It’s the first Whatcha Reading in July. Here’s how we’re kicking off the month:
Lara: I’ve just started Bald-Faced Liar by Victoria Helen Stone. ( A ) I’m only a chapter or so in, but I’m enjoying it so far. Will report back!
Amanda: I’m happy to report I read four books in a week. WHO AM I?! Most of them have been rather middling dark romances. For a change of pace, I realized I never finished the Girl Meets Duke series by Tessa Dare. I’m going to breeze through books two and three, since I think both will work for bingo categories.
Sarah: Four books? And historicals?!
What have you done with Amanda?
Elyse: I’m back into historicals as well. I think given my anxiety over current events (climate change, healthcare, human rights) I can’t read a contemporary without getting pulled out of it by my brain.
I was reading a contemporary where the heroine owned her own small business and my brain was like right but how does she get health insurance and will her rates soar in the next year causing her to close shop and she lives in a small town where there aren’t a lot of employment opportunities to begin with and also …
Sarah: “Not here. Not now.”
Elyse: Which isn’t to say things weren’t shitty in the past.
Sarah: Oh, for sure.
It’s sort of like the “Earl had to die” genre. Fits a lot of different types of books. “Not here. Not now” fits for fantasy, sci-fi, mysteries, etc. I also have let go entirely of the idea that historical romance is anywhere near an accurate representation of the past. To quote Melody from Heaving Bosoms, it’s “Englandtimes.”
Amanda: Actually, I read 5! And one was a re-read. Certainly I’ve been body snatched. I would also make the bad decision of starting a book at 10pm and know I can read pretty quickly, I’d be like, “Well, Kindle says if I keep up my pace, I can be done in an hour and a half.” So most of my books were finished between 10pm-1am.
Elyse: I also think I have reached a point in perimenopause where I can’t read a lot of dark romance because my tolerance for masculine bullshit is at an all time low. Oh he’s stalking you? Hit him with your car. Fuck that guy.
Amanda: Oh that’s so interesting! Because I think the ridiculous, over-the-topness of dark romance feels more like escapist fantasy to me. I noticed that I read those faster when compared to the historicals because everything is taken with a grain of salt.
Claudia: I’m slogging through one historical right now that shall remain nameless because it’s not the book, it’s ME.
I just can’t focus right now.
Elyse: Season 2 of The Buccaneers and season 3 of The Gilded Age are out now so that’s also influencing me.
I started a historical where the heroine’s big problem is her boob falls out of her dress at a ball and that is basically the level of conflict I can emotionally handle.
Sarah: I am reading one of the Osman covered mysteries: The Assassin’s Guide to County Gardening
I wasn’t sure if it was going to work but then the assassin told a terrible man what he would do if the terrible man didn’t stop being terrible and I was ON BOARD.
Tara: I listened to The AI Con by Emily M. Bender and Alex Hanna, ( A | BN | K | AB ) which I highly recommend. The whole thing is excellent, but my favourite chapter is the one that explains why AI boosters and AI doomers are two sides of the same marketing hype coin.
I also recently finished A Rare Find by Joanna Lowell, which was very cozy and lovely.
Claudia: I have that last one in my queue. I really like Joanna Lowell’s writing.
Whatcha reading this month? Let us know in the comments!
My main goal during the summer is filling Bingo squares. I’d like to max out my opportunities, so I’ve made a spreadsheet to organize the potential Bingo titles in my TBR pile. There’s a part of me that’s shaking its metaphorical head because I get so invested in anything with even a whiff of competition. Even just Pam v. Pam.
The Earl Who Isn’t by Courtney Milan
I chose this for the Immigrant MC Bingo category, since I’ve been meaning to read it for ages. I may replace it if I can find a better match. I was actually a little disappointed in this book. It was well written, but at times I found it a lttle stilted, especially in the dialogue. There were some strong social justice themes in this book, and the characters’ delivery of said themes was extremely unsubtle. I am not in disagreement with any of these views, but I didn’t feel they were well integrated into the romance. The book ended better than it began though, with a cool twist to the HEA.
Emily Wilde’s Compendium of Lost Tales by Heather Fawcett
So, I’m reading this for the Cover with No People Bingo square. It’s reading more like a creepy travelogue than a romance at the 40% mark. At this point I’m really liking Taran. He’s a psychopath, but an interesting one. [I’m taking a midbook break.] I finally finished this, and I can see why it got mixed reviews. Emily comments several times on the importance of stories to the world of Faerie. Her scholarship is centered on the collection and analysis of stories, and she uses those stories to solve practical problems. Stories are content, but they are also guardrails, so how do you reconcile the need for structure or, at least, parameters with an essentially irrational world. There are a number of events in this book that diverge from the expected in unsettling ways, raising the question of whether Faerie’s whimsical, amoral nature justifies the direction that the larger story takes. Some of Emily’s and Wendell’s problems are solved in ways that feel unearned, and that undermines the satisfaction of the “happy” ending. I suspect there will be more from Wilde/Fawcett. At least the Faerie door is open. I just don’t know whether I’ll venture through again.
Silver Shark by Ilona Andrews
Reread. This novella is one of my favorite comfort rereads. It is a 138 page gem. I’d call it flawless except for the somewhat abrupt ending. I love Claire and Venturo so hard, and I wanted that final ass-kicking so bad. I may read the third Kinsman novella as well. We’ll see.
Fated Blades by Ilona Andrews
Reread. This is the longest of the Kinsman books, and the deadliest. There is a high and bloody body count. This is also a Romeo and Juliet story where the lovers only suffer flesh wounds en route to an actual HEA. I think the Kinsman stories have the best setting of all of House Andrews’ books. I love the color, the culture, the food, and the barely sheathed violence of Rada and the province of Dahlia. And now, back to our regularly scheduled programming.
The Fall Risk by Abby Jimenez
I enjoyed this delightful short story of two strangers stranded on the second floor by some misplaced demolition. The clever well-constructed plot and characters packed a lot of goodies into a small package. There’s no sex and a truncated timeline for falling in love, but the story’s solid. CW for stalking and some highly satisfying violence.
Unlikely Story by Ali Rosen
I picked this because the blurb referred to renovations, but they turned out to be peripheral. I enjoyed this very New York romance, in spite of the fact that the romance didn’t start until I was a quarter of the way into it. That first 25% was a cross between confessional and therapist mode, with no real chemistry happening. However, like turning into a newt, it got better. This book is well written, but the single first person narrator sets a very deliberate pace. Nora’s interest is divided between an anonymous work colleague, J., and her angry disruptive neighbor Eli. The ending is never going to be a surprise, but the journey is worthwhile yet very shrinky.
Tribute by Nora Roberts
This work of romantic suspense is the best I’ve read by Roberts in years. Published in 2009, it holds up very well. It blends celebrity, renovation, and artistic elements for lovers of competence pr0n. The mystery is solid and had me befuddled to the end. I enjoyed the large cast of supporting characters and family members, but I adored the protagonists, Cilla and Ford. For me, reading Nora Roberts is always about family dynamics, but this one placed a little more weight on building the relationship between Ford and Cilla, and I really liked that. Also this one is a much better Renovation Romance than Unlikely Story if you’re doing the Bingo thing.
Need You Now by Nicole Helm
I picked this to fill the Western Romance Bingo square, as I’m not into cowboys. Brett Maverick was more my speed. Sadly, this was not that. It was about a family owned Colorado adventure company built as penance for the closure of Daddy’s mine. I really started disliking this book early and often. The writing was meh. Too much (in)action took place in the MC’s heads, and it was so repetitive. The protagonists and their assorted family members were all victims of horrible parents, and that seemed to be their sole motivation for every, single thing. None of the villains actually appear in the book, so it comes off as one long whinge.There was a single, talky, chapter-long sex scene midbook, then some more shit happens, none of it good. So depressing. Even the red herrings were depressing. I thought about quitting, but I ended up hate reading to the end. Basically, this book was not for me.(It does have a great Inclement Weather Scene though.)
Chasing Fire by Nora Roberts
Roberts’s ode to smoke jumpers reminds me of nothing so much as MASH in it’s depiction of men and women doing high stakes work under the pressure of battlefield conditions and the powerful bonds that emerge and ultimately keep these firefighters alive. It’s not simply the struggle against deadly western wildfires that conveys this bond but the camaraderie and goofy humor among the Zulies. Two parallel love stories, a huge and excellent cast of characters, edge of your seat firefighting scenes, and a harrowing murder mystery earn this 2011 thriller my wholehearted appreciation. THIS is my pick for Western Romance.
Everything But a Groom by Holly Jacobs
I’ve read a lot of “left at the altar“ stories that worked well for me, but I’m trying to make a good faith effort to read books I haven’t read before. Hence I chose a book by a new to me author. Sadly this book was not for me. The writing is not bad but kind of basic. The plot is simple, straightforward, and repetitive as hell. The characters are puddle deep and include twin plot moppets. The story was sentimental, “clean,” and sweet. Everybody is good and kind and wants the best for everyone else, and the jilted bride finds true love in two weeks. So, so not for me.
Behooved by M Stevenson
Initially I was seduced by the cover of Behooved, but the clever title also appealed to me. (I never say neigh to a juicy pun.) Happily, this romantic fantasy did not disappoint. In order to fulfill her aristocratic parents’ expectations, Bianca allows herself to be betrothed to Aric, heir apparent to a neighboring kingdom. Despite suffering from a chronic health issue, Bianca is determined to perform her duties flawlessly. However, when she and Aric are attacked on their wedding night and trigger an unstable spell, they are forced to gallop into the night and embrace the unexpected adventure that follows. I picked this for the Magic! Bingo square, and it was an absolute delight. Recommended.
Manila Takes Manhattan by Carla de Guzman
So I thought I might use this book for the Immigrant MC Bingo square instead of my previous choice. I’m still undecided, but I’m very glad that I read this book. After an unplanned one nighter, Filipino music composer/producer Mon and Filipina American actor Olivia discover that they are working on the same movie. Awkwardness ensues and then subsides as Olivia and Mon get to know each other. This story is steeped in Philippine culture, NYC culture, and the arts, lively and static. The language and character development are stellar. Recommended.
On Loverose Lane by Samantha Young
I found this to be a very solid sports romance with likable protagonists and a huge cast of supporting characters. Told from dual first person points of view, this story picks up as Beth, adult daughter of the couple from On Dublin Street, reconnects with her first love, Scottish futbol player, Callan. This includes several flashbacks to their short-lived teen romance. Their adult relationship starts as hostile neighbors, then evolves from steamy encounters to deeper feelings over time. Both Beth and Callan are dealing with trauma from their youth, and each supports the other in dealing with it. My only issue with this book is that Beth’s huge extended family is a mite confusing, especially since it’s been quite awhile since I read On Dublin Street and a couple? . . . few? of its sequels. The fam is otherwise pretty entertaining. I’m using it for the Class Differences Bingo square, but it’s also Sport Romance (soccer) and First in a Series. So, recommended.
And just in passing, I’m finding the Summer Romance Bingo an excellent tool for digging myself out of several reading ruts that I didn’t know I was stuck in.
Best new (to me) thing I read was THE FAST AND THE DEAD by Anuja Chauhan. Solid murder mystery, with romantic elements but much more of an ensemble piece. It’s the second in a series that none of my libraries has the first one of, and I hate reading out of order but I don’t think it matters much here. Well paced, fun, engaging, and the detective and his wife are very much in love which is not in any way the focus of the story. I imprinted on Nick and Nora, and Sherlock and Watson for that matter, so that’s a choice I really appreciate.
Everything else has been fine, whatever. Oh, Taylor Fitzpatrick continues to update AO3 stories so that’s new adjacent, and excellent. I have so much baffled, desperate hope for Robbie and Georgie, like I see them glacially slowly moving forward and I want all the good things for them both – but how one earth they would get there, even with the deus ex therapist intervention of Saul, is incomprehensible. I can’t even begin to imagine how Holden will get his shit together but I am here for it. And Gabe and Stephen being reworked?! It’s all delicious.
I have not been reading towards Bingo squares, because I am extremely aware of my reading ruts but have no real desire to get out of them. I mean, I worked out a way to have KJ Charles apply to just about every square, so I guess I am doing bingo reading? Except I was just rereading THE WILL DARLING ADVENTURES because I felt like it, I forget if it applies to anything. The female couple have no on page sex scenes and it’s still hotter than most erotica, their chemistry is pure fire. Will and Kim remain one of the hottest pairings Charles has ever written, in part simply because they have three whole books for it to develop, but they start off sizzling and their desire for each other never wanes. Such good stuff.
Oh, and I can recommend a children’s book although that’s actually well outside my comfort zone thank you. It’s because visiting children, and because I will in a pinch read any printed matter in my vicinity. THE WITCHES OF BROOKLYN was adorable, definitely recommend if you’re even vaguely into that sort of thing. I do like witches, and I love a graphic novel generally, although my preferred graphic novels tend to have a lot of violence. For example I’m obsessed with DARBI which is very very much not for children, although, of course, the kids found and devoured it. I am lucky the parents still speak to me lol.
THE IRRESISITABLE URGE OF FALLING IN LOVE WITH YOUR ENEMY, Brigitte Knightly, loosely based on her widely popular Dramione fanfiction DMATMOOBIL. I just started it and loving it so far. It’s more of a comedy than romantasy, which I really enjoy but that might not be everyone’s cup of tea. The worldbuilding seems a tad shaky but the story has so far plenty of differences from DMATMOOBIL to keep me entertained.
These days, I don’t read much outside the romance genre, so I surprised myself by reading two Catriona Ward horror novels back-to-back: THE LAST HOUSE ON NEEDLESS STREET and LOOKING GLASS SOUND. Both books are extremely well-written with evocative descriptions of the natural world (the Pacific Northwest and coastal Maine, respectively) along with the darker elements of what humans are capable of doing to each other (these are horror novels, after all, and it goes without saying that both books are full of triggers, so please take care if you plan to read either book). In THE LAST HOUSE ON NEEDLESS STREET, Dee has spent her entire adult life obsessively searching for the person who abducted her younger sister from a crowded lakefront when they were children. Her search brings her to Needless Street and a reclusive man named Ted who lives with his daughter, Lauren, and a cat named Olivia. In Ted’s mind, present & past are always colliding, he forgets things, time passes without him noticing, and objects have a funny way of moving, breaking, and being repaired (so much of what happens from Ted’s POV reminded me of Samuel Beckett’s work, especially MOLLOY). Lauren appears even less reliable, vacillating wildly between a sweet child who only wants to draw & color and a screaming terror who petrifies Ted. Only Olivia (yes, the cat has an internal monologue) seems in any way factually trustworthy. NEEDLESS STREET is twisty & turn-y in the best ways; and, while the story is in no way a romance, it does end on a rather hopeful note with the start of a new friendship—including the possibility of something more.
By contrast, LOOKING GLASS SOUND initially appears to be a straightforward narrative of a young man remembering two idyllic summers of his teenage years when he and two friends spent their days fishing, swimming, and playing together in the title location. Wilder stays in a cabin owned by his parents (whose relationship is fraught, to say the least). He meets and becomes fast friends with Harper, a troubled girl from a wealthy British family, and Nathaniel, the son of a local fisherman. The trio’s golden days are marred only by the specter of the women who have gone missing (presumed drowned) over the years, and a disturbing situation involving Polaroids being taken of sleeping children at night. Even after the events have resolved themselves (about halfway through the book), the story seems to be following a fairly common narrative arc: Wilder moves on to college where his roommate, Sky, becomes a good friend. But then, the story suddenly gets turned on its head, making us question everything that has come before. Just when we think we might have a solid grasp on what is actually happening, the same pulling out the rug from under the reader’s feet recurs. All the pieces do finally come together, with the loose ends getting tied up in a satisfying if rather melancholy way. As I finished LOOKING GLASS SOUND, the book I was most reminded of was John Fowles’s THE FRENCH LIEUTENANT’S WOMAN with its multiple endings before the ending. I recommend both THE LAST HOUSE ON NEEDLESS STREET and LOOKING GLASS SOUND, with the caveat that these are horror novels. Decide whether to read accordingly.
[CW/TW: suicide ideation, sexual assault, mental health struggles] Leslie McAdams’s NOTORIOUS is an odd book. On the surface, it’s a “getting drunk married in Vegas and deciding to try to make a go of it” story, but what it actually is the story of how a man, contemplating suicide and suffering from PTSD following a sexual assault, gradually gets healthier and falls in love with his husband. Kurt, a politician’s son who is running for office himself, wakes up married to Johnny, aka Velvet the Cowboy, a former porn star. At this point you have to suspend disbelief to accept that someone as politically connected as Kurt would decide to stay married to a porn star just to avoid looking “flaky”. As time goes by, it’s obvious that Johnny is dealing with some very serious mental health issues. With Kurt’s support, Johnny enters in-patient care where therapy and medication start helping him. There’s also a major subplot regarding Johnny’s sick mother (most of Johnny’s earnings have been going to support her). We also discover that Johnny was the victim of a porn producer who roofied him and then filmed Johnny being violently assaulted by a number of men. While most of the story is gentle (the guys adopt a puppy, Johnny gets a job taking care of horses), there’s a shocking act of violence toward the end which I’m guessing was supposed to be cathartic but instead just comes out of nowhere and adds nothing to the storyline:
I could see that happening in a dark romance, but NOTORIOUS is decidedly not dark. I don’t think the book would have suffered greatly if that scene had been omitted. As I said, NOTORIOUS is an odd book where serious/fluffy/heartwarming/dark sit cheek-by-jowl, not always successfully. I really can’t recommend it—there are better books that address the same subjects…without the mind-boggling violence toward the end.
I forced myself to take a break from Sister Frevisse mysteries b/c I wanted to read a fast paced “pool/beach read” in the lazy river at our local public pool. I picked Alice Feeney’s GOOD BAD GIRL and it definitely delivered. I gulped it down in days and then dropped it off in a little free library. A baby disappeared 20 years ago. It is all somehow related somehow to 3 women in the present day who are entangled in a murder at a nursing home, but it doesn’t all become clear till the end. This one has a lot to say about troubled mother and daughter relationships and at times it got a little ridiculous with coincidences (I feel this is a perennial problem with ‘domestic thrillers’) but it was still a lot of fun. I was only about a half step ahead of the characters, so just enough to feel clever but not enough to feel like they were stupid. Better than DAISY DARkER but not as good as ROCK PAPER SCISSORS (still my favorite of these). I’m trying a lot of other things and nothing is really grabbing me, so I may be heading back to Sister Frevisse mysteries sooner rather than later.
Hello, SBTB!
I have been reading a lot. Two highlights were A FOOLISH FLIRTATION by Alice Coldbreath – M/F Victorian, tangential to her prizefighter books. Excellent. I love Coldbreath’s Victorian romances – I reread them often. Emotional depth, warm, good heat level – just great books. Highly recommend.
HOW TO TAME A WILD ROGUE by Julie Anne Long. M/F Stranded by a storm, piratical/privateer and lady (class differences or weather event for the bingo card!) and excellent. Not all of the books in this series have worked for me, but this one totally did. Believable, beautiful emotional growth, good heat level – it was a lovely, romantic book. I was a little impatient about the time spent on characters from previous books, but otherwise excellent. Highly recommend.
Thank you for posting! I am gearing up for a beach vacation and will rely heavily on all of your recommendations.
Enjoy the summer!
Sorry if I am double posting — having some trouble with my computer. Also, I agree that the Summer Romance Bingo card is a great way to dig through the TBR pile and try new things.
Hello, SBTB!
I have been reading a lot. Two highlights were A FOOLISH FLIRTATION by Alice Coldbreath – M/F Victorian, tangential to her prizefighter books. Excellent. I love Coldbreath’s Victorian romances – I reread them often. Emotional depth, warm, good heat level – just great books. Highly recommend.
HOW TO TAME A WILD ROGUE by Julie Anne Long. M/F Stranded by a storm, piratical/privateer and lady (class differences for the bingo card!) and excellent. Not all of the books in this series have worked for me, but this one totally did. Believable, beautiful emotional growth, good heat level – it was a lovely, romantic book. I was a little impatient about the time spent on characters from previous books, but otherwise excellent. Highly recommend.
Thank you for posting! I am gearing up for a beach vacation and will rely heavily on all of your recommendations.
Enjoy the summer!
WOULD RECOMMEND
AI SNAKE OIL by Arvind Narayanan and Sayash Kapoor. This is a great book and I highly recommend it if you want to get an understanding of the current AI landscape. So much of how AI is covered in the press is terrible: it’s either breathless rewording of corporate press releases or misguided philosophical takes that have no basis in the reality of what AI can actually do. Read this book if you want the point of view of people who actually understand the technology and have done the heavy lifting of reading through the research for you. And fear not – this is not a book that can only be read by those who love math. There’s no equations or graphs in here.
GUILD HUNTER by Nalini Singh. I’m still happily working my way through this series. I’m nearly done book 14.
THE TWO WEEK ROOMMATE by Roxie Noir. New to me author. I’m only part way through, but so far I’m enjoying the chemistry between the MCs.
NOPE
QUIET by Susan Cain. I gave up on this one after a couple of chapters. This book desperately needs citations. I don’t want to read a book that talks about actual research without citations. Others here warned me that it wasn’t their cup of tea either, so I know I’m not alone.
@PamG: I’m also reading EMILY WILDE’S COMPENDIUM OF LOST TALES by Heather Fawcett. I hope the author writes more books set in this world.
Up next, I’ll probably read some more cozy fantasies like THAT TIME I GOT DRUNK AND SAVED A DEMON by Kimberly Lemming and THE ENCHANTED GREENHOUSE by Sarah Beth Durst.
I also want to binge out Murderbot on Apple TV+ now that the season is finished. I need to finish reading the books too.
I am also sick of the summer heat/humidity and wish we could skip ahead to fall. LOL. Stay cool out there, everyone! 🙂
I was on vacation at the end of June (Greece–highly recommend!) so got a chance to get through a bunch of excellent books.
THE TAINTED CUP and A DROP OF CORRUPTION by Robert Jackson Bennett. These are brisk and enjoyable fantasy mysteries. I would have said inspired by Holmes and Watson but the author’s note also references Hannibal Lecter for as the inspiration for the Holmes character, Ana. The world building is excellent (avoids common fantasy issues like info dumps or weird monologues about why things are the way they are) and there’s a small potential budding romance. Din (our hero/the Watson character) is bi and has both male and female partners. Definitely recommend.
COPPER SCRIPT by KJ Charles. Also a mystery with a romance angle. Aaron is a police detective who gets caught up with Joel, a graphologist (handwriting analyst). As always, Charles writes an excellent exploration of the types of tradeoffs we make (especially being a gay man who’s a police officer in a time when that’s not accepted/is actively dangerous) and how people persevere.
RULES FOR RUIN by Mimi Matthews may be my favorite book of hers besides GENTLEMAN JIM. I thoroughly enjoyed both Effie and Gabriel and their complicated connections to their pasts and common interest (they’re both trying to maneuver around the same sketchy MP, but for different and conflicting reasons.) Matthews’ attention to psychological and historical detail is top notch as ever and there’s an adorable poodle named Franc. (I am not a dog person, but even I was charmed by Franc).
THE BENEVOLENT SOCIETY OF ILL-MANNERED LADIES by Alison Goodman. A friend of mine called this “What I was hoping Sarah MacLean’s Hell’s Belles would be” which I think nicely sums this up–women making trouble navigating the restrictions on women. Lady Augusta (Gus) and her sister Julia get pulled into rescuing several women from bad circumstances. Some of the historical detail is kind of a lot (child sex trafficking, madhouses, a description of a mastectomy without anesthesia) and I skimmed those bits, but also solid.
I am trying to work up the energy to attempt my next book for book club OUT ON A LIMB by Hannah Bonham-Young. The heroine hooks up with a guy, ends up pregnant, decides to keep the baby, yada, yada, yada. I have VERY strong feelings about babies in romances (and I will NEVER read anything with a secret baby) so I just don’t know if I can stomach this one. We shall see!
Is it already time for another WAYR? I’m still rehabbing from knee replacement surgery, but my reading pace seems to have picked up compared to last month.
Enjoyed one excellent read: PASSION PROJECT, the first novel by London Sperry, is, as @Dahlia said in a “Hide Your Wallet” post a few months ago, both “quietly devastating” and “progressively more delightful.” FMC Bennet is in her mid-20s, living in New York City, working a series of temp jobs, and dealing with (or at the start of the book, refusing to deal with) deep depression stemming from the death of her first boyfriend. The portrayal of Bennet’s grief and her eventual moving away from constant grief is compelling, as MMC Henry helps Bennet to “find her passion” and discover a way to reclaim happiness, assisted by visits to a variety of NYC settings and experiences. The story is thoughtful, moving, funny at times, and immensely satisfying. Assuming the theme is not triggering for other readers, I highly recommend this novel.
I finished several other books that didn’t rise to the quality level of PASSION PROJECT:
SUMMER IN THE CITY, by Alex Aster, also is set in New York City and also involves a range of NYC experiences (plus some key experiences in Paris). The MMC is a billionaire, which is not a favorite trope for me. However, the FMC is not a complete “normie”– she’s a successful screenwriter who is experiencing writer’s block and agrees to fake date the MMC because he’s sort of a muse for her. There’s character growth along with lots of NYC description, but the conclusion seemed rushed– a lot happens in the final chapter.
I liked the writing style and the characters in ONE GOLDEN SUMMER, by Carley Fortune, and especially liked the journey of the FMC, Alice, a photographer who is spending a summer at the lake with her grandmother, and also considering how to make changes in her professional and personal lives. The MMC, Charlie, was less appealing for me, and his dilemma that is revealed late in the book and then resolved rather quickly seemed too abrupt. However, after finishing the book I learned ONE GOLDEN SUMMER was a follow-up to EVERY SUMMER AFTER– the debut novel by this author– so I read that one also. A major plot development was “spoiled” because I read the second book first, but I continued to appreciate the writing style and the characters. Now I’m considering re-reading ONE GOLDEN SUMMER since I have additional insights into the relationships of several main and secondary characters who appear in both books.
GIVE ME BUTTERFLIES, by Jillian Meadows, was marketed as a “spicy STEM romance.” There were plenty of spicy scenes, but the STEM content didn’t seem significant, which is not what I want if “STEM romance” is being highlighted. Both MCs work at a museum (she’s an entomologist trying to become the department head; he’s in charge of the astronomy department) but their professions didn’t seem to be particularly significant in this slow burn story. I thought too many plot developments were redundant and didn’t move the action forward, and the villains of the story (an ex-boyfriend, and the parents of one of the MCs) were cartoonishly villainous.
Currently I’m reading WILL THEY OR WON’T THEY by Ava Wilder, after finishing her first book, HOW TO FAKE IT IN HOLLYWOOD (mentioned in “Books on Sale” recently… and as is often the case for me, I found I’d already purchased both of Wilder’s books during previous sales). Both of these books are celebrity romances; HOW TO FAKE IT is built around a fake dating trope and WILL THEY OR WON’T THEY uses a second-chance romance premise. But both sets of characters and both plots contain a lot of nuances that elevate these books beyond other romances I’ve read that use similar characters/tropes. I’ll probably have more to say about Wilder’s books in my next WAYR.
A couple recent standouts–
CRASH TEST by Amy James is an m/m romance between F1 driver Travis Keeping and F2 driver Jacob Nichols. Their story unfolds after Jacob is involved in a terrifying crash that lands him in a coma and severely injures several other drivers. Between pressure to keep their relationship under wraps and Jacob’s family’s determination to excise Travis from their son’s life, no one is having a good time.
Amy James tells this story movingly from both Travis and Jacob’s perspectives, and I loved the chance to see their lives evolve as they each had work to do individually as they worked to be in a position to rebuild something that would endure the biggest ups and downs that come their way. I also loved the secondary characters Ms James creates, as they form a (mostly) supportive community for these men and give them reason to believe in themselves and each other. I loved their whole journey and seeing how this life changing event ultimately brought them through a crucible to a situation where they are both truly thriving and living their best lives. A genuinely thrilling read.
THE VENICE REUNION ARRANGEMENT by Michelle Douglas is a stand-alone second chance story between portrait artist Hallie Alexander and businessman Lucas Quinn. They had been blissfully happy until tragedy struck and their relationship was part of the fallout. When Lucas hires Hallie to help paint a family portrait and pays extra for her to consider faking an engagement for his ailing grandfather, maybe this time it can really work…
Michelle Douglas writes a beautifully sweeping story, balancing the lushly fabulous Venetian setting with Lucas and Hallie’s all too real and still acute pain. Loved the sweetness of the family moments even as the agony of their past makes a reappearance. Another splendid read by Ms Douglas, an author I think is under-read 🙂
I also enjoyed catching up with Heatherly Bell’s Charming, Texas, series, with HER FAKE BOYFRIEND and an ARC of the soon to be released THE EX NEXT DOOR. Heatherly Bell writes the main characters and their families and friends very well. Ms Bell lets us see some of the work and thought they’ve gone through as they’ve grown. I like her balance between their emotional ups and downs and the other challenges that pop up. I enjoyed both these.
I also liked HOPE & HARMONY, a music themed romance anthology that supports MusiCares. I think some of the stories tie into authors’ existing series, but they all seemed to stand alone relatively well. One of the best for me was WILD HOPE by Mari Carr. Other stories by authors including Layla Reyne, M. Robinson, Meredith Wild, etc.
Looking forward to everyone’s updates!
I hit a reading lull and hadn’t realized how bad it was until now. I’m partway thru HOUSE OF SALT AND SORROWS by Erin A. Craig, the book I’d just started last Whatcha Reading. It opens with some fairly interesting world building via funeral, kind of treads water for a few chapters. Then while looking for info on a neighboring island she bumps into a hot guy and gets the Hubba Hubba Embarrassing Awkwards and it is ridiculous. She says in narration that she always has Troy Le talking to men because she sees so few, but right before this she talked to a whole series of them with no apparent problem! I suppose this could be unreliable narration / lack of self awareness, but the whole scene made my eyes roll so hard that I considered quitting the book. But I continued, and spooky business has commenced, so I’m engaged enough for now.
She always has TROUBLE talking to men, not “Troy Le”. LE SIGH
MINDFUL OF MURDER by Susan Judy was a true and welcome surprise. A former Buddhist nun goes to butler school, but graduation and a new position are interrupted by the sudden death of a mentor and friend. Helen Thorpe is tasked with determining which relative deserves to inherit her friend’s spiritual retreat in British Columbia. Maybe it was the equanimity with which Helen and her fellow butlers dealt with fractious family members, maybe the goals of the spiritual retreat spoke to me. No matter, I was completely invested. And my library has the next two.
THE LIBRARY OF LOST DOLLHOUSES by Elise Hooper: The discovery of forgotten and exquisite dollhouses tells the story of an artist who flees New York in scandal and then finds her calling in pre-WWII Paris. A riveting tale of secrets and eventual answers.
Over the past two weeks ~
— very much enjoyed a reread of the science fiction romance Bone Rider by J. Fally; this book has a lot of violence but also tenderness. It features a man whose body is taken possession of by an alien symbiont (the bone rider of the title); the government is after him/them as is his ex-lover who is part of the Russian mob. This book fulfills a summer reading bingo prompt ~ cover without any people.
— I started Kiwi Strong by Rosalind James because I needed a sports romance (not football, baseball, or ice hockey) for the summer reading bingo. I’ve read several of this author’s NZ set books featuring rugby players and thought this would work; however, the male lead is a retired rugby player suffering migraines and feared brain damage from repeated concussions. The female lead is an emergency room nurse who escaped from a cult when she was sixteen. When the book begins, she is on her way to free two of her sisters from that same cult; the male lead hits her car and sees it go into a river. So…this book fulfills the summer reading bingo prompt ~ free space.
— very much enjoyed The Sleeping Soldier by Aster Glenn Gray, a time travel romance, which featured a man from the Civil War era who was cursed to sleep for a hundred years if scratched by a bayonet. (Yes, a reverse Sleeping Beauty scenario.) He awakens in 1965 and is befriended by a young man who helps him navigate this new time; he dubs this man his Virgil. There is a good serving of humor but also sadness as he grieves all those he knew who are now dead. The author included a note that detailed how very different platonic friendships between men were in the mid-1800s as they kissed, held hands, and shared beds. I will almost certainly reread this. This book fulfills a summer reading bingo prompt ~ time travel.
— also enjoyed Knit Tight by Annabeth Albert which features a barista who is raising his younger siblings and a knitwear designer who has come to help the yarn shop owning aunt who raised him as she deals with cancer. This book fulfills a summer reading bingo prompt ~ book that received a B+ or higher review.
— enjoyed another contemporary romance, From Out in the Cold by L.A. Witt, which featured two men who were boyhood friends who reunite after some years of separation. One arrives on the other’s doorstep after leaving the military with PTSD and being turned away by his parents for being gay. The other, we learn, has his own trauma to deal with. This book fulfills a summer reading bingo prompt ~ roommates or neighbors.
— Throwing Stones by Avery Cockburn was an enjoyable contemporary romance set in Scotland and features a curling player and the Canadian coach who is hired to coach an opposing team. This book fulfills a summer reading bingo prompt ~ sports romance that isn’t hockey, baseball, or American football.
— enjoyed Style of Love by AJ Sherwood which features two longterm good friends, one a police officer and the other an interior designer, who come to realize that they love each other romantically. This book fulfills a summer reading bingo prompt ~ small town.
— quite enjoyed Building Forever by Kelly Jensen which featured an author, widowed raising a teen daughter, and his new neighbor, an architect who is seeking a new start after his prior business and relationship collapsed. I could see rereading this and reading on in the series. This book fulfills a summer reading bingo prompt ~ renovation romance.
Happy reading all!
I reread several (as in, a bunch) of Celia Lake’s Albion books over the last two weeks (well, the last two months, really.) Rereading her books offers me a combination of “not here, not now” and the comfort of familiarity, plus the bonus that all her main characters treat each other with respect, care, and kindness. (I can’t imagine why I’m craving that right now…)
I also finished up The Blonde Who Came In From the Cold by Ally Carter, which was a lot of fun. I don’t think I would rate it quite as highly as The Blonde Identity, but I still really enjoyed it.
And I finally finished Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmerer. It’s a beautiful book, brimming with ideas and stories that I wanted to savor and ponder, so I took my time listening to it. The author narrates the audiobook herself, and her voice is gentle, warm, and comforting. However, it was not always an easy book to listen to, given the stark contrast between the concepts of living in reciprocity and gratitude with nature that she presents, and the current administration’s determination to allow and even encourage unfettered corporate exploitation of the earth’s resources.
I’m currently listening to A Study in Death, the fourth Lady Darby mystery by Anna Lee Huber. I missed a few of the books in the middle of the series, so I have gone back to fill them in.
Tessa Bailey is so hit or miss for me – some of her books I absolutely adore and are re-reads (even if the relationships as portrayed would be unhealthy IRL), but then sometimes I hate her books (when they cross over to crazy pants and/or truly toxic to me). So I loved, loved, loved Fangirl Down and really liked The Au Pair Affair, but Dream Girl Drama – ugh.
It has been a while, so I will skip ahead and only review my most current reads:
Excellent:
THE TYRANT ALPHA’S REJECTED MATE (Five Packs #1, Paranormal F/M) and HIS CURVY REJECTED MATE (Five Packs #4, Paranormal F/M) by Cate C. Wells: I will argue again that Wells is one of best romance novelists currently working. These are re-reads for me and I just can’t say enough about her stories – how they subvert norms of the genre, the scathing cultural criticisms she embeds in her books and the deep emotions and healing of the characters.
AFTER THE SHUT UP RING by Cate C. Wells (Contemporary, F/M): Have I ever read a romance where the FMC has an STI? Not that I can remember – see what I mean about subverting the norms of the genre? The FMC jilts her fiancé at the altar after enduring the final straw of a joke at her expense in his vows after years of verbal and emotional abuse. The reasons she stayed for so long are very clearly laid out based on her past trauma. MMC has loved her from afar for years and now has his chance.
Very Good:
NEVER BEEN SHIPPED by Alicia Thompson (Contemporary, F/M, LGBTQIA+): MMC is a guitarist from a alt rock band that broke up years ago (he is also the roommate of the MMC from With Love, From Cold World). The band is getting back together for a cruise (related to a TV show where their song was part of a very key scene). FMC, for good reasons, was the cause of the band’s break up, but MMC has always pined for her. I liked it, but not as much as With Love, From Cold World.
The Squire’s Tale (Historical Mystery, Dame Frevisse #10): Medieval mystery with a nun who does the sleuthing. In these last several books, the characters and world are solidly built first and then builds up to the murder, which I think didn’t take place until about 75% or so of the way through. Highly recommend the series.
Good:
BLUEBIRD, BLUEBIRD by Attica Locke (Contemporary Mystery, Highway 59 #1): A Black Texas Ranger investigates two murders in a small town – a young white mother and a Black man from out of town, murdered days apart. For my mystery book club.
THE HORDE KING OF SHADOW by Zoey Draven (Fantasy Romance, F/M): I love Zoey Draven (especially the Brides of the Kylorr series), but this spin-off fell a little flat for me – couldn’t quite figure out why the MMC and FMC fell for each other. But it does include dragons!
BEWITCHING RHAEGO by Victoria Aveline (Alien Romance, F/M, Clenicians #8): Again, love this series (especially Ruling Sikthand – swoon), but was disappointed in this one relative to the others. Rhaego had been set up in past books, so was looking forward to this, but and I realize how this sounds, it just pushed the boundaries of what I would believe in this alien world (I know – it is aliens!).
A DAWN OF ONYX by Kate Golden (Fantasy Romance, F/M, The Sacred Stones #1): Pretty standard romantasy – Chosen One FMC and powerful MMC (I did really like the set up of how they met – she is imprisoned in a dungeon and him posing as a fellow prisoner to get intel from someone else) – the book sometimes reads YA and other times adult. I can’t say the plot or world building elements were that original, but it was good enough for me to order the second in the series.
Meh:
KING OF WRATH by Ana Huang (Contemporary, F/M, Kings of Sin #1): All kinds of tropes mixed up in a bowl with lots of soap opera thrown in – arranged marriage, billionaire MMC, a tinge of mafia, family drama, an ex who wants the FMC back – wanted to like it more than I actually did. Too many elements that were too over the top for my taste.
BAD:
DNF:
DREAM GIRL DRAMA by Tessa Bailey (Contemporary, Sports, F/M, Big Shots #3): Like I said, I have a love/hate thing with Tessa Bailey – this was a hate. The FMC is a Manic Pixie Dream Girl (I think she may be literally described that way in the book?) who comes from vast amounts of wealth. The MMC is a professional hockey player with working class roots. They fall into insta-love and insta-lust, but, uh oh, their parents are getting married which would cause a scandal?? Am I the only one who thinks that two adults that are not at all blood related, did not know each other as children or as teenagers/were not raised as siblings dating is not that scandalous? Both MCs thought it would cause too much scandal for their careers – really???? Maybe I am that out of it, but this just didn’t seem that taboo to me! Also the MMC helps the FMC break free of her mom so she can go live in the city and be less “sheltered,” but then he ends up taking care of her – covering a lot of her bills, she repeatedly forgets her rent is due and has to dodge her landlord – he starts signing and selling hockey memorabilia to financially support her while trying to keep that a secret so she doesn’t feel guilty. As I said, Tessa Bailey can write romances that I swoon for, but would find problematic IRL, but then there are others that seem straight up toxic and not romantic at all and this crossed that line for me.
Elyse has succinctly articulated my problem with dark romance and I agree with the solution. “Oh he’s stalking you? Hit him with your car. Fuck that guy.”
I’ve been enjoying the anthology SHERLOCK IS A GIRL’S NAME, which has a really wide variety of stories which are pretty much only linked by Sherlock Holmes re-imagined as a woman. It’s in Kobo Plus.
Fairy tale re-imaginings are popular in fantasy romance, but AJ Lancaster has managed quite an inventive take with her latest, HOW TO FIND A NAMELESS FAE. It’s a reimagining of Rumpelstilskin complete with cozy vibes, found family, an adorable sentient house that loves home design magazines, and the slowest of slow burn romances. If I had any criticism of it at all, it’s that the first half is slower paced. But, Skymallow, the sentient house, stole the show and I never even thought about putting it down. There’s also a prequel novella of sorts, a Cinderella retelling called HOW TO MARRY A WINGED KING, that ties nicely into the main book.
LET’S MAKE A SCENE, Laura Woods’ follow up to one of my favorite books of 2024, UNDER YOUR SPELL, was great. I somewhat preferred the first book, mainly because the second featured the enemies to lovers trope as well as numerous flashbacks, both of which are not my favorites. Still, I would definitely recommend it. The writing was fantastic, the tension and heat between the MCs was palpable, and the author absolutely excels at found family.
MANIC PIXIE DREAM EARL by Jenny Holiday was a romp involving three nobleman, friends since boarding school, who go away on a boy’s trip every year. This in basically 2025 sensibilities in a historical setting, so don’t read it if you like your Regencies more traditional, but if you are okay with a male MC who is gender fluid, wears his heart on his sleeve, writes poetry, and is secretly in love with his female publisher, who is 10 yrs older, bisexual, middle class, and who thinks he’s a woman named Euphemia, well, you’ll love this.
THE LOVE FIX by Jill Shalvis was a strong, emotional finish to her Sunrise Cove series. The books don’t need to be read in order as the only thing tying the books together is the setting of the series. In the book, the female MC has to come to terms with the fact that her mother, a gambling addict who recently died, abandoned the MC to her cold and uncaring father when they got divorced, but later cleaned up her act and become a loving stepmother to her second husband’s daughter. She and her stepsister are now tasked with delivering some letters that her mom left behind. Of course, there’s also a sweet romance and plenty of the banter that Jill Shalvis is known for.
I’m currently 15% into BEFORE I LET GO by Kennedy Ryan and loving it, so looking forward to a great weekend of reading.
I’m finally cracking Iron Flame for my ‘Yellow or Orange Cover’ bingo square. A colleague read it some time back and she’s looking forward to having someone to bounce thoughts with when I’m done, but I also keep blowing into work shrieking about something or another as I go.
As a note, if your comments are ever stuck in the spam filter, Sarah and I usually check it throughout the day to go through it and release any comments that were marked incorrectly. Most times, if you comment again after something is stuck in spam, it’ll just trigger the spam filter again.
Kelly Jensen’s TO SEE THE SUN, futuristic mail order husband romance between Bram, a terra-forming farmer on an unforgiving planet, and Gael, a fugitive from the brutal undercity of an even worse ‘civilized’ planet. Slow-burn, found family, omission of critical information with predictable results, mild steam. I’d recommend this to those who enjoy sci-fi m/m romance.
@JT Alexis ~ I also enjoyed Kelly Jensen’s TO SEE THE SUN. Are you familiar with Lyn Gala’s Claimings series? That is my favorite sci-fi m/m romance.
@Amanda ~ Would it be possible for you to add the
‘whatcha reading’ tag? I noticed its lack when I went looking for this post this morning.
I hope everyone is having a great weekend!
An American in London by Louise Bay (KU)
Overall, a cute contemporary romance with a fake dating trope. Tuesday’s life has been going poorly, what with her ex-fiance breaking it off and her job in jeopardy after the company sold. The job has sent her from NYC to London for a management fast-track internship, which if she does well with, will provide some stability. And now that she’s in London, there’s this cute guy she keeps running into.
Bingo options: Living abroad
Force of Nature (Deserted Island Book 1) by Amelia Wilde and Skye Warren (KU)
Natural Disaster (Deserted Island Book 2) by Amelia Wilde and Skye Warren (KU)
Tropical Storm (Deserted Island Book 3) by Amelia Wilde and Skye Warren (KU)
Part of the Midnight Dynasty shared universe, this entry follows the story of Carter Morelli, Oxford botany professor and super-secret government agent, as he finds love with a pretty photographer and a handsome hermit. This trilogy was OK. It’s got a soap-opera-esque bonkers plot line, but the third volume kind of dragged a bit (I can only go over the same reasons the relationship won’t work so many times).
Bingo options: Spies, Weather (book 2), Why Choose (MMF), Living abroad (technically, the hermit is American but living on an island somewhere near the flight path between London and Mauritania when the professor and the photographer crash there), Class differences (maybe, it’s one of the reasons mentioned but it’s not well developed)
Smoke Bitten (Mercy Thompson Book 12) by Patricia Briggs (library)
This entry into the adventures of Mercy the coyote shapeshifter who is mated to a werewolf starts on a Very Bad Day. She’s worried about her relationship with her mate, who has been distant lately, then a fight with her family sends her for a long walk where she runs into the ghost of her just murdered neighbor, and finds signs that the murder had a supernatural component. Plus, some strange werewolves are making a move on their territory. Mercy manages to figure out what is going on and save the day. I enjoyed this book, and while I think this one is self contained enough to read by itself, this is book 12 of a series, so you would be missing things to start here.
Bingo options: Paranormal romance (this series isn’t Romance, but there are strong romantic components in most entries and with the relationship issues focus here, I think it qualifies for bingo)
Wild Sign (Alpha and Omega Book 6) by Patricia Briggs (library)
Werewolf mates Charles and Anna Cornick head to the site of an abandoned illegal encampment on pack lands to learn what happened to the inhabitants. I like this series which takes place in the same world as the Mercy Thompson books, but this is not the place to start reading.
Bingo options: (paranormal, maybe, but this one is less romance than some of the others so I’m honestly not sure it should qualify for bingo at all. There is insight into Bran and Leah’s relationship which made me happy.)
Perfect Enemies: A New Adult Mafia Romance (The Five Families Book 6) by Jill Ramsower (KU)
The youngest sister of the leads in the previous couple of books in the series is a senior in high school and enjoying it, except that her best friend (the daughter of the bad guys of the previous book) has a terrible home life and she wants to help her escape. Oh, and there’s this really hot new boy in her class who’s sending all kinds of mixed signals, but if he thinks he toy with her friend’s affections, she knows how to handle it. It was fine, but if you aren’t into these tropes, it’s not going to make you change your mind.
Bingo options: Free square, Class differences (maybe)
Curse and Craving: An Urban Fantasy Fae Romance (Of Myth and Man Book 1) by Jill Ramsower (KU)
The setup involves an American girl moving to Ireland for her dream job of museum curator assistant (it’s a tough job market) where she discovers that the Fae are real and the basis for all kinds of fun myths and legends (Hi Merlin!). For reasons, the Seelie Fae queen has decreed that all Fae must live in Fairy-land, and now the bad Fae are trying to break into our world in order to cause havoc. So we’ve got our chosen one, war is coming, and The Wild Hunt has some really hot guys in it. And I’m here for this. Unfortunately, our heroine is too stupid to live. Really, if the fate of humanity rests on this recent college graduate, humanity should be doomed. Don’t worry, despite having the situational awareness god gave a turnip, she manages to save the day and get the guy. I probably would have DNF’d this one if it didn’t fit in with so many bingo squares. (Note: this author also writes mafia romances, and there’s some dark stuff here as well, including rape by deception.)
Bingo options: Magic!, Character Living Abroad, Cover without People, 1st Book in a Series
Dark Side of the Moon (Dark-Hunter Novels Book 9) by Sherrilyn Kenyon
This weekend I visited a used book store with my sister, and she asssured me that this 2006 paranormal could be read as a standalone. 2006 means that it comes after both Buffy and Underworld by a couple of years, but that’s the vibe I got. I think I might have read the first one in this series a couple of decades ago, which is to say, it’s all new to me at this point. So, this is the kind of book where a centuries old shapeshifter/bad-guy-hunter with an unusual x, y, or z in his name falls in love with a spunky female reporter while the two of them team up to save the world from assorted bad guys. The heroine is also allergic to the hero’s cat hair causing her to sneeze at awkward moments. There’s also several references to the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, which I found to be a fascinating historical time capsule.
Bingo options: Paranormal, Immigrant main character (technically but likely misses the the point of category), Main couple who are 30+ (again, technically but …)
The Princess and the Player (Strangers in Love) by Ilsa Madden-Mills (KU)
When the story starts, Tucker is a professional football player celebrating his birthday, and Francesca is an artist who is trying to get over her cheating ex-fiance. They meet at an exclusive club and have a one night stand. Then they realize that they live in the same building, and she realizes that she’s pregnant. Nothing really new and exciting here, but it was sweet with nice chosen family bits.
Bingo options: yellow cover, neighbors, Main couple who are 30+ (if being 30 counts), Left at the altar (if three months before the wedding counts), Class differences
Beg For Me (Morally Gray Book 3) by J.T. Geissinger (KU)
Billionaire COO of McCord Media Carter McCord fell in love the first time he saw Sophia Bianco, despite her being 15 years older than him and the COO of a rival company. I enjoyed this one and found it to be surprisingly funny, but it’s not going to be for everyone, what with the hero’s obsessive stalker tendencies. His therapist is trying to help him with that. On the plus side, our heroine knows what she wants in the bedroom and takes the dominant role in some scenes. And it has golden retriever/black cat energy. Being the third book in the series, there are spoilers for the first two books. (Geissinger likes big reveals, so the spoilers are significant for those stories.) This one is significantly less dark than the previous two books.
Bingo options: Free square, Class differences (maybe)
@Kareni: All set.
I agree with @Amanda; dark romances are more about escapism for me. In order for me to enjoy the darker side, I need things to be fantastical enough that I can turn off the part of my brain that expects realism. Like, I think that the mafia romances I’ve been reading are about as close to reality as Vampire the Masquerade. I’m not reading these for healthy relationships, I’m reading them for entertainment.
@Kareni: I have heard of Gala’s Claiming series but have not checked it out. I will do that as I really enjoy the genre. Thank you for the reminder.
@JT Alexis ~ should you read the Lyn Gala books, I hope you’ll enjoy them!
@Amanda ~ thanks so much.
:::comes in humming the Superman theme:::
Why yes, I did see Superman today? How’d you guess? (Also, the theme, nearly teared up when it started.)
Anyhoodles, I started things with A Box Full of Darkness by Simone St. James. No one is out here doing spooky ghost stories quite like she is, and I liked the references sprinkled throughout to some of her other works. We love a spooky shared universe. Then I read An Evil Heart by Linda Castillo. This is the first one I’ve read in the Kate Burkholder series, about a cop that used to be Amish and still works in Amish country. It was interesting, since I can’t say I knew a great deal about the Amish as a culture, and the crime work was well done. Then I broke out a library copy of Bonded In Death by JD Robb. Look at this point, you know what you’re getting with Robb. I will say that I would read an entire series about The Twelve, and the part where Eve and her team get to interrogate the bad guy into the sun never fails to be pretty satisfying. Which brings us to now, and I am reading Open Season by Jonathan Kellerman. The writing is a bit workmanlike, but again, I like the crime aspects. So until next time, hey buddy?
Eyes up here.
I just finished all seven of the LitRPG stories DUNGEON CRAWLER CARL. I had never heard of this genre before but the first one was an on sale audible and I am SO GLAD I picked it up. This narrator is stellar and my new favorite. I have told everybody who will listen about these books. So now my husband, sister and nephew are reading them and I am obsessed. Much like Murderbot it is outside the real “romance” category but somehow appeals enormously. The funny, snarky dialogue helps loads.
It’s been a couple of months since my last post. I have to say most of what I’ve read over the past couple of months has been in the “it’s readable and decent, but it’s not great” category.
First up is Jesse Q Sutanto’s WORTH FIGHTING FOR – it’s part of the “Meant to Be” series, which are all books inspired by Disney movies. Sutanto rewrites Disney’s Mulan, turning Mulan into a high-level executive in her family-run investment/hedge fund company. Mulan pretends to be father, after he falls ill, so that she can close the deal on the Shang family’s whisky business. Her father dearly wants to acquire the business and Mulan, in spite of all her hard-work and competence, is still insecure about whether her father wishes he had a son instead of daughter. I’m on the fence about this book – there are some nice comedic moments and interesting reflections on the difficulties that Chinese American immigrants have faced in trying to fit into American culture. But I’ve read a couple of Sutanto’s previous books, and I find while I like her story ideas and set-ups, I’m less satisfied with the actual execution. For me she too often sacrifices plot, characterization, and the romance to create overtop comedic situations – and she does this again in this book. (It also probably didn’t help that I really don’t want to read right now about hedge fund managers and corporate raiders, even if they are nice ones.) I don’t regret reading this book, but I wouldn’t bother to reread it.
Claudia Gray’s THE RUSHWORTH FAMILY PLOT is the fourth book in her mystery series, featuring Jonathan Darcy, the son of Lizzie and Fitzwilliam Darcy (Pride & Prejudice) and Juliet Tilney, the daughter of Catherine and Henry Tilney (Northanger Abbey). I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I have enjoyed the previous books in the series. The course of true love might often be filled with obstacles, but the contrivances that Gray resorted to in this book to keep her lovers apart had me rolling my eyes. The secondary plot concerning Fanny Bertram (Mansfield Park) and her desire for family was touching, but I thought some of the other secondary plots were less successful. In fact, my main complaint was there was too much stuffed into this book — too many characters, too many secondary plots. As a result, the mystery and the romance both suffered. I liked this book, but I wish it had been just a bit better. Still, I’ll probably read the next one when it comes out as I have enjoyed the overall feel of the series so far.
In honour of the baseball season, I decided to pick up Jennier Hennessy’s FOR THE RING. Her first book, Degrees of Engagement, I thought was a decent first novel. The two books are slightly linked, but it’s not necessary to read the first one to enjoy this one. Sports Analyst Frankie Sullivan loves her job with her hometown team, the LA Dodgers. But a devasting divorce and a heartbreaking World Series lost push her to accept a promotion to an assistant general manager position with the New York Eagles. In her second year at New York, the Eagles hire a new manager, Charlie Avery, a recently retired catcher, who use to drive Frankie crazy back in LA with the way he, as a player, would base his decisions on emotions rather than analytics. Can she and Charlie learn to get along before the season starts, especially when Frankie is temporarily promoted to acting General Manager after the regular GM falls ill? Well of course they do because this is a romance. Although this is marketed as an “enemies to lovers” book, it really doesn’t feel like that – even with the inevitable cross-communication in the first part of the book. Both Frankie and Charlie come across as committed, competent professionals, which means it’s a bit difficult to believe that they won’t figure out a way to work out their differences like adults. And they do settle their differences quickly, but because the book is so short the resolution happens at the halfway point. And that’s too bad because I think this would have been a stronger book if Hennessy had spent more time developing the storylines of the second half of the book and fleshing out the characters a bit more.
Sarah Beth Durst’s THE SPELLSHOP is a marketed as sweet cottagecore romantasy. While I loved that Katia, the MFC, is a librarian with a talking, walking spider plant assistant named Caz, I found this book just a bit too twee. During a revolution the great imperial library is set on fire, and Katia and Caz are forced to flee by boat, taking with them a selection of the library’s books on magic. They end up at the small remote, rural island that Katia’s family had emigrated from many years before. And surprisingly her family’s old, abandoned cottage, furnishings and even old clothes are still in somewhat okay condition (just a few dints, holes, and tears to make things look interesting, but nothing so serious as dry rot, black mold or moths). In fact, it was a bit disconcerting how easily Katia restored and renovated her long-abandoned cottage and quickly set up her garden and magic business. I kept waiting for her, Caz, and Larran, the MFC, to break into “Whistle While You Work” with all the cute magical animals happily dancing around them. And while it’s not surprising that a cozy fantasy celebrates the small town and rural life over the city life, this book is not exactly subtle with that theme, with its awkwardly grafted, more serious storyline about how the greed of the powerful rulers in the big bad imperial city is causing magical environmental disasters for rural areas. There are many fun moments in this book, but not enough to make me strongly interested in keeping track of when the next book comes out.
Some of the other books that I’ve recently read, but don’t have time to discuss: Kathleen Buckley, BY SWORD AND FAN (Georgian romance); Naina Kumar, FLIRTING WITH DISASTER (contemporary); Lana Ferguson, THE FAKE MATE (light paranormal romance).
Also, just to say, I have tended to avoid stuff described as dark romance because I guess I have a low tolerance for that kind of passionate/angsty/violent/I don’t even know, and I tend to avoid mafia/MC/similar settings because of the same, but I LOLed at Elyse’s “Oh he’s stalking you? Hit him with your car. Fuck that guy.” response and yeah, I would totally read that, which is probably why Kati Wilde’s MC series is on my reread shelf…
I just finished BLACK RIVER by Nilinjana Roy, which is a detective story set in India. Very atmospheric and well-written. TW for child murder.
I recently finished NERVOUS: ESSAYS ON HERITAGE AND HEALING by Jen Soriano. Memoir which focuses on intergenerational trauma and its interrelationship with pain or illness. Gave me a lot to think about in my own life.
I read three books in the Harry McCoy detective series by Alan Parks. The best way to describe this is Tartan Noir, set in Glasgow in the 1970s.
I have some library books and ebooks all lined up — I’m having knee replacement surgery on Wednesday and am hoping I’ll feel well enough to read, at least after the first week.
Very best wishes for a smooth surgery and speedy recovery, @Carol S. Hope you’ll soon be tackling your TBR!
Vacation a couple of weeks ago so I read a LOT! None of my best reads were romance, though.
Excellent:
KILLERS OF A CERTAIN AGE – not romance, this is mystery, but I LOVED it. Competence porn, extremely smart women characters and strong female friendships, hard to put down. I hate to fly and had this as one of my plane books, so it was perfect – I got totally distracted. I think I found it here? Sarah reviewed it very positively when it came out. Can’t wait for the next installment!
THE LAST GIFTS OF THE UNIVERSE – also not romance (sci-fi) but very good. A kind story that I just really loved.
CAROLINE – this retelling of Little House on the Prairie from Laura’s mother’s perspective was excellent. I really enjoyed it and am still thinking about it weeks later – I will re-read the originals soon. A lot about being a mother and the experience of pregnancy, which, as a mom myself, I enjoyed. I read the originals many times as a kid and god I never thought about how terrifying it would be to journey off into the prairie, pregnant, with no idea if you’d have help when you gave birth in six months….
Oh, actually, I did read SAY YOU’LL REMEMBER ME by Abby Jimenez, which is a romance and which I quite liked. As per her usual, these are heavy on the family difficulties/family trauma, but I enjoy her books and this was no exception. The MMC, Xavier, is absolutely dreamy, and I’m of an age (or cynicism level?) where I rarely feel that anymore!
I also re-read DRAGON PRINCE by Melanie Rawn. I LOVED this book as an impressionable teen and read it many many times. I was surprised at a. how much I remembered and b. how well it actually held up. Nowhere near as dated as I expected. I’m not sure I’ll re-read the others in the series right now, but it was really good! I believe Rawn stopped writing several years ago, but she was a really fantastic writer with such interesting and unusual world building. I’d recommend this even though it came out in 1988!
Fine:
NEVER PLANNED ON YOU: enjoyable lightweight contemporary romance, but, I read this on the plane two weeks ago and I’ve already totally forgotten what it was about.
DO YOUR WORST: okay paranormal, reasonably enjoyable, end was kinda cheesy.
EMILY WILDE’S COMPENDIUM OF LOST TALES – as mentioned by others recently, not as good as the other books, I put this down several times and struggled to finish it.
Someone above mentioned GIVE ME BUTTERFLIES, and I read that recently too. I agree it wasn’t very STEM-y (more workplace focused than STEM) but it was decent.
I’ve been reading through Katee Robert’s DARK OLYMPUS series. I don’t usually do dark romances but the first several were less dark, I’ve enjoyed them less as they’ve gotten darker, but now I’m invested in the world and want to see what happens. I’m on 5, CRUEL SEDUCTION, now, but the first and third (NEON GODS and WICKED BEAUTY) have been the best so far.
Non-fiction current reads:
AIRBORNE by Carl Zimmer, which is about the history of the science behind studying airborne illnesses. I’m finding it a little slow going, but it’s interesting, perhaps it’s slow because it’s pretty dense with content. I’m currently on the bioweapons/weapons of mass destruction chapter, a time that I lived through (GWB & the Iraq invasion) and yet had completely forgotten. I would recommend this, but it’s not light.
I also just started HOPE FOR CYNICS by Jamil Zaki, and yeah, I need this book, and while I’ve just started, it’s good so far.
Really really looking forward to starting Nalini Singh’s newest, ATONEMENT SKY, this week! It comes out tomorrow. I can’t wait for the next book in my favorite world. I’m stuck because usually I read these the day they come out but my library copies of my two current non-fiction reads are expired so I can’t sync my kindle till I finish them, and the hold lines are months long….what to do, what to do!
I’m going down the rabbit hole of romantasy (my need for escapism is off the charts), and started the Court of Thorns and Roses series, which I’m binging hard.