In The Wrong Lady Meets Lord Right, Suzanne Allain’s playful Regency romance, delightful chaos ensues when an heiress and her impoverished cousin switch places.
In The Wrong Lady Meets Lord Right, Suzanne Allain’s playful Regency romance, delightful chaos ensues when an heiress and her impoverished cousin switch places.
The wife-and-wife team of Mikaella Clements and Onjuli Datta (The View Was Exhausting) are back with Feast While You Can, a queer horror-romance about a monster that feasts on the “passion, heartbreak and mess” of life.
Angelina Sicco has lived in the small European mountain town of Cadenze for her entire life. The large Sicco family is entrenched in the conservative community, and Angelina is well-liked despite being a lesbian. But this was not the case for Jagvi, Angelina’s brother’s ex-girlfriend. After Jagvi broke up with him and came out as a lesbian, she moved away. In the decade since, each time Jagvi returns to Cadenze, she proves to be “the chaos element in Angelina’s equilibrium.” That is, until Angelina has a terrifying and visceral encounter with a monster, and realizes that Jagvi is the only thing that can hold it at bay.
In Feast While You Can, Clements and Datta are firmly in the realm of psychological horror: A serial killer hiding in a closet isn’t the scariest thing in the room; rather, the underlying trauma of homophobia and racism feeds the horror and the menace. In the small community of Cadenze, the familiarity of family, friends and neighbors is both comforting and suffocating. This robust cast of secondary characters adds to the weighty conflicts between responsibility, family and self-preservation that Clements and Datta investigate, but at times the extended family drama is a distraction from the forward momentum.
There are so many layers of horror, trauma and sexy trysts to unpack here, with the monster functioning as both a real entity and a manifestation of the taboo desire Angelina feels for Jagvi. It’s like an unseen devil on her shoulder, willing her to act out her most secret desires so it can live vicariously through her until there’s nothing left of her to give.
You might want to read this one with the lights on, lest you look over your shoulder and realize the monster’s in the room with you.
A terrifying monster is both a real entity and a manifestation of taboo desires in Mikaella Clements and Onjuli Datta’s Feast While You Can.
Ally Carter does it again with the delightful The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year. An anonymous invitation lures rival mystery writers Maggie Chase and Ethan Wyatt to a secluded and nearly snowbound English mansion for Christmas. Upon arrival, they encounter a series of surprises: the identity of their hostess, her almost immediate disappearance and the dynamic sleuthing duo they become. Alternating between Maggie’s and Ethan’s viewpoints, this romantic comedy packs in plot and smiles on every page as the two work to unravel the puzzles they encounter during their stay. The characters’ emotional backstories add authentic heft, and Ethan’s heartfelt and outspoken devotion for Maggie will warm the coldest winter night. Readers will be more than willing to put off any pending holiday tasks to indulge in this vastly entertaining read.
Kiss Me at Christmas
Describing Kiss Me at Christmas by Jenny Bayliss as “feel-good” would be a colossal understatement: The entire package is practically wrapped in a sparkly Christmas bow. Right before the holidays, 40-something main characters Harriet Smith and James Knight have a one-night stand . . . and then learn that they’ll be working on a production of Dickens’ A Christmas Carol together. Single mom and private school counselor Harriet overcomes the awkwardness by focusing on her students: She agreed to manage the production to shield some of them from the consequences of breaking into the decrepit theater. The owner of the theater is one of serious lawyer James’ clients, and James isn’t happy about the play or how his night with Harriet ended. However, nothing’s more fun than let’s-put-on-a-show enthusiasm, which in this case brings together an entire English village as well as Harriet and James. Bayliss’ mature main characters are refreshing stars, even as they fall into the usual romantic insecurities and miscommunication that cause lovers of all ages to stumble. In the end, James loosens up with Harriet’s aid, and his regard helps her value herself more. Along the way, readers will revel in the cute and sometimes rebellious kids, the wise and charming oldsters, and the descriptions of scrumptious foods from all over the world.
The Duke’s Christmas Bride
Revenge leads to romance in Anna Bradley’s Regency-set The Duke’s Christmas Bride. Maxwell Burke, the Duke of Grantham, desperately wishes to recover Hammond Court, the family home his father lost long ago in a foolish wager with Ambrose St. Clair. When Ambrose dies, Max discovers the man left Hammond Court to him—but also to stubborn Rose St. Claire, Ambrose’s ward, who has no intention of moving out. What’s a ruthless duke to do to get her going on her way? Why, bribe an eligible London gentleman to romance and marry the chit, of course. A holiday house party is arranged, and the brooding Max finds himself ice-skating, sleigh-riding and arranging a Christmas ball . . . all while falling for the enchanting woman he’s scheming to hand over to someone else. Brooding won’t help him now, and Max must find a way to solve the very dilemma he created while his amused friends—main characters from other entries in Bradley’s Drop Dead Dukes series—look on. A closed-off aristocrat and a warmhearted heroine who bakes the best Christmas treats? That’s a recipe for love story satisfaction.
The Christmas You Found Me
Prepare for a few tears along with your hot chocolate while reading The Christmas You Found Me by Sarah Morgenthaler, which follows two total strangers who enter into a “marriage of purpose” to provide for a 4-year-old with a life-threatening illness. Sienna Naples may be busy maintaining her family ranch in the Idaho wilderness, but she can’t look away from the dire dilemma of Guy Maple and his daughter, Emma, who has Stage 5 chronic kidney disease. Sienna’s generosity in taking in the small family provides a boon to her, too, as she’s lonely post-divorce and with her dad in acute elder care. Providing Emma with some needed fun is imperative despite her hovering illness, and Sienna steps up to make memories for them all. Cue small-town holiday events in between emergency medical visits, and two people who fall in love despite their vulnerability and grief. Told in Sienna’s first-person voice, this story provides a roller-coaster of emotions as well as an enthralling look at winter life on a remote ranch. Have a hankie at hand.
Christmas Is All Around
A curmudgeon unearths her holiday spirit in Christmas Is All Around by Martha Waters. Charlotte Lane has been over the season since starring in the now-classic film Christmas, Truly as a child. When her refusal to join a reboot of the film goes viral, she escapes to her sister’s in London. There, she’s roped into holiday escapades, including a country house tour where she meets the owner, attractive Englishman Graham Calloway. Now an artist, Charlotte can’t resist his idea that she create a series of Christmas-themed illustrations around London . . . with Graham as her guide to several iconic locations. While there’s an initial spark, these two are slow to succumb to the burn of passion as they’re dealing with—or more accurately, not dealing with—family issues that hold them back. But love truly finds its way on this fun tour through a London holiday, which is peopled with amusing secondary characters and has a satisfying happy ending that ticks all the boxes.
The year’s most delightful Christmas love stories are full of mistletoe and merriment—with just a dash of potential murder to spice things up.
A while back, I was chatting with a close mom friend when she referenced her first husband.
“Right,” I nodded. “Your first husband.”
She had a first husband?
Should I have known that? Did I know that, and space out the fact somewhere between buying my tween wide-leg jeans and binging The Bear?
But, no. Though we’d spent countless birthday parties, beach days and even grown-up dinners together, we had never gone there. And I guess, by now, she’d forgotten what she had and hadn’t shared.
The more I thought about it, the less surprising it seemed. After all, when we meet as parents, at least initially, we present mostly sanitized versions of ourselves. We want to appear solid, trustworthy, like upright citizens, always at the ready with organic snacks. We swap anecdotes about the best dance and theater classes, teachers and math curriculum—even parenting fails.
But past lives as club kids and potheads, past relationships with discarded first husbands, past romantic dalliances? Not so much.
All that fun stuff is sort of off-limits.
My fascination with that concept—the juxtaposition between the different versions of ourselves, what we choose to present and, alternatively, bury—is at the heart of my choice to include a third narrator in my new book, Pick-Up, a contemporary romance that revolves around parents at school drop-off and pickup (and then meanders to a private Caribbean island). The book features the voices of the two love interests, Sasha and Ethan, and then Kaitlin, who is essentially a social voyeur from Sasha’s present and past.
I first had the idea for Pick-Up while lingering outside my kids’ elementary school after drop-off with a group of parent friends, discussing the dearth of decent scandal at our school. We were all so well behaved! Or so it appeared.
I myself became a parent while living in Brooklyn, only a mildly inconvenient, if not foul-smelling, subway ride away from Manhattan’s Upper West Side, where I grew up. But because I spent the intervening years living in Los Angeles, when I returned and had kids, my two worlds of high school friends and parent friends remained distinctly separate.
But what if, I began to imagine, my two worlds collided? What if someone here knew who I was before—and had opinions about my then and now?
When we begin new stages of our lives, we are often presented with the opportunity to reinvent ourselves, both for appearances and authentically. That is, unless there’s someone around to remind us, even peripherally, of who we were. Someone who we may feel not only judging us for our current decisions, but also seeing us through the lens of a previous incarnation of ourselves.
Are they seeing us more or less clearly?
Throughout Pick-Up, when she’s not arguing with Ethan, Sasha begins to open her eyes to how her identity has morphed over the years, for the better and worse. So, in some ways, the character of Kaitlin becomes not only an observer of Sasha’s story, but also Sasha’s own shadow self, an example of what happens when we allow ourselves to be so weighed down by our past self-concepts that we convince ourselves we are failing in our present.
Classically in romance, there are—of course—two players who fall in love. But maybe, if we dig a little deeper, there are actually myriad characters who have their own valid versions of our main characters’ stories: the friends, the enemies, the onlookers, the interlopers, even the past versions of the characters themselves.
Photo of Nora Dahlia by Rich Wade.
Pick-Up has not one, not two, but three narrators (and it’s not because it’s about a polyamorous relationships).
What’s in a name? A rose by another name might smell as sweet, but a Belle by another name would likely not be as rich. While cousins Arabella and Isabelle Grant are the closest and dearest of friends, they’re far from equals. Lady Isabelle, daughter of a marquis, has money, position . . . and debilitating social anxiety. Miss Arabella has beauty, charm . . . and barely a penny to her name. Arabella is treated as a charity case by Isabelle’s cruel, snobbish mother, yet everything changes when said mother dies and Isabelle’s great-aunt resolves to give her a London season, whether she wants it or not. Just the thought of balls and crowds terrifies Issie into palpitations. But Bella would shine in that setting. And since their nearsighted new guardian can’t tell which cousin is which, Issie concocts a plan for a little switch. It only has to last for the season, and then they can go home to their quiet lives and correct stations. No fuss, no muss, no harm done—as long as Bella keeps from falling in love, a task that’s easier said than done when she meets Lord Brooke. The attraction between them is palpable, but does he love her, or a Lady Isabelle who doesn’t exist?
The Wrong Lady Meets Lord Right has a plot Shakespeare himself might’ve used, and author Suzanne Allain fills it with playfulness, humor and a delightful cast of side characters. (My particular favorite is a maid who gives up altogether on figuring out which cousin to call “miss” and which to call “milady,” and calls them both “mislady.”) While Bella comes into her own as the toast of London and the woman who has wholly—and very truly—captured Lord Brooke’s heart, it’s just as captivating to see Issie emerge from her shell and form a romance with a handsome young doctor who stirs in her palpitations of a different sort. Love is in the air . . . along with confusion, misunderstandings and a whole lot of false assumptions. But where’s the fun in the course of love running smooth? All’s well that ends well—and all ends very well, indeed.
In The Wrong Lady Meets Lord Right, Suzanne Allain’s playful Regency romance, delightful chaos ensues when an heiress and her impoverished cousin switch places.
Nora Dahlia hits the ground running with her debut rom-com, Pick-Up. If you’ve ever languished in the car pool lane, been dismissed by teachers and administrators, or wondered if the other parents on field trips are judging you (because as we all know, they are), this is the book for you.
A modern romance with relatable characters and a catchy narrative style, Pick-Up is told from the perspective of three first-person narrators: single mother Sasha Rubinstein, single father Ethan Jones, and Kaitlin, a fellow parent at the school all three characters’ children attend who was a childhood friend of Sasha’s.
Sasha is your typical harried, always-on-the-go single mother. Ethan is your typical handsome, clueless single father, seemingly too busy to be personable. Or so it seems. Once the story gets going, Dahlia opens the window into the reality of two people wrapped up in their identities as parents, juggling responsibilities while still searching for a soulmate, who spar over sweatshirts for their kids and spots in after-school programs. Ethan is especially relatable with his mental to-do lists, which are constantly changing based on how his day’s going and how he feels about whatever’s left to check off.
Kaitlin fills in the blanks for the reader like a classic Greek chorus, helping us see beyond Sasha’s and Ethan’s perspectives as the story—and their relationship—unfolds. It’s Kaitlin, for example, who first informs us that Sasha’s now ex-husband, Cliff, disappeared to Hollywood after hitting it big as a screenwriter, the fallout of which the tight-knit school community witnessed through closely observing Sasha. As the book goes on, the two women rediscover their friendship and Kaitlin proves to be a good companion for Sasha, providing a calm stability she didn’t realize she needed. However, Kaitlin’s perspective is at times a distraction, and it can feel as if Dahlia either doesn’t trust or is unable to let Sasha and Ethan tell their love story on their own.
Dahlia is a lifestyle writer living in New York City, and her crisp, punchy voice shines throughout Pick-Up, giving the city as much character as the characters themselves. It’s an enjoyable romance where it’s easy to root for a happy ending.
If you’ve ever wondered if the other parents on field trips are judging you, Nora Dahlia’s debut rom-com is the book for you.
An acolyte of the sun god, Mische saw her life destroyed when she was forcibly Turned into a vampire. After murdering the vampire who turned her, Mische is spared from execution when she agrees to journey into the afterlife with Asar, a vampire prince, and resurrect the god of death. Tasked by the sun god with betraying Asar and sabotaging their mission, Mische finds herself questioning everything she’s ever believed in when she begins to fall for Asar.
The Songbird & the Heart of Stone takes us straight into an afterlife that’s as intriguing as it is terrifying. How did you conceive of your version of the road to the underworld? Much of my process adhered to the improv philosophy of “yes, and . . .” I know that many readers love my books for the hot vampires—and make no mistake, I do also love hot vampires!—but I have a streak that just really, really loves weird, gross, dark magic. I always enjoy creating structures to my magical fantasy journeys that have a strong sense of progression, and better yet if they give me the opportunity to try all kinds of different gimmicks. So, I loosely ran with the general idea of “circles of hell” and thought about what those “levels” might look like in the context of the Nyaxia world. Then I mapped each of these levels to the character arcs for Mische and Asar, and tied them into the lore of the gods’ story. This piece was the most fun for me!
So far in the Crowns of Nyaxia series, we’ve been inside the heads of three characters: Raihn, Oraya and Mische. Mische has a very different internal monologue than any of the others. How did you get into her head to really capture that change in narrative voice? Going from Oraya’s cynical, hard-edged voice to Mische’s optimistic and thoughtful one was a little jarring in the beginning. But, I had a baby in between writing The Ashes and the Star-Cursed King, the previous book in the series, and Songbird, so I had a lot of time to think about the inner workings of Mische’s brain during my maternity leave. I got to know her a lot in borderline-hallucinatory brainstorming sessions at 3 a.m.!
“There’s a lot more to power than physical strength . . .”
Luce, Asar’s beloved necromantic dog, is undoubtedly going to steal some readers’ hearts (just as she stole mine). How did she come into the picture? It’s only now that I realize I cannot remember when I first conceived of Luce! She came into the picture very early in my brainstorming for Asar’s character. He’s introverted, rigid and definitely a bit scary, but boy does he love his dog! (Rightfully so—she is a very good girl.) I believe that platonic relationships are just as important as romantic ones. It’s important that we see the characters reflected against someone else who is meaningful to them. In this case, Luce really helped me define Asar, and took on an (after)life of her own from there.
Architecture—whether it’s the impressive structures of the underworld or the details of the Citadel—gives a distinct sense of character to the human, vampire and godly locations within The Songbird & the Heart of Stone. Did you have any particular inspirations for the look of each major location? I’m very flattered by this question, because it’s so important to me that each of the houses feels distinct! My favorite thing about the Nyaxia world is that it’s just so huge, and with every book that ventures into a new corner of the world, I try to make sure that place feels different from everywhere we’ve been before it. Typically, I’ll start with a very general “vibe” for a place, and then I’ll mash together many different influences until I like what I’ve arrived at. I will be the first to admit that the entire creative process on this front is chaotic!
You once mentioned that you ended up with the three courts because you couldn’t choose one type of vampire. What were some of your influences in creating the vampire houses, and if you had to join one of the houses, which would it be? There wasn’t one specific influence for each house so much as each had a general “vibe” I was trying to capture. The Nightborn are the winged, deadly vampires; the Shadowborn are the seductive, scheming vampires; the Bloodborn are the monstrous, bloodthirsty vampires. Of course, these simplistic ideas bloomed into many others as I fleshed everything out!
I would be in the House of Shadow, because I’m definitely not coordinated enough to be in the House of Night nor intimidating enough to be in the House of Blood. I’d likely immediately get myself killed in the House of Shadow, too—but at least I could hide out in the libraries for a while first.
Despite following the same god, Mische and Chandra have little in common when it comes to both their outlook and their goals. If their roles had been reversed, how would Mische have taken to life as a midwife for vampires? What about Chandra as a vampire? Chandra and Mische both have been indoctrinated by their god most of their lives, and both of them have very real, very legitimate reasons to justify hatred of vampires. Chandra is so similar to Mische in so many ways, and yet has followed all of those commonalities to a completely different end. Even at the height of her status in her previous human life in her cult, Mische couldn’t fully accept the harsh boundaries of her world. Chandra was likely exactly the kind of acolyte Mische wished she could be in those years: pious, devoted and unquestioningly loyal. But Mische was never going to be that person, for better or for worse. Even if her positions were swapped with Chandra, they would always end up in radically different places.
Just as Chandra and Mische are foils, so too are Mische and Asar. We get Mische’s perspective the first time she sees Asar, but what does Asar think of Mische at first sight? I can’t answer this question in too much detail because it might be something we cover in the next book! In a super general sense: Asar knows right away that Mische is unusual, and he’s intrigued by her right off the bat. Some of that is just because he’s a guy who likes to know things, and Mische is objectively unusual because of her background. But even from the start, when he’s underestimating her, he gets the sense that there’s more to her.
Imbalanced power dynamics and the abuse of power are themes that have cropped up several times in Crowns of Nyaxia so far, from Vincent in The Serpent & the Wings of Night to this novel. This is obviously an issue in our own world as well, but do you think that there’s something about vampire society that makes it particularly interesting to explore? The exploration of power runs through the entire series. In the world of Nyaxia, there are just so many different layers to those power dynamics: humans versus vampires, gods versus mortals and, of course, the plethora of interpersonal power dynamics that are specific to each character. What makes this particularly interesting to me is that some groups or characters stand in very different places on the power spectrum depending on the lens you’re looking through. Vampires, for instance, are much more powerful than humans physically, but they’re also often brutally hunted if they venture beyond Obitraes. Vincent, Oraya’s father, was obsessed with maintaining power, but the things he had to do to keep it ended up isolating him—and unforgivably harming those he loved most. There’s a lot more to power than physical strength and having so many different layers in this world has made it particularly fun to explore.
Even with her own discomfort surrounding her vampirism, Mische holds views on vampires that seem more nuanced than what we see from Oraya in the Nightborn Duet. How much of that is from their backgrounds, and how much is due to the individuals—and the courts—that they’re dealing with? I love this question! Mische and Oraya are so, so different. They came from opposite backgrounds. Oraya was surrounded by vampires but constantly told how dangerous the world around her was. Meanwhile, as a missionary, Mische learned to help people become better versions of themselves by looking beyond her initial impressions of them. They embody opposite extremes, and we would have seen that even if their positions and Houses had been swapped—but of course, both still isolate themselves in different ways.
We get a deeper view of the pantheon in The Songbird & the Heart of Stone, including the very intimate interactions between the gods and their followers. What inspired you to have the gods be so very present (and fallible)? I love the sheer amount of possibility that the pantheon introduces into this world, and from the beginning, I wanted the gods to be highly present, creating very tangible impacts on the story. It introduces a whole other layer to the hierarchy of the world and another level of power dynamics. It throws open doors that would otherwise be impossible to explore!
Are there any gods who we haven’t interacted with yet who you’re excited to explore further? I am fascinated by the gods, and they play a much bigger role from Songbird onwards. So, the short answer is “yes, so many!”—but I think I’ll leave it at that rather than risk saying too much.
Photo of Carissa Broadbent by Victoria Costello.
The Songbird & the Heart of Stone starts a new arc in the author’s bestselling Crowns of Nyaxia series.
With The Woodsmoke Women’s Book of Spells, Rachel Greenlaw offers a haunting romantic fantasy. After a decade away, English artist Carrie Morgan returns to her hometown of Woodsmoke. She had reasons to run, including her family’s witchy reputation. But her grandmother left Carrie her cottage, and she decides to refurbish it before selling the property and leaving again. The lure of the mountain town is almost as irresistible as Matthieu, a handsome stranger who offers his help with the renovation. However, Carrie’s Great-Aunt Cora, the keeper of the family’s book of spells, is convinced Carrie is headed for heartbreak: Morgan lore tells of magical, beautiful strangers who appear out of the mountains as winter begins, but disappear with the spring. Told in alternating viewpoints, the story follows Carrie, Cora and Carrie’s best friend, Ivy, as they confront their pasts and find love. Readers will lose themselves in this engrossing, atmospheric and emotional tale.
Pictures of You
Twenty-nine-year-old Evie Hudson awakens in a hospital with no memories past the age of 16 in Pictures of You by Emma Grey. Evie’s youthful voice lends a Freaky Friday/13 Going on 30 vibe to the beginning of the novel, but the can’t-look-away plot is ultimately much more serious, and the tone soon changes to match. Evie struggles to integrate what she learns of her recent past with her teenage vision of who she would become. Then an old friend, Drew, reluctantly steps in to help her discover why she broke ties with her family and best friend. Grey jumps back in time to fill in gaps for the reader, and Evie’s tale becomes darker and ever more riveting as layers are peeled back and sacrifices revealed. There’s nonstop drama and surprise after surprise in this twisty tearjerker.
Perfect Fit
A couple re-meets-cute in Perfect Fit by Clare Gilmore. Josephine Davis runs her own clothing company in Austin, Texas, and is shocked when her largest investor hires business consultant Will Grant. Not only is Will the twin brother of Jo’s ex-best friend, but the pair also made out as teenagers. Can they work together even though they haven’t spoken in nine years? Gilmore writes in a fresh, modern voice, and fills the world around Josie and Will with cool friends with cool jobs and cool attitudes who support their burgeoning romance. It seems impossible for them not to end up together . . . if only they can overcome their insecurities and act like the adults they are now. Fun food, fun drinks and fun parties put this squarely in the rom-com lane, with an added coming-of-age element thanks to Josie’s first-person perspective.
Emma Grey’s Pictures of You highlights everything that’s great about one of romance’s most soapy tropes.
As she begins the second of the three duologies that will make up her Crowns of Nyaxia series, author Carissa Broadbent leaves the House of Night and takes her characters straight to hell—the underworld, that is. The Songbird & the Heart of Stone picks up in the months after the events of the Nightborn Duet (The Serpent & the Wings of the Night and The Ashes & the Star-Cursed King), as former acolyte Mische is still reeling from losing her connection to the sun god after being Turned into a vampire. When she is captured by the House of Shadow, one of three vampire courts, Mische is spared from death by the mysterious Asar, the bastard prince of the House of Shadow and brother to the vampire who Turned her. But Asar saves Mische not out of compassion, but to help him complete a task given to him by the goddess Nyaxia: Descend into the underworld and resurrect Nyaxia’s long-dead husband, the god of death. It’s an offer Mische can’t refuse, especially when her own god breaks his silence, ordering Mische to aid Asar and then betray him by killing the god of death after his resurrection.
In The Songbird & the Heart of Stone, Carissa Broadbent marries a thoughtful look at religious and family trauma with epic adventure and romance. Fan-favorite Mische was originally introduced as a seemingly happy-go-lucky sidekick in The Serpent & the Wings of Night. But now, she struggles to choose a path that could bring her happiness in her new life as a vampire, afraid of destroying her tenuous hold on her humanity—and her god. Not to be outdone in the personal baggage department, necromancer Asar has a past as bloody as it is tragic. You could argue that his actions go slightly beyond the “morally gray” territory so beloved by fantasy romance readers, edging into downright villainous. But his devotion to Mische and desire to help her find love that doesn’t hurt make him a compelling (and swoon-inducing) romantic lead. Mische and Asar’s story isn’t over yet, but this first half of their romance makes clear that they are destined for an adventure that will shake the very foundations of their world and its pantheon.
In The Songbird & the Heart of Stone, Carissa Broadbent marries a thoughtful look at religious and family trauma with epic adventure and romance.
Beauty and the Beast truly is a tale as old as time. There’s a charm to it that seems evergreen—the idea of a beast softened and redeemed by love. But what about what the Beast’s love does for Beauty? Can it lift her out of a life in which she feels trapped? Can it awaken feelings in her that she’d never known were possible?
And most pressingly, can it bail her out of jail?
A jail cell is, in fact, where a series of mishaps leads Alexandra Brightwall in the opening scene of Julie Anne Long’s The Beast Takes a Bride. Her long-estranged husband, the war hero Colonel Magnus Brightwall—popularly known as Brightwall the Beast—is able to get her released, upon which he proposes a bargain. Magnus has a chance of being elevated to the nobility, and if Alexandra will appear on his arm and boost his reputation over the next several weeks, he’ll provide the resources for her to have a comfortable life, far away from him. But if she lets him down—again—she’ll be on her own, and she’ll never have a chance to make amends for the terrible mistake that drove them apart on their wedding night five years earlier.
Fans of Long and her Palace of Rogues series will not be surprised to learn that the couple’s home base for Operation Reputation Restoration is the Grand Palace on the Thames, the boardinghouse by the London docks that is always filled with colorful characters and endearing old friends. (Newcomers might wish for a bit less time spent with previously established characters: not because they aren’t delightful, but because they take time away from our main couple.) All of Long’s creations have warmth, wit and sparkle to spare, but most especially the two leads. Alexandra is absolutely enchanting—utterly lovely inside and out. And while Magnus is decidedly unlovely at first glance, he is a fierce, sharp-witted force to be reckoned with, someone who loves with everything he has, which is quite a lot. Their passion is intense in their sensual moments together, but it’s also intensely sweet in the quieter scenes as they strain and struggle and inch toward a common understanding. As Beast rescues Beauty and Beauty redeems Beast, it’s the love they find together that saves them both.
Julie Anne Long’s latest historical romance has warmth, wit and sparkle to spare as it puts a Regency spin on Beauty and the Beast.
Unceremoniously dumped at the airport on her way to a European vacation with her girlfriend, Sam throws caution to the wind and goes anyway. But the plane experiences a mysterious rip in space and time, and crash-lands in 1805. The only survivor, Sam is rescued by a dashing naval captain, Fenton “Finch” Goodenough. Sam decides to pursue the captain for protection (what she refers to as a “safety bang”) until she can figure out how to get home. But once on land, Sam realizes Finch is not only engaged, but owes a horrible nobleman money and has agreed to betroth her to his debtor to settle his financial woes. With all the gumption of a 21st-century woman, Sam flees the wedding, throws herself on the mercy of Finch’s sisters and resigns herself to a quiet life as a tutor. However, one of said sisters is none other than Margaret Goodenough, an aspiring author who will write the first-ever lesbian kiss in British literature—and whom Sam finds increasingly alluring.
The historical romance subgenre has a rich tradition of defying expectations (and historical accuracy) in favor of a bonkers plot twist. True to form, the plot of J.M. Frey’s Time and Tide is a lot to take in: Some of it is fun, if often silly, and the bones of the story are solid. Frey expertly sets up a classic, time-traveling romance with a refreshing queer twist. Sam is incredibly resourceful and smart, stumbling through the unimaginable with admirable resilience. She’s doing her best to survive, but she’s a brash and outspoken modern woman in Regency England. And so, she constantly finds herself unintentionally overstepping, oversharing and occasionally hurting others’ feelings.
Unfortunately, the central romantic relationship is not as developed . Despite the captain’s eventual betrayal, Finch and Sam’s chemistry is palpable and exciting, whereas the energy between Margaret and Sam feels more tepid and prim. There is little spark between them, and it’s disappointing when Frey closes the metaphorical door after Sam shifts her attention from Finch to Margaret. Why is there explicit, on-page sex between Finch and Sam, but then only vague descriptions of Sam and Margaret’s more amorous moments? They are the couple readers are supposed to root for, but in order to fully do that, we would need to see more passion, love and commitment between them.
Time and Tide by J.M. Frey isn’t perfect, but it’s still a lot of fun, and it’s wonderful to see a time-travel romance embrace queer love.
J.M. Frey’s sapphic romance Time and Tide is a weird and wild time-travel story that embraces queer love.
Bethany Bennett’s latest historical romance has a heroine with a secret life as an erotica writer; a hero who smolders, yearns and pines; and a mystery that begins in a library. A promising start to Bennett’s Bluestocking Booksellers series, Good Duke Gone Wild excels when it comes to its earnest, evenly matched main characters.
Dorian Whitaker, the widowed Duke of Holland, has made the tough decision to finally part with his late wife’s library. He approaches Martin House Books, where he meets bookseller Caroline Danvers, niece of the shop owners. Caro agrees to help catalog and liquidate his wife’s library, but doesn’t expect to stumble across evidence of an affair: love letters from a mysterious man. The pair sets out to confront this scoundrel, but while Caro is helping Dorian uncover this secret, she has her own deceptions to protect.
Caro grew up as a vicar’s daughter, but when her father discovered that she was writing erotic novels under a pen name, he threw her out, leaving her to find her way to London and her aunt and uncle’s bookshop alone. Getting tangled up with a titled man like Dorian only further jeopardizes her, putting her secret identity as a writer at risk of discovery.
As the series name suggests, this is a romance for all kinds of book lovers: rare book collectors, those who dream of having their own personal library and romance readers alike. Caro loves reading and writing romance, and she adamantly refuses to let anything stand in the way of those dreams. Starchy and unapproachable on the surface, Dorian is completely undone by Caro, making him a worthy and delicious addition to the ranks of heroes who fall first.
Despite their difficult individual circumstances, both Dorian and Caro have managed to find and build wonderful support systems of people who will advocate for them, but also give them the reality checks that they need. It’s a wholesome and sweet complement to the spicy situations and sexual tension that characterize their interactions as a couple.
I can hardly wait to find out what bookish appreciation awaits us in future titles, but for now, we have Good Duke Gone Wild to tide us over, a reading (and rereading!) experience that’s sure to be punctuated by dreamy sighs and the false promise of “just one more chapter.” Caro Danvers would approve.
Bethany Bennett’s Good Duke Gone Wild is a sweet but still sexy romance starring a bookseller heroine with a secret life as an erotica writer.
Set in Yangon, Myanmar, I Did Something Bad by Pyae Moe Thet War combines kisses-only romance and suspense. Freelance journalist Khin Haymar has two months of access to movie star Tyler Tun in order to write an in-depth exposé. It’s the chance of a lifetime and, even though she’s known for more serious articles, such as one featuring an underground abortion clinic, Khin is recently divorced and needs a boost.,. When Khin and Tyler meet, they’re immediately drawn to each other, but journalistic ethics rule out a relationship between a writer and subject. Still, Tyler is handsome and sexy, and one night he steps in to save Khin from danger . . . How could she not be tempted? As they work together to investigate the threat, love blossoms. With swoony moments and some serious ones regarding the importance of journalism, this sweet yet thoroughly modern story satisfies.
The Highlander’s Return
The Highlander’s Return by Lynsay Sands hits all the classic notes of a satisfying historical romance: a marriage of convenience, a strong-but-silent hero and a feisty heroine who’s very deserving of her Happily Ever After. Six years ago, Annella Gunn’s husband, William, went missing the day after their wedding. After his younger brother, brawny warrior Graeme, returns home and delivers the news that William has died, Annella is a widow with an unknown future ahead of her. Graeme knows almost instantly what the beautiful Annella should do: Marry him. As he assumes his brother’s position of laird of the Gunn clan, Graeme also takes on the task of convincing Annella to become his bride. Their mutual passion works in his favor, but after the vows are exchanged, Annella and Graeme still have much to learn about each other—and a hidden danger lurks within the castle walls. Filled with excitement in and out of the bedchamber, this romance is a sizzling addition to Sands’ Highland Brides series.
Showmance
Tony Award-nominated playwright Chad Beguelin offers up a truly entertaining debut romance in Showmance. When playwright Noah Adams’ Broadway musical closes after one night, he returns to his Illinois hometown to look in on his ailing dad and lick his own wounds. The community’s local theater was his refuge as a gay teen, and when the group asks him to stage the same musical that just flopped, Noah can’t say no—even though Luke, his hunky high school nemesis/bully, is involved. Told in Noah’s first-person perspective, with well-drawn characters and bouncy dialogue, Showmance includes touching scenes between Noah and his undemonstrative father, as well as some of Noah’s old tormentors. As it turns out, hunky Luke likes guys, too, and his and Noah’s smoking chemistry leads to a happy ending that readers—especially those who catch all the musical references—will grin over.
Pyae Moe Thet War makes a convincing argument for the subgenre with her thrilling debut, plus Lynsay Sands’ latest Highland Brides romance.
Three heroines weather tremendously difficult circumstances, uncovering and navigating unsettling details about their families’ histories with admirable grace.
