NAACP nominee and USA Today bestselling author Beverly Jenkins celebrates her beloved Blessings series with a heartwarming novel set in Henry Adams, Kansas. “If you haven’t yet gotten your hands on [this] author’s work, you should do so immediately.”—Shondaland Tamar July, town matriarch of Henry Adams, KS, is being haunted by dreams of her humiliating wedding day, sixty years ago, when she discovered her intended, Joel Newton, was already married. The truth left her furious, heartbroken, and … Continue reading Calling All Blessings →
This guest post is from Verity, who lives in the UK, and reads a book set in every US state plus DC every year. I was super curious, so I asked her about it. Yes, I know, I’m nosy. … Hello, my name is Verity and I like writing cheques my reading brain doesn’t like cashing. Let me explain. I like to read romance and cozy crime. I have a terrible habit of finding a … Continue reading The Every State Reading Challenge with Verity →
This Rec League comes from Elyse: Heroes with Glen Powell from Twisters vibes (kinda cocky cowboy with secret heart of gold). Bonus points for found family Shana: I haven’t seen Twisters but cowboys are my jam. I suggest The Cowboy Whisperer by Sabrina Sol and Rebekah Weatherspoon’s Cowboys of California series. Beverly Jenkins’s has some cocky cowboys too: Something Like Love and her Old West series might work for this. Have any of you seen Twisters? … Continue reading The Rec League: Cocky Cowboys →
Happy Wednesday Links! We’re going through a heatwave in New England right now and it is unpleasant, considering my apartment (and most apartments in the area) don’t have central AC. Summer is…unpleasant. Anyone else experiencing the same thing and trying to keep cool? Also, I hate cooking during this weather, so feel free to share your favorite summer recipes that don’t require me standing by a hot stove! … Beverly Jenkins has announced that her Blessings series … Continue reading Links: Kickstarters, Cheese, & More →
This request comes from Grace. Thanks, Grace! I have a weirdly specific rec request. I guess you could just call it mail order brides, but more specifically: Sarah Plain & Tall vibes? I’ve been re-watching the Sarah Plain & Tall movies with my grandma lately. I’ve loved the book & movies all my life and they were VERY formative in becoming a romance addict, but being from the kids’ POV, we only see an outside … Continue reading The Rec League: Sarah, Plain & Tall →
We’re recapping all kinds of stuff this week, and today: our top five podcast episodes from 2023! Looking at the year overall, these are the top five most listened to Smart Podcast, Trashy Books episodes of the year – and thank you to everyone who listened, recommended, shared, and posted about the show. Special thanks to all our Patreon community members, who helped shape this season and keep the show going each week! Honorable Mention … Continue reading Smart Podcast, Trashy Books: Best of 2023 →
In this week’s podcast episode, we’re looking at the advertisements and features inside the June 2014 issue of Romantic Times, aka RT Book Reviews. We’ve got So Many Small Presses that no longer exist, plus some really, really weird feet. Yup, feet! You can also find all the RTRW content at our category page for Romantic Times Rewind. And, most importantly, if you want to listen and follow along with this entry, we have more … Continue reading Romantic Times Rewind: June 2014 Ads and Features! →
This guest post is from Elizabeth Held. Elizabeth is a reader and writer living in Washington, D.C. She co-moderates East City Bookshop’s Really Reading Romance book club and writes the book recommendation newsletter What To Read If. There’s a seven-year-old tweet from romance writer Alisha Rai that Jen Prokop, romance critic and co-host of Fated Mates, thinks about a lot. Prokop shared the anecdote at the recent Literature of Hope conference held at Yale University. … Continue reading Notes from Yale University’s Romance Conference →
Recently KJ Charles tweeted about how absolutely devouring the Blessings series by Beverly Jenkins helped “save her sanity during the 2020 lockdown.” So I asked if she’d talk to me about it – and to my surprise this is a popular topic at the moment! She recently did a panel about comfort reading, and I’m really excited to take a look at what makes a comfort read, well, comfy. Plus, we learn what a HFY … Continue reading 566. The Blessings of Comfort Reads with KJ Charles →
Beverly Jenkins, the bestselling author of Bring on the Blessings, returns readers to the enchanting Kansas town of Henry Adams for A Second Helping of love, laughter, and mayhem. Filling her poignant and wonderful tale with a cast of endearingly eccentric characters—and setting it against the rich historical backdrop that has become her trademark—Jenkins (“A superstar” —Detroit Free Press) delights from page one. Kimberla Lawson Roby fans take note: A Second Helping is supremely satisfying fare…and you’ll definitely be ready … Continue reading A Second Helping →
This Rec League is from Rosemary. Thanks, Rosemary! I recently began being a docent at an historical Victorian museum. It’s a home restored to it’s period, built in 1871. The other volunteers want to start a book club. I was hoping for some recommendations for American Victorian era romances. I think I may know of three and two of those are Christmas stories. Any ideas? Thanks! Amanda: The Heiress Gets a Duke isn’t set in … Continue reading The Rec League: American Victorian Romances →
