Comments for Smart Bitches, Trashy Books

Comment on Cookies, YA, & More by denise

denise — Fri, 22 May 2026 20:00:23 +0000

Sally lives in the next county over from me.

Comment on Jim Henson, Frankenstein, & More by denise

denise — Fri, 22 May 2026 19:58:46 +0000

I had that same problem Margo had yesterday. The links from my email wouldn’t show the post content, but when I went to home, I could see/read all the posts.

Comment on Checking In With Y’all by Michele Hall

Michele Hall — Fri, 22 May 2026 18:26:17 +0000

Be prepared for Leslie Jones’ audiobook. You will feel all the emotions. I really enjoyed it when I read it 2 summers ago. I was definitely a car book when I was traveling by myself. I started it, and was surprised to see it was over 12 hours. She said in an interview that she read the book like she wanted to write it, but her editor made her cut it down.

Y’all, the book is only 225 pages. I had to check it out to compare. On most pages she reads one to two sentences then just riffs the rest of the story.

Comment on Cookies, YA, & More by Laurel

Laurel — Fri, 22 May 2026 17:49:58 +0000

I second the recommendation for Sally’s Baking Addiction (& King Arthur) – really well thought out recipes that have never failed me.

Comment on Cookies, YA, & More by Gillian Berry

Gillian Berry — Fri, 22 May 2026 16:56:11 +0000

I loved Mrs. Nash’s Ashes. None of Adler’s books have hit for me like that one did. I found it so charming, funny, and very sweet while also having depth.

Comment on Cookies, YA, & More by Sandra

Sandra — Fri, 22 May 2026 16:27:31 +0000

Sally’s Baking Addiction is one of my go-to baking sites (King Arthur being the other), and I’ve never had a problem with any of her recipes. On a related note, I just picked up Erin Jeanne McDowell’s Savory Baking for $2.99 at B&N https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/savory-baking-erin-jeanne-mcdowell/1140825699?ean=9780358729945. She’s one of my YouTube subscriptions — entertaining and reliable.

Comment on Jim Henson, Frankenstein, & More by Kareni

Kareni — Fri, 22 May 2026 15:38:12 +0000

Thank you for your list, @flchen1.

I enjoyed Mrs. Nash’s Ashes by Sarah Adler and am now tempted to reread it.

Comment on Yesteryear by Caro Claire Burke by Whit

Whit — Fri, 22 May 2026 15:07:09 +0000

She actually has 4 children in the 1800’s timeline – Mary, Maeve, Noah and Abel, and there are potential hints of other pregnancies and/or births.

Comment on On Reviews and What Makes Them Useful by Deborah

Deborah — Fri, 22 May 2026 14:03:07 +0000

I have to differentiate between a review I would find at SBTB or AAR or…wherever else romance novels get reviewed in a way that I would expect to be contiguous with the reviewing standards of a professional publication vs reviews on a site like Goodreads or a Reddit sub.

I can’t tell you what makes a good “professional” review; I can only tell you how it lands for me: the most useful reviews are going to be the ones that hook me to read a book immediately or steer me away with the absolute confidence that I’m not missing anything that matters…and that success probably has as much to do with the book’s contents as it does with the reviewer’s skill. But I have a friend in my book group with the amazing gift of summarizing a novel’s hook — not just its premise, but that buried point of appeal, the thing that will really make it resonate with the reader — without spoiling the book. (Emotion check: so jealous of her. But also in awe.)

But for “user”-generated reviews — Goodreads, Storygraph, Amazon — give me all the recaps, the over-detailed summaries, the spoilers. I eat those up. They are the closest thing I’m going to get to a close reading of a romance novel, that analytical point where specific detail and interpretation collide. I consider myself spoiler-proof when it comes to romance. It’s the successful execution of the story or emotion that matters to me when I read a romance novel, and there are very few true “twists” in this genre that would enhance my experience if I went in blind.

Comment on Jim Henson, Frankenstein, & More by flchen1

flchen1 — Fri, 22 May 2026 04:57:16 +0000

$.99:
– Steal My Heart (Rosewood River Series Book 1) by Laura Pavlov
– Merry with a Probie: A small town, reverse age gap romance (Let It Burn) by Carolina Jax
– Spring Break with a Fire Chief: A Small Town Romance: Love Beach Collection (Let It Burn) by Carolina Jax
– Knave of Broken Hearts: A Finally-Growing-Up, Yaoi Kink, MM Romance (Love in Laguna Book 2) by Tara Lain
– Prince of the Playhouse: A MM, Coming Out, Secret Identity, Theater Romance (Love in Laguna Book 3) by Tara Lain

$1.99:
– Mrs. Nash’s Ashes by Sarah Adler
– The Sparkling One (Marcelli Sisters of Pleasure Road Book 1)
by Susan Mallery
– Lord of a Thousand Steps: An Age-gap, Sexy Babysitter, Single-dad MM Romance (Love in Laguna Book 4) by Tara Lain
– Fool of Main Beach: An Opposites-attract, Simple Hero, Must Love Dogs MM Romance (Love in Laguna Book 5) by Tara Lain
– Up All Night by Annabeth Albert

$2.99:
– My Own Words by Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Mary Hartnett, Wendy W. Williams

Free:
– Death in a Scarlet Gown (Murray of Letho Book 1) by Lexie Conyngham
– The List: A fish out of water, millionaire geek, spicy romantic comedy (Passion Pacts Book 1) by Tawna Fenske
– Summer with a Fireman: A small town, beach romance (Let It Burn)
by Carolina Jax
– Puck Like A Girl: A Why Choose Hockey Romance (Playing the Puck Book 1) by Wynter Ryan
– Mountain Man’s Secret Crush: Summer in the Pines by Wynter Ryan
– Line of Fire (Archer Tactical Book 1) by A.K. Evans
– Knight of Ocean Avenue: A Gay Awakening Romance (Love in Laguna Book 1) by Tara Lain
– Silver (Fox) Linings by Anna Sparrows

An LGQBT+ event: https://prismreads.com/