Ranking Emily Henry’s romance novels I love Emily Henry’s work, and her new novels are always on my must-read list. But her books can be tinged with deep sadness, and I’m not always up for that. Happily, her latest is a funny slow burn with lots of sizzle and a supremely sunny narrator. It’s my […]
In lieu of my usual romance book review (coming back next week), I’m taking a small detour to talk about the world of the pre-published author and what you, the amazing, creative book-loving community, can do to help us get our books out into the world. The author platform My first romcom manuscript is in […]
Is She Really Going Out with Him by Sophie Cousens + more Without any intention on my part, I’ve stumbled into a new romance subgenre: the midlife, post-breakup (or divorce) romance. I loved Mhairi McFarlane’s If I Never Met You but assumed the situation was a one-off. Then I read Personal Best by Jonesy Elise, […]
A meditation on Love, Theoretically, among other books. My first Ali Hazelwood book was The Love Hypothesis. I was an instant fan and immediately read everything of hers I could get my hands on. Then she published Bride, which didn’t look like my cup of tea, and I moved on to other authors, and now […]
Grooving on historical romcoms from Amanda Quick I love an author binge. When I read a book by a new author I like, I want to find and read their complete backlist. This is partly because I’m greedy for more of the good stuff I got from this author, but also because I’m afraid I’ll […]
I’ve been remiss in writing reviews for the last few weeks because I’ve been traveling. Despite my belief that I could play tourist all day and still write a whole book while I traveled, it turns out there are only 24 hours in my un-magical world, and I have to spend a few of them […]
These closed-door romance novels pack enough emotional heft to satisfy even a spice fan like me. Some romance readers are unrepentant smut lovers, the spicier the better, while others prefer to leave the sex to their imagination. I’m a spice fan. I want to go all the way into the bedroom in a romance novel. […]
A couple of years ago, I saw Sonali Dev present at a writer’s conference. She was both lovely and impressive, and I picked up the first of her Jane Austen-inspired novels, Pride and Prejudice and Other Flavors. But when I first started reading, the book was an immediate DNF for me—too much backstory at the […]
Happy Pride! When you come down off the high of the parades and the parties, I hope you’ll pick up one of these fabulous rom-coms and support queer writers. And if you’re not into Pride, I get it, but you should still check out these books. Romance has a broad spectrum of subgenres that allow […]
The one thing that makes every romance novel delightful—at least in my eyes—is the HEA: the happily ever after. A good romance lets you feel with the characters, through their hopes and despairs, and that journey is delicious. Even a so-so romance can be a fun journey. But when I read a book that not […]