The worst thing about The Friday Society is that it ends. I'm not criticizing the ending; I'm just saying that I had so much fun reading this book that I felt considerably depressed when it was over. It's that good. The Friday Society is a steampunk adventure with three main characters, each of whom is a teenager. Cora is the unappreciated assistant to a famous inventor. She is brilliant and cranky. Nellie is a Magician's … Continue reading The Friday Society by Adrienne Kress→
Reminder! Tomorrow at 9pm we'll be hosting the Sizzling Book Club Chat discussing The Chocolate Kiss by Laura Florand. There will probably be intricate discussions of dessert and pastry. Ms. Florand will join us at 10pm ET for a Q&A. I hope you'll come by – book club chat nights are very fun. … I'm over at Kirkus today, continuing my series about identifying your favorite tropes and character types in romance. This week, in … Continue reading Book Club Chat Reminder, Links, and DABWAHA 2nd Chance Tournament!→
How to Eat a Cupcake is $1.99 for a limited time. The reviews on this novel, about two very different friends who work in cupcakery, are largely positive. Is there a subgenre called 'cook lit?' 'Bake lit?' 'Cake lit?' This definitely fits within it. Funny, free-spirited Annie Quintana and sophisticated, ambitious Julia St. Clair come from two different worlds. Yet, as the daughter of the St. Clair’s housekeeper, Annie grew up in Julia’s San Francisco … Continue reading Books on Sale: Cupcakes, Confessions, and Revving It Up→
Time to compile the list of recommendations from everyone about which Nora Roberts should be among the first a new reader picks up. With Roberts, there’s a little of everything, too. There’s contemporary romance, romantic suspense, futuristic romantic mystery (in Death) and ParaNoras. There’s something for everyone… unless you like vikings. And I don’t think Roberts has written a post apocalypse YA with a heroine in a prom dress, either. For some their favorite is … Continue reading Classic Romance – Which One First? Nora Roberts Recommendations→
Time for Romance Novel Workout VII! So grab your nearest romance and get ready to read, sweat, and possibly growl in outrage. Don’t bite your lip, though. Thanks to Rudi’s tumblr for the inspiration today. Like the last few workouts, can do all these exercises with a mat and your own body. No handweights are needed unless you want to use some. Go get that novel you love (or love to hate), and get ready! … Continue reading Romance Novel Reader Workout VII→
RECOMMENDED & LAST CALL. Something About You is $1.99 for a few more hours. This book was featured in our Save the Contemporary campaign when it came out. Plus, it WON the DABWAHA in 2011. If you like contemporary romance, you'll probably like this. James writes very smart characters who don't forget how to do their jobs when their pants become slightly horny, and her stories have emotional and sexual tension to spare. Just go … Continue reading Books on Sale: Last Call for Something About You, Plus A Giant Bundle, and a YA Romance→
Iron Guns, Blazing Hearts is a fun, pulpy steampunk western that has a simple goal and achieves it. In her acknowledgements page, Heather Massey writes, “I wrote Iron Guns, Blazing Hearts with the goal of providing all the entertainment value I could muster”. I'm evaluating the book accordingly. Did it sweep me off my feet? Nope. Did I learn something about human relationships, or become a better person, or achieve an intellectual breakthrough? Nope again. … Continue reading Iron Guns, Blazing Hearts by Heather Massey: A Guest Review by CarrieS→
A few links for Sunday morning reading: I saw this article as I was checking out of a hotel and took pictures of the Wall Street Journal, but Holly @hi_26 on Twitter found the online version for me: Barnes & Noble and Simon & Schuster's financial dispute has led to BN significantly reducing the orders of S&S author books. The dispute holds risks for both sides. Simon & Schuster is losing sales and promotions at … Continue reading BN & Simon and Schuster in a Fight, Lizzie Bennet Diaries DVD, and Amish Romance→
Jessica has a HaBO request, and it involves dragons. And necklaces! OK. I am trying to find this book that I remember very specific details about things that really don't impact the plot. As you do. I know this is a historical “paranormal” romance. I want to say it was around the regency period in England but I'm not entirely sure. All I remember is that the hero gives the heroine a pet dragon egg … Continue reading HaBO: Dragon Eggs!→
This email comes from a reader who is searching for…some memorable reading. When I was in high school, I read a bunch of insane romances from one author (I think), all acquired from the library. I wasn't a romance reader at the time and actually didn't know that was what I was reading, since they were all hardcover and I assumed romances were all mass market size. Dumb! Anyway, I'd love to reread some of … Continue reading HaBO: It’s All About the Beads, Yo→
Since the new Disqus was making so many of us unhappy, it's been removed. Bye! Currently deployed for your commenting and conversationing pleasure is the standard comments that come with Expression Engine, the CMS that powers the Bitchery HQ. There's a captcha, and there's an RSS feed for following a comment thread if you'd like. There is numbered comments, non-nested, as per many requests. And there's commenting without up or downvoting. Unfortunately, I can't set … Continue reading Everything Old is New Again in the Comments→
