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This podcast transcript was handcrafted with meticulous skill by Garlic Knitter. Many thanks.
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The Lady He Lost by Faye Delacour is $1.99! This is book one in the Lucky Ladies of London series and I mentioned it on a previous edition of Get Rec’d. Book three in the series is out this month.
Her only interest is in making her own way in the world. Luckily, he can help.
Lieutenant Eli Williams was supposed to be dead. In the two years since his shipwreck, his friends and family mourned him, his brother spent his savings, and his fiancée married someone else. So, when he turns up in the middle of the London social season, he quickly becomes the talk of the town. All Eli wants is to set his life back in order and reconnect with Jane Bishop, a friend who has always meant so much more to him, before returning to sea.
Jane refuses to waste any more of her life pining over Eli, who chose her cousin instead of her. She needs to focus on gaining her financial independence by establishing a ladies’ gambling club. Never mind that Eli keeps trying to atone for his past mistake by bringing in new members. He’s obviously keeping secrets about his disappearance, which means that she can’t trust him with her heart even if she did kiss him in a moment of weakness. Or three.
As Eli works to regain her trust, Jane’s defensive walls begin to crumble. But when Eli faces a court of inquiry on suspicion of desertion, Jane must decide if she can let go of the past to build a future with Eli, or risk losing him for good.
This charming and sexy friends to enemies to lovers historical romance romp is the perfect read for fans of Evie Dunmore and India Holton.
Prince of Air and Darkness by M.A. Grant is $1.99! This is a gay fantasy romance with a royal fae hero and a magical human. The next book in the series is also on sale. It seems like this is on the line of new adult and the magical school being more like a college, with the characters in their early twenties.
Phineas Smith has been cursed with a power no one could control.
Roark Lyne is his worst enemy and his only hope.
The only human student at Mather’s School of Magick, Phineas Smith has a target on his back. Born with the rare ability to tap into unlimited magick, he finds both Faerie Courts want his allegiance—and will do anything to get it.
They don’t realize he can’t levitate a feather, much less defend the Faerie Realm as it slips into civil war.
Unseelie Prince Roark Lyne, Phineas’s roommate—and self-proclaimed arch nemesis—is beautiful and brave and a pain in the ass. Phineas can’t begin to sort through their six years of sexual tension masquerading as mutual dislike. But Roark is also the only one able to help Finn tame his magick.
Trusting Roark’s mysterious motives may be foolish; not accepting his temporary protection would be deadly.
Caught in the middle of the impending war, Phineas and Roark forge a dangerous alliance. And as the walls between them crumble, Phineas realizes that Roark isn’t the monster he’d imagined. But their growing intimacy threatens to expose a secret that could either turn the tide of the war…or destroy them both.
When a Duchess Says I Do by Grace Burrowes is $1.99! This is book two in the Rogues to Riches series. I thought we reviewed this one, but my memory has failed me. The cover model reminds me of Morena Baccarin.
An enchanting Regency romance with a fairy-tale twist from an always witty and delightful New York Times bestselling author who Tessa Dare calls “a romance treasure.”
Duncan Wentworth tried his hand at rescuing a damsel in distress once long ago, and he’s vowed he’ll never make that mistake again. Nonetheless, when he comes across Matilda Wakefield in the poacher-infested and far-from-enchanted woods of his estate, decency compels him to offer aid to a lady fallen on hard times. Matilda is whip-smart, she can read Duncan’s horrible penmanship, and when she wears his reading glasses, all Duncan can think about is naughty Latin poetry.
Matilda cannot entrust her secrets to Duncan without embroiling him in the problems that sent her fleeing from London, but neither can she ignore a man who’s honorable, a brilliant chess player, and maddeningly kissable. She needs to stay one step ahead of the enemies pursuing her, though she longs to fall into Duncan’s arms. Duncan swears he has traded in his shining armor for a country gentleman’s muddy boots, but to win the fair maid, he’ll have to ride into battle one more time.
The Copper Valley Fireballs Complete Series by Pippa Grant is $4.99 at Amazon! This set contains four sports romance, plus a holiday novella.
Meet the Copper Valley Fireballs, baseball’s lovable losers whose hot heroes are determined to turn this team around and resisting finding love along the way! This box set includes four full-length romantic comedies and a bonus novella.
About the
Jock Blocked is a home run of a feel-good romantic comedy featuring the world’s most superstitious sports fan, baseball’s oldest virgin hero, a rogue meatball, an adorable puppy with a cussing problem, and a happily ever after more satisfying than a game-winning grand slam.
Real Fake Love is a line drive straight to the heart featuring a grumpy athlete, a jilted bride, a fake relationship, and the world’s laziest cat. It stands alone and comes complete with sibling rivalry, the world’s most awkward shower scene, and a sweetly satisfying happily ever after.
The Grumpy Player Next Door is a fun-filled enemies-to-lovers romcom featuring a ray of sunshine on a mission, an athlete who’s only grouchy around her, and an epic prank gone wrong. It stands alone and comes complete with small-town shenanigans, a goat who’s not nearly as wise as his name suggests, and proof that sometimes, love is the best kind of vengeance.
Irresistible Trouble is a hilarious grand slam of a romcom about a baseball player whose ego is catching up to him, a pop star who’s a bit of a hot mess when the cameras aren’t looking (and sometimes when they are), and the kind of family and teammates that everyone deserves… in small doses.
Have Yourself a Grumpy Little Christmas is a hit of holiday sweetness featuring a grumpy retired baseball pitcher who hates the holidays, his best friend’s little sister, and a Christmas tree mishap.
smartbitches_feedThis HaBO comes from Marina, who wants to find this historical romance. Trigger warning for the description below:
I think this was a regency era setting.
The protagonist goes with stepmother and her daughter to a house party. She is not well treated by them. They secretly plan to entrap a titled rich guy into marriage. The daughter invited him to go to her room at night. He enters the protagonist’s room by mistake and starts making love to her, but since she was given laudanum she thinks it is a dream. (This was done to her so she would not hear what would go on next door.) When the stepmother goes to her daughter’s room – as planned – to find her daughter and “lover” in flagrante delicto, he’s not there but can hear them talking about their plan and is saved.
I can’t remember the rest and it’s making me crazy. I don’t even remember if I finished it. Can anyone help?
Wowza!
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"LEAPING LILY PADS!! Is...is that what I think it is? Phil, are you seeing this?!"
"...Phil?"
"...Will?"
"...Jill?
"You guys, snap out of it!"
"I'm...I'm scared, Gill."
"It's unnatural, I tell you - UNNATURAL!"
"Quiet, Bill! He's coming!"
"Hey guys! Wassup?
"They call me...TADPOLE."
Thanks to wreckporters Susan M., Abby G., Amber K., Becky L., Jesse D., Madi L., Sara M., and Tammy H. & Melanie D., who sent in separate reports of the same frog. I love it when that happens! My wrecky minions are everywhere - EVERYWHERE! Muah-ha-haaa!
*****
If you know someone who loves frogs, maybe skip the wreck and get them this instead:
Fanatical About Frogs
It's part of a cool animal series with incredible art. In fact I'm also eying Obsessive About Octopuses, just for the cover alone. Hnnng.
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Happy Tuesday!
We’re combining this week and next week given how sparse things are in terms of new releases. And then skipping for the rest of December. If you have any releases you’d like to mention for the month, drop them in the comments!
Otherwise, we’ll be back with new releases in 2026.
Which books are on your TBR pile this month? Let us know!
Author: Alexis Hall
Released: December 9, 2025 by Sourcebooks Casablanca
Genre: Contemporary Romance, LGBTQIA, Romance
Series: Winner Bakes All #3
A charming new LGBTQIA+ romcom from the bestselling author of BOYFRIEND MATERIAL.
Audrey Lane is perfectly fine. Really. So what if she left her high-powered job as a Very Important Journalist—and her even higher-powered long-term girlfriend—to live a quiet life as a reporter for the second-biggest newspaper in Shropshire? And so what if she keeps hearing that same higher-powered long-term now-ex-girlfriend in her head night and day, constantly judging just how small Audrey’s allowed her life to become?
She’s fine. She’s happy. She’s perfectly within her groove. Do not-in-their-groove people get weekday drunk and impulsively apply for the UK’s most beloved baking show?
All right, so maybe she’s not completely fine, but being on Bake Expectations is opening her world again in ways she never anticipated. First through fellow contestant Doris, whose personal story of queer love during WW2 captures Audrey’s heart, imagination and journalistic interest like nothing has in ages. Then through Jennifer Hallet, the most foul-tempered (and fouler-mouthed) producer, woman, and menace Audrey has ever met. Jennifer should be off-limits, but her fire lights something unexpected inside of Audrey, making her want to burn back a million times brighter. A million times hotter. A million times more herself than she’s been in a long, long time.
Book three in the Winner Bakes All series!
Author: L.M. Chilton
Released: December 9, 2025 by Gallery/Scout Press
Genre: Mystery/Thriller
A deliciously thrilling new novel about a mysterious threat that puts targets on the backs of a group of roommates, from the author behind the “darkly funny, hilariously twisty, and completely charming” (Jennifer Close, New York Times bestselling author) Swiped.
Kirby Cornell needs a break—particularly from her crumbling apartment in a sleepy town that is only known for serial killer in the ’90s, her dead-end job, her sleazy landlord, her sloppy housemates, and, most of all, the terrible thing they all did.
Luckily, that hasn’t caught up with her just yet. Until a new message in their old group chat pops up from ex-roommate “Everyone in the group chat will die.” The threat isn’t the most disconcerting part of this—it’s the fact that Esme died a year ago.
With his signature “plot twists and wicked” (Margarita Montimore, USA TODAY bestselling author) prose, L.M. Chilton proves that he is a wickedly entertaining author to look out for.
Sarah: The pitch says it’s a laugh-out-loud thriller and I feel like that’s a dare directed at me. WILL I LAUGH? Let’s find out!
Author: Bryn Donovan
Released: December 9, 2025 by Berkley
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Time Travel, Romance
Magic meets science and sunshine meets grumpy when a love spell whisks a Regency-era duke to modern times.
Rose Novak, a free-spirited museum employee who dabbles in magic, has had her share of disappointments. So when she tries a little spell for a romance with an “old-fashioned gentleman,” she doesn’t really expect it to work…especially literally. And yet, the duke from a painting she admired at the museum is now standing in her apartment, demanding to know who abducted him.
A man of science and truth, Henry Leighton-Lyons, the Duke of Beresford, has searched tirelessly for a way to turn back time and be with his late wife again. Instead, just as he’s about to pose for his portrait, he’s ripped centuries forward by a feckless, scantily dressed—and utterly bewitching—woman who believes in nonsense like magical crystals and astrology.
Unable to immediately reverse her spell, Rose vows to help Henry return to his own century, even though disguises and high jinks are required to get their hands on an enchanted astrolabe and master the art of time travel. But it’s hard not to fall for the irritable yet honorable duke.
Little does she know that he’s starting to did a reckless love spell get it right, after all?
A grumpy/sunshine romance with a time traveling hero.
Author: Amy Carol Reeves
Released: December 9, 2025 by Canary Street Press
Genre: Contemporary Romance, Romance
It’s fine. She’s fine. Really.
When life’s turned you into a big hot mess, there’s still love, laughs, and snark to be had…
Dr. Lizzie Wells, professor of British literature and bestselling author, is not okay. She wasn’t consulted when her beloved husband died unexpectedly, so she’s going to grieve however she damned well chooses. Keeping a lock of his hair in a choker around her neck and donning widow’s weeds. You bet. Notifying colleagues and students that she will only accept paper letters instead of email. Why not? Very nearly kissing her late husband’s best friend, Henry. Unfortunately, er…yes.
So when she’s offered a trip to London, Lizzie grabs it. What better place to escape, heal, and be reborn than in the same city where Queen Victoria famously mourned her beloved Prince Albert? Encouraged by new friends to be bold, have champagne and oysters before noon, and celebrate the beauty and the messiness of life, Lizzie begins to embrace it all.
Still, there’s that almost kiss with Henry she just can’t forget. Their cross-Atlantic ‘check-ins’ turn into FaceTime hangouts and their friendship evolves into something more. When Henry shows up in London, Lizzie fears she’s falling in love with him… Will she bravely embrace this second chance, too?
The title alone makes this seem like the Bitchery may be interested in this one.
Author: Julie Mulhern
Released: December 9, 2025 by Forever
Genre: Historical: American, Mystery/Thriller
Inspired by one of the first real-life female columnists at the New Yorker, this enticing historical mystery follows Freddie Archer as she solves crimes while reporting on the glamorous world of the rich and famous in 1920s Manhattan.
This writer just found her next scoop . . . and it’s deadly.
New York, 1925 – Freddie Archer frequents speakeasies and wild parties with her friends Dorothy Parker and Tallulah Bankhead. And the best part is that it’s all in a day’s work. Freddie loves her job writing the nightlife column for Gotham Magazine.
But Freddie’s latest piece just won her a bit more attention than she bargained for—from the police. A man mentioned in her column has been murdered. And Freddie is asked to keep an eye out for his fashionable female dinner companion. She’s told in no uncertain terms to stay out of the case herself.
So naturally, Freddie throws herself into an investigation that takes her from the elegant stores that line Fifth Avenue to the tenements south of Houston Street. Now between sipping gin rickeys with Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald and casting Broadway shows with Groucho Marx, she’s dodging bullets and dating a potentially dangerous bootlegger.
Freddie wanted adventure and excitement. But will she survive it?
Lara: Start of a series!
Author: Faye Delacour
Released: December 16, 2025 by Sourcebooks Casablanca
Genre: Historical: European, Romance
Series: The Lucky Ladies of London #3
When she picks the most unsuitable bachelor in London to ruin her reputation with a kiss, neither of them counted on her mother making a gentleman out of him….
Perfect for fans of Evie Dunmore, India Holton and Bridgerton .
Hannah Williams would never want a marriage like her parents’. She’d be perfectly happy to spend her life as a spinster and support herself by helping to run her sister-in-law’s gambling club. But no matter how many schemes Hannah hatches to repel suitors, her mother won’t accept defeat. To wrest back control of her life once and for all, Hannah takes drastic measures. She’ll ruin herself with a man so unsuitable that no one will force them to the altar, making her unmarriageable forever. What could possibly go wrong?
Silas Corbyn is nothing but trouble. Disinherited by his family and dishonorably discharged from the Navy over a fight with his sadistic superior, the ton has dismissed him without hearing his side of the story. When an old friend from the Navy gives him work as a dealer at a lady’s gambling club, Silas doesn’t intend to repay the favor by compromising the man’s little sister on his first night, but Hannah offers him an obscene amount of money for just one kiss. Money that he could use to build a new life for himself.
Neither of them counted on Hannah’s mother deciding to salvage her daughter’s reputation with a hasty marriage. Now they need to find a way to call off their engagement before it’s too late. Unless they lose their hearts first.
Given the current state of historical romances, we try to spotlight new releases where we can!
Author: Katta Kis
Released: December 17, 2025
Genre: Contemporary Romance, LGBTQIA, Romance
Series: Pagans & Pop Stars #3
A heavy metal goddess with a crush on…
The stern goth who hates her…
The spark that ignites them both.
Recovering from a breakdown, metal superstar Angela Alice is clawing her way to self-improvement. Except she’s got writer’s block, touring freaks her out, and her mother is getting out of prison.
Oh, and she keeps running into her ex’s best friend: the beautiful goth control freak she’s crushed on for years. Too bad they can’t stand her.
Too bad they can’t stand her.
Benji Nakamura understands mental health meltdowns, a breakdown ended their old band and remade their life. Now, they’re running an indie label, writing songs, renovating their house, and helping their mom reboot her punk band.
They have it under control—if a certain chaotic singer would stop tilting Benji’s world on its axis. And if they didn’t secretly enjoy it.
When Angela is attacked by bigots, Benji spirits her away to their probably-not-haunted Sacramento mansion. Hidden away, the mutual attraction is too strong to resist.
But it’s not all black roses and orgasms. For two people with scarred pasts and sharp edges, love is a four-letter curse.
Benji and Angie might fit together better than they ever expected, but can this spark survive or will it be just another regret?
No Love in LA is a standalone (though it doesn’t hurt to read the first two books) angsty contemporary rock star romance with an HEA and no cheating.
Shana: I hated this heroine in the earlier books so I’m excited to see her redemption arc.
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Not Safe for Work by Nisha J. Tuli is $2.99! This is a standalone contemporary romance with workplace rivals. I really like this cover too!
Two workplace enemies find themselves in close proximity on a tropical company retreat that challenges their assumptions—and just might make them to fall for each other—in this romcom by a beloved TikTok author.
Engineer Trishara Malik once dreamed of being the first woman of color to smash the glass ceiling at WMC Purcell, but after years of dealing with white male privilege and blatant nepotism, she watches her hard-earned promotion go to her nemesis, Rafe Gallagher—the boss’s son. Teetering on the edge of burnout, Tris is stunned when she’s picked to attend WMC’s corporate leadership retreat in Hawaii. It’s a chance to revive her stalled career and compete for a coveted spot in an executive training program—plus, three weeks in paradise! The only downside? Rafe is her co-attendee.
Tris plans to avoid Rafe entirely, but when she arrives in Maui, a booking error has them stuck sharing the honeymoon suite. Sure, it’s not all torture. Rafe is a smoldering ten—okay fine, an eleven—but after years of competition, they can barely stand being in the same time zone. As they vie against each other during aptitude tests and team-building exercises, Tris begins to realize Rafe might not be the villain after all. With her dreams at stake, can she learn to trust the man who might have been standing in her corner all along?
Loving You Always by Kennedy Ryan is $1.99! This is book two in The Bennett Series. This was released in 2014, but I believe is having a resurgence from the publisher due to new cover designs.
Secrets emerge and romance sparks in this irresistible suburban romance from the USA Today bestselling author Kennedy Ryan.
The man she can never have . . .
Kerris Moreton should be the happiest woman in the world: She has a successful business and is about to start the family she’s always wanted. But the man of her dreams-the one whose green eyes see straight into her soul and whose gentle hands make her body hum with pleasure-is not hers.
Each secret moment with Walsh Bennett serves to remind Kerris of what she’s missing. And every stolen hour makes it harder to see her future without him. But being with Walsh would betray a sacred promise and upend her perfect life. When tragedy strikes, the razor’s edge between love and loyalty grows sharper than ever. And Kerris must decide where her heart will fall . . .
Don’t miss the first installment in The Bennett’s Series…When You Are Mine.
RECOMMENDED: The Woman from the Waves by Roslyn Sinclair is $3.99! Tara reviewed this one and gave it an A:
This is a book that got under my skin and left me flailing for a few days after I finished it. As much as I loved and believed in the romance, the character arcs and exploration of religious trauma stole the show for me.
Love and hunger are not the same.
Six years ago, on a remote Scottish island, a mysterious woman saved Sister Madeleine Laurent from drowning. Now, after leaving her convent, Madeleine crosses the ocean again to find the rescuer who changed her life. Instead, her search is disrupted by Hæra North, a brazen, provocative local who stirs Madeleine’s repressed desires—and keeps a secret out of legend.
Hæra has one dream: to become the first female Stormhorse, a powerful leader in her clan of fearsome ocean horse spirits. To do so, she must capture, drown, and eat a worthy human. When she first saw Madeleine, she knew she’d found the one. So why did Hæra save her instead?
Now Madeleine’s back. All Hæra has to do is remain in human form, earn her woman’s trust, then devour her.
But Madeleine is awakening another kind of appetite…
The Woman from the Waves is an epic sapphic romantasy about the power of unleashed desire, the courage it takes to change, and a love so vast it spans the sea, earth, and sky.
RECOMMENDED: Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames is $2.99! Queen Beverly Jenkins recommended this one on a previous podcast:
The book is amazing! It’s laugh-out-loud funny in some parts. The writing is wonderful.
Clay Cooper and his band were once the best of the best — the meanest, dirtiest, most feared crew of mercenaries this side of the Heartwyld.
Their glory days long past, the mercs have grown apart and grown old, fat, drunk – or a combination of the three. Then an ex-bandmate turns up at Clay’s door with a plea for help. His daughter Rose is trapped in a city besieged by an enemy one hundred thousand strong and hungry for blood. Rescuing Rose is the kind of mission that only the very brave or the very stupid would sign up for.
It’s time to get the band back together for one last tour across the Wyld.
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dianec42
cakewrecks_feed[A group of Wreckerators, some in frosting-smeared aprons, walk on stage and begin to sing...]
When they're leery
Feeling small...
When tears are in...
... their eyes,
Why not buy them all?
All on one side...
Ohhhhh
'cause spa- cing's tou- ou- ough...
[joining hands]
When friends just caaan't beee found!
[soprano solo]
I assure you, that's "Harry Potter!"
[chorus]
Why not pay me now?
I’ve a fridge full of stubbled otter:
[3-part harmony]
Why not pay me now?
A very happy birthday to Art Garfunkle - who we hope will forgive us - and many thanks to Liz K., Lynnette W., Paul A., Michelle S., Rachel H., Lexi, C.H., & Katie S. for helping us appreciate the sound of silence.
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So right now I have a number of non-romance community friends coming up to me and saying stuff like:
“Oh hey sounds like some hockey fic finally made it onto TV, huh?”
“Yo Candy have you heard of the gay hockey romance TV show?”
“How excited are you about the gay hockey smut on TV?”
“Candy why is your entire Tumblr dashboard filled with naked asses?”
To which I say: excuse me, these are not just “naked asses.”
These are triple-platinum certified, AAA grade dumptrucks. Can dumptruck butts even be certified platinum, Sisqo hit notwithstanding?
Fuck you, they can now. These asses can do anything. These asses can fly you to the fucking moon. These asses were sculpted by the hand of God, after which God cut their own hand off because it had achieved perfection, so why sculpt anything else ever. Connor Storrie’s ass in particular is a mesmerizingly perfect hemisphere. He could never sneak into an enemy base because he is dummy thicc and the thunderclap of those asscheeks would absolutely alert the guards for miles around. Do you understand what I’m saying?
But the thing is, you need to watch the show — I can’t believe I’m saying this after what I’ve just said above — not for the asses, but because the actors are a delight to watch. It’s not that they’re beautiful, or at least, not only because of that.It’s because they inhabit their characters to a degree that is frankly eerie.
Like: the way Connor Storrie holds his body as Ilya Rozanov in every scene. Man doesn’t stand like an American, though he very much is. (Storrie is a Texan. A Texan.) And what does “doesn’t stand like an American” even mean? Look, I can’t fuckin’ explain it, OK, but white American dudes tend to hold themselves A Way, and he doesn’t do it. It’s like porn (which this show delivers on, by the way). I just know it when I see it.
That’s not even going into Storrie’s near-impeccable Russian (which he apparently acquired over three weeks), or the things he’s able to do with his eyes, or the curl of an upper lip, or a flick of his eyebrow.
And then there’s Hudson Williams as Shane Hollander. Shane, the lawful good muppet to Ilya’s chaos gremlin freak. Williams nails every microexpression, especially in the scenes in which he’s texting Ilya: vulnerability, frustration, reluctant amusement, endearment—they all flicker across his face. He’s stiff and awkward, which you might initially mistake for bad acting, except no, that’s Shane: Shane is an awkward motherfucker! Shane Hollander has zero grace until you strap skates on him, or until he’s confronted by Ilya Rozanov’s dick.
Sure, sure, my friends say. Watch it for the acting. That’s what you say. That’s not what you’re reblogging on Tumblr, you thirsty bitch.
I mean, yeah. I’m mostly posting gifsets of dumptruck butts because I need everyone I know to watch this show, and while I honestly find this image of Ilya giving Shane the once-over when they first meet theee actual hottest thing, who the fuck cares about that who hasn’t seen the show already?
That’s not going to grab people’s attention. Oh, look at this attractive white dude giving someone the ole bedroom eyes. Boh-ring. NEXT.
Ilya Rozanov, naked and glistening with water, jorkin’ it in the locker room showers while maintaining hideously uncomfortable eye contact with Shane? That’s an attention-grabber. And I’ve sold three different people into watching this show because of it.
So anyway, I’ve had to talk to several friends about this show, and about why I, a person who has worked hard all their life to achieve the perfect body (potato-shaped) care about sports romance, and I’ve come up with this Heated Rivalry explainer of sorts. Maybe you’ll find this helpful as you navigate conversations with other people in your life who are like, hey, I hear you like smut! What do you think of that smutty hockey show? Or, like, if you haven’t checked out either the book or the show, and somehow have avoided learning anything about either of them, maybe this will finally push you over the edge? In fact, I hope it does. Consider this me kicking you down a well lined with bare chests and fake team logos of dubious quality and screaming This! Is! Heated Rivalry!
It’s not a fic, it’s a hockey romance novel by Rachel Reid. The two main characters are Ilya Rozanov, Russian hockey wunderkind, and Shane Hollander, Canadian hockey wunderkind. (And yeah, Shane bears a physical resemblance to Sid Crosby, and Ilya being Russian and playing for a rival team immediately raises the spectre of Alexander Ovechkin, but as far as I know, this isn’t scrubbed Sid/Ovi fic, even if, uh, the inspiration seems pretty clear.)
Shane and Ilya meet rookie year, find each other infuriating yet irresistible, rapidly hook up, and then continue to hook up over many, many years, only to slowly, excruciatingly, fall in love. It’s somehow both slow-burn and bangs immediately. You know U-Haul lesbians? These guys are the exact opposite. (Move-away gays? I’ll have to workshop that more.)
Anyway. The book is mostly sex scenes by volume, and not a single one is repetitive or wasted, because it’s how the character and relationship development happen.
It’s now a TV show, adapted by Jacob Tierney. That’s the same guy who brought you Letterkenny and Shoresy, neither of which I’ve watched, but which I’ve been aware of for years now because people whose tastes I trust have watched them and loved them and told me I should watch them. Sorry, guys, it took the power of gay hockey idiots to drag me into the Tierney-verse. I’m here now, and I love it!
The thing you need to know about this show is: it leans in. It fully commits to the bit. Look, I know I keep talking about how this show is worth watching above and beyond the sex and the beefcake, but the fact of the matter is, you can’t extricate the show from the sex and the beefcake, because it’s a show. About hockey players. Who fall in love because they fuck. A lot. Over many years. So yes, I’m going to talk about the sex.
Anyway, yeah. The sex scenes. They skirt just shy of pornography, but oh my god they’re hot and beautifully shot, and while they show you neither hole nor hog, they do so so much with facial expression, and bodies in motion, and, crucially, soundscape. You don’t just hear people moaning. You hear them kissing. You hear the very distinct wet, rhythmic sounds of a mouth sucking on dick. You hear skin slapping against skin. When Ilya swallows a load, he makes a horny little humming noise.
These sounds, more than anything, make the sex scenes feel earthy and real. How many sex scenes have you watched in which the soundtrack takes over just as the action heats up? You hear some kissing noises maybe, and some panting, and then as soon as Boning is Imminent, the violins or synths soar and drown almost anything else out; there might be some tactically deployed ah’s and ooh’s, timed to sync with the music, but nothing else to tie the writhing actors to the tactile reality of sex.
That doesn’t happen here. Don’t get me wrong, there’s absolutely background music. But that takes a back seat to the sounds of two men having wet, messy, frantic, mind-blowing sex. And that’s honestly amazing and radical, because we don’t get a whole lot of movie or TV depictions of queer sex that end well for the people involved. Jacob Tierney put it best in an interview with Evan Ross Katz:
These are people learning about each other and their relationship by fucking. That’s how they’re understanding each other. It’s how they play out their dynamics. It’s the only time, especially in the first two episodes, that they’re not lying to each other, that they’re not doing boisterous dumb boy stuff and being like, “Fuck you, fuck you.” This is when they get vulnerable with each other. This is when they get real. And then the other thing that was important to me is that like… why shouldn’t we get some horny good sex for gay people on TV? Like sex that we know is not going to end in misery or AIDS or punishment. We often get punished for getting sex as characters in queer storylines. So I think you’re weirdly in a safe, nurturing space to watch people fuck.
So yeah, this story is about sex—gay sex, specifically, by people who fall in love, stay in love, and make it work—and I’m super thrilled about all that, ackshually.
But underlying all that glorious sex are two main conflicts that animate the plot, such as it is:
First of all: Shane and Ilya are people who talk past each other for years—at first because they’re not really interested in talking to each other because they’re both hyper-competitive buttholes, but after a while, because they simply lack the context and means of understanding each other. Their cultural gulf is immense. There’s a scene in episode 2 in which Shane tries to make some post-nut small talk with Ilya about his annual summer visit to Russia, and things skate perilously close to the personal. Shane asks Ilya whether he likes it there; Ilya doesn’t even know how to process that question, because that’s not the fucking point—that’s never the point about going home. The quiet bafflement that ensues is excruciating; these guys just don’t know how to express some deeply important things to each other. Not yet.
Secondly, and perhaps most importantly: the homophobia that’s the background radiation of professional men’s team sports played at the very highest levels are warping the two of them and their burgeoning love. (This reality—not just for these fictional hockey boys, but for real-life hockey boys, and football, basketball, and baseball boys—feels even more painful now than it did when I first read the book in 2020 and it sure makes me feel some kind of way!). Shane and Ilya are both keeping a secret which, if exposed, has immense implications for their career, their friendships, and possibly their personal safety, and the story makes you feel it by taking the bone-deep fear as a given from the very beginning.
They can’t be out. They must always be each other’s dirty little secret. And that’s the real killer, isn’t it? The first problem is personal: something they can work out with communication, empathy, and commitment. Maybe some therapy, too.
The second problem, though? That’s systemic, baby. No amount of therapy is going to conquer an entire society’s worth of homophobia. It is an issue that has ruined careers and ended lives.
And, okay, fine, the fact that they’re playing for rival teams is also a big deal. Kind of a conflict of interest. Oops? But, look, the lesbians have—as always—shown us the way: not once, but twice, a hockey player from Team America has married a hockey player from Team Canada. If the lesbians can do it, boys, so can you. I believe in you!
All of which to say: this story looks like a pretty standard enemies-to-lovers or rivals-to-lovers setup, but scratch the surface and you’ll see that it’s actually about trying to fight for enough space to let your love breathe, and then carve out even more space so the love can grow. If you’ve watched episode three, that particular story makes it even more clear that this is the thesis of the show. It’s beating heart.
Read the book. Watch the show. The show, in particular, is exceptionally well-made, which is high praise coming from me, a legendary hater of romance novel adaptations — I’ll spare you my opinions on Bridgerton and the Red, White & Royal Blue movie.
Watch what Storrie and Williams do with their faces and their postures.
Pay attention to how the camera frames shots and lingers for exactly the right amount of time to convey desire and longing.
Delight in the jokes, and in the moments when these two hockey boys act like the adorable idiots they are.
And yeah, this is important, too: revel in some of the best gay sex scenes to ever grace your TV screen.
We’ve had enough queer tears. Let’s have some queer orgasms.
Big massive thanks to Candy for this banger (lol). You can stream Heated Rivalry on HBO Max and on Crave.
cakewrecks_feedI grew up on old-school Doctor Who, back when it aired on PBS Friday nights. My first convention ever was a Doctor Who event - where John Pertwee patted my head - and just a few years ago I received a side-hug from my favorite Doctor, Peter Davison. [Still squeeing over that, btw.] So yeah, you could say the good Doctor and I go back a ways.
So today I thought we'd celebrate all things timey-wimey with the ultimate Best-Of cake mix sure to make your knees wibbly-wobbly. Ready? Allons-y!
(By Nerdache Cakes)
Much as I adore Tigger, I'm kinda bummed I can't make a "Doctor POOH" joke here. But that's ok; Piglet in a homemade Dalek costume MORE than makes up for it.
And speaking of Daleks:
(By Stacked Cakes)
WOW.
The 'net is full of so many fantastic TARDIS cakes, it's hard to narrow down the best ones.
Actually, I take that back; this one wasn't hard to narrow down at all:
(By Leigh Henderson of theyrecoming.com)
This cake (yes, it's cake!) is fitted with mirrors and lights to make it actually look bigger on the inside.
Here's a peek inside the window:
Time for a cookie break!
(By Cookie Cowgirl)
Daleks in party hats. YESSS.
And who's the cutest widdle alien fat particle of all time?
(Found here, baker unknown)
IT'S YOU!
(No, not YOU you. I mean the adipose. Um. Awkwarrrd.)
As a Classic Who girl, these guys were always my favorite villains:
(By Truly Scrumptious Designer Cakes)
Still can't get over how cute she managed to make a Cyberman look, though. I seriously want that cake in doll form!
And now for something a little steamy:
If you think about it, Steampunk and Doctor Who really are a match made in the heavens, am I right?
And while we're talking TARDISes TARDI TARDIS cakes, I love the galaxy airbrushing on this one:
(Made by Claudia's Cakery)
It takes a lot to fool me with cake these days, but this next one did. I *still* have a hard time believing it's not a wooden model:
(Found here)
Even if you've only watched Doctor Who since the reboot, I bet you still have a soft spot for Tom Baker:
(By Border City Cakes)
It's all about the scarf, right? And the crazy hair.
(I'm, uh, glad the baker went with the scarf, though. o.0)
And another excellent contribution from the original show:
(By Imaginative Icing)
K-9!
Sometimes you see a fan-built K-9 rolling around at conventions, and I so want one.
Even though I grew up on the show, I'm ashamed to admit I have a LOT of catching up to do with the new episodes. (Too many were making me cry!) I will catch up, though - I WILL.
Anyway, if you're in the same boat - or if you've never seen ANY episodes and just want to know what all the fuss is about, then at least watch the episode "Blink." It's quite possibly the best episode of any sci-fi show EVER, and stands alone just fine.
Plus, after you watch that, you'll know why everyone else is about to flinch away from their screens in terror:
(By the cake girl)
BOO!
Muahahahaha! :D
Ok, one more, just so we can end on a less petrifying [smirk] note:
(By Michelle Sugar Art)
Woohoo! It's a WHO-bilation!
(In my mind Doctor Seuss & the Doctor are friends, so that totally works.)
Happy Sunday, my fellow Whovians, and have a Sweet weekend!
*****
And from my other blog, Epbot:
smartbitches_feedWelcome back!
A nice variety in today’s post! There’s a YA holiday anthology, crafty non-fiction, a monster romance, and some saintly history.
What recommendations would you like to share? Let us know in the comments!
A YA anthology edited by Dahlia Adler, who runs our monthly queer romance posts. If you’re always searching for other representations of cultural holidays, this is a great collection of authors.
Fourteen acclaimed authors showcase the beautiful and diverse ways holidays are observed in this festive anthology. Keep the celebrations going all year long with this captivating and joyful read!
From Lunar New Year to Solstice, Día de Los Muertos to Juneteenth, and all the incredible days in between, it’s clear that Americans don’t just have one holiday. Edited by the esteemed Dahlia Adler and authored by creators who have lived these festive experiences firsthand, this joyful collection of stories shows that there isn’t one way to experience a holiday.
With stories
Dahlia Adler, Sydney Taylor Honor winner of Going Bicoastal
Candace Buford, author of Good as Gold
A. R. Capetta and Cory McCarthy, authors of the Once & Future series
Preeti Chhibber, author of Payal Mehta’s Romance Revenge Plot
Natasha Díaz, award-winning author of Color Me In
Kelly Loy Gilbert, Stonewall Book Award winning author of Picture Us in the Light
Kosoko Jackson, USA Today bestselling author of The Forest Demands Its Due
Aditi Khorana, award-winning author of Mirror in the Sky
Katherine Locke, award-winning author of This Rebel Heart
Abdi Nazemian, Stonewall Book Award–winning author of Only This Beautiful Moment
Laura Pohl, New York Times bestselling author of The Grimrose Girls
Sonora Reyes, Pura Belpré Honor winner of The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School
Karuna Riazi, contributor to The Grimoire of Grim Fates
I’m a Last Podcast on the Left listener and one of my favorite series they did was on the lives and deaths of saints. If you like wild, religious history, this is a worth a look.
Part history lesson. Part sacrilege. An entirely good time.
Think you have what it takes to be a saint? Lucky for you, thousands of souls have paved the way to heaven—creating a clear formula for getting the job done while also leaving a rich, disturbing history behind them. And in just five easy-ish steps, you can learn how to secure your own halo!
But even if the whole “dying and becoming a saint” thing doesn’t appeal to you, the bizarrely bureaucratic process of canonization is still guaranteed to delight and entertain. How to Be Saint is a compulsively readable and endlessly entertaining ride through Catholicism for anyone who enjoys their history with a side of comedy. From flying friars to severed heads, this book explores the wild lives (and deaths) of saints and pulls the curtain back on the oddest quirks of religious doctrine.
Whether you’re a lifelong Catholic or a weird-history enthusiast, How to Be a Saint is your ultimate guide to understanding the hilarious, fascinating, and shockingly true history of sainthood.
Looking to pick up a hobby and increase family bonding time? Nick Offerman and Lee Buchanan have put together a primer on woodworking with some family friendly projects.
From New York Times bestselling author, Emmy-winning actor, and charismatically carnivorous woodworker Nick Offerman and his fellow champion creator Lee Buchanan (who is also not averse to delicious meats), an illustrated woodworking guide with projects for the whole family
Are you a parent or an otherwise amply sized Woodchuck interested in making projects with, or for, your kids? Or are you an aspiring small Woodchuck ready to get into some quality mischief that involves a hammer, nails, and your very own pocketknife? Well, do we have a guide for you!
Offerman Woodshop is opening its avuncular doors to woodworkers of all ages in the form of twelve brand-new, family-friendly undertakings perfect for kids, from beginner offerings like a handmade box kite to more challenging structures like a garden planter.
All projects are achievable and fun and encourage eye contact, giggles, handshakes, and other old-fashioned familial engagements, while introducing young woodworkers-to-be to the satisfaction and good clean fun of hands-on crafting.
For all my cozy monster romance lovers. I will say that the gargoyle on the cover gives me Mass Effect Asari vibes.
Welcome to Monstera Bluff, a quaint, coastal small town with a monstrously big secret.
After Cara Bishop’s terrible year of heartache and upheaval, she finally lands her dream job as a city planner… in a place that just so happens to be inhabited by monsters and witches she never knew existed. Go figure they’d grapple with the same urban planning issues as everyone else! As the shock of their existence wears off, she’s determined to land on her feet once and for all in this unusual yet charming place that feels so far away from everything she’s trying to escape. Except, a brooding gargoyle named Ben—who is frustratingly unavoidable both at work and outside of it—as well as some odious local power brokers seem quite unhappy with her sudden appearance in their hidden, magickal town.
Ben Garde-Pierre thought his humdrum road construction project for the town would proceed like any other. That is, until Cara—a human uninitiated with his world— arrives with a shiny new job at town hall, shaking up his entire life. Her presence proves to be an unexpected though not unwelcome complication. Ben soon recognizes he must protect her from a series of escalating forces that would drive her away, including his own burgeoning attraction to her.
Despite these obstacles, will Cara reclaim her career and make a life for herself in Monstera Bluff? Or will this be yet another mistake in her rollercoaster of a year?
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Raziyyat-Ud-Dunya Wa Ud-Din lived from around 1205 to around 1240 and was the fifth Sultan of Delhi. She was the first female Muslim ruler of the Indian subcontinent, and to date the only female Muslim ruler of Delhi.
Razia was the daughter of Shams ud-Din Iltutmish, the 3rd Sultan of Delhi. Her father had quite an astonishing life story including rising from being enslaved to being the foremost power in the region. He was not impressed with his sons, and when he left for war, he left Razia in charge. He named her as his successor, stating that she was more capable than his sons.
Upon his death, his nobles, who did not want a woman in charge, named Iitutmish’s son Ruknuddin Firuz. He was allegedly not an attentive ruler, and left management to his mother, Shah Turkaan. After an escalating series of revolts by his nobles, Razia took the throne. This was revolutionary not only because of her gender but also because of her family’s background as enslaved peoples and because her rule was achieved largely through the support of the public.
According to Google Arts and Culture,
Razia ascended the throne as Jalâlat ud-Dîn Raziyâ, and immediately dropped her veil, replacing it with men’s attire instead. She authoritatively issued coins in her name, proclaiming herself to be the ‘pillar of women’ and ‘Queen of the times.’
Razia was progressive in other ways as well. The Indian American Muslim Council states:
As a ruler in a diverse empire, Razia took calculated steps to include all groups in daily life, regardless of how common discrimination against different groups was. One of her most progressive choices was her attempt to abolish the Jizya, which was a tax on non-Muslims under Islamic rule, as she believed people only converted to Islam out of fear. Razia also broke racial boundaries by appointing Jamal-ud-din Yaqut, an Ethiopian slave, to a high-ranking position alongside her. This decision caused backlash from nobles all around, but showed that Razia judged people based on their ability and not their background.
She also pushed for more, and better, access to education. We love a woman who supports public libraries, and she did! She also redeveloped some of the university curriculum of the day, making sure it included science and literature. She rode into battle herself and was considered a good administrator.
Now things get very confusing, as Razia may or may not have had a love affair with Jamal-ud-Din Yaqut, also known as Yakut, an Abyssinian slave who became her closest advisor. Rumors of their relationship provided an excuse for nobles to rebel. But wait, that’s not all! One of the leaders who rebelled against her, Altunia, was said to have been her childhood sweetheart. According to World History Encyclopedia:
The rebels posed a significant challenge to Queen Razia’s authority, ultimately contributing to her downfall. It was widely believed that Razia and Altunia, the capable but very ambitious governor of Bhatinda, were childhood sweethearts. However, Altunia grew intensely jealous of Razia’s close association with Yakut. Determined to confront Altunia and other rebels, Razia marched against him in April 1240, accompanied by Yakut. Yakut was killed on the battlefield, dealing a devastating blow to Razia, who was now deprived of her most trusted confidant and supporter.
Razia was imprisoned, but Altunia ended up feeling betrayed by the regime that replaced her. The two of them became engaged, he busted her out of prison, and they went to battle against Muiz ud-Din Bahram, Razia’s stepbrother who took power when she was deposed. Razia was defeated. Here’s World History Encyclopedia again:
Defeated, Razia and Altunia became fugitives. Details of their demise remain uncertain. Some accounts suggest they were captured and executed, while others indicate they fell victim to robbers near Kaithal in Haryana and were killed soon after.
Guys, there is a lot to unpack here and I’m no expert on Indian history, so I welcome corrections and clarification in the comments. My hope is that the Kickass Women column serves as a jumping off point for readers, and that they challenge some of the assumptions often made about women in history.
Incidentally, there was a historical drama series called Razia Sultan that aired on &TV in 2015. You can find it on YouTube, although what I found was in Hindi and didn’t have English captions or subtitles. It looks amazing!
Other sources:
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My husband’s therapist refers to the holiday as “The Gauntlet.” Even if you have perfect Hallmark family dynamics, it’s a lot.
I do not have perfect Hallmark family dynamics.
Specifically I’m navigating two parents with dementia, one of whom presents with outbursts and rages. Routine is key when dealing with dementia and so the holidays tend to be hard on everyone because that routine is disrupted, but in my case, the people with dementia are not yet at the point where we can skip the festivities all together without them realizing. It’s a real bag of shit.
When you combine managing aging parent dynamics and also, you know, The Horrors, it’s SO MUCH. I’m tired. Everyone in my family is tired. My cats are probably tired.
So. The Gauntlet.
I slept for almost fourteen hours one Saturday and realized, okay, we need to employ some really hardcore self care strategies here or I’m going to crash out. That means I’m setting aside my Christmas knitting because my only deadlines will be work related. I’m going to stick to my anti-inflammatory diet as much as possible, and keep one weekend day open for sleep. I’ve taken social media off my phone. I am also going to focus on reading.
Reading has always been my escape, the thing I can do no matter how physically sick or tired I am. It rejuvenates me mentally, putting some gas in my emotional tank. I’ve struggled with reading this year in part because I haven’t been making time for myself as much as I need to.
So for the next month I’m spending a lot of time in my happy place, which is buried under the blankets in my bed or curled up on the couch by the Christmas tree, preferably under a cat.
What is on my self care TBR?
I’m hoping that these books help me get through the next four weeks with as little emotional damage as possible.
Are you facing The Gauntlet this year? What are your self-care rituals or reads?
Author: Jim Hines
Released: October 21, 2025 by DAW
Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy, Urban Fantasy
Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Golden Girls in this humorous contemporary standalone fantasy about a group of former Chosen Ones coming out of retirement to save the world one last time
Three former Chosen Ones have joined together to spend their retirement in peace and quiet, running Second Life Books and Gifts in Salem, MA. A calm, peaceful, tourist-filled oasis, where they never have to worry about saving the world. Until some of the locals start summoning ancient creatures best left where they were . . . and they discover that their bookstore basement just may be the portal to the underworld. These ex-heroes may have thought they were done . . . but if they want to finish their retirement in peace, they’ll have to join together to save the world one last time.
Why leave saving the world to the young? Cozy mystery readers looking for an extra dash of magic will eat this story fun, funny, and heartwarming, it’s a novel about community, second chances, and the healing power of scones.
I was a huge, HUGE Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan back in the day. This recent release is about a group of former Chosen Ones who are in retirement, but now have to save the world one last time. I love the premise, and I also got this one on audio because I think my husband would enjoy listening to it with me.
Author: Claire North
Released: November 18, 2025 by Orbit
Genre: LGBTQIA, Science Fiction/Fantasy
My name is Mawukana na-Vdnaze, and I am a very poor copy of myself.
Slow Gods is the galaxy-spanning tale of one man’s impossible life charted against the fate of humanity amongst the stars—a powerfully imaginative space opera from multi-award-winning author Claire North.
In telling my story, there are certain things I should perhaps lie about. I should make myself a hero. Pretend I was not used by strangers and gods, did not leave people behind.
Here is one out there in deep space, in the pilot’s chair, I died. And then, I was reborn. I became something not quite human, something that could speak to the infinite dark. And I vowed to become the scourge of the world that wronged me.
This is the story of the supernova event that burned planets and felled civilizations. This is also the story of the many lives I’ve lived since I died for the first time.
Are you listening?
Thanks to AppleTV’s version of Foundation I’ve been craving a big juicy sci-fi novel (that isn’t actually the Foundation series because it sucks). This book has been getting some really fantastic reviews and it looks like the sweeping kind of tale I’ve been looking for.
Author: Linda Lael Miller
Released: October 7, 2025 by Canary Street Press
Genre: Historical: American, Western, Romance
Fans of the hit TV show Yellowstone and its two prequel series will fall in love with this epic love story from #1 New York Times bestselling author Linda Lael Miller.
Lizbet Fontaine will do anything to keep her family together, even leave behind the only life she’s ever known to journey to the West. But as the jitney rumbles away, holding tightly to her little brother’s and sister’s hands, she knows something is wrong. Her stepfather has summoned an associate with a predatory glint in his eyes, and Lizbet knows she needs to save them all. She just doesn’t know how…until a kind man points out the Silver Hills Boarding House.
Gabe Whitfield is no saint. But he won’t let a woman be threatened. Getting involved with Lizbet and little Frankie and Jubal is the last thing on his mind, though. When his wife and their child died a few years ago, a piece of him died, too. So he’ll help this family find their way at Miss Ornetta’s boarding house. Anything more is out of the question.
But that one chance meeting changes Gabe forever. Lizbet’s fierce strength makes him feel the faintest whisper of hope. And Lizbet can’t deny being drawn to the honest, gentle man whose kindness moves her. Can she trust her heart to a man who can’t let go of the past?
When I was kid, we used to drive to Chicago for the holidays, and one of the benefits was that my aunt would send me home with a giant shopping bag of mass market paperback romances to read. I would listen to my Discman and crack open a new to me book on the long drive home, while my sister periodically embarrassed me and irritated my mother by stealing it and reading the sex scenes out loud. I got her back though. Years later I gave her kids a cotton candy machine for Christmas. There was cotton candy floating though the house, sticking to every surface.
Anyway, there was usually a Linda Lael Miller book in that stack because she was huge in the mid to late 90’s (remember her vampire series? OMG).
I haven’t read one of her books in a long time and this looks like the perfect way to indulge in that holiday nostalgia.
Author: Robyn Gigl
Released: March 30, 2021 by Kensington Books
Genre: LGBTQIA, Mystery/Thriller
Series: Erin McCabe Mysteries #1
In a fresh and riveting thriller debut, Robyn Gigl introduces Erin McCabe, a New Jersey criminal defense attorney doing her best to live a quiet life in the wake of profound personal change—until a newsworthy case puts both her career and safety in jeopardy . . .
Erin McCabe has been referred the biggest case of her career. Four months ago, William E. Townsend, Jr., son of a New Jersey State Senator, was found fatally stabbed in a rundown motel near Atlantic City. Sharise Barnes, a nineteen-year-old transgender prostitute, is in custody, and given the evidence, there seems little doubt of a guilty verdict.
As a trans woman herself, Erin knows that defending Sharise will blow her own private life wide open, and doubtless deepen her estrangement from her family. Yet she feels uniquely qualified to help Sharise, and duty-bound to protect her from the possibility of a death sentence. Because Sharise admits she killed the senator’s son—in self-defense.
As Erin works with her partner, former FBI agent Duane Swisher, circumstances hint at ties to other brutal murders. Senator Townsend is using the full force of his prestige and connections to publicly discredit everyone involved in defending Sharise. And behind the scenes, his tactics are even more dangerous. For his son had secrets that could destroy the senator’s political aspirations—secrets worth killing for . . .
I’ve gotten into the tradition/habit of binging a mystery series during that fuzzy period of time between Christmas and New Years. The first book in a series, By Way of Sorrow has a criminal defense attorney who is also a trans woman as its main character. I haven’t seen much trans representation in the mystery world and I’m hopeful that this book will be great since there’s three more currently available in the series after that.
Author: Jennifer Weiner
Released: April 8, 2025 by William Morrow
Genre: Chick Lit, Literary Fiction
Sisters Cassie and Zoe Grossberg were born just a year apart but could not have been more different. Zoe, blessed with charm and beauty, yearned for fame from the moment she could sing into a hairbrush. Cassie was a musical prodigy who never felt at home in her own skin and preferred the safety of the shadows.
On the brink of adulthood in the early 2000s, destiny intervened, catapulting the sisters into the spotlight as the pop sensation the Griffin Sisters, hitting all the touchstones of early aughts fame—SNL, MTV, Rolling Stone magazine—along the way.
But after a whirlwind year in the public eye, the band abruptly broke up.
Two decades later, Zoe’s a housewife; Cassie’s off the grid. The sisters aren’t speaking, and the real reason for the Griffin Sisters’ breakup is still a mystery. Zoe’s teenage daughter, Cherry, who’s determined to be a star in spite of Zoe’s warnings, is on a quest to learn the truth about what happened to the band all those years ago.
As secrets emerge, all three women must face the consequences of their choices: the ones they made and the ones the music industry made for them. Can they forgive each other—and themselves? And will the Griffin Sisters ever make music again?
This book is about a pop duo featuring sisters Zoe and Cassie Grossberg who became famous in the early 2000s and then mysteriously broke up. Now Zoe’s teenage daughter is trying to learn why her mom isn’t talking to her aunt and what led to them disappearing from the spotlight.
I was in high school from 1997-2001 so I think this one is going to hit me right in my girlhood pop-loving feels.
Author: SenLinYu
Released: September 23, 2025 by Del Rey
Genre: Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
In this riveting dark fantasy debut, a woman with missing memories fights to survive a war-torn world of necromancy and alchemy — and the man tasked with unearthing the deepest secrets of her past.
“What is it you think you’re protecting in that brain of yours? The war is over. Holdfast is dead. The Eternal Flame extinguished. There’s no one left for you to save.”
Once a promising alchemist, Helena Marino is now a prisoner—of war and of her own mind. Her Resistance friends and allies have been brutally murdered, her abilities suppressed, and the world she knew destroyed.
In the aftermath of a long war, Paladia’s new ruling class of corrupt guild families and depraved necromancers, whose vile, undead creatures helped bring about their victory, holds Helena captive.
According to Resistance records, she was a healer of little importance within their ranks. But Helena has inexplicable memory loss of the months leading up to her capture, making her enemies wonder: Is she truly as insignificant as she appears, or are her lost memories hiding some vital piece of the Resistance’s final gambit?
To uncover the memories buried deep within her mind, Helena is sent to the High Reeve, one of the most powerful and ruthless necromancers in this new world. Trapped on his crumbling estate, Helena’s fight—to protect her lost history and to preserve the last remaining shreds of her former self—is just beginning. For her prison and captor have secrets of their own . . . secrets Helena must unearth, whatever the cost.
I never read the fanfic that Alchemised was born out of, but I know that it was inspired in part by Dramione and also The Handmaid’s Tale. I re-read The Handmaid’s Tale and followed up with The Testaments this year and I’m curious to see how that world would inspire a Romantasy since I personally didn’t find it very romantic reading.
Author: V.L. Bovalino
Released: September 23, 2025 by Forever
Genre: Gothic, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
Love. Loyalty. Sacrifice.
Grey Flynn has dedicated her life to her mage, Kier. She will be his blade on the battlefield, his healer and protector. The deep well of raw power inside her is Kier’s to wield. They are bound together by blood and magic, but there is one truth Grey dare not reveal . . . not even to Kier.
When a quest to protect the child of an enemy kingdom pulls them into a dangerous mission, Grey will need to decide what she’s willing to sacrifice to protect her secret.
For Grey is no ordinary magical well, and if she dies, all magic dies with her.
The Second Death of Locke is a devastatingly romantic epic fantasy about the undying bond between a knight and their mage, perfect for fans of Rachel Gillig and Alix E. Harrow.
I’ve actually started this book already and there is SO MUCH PINING you guys. It’s set in a vaguely medieval fantasy world where warrior mages draw power from a companion acting as a magical well. Grey Flynn has been acting as a well to a mage, Kier, during a long and bitter war. They’re always together and their bond is amplified through touch, which is a perfect set up for a forced proximity romance.
The yearning, you guys. Grey wants Kier, but he’s never made a move so she’s all like I’m sure he tenderly heals my wounds and massages my naked back for platonic reasons. So far it’s really got me hooked.
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The Summer Storms by Sarah MacLean is $1.99! Fingers crossed this deal lasts. I think this was her contemporary debut. Did any of you pick it up? What did you think?
New York Times bestselling author Sarah MacLean’s first foray into contemporary fiction, with a sharp, sexy novel about a wealthy New England family’s long-overdue reckoning with hidden desires, destructive secrets…and one week that threatens to tear them apart
Alice isn’t like the other Storm siblings. While the rest stayed to battle for their parents’ approval, attention, and untold billions, she left, building her own life beyond the family’s name and influence. Nothing could induce her to come back, except the shocking death of her larger-than-life father. Now back on the family’s private island off the Rhode Island coast, she plans to keep her head down, pay the last of her respects, and leave the minute the funeral is over.
Unfortunately, her father had other plans. The eccentric, manipulative patriarch left his widow and their grown children a final challenge–an inheritance game designed to humiliate, devastate, and unravel the Storm family in ways both petty and life-altering. The rules of the game are clear: stay on the island for one week, complete the tasks, receive the inheritance.
One week on Storm Island is an impossible task for Alice. Every corner of the sprawling old house is bursting dysfunctional chaos: Her older sister’s secret love affair. Her brother’s incessant mansplaining. Her sister-in-law’s unapologetic greed. Her younger sister’s obsession with “vibes”. Her mother’s penchant for stirring up competition between her children. And all under the stern, watchful gaze of Jack Dean, her father’s enigmatic, unfairly good-looking, second-in-command. It will be a miracle if Alice manages to escape the week unscathed.
A story about the transformative power of grief, love, and family, this luscious novel is at once deliciously clever and surprisingly tender, exploring past secrets, present truths, and futures forged in the wake of wild summer storms.
When the Marquess Was Mine by Caroline Linden is $1.99! This is part of the Wagers of Sin historical romance series and features a hero with amnesia. If the cover looks familiar, we featured it on Cover Snark because of the hero’s missing belly button.
In the game of love…
Georgiana Lucas despises the arrogant and cruel Marquess of Westmorland even before learning that he’s won the deed to her friend Kitty’s home in a card game. Still, Georgiana assures Kitty the marquess wouldn’t possibly come all the way to Derbyshire to throw them out—until he shows up, bloody and unconscious. Fearing that Kitty would rather see him die, Georgiana blurts out that he’s her fiancé. She’ll nurse the hateful man back to health and make him vow to leave and never return. The man who wakes up, though, is nothing like the heartless rogue Georgiana thought she knew…
You have to risk it all
He wakes up with no memory of being assaulted—or of who he is. The bewitching beauty tending him so devotedly calls him Rob and claims she’s his fiancée even as she avoids his touch. Though he can’t remember how he won her hand, he’s now determined to win her heart. But as his memory returns and the truth is revealed, Rob must decide if the game is up—or if he’ll take a chance on a love that defies all odds.
Hitwoman by Elsie Marks is 99c! This a mix of romance and suspense – a romantic suspense if you will. This is a recent release, but opinions seem to be mixed on review sites. Have you read it?
An action-packed, hilarious enemies-to-lovers thriller for fans of Butcher & Blackbird, The Fall Guy and Hitman. She always gets her man … but has Maisie Baxter met her match?
Maisie Baxter has a particular set of skills honed over a very successful career.
She’s determined not to let her job at a boutique, ethical assassin agency get in the way of her social life, but it’s tough when your hours are extremely unpredictable and you can’t share any details of your day.
So she can’t tell her friends about the guy that keeps showing up on her missions. Will. He’s cute – really cute – and he’s desperate to speak to her.
Maisie is sure Will works for the competition but it soon becomes clear that a much greater danger stalks them both. And they’re going to have to put aside their professional rivalry and their budding sexual tension if they have any hope of uncovering a conspiracy that goes all the way to the top.
How the Hitman Stole Christmas by Katie Reus is FREE! This is a holiday novella with a hitman hero and an explosives expert heroine. And they’re neighbors!
‘Tis the season for a grumpy-sunshine romance with a side of murder and mayhem!
She hates Christmas and everything that goes with it…
Explosives expert Elliana hates Christmas—and the only good thing about this holiday season is that her gorgeous neighbor seems allergic to shirts and clothes in general. She knows because she’s been watching him for months with her drone. She’s never stalked anyone before, but he not only doesn’t seem to mind, he puts on nightly strip shows just for her. When she finally works up the courage to talk to him, she stumbles right into a murder—that he’s committed.
But this holiday is one she’ll never forget…
According to him, the whole murder thing is no big deal—the dead guy needed killing. And while her hot neighbor wants her, protecting her is his main priority. So when she’s targeted, this cinnamon roll hitman kidnaps her for her own good. With a deadly threat hunting them and a hot hitman who keeps handcuffing her to him “for her own protection”, Elliana is starting to reconsider her grinchy stance on the holidays. And when everything finally comes to a head, the results are bound to be…explosive.
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