I persisted through this book for one reason: I NEEDED to know who the killer was. That’s it. That’s the only reason. As a mystery, it is compelling, twisty and enjoyable. As a romance, it made me want to throw my e-reader against a wall. So many of the secondary characters are total assholes. Truly. Even our heroine is a selfish dickwad. Across the characters, sometimes that asshole-ness is because they’re just assholes. For example, … Continue reading It Happened One Murder by Liz Lawson →
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 →
The Lodge is a wintery romance, but it only works if you don’t think about it too much. I enjoyed the book but found the plot too unlikely. I couldn’t buy that the story could unfold the way it did. Alix Morgan is an entertainment journalist who just landed the job that is sure to launch her career–she’s going to ghost-write the memoir for former boy band turned solo artist Sebastian Green. Sebastian belonged to … Continue reading The Lodge by Kayla Olson →
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 →
