Spring temperatures may be giving you whiplash, (and here’s hoping that temps Down Under have been more predictable!) and world news may be making you anxious, but an antidote is at hand: The Busty Bodice Club is live! Eliana Piers starts the series off with her fun CURVES FOR THE GRUMPY DUKE, and as you read these words, Cathy Maxwell’s CURVES FOR THE RAKISH DUKE is also available, with six more exciting stories bursting forth in the next several weeks. As Eliana Piers explained in an interview, all eight (!) of the well-endowed Harrington sisters will have their own exciting tales. In CURVES FOR THE GRUMPY DUKE, we learn how the girls’ recently deceased father set them each a challenge. First born daughter Honoria’s task is to have one of her portraits featured in a London museum, and to meet that goal, she prevails upon her friendship with her friend’s brother (a duke, of course), Dermont Wexford. Shenanigans prevail (kudos to the intrepid ferret!), and once the duke (grumpily, at first!) spends quality time with Honoria, he might just be interested in furthering more than only her artistic renown.
In CURVES FOR THE RAKISH DUKE, the inimitable Cathy Maxwell introduces us to Celeste (twin sister of Georgiana, whose tale comes out next week). Celeste is determined to start a charity to assist both the impoverished wounded veterans from the Napoleonic wars and the companion animals who often faithfully stay by their side in squalid living conditions. She seeks the assistance of the Duke of Salcombe, known as “the dragon of London,” which he grudgingly gives in hopes of re-inventing his own reputation. Planning for a ball to launch the charity forces the two into prolonged proximity, and … savvy readers can guess where that leads! Ms. Piers’s characters explain that the Bodice Club’s goals as a group are to “unlace shame, replace fear, embrace love,” and to do it all while celebrating self-confidence and body positivity. These books sizzle with physical and emotional passion, and I can’t wait to read all eight volumes!
Following recommendations from readers and writers alike, I finally found time for LISTEN FOR THE LIE by Amy Tintera, and I quickly came to agree with the hype. I was so transfixed that I was unable to pause the audio version (perfectly narrated by the wonderful January LaVoy and Will Damron), and my outdoor garden was grateful to finally get the spring clean-up it so badly needed! Lucy has spent ten miserable years half-heartedly believing the unproven assumption that she killed her best friend, Savvy, at a wedding celebration. Her own memories are discombobulated, and only when a true crime podcaster brings attention to the story does she return to Austin from her self-imposed exile in California and try to unravel the mystery herself. Savvy’s voice speaks to Lucy throughout the novel, providing both greater confusion and inspiration. Ms. Tintera gives us all a master class in maintaining suspense and the reader’s empathy. If LISTEN FOR THE LIE is sitting in your to-be-read pile, move it to the top!
Kristan Higgins spent years delivering deliciously satisfying small-town romance. In the last few years, she’s switched to satisfying small-town women’s fiction - all with a gratifying, but not attention-stealing romance. ONCE IN A BLUE MOON continues that tradition as the odd-one-out member of Ms. Higgins’s large, Cape Cod based Smith family, Winnie, takes center stage. Winnie’s been both figuratively and literally (thanks to her brother’s teasing gift of an embroidered shirt) labeled a “scarlet woman” when her chef boyfriend (who conveniently works out of town) is publicly revealed to be a married father of three. Yes, he lied to Winnie, repeatedly, but regardless of the book’s 2026 publication date, Winnie, the husband-stealer, is still the one punished by public opinion. (Remember the kiss-cam incident at the Cold Play concert? Which one of the two is still receiving hate mail? Yup) After all her customers abandon her, Winnie gives up her job as a party planner and accepts a position as personal assistant to “Dr. Satan,” a prominent surgeon and secondary character in 2025’s LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE. Dr. Satan, legally named Lorenzo Santini, wants order, neatness, and to never have to attend to life’s distracting necessities. Winnie’s happy to oblige, and the two come to work seamlessly together. Family ties and business trips cause them to spend more time together than initially anticipated, and eventually, the two socially inept characters come to rely on each other for more than just professional needs. ONCE IN A BLUE MOON delivers a tender and rewarding story in a refreshingly concise volume.
In a different return to secondary characters, Kait Nolan brings us back to the fictional North Carolina town of Gibson Hollow in HERO, UNEXPECTED. Residents are still struggling to overcome the damage from Hurricane Helene, and Emmaline has worked tirelessly to repair and re-open the beloved town bakery that her (still missing but presumed dead) grandmother ran for decades. Police chief Bodie Gibson knows Emmaline’s family well, but a decades-long feud between the families has only been intensified by his arrest and the eventual conviction of Emmaline’s brother for criminal activity. Ms. Nolan tells these two traumatized characters’ story beautifully, but I dare you to read (or listen to) the book without craving a muffin, croissant, or sticky bun!
If you’re still seeking relief from the headlines, check out my SECOND SIGHT. Wars, strife, and heartbreak are a constant on this planet, but time and again, love triumphs over despair.
Meg's friends during her high school years all expected her romance novels to hit the shelves decades ago, but she foolishly allowed "serious pursuits" to get in her way. Now that her beloved children can feed, clothe, and most importantly, support themselves, she's free to turn her attention to her first passion - putting words to paper that capture your attention and make your heart sing in quiet joy. Her stories tell most frequently of second chances--in life, love, and sometimes even at rediscovering a soul-mate from a previous life.
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