Peeps, the saga continues, but there’s some semblance of light shining at the end of the tunnel. Unfortunately, that light is also shining its beams onto some people.
Sponsored by Waterhouse Press
When Maddox and Wilder invite Jasmine into their friendship, sparks fly and she tries to convince them she can be so much more. To both of them. Can they figure out how to navigate a polyamorous relationship without destroying their friendship…and their hearts?
The Ongoing Saga
I figured it was worth adding a special section to this Thursday version of Kissing Books, which if you’re a regular you know is usually dedicated to posts on Book Riot Proper. Instead of hoarding all the news for Monday, here’s what’s been happening with RWA and the RITAs since we last spoke:
- Kharma Kelly wrote this excellent piece on what RWA can do about addressing Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion from an expert’s standpoint.
- Ana Coqui recommended what readers can do to address this on their end, from the point of view of a librarian member of RWA.
- Susanna Kearsley and Ann Aguirre have both asked for their books to be removed from the finalist list.
- Cherry Adair—this year’s Nora Roberts Lifetime Achievement Award recipient—tweeted about giving the finalists their day (three days later?) and ended up blocking the authors of color and allies who tried to help her understand. She also referred to the respondents as a lynch mob, which she then proceeded to show the definition of with the phrase “no mention of color.” Because no one on the planet hears “lynch mob” and thinks, nah, that’s not culturally and contextually related to the actual lynchings of black people that have gone and continue to go on in the United States. Nope.
- (I saw this in real time, but it’s possible her tweets may have been deleted. Some nice folks have preserved the moment in screenshots, which you can find if you search twitter.)
- Amish romance author Jennifer Beckstrand (a finalist in the Romance With Religious or Spiritual Themes category) apparently implied that maybe the reason for lack of racial diversity was a lack of quality in said racially diverse books.
- Finally, HelenKay Dimon made an announcement on behalf of the Board regarding RWA’s next steps to figure something out with the RITAs.
- Meanwhile, Jen has started her journey of Reading the RITAs
These are the news points, but I can’t even keep up with the conversations happening around the institutional racism and homophobia that resides inside the house. Find your favorite author and search their Twitter or Facebook for mentions of PAN, and then just read from there. There will be a lot of exasperated scoffing about white fragility and niceness, because that’s where we are now. Because really, maybe the authors of color we regularly exclaim about really don’t write books that are the same quality as those nominated. No matter they have to be Absolutely Effing Brilliant to get their foot in the door in the first place.
Whoosh. Sorry. It’s a lot. More on Monday.
On to more fun things!
Over on Book Riot
Do you have an overwhelming number of books in your Kindle Cloud? Here’s something to help.
If you’re like me, you might have read Nora Roberts at one point, and then discovered other authors and wandered away. Also like me, you might randomly stand in a bookstore or library, confronted with a full bookcase (or even a whole range) of Nora Roberts titles and think: where the hell do I start?
This Riot Recommendation question was made for romance readers: What’s your favorite historical fiction series?
Yellow is the color of spring…and apparently also the romance novel color of 2019. Check these out!
Deals
Have you read any Jamie Pope? Look no further than Mostly Sunny, which is 1.99 right now. It features a young social worker looking into her past and the pro-football-player-turned-lawyer who is begrudgingly helping her along the way.
KJ Charles has been tweeting about Brexit in severe anguish, so let’s all buy The Magpie Lord, which is 99 cents right now. It won’t help her anguish, but at least we’re thinking about her, huh?
New Books!
It wouldn’t be Thursday without new books, so I’ll tell you about one I’m excitedly devouring and a couple I’ve been drooling over (and watching people review in delight)
Mrs. Martin’s Incomparable Adventure
Courtney Milan
If you were around while I was reading After The Wedding, you know Bertrice Martin is definitely A Favorite. So when I found out Courtney Milan was writing a book just for her, I couldn’t hit preorder fast enough. And now, it’s out! This is a short novella set in the Worth universe, but you certainly don’t need to have read the others to get what’s happening here. (I mean, if you haven’t read the other Worth Saga books, you know what I’m going to say, but I don’t have to say it.)
When Bertrice Martin and Violetta Beauchamps first meet, one is preparing to swindle the other. Instead, they go on a remarkable, delightful, hilarious, adventure in which Bertrice intends to get revenge on her Terrible Nephew a “young thing of forty-nine” who has absolutely no responsibility and no consequences. The women, aged 73 and 69 respectively, are both wonderful women who could do without the existence of men, full stop, and find themselves quite attracted to one another. And really, that’s all you need to know. Go read it.
Others I’m excited to read soon:
Desire Lines by Elizabeth Kingston
One Warm Winter by Jamie Pope
Rebound by LA Witt (which I think I mentioned last week)
The Infamous Duchess by Sophie Barnes
A Lesson in Thorns by Sierra Simone
Forget Me Not by Brenda Jackson (HER 100th HARLEQUIN Y’ALL. ONE. HUNDRED.)
As usual, catch me on Twitter @jessisreading or Instagram @jess_is_reading, or send me an email at jessica@riotnewmedia.com if you’ve got feedback, book recs, or just want to say hi!