#Romantic Suspence

[blam-marie]

Summer is almost upon us! Looking for your next beach read?

How about picking up SKIN DEEP, a queer polyamory romance / supernatural murder mystery that will charm even the most reticent of readers!

—

Three times over the summer, the lifeless body of a Selkie was found dumped in the river. Naked, and with a missing pelt.

Louison is sent by her clan to investigate those murders and visit the Selkie’s brand of justice upon the one responsible. But soon enough she meets two charming strangers who everyone in town seems to be falling in love with… including herself.

—

Paperback available on Amazon and Ebook available everywhere that sells them! Check out blanchetmarie.com/en for full blurb and details

[mlmopinionsblog]

BOOK REVIEW: CALL HER JANIE BY S.R. FABRICO

RATING: Call Her Janie by S.R. Fabrico was a great read. It has everything you could want, a small-town feel, suspense, romance, and new beginnings. The book is under four hundred pages, so it was a quick read, two days. I was hooked from beginning to end. This book was a lot to take in. We have Lizzie, a successful and young marketing executive of Gray Stone Marketing in NYC. A woman who…

[ohmightydevviepuu]

(if i fall asleep) the shadows win / chapter eight

[artwork from @mariakov81 ]

chapter one | chapter two | chapter three | chapter four | chapter five | chapter six | chapter seven

Private investigator Emma Swan is working the case that will make her career when everything goes to hell and a meeting turns into a crime scene. Her mentor is dead, her client is injured, and an innocent woman is about to be found guilty of a crime she didn’t commit.

The police have no leads and no suspects, so Emma launches her own investigation. She doesn’t want–or need–help from anybody, but she’s in the deep end, the water’s over her head, and the killer could be looking for her next.

Enter Killian Jones. But now they’re both in danger–and their best chance at survival is if they save each other.

--

The sound of her scream was what woke her.  It chased her out of a dream—a nightmare—Neal showing up in the street and Killian chasing after him.  She closed her eyes and saw Felix with a gun.  She blinked and she saw Milah on the ground.  She dragged her palms against her jeans and felt drying blood on her fingertips and an urgent need to throw up.

She swallowed it, taking deep, gulping breaths of air.  Emma opened her eyes and saw twenty pages of ‘m’ on her notes app where she’d fallen asleep.

She didn’t hear his approach; the touch on her shoulder made her jump.  Emma tried to hide her disappointment when she saw Nemo, not Killian.  Nemo, who had escorted her from the street and ensconced her in the vintage car—well loved, cared for, the leather smelling like new—before she could take two steps into the street after Neal.  After Killian.  Her only view of him as he drove was in profile, his focus wholly on the road.  His eyes hidden behind the dark sunglasses so she didn’t know if he was watching her seething silence.

“Think about it, Miss Swan,” he’d said in his maddeningly calm, logical voice.  “You thought they might be following you, and now you know for sure.”

“Where are we going?”

“Back to my place.  It’s safe there.  We can wait for Killian to come back and explain himself.”

“Killian thinks I’m the one who need a bodyguard,” Emma said.

“I would guard that boy with my life, Miss Swan.  Just as he would for you, I take it.  Oh—and turn off your phone, please.  Just in case.”

There was nothing to say to that—nothing that didn’t sound snippy.  So she’d stayed quiet and locked herself in the small bedroom, setting everything up around her to work.

Something hot spilled on her lap and Emma froze:  Tea, not blood.  Nemo’s sheepish smile softened his face into something less on Her Majesty’s Secret Service and more approachable; kind and caring and open.  She watched in detached, fascinated horror as the brown splotches of spilling tea bloomed across the sheets of paper she’d so carefully laid out.

This fucking pile of paper.

God, she wished Milah were here.  They understood each other—even when they drove each other crazy—and she’d been found, her life ended,  because of this fucking pile of paper.

read the rest on AO3

[absolutebl]

helloo...

i know i'm late, but i just binge watching Triage last night. i kinda love it that the mystery about the story revealed gradually. and the leads had nice chemistry, despite the low heat. and i enjoyed bingeing on it and pulling an all nighter.

so, i'd like to ask you, do you have any recommendations on bl series like Triage that are completed or ongoing, that the show would be enjoyable on binge watching?

it's super fine if you don't answer this.

thank youu and have a nice day.

10 BL Series to Binge Watch with Complex story elements

Okay, I'm not really a binger so these are my best guesses at keeping the tension alive. Also it seems like you want something on the meaty end in terms of length so only Thai and Taiwanese stuff qualified.

Case study: Triage (so obviously that would be on this list)

1 Until We Meet Again

YouTube

Without question, a work of narrative genius with a powerful and cohesive romantic backbone and stellar performances. It is (to date) the only Thai BL (of c.250 watched) that I’ve rated a 10/10 predominantly on the basis of story structure. That said it is also very well cast (and it’s a BIG cast), with solid production values, and enduring pair branding as well as being the best Thai BL from a storytelling perspective. I think the story is good enough to carry the tensions. I also binges this on my first watch (it was already out when I discovered it) so I can attest to it being bingable. More discussion on why I love it so much here.

2 He's Coming to Me

YouTube

Boy and ghost boy fall in love, must solve ghost’s murder. Peak pining but also pretty tame, features my favorite sweet but important coming out sequence. The third in my precious triumvirate of unbeatable Thai BLs, that are only nominally BL because the story, acting, and production values are so good. (Together with UWMA & 1k*).

3 Not Me

YouTube

GMMTV gave us a dark disestablishment narrative (in a time of civil unrest) with established queer award-winning director Anucha and starring the biggest guns of BL, OffGun and THIS WAS AN AMAZING THING to get to experience at the time - nerve racking but remarkable. But was it ACTUALLY BL? It certainly has a lot of BL elements, but in the end romance was not what this show was about, or even what it was genuinely trying to be as a performance piece. Still a remarkable moment in Thai cinema, certainly worth your time. Don’t worry, it all ends happily. Full review.

4 I Feel You Linger in the Air

grey (YouTube for some)

I truly loved this time travel romance BUT for the ending it would have gotten a 10/10 from me. IFYLITA is an exquisite BL, from filming techniques to narrative framework (much like Until We Meet Again). Steeped in history and family drama it edges into lakorn (but no as much as To Sir With Love and with way less scenery chewing). This is an elegant and classy BL… from Thailand which normally doesn't even try for classy. If HEA's are NOT important to you, you'll be fine, but I struggled. More here.

5 Kiseki: Dear to Me

Gaga & Viki Y

The plot is totally ridiculous and slightly unhinged, but that’s normal for Taiwan. It involves all the tropes under a very casual framework of gay mafia gangs + food = love. Absolutely every character is queer. There’s a gum-ball machine of cameos, elder gay rep, great chemistry from all pairs, and a KILLER side couple. As a result Kiseki is a poster child for Taiwanese BL, and I happen to love Taiwanese BL. Bonus? They also managed to END IT WELL, which we cannot expect from Taiwan. (Triggers for knife play, child abuse, lingering trauma.)

6 Make a Wish

grey (Trailer)

(from Sammon - Manner of Death & Triage) about a doctor who can see the dead and strikes a bargain with a wish-granting irreverent tree angel to try and cure himself - naturally they fall in love. Stars Fluke Natouch opposite not Ohm, but who cares bc Fluke has chemistry with everybody. Once again the Thai afterlife is incredibly bureaucratic but I enjoyed the premise and the unfolding of the story (it’s not predictable but still satisfying and with nice little twist). I like that the doctor is just gay af and has a fag hag bestie and everything. The cast is excellent but the comedic stylings are often too overblown and tonally off. It had sad parts and did make me cry but is ultimately happy with a great sex scene, good smiley kisses, and all the agency.

7 HIStory 3: Trapped

Viki

Basically the definition of enemies to lovers from Lin Pei Yu. This is a cop + the mafia man he is chasing but WAIT, they fall in love. Added bonus side couple: assassin and nerd cop ALSO falling in love. It’s great. All the leads are stellar. Its high heat, fun action, and a bit of a mystery drama but pretty about all of it. My only warning is that the main couple doesn’t entirely end up together, it’s implied, but… amorphous ending.

8 Never Let Me Go

YouTube

Bodyguard romance where poor boy must watch over rich boy for family obligation reasons. Simple premise well executed with a few bumps that made it feel like it was trying to tackle too much (when it wasn’t). Still, an enjoyable show that benefited from being handed to PondPhuwin who did a stellar job with their roles and chemistry. Of GMMTV handing out new series to established pairs in 2023 this is one of the most successful IMHO. It's typically Thai in that it's a bit bloated and has a confusing plot, but at least it HAD a plot and the central relationship is solid and loyal. The Our Skyy 2 follow up is great too. And very much adds to the cannon in a fun way rather than feeling superfluous - making this show ultimately 14 eps rather than 12.

9 The Eclipse

YouTube

GMMTV does gay Blacklist with a good boy/bad boy pairing. This is a good show but the cast is excellent and the leads are absolutely flawless, which elevates it beyond just "a good show." We got a nuanced and multifaceted burgeoning relationship: philosophical (and socio-political) conflict contrasted to moments of empathy; flirtation contrasted to moments of genuine affection, plus plenty of angst. This narrative is less about love than it is about courage and tenderness. However, near the end the pacing was off and the plot frustrating. Still, this is an enjoyable watch, with a finale that features verbal consent and a fun blooper reel.

10 Ghost Host Ghost House

YouTube

This is light horror combined with family drama built around a well executed BL trough-line that felt honestly queer with fantastic chemistry from the lead pair. (I hope that we see more of them.) Pluem delivers the softest most seductive krap ever, Tod Techit (Kewin) is one of the prettiest humans on the planet, and watching these boys flirt over noodles is an unalloyed pleasure. Use of I/you pronouns is super interesting and cute as well. For me, personally, the surrounding cast, premise, and story didn’t resonate but if you like a touch of gothic in your BL this might appeal.

BONUS!

3 Will Be Free

YouTube

Queer AF crime thriller about three 20 somethings on the run after accidentally killing an assassin: a grifter, a nerdy mafia kid, and a stripper. They're chased by more assassins out for revenge.

It’s actually a remarkable piece of storytelling, using a pressure cooker of tension and suspense to bring about investigations into what love, romance, friendship, and identity actually mean. This show probably doesn’t qualify as BL but it does qualify as very very queer.

What it does well is examine many different aspects of queer identity, morality, and life choices based on repression and or acceptance of that identity using the framework of a crime triller.

It’s an adventure narrative, our three main characters are on the run together, being chased by assassins who are themselves dealing with the grief that results from love, all kinds of love. Meanwhile the 3 protagonists fall in love with each other and explore the boundaries and meaning of friendship/love.

Manner of Death

WeTV

Gay romantic suspense series with added cactus baby. Doctor & Mafia boy can't keep hands off each other, so also end up with chili plant baby.

Am I making sense? No? Well neither does it, but ho boy is it fun to watch MaxTul do... whatever it is they're doing.

I like MoD a lot but I’m conflicted over it being actual BL. It’s a great gay romantic suspense, although the mystery element is its primary weakness.

MaxTul, the Kings of Chemistry, are, of course, perfect and perfectly cast (and chemically unfair), but their romance thread is more a distraction than an addition. Still, I could watch them make-out the phonebook. Watch along here.

(source)

[elcycyromem]

LOL your always holding me you big scary monstr you. fatal romantic suspence

[avonne-writes]

Do you have any headcanons about dates for the boys? Modern or canon era. Like first date jitters or places they like to go or something

Oh, I loved thinking about this!

In both canon and modern era:

Ice cream - Gale loves ice cream and Bucky loves everything sweet, so this is the perfect date for them. Bucky always tries the most extra flavour available. Gale goes for something classic. In modern era, they always try each other's, although Bucky needs to convince Gale sometimes.

Movies - I headcanon that they both love movies, although for slightly different reasons. Bucky likes the cool characters, the action/suspence/humor and the effects. Gale likes it when a movie is immersive and makes him look at life a little differently after. In a modern AU, Bucky sometimes tries to convince Gale to watch certain movies just because he knows Gale won't care that much about their plot and will make out with him in the theater.

Road trips - Gale loves being driven around, and he finds something really comforting in sitting alone in a car with his love. Bucky loves driving and singing along to the radio until Gale actually joins him in it, and taking Gale to beautiful places where he finds peace.

Romantic dinner at home - especially in canon era, because they can’t really be themselves at a restaurant. Sometimes, they make dinner a special occasion, perhaps not with candles but with soft music in the background, and they will pretend whatever Gale made is restaurant quality, and one of them will play the gentleman walking their date home but it's actually straight to the bedroom, where they usually make slow love to each other. There are times when they just cuddle though, and in canon era, they discuss their sadness over not being able to love each other in public.

This ask actually inspired me to draft Buck and Bucky's first date in my HS AU...

[acourtofthought]

The one thing I don't understand is that in acowar it seemed like there was some progress for elucien and then in the next books they seem to move backwards. It is the one thing I don't really like and I hope that is just a way to create some sort of suspence to stretch their story until their book

Nessian ACOWAR:

Nessian ACOMAF:

SJM did the exact same with Nesta and Cassian's story because she doesn't typically start a pairings romantic arc with them on good terms. Especially for humans turned fae who are still struggling to come to terms with the loss of their humanity and feeling drawn to certain fae males from the moment they met them.

[skewiie]

Ahhh thank you sm for answering my ask lmaoo

Also indecisiveness I can relate so much its totally understandable please keep up with the cool work!! I think I might just die from the suspence tbh and also because I'm a sucker for happy endings and right now isn't looking to happy for Chan romantically 😭😭😭

DJDFHJDSF I KNOOOWWW... it breaks my heart too that things aren't looking up for poor channie right now,, but i promise they will!!!! he'll get his happy ending too, he just needs to be a bit of a lovestruck sap first i think ^^

[blam-marie]

Reminder that my romantic suspense novel SKIN DEEP comes out March 18th! Pre-order the ebook now or purchase the paperback on the release date :)

[Image ID: A book quote from the upcoming novel SKIN DEEP. It says: Three times already, Louison had been send to land to investigate the disappearance of a sibling. This time, however, the problem at hand was much worse than a missing Selkie, trapped by a human out of cruelty disguised as love. There was no one to save and no sibling to reunite with their family. Louison, for the first time in her life, had to solve a murder.]

[ovalleba]

A Safe Place #tour

   Can Maddi keep Kat safe and protect her own heart?   A Safe Place Philly Heat Series #6 by Becky Flade Genre: Romantic Suspense   15-year-old runaway Kat Anderson witnesses a gruesome murder. Social worker Maddi O’Hara is called in to provide emergency housing for the flight risk teen. While Maddi works to reunite Kat and her brother, Nathaniel, it becomes clear the man the police are…

[liliac-dreamer]

Oh God, the suspence!!! 🤩

Of course he loves her, but boy am I glad he finally admitted it (at least to himself)!

Can't wait to see the drama come along, we all know uncle Sal is going to tell him the scumbag's name, if only cause he too wants to see that man pay for the pain he put his niece through!

Last but not least, as much as i'm an incurable romantic, when they're inevitably going to talk about the fact that Johnny lied? You'll find me there, first row GAWKING to see the mess unfurl in front of me, eating popcorn! The tension, the fight, the (hopefully) making up that will follow!!! 💕

Minors DNI.

Chapter 9

Johnny stroked Amelia's long, dark brown hair as her head rested on his chest. They had just finished a rather passionate session of love making and were lying in Johnny's bed. She sighed and snuggled deeper into him, content with her man.

He was glad she felt safe, but the memory of what transpired between him and Malone the other night weighed on him. Who had hurt her? Should he ask her? Would she tell him? How would he be able to protect her if Malone did want to hurt her? He couldn't be by her side 24/7.

So many questions, but no clear answer came to mind. The only thing he could think of was something he didn't want to do. And that was to break up with her, if only to keep her safe.

"John?" she said, breaking him from away from his thoughts.

"Yeah, sweetheart?" he replied.

"Is something wrong?" she asked, shifting herself to look down upon his face.

"No," he said, gazing up into her soft brown eyes. He brought up a hand and caressed her cheek. "Why would you think that?"

"I dunno, you seem sad some how," she said, worriedly.

"Nah, I'm not sad...I'm just...thinking," he said.

"About?"

He sighed heavily and decided to ask. "Amelia, I wanna know who hurt you. Who cut you with the glass?"

Amelia bit her bottom lip and cast her eyes down.

"You can tell me, I'm not gonna be mad," he said.

"I...I'm not worried about you getting mad, John. Look, why does it matter? It was just some loser who wanted to control me, and it's in my past now," she said.

"No, it's not," he said.

"What?"

"Amelia, was the guy in a gang call the Vipers?"

Amelia nodded her head slowly. "Yeah, but my mother didn't know that. He was the son of her friend's friend. Said he was single and had money. My mother is always about the money," Amelia said, rolling her eyes. "Wait...how do you know he's in the Vipers?"

"I had a run in with the gang leader, Malone. He knows about you and me, and...and, well, I don't know how else to tell you. He threatened you."

Amelia frowned and looked confused. "John, are you...are you in a gang? I thought you just had a biker's club?"

Johnny brought a hand up and rubbed his face. Amelia was a good girl, he shouldn't be getting her involved in his shit.

"It was, but it isn't. Look, don't worry about it. I just wanna know the name of the guy who hurt you, okay?"

Amelia rolled off of Johnny and got out of bed. She wrapped the bed sheet around her body and folded her arms. "John, are you telling me...are you saying you have done illegal things?"

"That's not the point of this conversation," Johnny said, sitting up in bed and resting his arms on his knees.

"Well, I think it is, John. Because if I give you that name, I want to know what you're going to do. If you hurt that man, or whatever, don't you think the gang leader will retaliate? Don't you think he'd make sure to hurt me?"

Johnny paused, taking this into consideration. "I ain't planning on hurting the guy, Amelia."

"Then why do you want his name? John, I don't want to get mixed up in this all over again. Please just let it go, okay?"

"What do you mean by 'all over again'?" Johnny questioned.

Amelia nibbled on her lower lip again. He could tell she was trying to find the words to explain. "After he hurt me, the Vipers sort of harassed me for a bit. My Uncle Sal, he finally got involved. My family, they, uh...they have some connections. So it stopped. And Uncle Sal, he told me to just keep clear of people related to gangs. John, please tell me you're not involved in a gang? That the Vandals aren't a gang?" she asked, pleadingly.

Johnny didn't know what to say. The Vandals weren't a club anymore. They had a chop shop and sold stolen parts for cash. They didn't exactly hurt people for money, but if someone didn't pay fair or tried to get out of a deal, well, Johnny made sure to collect.

"Nah, we aren't Amelia. Like I said, don't worry about it. If you don't want to give me the name, that's fine," he said. Amelia nodded with relief and returned to the bed. Johnny took her back in his arms and kissed the top of her head.

He didn't feel great lying to her. But what else could he do? He loved her, that much he knew. Maybe if he just kept her out of that part of his life, it'd work out somehow.

Now, as for the name of the piece of shit that hurt her, well, he knew exactly how to get it. Good ol' Uncle Sal.

@potter-solomons

[absolutebl]

Manner of Death - It’s A Murdery Series

Episode 1 Analysis

I’m not sure I can do my normal flippant BL tropes analysis + pop culture crit with Manner of Death. Because: 

This is not BL, it’s romantic suspense 

Different tropes for different folks 

We are also in cozy mystery city, sweetheart

Or should I say cozy mystery small town?

Anywhowhatwhenwherewhyhow... 

Romantic Suspense in a BL blog? 

This is MaxTul and I have been waiting YEARS for them to appear in something decent, so sure, here we go...  

What’s romantic suspense? 

Romantic suspense is a literary sub genre of romance fiction in which both the romance AND the suspense/mystery/thriller elements are integral parts of the plot. This means that if you remove the romance thread the story would fall apart. And/or if you remove the crime element the story falls apart. It’s primarily consumed by romance readers. 

Why do I think Manner of Death qualifies as Romantic Suspense? 

Well at first I thought we were getting a cozy mystery with a gay romance sub-plot. (Which means if the romance element is removed, the story could still occur.) But after watching episode one, I think it’s actually romantic suspense because:

So much of this episode was built using romance tropes as well as mystery tropes. 

The gaze of the filming lens was very romance-driven in terms of lingering on longing glances and shirtless Dr Bun. 

We followed Dr Bun into his bed. Suspense (even cozies) rarely follows the protag into household intimacy zones in the first episode. (Victims = yes, protags = no.) Romance almost always does. 

Finally, we have got a kiss in the first installment for Dr Bun, plus a lot of screen time spent on their meet cute, and that kind of pacing indicates romance. 

Why is it EXCITING that Manner of Death is romantic suspense? 

Well, romantic suspense is a HUGELY hot genre amongst readers that has gotten VERY little attention from Hollywood. (Something like True Romance qualifies as do a few others but there isn’t much out there...) There’s also little to NO queer rep in suspense films in general (except as plot drivers and victims). 

Generally speaking, the Hollywood film industry prefers straight up suspense in which the heterosexual love story, while it can be present for the protagonist, doesn’t drive plot and usually doesn’t end happily (think Mission Impossible franchise). Or the alternate which is cozy mystery TV series, which I’ll address in a moment. 

In short? This is a massive untapped market in visual media. 

Cozy Mystery 

Cozy mysteries, AKA cozies, are a sub-genre of crime fiction in which:  

sex and violence usually occur off stage (AKA don’t be too graphic)

the detective is an amateur sleuth 

the crime and detection take place in a small, socially intimate community.

While I think Manner of Death is demonstrating all core elements of a cozy, I don’t think it is going to be a cozy because they wouldn’t have hired MaxTul if they weren’t going to give us some serious skinship (violating the too graphic rule above). And it has already gotten a bit violent for cozies. 

That said, it’s a REALLY smart thing to put a romantic suspense into a cozy framework because...

Cozy mysteries are SUPER popular, often times with exactly the same demographic that tends to watch BL and read romantic suspense. Which is to say: mostly straight women of a certain age. (What Hollywood calls the apple pie demographic. Don’t blame the messenger.) 

Also cozies are more popular as TV series, rather than one-off films. And what do we have with Manner of Death? A SERIES! 

So I’m calling Manner of Death as:

A gay romantic suspense series in a cozy mystery framework. 

And if they can stick to that, and have done their marketing properly, they could have a run away hit on their hands. 

There are some things to be wary of: 

The lingering gaze and romantic lens can upset mystery watchers, who are probably going to be coming to this show fresh (expecting a cozy) not understanding what it is. 

Also the captioning of the medical terminology and awkward phrasing of certainly dialogue may turn these viewers off. They are less forgiving than BL watchers. 

The director is going to have to tread a VERY thin line with romantic suspense to keep new (non-BL) viewers. As is the script - the mystery is going to need to be executed well. Finally, much as we like Dr Oak and the comedic element, that style of humor probably won’t translate well to a mystery audience, so I’m hoping they pull back a bit on that. 

Some stuff I really loved? 

The soundtrack. It’s way more mature than BL and I am really happy to hear music that doesn’t interfere with my enjoyment or beat me over the head with its mistrust of the actor’s ability to execute emotion.

The filming style, they have left off triple shots and other BL fillers. 

The lack of comedic sound effects. I have learned not to mind them in BL romantic comedies but they have no place in romantic suspense. 

Lack of product placement. Although I worry about how they are funding this baby. 

Tul’s acting. I seriously did not think he had it in him and I am really excited to see him carry this thing. I was confused as to why they gave Dr Bun to him and not Max, but now I totally get it. Tul has a soft sweetness to him that Max doesn’t and it’s perfect for this character. I am already very worried about him. That’s one of the dramatic tensions of a cozy - fish-out-of-water driven concern for the protagonist. 

My Feels?

This is going to be a wild, crazy, sexy ride. Even if it jumps the shark I’m excited to see where it fails. And I mean that lovingly. 

From a purely academic perspective it’s so cool to watch something totally new, yet based on so much trope-riddled history. 

And on that note... TROPES! 

Mystery & Suspense Tropes  We Got In Episode One 

Opening on a murder

Fridge girl (see women in refrigerators) 

Nosy reporter 

Medical evidence explained 

Female friend in danger

Amateur sleuth 

Small town sins AKA the dark underbelly  

Public argument

Zoom in on clues 

I know the victim 

Murder disguised as suicide 

Love interest is a suspect 

Romance Tropes We Got In Episode One 

Meet Cute 

Sexual tension 

Secretive brooding love interest 

You can’t go home again 

Witty banter & innuendo 

Everyone wants the protagonist 

Get his shirt off ASAP 

First kiss in under 10%

BL Tropes We Got In Episode One 

(what you thought I’d just forget my one true love?) 

Faen fatal 

Baby is a floppy drunk 

Proximity alert 

Post-it love note 

Touch my lip and think of kissing

Head touch (the ”you have something in your hair” variant) 

In conclusion Manner of Death may be the death of me, but what a way to go. 

[fasternneverscared]

Book 27-28/50: Slay and Ruin by Laurelin Paige.

[riley1cannon]

Let’s see... @mariaslozak, @honeybeeshepherd, @vintagecameoheart?  You might be interested in this. (Maybe some others? It’s always hard to know who to tag.)

The Tamarind Seed seems to ring a bit of a bell, but I don’t believe I’ve ever read anything by her. It sounds like her work might fall in with that of Helen MacInness (also forgotten?), Phyllis Whitney, and Mary Stewart. Looks like there’s historical fiction, too, although not strictly historial romance.

[mirrigold]

Irish mythology provides an unusual angle for this assassin romance!

Irish mythology provides an unusual angle for this assassin romance!

Hug It Out by Davidson King My rating: 5 of 5 stars This was even more my kind of thing than book one was and I absolutely loved that the author went to one of Unseelie Court’s more obscure Irish mythological figures for her assassin’s nickname and modus operandi. Vicious but brilliant. The Dullahan isn’t something to be messed with and is believed to be a big influence on the story of the…