Oh, this book. I thought I had my favorite books of the year all figured out, and then emmalita came around saying the newest Milan was awesome. I really didn’t like the first in the Cyclone series, but I’m trusting of such high praise. And it didn’t let me down. This is story of Maria and Jay. Maria and Jay have actually been friends for years, unbeknownst to both of them, on the internet. They meet for the first time due to a mutual friend […]
These are my Fu*k Off shoes.
Courtney Milan has reminded me why she is one of the best romance writers currently publishing. With Hold Me, she has stepped outside traditional romance characters, but tells a beautifuly traditional romance story. Both protagonists are people of color. Maria is Latina and Jay is Thai. Maria is a trans woman and Jay is bi. It matters and it doesn’t. It matters to them as individuals, it does not matter to them as a couple or to the story. The story is a hate to love, […]
“He uses invisible radiation to turn himself into an asshole.”
The trouble with being a Courtney Milan Fan (with a capital F) is that you rate her romances on a scale that exists independently of all other romances. It would be a shifted bell curve, except that you don’t get to actually start her scale at 2 and end it in 6, so you have to pretend that it’s the same 1-5 as everyone else. What this means is that, when you’re grading on the CMS (Courtney Milan Scale) sometimes you like the book, but […]
“Experience tells me that fiction is fiction and that hope leads to disappointment.”
When I reviewed Anna and the French Kiss I mentioned that while I would consider that book New Adult, I still had a tough time being invested in the romantic life of high school seniors. College, fine, that works for me. So when I reviewed the Contemporary/New Adult The Year We Fell Down I had no trouble with the age of the characters or believing their life in college. Which is what I kept thinking about when I settled on a rating of three stars […]
Note to Self: Always Trust Courtney Milan!
I admit, even though I absolutely adore everything I’ve read by Courtney Milan, I had a teeny moment of hesitation about picking up Trade Me. I’m usually not interested in contemporary romance, and “New Adult” as a genre name irrationally bugs me. I’m so glad I decided to check out the first chapter when she posted it on her website, though, because I was instantly hooked. And of course the full book was amazing too. I should never have had a doubt.
Courtney Milan does it again. Now with New Adult
4.5 stars Disclaimer! I was given an ARC of this through NetGalley in return for a fair and unbiased review. Of course, it being a Courtney Milan book, I had also already pre-ordered it, because I will buy anything she writes, even if said thing is a scientific treatise on spiders and cockroaches (the things that creep my out the most). If Ms. Milan ever reads this – please don’t ever write a book like that. I will buy it, but I might not like […]