If you've ever watched one of those Hallmark movies and wished it was not quite as saccharine, had more kissing, and was generally... better? This is for you.

In the words of a friend, "so now werewolf PNR is getting illustrated covers too?"

Mini-reviews of American Witch, Grim Shadows, Advanced Physical Chemistry, and Tell Me Something Good, which means an two contemporary romances, one 1920's paranormal, and an urban fantasy romance.

Please note that all of these were read as audiobooks.

In Lucky Caller, Emma Mills pairs a friends-to-lovers relationship arc with the story of a complicated family on the brink of change. Nina and Jamie, her childhood friend and neighbor, are both taking a radio class in their senior year of high school. Jamie and Nina were best friends until middle school, when *spoiler* happened and now they're 2 members of a 4 person team working on a show together. Nina's father is a famous radio show host who moved out to LA a few years earlier, but she'd rather be producing than hosting so another member of the team, Joydeep is the voice of the show-- together with Sasha, a bit later. The show is off to a rocky start until they play a couple of songs by a cult favorite grunge band, Existential Dead. Improbably, they attract a small following of Existential Dead fans and when they announce a special guest (Nina's dad) without saying his name? Those fans think the reclusive lead singer of the band is the special guest and hijinks ensue.

Kate Clayborn's books are not light and fluffy. They take me a while to read and I usually cry at least once. They are, however, the sort of book that makes me think a lot about how we connect as humans and what it means to start over, to stand still for a moment, to redirect the trajectory of a relationship or a life.

Alyssa Cole’s smart, sweet and short science fiction romance playfully mashes multiple tropes into a fun and surprising adventure. It is simply excellent.

Mini-reviews of Sick Kids in Love, Winterwood, The Magnolia Sword, Rage, and The Night Country, which means an one contemporary romance, one Mulan retelling and three fantasy novels with romantic elements.

This book hit all of my buttons: enemies-to-lovers, witches, historical (AU) France and a very murdery plot. It's a book that I might feel just a little twinge of guilt about loving as much as I do, but that guilt is overshadowed by the emotional ride this book took me on.

Mini-reviews of Irises in the Snow, A Hive of Secrets and Spells, Night of the Scoundrel, and We Met in December, which means an f/f fantasy-mystery, an m/m contemporary, an m/f historical and an m/f contemporary.

As you probably know, we don't review much erotica. But ever since I was handed one of her anthologies in my days at Heroes & Heartbreakers, I've followed Rachel Kramer-Bussel's work with Cleis Press. Kramer-Bussel's curation of these anthologies, particularly the Best Women's Erotica of the Year series, is what really makes them sing. The collections are diverse in both authorship and content and while most readers won't love every story, there's something for everyone in them--as with most anthologies. They're also loosely organized around a theme, this time it's "Outrageous."