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Welcome to the Kissing Books newsletter y’all. I’m P.N. Hinton, your guide to the world of romance novels. I hope your spirit is doing well today. Whether it’s a backlist, new release, or an under the radar delight, I aim to help you find a book or two that you can get lost in. 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.
August is almost over which means it will soon be Fall. Which, in my neck of the woods normally means nothing since it stays hot all year around with occasional bouts of the cold. However, based on the snowstorm earlier this year, I am also anticipating a possible actual fall. Which I’m here for since I think it would be nice to go through an actual fall that lasts longer than a week. Only time will tell though and in the meantime I’m remembering to stay hydrated since, again, it’s still warm here.
Oh, and if you haven’t heard already, the next When in Romance book is Office Hours by Katrina Jackson. I read this last year and can attest to it’s steaminess. You may need a cold shower after some scenes.
Romance Hot Takes
Apparently historical romances have been getting some pushback on historical inaccuracy and it’s a whole mood. Tessa said it perfectly here, but I wanted to chime in with my own two cents. Yes, I’m aware that historical romance isn’t always historically accurate. However, I’m pretty sure that not every forensics procedural show is accurate. I’m also fairly confident that if people in small towns were killed at the same rate and number size that they were in cozies, we would have more towns abandoned than we currently do because people would either stop moving there or move the hell away.
Critics really need to stop having expectations of the romance genre and realism that they don’t have for other genres .When people do that, their biasness is really showing. Also, stop saying there’s too much romance in romance. It’s a romance novel; it’s supposed to have romance even if it comes in varying degrees of sensuality.
And in closing, I will leave you with one reason as to why I’m okay with historical romances fudging accuracy every now and then. Syphilis. Safe sex wasn’t practiced nearly as often as it probably should have been in the past and people were more free with their love. So, there was a whole lot of syphilis in history. And no one wants to read about syphilis during sexy times.
As an aside, I also have side-eye for you if you say you’re writing a romance novel where they don’t end up together. That’s not a romance then; that’s a fiction novel. Again, as an example from another genre, it’s not a murder mystery if no one dies. Romances have HEA or at the very least HFNs. I’ve touched on this before but it’s a hill I’ll die on. No HEA or HFN? Then it’s not a romance novel. It may very well still be a good book; it’s just not romance.
Around the Web in Romance:
Cover reveal for The Book Boyfriend by Jeana Louise Skinner. This is giving me a lot of good vibes and I’m here for it. Who’s here for some witchy romances? This gal!
Ohhh what is this announcement from Kennedy Ryan that I spy??? I, for one, am very excited for this. As much as I loved Neevah and Canon’s love story, I desperately wanted to know more about Monk and Verity’s history.
This fan art that Helen Hoang shared on her Instagram for Quan and Anna warmed my heart.
Have you ever wondered about the different Romance Novel Awards out there, aside from the RWA? Rioter Laura’s got you covered! And yes, that one is mentioned even if it has been found lacking in the last few years.
A few reasons why small towns and romance novels go hand in hand.
With all the discussions around monster romances as of late, sharing this TikTok seems more than a little appropriate. His inflections had me rolling y’all.
New Releases & Deals:
Here are some of the new releases headed our way this week.
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The Heart Principle by Helen Hoang (read and would recommend)
Simply the Best by Karin Kallmaker
For the Love of April French by Penny Aimes (currently reading)
To Sir, With Love by Lauren Layne
Hijacked by Lucy Lennox and May Archer
Kiss of Fate by Louise Lennox
Give Me a Reason by A.L. Jackson
And here are some of the deals I found. Please remember, as always, these deals were active as of the writing of this newsletter.
A Wicked Bargain for the Duke by Megan Frampton is currently $1.99
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Grudge Puck by June Winters is only $0.99 (that title alone LOL)
Gruff Touch by R. Cayden is showing at $0.99 (hmmm silver foxes…)
The Seat Filler by Sariah Wilson is $1.99
Something About You by Reese Ryan is $2.99
The Devil’s Garden by Jane Kindred is $0.99
It’s Been You by Rina Gray is showing at $0.99
And that’s all she wrote for now. When I see you again, it will be a new month (Alexa, play “September” by Earth, Wind, and Fire). If you need more of me before then, give me a follow over at Twitter under @Pscribe801. Until next time!