Neurodivergence is a term that describes variations in brain function. Some forms of neurodiversity may be familiar, such as ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder), ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder), and Dyslexia. Others may be less familiar—or perhaps you never knew their specific name, such as ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder & the now depreciated term Asperger’s Syndrome), Developmental Speech Disorder, Dyspraxia and many other diagnoses.

There are some who claim conditions such as autism are “new illnesses” or a result of modern life and (insert any technology here). However, a look into folklore will show you that neurodivergence is simply a new name for old symptoms.

They jumped up from their bed and rushed in there to find their boy going through every barrel and pouch, every bag and shelf. There he was, as he had never gone, eating whatever he could get his hands on, and as soon as he saw his parents he gave them a frown and shrieked. His expression was grim, his eyes did not burn as bright and he spoke not a single word to his parents. The following days he wobbled around the house, kicking and yelling and stuffing into his mouth any scrap of food he could get his hands on. His parents watched him with a heavy heart, almost thinking it could not be their child. Indeed, he felt like a very different boy all together.

— Hjörleifur Helgi Stefánsson and Tord Sandström Fahlström, Icelandic Folk Tales

A certain mother’s child had been taken away out of its cradle by the elves, and a changeling with a large head and staring eyes, which would do nothing but eat and drink, laid in its place. In her trouble she went to her neighbour, and asked her advice. The neighbour said that she was to carry the changeling into the kitchen, set it down on the hearth, light a fire, and boil some water in two egg-shells, which would make the changeling laugh, and if he laughed, all would be over with him.

— Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm, The Complete Grimm’s Fairy Tales (~1818)

And not just in folklore. Take these passages from Agatha Christie’s The Moving Finger (1943).

‘By the way, Megan is coming to lunch.’

‘Is she? Good.’

‘You like her?’ I asked.

‘I think she’s a changeling,’ said Joanna. ‘Something left on a doorstep, you know, while the fairies take the right one away. It’s very interesting to meet a changeling.

— Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

It was curious that one could never gauge what Megan would think or feel.

Joanna nodded and said: ‘No, one never does know with changelings.’

— Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

Megan is repeatedly described by others as not getting sarcasm, as being odd and queer, and even describes herself as not being a real person.

‘Won’t you have one?’

‘No, I don’t think I will, but it was very nice of you to offer it to me— just as though I was a real person.’

‘Aren’t you a real person?’ I said amused.

Megan shook her head, then, changing the subject,

— Agatha Christie, The Moving Finger

That book also has (at least) two queer characters, reminding us there is nothing new under the sun.

Neurodivergence has historically been classified as a disorder, however, it seems nonsensical to classify 15-20% of the population as disordered when left-handedness (which affects only 10% of the population) is no longer classified as such.

One reason for the push to see these conditions are a variation rather than a disorder is the growing evidence of underdiagnosis in females and minorities. For women and girls, socialization and social expectations can cause some neurodivergent conditions to present differently than they do in males, leading to missed or severely delayed diagnoses.

For minorities, the reasons behind missed and delayed diagnoses can be even more complicated, however, as with mental health, allowing these conditions to be seen as part of being human, rather than a disability to hide or be ashamed of, helps everyone.

Just as you can expand your knowledge of mental and physical illnesses and ailments reading fiction, you can do the same for neurodiversity. More fiction is being published each year, including stories written by neurodivergent individuals.

We need to seek out stories with characters unlike ourselves. To see other’s lives from their perspective. Doing so not only broadens our own perspective, it lets us see how the world could be made less difficult for those who aren’t average or typical.

I firmly believe stories are one of the best ways to do this, because as neurodivergent characters live and fall in love and solve mysteries and have adventures, it becomes clear neurodivergence (like mental illness, like physical disability) isn’t some horror to be hidden, but simply another way of being a human.

Even more importantly, stories with neurodivergent women and minorities allow those who have gone undiagnosed to see themselves in the stories they read, and perhaps seek a diagnosis that might allow them to discover ways to make life easier.

I’ve gathered here a few quotes from or about characters that are either explicitly written as neurodiverse, or who display traits common to those on the spectrum.

Quotes

Touching is never a joke to Charlie. He doesn’t hate it as a general rule, but he does prefer advance warning and for hand sanitizer to be involved.

— Alison Cochrun, The Charm Offensive

Uninvited touches irritated her, and her mother knew it. She did it to “acclimate” her.

— Helen Hoang, The Kiss Quotient

It wasn’t that Martin disliked shaking hands, although there were some days where the touch of another person’s skin did make him shudder.

— Ada Maria Soto, Agents of Winter

“Is that what happened today? Is that why you went to the tavern? You didn’t hear me?”

“Not exactly. I did hear you, and I understood what you were saying at the time. It’s just…” She winced, and her voice grew soft again. “It was so loud downstairs and… Sometimes I concentrate so hard on hearing and understanding what’s being said that I… I forget to remember it. I know that sounds mad, but—”

He squeezed her hand. “You’re not mad.”

— Alissa Johnson, A Dangerous Deceit

(W)hile most people startle mildly when surprised, I jump out of my skin, adrenaline floods my system, and all I want to do is curl up into the fetal position. It’s unsettling and embarrassing.

— Chloe Liese, Always Only You

It was almost unheard-of for Michael to look anyone directly in the eye, with the exception of his children.

— Jane Steen, Lady Helena Investigates

(T)hey said the eyes were the windows to the soul, and Clem didn’t feel comfortable peering into people’s windows.

— KJ Charles An Unseen Attraction (Sins of the Cities)

Toby twisted his mouth in dissatisfaction, or embarrassment. “I forget sometimes, to say things. Small talk is difficult for me.” He made eye contact again. “I don’t want to be rude, so I’ve learned to ask.”

— R Cooper The Other Side of the Roses

I like my books. They’re one of the most vital tools in my arsenal for navigating human behavior, to explore my feelings about the parts of life that most confuse me. Books help me feel a bit more connected to a world that often is hard to make sense of. Books are patient with me. They don’t laugh at me instead of with me. They don’t ask why I’m “always” frowning, or why I can’t sit still. Books welcome me— weirdness and all— and take me exactly as I am.

— Chloe Liese, Always Only You

Laura wouldn’t have picked up the phone, only she thought it was Ruth.

Which was, in hindsight, ridiculous. Ruth never called. Ruth hated phone conversations. She was a text-only kind of girl.

— Talia Hibbert, Damaged Goods

(W)ith his job being IT, there were often good reasons he came home having exhausted his social-skill quota for the day and was only up to playing some games or reading a book before crashing. Books and video games also didn’t yell at you, or snidely act as though you were a waste of space.

— Aidan Wayne, Play It Again

A few days later, Corbin seemed out of sorts. Alex was working the cash register and when he asked Corbin how his day was going, Corbin muttered, “You can’t talk to me today. Please.”

“All right,” Alex said. “I’m sorry.”

— Roan Parrish, The Remaking of Corbin Wale

There was no easy way to explain being a grown man who was terrified of meaningless conversations and meeting new people. Saying small social embarrassments haunted him for years made him sound obsessive and weird.

— R Cooper, Vincent’s Thanksgiving Date

(T)here’s only one glass of sangria in my system, but I’m flushed and relaxed, slightly buzzed, which is when I feel like I have a tiny glimpse of what it’s like to be a socially fluent human. To flow with conversation and enjoy it,

— Chloe Liese, Always Only You

“Do loud noises bring on these episodes? Or is it something else?”

Lawrence shook his head. Noise was only the beginning. “I need things to be predictable,”

— Cat Sebastian, The Lawrence Browne Affair

“I simply prefer to retain control of my surroundings, because if I do not, I get a headache.”

— Theresa Romain, To Charm a Naughty Countess

(His) therapist– had been encouraging him to attempt to form other friendships. He had tried to explain how difficult that was, that patterns and routine gave his life order and that other people caused breaks in those patterns that could verge on physically painful.

— Ada Maria Soto, Agents of Winter

When Michael was in London for parliamentary business, he employed another secretary. Such help was vital since Michael, a highly intelligent man in all other respects, had never acquired the ability to read or write.

— Jane Steen, Lady Helena Investigates

“I’m capable of making out words on a page. I know my alphabet. It’s just…I am not any good at making sense of all those symbols. I can pick out words, but by the time I’ve got the next one down, I’ve practically forgotten the last. They never quite manage to coalesce into sentences.” His voice was whisper-quiet, but he spoke with a dire urgency.

— Courtney Milan, Unveiled

[Jaxon has severe dyslexia]
Caleb grinned. “Hi. How are you?”

Jaxon beamed. “I’m fine,” he signed. Signed! “How are you?”

“You speak ASL?!” Caleb signed back, sure his eyes were bugging out of his head.

“Only a little,” Jaxon said. “I tried to learn some basics. Thought it might make things easier for you if you could sign at least a little to me. I didn’t get to learn very much. I only had a few days. But it’s not that hard to learn! It’s just memorization, so even I could get it through my head.” His smile was bashful, but he still looked nervous, like he was waiting for Caleb’s approval.

This man had started learning ASL for their first date. And he was good at it.

And he thought he was stupid?

— Aidan Wayne, Loud and Clear

“(T)hey’re easier to see than the way writing usually looks. The letters don’t move around.”

“Letters move around?” I looked curiously at my brother.

“They do for me. They wiggle and slip away when I try to look at them. But this writing is in a picture, so the picture holds it steady for me.”

— Jane Steen, Lady Helena Investigates

Until then it hadn’t occurred to Phillip that his own difficulty with reading might be something that ran in the blood.

— Cat Sebastian. It Takes Two to Tumble

“She used to tell me, ‘S-spit it out boy.’ I d-don’t think she meant to be cruel, but I didn’t like it.” It had always seemed like such an ugly idea. My words reduced to nothing but phlegm.

Adam was frowning rather fiercely. “Your parents never said anything?”

“I didn’t ask them. I was too scared they . . . um . . . agreed with her. And I didn’t want to make my mother do the ‘he’s very sensitive’ speech because I could tell my father didn’t like it.”

— Alexis Hall, Waiting for the Flood

Caleb had spent his whole life fighting with a world that judged him on one single trait. Stamped stupid on his forehead in bright-red ink because he couldn’t get them to listen to what he had to say instead of how he said it. He knew what that fucking felt like. But he also knew he was a privileged bastard who’d gotten good grades without much trouble, who’d gotten into great schools as a result, who worked hard, yeah, but who’d also had the method and means to get to where he wanted to be.

— Aidan Wayne, Loud and Clear

“(S)ecret.” Actually, I hated that word. The c was a nail, driven jagged into a wall, waiting to catch at you and tear you skinless.

— Alexis Hall, Waiting for the Flood

Michael looked uneasy. He saw eating as a necessity rather than an enjoyment and was a little squeamish about food.

— Jane Steen, Lady Helena Investigates

Martin’s plate looked more like a small Thanksgiving-themed charcuterie board with bits of this and that minus certain flavors and textures he knew Martin wouldn’t like.

— Ada Maria Soto, Agents of Winter

(It) was actually one of her main weaknesses, and a defining characteristic of her disorder. She didn’t know how to be semi-interested in something. She was either indifferent . . . or obsessed. And her obsessions weren’t passing things. They consumed her and became a part of her. She kept them close, wove them into her very life. Just like her work.

— Helen Hoang. The Kiss Quotient

That was what she’d liked about his live stream, apart from his voice— that he was deeply and unashamedly interested in something.

— Alyssa Cole, Can’t Escape Love

Some people thought Theresa stupid. She wasn’t, not remotely. She was just the kind of clever that cared so little for what others thought that it was often mistaken for stupidity. When she could make herself sit still long enough to read, she understood everything. But she was always distracted— or, at least, she was always distracting herself.

— Courtney Milan, Once Upon a Marquess

“Um… Noah?” A furrow had appeared between Jordan’s eyebrows. “What are you talking about?”

Noah scrubbed his hands over his face. He knew he was doing that thing where he jumped between topics that were related in his mind and forgot to explain the connection to his listener.

— ES Yu, Human Enough

She wasn’t graceful. She was, in fact, the opposite of graceful. He worried for her safety once every five seconds at least. When she poured half of the hot water onto the counter, he was only surprised that she didn’t scald herself in the process.

— Talia Hibbert A Girl Like Her

He knew he looked like an automaton, staring blankly and answering furious shouts in a featureless voice, and he well knew it didn’t ever make anyone less angry, but it was all the defence he had against the awful spectre of violent, murderous rage.

— KJ Charles An Unseen Attraction (Sins of the Cities)

Stella flinched, and her already anxious heart squeezed. Fighting was her absolute least favorite thing. When people fought, it always felt like a personal attack for her. It didn’t matter if she was just a bystander.

— Helen Hoang, The Kiss Quotient

The psychologist said I’d have been diagnosed sooner if not for my fantastic ability to follow rules, copy behaviors, and pretend I was “normal.” Everyone hits a breaking point, the shrink said. It was only a matter of time before I’d have to stop pretending and get honest about my neurological difference.

— Chloe Liese, Always Only You

I confess that several times during the process of writing A Dangerous Deceit, I wondered if I should have my heroine struggle with something more likely to be familiar to readers. I never wavered for long, however — in large part because the inspiration for Jane Ballenger came from a much-loved member of my own family, a young woman who faces many of the same challenges. I wanted to give her, and readers like her, a heroine of their own.

— Alissa Johnson, A Dangerous Deceit

Neurodiverse Characters

Female Characters

Romance Books

A Girl Like Her (2018) Talia Hibbert, main character [ASD]

The Kiss Quotient (2018) Helen Hoang, main character [ASD]

Always Only You (2020) Chloe Liese, main character [ASD]

Unlocked (2011) Courtney Milan, main character [ASD]

Can’t Escape Love (2019) Alissa Cole, main character [ADHD]

Destined To Last (2010) Alissa Johnson, main character [not defined]

One Good Earl Deserves a Lover (2012) Sarah MacLean, main character [not defined]

Once Upon a Marquess (2015) Courtney Milan, sibling [not defined]

ASD: 4 | ADHD: 1 | dyslexia: 0 | other/not defined: 3

Mystery Books

Dahlia Donovan Motts Cold Case series: Poisoned Primrose (2020) main character [ASD]

Sherry Thomas Lady Sherlock series: A Study In Scarlet Women (2016) main character, sibling [ASD]

A Dangerous Deceit (2017) Alissa Johnson, main character [central auditory processing disorder]

The Moving Finger (1942) Agatha Christie secondary [not defined]

ASD: 2 | ADHD: 0 | dyslexia: 0 | other/not defined: 2

Male Characters

Romance Books

Unveiled (2011) Courtney Milan, main character [dyslexia]

It Takes Two to Tumble  (2017) Cat Sebastian, main character [dyslexia]

Untouchable (2018) Talia Hibbert, main character [dyslexia]

Loud and Clear (2016) Aidan Wayne, main character [dyslexia, speech disorder]

Waiting for the Flood (2018) Alexis Hall, main character [speech disorder]

An Unseen Attraction (2017) KJ Charles, main character [dyspraxia, ASD]

The Other Side of the Roses (2017) R Cooper main character [ASD]

Can’t Escape Love (2019) Alissa Cole, main character [ASD]

To Charm a Naughty Countess (2014) Theresa Romain character, main character [ASD]

Ada Maria Soto‘s The Agency: His Quiet Agent (2017), Merlin in the Library (2018), Agents of Winter (2022) main character [not defined: ASD, ADHD]

Connection Error (2016) Annabeth Albert, main character [ADHD]

In Pursuit Of… (2017) Courtney Milan, main character [not defined: ADHD]

The Lawrence Browne Affair (2017) Cat Sebastian main character [not defined]

Unraveled (2011) Courtney Milan main character [not defined]

Vincent’s Thanksgiving Date (2014) R Cooper, main character [not defined]

How to Be a Normal Person (2015) TJ Klune main character [not defined]

The Remaking of Corbin Wale (2017) Roan Parrish main character [not defined]

Play It Again (2019) Aidan Wayne, main character [not defined]

Conventionally Yours (2020) Annabeth Albert main character [not defined]

The Charm Offensive (2021) Alison Cochrun, main character [not defined]

A Gentleman’s Position (2016) KJ Charles sibling [dyslexia]

ASD: 5 | ADHD: 3 | dyslexia: 5 | other/not defined: 8

Mystery Books

Dahlia Donovan‘s London Podcast series: Cosplay Killer (2020), main character [ASD]

Dahlia Donovan‘s Grasmere Cottage series: Dead in the Garden (2018), Dead in the Pond (2018), Dead in the Shop (2018) main character [ASD]

A Case for Christmas (2021) J.A. Rock & Lisa Henry main character [not defined]

Jane Steen ‘s Lady Helena Investigates series: Lady Helena Investigates (2018), Lady Odelia’s Secret (2022) sibling [dyslexia]

ASD: 2 | ADHD: 0 | dyslexia: 1 | other/not defined: 1

Fantasy Books

Human Enough (2019) ES Yu, main character [ASD]

Ella Stainton’s Kilty Pleasures series: Best Laid Plaids (2020), Where There’s a Kilt, There’s a Way (2021) main character [ADHD]

Libriomancer (2012) Jim C. Hines, [ASD]

ASD: 2 | ADHD: 1 | dyslexia: 0 | other/not defined: 0

References

• Alonso, José Ramón. The changelings: fairy tales about autism? https://mappingignorance.org/2020/06/22/the-changelings-fairy-tales-about-autism
• CDC (2019) Spotlight On: Racial and Ethnic Differences in Children Identified with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/autism/addm-community-report/differences-in-children.html
• Christie, Agatha (1943) The Moving Finger
• Dimri, Bipin. Your Child Is Not Your Own? The Horrific Tales Of Medieval Changelings https://www.historicmysteries.com/changeling/
• Doyle, Nancy. Neurodiversity at work: a biopsychosocial model and the impact on working adults, Br Med Bull. (2020) Sep; 135(1): 108–125. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7732033
• Leask J, Leask A, Silove N, Evidence for autism in folklore? Archives of Disease in Childhood (2005) 90: 271. https://adc.bmj.com/content/90/3/271
• Lisa, Jessica Scher and Voulgarakis, Harry (2020) Autism Spectrum News. Presentation of Autism Spectrum Disorder in Females: Diagnostic Complexities and Implications for Clinicians https://www.autismspectrumnews.org/presentation-of-autism-spectrum-disorder-in-females-diagnostic-complexities-and-implications-for-clinicians/
• Lockwood Estrin, G., Milner, V., Spain, D. et al. Barriers to Autism Spectrum Disorder Diagnosis for Young Women and Girls: a Systematic Review. Rev J Autism Dev Disord 8, 454–470 (2021). https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40489-020-00225-8
• Penot, Jessica (2022) Psychology Today. Recognizing Autism in Females. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-forgotten-women/202203/recognizing-autism-in-females
• Price, Alan (2022) Neurodiversity And The Workplace https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbeshumanresourcescouncil/2022/02/15/neurodiversity-and-the-workplace/?sh=eae1c9c2a222
• Stefánsson, Hjörleifur Helgi & Fahlström, Tord Sandström (2020) Icelandic Folk Tales
• Whelan, Christopher (2021) Autistics Have Always Been Here, and We’re Not Going Away: Part 1 https://autisticrights.net/2021/04/02/autistics-have-always-been-here-and-were-not-going-away-part-1/
• Windling, Terri. The Stolen Child: Tales of Fairy Changelings https://www.terriwindling.com/folklore/changelings.html
• Yeats, W.B. (1892) Irish Fairy and Folktales
• Zipes, Jack (translator) (1992) The Complete Grimm’s Fairy Tales, based on stories published by Jacob Grimm & Wilhelm Grimm in 1812, 1815, and 1857
• Changelings: Terrifying Creatures That Impersonate Your Children, History Defined. https://www.historydefined.net/changelings
• Changelings https://autisticempath.com/changelings

Why Representation in Books Is Important
Representation in Books: Injury
Representation in Books: Illness

I can hardly believe it, but I read five new releases in October. Suer, half the other books are rereads, but I tend to sit on new releases, either afraid they won’t be as good as I want, or because I’m not in the mood for them. Yet here I am reading four different books in the same month they were released.

Were the new releases good? Pretty much, yes! I was startled to discover Ada Maria Soto had a new Agency book coming out, and almost held off reading it, in fear I wouldn’t like it as well, but as I’d just reread His Quiet Agent, it seemed silly not to read Agents of Winter.

I was delighted to see Raquel V. Reyes had a new Caribbean Kitchen Mystery out, and was pleased by that sequel as well. And it’s not that I disliked Mia P. Manansala third book in her series, but I kept thinking was the second book in Raquel V. Reyes series, and so was disappointed it wasn’t. And the fact I read both in a couple weeks of each other isn’t going to help me keep the authors straight.

David R. Slayton‘s Adam Binder series finished off the arc started in the first book, and I was pleased with it–even if I probably need to reread the entire series, to pick up the things I missed first go round.

Although it wasn’t a new release, I was delighted by Kathryn Harkup’s A is for Arsenic: The Poisons of Agatha Christie. I mean, science and Agatha Christie–what’s not to love?

I’m almost finished with my relisten of Ben Aaronovitch‘s Rivers of London series, and I have no idea what I’m going to listen to after that. (The books I listen to have to be fantasy or mystery and have to be one’s I’ve already read, so that makes things harder, especially since I like immersing myself with audio books, and some of the series on my want-to-reread lists are ones with authors I can’t bear to listen to.

I am still trying to finish my final post on representation, which is behind my reading of several books this month, except there is already one more book to read and always will be, so I just need to finish it and be done.

And that’s October.

Romance

A Girl Like Her (2018) Talia Hibbert (Ravenswood) 8.5/10

Agents of Winter (2022) Ada Maria Soto (The Agency) 8.5/10

Always Only You (2020) Chloe Liese (Bergman Brothers)  8/10

Damaged Goods (2018) Talia Hibbert (Ravenswood) 8/10

Can’t Escape Love (2019) Alyssa Cole (Reluctant Royals) 7.5/10

Bewitching Benedict (2017) C. E. Murphy  (The Lovelorn Lads) 7.5/10

Lucky Yellow Shoes (2020) Jae 7/10

Coffee Boy (2016) Austin Chant

Mystery

Calypso, Corpses, and Cooking (2022) Raquel V. Reyes (A Caribbean Kitchen Mystery) 8.5/10

Agatha Christie (Miss Marple): The Murder at the Vicarage (1930) 7.5/10, Thirteen Problems (1932) 8.5/10, The Body in the Library (1942) 8/10, The Moving Finger (1942) 8.5/10

Blackmail and Bibingka (2022) Mia P. Manansala (Tita Rosie’s Kitchen Mystery 7/10

Fantasy

Uncommonly Tidy Poltergeists (2017) Angel Martinez 8.5/10

Deadbeat Druid (2022) David R. Slayton (Adam Binder) 8/10

Witchmark (2018) C.L. Polk (The Kingston Cycle) 7.5/10

The Great Atlantean Battle Royalchemy (2022) K.D. Edwards 7.5/10

Non-Fiction

A is for Arsenic: The Poisons of Agatha Christie (2015) Kathryn Harkup 8.5/10

Audio Book

What Abigail Did That Summer, Audio Book (2021) Ben Aaronovitch narrated by Shvorne Marks and Kobna Holdbrook-Smith (Rivers of London) 8/10

False Value, Audio Edition (2020) Ben Aaronovitch narrated by Kobna Holdbrook-Smith (Rivers of London) 8.5/10

Tales from the Folly: A Rivers of London Short Story Collection, Audio Edition (2020) Ben Aaronovitch narrated by: the author, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Ben Elliot, Felix Grainger, Sam Peter Jackson, Alex Kingston, Shvorne Marks, and Penelope Rawlins 8.5/10

Waiting for the Flood, Audio Edition (2016) Alexis Hall narrated by Alexander Doddy 7/10

It’s Ace awareness week!

(I)t’s more that he can’t quite wrap his brain around being attracted to anyone. He can appreciate the aesthetic beauty of other people, and he’s had intellectual crushes on women— he’s admired women, respected them, had a vague desire for an intimacy and a closeness he’s never been able to achieve. But he’s never really wanted a woman before, and his sexual fantasies about women are usually vague and abstract. They’re not usually even about him.

— Alison Cochrun, The Charm Offensive

Everything looks like friendly teasing if you don’t know what sexual tension is.

— R. Cooper  For Better or Worse

He set the spoon down. “I’m not flirting with you.”

“Really.” Jonah’s voice dripped with disbelief. “You don’t call putting food in my mouth flirting?”

“No, actually. I share food with my eating companions regularly.” Vaughn mentally replayed their conversation. “What part of the last twenty minutes was flirtatious?”

Jonah’s jaw dropped. “Are you kidding me? Just how oblivious are you?”

— Cass Lennox. Blank Spaces

Orlando thought it strange, if other people were anything to go by, that he’d reached the age of twenty-eight without finding anybody he wanted to be close to.

— Charlie Cochrane, Lessons in Love

It had taken her a while to understand that hot wasn’t quite the same as beautiful for most people.

— Jae Perfect Rhythm

Kissing people gave them the wrong idea, and it was hard to enjoy touching anyone when you were constantly wondering where they’d stick their hands.

— K.J. Charles  The Rat-Catcher’s Daughter

“So, you have a relationship with this transport.”

I was horrified. Humans are disgusting. “No!”

Ratthi made a little exasperated noise. “I didn’t mean a sexual relationship.”

Amena’s brow furrowed in confusion and curiosity.

“Is that possible?”

“No!”

— Martha Wells Murderbot

 

---

 

 ~ Books with Ace Rep ~

Main characters

A Gentleman’s Position (2016) KJ Charles (Society of Gentlemen) Romance

Ada Maria Soto (The Agency): His Quiet Agent (2017), Merlin in the Library (2018), Agents of Winter (2022) Romance

All the Wrong Places (2016) Ann Gallagher (Bluewater Bay) Romance

Best Laid Plans (2021) Roan Parrish (Garnet Run) Romance

For Better or Worse (2017) R Cooper Romance

TJ Klune How to Be a Normal Person (2014), How to Be a Movie Star (2019) TJ Klune (How to Be) Romance

Making Love (2017) Aidan Wayne Romance

Perfect Rhythm (2017) Jae (Fair Oaks) Romance

Play It Again (2019) Aidan Wayne Romance

Jericho Candelario’s Gay Debut (2018) R Cooper parental Romance

That Kind of Guy (2019) Talia Hibbert (Ravenswood) Romance

Thaw (2017) Elyse Springer (Seasons of Love Book)) Romance

The Charm Offensive (2021) Alison Cochrun Romance

The Ex Talk (2021) Rachel Lynn Solomon Romance

The Heartbreak Bakery (2021) A.R. Capetta Romance

The Quid Pro Quo (2021) A.L. Lester (Bradfield Trilogy) Romance

The Rat-Catcher’s Daughter (2019) KJ Charles (Lilywhite Boys) Romance

Three Stupid Weddings (2018) Ann Gallagher Romance

Two Rogues Make a Right (2020) Cat Sebastian (Seducing the Sedgwicks) Romance

Upside Down (2019) N.R. Walker Romance

Human Enough (2019) ES Yu Fantasy

The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy (2018) Mackenzi Lee Fantasy

Turning Darkness Into Light (2019) Marie Brennan secondary Fantasy

Uncommonly Tidy Poltergeists (2017) Angel Martinez Fantasy

All Systems Red (2017) Martha Wells  (The Murderbot Diaries) SF

Blank Spaces (2016) Cass Lennox (Toronto Connections) Mystery

Charlie Cochrane (Cambridge Fellows) Lessons in Love (2008). Lessons in Discovery (2009) Mystery

Dahlia Donovan (Motts Cold Case series): Poisoned Primrose (2020), Pickled Petunia (2021), Pierced Peony (2021), Purloined Poinsettia (2022) Mystery

The Murder Next Door (2021) Sarah Bell Mystery

Secondary characters

Family Matters (2018) Angel Martinez (Brandywine Investigations)) Fantasy

The Book of Candlelight (2000) Ellery Adams (Secret, Book, & Scone Society) Mystery

The Moving Finger (1942) Agatha Christie (Miss Marple) Mystery

The Tropic of Serpents (2014) Marie Brennan (Lady Trent) Fantasy

Non-Fiction

Ace What Asexuality Reveals About Desire, Identity, and the Meaning of Sex (2020) Angela Chen

Friday I led a work hike up Ravens Rock trail.

We started the hike at nine, so there was still a little fog when we reached the rocks.

It was a perfect morning for a hike.

Saturday we decided to take a scenic drive with occasional stops to hike.

Our first stop was Seneca Rocks. From the visitor center we could see how busy things were upon the rocks, so we walked around a bit and then headed off to our next destination.

We hit the Blackwater River trail at Canaan Valley much later than normal, so the light was different.

Not at all bad, but the things I normally look at were in the shade.

I was pleased to be able to see things I don’t normally.

It had been several years since we’d been to Freeland Boardwalk. The entire thing has been completely replaced and rerouted in areas.

Last we went to the Beall’s Trails area in Canaan Valley Wildlife Refuge.

Just a short hike, but gorgeous, even though most trees were past peak.

I ended up flipping through my hiking books to find a trail near where we were going to be Saturday, which is how we ended up at the Shavers Fork Area, which is (I’m pretty sure) part of the Cheat River WMA.

Aside from our GPS disagreeing with the map, we found our way there and hiked the Crouch Ridge Trail.

It was lovely. We saw no other humans, the leaves were turning, and we there was even a tiny bit of snow falling from the sky!

One thing you don’t see a lot of in genre fiction is main characters with a serious illness. Sure, there are ill relatives and friends, but I have come across a far smaller number of stories where one of the main characters has a serious or chronic illness—especially in comparison to injured main characters or ill relatives. (I love mysteries, and in them someone is always getting hurt sticking their nose in where it doesn’t belong. (Is there a mystery book bingo card? Because that is definitely on it.))

Serious or chronic illness is something we are all likely to experience as we get older—either our own ill health or that of someone we love. Reading about these struggles can do several things: it can help us have empathy for those around us, it can prepare us for possible events, and it lets us feel seen when we might be struggling with illness or caregiving.

So I want to mention some books featuring main characters dealing with serious illness—either acute or chronic.

First is Dahlia Donovan’s story The Wanderer, which despite all the boinking (a me issue, not a story issue), was amazing. It’s a romance, and the whole thing is unflinching as we watch Graham go through cancer diagnosis and treatment. This includes not just the hair loss and weight loss, but things that are typically glossed over.

Aside from losing his hair, Graham’s body suffered from other side effects. His skin grew paler, and his nails were brittle. They’d gotten lotion to help with his dry and irritated skin.

— Dahlia Donovan, The Wanderer

The story is also blunt about the sexual side effects, and makes it clear many of the side effects of chemo and radiation can persist for a long time.

They’d all warned him about fatigue continuing to be a problem for what could be a potentially prolonged period up to several years post-surgery.

— Dahlia Donovan, The Wanderer

It also doesn’t pull punches when it comes to the strain such an illness can put on relationships.

Bad news combined with a stronger dose of chemo to make Graham both listless and depressed, and no one could blame him. A steady stream of visitors attempting to cheer him up hadn’t helped. Rupert’s last visit had ended in angry tears from both twins; the older ginger hadn’t been back since the fight.

— Dahlia Donovan, The Wanderer

We see not just the family and friends gathering together to help out, but also the bickering and misery and anger.

“I’d be ever so grateful if you’d tell my bloody brother to bugger off. How can he not see why I might need a good laugh right about now without feeling guilty? I’m taking my decreasing chances of survival as seriously as I can. What does he want me to do?”

— Dahlia Donovan, The Wanderer

Even more importantly, the story touches on caregiver burnout—how difficult it can be for those caring for an ill, elderly, or dying loved one.

 

Adriana Herrera’s American Dreamer (this is all SPOILERS, so skip ahead to avoid them) looks at previously fractured relationships, and how illness and impending death don’t always pull everyone together.

After everything that happened when I came out, my four siblings, using Mary as their speaker, had politely requested I never contact them again. So now I needed permission before I called to ask about my sister who was dying.

— Adriana Herrera. American Dreamer

 

After a moment, (the preacher) cleared his throat. “Jude, I’m here at Mary’s request to talk about your salvation, son. Your sister is dying, and she’s worried about the state of your soul as much as her own. She loves you and wants more than anything to see you turn away from the life of sin and perdition you’re living. She doesn’t want to leave this world without hearing you repent and say you accept our Lord in your heart once again.”

— Adriana Herrera. American Dreamer

This part of the story does not have a happy ending (although the romance of course does) but it does have a realistic ending, and that is incredibly important. Because stories lead us to believe that when serious illness comes, everyone will gather around and all will be good, past insults and injuries forgotten and forgiven.

 

END SPOILERS

 

Sweetest in the Gale is a collection of three novellas, and the third story has the main character discover of a lump in her breast and get a biopsy.

“I’m about to insert that titanium clip you heard about. It’ll help mark the spot for future mammograms or if you need surgery.”

— Sweetest in the Gale, Olivia Dade

And she does this while worrying about how she is going to pay for the diagnosis and treatment

Although marriage of convenience is a trope I particularly like, it is weirdly common in contemporary American romances, which is quite honestly depressing , and ’d be happier if it was relegated to historicals.

 

Layla Reyne’s story, Dine With Me, is a journey from diagnosis to accepting that life is worth fighting for, even if that life is irrevocably changed.

“Our lives revolve around taste— perfecting seasoning, pairings, entire menus. How much salt to add? Does it need acid? Where’s the perfect balance of sweet and savory? If I lose the ability to taste, to do those things that are essential to my daily life, both for work and my soul, which is highly likely with the course of chemo I need, not to mention radiation and possible surgery, then what the hell am I supposed to do with myself? Who the fuck am I?”

— Layla Reyne, Dine With Me

The story is his coming to accept he is more than his career, and that he has value even if he is no longer able to be a chef.

 

Lissa Kasey’s Haven Investigations series shows the dangers of concussion I’ve never seen in a story before.

“What happened?”

He pulled in a deep breath. “You had a stroke.”

I blinked at him in confusion. “Huh?”

“It’s called an Ischemic Stroke. A blood clot in the brain that deprives the brain of oxygen and nutrients. The neurosurgeon who’s treating you thinks it was caused by the multiple concussions you’ve had.”

— Lissa Kasey. Model Investigator

As a society, we’re mostly aware of the long-term dangers of repeated concussion, such early onset dementia like has been seen in those who played contact sports. But concussion can also cause blood clots and stroke, which can cause further brain damage.

“But if the clots are gone, I shouldn’t have any more seizures.”

“Baby, the seizures weren’t from the clots. They were from the damage to your brain, the swelling of blood vessels and oxygen deprivation. Those things aren’t healed yet.

— Lissa Kasey. Model Investigator

He’d had one seizure at home since having a stroke. It had been a rather mild one compared to that first terrifying moment when the stroke had hit him, but it still terrified me. Keeping him well fed and rested were keys to minimizing the seizures and allowing him time to heal. He still had small blackouts and often forgot things, which worried me a little. He might always have issues from the stroke.

— Lissa Kasey. Model Investigator

Oliver even loses his driver’s license because of the seizures.

That series tends to darkness and suspense, so the serious injuries and their repercussions (and there are a lot of both) help emphasize the danger of the situations the two characters keep ending up in.

However, illness is more than the big diseases that put you in the hospital and from which many people make a full recovery. There is also chronic illness—diseases for which there is no cure, or from which someone will never recover to who they were before.

I love stories with the day-to-day bits of living, so I particularly like ones that show living with a non-standard brain or body.

In Alissa Cole’s Can’t Escape Love, Reggie uses a wheelchair, due to her ataxia.

Gus caught a glimpse of several wheelchairs, at least one of which looked like something from a sci-fi movie. He imagined none of them had come cheaply. “You have a lot of those,” he said.

She glanced up at him, and when she spoke there was a frost in the air that didn’t come from the AC. “The device I depend on to navigate the world? Yes. I have more than one.”

— Alyssa Cole, Can’t Escape Love

Reggie knows how lucky she is to be able to afford multiple wheelchairs, but that doesn’t mean she isn’t also annoyed by people doubting her capability solely because she has mobility issues or frustrated by the weakness and lack of control she sometimes experiences.

(E)ven now, there was something in her cadence that people picked up on. She could always mark the moment when the stranger on the other end of the line began to speak to her louder and more slowly, like she needed their help to comprehend things when they were the ones with a problem.

— Alyssa Cole, Can’t Escape Love

Another story that is upfront in addressing accessibility issues is Play It Again by Aidan Wayne. Dovid and his sister review restaurants as part of their vlog.

Dovid counted to six in his head to give Rachel editing leeway, then said, “So that was a negative for The Sweet Spot. The aisle was plain too narrow for me to get through easily on my own. Which also means it’d be even harder to have someone side-by-side leading me along. And I don’t know exactly how wide the aisle was because I couldn’t see it, but it really didn’t seem like a chair would be able to maneuver comfortably either. Now, our hostess might not have been thinking and there was a wider path she could have shown us, but I can only judge what I got.”

— Aidan Wayne, Play It Again

I am aware of some of these things because I live in an area that is frequently inaccessible—which I discovered when I spent six weeks on crutches (as well as during the years my grandmother lived with us) and let me tell you it is maddening to find you can’t do simple things like open doors because a building has not been made properly accessible.

There are also “invisible” disabilities: Ones that aren’t obvious to the average bystander, but may have serious effects on someone’s daily life.

“I have POTS.”

Apparently convinced she was steady, he stepped back. She tried not to miss the feel of him, that reassuring solidness.

“What the fuck is POTS?” he demanded.

“It’s a circulation thing. Mine is fairly mild. Sometimes, when I stand up, my heart beats too fast and I get dizzy.” She usually rose slowly, so she wouldn’t drop like a sack of potatoes.

— Talia Hibbert, That Kind of Guy

 

“That night, I passed out on the sofa, woke up at dawn, and had this bright idea— if I cleaned up the mess before Kevin woke up, he’d be really happy. He hated untidiness, and the house was my responsibility. I suppose I got a bit nervous. So, I stood up to move all of the empty bottles… only, I’d forgotten about my heart.”
…
“I stood up too fast. My heart panicked, and I passed out and dropped everything. Then there was all this blood, shouting… It was a dramatic way to ring in the new year.”

— Talia Hibbert, That Kind of Guy

 

Even in stories where the characters have rare conditions, I still learn fascinating things I would not have realized otherwise.

I liked old black-and-white movies. They were easier to watch, what with never being overwhelmed by the mess of tones and colors blending into one another that represented modern cinema.

— CS Poe, The Mystery of the Curiosities

It’s one thing to know about color blindness, but it’s something else to go with someone through their day as they try to do things like getting dressed, or finding the building with “the red door.”

 

More than a decade ago I was in a class where one of my classmates blithely said that if he was no longer able to drive, he wouldn’t want to live anymore.

I was taken aback, to say the least.

Yes, different people have difference standards of quality of life, but to see a life restricted by something as small as no longer being able to drive as a life not worth living any longer… That’s a pretty harsh take.

It’s another reason I think stories are so important—because they allow you to see the value in other lives—even ones we might think we would find restricted and unhappy.

 

Historicals can sometimes be problematic for me, because they often to gloss over the lack of medicine and treatment available. The likelihood of a woman dying at any point in any of her pregnancies is a subject I’ll skip for now, except to say there are books that do an amazing job of addressing the subject, and I wish there were more.

Aside from pregnancy, there were many serious illness—easily treated now—that were common and devastating.

 

It had taken him years to accept that he couldn’t properly run a business when he might be taken ill at any time. There were men whose livelihoods depended on Medlock Shipping remaining a going concern, and he couldn’t properly ensure that when he was delirious and feverish. The realization that his bouts of illness were going to continue forever, bringing his life to a grinding halt with no warning, had finally dawned on him this past year. There would always be relapses and recurrences; he might not die, but he wouldn’t get better. Regardless of how well he felt when he was healthy, there would always be another attack waiting for him around the corner. Eleanor’s tinctures only did so much. Bloodletting and special teas did nothing at all. He would spend the rest of his life trying to cram his living into the space between illnesses, his life a sentence with the ugliest punctuation.

— Cat Sebastian, The Ruin of a Rake

Despite the many different miracles of technology we use on a daily basis, it’s how we are able to heal and control so many once common illnesses that I think would impress travelers from the past.

I initially had difficulty accepting the HEA of the following story, because the main character had tuberculous, which is uncurable and would have severely shortened his life.

“The doctor said you broke a rib coughing. He said not to try binding it up because then you’d risk injuring your lungs. So I’m afraid it may have healed badly.”

— Cat Sebastian, Two Rogues Make a Right

Then I realized I was being obnoxiously selfish and abelist, because everyone deserves love and happiness. None of us know how long our lives, and the lives of those we love will be, so we should grab love and happiness when we have the chance.

As much as I adore properly researched historicals (and I do love them) one of the more terrifying things about them is treatments of that time which make an appearance.

“My sister,” Chant began, “was… odd. That’s what my parents called it at least. She would have fits where her body would jerk and she would lash out. She might shout obscenities or nonsense. But, Gale, she was sweetness itself when you knew her, you must believe me. My parents called it an affliction. Her doctors too. And I suppose it was. But I also think that, were the world more receptive to the idea that we are all made differently— that it is not really for any of us to say what is normal or right— perhaps her character would not have seemed such a burden to my mother. My father loved her so very dearly. My mother too, in her way. But my father was especially bonded to her. He was a busy man, and I don’t think he fully understood the toll it took on my mother to care for Jenny in a society that thinks those with ‘afflictions’ ought to be locked away and only spoken of in whispers. Jenny’s prospects lay in marriage. But my mother took her to a rout one Season, and it was such a disaster that we attended no more events. Gradually I noticed my parents were keeping Jenny inside more and more. Not even trips to the pie shop or the bookstore were permitted. Jenny became all but a captive within those walls.

— J.A. Rock and, Lisa Henry, A Case for Christmas

 

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

He clenches his hands into fists around the blankets, face set, then says, “Fine, you want to know why? Because at the end of this year, I’m not going to law school, I’m going into an asylum.”

We stare at each other. It takes a long moment for me to grasp what he’s said— it’s so horrid and utterly unbelievable that I’m certain I must have heard wrong. “You’re . . . what?”

“There’s a place in Holland. A sanatorium. For the . . .” He squeezes his eyes tight and finishes very carefully. “For the insane.”

— Mackenzi Lee, The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue

 

“My aunt thinks that this is God’s way of punishing me. The family’s bastard Negro boy has convulsive fits— it’s appropriate. She still won’t be disabused of the notion that I’m possessed by the devil, and my uncle keeps telling me that I need to stop being hysterical and overcome it.”

— Mackenzi Lee, The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue

 

“Have you ever taken the water cure?”

“No, but I understand that if it’s properly done, it can alleviate a great many ills.”

“Is there a proper way to douse a terrified child with ice water? Or wrap her in freezing, wet sheets and tie her to a bed, or—”

“No,” he said quickly. “None.”

— Alissa Johnson, A Dangerous Deceit

 

“Some doctors call it epilepsy,” she said cautiously. “But she has seen so many of them. The only thing they can agree on is that they don’t know how to cure her fits.”

He nodded thoughtfully. “What I overheard the other day, that’s the nature of the typical experiment, then? The doctors want to send an electric shock through her?”

“Among so many other things.” Too many treatments to list. Too many for Jane to think about without feeling sick to her stomach. “They’ve tried bloodletting and leeches and potions that make her vomit. Those are the easy ones to talk about. The rest…” If she closed her eyes, she could still smell the poker burning into her sister’s arm. She could still hear her scream. “You don’t want to hear about the rest.”

— Courtney Milan, The Heiress Effect

 

Never mind the cocaine pills and mummy powder and laudanum and trepanning and Mercury elixir and snake oil.

My favorite thing about historicals is that I am only visiting the past—I don’t have to live there. I only wish the future where all things are better, was already here.

 

---

 

Books with Illness Representation

Main Characters

 

~Romance~

Not So Cookie Cutter (2019) Aidan Wayne, osteoarthritis

Play It Again (2019) Aidan Wayne, cancer

Can’t Escape Love (2019) Alissa Cole, ataxia

Destined To Last (2010) Alissa Johnson (Providence Series) unknown

Arctic Heat (2019) Annabeth Albert (Frozen Hearts) cancer

Status Update (2015) Annabeth Albert (#gaymers) Celiac disease

A Duke in Disguise (2019) Cat Sebastian (Regency Imposter) epilepsy

The Ruin of a Rake (2017) Cat Sebastian (The Turner Series) Malaria

Two Rogues Make a Right (2020) Cat Sebastian (Seducing the Sedgwicks) tuberculosis

Lucky Charm (2019) Chace Verity, deaf

A Kiss for Midwinter (2012) Courtney Milan (The Brothers Sinister) miscarriage

The Countess Conspiracy (2013) Courtney Milan (The Brothers Sinister) miscarriage

The Color of You (2017) CS Poe, asthma

The Wanderer (2014) Dahlia Donovan (Sin Bin series) cancer

Sweetest in the Gale (2020) Olivia Dade, cancer

Get a Life, Chloe Brown (2019) Talia Hibbert (Brown Sisters) fibromyalgia

That Kind of Guy (2019) Talia Hibbert (Ravenswood) POTS

Blind Faith (2018) N.R. Walker, blindness

 

~Mystery~

Blind Justice (1994) Bruce Alexander (Sir John Fielding) blindness

CS Poe‘s Snow & Winter series, achromatopsia : The Mystery of Nevermore (2016), The Mystery of the Curiosities (2017), The Mystery of the Moving Image (2018), The Mystery of the Bones (2019), The Mystery of the Spirits (2021)

Southernmost Murder (2018) CS Poe, narcolepsy

Fatal Shadows (2000) Josh Lanyon (Adrien English) heart

Dine with Me (2019) Layla Reyne, cancer

Lissa Kasey‘s Haven Investigations series, concussion, seizures (attack)

Model Exposure (2017), Model Investigator (2017)

 

~Fantasy~

The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue (2017) Mackenzi Lee, epilepsy

The Nobleman’s Guide to Scandal and Shipwrecks (2021) Mackenzi Lee, epilepsy

A Natural History of Dragons (2013) Marie Brennan (Lady Trent) miscarriage

 

Secondary Characters

 

~Romance~

Life’s Too Short (2021) Abby Jimenez, parent, sibling, ALS

American Dreamer (2019) Adriana Herrera, family, cancer

Knit Tight (2015) Annabeth Albert (Portland Heat) family, cancer

The Heiress Effect (2013) Courtney Milan (The Brothers Sinister) sibling, epilepsy

The Luckiest Lady in London (2013) Sherry Thomas, sibling, epilepsy

 

~Mystery~

A Case for Christmas (2021) J.A. Rock & Lisa Henry (The Lords of Bucknall Club) sibling, epilepsy

 

Why Representation in Books Is Important

Mental Health Representation in Books: Depression

Mental Health Representation in Books: Anxiety

Mental Health Representation in Books: Grief

Mental Health Representation in Books: PTSD

Mental Health Representation in Books: Addiction and Eating Disorders

Representation in Books: Injury

 

I’ve reached the point in life where very few people my age haven’t been laid up with an in injury or serious illness at some point, so they are in our conscious now. And disability (either in ourselves, friends or family members) is also something with which we have become familiar.become

But even when I was younger, I knew about these things from reading.

And I knew those TV shows and movies where the hero is knocked in the head and jumps right up, or is shot and walking around by the end credits were bullshit.

Recovery takes time. And you don’t always get back what you had before. So you learn to cope and accept these changes are the new normal.

When I think about injury and recovery, the book that always jumps immediately to mind is Robert B Parker’s Small Vices.

In chapter 35 Spenser is shot and goes into the “not quite frozen” river. In Chapter 36, Spenser, Hawk, and Susan drive across the country, where Spenser will spend more than half a year recovering.

What astounds me every time is that in three chapters you fully get the sense of how much work Spenser had to do—and how long it took him to do it.

About a quarter mile from the house was a hill that went up sharply at right angles to the much gentler hill we lived on. Each morning, Hawk and Pearl and I walked up to the foot of the hill and looked at it. Actually Pearl dashed. Hawk walked. I shuffled. But after the first week I shuffled without holding on. Pearl would race up the hill, barrel chested and wasp waisted. Bred to run for hours, she rubbed it in every day, looking puzzled that I couldn’t do at all what she did so effortlessly.

— Robert B Parker, Small Vices, Chapter 37

 

“Here we go,” I said.

We started up. I was half dragging my left leg. Hawk walked slowly beside me. On the right there was a lemon grove, the wet fruit glistening among the green leaves. Nobody seemed to be harvesting it. The fruit was yellow and heavy on the trees and littered the ground, some of it rotting beneath the trees. I was gasping for breath. I looked up and the mailbox was still thirty yards away.

“No reason not to stop and rest,” Hawk said.

I nodded. I looked back. The wet black road surface gleamed. I was twenty yards up the hill and I couldn’t talk. We stood silently together in the steady rain. I was wearing an Oakland A’s baseball cap, and white New Balance sneakers, jeans, and a bright green rain jacket that Susan said was the ugliest garment she’d ever seen legalized. In the left-hand pocket the Detective Special weighed about two hundred pounds.

“How . . . high . . . is . . . this . . . hill?”

“Never measured it,” Hawk said. “Takes me ’bout ten minutes to walk up, five minutes to run.”

— Robert B Parker, Small Vices, Chapter 38

 

Hawk and I went up into one of the canyons back in the hills and began to shoot. I held the gun in both hands, though my left was doing all the work, and I was able to level it mainly by pulling my right arm up with my left. My only success was that I didn’t shoot myself. I was up to five-pound dumbbells. With my right arm I was actually moving the weight, curling it maybe halfway so that my forearm was at right angles to my biceps.

— Robert B Parker, Small Vices, Chapter 39

 

Chapter 39 ends with this:

One morning I ran up the hill. All the way.

— Robert B Parker, Small Vices, Chapter 39

 

Then we’re back to the mystery.

But in those three chapters—27 pages—you can feel just how far Spenser had to go to recover, and just how hard he had to work to achieve that recovery. I’ve read (and listened) to that book more times than I can count, and every time I am shocked by how short the recovery chapters really are, because in the story I feel the work and the struggle and the time.

 

Charlie Adhara’s Big Bad Wolf series also does a good job of showing the aftermath of a life-changing injury.

Prior to the start of the story, Cooper took three slashes to his abdomen, with permanent damage to his digestive system.

He was supposed to eat small meals frequently throughout the day to allow his shortened small intestine to absorb the necessary amount of nutrients, but it was hard to do on the road. Cooper didn’t want to draw attention to himself as weak or, god forbid, stopping everything when a boy was missing so that he could get a snack. His guts would just have to deal.

— Charlie Adhara. The Wolf at the Door

What I appreciate so much about this story is that not only does this problem not disappear from the series, it’s appearance in subsequent books shows you glimpses of Cooper and Oliver’s relationship.

Ever since then Park had been hyper-vigilant that Cooper was getting enough nutrition. He often cooked him little omelets in the morning before Cooper woke, had started researching supplements and vitamins he thought Cooper should take, and packed snacks for him on cases as if he was a child.

— Charlie Adhara, The Wolf at Bay

 

They’d fallen into a habit of Cooper shopping and Park cooking since if left to his own devices Cooper often went weeks uninterested in meals that required more than three or four steps, his relationship with food having changed a lot since his gut had been torn up and he’d spent months not being able to eat “real” food.

— Charlie Adhara. Cry Wolf

Cooper’s life was irrevocably changed after the attack, but it goes on. Although he changes jobs, he remains capable of doing the work he loves. (This series also shows Cooper doing the work of realizing he has PTSD from his attack and then slowly—slowly—getting better.)

Plus, action, mystery, and werewolves. What’s not to love?

Neither of these books dwells on the subject, but they make it clear that being in a dangerous line of work can lead unexpected (and unwanted) life changes.

I’ve also found that scenes while someone is recovering can further the characters and the story.

Mercy Thompson was badly hurt fighting a monster.

“And do you know, when you have a broken hand and a giant cut under your arm, crutches don’t work, and neither does a wheelchair unless you have a minion to wheel you around. My good hand is burnt, so I can’t even turn circles.”
…
I was tired of everyone, which was ungracious of me. But I don’t like being dependent— it makes me cranky. I needed someone to carry me upstairs and downstairs. I needed someone to help me outside and inside. I even needed someone to help me into the bathroom because none of the bathroom doors were big enough for a wheelchair.

— Patricia Briggs, River Marked

Which is followed by this:

“Mercy,” (Stefan) said gently. “It’s not that they don’t want to help— they can’t. You’ve told them all to leave you alone. With Adam gone, you’re the highest power in the pack, and they can’t gainsay you. Warren told me that they were down to leaving you with pack members he couldn’t be happy about.”

That had never occurred to me. And explained why Auriele and Darryl hadn’t been back, even after I’d sent them an e-mail apologizing for yelling at them. I know e-mail apologies are lame, but it was the only way I could be sure not to grump at them some more.

“You need to tell them they can come back to the house and talk to you— and help you do whatever you need. Just as you would help them if they needed it.”

— Patricia Briggs, River Marked

That scene is powerful because we learn about how the pack works, and also because we see Mercy bend and accept help from those around her.

The pain of a major injury is awful, but in some ways, being completely dependent upon others is harder. It’s an important reminder we do not exist in isolation and it’s not just okay to ask for help when you need it—it’s important to do so.

And that goes for mental health as well as physical health.

 

Then there is concussion.

 

There is more awareness than there was two decades ago, but the fastest way for a book to piss me off is for a character to be knocked unconscious and then all but jump up and dive right back into danger.

A concussion isn’t a convenient plot point.

“(T)he thing is, you’ve suffered a concussion. That’s a brain injury. In your case, the injury appears to be mild, but symptoms can manifest even several days after the traumatic event.”

“I know. I run a mystery bookstore. Ninety percent of injuries suffered by characters in mysteries are concussions.”

Dr. Mane laughed, although Ellery was being serious. “Sure, but it’s not like in the books or in movies. Your brain needs time to heal, which can take seven to fourteen days. Ten is the average.”

“Ten days?” Ellery gaped at him.

“On average.”

— Josh Lanyon, Mystery at the Masquerade

 

They were given a long list of things Martin couldn’t do for a couple of weeks with his concussion, which included reading or looking at anything on a screen.

— Ada Maria Soto, His Quiet Agent

I am glad we are better educated about the dangers of concussion—both short term and long term consequences. But we still need regular reminders that head injuries are serious and can takes days, weeks, or even months to recover from.

And ignoring the doctors’ restrictions can lead to further injury or even death.

Sure, it’s not really fund and exciting to have a character in the hospital, or going through a long, slow recovery, but it’s a reminder for us that injuries aren’t something to be taken lightly. A reminder that we continue to learn and grow even when we can’t do things on our own.

The trouble with having a limp was that it was nearly impossible to execute a proper stomping. That wasn’t the only trouble, of course, but it was the inconvenience that most vexed Evie at present.

— Alissa Johnson, McAlistair’s Fortune

Another thing many of these books—especially romances—show is how some of the mechanics of sex may need to change after a serious injury, but those physical changes don’t end the sex life of the characters. Being me, that’s about all I want to say on the subject, but it is an important aspect of life, and putting such discussions and scenes in books is important because it lets people see that their physical changes aren’t an end, just a change.

Injury and recovery are a part of life, so I’m always glad to see them in fiction.

 

 

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Main Characters

– Romance –

His Quiet Agent (2017) Ada Maria Soto, concussion

Merlin in the Library (2018) Ada Maria Soto, concussion

McAlistair’s Fortune (2009) Alissa Johnson (Providence Series) injury (accident)

Connection Error (2016) Annabeth Albert (#gaymers) amputation (war)

Arctic Wild (2019) Annabeth Albert (Frozen Hearts) injury (accident)

The Soldier’s Scoundrel (2016) Cat Sebastian (The Turner Series) injury (war)

Whiteout (2017) Elyse Springer (Seasons of Love) concussion (accident)

Sympathy (2009) Jordan Castillo Price injury (accident)

 

– Fantasy –

Widdershins, (2006) Charles de Lint, injury (attack)

Charlie Adhara‘s Big Bad Wolf series, injury (attack)

The Wolf at the Door (2018), The Wolf at Bay (2018), Thrown to the Wolves (2019), Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing (2020), Cry Wolf (2021)

River Marked (2011) Patricia Briggs (Mercy Thompson) injury (attack)

 

– Mystery –

Lessons in Discovery (2009) Charlie Cochrane (Cambridge Fellows) concussion (accident)

Madison Square Murders (2021) CS Poe (Momento Mori) concussion (attack)

A Dangerous Thing (2002) Josh Lanyon, concussion

Somebody Killed His Editor (2009) Josh Lanyon (Holmes & Moriarity) concussion

Requiem for Mr. Busybody (2020) Josh Lanyon, injury (accident)

Mystery at the Masquerade (2021) Josh Lanyon (Secrets & Scrabble) concussion (attack)

Lissa Kasey‘s Haven Investigations series, concussion (attack)

Model Exposure (2017), Model Investigator (2017)

Small Vices (1997) Robert B Parker (Spenser) injury (attack)

Skin and Bone (2002) TA Moore, concussion (attack)

 

Why Representation in Books Is Important
Mental Health Representation in Books: Depression
Mental Health Representation in Books: Anxiety
Mental Health Representation in Books: PTSD
Mental Health Representation in Books: Addiction and Eating Disorders
 

Towards the end of the month I started reading a lot more. Part of it was receiving some comics I wanted caught up on, but another part was trying to shift my brain back into reading as a distraction.

That is working only so-so.

Oh! There were new releases I really wanted to read. By that I mean, I actually read two books that came out in the same month in which I read them.

Crazy, I know.

I was delighted by both  K.D. Edwards‘s third book in the Tarot Sequence, The Hourglass Throne as well as the first book in Charlie Adhara‘s Monster Hunt series. And actually annoyed I didn’t get another Oliver and Cooper book and so was grumpy about switching to Eli’s POV in Pack of Lies.

Silly me.

I’ve been reading up on the next series of posts I want to write about representation in fiction (I wrote several posts about mental health representation, and although it was good to do, it was also somewhat exhausting) so several of the books I read were ones I went delving into for quotes and ended up rereading the entire thing.

I was able to borrow the latest in Ashley Gardners Kat Holloway series, which I very much liked. I am not sure if the series is preparing to wind up or if it’s just the romance that is going to be settled, so I’m curious to see what happens next.

I did read one book that ended up pissing me off, mostly because they went with a power imbalance in the secondary character’s relationship. As I went through something similar my freshman year, I wasn’t delighted to see it seen as OK for a TA to date a student in a class he was currently assisting. No. Sorry. It’s not ok. Once the class is over, fine. But not concurrent.

Yeah, I’m still unhappy about it.

I got the newest Lacy Mechanika, which was good, but very dark, and a bit cliffhanger-y, which is mildly aggravating as those books are soooo slow to come out. Which isn’t the authors’ fault, but I do hate waiting.

And I had some comfort reads while I was flailing around. And Everything Nice is just a fun story that is full of baking–and no boinking. It’s very sweet. And I randomly got Glass Tidings in my brain and had to read that.

I also want to recommend (again) Loud and Clear by Aidan Wayne because it is sweet and cute and also has some amazing disability rep, making it clear (without preaching) just how much the luck of one’s birth affects whether someone with a disability can succeed.

Plus the romance is incredibly sweet.

I’ve got at least three new releases I coming my way; hopefully I’ll manage to read them immediately as well.

 

Fantasy

The Hourglass Throne (2022) K.D. Edwards (The Tarot Sequence) 8.5/10
Pack of Lies (2022) Charlie Adhara (Monster Hunt) 8.5/10
Human Enough (2019) ES Yu 8.5/10
Green Creek series by T.J. Klune: Wolfsong (2016) 7.5/10, Ravensong (2019)

 

Mystery

The Secret of Bow Lane (2022) Ashley Gardner (Kat Holloway) 8/10
Requiem for Mr. Busybody (2020) Josh Lanyon 7.5/10

 

Romance

Loud and Clear (2016) Aidan Wayne 9/10
Band Sinister (2018) K.J. Charles 9/10
Glass Tidings (2018) Amy Jo Cousins 8.5/10
And Everything Nice (2020) Ada Maria Soto 8.5/10
His Quiet Agent (2017) Ada Maria Soto 8.5/10
The Ruin of a Rake (2017) Cat Sebastian (The Turner Series) 7.5/10
Sympathy (2009) Jordan Castillo Price 7/10
The Other Side of the Roses (2017) R. Cooper
Lucky Charm (2019) Chace Verity
Adorkable (2020) Shane K. Morton

 

Audio

Rivers of London, Audio Edition by Ben Aaronovitch narrated by Kobna Holdbrook-Smith: Broken Homes (2014) 9/10, Foxglove Summer (2015) 9/10, The Furthest Station (2017) 8.5/10, The Hanging Tree (2017) 8/10, A Rare Book of Cunning Device, Audio Edition (2017), Lies Sleeping, Audio Edition (2018)

 

Comics

Lady Mechanika Volume 7: The Monster of the Ministry of Hell (2022) Joe Benitez, Beth Sotelo, Michael Heisler
Rivers Of London: Vol. 8: The Fey and the Furious (2020) Ben Aaronovitch, Andrew Cartmel, Lee Sullivan, Vol. 9: Monday, Monday (2022) Ben Aaronovitch, Andrew Cartmel, José María Beroy 7/10

Random Stats:

I’ve read 52 books that were published since 2021, and it’s currently split evenly between the two years.

13% of the books have been audio books, which apparently comes out to 13 days, 4 hrs, and 2 mins worth of audio books so far this year.

The lowest I have rated a book this year is 4/10 while 43% of the books I rated have been 8/10

8% of this years reading has been library books.

And 41% of the books this year have been rereads.

I really do like hiking Otter Creek. I almost always find solitude there, and the entire hike is beside the creek, which is one of my favorite sounds.

I’ll be honest–all these pictures are simply ones I liked, rather than ones that show the landscape. These stills reflect how being there makes me feel.

It was a lovely day.

Canaan Valley State Park

Blackwater River Trail, Canaan Valley State Park

Table Rock, Canaan Mountain Backcountry

The forecast was rain, but there was a night, home game, so we settled on a series of short hikes to waterfalls.

Douglas Falls is just outside of Thomas, and although the Blackwater Canyon trail is easy, there is a scramble down to the waterfall.

My favorite spot is along the top of the old (and crumbling) retaining wall, and down past the falls a bit.

Then we headed to Blackwater Falls to hike along the Falls of Pendleton.

This hike is not an easy one.

But the views were lovely.

Sadly, as much as I enjoyed sitting there watching the falls, my pictures don’t really show just how amazing the views were.

On the other hand, the weather meant we didn’t see anyone anyone else, which is always a plus.

Quite a few audio books this month. One was our travel book, the others were my exercise / cleaning books.

I’ve had a lot of cleaning to catch up on.

Lots of rereads, but I did manage some new releases–including three books that were released in August. That rarely happens–I tend to put off reading new releases for no rational reason. But these were mostly cozy mysteries, and I was very much in the mood for cozies.

Plus Husband Material, which is not a cozy, but a rom-com is just as good. And it was Alexis Hall! HUZZAH!

I want to give props to That Time I Got Drunk and Yeeted a Love Potion at a Werewolf. You’ll not I only gave it a middling rating, but it was a bunch of stuff I don’t care for (fated mate, weird mating rituals, tentacles, and a LOT of sex) and I still really enjoyed it.

I was just a little weirded out by some of the boinking bits.

If you like cozy mysteries, I highly recommend Charlie Cochrane‘s Lindenshaw Mysteries. The first book I was a little meh on, but I’ve loved every book since.

Mystery

Lock, Stock and Peril (2022) Charlie Cochrane (Lindenshaw Mysteries) (8/10)
Death at the Deep Dive (2022) Josh Lanyon (Secrets and Scrabble) (7.5/10)
Purloined Poinsettia (2022) Dahlia Donovan (Motts Cold Case Mystery) (7/10)
Give Unto Others (2022) Donna Leon (Commissario Brunetti) (7/10)

Fantasy

That Time I Got Drunk and Yeeted a Love Potion at a Werewolf (2022) Kimberly Lemming (Mead Mishaps) 7/10
Of Claws and Fangs (2022) Faith Hunter (Jane Yellowrock) (7/10)

Romance

Hottie Scotty and Mr. Porter (2016) R. Cooper (8.5/10)
For Better or Worse (2017) R. Cooper  (8/10)
Husband Material (2022) Alexis Hall (London Calling) (8/10)
The Labours of Lord Perry Cavendish (2021) Joanna Chambers (Winterbourne) (8/10)
The Turners by Cat Sebastian: The Soldier’s Scoundrel (2016) (7/10), The Lawrence Browne Affair (2017) 8/10

Non-Fiction

Predictably Irrational: The Hidden Forces That Shape Our Decisions (2009) Dan Ariely (8.5/10)

Audio

The Rook, Audio Edition (2012) Daniel O’Malley narrated by Susan Duerden (10/10)
Rivers of London by Ben Aaronovitch narrated by Kobna Holdbrook-Smith: Midnight Riot, Audio Edition (2012) (9.5/10), Moon Over Soho, Audio Edition (2011) (9/10), Whispers Under Ground (2012) (8.5/10)

 

I’ve only (only! HA!) read 160 books so far this year, but only 38% have been rereads, which is down from last year (and those rereads include 18 audio books (Almost all my audio books are rereads.) Plus, I’ve read 11 non-fiction books so far–I read only one last year. And that’s actually a decent pace for me for non-fiction, as I tend to read it much slower, and often go back and reread passages.

Plus, according to Goodreads I’ve read 1292% of my goal for the year!

(Yeah, goodreads numbers are off–but that 160 is the number of reviews I’ve written, so that’s the accurate number. (Except that I haven’t written reviews of a handful of books non-fiction I’ve read, but that’s a tale for another day.))

 

I’ve been (for quite awhile now) failing at posting about recent hikes.

So here are some pictures from the past month or so.

Addiction

 

There are several different kinds of stories that deal with addiction.

One is watching a main character spiral until they hit bottom and work to achieve their sobriety.

“I’m not an alcoholic.”

“If I asked you right now to go one solid week without a single alcoholic drink, would you be able to?”

The idea of facing his mother without that barrier, of trying to sleep without the pillow of numbness, made James’s insides squirrelly. He didn’t know because he’d never tried. He’d never had a reason to try.

— A.M. Arthur, Getting It Right

I think some of the books that do this best are the ones where you follow a character over the course of a series, so you have time to see the dawning of awareness that they have a problem, as well as the struggle and work to gain and keep their sobriety.

 

He couldn’t lie anymore about using alcohol as a way to cope with his anger and pain. Maybe he wasn’t addicted, but his behaviour was just as self-destructive. Time would tell if stepping outside of his life in Cardiff for a few months would actually change anything for him.

— Dahlia Donovan, The Lion Tamer (Sin Bin)

The thing about the Sin Bin series is that although only the final two stories are about Scottie, you watch him slowly get worse in the preceding books, which makes his recovery in the final book satisfying.

 

A second kind of story is where a character struggles with their sobriety over the course of the story.

Medlock gave him an appraising glance. “It’s like that, is it?” And then he took the bottle and the glass and poured the contents of both out the window.

“What the hell are you doing?” He could ill afford another bottle.

“If you wanted to drink it, you would have done so hours ago. I think you wanted not to drink it, so I helped.”

— Cat Sebastian, The Ruin of a Rake

 

Beyond the importance of routine, it was vital to stay healthy in times of stress. Swift had badly abused his body for most of his life. His current state of health required consciousness and commitment.

— Josh Lanyon, Come Unto These Yellow Sands

 

This was what I did. Things got bad, I didn’t want anyone to see me weak and broken, so I decided I’d wait until I was just a tiny bit stronger, and then I’d call. But in the space between shame and a public face lay the ocean of demons just waiting for the drop of blood that would set it churning. And I nicked myself with pride every time.

— Roan Parrish, Riven

I feel like these struggle are incredibly important—they remind us that sobriety is work. Sometimes you fail, but that as long as you’re alive, you can try again and again.

 

A third type of story is where a main character doesn’t struggle with their sobriety, yet their past still affects their actions as well as how they see themselves.

He hated telling people about his drinking problem, hated the way it changed how they looked at him, how it colored every interaction from that point onward.

— Annabeth Albert, Arctic Sun

 

“Laudanum.” He allowed the word to settle into the conversation, waited for her face to slowly change to a mask of confusion. “I don’t refuse it because it makes me muzzy-headed, because it gives me vivid dreams, or even because I dislike the taste. I refuse it because I developed an addiction to it when I was young. It was so severe that when I was at Eton, I took a dose that nearly killed me. I stopped breathing.”

She inhaled and tried to pull her hand away. Christian held on tightly.

“When I was… imbibing, I would set my day by my doses. It took over everything I was, everything I wanted. There is no safe dose, not for me.”

— Courtney Milan, Once Upon a Marquess

If an author is going to do this, I want to see the work. Representation is good, but I want it to be more than lip service. Just a mention with no further discussion of the struggle feels like a disservice to those who are currently struggling and want to gain / maintain sobriety.

 

Just as important is where the main character has to deal with a family member who is an addict—either sober or actively using.

Dad had not had a good day. He’d woken up from a nap to a war movie playing on TV that had triggered some memories and anxiety he’d tried to walk off. Walks helped when he wanted a drink,

— R Cooper, Jericho Candelario’s Gay Debut

 

I knew what was coming, like following a script written specifically for us. And yet every time I hoped this time would be different. This time he would really mean what he said. This time he would give up his brandy. So when he failed and I stumbled upon him defiantly swigging from a flask or passed out in his chair, an empty bottle at his feet, it was doubly painful.

— Anna Lee Huber, Secrets in the Mist

 

“It’s a disease. It’s not my fault. I can’t help it!”

“It is your fault! The disease didn’t decide to drink. The disease didn’t go find your purse. The disease didn’t walk out the door and down the street to Lucky’s. The disease didn’t walk to the back row where the vodka is and pick the bottle up off the shelf—”

“I didn’t go to Lucky’s. You never understand.”

“— and walk up to the register and pay for it. The disease didn’t open the bottle, Mom. The disease didn’t drink it, either. You did. It is your fault. It’s always your fault.”

— Heidi Cullinan & Marie Sexton, Family Man

 

One of the things I appreciate about the last two quotes is that they allow the characters to be angry. And that anger is complicated.

Why do I want to read about the struggles of other people? It’s multi-fold, really. It is nice to read about problems that are not my own, and because it reminds me that others might not be going through what I am, but they may be going through their own struggles—ones I don’t see.

 

(SAMHSA)

National Helpline: 800-622-4357

Help4WV

Substance Use Resource Center (Blue Cross Blue Shield)

Mental Health and Substance Abuse (USA.gov)

National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)

Resources (WVU)

 

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Eating Disorders

 

In some ways, eating disorders are similar to addiction. Except you cannot avoid the substance you have a troubled relationship with.

“Okay, so Maxine. Coke and booze. Plus she had issues with food. She ditched the coke and the booze, right? Went to meetings, did the whole bit. Took her a while, but she did it. After she’d been clean for about five years, you know what she told me? She said that she didn’t talk about it much at meetings because people didn’t take it serious, but the hardest thing for her to get under control— harder than coke and booze? Her eating disorder.”

“What? Why?”

He nodded. “You can draw a clean line with coke and booze. Say never again, and stay away from them, period. Food? You gotta eat that shit three times a day every day for the rest of your life, and you gotta make choices about it every time.

— Riven, Roan Parrish

 

NEDA

(800) 931-2237

National Institute of Mental Health – Eating Disorders (NIMH)

National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders

Eating Disorder Resources (WVU)

 

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Books with Characters Dealing with Addiction

 Characters seek help:

The Lion Tamer (2018) Dahlia Donovan (Sin Bin series) main character [alcohol] (Contemporary Romance)

The Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue (2017) Mackenzi Lee, main character [alcohol] (Historical Fantasy)

Open for Business (2016) Angel Martinez (Brandywine Investigations) main character [alcohol] (Contemporary Fantasy)

Black and Blue (1997) Ian Rankin (Inspector Rebus) main character [alcohol] (Contemporary Mystery)

Characters are sober, but sometimes struggle:

The Secret, Book, & Scone Society (2017) Ellery Adams (The Secret, Book, & Scone Society) main character [alcohol] (Contemporary Mystery)

Arctic Sun (2019) Annabeth Albert (Frozen Hearts) main character [alcohol] (Contemporary Romance)

The Duchess Deal (2017) Tessa Dare (Girl Meets Duke) main character [laudanum] (Historical Romance)

Clean (2012) Alex Hughes, main character (Contemporary Fantasy)

Come Unto These Yellow Sands (2011) Josh Lanyon, main character [drugs] (Contemporary Mystery)

Once Upon a Marquess (2015) Courtney Milan (Worth Saga) main character [laudanum] (Historical Romance)

Riven (2018) Roan Parrish (Riven) main character [drugs] (Contemporary Romance)

Raze (2019) Roan Parrish (Riven) main character [drugs] (Contemporary Romance)

The Ruin of a Rake (2017) Cat Sebastian (The Turner Series) main character [alcohol] (Historical Romance)

Two Rogues Make a Right (2020) Cat Sebastian (Seducing the Sedgwicks) main character [laudanum] (Historical Romance)

Secondary characters with an addiction:

Baked Fresh (2015) Annabeth Albert (Portland Heat) secondary character (Contemporary Romance)

Jericho Candelario’s Gay Debut (2018) R Cooper, parental [alcohol] (Contemporary Romance)

Family Man (2017) Heidi Cullinan & Marie Sexton, parent [alcohol] (Contemporary Romance)

Secrets in the Mist (2016) Anna Lee Huber, parent [alcohol] (Historical Mystery)

Jar City  (2000) Arnaldur Indridason translated by Bernard Scudder (Inspector Erlendur) adult child [drugs] (Contemporary Mystery)

Life’s Too Short (2021) Abby Jimenez, sibling [drugs] (Contemporary Romance)

The Lady’s Guide to Petticoats and Piracy (2018) Mackenzi Lee, sibling [alcohol] (Historical Fantasy)

 

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Books with Characters Dealing with an Eating Disorder

 

Getting it Right (2015) A.M. Arthur (Restoration) supporting character (Romance)

Boyfriend Material (2020) Alexis Hall (London Calling) main character (Romance)

Husband Material (2022) Alexis Hall (London Calling) main character (Romance)

Three Stupid Weddings (2018) Ann Gallagher, main character (Romance)

Arctic Sun (2019) Annabeth Albert (Frozen Hearts) main character (Romance)

Haven Investigations series by Lissa Kasey, main character (Contemporary Mystery): Model Citizen (2016), Model Bodyguard (2016), Model Investigator (2017), Model Exposure (2017)

The Nobleman’s Guide to Scandal and Shipwrecks (2021) Mackenzi Lee, main character (Historical Fantasy)

 

988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline

Call or text 988

 

Why Representation in Books Is Important
Mental Health Representation in Books: Depression
Mental Health Representation in Books: Anxiety
Mental Health Representation in Books: Grief
Mental Health Representation in Books: PTSD