Beauties is a one-shot comic by Marguerite Bennett, with art by Trungles and lettering by Rachel Deering. It’s a simply gorgeous art nouveau inspired fairytale that turns the Beauty and the Beast story into a completely fresh parable about love. In this story, instead of the Beast capturing Beauty, Beauty’s father, who has three daughters, captures The Beast. The first daughter makes him a pet. The second daughter makes him a slave. But the third daughter asks … Continue reading Beauties by Marguerite Bennett →
TAKE COVER. THE SQUEE CANNON IS SET TO KNOCK OUT LEVEL 7.8, WHICH IS JUST ABOVE LEVEL 7 WHEREIN LL COOL J’S MAMA DEMANDS THAT YOU BE KNOCKED OUT. Seriously, I could not have enjoyed this book more, and the first book as well. I heard about it when several readers and reviewers I follow on Twitter were exclaiming about it (and of course I can’t find that conversation now, dang it, so apologies that I can’t … Continue reading The Undoing by Shelly Laurenston →
Rag and Bone is a mix of Regency, fantasy, and mystery, and while some parts were stronger than others, the two heroes and the rapidly developing plot kept me reading for hours longer than I intended. Crispin is a struggling magician whose prior tutor/master turned out to be evil, and he has a clandestine but passionate relationship with Ned, who is a waste paper dealer. Ned, who is the gentleman of color on the cover, lives … Continue reading Rag and Bone by KJ Charles →
SW: This review is from Lara, who so loved The Diabolical Miss Hyde, she couldn’t wait to read the sequel. Because she discovered the series here (yay!) she asked to guest review The Devious Dr. Jekyll for us. Welcome, Lara! After reading Elyse’s review of the first book in Viola Carr’s Electric Empire series, I broke my no-impulse-buying rule and bought The Diabolical Miss Hyde. I loved it. LOVED IT! I soon began a countdown to the … Continue reading The Devious Dr. Jekyll by Viola Carr →
It’s pretty easy to write a glowing review or a scathing review – but writing a “meh” review is truly tricky. No one wants to read a review that goes, “IDK, it was fine, whatever.” However, my feelings about Newt’s Emerald are basically, “IDK, it was fine, whatever.” Newt’s Emerald is a Regency romance with magic, which is totally my catnip. It also has a heroine who dresses as a guy for strategic reasons, which … Continue reading Newt’s Emerald by Garth Nix →
There are friends who will help you move (I have those) and friends who will help you move bodies (I can neither confirm nor deny if I have any of those) (I do), and then there are friend who say “I found this book and I think it’s gonna make you bleed from your eyeballs, you need to read it!” I have the best friends. So this is a truly terrible shifter book. What I’m … Continue reading Werehipsters by Stikki Minaj →
I’m totally cheating here, and giving you the cover copy because it does a much better job of explaining the plot than I could: On a hike deep in the Rocky Mountains, Kai Monahan watches as a dozen dragons–actual freaking dragons–battle beneath a fat white moon. When one crashes nearly dead at her feet and transforms into a man, Kai does the only thing a decent person could: she grabs the nearest sword and saves … Continue reading Soul of Smoke by Caitlyn McFarland →
NB: Heather T. saw this book among yesterday’s cover snark and said, “I think I need to read this.” For science, I presume. Whatever the reason, we’re grateful! Welcome, Heather! The cover of this little missive showed up on the Bitchery because the cover and the concept were just So Fucking Funny. The cover showed this guy wearing nothing but glasses and a huge bejeweled codpiece. A MAGIC BEJEWELED CODPIECE. I volunteered to take one for the team and … Continue reading Guest Review: Emily’s Magical Bejeweled Codpiece by B. Snow →
I am a woman of eclectic genre reading habits, and wander far afield in the fertile lands of literary licentiousness. I am especially a fantasy and sci/fi junkie. However, I love it with all my heart when the sci/fi or fantasy novel I am reading adds at least a dollop of romance in its pages. Not some two-dimensional rumpy-pumpy between a fuck puppet and the hero or some bullshit like that, either. Make it good … Continue reading Guest Squee: Kushiel’s Dart by Jacqueline Carey, reviewed by Betty Fokker →
Of Noble Family is the final book in the Glamourist Histories series books by Mary Robinette Kowal. The first book, Shades of Milk and Honey , was a Jane Austen-style romance with a touch of fantasy. Subsequent books have been more focused on action and intrigue, but the focus on the main characters Jane and Vincent gives every book a strong romantic element. They are established as a couple, but seeing their marriage grow stronger … Continue reading Of Noble Family by Mary Robinette Kowal →
So apparently, in addition to being the Knitter in Residence here at SBTB, I am also the the aquatic romance reviewer. When Amanda sent me a book about a mermaid stripper, you know I had to read that, right? It’s as crazy-sauce as I could have hoped. The book is about Aazuria, a mermaid princess who lived in an undersea ice palace and who is now destitute after her murdering her dad. To be fair, her … Continue reading Drowning Mermaids by Nadia Scrieva →
