Not long into George Saunders’s Vigil (Random House 2026), I remarked that it was a bit Charles Dickens meets Tom Stoppard – to be more exact, it’s A Christmas Carol meets Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, with a strong nod to the Stoppard play. You would think that those echoes would be enough to haveContinue reading “VIGIL – George Saunders”
Tag Archives: Romance
JAMAICA ROAD – Lisa Smith
“I’ve missed you too. I’ve been missing you for ages.” Lisa Smith’s Jamaica Road (Knopf 2025) is a heartbreaking debut of a love story that is very much time and place. Set primarily in South London, Jamaica Road opens in 1981 with a young Daphne. Daphne is the only Black girl in her class, andContinue reading “JAMAICA ROAD – Lisa Smith”
ANY TROPE BUT YOU – Victoria Lavine
I wanted a cute, candy read. A Hallmark movie in book form. Set in the remote wilderness of Alaska with a romance author from California and the hunky lumberjack son of the proprietor of the resort she’s staying at? That sounds like a delicious candy book. And Victoria Lavine’s Any Trope But You (Atria 2025)Continue reading “ANY TROPE BUT YOU – Victoria Lavine”
HOMESEEKING – Karissa Chen
Karissa Chen’s Homeseeking (Putnam 2025) is a novel of choices and resilience, spanning 1938 – 2008 in the lives of dual souls divided by distance and circumstance. Suji/Suchi/Sue and Doudou/Haiwen/Howard became ready friends as children and that friendship quickly blossomed into a deep love that would act as a magnetic force, pulling them toward eachContinue reading “HOMESEEKING – Karissa Chen”
SAY YOU’LL REMEMBER ME – Abby Jimenez
This is going to be a difficult review to write. Abby Jimenez’s new novel, Say You’ll Remember Me ( Forever 2025), just didn’t live up to my expectations. I really enjoy Jimenez’s work. I’ve said before that I don’t really read romance – that’s mostly because I’m just very particular about what I want inContinue reading “SAY YOU’LL REMEMBER ME – Abby Jimenez”
LITTLE BEACH STREET BAKERY – Jenny Colgan
This review is a bit late, but hey, better late than never, right? I listened to my first Jenny Colgan novel a few weeks ago, Little Beach Street Bakery (2014), and while I enjoyed the story and found it cute, the audio does the experience absolutely no favors. The narration took me completely out ofContinue reading “LITTLE BEACH STREET BAKERY – Jenny Colgan”
THE LOVE ELIXIR OF AUGUSTA STERN – Lynda Cohen Loigman
“For a moment, Augusta could remember what it felt like to believe – not in the magic of witches or fairies, but in the magic of women who knew how to heal; the magic of women in the quiet of their kitchens, who could sweeten a bitter woman’ s heart or soothe a man’s temperContinue reading “THE LOVE ELIXIR OF AUGUSTA STERN – Lynda Cohen Loigman”
PS: I HATE YOU – Lauren Connolly
Lauren Connolly’s PS: I Hate You (Berkley Romance 2024) is absolutely stinking adorable. It reminded me a little bit of Abby Jimenez’s Just for the Summer, especially as it related to the mental health aspects and the general goofy smile reading the novel left on my face, and I loved it. Long story short –Continue reading “PS: I HATE YOU – Lauren Connolly”
A NOVEL LOVE STORY – Ashley Poston
I’m likely not the best person to listen to when it comes to reviewing romance. That said, I tried really hard to like Ashley Poston’s A Novel Love Story (Berkley 2024), but it fell way flat for me. The premise is cute enough – a woman who loves romance novels heads to a cabin forContinue reading “A NOVEL LOVE STORY – Ashley Poston”
THE MOST WONDERFUL CRIME OF THE YEAR – Ally Carter
While heading home for Christmas, I decided to listen to an audio book. (I usually get one or two audio books in a year, but it’s really not my reading preference.) I settled on Ally Carter’s The Most Wonderful Crime of the Year (Avon 2024), and I’m so glad I did. What a delicious holidayContinue reading “THE MOST WONDERFUL CRIME OF THE YEAR – Ally Carter”
A Girl Named Tommi 