The single biggest thing you need to know about this book up front is that it is an unapologetic celebration of materialism and name brands. If you don’t want to read about someone’s Louboutins and how well they match said individual’s Stella McCarthy cocktail dress, then read something else. This book happened to catch me in peak escapist mode so I enjoyed it, and yet in a different frame of mind, I could just as … Continue reading Marriage on Madison Avenue by Lauren Layne →
Romancelandia is awash in dukes behaving badly, and the hero in Never Kiss a Duke by Megan Frampton, Sebastian de Silva, was a wonderful departure from that trope. Sebastian handles conflict with maturity and faces adversity with a sense of positivity. It was such a relief to see a duke wearing his grownup breeches for once. Even with a hero I adored, the conflict fizzled at the end and I struggled with the heroine, affecting … Continue reading Never Kiss a Duke by Megan Frampton →
This week’s podcast episode will be the first of a four-episode series on RWA: One Month Later. It’s been just over a month since Romance Writers of America informed Courtney Milan on 23 December 2019 that due to an ethics complaint, she was barred from leadership for her lifetime, and was suspended for a year. That decision was then rescinded, and, well, a lot has happened in a month. I wanted to create an audio … Continue reading RWA One Month Later: A Special Podcast Series →
Welcome back to Wednesday Links! I am currently in a state of delirium after going out with some fellow booksellers and then having to be back at the bookstore bright and early for an inventory count. I am a master at making good decisions! … SBTB HQ is very interested in this new video game. You might be interested too if you enjoyed our latest Stuff We Like! … Several romances authors are releasing an anthology … Continue reading Links: Fundraisers, Video Games, & More →
RECOMMENDED: The Invisible Library by Genevieve Cogman is 99c! This is a fantasy novel that Carrie really enjoyed. She graded it a B+:
While I genuinely loved the characters and concepts of the book, it’s played strictly for fun adventure. It’s basically just an excuse to have smart people fight cyborg alligators in a ballroom and werewolves in a museum. It’s smart, well-written fluff and I ate it up with a spoon.
Continue reading →
Happy Bachelor day, Bitchery! Last week after a ton of back and forth bickering, Alayah went home after being dubbed “fake.” That was basically the entire episode. That’s the entire intro. Pour yourself a stiff drink. Let’s get this party started. The episode opens with Chris Harrison telling the contestants, “Good morning! C’mon in! We’re making biscuits!” They all assemble in the living room where there are no biscuits. Is that some sort of slang term … Continue reading Elyse Watches The Bachelor–S24 E4: We’re Makin’ Biscuits →
In My Best Friend’s Royal Wedding, Khara agrees, with some reluctance, to be the bridesmaid at her best friend’s wedding to the Archduke of Westerwald, a tiny principality somewhere in Middle Europe. A cocktail waitress from Las Vegas, Khara finds herself daunted by the unspoken rules of etiquette that surround her, but the best man, Adam, is more than happy to be her tutor…and, if possible, to get into her pants. Trouble is, while Adam … Continue reading My Best Friend’s Royal Wedding by Romy Sommer →
Help A Bitch Out - SOLVED!
This HaBO is from Shannon, who is trying to track down one of the first romances she read: This is everything I remember about one of the first romance novels I read sometime in the late 80s or early 90s and have not been able to find again. It may have been in a Reader’s Digest condensed book. My grandparents had a stack of them and I’m sure no one thought anything about me reading … Continue reading HaBO: Comstock Laws →
The Raven Prince by Elizabeth Hoyt is $1.99! This book is much loved by historical romance readers, and has a 3.9-star average on GoodReads. Readers who love it especially like that the hero and heroine are both a bit unconventional: neither of them is superbly good-looking, a fact that has influenced their lives in several ways, and both are over thirty
Continue reading →
Help A Bitch Out - SOLVED!
This HaBO comes from Emily, who wants to track down this historical romance: The book I’m trying to find is n historical set in England – London mostly – I think it’s a Regency. It’s part of a series I’m pretty sure. The heroine is the daughter of a professor/inventor/scholar of some sort and her mother’s dead. They live in Europe somewhere. Then her father’s killed and she hides until his attackers – who are … Continue reading HaBO: Heroine’s Father Leaves a Note in Book’s Margins →
Strange Love by Ann Aguirre is a delightfully weird, heartwarming romance featuring a virgin alien hero, an abductee heroine, and a talking dog. It’s a blend of Alien, The Bachelor and The Hunger Games. It’s also a middle finger to people who claim that romance novels are formulaic and rely on rich, handsome heroes to seal the fantasy. The hero in this book is Zylar of Kith Balak, a vaguely insectoid alien who comes from … Continue reading Strange Love by Ann Aguirre →
