Better Than People (2020) Roan Parrish (Garnet Run) One of the things that resonated so strongly with me was the misery of being laid up after a bad break that requires you to stay off your feet. Every day had dilated to a month, every night to a year, and Jack found himself wishing for […]

The Care and Feeding of Waspish Widows (2020) Olivia Waite (Feminine Pursuits) Set in England in 1820 Let’s start with what I loved about this story: The history. The politics. George had at the same time enjoyed a cheery reunion with his mistress, Lady Coyningham, whose husband had recently been elevated to the Privy Council […]

The Ruin of a Rake (2017) Cat Sebastian (The Turner Series) Set in London in 1817 All Courtenay really wants is to see his nephew. But his past (and other circumstances) have made it so Radnor is refusing to allow him any contact. Courtenay was effectively stranded in London, a city populated by people who […]

The Lawrence Browne Affair (2017) Cat Sebastian (The Turner Series) Set in England in 1816 Lawrence Browne is waiting to go mad. In the meantime, he’s trying to be useful, putting his efforts into various inventions, but refusing to let anyone get close to him, for fear of taking them down with him. Penkellis was […]

American Dreamer (2019) Adriana Herrera (Dreamers) This is a reread, and as with the first time through, I really liked everything except the boinking. Luckily, I could skim that–especially since this was a reread. Otherwise, there is much to love about this story, especially the friendships. “Oh my god, Jude Eugenio Maria Fuller! What did […]

Paladin’s Strength (2021) T. Kingfisher (The Saint of Steel) Istvhan is a Paladin of a dead god. When the Saint of Steel died, every paladin went mad, sub-coming to battle rage, and only a few survived the madness. Those who were left went on to work for the Temple of the White Rat, assisting as […]

Kneading You, Joy, The Color of You (2019, 2017) C.S. Poe The Haven Investigation series was excellent, but emotionally rough. So I decided to reread the Lancaster series, for some comfort. No one deserved to lose access to books simply because of where they lived. Kneading You All I did was give a guy tacos. […]

Model Exposure (2017) Lissa Kasey (Haven Investigations) This picks up immediately after the end of the previous book. Ollie is healing, but so is Kade. But Kade doesn’t like having to admit that he needs help, and fears that if he needs help, he’ll lose Ollie. “Ollie needs me.” He was healing from a (thing). […]

Model Investigator (2017) Lissa Kasey (Haven Investigations) Back to Ollie, this book takes off after the events of the previous book–which ended on a cliffhanger. First and foremost, this is one of the few mysteries I’ve ever read that actually has characters deal with some of the real-life consequences of repeated concussion. The sparkles around […]

Model Bodyguard (2016) Lissa Kasey (Haven Investigations) The second book in the Haven Investigations series switches from Oliver’s POV to Kade’s POV. Which is fantastic, because Oliver sees Kade as strong and almost perfect, whereas Kade actually? A huge mess. This was the stuff of nightmares— a mental hospital. It wasn’t my first trip. No, […]

A Little Light Mischief (2019) Cat Sebastian (The Turner Series) Set in England in 1818 Alice Stapleton has spent her life keeping house for her father and taking care of her siblings and nieces and nephews. So it came as a rude surprise when her father threw her out and disowned her, and she was […]

Model Citizen (2015) Lissa Kasey (Haven Investigations) Oliver Petroskovic hoped that once he bought the house his life would start to be more settled. Sure, he’d do more modeling gigs, but with the house he was finally able to repay his brother for the years spent raising him. He’d paid for private school and attended […]

Red Dirt Heart (2014) N.R. Walker (Red Dirt Heart) For the first time since Charlie’s father died, Sutton Station is going to have an agronomy exchange for a month during round-up. Charlie is hoping whoever they get will be competent and helpful. He doesn’t expect to fall in love. One of the things I enjoyed […]

The Labours of Lord Perry Cavendish (2021) Joanna Chambers (Winterbourne) Set in England in 1824 Six months ago, Perry Cavendish had been shocked to discover his best friend–Lysander Winterbourne had the same inclinations he did–and was in love with the man he was working for. After several months of drowning his sorrows, Peregrine finally takes […]

Where There’s a Kilt, There’s a Way (2021) Ella Stainton (Kilty Pleasures) Set in Scotland and Sweden in 1930 Joachim Cockburn and Ainsley Graham have been looking for summer positions to broaden their fields; specifically Jochaim wants to change how patients in asylums are treated, and hopes that working at a prestigious university will give […]

Ghost Light Killer (2021) Dahlia Donovan (London Podcast Mystery) I’ve enjoyed everything I’ve read by Dahlia Donovan, but especially her mysteries. Unfortunately, the mystery was off in this book for me. The characters and their interactions I still enjoyed very much. Dannel had a habit of never leaving or having Osian go without saying “I […]

An Unexpected Peril (2021) Deanna Raybourn (Veronica Speedwell) Set in London in 1889 Veronica and Stoker are now coworkers but also romantic companions, and despite everything, they continue to get along well. I reflected bitterly. For now that I had joined myself in affection to Stoker, I could no longer run from myself as I […]

Mischief: A Daydream, Colorado Short Story (2021) A.M. Rose Dylan loves running the pizza parlor, almost as much as he loves his rescue dog, Buck. Dylan pulled up outside the familiar house and barely had time to get his helmet off and butt off the seat when he heard a thundering BARK! from inside. A […]

Blindspot (2021) A.M. Rose (Daydream, Colorado) Back in January, I picked up a bunch of free MM romances from Prolific Books, and I found Daydream interesting enough that I decided to get the first book in the series. Drew grew up in Daydream, a magical enclave, standing out as the only one without magic. He […]

The Queer Principles of Kit Webb (2021) Cat Sebastian Set in England in 1751. After a carriage hold up that cost him the full use of his leg as well as his best friend, Kit Webb decided to take over the running of his coffee shop. There might be some planning and deals and fencing […]

The Hanged Man (2019) K. D. Edwards (The Tarot Sequence) Occasionally, it takes time for me to realize how good a book is. Other times, I know it’s good, but don’t realize just how much the story is going to stick with me. The Atlantean World War was brief. The cost was high. Magically radioactive […]

Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake (2021) Alexis Hall (Winner Bakes All) Rosaline Palmer gave up medical school to become a single mother. “The last bold thing I did was decide I was keeping the baby, and while I’m glad I did, as decisions go it’s not exactly been without consequences.” She loves her daughter, and […]

The Last Sun (2018) K.D. Edwards (The Tarot Sequence) My name is Rune Saint John. I am, before anything else, a survivor: of a fallen House, of a brutal assault, of violent allies and complacent enemies, of life among a people who turned their back on me decades ago. KD Edwards recently published several short […]

Poisoned Primrose Dahlia Donovan (2020) Poisoned Primrose (Motts Cold Case Mystery) Motts is a 39 year-old asexual, biromantic autistic who is living on her own for the first time in a house left to her by her aunt. Unfortunately, when digging up the untended garden, remains are discovered, which causes no end of problems for […]

Subtle Blood (2021) KJ Charles (The Will Darling Adventures) Set in London ~1924 Will Darling is finally somewhat comfortable in his relationship with Kim Secretan, even if they continue to have to hide they are more than just acquaintances. Will is also finally doing a decent job with the bookstore he inherited–due in part to […]

The Day Pass (2021) Slade James (Bear Camp) Although he has to work that night, Kevin is going to enjoy himself and spend the day at Bear Camp. He doesn’t expect anything except a day in he sun and maybe a quick hookup, but his new-to-him truck came with a dragonfly sticker, and maybe that’s […]

An Unsuitable Heir (2017) KJ Charles (Sins of the Cities) Set in London in 1873 “What does he do?” Pen paused. “He didn’t say, actually. We mostly talked about, well, me.” “No wonder you think he’s charming.” Pen blinked. “You’re an anarchist about the laws of nature?” “I’m not an anarchist at all, same as […]

An Unnatural Vice (2017) KJ Charles (Sins of the Cities) Set in London in 1873 He looked like the sin of angels, like the sweetest fruit at the goblin market, and Nathaniel despised everything about him. Justin stayed upstairs until he heard the door shut. Some people would call it flagrant physical cowardice to leave […]

An Unseen Attraction (2017) KJ Charles (Sins of the Cities) Set in London in 1873 (T)hey said the eyes were the windows to the soul, and Clem didn’t feel comfortable peering into people’s windows. Clem was not a man you could read like a book, or if you could, the book was in an unfamiliar […]

Moonlight & Mechanicals (2012) Cindy Spencer Pape (The Gaslight Chronicles) Set in England in 1858 I have zero memory of reading this story. You’d think I’d have remembered, considering how pleased I am that she put in the many dangerous side effects of a coal-based steampunk society. Every day, Londoners too poor to employ air […]

Scandal at the Salty Dog (2021) Josh Lanyon (Secrets and Scrabble) Ellery Page seems to have gotten his man. He and Police Chief Jack Carson may be seeing each other, but Jack isn’t pleased when Ellery gets involved in another mystery–especially since he’s just recovered from the events of the previous one. Ellery was able […]

Short Stories: KJ Charles “Five for Heaven” (2019) A Charm of Magpies 3.5 Set in Nagasaki, three years after A Flight of Magpies (15 pages) “A Confidential Problem” (2016) Society of Gentleman 2.5 Set in England in 1820 (14 pages) “A Private Miscellany” (2016) Society of Gentlemen 3.5 Set in London & Berlin in 1821 […]

Status Update (2015) Annabeth Albert (#gaymers) “I’m actually a geoarchaeologist— I specialize in the study of how early civilizations interacted with their physical environment and how that physical environment influenced the artifacts we find.” “Trust me, we don’t want to get it wrong— we give a rocky planet too many characteristics of a water-rich one, […]

Short Stories: Annabeth Albert Annabeth Albert “New Status Needed” (2016) Noah & Adrian, #gaymers 1.5 (16 pages) “Tease Me” (2019) #gaymers Ryan & Josiah 3.5 (26 pages) “Love Connection” (2017) Ryan & Josiah #gaymers 3.7 (24 pages) “Off Leash” (2018) Pike & Zach, Out of Uniform 1.5 (26 pages) “Homebodies” (2018) Wes & Dustin, Out […]

Scenes from the Holidays (2021) K.D. Edwards (Tarot Sequence) “The Playground” (7 pages) “The Sanctum” (7 pages) “The Ghost” (10 pages) “The Principality Ciaran” (13 pages) “The Tree” (7 pages) “The Dinner” (20 pages) “The Equinox” (13 pages) Scenes from the Holidays consists of short Tarot Sequence vignettes, released serially beginning in December 12, 2020, […]

Tales from the Folly: A Rivers of London Short Story Collection (2020) Ben Aaronovitch narrated by: the author, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith, Ben Elliot, Felix Grainger, Sam Peter Jackson, Alex Kingston, Shvorne Marks, and Penelope Rawlins PART ONE: THE PETER GRANT STORIES The Home Crowd Advantage The Domestic The Cockpit The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Granny King […]

Flight of Magpies (2014) KJ Charles Stephen stuffed his hands in the pockets of the topcoat that Crane had insisted on buying him for this chilly winter. It had been a great deal more expensive than Stephen, who accepted gifts with startling gracelessness, had wanted; a great deal cheaper than Crane would have preferred; unsatisfactory […]

Spectred Isle (2017) KJ Charles (Green Men) Set in England in 1923 Saul’s professional instincts were shaped by his doctorate in archaeology from Oxford and two years working on excavations in Mesopotamia. Major Peabody believed that if the ravens left the Tower of London, the city would fall. He hadn’t given a damn about Saul’s […]

The Secret Casebook of Simon Feximal (2013) KJ Charles Set in England 1894 to 1914 He was covered in writing. It was scrawled in black and red ink, from wrist to shoulder of both muscular arms, across his broad, powerful shoulders and chest. None of it was in a language I recognised, or could read, […]

A Case of Possession (2014) KJ Charles (A Charm of Magpies) “An honest mandarin.” There was a dubious murmur at that. Most of those present regarded bribery as something between a handy tool and a form of tax; none of them had high opinions of mandarins of any nationality. “I beg your pardon,” he began, […]

The Magpie Lord (2013) KJ Charles (A Charm of Magpies) I can’t bear it. He’d never said the words in thirty-seven years, not even in the times of hunger and degradation. He wanted to say them now. Merrick frowned. “Got to fight it, my lord.” “Fight what? Give me something to fight, and I’ll fight […]

Blank Spaces (2016) Cass Lennox (Toronto Connections) Devon took a hefty gulp, then pressed his mouth to Toned’s. Vaughn saw liquid dribble from one corner as the gulp passed from mouth to mouth. His stomach rolled. That couldn’t be hygienic. He couldn’t really say much about Jonah’s clothes, except that they were so tight they […]

Play It Again (2019) Aidan Wayne Dovid had been a pretty typical child. Just that, thanks to medulloepithelioma— a type of incredibly invasive cancer— he grew up missing two parts a typical child possessed, after they were removed in order to get rid of the cancer entirely. But he kept bumping into chairs. The tables […]

Uncommonly Tidy Poltergeists (2017) Angel Martinez “I drove … down to Dover a few weeks ago.” “To the farmer’s market?” Ben said around a mouthful of pie. “Long way to go for strawberries.” Luka gave Ben an odd look. “He didn’t say anything about produce.” “Well, no, but why else go all the way—” Ben […]

Southernmost Murder (2018) C.S. Poe My cataplexy was why I took life in stride, because if I allowed myself to become overwhelmed with emotions, good or bad, it triggered my attacks. It sucked when a micronap hit while I was in the middle of a conversation. Or eating. (In my defense, salads were boring.) “When […]

Arctic Heat (2019) Annabeth Albert (Frozen Hearts) Owen took “married to the job” to mean “closeted as hell” I’ll be waiting. The period made Quill’s text seem even more ominous in response to Owen’s message about his arrival time. “You’re pissed at me, but you’re giving me food?” Quill struggled to keep up with Owen’s […]

All the World’s an Undead Stage (2018) Angel Martinez (Offbeat Crimes) “Best stay elevated,” Carrington murmured when Tim climbed out of his house to stare at him. How Tim managed to look surprised when he had no facial features was one of the mysteries of the universe. “We decided to call it a zorpse,” Kyle […]

Arctic Wild (2019) Annabeth Albert (Frozen Hearts) Toby also had a personal bias against trophy hunting that he didn’t want to explain. It was fine for the clients, but he’d been raised to value subsistence hunting. “My mom’s a lawyer too.” Amelia sighed as if this was a fate worse than death, probably to try […]

Arctic Sun (2019) Annabeth Albert (Frozen Hearts) “Food sounds good,” River lied. The alarm on his phone earlier had said it was time to eat, so he would. It’s partly control— I don’t like not having charge of what happens— but it’s also wrapped up in my body image stuff and the eating disorder. I […]

Jackalopes and Woofen-Poofs (2017) Angel Martinez (Offbeat Crimes) “Kinda wish I could take you with me, Mom,” Wolf mumbled around a bite of toast. “I wish I could go too, sweetie. But then all the other officers would want to take their moms and the poor board of inquiry members at State probably wouldn’t survive.” […]