This request comes from Eliza. Thanks, Eliza! I’m looking for fiction books that tackle the stage of a relationship after two characters have fallen in love and decided to spend their lives together. Once people are in love, there are still problems that come up, small hurts that each partner accidentally causes the other, and confusions or disagreements that need to be resolved in order to keep a relationship strong. I want to read about … Continue reading The Rec League: Established Couples →
Happy April! I hope you all enjoyed the site’s April Fools joke. We have such a fun time planning it every year. Spring is upon us. I wore short sleeves and sandals the other day in New England. Also, if you haven’t tuned into out Twitch channel yet, this Sunday, some of us at the site will be playing silly Jackbox games at 2pm eastern. We also invite our audience members to play to! Elyse: … Continue reading Whatcha Reading? April 2021 Edition, Part One →
Is love worth the loss of one’s freedom and independence? This is what Mrs. Tavernor must decide in the new novel in the Westcott series from New York Times bestselling author Mary Balogh. When Harry Westcott lost the title Earl of Riverdale after the discovery of his father’s bigamy, he shipped off to fight in the Napoleonic Wars, where he was near-fatally wounded. After a harrowing recovery, the once cheery, light-hearted boy has become a reclusive, somber … Continue reading Someone to Cherish →
We were super tickled by this request sent in by Anna: This might be a vague question, but it’s for a library patron! I am looking for books with a similar relationship dynamic to Howl’s Moving Castle (not necessarily in a fantasy setting!) where the woman is plain, pragmatic, and reserved and the man is flamboyant, charismatic, and more conventionally attractive (same-sex pairings and queer and non-binary characters with similar dynamics welcome, just not straight … Continue reading The Rec League: Pragmatic Meets Flamboyant →
We are approaching the end of February and I could not be more excited. There’s something about this month that makes me so unbelievably tired and sluggish. I hope I’m not the only one! But of course, let’s talk books! Sneezy: I’m pinging between so many books and webtoons right now that I’m almost confused by this question. I remember reading… What did I read? Did I actually read??? I’m re-reading City Kitty and Country … Continue reading Whatcha Reading? February 2021 Edition, Part Two →
This is another one from our Submit Your Rec League post and is from Star: All those Bored Slutty Wives and Widows who exist to show how hot and experienced the hero is? The ones who aren’t allowed to be people and are written off as pathetic trash because they weren’t lucky enough to marry someone they loved (or even someone decent)? Stories where they get to be happy too. Catherine: Oh, that’s a really … Continue reading The Rec League: Horny Widow HEAs →
Let’s close out November with another edition of Whatcha Reading! The holiday season usually goes either way in terms of reading: either you’re too busy to get any reading done or you’re making a large dent in your TBR. Carrie: Lots and lots of Victorian Ghost Stories. Meanwhile, in War and Peace, Napoleon is making a very large mistake and Pierre has discovered Inner Peace. EllenM: Still chugging along with my month of novellas! 2 … Continue reading Whatcha Reading? November 2020 Edition, Part Two →
This HaBO request comes from Soleil, who is searching for this historical romance: I have been looking for this book for years, I believe that I read it in the 90s and that is Regency-ish. A very beautiful young woman is (I think) under the guardianship of a military man and his wife. A nobleman sees her and covets her for her beauty – they don’t know each other and he is kind of an … Continue reading HaBO: Hero Banishes Heroine to an Estate →
Time again for one of the most challenging recommendation features we have: READY, SET, GO! Here are the rules: We pick a specific sub-genre, trope, or type of romance, and we have to make ONE recommendation for that type. And no more than two sentences as to why. Just One. And our theme this month? The doomy-est scrolly-est days of hellscape in the US are next week, and I’m sending all of you virtual comfort … Continue reading Ready Set Go: In Case of Emergency, Read This Book! →
This comes from Sarah J, who suggested this in our Submit Your Rec League post: Horror-romances or horror novels with a satisfying romantic arc please! Paranormal romances abound, but I’m having problems finding ones that are really grounded in the horror genre. I’m thinking of books along the lines of Simone St. James, Jenn Bennett’s Roaring 20s series, or Amanda Stevens’ Graveyard Queen books. I don’t know, I’m finishing my PhD in lockdown and have … Continue reading The Rec League: Horror Romance →
This suggestions comes from Rebecca in the comments of our Submit Your Rec League post: Heroes and heroines with unsexy jobs- e.g. administrators, accountants, city clerk. No lawyer/doctor/architect/owner of charming small business. HR professionals fall in love too! Carrie: Both the upcoming A Princess for Christmas and Get a Life, Chloe Brown have heroes who are apartment building supervisors/maintenance workers and the hero of Take a Hint, Dani Brown is a security worker at a … Continue reading The Rec League: “Unsexy Jobs” →
