Academics in Love

From the Great Lakes to the Northern Lights by boats, planes, trains, mass transit, car service, and on foot, these romances take readers on bumpy journeys to finding love around the world.

[a stack of 3 trade paperback books: Frequent Fliers, Love Requires Chocolate, Second Tide's the Charm]

Second Tide's the Charm by Chandra Blumberg

contemporary romance

Canary Street Press, August 2024

Hope and Adrian's future together once seemed guaranteed, until it wasn't.

When circumstances force them back into each other's lives will they get closure and move on separately or have they grown enough as individuals to figure out how to build a happily ever after that works for both of them?

Maligned sharks, an assortment of science nerds, meddling friends, family, tourists, and the cut-throat arenas of academia, research grants, and social media add to the high stakes of their love story.

Love Requires Chocolate (Love in Translation #1) by Ravynn K. Stringfield

contemporary romance

Joy Revolution, August 2024

Whitney's to-do list:

Ace the Paris exchange student experience.

Retrace Josephine Baker's Paris.

Learn French. (Maybe that should have been first.)

Falling in love with her grumpy language tutor wasn't on her agenda, but sometimes rolling with improvisation leads to unexpected rewards, along with laughs, emotional revelations, and intimate connections.

Frequent Fliers by Noue Kirwan

contemporary romance

Canary Street Press, August 2024

Lanie travels back and forth between New York City to London carrying the weight of unrequited love, conflicting family expectations, and cross-cultural friction. A meet-hostile leads to a surprising connection in this layered story about grief and learning how to heal and move forward. Generational, international, and cultural threads weave together to form an engrossing narrative tapestry. It's beautiful, poignant, funny, and super sensual.

An engaging virtual event

[Zoom Workplace waiting room screen with "Cardyn Brooks" for "On Romance: A Conversation with Author Beverly Jenkins and Dr. Carole V. Bell"]

DePaul University respects, appreciates, and adores Ms. Beverly Jenkins as much as the rest of her fans with a lively exchange of thoughts, ideas, and revelations. Also, laughs.

This week's library haul

[a stack of 7 books from top to bottom: Frenemy Fix-Up, The Design of Us, Close Knit, The Duke Has Done It Again, Errands & Espionage, Courage to Love Again, Between Friends & Lovers]

Happy reading!

Comments

Hot Love in the Kitchen & Travelling Through Time

Redemption of the Heart by Moni Boyce contemporary romance Love Snacks Publishing 8 January 2019 Despite addressing heavy themes of domestic violence, incarceration, and grief, Redemption of the Heart is a charming and sweet spicy read in the tradition of a 21st-century interracial homage to Janet Dailey’s monthly romance era. Gemma’s open-hearted ingénue contrasts starkly with Alex’s jaded workaholic. They struggle with a variety of challenges, but ethnicity isn’t one of them—a spin that feels particularly modern. Once readers commit to their suspension of disbelief regarding the cascading impact of lacks in due diligence by several characters, it’s easy to settle in to enjoy this love story. The recent public debate about the pros and cons of Gillette’s “We believe the best man can be” campaign ties in with the contradictory messages in the story threads about toxic masculinity. There’s a scene in which Alex apologizes to someone who was openly bragging among cowork...

123123! Goodbye 2023! Hello 2024!

A Marquis to Protect the Governess by Parker J. Cole historical romance fiction Harlequin Historical, December 26, 2023 Sometimes scrolling through new releases available on Libby (even though there's a stack of physical books within arm's reach), leads to unexpected reading pleasure. That's what happened with me upon starting this gem of a tale. Like opening my first books by Ms. Bev(erly Jenkins), Gay G. Gunn, Vanessa Riley, Alyssa Cole, and Lisa Rayne, Isadora and Andre's rocky love story hooked me from the first page. Using a seamless integration of historical context, character evolution, and high stakes combined with emotional nuances, this author has crafted an engaging tale that organically includes people and places too often erased from historical romance fiction. Hot Flashes and Hockey Slashes by Marika Ray & Sylvie Stewart, authors & publisher contemporary romance fiction October 2023 Who knew that normalizing op...

21st Authorversary & 20th IPPY Awardiversary + Thanks!

[front cover of Seducing the Burks: Five Erotic Tales by Cardyn Brooks with the image of an open hand making a beckoning gesture, a "2004 Independent Publisher IP Award Finalist" medallion sticker; back cover with blurb, "authorHOUSE" logo - formerly 1st Books, barcodes] Self-publishing 21 years ago was still often considered "vanity publishing" as in ego-driven by writers not talented enough to merit a contract with a traditional publisher. My decision to self-publish came after years of feedback praising the compelling nature and professional quality of my submission as prefaces to rejections that included phrases like, "Will your target audience of readers relate to the level of privilege your main characters have?" WT... It took me awhile to understand that since my Black characters are educated and middle class, agents and editors assumed that most readers wouldn't identify with them since (they also assumed) most Black people wer...

Search This Blog