Romance / Erotica
Plot: The simple, yet complex plot builds organically and flows easily from beginning to end, with clear plot points and resolutions. Lack of explanation on some background details – Elizabeth’s businesses, for example, or how Mark was able to fabricate so much about Alba – can lead to questions which should have easy answers, yet those answers aren’t found in the narrative.
Prose/Style: The writing style is smooth and readily engaging, and the author has a definitive talent for storytelling. Certain phrasings may prove foreign to some readers.
Originality: The highly original plot combines the best of paranormal with the best of romance. While the idea has been seen before, Stray Witch is a fresh take with delightful results.
Character Development: Each character is lovingly detailed, vivid in perspective. The slow teasing out of each’s history allows for a tantalizing, unputdownable read, though small idiosyncrasies, particularly regarding Alba’s relationship with Mark, may pull readers out of the story.
Plot: A nineteenth-century romance teetering on the brink of clandestine intrigue, this captivating novel has the potential to ensnare the mainstream reader. A free Black woman working for the Union Army during the American Civil War meets an Irish immigrant while teaching adults to read and write, illustrating a balanced combination of an emotional and sensual courtship, along with embedded Confederate treachery typical of the period.
Prose/Style: Lighthearted scenes alternate with gruesome moments, a free-flowing narrative that conveys somber observations in an organic and genuine manner, as opposed to overloading the text with an abundance of historical facts. The focus remains on the story, not on the backdrop.
Originality: Plots that feature spies in wartime settings are commonplace in all fiction genres, especially romance, yet this well-crafted novel is a must-read addition. Despite the book’s engaging approach to this familiar scenario, these covert operations have been seen before, played out in countless ways.
Character Development: The essence of these outstanding protagonists lingers, fine-tuned and realistic depictions that live on past the final page. Authentic development of a character from the 1800s, often difficult to achieve in a contemporary mind frame, sets this historical love story apart from mediocre competition in a popular genre riddled with triteness.
Plot: Thorne’s novel is well-plotted, mixing a fun and sexy romance with exciting supernatural-fueled action. While some of the non-action scenes can get repetitive, the chemistry between the main couple saves the novel from becoming boring. The main couple’s romantic storyline is passionate, yet it does lack a strong conflict between the two, making their connection fun but not necessarily emotionally resonant.
Prose: Descriptive action scenes, realistic and humorous dialogue, and passionate romantic scenes drive this novel’s well-crafted prose. The love scenes are both hot and humorous, but do have an occasional overly elaborate word that threatens to take the reader out of the intense moment.
Originality: While enlivened by a sexy, sassy couple and an exciting supernatural storyline, Six entertains but falls shy of fully engaging readers’ emotions with a strong main conflict.
Character/Execution: The hero and heroine are fleshed-out characters who have a sexy relationship filled with fun banter--which grows and deepens rather quickly. Their emotional connection--teased in scenes to be a strong and powerful force--tends to be “told” more than “shown.” A host of intriguing supporting characters with varied personalities are introduced and add a charming familial feel to the storyline.
Plot: While listed as a romantic comedy, the first half of Exit Through the Jungle is a little light on the comedy part and feels fractured. The remainder, however, is thoughtful and delightfully fun.
Prose/Style: Well-written prose works well with the occasionally stilted dialogue. Overall, it flows smoothly and invites the reader to continue.
Originality: With a positive set of messages and a compelling environmentally-conscious theme, the novel has a bright, original feel.
Character/Execution: Both protagonists develop slowly here, but the active and eventual growth is heartwarming to watch.
Plot: The well-paced plot of Dark Descent into Desire mixes the mystery and erotic romance genres to entertaining effect. The mystery plot points are complex and fresh, and lead to a busy but strong conclusion. While the romantic elements can be dominated by the passionate nature of the characters, the couple’s happily-ever-after does feel earned.
Prose/Style: The prose flows well, with authentic dialogue and vivid description propelling the story. While passionate and explicit, the sex scenes get repetitive, in both language and frequency.
Originality: Sorel’s Dark Descent into Desire is engaging and passionate, yet overused tropes and genre-popular plot points lend the story a familiar feel.
Character Development: The main hero and heroine have complex personalities with engaging backstories. While their powerful chemistry propels the erotic parts of the narrative, their emotional connection lacks a strong base. Strong secondary characters, including several antagonists, flesh out the mystery well.
Plot: With the vibrant American West as its setting and cultural foundation, this historical romance moves at a consistent pace, enhanced by intriguing chronological details. The storyline features a tepid main romance that is eclipsed by the more engaging supporting characters and subplots based on actual historical events.
Prose/Style: Realistic dialogue and the vivid description of the sights and sounds of the American West draw readers into the narrative. The occasional use of textbook-type prose to relay historical details disrupts cohesion with the fictional narrative.
Originality: Creek’s The Return of the Scoundrel is more historical fiction than romance. The time-related details are so interesting and strong, they leave little room for an equally compelling main romance.
Character Development: The titular scoundrel is a compelling character with genuine conflict. In contrast, the main hero and heroine lack emotional complexity, particularly a strong enough conflict between them to encourage readers to root for their happily-ever-after. The stable of supporting characters are plentiful and add depth to the main narrative.
Plot: Reminiscent of the novel Contagion, the medieval plague, and the 1918 Spanish influenza epidemic, this gripping novel is stirringly relevant. References to China backed by conspiracy theory supercharge the plot with frightening reality.
Prose/Style: The ability to harness attention with explosive descriptive phrases catapults every terrifying scene into a surreal catastrophic realm. A tad overdone but implemented with precision, each word strives for heightened emotion and maximum impact.
Originality: A blatant allusion to the havoc of the 2020 coronavirus places parts of this novel in a blurry faction zone—a fictionalized account of real events combined with a fabricated plot line. An intriguing but familiar scenario, it is not original, nor is it taking strides beyond other literary works triggered by the concept of or the actual occurrence of widespread diseases.
Character Development: Amid the book’s riveting action is a sweet romance and tender introspection that allow for character development beyond the shallow cardboard figures that often appear in thrillers. Set against a life-altering global event followed by an apocalyptic aftermath, the protagonists step forward with empathetic human traits.
Plot: Although this book has an engaging premise, Redd’s execution of the main character’s journey – from country-dwelling cheerleader to worldly city slicker to contented rancher’s wife – lacks a consistent focus, due to less engaging subplots and an overall narrative that expands on inconsequential scenes and condenses ones that offer the opportunity for emotional growth.
Prose/Style: Redd’s talent at landscape description, authentic dialogue, time-period characterization, and sweet humor are strong. Yet the main character’s voice, while distinct, projects a naivete that seems inconsistent with the changing of times and her personal/world experiences.
Originality: The Cowboy and the Cheerleader mixes tropes of both women’s fiction and conventional romance to varying degrees. The overall imbalance creates a story that’s compelling in pieces but not overall.
Character Development: While the heroine’s development ticks the necessary narrative boxes when it comes to experiences/action, a lack of internal dialogue and unsophisticated social commentary lend a sense of inauthenticity to her growth. Also, the majority of the narrative focuses on the heroine with less space given to the titular cowboy. This imbalance lessens the reader’s emotional investment in the relationship and the happily-ever-after of the main couple.
