Paranormal Romance, Historical Fiction, & More

Friday, January 23rd, 2026 04:30 pm
[syndicated profile] smartbitches_feed

Posted by Amanda

Butcher & Blackbird

Butcher and Blackbird by Brynne Weaver is $1.49! This is book one in The Ruinous Love series. I read this one and these are my thoughts from my Goodreads review:

This one started off really promising. Unfortunately, the pacing started to falter about about a third of the way into it. The last quarter was suspenseful and I appreciated the twist, but yeah…the middle of the book felt mostly like filler. I also didn’t feel a ton of romantic progression between the leads.

One thing that really confounded me was that Sloane is described as being in her early twenties. She’s an accomplished serial killer and quotes Zoolander (which came out in 2001). Look, I love Zoolander as much as the next person, but it’s not exactly the Criterion Collection. It really took me out and had me wondering when exactly did this story take place.

Overall, I enjoyed the tone and dark humor. It’s a unique romance, but needed some refinement.

Every serial killer needs a friend.
Every game must have a winner.

When a chance encounter sparks an unlikely bond between rival murderers Sloane and Rowan, the two find something elusive—the friendship of a like-minded, pitch-black soul. From small town West Virginia to upscale California, from downtown Boston to rural Texas, the two hunters collide in an annual game of blood and suffering, one that pits them against the most dangerous monsters in the country. But as their friendship develops into something more, the restless ghosts left in their wake are only a few steps behind, ready to claim more than just their newfound love. Can Rowan and Sloane dig themselves out of a game of graves? Or have they finally met their match?

Butcher & Blackbird is the first book in the Ruinous Love Dark Romance trilogy of interconnected stand-alone dark romantic comedies. This dual POV novel ends on a HEA.

***Butcher & Blackbird is a DARK ROMANCE intended for an adult audience – please see Brynne’s website for a comprehensive list of CWs***

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

You can find ordering info for this book here.

 

 

 

Do Your Worst

Do Your Worst by Rosie Danan is $2.99! Lara was middling on this paranormal romance and gave it a C-. I enjoyed Danan’s contemporaries so I remember looking forward to this one. Did you read it?

Riley Rhodes finally has the chance to turn her family’s knack for the supernatural into a legitimate business when she’s hired to break the curse on an infamous Scottish castle. Used to working alone in her alienating occupation, she’s pleasantly surprised to meet a handsome stranger upon arrival—until he tries to get her fired.

Fresh off a professional scandal, Clark Edgeware can’t allow a self-proclaimed “curse breaker” to threaten his last chance for redemption. After he fails to get Riley kicked off his survey site, he vows to avoid her. Unfortunately for him, she vows to get even.

Riley expects the curse to do her dirty work by driving Clark away, but instead, they keep finding themselves in close proximity. Too close. Turns out, the only thing they do better than fight is fool around. If they’re not careful, by the end of all this, more than the castle will end up in ruins.

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

You can find ordering info for this book here.

 

 

 

The Other Princess

The Other Princess by Denny S. Bryce is $1.99! This one was featured in a previous Book Beat post. We’ve also had Bryce’s debut Wild Women and the Blues on sale before.

A stunning portrait of an African princess raised in Queen Victoria’s court and adapting to life in Victorian England—based on the real-life story of a recently rediscovered historical figure, Sarah Forbes Bonetta.

With a brilliant mind and a fierce will to survive, Sarah Forbes Bonetta, a kidnapped African princess, is rescued from enslavement at seven years old and presented to Queen Victoria as a “gift.” To the Queen, the girl is an exotic trophy to be trotted out for the entertainment of the royal court and to showcase Victoria’s magnanimity. Sarah charms most of the people she meets, even those who would cast her aside. Her keen intelligence and her aptitude for languages and musical composition helps Sarah navigate the Victorian era as an outsider given insider privileges.

But embedded in Sarah’s past is her destiny. Haunted by visions of destruction and decapitations, she desperately seeks a place, a home she will never run from, never fear, a refuge from nightmares and memories of death.

From West Africa to Windsor Castle to Sierra Leone, to St. James’s Palace, and the Lagos Colony, Sarah juggles the power and pitfalls of a royal upbringing as she battles racism and systematic oppression on her way to living a life worthy of a Yoruba princess.

Based on the real life of Queen Victoria’s Black goddaughter, Sarah Forbes Bonetta’s story is a sweeping saga of an African princess in Victorian England and West Africa, as she searches for a home, family, love, and identity.

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

You can find ordering info for this book here.

 

 

 

Rebellious Desire

Rebellious Desire by Julie Garwood is $1.99! This is a Regency romance that was first released in the 80s. Garwood fans say this isn’t their favorite book of hers, while others enjoyed the mystery element added to the romance. Have you read this one? What did you think?

Before there was Downton Abbey, there was Rebellious Desire…in this classic Regency romance from bestselling author Julie Garwood, an American heiress must land a titled lord.

Of all the dukes in England, Jered Marcus Benton, the Duke of Bradford, was the wealthiest, most handsome—and most arrogant. And of all London’s ladies, he wanted the tender obedience of only one—Caroline Richmond.

She was a ravishing beauty from Boston, with a mysterious past and a fiery spirit. Drawn to the powerful duke, undeterred by his presumptuous airs, Caroline was determined to win his lasting love. But Bradford would bend to no woman—until a deadly intrigue drew them enticingly close. Now, united against a common enemy, they would discover the power of the magnificent attraction that brought them together…a desire born in danger, but destined to flame into love!

Add to Goodreads To-Read List →

You can find ordering info for this book here.

 

 

 

Closet Ready

Friday, January 23rd, 2026 08:06 am
susandennis: (Default)
[personal profile] susandennis
Here's what my closet looks like now:

PXL_20260123_154336420.MP

And then there is a little cove off to the side:

PXL_20260123_154348567.MP

And here's where the current contents are housed:

PXL_20260123_154401244

It's all done and ready. I had about 5 robe hooks scattered around the closet, installed three years ago with Command strips. They were always in constant use. Every single one of them came right off with no sign they were ever there. I love Command strips.

The closet guy is supposed to get here between 9 and 11. Supposedly I can call to see where I am in the queue after 9. This company has sent me 4 emails and called leaving voice mail 4 times to remind me. I am over their aggression. I just hope the installers isn't an asshole.

I think while he is here, I'll descale the Keurig. It has been bitching about it for 6 months now. The old Keurigs had an over ride process but this one you have to physically pour the stupid water in a million times and wait for it to go though cup by cup - it's a bitch which is why I just let the flasher flash the message for 6 months. We have fine water and I don't care. But, it might be a productive way to spend time while he's working.

AND I just heard from him. Zach. Who says he'll be here by 8:45!

Woot. They say it should take about 90 minutes so I should have my new closet operational by lunchtime.

Ok. Guess I'll get ready to go out to meet him at the secret parking spot near the elevator. It is very cold out. Wonder if I have gloves?

PXL_20260123_012757005

Assortment

Friday, January 23rd, 2026 03:37 pm
oursin: Brush the Wandering Hedgehog by the fire (Default)
[personal profile] oursin

Dr rdrz may imagine the noises I made when reading this (we get the London Standard free from our newspaper deliver people): Make America Hard Again: is there an erectile dysfunction epidemic?, particularly when I came to '“There have been huge uncertainties about male virility since the rise of feminism,” says Grossman.' and started screaming 'THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE OF HISTORY!!!!'

Okay, there are some very creepy blokes there.

***

Creepy but in a different way: I was being 'recommended' this on Kobo, Y O Y???? The Voyage Out: A Quick Read edition:

Discover a new way to read classics with Quick Read.
This Quick Read edition includes both the full text and a summary for each chapter.
- Reading time of the complete text: about 13 hours
- Reading time of the summarized text: 20 minutes

The horror, the horror. And really, is Woolf a writer for whom this is an appropriate approach?

***

I'm sorry, but I couldn't help flashing on to the famous phrase 'Normal for Norfolk' when reading this: Archive reveals hidden stories of Queer Norfolk:

Norfolk: That's a queer ol' place
In the depths of the Norwich Millennium Library, there’s an archive dedicated to Norfolk’s LGBTQIA+ history

Doesn't mention that Gurney was a Friend, also disabled as a result of childhood polio.

***

This is rather fascinating: Flap Anatomies and Victorian Veils: Penetrating the Female Reproductive Interior:

Lifting flaps that unveiled the female reproductive body for medical purposes could just as easily be interpreted as a pornographic act imbued with sexual titillation and voyeurism. The ‘obstetrical flap’ was thus understood and used as both a teaching prop and an obscene tool. It functioned as a ‘veil’ of Victorian modesty in the name of new and penetrating obstetrical knowledge and a ‘veil’ of man's apparently underlying and untamable penetrative sexual impulses.

***

One has rather worried about this, and it appears that there are grounds for concern: ‘That belongs in a museum’: The true ‘cost’ of detecting in England and Wales.:

My previous work has discussed various aspects of the hobby of detecting: how the context of archaeological finds is often lost, how private ownership of finds is reducing the archaeological dataset, how our obsession with monetary worth may be fueling an increase in artefact theft and, more recently, the hidden and unacknowledged costs of the hobby of detecting to the wider British public.

open thread – January 23, 2026

Friday, January 23rd, 2026 04:00 pm
[syndicated profile] askamanager_feed

Posted by Ask a Manager

It’s the Friday open thread!

The comment section on this post is open for discussion with other readers on any work-related questions that you want to talk about (that includes school). If you want an answer from me, emailing me is still your best bet*, but this is a chance to take your questions to other readers.

* If you submitted a question to me recently, please do not repost it here, as it may be in my queue to answer.

The post open thread – January 23, 2026 appeared first on Ask a Manager.

Minnesota linkspam

Friday, January 23rd, 2026 03:54 pm
rydra_wong: Lee Miller photo showing two women wearing metal fire masks in England during WWII. (Default)
[personal profile] rydra_wong
Mostly to create some space in my head. But holy shit, Minnesotans, you are extraordinary and we see you. Across the fucking ocean, we see you.

Cut for US politics, violence )

How To Help If You Are Outside Minnesota by Naomi Kritzer
james_davis_nicoll: (Default)
[personal profile] james_davis_nicoll


Su Lin dutifully accepts a social obligation, only to find herself embroiled in another murder and further colonial machinations.

The Angsana Tree Mystery (Crown Colony, volume 8) by Ovidia Yu

Critical Role

Friday, January 23rd, 2026 10:34 am
settiai: (Critical Role -- settiai)
[personal profile] settiai
Back before the holidays, I didn't stay up to watch the very last episode of Critical Role for 2025. Despite knowing damn well how hard it is for me to catch up if I don't watch the episode as it airs, I figured that I was going to have almost a month until the next episode and would be off work for a decent chunk of that time. It would be fine. I'd definitely find the time to watch one single episode before the next one aired.

... yeah, that didn't happen. 🙃

The show picked back up last week, and I couldn't watch live because I still hadn't watched the previous episode. And then last night I couldn't watch because I was two episodes behind by that point. So I now have three episodes to watch, which is a whopping 10 hours and 17 minutes (plus an additional 30 minutes from the Cooldown for the two episodes that have one).

This happens every time. I don't know why I'm remotely surprised. There's a reason that I intentionally fuck up my sleep schedule every Thursday, because I know myself well enough to know there's not a chance in hell that I'll actually watch the episode before the next one airs if I don't force myself to stay up and watch it live. And then I end up 2, or 3, or 5, or 7 episodes behind and have to work my butt off to catch up.

On that note, I'm going to do my best to set aside some time this weekend to watch at least two of the three episodes that I'm behind on (and maybe even part of the third if I can manage it). I'm pretty sure that I won't be going into the office next week, so hopefully I'll be able to watch the third episode here and there between phone calls at work if I'm working remotely all week like I expect.

2025

Friday, January 23rd, 2026 09:49 am
pauraque: bird flying (Default)
[personal profile] pauraque posting in [community profile] threeforthememories
My partner and I moved in together last year, and this year we continued settling in. We set up bird feeders in the yard and made lots of avian friends! Here's a male Hairy Woodpecker enjoying some suet:



two more pictures (content note: pet death) )

drive-by in current reading

Friday, January 23rd, 2026 08:07 am
yhlee: Alto clef and whole note (middle C). (Default)
[personal profile] yhlee
Nicolas Niarchos. The Elements of Power: A Story of War, Technology, and the Dirtiest Supply Chain on Earth. I think I got this rec from Farah Mendlesohn. Apparently the entire "green energy" resource supply chain (including/especially the batteries) is fucked to hell and gone, including/especially in the human rights arena. Which is not surprising as such, but this is a field I don't follow in any detail (the world is FULL OF THINGS TO KNOW and I can't be expert in them all).

From the jacket copy:

In this rush for green energy, the world has become utterly reliant on resources unearthed far away and willfully blind to the terrible political, environmental, and social consequences of their extraction. Why are the children of the Democratic Republic of the Congo routinely descending deep into treacherous mines to dig with the most rudimentary of tools, or in some cases their bare hands? Why are Indonesia's seas and skies being polluted in a rush for battery metals? Why is the Western Sahara, a source for phosphates, still being treated like a colony? Who must pay the price for progress?


This is ©2026 and just released, but of course...:gestures at current events:

:looks at small collection of slide rule, Napier's bones, abacuses, manual typewriters: Well.
[syndicated profile] smartbitches_feed

Posted by SB Sarah

I talk a lot about how SBTB feels like a piece of vintage internet sometimes. I mean, we’re a book blog, albeit a large one with a podcast and a bunch of social media accounts, and every now and again I’m reminded that we’re one of the classic pieces of the internet. (Also: STILL HERE!)

YouTube was founded the 14th of February 2005, a few weeks after this here website, in fact. Yup, both YouTube and SBTB are turning 21 this year. Hoo, boy.

I tried to think of the oldest video I remember seeing on the internet – and I first went online at my now-husband’s college in the mid-90s because mine didn’t have the internet at all. I scared the crap out of myself reading the section of Yahoo that housed all the ghost stories. This was back when, to quote someone whose name I cannot recall (sorry) “you could have any colors you wanted on your web page as long as it was black on grey.”

The most memorable vintage YouTube videos for me seem to be songs, or performances of songs.

For example:

“Chocolate Rain” by Tay Zonday, posted in 2008, aka 18 years ago.

Gary Brolsma’s “Numa Numa” dance, to O-ZONE’s “Dragoste din Tei” which is on my snowboarding playlist. If you see a slow-moving snowboarder singing, “Vrei sa pleci dar nu ma nu ma iei, nu ma nu ma iei, nu ma nu ma nu ma iei,” it’s probably me.

This was originally published on a site called Newgrounds in 2004, and then on YouTube in 2006.

And probably the song I most remember because Candy sent it to me and I started playing it at work. I still sing this to people – who are familiar with the video itself, not just randomly.

This is from 19 years ago, originally uploaded on Valentine’s Day 2007. HA! I also learned from Wiki that Samwell performed it in April 2008 on the BBC show Lily Allen and Friends

And there’s a making-of behind the scenes video, too. You’ll never believe which sections have the highest views.

Wait – no, I think this is the oldest. It’s from 2003. TWO THOUSAND AND THREE.

And I still say, “But I am le tired” all the time. (Jesus’ Trucknuts I didn’t expect that video to hit me so hard in the current anxieties – proceed with caution with this silly video.)

Happy Friday, y’all!

What’s the oldest video you remember seeing online?

 

 

 

Fannish webpage templates

Friday, January 23rd, 2026 08:24 am
ceu: (mulan)
[personal profile] ceu posting in [community profile] smallweb
I made a template for media/fic recs (depending on what you're looking for) that allows users to select if filters are inclusive or exclusive, and filters automatically for results. It uses Javascript, so if you want to do advanced customizations you might need a little bit of familiarity there. But you don't have to if your needs are pretty similar to the default settings, and I explain (pretty thoroughly, I like to think) how to use the code in the documentation: https://fan.kingdra.net/recs/

Installation is done directly through the live previews, and also available on Github: https://github.com/aroceu/recs-template

Image preview:



This code is usable on Neocities, Nekoweb, and anything similar!

A while back, I also wrote up CSS to make fics downloaded from AO3 as HTML files look prettier. If anyone is importing their fics from AO3 to Neocities/Nekoweb/wherever as HTML files and want to make them look nicer than the default styling, you might be interested: https://fan.kingdra.net/ao3css/

Please feel free to let me know if you have any questions, run into any bugs, whatever! ♥

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