#Avon Books
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Pilgrimage by Zenna Henderson, cover by Hector Garrido (date unknown; 1970s)
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Isaac Asimov’s Foundation trilogy - art by Don Ivan Punchatz (1966)
#don ivan punchatz#isaac asimov#60s sci-fi art#foundation#foundation and empire#second foundation#avon books#sci-fi books#science-fiction#sixties#1966
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Vintage Paperback - Asimov On Physics by Isaac Asimov
Avon (1979)
#Paperback Cover#Paperback Art#Asimov On Physics#Isaac Asimov#Science Fiction#Vintage#Art#Paperback#Paperbacks#Avon Books#Avon#1979#1970s#70s
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Steamy Saturday
There is love, tender and tempestuous. . . .
Curt Wiley, a handsome Texas engineer, came to town. . . .
Judy hated Curt the moment she met him. . . .
Then, . . . Judy discovered that Curt was not the playboy he appeared to be . . . but a decent sensitive human being . . . who seemed to be falling in love with her.
Judy found herself head over heels in love!
Suddenly, Neal Bentley seemed dull and uninteresting to Judy.
By spring she had made a decision . . . a decision that was as much a surprise to Judy as it will be to you.
A surprise? Really? The promotional blurbs project the ending before we even get to the first chapter:
I told you . . . I wasn't worth it. I'm not the steady sort -- say, like your friend, Neal Bentley. . . . I won't make any girl a very good husband. Bentley seems like the right sort for you. . . .
She had to choose between the rootlessness of a life as a construction man's wife, or the steady, homespun love of her childhood sweetheart. . . .
A surprise? Neal Bentley, hint, hint. This is staid New England in the 1950s, after all, where:
"When the sap runs in the maple grove . . . that's spring in New England. Spring always comes after the snow -- after the storm.". . Love like Neal's could guarantee that, no matter what came, spring or storm, . . their love -- would never change.
Indeed, there's definitely more sap than steam in New England Nurse by the prolific nurse romance novelist Adelaide Humphries (a pseudonym for Adelaide Morris Rowe, 1898-1979), first published in pulp paperback by Avon Books in 1956. We do appreciate the cover art, however, with its chilly color palate, asymmetrical design, and the nurse who looks, as our intern Ana observed, "like she's so over it, but at the same time still into it." We wish we knew who the cover artist was. And then there's that keen observation about regional differences: "I'm a Texan, not a New Englander. A roamer, not a rock." And there you have it, in a nutshell.
View other nurse romance novels.
View other pulp fiction posts.
#Steamy Saturday#pulp fiction#nurses#nurse romances#nurse romance fiction#nurse romance novels#romance novels#romance fiction#pulp novels#Adelaide Humphries#New England Nurse#Avon Books
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ARC Review of The Duke Gets Desperate by Diana Quincy
Summary:
Raya Darwish unexpectedly inherits her late cousin's castle, much to the displeasure of Anthony, the Duke of Strickland. Stick's father should have passed the castle onto him, but instead chose to leave it to his wife, who left it to Raya, an American interloper. Now Raya and Strick are forced to work together to bring the crumbling castle and the lands surrounding it back to life...
My review:
First, as a daughter of Asian immigrants, I deeply appreciated the Arab-American rep we got with Raya and her aunt. Raya was born and raised in Brooklyn and is pretty American in her attitudes (as Strick derisively points out every time she brings up ways to monetize the estate), but she also holds onto the Palestinian culture of her parents. I appreciated the references to the food she enjoyed back home, as well as her describing how her parents took care to protect their daughter's modesty, something that is culturally very important from my understanding. Raya's Auntie Majida reminded me fondly of all the aunties in my life, particularly in the way she melds her Arabic and English when speaking (Diana Quincy also wrote Majida's accent into her dialogue), as well as her attitudes towards certain, uh, *improprieties* lol.
Regarding the romance of it all, I enjoyed this variation on the enemies to lovers trope. The management and ownership of the castle and its surrounding estate is the main point of contention between Raya and Strickland— which is not so lighthearted as a petty grudge, but neither is it something super intense or horrific. And it makes sense: Of course Raya's entrepreneurial American spirit would clash with Strick's aristocratic English attitudes, but they're forced to work together anyway. Which leads to an abundance of sexual tension between them.
There's this particularly great period of time between them where there's just.... unmitigated horniness on both their parts (but of course they don't act on it minus the time he's like "show me your tits" and she's like "...yeah why not") where Strickland keeps trying to use his sexual wiles on her to persuade her to marry him, and Raya keeps inadvertently turning him on by using business lingo. He delivers what might be the most and yet the least persuasive proposal in HR history which goes something like this: "I want to fuck you so bad it hurts. I cannot wait to be inside of you. Ergo, marry me."
Luckily, Raya is a smart gal and before agreeing, she takes care to secure her legal right to the castle using an actual solicitor thanks to property right laws that have changed recently. See, this is why I like historical romances set in the Victorian era (this is set in the 1880s): there's far more potential for racially diverse characters, as well as feminist themes, even if they're subtle. Raya getting a legal agreement on paper and making Strickland sign it to protect her rights absolutely counts.
There is also a mystery aspect to the plot, though it doesn't pick up until more than halfway through the book. Raya's late cousin died under mysterious circumstances by falling off the top of the castle, and this is related to Strickland's missing artifacts (which he's passionate about excavating and collecting). In addition, there's a bunch of will-related issues which also serves to drive a wedge between the couple. Does Strickland also attempt to use sex to grovel? Absolutely. Speaking of which—
The sex:
This book has solid sex scenes, and Diana didn't skimp on the foreplay (I'd argue the foreplay was the best part). I really liked this scene where in order to "seal" their bargain, Strickland asks to see Raya's tits (like I mentioned earlier) and goes to town on them. Specifically, the wording here is that he "clawed" at her bodice and tbh I find that level of desperation very hot.
The standout sex scene is probably when he covers her in Anglo-Saxon-era gold jewelry and then proceeds to finger her while making her watch them in the mirror. That being said, the unsung hero sex-wise might be Strickland's dirty talk. Like, man has some hits including "your quim wants to be friends", "I'm going to enjoy your sweet tits every day until we're old and grey", and "I'm going to keep burying myself in you until I'm too old to move". The future-forward dirty talk really did it for me. Bravo Anthony.
Overall:
I would recommend this book to anyone and everyone, and specifically anyone looking to start their historical romance journey. This is your quintessential "enemies to lovers" historical romance complete with a smart, plucky heroine, a hero that's initially arrogant and suspicious of the heroine but falls HARD for her later on (and that's after him panting after her for a good chunk of the story), and a plot that really makes you reassess the role of the aristocracy by this time period. Like, no longer are dukes infallible beings; they have to deal with money loss, railroads buying them out, possibly opening their homes up to tourists, and so on. For me, it was this aspect of the plot, combined with the dynamic between the hero and heroine, that really sealed the deal for me.
Thank you to Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my review.
#diana quincy#netgalley#arc#arc review#historical romance#avon books#avon#Harper Voyager#romance novel
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Victor Gadino's cover art for the novels of Gordon Merrick. With the exception of A Measure of Madness (1986, Warner), all were released by Avon, from 1971 to 1984.
I'm not particularly fond of Merrick's work, but these Gadino covers remain among the greatest of gay literature.
#victor gadino#gordon merrick#book edition#avon books#gay literature#lgbt literature#books#booklr#1970s#1980s
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Vintage Paperback - Burial Of The Fruit by David Dortort
Avon (1951)
#Paperback Cover#Paperback Art#Sexploitation#David Dortort#Burial Of The Fruit#Vintage#Art#Paperback#Paperbacks#Avon#Avon Books#Juvenile Delinquency#1951#1950s#50s
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Now & Again by Joan Cassity
ISBN 0-380-87353-2
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Fletch (1974)
Gregory McDonald
Avon Books
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Yevgeny Zamyatin - We - Avon/Bard - 1972 (cover design by Hal Siegel)
#witches#we#occult#vintage#avon books#yevgeny zamya#yevgeny zamyatin#novel#hal siegel#1972#bard#science fiction
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The Wolfen by Whitley Strieber, cover by Unknown Artist (1988)
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Not That Duke by Eloisa James ~ New Release
Not That Duke by Eloisa James ~ New Release
NOT THAT DUKE
A Would-Be Wallflowers Novel
NOT THAT DUKE is a brand-new enemies-to-lovers romance by NYT bestselling author Eloisa James.
BOOK INFORMATION
NOT THAT DUKE
Would-Be Wallflowers #3
Eloisa James
406 Pages, Avon Books
PUB DATE: July 25, 2023
The Duke of Huntington has no interest in an eccentric redhead who frowns at him over her spectacles…until he realizes that she is the…
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Vintage Paperback - Assignment Nor'Dyren by Sydney Van Scyoc
Avon (1973)
#Paperback Cover#Paperback Art#Assignment Nor'Dyren#Sydney Van Scyoc#Science Fiction#Vintage#Art#Avon Books#Avon#Avon Science Fiction#1973#1970s#70s
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Review: We Could Be So Good by Cat Sebastian
Title: We Could Be So Good
Author: Cat Sebastian
Publisher: Avon Books
Length: 383 Pages
Category: Historical Romance (1950s)
Rating: 5 Stars
At a Glance: Cat Sebastian does everything right with this story, from not making things unrealistically tidy to tidying things up for her characters in a way that defies the attitudes of the time and delivers their future together in perfect…
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ARC Review of Tastes Like Shakkar by Nisha Sharma
Summary:
Wedding planner Bobbi Kaur is determined to make sure her friends Kareena and Prem's wedding goes off without a hitch, even if it means working with popular chef Benjamin 'Bunty' Padda. Bobbi and Benjamin may not have gotten off to a great start, but doesn't stop their mutual attraction. As they try to solve the mystery of who's sabotaging the wedding, they quickly fall into a relationship even as they know there's a deadline approaching...
My review:
I enjoyed this book a lot more than I was expecting based on some of Nisha Sharma's earlier books that I've read including Dating Dr. Dil, the book prior to Tastes Like Shakkar. I thought Benjamin and Bobbi were solid characters individually, I bought their chemistry, and I really liked the background cast of their friends and The Aunties.
I'm not going to lie, I initially thought a "shaadi saboteur" would make for a really hokey plot, but I was invested because I was firmly on Bobbi and Benjamin's side and rooting for their success. I think that conflict's resolution might have been a bit rushed and contrived, but until then, it worked. Also, Nisha mentioned in her acknowledgements that she wanted to explore the concept of "family managers" in Indian culture namely, when children feel like their value to the family is conflated with the help the provide which is... so so accurate. The shaadi saboteur plot really pushed that idea to the forefront of my mind while I was reading, because Bobbi was determined to prove to her value to her family and her friend whose wedding she's planning to the extent where she thinks that's all she's worth. Benjamin had a similar conflict with his own dad who, get this, runs a frozen naan empire.
Regarding Bobbi and Benjamin's relationship, the blurb pushes the "enemies" aspect of their relationship but in actuality, they know pretty early on that they have sexual chemistry, and after the first time they have sex, they're basically in a relationship. It's fairly early on in the story, but I actually liked that. The plot took the time to explore their growing relationship and you could understand what drew them to each other, and perhaps more importantly what kept them together which, in my opinion, might have been how they handled the long-distance aspect of their relationship.
I love how Nisha wrote the long-distance relationship in an epistolary format, like, that's what convinced me they should stay together. There were texts, cute little notes, checking in on each other, Benjamin ordered Bobbi food when he knew she'd forget, and of course, there had to be phone sex. Which I thought was pretty solid all things considered. Speaking of sex—
The sex:
Here's my thing: Authors can sometimes get weird about people of color and sex, and even moreso about people of color and kink. I think it's this paranoia about how they're depicting the characters' sexuality, their bodies, and how "correct" they're being about the sex (oh and some strange detours into multilingual dirty talk in a way that fetishizes the language) that gets in the way of writing sex scenes that are actually... sexy. But I thought Nisha handled this potential pitfall really well here. The fact that Bobbi isn't conventionally skinny? It's touched upon just the right amount and her body is described during sex, but Nisha never harps on it. The fact that Benjamin enjoys bondage during sex? He explained it to Bobbi frankly, checked in with her, but otherwise it was no big deal. Their desire for one another was frank and explicit. There was no place for coyness here. I only wished some the scenes themselves could be a little longer.
Stand-out moments include:
a) First sex scene was at the 44% mark and that made me happy. It was a storage room oral moment on those decorative throne things they make South Asian brides and grooms sit on during their wedding reception which I thought was hilarious
b) A blowjob scene that surprised me because she was laying down and he like, actually straddled her chest and went for it, which I don't see in a lot of contemporary romances.
c) At one point during sex they were looking at themselves in a mirror and Bobbi likened herself to those women in old Indian paintings with their hips and stomachs out and I just thought that was really beautiful and body-affirming.
Overall:
This might be one of the best rom-coms I've read in a long time. It accomplished exactly what it set out to do: You got that desi rep (specifically that Jersey desi rep— iykyk) with a solid cast of Indian characters, a great romance that's probably as hot as any rom-com will ever get, and plot that was funny and sweet in equal measure. I would absolutely recommend it to anyone who's remotely interested in this genre.
Thank you to Avon and Harper Voyager and NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my review.
#arc#arc review#netgalley#nisha sharma#contemporary romance#avon books#avon#Harper Voyager#romance novel#desi tumblr#desiblr
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A Most Intriguing Lady by Sarah Ferguson, Duchess of York #BookReview
The #DuchessofYork has written a new #VictorianEra novel that follows on the success of #HerHeartForACompass. It's part #historicalfiction, part #Mystery, and it was loads of fun. #AMostIntriguingLady #AvonBooks #SarahFerguson #Audibook #2023Books
From Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, a sweeping, romantic compulsively readable historical saga about a Duke’s daughter–the perfect Victorian lady–who secretly moonlights as an amateur sleuth for high society’s inner circle.
Victorian London was notorious for its pickpockets. But in the country houses of the elite, gentleman burglars, art thieves and con men preyed on the rich and titled.…
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#Avon Books#Blackstone Audio#Drumlanrig Castle#Duchess of Buccleuch#Duchess of York#Duke of Buccleuch#Harper Collins#Her Heart For a Compass#House of Windsor#Mills & Boon#Sarah Ferguson#Victorian England#Victorian Era
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