System Collapse (2023) Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries, #7) (According to Martyn, ART is of course capable of doing its own accounting, but it always ends up with extra numbers that no one can trace. So now Turi does it and has to keep a hardcopy ledger because otherwise ART would alter their data. No […]
Fugitive Telemetry (2021) Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries, #6) The bag had lights but turning them on would just be stupid plus I didn’t really want to see what was happening. Farid came into the room, spotted me, and came over to say, “Uh, we’re making tea. Do you—” I paused my feed and told […]
Network Effect (2020) Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries #5) Thiago: “You trust it that much?” Mensah: “With my life, literally. I know what it will do to protect her, and you, and the rest of the team. Of course, it has its faults. In fact, it’s probably listening to us right now. Are you listening, […]
Exit Strategy (2018) Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries #4) Ship’s drones gathered to watch me, confused as to why I was going out the wrong door and beeping sadly about it. I “liked” these clothes. Maybe I actually liked them enough to remove the quotation marks around “liked.” I was having an emotion, and I […]
Rogue Protocol (2018) Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries #3) (There needs to be an error code that means “I received your request but decided to ignore you.”) Or Miki was a bot who had never been abused or lied to or treated with anything but indulgent kindness. It really thought its humans were its friends, […]
Artificial Condition (2018) Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries #2) Constructs sometimes fall under the same category as bots, sometimes under the same category as deadly weapons. (FYI, that is not a good category to be in. I could feel ART metaphorically clutch its function. I closed the story by reflex, like that would make it […]
Somewhere Beyond the Sea (2024) T.J. Klune (Cerulean Chronicles, #2) This book is set after The House in the Cerulean Sea although there is a brief bit in the beginning that shows some of Arthur’s past. Arthur is invited to speak about his past, and his hopes for Marsyas Island and his children, but instead […]
The Benevolent Society of Ill-Mannered Ladies (2023) Alison Goodman (The Ill-Mannered Ladies) Set in England in 1812 Content warnings: spousal abuse, homophobia, cancer, rape (off-page), child abuse & sexual assault (off-page), detailed description of medical procedure without anesthesia. Gus and Julia, middle-aged twins who have never married, become involved in nefarious activities by accident, in […]
Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms (2024) Sarah Wallace, S.O. Callahan (Fae & Human Relations: A Regency Fantasy Series) Roger Barnes failed his Hastings Exam–the magical test that determines which child can inherit. He believes the is inherently problematic, and goes up before the Council to propose a different testing scheme. Many humans, once they reached the […]
The Mistletoe Motive (2021) Chloe Liese Gabriella Di Natale love Christmas. She also loves working in Bailey’s Bookshop, where she can recommend books (especially her favorite romances) to customers. But the store is in trouble. A chain is trying to put them out of business, so the Bailey’s hired another manager–one focused on business–to try […]
Stubbed Toes and Dating Woes (2023) Dahlia Donovan Niclas Ruiz loves his archeological work. He also has a huge crush on his brother’s best friend. Falk “Grizz” Evensen is content with his life. He has his own business (which he runs with the help of his best friend) and is successful. But his life is […]
Socially Orcward (2021) Lisa Henry and Sarah Honey (Adventures in Aguillon) Dave’s favorite thing is dragons. Especially his dragons. And he is thankful that his kings gave him a tower where he could raise and keep them. Simon Perrin doesn’t know how to do much, but his willing to try. What he does know, however, […]
Role Playing (2023) Cathy Yardley Maggie Le thought being divorced was hard. But her son Kit living for college was worse. Now she had no reason to leave her house, except to get food. “Second: I have changed markedly since my twenties,” she said. “I don’t want to wear bandage dresses and club all night […]
Best Laid Plans (2021) Roan Parrish (Garnet Run) He looked at the situation and chose to acknowledge all the dimensions of it. Dimensions (as he thought of them) weren’t positive or negative. They were simply the truth of how he felt about things. He cut off his thought spiral and pictured windshield wipers clearing the […]
Teacher of the Year (2023) M.A. Wardell (Teachers in Love) Marvin has ADHD and anxiety I keep nursing my drink, which is already three-quarters gone, and try to ignore her mounting energy. Sometimes Jill getting revved up triggers my anxiety, and right now, I’m about to tip. And is also up for Teacher of the […]
Jericho Candelario’s Gay Debut (2018) R. Cooper That was too much to ask of anyone. Jerry should have used his words. Not stupidly thought that doing something for Lincoln was the same as talking to him. “You brought your toolbox,” Lincoln informed him, as though Jerry didn’t know that, and then mumbled, “Coffee, he says,” […]
Fugitive Telemetry (2021) Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries) The bag had lights but turning them on would just be stupid plus I didn’t really want to see what was happening. Targets Two and Four had been giving very convincing descriptions of their cargo route. Clearly they had taken some effort to get their stories straight. […]
Network Effect (2020) Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries) There is a protocol for meeting humans who are not clients but who are associated with clients, and that protocol will apply here. Before I can speak, Ratthi waves and says, “Hello, hello. Perihelion says you’ve disabled your governor module. I’m Ratthi, and this is Amena. Please […]
Exit Strategy (2018) Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries) In the shows, I saw humans comfort each other all the time at moments like this. I had never wanted that and I still didn’t. (Touching while rendering assistance, shielding humans from explosions, etc., is different.) But I was the only one here, so I braced myself […]
Rogue Protocol (2018) Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries) The core cutter had powered up and accessed my feed to deliver a canned warning and a handy set of directions. Why yes, I did want to disengage the safety protocols, thanks for asking. In another twenty seconds, they were all my new drone friends. I had […]
Artificial Condition (2018) Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries) Calm down, ART said, not helpfully. I closed the story by reflex, like that would make it not exist. After three seconds of shock, I made myself open it again. My human parts were experiencing a cold prickling that wasn’t comfortable. This place was creepy. I reminded […]
All Systems Red (2017) Martha Wells (The Murderbot Diaries) I was depressed this morning. I’d tried watching some new serials last night and even they couldn’t distract me; reality was too intrusive. Gurathin turned to me. “So you don’t have a governor module, but we could punish you by looking at you.” I looked at […]
Blank Spaces (2016) Cass Lennox (Toronto Connections) Flirting? Good God. Calorie-conscious and delusional. Vaughn knew how to pick them. 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 […]
The Rat-Catcher’s Daughter (2019) K.J. Charles (Lilywhite Boys) Set in London in 1893 Another ace-ace romance! Set prior to the first Lilywhite Boys story, here we have Stan, Jerry and Templeton’s fence meeting his love, and arranging for her to be rescued from a wannabe crimelord. I’d forgotten for some reason why I enjoyed the […]
Three Stupid Weddings (2018) Ann Gallagher Ace-ace romance! I met my reflection’s eyes and sighed. All the “you need to gain weight” crowd had backed off. The “oh my God, you’ve lost so much weight and you look fabulous” bunch had too. Maybe that meant I’d landed somewhere in the middle and could stop obsessing […]
Play It Again (2019) Aidan Wayne Dovid followed along with his cane. But he kept bumping into chairs. The tables were very close together, and it was hard to navigate with a cane. And a wheelchair certainly would have an even harder time. Bernice was walking pretty fast too. Dovid found himself trying to hurry […]
An Island For Two (2022) Ophelia Silk Dela is an elf influencer–living on the money inherited from her parents and hoping to share a bit of joy and fun with the world, which is why she wants to build an event center on the island she recently purchased. Unfortunately, that island is already inhabited. Dela […]
Making Love (2017) Aidan Wayne Aphrodite Agency was open to all magic and fae creatures, but it wasn’t as though humans could walk through their doors to request a match. And they deserved love just as much as anyone else. Carla loved to work with humans, knowing that she would help them find matches even […]
Agents of Winter (2022) Ada Maria Soto (The Agency) Martin’s dietitian would be glad as well. Evidently, his comment at his last appointment of ‘I currently weigh more than I did prior to the incident’ did not paint a good picture of Martin’s long-term health management skills. Martin was sent home with an entirely new […]
Merlin in the Library (2018) Ada Maria Soto (The Agency) A very brief story from Martin’s POV, set a couple of weeks after his return. The previous day had been bad on the pain scale, leaving him with little appetite. Now, under the persistent ache, he found himself to be hungry. He would have to […]
His Quiet Agent (2017) Ada Maria Soto (The Agency) Comfort reread. His supervisor sighed. “Agent Drams, no one knows who you are.” “We’re a black budget government agency. No one is supposed to know who we are.” Arthur looked over at The Alien. It was a Go Away sign, but it was a very specific […]
A Carriage of Misjustice (2020) Charlie Cochrane (Lindenshaw Mysteries) Adam and Robin are married, but since their wedding was during the school year, they’re putting off their honeymoon. Which is good because Robin is requested for a secondment in Hartwood, which means Robin and Pru will be staying at a hotel for the duration. A […]
Jericho Candelario’s Gay Debut (2018) R. Cooper He and Jerry had argued once, in their way, about the difference between Lincoln working for his dream and doing what he loved, and why Jerry might be tired at the end of each day. Mostly, Lincoln had gotten loud, Jerry had gotten quiet, then said, “I love […]
The Eidolon (2023) K.D. Edwards (Magnus Academy) This story occurs in parallel to The Hourglass Throne, the third book in The Tarot Sequence. We discover what happened to Max, Quinn, and Anna when they were kidnapped by Lady Time. I truly have no idea if you could read this story without having read the Tarot […]
Jericho Candelario’s Gay Debut (2018) R. Cooper I just needed the mental hug. Paris Daillencourt Is About to Crumble was rough on my mental well-being. He and Jerry had argued once, in their way, about the difference between Lincoln working for his dream and doing what he loved, and why Jerry might be tired at […]
Uncommonly Tidy Poltergeists (2017) Angel Martinez Off kilter and knew this would work to distract me. Rating: 8.5/10
Agents of Winter (2022) Ada Maria Soto (The Agency) I was slightly worried I wasn’t going to enjoy this anywhere near as much as His Quiet Agent, which I adore. It is different from the first story, His Quiet Agent, and also from the short story Merlin in the Library. But it is definitely the […]
His Quiet Agent (2017) Ada Maria Soto Arthur Drams likes his job. But he doesn’t like that he is going nowhere with it. “Hi, Arthur Drams, level two analyst, trying, badly apparently, to make friends because I’m really tired of getting promoted sideways because my own supervisors forget I exist.” As he is already out […]
Human Enough (2019) ES Yu Noah Lau joined the Vampire Hunters–first as an Intelligence Analyst, but after issues with his supervisor, as a hunter. Although people assume he joined in revenge for the murder of his parents, he really just did not want another child to have to live through what he and his sister […]
For Better or Worse (2017) R. Cooper I reread the previous book, so I had to reread this one. To this day he could remember the exact feeling of relief at discovering terms like demisexual and gray ace, and his immediate need to know more, and then still, always, that faint shame of not being […]
Purloined Poinsettia (2022) Dahlia Donovan (Motts Cold Case Mystery) Motts has been fascinated by cold cases since her childhood best friend was murdered and no one every caught. Recently, she’s discovered that the majority of girls she went to school with have been killed in the interim. Now, as they are slowly closing in on […]
Ace: What Asexuality Reveals About Desire, Identity, and the Meaning of Sex (2020) Angela Chen What is ace? The book opens with a decent explainer. What I didn’t know was what it felt like to want sex without a specific person in mind. To think about sex at all when I was alone. To feel […]
Lessons in Love (2008) Charlie Cochrane (Cambridge Fellows) Set in England in 1905. Jonty has returned to St Bride’s College as a fellow in English. He is immediately drawn to dark, silent, and grumpy mathematics fellow Orlando Coppersmith. The words aren’t used (because of the setting) but Orlando is very clearly demi. Orlando thought it […]
Something Fabulous (2022) Alexis Hall (Something Fabulous) Set in Historical England. To be honest, I don’t think this is historical England as much as fantasy historical England. Which is fine, since as he says in the author’s note, almost everyone in the story is queer. Valentine Layton, the Duke of Malvern is expected to marry […]
How to Be a Movie Star (2019) T.J. Klune (How to Be) Josiah Erickson wants to be a movie star. From his first acting role–as a block of cheeses–he has wanted nothing more than to act. Unfortunately, he tends to create stories in his head. A man a few chairs down stood up. He had […]
Perfect Rhythm (2017) Jae (Fair Oaks) Leontyne Blake grew up wanting nothing more than to escape the small town where she grew up, and now she has that, as pop start Jenna Blake. But at the end of her tour she receives a call from her mother, that Leo’s father has suffered a stroke and […]
The Heartbreak Bakery (2021) A.R. Capetta Syd is finishing up high school while working full time in the Proud Muffin–the bakery and community space that is a second home for so many LGBT teens and adults in Austin. But when Syd is dumped by their girlfriend, the accidentally bake Break-Up brownies which not only breaks […]
The Murder Next Door (2021) Sarah Bell Set in England in 1912. Louisa is startled to discover their next door neighbor has been found dead–and the wife has disappeared with their young son. Ada saw Mrs Pierce hurry away from the house early in the morning, with a look of terror on her face. I […]
The Quid Pro Quo (2021) A.L. Lester (Bradfield Trilogy) Set in England in 1920 Walter met Sylvia when they were both working at the same hospital at Royaumont. They only got the worst cases here now… had done for a while, since the brass had worked out that the lady doctors had a better surgical […]
Pickled Petunia (2021) Dahlia Donovan (Motts Cold Case Mystery) The third Motts mystery finds a young woman at Motts’ door, asking for help in finding her mother. It also find the London detective in charge of the cold case from Motts’ childhood worried that the person who killed her best friend as a child has […]