Category: Romance

Love Me to Death (Lucy Kincaid #1) by Allison Brennan

Due diligence for work! I didn’t like this quite as much as I enjoyed the Max Revere books I’ve read so far, most likely because there is So Much Backstory alluded to here that it doesn’t feel like the start of a series but the continuation of some other book I can’t quite figure out. …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2017/07/09/love-me-to-death-lucy-kincaid-1-by-allison-brennan/

Eligible: A Modern Retelling of Pride and Prejudice (The Austen Project #4) by Curtis Sittenfeld

Quite charming, and for the most part a note-perfect retelling of the classic for modern times. There were really only two false notes for me: the first was the laughable idea that, as a writer-at-large, Lizzy Bennett earns $105k a year, and the second was the last marriage proposal of the book, which I thought …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2017/01/02/eligible-a-modern-retelling-of-pride-and-prejudice-the-austen-project-4-by-curtis-sittenfeld/

Naked In Death (In Death #1) by J. D. Robb

(Hunh, I thought I’d posted this when I’d originally reviewed it. Apologies.) There is so much about this book to like, from the fully realized near-future setting to the compelling, scandalous murder mystery to the damaged protagonist (and victims) to the clear moral and political stance J. D. Robb has on women’s rights and crime …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2016/12/05/naked-in-death-in-death-1-by-j-d-robb/

The Return Of Sir Percival: Guinevere’s Prayer by S. Alexander O’Keefe

I’m not sure how I feel about this book. On the one hand, it’s an entertaining tale of Dark Ages Britain, with some really cool Roman/Byzantine/Middle Eastern history and politics thrown in. On the other, it’s a re-imagining of Arthurian lore which plays super fast and loose with established canon, and while it’s good reading, …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2016/09/18/the-return-of-sir-percival-guineveres-prayer-by-s-alexander-okeefe/

Tooth And Claw by Jo Walton

Deeply satisfying. Those were literally the two words that came to me as I turned off my Kindle, sighing with happiness at the end of the book before snuggling down to sleep. Which is, of course, the feeling I always have at the end of any well-resolved marriage plot, even if things do end a …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2016/08/10/tooth-and-claw-by-jo-walton-2/

Tooth and Claw by Jo Walton

Tooth and Claw by Jo Walton is … strange. It’s a sentimental Victorian novel: the main plot turns on a lawsuit brought to settle the estate of a country squire. Subplots mostly involve finding suitable marriage partners for the younger generation, or that generation making efforts to hide their pre-marital arrangements from the older generation. …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2016/08/06/tooth-and-claw-by-jo-walton/

The King In Yellow by Robert W Chambers

This book is easily split into two parts, perhaps three. The first four stories are overtly supernatural and horrific, having to do with a fabled play, The King In Yellow, and its unhappy effects on its readers. The second bit transitions away from TKIY, seguing from horror and romance to horrors of a different sort …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2016/03/07/the-king-in-yellow-by-robert-w-chambers/

Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

A sweet, clever romance set around the turn of the 21st century. It’s easy to see how Lincoln could fall in love with Beth via her e-mails to her best friend: I kinda wanted her to be my best friend, too, by the end of the book (pax, Jon, I know I already have the …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2015/12/12/attachments-by-rainbow-rowell/

Modern Romance: An Investigation by Aziz Ansari

Honestly, this is just a superlative book on what it’s like to date and be in a relationship in the present day. Aziz Ansari and Eric Klinenberg conduct studies and review data to bring a comprehensive but still accessible (in large part due to Mr Ansari’s humor and personal anecdotes) overview of modern romance. They …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2015/11/03/modern-romance-an-investigation-by-aziz-ansari/

Landline by Rainbow Rowell

Deeply moral and achingly romantic, this is a book about a woman inadvertently reaching into the past to try to fix problems in her marriage to a man she desperately loves. Rainbow Rowell is a terrific writer of dialog and characters, and though Landline felt a bit shallow in places (by which I don’t mean …

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Permanent link to this article: https://www.thefrumiousconsortium.net/2015/08/11/landline-by-rainbow-rowell/