The follow-up to Donut Fall in Love is an opposites-attract romance with a deeply introverted heroine and a larger-than-life hero. Although it can be read as a standalone, I enjoyed revisiting characters from the first novel. While I loved the romance, the depictions of the hero’s job fell flat, sometimes pulling me out of the story. Quiet, reserved Vivian Lao is going to be a bridesmaid in her roommate Lindsay’s wedding to actor Ryan Kwok. … Continue reading The Stand-Up Groomsman by Jackie Lau →
Content warning: It’s important to note that the speculative history the book is based on is very very plausible, some already happening in our world, things like energy wars, crumbling infrastructure, and inept government officials cutting off essential resources and services so they can continue grabbing at more power. There’s also mentions and descriptions of torture in the book. Take stock of your mental and emotional bandwidth before diving in if any of these subjects … Continue reading Deal with the Devil by Kit Rocha →
On the first read, I very much enjoyed Faith, a YA about a plus-size superhero who loves animals, her two best friends, her grandma, and fictional TV show The Grove, not necessarily in that order. Unfortunately, as soon as I tried applying thought to the book, it failed to make any sense. There’s a f/f romance, but this book is the first in a planned duology, so expect an inconclusive ending, and expect minimal superheroics … Continue reading Faith: Taking Flight by Julie Murphy →
This book was like a warm hug. The characters were people I would love to know in real life, the relationships (romantic and otherwise) were tender, and gentle emotional healing was a major theme. In other words, my crops are watered, my skin is clear, my checkbook is balanced, etc., etc., etc. Let us start with our protagonists, Verity and Ash, who felt very real and immediate. Verity is clever, ambitious, and practical, and these … Continue reading A Duke in Disguise by Cat Sebastian →
TW/CW: Murder, graphic violence, racism, ableist language, mentions of rape and sexual assault. The Girl in Red by Christina Henry is the latest addition in her gritty fairy tale retellings. They aren’t part of a connected series, but Henry has done retellings of Alice in Wonderland, The Little Mermaid, and Peter Pan. This one retells Little Red Riding Hood where a young woman tries to get to her grandmother’s house following an outbreak of deadly … Continue reading The Girl in Red by Christina Henry →
Fire on the Ice by Tamsen Park is an erotic romance novella featuring two female professional athletes competing in the Snow & Ice Games which is definitely not the same thing as the Winter Olympics. Nope. Definitely not. It also has the honor of tying with Tiffany Reisz’s Original Sinners series in the category: Most Sexually Explicit Scene Elyse Has Ever Read. So… If that makes you a little nervous (and that’s fair given I … Continue reading Fire on the Ice by Tamsen Parker →
Knit One, Girl Two is a knitting lesbian romance novella with Jewish characters. I bet a bunch of you just one-clicked before reading any more of this review, right? It’s not a perfect book – in fact it suffers from a lack of almost any kind of conflict – but it was exactly what I needed. I’m traveling for work. According to the odometer I’ve driven just under six hundred miles in two days. I’m … Continue reading Knit One, Girl Two by Shira Glassman →
As an ardent fan of Jane Eyre, I have read many literary adaptations of her story. I’ve read about a vampire slayer Janes (Jane Slayre) and Jane in space (Jenna Starborn) and Jane in the 1950s (The Flight of Gemma Hardy) and many more, and I’m usually disappointed. Jane Steele, however, was just about the most viciously satisfying thing in the history of ever. NB: book titles in this review are italicized while names are not. … Continue reading Jane Steele by Lyndsay Faye →
While reading this short story, I vacillated wildly between appreciation for the lyrical and elegant descriptions of playing music, and bafflement at the overabundance of exclamation points and awkward and unrealistic dialogue. Lauren Stern is second oboe in an orchestra, and she has a thing for first oboe, Dan Cohen, who is much older than she is. They’ve been playing together for awhile and are friends, having bonded over the experience of being two lone Jewish … Continue reading Lioness in Blue by Shira Glassman →
