I typed a book this month! I finalized (some) holiday knitting! I hosted my first Christmas in my house! AAAAND I managed to read some more stuff, including finishing off my 25 in 2025 list!!
Reviews linked:
THE FUTURE ★★★ From my translation box a couple years ago! Very magic realism, very lit spec. Canadian, alt history/future.
DEAL WITH THE DEVIL ★★★ By "elements of romance," Goodreads meant Mostly Steamy Romance (And Sex) lol. ORPHAN BLACK meets AVENGERS, plus librarians. Just the right combo of badass and questionable science and goofy for me.
THE SOLACE OF OPEN SPACES ★★★½ Lovely little bit of nature writing about Wyoming. Hugely evocative.
THE WORKS OF VERMIN ★★★★★ This confirms it: I will follow Hiron Ennes anywhere, and I'll have a great time doing so. Leaned harder on fantasy than horror, giving AMBERGRIS and PALADIN'S GRACE and METAL FROM HEAVEN, plus bugs.
HOUSE OF LEAVES ★★★★ After eight (8) years of meaning to, I have finally faced the labyrinth and emerged victorious! Weird, fucked up, funny in places, very twisty and enriching. My speed of puzzle book. Recommend, but only if you're ready to obsess--you get as much out of this as you're willing to put in.
ROSE/HOUSE ★★★½ (wow i managed not to put the two houses in the right order in my pic, FML) Used this to come back up from HOUSE OF LEAVES, and it was the perfect pick. Short, sweet, didn't quite stick the landing for me. Will be checking out Martine's other work, though.
THE EMPEROR'S SOUL ★★★ Read under duress (bargains were made). I wasn't impressed by the first page and the prose didn't improve, but I Persevered. A Deeply Average Book. Not my cup of tea.
Under the Cut: A Note About ~*★Stars★*~
Historically, I have been Very Bad™ about assigning things Star Ratings, because it's so Vibes Heavy for me and therefore Contingent Upon my Whims. (Example: I don't like that stars are Odd, because that makes three the midpoint and things are rarely so truly mid for me)(I have hacked my way around this with a ½, which is really only applicable for me at ★★★ and up). Here is, generally, how I conceptualize stars:
★ - This was Bad. I would actively recommend that you do NOT read this one, no redeeming qualities whatsoever, not worth the slog. Save Yourself, It's Too Late For Me. Book goes in the garbage (donate bin).
★★ - This was Not Good. I would not recommend it, but it wasn't a total waste or wash--something in here held my interest/kept my attention/sparked some joy. I will not be rereading this ever. Save Yourself (Or Join Me In Suffering, That Seems Like A Cool Bonding Activity).
★★★ - This was Good/Fine/Okay/Meh. I don't care about this enough to recommend it one way or another. Perfectly serviceable book, held my interest, I probably enjoyed myself (or at least didn't actively loathe the reading). I don't have especially strong feelings. You probably don't need to save yourself from this one--if it sounds like your jam, give it a shot! Just didn't resonate with me particularly powerfully. I probably won't reread this unless I'm after something in particular.
★★★½ - I liked this! I'll probably recommend it if I know it matches someone's vibes or specific requests, but I didn't commit to a star rating on Goodreads. More likely to reread, but not guaranteed.
★★★★ - I really enjoyed this!! I would recommend it (sometimes with caveats about content warnings or such--I tend to like weird fucked up funny shit, and I don't have many hard readerly NO's). Not a perfect book for me by any means, but Very Good. This is something I would reread! Join me!!
★★★★★ - I LOVED THE SHIT OUT OF THIS, IT REWIRED MY BRAIN, WILL RECOMMEND TO ANYONE AND EVERYONE AT THE SLIGHTEST PROVOCATION (content warning caveats still apply--see 4-star disclaimer). Excellent book, I'll reread it regularly, I'll buy copies for all my friends, I'll try to convince all of Booklr to read it, PLEASE join me!!
December Book Reviews: Daughter of Tides by Kit Rocha
I requested this ARC because I've enjoyed author team Kit Rocha's books before, and I'm excited to see a new poly romance being published. In Daughter of the Tides, the god of love Aleksi is sent to negotiate at the last minute with the hostile island kingdom of Akeisa, along with the water nymph Naia and ship god Einar. Will their growing connection survive the unstable—and dangerous—situation in Gwynira's court?
Daughter of the Tides was billed like it was a standalone, and I was surprised to find it's apparently part of a series. The book is not only relying on previously established setting and characters, it's continuing plot points from other books, and it ends with that running plotline unresolved. The style and focus of the book sits solidly in the romance genre, with a relatively light political intrigue plot as garnish. Naia and Einar have an existing push-and-pull flirtation they haven't resolved. Aleksi, the prettiest man alive (scientifically) and an old god, plunges into this dynamic determined to matchmake, but finds himself attracted to the pair. Kit Rocha solidly writes the romance between Einar and Naia, but they really shine when Aleksi begins to become involved as well, and I think the poly romance was done excellently overall. However, the action plot is effectively an elaborate setting to display this romance to best advantage—there are battles, formal balls, duels, plotting courtiers and so on, but they exist mainly to either complicate or spur on the characters' romantic relationship.
An engaging fantasy romance with an emphasis on the romance. Recommended for fans of AK Mulford or Danielle L. Jensen's The Bridge Kingdom.
This month’s post is sponsored by Dougie K Powell in honor of the release of My Best Rival, a new trans YA romance published by Spectrum Books! Click the graphic for more information and buy links!
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The Santa Pageant by Lillian Barry (1st)
For fans of Rachel Bowdler and Ashley Herring Blake, a second-chance holiday romance between a sunshiney lesbian and a chilly non-binary bisexual.
Ten…
This is list number 2 and it will be focusing on Urban Fantasy and Contemporary romance with fantasy elements. For more traditional Fantasy recs, check list 1!
Maybe it will help someone somewhere. XD
***Some of the books listed here are not Romance novels officially but all have romance and have HFN or HEA endings
Urban Fantasy Romance (Paranormal Romance)
Hidden Legacy Series by Ilona Andrews
2 Trilogies
Nevada Baylor is a Truthseeker; she is able to tell when people lie. When her family's detective agency is tasked with apprehending a powerful fire wielding psychopath, it puts them on the path of collision with the powerful magical elite who rules Houston.
Guildcodex Series by Annette Marie
4 Series. Spellbound, Demonized, Unveiled and Wraped.
When feisty redhead Tori landed a job at a sketchy pub, she had no idea she'd just joined a magic guild. And the three guys she drenched with a margarita during her first shift? Yeah, they were mages. She's about to get a crash course in the world of magic and mythics.
Mercernary Librarians Trilogy by Kit Rocha
Meet the Mercenary Librarians: a trio of information brokers who join forces with a squad of elite super-soldiers to use their knowledge to help the hopeless in a dystopian post-apocalyptic United States ruled by a corporate autocracy.
Psy-Changeling Series by Nalini Singh
A world shared by Changeling, a race of animal shifters , the Psy, a race of powerful psychic who live without emotions and Humans. Tension between the 3 races are rising.
The Firebrand Series by Helen Harper
Emma, an aspiring detective, is placed with the Supernatural Squad in London. Soon she is brutally murdered by an unknown assailant, wakes up twelve hours later in the morgue – and is very much alive.
Contemporary Romance with Fantasy Elements
The Dead Romantic by Ashley Poston
Florence Day is the ghostwriter for one of the most prolific romance authors in the industry, and she has a problem... she no longer believes in love. Then her new editor shows up at her front door as a ghost. Romance is most certainly dead... but so is her new editor, and his unfinished business will have her second-guessing everything she’s ever known about love stories.
The Very Secret Society of Irregular Witches by Sangu Mandanna
A warm and uplifting novel about an isolated witch whose opportunity to embrace a quirky new family--and a new love--changes the course of her life.
A Stitch in Time by Kelley Armstrong
Thorne Manor has always been haunted...and it has always haunted Bronwyn Dale. As a young girl, Bronwyn could pass through a time slip in her great-aunt’s house, where she visited William Thorne, a boy her own age, born two centuries earlier.
Someone on Bluesky was like, hey maybe don't rec romance novels and sexy books to people who are actively saying they don't like romance, and especially don't tag in romance authors in those discussions because it turns out that authors do NOT like having their works shat upon by people who don't enjoy them, huh, who could have foreseen.
So when IS a good time to rec romance novels and sexy books?
RIGHT NOW!
I love romance novels and sexy books and here are some of my faves:
IF YOU LIKE: young protagonists, princess/bodyguard, princess/bad boy, and excellent SF nonsense
TRY: Polaris Rising by Jessie Mihalik. It's the first in her Consortium trilogy, and all the books are a delight. The first is princess/bad boy, the other two are more princess/bodyguard, and they are ALL great SF, great adventure, and great romance!
IF YOU LIKE: middle-age protagonists complaining about their back pain, comedy, a religious order whose whole goal is to make things better for as many people as possible, and just a whiff of horror
TRY: Paladin's Grace by T Kingfisher. It's the first in her Paladin Romance series and they are all hilarious and sweet, with only a few severed heads. Hardly any. And only the one warrenmind. (Like a hive mind, but hares.) Bishop Beartongue is the very best.
IF YOU LIKE: leather, whisky, BDSM, overthrowing the patriarchy, and just, so many orgies
TRY: Beyond Shame by Kit Rocha. It's the first in their Broken Circle series, and it is an EXTENDED series. They were one of my gateway drugs into romance and I do love the extended metaplot.
IF YOU LIKE: fancy British society, clever unionizing efforts, and women who know how to play to their strengths
TRY: The Duchess War, by Courtney Milan. It's the first full novel in the Brothers Sinister series (there's a prequel novella called The Governess Affair) and it's fantastic. The second book in the series, The Heiress Effect, had one of the tightest plots I've ever read. Everything tied up with a bow at the end, in a way that I didn't see coming but made perfect sense as I read it. Beautiful.
IF YOU LIKE: The Mummy, Indiana Jones, pulp adventure, hidden magic, good guys who can do no wrong, bad guys who can do no good, strong women who are stronger than they think
TRY: Warrior, by Zoe Archer. It's the first book in the Blades of the Rose series and every book is cover-to-cover pulpy adventure goodness. The bad guys are cartoonishly evil. The good guys are pure of heart. The second book, Scoundrel, starts with a fight/chase themed around an Olympic pentathalon. It's SO good.
IF YOU LIKE: New York City, non-lethal violence, comedy, shifters who are decent but sometimes real assholes
TRY: Hot and Badgered, by Shelly Laurenston. It's the first in the Honey Badger Chronicles, but the series comes after the Pride Series. (I started with these books, it's fine.) One of my favorite depictions of shifters, in no small part because of the thought she put into how shifters behave. Like how obsessed the male lion shifters are with their hair, or how sleepy the panda shifter is. I laughed a LOT when reading these books, they're SO funny. Violent, too, but shifters heal quick.
IF YOU LIKE: blood magic, becoming a monster to overthrow the patriarchy, polyamory, disaster pansexuals, ancient Greek aesthetics
TRY: In the Ravenous Dark, by A.M. Strickland. We start with our narrator waking up, hung over, clutching a mostly-empty wine skin, with her on-again off-again girlfriend, on the roof of a pagoda-like thing above a fountain, in the middle of town. She makes choices based on wine and lust and anger and I love her.
IF YOU LIKE: subby men and Domme women, found family, overthrowing the patriarchy, long journeys, BDSM, ~angst~ and ~longing~ and ~guilt~
TRY: His Secret illuminations, by Scarlett Gale. It's the first in a duology and you may have heard of it as the fantasy pegging book. I regret to inform you that there is no pegging and not even any kink in the first book. I rejoice to inform you that there is a LOT of kink in the second one, His Sacred Incantations. (And yes, pegging.) He was raised in a monastery and taught that too much joy or pleasure will make him lose his magic. She's an Amazonian warrior woman who needs some help tracking down a missing book. They have an adventure! And, just, so much angst.
IF YOU LIKE: shifters, fighting the would-be conquerors, second chances, subby men and bossy women, grumpy/sunshine
TRY: The Leopard King, by Ann Aguirre. It's the first in her Ars Numina series. Book 2, The Demon Prince, is more bossy lady/subby man, along with some hurt/comfort. Book 4, the Shadow Warrior, is a lot more BDSM. Book 5, The War Priest, is angsty grumpy/sunshine and Grumpy does NOT want to like Sunshine as much as he does. They're all good fun.
IF YOU LIKE: thriller/horror with a "hang on what is HAPPENING here" vibe, second chances, fighting for freedom
TRY: The AI Who Loved Me, by Alyssa Cole. This book does a great job painting a scene that is just a little bit off, then slowly and subtly going more and more *wrong*. Not too scary, even for a horror weenie like me.
QUICK NOTE: I realized as I was making this that there are not enough Black authors on here. If anyone has any recs for science fiction / fantasy romance novels by Black authors, lay 'em on me!
The (also gay) mad scientists behind this account have combined the above truths into one post. Feel the mitest bit queer? Got a gay hankering for LGBTQIA+ books?
Check it out 😎
The Thousand Eyes by A. K. Larkwood
Two years after defying the wizard Belthandros Sethennai and escaping into the great unknown, Csorwe and Shuthmili have made a new life for themselves, hunting for secrets among the ruins of an ancient snake empire. Along for the ride is Tal Charossa, determined to leave the humiliation and heartbreak of his hometown far behind him, even if it means enduring the company of his old rival and her insufferable girlfriend. All three of them would be quite happy never to see Sethennai again. But when a routine expedition goes off the rails and a terrifying imperial relic awakens, they find that a common enemy may be all it takes to bring them back into his orbit.
The Atlas Six by Olivie Blake
The Alexandrian Society, caretakers of lost knowledge from the greatest civilizations of antiquity, are the foremost secret society of magical academicians in the world. Those who earn a place among the Alexandrians will secure a life of wealth, power, and prestige beyond their wildest dreams, and each decade, only the six most uniquely talented magicians are selected to be considered for initiation. When the candidates are recruited by the mysterious Atlas Blakely, they are told they will have one year to qualify for initiation, during which time they will be permitted preliminary access to the Society’s archives and judged based on their contributions to various subjects of impossibility: time and space, luck and thought, life and death. Five, they are told, will be initiated. One will be eliminated. The six potential initiates will fight to survive the next year of their lives, and if they can prove themselves to be the best among their rivals, most of them will. Most of them.
Last Exit by Max Gladstone
Ten years ago, Zelda led a band of merry adventurers whose knacks let them travel to alternate realities and battle the black rot that threatened to unmake each world. Zelda was the warrior; Ish could locate people anywhere; Ramon always knew what path to take; Sarah could turn catastrophe aside. Keeping them all connected: Sal, Zelda’s lover and the group’s heart. Until their final, failed mission, when Sal was lost. When they all fell apart. Ten years on, Ish, Ramon, and Sarah are happy and successful. Zelda is alone, always traveling, destroying rot throughout the US. When it boils through the crack in the Liberty Bell, the rot gives Zelda proof that Sal is alive, trapped somewhere in the alts. Zelda’s getting the band back together.
The Discord of Gods by Jenn Lyons
Relos Var’s final plans to enslave the universe are on the cusp of fruition. He believes there’s only one being in existence that might be able to stop him: the demon Xaltorath. As these two masterminds circle each other, neither is paying attention to the third player on the board, Kihrin. Unfortunately, keeping himself classified in the ‘pawn’ category means Kihrin must pretend to be everything the prophecies threatened he’d become: the destroyer of all, the sun eater, a mindless, remorseless plague upon the land. It also means finding an excuse to not destroy the people he loves (or any of the remaining Immortals) without arousing suspicion.
The Origin of Storms by Elizabeth Bear
Hugo Award-winning author Elizabeth Bear returns to conclude her acclaimed epic fantasy trilogy of the Lotus Kingdoms, which began with The Stone in the Skull and The Red-Stained Wings, bringing it all to a surprising, satisfying climax in The Origin of Storms. The Lotus Kingdoms are at war, with four claimants to the sorcerous throne of the Alchemical Emperor, fielding three armies between them. Alliances are made, and broken, many times over—but in the end, only one can sit on the throne. And that one must have not only the power, but the rightful claim.
The Grief of Stones by Katherine Addison
In The Grief of Stones, Katherine Addison returns to the world of The Goblin Emperor with a direct sequel to The Witness For The Dead…
Celehar’s life as the Witness for the Dead of Amalo grows less isolated as his circle of friends grows larger. He has been given an apprentice to teach, and he has stumbled over a scandal of the city—the foundling girls. Orphans with no family to claim them and no funds to buy an apprenticeship. Foundling boys go to the Prelacies; foundling girls are sold into service, or worse.
At once touching and shattering, Celehar’s witnessing for one of these girls will lead him into the depths of his own losses.
The love of his friends will lead him out again.
A Strange and Stubborn Endurance by Foz Meadows
Velasin vin Aaro never planned to marry at all, let alone a girl from neighboring Tithena. When an ugly confrontation reveals his preference for men, Vel fears he’s ruined the diplomatic union before it can even begin. But while his family is ready to disown him, the Tithenai envoy has a different solution: for Vel to marry his former intended’s brother instead.
Caethari Aeduria always knew he might end up in a political marriage, but his sudden betrothal to a man from Ralia, where such relationships are forbidden, comes as a shock. With an unknown faction willing to kill to end their new alliance, Vel and Cae have no choice but to trust each other. Survival is one thing, but love—as both will learn—is quite another.
The Book Eaters by Sunyi Dean
Out on the Yorkshire Moors lives a secret line of people for whom books are food, and who retain all of a book’s content after eating it. To them, spy novels are a peppery snack; romance novels are sweet and delicious. Eating a map can help them remember destinations, and children, when they misbehave, are forced to eat dry, musty pages from dictionaries. Devon is part of The Family, an old and reclusive clan of book eaters. Her brothers grow up feasting on stories of valor and adventure, and Devon—like all other book eater women—is raised on a carefully curated diet of fairytales and cautionary stories. But real life doesn’t always come with happy endings, as Devon learns when her son is born with a rare and darker kind of hunger—not for books, but for human minds.
Dance with the Devil by Kit Rocha
Tobias Richter, the fearsome VP of Security of TechCorp is dead. The puppetmaster is gone, and the organization is scrambling to maintain control by ruthlessly limiting access to resources to Atlanta, hoping to quell rebellion. Our band of mercenary librarians have decided that the time for revolution has come. Maya uses her wealth of secrets to weaken the TechCorps from within. Dani strikes from the shadows, picking off the chain of command one ambush at a time. And Nina is organizing their community—not just to survive, but to fight back. When Maya needs to make contact with a sympathetic insider, Dani and Rafe are the only ones with the skill-set and experience to infiltrate the highest levels of the TechCorps. They’ll go deep undercover in the decadent, luxury-soaked penthouses on the Hill. Bringing Dani face-to-face with the man who turned her into a killer. And forcing Rafe to decide how far he’ll go to protect both of his families—the one he was born to, and the one he made for himself. Victory will break the back of Power. Failure will destroy Atlanta.
The Genesis of Misery by Neon Yang
An immersive, electrifying space-fantasy, Neon Yang's debut novel The Genesis of Misery is full of high-tech space battles and political machinations, starring a queer and diverse array of pilots, princesses, and prophetic heirs.
It’s an old, familiar story: a young person hears the voice of an angel saying they have been chosen as a warrior to lead their people to victory in a holy war.
But Misery Nomaki (she/they) knows they are a fraud.
Raised on a remote moon colony, they don’t believe in any kind of god. Their angel is a delusion, brought on by hereditary space exposure. Yet their survival banks on mastering the holy mech they are supposedly destined for, and convincing the Emperor of the Faithful that they are the real deal.
The deeper they get into their charade, however, the more they start to doubt their convictions. What if this, all of it, is real?
A reimagining of Joan of Arc’s story given a space opera, giant robot twist, the Nullvoid Chronicles is a story about the nature of truth, the power of belief, and the interplay of both in the stories we tell ourselves.
The Genesis of Misery is on sale 9/27/22
Ocean’s Echo by Everina Maxwell
When Tennal—a rich socialite, inveterate flirt, and walking disaster—is caught using his telepathic powers for illegal activities, the military decides to bind his mind to someone whose coercive powers are strong enough to control him. Enter Lieutenant Surit, the child of a disgraced general. Out of a desperate need to restore a pension to his other parent, Lieutenant Surit agrees to be bound to Tennal and keep him conscripted in the army, a task that seems impossible even for someone with Surit’s ability to control minds. Tennal just wants to escape, but Surit isn’t all that he seems. And their bond may just be the key to their freedom.
Ocean’s Echo is on sale 11/1/22
Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree
The much-beloved BookTok sensation Legends & Lattes is Travis Baldree's novel of high fantasy and low stakes.
*The new paperback edition will include a very special, never-before-seen bonus story, 'Pages to Fill.'*
After a lifetime of bounties and bloodshed, Viv is hanging up her sword for the last time.
The battle-weary orc aims to start fresh, opening the first ever coffee shop in the city of Thune. But old and new rivals stand in the way of success — not to mention the fact that no one has the faintest idea what coffee actually is.
If Viv wants to put the blade behind her and make her plans a reality, she won't be able to go it alone.
But the true rewards of the uncharted path are the travelers you meet along the way. And whether drawn together by ancient magic, flaky pastry, or a freshly brewed cup, they may become partners, family, and something deeper than she ever could have dreamed.
