Author
The Doomsday Books, Book #1
Heat Factor: We open with sex, then get a whole lotta feelings, and then some more sex toward the end.
Character Chemistry: Both the antagonism and the support hit perfectly.
Plot: Gareth inherits a barony, a house, and a whole lot of trouble with smugglers when his father dies. Luckily, Joss is only too happy to help him out.
Overall: An enjoyable read.
I don’t read nearly as fast as Holly or Ingrid, and I really like to multitask in certain areas (embroidery and movie night, anyone?). Holly and Ingrid were recently bemoaning (might be a strong word, but if they weren’t, they should have been) the fact that they can’t process audiobooks, and there I sat, wondering how on earth I’d live without them. (I mean, I would, but my shopping trips would be less fun.)
Aside from one’s ability to process audiobooks or not, there’s the matter of narrators. A narrator can make or break an audiobook. I’m sure I’ve listened to audiobooks that I might have thought were just okay if I had read them, but the narrator brought the story to life in such a way I thought it was fantastic. I might do another smutty six featuring narrators I like to listen to, but for today we’re looking at the combination of great stories brought to life with great narration.
I decided to organize these more or less (how does one even compare apples and oranges, anyway?) in order so we end with my absolute, top, I-squee-to-everyone recommendation. So without further ado, before you give up on audiobooks, try these:
Zapata’s books are all first person from the heroine’s perspective, and typically that narration would simply be done by a woman reading the whole book, but in this case, Callie Dalton narrates the story, and Teddy Hamilton voices only Ivan’s lines. The style is unusual and absolutely not for everyone, but I enjoy Dalton’s calm tones with enough intonation to give us Jasmine’s attitude, and Teddy Hamilton’s voice is mellifluous, bringing Ivan to life even though he’s not reading any full chapters. Plus, Lukov is one of Zapata’s most popular books.
I have listened to so many books narrated by Alexander Cendese and Iggy Toma, and I typically find the combination delightful, but this is the one I’m suggesting. Both narrators have very distinctive voices (Cendese especially), so YMMV, but Cendese as the cuddly but clueless hockey himbo, Cohen, and Toma as the academically superlative but romantically sidelined grad student, Seth, in a playful college romance, really lets those voices shine.
Did I listen to 19 Psy-Changeling books in a row? In a month? I sure did. Angela Dawe is so easy to listen to. Why am I recommending Silver Silence instead of Slave to Sensation? Well, it’s the beginning of Psy-Changeling, Part II a.k.a. Psy-Changeling Trinity, so it’s a good place to start, and without some dated stuff from the earliest books. But really? The bears.
Mary Jane Wells has narrated many books, but I just listened to this one to prep for our Back to Old School duel, and, look, I stan Sebastian, Lord St. Vincent. I could have listened to a satisfactory narration of the book, and it would have been fine if he weren’t quite right, but let’s face it: I would have left unsatisfied. Luckily, I listened to Mary Jane Wells, who absolutely nailed the assignment. She had me chuckling out loud at Sebastian’s outrageousness because she captured him perfectly.
It’s possible I have accent envy, but really, kudos to Cornell Collins for managing all the different accents in this whole series (there are quite a few). The way he brought Will and Kim to life… So fun. And I legit gasped when Will and Kim kissed for the first time. It’s so fun when a narrator pulls you into the story so completely that you react out loud to what’s happening. Another winning combination: KJ Charles is an exceptional storyteller, and this series deserved—and got—an exceptional narrator.
I have enjoyed many an audiobook, but I do not think I have ever heard a better narration than Renée Raudman’s in this trilogy. Some of the voices she creates for the secondary characters seem not to be from the same person who is voicing the narrator. The first time I listened to this book, I made excuses to keep cleaning my house so I could binge all three almost straight through. It doesn’t hurt that the story is riveting, too.
Fortunately, the Milk by Neil Gaiman
Narrated by Neil Gaiman
I know it’s not romance, it’s actually a short children’s book (<1hr), which is how I found it: desperately searching for something to occupy my kids on a drive. It. Is. Amazing. Gaiman simply brings to life this witty and outlandish story about a father explaining to his children why he was late coming back from the corner shop with their milk for breakfast. It involves a stegosaurus, a hot air balloon, a Really Good Moves Around in Time Machine, and, of course, the milk.
Want to give audiobooks a try? All of these romances are available on Audible. (Or support your local library by seeing if they’re on Hoopla!)
Heat Factor: They just crash into each other. It’s intense.
Character Chemistry: The way that Will knows he can’t trust Kim but also just really wants to love him is *chef’s kiss*
Plot: After WWI, Will Darling struggled with the return to civilian life until his uncle bequeathed him a bookshop. A bookshop that embroils him in a conspiracy, and brings into his life the perturbing and slippery Kim Secretan.
Overall: Exceptional. Absolutely exceptional.
Continue reading “Review: The Will Darling Adventures by KJ Charles (2020-2021)”
Romance retellings are fun and offer endless variety. The fun comes from seeing a recognizable frame—and then going along for the ride as the author takes the base story in a new direction. And there are so many ways you can take retellings! And so many stories out there to retell! We had a group chat just about Cinderella romances last fall, and even that one story offers a host of possibilities. When the original and the new material really play off each other, it’s magic.
Holly is our local Austen Retelling Expert, and Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors remains her gold standard for Pride and Prejudice retellings. Dev captures the ethos of the original in her contemporary retelling but gives Tricia and DJ depth such that their arc from antagonism to love is believable in and of itself, and not just because they are Lizzie and Darcy and have to fall in love. (Read Holly’s full review.)
Content Notes: racism, medical stuff, past sexual assault (secondary character)
On the surface, this Taming of the Shrew retelling follows a women’s rights activist and a buffoonish aristocrat who’s trying to do right by her after inadvertently compromising her. But Cassandra “tames” Ashmont (as it were), not vice versa, because as she explains why she won’t marry him, doesn’t respect him, and doesn’t trust him, she makes Ashmont see his privilege and how his past behavior had harmed her (and others) and made her feel invisible. Chase did some really awesome things with this retelling, and the character development was fabulous. (Read Erin’s full review.)
Content Notes: emotional abuse, misogyny
This Cinderella retelling manages to evoke the Cinderella ethos without making Amanda a helpless victim. With Amanda’s employer being cast in the role of the step-sister, it’s easy to understand why Amanda chooses to tread carefully – she’s got a dream to reach for, after all! But even without meaning to, Oscar-winning actor Sam Pleasant churns up some drama when Amanda comes into his orbit. The natural tension of the Cinderella plot works for this story, so if you’re looking for a not-so-angsty read with some solid natural tension and awesome checking in and consent between the protagonists, this here’s a great retelling for you!
Content Notes: verbal/emotional abuse (in the workplace)
Garton’s reimagining of the Arthurian legend is set in rural Kentucky, and it is a wild ride. Lance, as a trans man dealing with some self-esteem struggles and body dysphoria and living back in his hometown where people don’t hesitate to deadname him, is working on some emotionally weighty stuff. But also he, his sister Gwen, his friends Mordy and Morgan, and his best friend–>boyfriend Arthur have to destroy the evil necromancer, save the girls/young women in their community, and pull themselves out of the eons old reincarnation loop that they’ve been dealing with since being cursed by Morgana. (Read Erin’s full review.)
Content Notes: transphobia, deadnaming, abuse, violence
This super-sexy retelling of the Hades and Persephone myth leans in to the dysfunctional side of Olympus. Like, of course Persephone and Demeter have a fraught relationship! Where this book really shines, however, is in the bantery grumpy-sunshine dynamic that develops between Persephone and Hades, as they go from exhibitionist sex pact to true love. Bonus points for Hades doing that thing where he is all domineering because that’s how he shows he cares.
Content Notes: public sex, violence
Whether or not you agree with me about including this book probably depends on how you take your happy endings, but I’m going for it because 1. It is a reimagining of the Victorian pulp romance The Prisoner of Zenda, 2. It clearly demonstrates that retellings or reimaginings are everywhere and 3. It is totally awesome. The original is OTT in true Victorian pulp fashion, but with her “let’s tell this story from the perspective of the bad guys, and also they’re totally into each other” twist, Charles makes it even better! Jasper is a cheeky anti-hero narrator, and he and Rupert are a clever team with some stellar on-page sizzle.
Content Notes: violence, homophobia, abduction, discussion of sexual assault
This book is the rare retelling that makes you rethink the source material—and not just because Chant reimagines Wendy/Peter as the same person, but also because of the way he portrays Neverland and the nature of reality there. Plus, everyone can agree that Captain Hook is the sexiest. So why is this incredible book listed as a bonus? Because it’s not currently available for sale anywhere. (Holly was lucky enough to find a copy at her local library; you might get lucky too!)
Content Notes: transphobia, violence
EDITED TO ADD: As of June 1, 2021, Peter Darling has been re-released by the author and is available for purchase.
It’s easy to find romance including women loving women, and it’s super easy to find romance including men loving men. It’s even pretty easy to find throuple romance that’s not exclusively about tittilating sex. But it’s not always so easy to find romance, especially Own Voices romance, featuring stories about all those other letters we see in our Pride hashtags.
In my ongoing quest to read everything, I made myself some special shelves on my Goodreads list to help me focus. This week, let’s talk about ace (that’s asexual, but if you’re looking at the spectrum more broadly, we can also encompass gray, demisexual and aromantic) romance I’m excited about (which is in no way comprehensive, but it’s the Saturday Smutty Six, not the Saturday Smutty Everything-on-my-list).
Titles link to the book’s Amazon page.
There be dragons in this fantasy romance. One protagonist has his dragon magic stolen (gasp!), and he must roam the earth as a mortal, seeking to recover it. And he’s mind-linked to the other protagonist, but they don’t know when they find each other!!! Sounds epic. Bonus points: The author is non-binary and asexual, so this is an own voices story.
I think K.J. Charles might be a genius. At the very least, her writing is incredibly tight. This short story is a Lilywhite Boys prequel, so you’ll be able to engage with these characters a bit more if you continue the series. I like to see trans and ace representation in historical romance, so I’m going to keep track of any I find and add it to my TBR.
Historical romance in an unusual period: the 1970s. It sounds super angsty, since one protagonist is married with children and can’t figure out why he doesn’t like sex, and the other is gay in 1970s America, and it occurs over the course of a decade. I’m super intrigued.
Please find enclosed a M/M pairing with a vampire and a vampire hunter in a non-linear timeline. The vampire hunter is autistic, and the vampire is asexual, and together they find love and solve some shady mystery shenanigans. Bonus points: This fantasy story includes Asian protagonists and is written by an Asian author.
I was probably drawn to this book initially because my children are currently obsessed with a book about an Antarctic research station, but, I mean, it’s a forced proximity, enemies to lovers slow burn set at the South Pole, so… Aren’t you also interested? Plus, I do love an awkward scientist. Bonus points: This author is lesbian and neurodivergent. We’re on a roll with own voices stories in this list, amiright?
In an unexpected twist, Upside Down features not one, but two ace protagonists! And one of them is a librarian! While one protagonist is exploring his new understanding of his asexual label, the other is helping him to do it. Sounds utterly charming, doesn’t it? I bet it’ll get me right in the feels.
Please let me know if there are any ace romances you’re excited about, as I’m constantly updating my TBR, and I’ve already blown through my 2020 reading goal, so I need all the books.
The Smut Report 