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RomanceInspirational Romance

To Spark a Match

Sponsored by Bethany House Publishers

After five unsuccessful Seasons on the marriage mart, Miss Adelaide Duveen has resigned herself to the notion that she’s destined to remain a spinster forever—a rather dismal prospect, but one that will allow her to concentrate on her darling cats and books. However, when she inadvertently stumbles upon Mr. Gideon Abbott engaged in a clandestine activity during a dinner party, Adelaide finds herself thrust into a world of intrigue that resembles the plots in the spy novels she devours.

Former intelligence agent Gideon Abbott feels responsible for Adelaide after society threatens to banish her because of the distraction she caused to save his investigation. Hoping to return the favor, he turns to a good friend—and one of high society’s leaders—to take Adelaide in hand and turn her fashionable. When danger surrounds them and Adelaide finds herself a target of the criminals in Gideon’s case, the spark of love between them threatens to be quenched for good—along with their lives.

Miss Adelaide Duveen—society misfit and confirmed spinster—is in danger of being banished from society. Former intelligence agent Gideon Abbott feels responsible for her plight and helps her relaunch into society. But when danger surrounds them and she finds herself a target of the criminals in Gideon's case, can the spark of love between them survive?
RomanceFictionPopular FictionLiterary FictionFamily DramaContemporary Romance

4 festive novels explore family drama during the holidays

Feature by Julie Hale

In Lynn Steger Strong’s stirring Flight, siblings Kate, Henry and Martin struggle to make it through the holidays after the death of their mother. Assembling at Henry’s home with their respective families for Christmas, they try to be cheerful while sorting out big issues like whether to keep their mother’s house. When the daughter of a friend disappears, the siblings offer support, and the crisis transforms each of them. Strong’s powerful novel features a range of discussion topics, including grief, inheritance and the bonds of family.

Set on the border between Texas and Mexico, Everyone Knows You Go Home by Natalia Sylvester chronicles the marriage of Isabel and Martin. Martin’s late father, Omar, deserted the family when Martin was a boy. But every fall, on the Day of the Dead, Omar’s ghost visits Isabel and begs her to convince Martin and the rest of the family to forgive him. As the novel unfolds, Isabel learns more about Omar and his past, and her discoveries threaten her happiness. Themes like loyalty, memory and the Mexican American immigrant experience will spark spirited dialogue among readers.

In Jean Meltzer’s The Matzah Ball, Rachel Rubenstein-Goldblatt, successful writer of Christmas romances (an occupation she conceals from her Jewish family), is asked to pen a love story set during Hanukkah—an assignment that proves daunting. Rachel finds Hanukkah lackluster compared to Christmas, and she hits a wall while dealing with chronic fatigue syndrome. In need of motivation, she helps organize a Hanukkah celebration called the Matzah Ball, reconnecting with an old flame along the way. Meltzer mixes humor with romance to concoct a delightful holiday frolic.

December takes an unexpected turn for the Birch clan in Francesca Hornak’s Seven Days of Us. Emma and Andrew Birch look forward to spending Christmas at Weyfield Hall, their country house, but when their daughter Olivia, who’s a doctor, returns from Liberia where she was exposed to a dangerous virus, the family is forced to quarantine for a week. Despite rising tensions and the reveal of a huge family secret, the Birches become closer than ever during their Yuletide lockdown. Poignant yet festive, Hornak’s novel is a treat.

There’s nothing more fun than gossiping about fictional characters with your book club.
RomanceRomantic SuspenseContemporary Romance

The five best holiday romances of 2023

Feature by Christie Ridgway

★ The Takedown

Carlie Walker’s The Takedown is an engaging story filled with danger, drama and introspection—and a Christmas romance you won’t want to miss. When CIA agent Sydney Swift learns her sister plans to marry crime lord Johnny Jones, she instantly regrets the familial distance she’s encouraged due to her dangerous job and agrees to help the FBI take Johnny down. At Grandma Ruby’s for Christmas, Sydney must keep her mission a secret even as she’s sharing quarters with not only Johnny, but also his best man and head of security, the far too attractive Nick Fraser. Celebrating the season while sussing out the Jones clan’s nefarious next moves isn’t easy, and Sydney does some soul-searching about her career while trying not to fall for Nick, who must be as bad as Johnny—right? This untraditional Christmas tale is as fun as can be and will have readers whipping through the pages.

Three Holidays and a Wedding

Bad luck turns to good fortune in Three Holidays and a Wedding by Uzma Jalaluddin and Marissa Stapley. Maryam Aziz is on her way to her sister’s wedding, and Anna Gibson is about to meet her boyfriend’s parents. But both are stranded along with their entire flight after a blizzard traps them in the adorable and fantastical town of Snow Falls, Ontario, where the sequel to a beloved Christmas movie also happens to be filming. As Christmas, Hanukkah and Eid al-Fitr approach (the novel is set in 2000, when all three celebrations fell within days of one another), Anna must deal with the displeasure of her boyfriend and her attraction to the movie’s leading man, while Maryam manages her extended family and her childhood crush, Saif. Jalaluddin and Stapley expertly braid the three faiths together and each character sparkles in their own way. The holiday(s) spirit is strong in this one!

Faking Christmas

For pure festive rom-com fun, look no further than Faking Christmas by Kerry Winfrey. Laurel Grant thinks of herself as the “other twin,” the one who constantly screws up, while her identical sister Holly lives on a farm with her husband and kids, raises goats and cooks like a dream. Laurel is the social media manager for a magazine promoting the charms of Ohio, and may have pretended her sister’s life was her own to get the job. But then her boss invites himself to a holiday meal. Luckily, Holly doesn’t mind letting Laurel step into her place . . . with the exception of playing wife to her husband. There’s another man for that role: Laurel’s nemesis, grouchy and fun-averse Max Beckett. Of course, there’s a blizzard and romantic sparks and misunderstandings, as well as movie marathons and dance parties. Max learns to smile on occasion and Laurel finds out she’s not such a screw-up after all. This is hot chocolate in book form—warm and sweet.

A Holly Jolly Ever After

An unlikely pairing enjoys a scorching Christmas romance in A Holly Jolly Ever After by Julie Murphy and Sierra Simone. After years in good-girl roles followed by a shocking divorce, actor Winnie Baker is ready to end her people-pleaser ways and take charge of her life. First up is starring in a Christmas soft-core porn film alongside ex-boy band member, Kallum Lieberman (who was “the funny one”). Though she’s been in the entertainment business since childhood, the challenge of acting sexy, especially pretending to enjoy sex on screen, is such a hurdle that Winnie confides in Kallum—and he’s eager to help. He’s had a crush on her since her early TV days, and awakening her to carnal pleasures is a joy that threatens to turn into love. But their idyll in Christmas Notch, Vermont, the charming backdrop for their movie, is supposed to be no-strings. The love scenes smoke, the characters and their sidekicks are funny and sweet, and readers will root for Winnie to get all she deserves.

Wreck the Halls

In Tessa Bailey’s Wreck the Halls, the progeny of an infamous female rock duo get involved in a band reunion—and with each other. The Steel Birds broke up before their respective kids, Beat and Melody, were born. But their legend lives on, and since Beat’s in a financial bind, he tries to get the women back on stage. Though Melody only met him once when she was a teenager, she feels so connected to Beat all these years later that she jumps on board with his idea. The holiday reunion setup and The Steel Birds are interesting, but it’s Beat and Melody’s intense bond that drives the story and gives it oomph. Bailey masterfully sells the sublime connection between the two characters, whether in conversation or more carnal situations. It’s delicious and delightful, the stuff of pure fairy tale romance, and readers won’t want it to end.

The annual avalanche of festive love stories is upon us—here are the books you should put on your list.
RomanceContemporary Romance

For Never & Always

Review by Elizabeth Mazer

For the first time in four years, Levi Matthews is returning to the winter wonderland that is Carrigan’s, the inn and Christmas tree farm where he grew up. The oldest child of the inn’s handyman and cook, Levi’s childhood was spent alongside Carrigan’s heir apparent, Hannah Rosenstein. Hannah visited her great-aunt’s inn as often as possible, much to the bemusement of her globe-trotting documentary filmmaker parents. Hannah’s only dream was to permanently live in the place she loved best, stable and settled with Levi, the person she loved most. But one person’s safe haven is another person’s stifling prison: The pansexual Levi was bullied as a child for all the ways he diverged from the small-town norm, whether it was his love of cooking or flamboyant appearance. Hence a painful, messy break ensued when Levi left to find himself and Hannah stayed behind. As For Never & Always begins, Levi, now a successful celebrity chef, returns home for Passover, knowing that he doesn’t want to contemplate a future without Hannah. But before they can find happiness, they’ll have to grapple not just with baggage from the past but also with an age-old question: A bird may love a fish, but where would they build their home?

Anyone familiar with the vibrant cast of characters at Carrigan’s, who were introduced in author Helena Greer’s debut, Season of Love, will know to expect plenty of humor and warmth baked into powerfully sweet relationships. In addition to its central romance, For Never & Always tells many love stories about friendship and family—by choice as well as by birth—all flawlessly illustrated in small, telling gestures. Even more to its credit, it doesn’t shy away from the things that love can’t fix. When Hannah and Levi were younger, they would default to sex to paper over the cracks in their relationship, whether it was Hannah’s anxiety or Levi’s increasing desire to leave Carrigan’s. Growing up means admitting that they need to address their problems openly, talk about what they’re feeling and really listen to each other.

For Never & Always is a wonderful example of what readers love about second-chance romances: a couple that is now ready for happily ever after in a way that they weren’t before. A forever love takes time, commitment and a level of maturity that you may not have when that first rush of love sweeps you away. The fact that Levi and Hannah are willing to wait and work for it is exactly what makes their happy ending feel so joyful and blessed.

With its hard-won happy ending, For Never & Always is a wonderful example of why readers love second-chance romances.
RomanceContemporary Romance

Raiders of the Lost Heart

Review by Amanda Diehl

Jo Segura’s debut, Raiders of the Lost Heart, harkens back to foundational adventure films like Romancing the Stone and The Mummy as well as the action-packed, globe-trotting romance novels of the ’80s and ’90s. Archaeologist Dr. Socorro “Corrie” Mejia travels to Mexico in hope of unearthing the remains of her ancient Aztec ancestor during a once-in-a-lifetime archaeology dig. Unfortunately, the dig in question is being led by Corrie’s academic rival and fellow archaeologist, Dr. Ford Matthews. Both need this dig to succeed for personal and professional reasons, but they’ll have to battle the harsh jungle environment and their own lingering feelings first. 

A tenacious heroine is a must for any good adventure rom-com, and Corrie fits the bill and then some. She’s fiery, nerdy and a little quirky, with a knack for getting into the most chaotic of situations. Corrie’s career advancement has often been hampered by a white man taking all the glory, and she’s not about to let that happen again. While Ford may be an intelligent archaeologist, Corrie feels he relies too much on his own charisma and avoids getting his hands dirty. Corrie, however, craves adventure and being in the field, and is most at home trudging through the elements instead of sitting behind a desk. 

Ford needs this dig to work out, as the great press would ensure more jobs to help him pay for his mother’s medical treatment. But he also knows the privilege he wields and has begun to reckon with that. He doesn’t quite know what to do with his complicated emotions towards Corrie—other than physically surrender to them and sort it all out later. If the tension of an archaeological deadline and all the different ways the jungle can kill weren’t enough to keep the momentum at a steady pace, Ford is also doing his best to hide a sizable secret, one that could jeopardize his professional integrity and whatever goodwill he is slowly winning from Corrie. 

Both the romance and action are slow burns, with Segura taking her time to develop both before a dramatic third act. Someone in the camp is sabotaging the dig and Corrie and Ford need to find out why, but they’re distracted by their quick banter and the looming sexual tension of having to share a tent. While slightly disjointed at times, this is a fun romance that clearly appreciates its adventure romance predecessors. It’s a hopeful sign of good things to come, both by Segura and possibly the genre as a whole: There’s been a dearth of adventure romance novels for far too long, and Raiders of the Lost Heart is a thrilling addition to the canon that will hopefully kick off a new wave of the subgenre.

An adventure romance a la Romancing the Stone and The Lost City, Raiders of the Lost Heart will hopefully kick off a new wave of the subgenre.
RomanceParanormal Romance

The Fake Mate

Review by Katie Garaby

Lana Ferguson’s The Fake Mate is the perfect introduction to the wild world of the omegaverse, a romance subgenre where people (who are often also wolf-shifters) are divided into a hierarchy of alphas, betas and omegas. Fun and easy, The Fake Mate is all pheromones and big, sexy energy. It’s the literary equivalent of a really delicious snack, the kind that once you open the bag, you just can’t stop before it’s gone.

Despite being a successful doctor, omega Mackenzie Carter can’t seem to get her grandmother to register that she’d rather focus on her career than dating. And after a string of horrible dates who seem more interested in her tail than her mind, it only makes sense to lie and tell Gram that she’s met someone. Enter Noah Taylor, a gruff cardiologist at Mackenzie’s hospital who has kept the fact that he’s an alpha hidden from the board. When his secret gets out, he needs to convince everyone that he’s happily settled down and nothing like the stereotypical aggressive alpha. It’s a practically perfect setup for a fake-dating arrangement. But once Mackenzie and Noah become friends with benefits, it’s almost impossible for this alpha and omega to ignore the pull of fate.

The Fake Mate pulls out a bunch of tropes that rom-com readers know and love: fake dating, workplace romance and a good, old-fashioned grumpy/sunshine pairing. But the omegaverse has its own tropes, like the alpha/omega dynamic, heat cycles and knotting. (Google at your own risk.) Ferguson doesn’t compromise when blending these two worlds, creating an exciting entry point for folks who want to dip their toes into the omegaverse but aren’t quite sure where to start. Mackenzie and Noah are easy to fall for and fun to root for, and the stakes of their story are breezily low. There’s something reassuring and deeply satisfying about a book that’s easy to slide into, a little banana-pants and blessed with an almost alarming amount of spice; judging by The Fake Mate and her debut, The Nanny, that particular combination seems to be Ferguson’s specialty.

Whether you’re new to the omegaverse or a longtime fan, the scorching The Fake Mate will thrill those in search of a book that turns the heat all the way up.

The Fake Mate, Lana Ferguson’s omegaverse rom-com, is all pheromones and big, sexy energy.
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10 Things That Never Happened

Sponsored by Sourcebooks

Sam Becker loves—or, okay, likes—his job. Sure, managing a bed and bath retailer isn’t exactly glamorous, but it’s good work and he gets on well with the band of misfits who keep the store running. He could see himself being content here for the long haul. Too bad, then, that the owner is an infuriating git.

Jonathan Forest should never have hired Sam. It was a sentimental decision, and Jonathan didn’t get where he is by following his heart. Determined to set things right, Jonathan orders Sam down to London for a difficult talk…only for a panicking Sam to trip, bump his head, and maybe accidentally imply he doesn’t remember anything?

Faking amnesia seemed like a good idea when Sam was afraid he was getting sacked, but now he has to deal with the reality of Jonathan’s guilt—as well as the unsettling fact that his surly boss might have a softer side to him. There’s an unexpected freedom in getting a second shot at a first impression…but as Sam and Jonathan grow closer, can Sam really bring himself to tell the truth, or will their future be built entirely on one impulsive lie?

Alexis Hall’s rom-com 10 Things That Never Happened has a hilariously zany setup—a guy fakes amnesia!—but its authentic emotion will win readers’ hearts.
Science Fiction & FantasyRomanceNonfictionMystery & SuspenseFictionFeatured

The 33 best 2023 books to read with your book club

List by Savanna, Associate Editor
STARRED REVIEW
October 16, 2023

The 33 best 2023 books to read with your book club

Ambitious, accessible and thought-provoking, these titles will make your entire reading group happy.
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Lone Women by Victor LaValle book jacket

Lone Women

A powerful study in setting and character with a healthy dose of horror, Lone Women will forever change the way you think about the Wild ...
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Book jacket image for Romantic Comedy by Curtis Sittenfeld

Romantic Comedy

A comedy sketch writer and a singer-songwriter become pandemic pen pals in Curtis Sittenfeld’s charming romance.
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Book jacket image for In Memoriam by Alice Winn

In Memoriam

In Memoriam is a remarkably beautiful debut novel, both a gripping love-in-wartime story and a meditation on the futility and trauma of World War I.
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Book jacket image for The Great Reclamation by Rachel Heng

The Great Reclamation

The prose in Rachel Heng’s second novel, set in 20th-century Singapore, is alive. Each character is rich with complexity and depth, each snapshot brimming with ...
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somethingwildandwonderful

Something Wild & Wonderful

Anita Kelly’s Something Wild & Wonderful follows two men who fall in love as they hike the Pacific Crest Trail, and it’s so sweet and ...
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Ambitious, accessible and thought-provoking, these titles will make your entire reading group happy.
RomanceFantasy Romance

Bring her that horizon: Katee Robert revives the pirate romance

Behind the Book by Katee Robert

She’s written love stories starring monsters and Greek gods, but with Hunt on Dark Waters, Katee Robert has written the high seas fantasy adventure of her dreams.

There’s something about pirates that remains timeless. We gravitate toward the idea of a reckless captain standing at the helm, the salty sea breeze whipping their stylish coat, the horizon an endless blue of possibility. The world feels big in a way that it really doesn’t anymore. Historical—and fantasy—pirates exist out of time and space, and the only rules they follow are the ones they make up. 

Obviously, reality was a bit less glamorous and more rife with scurvy and poop decks, but the mythos of pirates continues to attract and seduce. It certainly does with me, at least.

It’s hard to say when my fascination with pirates began, but I suspect it was the moment I boarded the Pirates of the Caribbean ride in Disneyland when I was very young. The “briny” air wrapped around me and I sat with wide eyes through scene after scene of glamorized and entertaining glimpses of what a pirate’s life might be like. I was hooked.

Fast-forward some 30-odd years, through my deep obsessions with pirate nonfiction books, the Pirates of the Caribbean movie franchise and the TV show “Black Sails,” to name just a few influences. When it came time for me to circle back to my first love, fantasy novels, it was also an opportunity to mix two of my favorite things into one grand adventure.

I will admit that pirates seemed to be a bit of a long shot. While pirates have been a staple in genre fiction since the beginning of time, they’ve kind of fallen out of popularity in recent years. There’s probably some really interesting reasons why, but I love them and I’ve been on the hunt for spicy pirate romances for ages. They exist, to be sure! But there’s never enough to feed my voracious reading. One book is never enough!

Read our starred review of ‘Hunt on Dark Waters’ by Katee Robert.

Really, though, it all boils down to the fact that I’ve been chasing the high of Pirates of the Caribbean, both the ride and the movies, since my formative years. I saw the first movie in theaters five times. I was addicted to the way my heart beat faster as the music swelled and the sheer possibilities that unfolded when Jack Sparrow grinned and said, “Bring me that horizon.”

I wanted to recreate that feeling while writing—and hopefully for the reader while reading. That moment of looking out at the horizon and having no idea what it might hold. The thrill of a fight against a monster on the deck of your ship. The magic and mystery that comes when things and people aren’t quite what they seem, but you’re seduced despite yourself.

And, because it’s fantasy, everyone is freshly bathed and there’s indoor plumbing!

She’s written love stories starring monsters and Greek gods, but with Hunt on Dark Waters, Katee Robert created the high seas fantasy adventure of her dreams.
Science Fiction & FantasyRomanceNonfictionMystery & SuspenseFictionFeaturedChildren's & YAYA FictionYAScience FictionMysteryMiddle GradeLiterary FictionHistoryHistorical FictionGraphic MemoirsDystopian FictionContemporary RomanceChildren'sAmerican History

Top 10 titles of November 2023

List by the editors of BookPage
STARRED REVIEW

Our top 10 books of November 2023

This month’s top titles include career-best works from Jesmyn Ward, Alexis Hall and Naomi Alderman.
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Book jacket image for Nowhere Special by Matt Wallace

Author Matt Wallace excels at depicting realistic family scenarios, complex moral dilemmas, and good-hearted, but flawed, adults.

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The Space Between Here & Now is an intriguing mix of fantasy and realism that lures readers in with the promise of magic and keeps

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Book jacket image for Let Us Descend by Jesmyn Ward

We sometimes forget that the descent in Dante’s Divine Comedy is a journey toward God. Jesmyn Ward’s portrayal of slavery is the profound manifestation of

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Book jacket image for The Future by Naomi Alderman

The Future is a daring, sexy, thrilling novel that may be the most wryly funny book about the end of civilization you’ll ever read.

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Book jacket image for When I'm Dead by Hannah Morrissey

Hannah Morrissey’s small-town murder mystery When I’m Dead is nigh-on impossible to put down.

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Book jacket image for I Must Be Dreaming by Roz Chast

Longtime New Yorker cartoonist Roz Chaste’s I Must Be Dreaming is an uproarious, touching and zany ride.

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Book jacket image for The Dictionary People by Sarah Ogilvie

The Dictionary People—which chronicles the unsung heroes who contributed to the Oxford English Dictionary—is sheer delight.

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Book jacket image for Flight of the WASP by Michael Gross

Michael Gross’ delightful cultural history of WASPs illuminates the odd corners of the lives of our nation’s elite—and American history itself.

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Book jacket image for 10 Things That Never Happened by Alexis Hall

Alexis Hall’s new rom-com might have a zany setup—a guy fakes amnesia!—but its authentic emotion will win readers’ hearts.

Read More »
Book jacket image for The Reformatory by Tananarive Due

Beautiful and expertly executed, The Reformatory is a horror masterpiece that derives its power from both the magical and the mundane.

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This month’s top titles include career-best works from Jesmyn Ward, Alexis Hall and Naomi Alderman.
RomanceParanormal Romance

The three best witchy romances of 2023

List by Savanna, Associate Editor
Paranormal romances tag page header image
STARRED REVIEW

October 9, 2023

The three best witchy romances of 2023

Serious spells for lovestruck witches: These paranormal romances tackle complex emotions, pressing social problems and family drama.

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RomanceParanormal Romance

Witch of Wild Things

Review by Amanda Diehl

Poet and young adult author Raquel Vasquez Gilliland’s adult debut, Witch of Wild Things, is a story of family legacies and complicated sisterhood, told with romantic and lush magical realism. 

For the entirety of Sage Flores’ life, she’s known three things. First, the old gods have no love for Flores women and have thus cursed them. Second, she feels anything but lucky to have inherited one of her family’s many “gifts,” which in Sage’s case is the ability to identify plants and commune with their spirits. Finally, she wants no part of either her inherited abilities or retribution from meddling gods. The death of her younger sister, Sky, only solidified Sage’s decision to escape her hometown of Cranberry, Virginia, and never look back. But eight years after Sky’s death, Sage finds herself back amongst her old childhood haunts and slowly starting to accept her uncanny talents. 

Returning to her old job at the Cranberry Rose Company, Sage, accompanied by Sky’s ghost, uses her powers to discover new and rare flora in the area. One of her coworkers is a familiar face: Tennessee Reyes, the boy who left her heartbroken in high school. While Tennessee and Sage are workplace rivals at first, their competitiveness is easily quelled as they nerd out on plants and bloom as friends (and then possibly more) while out in nature.Their romance is sweet and subtle, something Gilliland unfolds carefully while Sage deals with the larger obstacles in her life, namely her family. 

Sage is the beautiful heart of Witch of Wild Things, with her herculean efforts to both protect herself but still allow for vulnerability. She’s delightfully funny and heartbreakingly flawed; rooting for her comes easily. There are magical family secrets to uncover, cultural identities to reckon with and relationships to mend, most notably with her other sister, Teal, whose ability to summon thunderstorms and lightning have stirred up plenty of trouble in town. Even when the plot momentum ebbs, Gilliland keeps readers enthralled with her luxurious prose. Sage’s work with plants gives Gilliland plenty of opportunities to create gorgeous imagery for readers to lose themselves in. And the sexy Tennessee’s knowing smirks will make readers weak in the knees right along with Sage. 

Transportive and bursting with heart, Witch of Wild Things is a tender masterpiece of magical realism.

Transportive and bursting with heart, Witch of Wild Things is a tender masterpiece of magical realism and a sexy love story to boot.
RomanceParanormal RomanceContemporary Romance

Full Moon Over Freedom

Review by Elizabeth Mazer

Recently divorced Gillian Armstead-Bancroft has returned to Freedom, Kansas, with two kids, no money, seriously dented self-respect—and a curse that’s robbed her of her magical powers. Nothing in life has turned out as this always-good girl (and secret bruja) thought it would. And when a good girl is under a curse that turns all her good intentions to ash, the obvious fix is to try out being bad. Preferably with her childhood friend, Nicky Mendoza, who is now a successful artist and still the only man who has ever satisfied her in bed. Meanwhile, things are changing in the town of Freedom. The run-down East Side is getting a boost, and Gillian’s noisy, nosy family is leading the charge. There’s a role there for Gillian, if she’s willing to take it . . . and if she can let go of the idea that success looks like the life she left behind, which was all big-city sparkle, name-brand luxury and soul-crushing emptiness.

Angelina M. Lopez’s Full Moon Over Freedom, her sequel to After Hours on Milagro Street, delivers on all expectations. It’s both powerful and sweet to see Gillian and Nicky rekindle their romance. They’ve lived separate lives for the past 13 years, but from the moment they reunite, Nicky is once again the only person Gillian lets herself be truly honest with. And when it comes to her sexuality—her needs, her desires—their compatibility is off the charts. If you’re a reader who enjoys the “healed by the magic of great sex” trope, you will absolutely love this book. Mixing in with all of the classic plot elements is actual magic, which in Lopez’s hands is tangible, present and beautifully imperfect. Refreshingly, it doesn’t solve all of Gillian and Nicky’s problems and it also results in contact with the spirit realm, moments that are alternately unsettling and enchanting—sometimes both at once.

Gillian’s Mexican American identity, which Lopez shares, radiates throughout the book. Full Moon Over Freedom unpacks the Latinx history of Kansas, showing how the struggles of women in the past trickle down into the prejudices of today through an infuriating heartbreaker of a historical story based on a real court case. This is the work of a writer who knows and celebrates her community and her culture. It’s also a love story that embraces the unusual, celebrates the unsung and makes you believe the words of another famous Kansan: There’s no place like home.

Full Moon Over Freedom celebrates the unsung Latinx history of Kansas while telling a second-chance love story that’s powerful, sexy and sweet.
RomanceParanormal Romance

In Charm’s Way

Review by Dolly R. Sickles

Lana Harper continues to enchant the hearts of readers with the fourth book in her Witches of Thistle Grove series, In Charm’s Way. These supernatural rom-coms are always enjoyable and fun, but this latest installment has some darker, broodier moments, too. 

Delilah Harlow is still reeling from the oblivion charm cast on her at the end of book three (Back in a Spell), and her healing journey takes her down a dark path. She’s lost memories and her sharp mind has been dulled, forcing her to turn to her paranormal community for help. But relying on others makes you vulnerable, which Delilah can’t abide, so she casts a dangerous blood spell to harness her power and bring forth its healing capabilities. What she didn’t account for was how the spell would make her a magnet for a hoard of dangerous monsters.

Fortunately, there’s Catriona Quinn, monster hunter. She’s half-human and half-fae, an expert in her field and a member of the Shadow Court, which helps hold the evil, violent side of the paranormal at bay. She’s like Buffy the Vampire Slayer with a morally gray and beguiling core. Sassy and headstrong, confident and reckless, Catriona catches Delilah’s attention in the sexiest, most distracting way possible. Just distracting enough, in fact, to help Delilah get out of her head.

Harper creates a remarkably intimate experience for the reader by keeping them rooted in Delilah’s perspective as she works through her mental trauma. She’s angry about the things that were taken from her, and rightfully so, but her experience has shifted her personality in such a way that she’s able to lean into the rage and use it to heal herself. 

The characters are well developed, the dialogue is snappy and the plot is fast-paced and engaging in the supremely satisfying and entertaining In Charm’s Way.

Lana Harper’s latest paranormal romance, In Charm’s Way, movingly explores mental trauma (via an oblivion charm, naturally).

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Serious spells for lovestruck witches: These paranormal romances tackle complex emotions, pressing social problems and family drama.
RomanceContemporary Romance

Courting Samira

Review by Elizabeth Mazer

Samira Abdel-Aziz might be in want of a husband but she’s definitely not in want of suitors, having received a slew of what she calls “doorknock appeals” arranged by her traditional Muslim family. But finding one with actual appeal—one who isn’t too “fundy” or too secular, too stylized (she nicknames an excessively gelled suitor “Manga Boy”) or too frumpy, too judgmental or too indifferent—is quite another matter entirely. Things finally start falling into place after a meet cute with the surprisingly charming Menem, but the road to happiness is still long, winding and stuffed with awkward family dinners, nosy relatives and unexpected jealousy from her friend (and former crush), Hakeem.

Amal Awad’s Courting Samira might be best described as an Australian Muslim Bridget Jones. Like Bridget, Samira is a wry, endearing woman with big dreams of what love should look like (e.g. the final kissing scene in The Princess Bride) but minimal success when it comes to figuring out how to get what she wants. Awad warmly displays the formal propriety of Arab Muslim courtship while still highlighting the humor of it all, along with an amused appreciation of its parallels to the Regency world of Jane Austen. (Let’s face it, if Elizabeth Bennet or Emma Woodhouse magically came to life in our modern world, a doorknock appeal would make a lot more sense to them than Netflix and chill.) However, while the love story Samira experiences may be chaste, it doesn’t feel dated or old-fashioned. Searching for romance is never easy and happiness is never where you expect to find it, but somehow, love will always manage to find a way.

Amal Awad’s Courting Samira is best described as a wry, endearing Bridget Jones set in Sydney’s Muslim community.
RomanceContemporary Romance

In Alexis Hall’s new rom-com, a man fakes amnesia to avoid being fired—and ends up falling for his boss.

Feature by Christie Ridgway

★ 10 Things That Never Happened

A man trying to do right ends up doing one big wrong in Alexis Hall’s 10 Things That Never Happened. Sam Becker enjoys almost everything about his job managing a bed-and-bath store, except for his awful boss, Jonathan Forest. While confronting said boss, Sam hits his head and—well, the details don’t matter when the result is that he fakes amnesia to avoid being fired and moves in with Jonathan so that he can be looked after. That screwball setup leads to a poignant love story, told through Sam’s amusing first-person voice. The close perspective puts the reader shoulder-to-shoulder with Sam, who is actually holding some important stuff back. Closed-off Jonathan is a typical workaholic, yet the attraction between the two housemates grows and becomes impossible to ignore despite the boss-employee taboo. The Christmas season, Jonathan’s zany family and an important company event complicate matters, but the authentic emotion at the center of this romance will win readers’ hearts and make them care deeply about these characters and their hopeful happy ending.

The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch

Two childhood friends explore their deep connection in The Predictable Heartbreaks of Imogen Finch by Jacqueline Firkins. Trained artist Imogen has given up her dreams to care for her mother in their small town on the Oregon coast. But when Eliot Swift, the rich-boy crush she never got over, comes back to town, she’s forced to reexamine her choices and the true state of her heart. Eliot must look within too, facing feelings and failings he’s been running from for a decade. Firkins delicately peels back the layers of her main couple to expose their raw emotions. Imogen and Eliot are multifaceted, fascinating personalities, and readers will cross their fingers for a happy ending even though it feels impossible. Love scenes of smoking passion and warm tenderness give this romance an extra sparkle. 

The Once and Future Fling

Leigh Heasley’s imaginative and adventurous The Once and Future Fling is set in a world in which time travel exists and dating people from different eras of history is a sought-after experience for the idle rich. Ada Blum, however, is anything but idle: She’s near-desperate to escape the ramifications of her high-profile relationship with state Sen. Samson St. Laurent by finding a match in another time. Regency-era bachelors aren’t catching her interest, so she takes a chance on 1920s New York City—and that’s where things turn thorny. Henry Levison, a violinist and maybe-criminal from the ’20s, catches hold of her heart, but Samson has also reentered the picture. Gangsters and more time-hops keep things entertaining while readers wonder how—and when—this heartfelt story will end.

Also in this month’s romance column, a time travel romance and a tender small-town love story will delight readers.

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