We’re digging back through the archives this week for some recs that are a little older — mostly because I fell a little behind in my reading in favor of maybe, potentially drafting my own book(!!!), but hopefully you’ll find something this week that you could be into.
And, just a reminder: I’m going to be opening Kissing Books up to guest recommendations OR subscriber takeovers soon (probably both, to be honest), so if you’ve got a book you want to shout out on the weekly newsletter or want to take over an entire installment of Kissing Books sometime, feel free to give me a shout. You can reply to this email directly, hit me up in the Twitter DMs, whatever’s easiest or most convenient.
Note: Sorry, it’s only Indiebound links this week, folks, because yours truly made a dumb spelling error and got their Amazon affiliate account temporarily shut down as a result. Oops! Turns out when you accidentally send them the wrong link, they don’t like that, but hopefully it’ll be resolved by next week’s newsletter.
Kushiel’s Dart by Jacqueline Carey
(epic fantasy with romantic/erotic elements)
I feel like I’ve been talking about this book (and the rest of its trilogy and the trilogies that follow it) a lot this week, so that means it’s time to rec it, obviously. If you haven’t read this series by Carey, do yourself a favor and CHECK. IT. OUT. I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again: it’s the epic fantasy series that Game of Thrones wishes it was, only with a main female protagonist (whose POV drives the first three books) that is complex, capable, competent and enduring. Phèdre nó Delaunay has always known she was different; born with a scarlet mote in her eye, she has essentially been chosen by Kushiel to forever experience pain and pleasure in tandem. When she’s plucked out of indentured servitude by the nobleman Anafiel, she is later trained in both the arts of seduction and propriety — but she is also taught to become a spy and to user her talents to uncover sensitive and potentially dangerous information from those who pay for her services. The world of Terre d’Ange is a lush one, filled with intrigue and court politics and betrayal, and Phèdre is a heroine you’ll want to root for throughout her adventures as she comes up against one of her greatest foes and one of her greatest loves.
Into the Drowning Deep by Mira Grant
(horror)
Murder mermaids! Seven years ago, the Atargatis set off on a voyage to the Mariana Trench to film a “mockumentary” around the mermaid myth – but it was eventually reported lost at sea with no survivors. Some believe it’s a hoax, some are convinced it’s a tragedy, but now a new crew has come together to follow the same route in search of the truth — a truth lurking beneath the mysterious sea depths that will ultimately come at a cost. My recommendation here is to start with the prequel novel that occurs before this one and chronicles the doomed adventures of the Atargatis, Rolling in the Deep, before picking up its sequel, because they’re both SO GOOD and will fill you with that sense of creeping dread that only a well-paced horror novel can.
Night Hawk by Beverly Jenkins
(historical romance)
Those of us who are citizens of Romancelandia never forget our first book by Ms. Beverly Jenkins, and this was mine. An Old West love story between a hardened bounty hunter and a sassy prisoner on the run, paired with what essentially becomes a road trip romance? YES. PLEASE. Since Ian Vance’s wife was murdered years ago, the tough-as-nails lawman is convinced he’ll never find love again — but when he’s charged with bringing a sharp-eyed beauty in to face charges, he realizes he might not be immune to her charms. Maggie Freeman has always managed to get out of tough spots, but when a vigilante mob wants to see her hang for a crime she didn’t commit, she’ll have to put her life in the hands of a man standing between her and total freedom.
Kissing Books is a weekly newsletter about, well, exactly what it sounds like, plus other non-romance novels that might have varying levels of smooching in them. Questions? Comments? Reply to this email, or find me on Twitter @carlylane. If you’re reading this on Substack or someone forwarded this email to you, consider clicking that helpful button to become a regular subscriber.