing in three distinct narrative voices and letting us see shifting feelings and allegiances within the triad. I usually hate reviews that essentially say, “I can’t tell you anything about this book; you have to go into it blind, knowing nothing about it,” because that’s a blurb not a review. But I really can’t say too much more about IN TO HER without giving away some key plot points—and because what makes this story interesting is seeing how dark secrets unfold and change the dynamics between three characters: a woman who owns a bar in the mountains and the two men who show up just before closing time and just as a snowstorm makes it impossible for them to travel further. I’ll just say, it’s not by random chance that the three are where they are. Very well done, even if ménage stories are not your catnip—but, be forewarned, parts of the story are extremely dark indeed.
Caitlin Crews’s THE UNTAMED BILLIONAIRE’S INNOCENT BRIDE is the second of three HPs she is writing about the siblings of a wealthy Anglo-Italian family (it is also Crews’s 50th Harlequin book, which must be pushing her into Lynne Graham/Melanie Milburne territory). The story features both fairy-tale retelling (Little Red Riding Hood) and marriage-of-convenience tropes. The heroine is another of Crews’s super-efficient personal assistants, the hero is the reclusive older brother of the hero of the previous book (THE ITALIAN’S TWIN CONSEQUENCES). The heroine is sent by her employer to retrieve his brother from the forest cabin where he has been living. As is par for the recent Crews HP course, the heroine is a virgin (virginity fetishism appears to be a new HP trope; sometimes it feels as if the heroines have all stepped out of an Alexa Riley romance, their intact hymens are such a point of focus), and there’s a lot of angst before the HEA. I liked this book more than the previous one—the relationship between h&h seemed to develop more naturally, despite starting with an MOC.
Skye Warren’s FALLING FOR THE BEAST is the follow-up to Warren’s earlier BEAUTY AND THE PROFESSOR. It continues the story of a college student who enters into a relationship with the scarred and reclusive veteran whose house she cleans. The hero emerges from self-imposed exile when he accepts a teaching position at the college. This puts pressure on his relationship with the heroine who has to take his class to graduate. The focus of this book is parents: the heroine’s single mother has had a heart attack and requires around-the-clock care for a while; the hero’s wealthy parents (particularly his brittle mother) mask a multitude of secrets behind their chilly facade. There’s an HEA, but the story is somewhat more muted and low-key than most of Warren’s work.
When it comes to Natasha Knight, we all know the drill—she has a template and you either like it or you don’t: a young woman, through no fault of her own, gets entangled with a crime/mob/mafia figure; h&h have similar damaged/dysfunctional family backgrounds; consent is dubious or problematic or non-existent; there is a punishment/revenge/retribution element to the sex; there’s even-badder-than-the-hero bad guys hovering in the background; very dark things happen; and then there’s an eventual, somewhat fractious HEA. Knight’s latest book, DEVIL’S BARGAIN, hews very closely to her established formula, so there isn’t much more to say, except…Holy Flaming Shitballs, is that cover model (Zack Salaun) hot or what? Especially if you like the natural, unwaxed, hairy look.
https://www.amazon.com/Devils-Bargain-Natasha-Knight-ebook/dp/B07SHBX7KB/ref=sr_1_3?crid=2L17YDB10T5H5&keywords=natasha+knight+devils+bargain&qid=1559997938&s=gateway&sprefix=Natasha+knight%2Caps%2C169&sr=8-3
You’re welcome!
Lots of irons in the fire currently, so not a lot of reading.
Tight Rope, the latest Amanda Quick/JAK continues her post-war Burning Cove series. Nice tidy little romantic suspense. Must say I fell for a bit of a red herring when it came to the big bad. I thought the character was the there for a completely different reason. The romance was a bit of instalove, which isn’t my favorite, but it was nice to see characters from previous books didn’t fall immediately into meet/married in two weeks.
This morning I closed the covered with a deep satisfied sigh of contentment on The Unhoneymooners. I can’t recommend Chritina Lauren’s books enough – even to people who dislike first person narratives. Their blend of humor and emotion always works for me.
Next up, Wolf Rain fresh from the GBPL reserve list. I have tons to do today, lots of time sensitive projects, but I know myself. The sun is out, there’s a bottle of Gallo’s Sweet Peach in the fridge (seriouly, the stuff is like sunshine in a glass), and the words “new Nalini Singh” are a siren call at the back of my brain. I will be spending the afternoon in my patio lounger book in hand.
Bad Decisions Book Club? Charter member.
@KateB: Let’s squee over “Red, White & Royal Blue” together! I loved it so much!
@LMC: Yes, “Circe” is amazing! Madeline Miller became an autobuy author for me with “The Song of Achilles”. She is so incredibly talented.
@Jill Q: I loved “The Ghost Belonged to Me” as a kid! I always read my grandmother’s copy when I visited her (she was a school librarian and had a lot of hardcover, signed kids’ books from the 70s). I was a big ghost story fan as a kid, so Mary Downing Hahn (“Wait Til Helen Comes”) and Elaine Marie Alphin (“Ghost Cadet”) were totally my jam. I still love them.
I am currently reading “Do You Have Kids? Life When the Answer is No”. It’s all about people – specifically women – who don’t have kids, either by choice or circumstance, and how we craft fulfilling lives. I also have “Childfree by Choice” by Dr. Amy Blackstone on the hold shelf at the library and I’m looking forward to that one. As someone who has deliberately chosen not to have kids because I don’t want them, I simply don’t get the angst over not having kids that the childless (those who want kids but, for various reasons, don’t have them) often express. Often books on adults without kids focus on the “you wanted kids but couldn’t have them and now you’re trying to ‘fill the void’ with other stuff” perspective. It’s nice to find books where people say “I chose not to have kids and other things in my life (pets, children who are relatives, etc) are not some lesser, alternative outlet for mythological “frustrated nurturing urges”.
Also, since it’s Pride month, I have a ton of LGBTQ+ romance on my TBR.
First the Good:
SHADES OF WICKED by Thea Harrison – This is Ian’s story. He’s been the irreverent asshole throughout the Cat and Bone’s series. It is going to be at least a 2-part story so forewarned.
TOP SECRET- By Sarina Bowen. This is a M/M college story which she has done before of course (Him) but a different but great story. These are Frat brothers with the rich/poor backgrounds and much hate at first.
WOLF AT THE DOOR BY Charlie Adhara – This is a human/werewolf partnership in law enforcement thats a bit of a slow burn. I think I read about it here at Smart Bitches and so my TBR keeps getting enormous. Great story and I picked up the next one because I couldn’t help myself.
BLUEST OF BLUE – By Melissa Blue. This is a funny, snarky book but disregard the cover which makes it look like an Motorcycle Club book. It’s a PR heroine and a super reluctant scientist hero. H’es brainy and a bit of an asshole but really good looking so the observatory wants him to do PR to bring in money. He fights it the whole way but the feisty heroine can hold her own.
MAGIC AND THE SHINIGAMI DETECTIVE By Honor Raconteur. This was recommended by Ilona Andrews and I’m so glad I picked it up. The heroine is an FBI agent that’s dragged by an evil witch through a portal to another world. It’s very Victorian England and lacking in tech. She manages to kill the witch and make a reputation for herself since everyone feared the witch so much. She becomes a detective and since the world has magic she’s paired with a “magical examiner” as her third partner (the others did NOT work out). It’s definitely a slow burn but a truly well written story and unique.
THE UNHONEYMOONERS -By Christina Lauren. I’ve both loved and hated work by this author and this one was great. It’s a Hate to Love story when the groom’s brother and the brides twin(!) sister are the only ones not sick from a wedding reception buffet. They both want the non refundable honeymoon trip so go together. Loved it.
THE BRIDE TEST – By Helen Hoang. I loved Khai the hero (from book 1). The premise was a bit weird but the sincerity and good nature of the H/h was wonderful. There were issues but still a great read.
A WICKED KIND OF HUSBAND – By Mia Vincy. I think this is the only book by this author so BOLO. This was great and the conversations between the H/h were witty and fun. I’ts been awhile since I’ve come across a really good historical. The Hero marries (and then leaves) the heroine as a favor to her father who he really admired. It’s a convenience thing. They live totally separate lives until the heroine is forced by her families circumstances to head for London at the same time the Hero happens to be there. Good times!
NOT AS GREAT
HOOK SHOT By Kennedy Ryan. I loved Long Shot the first book. This author will tackle just about any tough subject. Child abuse, domestic violence etc but the H/h just were not that interesting to me and I grew a little bored with the hero.
BOSSMAN By Vi Keeland. The smirky arrogance and aggressiveness of the hero really turned me off.
MEET CUTE – By Helena Hunting. I “liked” this one but was a touch disappointed in this couple. The Hero’s parents die and he has to take charge of younger siblings. The heroine had met the hero in law school and worked on the parents will so they meet again. There is a custody issue because the Aunt expected custody.
THE MISTER – By E.L. James. I liked the premise but not the execution. The prose was a little flowery and the heroine was just toooo innocent. The jaded hero had insta love for no apparent reason.
RUNNING WITH SCISSORS – By L.A. Witt. The hero left a band (because of a bad romance with a bandmate) right before they became a big success. Fast forward to the hero in a cubicle job being asked if he can help out the band. The Bass guitar left suddenly and since he can get up to speed quicker than anyone else will he play for the band temporarily? He’s such a good musician he can do Bass even though he was the original drummer. I loved this set up but the Hero was forced to accept more blame than he should have. He was too apologetic the entire book and I wanted to punch some of the other bandmates and point out the flaws in their logic of blame.
Overall a really good month.
I listened to the audiobook of EDUCATED by Tara Westover (read by the author). It’s her autobiography about growing up in a large family in Idaho. She had very strict survivalist parents who didn’t believe in sending their children to doctors or public schools. Westover managed to get into a university by convincing them that she had been thoroughly home-schooled even though she definitely had not. She is still very young, and her life has already been so interesting. I highly recommend this book. In fact, my friends are getting tired of me talking about it.
I also listened to LADY DERRING TAKES A LOVER by Julie Anne Long. I very much enjoyed the women starting new lives by opening a boarding house. And I liked both Lady Derring and her lover, but I didn’t feel that there was a lot of conflict or tension between them.
I read LADY LORNA by Joan Smith. I think of her as an author of witty old Regencies from the 1970s and 1980s (she also wrote mysteries). When I looked to see the publication date of Lady Lorna I was very surprised to see that Fantastic Fiction says it’s a novella from 2016. I had no idea she was still writing (if this date is correct). I got it from the library so I didn’t realize it was a new publication. It had a bit of a mystery – which was interesting – but I didn’t enjoy the romance aspect too much. We don’t see the hero falling in love with the heroine but apparently he suddenly is in love. I picked it up because I loved her IMPRUDENT LADY – which Fantastic Fiction says was written in 1978.
Is “the cute cashier at the pet supply store saw my Hawkeye cosplay t-shirt and told me it’s her favorite run” a good reason to reread Fraction/Aja’s Hawkeye run? If so, that’s my excuse (along with great single issues) for basically only having read comics since the last post.
And that Hawkeye does hold up really futzing well to a reread, bro. (Tho it’s not my favorite thing ever like it is for many ppl, I love it.)
TV tho: most of my stuff has finished its run for the season, and I’ve found myself rewatching Flashpoint. It mostly holds up really well, once the early first season random (not condoned) toxic masculinity mostly peters out. Even the rocky stuff tho is still a breath of fresh air compared to current stuff in the “elite cops” genre.
It never feels exploitive even when dealing with very sensitive subjects–and just the sheer lack of serial killers, rape, and terrorism, and the way human life is always respected (compare to your NCIS:LAs) even when it’s a “bad guy”, is timelessly good. That stuff and the characters are enough, imo, to make up for the show’s flaws.
But along with the team feels I’m most of all here for JULES. She who is for most of the run (esp early on, if I recall correctly) the One Girl on the Team. If you’re the right age or your kids are, you may recall actress Amy Jo Johnson from the Pink Ranger on the first American version of Power Rangers. She’s fabulous.
And she’s got the team romance with newbie Sam. I had forgotten how rocky the start of their relationship is (IDK if they originally wrote him as an audience stand-in and they assumed the viewership would be dumbass dudebros, but literally his opening flirt with Jules is, like, “Lady snipers are hot.” Eyeroll.) And I don’t QUITE get why Jules goes out with him all of a sudden (off screen I think) when her initial response to his asking her out is to say she values her place on the team too much to endanger it.
But once he gets over his bullshit, Sam is totally loveable and they’re totally shippable. (And, speaking as someone who rarely finds the menfolk attractive, he’s an absolutely edible cupcake of a badass.)
I love their battle-couple competency-porn thing, with the “will they won’t they” being more “will they won’t they make it work” than “will they make out” since it’s a breakup then back together kinda thing. They’re also super supportive of each other; by season three Sam’s going with “I like that you speak your mind” for (very rare!) on the job lowkey flirting, rather than “lady sniper” comments.
So, yeah, I love rewatching knowing they get their HEA.
No spectacular reads this month, but a few decent ones.
Excellent:
None
Very Good:
None
Good:
Death by the Dozen by Jenn McKinlay: The third in the Cupcake Bakery cozy mystery series, I keep reading these because I like the main characters and I love the descriptions of the baking. The mysteries are fairly obvious and the possible suspects are very flat as characters, however.
Half-Hitched by Isabel Sharpe: There was a lot packed into this Harlequin Blaze. The heroine is stuck in a life rut and the hero is yacht owner who runs a charter service – they meet at a friend’s wedding. This is part of the Wrong Bed theme from Blaze and the heroine mistakenly enters the hero’s room when trying to go seduce an old flame. I actually liked the secondary story line in this one – the heroine’s best friend always goes after the wrong guy when she has a guy friend who has loved her all along and the wedding opens her eyes to what she has been missing.
Driving Her Wild by Meg Maguire: Another Harlequin Blaze and I do have to say this is probably this most unique romance I have ever read. The hero is a blue collar worker who is down on his luck financially and is also a Beta – so basically the opposite of almost every romance hero EVER. The heroine knew what a struggle her parents had financially trying to make ends meet and she doesn’t want to get into a relationship where she may have to do the same. Oh yeah, and she is a retired pro MMA fighter (although it is clear that she was not a star and did not make a ton of money). While I liked that the hero was an Alpha between the sheets, but Beta in the streets, he was just a little too much of a kind of lost stray puppy following the heroine around for me.
Meh:
An Improper Arrangement by Kasey Michaels: this is a kind of guardian/ward romance with a lot going on – a very eccentric aunt and uncle of the hero (this would fulfill the sassy grandma trope for sure, which I think there was a rec league about relatively recently), a brewing scandal, repercussions of serving in war, loads of sequel bait, and a secondary romance involving the heroine’s maid. It was too zany for me, BUT I loved that the hero and heroine had excellent banter and the heroine delivered some very intelligent set downs to the hero when needed.
The Bad:
None
I started FALL by Kristen Callihan based on a rec here. It’s about an “ordinary” woman and a rockstar and to the author’s credit the made up band in the series sounds like one that might actually be palatable in real life (as a serious music lover this is important to me). It also deals with depression and suicide attempts which is near and dear to my heart. So far, B.
I just got out of a place where I was reading a lot of “dark” romance and I don’t feel good about it. For someone familiar with kink, it’s very obvious that it’s fantasy but for some readers I think there should be a better framing device or warning label for this type of book. I want to talk to other people who have read this stuff.
It’s a little dark, but not “dark,” but I finished HAVEN by Rebekah Weatherspoon and it was like a breath of fresh air, like consenual BDSM brain bleach after the stuff I was reading. A+
@lmc @heatherS. I just binge read both Circe and Song of Achilles. I liked them both, but Song of Achilles really moved me, maybe because it reminded me of a book I loved as a teenager–The Persian Boy by Mary Renault.
@EJ: I read quite a bit of fairly dark romance—crime/mob/mafia, abduction, retribution, captivity, etc.—and I often refer to them as “Stockholm Syndrome” books because that’s essentially what any love story coming from that set-up would be. Skye Warren writes some of the best dark romances because of her emphasis on the damage and dysfunction in the backgrounds of both the hero & heroine. I think what separates today’s dark romance from the bodice-ripper-rapey books of my youth is that today there’s rarely any sort of subtext that implies the non-consensual behavior is normal/acceptable. I separate dark romance from books that make it clear the h&h are playing “consensual non-consent” games (such as Cara McKenna’s WILLING VICTIM/BRUTAL GAME or any of Lilia Moon’s Fettered series) and incorporate elements such as safe words and aftercare.
I stayed up too late reading not once, but twice in the past couple of weeks. So by that measure it’s been a good reading month.
Great:
The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal – this had all of my favorite catnip: smart women scientists, women astronauts, overcoming anxiety, and a hero who is unflaggingly supportive and never an ass.
Storm Cursed by Patricia Briggs – I’ve found the last couple of Mercy Thompson shifter books a bit stressful, and I’m not a big fan the alpha hero, but this felt like a return to the bad-ass tone of earlier books.
So Sweet by Rebekah Weatherspoon – I didn’t read this when it originally came out b/c I wasn’t sure about the sugar daddy storyline but I surprisingly enjoyed this. The age difference took a backseat to the class difference. Warning: There’s some friendship tension over a boy that made my jaw clench.
The Innocent by Ann Gabhart. Inspirational about a widow who goes to live in a Shaker Village. Loved the idea of a story about Shakers, but found the story too preachy and critical of them.
@KateB
The priest in Fleabag is Andrew Scott???!!!! No one prepared me to receive this information. I . . . *flails helplessly*
@DonnaMarie
Thank you for your perspective! I actually enjoyed the books but felt like I shouldn’t because of all the Goodreads reviews saying this kind of book shouldn’t exist, it’s never ok to write stories like this, etc. Maybe this isn’t the right place for this conversation, but I think a really good one could be had.
Sorry, it was DiscoDollyDeb who commented, not DonnaMarie.
@EJ: One if the reasons I rarely read reader reviews on GoodReads, Amazon, etc., is for this very reason—I’m too old for someone to tell me I shouldn’t be reading something I want to read. I KNOW the difference between fiction & real life, between fantasy & reality, between what I feel fine reading and what I definitely WOULD NOT WANT to happen to me or any other woman irl. There’s a reason dark romance books are written…because someone somewhere purchases and reads them.
Have any of you read Rich Amooi’s books? They’re often free and have been piling up on my phone. I randomly opened KISSING FROGS and (a) I had no idea he wrote romance and (b) it wasn’t horrible, rather witty in places. I was reminded, however, of stories that are all plot with a side of inner musing. Apparently I like introspection more than all action. Again, not bad, kind of a surprise really.
Currently reading PRINCE ON PAPER and, for whatever reason, this one isn’t working for me as well as Cole’s other books have. I can’t put my finger on it, but assume it must be me.
Starting WAKE OF VULTURES by Lila Bowen. “Nettie Lonesome had two things in the world that were worth a sweet goddamn; her old boots and her one-eyed mule, Blue.” That’s all I needed to know.
Finally, Estelle Ryan’s THE GAUGUIN CONNECTION was another out-of-left-field surprise. Her heroine has high-functioning autism and works as an insurance investigator in art crimes. I loved Genevieve Lenard and while much of the story is improbable, I enjoyed every word. Similar to Anne Bishop’s stories–an unusual/fragile woman finds herself in the company of over-protective men who rush to “save” her at every turn–Genevieve herself is amazing. The series is worth reading just for her.
It’s been a good few weeks for reading, despite a sinus infection knocking me down for a few days. Normally I’d take advantage of the forced rest by reading more but I just couldn’t keep my eyes open. I still managed to get a few good books in.
My favourite read was Top Secret by Sarina Bowen and Elle Kennedy. I’m a sucker for a grumpy, withdrawn hero and they paired him perfectly with a preppy jock who is secretly a big teddy bear, or Labrador in this case. Now I think a Him/Us reread is in order.
Other notable mentions:
The Lightning Struck Heart by TJ Klune – sweet and hilarious. I had to stop listening to it at work because I kept snort-laughing and was distracting my cubicle mate.
Fortunes Pawn/ Honor’s Knight/ Heaven’s Queen by Rachel Bach – Finally got around to reading the first book in the trilogy which, of course, ended with me having to read all three. The romance was slow to start but I really enjoyed how self-aware Devi was.
A Darker Shade of Magic/ A Gathering of Shadows by VE Schwab – I’m about halfway through the second book and am really enjoying the world building and the characterization.
Burnout: The Secret to Unlocking the Stress Cycle by Emily and Amelia Nagoski – I’m thankful to everyone who recommended this book and I will be passing it on to all the other women in my life.
Next up is Red, White and Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston which, based on the previous comments, is going to be a fantastic read.
I was travelling last month, enjoying a somewhat problematical vacation. So my reading was spotty and somewhat comfort-seaking. I even read Andrews’ Silver Shark yet again.
Down with Love (1) and Illegally Yours (2) in Kate Meaders’ Laws of Attraction series. I enjoyed the first of these, and put the second on hiatus. Sometimes I get an echo chamber effect when I read books in a series back to back. Usually I really like the first book, but some element in the second book either doesn’t resonate or resonates so much the bridge starts making wave motions. So book 1 is better than it should be from the blurb. I mean Divorce Lawyer and Wedding Planner–puh-leeez.The characters end up being quite likeable and not necessarily what I expected, so it turned out to be a fun read. The second book may actually be better than the first when I get back to it. The lawyer hero (partner to the hero of bk. 1) has a class clown streak, a British accent, and a very interesting back story, while the heroine is a mixed race whiskey sommelier with an equally interesting past. The problem was what seemed to be patterns is the plot structure. Sort of pick a trauma to make our hero(ine) relationship averse, then pick commonalities to bring them together, then toss in some not-to -be-resisted sex, and finally have them figure out that the other is not only a much better person than they first seemed but THE ONE. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 minutes, and–boom–HEA! So, yeah I’ll go back to this sometime after book one fades in memory and I can appreciate Illegally Yours on its own merits. I only mention this because this situation came up a couple of times this month. Grades: B & Incomplete
American Witch by Thea Harrison. I hadn’t read Harrison in a while, but she stays on my autobuy list for a reason. I really enjoyed this story of a witch coming into her powers in her mid-thirties and dealing with the betrayal of her cheating spouse with wrenching pain and amazing badass common sense. Set in the world of the Elder Races, yet only slightly related to the earlier series, this book really makes me look forward to future entries in the American Witch series. Grade: B
Dream a Little Dream by Antoinette Stockenberg. It took me a loooong time to finish this. It wasn’t a bad book, but at times it seemed a bit unwieldy. Stockenberg combines a romance with a mystery and a ghost story. The story has one of those really flimsy triangle wannabe plots that pretty much spoils mystery early and often, and the ghost story is just a frill. Still the initial premise of a castle transported from England to the US and then sought out by a descendant of the original owner was quite intriguing. The hero, Will, was surprisingly appealing and the heroine’s sister and grandparents were just delightful. Elinor, with her whining and her outbursts of anger, was. . . less so. Grade: C
Teach Me by Olivia Dade. This book might be my favorite book so far this year. I loved the high school setting and the mature, divorced, history teacher protagonists. I love characters who take damage and soldier on to become truly admirable adults who do the actual adulting so well. I was amazed to discover that I’d read the beginning novella and ~a third of the first novel in Dade’s Lovestruck Librarian series and basically couldn’t continue with the series at all. Based on Teach Me, I’m giving it a second chance. Grade: A!
One and Only (1) and It Takes Two (2) in Jenny Holiday’s Bridesmaids Behaving Badly series. One and Only was a fun, light read with endearing protagonists Jane and Cameron. Aside from the whole wedding tropefest, we’ve got a good girl/bad boy dynamic as well and all of it is very well executed. Then along comes It Takes Two. Remember my complaints about resonance between books in a series. Again with the wedding thing (see series title) mated (hur) with a second chance scenario. As with our previous MCs, youthful scars make these two hyper responsible lawyers relationship averse, but, naturally, true love triumphs. I bought books 2 & 3 based on the first one., but the third one’s on the back burner, due once again to that resonance thing. In this case, tons of details, the sequencing of the sexual encounters (is that weird?) as well as certain descriptive terms–not all sexual–set up that resonance thing in this series. I finished It Takes Two feeling like I’d read the first book over again with a blander and more annoying couple. When will I learn, you may ask. Grade B+ and C
Moonshadow (1), Spellbinder (2), and Lionheart (3) in the Moonshadow series by Thea Harrison. So American Witch sent me back to my Kindle to unearth my unread Thea Harrisons. At present, I’m reading Lionheart and expecting to thoroughly enjoy it. Moonshadow and Spellbinder were both great with the second, Morgan and Sidonie’s story, edging out Nik and Sophie’s, I may even go back and reread the Elder Races series, especially since Dragon Bound is one of my all time favorites. I guess this right here is why I never learn. Grades: B+, A, and Lookin’ Good.
@Maria Vale: YES! I loved Renault’s Alexandriad! There was a big push among certain fanfic circles in the early 2000s to read her books, especially “Fire From Heaven” and “The Persian Boy” (and finished off with “Funeral Games”). Mary Renault really crafted my longing for lyrical, highly-detailed ancient historical fiction, and Madeline Miller is rightly considered her literary heir. Renault’s Bagoas was clearly inspirational for Miller’s Patroclus. I quickly amassed and read all of Renault’s books, and Miller has been an auto buy for me since I saw that shiny hardcover of “Achilles” on the new book table at Barnes and Noble in 2012. I am most definitely jealous of anyone who is new to either author and is about to start their books.
I just finished The Rook by Daniel O’Malley (fantasy/mystery, not a romance) and it was delightful, so now I’m starting in on the sequel, Stiletto.
Okay, so I just picked up “A Taste of Honey” by Kai Ashante Wilson and it looks a lot like the beautiful queer fantasy romance between a Roman-esque soldier and a handsome Black distant relation to a royal family that I didn’t know I needed. Also, the cover is gorgeous.
“Long after the Towers left the world but before the dragons came to Daluça, the emperor brought his delegation of gods and diplomats to Olorum. As the royalty negotiates over trade routes and public services, the divinity seeks arcane assistance among the local gods. Aqib bmg Sadiqi, fourth-cousin to the royal family and son of the Master of Beasts, has more mortal and pressing concerns. His heart has been captured by a handsome Daluçan soldier named Lucrio. They become swept up in a whirlwind romance, but neither Aqib nor Lucrio know whether their love can survive all the hardships the world has to throw at them.”
Deep diving into the library’s Victoria Holts for a blast from my past. Predictable and comforting, although i can’t say why all these uncommonly beautiful eighteen year olds hang out at mysterious old manor houses…
@Allison
THE ROOK is delightful!!! I’m not sure if I’m going to watch the show or not though.
Recent reads here ~
— Unfettered III: this is a fantasy anthology that could be described as a tome due to its seven hundred plus pages. I tried every story; many I finished, others I did not. I particularly enjoyed the stories of Seanan McGuire, Naomi Novik, Callie Bates, Lev Grossman, Marc Turner, Anna Stephens, Megan Lindholm, Cat Rambo, and Scott Sigler. Some of these authors were already known to me, others were not.
— The Goblin Emperor which I reread for the, uh, nth time. I enjoyed it once again.
— I also read about fifty book samples of the hundreds I have on my Kindle.
— Expendable (League of Peoples) by James Alan Gardner was a science fiction novel with an unusual premise; I was kept guessing and often did not foresee where the story would go. I enjoyed it.
— His Steadfast Love and Other Stories by Paul Brownsey is a collection of stories by one author. I enjoyed some of the stories, others left me unmoved.
— the short work Skybound by Aleksandr Voinov. I found its setting (WWII Germany) and characters (pilot and plane mechanic) unusual for a romance which added to my enjoyment.
— Ben Aaronovitch’s Lies Sleeping. This is number seven in the Rivers of London series. I look forward to the next volume.
— The Enchanted Hour: The Miraculous Power of Reading Aloud in the Age of Distraction by Meghan Cox Gurdon which was both sobering and enjoyable to read. This would be a good book to give to new parents. It reminds me of Jim Trelease’s The Read-Aloud Handbook but with fewer book recommendations and with added material about the importance of reading aloud at ALL ages.
@Kareni – Have you read the Miles Vorkosigan series by Lois McMaster Bujold? It’s got some of the outsider vibe of Goblin Emperor and the Linesman series. It’s SF, not Romance though he gets an HEA in one of the last books in the series.
I read LADY DERRING TAKES A LOVER, which I had mixed feelings about. At first I really liked it, because I loved the developing friendship between two of the women and the work they put in to start a boarding house. The more I thought about it, though, the more issues I had with the book overall. The romance never grabbed me, the smuggling plot didn’t work, and the author uses a writing quirk that I particularly dislike (lots of very short, one sentence paragraphs, and incomplete sentences.)
I mostly read non-romance this month. I loved Colleen Hoover’s IT ENDS WITH US, but it’s helpful to know that while it begins like a traditional romance novel, it doesn’t end like one. It’s a very good look at how a bad relationship happens, and why someone stays in one.
I also read PIECES OF HER by Karin Slaughter and THE ROYAL SECRET by Lucinda Riley. Both were mystery/suspense novels, and I enjoyed them both without being blown away by either. I did enjoy the 90’s setting for The Royal Secret, as I think mysteries are more fun when modern tech isn’t in play. Plus, it made me nostalgic for my year abroad in England in the early 90s.
For a very throw-back comfort read, I re-read Mercedes Lackey’s Arrows of the Queen trilogy. Even though bad things happen in her stories, they always sound so much like really interesting bedtime stories that I find them relaxing. And she was one of the early fantasy writers to write about gay characters as normal people.
I also read The Stillwater Girls by Minka Kent (thanks, Bitches) and enjoyed it. Not scary so much as kind of creepy.
I won The League of Orbis Novus by C.C. Prestel in a Goodreads giveaway. This is about a young cub reporter who falls into a huge conspiracy to “cure” addiction. Which all goes wrong and lethal. It is an interesting action tale. In addition, it raises some interesting questions. As a physician, I have some thoughts about addiction, prevention, autonomy, etc. This was a chance to think about all this again. I did, also, have to suspend a certain amount of scientific/medical disbelief and was OK with that.
Her last ie by Amanda Brittany is one of those “who can you trust” books about a young woman targeted by two different serial killers at two different times in her life. Mildly over the top and trying for a twist at the end. I enjoyed it.
Had a couple DNFs but may be due to stress in my life so will try later.
Also let my grandson sign me up for OKCupid and spending a lot of time reading profiles and deleting men who want to cheat on their wives with me. I think I like romance and fantasy novels better.
Read You, Me, US by Brigitte Bautista – an ff contemp romance set in the Philippines. Bought it on sale – it’s very good but unusual.
Also read the latest Annabeth Albert but didn’t love it.
@HeatherS. I’m so glad to know that Mary Renault’s books have a new following. Also, if you like that kind of rich historical writing, I always suggest Great Maria by Cecilia Holland, set in Italy during the late 11th century. The writing is like Renault’s, detailed and necessary and Maria herself, from her early teens, is a force to be reckoned with but in a way that jibes with the realities of the day. I’d loved it when I first read it and then read it again a couple of years ago, terrified that it wouldn’t hold up. It did.
@MaryK, I recently read Shards of Honor by Lois McMaster Bujold . I look forward to reading more in the series and getting to know Miles. Thank you for the suggestion.
::::falls in to the strains of Tiny Dancer, because my daughter had her dance recital today and it was 4 hours and I’m tired:::
Let’s see, I left off on Fall of Giants by Ken Follett. The writing felt more workmanlik to mee than in his Pillars of the Earth series, perhaps because I know more about World War I than medieval cathedral building, but I really enjoyed many of the characters, as well as, weirdly, the sense of foreboding that hung over the last chapter, as some of the characters could already see the events in motion that would eventually lead to the Second World War. Then, because I like to do a nice 180 here and there, I read Little White Lies by Jennifer Lynn Barnes. I had previously read and really enjoyed her Fixer series, and was like, “Oh, evil Southern debutantes, SIGN ME UP”. Well, they were Southern and sneaky, but honestly, that book needed to be a touch twistier. Moar evil, please. I feel like there was some unfulfilled potential there. Which brings us to today, in which I’m reading The Death of Mrs. Westaway, and really enjoying it. I really like the main character, and how she’s written as being a very skilled cold reader that applies those skills in giving people tarot readings. I see a lot of the reviews comparing her books to Dame Agatha’s, and they definitely have that same kind of twisty Gothic tone to them. Until next time, look up, point your toes, and leave your glasses off because you can’t get stage fright if you can’t see the audience.