Happy Monday y’all! Welcome back to the Kissing Books newsletter. It’s me, PN Hinton, your guide through the world of romance. Here we are at the beginning of a new year and, although there have been some interesting developments already, overall I think it started off…okay.
Mine was fairly decent at least. I spent most of the first recovering from too much champagne, although I did remember to eat my black-eyed peas and collard greens. The second was my anniversary, so we took our annual trip to The Cheesecake Factory and Barnes & Noble where I picked up a few books including Mistakes Were Made and The Violin Conspiracy. I haven’t started them yet since I’m still working my way through Back in a Spell, Legends & Lattes, and The Last Party as “free reads,” meaning they’re not being tracked on my spreadsheet or Goodreads.
Speaking of reading challenges, it’s time for Read Harder 2023! We’re going on nine years for this challenge and we love that we’re still able to help you push your reading limits! Click here to sign up to receive newsletter tailored for each prompt and recommendations for books to tackle all 24 tasks from some of our writers.
Bookish Goods
I’d Rather Be Reading keychain by Meaggie Moos
This is an entire mood. In almost every single situation, I’d rather be reading, even if I get distracted by my phone whenever I get the opportunity of reading unencumbered. Oh well…such is life. This is priced at $9.
New Releases
Exes and O’s by Amy Lea
In an attempt to find the love of her life, romance novel reader Tara decides to revisit her exes in the hopes of finding a second-chance romance. She enlists the help of her roommate Trevor for this task, which he begrudgingly agrees to. As they spend more time together, they begin to look at each other in a different light and Tara wonders if maybe the “they were roommates” trope is actually the key to her HEA.
Loves and Lattes by Karis Walsh
Cat café owner Bonnie and wedding planner Taryn’s paths cross when one of the latter’s clients wants to host their nuptials in Bonnie’s establishment. Bonnie is reluctant at first until Taryn promises this will end in a mass adoption and new forever home for some of the felines. As the women work together to do just that, a relationship blooms between them that could prove to be so much more.
For a more comprehensive list of new releases, check out our New Books newsletter.
Riot Recommendations
Originally, the theme of today’s recommendations was going to be opposites attract. That is, until I realized how vast of a pool that is. It may not seem that way but it’s true. Even the ever popular grumpy/sunshine set up is just a more specific description of that type of match up.
Thinking of that got me to thinking about another one of the specific pairings I’ve always enjoyed under that umbrella: the geek or nerd and the jock pair up. Of course, in adult romances, it’s not always quite like that, as the geek part can be paired up with any other different personality trait. But they’re still fun. With that said, onto the recommendations!
Joystick: A Blerd Grrl Romance, Book 1 by Nikki Woolfolk
After life-long gamer and nerd Vivi’s reputation is shattered online, she returns home to recoup. There, she agrees to pose as her brother at his job while he recovers from a sickness. She plans to just go in and keep her head low until her brother is healed. Then she discovers that his boss is the handsome Oliver, a man she had just recently flirted with and things get a bit more complicated.
Crazy for a Geek Girl by Nicolette Dane
When a huge work project results in Netty having to contact her company’s IT department, she is left breathless when the beautiful Henry is the one to answer the call. After a passion-filled encounter, Netty is left wondering if this unexpected technology issue is going to be the catalyst for an even more unexpected romance.
And that’s all I have for you today. We’re back to our normal broadcasting schedule now which means I’ll be back in your inboxes on Thursday with another update. In the meantime, I can still be found floating around over on Twitter under @PScribe801. Until we meet again, happy reading and stay hydrated!
PN Hinton