A Haunting in the Arctic is emphatically not a romance, but it has some elements that are relevant to our interests, specifically female rage and mermaids and selkie legends. It’s very atmospheric and creepy, but it forgets to make sense. The plot revolves around a LOT of rape, and also includes graphic violence, self-harm and gaslighting. If I had realized that the plot involved so much rape, much of it committed on page and the … Continue reading A Haunting in the Arctic by C.J. Cooke →
Lizzie Blake’s Best Mistake is a classic example of how a book that is otherwise OK can be utterly ruined by a few sentences near the end. If this review seems compartmentalized, it’s because the book has a lot of compartments, some of which are filled with great stuff (hot sex, self-actualization) and some of which are terrible (unfortunate implications about abortion). I’m going to deal with the terrible first so you don’t have to … Continue reading Lizzie Blake’s Best Mistake by Mazey Eddings →
This guest review is from Babelfish, who is a California librarian, historical fiction enthusiast, lizard person, and ADHD-prone daydreamer. … Long-time reader, first-time contributor. I find the reviews on this site some of the most entertaining writing on the internet, and the number of quotes with which I spam my coworkers (and my best friend) is a mite excessive. I *really* appreciate you people, is what I’m saying. 🙂 Y’all got me into reading romances in … Continue reading Passion Play by Beth Bernobich →
tw/cw: antifat bias, manipulation, abuse Flirting With Fifty is a contemporary romance between Paige, who turns fifty about halfway through the book, and Jack, who is a few years older. Full disclosure: I’m the same age as Paige, and, like Paige’s daughters, I’m the adult daughter of an alcoholic father and a mom who divorced said father late in life, and my personal experiences very much colored how I perceived the book. There’s not a … Continue reading Flirting With Fifty by Jane Porter →
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 @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 good freelance job. This is her third … Continue reading Guest Rant: Night Storm by Catherine Coulter →
CW/TW: misgendering genderqueer/nonbinary person, bathroom panic This book pissed me off so much that I bailed almost a quarter of the way in. As a genderqueer woman, I cannot recommend it and I regret picking it up in the first place. I was so mad about this book that I rage wrote the whole review on my phone while laying in bed, because this was supposed to be my fun bedtime read. You know you’re … Continue reading The Holiday Detour by Jane Kolven →
Warning: While I had several issues with this book throughout the story, the thing that really inspired this rant happened right at the very end. Here be spoilers. Here be massive, massive spoilers. Also, rage. I picked up Thief of the Heart for its set up: female FBI agent on the trail of a female jewel thief, and they fall in love. I mean. Women excelling in traditionally male-dominated professions! Enemies to lovers! Career versus … Continue reading Thief of the Heart by MJ Williamz →
The DNA of You and Me might just as well be called “False Equivalency: The Novel.” The description on the inside front cover leads the reader to suppose that the book is about the career choices that women have to make, especially between love and work. However, the book is actually about an obsessed woman in an emotionally abusive relationship who has to decide whether to stay in the abusive relationship or stay at a research … Continue reading The DNA of You and Me by Andrea Rothman →
Mystic by Cheryl Brooks is the second book in a spinoff sci-fi romance series from Brooks’ original Cat Star Chronicles. I have neither read the first book in this spinoff series, Cat Star Legacy, nor the original series, but I’m always down for some bonkers reading from time to time. Not being familiar with any of the book’s predecessors was probably to my detriment, but my inability to understand the world has nothing to do with … Continue reading Mystic by Cheryl Brooks →
Sarah asked us to think about throwback series, and I knew immediately that I wanted to discuss the Orphan Train Series by Linda Lael Miller. I remembered them VERY FONDLY from my early teenagerhood (early 1990s) and wondered how well they would hold up. I was pretty sure the answer was going to be in the realm of “not great” but it turns out, no, it’s all the way over in “VERY VERY BADLY.” In … Continue reading Lily and the Major by Linda Lael Miller →
I read Princess of Zamibia because it’s a romance between an African prince and an African American woman, and because it avoids negative stereotypes of African countries. I ended up being triggered and upset and a little bit murderous. Rant ahead. TW for kidnapping and rape. I’m angry, people, and anger is contagious. It’s OK to skip everything ahead. Short version is that the hero in Princess of Zamibia is an asshat. It’s my duty … Continue reading Princess of Zamibia by Delaney Diamond →
