The server got a whole makeover and I need to test some things, including new posts.
Hi!!!
So, uh, what was for dinner? We had Korean takeout and my cat has now discovered that bulgogi is the only thing he wants to eat for the rest of his furry life. oh no..
The Raven Scholar by Antonia Hodgson is $1.99! I mentioned this on Hide Your Wallet when it released earlier this year. I’ve heard nothing but good things from those who have read it. Did you pick this one up?
From an electrifying new voice in epic fantasy comes The Raven Scholar, a masterfully woven and playfully inventive tale of imperial intrigue, cutthroat competition, and one scholar’s quest to uncover the truth.
Let us fly now to the empire of Orrun, where after twenty-four years of peace, Bersun the Brusque must end his reign. In the dizzying heat of mid-summer, seven contenders compete to replace him. They are exceptional warriors, thinkers, strategists—the best of the best.
Then one of them is murdered.
It falls to Neema Kraa, the emperor’s brilliant, idiosyncratic High Scholar, to find the killer before the trials end. To do so, she must untangle a web of deadly secrets that stretches back generations, all while competing against six warriors with their own dark histories and fierce ambitions. Neema believes she is alone. But we are here to help; all she has to do is let us in.
If she succeeds, she will win the throne. If she fails, death awaits her. But we won’t let that happen.
I love romantic suspense with survival elements (especially cold weather survival) and I also really enjoyed the espionage/global threat aspect of the mystery. I wish I’d read the prequel novella first, but it wasn’t a huge issue, and I’m delighted to have a new series to look forward to.
Angel Smith is finally ready to leave Antarctica for a second chance at life. But on what was meant to be her last day, the remote research station she’s been calling home is attacked. Hunted and scared, she and irritatingly gorgeous glaciologist Ford Cooper barely make it out with their lives…only to realize that in a place this remote, there’s nowhere left to run.
Isolated with no power, no way to contact the outside world, and a madman at their heels, Angel and Ford must fight to survive in the most inhospitable—and beautiful—place on earth. But what starts as a partnership born of necessity quickly turns into an urgent connection that burns bright and hot. They both know there is little chance of making it out alive, and yet they are determined to survive against the odds—and possibly, the world.
An Earl Like You by Caroline Linden is $1.99! This historical romance is the second book in The Wagers of Sin series. Elyse read this one and, while she loved the heroine, she couldn’t forgive the hero for his actions and behavior. Have you read this one?
When you gamble at love…
When Hugh Deveraux discovers his newly inherited earldom is bankrupt, he sets about rebuilding the family fortune—in the gaming hells of London. But the most daring wager he takes isn’t at cards. A wealthy tradesman makes a tantalizing offer: marry the man’s spinster daughter, and Hugh’s debts will be paid and his fortune made. The only catch is that she must never know about their agreement.
You risk losing your heart…
Heiress Eliza Cross has given up hope of marriage until she meets the impossibly handsome Earl of Hastings, her father’s new business partner. The earl is everything a gentleman should be, and is boldly attentive to her. It doesn’t take long for Eliza to lose her heart and marry him.
But when Eliza discovers that there is more to the man she loves—and to her marriage—her trust is shattered. And it will take all of Hugh’s power to prove that now his words of love are real.
Hammajang Luck by Makana Yamamoto is $1.99! This one released in January and I mentioned it on Hide Your Wallet. I’m a sucker for anything heist related.
HAMMAJANG | adjective. Definition: In a disorderly or chaotic state; messed up. Chiefly in predicative use, esp. in all hammajang. Etymology: A borrowing from Hawaiian Pidgin. Source: Oxford English Dictionary.
Edie is done with crime. Eight years behind bars changes a person – costs them too much time with too many of the people who need them most.
And it’s all Angel’s fault. She sold Edie out in what should have been the greatest moment of their lives. Instead, Edie was shipped off to the icy prison planet spinning far below the soaring skybridges and neon catacombs of Kepler space station – of home – to spend the best part of a decade alone.
But then a chance for early parole appears out of nowhere and Edie steps into the pallid sunlight to find none other than Angel waiting – and she has an offer.
One last job. One last deal. One last target. The trillionaire tech god they failed to bring down last time. There’s just one thing Edie needs to do – trust Angel again – which also happens to be the last thing Edie wants to do. What could possibly go all hammajang about this plan?
Ocean’s 8 meets Blade Runner in this trail-blazing debut science fiction novel and swashbuckling love letter to Hawai’i about being forced to find a new home and striving to build a better one – unmissable for fans of Gideon the Ninth by Tamsyn Muir and Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo.
As the northern hemisphere turns towards winter, it bears repeating that none of us does well alone, without reasons to get out of our apartments/homes/domiciles (no matter how cozy and apparently winter-proof) and participate in the world sometimes. I've seen advice go by about light boxes and exercise, but I would argue a good part of that is staying connected with your fellow human beings; the reminder that life doesn't begin in an office and end in the dark. No one wants to emerge in late March as a pale, undersocialized and overall worse version of themselves! So let's all strive....not to.
November is always a quieter month on the queer romance front, not quite ready for holiday romances but past the point when everything screams “Autumn!!” with leaf-filled covers. As such, we’ve got a fun variety of genres and categories waiting to be snatched up!
From New York Times bestselling author Akwaeke Emezi comes a steamy paranormal romance set in the Black South—a bold new foray that takes us on a journey of magic and fantasy, from the whispering creeks outside the city of Salvation to the very depths of Hell itself.
Tenderhearted Galilee was raised by the Kincaids, a formidable clan of Black women sequestered deep in the weeping willows and dark rushing creeks of their land. Galilee has always known that she’s different—that there is an old and unknowable secret around her very existence. It has been a hollow ache inside her since her childhood, something she assumes she will always have to live with.
Until she meets Lucifer Helel. He’s fronting as the head of security for her wealthy friend Oriaku’s family, protecting a mysterious, ancient artifact, but from the moment she lays eyes on him, Gali knows he’s not human. From her first incendiary touch, Lucifer knows something even Gali herself doesn’t—that she isn’t human either.
Leviathan. As Lucifer’s most trusted prince of Hell, Levi is ruthless and determined to eliminate the intolerable danger that is Galilee before she brings death and disaster to those he loves. While unseen battles rage between Hell, Heaven, and earth, Lucifer and Galilee’s attraction threatens to bring all the structures of their existence crashing down around them.
Soon, loyalties will be shattered and reformed as Kincaid secrets clash with the princes of Hell, driving even the most powerful to their knees. Galilee Kincaid must decide if she will step into herself and embrace the consequences of power in this astonishing, seductive, and wildly original fantasy.
I dare you to find an author with more skill at jumping between categories and genres than the massively critically acclaimed Emezi, who’s at it once again with their very first steamy paranormal romance (which I’m also seeing being called a Romantasy, and I’ve frankly just given up on trying to understand all the differences, but anyway, points to Emezi for being super on trend in a deeply unique way, as always). I loved Emezi’s debut romance, the grief-centric contemporary You Made a Fool of Death with Your Beauty, and now you’re telling me this one’s set in the Deep South and featuring the devil? No chance this one’s not amazing. (Also, I don’t care if you’ve got sprayed edge fatigue – this book’s got a seriously stunning design.)
Author: Robyn Green Released: November 11, 2025 by Harper Perennial Genre:LGBTQIA, Romance
Red, White & Royal Blue meets the theater world of London’s dazzling West End in this nuanced, queer debut romance in which a fake dating publicity stunt between rival co-stars results in romantic sparks neither of them expected.
After winning his first Olivier Award for his performance in the West End’s top musical, The Wooden Horse, fabulously talented Jonah Penrose is the new shining star of London’s theatre scene. But Jonah’s success can’t erase the pain of a recent breakup, fix his self-doubt, or remedy his father’s ailing mind.
Enter stage right, Dexter the West End’s golden boy, the newest cast member of The Wooden Horse, and someone Jonah finds to be intolerable and arrogant.
Everything about Dexter is infuriatingly perfect, from his dashing looks and casual but cutting notes on Jonah’s performances to his obnoxious sweaters that cost more than Jonah’s rent. Worse yet, while Dexter was supposed to play Jonah’s enemy in the show, his role switches to his love interest after a bout of illness temporarily sidelines half of the cast.
Jonah’s plan to stay as far away from Dexter as possible is thwarted when fans mistake their on-stage tension for romantic chemistry and tickets start selling like hotcakes. With fans desperate to catch a glimpse of the West End’s ‘hottest couple,’ the show’s producer pushes the co-stars to put on a show of their own and convince the world that they are in love.
While pretending to be head over heels for his co-star is the last thing Jonah wants, he reluctantly agrees. Yet as he gets to know Dexter better, he learns there’s more to him than meets the eye. As the lines between fiction and reality begin to blur and Jonah’s feelings become less of an act, he must decide if he’s willing to entrust his heart to someone again.
At turns both passionate and poignant, heartfelt and intimate, The Dramatic Life of Jonah Penrose is a love letter to the theater, to life in your thirties, and to what happens when you throw out the script and improvise the life you want.
I know we are all ready for something charming, sweet, and fun, and this theatre romance set in London’s West End totally delivers just that with a healthy dose of delightful romance tropes. It’s exactly what you want to read this season, and then lend to a friend who also needs a queer romance pick-me-up.
A swoon-worthy YA rom com about an ambitious college student whose plans get derailed when he discovers his roommate is the prince of hell.
Owen is not going to college to have fun. Nothing is going to stop him from achieving his goals: study hard, get a good job, and set himself up for the rest of his life. The last thing he needs is to have a loud, obnoxious, and infuriatingly hot roommate. Especially since said roommate just so happens to be the prince of hell.
Prince Zarmenus has come to Point University for the first-ever Earth/hell exchange program, and he’s determined to make the most of it. Which may or may not include wild parties, bringing in random boys to his and Owen’s room, and accidentally setting Owen’s furniture on fire. Sparks fly (literally) as Owen and Zar clash, but Zar’s actions threaten to not only ruin Owen’s peaceful college life, but demon-human relations as well. To clean up his image, he asks Owen to be his fake boyfriend and teach him how to be a better human in exchange for an internship that will secure Owen’s future. That, and Zar will consider being a better roommate.
A deal is struck, and the two start pretending to be in a relationship where they each have agendas of their own. Only Owen has a secret―dating his mortal enemy, even if it’s fake, is the most fun he’s ever had.
Charming and fun, My Roommate from Hell is a rom com with a magical twist. Think just one bed, but that bed is in hell, surrounded by fire and brimstone.
I’ve been a fan of Aussie author Dietrich’s fun and quirky YA since his m/m spy romance debut, The Love Interest, and it’s been delightful to watch him jump around from rock stars to royalty to a fraternity-set slasher. But of all his titles, I probably have the highest hopes for this one, because I just think a Earth/hell exchange program is one of the funniest premises I’ve ever heard (plus I love me a college-set YA).
Exploring themes of love, family, and parenthood, Husband of the Year is a trade paperback original publication featuring all the characters you’ve met and grown to love and is the highly anticipated final installment in the Teachers in Love series—from an author whose “stories are sweetness and spice wrapped into a big, warm hug” (Alice Oseman, bestselling author of Heartstopper).
Family isn’t only about blood. It’s about the people we choose. Olan Stone wants nothing more than to spend the rest of his life with kindergarten teacher Marvin Block. And his daughter, Illona, can’t wait to call Marvin her stepfather. They’re bashert—meant to be.
However, as the big day approaches, family tensions and unresolved issues put their future together in jeopardy. Marvin thought he and Olan had everything all figured out. But he’s realizing that their whirlwind romance may not be the foundation for a lifetime commitment after all. As they struggle through the changes that life is throwing their way, will they be drawn closer together or farther apart?
After a little delay for the Teachers in Love series to move over to trad pub, we’re finally seeing it come to a close as Olan and Marvin, the couple we met in the first book, near their wedding. Wardell never fails to bring both the steam and the heart, so I feel confident this one will go out with a bang (or two).
Bestselling author Lyla Lee delivers a deliciously fun YA K-drama remix of Pride and Prejudice—if Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth Bennett were a college-run reality TV dating show.
It is a truth universally acknowledged that when there is a hot person, there is also someone with a crush on them.
Mia Yoon has a plan for everything. Get a full ride to her dream film school in Los Angeles, behind her mom’s back, and escape her middle-of-nowhere hometown—check. Produce her own dating show starring other people and their crushes—check. But everything goes off the rails when she has to enlist the help of her own secret crush, Noah Jang, a boy she’d rather hate.
Despite being a campus celebrity voted “most eligible student bachelor,” Noah can’t remember the last time he was in a relationship. And he’s perfectly content with that, thank you very much, especially since just the word feelings makes him uncomfortable. But he can’t stop staring at Mia, who keeps glaring at him in class. And when she asks him to be on her dating show—as one of the contestants—he can’t say no.
As Noah goes on more and more romantic dates on The Cuffing Game and Mia watches from behind the camera, something feels off. With the showrunner and contestant slowly falling for one another, can the show still go on?
Pride and Prejudice meets Love Island with bi Korean rep is really not something I ever expected to see in a YA novel, but trust Lyla Lee to come up with it. Lee is an elite group currently publishing in four categories (early reader, middle grade, young adult, and, as of this year, adult — definitely don’t miss her debut Sapphic romance, Love in Focus), but she always hits the age just right, and this sweet romance is thoroughly modern with its heavy social media angle and the fact that said show airs on YouTube rather than traditional cable. It’s fun, it’s cute, and it’s got a heavily queer secondary cast in addition to its bi heroine.
After mentioning Heather Graham, one of the Grande Dames of RT, so many times while recapping issues of Romantic Times, I got to sit down with her to talk about her career, the way the industry has changed, and of course, her memories of Romantic Times, both the magazine and the convention.
We talk about…
Her memories of meeting Kathryn Falk
The earliest Romantic Times Conventions
Her incredible RT parties
The work of hosting conferences.
Heather has had one of the most interesting career paths, and this is a guest with whom I could just turn on the mic and say, “Please, tell me everything.”
TW/CW: At 48:40, there is a discussion of groping, and if you’d like to avoid it, please skip ahead one minute.
What did you think of today's episode? Got ideas? Suggestions? You can talk to us on the blog entries for the podcast or talk to us on Facebook if that's where you hang out online. You can email us at sbjpodcast@gmail.com or you can call and leave us a message at our Google voice number: 201-371-3272. Please don't forget to give us a name and where you're calling from so we can work your message into an upcoming podcast.
Speaking of Dad: he had another scan last week and the chemo shrank the (inoperable) tumor in his lung again and he now only has identifiable cancer in that one spot of his body. Everywhere else it was found is gone. He starts immunotherapy in two-ish weeks and they’ll see in six months if he needs more chemo to improve the quality of his life.
He still has a terminal diagnosis because of the nature of this type of cancer, but it’s now a coin toss between whether cancer or old age gets him.
Modern chemo is a miracle. I love science.
Question, I know your parents are or at least used to be the bad kind of crunchy, but did he have the Covid vaccine?
I ask because it’s looking like the mRNA Covid vaccine does something to the immune system which massively increases the effectiveness of cancer treatments. The study is on mice but there’s anecdotal evidence that it helps people too.
I’d heard something about mRNA being used to explore the possibility of cancer immunotherapy. (among other things.) its wild what they’re figuring out.
And funnily enough while my parents are/were the bad crunchy types, the one thing they never avoid is vaccines. They’re extremely provaccine and my dad actually just got all of his boosters this week.
My mother’s cousin had polio as a kid and my dad actually ended up in a sanatorium for tuberculosis when he was five or six, so I think that influenced their outlook on that. They had me and my brother vaccinated for everything possible when we were kids
The only thing I wasn’t fully vaccinated for was for whooping cough because I had an allergic reaction, and when I got whooping cough at school because of the anti-vax movement that was taking off at the time, my mother was livid.
So they wouldn’t let us take painkillers (unless we had a fever) or a lot of other medicines because of the “side effects” but at least they didn’t fail us there. Small mercies, in the grand scheme of things.
So I have not looked into this at all but the covid vaccine increasing the effectiveness of chemo is wild to me. I’m not sure why that would be. (Not that I’m dismissing the notion out of hand though, the human body is wild).
Yeah, mRNA is looked into for immunotherapy but I have to note that those two things are unlikely to be related in that sense, since mRNA is a huge class of molecules, like protein (one could argue there is greater variety in mRNA than proteins but I don’t have the numbers so I’m not going to make any claims on that).
I’m not medically literate enough myself to understand it. (though i think a link was posted in the notes so you may be able to make more sense of it with your background.)
Anecdotally, while quite a few people in the MCAS community attribute the onset of their illness to the mRNA vaccine (and I believe it may have contributed for them. MCAS is a bonkers disease) I was told by my doctors to hold off until they had more data, so I spent a terrifying year unvaccinated for COVID.
Eventually when my doctor deemed it safe enough for me and we took every precaution to avoid idiopathic anaphylaxis, I actually went into partial remission after getting the mRNA vaccine. The chronic hives I’d been covered in for almost five years nonstop vanished. It just stopped.
Something in my immune system went “huh” in response to it and started trying to function again. And I’ve been able to tolerate other non mRNA vaccines again since then, which I couldn’t before. I actually got the whooping cough vaccine on accident while getting a tetanus shot and nothing happened. Everyone was bracing for me to crash and go into shock and I was just… Fine.
And no one can tell me why. They’re just like “well the body is weird, dont look a gift horse in the mouth” lmao
And by contrast, it seems there’s maybe a link between mRNA vaccines and a rise in ANA numbers and Lupis being triggered for those already with the potential for it. So now I have to rely on herd immunity according to my rheumetologist which is terrifying. But I might be one of those with a natural immunity to Covid? As does my mother… Who also has Lupis pending… which is… hum.
Anyways! mRNAs are amazing and terrifying and there is some much more we can do with them.
I’m sorry to hear that. If living with MCAS has taught me anything, its that there is no foolproof way to predict how some people’s bodies will react to even the safest of things.
If it’s any help, Flo Masks have been literally life saving for me as an immunocompromised person. My doctor ended up buying one after he saw me wearing it and he was impressed by the seal. Doesn’t steam my glasses up either if that’s a concern for anyone who struggles with that.
Sorry for the lack of alt ID folks, I’m having a bad brain day, but hey, @stringsofglass, I dont know where you are in the world, but strapless adhesive N95 masks are a thing and not many people know about them.
This is one example a friend of mine uses because she also can’t wear regular masks without it causing conflicting issues with her nerve pain:
I’ve only ever seen them available to buy in bulk and of course there is always the possibility of a skin reaction to the adhesive. But I wanted to put it out there as an option for anyone who didn’t know adhesive masks are available.
When the POTS hits and the 10lb self-appointed service dog tries to lift your legs 😂
She was on my left side and started trying to crawl under my legs so I bent my knees thinking she was trying to get to the other side of the bed and was being an awkward little weirdo about it. And then she just stayed under my knees 😂
Thank you, babygirl. It’s not helping but it’s the thought that counts.
Holly Mop every day since I got back from Scotland with worse health than when I left:
Stop volunteering to be the village sacrifice we all know you’re not a virgin. The dragon probably wouldn’t even be into you.
Untie yourself from that altar right now.
Look. I didn’t want to say anything because it’s kind of a touchy subject, but the dragon doesn’t actually take these “brides” back to its lair full of riches and add them to a harem. Okay? It’s a big fucking lizard with a brain the size of an orange, it just roasts and eats them.
That’s why we always pick the most useless airhead to sacrifice come harvest season.
Now come on, get those chains off. Where did you even get these? Oh you made them? See that’s the kind of craftsmanship the village needs you for. We’ll have a big orgy after the ritual and if you want a bunch of us will dress up as dragons and take turns having a go at you. It’ll be nice, you’ll see.
Yes, yes, I know, not the same. Well not all dreams are attainable, in the end.
When the POTS hits and the 10lb self-appointed service dog tries to lift your legs 😂
She was on my left side and started trying to crawl under my legs so I bent my knees thinking she was trying to get to the other side of the bed and was being an awkward little weirdo about it. And then she just stayed under my knees 😂
Thank you, babygirl. It’s not helping but it’s the thought that counts.
Ready or Not by Cara Bastone is $1.99! Bastone’s contemporaries come highly recommended by those who have read them. I loved her newest one, Promise Me Sunshine. Thanks to everyone who let us know about this sale.
A surprise pregnancy leads to even more life-changing revelations in this heartfelt, slow-burn, friends-to-lovers romance of found family and unexpected love.
Eve Hatch lives for surprises! Just kidding. She expects every tomorrow to be pretty much the same as today. She loves her cozy apartment in Brooklyn that’s close to her childhood best friend Willa, and far from her midwestern, traditional family who has never really understood her. While her job is only dream-adjacent, it’s comfortable and steady. She always knows what to expect from her life . . . until she finds herself expecting after an uncharacteristic one-night stand.
The unplanned pregnancy cracks open all the relationships in her life. Eve’s loyal friendship with Willa is feeling tense, right when she needs her the most. And it’s actually Willa’s steadfast older brother, Shep, who steps up to help Eve. He has always been friendly, but now he’s checking in, ordering her surprise lunches, listening to all her complaints, and is . . . suddenly kinda hot? Then, as if she needs one more complication, there’s the baby’s father, who is (technically) supportive but (majorly) conflicted.
Up until this point, Eve’s been content to coast through life. Now, though—maybe it’s the hormones, maybe it’s the way Shep’s shoulders look in a T-shirt—Eve starts to wonder if she has been secretly desiring more from every aspect of her life.
Over the course of nine months, as Eve struggles to figure out the next right step in her expanding reality, she begins to realize that family and love, in all forms, can sneak up on you when you least expect it.
Voidwalker by S.A. Maclean is $2.99! This one is a Kindle Daily Deal. It released in August and I mentioned it on Hide Your Wallet.
From the author of The Phoenix Keeper comes an era-defining new fantasy universe where spicy romantasy meets the Cosmere, unmissable for fans of the world-building scale of Sarah J. Maas and the world-shifting stakes of Rebecca Yarros. Voidwalker will be your next romantasy obsession, a deliciously feral story that starts with just two “bite me.”
Fionamara is a smuggler. Antal is the reason her people fear the dark. Fi ferries contraband between worlds, stockpiling funds and stolen magic to keep her village self-sufficient – free from the blood sacrifices humans have paid to Antal’s immortal species for centuries.
Only legends whispered through the pine forests recall a time when things were different, before one world shattered into many, and the flesh-devouring beasts crept from the cracks between realities, with their sable antlers and slender tails, lethal claws and gleaming fangs. Now, mortal lives are food to pacify their carnivorous overlords, exchanged for feudal protection, and the precious silver energy that fuels everything from transport to weaponry.
When Fi gets planted with a stash of smuggled energy, a long-lost flame recruits her for a reckless heist that escalates into a terrorist bombing – and a coup against the reigning immortals, with Fi’s home caught in the crossfire.
She’s always known the dangers of her trade – and of the power she’s wielded since childhood, allowing her to see the secret doors between dimensions, to walk the Void itself. But nothing could have prepared her for crossing paths with Antal. For the deal she’ll have to make with him, a forced partnership to reclaim his city that begins as a desperate bid for survival, only to grow into something far more dangerous.
A revolution. And a temptation – for how sweet the monster’s fangs might feel.
Arcana Academy by Elise Kova is $1.99! This came out over the summer and a couple of us are fans of Kova’s fantasy romance. Last I checked, the sale was only valid at Amazon, but hopefully it’ll be matched by the time this is live.
A woman who wields magical tarot cards lands herself in a false engagement with the headmaster of a mysterious academy in this first installment of an enthralling fantasy romance series from the bestselling author of A Deal with the Elf King.
Clara Graysword has survived the underworld of Eclipse City through thievery, luck, and a whole lot of illegal magic. After a job gone awry, Clara is sentenced to a lifetime in prison for inking tarot cards-a rare power reserved for practitioners at the elite Arcana Academy.
Just when it seems her luck has run dry, the academy’s enigmatic headmaster, Prince Kaelis, offers her an escape-for a price. Kaelis believes that Clara is the perfect tool to help him steal a tarot card from the king and use it to re-create an all-powerful card long lost to time.
In order to conceal her identity and keep her close, Kaelis brings Clara to Arcana Academy, introducing her as the newest first-year student and his bride-to-be.
Thrust into a world of arcane magic and royal intrigue, where one misstep will send her back to prison or worse, Clara finds that the prince she swore to hate may not be what he seems. But can she risk giving him power over the world-and her heart? Or will she take it for herself?
The Mismatch of the Season by Michelle Kenney is $2.99! This is book one in the Fairfax Sisters series. Sadly, I don’t like this book description as it tells me little about the plot.
Calling all Bridgerton and Jane Austen fans! You are cordially invited to fall in love with your favorite new Regency romance novel…
‘I don’t pretend to know the details of your private life, Miss Fairfax, but you might do better to embrace the fortunate position into which you were born, rather than regret the one that only exists between the covers of a novel’
Miss Phoebe Fairfax dreams of being as free as her four brothers. When she discovers she is to be wed to a repugnant earl who is old enough to be her grandfather, she decides to embark on a real adventure…
Enter the insufferable – and insufferably gorgeous – Viscount Damerel.
A must-read for fans of Evie Dunmore, Martha Waters and Virginia Heath
Gold Coast Dilemma is at its best when unpacking the culture, food, and family dynamics of a well-to-do Ghanaian-American family and the life of the central character, Ofosua. It is at its most infuriating when the characters face macro and micro-aggressions regarding race, gender, and mental health. And it’s least convincing when selling the actual romance between Ofosua and Cole.
This romance is told from both Ofosua’s and Cole’s point of view, but Ofosua’s is by far more compelling. Ofosua works in publishing and is prepared to marry a man who meets the requirements of her demanding mother. When she discovers her fiancee cheating on her AT THE WEDDING, she has the wedding annulled and attempts to go on with her life. She is thrilled to be offered a multicultural imprint to run – but horrified that she has to co-run it with her rival, Cole. Sparks fly, but can they make this relationship work?
This book is one that my romance book club, Between the Covers, read, and I was fascinated to see that our entire discussion barely touched on the actual romance. Ofosua is a layered, interesting character who is dealing with many conflicts in her life. She is complex and her relationships with her friends and family are complex. Ofosua experiences panic attacks and struggles with the cultural barriers around mental health care. Her mother is a constant source of tension, which is bound up in the difference between her mother’s cultural and class and generational expectations and those of Ofosua. Her friends are, in my opinion, astonishingly unhelpful. Ofosua’s work at her publishing company is fascinating, frustrating and inspiring. She expresses herself through fashion in an interesting way. In short, she’s a great character.
Cole is, in the immortal words of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, “just this guy, you know?” He starts off as a collection of red flags. He’s friends with a blatantly racist and sexist guy. He doesn’t know why Ofosua dislikes him (it’s a bizarre conflict that never needed to be in the book) and that frustrates him, so he likes to make her angry so he has her attention (“Cute when angry” is a personal trigger of mine and I never forgave him for this).
A few chapters in, it’s as if suddenly the book remembers that he’s the romantic hero and his whole personality changes. I have to admit that I was very, very hard on Cole, even though by the end of the book he seems like a terrific ally in the making. I just never trusted him – also, he’s simply not interesting. He’s a rich White asshat nepo-baby who becomes less of an asshat. He and Ofusua get to a place that seems healthy and happy for them but I never invested in him as a character.
I want to warn readers that although ultimately this is a happy story (it’s a romance novel, after all), it can be very difficult to read some of this book. Ofosua’s mother was clearly parenting from a specific cultural, generational, and experiential place – I always felt like she was a whole person who genuinely thought she was doing the right thing. But this doesn’t soften the damage she does to her daughter and I could barely tolerate her on the page. It was hard to read about all the microaggressions Ofosua faces in her workplace. It was infuriating to read about the asshole who runs the publishing company and every time Cole’s horrible friend Chad showed up I wanted to scream into the void. I was so angry at Ofosua’s horrible boss, Cole’s uncle, that I could barely read passages involving him.
However, I also learned a lot from this book. I enjoyed learning about Ghanaian culture. I loved that this family is wealthy and respected in Ghana and America, and that Ghana is respected as a specific country (Ofosua often has to push back against people who regard “Africa” as a monolith). I learned about Ofosua through her use of fashion as self-expression. I also enjoyed the scenes in which Cole and Ofosua work together within the publishing company.
This book provides so many jumping-off points for discussion and thought – family relationships, different kinds of immigration and migration stories, Ghanaian culture, generational and cultural clashes, the ridiculous standards that Black women in corporate America are forced to meet, and so much more. What it doesn’t do is provide a compelling love story between equals. I cared tremendously about Ofosua and I would love to read more about her, but I don’t find myself caring about her and Cole as a couple. As a romance, this book did not work for me, but every other aspect of Gold Coast Dilemma was fascinating, thoughtful, and nuanced. It led to a lively and engaging discussion with my book club, and left me with much to think about long after I finished it.
“Every time I show the film – whether it’s to film students at USC or UCLA or I’m going to a festival – that’s always the first question: How did Kermit ride the bicycle? And my stock answer is: I put him on a three-wheeler until he got his balance, and then I put him on the two-wheeler.”
Speaking of Dad: he had another scan last week and the chemo shrank the (inoperable) tumor in his lung again and he now only has identifiable cancer in that one spot of his body. Everywhere else it was found is gone. He starts immunotherapy in two-ish weeks and they’ll see in six months if he needs more chemo to improve the quality of his life.
He still has a terminal diagnosis because of the nature of this type of cancer, but it’s now a coin toss between whether cancer or old age gets him.
Modern chemo is a miracle. I love science.
Question, I know your parents are or at least used to be the bad kind of crunchy, but did he have the Covid vaccine?
I ask because it’s looking like the mRNA Covid vaccine does something to the immune system which massively increases the effectiveness of cancer treatments. The study is on mice but there’s anecdotal evidence that it helps people too.
I’d heard something about mRNA being used to explore the possibility of cancer immunotherapy. (among other things.) its wild what they’re figuring out.
And funnily enough while my parents are/were the bad crunchy types, the one thing they never avoid is vaccines. They’re extremely provaccine and my dad actually just got all of his boosters this week.
My mother’s cousin had polio as a kid and my dad actually ended up in a sanatorium for tuberculosis when he was five or six, so I think that influenced their outlook on that. They had me and my brother vaccinated for everything possible when we were kids
The only thing I wasn’t fully vaccinated for was for whooping cough because I had an allergic reaction, and when I got whooping cough at school because of the anti-vax movement that was taking off at the time, my mother was livid.
So they wouldn’t let us take painkillers (unless we had a fever) or a lot of other medicines because of the “side effects” but at least they didn’t fail us there. Small mercies, in the grand scheme of things.
So I have not looked into this at all but the covid vaccine increasing the effectiveness of chemo is wild to me. I’m not sure why that would be. (Not that I’m dismissing the notion out of hand though, the human body is wild).
Yeah, mRNA is looked into for immunotherapy but I have to note that those two things are unlikely to be related in that sense, since mRNA is a huge class of molecules, like protein (one could argue there is greater variety in mRNA than proteins but I don’t have the numbers so I’m not going to make any claims on that).
I’m not medically literate enough myself to understand it. (though i think a link was posted in the notes so you may be able to make more sense of it with your background.)
Anecdotally, while quite a few people in the MCAS community attribute the onset of their illness to the mRNA vaccine (and I believe it may have contributed for them. MCAS is a bonkers disease) I was told by my doctors to hold off until they had more data, so I spent a terrifying year unvaccinated for COVID.
Eventually when my doctor deemed it safe enough for me and we took every precaution to avoid idiopathic anaphylaxis, I actually went into partial remission after getting the mRNA vaccine. The chronic hives I’d been covered in for almost five years nonstop vanished. It just stopped.
Something in my immune system went “huh” in response to it and started trying to function again. And I’ve been able to tolerate other non mRNA vaccines again since then, which I couldn’t before. I actually got the whooping cough vaccine on accident while getting a tetanus shot and nothing happened. Everyone was bracing for me to crash and go into shock and I was just… Fine.
And no one can tell me why. They’re just like “well the body is weird, dont look a gift horse in the mouth” lmao
And by contrast, it seems there’s maybe a link between mRNA vaccines and a rise in ANA numbers and Lupis being triggered for those already with the potential for it. So now I have to rely on herd immunity according to my rheumetologist which is terrifying. But I might be one of those with a natural immunity to Covid? As does my mother… Who also has Lupis pending… which is… hum.
Anyways! mRNAs are amazing and terrifying and there is some much more we can do with them.
I’m sorry to hear that. If living with MCAS has taught me anything, its that there is no foolproof way to predict how some people’s bodies will react to even the safest of things.
If it’s any help, Flo Masks have been literally life saving for me as an immunocompromised person. My doctor ended up buying one after he saw me wearing it and he was impressed by the seal. Doesn’t steam my glasses up either if that’s a concern for anyone who struggles with that.
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After mentioning Heather Graham, one of the Grande Dames of RT, so many times while recapping issues of Romantic Times, I got to sit down with her to talk about her career, the way the industry has changed, and of course, her memories of Romantic Times, both the magazine and the convention.
