I think I wouldn’t have been so disappointed in The Star and the Strange Moon had the premise not been so intriguing. This book had the potential to be so excellent, but the pacing was all over the place and most of the novel just dragged on while the best parts felt rushed. In 1968, French-American actress Gemma Turner’s career was struggling. She’s starred in surfer movies that while popular aren’t exactly critically acclaimed. Now … Continue reading The Star and the Strange Moon by Constance Sayers →
I’ve always maintained that it is difficult to do a romance short-story because the format doesn’t allow for the required amount for character or relationship growth. I’m happy to say that the anthology Someone in Times: Tales of Time-Crossed Romance is the exception that proves the rule, with an amazing collection of love stories in short-story form (some with happy endings and some not) and not a bad story in the lot. All of these … Continue reading Someone In Time edited by Jonathan Strahan →
Grey Dawn is an odd little book. It didn’t quite gel for me, but I admired its gumption. It’s always lovely to see an attempt to do something new with a story even if it doesn’t quite come together, and it had a lot of heart. The book takes place in two time periods, both in Philadelphia. In 1858, Chloë and Leigh met. In Chloë’s words: We were an unlikely pair: she, born in a … Continue reading Grey Dawn by Nyri A. Bakkalian →
Well reader, I was wrong. I read this book up to the 31% mark and figured it was a DNF due to an over-reliance on clichés. However, I started skimming the middle of the book and had to back up and read the whole thing. Jane in Love is a wildly uneven book which I expect will be a love it or hate it book for readers. I enjoyed Jane Austen as a curious and insightful … Continue reading Jane in Love by Rachel Givney →
With its brooding hero, numerous ghosts, a charming-yet-haunted old house, multiple historical murder mysteries, and the beautiful but dangerous moors of England, A Stitch in Time was a fun and engaging book to start out my spooky season reading. Was it somewhat derivative and convoluted? Yes. But it was also delightfully atmospheric and endearingly quirky in its delivery of a number of gothic and paranormal romance tropes. It sort of reminded me of Crimson Peak … Continue reading A Stitch In Time by Kelley Armstrong →
I thought it would be fun to check out an older romance that has been mentioned on the site and in comments for years but never had its own review. People, Breath of Magic, first published in 1996, is completely bonkers and while it has definitively not aged well, it has a certain dreamy charm. While I usually try not to recap the whole plot, buckle up, because this plot deserves some serious recapping. Spoilers … Continue reading Breath of Magic by Teresa Medeiros →
Tara: Hello! It’s me, once again crashing one of Shana’s reviews (thank goodness she loves me). I was SO excited when I found out she was reading My Heart’s in the Highlands, because I’d just finished and was desperate to talk to someone about it. This book is BANANAS and kind of messy, but I was into it. Shana: Meanwhile, I was quietly squeeing to myself, with no one to talk to about how ridiculous … Continue reading My Heart’s in the Highlands by Amy Hoff →
We received this request from Scarlett some time ago, but it got lost in the inbox ether. However, it’s been recovered and it’s a great one. Thanks, Scarlett! I was recently reminded how much I enjoy a good time-travel romance…except for one thing. The ones I’ve read have all been modern woman/historical man, and they all end with the woman giving up her modern life to live with the hero in the past (see Outlander, … Continue reading The Rec League: Reverse Time Travel →
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 →
MirandaB mentioned that she was reading this book in May’s Whatcha Reading post, and being a big fan of Connie Willis’ time traveling historians books, I had to give this a try. This is a series of nine full length books, and a whole BUNCH of novellas. Just One Damned Thing is the first book, and by necessity is setting up the rest of the series. This is the story of Madeline Maxwell, a historian … Continue reading Just One Damned Thing After Another by Jodi Taylor →
A Murder in Time is a book I’ve mentioned a couple times on the site. It was also recently on sale! The premise of an FBI agent heroine traveling back in time to 1815 London and getting involved in a serial murder case was too tempting for me to resist. At its heart, this story has a great mystery, but too many unnecessary or ill-fitting details slowed the book to a slog. I just wanted more … Continue reading A Murder in Time by Julie McElwain →
