These reviews, which were promoted in CBR social media, on our homepage, and in Pajiba Love, appear below by review publication date, not by date featured.
Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros
I am a sucker for a good fantasy book in a school setting. I am sure a lot of that is due to Harry Potter, but I think an academic setting provides a good skeleton for a story. They almost always start shortly before a school year, and run all the way until a final exam. I am sure Fourth Wing will invite many comparisons to Harry Potter and the Hunger Games, but it reminded me quite a bit more of The Poppy War by […]
A Love Song for Ricki Wilde by Tia Williams
Tia Williams has just made me like a fated lovers romance. Not like. Love. Lovers who are destined for each other is one of my least favorite tropes, but WIlliams makes this work for me. She throws in the right mix of magic and logic, and gives us achingly human characters. Now is the perfect time to read this. A lot of the action takes place in February 2024. Williams grounds her magic in the leap year, almost making me believe in the magic of […]
The Visitor (The One #5) by Dodai Stewart
“The Visitor” is a true story from journalist Dodai Stewart. On NYE, I stumbled upon it looking for something quick to hit my book goal. Once I began, I realized I’d rather savor it. I finished the audiobook while walking my pup on New Year’s Day. The story is a poignant musing on the idea of love. She explains how she grew up in New York. She loves how cinematic living in the city can be. Everything seems full of promise and glamor, especially when […]
Mile High by Liz Tomforde
The Right Move by Liz Tomforde
Caught Up by Liz Tomforde
As a queer romance reader, I’ve been really frustrated with myself for the past few years. For some reason, I just don’t enjoy queer romance novels as much as I do ‘straight’ ones. Obviously, there are exceptions, but often, I feel like a lot of these romances are written in unintentionally heteronormative registers, which dulls the chemistry and the tension that makes a book sing. A significant exception to this, I have found, is the ‘Sports Romance’ genre [given my familiarity with Archive Of Our […]
Moonstruck Madness by Laurie McBain
Chance The Winds of Fortune by Laurie McBain
Dark Before the Rising Sun by Laurie McBain
Moonstruck Madness – 4.5 stars (Aug 2022) Sabrina is a lady by day, but by night she rides as a highwayman, trying to keep her family afloat. When she clashes with the Duke of Camareigh, her schemes begin to unravel. There is not as much swashbuckling adventure as you usually get in these old bodice rippers, but that was more than made up for by the genuinely strong-willed heroine and her rather sensible reasons for clashing with the hero. Lucien is rather arrogant though, and […]
Warrior Girl Unearthed by Angeline Boulley
Warrior Girl Unearthed is Angeline Boulley’s follow-up to her award-winning debut, Firekeeper’s Daughter, which I loved; I was really excited to return to this world. We go back to the Ojibwe community of Sugar Island and meet our protagonist Perry, 16-year-old niece of Daunis, the primary character in FD. Set ten years after the first novel, Perry’s plans for a relaxing summer are disrupted when she wrecks her car and is forced into a summer internship to repay her Aunt Daunis for covering the cost […]
