TW/CW: Murder, attempted rape, beheading/separated limbs. I deeply, deeply enjoyed The Beautiful by Renée Ahdieh. Or, a lot of it, anyway. The Beautiful takes place in 1872 New Orleans, where a young former dressmaker named Celine arrives after fleeing Paris. She arrives with several other young women from Europe and they are all to be settled in a convent together until they marry. Celine quickly becomes drawn to a young woman named Odette, who hires … Continue reading The Beautiful by Renée Ahdieh→
I have sat next to author JN Welsh at book signings – Ws! It’s where the A/C is! – and we’ve had the best conversations. I thought you might like to listen in! What do we talk about in this episode? Attending DJ school and how her love of music found its way into her writing Her work as an adjunct professor of American Sign Language The importance of showing, not telling, in every aspect … Continue reading 372. Hanging Out in the Ws with Sarah and JN Welsh→
The Grace Year is described as a “haunting, feminist YA speculative thriller,” and I mostly agree with that assessment. It’s twisted, memorable, and eerie (there is a tree from which severed fingers and other body parts hang). It’s a book you’ll be thinking about for days after you’ve finished reading, but it does struggle with being overly ambitious in subplots and when it comes to a satisfactory ending, it doesn’t stick the landing. There is … Continue reading The Grace Year by Kim Liggett→
Hey hey! It’s Wednesday! At least, I think it is. I can already feel the holiday season starting to snowball. Anyone else? No? Just me? We hope you all are having a fantastic week and are reading some great books. If not, that’s a-okay! Let’s rally, push through the afternoon, and then get cozy at home for some restorative care and some relaxing activities. … Looking for some fantasy reads with a queer romantic subplot? … Continue reading Links: Firefighters, Lisa Frank, & More→
Blame It on the Duke by Lenora Bell is $1.99! I’m confused as to whether this has a fake relationship or a marriage of convenience, but it has some element of that. Readers found that book was overly dramatic at times, though others really loved the heroine. It has a 3.7-star rating on Goodreads.
By Wingèd Chair is a young adult coming-of-age fantasy romance novel which plays with the Robin Hood story and takes it in some interesting new directions. Set in a fantasy world that has both medieval European and Victorian steampunk elements, the backdrop to the story is the unjust rule of Duke John, who has somehow disposed of his elder brother and now rules the country with the aid of the Sheriff and his Peacekeepers, who … Continue reading By Wingèd Chair by Kendra Merritt→
This HaBO request is from Bonessasan, who wants to find this historical romance: I actually remember a lot about this book, just no names (author, character, or places). It’s a historical romance set in England, possibly around the time of William the conqueror. The opening scene has two warrior brothers (Norman? Definitely from what is now France) who have just gotten out of battle and go to the house of a red-headed Saxon woman known … Continue reading HaBO: Jeweler Identifies Origin of a Pin→
Seasons of Sorcery is $2.49! This is a fantasy anthology with four stories by Jennifer Estep, Grace Draven, Jeffe Kennedy, and Amanda Bouchet. I also made cocktails for this release! My thoughts on the anthology is that it wasn’t bad, but I prefer reading these authors when they have plenty of page length to work.
This HaBO comes Michelle, who is hoping to find this contemporary romance: A woman moves back to her small hometown after being away for years and years. She’s a journalist/reporter who spent some time in war-torn Iraq or Iran. She had been in a relationship with her cameraman/photographer, who ended up being killed in a car bombing or something. She was also injured and has PTSD because of what happened. She comes back and gets … Continue reading HaBO: War Reporter Heroine Returns Home→
I adored this book, but the title is misleading. As far as I can tell, “multiverse” is an exaggeration. This book is really about how Rory destroys galactic peace. Not even in the whole universe. Just a little bit of it. She does a really great job of it though. This character, and the supporting characters, and the narrator, and the entire book made me happy for every single second of the story and I’m … Continue reading How Rory Thorne Destroyed the Multiverse by K. Eason→
