I’ve categorised Rachel Ember’s Burning Season as an historical romance – although it feels utterly weird to use the word ‘historical’ to describe a story that takes place during my lifetime! Set in 1972 (when I was eight!) it’s the third published book in the author’s Wild Ones series, but is the first chronologically; I…
Aster Glenn Gray’s Honeytrap is a compelling and unique story that charts the development of the unlikely relationship between an American FBI agent and a lieutenant in the Red Army (and possible KGB agent) over a period of around thirty-five years. It’s extremely well-written, and the author does an amazing job of exploring the cultural…
Confessions in B-Flat is a resonant and romantic novel, filled with truth and history and finely-etched details. Featuring two young lovers who are passionate about changing the world but unsure of how to accomplish their goals, the reader will remember them and their story long after finishing the book. It’s 1963, and Atlanta native Jason…
Daisy Payton and Trevor Boone are two of the most likeable characters I have come across in a long time and their HEA is a sweet yet realistic coming-of-age story. Set in 1975 at Fisk University – an historically Black university in Nashville, Tennessee – Upsy Daisy tells the origin story of two beloved characters…
Promise Me a Dream is a gentle, tender story about two people coming together at a turbulent time in American history. Unsparing when discussing racial violence, it also tells a lovely story of community and first true love. And while I had a couple of issues with the stiffness of its prose, overall it is…
In Lady in the Lake, Laura Lippman sweeps readers back in time to 1960s Baltimore, where the body of a young, African-American woman is found floating in a lake. No one seems to know who she is, nor do they seem all that interested in finding out, so housewife-turned-reporter Maddie Schwartz decides to solve the…
With the recent fiftieth anniversary of the Apollo 11 landing, it was about time that I caught up on the Fly Me To The Moon series, which fictionalizes the astronauts, techs, and families of 1960s NASA into the imaginary American Space Department (or ASD). I’m completely thrilled that I did. In book one, Star Dust,…
Jennifer Weiner is known for writing remarkably emotive books about women, their struggles, and their triumphs. In Mrs. Everything, she does this again, but in a much bigger, bolder way than before. Jo and Bethie Kaufman are sisters, growing up in 1950s Detroit and leading lives that are pretty average when compared to those of…
Are you tired of the same old historical settings? Then how about 1970s Cleveland? Can you fall in love with a mustachioed hero named Randy Manucci who likes to do the hustle? Want to read about a savvy black businesswoman and community representative heroine who looks superfly in silver Lurex? Then give it up for…
I was a small child during the last years of the Vietnam War era, and unlike the hero and heroine of Christmas Presents and Past, have no first hand memories of the conflict or the political upheaval it caused. Learning about the events through their eyes has given me a new appreciation for this period…