It’s Whatcha Reading! Here’s how we’re kicking off June:
Elyse: I’m reading The Iron Garden Sutra by A.D. Sui. ( A | BN | K | AB ) It’s a sci-fi locked room mystery with a monk as a protagonist and I’m really enjoying it.
Sarah: I just started The Parisian Heist by Jo Piazza, ( A | BN | K | AB ) as in, I’m 2% into the book.
Claudia: I’m just finished Dearest Beast by Felicia Grossman. Suffer-no-fools “unlikeable” heroine is the “beast” in this retelling.
Shana: I’m continuing to burn through the Rivers of London series. And I just started Flirting Lessons by Jasmine Guillory. ( A | BN | K | AB )
Lara: I enjoyed Dearest Beast, but the retelling aspect passed me by. Didn’t notice it at all.
I’m slowly working my way through Candice Proctor’s historical romances. The last one I read (The Last Knight) ( A ) needs all the warnings for violence and brutality. She’s so good at making it all feel so real and believable that the brutality got to me.
Tara: I’m reading The Whole Truth by Haley Cass ( A ) and I’m loving it. Enemies to lovers with two closeted country music stars who agree that a casual arrangement could be beneficial.
Amanda: I just finished Broken Breath by Blake Black. ( A ) It’s a Why Choose romance set in the downhill racing circuit. The heroine poses as a man to get revenge for a crash seven years earlier that left her near death. It ends on a cliffhanger, but wasn’t bad, even if what feels like the primary love interest isn’t my bag.
Susan: I’m a volume and a half into My Fiancé Cheated But a New Love Rings, ( A | BN | K | AB ) and so far it’s very silly! It’s your standard “woman finds out her idiotic royal fiancé is cheating on her” premise, but this time her bodyguard instantly offers to help her fake her own death. … The two leads spend a lot of time flapping about how adorable the other one with is. It’s kinda cute.
Whatcha reading? Tell us in the comments!
I snapped up Slayers of Old as a KDD and I’m thoroughly enjoying the older characters. They have their aches and pains but they’re still in the game and the story is fun. Jim C Hines is a new to me author and his other books look like ones I’d enjoy.
Really enjoyed ENCHANTING THE FAE QUEEN by Stephanie Burgis and EIDOLON by Grace Draven. Both of those are “read the first book in the series first,” and while they are quite different they both have solid character arcs.
I really wanted to like Heather Fawcett’s AGNES AUBERT’S MYSTICAL CAT SHELTER. I loved the Emily Wilde books and was looking for a similarly fun ride (cats! 1920s Montreal!) but it didn’t come together. All of the characters seem to lack development and coherence. The ideas are good and the premise is interesting, but the beats in the romance are off (the hero and heroine should have just been friends) and there’s a lot of wasted opportunities with the secondary characters.
NEVER LOVE A HIGHLANDER by Maya Banks was fine except for the incessant use of “‘tis” and “‘twas” and the fact that waking up to your husband having sex with you is supposed to be okay, and not, you know, sexual assault? I also have problems with the “heroine didn’t even know what sex was literally last week and is now a sex god” plot point. All that to say, it was good enough that I finished it, but don’t think I’d recommend it.
It’s been fantasy/sci-fi/cozy fantasy for me primarily so far this year. Currently re-reading the Penric and Desdemona series by Lois McMaster Bujold. Alternating them with a new read of Seanan McGuire’s Wayward Children. Both are awesome. Also currently working through The Tapestry of Fate (Amina Al-Sirafi #2). The first one was meh for me. I thought I’d give this one a chance, but it just hasn’t been ringing my bell. Not sure why. I just finished the Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong. Loved it.
I agree on Agnes Aubert. I loved the Emily Wilde books, but something just didn’t mesh well.
I gobbled up a whole lot of comfort reads this month–both new and reruns. I enjoyed several series, but
the novels by KJ Charles, Kate Spradling, and Julie Anne Long made my socks go up and down.
Midlife in Gretna Green by Linzi Day
The Midlife Recorder series was recommended by multiple readers on the Ilona Andrews blog as something to read after This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me. Book one is set in present day Scotland and is the story of Niki McNight, who inherits the title of Recorder, a trust fund, and responsibility for an interdimensional gate to seven Celtic kingdoms. The characterization and world building is most entertaining. This novel is not a romance at all, but is an interesting take on cozy fantasy. I look forward to reading the next book in the series.
First and Forever by Lynn Painter
This unapologetically adorable sports romance gets it’s spark from lively character development. Duffy and Connor just come alive on the page, and, if that doesn’t do it for you, read it for Duffy’s dad Tony, her full-on bro siblings, and the four cats. This is a feel good read steeped in football superfandom. I had two minor quibbles that are basically me problems. First, the main couple are pretty young (early twenties) and I tend to prefer older MCs. Second, you can see the speed bump coming in this perfect relationship a mile away, and the FMC’s response was a little over the top for me. Never-the-less, this is a delightful read with just a touch of spice.
Calculated Whisk by Lindsay Buroker
The first of the Tales from the Dragon Diner series is strongly of the cozy fantasy persuasion. Rife with running gags, double entendres, and snarkish banter, this book is a lighthearted fantasy take on the world of draconian cuisine, right down to a high pressure cooking competition. This is neither urban fantasy nor romance though there are hints of romance to come. This may not be this author’s best, but it is a lot of fun.
Naked in Death by J. D. Robb
Glory in Death by J. D. Robb
Immortal in Death by J. D. Robb
Reread.
Many years ago, my mystery bookclub read the first of these, and our resident genre maven was a little scornful of Robb’s sci-fi chops. With deep respect, I have to disagree. While the tech and the adulation of law enforcement seem a tad stale these days, Robb’s interpretation of social and cultural trends still resonates, from synthetic food to Urban Wars. The earliest books are the romanciest, and Eve and Roarke still sooth me in times of trial. These first three books center the relationship between Roarke and Dallas and establish the origins of their found family as Eve investigates a series of brutal murders. Ultimately, it is the slowly expanding circle of trusted and trusting friends that makes this series a superb comfort read in a violently disordered world.
Yes, Your Serpentine Excellency by Kate Spradling
I thoroughly enjoyed this vaguely historical gaslamp fantasy adventure. When clever, practical teleporter Joanna Marlow tracks her crooked sweetheart to a gaming den, she doesn’t expect a rare dragon to follow her home and throw her family’s neighborhood into chaos. Nor does she expect her draconian friend to have quite so many secrets, This well-written tale features a carefully structured magic system paired with complex political structures. The characterization is absolutely first class with a no nonsense FMC who uses her brains rather than physical aggression to face down family and enemies alike. As for her scaly companion, he is one of my favorite dragons ever. Though there is a romantic interest, the heat level is low and worked for me due to the fine balance between the two personalities. Enthusiastically recommended.
How to Fake It in Society by KJ Charles
It’s been a while since I’ve read anything by Charles, but something in the description of this historical romance with its very opposite MCs and its arts background just drew me in. I loved Titus and Nico just as much as the Bitchery promised, and I loved the exploration of what it means to build a good life with someone. So many readers have rightfully praised this book, that I really have nothing to add. Recommended.
Beyond Sunrise by Candice Proctor
Lara mentioned this author of historical romance in the last WAYR post. A couple of people noted in comments that Proctor also writes the Sebastian St. Cyr mysteries as C. S. Harris, so I was immediately intrigued. When I was young I loved nothing so much as a book set in some distant and fascinating locale, especially if there was romance topped off with a generous dollop of danger. Whether fleeing madly through the tropical forests of remote South Pacific islands. navigating treacherous passages through coral reefs, or crawling through bone filled caves, Jack and India’s adventures are totally riveting. Their initial antagonism is eroded by the gradual reveal of Jack’s tragic past and India’s growing commitment to helping him find justice. The burn is slow, but it’s convincing. Beyond Sunrise would have probably kicked butt had I read it in 2003, but you can’t unlearn what you’ve absorbed in almost a quarter century. While the MCs are likable and not racist, sexist assholes, there is no escaping the white, colonizer gaze in this book. It is pervasive in the descriptions of people, of landscapes, of cultural and religious practices. While the story addresses military atrocities, Christian erasure of indigenous culture, injustice against, and stereotyping of various groups including “cannibals,” Pacific Island women, and French.bureaucrats, it uses language and imagery that reinforces, perhaps unintentionally, the notion of an exotic and occasionally “erotic” tropical paradise. To be honest, I didn’t find this a horrible book, but I’d be motoring along and hit something I couldn’t be comfortable with. Sometimes it seemed unconscious; sometimes, it felt almost tongue-in-cheek; but it always struck me as cringe worthy or, at best, woefully trite. Clearly, ymmv.
Painting the Blues by Linzi Day
The second paranormal fantasy in the Midlife Recorder series continues the saga of Niki, the newly minted gate keeper for seven magical Celtic worlds. Niki is still learning her role as a magical registrar for the seven realms and makes good progress sorting the problems of the Pictish Queendom. These books tend to ramble and be heavily dependent on dialogue, but they are strangely fascinating and relaxing to read if you’re in the mood for cozy fantasy.
Just Watch Me by Rosalind James
CW: natural disaster, death, sudden illness)
This rugby romance is the sixteenth outing in the Escape to New Zealand series and I’m so happy to return to this fictional world. On one level, I always trust this author to combine comfort and characterization in excellent proportions; on the other, she always finds a way to surprise me too. With a pair of widowed parents and six highly opinionated kids this book gives Brady Bunch vibes, only with a lot less bland. The balance between the humor of family life and the drama of near tragedy is particularly gripping. There are a few irritants: I wanted to bitch slap the randy grandparents a number of times. and the dad had his clueless moments as well. Yet these are good people, not perfect people. Like most of James’s books, this one is pretty expansive, which I consider not a bug but a feature.
Ties That Bond in Gretna Green
Seeing Red in Gretna Green
by Linzi Day
These are books three and four in the Midlife Recorder paranormal fantasy series. Ties That Bond is centered on the Gateway’s function as a wedding registry, while Seeing Red focuses on problems across several kingdoms and inter-gate politics, and finally introduces a touch of romance for Niki. Sadly, the latter book ends in a cliffie, but the next two are out. These books don’t have literary pretensions, and the POV character has a sturdy whiff of Chosen One, but they are really hard to put down. The series follows a tight timeline and is best read in order.
Game of Rogues by Julie Anne Long
I’ve been reading JAL nearly as long as I’ve been reading SB-TB and she always come through. No one does historical romance better. The ninth in the Palace of Rogues series celebrates the lively residents of the Grand Palace on the Thames while maintaining an unerring focus on the relationship between Gabriel and Ginny. A plot summary would just seem banal for this book. It is the sharp and delicate back and forth between the protagonists as they recognize and appreciate each other’s inner life that defines and elevates their relationship. Humor doesn’t just lighten this story; it enlightens characters and readers alike. I loved everything about it but the cover, which seemed to be made of meat.
Code Yellow in Gretna Green
Well, I succumbed to the cliffie, and Niki’s sorting the Vikings who are suffering from corrupt leaders, oath breakers, pet killers, murder, domestic terrorism, slavery, date-rape drug-trafficking, and droit de seignuer (not what you think it means.) Niki’s daily life is so heavily weighted with minutiae that every time I look at the percentage completed, I’m, like, ONLY 3% since last time I looked?! This sucker is loooonng. You could probably reduce the page count by 10-20% by removing most references to caffeinated beverages and snacks alone.The Recorder must have a Gate in her bladder to handle that many caffeinated hot drinks. Yet I still compulsively need to know what happens next.
Two recommendations: The Last Contract of Isako by Fonda Lee and This Kingdom Will Not Kill Me by Ilona Andrews. Both fantasy, both surprisingly slow starts given how experienced and talented the authors are, both absolutely worth sticking with. TLCoI has less romance, but it doesn’t end on a cliffhanger like TKWNKM, which is entertainingly meta of them in theory but I do not appreciate all the same. It was otherwise their typically excellent balance of romance and action. I don’t know that either book would eclipse my previous favorites of either of these authors, but I was in no way disappointed by the new directions, and if they had been written by new to me authors I would absolutely be hunting down backlists and talking up these incredibly engaging worlds.
Most of what else I read was eh whatever but there were two that I feel like deserve a little warning, although as always there’s a high probability these are just me problems. I had heard raves about The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillis but I found it absolutely impenetrably overwrought writing and couldn’t get to any characterization that would make me want to continue. It felt like it was written by a reasonably bright, unusually self centered teenager. I dunno that I heard anyone rave about The Duke by Anna Cowan, I think I just heard butch Sapphic regency Duke and put a hold on it. And at fist I was pleased by all the callbacks to older straight regencies but pretty quickly it was disappointingly just an old school straight romance, like, there was essentially no worldbuilding, it was just replacing all the he’s with she’s, like it did not feel queer at all at all. And it promptly went into bad boring politics and nonsensical scheming and obvious misunderstandings and so much not having of any sort of sex.
Like, ok, to be fair I don’t think I have ever been attracted to an Ilona Andrews hero, and I would in fact much prefer it if they were all butch warrior women instead, but if you just nominally change the gender and otherwise they are exactly the same, it isn’t actually improving anything. And Ilona Andrews heroes are sexist asshats but I believe in them as characters and I even believe they are doing as best as they can with their limited and consistent worldviews. They are not flimsy or unbelievable constructs.
Anyway. There is no force that would have stopped me from reading The Duke, and indeed I don’t want to stop anyone from reading it, I just find that managing expectations makes it easier to enjoy things, and I wish I had understood just how essentially heterosexual this nominally queer book was.
I am currently reading Alexis Hall’s Hell’s Heart extremely slowly because it is everything I wanted and was promised (Sapphic Moby Dick in space). I have to keep pausing to kick my legs and flail about and try to find anyone who will care even half as much as I do that this Queequeg speaks Latin and it’s all like, Catullus and Cicero and Somg of Solomon quotes. I am not going to say this makes my having read Moby Dick worth it, but it definitely feels like I am finally being rewarded for having suffered through it. I will say that Moby Dick is extraordinarily homoerotic for the time, so queering it is not all that challenging given that it’s already queer. But it’s intensely male, like, not for nothing they’re hunting sperm whales. So making it Sapphic and really having fun with it does still feel delightfully subversive.
Let’s see, since last time, I kept the romance novel with fantasy elements train (not quite romantasy, but yanno, maybe?) with Entities to Lovers by Mallory Marlowe. I enjoyed the hero in this one particularly, and found the ghosts engaging (especially the Annabelle like doll that, instead of being evil, appoints herself romance wingman and shows up with condoms at just the right time). Then I cracked open The Unicorn Hunters by Katherine Arden. Wasn’t sure how it was going to go…I loved the Winternight Trilogy and couldn’t get into The Warm Hands of Ghosts to save my life. Fortunately, this one caught me. This one takes the story of Anne of Brittany and instead of having her sold off to France to bear a bunch of kids, adds unicorns and faeries and the odd mad sorcerer. I always enjoy a sneaky, competent heroine, and this Anne was certainly that. Which brings us to now, in which I’ve just started The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley. I’m enjoying the multiple narrators, and the bloodthirsty eat-the-rich part of my personality already is grinning at the idea of bad things happening to bad people that deserve it.
@kkw Well, damn. I’m not attracted to women at all, but now I really want to read Ilona Andrews with butch warrior women replacing the MMCs. Their FMCs deserve better than they get, and I say this as a fan of their books.
I just finished DOLLY ALL THE TIME, the new book from one of my favorite authors, Annabel Monaghan. I loved this novel, for all the reasons that were beautifully explicated in @Lara’s recent review, and also because of many memorable and thought-provoking observations voiced by the FMC. (An example of lines that stuck with me: “One thing about caretakers is they are never carefree. Without our cares, we’d just be takers like everyone else.”) I strongly suspect I’ll be returning to DOLLY for a re-read very soon, and savoring the experience all over again.
Other reading since the last WAYR: I enjoyed the “Off Campus” TV series and hadn’t read the books, so during a two week span I consumed the entire five-book series by Elle Kennedy, plus two of the follow-ups (THE GRAHAM EFFECT and LOVE SONG) centered on the college-age children of several MCs from the original books. I’m not a huge fan of hockey romances, but I enjoyed these books for the most part. However, I agree with a comment from @book_reader_ea01sj71r4, in the last WAYR, about the treatment of gender-related violence in the first book (THE DEAL), published in 2015. The significant plot element that involves victim-shaming the FMC and her family was troubling to me. And while I appreciated the sex-positive attitudes of the various “Off Campus” FMCs, by the time I’d finished all seven books the numerous sex scenes seemed be extremely repetitive. (Maybe that’s a feature, not a bug?) I thought character development was better in the third and fourth books (THE SCORE and THE GOAL), so I’m looking forward to future seasons of the TV series focused on those MCs.
I needed a palate cleanser after all the F/M hockey stories, and read Clare Lydon’s new book GIRLFRIEND GOALS, an F/F sports romance about two women who were professional soccer teammates and roommates in their 20s, stopped speaking to each other for about 20 years, and are now reunited as “co-stars” in a documentary about their rivalry as coaches of the England and Ireland women’s national teams. I didn’t like this book as much as other Lydon romances because of the Big Miscommunication that led to the friendship breakup, and because the eventual romance seemed to emerge abruptly rather than organically. The descriptions of soccer coaching strategy were good, though.
Also, I read the six-part “Summer Lovin” collection of Amazon Original short stories, and was thrilled that it included new work—STAYCATION–from another one of my favorite authors, Sarah Grunder Ruiz. Other standouts for me were ONE HOT SUMMER WEDDING by Falon Ballard, and SUMMER THAW, a hockey romance by new-to-me author Rebecca Jenshak.
So it’s been a good start to early summer reading, and I’m eager to see what others are recommending.
Summer is here in all its hot and humid glory. That’s why I’m inside reading. (I know it’s too early for these to count for my bingo card, but I’ll try to note what I remember just in case it helps someone. Plus, anything from a WAYR counts as “From a Rec”, right?)
Fighting Chance (Misty Grove Book 1) by Victoria Paige (KU)
Bingo: Mistaken or Secret Identity
There’s a new sheriff in this small-town, and he’s got mysteries to solve, including why does the pretty lady seem to attract so much trouble? I think part of the fun with this one was going in mostly blind as to what was going on, so I don’t want to say too much. It was decent overall.
The Deserted Heart (The Unmarriageable Series Book 1) by Mary Lancaster (KU)
Bingo: Mistaken or Secret Identity, Wrong Sibling
A young woman bringing her brothers home from school must shelter from the bad weather. The inn is mysteriously empty except for another guest similarly stranded. They part ways in the morning never expecting to see each other again, until she is surprised by the familiar face on the young man who has come to court her sister. I enjoyed the touch of mystery in this historical, plus it had lots of bonus regency trappings like a road trip to a spa town.
Corrupting Her Heart (Owning Vegas 2nd Gen Book 2) by Kylie Kent (KU)
Bingo: Tattoos, Published in the last 3 months
We are back in Vegas with Frankie (parents: His Kingdom) and Emilio (parents: Dead or Alive). Emilio has known Frankie was the one for him since they were kids. Frankie thinks he’s sexy, but she’s not sure dating Emilio is worth the risk of a war between their families. (Both dads are known to be a little crazy about protecting their kids.) This one has a lot of touch her and die energy, which has fit my mood lately. I liked it well enough, and I think it would work as a standalone, but honestly a large part of the fun for me was catching up with the characters from the previous books.
The Sinister Heart (The Unmarriageable Series Book 2) by Mary Lancaster (KU)
Bingo: Mistaken or Secret Identity
This one follows the romance of the sister of the male lead from The Deserted Heart and a notorious lord. They meet at an the same mysterious Hart Inn from the first book when he catches her spying on him, and he decides to kidnap her. As you do. Cue the fake engagement to protect her reputation, add in the mysterious death of his first wife, and fold together with some terrible relatives for more regency drama. It’s a solid regency romance.
Frozen Heart: An Age Gap Mafia Romance (Perfectly Imperfect Book 12) by Neva Altaj (KU)
Bingo: Mistaken or Secret Identity, Sex Worker, Latest in a Series, Published in the last 3 months
I’m noting a trend in the titles of my books this round, and I’m not saying I wouldn’t plan that, but I promise this time I didn’t. Anyway, our mafia adjacent hero becomes obsessed with the pretty maid who saw something she shouldn’t. Look, I’ve enjoyed the other 11(!) books in this series, so I’m predisposed to like this one, and I did. I’ll admit that the masked sex club plot line seemed a little contrived, but also sexy, so I’m going to let that slide. This one is for folks who like their heroes morally gray and scheming.
Mine (Ties That Bind Book 1) by Natasha Knight and A. Zavarelli (KU)
His (Ties That Bind Book 2) by Natasha Knight and A. Zavarelli (KU)
Bingo: One Night Stand
Dark mafia romance duet with lots of twists. The setup involves a one night stand, an accidental pregnancy, and her going on the run after seeing something that makes running seem like a perfectly reasonable response. I picked this one up because DiscoDollyDeb mentioned the author in the comments on a post a few weeks ago. It was a solid dark mafia story, and I’ll be on the lookout for others by the authors.
Hunter: Mafia Romance (Hunting Her Book 1) by Eden Summers (KU)
Bingo: Mistaken or Secret Identity
Dark mafia romance set in Portland. We’ve got a mafia assassin and a vigilante circling each other in this one, which made for a fun setup. (Looking at my current reading list, you might have thoughts about my definition of fun. These thoughts are likely correct.) It looks like the rest of the series is also made up of crazy sauce and trigger warnings, and I enjoyed it enough that I’ll probably keep going.
Lead: A Stage Dive Novel (Stage Dive Series Book 3) by Kylie Scott (KU)
Deep: A Stage Dive Novel (Stage Dive Series Book 4) by Kylie Scott (KU)
Bingo: Artist or Performer
I’d read the first couple of books in this series before they became available in KU, but got distracted before finishing the series. They are all solid rock star romances, though the characters read very young to me. Lead follows the band’s lead singer’s romance with his live in assistant who is also functioning as his sobriety companion. Deep follows relationship between the band’s bass player and the younger sister of the female lead from book 2 after a one night stand in Vegas leads to an unexpected pregnancy. It’s fun stuff in a crazy celebrity drama kind of way.
Reading really continues to be a struggle for me, but I did really enjoy THE MIDNIGHT SHOW by Lee Kelly and Jennifer Thorne. An epistolary mystery with a contemporary researcher digging into a mysterious disappearance of a female comedian (from a SNL like show) in the 80s.
Now, I did figure out at least part of the mystery early on, but I felt like the epistolary aspect still made it feels really satisfying and twisty. You would see something from one POV and the another and you weren’t sure where the truth lies. All of the characters had secrets and you often weren’t sure who the good guys/bad guys were in such an ambitious cutthroat world.
Reading some promising things, but nothing is finished yet and I don’t want to jinx myself.
Happy Reading, y’all.
My tear ducts have gotten quite the workout in the last two weeks.
I had just started THE BALLAD OF FALLING DRAGONS the second book in Sarah A. Parker’s Moonfall series. I think I may have found my romantasy jam. I am completely invested in the main characters, Raeve and Kaan, their tragic past, their complicated present, their uncertain future. There is a vast cast of secondary characters whose stories I’m looking forward to seeing fleshed out. If you looking for an outlet for female rage, there are no punches pulled here. We left Raeve on her way to mete out justice to the man who murdered her friend. This book starts with how that went. Graphically. That’s a warning, but along with a load of political intrigue, betrayal and violence, there’s heart and emotion in this book. Characters who love deeply. Characters that can put aside their needs for the greater good. Hopefully Raeve will become one of those. I know I’m a soft touch, but I found myself weeping over a piece of paper. A PIECE OF PAPER! Which should tell you how well I took events later in the book. Also dragons. More weeping.
After that I unwisely chose T.J. Klune’s WE BURNED SO BRIGHT, an end of the world road trip. Don and Rodney undertake a cross-country drive to fulfill one last promise. There’s nothing but the open road and the ominously cracked moon in an ever changing sky. The story of their marriage and the reason for this last seemingly impossible trip plays out against their encounters with the best and saddest of what’s left of humanity. I think I’ve said enough to make it clear that my Kleenex box did not leave my side.
After the emotional roller coaster above, I went for Emily Tesh’s SILVER IN THE WOOD, a short story take on the Greenman myth. Tobias has been inhabiting the Greenhallow woods for a very long time. He leads a quiet life with his cat in his hard to find cabin. One day someone new appears. A handsome young red haired investigator of fables and myths. Henry Silver shakes Tobias from his solitary existence. He is forced to confront his past and the dark force at the heart of his home. This did not give my Kleenex supply a rest.
On to THE PARIS MATCH. I approached Kate Clayborn’s latest with some trepidation. I try to avoid reading reviews of books that are high on my must read list, but I saw enough to know they were mixed. I shouldn’t have worried. Layla Bailey loved her ex-husbands family finding in them something she had been looking for all her life. So when her much loved former SIL calls to invite Layla to her wedding, how can she say no? The divorce was, after all, amicable. Paris is an emotional minefield being the site of her own honeymoon. After a completely pleasant night out with the girls, the surly best man comes pounding on her insisting she fix whatever it was she did to cause the bride to announce she’s having second thoughts. Griff is there to make sure his friend gets the HEA he deserves. As they move from one Paris landmark to another they find themselves rescuing each other from the more troublesome aspects of the bridal party: her ex with his new girlfriend, the groom’s parents who place the full blame for their son’s previous heartbreak on Griff. Secrets are slowly unveiled, emotions are confronted and love happens. Le sigh. No Kleenex required.
Hello, Smart Bitches!
Lots of reading these last two weeks!
A CURSE OF BEASTS AND MAGIC by Jeaniene Frost — M/F Urban fantasy. Not one of her best efforts, but not a bad way to while away an evening.
OUTLIER by Susie Tate — M/F contemporary. Ok, but I have read better books that feature neuro-divergent leads. I also found the way her family and friends treated her as callous and dismissive one minute, and then infantilizing and overly solicitous the next. It made some of the plot points not really ring true or even not make sense.
THE UNDERCUTTING OF ROSIE AND ADAM by Megan Bannen — Highly recommend! I loved this whole, very unique series. Three M/F romances set in a mythical world with tech comparable to the 1950s. With magic and gods. While all three were excellent, this one is more myth based and the action feels more like a fable than the others. Powerful, demi-god heroine, and short king, genius inventor hero. Rarely have I read books that manage to dig deeply into the feelings and romantic motivations and insecurities of its characters, while still moving the action right along. Highly recommend, but read them in order.
HERCULE POIROT’S CHRISTMAS by Agatha Christie — Exactly what was on the tin. Love Christie’s Poirot and Marple books.
STARTER VILLAIN by John Scalzi — First book for me by this author. I really enjoyed this book. The dialog was snappy and plot clever and entertaining. His writing has a certain rhythm that might be wearing if it went on too long, but the book was also the perfect length. I’m going to give myself a break and then read some more of his work. This was a good entry point, if people are thinking about picking up something by Scalzi. The sentient cats and striking dolphins were also handled beautifully. Highly recommended!
LOVE ME STALK ME by Laura Bishop — Meh. Couldn’t quite make up its mind if it was going to be really dark or not. Commit if you’re going to do it.
THE PAPER BARK TREE MYSTERY by Ovidia Yu — Mystery set in Singapore in the 1930s. Not as good as the first two, but once again, an interesting peek into a part of the world I know little about during a fascinating period of time.
As you can see, I am digging into my TBR, mostly because the family is doing a reading challenge and I refuse to be beaten! I am definitely enjoying my reading more because I am pushing through even when I am feeling draggy.
Very excited to read the recs because I have a few days off this week. Thanks to all!
Happy Reading!
It’s been a minute, and book reading has taken a backseat to house renovations, but there’s light at the end of the tunnel, and I have read a few books recently:
There seems to be a trend of romance writers incorporating suspense plots into their stories. Two of my favorite writers—Jill Sorenson and Zoe York—have recently started romantic-suspense series (and Serena Bell’s latest, HOTT HOTTER HOTTEST, which I haven’t finished yet, also includes a suspense plot). Jill Sorenson’s SHERIFF’S HONOR (the second book in her His to Protect series) and Zoe York’s STOLEN HOPE (the first book in her new Dragonfly Creek series) both feature heroines on the run from abusive exes. While both books are well-written, I think I’m a bit burned out on abusive exes. York’s book in particular with its heroine escaping from [cw/tw] a high-control church environment and dealing with the associated religious trauma makes for some challenging reading at times. I liked SHERIFF’S HONOR a little more than STOLEN HOPE partly because the heroine, despite also dealing with the trauma of escaping from abuse, has a bit more moxie than the (younger) heroine of York’s book, plus Sorenson’s book has an interesting mystery (unrelated to the heroine) about the discovery of a long-dead body. I will be continuing both series, but I’ll be spacing out my reading to avoid too much “abusive ex” material.
It seems strange to complain that a book set amongst anthropomorphized animals, mythical creatures, and folklore entities is “too paranormal”, but that’s how I feel about C.M. Nascosta’s REUNIONS (the fourth and final book in her Girls Weekend series). First things first, you cannot read REUNIONS as a standalone, it will make no sense without reading the previous books in the series. Some of the book focuses on elf Lurielle who is now married to an orc and pregnant with her first child. Much of Lurielle’s worries focus on her own difficult relationship with her emotionally withholding mother (Nascosta does a really good job, in a just a few conversations, of showing how awful Lurielle’s mother is) and how will she be able to love her child unconditionally when she never received unconditional love herself. Another large part of the book (and the part that I found “too paranormal”) was elf Silva’s search for her lost love, the part-fae elf, Tate. Silva has married a “safe” elf but spends her time trying to penetrate the fae world that has claimed Tate. Naturally, there are many complications. If you have already reached this point in the Girls Weekend series, you’ll want to continue and finish the story, but be forewarned, there’s a lot of supernatural stuff ahoy.
Garrett Leigh’s JUST THIS HEART (the second book in her Men of Porth Luck series set on the Cornish coast) features two MCs who are torn apart by circumstances and situations that left me wondering if these poor guys would ever catch a break. Military veteran Jack experiences episodes of amnesia and vertigo, the result of a traumatic brain injury he suffered while on duty. His best friend is fisherman Sol who is always in debit due to his father’s chronic gambling (I wanted Sol to cut off his father at several points in the book, but Sol’s commitment to his family wouldn’t permit him to do that, although it felt a lot like enabling to me). What Jack doesn’t remember is that he and Sol were “more than friends” before his brain injury. During the course of the book (which features many cameos from Leigh’s previous books, especially from the Rebel Kings MC), Jack begins to piece together his past with Sol. Key quote: “sex doesn’t fix things. It makes good shit better and bad shit more complicated.” JUST THIS HEART wouldn’t be a good entry into Garrett Leigh’s universe (you’ll be lost with the number of characters who dart in and out), but if you’re already familiar with her angsty style, this book is a good addition to your tbr.
A few months ago, I read Jesse H. Reign’s GONE WILD, her first book set in the omegaverse. I’m not a big reader of a/b/o books, but I liked GONE WILD enough to pick up the second book in the Wild Hearts series, BORN WILD, which is a very weird book indeed, a strange mix of old-school gothic, Beauty & the Beast retelling, omegaverse complications, and modern romance (there are long sections of the book that felt so 19th century, I completely forgot it was set in contemporary times until a character picked up a cell phone or got into a car). Jensen, an omega and the brother of one of the MCs from GONE WILD, travels to England to catalog the massive library of Lord Augustus (known as Alfie, which felt like a distinctly non-lordly name to me, but generally referred to as “My Lord” by Jensen), an alpha who has the “Casanova gene” which makes all omegas fall in love with him, so he takes suppressant to keep the emotional damage at bay but that, in turn, fates him to live in a world devoid of sensation—especially scent, which is extremely important in the omegaverse. As I said, BORN WILD combines gothic sensibility (it will be no surprise that a climactic event takes place at a masked ball), the rehabilitation of a damaged character (Jensen reads books to Alfie, first choosing JONATHAN LIVINGSTONE SEAGULL first—which made my 1970s teenage heart giggle), and, naturally, the discovery that Jensen and Alfie are fated mates. BORN WILD just misses outright silliness due to good writing and the sincerity of its protagonists. If you’re looking for something a little off the beaten bath, BORN WILD wouldn’t be a bad choice.
The last couple of days found me blue for no good reason. Last night I finished a book titled Less, about a 49 year old author whose third book has been rejected by his publisher and a former lover is marrying so he goes around the world and is unhappy the entire time. Faint curiosity about where this was all leading – surely not to the obvious conclusion – held me to the end. I do wish my library did not own this book. A Pulitzer prize winner (why?), praised by Washington Post reviewer Ron Charles as brilliantly funny (where?), I found it profoundly depressing and vow, once again, to steer clear of “literary” fiction. I mean, isn’t all fiction literary?
While I’m grumbling about books, I also read The Correspondent and have been wondering for a week now if it is possible to like a book when you sincerely dislike the main character. My dislike grew as the character revealed herself and her past through letters, so it wasn’t as if I knew early on that the book would not satisfy. First time I’ve ever wished I was in a book club but I scratched that itch by reading Amazon 1-star reviews.
And then there was The Phallus in Nature, which I was about to abandon at chapter 13 where the main character’s brother was introduced so I flipped through until he was out of the way, then continued to the end. It was a very strange book. Not bad or good, just (to me) strange.
Have I read anything that was entirely enjoyable recently? I’m searching KU, because unlike one reviewer who disparaged ALL KU titles, I’ve read wonderful books that were available in KU. Most recently, The Runaways by Devney Perry, five novellas linked by four young people – two twins, no other family relationships – who justifiably left their various homes and school – to work while living in the abandoned vehicles of a junkyard and waiting to turn 18. The novellas pick up about 10 years later. The emotions and distinct characters created by the author were strong and the each story believable.
I placed a hold on Christina Dodd’s Teach the Torches to Burn, the third in her Daughter of Montague series. Talk about creative storyline – these books are narrated by the oldest daughter of Romeo and Juliet. Humorous but never silly, I’m happy to wait for library availability. In the meantime, I make a hard and grateful turn to reading romance.
I’m reading Letters from Tove, a collection of Tove Jansson’s letters to various friends and family. I’m not quite convinced by the decision to group them by recipient rather than in date order, but they’re very interesting and enjoyable. I hadn’t realised how much of a roman à clef the Moomin books are!
DEATH MEETS CUTE by J. Penner: The cover is wonderful; the story took me a little longer to appreciate. At first, both MCs were too evil/too good, Mary Sue’s in different ways. Until they weren’t and their journey became less frustrating, more enjoyable. Would recommend.
THE FRACTURED DARK (book 2) by Megan E. O’Keefe: Planets dying, greedy corporate families, war and mistrust all around, as well as reprinted bodies that go wrong. The series must be read in order for any understanding and I love these two prickly and difficult characters. Almost like a Kristen Hannah novel: what the hell else can we throw at them to near destruction? Highly recommended.
NINE MONTH CONTRACT by Amy Daws: Lots of difficult emotional growth, rescued farm animals, found family, surrogacy and everybody lives on a mountaintop outside Denver. The family of four brothers was almost too perfect, until we discover all the really ugly stuff below the surface. Some funny dialog, loads of sexy times, and unexpectedly enjoyable.
THE LIBRARY AFTER DARK by Ande Pilego: What a dark surprise. Consider a tour of a haunted library in the tradition of THEN THERE WERE NONE and no one is who they seem. Our FMC was emotionally traumatized by childhood events and vowed to stay away from the library. Then they’re all locked in. Creepy and really good.
THE BLACK CRESCENT by Jane Johnson: 1950s Morocco and the French are in brutal command. A young officer in Casablanca tries to navigate loyalty to his country and to his employers during the inevitable uprising, which the French make impossible. Highly recommended, also rage-inducing.
THE LAST MANDARIN by Louise Penny and Mellissa Fung: Another chilling and believable political thriller, this time set in DC and China. Yikes. That is all.
Over the past three weeks ~
— quite enjoyed Grace & Henry’s Holiday Movie Marathon by Matthew Norman even though I did put it aside for a week mid-read. This is a contemporary romance set in Baltimore that featured a bar owner and mother of two whose husband has recently died of cancer and a man whose wife has recently died in a plane crash. Their mothers attempt to matchmake, but instead they become grieving partners and movie watching buddies.
— read The Edge Of Heaven by E.M. Lindsey, a contemporary romance between an English teacher and an astrophysicist. The former is being pressured by family into attending his ex-husband’s marriage to his (the teacher’s) first cousin, so he invents a boyfriend. His best friend says that he’ll find someone and, due to a wrong number, hires the second lead character believing that he is an escort. It was complicated but enjoyable.
— quite enjoyed the second book in a historical mystery series, A Case of Life and Limb: The Trials of Gabriel Ward by Sally Smith. I recommend starting with the first book, A Case of Mice and Murder.
— Private Charter by N.R. Walker was a pleasant read. One lead is a high-powered businessman whose health is at risk due to work stress who charters a private cruise off the Australian coast; his casual companion cancels at the last minute. The other lead is the yacht owner/captain who had a similar stressful life before making changes. While I enjoyed this, I think I’d have liked it more had the ratio of physical to emotional intimacy leaned more heavily to the latter.
— For an upcoming book group, I read Three Days in June by Anne Tyler. This was a quick read that takes place (surprise!) over three days in June. The focal character is a divorced woman whose daughter is getting married; the story takes place on the wedding day and the days before and after. Other characters of importance are her ex-husband and daughter. This book made a pleasant change from the dark books that my book groups often read. I look forward to the discussion; all of the women in my group (save for me) have experienced a child’s wedding.
— read Play Mahjong!: An All-Levels Guide to American Mahjong by Alyssa Gross. It proved to be a quick read for me as I’m an experienced mah jongg player. It would be a fine introduction to the game for a new player.
— enjoyed the contemporary romance Trick Shot: by L.A. Jasper which featured an ice hockey player and a rock star. I look forward to reading the author’s next book.
— How to Fake It in Society by KJ Charles is a historical romance set in London in the early 1800s. One lead is a purveyor of paints who, while delivering an order to a wealthy elderly woman, is asked to marry her so that her nephew, who caused her to fall down the stairs, does not inherit. The other lead is a young French comte (or is he?) who had been wooing that same woman; he helps the first lead navigate his sudden change in fortune, both good and bad. I quite enjoyed this book.
— A Series of Rooms by A.J. Barlowe is a gritty contemporary romance. The ‘friends’ of one lead hire a male prostitute for the night of his 21st birthday. The prostitute is being trafficked but sees no way out of his situation. The first lead provides him a safe place to spend a platonic night with conversation, a shower, and food. The first lead then hires him for weekly overnight stays in a variety of motels. (Since lead one is working at a diner to pay for college, it strains credulity that he could pay $500 each week but ….) I quite liked this, but it carries a lot of content warnings for violence and more.
— So enjoyed the above that I purchased and read the sequel, Doors & Windows, which I also liked. The above book had an epilogue that took place several years after the main story; the sequel fills in that missing time. Much of the story deals with recovery after trauma.
— read a soon to be published book that I won in a Goodreads giveaway ~ Voyagers: A Novel by Meg Charlton. This was an intriguing science fiction story. The focal character was a man who as a six year old disappeared with a six year old girl for thirty-six hours. The children become famous for having an alien encounter; they are close friends until age seventeen keeping in touch by phone and letter and meeting at the occasional UFO event. When the story begins some thirty years later, there is a worldwide panic as something, not naturally occurring, is approaching from the edge of the solar system.
— reread Metal Boxes by Alan Black which I first read back in 2021. At the time I said, “The book is silly in parts; however, it definitely kept my attention, and I enjoyed it. It’s classified as both space opera and military science fiction.” I’ll add that I remembered absolutely nothing of the book, so it was as though it was a new read! I would happily read on if my library had the sequels.
MARS HOUSE by Natasha Pulley is a queer political marriage of convenience story set in Mars, which has been colonized for six or seven generations. It’s described as a romance but, at 65%, there has been very little progress and some significant obstacles so think of this as a glacially slow burn. The relationship is between a human man born on Earth who was a principal dancer for the Royal Ballet in London and a powerful Mars-born politician whose family controls the power grid.
The central tension is that people born on earth are 3 times stronger than ‘natural’ people whose ancestors were born on Mars, and accidentally kill them in disturbing numbers.
The world is fascinating, with a brutal 2-tier social hierarchy, eradication of ‘extreme gender traits’ from the DNA of natural people, and mammoths who can communicate.
As of this minute, it’s $1.99 on kindle. I don’t know how long that will last, but if you enjoy sci-fi with ‘maybe a romance’ I recommend you check this out.
@Kareni, I first read the title of Three Days in June as The Three Junes, I book read almost 25 years ago and was amazed that someone -here- read it and further confused because I didn’t recall it as an Anne Tyler book. Then I blinked.
The Three Junes is a lovely book, by the way. Literary fiction and lovely, which hasn’t been my experience in recent years.
Hi, Smart B*tches! It’s admittedly been an age since I’ve posted. Excited that the school year has ended and I’m enjoying the option to turn the morning alarm off occasionally, LOL.
Recent reads I loved: Serena Bell’s HOTT HOTTER HOTTEST, Laurel Greer’s THEIR PLAYOFF ARRANGEMENT, KJ Charles’s HOW TO FAKE IT IN SOCIETY, Tracy Solheim’s DIRTY LITTLE SECRET, Lisa Henry and Sarah Honey’s CASH HOOPER SAVES A LIFE. The last is the most recent in their Goose Run series, and it’s absolutely fantastic. I’ve reread it already. And both Serena Bell and Laurel Greer are on my list of underappreciated authors–they write characters I really enjoy, and I really like how these characters feel very real and vulnerable and brave all at the same time.
I also binged the last few in Cynthia Eden’s Protector and Defender Romance series and enjoyed them very much. She hits the spot when you’re in the mood for some entertaining, high octane romantic suspense.
Here’s to some fantastic June reading for everyone!
Since I was denied an ARC for Edge of Mercy, I’ve gone back to re-reading books 1 and 2 (Liar City and Twisted Shadows) in the Sugar and Vice series to tide me over until 6/23. MM, paranormal, Reese and Evan and their found family battle an evil corporation with government connections. I heard Rachel Reid recommend the series by Allie Therin on a podcast. Found out I had purchased but never read book 1 in 2023. So good news for my TBR? And does it count when you read a book twice? Also, thank goodness for my local Library.
I keep re-reading Cat Sebastian novels because they make me happy, but I have tried several books recently:
THE ADVENTURES OF AMINA AL_SIRAFI by Shannon Chakraborty
I desperately wanted to like this one. The FMC was very appealing – a middle aged former pirate. The setting was appealing. The side characters I had met (so far) were appealing. But my brain just didn’t care and didn’t want to finish it. I should have known better because I didn’t finish THE CITY OF BRASS either. This is definitely a me issue.
THE OPEN ERA by Edward Schmit
I finished this one and it definitely kept my interest, but when I reflect on the story as a whole, it just didn’t make sense to me. We only get Austin’s POV, which can be fine. I don’t always need both POVs. But I really needed Diego’s POV in this one because I just did not understand his behavior at all. He seems to oscillate between coming on extremely strong and disappearing. And my man Austin is honestly kind of dumb about it all. But I guess that he’s young? I don’t know. The fact that the action all takes place over the course of a week doesn’t help because I’ve never been an insta-love person. So this may again be a me issue.
WHEN THE MOON HATCHED by Sarah A. Parker
I’m on the fence with this one. I can get why people love this story. The world building is first class. The world has “moons” that are dead dragons. And a fantastic world origin story. And interesting magic. I was sucked in immediately! But I’m now having second thoughts. There’s a lot of what feels like exposition because I’m pretty sure I haven’t hit the main story yet. I’ve also gotten quite confused at least of couple of times already, which doesn’t bode well for the rest of the book. I sometimes read in quite short spurts and often switch between books depending on mood, so I need something with plots that aren’t too complicated. Also a me issue!
THE CABOTS by Cat Sebastian
Reading Cat Sebastian is so often like taking a warm bath. It’s not that the characters have no conflict. They do. And they are dealing with difficult things. But you feel for certain that it will all work out and the emotional journey the characters go through is always great. I’m on book 3 of series right now, having finished 1 and 2 earlier this week. Daniel and Alex are such great characters. I particularly empathize with Alex’s desperate need for calm and quiet after peopling too much.
My history book club just finished reading Fifth Sun: A New History of the Aztecs by Camilla Townsend. It was a fascinating look at the Mexica people both pre- and post-conquest.
In the romance department, I read two books by a new to me author, Alice Coldbreath. While I enjoyed A Foolish Flirtation quite q bit, I really liked A Much Maligned Miss.
Now I’m reading the latest C.S. Harris, When the Wolves Are Silent. The Sebastian St. Cyr mysteries have been so well done, but I keep seeing people recommend Candace Proctor (C.S. Harris)’s historical romances so I’m going to have to add a few to my tbr pile.
Loved Dearest Beast (ARC)!
Just flew through Nora Roberts’ latest, The Final Target – good title. Nothing very surprising in the content but I enjoyed the FMC’s work and found the ending highly satisfying.
Despite Mount TBR being so lofty that I fear an avalanche, I’m hopping from foot to foot to get the new book of Amina Al Sirafi and Anne Leckie’s new novel Radiant Star. May fill up the gap with Natalie Haynes’ No Friend to This House (about Medea).
@LML ~ having read The Three Junes many moons ago, my first thought about Three Days in June was that surely I’d read it. So I definitely hear you! (And I am appreciating it when either of my book groups selects a book that is NOT all doom and gloom.)
My standout read is Suzanne Palmer’s Ode to the Half-Broken. Postapocalyptic, nomadic, and very much a found-family quest book (but not a romance). I bought it in hardcover and I’m also going to get the audio.
@LML—I have the same reaction to a lot of literary fiction (see, for example, TRUST by Hernan Diaz). It’s like I don’t even read the same book as other people! I also go look for the 1 and 2 star GR reviews—it surprises me (though perhaps it shouldn’t) that they often cluster and share the same complaints as me.
I realize this isn’t quite the right place, but I just saw that Alexis Hall’s FATHER MATERIAL (the ongoing story of Luc & Oliver from BOYFRIEND MATERIAL and HUSBAND MATERIAL) is on sale for $1.99 in the Kindle Store.
I’m way behind on noting my reading and at least one WAYR behind, so I’m just going to do quick lists. Kind of mostly in order of favourites within the categories.
– f/m historicals –
Eloisa James’s THE LAST LADY B. Clearly riffing off of NORTHANGER ABBEY, this is such a fun play on the Gothic. Such a good time.
Julie Anne Long’s GAME OF ROGUES was also just delightful. The recent ones in the series have been great.
Harper St. George’s third Doves of New York book THE DOVE AND THE ROGUE was strong. I do like when the rake falls hard.
Continued my D.E. Stevenson run with BEL LAMINGTON, FLETCHER’S END, KATHERINE WENTWORTH, KATHERINE’S MARRIAGE, SARAH MORRIS REMEMBERS, SARAH’S COTTAGE, AMBERWELL, SUMMERHILLS, VITTORIA COTTAGE. These are so lovely.
– Contemporaries (all f/m except the Hall) –
Kennedy Ryan’s SCORE is another of her brilliant deep romances. Here a Black bisexual screenwriter who has bipolar disorder with all its complications navigates is on the team producing an epic Harlem Renaissance biopic with her songwriter/score composer ex.
Liz Tomforde’s IN HER OWN LEAGUE (to my mind the best of the Windy City series) Great characters in their 30s/40s–the new female owner of the baseball team and the field coach.
Annabel Monaghan’s DOLLY ALL THE TIME was pretty delightful.
Alexis Hall’s FATHER MATERIAL if you liked the first two in the series BOYFRIEND MATERIAL and HUSBAND MATERIAL, which I did. So much. Laugh out loud stuff.
Tia Williams’s THE MISSED CONNECTION had such vivid characters and great connections.
Lauren Okie’s THE BEST WORST THING is also angsty and good but also a debut.
Sarra Manning’s THE LAST DAYS OF SUMMER has a tough starting point–a friend group gathering for a summer weekend when one has terminal cancer and only a few of them know about it–but it still had its delights.
Didn’t love Elsie Silver’s FEVER DREAM as much as some of her others, but it was still good. A bull rider agrees to be the bachelor on a reality ranch romance show but falls for the location coordinator, who happens to be his nemesis’s sister.
I’m a little burned out on the whole friends to lovers angst about ruining friendships by falling in love, though I do like yearning. Anyway, Carley Fortune’s OUR PERFECT STORM was made special by its Tofino, BC setting which made me so so so homesick (I grew up in Victoria).
– fantasy/romantasy –
Rachel Gillig’s Gothic Shepherd Kings duology ONE DARK WINDOW + TWO TWISTED CROWNS was so inventive and strong.
I haven’t love Sarah A. Parker’s Moonfall series as much as some others because hat’s going on is fuzzy to me at times but great world building, poetic language, and passion.
Sable Sorensen’s FURY BOUND was also good–the second in the series.
@ LML and FashionablyEvil
I read Trust for my book group and liked it very much, especially the female ghost writer learning to write in a “male voice”. I don’t enjoy most of the group’s choices, which I would call a range between middlebrow and literary fiction (except for Saunders’ Lincoln in the Bardo and Everett’s James). I’ve gotten used to applying my own standards and not those of reviewers.
I started re-reading “We Could Be So Good” by Cat Sebastian and some parts are just really hitting me in the feels. I kept having to stop and re-read and stop again to let the words marinate in my brain.
Otherwise, it’s still pretty much all “Heated Rivalry” fanfic with the aid of our good friend AO3.
“Operation Boyfriend” by Zarah Detand was ok, not great. Fake boyfriend premise is hit or miss for me, and while the romance was cute, I just couldn’t get over the interfering family. It really bothers me when boundaries are crossed so hard and it’s ok because the family just loves each other so much and wants the best for each other.
Just finished reading the entire “Brent Boys” series by D.P Clarence and loved them all.
“Worth a Try” by Jemma Croft, #3 in the “Try for Love” series about rugby players in Bath. I adore her characters, flaws and all.
@KarenG, you might follow up with a brilliant reimagining of the Moctezuma/Cortez meeting: YOU DREAMED OF EMPIRES by Alvaro Enrigue!
Not read much straight romance recently. I did read my first book by Rosamunde Pilcher, “Voices in Summer”, which I didn’t much like. It’s not dated that well.
“Out of the Ordinary” by Annie Dalton is an older fantasy novel for teenagers which I did enjoy. It has influences from the Tam Lin legend.
“A Case of Life and Limb” is the second in a cosy-ish mystery series by Sally Smith. Love the setting, which is the Inns of Temple in the Edwardian period. The writer worked there and obviously knows it well and loves it. The writing is good and the characters interesting. The mystery plot itself didn’t work for me.
Recently finished JANUARY SNOW by Hayden Wand, a retelling of Snow White with 1920’s mafiosi–a concept which appeals to a niche crowd of approximately two people, one of which is me. January “Snow” Esposito is the daughter of a murdered mob boss who’s on the run after her stepmother, a medium who talks to spirits through a scrying mirror, decides Jan must be the cause of her father’s death. David is a nice boy from a wealthy family who accidentally stumbles into the twisted web of mafia corruption among the upper class and city politics, and determines he’ll bring down the mob to save Jan before her stepmother can catch up. This ended up not being a romance, which was good because Jan and David have no romantic chemistry at all. I think this was self-published; there were a lot of spelling/grammar/punctuation errors in my ebook. The best parts were the ‘translation’ of the Snow White elements to the setting–the seven dwarfs are West Virginia coal miners, the poison apple turns out to be apple cider moonshine–and Jan herself, who is not likeable in a way I wish more book heroines got to be. She’s not exactly ruthless or cold-hearted like her stepmother, but she’s prickly and takes no shit.
Reading TO STEAL A BRIDE by Terri Mackenzie, another free Regency Romance ebook. I like this one though I don’t think it’ll appeal to everyone; the leads argue a LOT and the plot kicks off with some TSTL on the part of the otherwise level-headed heroine. Oliver is the wastrel younger son of an earl who is getting cut off from his allowance, but knows he’ll inherit a house and some money when he marries…so why wait? He goes to the next village over and proposes to the first girl he sees; she’ll get a better class of life than she’s got and he’ll keep a roof over his head. What he doesn’t count on is her spinster sister Emily deciding to have words with him on the same night he planned on sneaking them to Gretna Green (why would you get in the carriage, Emily! Don’t let them take you to a secondary location!). Emily was ruined by a lordling who promised marriage then dropped her when he got what he wanted, so she’s not trusting of Oliver’s version of events. Oliver meanwhile has never been brought to task by someone who thinks he’s capable of anything, and realizes he likes having to prove himself. A crashed carriage has them convalescing on a farm near the England/Scotland border and having to fake being newlyweds so as not to raise suspicion. There’s a lot of almost-communication and half-steps towards understanding.
Still reading the webcomic WIDDERSHINS by Kate Ashwin and almost caught up to the current update. Seriously, let me just recommend it again. Early Victorian era magic world; a magical-artifact bounty hunter and her assistant, a wizard who wants to be a magician and has magical kleptomania (not his fault!), get wrapped up into far reaching schemes along with a grumpy drifter who sees spirits, his traveling musician friend, and the overly by-the-book wizard who (is pressured to) employ them as ghost-busters. Has really fun worldbuilding, multiple romance arcs, and a general “everyone is capable of becoming a better person (and that doesn’t mean giving up your personality)” philosophy.
Finished PICNIC AT HANGING ROCK by Joan Lindsey, as well was the extra chapter that was published later, and watched the Peter Weir movie adaptation. I don’t know if I even liked the book but I’m still thinking about it. Victorian schoolgirls go missing at Hanging Rock in the Australian bush, and the fallout reveals the rotten underside of their boarding school and Victorian society. I have Thoughts, but I’ll tread lightly. Let’s just say I don’t necessarily buy that this is as anti-colonial, at least intentionally, as a lot of essays about it claim. Anti-Victorian, yes, but the view of Australia is more of an untouched wilderness that people shouldn’t disturb than a place where people have lived for tens of thousands of years before the British showed up.
Among other things, working through Aster Glenn a grey’s historical MM romances. First HONEYTRAP (oh my heart), between a Soviet agent and an American agent; then FOR THE LARKS BRAVELY SINGING(post-WWI, a romance between two veterans who have both lost limbs); and now THE SLEEPING SOLDIER, which is so good.
I feel like her stuff doesn’t ever get mentioned in MM romance conversations, which is a shame. It’s lovely and emotional and always a glimpse into a different historical period than the usual Regencies (at least those I’ve read so far). Cat Sebastian’s ‘50s-‘70s books are a good comp. Highly recommend!
I also recently read WOLF WORM, T. Kingfisher’s excellent and quite gruesome newest horror.
Thanks to Reciprocard, I was able to get all the Dungeon Crawler Carl books in Libby! I have been gobbling them up like potato chips. Definitely not for everyone. I almost quit after book 1 because it was so hopeless feeling. But it gets more hopeful moving forward. I’m on book 8 and I am not sure what I will do with myself after that.
Absolutely loved THE LAST CONTRACT OF ISAKO by FONDA LEE. Middle-aged long-kniveswoman who has been stellar at her job but her client does something unfathomable and now she has one last contract to complete and a whole lot of mysteries to solve.
The BOOK WITCH by Meg Shaffer had a great beginning and a slightly bogged-down middle, and I figured out most of the twists before the fun ending, but it was a good read overall and definitely a fun zone-out-at-the-beach read.
Reread SMALL MAGICS, a Kate Daniels novella and Curran and Jim POV collection from Ilona Andrews when they offered it as a free download with updated illustrations. Always fun to see Kate outwit others.
Next up is either KNIGHT AND THE MOTH by Rachel Gillig or NEWCOMER by Keigo Higashino — romantasy and mystery short stories, respectively.
Missed the last couple WAYR due to work and distraction and my 99 yo mother’s health. And being in a bit of a reading slump. I’ve t tried a bunch of different types of romance and not finding a ton I love. And starting to recognize AI style.
I’ve done a lot of re-reading, Nora Roberts, Rosalind James, heck, I even re-read some Maya Alden which is not that old. But looking for the familiar amid the chaos.
I did find some new books I liked. THE HEARTHFIRE by Jalal Hockett is not a romance but more cozy fantasy. Set in something approximating medieval Scandinavian, especially since most of the characters have the same names as my Icelandic cousins, it follows a mid 30’s shield maiden who inherits an inn and gives up fighting to run it. She gradually settles in to the village and acquires a family, much to her surprise.
I also liked Rosalind James’ latest rugby romance, JUST WATCH ME. Two single parents with many kids meet and eventually get together despite work obstacles and natural disasters.
I also want to thank the Smart Bitches for the spreadsheet that allows me to remember which books I read and likes.