Confession Time! I read romance novels. There I said it. Oh I feel like a huge weight is off my shoulders; no need to hide my dark habit in the corner.

Okay sarcasm aside, I do not understand the bashing accompanying this genre. Normally when I explain I enjoy the occasionally historical romance (my personal favorites are Regency Romances) I get weird looks and the phrase “really?” I used to feel the need to justify my enjoyment of what one of my grandmothers called “smut.” (The other grandma reads them with gusto!) I said things such as “well they are easy reads” or “sometimes my brain just needs a rest.” Both of these statements are true but the underlying reason that I read one to two (to four) romances a month is because I LIKE THEM!
There I said it. I have found that most people who pass judgment on this genre (and usually any genre) are individuals who have never read one. Sometimes they have read one they hated and judge all romance books by this one unfortunate experience. I have also heard the “these set up unrealistic expectations of love.” I would argue that most fiction can set unrealistic expectations and some of the self-help fall into this category as well. After all it has taken me years to accept I will not be receiving my letter from Hogwarts and must remain a muggle but I am okay. (Not that I would not pick out a wand tomorrow if I learned the owl delivering my letter simply got lost for years!)
The two books I read this month are not great literature. One was a super fun read; the other not so much. Here is a little background on both.

Say Yes to the Marquess is Tessa Dare’s second book in her Castles Ever After series. This is a historical romance featuring Miss Cleo Whitmore who has been patiently waiting for her fiancé to return and marry her for eight years. She finally decides she is through after inheriting a castle. Unfortunately her fiancé’s brother, Rafe, does not want her to break the engagement and during several far-fetched antics they fall in love. My favorite part of this book is that Cleo has decided to open a brewery on her castle. In the end everyone is happy and she does begin to grow hops. All in all a pleasant way to spend a few hours.

While it is the second in the series these are standalone books. There are no characters from the first novel in this one. Feel free to read Dare’s series in whatever order you please.
Hannah Howel’s If He is Daring is the sixth book she has written involving the Wherlocke family. The Wherlocke’s all possess different traits/gifts which make them pseudo outcasts in Victorian society. In this book Lady Catrin enlists Sir Orion Wherlocke’s aid in rescuing her son after he is kidnapped by an evil uncle. I did not enjoy this story very much. There are parts of it which are very dark. There is childhood abuse and a drugged rape scene which turned my stomach and makes me unwilling to recommend this novel in the “fun smut” category. Overall the story ends happy (it is a romance) but it is not one that I will pick up again in the future.

Neither of these books has any listed challenges against them. To be very honest they are not popular enough to warrant a challenge.

Next week I will be reviewing a book a first learned about on the podcast “Stuff you Missed in History Class” Shades of Milk and Honey by Mary Robinette Kowal. Until then have a wonderful week and enjoy a good book!