#Diverse Romance

[amysbooksnthings]

read the rainbow

just in case you're still looking for LGBTQIA+ romance books

[lady-t-musings]

You probably shouldn’t just link with strangers in the street, but then again, everyone’s a stranger till you connect *pewpew*

Ck MagicalMashup! Link in bio :) or like copy paste https://LadyTMusings.art

[flaviathebibliophile]

Mid-Year Freak Out Tag 2024

A bit late on the Mid-Year Freak Out Tag this year. But I suppose it’s better than being months late! For those of you who haven’t read my previous freak out tags yet, here are my Mid-Year Freak Out Tag posts from 2018, 2019, 2022, and 2023! Continue reading Mid-Year Freak Out Tag 2024

[ezichiny]

Pride and Protest by Nikki Payne

TITLE: Pride and Protest by Nikki Payne My rating: 4 of 5 stars Genre: Modern retelling, contemporary romance, Jane Austen retelling, diverse romance Format: Paperback (401 pages) Published: November 15, 2022 by Berkeley Blurb: Liza B–The Only DJ That Gives a Jam—wants to take her neighborhood back from the soulless property developer dropping unaffordable condos on every street corner in DC. But…

[bree-unabashedly]

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[somewherelostinbooks]

Tastes Like Shakkar- Review

Tastes Like Shakkar By Nisha Sharma Genre: Contemporary Romance Series: If Shakespeare Were an Auntie #2 Publisher: Avon Publication Date: August 1,2023 Rating: 4.75 Stars Amazon Indiebound Description: In the hilarious follow-up to the breakout rom-com Dating Dr. Dil, Nisha Sharma adds shakkar and mirch to Shakespeare’s iconic comedy Much Ado About Nothing for one sweet and spicy love…

[reesourire]

Cover Reveal: Friend Zoned by Evelyn Sola

#CoverReveal: Friend Zoned by @WritesEvelyn

We are so excited to share the cover reveal of Friend Zoned by Evelyn Sola. Fans who enjoy diverse contemporary romances will sink their teeth into this steamy, friends to lovers romance. Keep scrolling for more details about this sexy cover. Title: Friend Zoned Author: Evelyn Sola Release Date: 06/02/2023 Genres: Contemporary Romance Page Count: 126,000 words Trope: Friends to Lovers, Sports…

[black-is-beautiful18]

This. She also said if she were to include Black ppl and POC in her books then she’d have to find reasons as to why ppl like the Bridgerton’s wouldn’t be racist to them…Like just make them good ppl. It’s not rocket science. This is also why I think her writing the Queen Charolette book is absolutely insane and just stupid. You’re making all these poor excuses as to why you don’t want to include nonwhite characters when you can say that you just don’t want to write them🙄.

Ok, so apparently the Bridgerton books are being reprinted with the cast on the covers? Please know that if you’ve never read the books that this is false advertisement. Bridgerton is super white. If you want diverse period dramas I suggest reading Beverly Jenkins, Alyssa Cole, Lena Hart, Courtney Milan, Erica Ridley, Sapna Bhog, Dahlia Rose or Jeannie Lin. The author of Bridgerton also gives off racist vibes due to her “Black ppl don’t fit in my world” comment around the time the first season came out.

[vaguely-concerned]

on the one hand I think inner demons could stand to have a bit more romanced rook specific content, but on the other hand the underlying in-built implication that 'yours is the one true voice of comfort and safety in my inner world' is a sentiment and intimacy so way beyond the romantic or the platonic or any secret third thing you could care to name that it makes me lose my entire poor little mind a bit. it's so big and fundamental — near-existential — that in that exact moment at least the distinctions kind of seem irrelevant.

all the people lucanis' mind conjures up along the way are relationships he has that are unavoidably mixed and fraught in some ways even when they're also full of love (they are fraught BECAUSE they're full of love) — the good in them inseparable from things that hurt him at the same time. (it's about: the basic disorganized attachment patterns this poor guy is dragging around with him. careful with those, they're dellamorte heirlooms. what you love also inevitably hurts you and you won't be allowed to have one without the other, you have to surrender parts of your soul to hold on to what little you have left: this is the story up until now.) and the idea that rook isn't that to him — that beneath the fear of wanting them when romanced (which is more its own separate thing because within this psychology, actively wanting something and not just clinging on for dear life to even a meager status quo lest you lose it is in itself dangerous bordering on catastrophic), this is a relationship where there isn't resentment, or guilt, or shame, or dread, or rage, or self-hate, or any of the other emotions that keep him paralyzed, unable to move this way or that. no debts, nothing owed of yourself and your soul's substance except what you can freely and safely and happily give. love and freedom don't coexist — but, I mean, you're almost starting to make me think........... unless...👀👀👀. the unconditional and undramatic 'you are here and I am here with you, you can be exactly how you are right now with me and it's safe for us both even though you're afraid it won't be, I'm not going anywhere' acceptance rook shows him here that he returns to them in the big romance scene, when it's rook who needs it. the way he's just. standing there in the center of it all, like a child desperately helplessly waiting to be found, hiding in the place he hopes you'll know to look first. (rook does know. it's one of the first things they say in there.)

in short the most important room in his little mind palace for the romance is the very first room — the one where rook isn't. where, in fact, rook cannot be, because they disprove the entire structure of the place with their existence and presence in his life. with everyone else he's putting words in their mouths about what they think of him, and rook is the one who actually gets to come in to speak their own words to him — and have him listen. ('he'll listen to you, he always listens to you', 'your voice is a comfort'.) of course rook isn't present anywhere else in there — at the risk of stating the obvious to a tedious degree, they aren't one of the locks, they're bringing the key. in the very finest 'the messenger and the message' sort of way.

[amaranthdahlia]

they are teenage lovers, they are girlfriends, they are old man yaoi, they are ancient yuri, they are nb4nb, they are a situationship, they are married, they are divorced, they are remarried, they are forbidden lovers, they are best friends to lovers, they are biblical partners, they are queer, they are eldritch abominations in love

[amysbooksnthings]

romance books for PRIDE

[bookshelf-in-progress]

I love how a well-written romance is so often structured as a mystery. A person starts with a certain idea about another person, and over the course of the story, they uncover more evidence that gives them a fuller picture of who the other person truly is. They learn about layers to the personality and backstory that give the other person more depth. They learn how the other person's personality meshes with theirs. Even the third-act misunderstanding fits the mystery structure--it looks like they've uncovered the final secret to the other person's identity, which is that they're not the worthy person they seemed to be, but then discover that they misinterpreted that evidence, or the other person takes steps to apologize and repair the level of trust. When the mystery is resolved, they've reached a full understanding of each other and know they've found a partner they can trust their whole future to.

[flaviathebibliophile]

My Top Reads of 2023

Here we are…another year gone. I honestly don’t know where 2023 went. It moved so slowly while in retrospect feeling like it went so quickly. It’s quite bizarre if you ask me. As I sat down to work on this post, I realized that I somehow missed creating a post for 2022. I did list my top reads of 2022 on my Instagram (you can still see them in Story highlights), but I missed adding them to the…

[poeisatransfemmelesbian]

'Luther is aroace so doesn't have sex', 'Luther is the horniest man alive' NO NO THERE'S A THIRD BETTER OPTION

Luther is aroace by human standards but loves making his cats happy, so is more than comfortable to pet them and give them affection

He finds it adorable when they react to physical stimuli (including sexual) so helps them with that when they need it :(

He's done so much research about bdsm related stuff for them because, let's be honest, Nyon's freak is unmatchable and he thinks it's cute

[bree-unabashedly]

‘Researching the time period and reflecting on my family’s stories of Alexandria and the Nile Delta helped me find evidence of people who had lived their lives unapologetically despite their circumstances. And, often, in defiance of the commodification that prioritized industry over humanity.’

-from the Author Note of The Earl’s Egyptian Heiress, July 2023 Harlequin Historical, by Heba Helmy

[somewherelostinbooks]

Four Weddings to Fall in Love-Review

Four Weddings to Fall in Love By Jackie Lau Genre: Contemporary Romance Series: Weddings with the Moks #1 Publication Date: July 25,2023 Source: Received an ARC in exchange for an honest review Rating: 4.5 Stars Amazon Description: Max Mok has four weddings to attend this year…When I meet Kim Sung at a friend’s wedding, I don’t make the first move. God, no. But she’s delightful and…