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Hello again romance readers. I’m PN Hinton, your companion into the world of romance. I hope your spirit is doing well today. If you’re new to the Kissing Books newsletter, welcome and enjoy your stay. If you’re a long-time reader, welcome back; it’s good to see you again.
Well, Monday, we meet again. Now, I’m not like Garfield who detests Mondays but we’re not always buddy-buddy. We have a begrudgingly somewhat civil relationship since it’s always inevitable. Please don’t ever ask me if I’m having a case of ‘the Mondays’ a la Office Space though. Someone saying that to me would have me wanting to set fire to something even without stealing my red stapler.
But…don’t do that either.
This week should start off a little bit more positively since I’m coming off my birthday weekend. I had a great time relaxing with friends and, yes, I did buy a few books. Sometimes it feels weird buying books when I know I still have a TBR stack waiting at home. Recently, I’ve been in a weird reading mood. It’s not a slump though; it’s more stagnant reading. Books are taking me longer to get through, and this isn’t counting the ones that I’m savoring slowly. I think it’s because on some level I’m still trying to avoid DNFing books. Which isn’t to say that I still won’t, but so far this year I’ve only done that for five books and two of those were within the last week.
It’s an interesting internal struggle to have. On the one hand I want to finish the books at a higher rate than I’m obtaining them. This includes ARCs provided to me through NetGalley or otherwise. On the other hand, life’s too short to force yourself through a book that you’re not loving. So it’s a mixed bag all around.
Romance World Recap
Recently, Andrea of the Shelf Love Podcast tweeted about how romance novels shouldn’t be a substitution for sex education. And she’s correct; they shouldn’t be. Some people’s beef with romance is that it portrays an inaccurate view of sex and relationships. However, I will counter by reminding that these are fiction novels and they’re not intended to depict reality. Not every murder mystery gets solved; so by that mindset, there should be just as much pushback against mysteries and thrillers.
Part of the draw is that the sex is always good. Is it sometimes unbelievable? Sure, especially in the olden days of romance. But again, every other genre has a quality or two that in real life would be unbelievable such as cozy hamlets that have a new murder mystery every other month. In real life there wouldn’t be a plucky amateur sleuth. In real life, the town would be on a watch list and most people would get the hell out of dodge.
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In real life, sex isn’t always great. Kids interrupt, you’re too tired, you’re not in the mood…the list could go on. And there’s nothing wrong with that because, in my opinion, when you’re in a committed relationship, whether it’s monogamous or polyamorous, you should feel comfortable enough with your partner(s) to have that type of honesty. Sex is not the foundation of a relationship nor does it a relationship make. It can be an enhancer but not always because there are asexual people in very happy relationships that don’t include sex. And that’s perfectly fine.
And not every single romance novel has a fireworks inducing first sex scene. In Jennifer Crusie’s Faking It, the first time Minerva and Davy hook up, she is…well faking it, prompting Davy to stop mid-stroke and say, “You’re not getting anything out of this are you?” Now, the next time is much better, but the first time wasn’t anything to write home about. Intentional bad sex scenes can happen in romance novels too. I make that distinction because unintentional bad sex scenes are a completely different kettle of fish.
Around the Web in Romance
Over on Book Riot, Erika gave recommendations for book about Black Love, something we’ve discussed before, and Isabelle gave some for witchy romances.
If you’re still looking for LGBTQ books, romance or otherwise, peruse this list.
Here is a gathering of some of the most eagerly anticipated romances hitting the shelves this summer.
New Releases and Deals
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Some of this week’s new releases include An Extraordinary Lord by Anna Harrington, Paws and Prejudice by Alanna Martin, American Fairy Tale by Adriana Herrera, and Surprise Double Delivery by Therese Beharrie. There are a lot of new releases this week, including re-issues from Linda Lael Miller and the Bridgerton series, so get thee to a bookstore to see them all.
As for deals, Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall, Play it Again by Aidan Wayne, and The Love Song of Sawyer Bell by Avon Gale are all currently $1.99. You can also pick up The Forbidden Man, His All Night, and Her Kind of Man all by Elle Wright and all for $0.99.
And that’s it for today. I’ll be back Thursday with another edition. As a heads up, there will not be a new one next Monday for America’s Fourth of July holiday. Give me a follow over on Twitter @PScribe801. Y’all have a great week!