Little reviews of The Love Song of Sawyer Bell, Waiting for Tom Hanks, and Evvie Drake Starts Over.

New Ink on Life is an f/f romance that manages to be both sweet and gritty, harrowing and hopeful. Before we go further, please note that if reading about characters in cancer remission will be difficult for you, you may not want to continue with this review (or the book, naturally).

School starts at the end of this month for much of the US. This means one of three things:

1) Time to read as many books as possible! Get them in that Ripped Bodice Bingo card before vacation ends!

2) School will be back in session and your kids will be gone so now you can finally read!

3) Nothing new, but let's read a bunch of books while eating peaches and soaking up the last of the summer sun!

No matter what, the message is that you can read these new books we're excited for AND you get an exclamation point.

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You know how sometimes you read a romance plot and you think, "hmm, this sounds familiar" only to realize it's a story that could be on Bravo or HGTV? Yeah, me too. And I fall for it every time.

Reality TV, whether it's a new person/couple each episode or an entire season with the same people, plays off of dramatic scenarios, big personalities, and high stakes - perfect for a romance novel. Below are a few that I've read. Please tell me your faves in the comments so I can stock up!

This book came out more than 4 months ago, but I just now managed to read it. Having read the first two in the series, An Extraordinary Union and A Hope Divided, I knew a little of Daniel's story and I wasn't eager to read it. Not because I thought it would be anything less than excellent, but because I knew that Alyssa Cole called this the book that almost broke her.

This is the third in Lovett's sex planet books (Planet of Desire is the correct series name) and I enjoyed it but not quite as much as the first two. Jenie is an alien herself, so it's her with a genetic mating bond to worry about for a change. She's convinced that penetrative sex is going to seal the deal, as it were, so she spends most of the book fighting both the sex planet toxin (read more about that here) and the mating bond.

Song of Blood & Stone has had something of a confusing publishing trajectory. If you're new to the series, here's a quick rundown before my review. L. Penelope self-published Song of Blood & Stone in 2015, then the book was picked up by St. Martin's Press and reissued in May 2018. Now there's an extended version coming out in paperback July 2019.  The second book was also self-published and is due to come out in October from the same publisher. There's also a prequel novella out as of January. Got all that?

On the cover, there’s a blurb from Maurene Goo that reads, “As sweet and satisfying as actual mochi... a tender love story wrapped up in food, fashion, and family. I gobbled it up.” Honestly, that’s a perfect one-line review. I Love You So Mochi really is as sweet as mochi.

Kimi is a senior in high school and the book opens with her having something of an identity crisis. The book opens with her and her mother having one of those very devastating silent fights about Kimi not wanting to pursue art school. But what does Kimi want to do with her life if not the art she’s been creating since she was four?

Fix Her Up is a funny, surprisingly steamy romance between a literal clown (she does birthday parties) and her brother's best friend. Georgie's the perpetual pesty little sister and wants to change the town's perception of her. Travis is a former playboy baseball player, back home to lick his wounds after an injury led to his being traded between several teams before being effectively booted out of baseball for good.

July is the hottest month of the year here, so I'm ready to grab a book and cool down. Andrea's in the opposite hemisphere, so she's probably ready to warm up with a book. Books are good for whatever your temperature needs are.

Onward, to new books!

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