I guess I just want more low-key reactions to… all of everything. Ending on a downer, WEATHER GIRL handled depression, both the heroine’s and her mother’s, so clunkily that it really took me out of the story. I also felt like the parental issues were handled more deftly, but that’s also the difference between conflicts between essentially well-meaning characters and having a parent who’s a narcissistic sociopath. I followed it with THE EX TALK, which had the exact same issue, but with the tone being slightly toned down overall it worked better. THE WORST GUY was a lot of fun, until the resolution was too much of a Grand Gesture to be enjoyable in what had until then been a story with somewhat real people, repeated frantic hatesex aside.

I’ve mostly been reading non-romance so far this year (highly recommend PIRANESI liked TROUBLE THE SAINTS OUR SPOONS CAME FROM WOOLWORTHS made me want to read everything by Barbara Comyns MIGRATIONS had some issues in the way it approached mass extinctions but the actual story made me bawl my eyes out) but I did get to some romances this last week: I am very hungry to get to the sequel, though! Such beautiful, vivid writing – and such a gorgeous book, too (I have the lovely hardcover with the indigo page edges). I’m still struggling with finding a book I like and feel like highlighting here…Ĭatherine: I’ve just embarked on a reread of The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker because my copy of The Hidden Palace has just arrived and I wanted to make sure I remembered everything going in to the sequel. so far it reads like some kind of smutty fanfic fever dream? The plot has some VERY obvious plausibility issues but it’s so clearly all just scaffolding for various Sex Scenarios that I don’t think I even care? I can’t tell if I love this book or hate it.Ĭlaudia: Honestly, that sounds awesome, LOL. I’ve been reading a lot of high-falutin’ stuff and this is like eating one of those little mints after a heavy meal.ĮllenM: So I’ve been reading an indie erotic fantasy romance called Velvet by Lisette Marshall where a spunky, smart princess hooks up with a her father’s remote, sexy spymaster.

I also just started Silk & Steel: A Queer Speculative Adventure Anthology and I’m enjoying the short stories so far.Ĭarrie: I am reading a ridiculous romance by Josie Watts called Fish Out of Water, ( A ) it is not great and yet I’m enjoying every minute of it. AI’ve been reading David Chang’s cookbook Cooking at Home ( A | BN | K ) and now I have an enormous crush on him.

Bold by Garrett Leigh