I’m not even going to pretend that I picked this book up by chance. I had meant to read it last year when it came out, but didn’t. I don’t know why. I don’t have a good reason. Post-Heated Rivalry TV show obsession, I remembered I had this novel waiting for me on my Kindle. I started it last night when I got in bed. I read it while I was pumping milk in the … Continue reading The Shots You Take by Rachel Reid
When I sat down to write this piece, I had no idea it would turn into a rant, but it did. My head swirled with thoughts and all of them were burning a hole in my stomach, desperate to be let loose. Release the Kraken! I shouldn’t have read this book. It irritated me MULTIPLE TIMES. It’s irritated me so much that I can’t even bring myself to do a recap of the premise like … Continue reading And Now, Back to You by BK Borison
I picked this book up for a ridiculous reason: a misreading of the title. I read Dom-Con – a convention of doms and I found that idea hilarious. That notion was quickly dispelled when I read the cover again followed shortly by the blurb. I’m thankful for that silly mistake of mine because I had a lot of fun. Rae is a total newbie to the BDSM world when she rocks up to a BDSM … Continue reading Dom-Com by Adriana Anders
I had a tremendous amount of fun with this book. Not only is it actually laugh-out-loud funny, the heroine is perfection. Or to quote my Gen Z work colleague, she is goals. Slay. Let’s begin with the trauma that makes her who she is. Juliette Winters had two psychologists for parents who treated her more as a lab experiment than a beloved daughter. They published books about her! Multiple books! The result is that Juliette … Continue reading Cross Your Heart and Hope He Dies by Jenny Elder Moke
My only exposure to the Bachelor franchise is Elyse’s commentaries/summaries of episodes. But apparently a book set in a Bachelor-like TV show works for me! With some caveats.… Georgia is a cast member of Love Shack, along with 19 other women, most of whom are in pursuit of the bachelor: Roland, a professional tennis player, who is currently not playing due to an injury. You don’t meet all of the women, obviously. It would be … Continue reading Most Eligible by Isabelle Engel
I read this book in snatched moments and stolen hours and I adored it. It features tropes that I’m not all that interested in: single dad, nanny x boss, and small town romance, but the writing is so immersive and rich that these didn’t feel like familiar tropes. They felt original and fresh. Like this was the first nanny on the planet to fall in love with her boss. THAT original. But I’m getting ahead … Continue reading Fundamentals of Being a Good Girl by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone
This guest review comes from Lisa! A longtime romance aficionado and frequent commenter to SBTB, Lisa is a queer Latine critic with a sharp tongue and lots of opinions. She frequently reviews at All About Romance and Women Write About Comics, where she’s on staff, and you can catch her at _@thatbouviergirl on Twitter. There, she shares good reviews, bracing industry opinions and thoughtful commentary when she’s not on her grind looking for the next … Continue reading Love at First Sighting by Mallory Marlowe
What is this book about? Let’s give the blurb its moment to shine as it is one of the good ones (i.e. it matches the content of the book well) Sadie Shaw and Jonah Fisher have been academic rivals since they first crossed paths as undergraduates in the literature department thirteen years ago. Now that a highly coveted teaching opportunity has come up, their rivalry hits epic proportions. Jonah needs the job to move closer … Continue reading An Academic Affair by Jodi McAlister
Gold Coast Dilemma is at its best when unpacking the culture, food, and family dynamics of a well-to-do Ghanaian-American family and the life of the central character, Ofosua. It is at its most infuriating when the characters face macro and micro-aggressions regarding race, gender, and mental health. And it’s least convincing when selling the actual romance between Ofosua and Cole. This romance is told from both Ofosua’s and Cole’s point of view, but Ofosua’s is … Continue reading Gold Coast Dilemma by Nana Malone
This guest review comes from Lisa! A longtime romance aficionado and frequent commenter to SBTB, Lisa is a queer Latine critic with a sharp tongue and lots of opinions. She frequently reviews at All About Romance and Women Write About Comics, where she’s on staff, and you can catch her at _@thatbouviergirl on Twitter. There, she shares good reviews, bracing industry opinions and thoughtful commentary when she’s not on her grind looking for the next … Continue reading Give Me a Reason by Jayci Lee
This series focuses on exiled members of the French royal family, and this is Princess Danielle’s book. Not that she knows she’s a princess at the start. At that stage, she’s just Dani, a 22-year-old ‘village girl’ from Ivy Hill, Kent, who lives with her adoptive parents. She’s forthright, passionate about her community and looked to as a leader by that community despite her gender and age. It’s still a pretty quiet life though. That … Continue reading Claiming the Princess by Charis Michaels
