BookTalk: The Woman in Me, Britney Spears

Now the protagonist in so many tales over the years takes back the narrative to literally become the author of her own story. After years of being silenced, she's letting her voice be heard again… and it's compelling.

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BookTalk: Here With Me, Samantha Young

Here With Me by Samantha Young has strong characters with an engaging writing style taking place in a beautiful portrayal of Scotland.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

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New Release: Thank You for Sharing, Rachel Runya Katz

A chemistry-filled childhood friends to enemies to lovers debut romance about two people forced to confront their pasts to save both their relationship and careers.

Daniel Rosenberg and Liyah Cohen-Jackson’s last conversation—fourteen years ago at summer camp—ended their friendship. Until they find themselves seated next to each other on a plane, and bitterly pick up right where they left off. At least they can go their separate ways again after landing... That is, until Daniel's marketing firm gets hired by the Chicago museum where Liyah works as a junior curator, and they’re forced to collaborate with potential career changing promotions on the line. With every meeting and post-work social gathering with colleagues, the tension (and chemistry) between Daniel and Liyah builds until they’re forced to confront why they broke apart years ago at camp. But as they find comfort in their shared experiences as Jews of color and fumble towards friendship, can they ignore their growing feelings for each other? With sexy charm and undeniable wit, Rachel Runya Katz's sparkling debut, Thank You For Sharing, proves that if you're open to love, anything is possible.

Goodreads | Amazon | Bookshop | Bookshop UK

Booktalk: The Duchess Effect, Tracey Livesay

The Duchess Effect is a page-turner. I appreciated the romance with the exploration of tokenism and colonialism, which added authenticity to the story. The book had a realness that blurred the lines between reality and fiction.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 5 out of 5. The Duchess Effect (American Royalty #2)Tracey LivesayRelease Date: July 11, 2023Publisher: AvonGenre: Fiction, Contemporary, RomanceGoodreads | The StroyGraph Continue reading Untitled

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In celebration of the 10th Anniversary Edition of The Bone Season by Samantha Shannon, I’m re-posting my interview from 2013. It was posted after her debut on my previous blog.

American Royalty by Tracey Livesay

In this dangerously sexy rom-com that evokes the real-life romance between Prince Harry and Duchess Meghan Markle, a prince who wants to live out of the spotlight falls for a daring American rapper who turns his life, and the palace, upside down.

Sexy, driven rapper Danielle “Duchess” Nelson is on the verge of signing a deal that’ll make her one of the richest women in hip hop. More importantly, it’ll grant her control over her life, something she’s craved for years. But an incident with a rising pop star has gone viral, unfairly putting her deal in jeopardy. Concerned about her image, she’s instructed to work on generating some positive publicity… or else.

A brilliant professor and reclusive royal, Prince Jameson prefers life out of the spotlight, only leaving his ivory tower to attend weddings or funerals. But with the Queen’s children involved in one scandal after another, and Parliament questioning the viability of the monarchy, the Queen is desperate. In a quest for good press, she puts Jameson in charge of a tribute concert in her late husband’s honor. Out of his depth, and resentful of being called to service, he takes the advice of a student. After all, what’s more appropriate for a royal concert than a performer named “Duchess”?

Too late, Jameson discovers the American rapper is popular, sexy, raunchy and not what the Queen wanted, although he’s having an entirely different reaction. Dani knows this is the good exposure she needs to cement her deal and it doesn't hurt that the royal running things is fine as hell. Thrown together, they give in to the explosive attraction flaring between them. But as the glare of the limelight intensifies and outside forces try to interfere, will the Prince and Duchess be a fairy tale romance for the ages or a disaster of palatial proportions?

I just finished another Samantha Young novel, #HereWithMe and it’s another hit. Her novels are a must-read for me. Luckily I still have a few on the backlist to get to including the rest of the Adair Family series. She is definitely one of the reasons Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿 has been added to my travel list 🧳

#bookstagram #books #reading #read #bookrecommendations #bibliophile #booknerd #bookworm #romancebooks #novel #lit #booklover #bookaddict #samanthayoung #adairfamilyseries #indieauthor https://www.instagram.com/p/Cp56D8qMyOW/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

The Hating Game meets Mission: Impossible in Stars and Smoke, a smoldering new novel from #1 New York Times bestselling author Marie Lu about a superstar tapped to become a secret agent and the reluctant young spy assigned to be his partner.

Meet Winter Young—rookie backup dancer turned global pop phenomenon. His star power has smashed records, selling out stadiums from LA to London. Now he’s bringing his swoon worthy assets to a whole new arena. . . Infamous criminal tycoon Eli Morrison has just one weakness—his daughter, Penelope. And Penelope has just one wish for her nineteenth birthday—a private concert with Winter Young. When covert ops organization The Panacea Group approaches Winter with this once-in-a-lifetime chance to infiltrate Morrison’s inner circle, Winter must use his fame, cunning, and charisma to pull it off—only he won’t be on his own. Posing as Winter’s bodyguard is the fiery Sydney Cossette, Panacea’s youngest spy. Sydney may be the only person alive impervious to Winter's charms, but as the mission brings them closer, she's forced to admit there's more to this A-lister than slick dance moves and a handsome face. Panacea's unlikeliest partners just might become its biggest heroes—and maybe even more—if they can survive each other first.

One day late, but it’s here. Here we go 📖

Currently Reading: The Blood Trials, N. E. Davenport

Blending fantasy and science fiction, N. E. Davenport’s fast-paced, action-packed debut kicks off a duology of loyalty and rebellion, in which a young Black woman must survive deadly trials in a racist and misogynistic society to become an elite warrior.

It’s all about blood.

The blood spilled between the Republic of Mereen and the armies of the Blood Emperor long ago. The blood gifts of Mereen’s deadliest enemies. The blood that runs through the elite War Houses of Mereen, the rulers of the Tribunal dedicated to keeping the republic alive.

The blood of the former Legatus, Verna Amari, murdered.

For his granddaughter, Ikenna, the only thing steady in her life was the man who had saved Mereen. The man who had trained her in secret, not just in martial skills, but in harnessing the blood gift that coursed through her.

Who trained her to keep that a secret.

But now there are too many secrets, and with her grandfather assassinated, Ikenna knows two things: that only someone on the Tribunal could have ordered his death, and that only a Praetorian Guard could have carried out that order.

Bent on revenge as much as discovering the truth, Ikenna pledges herself to the Praetorian Trials—a brutal initiation that only a quarter of the aspirants survive. She subjects herself to the racism directed against her half-Khanaian heritage and the misogyny of a society that cherishes progeny over prodigy, all while hiding a power that—if found out—would subject her to execution…or worse. Ikenna is willing to risk it all because she needs to find out who murdered her grandfather…and then she needs to kill them.

Mereen has been at peace for a long time…

Ikenna joining the Praetorians is about to change all that.

Magic and technology converge in the first part of this stunning debut duology, where loyalty to oneself—and one’s blood—is more important than anything.

📚 2023 Book Releases, Part VI

This list could go on forever. Every time I think I found everything I want to read for 2023 I come across another one. With so many titles to choose from it should be a good reading year.

▫️Spice Road, Maiya Ibrahim ▫️When a Moth Loved a Bee, Pepper Winters ▫️Venom & Vow, Anna-Maria & Elliott McLemore ▫️The Surviving Sky, Kritika H. Rao ▫️Queen of Exiles, Vanessa Riley ▫️Under This Forgetful Sky, Lauren Yero ▫️Paramour, Robin Alvarez ▫️Vengeance of the Pirate Queen, Tricia Levenseller ▫️The Half King, Melissa Landers

📚 2023 Book Releases, Part V

A gothic thriller, graphic novel about a girl who embraces her natural curls, fantasy inspired by the history and folklore of South America or literay fiction on the bizarre ways a current heated political moment manifests in daily life. Like a box of pralines, I can choose whatever I'm in the mood for with the added benefit that I don't have to keep myself in check 🍫😊

▫️House of Roots and Ruin, Erin A. Craig ▫️Immortal Longings, Chloe Gong ▫️The Sun and the Void, Gabriela Romero Lacruz ▫️Forged by Blood, Ehigbor Okosun ▫️How to Care for a Human Girl, Ashley Wurzbacher ▫️Bloodguard, Cecy Robson ▫️Frizzy, Claribel A. Ortega & Rose Bousamra ▫️Sanctuary of the Shadow, Aurora Ascher

📚 2023 Book Releases, Part IV

The upside to making a concerted effort to look for upcoming releases is that you will come across books you might not have heard of otherwise. The downside is finding the time to read all the books you come across 😆

▫️I'm Not Supposed to Be in the Dark, Riss M. Neilson ▫️The God of Good Looks, Breanne Mc Ivor ▫️Yellowface, R. F. Kuang ▫️Of Light and Shadow, Tanaz Bhathena ▫️Identity, Nora Roberts ▫️When the Vibe Is Right, Sarah Dass ▫️What Remains, Wendy Walker ▫️Sing Me to Sleep, Gabi Burton ▫️Playing For Keeps, Tristen Crone

Fate does not choose the weak. Fate chooses the ready.

Illustros is a cursed realm ruled by the ruthless Gods of Fate, and no one understands the Fates’ wrath more than Calliope Rosewood. Blessed with unspeakable powers that terrify even the most dangerous witches and fae, Calla hides her forbidden magic in shame and fear that one wrong touch could send her to her death. With only her two best friends in tow, Calla deserted her coven and has been on the run ever since.

Worse, Calla is concealing an even darker secret: fate has chosen her as the final prophesied Blood Warrior, the being destined to start the Fates’ War, which will decimate her people and eradicate their magic.

After a betrayal from her infuriating ex Ezra leads her one step closer to fulfilling that age-old prophecy, Calla is desperate to do whatever it takes to reset her fate. So when a mysterious and charming witch offers to help Calla do just that, she immediately agrees to his plan. Only catch? That plan includes journeying into the deadly Neverending Forest with Ezra and said witch, who just so happens to be Ezra’s tempting older brother. Torn between her past desires and alluring new possibilities, Calla brings along her best friends to fight what lies ahead.

As the group ventures into the enchanted woods together, they’ll all soon learn that choosing your destiny comes with dire consequences . . . and the Fates are not to be tested. Calla believes the Fates have it out for her, while others believe they have chosen her for a reason. But in the end, Calla will have to fight to forge her own destiny and decide if the risk of choosing herself is worth the possibility of damning everyone else.

Worse, Calla is concealing an even darker secret: fate has chosen her as the final prophesied Blood Warrior, the being destined to start the Fates’ War, which will decimate her people and eradicate their magic.

After a betrayal from her infuriating ex Ezra leads her one step closer to fulfilling that age-old prophecy, Calla is desperate to do whatever it takes to reset her fate. So when a mysterious and charming witch offers to help Calla do just that, she immediately agrees to his plan. Only catch? That plan includes journeying into the deadly Neverending Forest with Ezra and said witch, who just so happens to be Ezra’s tempting older brother. Torn between her past desires and alluring new possibilities, Calla brings along her best friends to fight what lies ahead.

As the group ventures into the enchanted woods together, they’ll all soon learn that choosing your destiny comes with dire consequences . . . and the Fates are not to be tested. Calla believes the Fates have it out for her, while others believe they have chosen her for a reason. But in the end, Calla will have to fight to forge her own destiny and decide if the risk of choosing herself is worth the possibility of damning everyone else.

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Brown Sisters trilogy, comes a laugh-out-loud story about a quirky content creator and a clean-cut athlete testing their abilities to survive the great outdoors—and each other. Bradley Graeme is pretty much perfect. He’s a star football player, manages his OCD well (enough), and comes out on top in all his classes . . . except the ones he shares with his ex-best friend, Celine.   Celine Bangura is conspiracy-theory-obsessed. Social media followers eat up her takes on everything from UFOs to holiday overconsumption—yet, she’s still not cool enough for the popular kids’ table. Which is why Brad abandoned her for the in-crowd years ago. (At least, that’s how Celine sees it.) These days, there’s nothing between them other than petty insults and academic rivalry. So when Celine signs up for a survival course in the woods, she’s surprised to find Brad right beside her. Forced to work as a team for the chance to win a grand prize, these two teens must trudge through not just mud and dirt but their messy past. And as this adventure brings them closer together, they begin to remember the good bits of their history. But has too much time passed . . . or just enough to spark a whole new kind of relationship?