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unfortunate-arrow · 2 years

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Hey, I know you read HR so I was wondering if you could give me recs that are not Julia Quinn and Lisa Kleypas,

Love by Numbers series, Sarah MacLean

This one might be mentioned more often, but I absolutely loved the first book. Follows identical twin brothers and their newly discovered half-sister as they fall in love. Can be read out of order. Three books.

Ella Quinn

I’ve read and enjoyed almost her whole catalogue of books. Series are The Worthingtons, The Marriage Game, The Lords of London, and a few novellas. Can be read out of order.

Rouges to Riches series, Grace Burrowes

This was an enjoyable series and I’ve read all but the one published this year. Follows the Wentworth family as they go from poverty to riches. One book features the depiction of a hero who most likely has epilepsy. Another book includes a hero who uses a wheelchair and cane. Can be read out of order. Seven books and a handful of novellas.

Hellions of Halstead Hall series, Sabrina Jeffries

I really liked this series. Follows the five wild Sharpe siblings after their grandmother gives them an ultimatum to marry or be cut-off and as they decide to investigate their parents’ mysterious deaths. Should be read in order. Five books + one that leads into another series.

Swanlea Spinsters series, Sabrina Jeffries

I enjoyed this series. Follows the daughters of the earl of Swanlea plus two others. Should probably be read in order. Five books.

Anna Harrington

I really like all of her work. I’ve read almost all of them and they’re quite enjoyable. Her series are: The Secret Life of Scoundrels, Capturing the Carlisles, and The Lords of The Armory. (The Lords of The Armory should be read in order.) One of her novellas features one of my favorite heroes, Hugh Whitby.

Sons of Sin series, Anna Campbell

I enjoyed this series. Follows three friends who are all illegitimate, even if they aren’t technically illegitimate. (It’s complicated.) Four books + a novella. Probably could be read out of order.

The Survivors series, Shana Galen

I absolutely loved this series. Follows the twelve surviving members of a suicide troop and their lieutenant colonel as they fall in love after the Napoleonic wars. Features a varied cast of heroes and heroines. Not all heroines are virgins and most of the heroes suffer from PTSD. Some heroes also bear physical reminders: a burned face, crushed legs, and near blindness. Most of the heroes also aren’t rakes and there’s at least one virgin hero! Twelve books + three novellas. Should be read in order, or at least leave book 12 for last as everyone prior makes an appearance. *Also, one novella focuses on a black character & a dark-skinned mixed race character. Other novels include characters of color being given side plots.*

Honorable Mentions: Jewels of the Ton, Shana Galen ; The Rogues of Regent Street, Julia London ; Rogues’ Dynasty, Amelia Grey

Note: Some of the books include sensitive topics, including heroines being raped prior to the book’s events in two books.

#regency romance novels #regency romance #historical romance novels #bridgerton #because who knows someone in there might be interested #the survivors features my favorite illegitimate hero neil #i just adore him and for bridgerton people he shares similarities with sophie #yes two heroines were raped prior to the book’s events… desiring lady caro (ella quinn) & unmask me if you can (galen)#from what i remember there’s no real details it’s just there and their heroes are respectful #(of course galen’s hero has his own issues; more than quinn’s does anyway)#i don’t know if i’d recommend burrowes as the one romance novel that i hated was written by her #but i think that’s because the book’s summary is not what happens #however it is the first romance to make me go “just fucking die already” about a character

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alexa-santi-author · 3 months

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99 cent historical romance? Yes please!

A bunch of my historical romance author friends got together today (2/14/2024) so you can buy their ebooks at 99 cents! I wasn’t able to officially participate since I don’t get the rights to my novella back until next month, but here’s the link for everyone else!

#romance novels #historical romance #cheap ebooks #romance recs #romance books #romance reader #Historical romance novels

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slytherinsomniari · 1 year

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I really need to get back into reading historical romance novels. I feel like reading them would possibly help me improve my fanfic writing and give me ideas but I tend not to like them since the genre has a lot of tropes I hate (e.g. insta-lust being mistaken for insta-love, men not letting women decide/do things for themselves, characters literally only thinking of lust, character changes, etc.). I used to read some in high school but I went through them a few years back and got rid of all but one of them. They were really famous ones too so it does make me feel a bit iffy. But I love historical romance and the historical genre so I’ll be on the lookout for some novels that pique my interest.

#historical romance #romance novels #fanfic #fanfiction #books #reading #historical romance novels

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forsythiaproductions · 11 months

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Ending Soon! 😱💖

All your support means the world, thank you for being here with us! Of Sense and Soul is our Queer Victorian Romance visual novel and it has...

Two lives, one love story 🎩👓

Victorian setting 🕰️

Soft queer romance 🌈

Slow burn pining 🔥

Happily ever after 💖

Help us make Of Sense and Soul a reality and back our campaign here! 💪

(Backing is just one way to support the game; you can reblog & like this post to help us with our community challenges, too!)

Play our demo | Get our newsletter | Send us an ask 💌

#visual novel #indie game #queer fiction #historical fiction #historical romance #narrative game #kickstarter #crowdfunding #game dev #announcement #victorian #gay #queer #lgbtqia

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triviareads · 4 months

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The good, bad, beautiful, and problematic: romance novel cover art painted by John Ennis. He spent decades painting cover art for various publishing houses and recently retired, and I had a lot of fun attending this exhibition!

#romance novels #historical romance

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asteriass · 2 months

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The progression of the “Villainess” trope

Y'know, thinking about it, it's very ironic how a trope made to subvert one's expectations & give more depth to 1 dimensional villains in cliche novels by "humanizing" them more & providing their side of the story, eventually became oversaturated with cartoony villains & flat MCs. Thus, completely failing in its goal to "subvert expectations" as it too turned into mind numbing cliche, becoming the exact opposite of what the troupe initially aimed to achieved.

I am talking about "Villainess" series.

I remember seeing a twitter post a while back saying how a lot of the villainess stuff the authors & studios are putting out nowadays lack any sort of nuance when it comes to its characters. And how a lot authors simply switch the roles of the cast (Like: OG MC -> villain | OG villain -> MC) & call it a day. And I 100% agree with that.

This troupe kinda ended up becoming the dictionary definition of the saying, "You either die as a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become a villain” lmao

What could've been an opportunity to write nuanced villains & morally ambiguous main characters, turned EXACTLY into the cliche it was pocking fun at.

In an attempt to reveal how the MCs of your typical cliche novels can also be in the wrong at times, flaws that the story & its (in-canon) fandom may purposefully ignore, the villainess stories ended up doing EXACT SAME thing EXECPT this time it's the "villains" doing it rather than the OG FL or OG ML of the “OG novel”. In an attempt to stop cliche villains from remaining cliche, while we did ended up getting slightly more nuance for the “OG villain” characters, in the process, the OG MCs turned exactly into those flat cliche villains.

Alot of villainess series poke fun at the troupes they themself use, but not in a satirical way.

So many villainess series poke fun at the OG novels for being problematic or stupid & the fandom of said novels basically ignoring its flaws & problems, only gushing over the OG FL. Which yea, is nice & all, but y'know... that's exactly what those villainess series do too. SO MANYY of them borderline have the FLs participating in literal slavery. & More often than not have a borderline colonizer ML. Not to mention the numerous which carry weird undertones of colorism, and many such other things. All the while, the fandom of these villainess series continue to ignore their glaring problems & flaws & instead just gush over the FL and ML.

And I'm not even saying this in a hating sort of way (well, aside from the series with issues of colorism, orientalism, etc). Moreover, this is all not to say that one can not enjoy such stories, because admittedly, there is indeed fun in just reading a simple and familiar story line. But this is all more me being intrigued by this trope’s almost ironic progression as companies rush their staff to produce something which they think will be able to ride the waves of the current trends, only for the vast majority to simply drown in a sea of mediocrity (with many even being canceled due to this)

[Though I mean, something as simple as villainess tropes won’t be the only one to go through this. Like a lot of Shakespearean works, a subversion of the classics & typical troupes back then, got turned into ones of those classics and by many are now considered cliche. And that's just scrapping the bottom of the barrel!]

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sarahmaclean · 2 years

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KNOCKOUT Hell's Belles Book 3

Coming Summer 2023

Thoughts and Prayers for Tommy Peck

#sarah maclean #hell's belles #imogen loveless #historical romance novels #tommy goes boom #thoughts and prayers for tommy peck

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nothwell · 5 months

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Do you have time to read three romance novels?

Are you able to judge without bias?

Are you ready to have fun?

Serve as a judge for the New England Readers’ Choice Awards Contest!

Readers, librarians, booksellers, and unpaid bloggers/reviewers are all welcome to judge the NERW contest.

(Published romance authors and paid reviewers are not allowed to serve as judges.)

Judges will be asked to read and score 3 novels/novellas. Ebooks will be sent out one at a time; once judges have submitted their scores for their first book, they will be sent a second, and then a third, book to judge. If judges submit scores for all three books early, and wish to judge more entries, additional books will be sent out if they are available (up to a limit of 10 per judge).

Our contest coordinators will assign books based on reading preferences indicated by judges on the judging intake form.

Books will be sent out between March 2024 and April 2024, as they are received by the contest organizers. Judges will need to submit all scores by April 30, 2024.

Visit NERW dot org to sign up!

#gay romance #historical romance #mm romance #mlm romance #queer romance #victorian romance #romance novels #new england romance writers

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russiansappho · 2 months

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“I still pick flowers with you in my dreams. And you smile. You laugh. You dance with me in the emerald fields. I wonder if you keep my letters under your pillow. I wonder if you still sit by the lake and remember the sunsets we spent in each other’s arms.”

Painting: Gather Ye Rosebuds While Ye May by John William Waterhouse.

#writing my lesbian romance novel #veronika sizova #writer #lesbian romance #sapphic #wlw #sapphic art #the dawn of eternal winter #wlw books #historical fiction #books #john william waterhouse

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battyaboutbooksreviews · 9 days

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🪞 What to Read After Watching Bridgerton Season 3

🪞 Don’t Want You Like a Best Friend - Emma R. Alban 🪞 The Ladies Rewrite the Rules - Suzanne Allain 🪞 Confounding Oaths - Alexis Hall 🪞 Hathor and the Prince - J.J. McAvoy 🪞 Ne’er Duke Well - Alexandra Vasti 🪞 The Lord of Stariel - A. J. Lancaster 🪞 The Lily of Ludgate Hill - Mimi Matthews 🪞 To Catch a Suitor - Sarah Adams 🪞 To Woo and to Wed - Martha Waters 🪞 My Season of Scandal - Julie Anne Long 🪞 Damned If I Duke - Anna Bradley 🪞 A Viscount for the Egyptian Princess - Heba Helmy 🪞 The Diamond and the Duke - Christi Caldwell 🪞 An Unlikely Proposition - Rosalyn Eves 🪞 A Governess’s Guide to Passion and Peril - Manda Collins 🪞 Lies and Weddings - Kevin Kwan 🪞 Viscount in Love - Eloisa James 🪞 A Lady for a Duke - Alexis Hall 🪞 Lady Charlotte Always Gets Her Man - Violet Marsh 🪞 My Rogue to Ruin - Erica Ridley 🪞 Never Met a Duke Like You - Amalie Howard 🪞 Never Blow a Kiss - Lindsay Lovise 🪞 Wake Me Most Wickedly - Felicia Grossman 🪞 The Duke’s All That - Christina Britton 🪞 Bookshop Cinderella - Laura Lee Guhrke 🪞 Dukes Do It Better - Bethany Bennett

#books #romance novels #romance books #bridgerton #penelope featherington #colin x penelope #romance #historical fiction #batty about books #battyaboutbooks #bridgerton season 3 #bridgerton s3 #netflix #what to read

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mermaidsirennikita · 3 months

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Do you have any queer historical romance recs? Are there any upcoming 2024 queer historical romances that you’re excited for?

Absolutely, I have recs! As for 2024 books, I'm currently most looking forward to You Should Be So Lucky by Cat Sebastian, which is an m/m romance set, I believe in the 50s, set around the world of baseball.

I also just read A Sweet Sting of Salt by Rose Sutherland (out 4/9) which I SUPER recommend if you want a f/f romance set in the 1800s, with a touch of fantasy. It's about a prickly midwife who finds this mysterious woman in the middle of the night, literally about to give birth. She helps her, and her husband turns out to be a local fisherman. But... something isn't right... both with the husband, and with his wife's origins. And when the husband realizes the women are falling in love, he only becomes more possessive. I promise it's romantic and has an HEA and doesn't feature overwhelming sadness (there is domestic and sexual violence alluded to, but it's brief and off the page).

As for historicals otherwise...

M/M

We Could be So Good by Cat Sebastian--set in the same general era and space as the 2024 release, I think, about a pair of reporters slowly and sweetly falling in love, especially after they become roommates (and they were ROOMMATES).

The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen by KJ Charles--about a guy who moves to the marshland after he becomes a baronet, and has to take care of his estranged father's family left behind. He finds out there is a crime family of smugglers controlling the area, and he rats on them after seeing something sus... But when he goes to testify, who's there to stop him but the guy who he used to anonymously hook up with! JOSS DOOMSDAY. Joss Doomsday is amazing I love him. Super sexy, funny, and definitely focused on a side of England you like, never see in historicals.

The Nobleman's Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel by KJ--the standalone followup to the last book. In this case, another title is inherited, and this time the lord's this gruff former soldier. His cousins or something contest his inheritance, and he hires this young, charismatic secretary (especially important because our lord has a hard time reading, which I felt was done in a really touching way). Anyway, the sexual tension boils over and they start hooking up on the low, but there's a SECRET. (Also, the lord is very like "I'M ABUSING MY BOSSLY POWER" while the secretary is like "I mean... abuse it some more.....")

Band Sinister by KJ Charles--kind of a queer sendup of gothics, this is about a young guy whose sister is like, always spying on their scandalous neighbors who hold orgies and shit for the sake of writing her novels. Then she breaks her leg and ends up laid up in the orgy house, and he rushes over like NO ORGIES FOR HER, but he realizes the group of friends is actually super cool, especially the verrrry siiiiiilky smoooooth one who's just soooooo suave. So good, and especially interesting in that, while I would definitely not call this a poly romance, it does explore the complexities of open relationships and polyamory.

The Queer Principles of Kit Webb by Cat Sebastian--Kit is a retired highwayman running a cafe, and suddenly this vERRRY pretty nobleman comes in flashing his very nice ankles and asking Kit to steal this mysterious book from his dad. Kit refuses, but agrees to teach Percy how to steal. Both are great, but omg PERCY is AMAZING. He's kind introduced as somewhat like... conventionally more on the femme side, but he's like a secret swordmaster, and also takes the lead with Kit sexually a lot. One of my favorite moments in this book is when he's blowing Kit and Kit thinks he's gone too deep and is like "SORRY" and Percy rolls his eyes and makes Kit grab his hair and start facefucking him lmao. Also has nice demi rep in Kit.

Something Fabulous by Alexis Hall--A frosty duke proposes to a woman he was always supposed to marry, and she subsequently goes on the run. He then has to pair up with her dramatic, fanciful twin brother. It's a really funny romcom, with a ridiculous duel that had me wheezing. Plus a semi-cultlike group of lesbians? Also, enthusiastic ass eating.

F/F

An Island Princess Starts a Scandal by Adriana Herrera--A cold vamp widow wants this business deal with a fun and flirty heiress, and the heiress agrees to make the deal... If the vamp agrees to show her LESBIAN PARIS. Hot, and both of the leads are Latina.

Mortal Follies by Alexis Hall--Adding this even though it definitely has a good dose of fantasy, because it's like... Jane Austen meets a Midsummer Night's Dream, with an emphasis on the fairies. This young deb ends up hexed so her dress is unraveling at a ball, and as she hurries into the pushes, she meets the mysterious Lady Duke, who's rumored to have murdered her brother and father. They begin this push and pull of seduction. It's both funny and kind of dramatic.

Trans/Nonbinary

Something Spectacular by Alexis Hall--the standalone followup to Something Fabulous. The runaway fiancee's ex, the genderfluid Peggy, is roped by said ex into attending an opera. The ex wants to seduce Orfeo, this gorgeous castrato soprano, and when they open their mouth to sing Peggy, who's very gruff and in control typically, faints. Orfeo is naturally like "WHO'S THAT" and begins pursuing Peggy rather than the ex. One of my favorite books, so funny (at one point they accidentally incite a gay orgy) with a hint of melancholy and great sex. Also, it has one of the most unique sex scenes I've ever read.

Unmasked by the Marquess by Cat Sebastian--a bisexual marquess makes a new friend in this young dandy in town. They kiss, and he thinks his friend is going to blackmail him... But the friend, Robin, turns out to be chamber maid in disguise! Except they're actually not a man or a woman, and don't want to live as a woman. It becomes as an FWB thing, but naturally our romantic hero falls in love and things become Fraught. Has one of my favorite "resentfully horny" moments, when Alistair is watching Robin from across the ballroom, and they pull a glove off with their teeth, and he's like "THAT IS IMPROPER" and wants to fuck them so bad.

A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall--Viola faked her death at Waterloo in order to live as her true self. Years later, she's pulled into helping her old best friend, the Duke of Gracewood, who's suffering from a chronic injury and severe depression following the battle. At first he doesn't recognize her... at first. Has an absolutely INCREDIBLE moment of recognition, and I really like that it's this romping old school type romance with a trans heroine.

Most Ardently by Gabe Cole Novoa--this one is actually a YA Pride and Prejudice retelling, highly recommend if you're open to it. In this case, the Lizzie character is actually Oliver, a trans boy, and he and Darcy fall in love--molly houses are included in this, which I really like. It's not super about historical accuracy, which I personally dgaf about, and it's very sweet and funny and warm. Also, the author is a trans man.

Queer Polyamory

Scandalous Passions by Nicola Davidson--FFM. A king's former mistress is sent away because the queen hates her, and is also asked to care for the king's ward. She and the ward begin to give in to their attraction, and at the same time their escort is this much-feared knight (who's really quite subby) who's been in love with the older heroine for years. And then he begins falling for the ward as well.... Super sexy medieval, with Dom/sub overtones.

Their Marchioness by Jess Michaels--A playwright is asked to a marquess and marchioness's home... Turns out he and the marchioness were in love before she was forced to marry the marquess. Fortunately, she and her husband are now very much in love, and he's basically gifting her a tryst with her old love for her birthday. Then he joins in... and it begins being more than sex. Has some bi awakening stuff.

M/F with Bi leads

The Perfect Crimes of Marian Hayes by Cat Sebastian--a standalone followup to Kit Webb. Percy's stepmother Marian is having a correspondence with a blackmailer, who unbeknownst to her is her odious husband's secret son. He ends up falling in love with her as they go back and forth with letters, so when she ends up in trouble and on the run, he comes to "save" her, only to find that Marian ain't that girl. Both leads are bi, and the sex is really cool and interesting because Marian doesn't like penetration due to trauma surrounding her pregnancy and labor. So she penetrates him (among other things) instead.

Hugo and The Maiden by S.M. LaViolette--a successful sex worker ends up being transported and washing ashore after a shipwreck. He's very snarky, but finds himself up against the vicar's uptight and uncompromising daughter--but he still has enemies lurking. Hugo is openly (for the day) bi and services both men and women. I really liked that even as he fell in love, his bisexuality wasn't like this background thing--he sees a guy he likes at one point and is basically like "if I wasn't taken......."

Any Duke in a Storm by Amalie Howard--a spy (who's also kind of a lady pirate) ends up being attracted to her super rakish and slutty first mate. She's bisexual, and one of the women on her ship is her former hookup (still her friend), which I like.

Melissa and The Vicar by S.M. LaViolette--a madame goes to a small village to recuperate and de-stress, and ends up falling in love with a virginal vicar she's so sure she can't have. Melissa is bisexual, and I thiiink a woman she used to be involved with is on the page? Her hero, Magnus, kind of has a "oh shit am I bi?" moment when Melissa tries to fake him out by pretending she's hooking up with Hugo. To be fair, everyone wants to fuck Hugo.

In Which Margo Halifax Earns Her Shocking Reputation--a scandalous woman begins chasing her sister (who ran off with a Bad Man) along with her brother's best friend, who's secretly in love with her. Margo is bi, and her relationships with women are one reason why she's considered scandalous~.

#romance novel blogging #romance novels #book recs #i wish there were more f/f recs :/#that's not by design but f/f romance is verrrrry much underrepresented and a lot of the f/f historicals i've read are just...#light on plot #and i'm someone who needs conflict

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forsythiaproductions · 1 year

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This is the entire premise of the game. Hugo's "unintentionally" gay thoughts are the sole reason why this game exists.

We had to make it JUST so he can figure it out.

Please figure it out 💀

Of Sense and Soul: A Queer Victorian Romance Game 💌 Follow our Kickstarter (Launching July 12th!) Play our demo | Get our newsletter

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triviareads · 1 month

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do you have more recommendations for Penelope featherington-coded fmcs? both from the book version and the show version.

Callie from Nine Rules to Break When Romancing a Rake by Sarah MacLean: She's fat/plus-sized and a spinster who realizes she never tried to stand out or grab life by the horns (by herself!) so she comes up with a list of scandalous things she wants to do, the first of which is asking a notorious rake for her first kiss. Ralston is immediately intrigued and soon becomes OBSESSED (no seriously the way he's just so deeply into her body is everything) as he helps her accomplish all the things on her list. There is a very hot carriage scene and (an actual) mirror scene.

Grace from When The Duke Was Wicked by Lorraine Heath: The show!polin dynamic basically; Grace is a redhead with a certain body insecurity who asks her older friend to help her find a suitor who truly loves her. Lovingdon is a jaded rake Who Can Never Love Again after the death of his first wife and son, but that doesn't stop him from doing all these sweet things for Grace and debauching her in every corner while informing her that a man who truly loved her would do all of this... which isn't him. obvi.

Penelope from The Duchess Hunt by Lorraine Heath: Not just because her name is Penelope, but the pining vibes in this are impeccable; she's the duke's secretary and this dumb dumb man is making her find him a wife while being all "hm the ideal wife would look like Penelope, talk like Penelope, smell like Penelope.... I WONDER WHAT THAT MEANS". Anyway she's so turned on by a hand touch that she masturbates in his carriage and LATER ON TELLS HIM and then HE GETS HER OFF IN THE CARRIAGE.

Jane from The Truth About Cads and Dukes by Elisa Braden: More plus/size-fat rep and she's a wallflower; she's compromised by a guy name Colin (lol) and Colin's older duke brother Harrison steps in to marry her. He's super icy and cold, but he's actually wildly obsessed with Jane's bod after 10 seconds of marriage and once she realizes that, she uses it to her advantage by means of low-cut gowns and erotically stripping her gloves :D

Sarah from Temptations of a Wallflower by Eva Leigh: Sarah is a wallflower who moonlights as infamous erotica writer The Lady of Dubious Quality, but like, instead of ragging on other women, she's actually doing her part to educate women about sex through her stories and provide entertaining material. The hero Jeremy is a vicar who's charged with hunting down The Lady Of Dubious Quality, and unknowingly ends up falling for, and then marrying her. It's also really cute that as Sarah falls in love with Jeremy, her erotica becomes more and more romantic.

#sarah maclean #elisa braden #eva leigh #lorraine heath #romance novels #historical romance #ask #bridgerton #penelope featherington #book recs

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