Very sweet sapphic neurodivergent romance between ADHD chaos bunny artist and autistic flower-grower. The conflict is really very much in their respecVery sweet sapphic neurodivergent romance between ADHD chaos bunny artist and autistic flower-grower. The conflict is really very much in their respective heads: Opal struggles with impulse control, emotional lability, and self esteem, while Pepper is conscious of not fitting in a neurotypical world, as well as profoundly traumatised by abusive parenting and abandonment.
Obviously that's fairly heavy stuff, so the decision to make the plot and conflict around them as light as possible is the right one: they have enough on their plates just with coming to understand one another. It's also lovely to see how they learn to play off one another's strengths: Opal is great with change and emergencies, where Pepper is good at stability and getting things done properly.
How have I never heard of this book or author before? Why hasn't this been filmed? Craps all over Mad Max.
So this is brilliant. In a post climate colHow have I never heard of this book or author before? Why hasn't this been filmed? Craps all over Mad Max.
So this is brilliant. In a post climate collapse America, a variety of hardscrabble losers are hanging on by their fingernails and more or less giving up on life. I will not spoil the plot but it involves a psycho bestie, a frippery sibling, mutant powers, plucky lesbians, rabbits, quite a lot of violence, and a really interesting take on the Scary Post Apocalyptic Organisation of Thugs.
The narrative voice is great, striking the rare balance where you believe the hard-nosed pitch black humour is a cover for deep agonising feelings, rather than just someone pressing the 'snark' key. Lovely characters, well developed world, imaginatively expansive, and a fabby f/f romance in a terribly unhealthy way.
Hugely enjoyable and really deserves to be far more widely read....more
Absolutely love this series. Cracking London-based urban fantasy that has a lot of fun with the cliches of the genre while taking the adventures and eAbsolutely love this series. Cracking London-based urban fantasy that has a lot of fun with the cliches of the genre while taking the adventures and emotions very seriously. In this installment the tangled web of the first two books is woven into a brand new threat (it is a testament to the author that I had no trouble picking up the story where I left off despite that being a few years ago) and the emotional developments go in some unexpected directions. Highly readable, very funny, proper urban fantasy adventure. I wolfed it down.
Merged review:
Absolutely love this series. Cracking London-based urban fantasy that has a lot of fun with the cliches of the genre while taking the adventures and emotions very seriously. In this installment the tangled web of the first two books is woven into a brand new threat (it is a testament to the author that I had no trouble picking up the story where I left off despite that being a few years ago) and the emotional developments go in some unexpected directions. Highly readable, very funny, proper urban fantasy adventure. I wolfed it down....more
Love the cover. Love the fact that M&B are doing sapphic historicals. Love the setting in British regional theatreland, it's nice to get out of LondonLove the cover. Love the fact that M&B are doing sapphic historicals. Love the setting in British regional theatreland, it's nice to get out of London. Liked the set up a lot--fresh-faced Ruth, dumped into becoming manager of her father's failing theatre, gets grumpy reclusive playwright Artemis to write them a hit play.
Sadly this didn't come together in a satisfactory way, despite all the potential. There's a lot of internal narrative which kind of feels like filler in the middle section, and the romance is uneventful after a strong beginning. (It also doesn't engage at all with any issues of a sapphic romance in the 1830s--not in a Bridgerton TV way, because nobody else in this theatre set book seems to be queer, just not mentioning it.)
However, the main issue is the editing, which is dreadful. One woman is repeatedly addressed as Ms in 1832, people do things "carefully but perfunctorily" or have no appetite while being ravenous, several sentences just don't make sense, and mostly, something absolutely hatstand is going on with dashes, commas and especially ellipses. The following extracts are transcribed exactly as they appear in the book (Kobo ebook).
I don't know how--and I do know it will be...the worst thing I've ever written, that will likely ruin us both, but I will write her a play.
And one of the most exceptional things was that... Unlike other encounters she'd had--Thomas being the exception, not that she was comparing--it didn't feel as though... There was any pressure of time, for her to reach her peak. The sounds Artemis was making... The way she left no spot--save for those Ruth didn't react well to--untouched...
What the Emily Dickinson fuck.
I don't know what the hell is going on in the editorial department but this is not a state in which you let a book go out. This had a massive amount of potential and I am really unimpressed for the author. (It's also the second shockingly edited f/f book from M&B I've read in a few days. I am *side eyeing*.)...more
DNF. The structure, plot and characterisation really need a development edit, and it's full of errors and missing words. The hell's going on at M&B? DNF. The structure, plot and characterisation really need a development edit, and it's full of errors and missing words. The hell's going on at M&B? ...more
What a delightful read. A Mumbai-set f/f romance with trans woman dance teacher Billu instructing desi Esha on the dances for her upcoming arranged maWhat a delightful read. A Mumbai-set f/f romance with trans woman dance teacher Billu instructing desi Esha on the dances for her upcoming arranged marriage oops.
Tremendous atmosphere and sense of place, including the dislocation of divided cultures, countries and households. Wonderfully vivid writing. Absolutely lush pining, longing, and extended falling in love, which is delightful.
And then after the lengthy slow burn, the entire book shifts gears into a full on Bollywood sequence of the most bonkers sort, and it's even better, ahaha. (It's one of those points where you might kind of go WTF because the tonal shift from a very real feeling story to crazed melodrama action is a bit sudden, but just let go and have fun, honestly.)
A crackingly enjoyable f/f read, highly recommended. ...more
A M&B Medical with sapphic couple, and a lovely clinch cover. It doesn't feel that long since I was on the Medical team but wow, things do sometimes cA M&B Medical with sapphic couple, and a lovely clinch cover. It doesn't feel that long since I was on the Medical team but wow, things do sometimes change.
This is a very soft, moderately hot second chance/baby/wealth gap story (the baby plot is neither traumatic nor cringe), with lots of love expressed in action. A fine category romance, and a welcome addition to the list. ...more
Sapphic relationship with two Armenian diaspora heroines. For me, this landed more as I guess women's fiction than romance, in that there's a lot abouSapphic relationship with two Armenian diaspora heroines. For me, this landed more as I guess women's fiction than romance, in that there's a lot about Armenian identity and prejudice, parents relationships, jobs, cooking competitions etc, and I didn't really get a lot of sense as Vanya as an individual, rather than another element in Nazeli's life (or, tbh, a sense of what she saw in Nazeli). That can work very well in its own right, obv, but my tastebuds were set to romance. If you're looking for a wider-ranging story, this may well work for you, I'm incredibly grumpy and wanted more romance. ...more
Lesbian Jewish screwball heist romcom in space. You don't get many of those to the pound.
This is a bit of oddball in some ways. It's very much a screLesbian Jewish screwball heist romcom in space. You don't get many of those to the pound.
This is a bit of oddball in some ways. It's very much a screwball heist comedy caper in the spirit of old movies, down to bursts of dialogue you could imagine Jane Russell voicing, which does sometimes land slightly oddly in the context of future antigrav and spaceships. The spirit is pitch perfect though: a conwoman with a good heart underneath the hardboiled shell sets her sights on a rich young man and instead falls for his poised rich-girl sister (to whom there is more than meets the eye, natch).
It's a very likeable and engaging slow burn romance, and the heist element is great fun. I felt it could have been a touch pacier: the screwball thing really needs to be all but non-stop breakneck so we don't have the leisure to ask awkward questions about plausibility, ahaha.
Nevertheless, definitely the most enjoyable heist read in a while and a proper romance well balanced with the plot. Recommended. ...more
1890s f/f with Caribbean and Chilean/English MCs. Worked better for me than the first in the series, I think because the long period of UST gave the c1890s f/f with Caribbean and Chilean/English MCs. Worked better for me than the first in the series, I think because the long period of UST gave the characters and world such terrific space for development (and I just like UST okay). Both heroines have a lot to learn about what they really want (starting from some not entirely sympathetic places, which I loved) and it makes for a very satisfying romance.
And the world building is great. Fabulous and clearly deeply researched depiction of fin de siecle arty-boho and queer Paris, plus a lot of interesting stuff on the struggles of women, especially of colour, in the very white male world of business. A satisfyingly meaty read along with some scorching sex. ...more
Very relatable, contemporary British f-f romcom which is actually a romcom, unlike literally every other book described as a romcom that I have read tVery relatable, contemporary British f-f romcom which is actually a romcom, unlike literally every other book described as a romcom that I have read this year.
This is partly a story about an aimless late 20something looking for more in her life, and partly a story about a group of friends moving to a dilapidated house in a village to found a queer commune, and also a f-f super slow burn romance where the narrator has a long lasting crush on one of the people she moves with.
It's well written, lots of fun, and highly readable but, perhaps because it's trying to be three books, it wasn't completely satisfying as any of them. I would have loved more on the house restoration and living together because that was really fun, I'd have liked more soapy group drama. And I wanted more out of the romance, which...after 200pp of the narrator pining for Ray, I actually really wanted her to hit it off with one of the other cute girls she meets because Ray's obliviousness began to grate, and I never quite pulled that back. Basically I wanted the book to do lots more of the things it's doing, which is no bad thing....more
A very entertaining urban fantasy that should be hoovered up by fans of Jordan L Hawk. 1950s US, with a sinister government organisation dealing with A very entertaining urban fantasy that should be hoovered up by fans of Jordan L Hawk. 1950s US, with a sinister government organisation dealing with otherworldly (tentacular) incursions, a mysterious young lady with unknown powers being held semi captive, a Sinister Secret Occult Organisation, and all the trimmings. Our Nancy Drew team, battling 1950s America as well as the SSOO and the tentacles, ismade up of a young Black woman, a white lesbian, and a part-Lovecraftian-horror trans girl, which is what I call diversity.
Very good fun, enthusiastically paced and with a highly engaging narrative voice. A bit scruffy round the edges at points but fair enough for a first book; I hope there will be more....more
Great premise (the leads are rival professors at a university but Harper also has a side gig doing phone sex, Macy is her most devoted caller, and neiGreat premise (the leads are rival professors at a university but Harper also has a side gig doing phone sex, Macy is her most devoted caller, and neither of them has ever recognised the other's voice because romance shut up).
Took the bold decision to make one of the leads an absolute tool. Macy is a trust fund baby, a vicious undermining jerk who repeatedly attacks the only other female at her level and at one point publicly mocks Harper for her stutter. I wasn't clear if she was also meant to be an alcoholic (the drinking in this book is wild, in a way that rather suggests the author doesn't drink). Not a great start for Macy, then. The story does a good job of showing her remorse and a convincing self improvement arc, so if you can get over the bad impression, it works out well. Disappointing editing from a press, though....more
A hugely absorbing romance between two 40yo Indian women, one a head teacher in Bangalore (bi, widowed, teenage son, dealing with demanding parents) aA hugely absorbing romance between two 40yo Indian women, one a head teacher in Bangalore (bi, widowed, teenage son, dealing with demanding parents) and one a peripatetic IT person. Very much one of those romances that's a picture of a life: Leela deals with a lot of stuff that's not related to Nandini in any way and the conflict in the romance is basically the women, especially Leela, finding a way to fit their lives together.
Mature characters, great sex, well drawn setting, and enough incident and conflict to keep you thoroughly absorbed in both the romance and life parts. This is the second f/f romance I've read from this author and I will hope for more. ...more
Delightful shortish novel sequel with sapphic Holmes and Watson, only instead of gas lamps it's a gas giant because the books are set on Jupiter (wherDelightful shortish novel sequel with sapphic Holmes and Watson, only instead of gas lamps it's a gas giant because the books are set on Jupiter (where humanity has fled after the collapse of Earth).
I love the setting, it's gleefully imagined with the planet-spanning rails, and I adore how so many of the metaphors and vocabulary Pleiti uses are drawn from the rails. Mossa and Pleiti's relationship is a little bit prickly, a little bit uncertain, entirely engaging.The mystery wasn't hugely complex since it's a fairly short read, but fun. And I really, really need to see the Murderbot opera that exists in this world oh my God.
Linked to but not exessively weighed down by the first book. Absolutely lovely cover. I hope there will be many more in this series. ...more
A frothy and entirely ahistorical histrom. Present tense, and dialogue is extremely modern American English. You mind this or you don't.
Chacun a son A frothy and entirely ahistorical histrom. Present tense, and dialogue is extremely modern American English. You mind this or you don't.
Chacun a son gout. If these things don't bother you, it's got lots of froth and romp and a parent-trap plotline that looked fun; I just didn't get on with it as I was hoping to, which I regret. Hey ho, not everything is for me.
I do need to comment on the absolutely bewildering names: Mrs Demeroven? Lord Psoris? Lord Frightan? Mrs Stelm? Lord Bletchle? I suppose it's in the Victorian authorial tradition of filling books with weird-ass names as per Trollope and Thackeray; I found it distracting, but there you go. ...more
A big old sapphic Gothic novel with isolated house from which women run in dresses, weird English family, servant with hook for hand, bloodstains, ghoA big old sapphic Gothic novel with isolated house from which women run in dresses, weird English family, servant with hook for hand, bloodstains, ghosts, Uncle Tom Cobleigh and all. It's good fun. I found Kit rather lachrymose and ineffectual for a lot of the book (and the premise of 'I have no idea why the woman I love is being cold and unfriendly to me! In other news, I just married her brother' is perhaps taking naivety a little too far). But she picks up nicely towards the end, and Alexandra is a chilly, guilt-ridden delight throughout.
The premise is bonkers, but it's a Gothic novel so it would be very disappointing if it was sensible. The world needs more bonkers sapphic Gothic novels. Could have used an edit for consistency issues, but held my attention very happily. ...more
Erotic romance, with more erotic than romance. The plot takes a back seat: we raise a bunch of issues (mother's cancer, hostile relationship with brotErotic romance, with more erotic than romance. The plot takes a back seat: we raise a bunch of issues (mother's cancer, hostile relationship with brother whose best friend is the heroine's love interest, the question of the heroine having an inheritance that means she doesn't have a job, hobby or purpose in life, jealous exes) that don't really get much resolution. It's mostly about Dez shagging more or less every woman she can get hold of until she finally falls in love. Very well-done shagging, too.
I'm not generally an erotic romance reader as I need more plot, but 'rich Black woman has masses of wild queer sex' is going to be a *lot* of people's cup of tea, and it is perfectly brewed here....more
Sapphic short story about a Welsh musician with a terrible secret and the conductor she secretly loves. Slow burn with Welsh magic and terrific music Sapphic short story about a Welsh musician with a terrible secret and the conductor she secretly loves. Slow burn with Welsh magic and terrific music and lots of emotional intensity, very nicely written....more
An Old West story of a farmer's wife in love with the woman who runs the small town general store, which I accept sounds lethal. We never get a strongAn Old West story of a farmer's wife in love with the woman who runs the small town general store, which I accept sounds lethal. We never get a strong sense of Martha--we mostly see her as the combination Johnny Appleseed/Venus of Willendorf figure of Amanda's imagination--but this isn't a romance, it's more a fantastical meditation on the life of a woman of profound and complex feelings stuck in a misogynist time with a narrow-souled husband in a godbothering tiny town, and how she emerges/is forced from that cocoon in part by writing stories. There's a fantastical shimmer to it, but also a lot of very routine detail about the hard repetitive slog of frontier life. (There is no hint of Native Americans existing or having existed anywhere in this book: I don't know if this is an intentional omission.)
I was impressed by it but didn't love it. It's very good on women's stifling lives and on the physicality (strong fat-celebration vibes throughout), and I think if you're into description and atmosphere and creation of a vivid world, you'd love it. I found I needed more to happen, but admittedly since lockdown I've really struggled with stories of stuckness, so perhaps that's it. ...more
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