#author: jackie lau

[battyaboutbooksreviews]

💜 Happy release week to Love, Lies, and Cherry Pie by Jackie Lau! @jackielaubooks

❓What's your favorite type of pie? Have you ever made one from scratch?

🦇 Writer and barista Emily Hung is tired of hearing about the great Mark Chan, the son of her parents’ friends. You’d think he single-handedly stopped climate change and ended child poverty from the way her mother raves about him. But in reality, he’s just a boring, sweater-vest-wearing engineer, and when they’re forced together at Emily’s sister’s wedding, it’s obvious he thinks he’s too good for her. But now that Emily is her family’s last single daughter, her mother is fixated on getting her married and she has her sights on Mark. There’s only one solution: convince Mark to be in a fake relationship with her long enough to put an end to her mom’s meddling. He reluctantly agrees. With each fake date, though, Emily realizes that Mark’s not quite what she assumed and maybe that argyle sweater isn’t so ugly after all.

🥧 New Adult 🥧 Rom-Com 🥧 Foodie 🥧 Writer FMC 🥧 Set in Canada 🥧 Fake Dating 🥧 Slow Burn 🥧 Pride and Prejudice Retelling 🥧 OWN Voices / AAPI Month Read 🥧 Dual POV

💜 For fans of My Big Fat Greek Wedding and Kim’s Convenience.

[authorkarajorgensen]

10 Books on my Wishlist in 2024

This week's post has 10 books I am dying to get my hands on, coming out in the first half of 2024.

As we head ever closer to the end of the year, I thought I might make a very non-exhaustive list of books that I am dying to get my hands on when they come out next year. To be clear, this is definitely not every book I have been eyeing, and if it was, you probably wouldn’t want to sit through that lengthy blog post. I’m also confining this list to the first half of 2024 for simplicity’s sake and…

[dilawrosas]

[BOOK REVIEW] ARC: Not Your Valentine by Jackie Lau

This Jackie Lau book is AVAILABLE NOW! ✍️✍️✍️✍️✍️ The heroine is tired of the pitying looks that everyone is giving her due to her ex-boyfriend breaking up with her in a very public way that made her infamous in social media. With the approaching first-year anniversary of the breakup, the heroine decided to have a fake romantic relationship with her friend, the hero. As the two began to fake…

[clinchcoverenthusiast]

I kicked off my birthday month by rereading Pacts and Predicaments after recommending it on a particular subreddit and it had been a minute since I'd revisited one of my favorite kinky couples. Several books I'd been waiting for came out in March, so it was a great reading month. Favorites this month were Black AF History, The Fractured Dark, James, The Other Side of Disappearing, and There's Always This Year. I own Pacts and Predicaments and Black AF History, which I listened to on Libby. I also listened to There's Always This Year on Libby because I love when Hanif narrates his own books. Everything else was from either Hoopla or Libby.  

Pacts and Predicaments - Jo Henny Wolf

The One in My Heart - Sherry Thomas

The Night Eaters, Book 2: Her Little Reapers - Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda* **

Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees #1, #2, #3 - Patrick Horvath

Meegan (Loose Ends #3) - Rebekah Weatherspoon**

The Sitcom Star (Chu's Restaurant #1) - Jackie Lau* **

Black AF History: The Un-Whitewashed Story of America - Michael Harriot* **

The Reluctant Hearththrob (Chu's Restaurant #2) - Jackie Lau* **

The Fractured Dark (The Devoured Worlds #2) - Megan E. O'Keefe

Wandering Stars - Tommy Orange* **

The Ones Who Got Away (The Ones Who Got Away #1) - Roni Loren

Sweetest Scoundrel (Maiden Lane #9) - Elizabeth Hoyt

James - Percival Everett* **

Chef's Kiss (Chef's Kiss #1) - TJ Alexander

Chef's Choice (Chef's Kiss #2) - TJ Alexander

The Other Side of Disappearing - Kate Clayborn

Sunflowers - Keezy Young

There's Always This Year - Hanif Abdurraqib* **

* = author(s) of color

** = main character(s) of color

[scifrey]

I'll be speaking at the Toronto International Festival of Authors!

Hearts and Hauntings September 21 @ 1:30pm A rom-com about rom-coms and a ghost story about… ghosts? Markus Harwood-Jones‘s The Haunting of Adrian Yates and Lynn Painter‘s Better Than The Movies will make you laugh, make you think and maybe make you nostalgic about all the cringy things you did in high school. Join us for a conversation with the two skilled YA love story writers about what inspired them, what the creation process was like and what they have coming down the line. Moderator: J.M. Frey

Swooning for Romance Novels September 22 @ 1:30pm Meet Mr. Perfect, fall in love and don’t mess it up. Joining forces to discuss their latest hilarious and relatable stories about strong Asian female characters are Toronto-based romance writers Lily Chu and Jackie Lau. In Chu’s The Takedown, Soon Dee is tasked with cleaning up a scandal for intimidatingly chic luxury fashion firm, but she soon discovers her mega-hot nemesis works there and he’s nothing like the man she thought she knew. In Lau’s Love, Lies, and Cherry Pie, a young woman is desperate to fend off her meddling mother intent on setting up her last single daughter—only to find that maybe mother does know best. Moderator: J.M. Frey

Writing Queer September 22 @ 3pm Join J.M. Frey and Markus Harwood-Jones for this panel on bringing queer narratives to life. From romance to the supernatural, they’ll discuss what it means to bring authentic new voices and experiences to long standing genres, how far we’ve come, and how far we have to go. Moderator: Trevor Campbell

[princessofbookaholics]

END OF THE YEAR BOOK TAG 2023

It's the end of the year again! I've been doing this tag since 2020 and I love looking at the stats every year. Although my 5 star reads keep getting lesser every year or I'm just getting more strict with my ratings, who knows? Some answers might be a continuation of my Mid Year Book Freak Out Tag so I don't repeat books again. Here are the questions:

1. How many books did you read this year?

I read 166 books this year (including 4 rereads)

2. What genres did you read?

62 romance books

59 mystery/thrillers

15 fantasy books

11 contemporaries

6 graphic novel/manga

6 anthologies

3 non-fiction books

3 historical fiction

1 poetry

3. What age ranges did you read?

130 adult books

16 young adult books

13 new adult books

7 middle grade books

4. How many books got each rating?

23 five star books (including 4 rereads)

69 four star books

58 three star books

16 two star books

5. Best book you've read this year?

I think Babel by R. F. Kuang is still my number one of the year, nothing was able to top that reading experience for me. I've made a post with all my 5 star reads of the year if you need more recs!

6. Have you completed any series this year?

It was my reading goal to complete more series and i definitely did that.

Dance of Thieves duology by Mary E. Pearson

Lovestruck series by Mimi Grace

Tattered and Torn series by Catherine Cowles

Spirit Hunters by Ellen Oh

Dirty Air Series by Lauren Asher

Queen's Cove series by Stephanie Archer

7. Biggest disappointment (for the second half of the year)

8. Biggest surprise (for the second half of the year)

9. Underrated gems (for the second half of the year)

10. Beautiful book covers (for the second half of the year)

11. New favorite authors you discovered

Romance authors: Catherine Cowles, Mimi Grace, Stephanie Archer, Juliana Smith, Kristina Forest, Catherine Walsh

Mystery/thriller authors: Freida McFadden, Mary Kubica, Catherine Ryan Howard, A. R. Torre, Lucinda Berry, Keigo Higashino

12. Favorite new releases of the year

13. Books that lived up to the hype

14. Books that did not live up to the hype

15. Longest and shortest book you read this year

Longest book: Final Offer by Lauren Asher (583 books)

Shortest book: Not Your Valentine by Jackie Lau (136 pages)

16. Did you accomplish your reading goals

I did complete 5 series so that's done. I read more than 100 books but i didn't manage to finish The Count of Monte Cristo because i gave up halfway because I had started slumping. I will try to pick it up again next year!

17. Reading plans for next year

I want to slow down on my reading and try to put quality over quantity because this reading year was so average.

[ash-and-books]

Rating: 3.5/5

Book Blurb: Jackie Lau, author of the “full of heart” (Ali Hazelwood, New York Times bestselling author) The Stand-Up Groomsman, returns with a charming rom-com about a young woman’s desperate attempts to fend off her meddling mother…only to find that maybe mother does know best.

Mark Chan this. Mark Chan that.

Writer and barista Emily Hung is tired of hearing about the great Mark Chan, the son of her parents’ friends. You’d think he single-handedly stopped climate change and ended child poverty from the way her mother raves about him. But in reality, he’s just a boring, sweater-vest-wearing engineer, and when they’re forced together at Emily’s sister’s wedding, it’s obvious he thinks he’s too good for her.

But now that Emily is her family’s last single daughter, her mother is fixated on getting her married and she has her sights on Mark. There’s only one solution, clearly: convince Mark to be in a fake relationship with her long enough to put an end to her mom’s meddling. He reluctantly agrees.

Unfortunately, lying isn’t enough. Family friends keep popping up at their supposed dates—including a bubble tea shop and cake-decorating class—so they’ll have to spend more time together to make their relationship look real. With each fake date, though, Emily realizes that Mark’s not quite what she assumed and maybe that argyle sweater isn’t so ugly after all…

Review:

A writer with a meddling matchmaking mother insists she has found the perfect guy for her... so she decides to fake date him to get her mom off her back... except she might actually be falling for him. Emily Hung is a writer and a barista, she's chasing her dreams and just trying to get by. She isn't the daughter her parents hoped for and her mother is convinced that if she has a husband/boyfriend, she'll be perfect. Her mother is obsessed with getting Emily to date Mark Chan, the son of her parents's friends who is just so perfect. Emily just wants her mother to stop matchmaking her... so what better way than to get Mark to agree to fake date her after their very awkward first to meet ups. Mark surprisingly agrees, but with Emily's mother watching and having eyes everywhere to see all their dates... Emily and Mark have to actually go on the dates as proof. Yet the more time they spend together, the more Emily is beginning to realize that Mark might actually be the perfect guy (much as she hates to admit that her mother was right). Yet with Emily's family drama, a relationship that started out fake but is beginning to feel very real, and a book to be written, she's got her hands full and something might break. This was an overall pretty cute read. It's an easy read and the drama is fine, I think if you are looking for an easy contemporary romance read, this is for you. Mark is a sweet romance lead, I just was hoping for a bit more from their relationship, and I kinda wish Mark had more depth. Overall, it's a cute and fine read!

*Thanks Netgalley and Atria Books | Atria/Emily Bestler Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[bettslovesromance]

Lately I've been reading fabulous series and just wanted to share my joy!

The only two series in the post that I've actually finished are Destiny by Beverly Jenkins and Cowboys of California by Rebekah Weatherspoon and both are magnificent 💜

I started The Brothers Sinister by Courtney Milan and The Cider Bar Sisters by Jackie Lau last year, but I've been taking my time reading them because of how good they are 💙

And this year, thanks to bookstagram, I discovered new to me authors Tracy Sumner and Daisy Jane and so far, I've loved the books I've read by each of them 🧡

I'm currently reading The Scandalous Vixen and The Brazen One

The post is in no particular order, I love and recommend all of them

[bookclub4m]

Episode 189 - Romantic Comedies & Humorous Romance

This episode we’re discussing the fiction genre of Romantic Comedies! We talk about the difference between “fun” and “funny,” crossover romance genres, cataloguing romance fiction, and more!

You can download the podcast directly, find it on Libsyn, or get it through Apple Podcasts or your favourite podcast delivery system.

In this episode

Anna Ferri | Meghan Whyte | Matthew Murray | Jam Edwards

Things We Read (or tried to…)

The House Witch by Delemhach

A Witch's Guide to Fake Dating a Demon by Sarah Hawley

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston 

Evvie Drake Starts Over by Linda Holmes

Delilah Green Doesn't Care by Ashley Herring Blake

Take Me Home by Lorelie Brown 

I Kissed a Girl by Jennet Alexander 

The Bromance Book Club by Lyssa Kay Adams

Other Media We Mentioned

When Harry Met Sally… (Wikipedia)

The Bear (Wikipedia)

Nominated for Golden Globe Award for Best Television Series – Musical or Comedy

The Martian (Wikipedia)

Golden Globes change comedy rules after controversial win for The Martian

The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams

Beetlejuice (Wikipedia)

The Wallflower Wager by Tessa Dare

A Week to be Wicked by Tessa Dare

You Deserve Each Other by Sarah Hogle

Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston

Judgment (video game)

Bridgertons Series by Julia Quinn

Crazy Stupid Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams

A Very Merry Bromance by Lyssa Kay Adams

The Duke Who Didn’t by Courtney Milan

Cats (2019 film) (Wikipedia)

Links, Articles, and Things

Episode 119: Regency Romance

What does a happily ever after look like? (romance novel covers)

Sensible Chuckle (Know Your Meme)

There Is Only One Bed (TV Tropes)

Pop Culture Happy Hour

Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me!

Does the Dog Die?

20 Humorous Romance by BIPOC Authors

Every month Book Club for Masochists: A Readers’ Advisory Podcasts chooses a genre at random and we read and discuss books from that genre. We also put together book lists for each episode/genre that feature works by BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, & People of Colour) authors. All of the lists can be found here.

Courting Samira by Amal Awad

The Wildest Ride by Marcella Bell

A Proposal They Can't Refuse by Natalie Caña

Yinka, Where Is Your Huzband? by Lizzie Damilola Blackburn

Rent a Boyfriend by Gloria Chao

How to Find a Princess by Alyssa Cole

You Had Me at Hola by Alexis Daria

Game On by Seressia Glass

Manhattan Dreaming by Anita Heiss

Get a Life, Chloe Brown by Talia Hibbert

A Dash of Salt and Pepper by Kosoko Jackson

Much Ado about Nada by Uzma Jalaluddin

Serena Singh Flips the Script by Sonya Lalli

The Stand-Up Groomsman by Jackie Lau

Booked on a Feeling by Jayci Lee 

The Secret to a Southern Wedding by Synithia Williams

Pride and Protest by Nikki Payne

Tastes Like Shakkar by Nisha Sharma

The Worst Best Man by Mia Sosa

The Donut Trap by Julie Tieu 

Give us feedback!

Fill out the form to ask for a recommendation or suggest a genre or title for us to read!

Check out our Tumblr, follow us on Instagram, join our Facebook Group, or send us an email!

Join us again on Tuesday, February 20th we’ll be talking about our reading resolutions for 2024! 

Then on Tuesday, March 5th we’ll be discussing the genre of Dark Fantasy!

[ajibooks]

Do you like Jim/Oluwande, the canon OFMD ship? Do you have no idea who those people are? Either way, maybe you're a fan of the trope called "the grumpy one is soft for the sunshine one." Here are some published romance novels you might enjoy. Asterisk indicates there is not on-page sex.

Be aware that (as with Jim) this trope often involves bad experiences in one or both characters' pasts, so please take a look at content warnings, if you usually do. My messages & ask box are always open for any book questions! These are all books I really loved, and I recommend them with enthusiasm.

The Soldier's Scoundrel by Cat Sebastian - M/m romance between two gay men set in Regency England. Lots of gentle humor and a light mystery plot. This author has written this trope often.

Honey and Pepper by AJ Demas - M/m romance between two young gay men set in a fantasy world based on the ancient Mediterranean (specifically Rome, in this novel). The grumpy one is a little softer in this one than in some of the others.

*Winter's Orbit by Everina Maxwell - M/m romance between two men, with a sci-fi mystery adventure plot. Also features the arranged marriage and only one bed (tent) tropes. It's both very plotty and very romance-y.

*Magic in Manhattan series by Allie Therin - M/m romance between a gay man and a bi man, set in Prohibition-era NYC and other cities, with an urban fantasy action-adventure plot. Lots of fun. The first book does not end on a cliffhanger, but there's a continuing plot throughout the trilogy.

*The Heartbreak Handshake by JR Hart - M/nb romance set in a fictional contemporary town. Both characters are neurodivergent and asexual. The male character is much more cheerful than his love interest, a nonbinary crafter. Also features the fake dating trope (extremely clever title for it, too). Disclaimer: I beta-read this book. It stands alone and is only loosely linked to the other books in the series.

Wild Rain by Beverly Jenkins - M/f (cishet) romance between a man and woman set in the Old West. This author is one of the greatest romance novelists, and she writes Black romance, mainly historical. The female character here is the grumpy one, an accomplished horse-tamer. The author writes this trope often. Night Hawk is the book of hers I usually see recommended, and I loved it too; it has a grumpy male lead and sunshine-y female lead.

Her Big City Neighbor by Jackie Lau - M/f (cishet) romance between a white woman and an Asian man set in contemporary Toronto. The man is the grumpy one and the woman is exceptionally cheerful. This author loves to write detailed food descriptions!

Proper English by KJ Charles - F/f romance between two women set in early 20th century England, with a murder mystery plot. Both characters have hidden depths, which is part of the romance, but I'd loosely categorize the book this way.

Shake Things Up by Skye Kilaen - Polyamorous romance, bi characters, contemporary setting (starts in Austin and the characters take a road trip to Colorado). One of the female leads is grumpy by nature, and both of her partners (m and f) are pretty sunshine-y. Disclaimer: I beta-read this book. This author has written this trope a few times as well.

[perspicaciouslynameless]

Books I Read in 2022

Similar to last year, this will start with the overall visual summaries, followed by a full list of the books I read.

Overall statistics by genre

In a shocking turn of events, romance and sci-fi/fantasy remain the top. Surprising number of young adult books though.

Rating and count of book by genre

Overall higher ratings across the board, even though I had one- and two-star ratings this year, but none last year, and that's because...

Ratings and page count over time

Almost no three-star ratings this year! Did I read better books or was I more generous?

Content

Similar to last year. Funniest thing remains the number of books I happen to read that are set in space, though I think the majority of that is actually rereads, so the continuation of the trend is not actually surprising.

Gantt Charts

Longest was definitely Guards! Guards!, which was due to me reading it slowly and not finishing it before I had to return it to the library (twice) and then eventually buying it.

Overall thoughts

Some of this year's favourites are:

All the Jackie Lau ones - she's a very straightforward author.

A Pho Love Story - this was lovely. Vietnamese authors are killing it. I don't think I've ever read another young adult book that really drove home how busy teenagers are with school, extracurriculars, and home stuff, which made this potentially the most relatable teen book ever to me. I promise it's not boring, though.

The Taming of Mei Lin - short stories can be really perfect sometimes. This got to the point and was funny and sexy while doing it.

He Mele a Hilo - Ryka Aoki is an author whose voice and perspective I really, really like after having read two books by her, and I would love to read more.

All the Kate Clayborn ones - I was disappointed to realize that she actually has not written a lot of books! If anyone has recs of books like Kate Clayborn's, please please please tell me.

Charming as a Verb - I really enjoyed how conscious this book was of the main character's place in society and what the potential consequences of his actions are, especially when it came to the big conflict at the end.

The Death of Vivek Oji - very queer, very focused on community, very ouch.

Into the Riverlands - can I read a Nghi Vo book without being completely in love with it? (No.)

My goals last year were:

To be more deliberate in my book choices - I think we can just give up on this one, tbh.

To put a dent in all the books I own that I haven’t read yet - no comment :|

Full list of books read

Aristotle and Dante Dive into the Waters of the World, by Benjamin Alire Saenz

A Match Made for Thanksgiving, by Jackie Lau

A Second Chance Road Trip for Christmas, by Jackie Lau

A Fake Girlfriend for Chinese New Year, by Jackie Lau

A Big Surprise for Valentine's Day, by Jackie Lau

Iron Widow, by Xiran Jay Zhao

Life, the Universe and Everything, by Douglas Adams

The Taming of Mei Lin, by Jeannie Lin

A Pho Love Story, by Loan Le

Butterfly Swords, by Jeannie Lin

First Love, Take Two, by Sajni Patel

Through the Storm, by Beverly Jenkins

Donut Fall in Love, by Jackie Lau

So Long, and Thanks for All the Fish, by Douglas Adams

Just Business, by Anna Zabo

The Jasmine Throne, by Tasha Suri

Satisfaction Guaranteed, by Karelia Stetz-Waters

Ties that Bind, by Katee Robert

Animal Attraction, by Katee Robert

He Mele a Hilo, by Ryka Aoki

Mostly Harmless, by Douglas Adams

Delilah Green Doesn't Care, by Ashley Herring Blake

All Systems Red, by Martha Wells

Beginner's Luck, by Kate Clayborn

Luck of the Draw, by Kate Clayborn

Best of Luck, by Kate Clayborn

Missing Christmas, by Kate Clayborn

Artificial Condition, by Martha Wells

Charming as a Verb, by Ben Philippe

Rogue Protocol, by Martha Wells

Not My Father's Son, by Alan Cumming

Exit Strategy, by Martha Wells

You Had Me at Hola, by Alexis Daria

A Lot Like Adios, by Alexis Daria

Iron & Velvet, by Alexis Hall

The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins

The Death of Vivek Oji, by Akwaeke Emezi

From Bad to Cursed, by Lana Harper

The Girls I've Been, by Tess Sharpe

Catching Fire, by Suzanne Collins

Gideon the Ninth, by Tamsyn Muir

Mockingjay, by Suzanne Collins

Slippery Creatures, by K.J. Charles

A Billionaire Between the Sheets, by Katie Lane

Waking Up With a Billionaire, by Katie Lane

Guards! Guards!, by Terry Pratchett

The Billionaire's Wake-Up-Call Girl, by Annika Martin

Into the Riverlands, by Nghi Vo

The Sugared Game, by K.J. Charles

Subtle Blood, by K.J. Charles

Her Big City Neighbor, by Jackie Lau

The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle, by Stuart Turton

Harrow the Ninth, by Tamsyn Muir

Astrid Parker Doesn't Fail, by Ashley Herring Blake

Paris Daillencourt is About to Crumble, by Alexis Hall

A Lady for a Duke, by Alexis Hall

Partners in Crime, by Alisha Rai

[innerdreamercollective]

Freebie for a limited time!

Amazon: https://a.co/d/0hZlt0H

The summer heat is here and we’re ready to get even hotter! Your next favorite book boyfriend awaits in this collection of nine standalone, steamy, and hilarious romances. But shhh…keeping your summer fling a secret only makes it sexier.

Whether you’re dipping your toes into the Mediterranean Sea off a luxury yacht or sitting by the bonfire in your small town, there’s a sexy man for that—a coworker, a fake boyfriend, your brother’s best friend…

This hilarious and spicy anthology includes stories

Bestselling Romance Authors

The Second Chance in the Mediteranian by Liz Alden

Filled Potential by Lainey Davis

Walk on the Wilder Side by Serena Bell

Boss Me by Michelle McCraw

What Happens in carolina by Karen Grey

Love me by Liz Lincoln

Grumpy Fake Boyfriend by Jackie Lau

Enemies with Benefits by Roxie Noir

Blue Hawaian by Carla Luna

This collection is a limited-time gift to our readers.

Snatch it up before it disappears!

[authorkarajorgensen]

Hi! I am a big fan of the Reanimator series and waa delighted to find your tumblr. Recently some light-hearted joking with friends turned into a more serious revelation that I do actually share a lot of autistic traits with them and now I'm on a journey to learn more about autism and myself. I just combed through your blog posts tagged with autism/neurodivergence and welp, I find a lot of it relatable. (Coincidentally, I am also exploring my gender and distancing myself from ~womanhood~ and found your post on gender to be extremely relatable in many ways!)

Reading TRH through Oliver's eyes was really interesting and I do remember having a bunch of "I do that" moments. At the time I think I brushed it off by being like "well there's a lot of overlap between signs of autism and anxiety" (the latter of which I definitely do have) but I'm going to do a reread with a new openness to the possibility that me relating to Oliver could be more than just "I like him as a character" 😅

Do you have any recommendations for more books with an autistic protagonist? And no worries if you don't have the energy to answer that. Recs or no, I also wanted to express my appreciation for your books and for using your blog to share your experiences. It has all helped me understand myself better and feel a little bit less afraid of exploring an otherwise unknown and overwhelming topic for me. So thank you!

;----; I'm so glad you saw yourself in Oliver. I hope your journey of discovery in terms of gender and neurodivergence is a good one that brings you lots of community and comfort!

First off, you might want to check out this database of autistic books by autistic authors. There are A LOT there and ones I will definitely miss.

I'd also highly recommend DN Bryn's books for autistic queer rep along with Roan Parrish, Talia Hibbert (especially the Brown Sisters books), Cat Sebastian (especially The Lawrence Brown Affair and We Could Be So Good), Chuck Tingle (I know some of Chuck's more recent trad pub books have explicitly ND main characters and the author is autistic as well), and Jackie Lau (especially The Reluctant Heartthrob).

Most of these authors, if not all, are some flavor of neurodivergent and many of their characters are ND/autistic-coded even if it isn't explicitly stated in the text.

[the-book-queen]

Hide your wallets, it's that time again! Your daily thread of romance deals is ready, $0.99 to $1.99!

$0.99 ✦ Four Weddings to Fall in Love by Jackie Lau

1st POV. Opposites attract. Starchy, anxious hero who doesn’t do hookups + confident heroine who has sworn off love and only wants one-night-stands.

Contemporary Romance (MF) | https://amzn.to/3y4QVjt

$0.99 ✦ Tucked Away by Jennie Marts

She hit rock bottom after her cheating ex cleared out her accounts. Then she inherits a Montana farm from a grandmother she didn't know about, and falls for the local vet/single dad.

Contemporary Romance (MF) | https://amzn.to/3WuneC0

$1.99 ✦ A Duke Worth Fighting For by Christina Britton

A scarred war hero who needs someone to help him practice socializing with the ton again + a widow who agrees to help in exchange for $ to pay off a blackmailer.

Historical Romance (MF) | https://amzn.to/3WvlCIe

$1.99 ✦ Novel Problems by Elizabeth Luly

1st POV. A fantasy author suffering from writer's block flees to a small town and accidentally ends up working at the local cafe-bookstore, and falls for the owner.

KU Title

Contemporary Romance (FF) | https://amzn.to/3ygkleu

$1.99 ✦ Pleasure of a Dark Prince by Kresley Cole

A fierce Highland werewolf prince + a mysterious archer/huntress who received her skills from a goddess.

TBQ Rec

Paranormal Romance (MF) | https://amzn.to/4d5XUHQ

Putting these lists together takes time. If you appreciate this content, please consider buying me a Ko-Fi. http://ko-fi.com/danielletbq

[clinchcoverenthusiast]

Lots of things I'd been looking forward to reading came out in May so it was a decent reading month. I got back on my KU bullshit early in the month thanks to a three months free offer and promptly struggled/vague blogged my way through The Home Smirker Wrecker. This was one I was looking forward to for the messy polyamory and it was not a good time due to writing/editing issues.

Highlights of the month were Love, Lies, and Cherry Pie, the Starlight's Shadow series, Happy Medium, and Ruling Sikthand. In order to finish Beneath the Trees, I had to go support my local comic shop by buying numbers 4 and 6 because Hoopla finally updated but only with #5. The Home Wrecker was KU and everything else was from either Hoopla or Libby.

Annie Bot - Sierra Greer

The Angel of Indian Lake (The Indian Lake Trilogy #3) - Stephen Graham Jones* **

Love, Lies, and Cherry Pie - Jackie Lau* **

Hunt the Stars (Starlight's Shadow #1) - Jessie Mihalik

Beneath the Trees Where Nobody Sees #4, 5, 6 - Patrick Horvath

Eclipse the Moon (Starlight's Shadow #2) - Jessie Mihalik

Happy Medium - Sarah Adler

Remember: The Science of Memory and the Art of Forgetting - Lisa Genova

Ruling Sikthand (Clecanian #7) - Victoria Aveline

The Home Wrecker (The Goode Brothers #2) - Sara Cate

The Hunger and the Dusk #6 - G. Willow Wilson

* = author(s) of color

** = main character(s) of color

[stacyalesi]

LOVE, LIES, AND CHERRY PIE by Jackie Lau

New #bookreview: LOVE, LIES, AND CHERRY PIE by Jackie Lau, a heartwarming, joyous, and rollicking read! Don't miss it! #JackieLau #emilybestlerbooks @simonandschuster #romancereads #romcom #ownvoices #mustread #romancestagram #bookstagram

CLICK TO PURCHASE From the publisher: Jackie Lau, author of the “full of heart” (Ali Hazelwood, New York Times bestselling author) The Stand-Up Groomsman, returns with a charming rom-com about a young woman’s desperate attempts to fend off her meddling mother…only to find that maybe mother does know best.Mark Chan this. Mark Chan that.Writer and barista Emily Hung is tired of hearing about the…