Naomi Novik knows how to write a freaking good fantasy novel. I’ve been thinking nonstop about A Deadly Education for the past week and have been frantically messaging speculation/theories to other readers. It’s the type of story that will exist rent-free in my brain for the foreseeable future. No matter how much I try, I can’t scrub it out because exciting details keep invading my mundane day-to-day thoughts. So let’s get right to it! I … Continue reading A Deadly Education by Naomi Novik→
Content warnings: Everyone in this book is reacting, one way or another, to the death of Susan’s mother at the start of the book. There is a character with disordered eating and she plays a large role in the book. Another character has untreated anxiety which manifests itself as hypochondria. There is also an enormous amount of snobbery and classism. 2020 seems to be the year for food-themed, contemporary re-tellings of Jane Austen’s Persuasion, and … Continue reading All Stirred Up by Brianne Moore→
Content warning: It’s important to note that the speculative history the book is based on is very very plausible, some already happening in our world, things like energy wars, crumbling infrastructure, and inept government officials cutting off essential resources and services so they can continue grabbing at more power. There’s also mentions and descriptions of torture in the book. Take stock of your mental and emotional bandwidth before diving in if any of these subjects … Continue reading Deal with the Devil by Kit Rocha→
Who’s That Earl is a light, fun, Regency romance that felt like snuggling down under a warm blanket. It is gleefully tropey. Jane Quayle, cast out by her family, makes her living writing wickedly erotic novels under a pseudonym. As if one pseudonym wasn’t enough, she also pretends to be her own secretary under a second pseudonym. She does all of this in a neglected Scottish castle in the company of two neurotic dogs and … Continue reading Who’s That Earl by Susanna Craig→
You can bet when I saw the words “gender-swapped Alexander the Great in space” used to describe a book, my immediate reaction was PUT IT IN MY EYEBALLS. Plus, it’s written by Kate Elliot, who wrote the totally amazing and ass-kicking Spiritwalker fantasy trilogy. I figured Unconquerable Sun was a guaranteed winner. Folks, it is a winner–eventually. After a stuttering start, it is jam-packed with incredibly cool and interesting sci-fi world-building and nonstop twisty politics … Continue reading Unconquerable Sun by Kate Elliott→
Tam Lin, by Pamela Dean, is one of those novels that has popped up in the comments and in book recommendation posts a lot of times and never gotten a full review. I figured I’d use some of my quarantine time to tackle it and what a long, strange book it was – sort of a romance, sort of a fairytale, and mostly a book about college. I feel like I’d need to read it … Continue reading Tam Lin by Pamela Dean→
Today’s guest review comes from Crystal Anne With An E, who has written a few guest posts before! Crystal Anne With An E is an autism consultant by day, goes to library school by night. She reads a lot, cross-stitches with a vengeance, and is a Hufflepuff, because honey badgers don’t give a shit. … CW/TW: All of them. Child abuse, spousal abuse, animal death, discussion of rape, patriarchy being assholes, gaslighting, possible/likely miscarriage So … Continue reading Guest Review: A Heart of Blood and Ashes by Milla Vane→
Real Men Knit is a contemporary romance set in Harlem. Mama Joy was the owner of Strong Knits, one of the few older Black-owned small businesses in Harlem. She was also the foster mother to Jesse, Noah, Lucas, and Damian, and mentor and mother-figure to Kerry, all of whom are now adults. When Mama Joy dies, Jesse and Kerry decide to try to keep the store open as a tribute to Mama Joy and because … Continue reading Real Men Knit by Kwana Jackson→
Sometimes a series is just exactly what you thought it was going to be and what you were looking for, and the josei manga series You’re My Pet! was that for me. This 14-volume manga series is comedic, soap-operatic, a little weird, romantic, and hopeful. While I can’t say it’s flawless, I nonetheless loved it. This series was originally released in the US as Tramps Like Us in the 2000s by Tokyopop (although I think … Continue reading You’re My Pet by Yayoi Ogawa→
Content warning: Manipulative / borderline abusive families; heroine was married at 17 to a man in his mid-twenties and that relationship was also manipulative and possibly more than borderline abusive, though we see very little of it on the page. This is a fun, gentle romance that will make you hungry. Rosalie is a young, recently divorced, single mother who returns home to live with her own mother because she is out of options, and … Continue reading Love’s Recipe by Mila Nicks→
In a world of lockdowns and panic-buying, I want two things in a romance novel: suspense and sex. This book gave me both. Meet Carter Warren, a Special Agent with the FBI, who moves from one undercover assignment to the next with nary a home base in sight. He’s buff, smart, and a little cocky. Now, allow me to introduce you to Lincoln Monroe AKA Mr Homebody. He’s a professor at Quantico and a silver … Continue reading Variable Onset by Layla Reyne→
