He leaned against a round window frame and pressed his forehead to the stained glass. Through a haze of purple, he could see a little grove of trees trembling in the wind. He focused on the branches, on the sensation of glass cooling his skin, on the woodgrain of the windowsill plucking at his fingertips like the drum of a music box.
How I love when historical romance historicals, Mother Bloor just got a shout out in conjunction with Nebraska.
(Loup City women chicken workers strike, for those not in the know or didn't grow up in NE)
You Should Be So Lucky by Cat Sebastian
Releases tomorrow!
Buy it alone for the random NE communist connection mention
Dionysus in Wisconsin has also been shortlisted for the New England Romance Writers Readers' Choice Award in the paranormal/fantasy/scifi/time travel category! I didn't get a chance to make a graphic specifically for this one, but I'm excited--being shortlisted means it went up against more traditional M/F romances and won!
One of my offline friends was telling me, as I was stuffing watermelon into my mouth, that the reason most people detest #Romance books is, yes, because of the smut, but it leads people to confront some human desires they really don't want to think about. She then continued, when reading a romance book, you have to engage in human connections and relationships instead of a fantasy world or a possible dystopian future. Concepts. I was gonna remind her that romances are starting to involve objects and tech now but I let her continue...
And continuing, People hate having to confront their human desires so they'd rather pretend romance is for dumb people and pretend to engage in higher level concepts instead of their own needs or other peoples needs. I dunno if she nailed it but I haven't stopped thinking about it since. #RomanceLandia#Romance@romancelandia
#WhatchaReading ? I gave up on the audio of Take a Bow, Noah Mitchell, despite an excellent narrator with a delightful Australian accent. How can a "Shop Around the Corner" trope about online friends falling in love through musical theater be so desperately dull? Also all the bullying and loneliness was really painful to listen to.
I finally finished a book, thank Maude! After almost DNF'ing Wildfire because it seemed too similar to Icebreaker, I gave it another shot and wound up liking it considerably more than the first book. The characters are sweet and relatable, and the summer camp setting is cozy. Even the inevitable references to the romance genre were less annoying here, because the heroine actually learned something from her reading. 😂
Friends, #WhatchaReading ? I finished The Other Side of Disappearing and think it'll be one of my top romances of the year. I loved the plotting, the richness of the themes and the really satisfying way things came together in the end.
Also read The Brunellesci Baby because what's a vacation without a Harlequin Presents? It's a pretty good one, tropey but with some individuality.
Happy #InternationalDayOfTransgenderVisibility! Today I'm reading "Jesse's Girl" by Reese Morrison, a romance novella detailing trans representation and identity.
I'm aiming to be more intentional about reading diversely, so this will be the first of many books featuring trans characters and/or written by trans authors.
If you have any recs, please let me know. Thank you!
Greetings!. The story is a #friendstolovers story about two forty-years old best friends who've known each other since college and who may or may not finally admit that they are in love. Throw in a new guy, an ex-gf, #mentalhealth, and a mutt named Buster and mix it together for a good time! It starts here: https://www.instagram.com/p/C5EjbpySDf9/.
I meant to post about this yesterday, but then one of the kids gave me a norovirus, so I did that instead. Dionysus in Wisconsin has been shortlisted for a Lammy in gay romance. I'm very excited to be up there with so many greats!
My first #TransRightsReadathon story was from my TBR, I'll Be Home for Christmas by Mason Deaver. It's a short follow-up to the YA romance I Wish You All the Best, in which Ben tries to surprise their boyfriend Nathan for Christmas but winds up snowed in at the airport. An affecting holiday rom-com.
1/2 We're one month out from our MEGA conference!
There's still time to register through April 5. Make sure to book your hotel ASAP as the discount is ending! #romance#romancelandia#conferences
Instead of letting me go, she said, “You shouldn’t. That’s a graveyard and she’s dead.”
Everyone said that, but it was a mistake. I had seen Mikawa, and she was definitely alive. Why wouldn’t Ume let me go? All I wanted to do was be with my girlfriend. Did this damn bitch think I would go with her when I had Mika?
“Fuck you,” I said and tried to get away. “She’s waiting. Mika is waiting.”
#WhatchaReading ? I finished A Love Song for Ricki Wilde by Tia Williams, which reminded me a bit of One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston -- both use a fantastic scenario to engage with some lesser known history.
This was often sweet and funny, and the tributes to 1920s Harlem and Black musicians are lovely, but the tone mixture of goofy romcom and high stakes fated love didn't gel for me.
I #read Finding A Purple Unicorn by Sean Michael (#book 3/Starting Over). This MM single dads #romance is by far my favorite of 2024 so far. It was fun & #reading it went by fast. TW for custody argument, ex drama, & a neglectful parent (not a main character). Also some bdsm/spanking references. No need to read the first 2 #books. 🏳️🌈🏳️🌈 #romancelandia@romancebooks https://amzn.to/3OUXqdU