#queerromanceclub — Public Fediverse posts

🏳️‍🌈 📖 Queer Romance Club DECEMBER selection — The Holly Groweth Green 📖 🏳️‍🌈

***
It’s Christmas 1946. Lost in the Hampshire countryside on a snowy Christmas Eve, ex-military doctor Laurence stumbles across lonely Mistle Cottage and its owner: Avery.

***

Another tie-breaker needed. I've picked the m/m one as we've had quite a few f/f through the year. (Feel free to read one of the others on the list instead or as well, or recommend your own favourite holiday reads!)

This one looks like a short, sweet read to end the year :)

It's on #KoboPlus for those with subscriptions but will be also available wide.

QRC is open to all, read at your own pace over the month and post about it under the #QueerRomanceClub and @queerromanceclub tags (that's a fedi.groups group, not the dead gup.pe group).

No rules: let’s hear reactions, theories, reviews, favourite quotes etc, any time throughout the month or whenever you read it. CW for spoilers appreciated.

More about QRC here:
https://mastodon.au/@wendypalmer/113144943004145104

#ChristmasReads @bookstodon
#books #bookClub #GayRomance #lgbtq

@queerromanceclub #QueerRomanceClub

I apologise, I’ve let the ball drop for the Queer Romance Club November read (got ever so slightly frantically busy the last few weeks…).

The theme is classics/old favourites, and I thought maybe instead of running a vote and picking a single book, queer romance fans can drop their recommendations in the comments:

- maybe the first romance you ever read that wasn’t just straight m/f (even if it was m/f with a bisexual character etc)
- nostalgic reads which might not hold up today but which you still have a soft spot for
- a classic of the genre which you think is the gold standard (I don’t know, like LoTR is for fantasy)
- even just books that are a few years old now that you think did not get the attention they deserved when they were released.

No need to be a regular participant in the QRC, this is just about blowing up those TBR lists :)

(But more about it here, FYI:
https://mastodon.au/@wendypalmer/113144943004145104)

#books @bookstodon #reading #LGBTQBooks #LGBTQRomance #romancelandia #RomanceReads

🏳️‍🌈 📖 Queer Romance Club OCTOBER selection — All of Us Murderers by KJ Charles 📖 🏳️‍🌈

ETA: depending on your time zone, this book should be out now, at your favourite retailer or library

WHO WILL SURVIVE LACKADAY HOUSE?

When Zeb Wyckham is summoned to a wealthy relative's remote Gothic manor, he is horrified to find all the people he least wants to see in the world: his estranged brother, his sneering cousin, and his bitter ex-lover Gideon Grey. Things couldn't possibly get worse.

Then the master of the house announces the true purpose of the gathering: he intends to leave the vast family fortune to whoever marries his young ward, setting off a violent scramble for her hand. Zeb wants no part of his greedy family—but when he tries to leave, the way is barred. The walls of Lackaday House are high, and the gates firmly locked. As the Dartmoor mists roll in, there's no way out. And something unnatural may be watching them from the house's shadowy depths…

Fear and paranoia ramping ever-higher, Zeb has nowhere to turn but to the man who once held his heart. As the gaslight flickers and terror takes hold, can two warring lovers reunite, uncover the murderous mysteries of Lackaday House—and live to tell the tale?

***

QRC is open to all, read at your own pace over the month and post about it under the #QueerRomanceClub and @queerromanceclub tags.

No rules: let’s hear reactions, theories, reviews, favourite quotes etc, any time throughout the month or indeed whenever you happen to read it 😊 CW for spoilers appreciated.

More about the club here:
https://mastodon.au/@wendypalmer/113144943004145104

#books #gayRomance #bookClubs #KJCharles

🏳️‍🌈 📖 October Queer Romance Club - seeking suggestions 📖 🏳️‍🌈

October’s theme is paranormal/Halloween reads. I’ll put the vote out over the weekend.

I have a few ideas already:

All of Us Murderers by KJ Charles (m/m, historical, Gothic, something unnatural lurks…)

The Most Unusual Haunting of Edgar Lovejoy by Roan Parrish (transmasc they/cis he, ghosts, cosy)

Feast While You Can by Julia Armfield and Eliza Clark (f/f, sounds like actual horror though, so might not be to everyone’s tastes)

But Not Too Bold By Hache Pueyo (sapphic gothic fantasy monster romance novella, possibly still more down the horror end)

The Lavender Blade by EL Deards (I’m not sure if this is a romance actually, but it sounds great ;) established m/m relationship, a case of possession)

Other suggestions much appreciated!

(We’ve already had two ghost stories this year, Roland Rogers Isn’t Dead Yet by Samantha Allen and The Keeper of Lonely Spirits by EM Anderson. Must be something in the air 😊)

ETA: more info about QRC:
https://mastodon.au/@wendypalmer/113144943004145104

@queerromanceclub #QueerRomanceClub #books #bookClub #reading #bookstodon #paranormal #queerReads #HalloweenReads

🏳️‍🌈 📖 September Queer Romance Club selection - Mise En Death by Nikki Woolfolk 📖 🏳️‍🌈

I’m looking forward to this one, it sounds delightful 😊 Alt-history steampunk

***
A gourmet airship banquet takes dinner—and murder—to the next level.

For Alex LeBeau, everything is finally mise en place—falling into place. She's ready to put her clandestine part in the Insurrection of 1856—and a romantic entanglement that broke her heart—behind her and just be herself. A simple, unassuming chocolatier.
When an opportunity to teach at a friend's struggling cooking school lands in her lap, Alex moves with her almost-grown son, Pierre, back to her sleepy hometown of Honfleur, Louisiana. And she's determined not to ruin it by falling for the first beautiful woman who crosses her path.

Naturally, as she rushes to prepare for a catered airship banquet that will save the school, she does exactly that. Literally sprawling at the feet of Josephine Campbell, a bundle of warm-eyed, kilted good humor with a baffling accent that melts Alex's heart into a puddle of ganache.

But when a mishap with the banquet's engineering-marvel centerpiece leaves the hostess dead and Pierre charged with murder, Alex, with Josephine at her side, must risk everything—including exposing her past—to save her son. And stop the real killer from striking again.

***

QRC is open to all, read at your own pace over the month and post about it under the #QueerRomanceClub and @queerromanceclub tags.

No rules: let’s hear reactions, theories, reviews, favourite quotes etc, any time throughout the month or indeed whenever you happen to read it 😊 CW for spoilers appreciated.

More about the club here:
https://mastodon.au/@wendypalmer/113144943004145104

#books @lgbtbookstodon #altHistorical #steampunk #FFRomance

🏳️‍🌈 📖 September Queer Romance Club selection - Mise En Death by Nikki Woolfolk 📖 🏳️‍🌈

I’m looking forward to this one, it sounds delightful 😊 Alt-history steampunk

***
A gourmet airship banquet takes dinner—and murder—to the next level.

For Alex LeBeau, everything is finally mise en place—falling into place. She's ready to put her clandestine part in the Insurrection of 1856—and a romantic entanglement that broke her heart—behind her and just be herself. A simple, unassuming chocolatier.
When an opportunity to teach at a friend's struggling cooking school lands in her lap, Alex moves with her almost-grown son, Pierre, back to her sleepy hometown of Honfleur, Louisiana. And she's determined not to ruin it by falling for the first beautiful woman who crosses her path.

Naturally, as she rushes to prepare for a catered airship banquet that will save the school, she does exactly that. Literally sprawling at the feet of Josephine Campbell, a bundle of warm-eyed, kilted good humor with a baffling accent that melts Alex's heart into a puddle of ganache.

But when a mishap with the banquet's engineering-marvel centerpiece leaves the hostess dead and Pierre charged with murder, Alex, with Josephine at her side, must risk everything—including exposing her past—to save her son. And stop the real killer from striking again.

***

QRC is open to all, read at your own pace over the month and post about it under the #QueerRomanceClub and @queerromanceclub tags.

No rules: let’s hear reactions, theories, reviews, favourite quotes etc, any time throughout the month or indeed whenever you happen to read it 😊 CW for spoilers appreciated.

More about the club here:
https://mastodon.au/@wendypalmer/113144943004145104

#books @lgbtbookstodon #altHistorical #steampunk #FFRomance

🏳️‍🌈 📖 September Queer Romance Club selection - Mise En Death by Nikki Woolfolk 📖 🏳️‍🌈

I’m looking forward to this one, it sounds delightful 😊 Alt-history steampunk

***
A gourmet airship banquet takes dinner—and murder—to the next level.

For Alex LeBeau, everything is finally mise en place—falling into place. She's ready to put her clandestine part in the Insurrection of 1856—and a romantic entanglement that broke her heart—behind her and just be herself. A simple, unassuming chocolatier.
When an opportunity to teach at a friend's struggling cooking school lands in her lap, Alex moves with her almost-grown son, Pierre, back to her sleepy hometown of Honfleur, Louisiana. And she's determined not to ruin it by falling for the first beautiful woman who crosses her path.

Naturally, as she rushes to prepare for a catered airship banquet that will save the school, she does exactly that. Literally sprawling at the feet of Josephine Campbell, a bundle of warm-eyed, kilted good humor with a baffling accent that melts Alex's heart into a puddle of ganache.

But when a mishap with the banquet's engineering-marvel centerpiece leaves the hostess dead and Pierre charged with murder, Alex, with Josephine at her side, must risk everything—including exposing her past—to save her son. And stop the real killer from striking again.

***

QRC is open to all, read at your own pace over the month and post about it under the #QueerRomanceClub and @queerromanceclub tags.

No rules: let’s hear reactions, theories, reviews, favourite quotes etc, any time throughout the month or indeed whenever you happen to read it 😊 CW for spoilers appreciated.

More about the club here:
https://mastodon.au/@wendypalmer/113144943004145104

#books @lgbtbookstodon #altHistorical #steampunk #FFRomance

🏳️‍🌈 📖 September Queer Romance Club selection - Mise En Death by Nikki Woolfolk 📖 🏳️‍🌈

I’m looking forward to this one, it sounds delightful 😊 Alt-history steampunk

***
A gourmet airship banquet takes dinner—and murder—to the next level.

For Alex LeBeau, everything is finally mise en place—falling into place. She's ready to put her clandestine part in the Insurrection of 1856—and a romantic entanglement that broke her heart—behind her and just be herself. A simple, unassuming chocolatier.
When an opportunity to teach at a friend's struggling cooking school lands in her lap, Alex moves with her almost-grown son, Pierre, back to her sleepy hometown of Honfleur, Louisiana. And she's determined not to ruin it by falling for the first beautiful woman who crosses her path.

Naturally, as she rushes to prepare for a catered airship banquet that will save the school, she does exactly that. Literally sprawling at the feet of Josephine Campbell, a bundle of warm-eyed, kilted good humor with a baffling accent that melts Alex's heart into a puddle of ganache.

But when a mishap with the banquet's engineering-marvel centerpiece leaves the hostess dead and Pierre charged with murder, Alex, with Josephine at her side, must risk everything—including exposing her past—to save her son. And stop the real killer from striking again.

***

QRC is open to all, read at your own pace over the month and post about it under the #QueerRomanceClub and @queerromanceclub tags.

No rules: let’s hear reactions, theories, reviews, favourite quotes etc, any time throughout the month or indeed whenever you happen to read it 😊 CW for spoilers appreciated.

More about the club here:
https://mastodon.au/@wendypalmer/113144943004145104

#books @lgbtbookstodon #altHistorical #steampunk #FFRomance

🏳️‍🌈 📖 September Queer Romance Club selection - Mise En Death by Nikki Woolfolk 📖 🏳️‍🌈

I’m looking forward to this one, it sounds delightful 😊 Alt-history steampunk

***
A gourmet airship banquet takes dinner—and murder—to the next level.

For Alex LeBeau, everything is finally mise en place—falling into place. She's ready to put her clandestine part in the Insurrection of 1856—and a romantic entanglement that broke her heart—behind her and just be herself. A simple, unassuming chocolatier.
When an opportunity to teach at a friend's struggling cooking school lands in her lap, Alex moves with her almost-grown son, Pierre, back to her sleepy hometown of Honfleur, Louisiana. And she's determined not to ruin it by falling for the first beautiful woman who crosses her path.

Naturally, as she rushes to prepare for a catered airship banquet that will save the school, she does exactly that. Literally sprawling at the feet of Josephine Campbell, a bundle of warm-eyed, kilted good humor with a baffling accent that melts Alex's heart into a puddle of ganache.

But when a mishap with the banquet's engineering-marvel centerpiece leaves the hostess dead and Pierre charged with murder, Alex, with Josephine at her side, must risk everything—including exposing her past—to save her son. And stop the real killer from striking again.

***

QRC is open to all, read at your own pace over the month and post about it under the #QueerRomanceClub and @queerromanceclub tags.

No rules: let’s hear reactions, theories, reviews, favourite quotes etc, any time throughout the month or indeed whenever you happen to read it 😊 CW for spoilers appreciated.

More about the club here:
https://mastodon.au/@wendypalmer/113144943004145104

#books @lgbtbookstodon #altHistorical #steampunk #FFRomance

Voting for the July Queer Romance Club (cosy theme)

Homegrown Magic by Jamie Pacon and Rebecca Podos - f/nb fantasy
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/homegrown-magic
A delightful queer cottagecore romantasy full of friends-to-lovers romance, found family, rival family drama, and cozy garden magic.

The Broposal by Sonora Reyes - m/m contemporary
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/the-broposal-2
From the author of The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School, two best bros fake an engagement–but will their friendship survive?

Don't Want You Like a Best Friend by Emma Alban - f/f historical
(AKA More Than a Best Friend in some non-US locations)
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/more-than-a-best-friend
A swoon-worthy debut queer Victorian romance in which two debutantes distract themselves from having to seek husbands by setting up their widowed parents, and instead find their perfect match in each other—the lesbian Bridgerton you never knew you needed!

Direct Descendant by Tanya Huff - f/f cosy horror
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/direct-descendant-3
Lake Argen’s in danger and Cassie has to choose: her hometown or Melanie. Surely an army of unearthly monsters won’t stand in the way of true love?

#QueerRomanceClub @queerromanceclub @bookstodon #cosyReads @lgbtqbookstodon

Queer Romance Club June selection — Navigational Entanglements by Aliette de Bodard

Since we had a tie (what a surprise 😊), I’ve deployed my tie-breaker for go for the f/f SF as the official pick (feel free to let us know what you think of any of the others, though!)

***
Teaser blurb:

Jockeying navigator clans guide spaceships through the Hollows: an area of space populated by the mysterious but deadly creatures known as Tanglers. When a Tangler escapes the Hollows for the first time in living memory, each clan must send a representative to help capture it—but the mission may be doomed and the hearts of two clan juniors may be in danger too.

***

QRC is open to all, read at your own pace over the month and post about it under the #QueerRomanceClub and @queerromanceclub tags.

No rules: let’s hear reactions, theories, reviews, favourite quotes etc, any time throughout the month or indeed whenever you happen to read it 😊 CW for spoilers appreciated.

More about the club here:

https://mastodon.au/@wendypalmer/113144943004145104

#bookstodon #Bookclub #ScienceFiction #LGBTQRomance #NavigationalEntanglements

Queer Romance Club June voting - Pride theme

We got some great suggestions, but I can only list four options in the poll so had to narrow it down to try to offer a broad range of (self-reported) identities and relationship types (I managed to get an L, a G, a B, and a T in there 😂), plus what’s hopefully readily available through libraries. Check out the @/# for more suggestions though.

Choices:

TJ Alexander — A Gentleman’s Gentleman (AKA The Earl Meets His Match) — transm/m historical
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/the-earl-meets-his-match

Aliette de Bodard — Navigational Entanglements — f/f SF
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/navigational-entanglements

Matt Cain — The Secret Life of Albert Entwistle — m/m contemporary/general
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/the-secret-life-of-albert-entwistle

Alexis Hall — Rosaline Palmer Takes the Cake — m/bi-f contemporary (where the bisexuality is relevant to the plot, not just a character trait)
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/rosaline-palmer-takes-the-cake-by-the-author-of-boyfriend-material
Apparently this one has been optioned to be a movie.

#QueerRomanceClub @queerromanceclub #LGBTQRomance

1/2

MAY selection for the Queer Romance Club — The Keeper of Lonely Spirits by EM Anderson

I can’t say this SOUNDS much like a cosy fantasy romance — I’m looking forward to it anyway but I think I should stop being quite so trusting of certain book lists 😂

***

Blurb:

This mesmerizing, wonderfully moving queer cozy fantasy, an immortal ghost hunter must confront his tragic past in order to embrace his found family.

Find an angry spirit. Send it on its way before it causes trouble. Leave before anyone learns his name.

After over two hundred years, Peter Shaughnessy is ready to die and end this cycle. But thanks to a youthful encounter with one o’ them folk in his native Ireland, he can’t. Instead, he’s cursed to wander eternally far from home, with the ability to see ghosts and talk to plants.

Immortality means Peter has lost everyone he’s ever loved. And so he centers his life on the dead — until his wandering brings him to Harrington, Ohio. As he searches for a vengeful spirit, Peter’s drawn into the townsfolk’s lives, homes and troubles. For the first time in over a century, he wants something other than death.

But the people of Harrington will die someday. And he won’t.

As Harrington buckles under the weight of the supernatural, the ghost hunt pits Peter’s well-being against that of his new friends and the man he’s falling for. If he stays, he risks heartbreak. If he leaves, he risks their lives.

***

QRC is open to all, read at your own pace over the month and post about it under the #QueerRomanceClub and @queerromanceclub tags.

No rules: let’s hear reactions, theories, reviews, favourite quotes etc, any time throughout the month or indeed whenever you happen to read it. CW for spoilers if going into details but general observations can be open.

(Feel free to tell us what else you’re reading in #queerRomance too)

More about the club here
https://mastodon.au/@wendypalmer/113144943004145104

@bookstodon #RomanceReads #FantasyReads #books
@lgbtqbookstodon #LGBTQRomance

Looking for recommendations for the Queer Romance Club May read. May’s theme is Fantasy.

Please note recommendations do have to be both queer, in any iteration, and a Romance aka the relationship is a central component of the plotline, with a happy ever after (or happy for now) ending.

I have these possibilities lined up already:

The Jasmine Throne (epic f/f)
The Keeper of Lonely Spirits (cosy m/m)
Acts of Cupidity (urban fantasy m/m)

Looking to round it out with different queerness flavours and/or different sub-genres. Note we have Cosy and Paranormal themes coming up later in the year, too, so fantasies in those veins can be used then.

Indie author suggestions very welcome, but the books have to be widely available (no Amazon-only), including from libraries.

More about the queer romance club here
https://mastodon.au/@wendypalmer/113144943004145104

@queerromanceclub #QueerRomanceClub #LGBTQRomance #IndieAuthors

APRIL selection for the Queer* Romance Club — Ocean’s Echo by Everina Maxwell

As is fairly standard for QRC, the voting ended in a tie, so I’ve deployed my coordinator tie-breaker to go for Ocean’s Echo (the one I would have voted for, if I took part in the poll).

This should be widely available at libraries. Though it’s in the same world as Maxwell’s first book, Winter’s Orbit, it is a stand-alone. I’m looking forward to this one :)

***
Blurb:

“Change begins with the meeting of the minds”

When Tennal - a rich socialite, inveterate flirt, and walking disaster - is caught using his telepathic powers for illegal activities, the military decides to bind his mind to someone whose coercive powers are strong enough to control him.

Enter Lieutenant Surit, the child of a disgraced general. Out of a desperate need to restore a pension to his other parent, Lieutenant Surit agrees to be bound to Tennal and keep him conscripted in the army, a task that seems impossible even for someone with Surit's ability to control minds.

Tennal just wants to escape, but Surit isn't all that he seems. And their bond may just be the key to their freedom.

***

QRC is open to all, read at your own pace over the month and post about it under the #QueerRomanceClub and @queerromanceclub tags.

No rules: let’s hear reactions, theories, reviews, favourite quotes etc, any time throughout the month or indeed whenever you happen to read it. CW for spoilers if going into details but general observations can be open.

Or let us know what else you’re reading in the #queerRomance genre. One of the other titles on the voting list? An undiscovered gem? An old favourite?

More about the club here
https://mastodon.au/@wendypalmer/113144943004145104

@bookstodon #RomanceReads #ScienceFiction #books #bookclubs @lgbtqbookstodon #LGBTQRomance

*I realised I typoed in the voting to Queen Romance Club. Which would have had quite different selections ;)

Voting for the Queen Romance Club April selection (SF theme)

More about the bookclub here:
https://mastodon.au/@wendypalmer/113144943004145104

Choices:

Ocean’s Echo by Everina Maxwell — m/m, telepathy/mind control
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/ocean-s-echo-2

In the Shadow of the Ship by Aliette de Bodard — f/f, xuya universe (sentient spaceships in a Viet-inspired galactic empire, ongoing world but stand-alone story)
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/in-the-shadow-of-the-ship

This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone — f/f, time travel
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/this-is-how-you-lose-the-time-war-2

Mars House by Natasha Pulley — m/nb, Mars colony
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/the-mars-house-1

#QueerRomanceClub @queerromanceclub #QueerReads #bookclub #books #LGBTQBooks @bookstodon #bookstodon

#QueerRomanceClub @queerromanceclub

I’m looking for suggestions for the March vote of the QRC. The theme is historicals. I have a few on my list, but some are probably more historical than, ah, romantical 😊 and obviously a central queer (in any shape or form) relationship is required.

Indies/lesser known authors encouraged but the books need to be widely available (no Amazon-only books, library accessible).

#Romance @romancelandia #RomanceReads #Historicals #LGBTQBooks #LGBTQRomance

Queer Romance Club February vote 👇

As is traditional for QRC (ie as was done last year 😂), we’ll focus on BIPOC authors/stories for February

Leather, Lace and Locs by Anne Shade — contemporary f/f/f friends to lovers
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/leather-lace-and-locs

One and Done by Frederick Smith — contemporary m/m one night stand becomes more
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/one-and-done-10

A Taste of Honey by Kai Ashante Wilson — fantasy m/m, it’s a unusual one but it’s still romance 😊 might say Book 2 at your source but stands alone
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/a-taste-of-honey-34

Runnin’ No More by GT Dipe — brand new release (not out til mid-month!) m/m contemporary, probably quite heavy given the blurb but also vey highly rated
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/221544569-runnin-no-more

@queerromanceclub @romancebooks @bookstodon

#QueerRomanceClub #BookClub #LGBTQRomance

Voting for Queer Romance Club January selection

I know I am quite anti-contemporary, so I’m trying to fight my bias with this month’s choices 😊 75% contemporary!

A Bloomy Head — J Winifred Butterworth (debut author, Regency, murder, cheese, transm/f romance, can highly recommend even if not chosen as the bookclub pick)
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/a-bloomy-head

Roland Rogers Isn’t Dead Yet — Samantha Allen (paranormal contemporary, one of the rash of recent books where the love interest is a ghost; MC is a ghostwriter. m/m romance)
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/roland-rogers-isn-t-dead-yet-1

The (Fake) Dating Game — Timothy Janovsky (a reality show contemporary, m/m romance)
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/the-fake-dating-game-1
(Currently 50% off at Kobo, BTW)

Sorry, Bro — Taleen Voskuni (debut author, contemporary described as the bisexual Big Fat Greek Wedding, bisexual f/f)
https://www.kobo.com/au/en/ebook/sorry-bro-8

(My server now allows multi-choice, I’ve enabled it, don’t abuse the privilege 😂)

#QueerRomanceClub @queerromanceclub

#books @bookstodon
#BookClub #LGBTQBooks #LGBTQRomance