#A Shore Thing by Joanna Lowell

[betterbooksandthings]

"Radically reimagining queer joy is the project of the best queer historical romance books.

Historical research and fantasy are the founding pillars of historical romance. There are certain things about the past that any historical romance is willing to hand-wave away. In return, readers of the genre buy into that imagined past.

Queer historical romance is perhaps more radical in its approach. Not because it is less historically accurate than any other historical romance but because it works against the myth that queer people never existed in the past.

Patriarchy, Teleology, and Queer Historical Romance

Patriarchy and teleology undoubtedly work against queer historical romance. The teleological view of history is the idea that history works in a forward march of progress to a single unified goal. Teleology works against historical romance’s aim to humanize people from the past. The genre gives characters access to joy and agency that often feels anachronistic, especially to readers unfamiliar with the periods.

Pair teleology with a frankly overwhelming body of historians using patriarchal lenses to interpret history, and many dismiss all historical romance as entirely inaccurate. Not to mention, a general de-prioritization of joy and the humanization of people throughout history complicates the idea that everyone should view the past one way.

As historical romance books continue to include queer and BIPOC characters, arguments of historical inaccuracy continue to pile onto the genre. Queer historical romance rejects the claim, “In the before times, things were bad, everyone was horrible, and queer people or non-white people didn’t have power.”

So, while all historical fiction will include fiction by its genre category alone, diverse historical romance bears the brunt of historical inaccuracy claims.

What Makes a Great Queer Historical Romance?

So maybe it is unsurprising that I love queer historical romance quite so much. It’s radical, fun, engrossing, and sometimes downright silly.

Selecting just a dozen books to feature in this list was difficult, especially when so many queer historical romance authors have excellent backlists. If I were you, I would start with the twelve best queer historical romance books here and then go into each other’s backlist for an even better time."

[transbookoftheday]

Hi, do you know of any trans m/f romances? I feel like the majority of them are m/m, which I enjoy, but I want some variety sometimes!

Yes! Here are some of my favorites:

Book Titles:

A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall

For the Love of April French by Penny Aimes

A Shore Thing by Joanna Lowell

A Shot in the Dark by Victoria Lee

Drag Me Up by R.M. Virtues

Chef's Kiss by TJ Alexander

[lgbtqreads]

New Releases: June 18, 2024

A Shore Thing by Joanna Lowell Former painter and unreformed rake Kit Griffith is forging a new life in Cornwall, choosing freedom over an identity that didn’t fit. He knew that leaving his Sisterhood of women artists might mean forfeiting artistic community forever. He didn’t realize he would lose his ability to paint altogether. Luckily, he has other talents. Why not devote himself to selling…

[the-forest-library]

The Pairing - Casey McQusiton

Slow Dance - Rainbow Rowell

The Break-Up Pact - Emma Lord

Last Seen Online - Lauren James

All's Fair in Love and War - Virginia Heath

A Shore Thing - Joanna Lowell

You Should Be So Lucky - Cat Sebastian

This Spells Love - Kate Robb

Where Are You, Echo Blue? - Hayley Krischer

My Antonia - Willa Cather

The Girl in Question - Tess Sharpe

The Only Light Left Burning - Erik J. Brown

Death at Morning House - Maureen Johnson

Hawkeye: Bishop Takes King - Ashley Poston

Across a Field of Starlight - Blue Delliquanti

Show Up and Vote - Ani DiFranco

A Product of Genetics and Day Drinking - Jess H. Gutierrez

The Hard Parts - Oksana Masters

Rage Becomes Her - Soraya Chemaly

The Genius of Judy - Rachelle Bergstein

Me Vs Brain - Hayley Morris

Forever Barbie - M.G. Lord

It's Not Hysteria - Karen Tang

The New Menopause - Mary Claire Haver

The Nervous System Reset - Jessica Maguire

The Modern Trauma Toolkit - Christy Gibson

Small Talk - Richard Pink

Girls Just Wanna Have Funds - Emma Due Bitz

Please Unsubscribe, Thanks! - Julio Vincent Gambit

Work Won't Love You Back - Sarah Jaffe

The Tree Collectors - Amy Stewart

Cowpuppy - Gregory Berns

Bold = Highly Recommend

Italics = Worth It

Crossed Out = Nope

Thoughts:  Unfortunately this month was marked by some disappointments (eagerly anticipated reads: Slow Dance, Last Seen Online) and (sequels to books I loved: The Girl in Question, The Only Light Left Burning), but The Pairing restored my faith in Casey McQuiston and left me desperate for a European food and wine tour.

Goodreads Goal: 289/300 2017 Reads | 2018 Reads | 2019 Reads | 2020 Reads | 2021 Reads| 2022 Reads | 2023 Reads | 2024 Reads

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🌈 Queer Books Coming Out in June 2024 🌈

🌈 Good morning, my bookish bats, and happy Pride Month!! Struggling to keep up with all the amazing queer books coming out this month? Here are a FEW of the stunning, diverse queer books you can add to your TBR before the year is over. Remember to #readqueerallyear! Happy reading!

[ Release dates may have changed. ]

❤️ The Shadow of Summer - Marlon Yelich 🧡 Of Stardust - (ed) Avrah C. Baren 💛 The Ballad of Jacquotte Delahaye - Briony Cameron 💚 Triple Sec - T.J. Alexander 💙 Same Difference - E.J. Copperman 💜 The Pull of the Tide - Various ❤️ The Misadventures of Getting Lainey a Date - Eija Jimenez 🧡 Surface Pressure - Adrian J. Smith & Neen Cohen 💛 Mirrored Heavens - Rebecca Roanhorse 💙 The Fire Within Them - Matthew Ward 💜 One and Done - Frederick Smith 🌈 Digging for Destiny - Jenna Jarvis

❤️ She Who Brought the Storm - Vaela Denarr & Micah Iannandrea 🧡 Tristan and Lancelot: A Tale of Two Knights - James Persichetti & L.S. Biehler 💛 London on My Mind - Clara Alves (translated by Nina Perrotta) 💚 The Deep Dark - Molly Knox Ostertag 💙 Furious - Jamie Pacton & Rebecca Podos 💜 Gay the Pray Away - Natalie Naudus ❤️ Such A Small World - Jordan Clayden-Lewis 🧡 Make It Count: My Fight to Become the First Transgender Olympic Runner - CeCé Telfer 💛 Cicada Summer - Erica McKeen 💙 We Used to Live Here - Marcus Kliewer 💜 Dandelion - Merlina Garance 🌈 The Curse of the Goddess - C.C. González

❤️ The Schoolmaster - Jessica Tvordi 🧡 Cigarette Lemonade - Connor de Bruler 💛 Coil of Boughs - Penny Moss 💚 Ballad for Jasmine Town - Molly Ringle 💙 Asking for a Friend - Ronnie Riley 💜 Pleasure Principle - Madeleine Cravens ❤️ Perfect Revenge - Jessica Burkhart 🧡 Lockjaw - Matteo L. Cerilli 💛 Markless - C.G. Malburi 💙 Queer Art - Gemma Rolls-Bentley 💜 Morally Straight - Mike De Socio 🌈 Our Bodies Electric - Zackary Vernon

❤️ Love Is All - Various 🧡 Becoming Ted - Matt Cain 💛 Annie LeBlanc Is Not Dead Yet - Molly Morris 💚 Dear Cisgender People: A Guide to Trans Allyship and Empathy - Kenny Ethan Jones 💙 Pole Position - Rebecca J. Caffery 💜 Something to be Proud Of - Anna Zoe Quirke ❤️ Hot Hires - Nan Campbell, Alaina Erdell, Jesse J. Thoma 🧡 Lord of the Empty Isles - Jules Arbeaux 💛 Kissing Girls on Shabbat - Sara Glass 💙 When You Smile - Melissa Brayden 💜 We Could Be Heroes - Philip Ellis 🌈 But How Are You, Really - Ella Dawson

❤️ A Bluestocking's Guide to Decadence - Jess Everlee 🧡 Take All of Us - Natalie Leif 💛 One Killer Problem - Justine Pucella Winans 💚 Why Are People Into That? - Tina Horn 💙 Free to Be: Understanding Kids & Gender Identity - Jack Turban 💜 Lady Eve's Last Con - Rebecca Fraimow ❤️ Sea of Broken Glass - Jenna Pine 🧡 Rapunzella, Or, Don't Touch My Hair - Ella McLeod 💛 Wolfpitch - Balazs Lorinczi 💙 Looking for a Sign - Susie Dumond 💜 Director's Cut - Carlyn Greenwald 🌈 Wish You Weren't Here - Erin Baldwin

❤️ Act Two - Rochelle Wolf 🧡 Unexploded Remnants - Elaine Gallagher 💛 The Stars Want Blood - Morgan Lawson 💚 Shadows Dark and Deadly - Andrea Marie Johnson 💙 Design of Darkness - R.D. Pires 💜 Two Sides to Every Murder - Danielle Valentine ❤️ Meet Me in the Sky - Jeffrey K. Davenport 🧡 A Shore Thing - Joanna Lowell 💛 The Lions' Den - Iris Mwanza 💙 Under the Dragon Moon - Mawce Hanlin 💜 A Sea of Wolves - Sarah Street 🌈 Saints of Storm and Sorrow - Gabriella Buba

❤️ Private Rites - Julia Armfield 🧡 Everyone I Kissed Since You Got Famous - Mae Marvel 💛 The Stars Too Fondly - Emily Hamilton 💚 Keeping Carmen Ruiz - Alyson Root 💙 Cuckoo - Gretchen Felker-Martin 💜 Heartwaves - Anita Kelly ❤️ Bound to the Wild Fae - Tavia Lark 🧡 Four Squares - Bobby Finger 💛 The Ghost of Us - James L. Sutter 💙 Poison in Their Hearts - Laura Sebastian 💜 Puppy Love - Elle Sprinkle 🌈 Hot Summer - Elle Everhart

❤️ Liddy-Jean Marketing Queen and the Matchmaking Scheme - Mari SanGiovanni 🧡 All Friends Are Necessary - Tomas Moniz 💛 Six of Sorrow - Amanda Linsmeier 💚 Shanghai Murder - Jessie Chandler 💙 PROUD - Anthology 💜 Little Rot - Akwaeke Emezi ❤️ Fling - Deja Elise 🧡 Too Many Stars to Count - Frances M. Thompson 💛 Rakesfall - Vajra Chandrasekera 💙 The Unrelenting Earth - Kritika H. Rao 💜 Freakslaw - Jane Flett 🌈 Please Stop Trying to Leave Me - Alana Saab

❤️ A Sense of Shifting - Coco Romack, Yael Malka 🧡 Moonstorm - Yoon Ha Lee 💛 Now, Conjurers - Freddie Kölsch 💚 Hide No More - Rita Potter 💙 Running Close to the Wind - Alexandra Rowland 💜 The Afterlife of Mal Caldera - Nadi Reed Perez ❤️ Her, Him & I - Christian Weissmann 🧡 The Sons of El Rey - Alex Espinoza 💛 Show Me Your Teeth - Amy Marsden 💙 Defeating Demons and Breaking Up With My Boyfriend - Dylan James 💜 For Real - Alexis Hall 🌈 The Clarity of Light - Jade Church

[mermaidsirennikita]

A Shore Thing by Joanna Lowell is a historical romance with a trans rake hero

I repeat A Shore Thing by Joanna Lowell is a historical romance with a trans rake hero

(and also they meet cute when she throws him off balance on his high speed bicycle ride and he crashes and is woozy after and keeps mistaking her for all these other ladies while she gets increasingly offended while also being like "that DOES sound interesting" internally)

[hopedflight]

𝐆𝐄𝐓 𝐓𝐎 𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐖 𝐌𝐄 𝐁𝐄𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑

𝐀𝐋𝐈𝐀𝐒 / 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄: bee / harper

𝐁𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐇𝐃𝐀𝐘: may 1

𝐙𝐎𝐃𝐈𝐀𝐂 𝐒𝐈𝐆𝐍:  taurus

𝐇𝐄𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓: 5’0"

𝐇𝐎𝐁𝐁𝐈𝐄𝐒:  gaming, reading, sewing / crafting.

𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐂𝐎𝐋𝐎𝐑: yellow!

𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐁𝐎𝐎𝐊: currently the dungeon crawler carl series by matt dinniman; historically it's the enchanted forest chronicles series by patricia c wrede

𝐋𝐀𝐒𝐓 𝐒𝐎𝐍𝐆: joyride by kesha

𝐋𝐀𝐒𝐓 𝐌𝐎𝐕𝐈𝐄 / 𝐒𝐇𝐎𝐖: relative strangers (2006)

𝐑𝐄𝐂𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐃: just finished "eye of the bedlam bride" by matt dinniman (book 6 of the dungeon crawler carl series). also just started reading "a shore thing" by joanna lowell (queer victorian romance novel with ftm love interest!)

𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐏𝐈𝐑𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍: i could write u essays about the characters that inspired fel's story (biggest ones are anne shirley, wendy darling, alice liddel, and coraline). she is also based off of a character in a dnd campaign i am in!

𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐑𝐘 𝐁𝐄𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐃 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐔𝐑𝐋: eilistraee is associated with the moon, as is lurue. also cleric! she prayed for someone to answer her and the moon did, so she keeps praying.

𝐅𝐔𝐍 𝐅𝐀𝐂𝐓: in the spring i am going back to school (online) to start my master's degree in library science, school not fully decided yet but i have 3 offers!

tagged by: stole it from @maestrojax tagging: yes! :D

[clinchcoverenthusiast]

Storygraph's new monthly wrap-up graphic is here! There's also a monthly view with ratings but I stuck with the cover only view since don't rate everything.

July was another mostly stellar reading month with many more of my anticipated new releases. Saga and The Hunger and the Dust returned! Chuck Tingle, Stephen Graham Jones, and Paul Tremblay knocked it out of the horror park. Cathy Yardley gave me more actual 40+ year old adults falling in love and Adriana Anders brought some serious both over 30 OWYM breeding kink heat. Once Bitten was so good that I forgive the cliffhanger ending and now I'll just have to read the rest of Heather's backlist while I (im)patiently wait for Twice Shy. Everything was from Hoopla or Libby except for Hot Blooded, Well Bred, Do Me a Favor, and Once Bitten, which were KU. Here's everything in chronological reading order:

A Shore Thing - Joanna Lowell

Hot Blooded (Tooth & Claw #2) - Heather Guerre

The Partner Plot (Greene Sisters #2) - Kristina Forest* **

The Hunger and the Dusk: Book Two #1 (The Hunger and the Dusk 2.1) - G. Willow Wilson

Bury Your Gays - Chuck Tingle

Well Bred - Adriana Anders

Pink Slime - Fernanda Trías

Do Me a Favor - Cathy Yardley* **

I Was a Teenage Slasher - Stephen Graham Jones*

Books & Broadswords Vol. 1 (Books & Broadswords #1) - Jessie Mihalik

Horror Movie - Paul Tremblay

Once Bitten (Tooth & Claw #3) - Heather Guerre

Roaming - Jillian Tamaki, Mariko Tamaki* **

Saga #67 - Brian K. Vaughan, Fiona Staples

This One Summer - Jillian Tamaki, Mariko Tamaki*

* = author(s) of color

** = main character(s) of color

[transbookoftheday]

A Shore Thing by Joanna Lowell

A delightfully queer Victorian love story, featuring a boldly brash trans hero, the beguiling botanist who captures his heart, and a buoyant bicycle race by the British seaside — from the author of The Duke Undone.

Former painter and unreformed rake Kit Griffith is forging a new life in Cornwall, choosing freedom over an identity that didn't fit. He knew that leaving his Sisterhood of women artists might mean forfeiting artistic community forever. He didn’t realize he would lose his ability to paint altogether. Luckily, he has other talents. Why not devote himself to selling bicycles and trysting with the holidaymakers?

Enter Muriel Pendrake, the feisty New-York-bound botanist who has come to St. Ives to commission Kit for illustrations of British seaweeds. Kit shouldn’t accept Muriel’s offer, but he must enlist her help to prove to an all-male cycling club that women can ride as well as men. And she won't agree unless he gives her what she wants. Maybe that's exactly the challenge he needs.

As Kit and Muriel spend their days cycling together, their desire begins to burn with the heat of the summer sun. But are they pedaling toward something impossible? The past is bound to catch up to them, and at the season’s end, their paths will diverge. With only their hearts as guides, Kit and Muriel must decide if they’re willing to race into the unknown for the adventure of a lifetime.

[lgbtqreads]

Hi there! Do you know any t4t historical fiction stories or at least have recs for ones with a trans male lead?

I do! Basically, you’re gonna wanna become best friends with EE Ottoman’s whole collection, almost all of which is historical fiction starring trans men and at least one of which is t4t4t. For a couple of others with trans male leads, try Most Ardently by Gabe Cole Novoa in YA and Confessions of the Fox by Jordy Rosenberg, and keep an eye on the upcoming A Shore Thing by Joanna Lowell.

[mermaidsirennikita]

WEEKLY BOOK RECS: 6/14/24-6/21/24

The Gentle Art of Fortune Hunting by K.J. Charles

This is a quick, snappy, and emotionally resonant romcom with a charmingly simple (yet so good) premise: a stern, gruff man realizes that a young hottie and his sister are fortune hunting. Said young hottie's efforts seem to have landed on gruff man's beloved niece. Gruff man realizes that young hottie is scamming at cards, beats him, and young hottie responds with "Well, if you forgive my massive debt, I can... Do Things". Perf! We love a sex deal! So good, so hot. This has the customary K.J. Charles sense of humor and approach to the social intricacies of the Regency. It's not super complicated, it reads like a breeze, and I'd totally recommend it as an intro to her work, or queer historicals in general.

A Shore Thing by Joanna Lowell

OH I loved this one. The basic concept is: botanist widow is on vacation, runs into rake hero (actually he runs off the road on his bicycle), ends up roped into long distance bicycle race that kinda feels like a motorcycle club situation, except it's with Victorian bicycles and everything ends up being hilarious and warm and there's depth to EVERYONE. Also, we have not one, but TWO dildo scenes. Kit, our hero, is a trans man; this is treated with historical realism and some pain, but not with any degree of heavy angst. We get several relationships that don't at all go where I was expecting. The side characters are fabulous. Kit and Muriel have an incredible emotional AND sexual connection. The line "Would you like to see my cock?" is uttered (after which he admits that her like... seeing it.... was not the only thing he wanted her to do with it...). It's excellent and I totally recommend.

As a sidebar, Joanna's partner is a trans man, and a gender and sexuality historian. What fucking luck. Stick around for the author's note at the end written by both of them. It's worth it.

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🌈 Queer Books Coming Out in June 2024

🌈 Good morning, my bookish bats, and happy Pride Month!! Struggling to keep up with all the amazing queer books coming out this month? Here are a FEW of the stunning, diverse queer books you can add to your TBR before the year is over. Remember to #readqueerallyear! Happy reading!

[ Release dates may have changed. ]

❤️ The Shadow of Summer - Marlon Yelich 🧡 Of Stardust - (ed) Avrah C. Baren 💛 The Ballad of Jacquotte Delahaye - Briony Cameron 💚 Triple Sec - T.J. Alexander 💙 Same Difference - E.J. Copperman 💜 The Pull of the Tide - Various ❤️ The Misadventures of Getting Lainey a Date - Eija Jimenez 🧡 Surface Pressure - Adrian J. Smith & Neen Cohen 💛 Mirrored Heavens - Rebecca Roanhorse 💙 The Fire Within Them - Matthew Ward 💜 One and Done - Frederick Smith 🌈 Digging for Destiny - Jenna Jarvis

❤️ She Who Brought the Storm - Vaela Denarr & Micah Iannandrea 🧡 Tristan and Lancelot: A Tale of Two Knights - James Persichetti & L.S. Biehler 💛 London on My Mind - Clara Alves (translated by Nina Perrotta) 💚 The Deep Dark - Molly Knox Ostertag 💙 Furious - Jamie Pacton & Rebecca Podos 💜 Gay the Pray Away - Natalie Naudus ❤️ Such A Small World - Jordan Clayden-Lewis 🧡 Make It Count: My Fight to Become the First Transgender Olympic Runner - CeCé Telfer 💛 Cicada Summer - Erica McKeen 💙 We Used to Live Here - Marcus Kliewer 💜 Dandelion - Merlina Garance 🌈 The Curse of the Goddess - C.C. González

❤️ The Schoolmaster - Jessica Tvordi 🧡 Cigarette Lemonade - Connor de Bruler 💛 Coil of Boughs - Penny Moss 💚 Ballad for Jasmine Town - Molly Ringle 💙 Asking for a Friend - Ronnie Riley 💜 Pleasure Principle - Madeleine Cravens ❤️ Perfect Revenge - Jessica Burkhart 🧡 Lockjaw - Matteo L. Cerilli 💛 Markless - C.G. Malburi 💙 Queer Art - Gemma Rolls-Bentley 💜 Morally Straight - Mike De Socio 🌈 Our Bodies Electric - Zackary Vernon

❤️ Love Is All - Various 🧡 Becoming Ted - Matt Cain 💛 Annie LeBlanc Is Not Dead Yet - Molly Morris 💚 Dear Cisgender People: A Guide to Trans Allyship and Empathy - Kenny Ethan Jones 💙 Pole Position - Rebecca J. Caffery 💜 Something to be Proud Of - Anna Zoe Quirke ❤️ Hot Hires - Nan Campbell, Alaina Erdell, Jesse J. Thoma 🧡 Lord of the Empty Isles - Jules Arbeaux 💛 Kissing Girls on Shabbat - Sara Glass 💙 When You Smile - Melissa Brayden 💜 We Could Be Heroes - Philip Ellis 🌈 But How Are You, Really - Ella Dawson

❤️ A Bluestocking's Guide to Decadence - Jess Everlee 🧡 Take All of Us - Natalie Leif 💛 One Killer Problem - Justine Pucella Winans 💚 Why Are People Into That? - Tina Horn 💙 Free to Be: Understanding Kids & Gender Identity - Jack Turban 💜 Lady Eve's Last Con - Rebecca Fraimow ❤️ Sea of Broken Glass - Jenna Pine 🧡 Rapunzella, Or, Don't Touch My Hair - Ella McLeod 💛 Wolfpitch - Balazs Lorinczi 💙 Looking for a Sign - Susie Dumond 💜 Director's Cut - Carlyn Greenwald 🌈 Wish You Weren't Here - Erin Baldwin

❤️ Act Two - Rochelle Wolf 🧡 Unexploded Remnants - Elaine Gallagher 💛 The Stars Want Blood - Morgan Lawson 💚 Shadows Dark and Deadly - Andrea Marie Johnson 💙 Design of Darkness - R.D. Pires 💜 Two Sides to Every Murder - Danielle Valentine ❤️ Meet Me in the Sky - Jeffrey K. Davenport 🧡 A Shore Thing - Joanna Lowell 💛 The Lions' Den - Iris Mwanza 💙 Under the Dragon Moon - Mawce Hanlin 💜 A Sea of Wolves - Sarah Street 🌈 Saints of Storm and Sorrow - Gabriella Buba

❤️ Private Rites - Julia Armfield 🧡 Everyone I Kissed Since You Got Famous - Mae Marvel 💛 The Stars Too Fondly - Emily Hamilton 💚 Keeping Carmen Ruiz - Alyson Root 💙 Cuckoo - Gretchen Felker-Martin 💜 Heartwaves - Anita Kelly ❤️ Bound to the Wild Fae - Tavia Lark 🧡 Four Squares - Bobby Finger 💛 The Ghost of Us - James L. Sutter 💙 Poison in Their Hearts - Laura Sebastian 💜 Puppy Love - Elle Sprinkle 🌈 Hot Summer - Elle Everhart

❤️ Liddy-Jean Marketing Queen and the Matchmaking Scheme - Mari SanGiovanni 🧡 All Friends Are Necessary - Tomas Moniz 💛 Six of Sorrow - Amanda Linsmeier 💚 Shanghai Murder - Jessie Chandler 💙 PROUD - Anthology 💜 Little Rot - Akwaeke Emezi ❤️ Fling - Deja Elise 🧡 Too Many Stars to Count - Frances M. Thompson 💛 Rakesfall - Vajra Chandrasekera 💙 The Unrelenting Earth - Kritika H. Rao 💜 Freakslaw - Jane Flett 🌈 Please Stop Trying to Leave Me - Alana Saab

❤️ A Sense of Shifting - Coco Romack, Yael Malka 🧡 Moonstorm - Yoon Ha Lee 💛 Now, Conjurers - Freddie Kölsch 💚 Hide No More - Rita Potter 💙 Running Close to the Wind - Alexandra Rowland 💜 The Afterlife of Mal Caldera - Nadi Reed Perez ❤️ Her, Him & I - Christian Weissmann 🧡 The Sons of El Rey - Alex Espinoza 💛 Show Me Your Teeth - Amy Marsden 💙 Defeating Demons and Breaking Up With My Boyfriend - Dylan James 💜 For Real - Alexis Hall 🌈 The Clarity of Light - Jade Church

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🌈 Queer Romances to Love All Year Round

🦇 Good morning, my beloved bookish bats. We're halfway through pride month, but there are still so many amazing queer books to read! To celebrate that love is love mentality, here are 78 queer romance novels you can add to your tbr! Don't forget to #readqueerallyear, and that none of us are free until all of us are free. 💜

❤️ Delilah Green Doesn’t Care - Ashley Herring Blake 🧡 Skye Falling - Mia McKenzie 💛 The Breakup Lists - Adib Khorram 💚 Prince of the Palisades - Julian Winters 💙 Solomon’s Crown - Natasha Siegel 💜 The Borrow a Boyfriend Club - Page Powars

❤️ Full Shift - Jennifer Dugan 🧡 A Shore Thing - Joanna Lowell 💛 Showmance - Chad Beguelin 💚 Exes & Foes - Amanda Woody 💙 Full Disclosure - Camryn Garrett 💜 When You Were Everything - Ashley Woodfolk

❤️ Playing the Palace - Paul Rudnick 🧡 I’m So (Not) Over You - Kosoko Jackson 💛 When Katie Met Cassidy - Camille Perri 💚 Captive Prince - C. S. Pacat 💙 The Lovers - Rebekah Faubion 💜 That Summer Feeling - Bridget Morrissey

❤️ Wild Things - Laura Kay 🧡 Experienced - Kate Young 💛 Lose You to Find Me - Erik J. Brown 💚 The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School - Sonora Reyes 💙 Nate Plus One - Kevin van Whye 💜 Countries of Origin - Javier Fuentes

❤️ The Passing Playbook - Isaac Fitzsimons 🧡 But How Are You, Really - Ella Dawson 💛 Looking for a Sign - Susie Dumond 💚 The Prospects - KT Hoffman 💙 Last Night at the Telegraph Club - Malinda Lo 💜 Malice - Heather Walter

❤️ You Should See Me in a Crown - Leah Johnson 🧡 Let’s Talk about Love - Claire Kann 💛 Bonds of Brass - Emily Skrutskie 💚 Looking for Love in All the Haunted Places - Claire Kann 💙 The Stars and the Blackness Between Them - Junauda Petrus 💜 In Charm’s Way - Lana Harper

❤️ Everything Leads to You - Nina LaCour 🧡 Marriage of a Thousand Lies - SJ Sindu 💛 I Think I Love You - Auriane Desombre 💚 Lavash at First Sight - Taleen Voskuni 💙 The Bump - Sidney Karger 💜 The Disenchantment - Celia Bell

❤️ The Dos and Donuts of Love - Adiba Jaigirdar 🧡 Riley Weaver Needs A Date To The Gaybutante Ball - Jason June 💛 Epically Earnest - Molly Horan 💚 Out of the Blue - Jason June 💙 Flip the Script - Lyla Lee 💜 Imogen, Obviously - Becky Albertalli

❤️ Café Con Lychee - Emery Lee 🧡 A Little Bit Country - Brian D. Kennedy 💛 Late to the Party - Kelly Quindlen 💚 The Key to You and Me - Jaye Robin Brown 💙 What If It’s Us - Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera 💜 The Falling in Love Montage - Ciara Smyth

❤️ The Love Curse of Melody McIntyre - Robin Talley 🧡 Meet Cute Diary - Emery Lee 💛 Love & Other Natural Disasters - Misa Sugiura 💚 Date Me, Bryson Keller - Kevin van Whye 💙 Just Your Local Bisexual Disaster - Andrea Mosqueda 💜 Pumpkin by Julie Murphy

❤️ She Gets the Girl by Rachel Lippincott - Alyson Derrick 🧡 Home Field Advantage - Dahlia Adler 💛 The (Un)Popular Vote - Jasper Sanchez 💚 Melt With You - Jennifer Dugan 💙 Cool for the Summer by Dahlia Adler 💜 Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating - Adiba Jaigirdar

❤️ I Kissed Shara Wheeler - Casey McQuiston 🧡 Jay’s Gay Agenda - Jason June 💛 Triple Sec - TJ Alexander 💚 Finally Fitz - Marisa Kanter 💙 I’ll Be the One - Lyla Lee 💜 This Is Kind of an Epic Love Story - Kacen Callender

❤️ May the Best Man Win - ZR Ellor 🧡 One Last Stop - Casey McQuiston 💛 Late Bloomer - Mazey Eddings 💚 The Fiancee Farce - Alexandria Bellefleur 💙 Stars Collide - Rachel Lacey 💜 Truly, Madly, Deeply - Alexandria Bellefleur

[mermaidsirennikita]

Is there any romance where the couple bath together?

Yes!

Princess by Gaelen Foley has a lovely scene where Darius and Serafina bathe together shortly after they hook up for the first time. They didn't go all the way~ because she's a princess and he's a kitchen boy bodyguard, but she's very overwrought about everything (she had a Big Day) so he holds her in the tub and it's very cute and hot.

The Duke by Gaelen Foley also has a scene wherein the heroine is in the bath and the hero like... helps her bathe? And then he helps her with other things while she is standing (and he is on his knees), still in the tub, so it counts.

Fantasy-wise, there's Charissa Weaks's Witch Walker series (not standalones). In the second book, Alexus and Raina go to these special pool hot spring things to bathe after a long journey, and they wash each other's hair and stuff. Tbh, they were definitely doing ALL OF IT in their little tents during the journey, so. What's super hot about this too is that they ran out of birth control during the journey (fantasy potions lmao) and the new doses haven't kicked in yet, so they have to... finds some workarounds...

Forget Me Not by Julie Soto is a contemporary romance with a REALLY good tub scene. The heroine is a high-strung overworked wedding planner, and she and the hero are kind of in a casual borderline FWB "what are we" situationship. He... helps her relax.

Lady Isabella's Scandalous Marriage by Jennifer Ashley has a scene where Isabella is in the tub and Mac walks in. He does some things. When the maid comes in he wipes his face off with a towel. So he wasn't in the tub, technically, but he did get pretty wet.

Duke of Sin by Elizabeth Hoyt has the infamous scene where Bridget is in the tub and Valentine is watching her and going on about her toes and stuff. He does not get in the tub. Scandalous Desires also has a scene where Mickey is in the tub and Silence comes over and he makes her ~feel him. So neither one is a mutual bath situation, but thought I'd mention it.

The Duke Gets Even by Joanna Shupe has an amazing bath scene after Nellie and Lockwood first hook up, where she's like "I don't want a relationship" and he's like "for sure I am on the same page now let's cuddle in the bathtub while we tell each other our deepest darkest emotional secrets". He is.... RIDICULOUS.

Bride by Ali Hazelwood has an extended, very very good bath scene.

Dreams of a Dark Warrior by Kresley Cole has another "not bathing together but he's watching" scene which is AGAIN fantastic. The hero and heroine are SUPER ENEMIES (he has her imprisoned and wants to annihilate all supernatural creatures, she is a supernatural creature) but as it turns out, they were lovers in SEVERAL past lives. And she remembers this, because she actually never died and is immortal, but he, the reincarnated one, can't. So she bathes and talks about all the things they did in his past lives while he sits there, gripping the chair to keep from jumping her... and then he starts telling her what he'd do to her in THIS life...

American Royalty by Tracey Livesay has a scene where the heroine is in the bath... the hero isn't, I think, but it's another one where he's like "while I'm here om nom nom".

The Music of Love by S.M. LaViolette has an ANGRY BATHTUB BANG scene. The hero and heroine are married but on the outs (she is also pregnant, which is why they're married lmao) during a trip to visit his family. So they're at this inn, and she's in the bathtub, and she's been Lustfully Watching Him Undress sneakily... And he walks in and.... It is SOOOOO GOOD. But also hilarious, because they're mostly just incredibly mad at each other throughout.

A Shore Thing by Joanna Lowell has the leads' first time in a bathtub (I mean, it begins in a bathtub) with what begins as a definitely not innocent bath. They're on a bicycle race together, so they stop in an inn and Things Happen. They also do it in a Victorian bathing machine later lmao

Once More, My Darling Rogue by Lorraine Heath has a bathing scene, I believe. I can't remember exactly what happens, but I'm pretty sure it leads up to this as the hero makes the heroine wash his back as a part of like, her job lmao.

Lisa Kleypas has scenes where the hero "tends" to the heroine in an afterglow bath in Seduce Me at Sunrise and Love in the Afternoon, but I'm not sure if they fully get in the bathtubs. Or just their hands.

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

🌈 Queer Romances to Love All Year Round

🦇 Good morning, my beloved bookish bats. We're halfway through pride month, but there are still so many amazing queer books to read! To celebrate that love is love mentality, here are 78 queer romance novels you can add to your tbr! Don't forget to #readqueerallyear, and that none of us are free until all of us are free. 💜

❤️ Delilah Green Doesn’t Care - Ashley Herring Blake 🧡 Skye Falling - Mia McKenzie 💛 The Breakup Lists - Adib Khorram 💚 Prince of the Palisades - Julian Winters 💙 Solomon’s Crown - Natasha Siegel 💜 The Borrow a Boyfriend Club - Page Powars

❤️ Full Shift - Jennifer Dugan 🧡 A Shore Thing - Joanna Lowell 💛 Showmance - Chad Beguelin 💚 Exes & Foes - Amanda Woody 💙 Full Disclosure - Camryn Garrett 💜 When You Were Everything - Ashley Woodfolk

❤️ Playing the Palace - Paul Rudnick 🧡 I’m So (Not) Over You - Kosoko Jackson 💛 When Katie Met Cassidy - Camille Perri 💚 Captive Prince - C. S. Pacat 💙 The Lovers - Rebekah Faubion 💜 That Summer Feeling - Bridget Morrissey

❤️ Wild Things - Laura Kay 🧡 Experienced - Kate Young 💛 Lose You to Find Me - Erik J. Brown 💚 The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School - Sonora Reyes 💙 Nate Plus One - Kevin van Whye 💜 Countries of Origin - Javier Fuentes

❤️ The Passing Playbook - Isaac Fitzsimons 🧡 But How Are You, Really - Ella Dawson 💛 Looking for a Sign - Susie Dumond 💚 The Prospects - KT Hoffman 💙 Last Night at the Telegraph Club - Malinda Lo 💜 Malice - Heather Walter

❤️ You Should See Me in a Crown - Leah Johnson 🧡 Let’s Talk about Love - Claire Kann 💛 Bonds of Brass - Emily Skrutskie 💚 Looking for Love in All the Haunted Places - Claire Kann 💙 The Stars and the Blackness Between Them - Junauda Petrus 💜 In Charm’s Way - Lana Harper

❤️ Everything Leads to You - Nina LaCour 🧡 Marriage of a Thousand Lies - SJ Sindu 💛 I Think I Love You - Auriane Desombre 💚 Lavash at First Sight - Taleen Voskuni 💙 The Bump - Sidney Karger 💜 The Disenchantment - Celia Bell

❤️ The Dos and Donuts of Love - Adiba Jaigirdar 🧡 Riley Weaver Needs A Date To The Gaybutante Ball - Jason June 💛 Epically Earnest - Molly Horan 💚 Out of the Blue - Jason June 💙 Flip the Script - Lyla Lee 💜 Imogen, Obviously - Becky Albertalli

❤️ Café Con Lychee - Emery Lee 🧡 A Little Bit Country - Brian D. Kennedy 💛 Late to the Party - Kelly Quindlen 💚 The Key to You and Me - Jaye Robin Brown 💙 What If It’s Us - Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera 💜 The Falling in Love Montage - Ciara Smyth

❤️ The Love Curse of Melody McIntyre - Robin Talley 🧡 Meet Cute Diary - Emery Lee 💛 Love & Other Natural Disasters - Misa Sugiura 💚 Date Me, Bryson Keller - Kevin van Whye 💙 Just Your Local Bisexual Disaster - Andrea Mosqueda 💜 Pumpkin by Julie Murphy

❤️ She Gets the Girl by Rachel Lippincott - Alyson Derrick 🧡 Home Field Advantage - Dahlia Adler 💛 The (Un)Popular Vote - Jasper Sanchez 💚 Melt With You - Jennifer Dugan 💙 Cool for the Summer by Dahlia Adler 💜 Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating - Adiba Jaigirdar

❤️ I Kissed Shara Wheeler - Casey McQuiston 🧡 Jay’s Gay Agenda - Jason June 💛 Triple Sec - TJ Alexander 💚 Finally Fitz - Marisa Kanter 💙 I’ll Be the One - Lyla Lee 💜 This Is Kind of an Epic Love Story - Kacen Callender

❤️ May the Best Man Win - ZR Ellor 🧡 One Last Stop - Casey McQuiston 💛 Late Bloomer - Mazey Eddings 💚 The Fiancee Farce - Alexandria Bellefleur 💙 Stars Collide - Rachel Lacey 💜 Truly, Madly, Deeply - Alexandria Bellefleur

[mermaidsirennikita]

Any recs for books with love scenes in a memorable, non-bedroom location? Clandestine or just random settings.

For sure!

Historical:

Glory and the Master of Shadows by Grace Callaway has Wei give Glory oral sex up against the wall a few feet away from her parents' bedroom (and their door is open). Shall always remember THAT lol

Grace's The Duke Redemption has a (somewhat rough) BJ scene when the hero and heroine are in a cage surrounded by onlookers lmao

Never Say Never to an Earl by Grace Callaway has the hero deflower the heroine like... outdoors... against like a wall... and it certainly doesn't stay clandestine for very long. It's implied that the hero is having something of a manic episode (he has bipolar disorder--the heroine isn't aware, they're both consenting, to be clear) and I remember being a little shocked that it went THAT far in an"well that escalated quickly" way.

The Duke Gets Even by Joanna Shupe has the beeeest pool sex scene ever--it's the heroine's indoor pool (well, her dad's, but that didn't stop 'em). Oral sex for both

Hotel of Secrets by Diana Biller has the hero eat the heroine out in a closet--she's teaching him how to do such as that

Wicked in His Arms by Stacy Reid actually has the hero DEFLOWER the heroine in a closet, then promptly get caught chasing after her while she's crying by his mom, hence a shotgun wedding

A Daring Pursuit by Kate Bateman has the recently mentioned "doggy style in the woods and a bear is nearby" scene

Actually, In Which Margo Halifax Earns her Shocking Reputation by Alexandra Vasti ALSO has a doggy style in the woods scene

A Rogue's Rules for Seduction by Eva Leigh has the hero eat the heroine out in like... a courtyard, I wanna say? It's the one where he bloodies his own knees doing it, so he's kneeling on a rough surface lmao

The Duke in Question by Amalie Howard has that "she's deflowered bent over and braced against a tree" scene. Also, they're chasing a criminal at the time lol

The Hawk by Monica McCarty is one of the BEST for this--the hero and heroine have sex on a raft in the middle of a storm because that... calms her down...?

The Return of the Duke by Grace Callaway. They have sex (her first time) against a tree in the middle of the night, then go to sleep up against said tree... which leads to consequences...

Never Cross a Highlander by Lisa Rayne has waterfall sex, I believe!

A Caribbean Heiress in Paris by Adriana Herrera has a fingerbang (to completion) on the Eiffel Tower

In Ravished by Amanda Quick the hero famously deflowers the heroine in a cave because what else do you do during that time

A Shore Thing by Joanna Lowell has one of my FAVORITE recent editions, in which the hero and heroine have sex in a VICTORIAN BATHING MACHINE

Paranormal:

No Rest for the Wicked by Kresley Cole features a mile-high tittyfuck

Wicked Deeds on a Winter's Night by Kresley Cole features a sex scene in which the heroine has the hero bound to a tree by magical vines... and she just.... backs onto it... (to be fair, this is all very much for his own good)

A Demon's Guide to Wooing a Witch by Sarah Hawley has the hero and heroine have sex in a camping tent lmao (and he eats ass during, which somehow seems more impressive in a tent)

Fantasy:

The Witch Walker series by Charissa Weaks also has tent sex! Which is especially fun because they have to be quiet, AND the heroine stumbles out of the tent and runs into her ex... after which the hero is like "WHAT'S HAPPENING" and also leaves the tent, shirtless, pants undone, with scratches all over his chest

A Fated Inked in Blood by Danielle L. Jensen has like... outdoor sex (including cave sex, I think) but what really caught my imagination was the hero fingerbanging the heroine under the furs~ where everyone, including I believe her husband (his father) could potentially hear them

Kerri Maniscalco's Throne of the Fallen has some INTENSE sex on a throne

Ruby Dixon's Aspects and Anchors series has a lot of sex scenes in a lot of memorable locations. Bound to the Battle God probably has the most famous one, where the hero and heroine are in this hall that's meant to incite lust in everyone, and she's like, crawling all over him, begging for something, and he's like "UGH. FINE" and just fingers her lol

Contemporary:

A Merry Little Meet Cute by Sierra Simone and Julie Murphy has a fingerbang scene in like... I believe it's a makeup/dressing room scene?

The Hookup by Kristen Callihan a scene in which the hero bends the heroine over in the AV room lmao

Act Your Age by Eve Dangerfield has the hero and heroine hook up at the workplace, I think a back room? Because the just! Can't! Hold back!

Reckless by Stella Rhys has another workplace sex scene--in this case, in his office because they have to get it out of their systems (there's also a scene later where he plays with her while on a contentious work call, because like, he's so stressed lmao--also in his office; and I think they also have sex in a public bathroom at one point)

Erotic Romance:

Sierra Simone specific--

Priest: Sex in a priest's office, sex (famously) on the altar, and MORE

Sinner: Sex in a convent kitchen, and I believe at least some fooling around in a back room at a rollerskating rink lol

Saint: Sex outdoors while they're on a tour of monasteries lol

New Camelot: Sex in a forest in the middle of a war zone, sex in the Oval Office, so on

The Lyonesse Trilogy: A lot of public sex (Mark and Isolde consummate their marriage literally on stage), sex literally in the middle of a club while dancing

The Thornchapel series has some extremely memorable sex scene in extremely memorable places... Including group sex in a sacred chapel waking dark supernatural forces!

Mafia Target by Mila Finelli has sex in a public park while some random creeper is watching (they know it)

Sara Cate's Salacious Players series has a lot of "sex club in front of a bunch of onlookers" scenes

The Professional by Kresley Cole also has a "let's fuck while people watch on the other side of the glass" sex club scene