Kill the Queen by Jennifer Estep is the first book in a fantasy series that features a badass female gladiator on a quest to reclaim the throne from her murderous cousin. It’s tremendous fun, although it wraps up quickly. Lady Everleigh Saffira Winter Blair is a low ranking member of the royal family of Bellona. She’s never going to inherit the crown and, in a world that values magic, she has no real magical power. … Continue reading Kill the Queen by Jennifer Estep →
It’s been a bad week(s) for a lot of women. Personally, I’ve been vacillating between the kind of rage where I feel like wasps should come out of my mouth in a swarm, and the sort of despair that leaves you noodle-limp. It’s a combination of anger and exhaustion. I know that I am not alone. Then I picked up Mating the Huntress by Talia Hibbert, and goddamnit, this novella had everything my brain needed. It … Continue reading Mating the Huntress by Talia Hibbert →
CW/TW for mentions of violence, rape, and abuse both in the book and in this review. Phoenix Unbound is a brand new fantasy romance from Grace Draven and the start to a new series. While the world building is fantastic, the pacing greatly affected my reading experience. I also want to warn that I’m going to spoil some elements of this book because some things are integral in discussing my feelings. Also, please keep the … Continue reading Phoenix Unbound by Grace Draven →
I enjoyed this book so much! A Gentleman Never Keeps Score is a Regency m/m about a disgraced gentleman and a Black pub keeper. The book has a lovely romance as well as a theme of found family and recovery from trauma. TW/CW for discussion of sexual abuse. Hartley, who is White, grew up poor with two brothers, Will and Ben. In an effort to provide for them he began a relationship with Sir Humphrey Easterbrook … Continue reading A Gentleman Never Keeps Score by Cat Sebastian →
There are historical romances that are actually historical and there are historical romances that say, “The hell with history, these people are gonna be unchaperoned ALL THE TIME and we’re throwing in a magical cat.” How To Manage a Marquess is one of the latter. It’s a fun book, and I enjoyed it, but if you like realism in your historical romance then stop right here and go read something else. Godspeed. I’m not sure I … Continue reading How to Manage a Marquess by Sally MacKenzie →
A Notorious Vow is the first book of Joanna Shupe’s that I have read, though upon finishing, I immediately went and bought some backlist. What began as romance with a marriage of convenience between friends turned into a beautiful story of loving someone wholly and completely. I cried. Twice. Though this book is the third in the Four Hundred series, I had no problem reading this on its own. If characters from previous books appeared, … Continue reading A Notorious Vow by Joanna Shupe →
TW/CW: Please note that this review contains discussion about the kidnapping and sexual assault of an eleven-year-old girl, as well as a broader examination of how our culture treats rape victims. Please be safe, and stop here if this content could be triggering for you. In 1948, eleven-year-old Sally Horner was kidnapped by a convicted pedophile named Frank LaSalle. Sally would remain his captive for two years, traveling from her home in Camden, New Jersey, … Continue reading The Real Lolita by Sarah Weinman →
CW/TW for rape, coercion, child abuse, child murder, and general horribleness of Nazis and WWII. The Paris Seamstress is told in parallel storylines between two women, Estella and her granddaughter Fabienne. Estella escapes Paris prior to the Nazi invasion, bringing with her a sewing machine and not much else. She arrives in New York having newly learned that she is a dual citizen of France and the US because her father was American – but … Continue reading The Paris Seamstress by Natasha Lester →
His Wicked Charm is a fun Regency Gothic romance. This is one of many books in the “Mad Moreland Series,” which is about an unconventional upper class family in England. In this book, one of the Moreland brothers, Con, teams up with his sister’s friend Lilah to solve mysteries and fight crime (basically). Con is the “bad” brother and Lilah is the “boring” friend. The story kicks off with a kidnapping and winds up full-in Gothic … Continue reading His Wicked Charm by Candace Camp →
Gilded Cage, which is the first book in the “Dark Gifts” series, is emphatically not a romance. However, it’s the kind of story that I think might appeal to those readers who like fantasy and alternate history that includes class struggles. Beware, though, as this is the first book of a trilogy and I doubt that everyone will have a happy ending. Things certainly are figuratively and literally messy by the end of the first … Continue reading Gilded Cage by Vic James →
Sarah and I both read and enjoyed The Phantom Tree by Nicola Cornick, which is interesting as our reading tastes are fairly divergent. I finished the book in one day, and I was super excited to talk to her about it later. Sarah: I finished it in a day and a half and shamelessly bothered Elyse for a week or more to ask if she’d read it yet, had she? Huh? Had she read it? (FINALLY SHE … Continue reading The Phantom Tree by Nicola Cornick →
