Category: fiction

2022 Romance Titles Ranked By Heat Level

On By angeliquejamailIn books, fiction, literature, romanceLeave a comment

Once again, because it is a popular follow-up to my annual Books I Read lists, I’m including a list of the category romance titles I read this past year and ranking them by heat level. For those who might be unfamiliar with that term, it essentially refers to the sensuality level or raciness of the story. There are several different technical, helpful guides and explanations for how to rate such things if you go looking for them online, but I’ll summarize the widely accepted definitions below.

Something to remember here: I’m not including any titles that could easily or more appropriately fit into a different genre, such as fantasy, even if those stories contain strong romantic subplots. This ranking list is strictly for titles that don’t really fit anywhere else.

Also, once again, I’m including an explanation of the usually accepted five heat levels within the romance genre. Again, these categories of romance have been well established for a while now, and these are the ranking guidelines I use. You can no doubt find other ways of ranking them or other descriptions of them, but these are the descriptions I go by, so please bear that in mind.

Here are the five levels of heat, in order, with very brief descriptions:

*  MILD — Sweet like a Hallmark Christmas movie, and I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend these titles to my adolescent children or even mature middle schoolers who were genuinely interested in the genre. In many examples of this heat level, the most titillating thing that happens might be kissing and the occasional cute innuendo.

*  MEDIUM — Generally equivalent to a PG-13 movie in that intimate situations or scenes are there, but they aren’t graphically described and won’t likely make people (who like the concept of kissing books) uncomfortable. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend books like these to high school students who genuinely liked YA romance. (Please note that not all titles in this heat level will be YA.)

*  HOT — Sometimes called steamy, sexy, or spicy, this level includes most category romance books and offers a wide range of description of intimate activity and the language used to describe it; the titles I’ve included here also represent a wide range within this heat level.

*  NUCLEAR — Expect graphic descriptions and possible forays beyond vanilla.

*  EROTIC (ROMANCE) — This heat level pushes boundaries, most definitely; the characters’ emotional journeys are lived through explicit sexual activity, but (unlike in erotica) the emotional journey and the external story still retain primacy — as does the all-important happy story ending.

And here are the titles I read this past year, ranked by me:

MILD:
None this past year, although if I were including other books from my reading list that didn’t fit exclusively into category romance, some of them would probably be here.

MEDIUM:
Cinder-Nanny by Sariah Wilson
Roommaid by Sariah Wilson
Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall

HOT:
Sleeper by Kayley Loring
Charmer by Kayley Loring
Trouble Maker by Kayley Loring
Romancing Mister Bridgerton by Julia Quinn
All the Feels by Olivia Dade
The Love Interest by Kayley Loring
Munro by Kresley Cole *
One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston
Good Vibrations by Kayley Loring
A Very Bossy Christmas by Kayley Loring
A Not So Meet Cute by Meghan Quinn
A Very Friendly Valentines Day by Kayley Loring
So Not Meant to Be by Meghan Quinn
Hello Darling by Kayley Loring
It Takes a Villa by Kilby Blades
The Reunion by Meghan Quinn
The One Night by Meghan Quinn
Ship Wrecked by Olivia Dade

NUCLEAR:
Get Off Easy by Sara Brookes **
Switch It Up by Sara Brookes **
In the Rough by Sara Brookes **

EROTIC (ROMANCE):
Get Off Easy by Sara Brookes **
Switch It Up by Sara Brookes **
In the Rough by Sara Brookes **

* Munro by Kresley Cole is the latest installment in her Immortals After Dark series, which overall is most definitely in the nuclear category. However, Munro was published after quite a long hiatus from the rest of the series, and I don’t recall it having the same timbre as the previous books. Proceed with caution in case my memory is faulty.

** I suspect that with this trilogy by Sara Brookes, how a reader perceives the heat level is going to be largely determined by the individual reader’s experience and taste. All three books could fit into either or both heat levels.

2022 Reading Year In Review

On By angeliquejamailIn books, children's books, children's literature, fiction, literature, nonfiction, poetryLeave a comment

This year’s Books I Read list is the longest it has been since I started keeping track of it, by far. For instance, I came down with an illness at the start of the summer that had me unable to get out of bed for a solid week, and in that week I read ten books, which had been my previous goal for how many books to read over the summer. I plowed through them — I tend to read at a fairly quick pace — and then kept right on going.

This is a partial grouping of the books I read this past year. My Kindle is on the top of one of the piles because a lot of the books I read were on that. Also, some books aren’t pictured because I accidentally left them at school over the holidays. Oops.

This year, I found myself reading voraciously anything that put me in a good mood, because reasons. Therefore you will find a lot of books on this year’s list that are just really fun, including — but not limited to — laugh-out-loud romantic comedies (which is rapidly becoming one of my favorite genres).

I also dove into a bunch of series this year, so you’ll see a lot fewer individual authors on the list than book titles. The breadth of my reading diet was also, therefore, not as wide as I normally strive for. (I’ll do better next year.) One thing I found interesting is that some series were excellent all the way through, and some were…less consistent.

One thing I’m always curious about is how an author maintains a contiguous storyline over multiple books, especially since I’m working on a series like that myself. But I’m also interested to see how series set within the same “world” (whether it’s the real one or not) work when each book is a separate storyline but shares characters. (We see things like this quite often in category romance, where different characters play supporting roles in their friends’ stories and then get to have their own protagonistic moment in their own book. And yes, I’m working on a series like that, too, though not in the romance genre.)

Also, because I am sometimes a completist, if there’s a book I want to read that’s in the middle of a series, I will read the books that came before it first. (See also the note above about the two types of series I’m studying the mechanics of.)

As always, I’m leaving off my list the titles of any books I did not finish reading. Likewise the titles of any manuscripts I read which are not yet published. This year I am including, however, books I read which I had read before in a previous year. There are some titles I revisit, either because I love them or because I’m studying them for craft/genre reasons or because I’m teaching them.

See below the list for a partial breakdown of genres.

Sleeper by Kayley Loring
Charmer by Kayley Loring
The Night She Went Missing by Kristen Bird
Trouble Maker by Kayley Loring
Bloodwarm by Taylor Byas
Romancing Mister Bridgerton by Julia Quinn
All the Feels by Olivia Dade
The Last Graduate by Naomi Novik
Still Mine by Jayne Pillemer
Eurydice by Sarah Ruhl
The Love Interest by Kayley Loring
Munro by Kresley Cole
Payback’s A Witch by Lana Harper
The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Binti by Nnedi Okorafor
Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi
Binti: Sacred Fire by Nnedi Okorafor
Binti: Home by Nnedi Okorafor
Boogie Knights by Lisa Wheeler
Binti: The Night Masquerade by Nnedi Okorafor
Uncertain Resident by Tova Hinda Siegel
Tethered to Stars by Fady Joudah
Unbroken edited by Marieke Nijkamp
One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston
Blood Countess by Lana Popović
Good Vibrations by Kayley Loring
A Very Bossy Christmas by Kayley Loring
The Kaiju Preservation Society by John Scalzi
A Not So Meet Cute by Meghan Quinn
Shutter by Taylor Byas
The Author Wheel Quick Guide to Productive Writing Habits by G.C. Boris and M. Haskell
Another Brooklyn by Jacqueline Woodson
From Bad to Cursed by Lana Harper
A Very Friendly Valentines Day by Kayley Loring
Self-Editing for Fiction Writers by Renni Browne and Dave King
The Vine Witch by Luanne G. Smith
So Not Meant to Be by Meghan Quinn
Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson
Hello Darling by Kayley Loring
Cinder-Nanny by Sariah Wilson
Get Off Easy by Sara Brookes
The Round House by Louise Erdrich
Spellbreaker by Charlie N. Holmberg
Lady Mechanika Volume 1 by Joe Benitez
It Takes a Villa by Kilby Blades
Roommaid by Sariah Wilson
The Reunion by Meghan Quinn
Boyfriend Material by Alexis Hall
The Golden Enclaves by Naomi Novik
Switch It Up by Sara Brookes
The One Night by Meghan Quinn
In the Rough by Sara Brookes
The Wisteria Society of Lady Scoundrels by India Holton
The League of Gentlewomen Witches by India Holton
Ship Wrecked by Olivia Dade
The Two Rabbits and the Great Texas Freeze by Anna and Sophia Nguyen
Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
Sh*t My President Says by Shannon Wheeler
Original Love by Molly Peacock

And here is the promised, but brief, breakdown by genre — only broad strokes this year, though.

46 fiction titles
5 poetry titles
3 nonfiction titles
2 graphic novels/memoir
3 children’s books

As I do every year, I’m offering to give you my opinions, for what those are worth, on any of the books listed here. Just ask if you want to know. (Also, if you want to read my formal review of Kristen Bird’s The Night She Went Missing, click here to read my essay that was published by Literary Mama.)

At some point in the next week-ish, I will do my annual Romance Titles Ranked By Heat Level list as well, since that seems to be very popular here on the blog.

So. What have you been reading? Anything you’d like to recommend? Have at it in the comments!

Authors Are Small Businesses, Too

On By angeliquejamailIn books, Christmas, fiction, Finis., gifts, holidays, HOMECOMING, literature, poetry, THE MILK OF FEMALE KINDNESS, THE SHARP EDGES OF WATER, writingLeave a comment

Hello! Here in the U.S. (and perhaps other places too?) today is Small Business Saturday, one of a series of themed commerce days that launch us from Thanksgiving into the full brunt of the Christmas Shopping Season. It is what it is.

That said, did you know that authors are, in and of themselves, small businesses? Small business owners, I suppose would be more grammatically accurate (if not practically so), but the point is that we are entrepreneurs as well as artists. That is a big part of the job of being an author. Not everyone likes it. It’s not the art form we signed up for. But again, it is what it is.

If you are looking for a delightful stocking stuffer (“Take two, they’re small!”) or gift for someone who enjoys reading, you might consider one of my books. As of now, we have no supply chain problems. (Yay!) You can order directly from me (send an email to forest.of.diamonds@gmail.com) and I can ship it to you usually within 1-2 days, or you can order from any bookseller (online or brick-and-mortar).

At the moment, I have four titles available:

Finis. (fiction, Book 1 of the Animal Affinities Series) — Click here to read the first two chapters.

Homecoming (fiction, Book 2 of the Animal Affinities Series) — Click here to read the first two chapters.

The Sharp Edges of Water (poetry) — Click here to read a poem from the collection.

The Milk of Female Kindness: An Anthology of Honest Motherhood (international anthology of writing and artwork for which I am one of the lead contributors)

I’m happy to sign books and get them to you ASAP. (You will pay shipping.) If you order them before December 15th, there’s a much better chance you’ll have them in time for Christmas, if that’s your thing.

Leave a comment here on this blog post or email me at forest.of.diamonds@gmail.com to order them from me directly, but again, you can get all three of my own titles just about anywhere. (If a bookstore is out of stock, have them order it from Ingram.) The Milk of Female Kindness is available through me directly or through Amazon.

Thank you for supporting your local indies!

2021 Romance Titles Ranked By Heat Level

On By angeliquejamailIn books, fiction, literature, reading, romanceLeave a comment

The last two years when I posted my Reading Years in Review, I was asked to provide more detail on the books I read that were category romance, and that was so well received, it looks like this is going to be another annual tradition here on the blog. (Click on these links to read the 2019 and 2020 rankings.) So once again, I’m providing a list of the romance titles I read over the past year ranked by heat level. For those who might be unfamiliar with that term, it essentially refers to the sensuality level or raciness of the story. There are several technical guides and explanations for how to rate such things if you go looking for them online, but I’ll summarize the widely accepted definitions below.

Continue reading “2021 Romance Titles Ranked By Heat Level” →

2021 Reading Year in Review

On By angeliquejamailIn books, fiction, literature, non-fiction, poetry, reading10 Comments

Here we are on the last day of 2021, and I’m confident I won’t finish by tonight the book I’m currently in the middle of reading, so I’ll just go ahead and do my 2021 Reading Year in Review post now. In case you haven’t seen these posts in the past when I’ve done them and would like more context for why I write them, please click here for 2019 and here for 2020.

The short version is that I’m happiest when I’m reading a lot for fun. Not just reading student papers (which I can enjoy but which is work), not just reading emails or social media posts (rarely fun, and usually decidedly worse), not just reading my critique partners’ manuscripts (can be enjoyable but definitely uses a different part of my reading brain). Reading for pleasure is actually one of the few activities that I can reliably depend on for a dopamine hit. I love reading when I’m reading something good.

So in an effort to read fun books more, and in an effort to broaden my reading diet, I started several years ago keeping a list of the books I read each year. The listmaking accomplished both of these goals really well. I will admit, though, my pleasure reading quota this year was not quite as many books as I would have liked, nor were the titles on it as broadly varied as I typically strive for. Part of this was because of the overwhelm of my job, which was really something else entirely this year — so I read fewer books overall — and part of it was my apparent need for predictably happy endings in the stories I was reading — so I read more category romance. I also started writing (actually drafting, not just making notes and transcribing random scenes from my imagination) a romance this year, too, so that influenced my choices somewhat. Finally, I took some poetry classes over the summer and am working on another poetry collection; the beneficial effect this had on my reading list was to add more poetry titles.

It’s useful to note that on my list, I will include books I reread, but if I read them more than once in a single year (which happens occasionally, particularly when I’m studying a text), I will list them only once. Books I read but which are not yet published will not be listed here, nor will I list books which I started but did not finish (or do not intend to finish). You might notice that some of these titles are part of one series or another and when I enjoy a series, I tend to keep reading it, even if I don’t typically binge all of the books one right after another. 

So without further explanation, here is my 2021 Reading Year in Review. (I’ll do a little more category analysis after the list.)

Here are some of the books I read. Obviously not pictured are ones on my Kindle or laptop (which ended up being a lot this year), ones that are at school (campus is closed), ones which have gone through my Little Free Library, and ones which I’ve lent out to friends or family members.

All At Once by Brill Harper
Any Rogue Will Do by Bethany Bennett
The Viscount Who Loved Me by Julia Quinn
An Offer from a Gentleman by Julia Quinn
Meaty by Samantha Irby
Beneath the Keep by Erika Johansen
The Millionaire Booklet by Grant Cardone
Cinderella Is Dead by Kalynn Bayron
You Can Do Anything, Magic Skeleton! by Chuck Wending
The New Yorker Book of Lawyer Cartoons by The New Yorker
Spoiler Alert by Olivia Dade
Steering the Craft by Ursula K. LeGuin
The Sugared Game by KJ Charles
The Warrior King by Abigail Owens
The Golem and the Jinni by Helene Wecker
Ten More Poems by James Hoff
Lullaby by Christine Hume
Almost Perfect Forms by Michael Stewart
City: Bolshevik Super-Poem in Five Cantos by Manual Maples Arce
Men to Avoid in Art and Life by Nicole Tersigni
Space Opera by Catherynne M. Valente
You Can Never Tell by Sarah Warburton
The Cure for Writer’s Block by Andrew Mayne
Funny Business by Kayley Loring
Witch Please by Ann Aguirre
Their Nerd by Allyson Lindt
If She Says Yes by Tasha L. Harrison
Before We Disappear by Shaun David Hutchinson
Dearly by Margaret Atwood
All Together by Brill Harper
The War of Art by Steven Pressfield
A Raisin in the Sun by Lorraine Hansberry
The Old Cities by Marcel Brouwers
Blame It on the Mistletoe by Beth Garrod

So now for a little light category analysis — and please note that a few of these titles actually fit comfortably in more than one category.

There are 34 books on this list. I mostly read narrative fiction this year, which is typical for me as it is my favorite thing to read, by far. But I also read other genres:
* non-fiction — 7 titles
* poetry — 6 titles
* plays — 1 title
* humor — 4 titles
* graphic forms — 3 titles

Most of what I read is typically considered adult fiction, but I do also like YA. In the YA category, I read 3 titles this year: Cinderella Is Dead, Before We Disappear, and Blame It on the Mistletoe. And while the three YA titles I read this year might also be marketed as YA romance, I’m not including them as category romance because I think the other important plot elements (and in fact, their entire overarching narratives) really do bear more of the weight in those stories.

And that’s it, my reading list for 2021! I had a generally good year for reading, not gonna lie. Watch in the coming days for a post on this year’s romance titles ranked by heat level, which is something a few of you excellent blog readers requested a couple of years ago and which has been a hit every time I’ve done it.

So…what on this list is interesting to you? Have you read any of these titles, and if so, what did you think? Would you like a review of any of these books? Let me know in the comments.

SONIC CHIHUAHUA at the Turn of the Year

On By angeliquejamailIn art, fiction, memoir, poetry, Sonic Chihuahua, writing, zines2 Comments

As of today, the December issue of the SONIC CHIHUAHUA is ready to go out the door and to a mailbox (or eagerly awaiting open hand) near you!

So how are things going, eight issues in, with my little zine?

Well, frankly, WELL.

I will be the first to admit that restarting this zine after a twenty-nine-year hiatus was an impulsive lark. It was a decision that I made quickly, even if the seeds of that decision had been planted and quietly sprouting for a couple of years or so. And for the first couple of issues this spring, I was very much feeling my way (again) around the mechanics and logistics of putting a project like this together.

Every month. With paper and black pens and scissors and an adhesive roller.

The first issue ended up being almost twice as long as I’d intended, but it was a good length and is one I’ve stuck with. Figuring out the layout of the zine and the formatting of the content that was printed involved a fair bit of trial-and-error, but I got there. During our pandemically deprived social life, the Sonic Chihuahua became my new Friday night jam, and I loved it.

And even better was the reaction I enjoyed from nearly everyone I sent it to: excitement, enthusiasm, eager support, encouragement. Even, occasionally, someone giving me money for it! (Though financial contributions have always been optional.) There were even a couple of months when the income earned from the zine surpassed the royalties earned on my books!

And the zine grew. Oh wow, did it grow. The distribution, which wasn’t small to begin with, is half again larger than it was when it started, and now I have regular contributors sending me wonderful content to include. I’m loving that!

Without putting too fine a point on it, the Sonic Chihuahua has been, for me, exactly what I needed, exactly when I needed it. And I’ve heard from several readers that it has been what they needed, too, and this also makes me quite happy.

In November, Han and I went to Zine Fest Houston. I’d never attended before and was thrilled that Sonic Chihuahua got in. The event itself was excellent — it was a gorgeous day with perfect weather, the fest was in an open-air warehouse space that caters to arts events, the organizers were totally on the ball, and the crowds were big enough for Han and me to be busy all afternoon but not so thick that we felt unsafe. (And yes, we wore masks.) It was a delightfully good day, and we got to browse around and see dozens of other zinesters and their work. I learned a lot.

  1. For one thing, our little zine was well-received. That’s always nice.
  2. For another thing, there’s a whole bunch of incredible indie and self-publishing and artwork happening out there, and it’s well worth checking out.
  3. And finally, our production schedule is way aggressive! 

Putting an issue out there once a month, turns out, is rather more frequent than most zinesters are doing. (In fact, we encountered maybe none who were, besides us.) Add to that the increasing costs to produce the paper zine, and the fact that a few of my readers have told me they don’t always finish reading it before the next issue comes (there’s a LOT in each one, y0), and the other fact that I would really like to finish at least one of the novels I’m currently writing… 

You can see where this is going, can’t you? I’ve decided that in 2022, volume 3 of the Sonic Chihuahua will come out every other month instead of every month. I’ve also standardized subscription rates — for those who wish to pay for it — and even added a limited digital option (by subscription only). All of this feels like the right direction to go in, for various reasons which are boring but which I’m happy to expound upon if people want me to. (Leave your questions in the comments, if you have them.)

You’ll see the same awesome content as before. You’ll just have more time to enjoy it before the next issue comes out. Also look for more art in the zine, starting with December’s issue this week.

So on balance, I would say the zine has been a highly worthwhile project for me personally and highly appreciated by those who read it, and therefore I will keep making it. Woot! Thank you to everyone who has subscribed and/or read and/or shared photos of the zine on their social media. I appreciate all of this more than you know!

Do You Know What Doesn’t Suffer From Supply-Chain Problems?

On By angeliquejamailIn art, books, fiction, Finis., HOMECOMING, literature, poetry, poetry art cards, Small Business Saturday, Sonic Chihuahua, THE MILK OF FEMALE KINDNESS, THE SHARP EDGES OF WATER, writing, zines5 Comments

Happy Small Business Saturday!

I hope you’ve had a lovely Thanksgiving (for those of you celebrating it) or else just a very nice week. Here in the US we have launched ourselves full-force into the holiday season, and the day after Black Friday is Small Business Saturday, a day designated to encourage and buy from small businesses in an effort to shop local and indie. And something useful to remember is that authoring is a business, and therefore every author is a small business owner. (That includes me!)

I have several items that might be of interest to you and yours:

  • My books include Finis. and Homecoming in the Animal Affinities series (urban fantasy), and The Sharp Edges of Water (poetry). I also currently have the international anthology The Milk of Female Kindness–An Anthology of Honest Motherhood available; I was one of the lead contributors on that project, which includes fiction, poetry, essays, interviews, and art.
FINIS. (Book 1) – $5.99
HOMECOMING (Book 2) – $5.99
THE SHARP EDGES OF WATER – $13.00
(not pictured: THE MILK OF FEMALE KINDNESS – $15.00)

 

  • I have my zine, Sonic Chihuahua, issues 1-7 in stock. (Click on this link to see what’s in each issue.) These are $3 each and include poetry, essays, fiction, art, recipes, interviews, and fun-and-games. Rejoice in the 90stalgia that is this fabulous and popular zine!
Click on the link above to see the Table of Contents for each issue!

 

  • Poetry art cards, which include my handmade designs and often my poetry on them, are blank on the inside and — with your thoughtful note written in — make lovely gifts in themselves, suitable for framing. Click here to see all 19 designs in more detail. Cards are $8 each.
Click on the link in the description to see the individual cards.

 

You can order all of these items from me directly. You can also see all of these, plus my handmade jewelry and decorated blank journals, at the Sawyer Yards Market on December 11th.

Although you can buy my books Finis., Homecoming, and The Sharp Edges of Water in bookstores — and I hope you will! — you can also buy them directly from me. Just leave a note in the comments about it, and I’ll be in touch with you, or else email me (forest [dot] of [dot] diamonds [at] gmail [dot] com), and I’ll put your items in the mail to you right away. (I recommend you order from me before December 12th for the best chance of receiving your package in time for Christmas, if that’s what you’re aiming for.) Shipping costs will be as low as I can make them.

Of course you can also get my books from Amazon and Bookshop and other big online retailers. If you’d like to get them from local and indie bookstores — and I encourage you to do so! — I know they’re currently on the shelves at Blue Willow Bookshop (Houston) and The Twig Bookshop (San Antonio). And any bookstore can order it from Ingram if they don’t currently have any copies left in stock. (Interesting note about Amazon: they currently have Finis. and Homecoming on sale, though I don’t know how long that promotion will go for.)

So that’s it! I hope you’ll support your local and indie shops and authors and makers, not just now at the holiday season but all year round. Happy holidays to you! And thank you for your support.

The SONIC CHIHUAHUA: Volume 2, Issues 1-7

On By angeliquejamailIn art, fiction, literature, memoir, poetry, Sonic Chihuahua, writing, zines3 Comments

Many of you know that after a 29-year hiatus, I restarted my zine, the SONIC CHIHUAHUA, this spring. It has been one of the best decisions I made this year! I’m pleased to report the zine is thriving and growing far beyond my expectations, and that it feeds a part of my creative spirit I wasn’t aware I needed to be fed. It will continue.

For those of you who are not yet subscribers, here is a preview (i.e. a look at the Table of Contents) for each of the issues that has come out this year.

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 1: * Why “SONIC CHIHUAHUA”? What Does That Even Mean??? * The Year of Living Pandemically * apple pie (seriously!) * convo with author Sarah Warburton * a Top 5 List not to be missed! * poetry and art

 

 

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 2:
* A Graduation Message: The Fundamental Lies of Our Culture
* Chocolate Disaster Cake (seriously!)
* convo with Jamie Portwood of Writespace (wide-ranging, and it gets DEEP, yo)
* a Top 5 List not to be missed!
* poetry and art

 

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 3:
* Vacationing in Purgatory: The Spice Lady of Maine
* fiction and bingo
* rainbow trout (seriously!)
* convo with author Adam Holt
* a Top 5 List not to be missed!
* poetry and art

 

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 4:
* The Twi-Moms’ Lament
* yet more fiction
* chocolate chip cookies (seriously!)
* convo with Vali Reinhardt (frontwoman of Black Market Tragedy)
* a Top 5 List not to be missed!
* poetry and art

 

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 5:
* an essay about the day this country shifted
* kittens and fiction
* pasta sauce (seriously!)
* convo with Sean Fitzpatrick (executive director of The Jung Center)
* a Top 5 List not to be missed!
* poetry and art

 

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 6:
* Embracing My Inner Goth (part 1)
* NeriSiren’s Coffee Grotto
* zeitunes (seriously!)
* convo with renaissance woman Christa Forster
* a Top 5 List not to be missed!
* poetry and art

 

VOLUME 2, ISSUE 7:
* Embracing My Inner Goth (part 2)
* NeriSiren’s Coffee Grotto
* turkey (seriously!)
* convo with Aaron Herrick
* a Top 5 List not to be missed!
* poetry, fiction, and art

Witchy Weekends: Review of WITCH PLEASE by Ann Aguirre

On By angeliquejamailIn Ann Aguirre, books, fiction, literature, paranormal romance, romance, witches, Witchy Weekends3 Comments

Witch Please by Ann Aguirre is an entertaining paranormal rom-com that nibbles at some important social issues without treading into heavy-handed territory.

Danica Waterhouse lives with her first cousin Clementine in a small midwestern town. They own a fix-it shop and perform technomancy, a form of magic that repairs broken gadgets, appliances, and electronics, for their fellow townspeople. The catch, though, is that they can’t let anyone know they’re using actual magic, because for one thing, they can’t let people know that witches (the actual magical kind who have metaphysical powers) are real, and for another, they don’t want to bring witch hunters onto themselves and their coven. (Or, as they like to call themselves, their “book club.”)

The challenge comes in when Danica meets Titus, a mundane (i.e. not a witch), and they have instant romantic chemistry. And since this book is firmly in the romance genre, working out whether they’ll end up together is most of the plot. But the journey through that plot is pretty fun.

I won’t lie, this book feels like a confection sometimes, and not just because Titus is a supremely talented baker. But Witch Please does begin to explore deeper issues, too, including real-life dangers and prejudices against pagans, bigotry rooted in fear, emotional manipulation within families, and the importance of ride-or-die friendships against the pull of one’s heart.

Other reviews online have made some valid points about some of this book’s features and quirks that are not satisfying for every reader, particularly Titus’ arguably underdeveloped bisexuality and the question of whether the varying gray shades of honesty within their relationship would work well in the real world.

The second book in this series focuses on Clem, and the foundation of her storyline is significantly developed, dovetailing quite nicely with Danica’s in this first book. I haven’t read the second one yet, but since I generally enjoyed Witch Please, at some point I’m sure I probably will.

What fun witchy books have you read? Or entertaining romances? Tell us in the comments!

24 Hours Left…

On By angeliquejamailIn books, creative writing, fiction, Goth culture, Gothic, Gothic Literature, literature, teaching, WriteSpace, writingLeave a comment

Hey there! If you were on the fence about taking my Gothic Story Elements class this Saturday afternoon, please note that you have about 24 hours left to sign up for it. (That *might* be flexible, but seriously do it before tomorrow evening.) The course will be conducted over Zoom — and you don’t need your own Zoom account, since you’ll get a link to join at registration — so you can take it from anywhere online.

Writespace sometimes offers discounts on classes at the last minute, and it looks like they’re doing that with mine, woot! If you want that discount code, let me know ASAP.

You can register for the course here.

Here’s the course description, too, in case you missed it before…

GOTHIC STORY ELEMENTS

photo by Bee Felten-Leidel on Unsplash

What do a darkly beautiful aesthetic, #WitchyGirlAutumn, and a tantalizing sense of foreboding all have in common? They can be part of the rich pageant of Gothic story elements that make so many “classic” — or “forbidden” — literary pleasures so deep. In this three-hour generative workshop, we will dip our feet into the chilling waters of Gothic literature to find out what that genre entails. Expect a multi-faceted exploration as we discuss a range of examples in visual art, film, music, and mentor texts. Our writing time will include the opportunity to use these Gothic  elements to begin a story or enhance one you’ve already started. Students will have the option of sharing what they’ve written during the workshop. Come with your favorite writing utensils (a laptop, a legal pad and sharpened pencils, a leather-bound journal and a fancy feather quill—whatever works for you). Let’s kick off the Gothic season in writing style!

All levels of writing experience welcome.