Hide Your Wallet
We’re still deep into beach read season, but make sure you bring a cooler with you, because these books are gonna get you thirsty! (Some more literally than others, if you know what I mean.) (Oh, you don’t? Read on, then!)
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The Pairing
Theo and Kit have been a lot of things: childhood best friends, crushes, in love, and now estranged exes. After a brutal breakup on the transatlantic flight to their dream European food and wine tour, they exited each other’s lives once and for all.
Time apart has done them good. Theo has found confidence as a hustling bartender by night and aspiring sommelier by day, with a long roster of casual lovers. Kit, who never returned to America, graduated as the reigning sex god of his pastry school class and now bakes at one of the finest restaurants in Paris. Sure, nothing really compares to what they had, and life stretches out long and lonely ahead of them, but—yeah. It’s in the past.
All that remains is the unused voucher for the European tour that never happened, good for 48 months after its original date and about to expire. Four years later, it seems like a great idea to finally take the trip. Solo. Separately.
It’s not until they board the tour bus that they discover they’ve both accidentally had the exact same idea, and now they’re trapped with each other for three weeks of stunning views, luscious flavors, and the most romantic cities of France, Spain, and Italy. It’s fine. There’s nothing left between them. So much nothing that, when Theo suggests a friendly wager to see who can sleep with their hot Italian tour guide first, Kit is totally game. And why stop there? Why not a full-on European hookup competition?
But sometimes a taste of everything only makes you crave what you can’t have.
If your idea of a perfect summer is a sex-filled gastronomical romp around Europe, congratulations: you have found your bookish soulmate in McQuiston’s newest, perfect for oenophiles, foodies, and anyone stricken with wanderlust (or just simply lust). It’s cheeky and fun and has a lovely nonbinary coming out scene – perfect as summer slips into new beginnings.
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Settle the Score
Lost goals make way for new dreams. Two enemies must face their cold past and find new warmth in this wintry, forced proximity rom-com from Kris Ripper, author of Book Boyfriend.
Aspiring investigative reporter Des Cleary had dreams of a better world—one more accepting of people like him—when he broke the story of Orion Broderick’s relationship. A story that kicked Orion out of the soccer halls of fame and sent him careening into obscurity. Racked with shame, Des abandoned his own career for good.
Now working at an LA marketing firm, Des gets a daunting recruit Orion for a Pride campaign aiming to get LGBTQI+ kids into sports. But this is no shot at redemption—how could Des ever make up for what he’s done?
Des finds Orion’s cabin in the snowcapped mountains. His strategy? Keep it professional and get out quick. Nature has other plans. Snowed in together, Des and Orion have a chance to address past wrongs and lost goals. Time and shame have changed them both, but winter has a way of clearing the way for fresh beginnings.
I am delighted to see Kris Ripper return with a new book, and double delighted that ze’s bringing us a sports-adjacent rom-com just in time to provide a distraction for those mourning the end of the Olympics. And forced proximity at a snowed-in cabin?? I know some readers like reading wintry books in the winter, but this is exactly what I wanna be reading the next time the thermometer breaks 90.
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I’ll Have What He’s Having
A smart, tender, vivacious romantic comedy about mistaken identities, the line between love and sex, and the way one night—and one person—can change your life forever.
When it comes to love, Farzan Alavi is a disaster. After his most recent heartbreak, he’s drowning his sorrows at Kansas City’s newest wine bar. Only instead of being crowded between strangers, he’s escorted to a VIP table for one. There, the hot sommelier does more than treat him to the meal of his life. The way he flirts with Farzan ignites instant sparks.
There’s just one problem: David Curtis thinks Farzan is Frank Allen, Kansas City’s most influential food critic. The truth only comes out after the two spend an unforgettably hot night together. Good news—both think the mix-up is hilarious. Bad news—David is studying to become a master sommelier and has no interest in a relationship.
Neither expects their paths to cross again . . . until Farzan inherits his family’s bistro and needs David’s restaurant knowledge. The two agree to an exchange: David will answer Farzan’s questions, and Farzan will help David study for his test. Only business turns to pleasure when neither can ignore the attraction still sizzling between them. But with David set on moving after his test, and Farzan committed to his family’s restaurant, how can their relationship last past the expiration date?
I’ve followed Adib Khorram from spectacular YA (seriously, if you haven’t read Darius the Great is Not Okay, let me tell you, it is something special) to spectacular picture books (my kid and I learned so much about Nowruz!) and I love that even in his newest category, aka his adult debut, he’s still writing queer Iranian protagonists who feel like real people with real insecurities, real bodies, and real friendships. There are so few authors doing what he’s doing, if any at all, and I’m so happy to see him in this space. This one’s the first in a series, and I’ll definitely be following along to the next one.
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You’re the Problem, It’s You
The enemies-to-lovers queer Victorian romance follow-up to Don’t Want You Like a Best Friend, in which a young lord and a second son clash, but find themselves thrust together again and again by their meddling cousins.
“That man is, without a doubt, the absolute most obnoxious…
Bobby Mason is sick of being second: born the spare, never trusted with family responsibility, never expected to amount to much. He’s hungry to contribute something that matters, while all around him his peers are squandering their political and financial power, coasting through life. Which is exactly why he can’t stand the new Viscount Demeroven.
…insufferable…
James Demeroven, just come of age and into the Viscountcy, knows that he’s a disappointment. Keeping his head down and never raising anyone’s expectations is how he’s survived life with his stepfather. To quiet, careful James, Bobby Mason is a blazing comet in his endless night, even more alive than he was at Oxford when James crushed on him from afar. But Mason is also brash and recklessly unapologetic, destined to shatter the fragile safety of James’s world. Worst of all, he keeps rubbing James’s failures in his face.
…hottest man to ever walk the ton.”
They can barely get through a single conversation without tensions boiling over. Neither Bobby nor James has ever met a more intriguing, infuriating, infatuating man.
If only they could avoid each other entirely. Bad enough their (wonderful but determined) cousins Beth and Gwen keep conveniently setting up group outings. But when an extortionist starts targeting their families, threatening their reputations, Bobby and James must find a way to work together, without pushing each other’s buttons (or tearing them off) in the process…
Alban’s Sapphic histrom debut kicked off my new year in the absolute most delightful way, so I’m thrilled to see the series continue with more Victorian hijinks, this time involving the menfolk. Plus, it looks like cameos from Beth and Gwen are guaranteed by the blurb, and I am definitely ready to hang with those ladies again!
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Hers for the Weekend
Readers of Mia Sosa and Alexandria Bellefleur will love this swoony, sexy opposites-attract romcom from USA Today bestselling author Helena Greer, where the relationship may be fake, but the feelings are very real!
No-nonsense Tara Sloane Chadwick is practically perfect. An impeccably mannered Southern belle, she’s the youngest to make partner at her law firm and still friends with all her exes. However, when the woman behind her most humiliating breakup invites Tara to her wedding, Tara panics at the thought of showing up alone and impulsively declares she’s bringing her very serious girlfriend.
One issue: Tara is seriously single.
Waitress and wild child Holly Siobhan Delaney may be lusting over Tara—but Tara only dates women she can marry, and Holly’s sworn off relationships. So when Tara needs a fake girlfriend, Holly’s eager to propose a no-strings, temporary fling. Only sharing secrets and steamy kisses show Holly the caring woman beneath Tara’s picture-perfect exterior, tempting Holly to break her own rules. Can these two opposites trust their feelings enough to try for forever—or will their relationship go down in flames?
Lovers of Carrigan’s Christmasland rejoice! The third book is upon us, and it brings fake dating, some pining, and Only One Bed. If we have to leave Carrigan’s behind (and I think this is the last one in the series), this sounds like a delightful way to go!
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