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Just One Damned Thing After Another
RECOMMENDED: Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor is 99c! Redheadedgirl read this one and gave it a B:
If you’re a fan of Connie Willis, I would suggest you give this series a try. It doesn’t take itself quite so seriously, and Max as a heroine and audience surrogate is a lot of fun. It’s potentially a commitment, given that there are 9 books and a bunch of novellas, but I’m looking forward to making a dent in my TBR pile to read the next book.
“History is just one damned thing after another” – Arnold Toynbee
A madcap new slant on history that seems to be everyone’s cup of tea…
Behind the seemingly innocuous façade of St Mary’s, a different kind of historical research is taking place. They don’t do ‘time-travel’ – they ‘investigate major historical events in contemporary time’. Maintaining the appearance of harmless eccentrics is not always within their power – especially given their propensity for causing loud explosions when things get too quiet.
Meet the disaster-magnets of St Mary’s Institute of Historical Research as they ricochet around History. Their aim is to observe and document – to try and find the answers to many of History’s unanswered questions…and not to die in the process.
But one wrong move and History will fight back – to the death. And, as they soon discover – it’s not just History they’re fighting.
Follow the catastrophe curve from eleventh-century London to World War I, and from the Cretaceous Period to the destruction of the Great Library at Alexandria. For wherever Historians go, chaos is sure to follow in their wake…
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The Ex Hex
The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling is $2.99! This is a light paranormal romance with some witchy elements. This one was…sweeter? More twee? than I had thought it’d be. I hope you get what I’m trying to say here.
New York Times bestselling author Rachel Hawkins, writing as Erin Sterling, casts a spell with a spine-tingling romance full of wishes, witches, and hexes gone wrong.
Nine years ago, Vivienne Jones nursed her broken heart like any young witch would: vodka, weepy music, bubble baths…and a curse on the horrible boyfriend. Sure, Vivi knows she shouldn’t use her magic this way, but with only an “orchard hayride” scented candle on hand, she isn’t worried it will cause him anything more than a bad hair day or two.
That is until Rhys Penhallow, descendent of the town’s ancestors, breaker of hearts, and annoyingly just as gorgeous as he always was, returns to Graves Glen, Georgia. What should be a quick trip to recharge the town’s ley lines and make an appearance at the annual fall festival turns disastrously wrong. With one calamity after another striking Rhys, Vivi realizes her silly little Ex Hex may not have been so harmless after all.
Suddenly, Graves Glen is under attack from murderous wind-up toys, a pissed off ghost, and a talking cat with some interesting things to say. Vivi and Rhys have to ignore their off the charts chemistry to work together to save the town and find a way to break the break-up curse before it’s too late.
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All Scot and Bothered
All Scot and Bothered by Kerrigan Byrne is $1.49 at Amazon and $1.99 elsewhere! Thanks to everyone who let us know about this sale. This is book two in the Devil You Know historical romance series. Be warned that Byrne’s historicals can be rather dark and graphic, so check content warnings.
They are a dangerous duke, a fierce lord, and an infamous earl—dark, bold, brave men who know exactly what they want. And there is only one woman who can bring them to their knees…
He is first and foremost—at everything. A man who’s made his own way in the world through ruthless cunning and sheer force of will. A strong and imposing Scot who can turn on the charm but does not suffer fools. His title: Lord Chief Justice of the High Court. His name: Cassius Gerard Ramsay. His mission: To investigate the goings-on at London’s most notorious gaming hell, owned and operated by one of the most intriguing and desirable women he’s ever met.
IN THIS GAME OF LOVE, THE RULES DO NOT APPLY
Cecelia Teague was an orphan facing a rather dire future—until a secret benefactor from her mother’s scandalous past swept into her life. Sent to prestigious boarding school and later to university, Cecelia believed high society was at her fingertips…Then, from out of nowhere, she became the inheritor of a gambling establishment. Now Cecelia must live two lives: one as a proper lady who finds herself undeniably drawn to Lord Ramsay and the other as a savvy gaming hell owner trying to save her business from the very same man. He has no idea she is both women…and Cecelia would like to keep it that way. But what happens when consuming passion and escalating danger threaten to reveal the truth?
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The View Was Exhausting
The View Was Exhausting by Mikaella Clements and Onjuli Datta $2.99! I mentioned this one on a previous Get Rec’d for hardcover romance readers, though I believe it’s coming out in paperback soon. Lots of tropes here – fake dating, celebrities, and friends to lovers.
Daisy Jones and the Six meets Crazy Rich Asians in this escapist, swoon-worthy debut novel of a famous actress embroiled in a fake tabloid romance, confronting the challenges of being a woman of color in Hollywood and the notion that she might actually be in love.
Faking a love story is a whole lot easier than being in love . . .
The world can see that international A-list actress Whitman (“Win”) Tagore and jet-setting playboy Leo Milanowski are made for each other. Their kisses start Twitter trends and their fights break the internet. From red carpet appearances to Met Gala mishaps, their on-again, off-again romance has titillated the public and the press for almost a decade. But it’s all a lie.As a woman of color, Win knows the Hollywood deck is stacked against her, so she’s perfected the art of controlling her public persona. Whenever she nears scandal, she calls in Leo, with his endearingly reckless attitude, for a staged date. Each public display of affection shifts the headlines back in Win’s favor, and Leo uses the good press to draw attention away from his dysfunctional family.
But pretending to be in a passionate romance can only lead to one thing . . . trouble. So instead they settle for friendship, with a side of sky-rocketing chemistry. Except this time, on the French Riviera, something is off. A shocking secret in Leo’s past sets Win’s personal and professional lives on a catastrophic collision course. Behind the scenes of their yacht-trips and PDA, the world’s favorite couple is at each other’s throats. Now they must finally confront the many truths and lies of their relationship, and Win is forced to consider what is more important: a rising career, or a risky shot at real love?
THE VIEW WAS EXHAUSTING is a funny, whip-smart modern love story set against the backdrop of exotic locales and the realities of being a woman of color in a world run by men.
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The Ex Hex is fluffy and sweet for sure. I was expecting something a little witchier and darker. There is some interesting magic worldbuilding but mostly it felt cozy. The characters are likeable, there’s banter, some silly magical mishaps, that sort of thing. Hoping for more of the talking cat in book 2.
Jodi Taylor’s series was recommended to me as a Connie Willis read alike, so I tried book 1 and couldn’t get past some unnecessarily dark scenes. Check content warnings.
For more fantasy romances (and romantic fantasies), 21 are on sale for 99c/99p or free for the next few days in the #FaRoFae sale (including my book Thornbound, A.J. Lancaster’s The Lord of Stariel, and many more).
There’s a one day sale going on now – 500 romances are free today at https://www.romancebookworms.com/
@Escapeologist I agree! I read Just One Damned Thing After Another and was really enjoying it, funny, cool premise, good characters, and then the events in prehistoric times happened. Major tone shift into creepy town, and not the good kind of creepy . . . I finished the book but did not continue with the series. YMMV
Definitely check content warnings.
As @Escapologist says, the St Mary’s books are an odd mix of light-hearted and graphically violent. I bailed on the series after the first couple of books. The violence is (mostly) historical and true to the time period in which it occurs — history is full of ugly events. But it’s still jarring and IMO unnecessary. Go dark or go light, but don’t try to do both in the same book.
The Ex Hex is my pick, but I’m yoinking One Damn Thing After Another because it sounds like fun. Also this isn’t my favorite Byrne, but I remember it being pretty good.
@Cleo: thanks for the heads-up about the free books. I just downloaded several–because I don’t have a thing to read, lol.
@DDD – Right?! I’ve gotten much, much better at only buying ebooks that I’m actually going to read but I’m still a bit of a book hoarder when it comes to the freebies. And I do like how this giveaway lets you browse by different categories – so much easier to find something that looks good.
I’m always in the minority about Taylor’s St. Mary’s books. Not that the warnings don’t have merit, but I still love them (and the connected Time Police series). It’s true the books can be utterly heartbreaking and distressing for a variety of reasons. History buffs can probably weather those related aspects, but I think some readers struggle with the physical/emotional trauma that’s inflicted on (by?) main characters on occasion. I’m still on board with St. Mary’s, but I think Taylor may have crossed my personal line with the latest book in her Elizabeth Cage series.
tl;dr–it’s definitely a YMMV situation.
I was disappointed in Ex Hex – I found the characters underdeveloped, the plot non-existent, and the world-building weak. There were some fun moments (the cat was great), but not enough to redeem the book for me.
Thanks @Cleo for the list of free books. I’m going to check out the list!
THE VIEW WAS EXHAUSTING is a really clever book about fame, perception, gender, and race. Win struggles to have a perfect public image in order to give directors and producers no excuse for not casting her, but this lands her in impossible situations with her private life. Helping Win makes wealthy playboy Leo feel useful. In spite of the fact that he’s a celebrity his own right, Leo’s relative privilege prevents him from understanding the game that Win has to play. His latest effort to help ends up backfiring terribly on Win, forcing her to reevaluate how she will navigate her career going forward.
Amongst the free books is Into the Fire: The Complete Series by Mia West which I recall @DDD recommending.
@Kareni: yes, indeed! INTO THE FIRE (which consists of 11 interconnected novellas & short stories) was one of my favorite reads in 2021. It covers several decades in the lives of two men (a former soldier and a blacksmith) in the years following the fall of the Roman Empire. It leads into West’s SONS OF BRITAIN series (the MCs of INTO THE FIRE are Arthur’s grandfathers). Highly recommended—and you can’t beat the price right now!
I love St. Marys, but yes, they include all the ugly along with the funny.
The Devil in her Bed by Kerrigan Byrne is also 1.49 at Amazon.
I’m in the same minority as Susan. I unreservedly love the Chronicles of St. Mary’s series (but I recognize it may not be everyone’s cup of tea).