Sponsored by Penguin Teen.
A heartfelt, witty, and thought-provoking YA love story about two teens who fall for each other while forced apart during quarantine, written by two New York Times bestselling authors, and for fans of Five Feet Apart, Anna and the French Kiss, and My Life Next Door. Maxine and Jonah meet in the canned goods aisle just as California is going into lockdown. As Max and Jonah get to know each other through FaceTime dates, socially distanced playground hangs, and the escalating heartbreaks of the pandemic, they’re pushed apart by what they don’t share and pulled closer by what they do.
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.
I’m not going to lie, friends; it’s been a rough week. Between the shenanigans that went down in Romancelandia last week and the very upsetting more than handful of laws that recently passed in my home state, it’s hard to stay positive. That’s especially more so because that is actually not my default setting. Despite my love of all things romance, I tend to be very pessimistic. And this last week didn’t help that tendency. That said, I am going to try to keep my head and remember to let my voice be heard come next November.
You may have noticed #SapphicSeptember floating around over on the bird app. This is a very exciting month-long read-a-thon hosted by @manic_femme. It is pretty self explanatory but just in case, it’s intended to boost and uplift wonderful F/F stories. I’ve discussed before that I have strong opinions about how ravenously a majority of Romancelandia will swoon over M/M romances but the moment that a F/F story comes up they get lemon face. None withstanding the borderline fetishization that this is, it’s also a double standard that needs to stop. F/F romances are just as important as any other and deserve their accolades. So be sure to pick up a few of those types of stories this month. Seriously, if you Google the hashtag, you’re likely to get tons of recommendations. Maybe you’ll even be able to fill out the Bingo card for it!
It is also Bisexual Awareness Month, something I also feel very passionate about boosting for a number of reasons. One is that in additional to it the monthlong celebration, Bi Visibility Day is also on September 23rd. There has been an uptick in biphobia and gatekeeping for individuals who identify as bisexual, which is ridiculous because the “B” has always been part of the alphabet mafia. It’s not acceptable to exclude a specific group of people that are already marginalized from the community that is supposed to accept them. So, we, as a whole, need to be more cognitive of that type of behavior. That said, be sure to also pick up some romances that boost this type of rep. And don’t forget about the Bisexual Romance Panel being held by the Seattle Library this Saturday.
Katee Robert tweeted this the other day and it bears repeating. I get being a super fan and just having to know what happens next. That said, anything worth doing is worth doing well and sometimes that just takes time. While I somewhat admire those authors who can churn out books every month, I also respect those that admit they need more time. Quantity does not equal quality and personally I’d rather wait longer and have the quality of a book be better than it would be if it were a rush job.
Book Riot Romance
Here are a couple of articles from the Book Riot Vault. Please note that these lists may not exclusively be romance.
Up first, we have this one for some of the best Sapphic Books circa 2019.
And then there is this list of books to read in honor of Bi Visibility Day, which is celebrated on September 23rd.
While not romance specific, we have this super awesome giveaway going to win a QWERKY keyboard. It looks and sounds like a typewriter keyboard! If nothing else, enter for me so I can live vicariously through your clacking sounds.
Around the Web in Romance
Another trope I didn’t know I love until it was called out is literally crashing into someone. That definitely makes for an interesting ‘meet cute’ story!
I mean, is this the beginning for some type of awesome romance or what?
I saw this and have to say that I agree with the sentiment to some degree. There’s something to be said about making out and I mean just that. Not foreplay. Not dry humping. Just making out like you used to in seven minutes of heaven if you played that in high school. And hand holding is just sweet, especially in the car or just sitting there watching a movie. Don’t get me wrong I like sex in my novels; but I also enjoy this as well.
New Releases and Deals
Here are some of the new releases headed to our shelves this week!
 |
Not Over You by Jodi Payne
A Lot Like Adios by Alexis Daria
The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood
The Dom Identity by Lexie Blake
Beginner’s Bet by Fiona Riley
Gone But Not Forgotten by Charlie Cochet
Sucker for Love by Jade Jones
And here are some of the deals that I found while perusing the web. As always, bear in mind that these were the prices as of the writing of this newsletter.
 |
The whole Reformed Rakes Box Set by Amy Sandas for just $0.99!
Geek Tattoo by R. Cayden for $1.99
Lean on Me by Pat Simmons is $1.99
Solid Soul by Brenda Jackson is $1.99
Rulebreaker by Cathy Pegau is $0.99
The Superheroes Union: Dynama by Ruth Diaz is $1.99
The Slaughtered Lamb Bookstore & Bar by Seana Kelly is $0.99
And that’s all I have for you today. I hope this newsletter either helped to start your Monday off on the right foot, provide good lunch time reading, or was a great way to wind down. I’ll see y’all Thursday. As always, you can catch up with me on Twitter under @PScribe801. Until we meet again!