romance

The Paris Match

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The Paris Match by Kate Clayborn

Emily and Michael are getting married, in Paris!

Layla was Emily’s sister-in-law, and is amicably divorced from Emily’s older brother, Jamie. Emily pleads with her to come to Paris for the week. Awkwardly, Jamie is bringing his new girlfriend.

Griffin is Michael’s best man. Griffin and Michael have been best friends since they were kids. Griffin has chronic pain and visible burn scars. Bridesmaid Rosie thinks he might be a billionaire, though that’s not actually true.

Emily has second thoughts about the wedding. Griffin tells Layla that Michael’s happiness means everything to him, and that it’s imperative she talk with Emily and fix things. They met on the flight to Paris, when Layla helped another passenger with a health crisis. Layla is a doctor, traveling from city to city for temporary positions. She doesn’t like Griffin, who rarely smiles, but finds him fascinating, and a slow burn romance begins.

The main section of the book is set during a week in Paris and at Versailles while the next section is set three months later, well before the epilogue. There are plenty of tricky family dynamics and secrets that need to be revealed. I found this contemporary romance to be an engaging, immersive read. Not at all a light-hearted book, but well worth reading for memorable main characters, originality, and the Parisian setting.  

Brenda

Moss’d in Space

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Moss’d in Space by Rebecca Thorne

This was just what I needed; a cozy science fiction book from the author of the Tomes and Tea fantasy series, which begins with Can’t Spell Treason Without Tea.

Two sisters live on Colony 13, a large human space station. Torian has studied solar engineering and worked on a spaceship for Fleet Captain/smuggler Amelia. Once, and only once, they kissed. Torian’s older sister Celise is a medic. The not-so-healthy atmosphere on Colony 13 makes her cough, and the long-term prognosis is not good. Torian save up enough money to buy a very small spaceship covered in moss. The moss turns out to be inside as well, and sentient. Meet Moss, sort of a hybrid entity. Torian and Moss head out on adventures, first to the planet Rhymarra, and then on the mostly abandoned space station Vaesa. Moss is holding a grudge against a long-lived alien who left the ship behind on Colony 13, but Moss finds Torian’s curiosity and loyal recklessness oddly appealing. This is not at all hard science fiction, with a refreshing lack of violence or much danger. I thought this was a fun and charming read. I look forward to the second book, to be published next summer. Fun trivia: the author also works as a flight attendant.

Brenda

Stay for a Spell

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Stay for a Spell by Amy Coombe

I didn’t want this cozy fantasy romance to end. A remarkably good first novel, this is a fun and satisfying read. Princess Tanadelle, or Tandy, is on yet another royal visit. Her next carriage stop is to dedicate the new market square in Little Pepperidge. Tandy has just finished the last book she packed when she sees a bookstore. There’s only time for a very short visit, but the next morning, she becomes a cursed princess and new proprietor of a bookstore. The bookstore is very crowded and needs rather a lot of tidying.

Distraught, her parents send a parade of princes to try and break the curse with a kiss. Her teen bookstore assistant Sasha is fascinated and pirate Bash is amused. A lovely story, but I don’t want to give away any more plot twists, other than to say that Tandy is not at all upset at the break in her royal routine. I look forward to the author’s second book.

Brenda

Hemlock & Silver

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Hemlock & Silver by T. Kingfisher

This novel is inspired by the fairytale Snow White and has hints of Alice Through the Looking Glass, but isn’t too similar to either. Fantasy with some romance and a little horror, there is also a talking cat in Hemlock & Silver. Well, Grayling is probably a cat.

Anja is a healer who specializes in researching antidotes to poisons. Anja is summoned by the King to diagnose and treat Snow, the King’s 12-year-old daughter. Snow is frequently ill, and may have been poisoned. Very reluctantly, Anja travels with the King’s retinue and guards Javier and Aaron across the desert to the King’s country home.

Snow’s mother and sister have died, so the King will do anything to save her. Anja eventually discovers silvered apples that Snow has eaten, and learns that they come from the other side of the mirror. Anja, Grayling the Cat, and handsome guard Javier have adventures in the beautiful and creepy mirror world. Reflections there do not always behave as predicted, and Snow has an unexpected reason for eating the silvered apples. Some humor along with the adventure, plus a romance, make for an enchantingly good read.

Brenda

Costumes for Time Travelers

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Costumes for Time Travelers by A. R. Capetta

I really enjoyed this teen time travel fantasy. There is plenty of adventure and some romance. Calisto (they/them) is growing up in Pocket with three parents and siblings. One parent was a history professor in Australia, another was a priestess in ancient times, while the third parent is a Pocket native. Pocket has several moons and is a waypoint that most time travelers pass through. The travelers get new costumes for the next time period they’ll be visiting and have the cobblers resole their time boots. Calisto works in the costume shop with their grandmother Mena, a tailor. They design and sew costumes with a huge variety of fabrics for their customers. I really liked how the author makes costume design and sewing seem very cool.

Fawkes, a time savant, arrives in a dramatic fashion from the far future, where he had a mostly solitary upbringing. Calisto is shocked that Fawkes has only one outfit, and no home to return to. In a kaleidoscope of a story, Fawkes and Calisto time travel to the Elizabethan era where Fawkes is in one of Shakespeare’s plays. They also meet the Minotaur in Crete, and travel to Stanford University where Californians are worrying about Y2K and computers. Time wardens want to stop new time lines, and Fawkes and Calisto try to stop a time quake that may affect Calisto’s beloved Pocket, which is governed by a group of elders at their book club meetings. The romance is sweet, and the sense of place and time are vividly drawn, along with the costumes. I didn’t get any sense of how time travel actually works, and wasn’t sure if this was as much science fiction as it is fantasy, but definitely enjoyed the journey.

Brenda

The Keeper of Magical Things

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The Keeper of Magical Things by Julie Leong

The second cozy fantasy by the author of The Teller of Small Fortunes is not a sequel, but is set in the same world. Certainty Bulrush has been living in the city of Margrave for six years, as a novice in the Guild of Mages. Her only magical talent is to communicate with objects, especially magical objects such as a talking teapot. If she becomes a mage, her family, who have a pear orchard, can afford an apprenticeship for her brother.

Certainty is sent on an assignment with Mage Aurelia Mirella, a farspeaker. Their task is to take two wagons of minor magical artifacts to a remote and unmagical village. Their housing and storage for the artifacts have been pre-arranged, supposedly. The pair are to inventory, organize, store, and ward the collection. Too many magical items at the Guild have created an overflow of magic, leading to some humorous magical incidents. Aurelia has a reputation for being standoffish, and is from a wealthy family in the city. She also has a big secret, which is soon revealed to Certainty. Aurelia has high standards, and neither their housing, storage, or meals meet her approval. Cert has to show by example how to fit in to the village. With assistance from some of the minor magical items, they help the village’s apple orchards, water supply, and help create very tasty pasta. There’s also some romance, and a small catdragon.

When their assignment ends badly, Cert is unfairly blamed and goes home in disgrace to her family, where she is shown … kindness and love. Back to the city she goes, to explain her motives and actions. An enjoyable read, though different in setting and tone from her first book.

Brenda

Hot Desk

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Hot Desk by Laura Dickerman

This engaging dual timeline novel is set in the publishing world in New York City. Two young editors, Rebecca and Ben, work for rival publishers and reluctantly share a desk. They are both trying to meet with a literary legend’s widow for rights to publish a short story collection and one last novel. There are flashbacks to 1982. How is 1982 a historical time period already? Back then, Rebecca’s mom and her best friend Rose are interns at The East River Review, a journal published from the townhouse of the same literary legend, Edward David Adams, known as the Lion.

The book sections set in 1982 are chaotic, exhilarating, and full of secrets. Also, not very friendly for young women aspiring to be writers or editors. AIDS is not yet named, but definitely scary. 2022 is messy, but with situations such as hot desking, working remotely part-time, Zoom meetings where someone always needs prompting to unmute and large publishers buying smaller publishers. Rebecca helps her friend Stella run a dinner club with Rebecca’s charming grandmother, which is getting online buzz. Rebecca and Ben exchange cryptic heated texts, especially about a cactus on their shared desk that neither claims. An immersive read, this is an accomplished first novel.

Brenda

Gracie Harris is Under Construction

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Gracie Harris is Under Construction by Kate Hash

The book cover is funny because Gracie doesn’t actually paint any walls during her house remodel. She does wallpaper her bedroom closet, though, which I think sounds cool. Gracie Harris is on a journey of self-discovery and grief after her husband Ben suddenly dies. She has two great kids and money does not seem to be an issue as the house being remodeled in a small North Carolina town is her second home. I really enjoyed the scene when her bookshelves were being put together because it means she can go on a shopping spree at the local indie bookstore. Imagine having multiple new bookcases to fill, and plenty of money to fill them! I think I’d really enjoy visiting Gracie’s remodeled house.

This summer, Gracie’s kids are spending 8 weeks at a sleep-away camp 30 minutes from town. Gracie is writing a memoir and trying to do interviews but has a rough time with nerves and grief during her first major interview. Josh, her realtor’s brother, is remodeling the Craftsman house part-time for Gracie. Over lunches, Josh asks Gracie questions she might face at future interviews, and gives her advice on the best coffee shop for her writing sessions. To no one’s surprise except Josh and Gracie, they fall for each other. Even Gracie’s daughter thought they might start dating.

Not a rom-com, and not a steamy romance, this is a sweet and tender story about starting over and second chances, plus some good advice about working through the messy seasons of grief. Well, the romance is kind of steamy, but the bedroom door stays almost closed for the reader. This is Kate Hash’s first novel, and it’s a memorable, compelling read. I look forward to seeing what she rights next.

Brenda

Ghost Business

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Ghost Business by Jen DeLuca

Ghost Business, an enjoyable read, is the second spooky rom-com by DeLuca, who also has four wonderful romances set at renaissance faires, beginning with Well Met.

Ghost Business is the sequel to Haunted Ever After, and both stories are set in Boneyard Key, somewhere on Florida’s Gulf Coast. I’ve visited Florida several times and never once thought of ghosts or hauntings, but maybe I haven’t visited the right towns. Carol Perry writes a cozy mystery series set in Florida, beginning with Be My Ghost, which are readalikes for Ghost Business. The Spirit Moves is the fourth and most recent. Cedar Key was the inspiration for Boneyard Key.

Tristan moves to Boneyard Key for six months, staying in a condo his dad’s just bought for an investment. He’s there to start up a ghost tour, which he and his college buddy Eric run in several tourist towns across the U.S. Right away he meets Sophie, who also runs a ghost tour in Boneyard Key every weekend. She doesn’t have a website, so Tristan and Eric didn’t know they’d have competition. Sophie, a local, knows that Boneyard Key is truly haunted, and tells the stories of the resident ghosts. Tristan, with Ghouls Night Out, just wants to entertain his customers with familiar ghost stories with no real connection to Boneyard Key. Of course, Tristan doesn’t believe in ghosts, which leads to some funny scenes.

Tristan and Sophie are rivals, though quite attracted to each other, and Tristan has a hard time getting the locals to welcome him. A few months after he’s settled in, a hurricane is headed for the Gulf Coast, and Boneyard Key. No one in town is injured, but it’s pretty intense reading. Tristan needs Sophie’s help, and they fall for each other. Rivals to lovers is a common but pretty good trope, and DeLuca is a very good storyteller. I look forward to her next page-turner, wherever it’s set.

Brenda

Thus With a Kiss I Die

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Thus With a Kiss I Die by Christina Dodd

Well, that’s not a very cheerful title, is it? Since I thoroughly enjoyed the first Daughter of Montague novel, A Daughter of Fair Verona, I knew the book would be much more entertaining than a quote from Romeo and Juliet would lead the reader to expect. In Christina Dodd’s fictional Verona, Romeo and Juliet are alive, in love, and married with several children. Rosaline, called Rosie, is 20 and helps run the Montague household. While dreaming about handsome Lysander, she has somehow become betrothed to Escalus, the prince of Verona.

Rosie is not at thrilled by her betrothal. But she likes Escalus’s little sister, Isabella, his Nonna Ursula, and his father’s ghost. The ghost of Escalus the Elder is problematic as no one else can see or hear him and he never saw his murderer, who was masked and cloaked. Escalus, nicknamed Cal by his ghostly father, also enjoys spending time with Rosie’s large, chaotic family. When there is unrest in the city, even the prince’s home isn’t safe. On one eventful night Rosie must get home to her mother, then quickly solve two crimes and decide how she really feels about Cal. Of course, both Cal and Rosie are in danger, and deciding who to trust is key.  

This historical novel has witty banter, quirky characters, and is full of adventure, humor, mystery and some romance. The next book, Much Ado About Mistletoe, will be published in late October.   

Brenda