When I read the following scene near the start of Big Stick Energy, I knew I was going to have a good time with this hockey romance. The captain, Eric (our hero) describes his teammates getting off the bus by saying “I watch as they file toward the front, a procession of exhausted millionaires griping like toddlers before nap time.” It made me hoot with laughter. I thought, here was a sports romance that a … Continue reading Big Stick Energy by Sarina Bowen →
I listened to Hollywood Hookup on a recent plane ride, and while the tone of the narrative wasn’t really for me, I can say that the structure of the book lends itself really well to audio. Josie Days is a makeup artist on a hit musical sci-fi show starring five hot guys who are sequel fodder. They’re doing a charity celebrity date contest with said five guys and for hand-wavy reasons Josie gets roped in … Continue reading Hollywood Hookup by Christy Swift →
There is a more extensive list of triggers and warnings on the author’s website that goes into more detail, especially regarding kinks. Boys Who Hunt is a dark, bully, why choose romance, and it was the art that made me read it. I was advertised a Kickstarter for special editions and I was like, Whoa, that cover art is gorgeous. It reminded me a lot of the dreamy art styles I see in romance manhwa … Continue reading Boys Who Hunt by Clarissa Wild →
The Al Gore Rhythm got me. Recently, I’ve been receiving algorithmic ads for serial romances, where you pay to unlock chapters. Typically, Instagram or Facebook will show you the first few chapters to hook you and then send you to one of the gazillion romance novel apps out there. The excerpt grabbed me, but I was not about to pay per chapter for a serial that, while thankfully completed, was over 150 chapters. Lucky for … Continue reading The Wrong Obsession by E.L. Sparrow →
I don’t enjoy reading women’s fiction and this book is women’s fiction, so please keep that in mind when you read this review. I shall do my best to correct for my preferences, but it’s best to be upfront about these things. So why on earth did I pick it up? Well, it was the premise you see. It totally sucked me in. I was so curious how this set up would unfold because this … Continue reading Welcome to Murder Week by Karen Dukess →
There’s a lot of things I could write about Another Simple Favor. I could write about whether or not Anna Kendrick and Blake Lively get along with each other! I could write about our current societal obsession with True Crime! I could write about how the conversation about mommy vlogging has changed since 2018! I could write about stereotypes about Italians – we aren’t all in the mob! Some of us are freelance writers! But … Continue reading Movie Review: Another Simple Favor →
I picked up this book for its cover. The blue really spoke to me. Plus it was on sale. That’s two things in its favour. Not a very substantial reason to start a book, but it is what it is. Now that I’ve read it, I can list a few more things it has going for it, although there are some negatives, too. Dovey van Dalen is a mystic. She was spellbound at 18 and … Continue reading A Trinket for the Taking by Victoria Laurie →
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 The Nightmare Before Kissmas →
If you’ve ever dreamed of love between a woman and a flamingo, then your wish is granted. The Flamingo’s Fated Mate, the first in a series of novellas about Lawn Ornament shifters, tells of romance between a baker and a millionaire who is also a flamingo shifter. I present the following without judgment, purely for your factual edification: No one has sex in the form of a flamingo (lawn ornament or actual). The sex that … Continue reading The Flamingo’s Fated Mate by Elva Birch →
I enjoyed this book. I read it cover-to-cover in almost one sitting, but as I sit here to write this review, I’m left with distinctly meh feelings about it. Is this because I had a disappointing breakfast and that’s colouring my perspective? Or was the book meh? Let’s find out together. This story is set in the Jewish community of London in the 1830s and is essentially a gender-reversed Snow White retelling. Solomon Weiss is … Continue reading Wake Me Most Wickedly by Felicia Grossman →
How can I review a book that has a plot twist in the last chapter that changes the entire book? Lore of the Wilds is a fantasy that is enjoyable but…odd. The heroine is twenty-one but the book reads as very YA despite one graphic sex scene. There’s a love triangle, but it’s difficult to write about it without revealing a spoiler that comes out of nowhere at the very end of the book. There … Continue reading Lore of the Wilds by Analeigh Sbrana →
