Welcome back!
How are we doing? I’m exhausted. It’s one of the weeks that has a lot in terms of work, social responsibilities, and holiday errands. I also have a hankering for banana pudding, which I haven’t had in probably over a decade.
What have you been craving lately?
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Author and romance scholar Jodi McAlister is in People discussing the rise of audio erotica apps and how it taps into a certain kind of intimacy. Have you tried these?
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If you like logic puzzles, may I suggest Murdle? They also have a book version, if you prefer to do these sorts of puzzles on paper. I mentioned them in the latest 2025 Holiday Gift Guide.
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Bookpage listed their Best Books of 2025. Rules of Ruin by Mimi Matthews made their top ten list! They also have separate lists by genre.
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The latest hubbub in romance discourse is the profile of 831 Stories. Shoutout to my romance Slack group at the office for bringing this to my attention. They made a very good point that 831 Stories seems to denigrate romance while trying to be part of it.
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Don’t forget to share what cool or interesting things you’ve seen, read, or listened to this week! And if you have anything you think we’d like to post on a future Wednesday Links, send it my way!
I remember us discussing 831 Stories here on SBTB when they were preparing to launch their first book and a lot of us had OPINIONS on the influencers-turned-publishers thinking they were reinventing the genre. I can tell it’s being done by influencers because the community isn’t organic and fan-made, it’s commercialized and corporate and based on selling us stuff. They’re trying to manufacture fandom.
One of the commenters from the article you linked really nailed it: “I’m a huge fan of romance novels, and I read three 831 books before deciding to stop. The issue with them working with non-romance authors is that their books are disappointing as romance novels, leaning more to literary observation than relationship development, strong characters and plot. But that goes back to the leadership, too — they don’t come from a publishing background and also rely on gig work and freelance hiring of editors instead of investing in talent. I think 831 is focused more on brand building and has built a company rooted in consumerism and accessory, instead of genuinely rich romance storytelling. You can even buy a little embroidered cloth sleeve from them to display your 831 books in.”
I really enjoy Murdle, but became impossibly stumped around case 44. None of the clues made sense at the time, so I obviously need to revisit where I left off. Still highly recommended.
Whelp, now I want banana pudding, too.
I read that article about 831 and found it striking how I don’t think I’ve really seen any of their books promoted by the independent bookstores that I know. Also they haven’t really appeared in any publications I read for my library.
I also read some of the Goodreads’ reviews which were fairly middling. They just don’t seem that interested in romance but instead in money from readers or people who want to look like readers. The book covers are well done but also very much look like books from a small press that mainly does poetry or literature.
Also exhausted but loving watching Ken Burns’ The American Revolution every night, as someone who grew up outside Philly and now live outside Boston, it feels very close. I really appreciate the focus on finding letters and diaries of voices that are known and not known. I love a great use of primary sources and it reminds me that for all that I work in Concord, I haven’t truly done the sights.
I am now addicted to Murdle.