Jerry Cooke
5⭐️ - What if A Knight's Tale was sapphic and had dragons and drunk tea parties? Sounds like an amazing time and it was!
"Today you are a knight.. and today, you are MY knight"
Gwen hates that she has to hide that she's taken over her father's blacksmithing business, because god forbid somebody buy a sword made by a woman. She's also quite like joust, as it happens, just to know that she can. Some things aren't worth getting burnt at the stake over though, she decides, and so when she wins the first round of the tourney under the disguise of Sir Gawain, she doesn't intend on doing a second one!
Lady Isobelle is somewhat invested in the outcome of said tourney, her guardian having placed her hand as the prize to be won. As somebody who has always been able to talk her way out of any situation, being placed in this situation just won't do. Therefore, her discovery of Gwen's knightly ambitions comes just at the time, because it would be rather lovely to have her win instead of one of the lecherous old knights.. she just needs to convince Gwen to play along!
This isn't a world that accepts a woman doing a man's job though and so freedom for Isobelle comes with a severe risk of persecution for Gwen. Something that becomes more and more difficult to stomach as feelings grow between the two.
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I'm not sure I've ever grinned so much during the first couple of hours of an audiobook. This truly does give A Knight's Tale vibes in the best way, but while there's a lot of similarities in the overarching concept, the execution done in a way that really makes it stand alone. I take my hat off to Helen Keeley and Barbara Rosenblat, because they do a phenomenal job here - giving perfect accents and wonderful Lady Whistledown vibes during the prologue and scattered narration segments.
Isobelle's queer awakening is a thing of beauty, with so much yearning and awkwardness. The tentative questioning and hinting that she and Isobelle both do to determine if they're both into women is as face-palmy as it is fun and affirming. It's some of the most fun I've had with a romance story in ages. The whole cast is amazing though and the Power of Female Friendship vibes are truly flawless. I couldn't ask for more.. except for desiring a sequel, which I'm happy to say we're getting this year!
5⭐️ - What if A Knight's Tale was sapphic and had dragons and drunk tea parties? Sounds like an amazing time and it was!
"Today you are a knight.. and today, you are MY knight"
Gwen hates that she has to hide that she's taken over her father's blacksmithing business, because god forbid somebody buy a sword made by a woman. She's also quite like joust, as it happens, just to know that she can. Some things aren't worth getting burnt at the stake over though, she decides, and so when she wins the first round of the tourney under the disguise of Sir Gawain, she doesn't intend on doing a second one!
Lady Isobelle is somewhat invested in the outcome of said tourney, her guardian having placed her hand as the prize to be won. As somebody who has always been able to talk her way out of any situation, being placed in this situation just won't do. Therefore, her discovery of Gwen's knightly ambitions comes just at the time, because it would be rather lovely to have her win instead of one of the lecherous old knights.. she just needs to convince Gwen to play along!
This isn't a world that accepts a woman doing a man's job though and so freedom for Isobelle comes with a severe risk of persecution for Gwen. Something that becomes more and more difficult to stomach as feelings grow between the two.
---------------------------
I'm not sure I've ever grinned so much during the first couple of hours of an audiobook. This truly does give A Knight's Tale vibes in the best way, but while there's a lot of similarities in the overarching concept, the execution done in a way that really makes it stand alone. I take my hat off to Helen Keeley and Barbara Rosenblat, because they do a phenomenal job here - giving perfect accents and wonderful Lady Whistledown vibes during the prologue and scattered narration segments.
Isobelle's queer awakening is a thing of beauty, with so much yearning and awkwardness. The tentative questioning and hinting that she and Isobelle both do to determine if they're both into women is as face-palmy as it is fun and affirming. It's some of the most fun I've had with a romance story in ages. The whole cast is amazing though and the Power of Female Friendship vibes are truly flawless. I couldn't ask for more.. except for desiring a sequel, which I'm happy to say we're getting this year!
4.75⭐️ - A powerful retelling of Arthurian legend, with sweeping sapphic romance, and elemental magic!
"It made me angry, I realised – the gaping mouths and knowing looks between neighbours, not an ounce of sympathy among them. Morgan’s grief might be loud, it might be furious, or even ugly, all things we women had been taught to circumvent, but at least she was honest about how she felt. She wore her heart on her sleeve. I wished I could be a little bit more like her in that."
Lady Viviane's arrival in Camelot comes with much expectation from her father about gaining alliance through marriage with Arthur, but she's truly no desire to marry to prince. In fact, she's far more interested in spending time with the wild and adventurous Morgan. Having gained tutelage from the mysterious Merlin, the two begin to dream of charting their own course with their new power, but life in this court is not so easy and freedom has a price.
As machinations of kingdoms being danger, elemental magics cause chaos and grow a threat to the grown, and Viviane and Morgan must support each other and their closest allies to survive the darkness that emerges. With so much stacked against them, it becomes hard to know if a future is possible in this realm, or even in the Otherworld.
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Menzies brings her love of lore and legend to bear in this beautiful and bittersweet retelling. It was such a powerful story of these two women (three, if you include Guin, who also had a pretty hard time of it) carving their own path in this incredibly patriarchal world they lived in. The way that Merlin is given a treatment as a powerful but devious letch, flipping that common assumption of him as a wise and benevolent sorcerer, is really satisfying, honestly. I very much enjoyed him getting his comeuppance.
Viv and Morgan don't have the easiest relationship at times and the way that they react to things is intensely human - feelings of jealousy, betrayal, etc. forming breaks in their interaction with each other, but always finding their way back ultimately. The way in which Viv allowed Morgan space and grace to be open with her feelings was really affirming - being reminded that it's okay to break down sometimes. I also enjoyed the truth to their respective desires - their eventual paths being ones that felt right for their respective drives and specialities.
A really wonderful fantasy debut and such a well written tale.
4.75⭐️ - A powerful retelling of Arthurian legend, with sweeping sapphic romance, and elemental magic!
"It made me angry, I realised – the gaping mouths and knowing looks between neighbours, not an ounce of sympathy among them. Morgan’s grief might be loud, it might be furious, or even ugly, all things we women had been taught to circumvent, but at least she was honest about how she felt. She wore her heart on her sleeve. I wished I could be a little bit more like her in that."
Lady Viviane's arrival in Camelot comes with much expectation from her father about gaining alliance through marriage with Arthur, but she's truly no desire to marry to prince. In fact, she's far more interested in spending time with the wild and adventurous Morgan. Having gained tutelage from the mysterious Merlin, the two begin to dream of charting their own course with their new power, but life in this court is not so easy and freedom has a price.
As machinations of kingdoms being danger, elemental magics cause chaos and grow a threat to the grown, and Viviane and Morgan must support each other and their closest allies to survive the darkness that emerges. With so much stacked against them, it becomes hard to know if a future is possible in this realm, or even in the Otherworld.
----------------
Menzies brings her love of lore and legend to bear in this beautiful and bittersweet retelling. It was such a powerful story of these two women (three, if you include Guin, who also had a pretty hard time of it) carving their own path in this incredibly patriarchal world they lived in. The way that Merlin is given a treatment as a powerful but devious letch, flipping that common assumption of him as a wise and benevolent sorcerer, is really satisfying, honestly. I very much enjoyed him getting his comeuppance.
Viv and Morgan don't have the easiest relationship at times and the way that they react to things is intensely human - feelings of jealousy, betrayal, etc. forming breaks in their interaction with each other, but always finding their way back ultimately. The way in which Viv allowed Morgan space and grace to be open with her feelings was really affirming - being reminded that it's okay to break down sometimes. I also enjoyed the truth to their respective desires - their eventual paths being ones that felt right for their respective drives and specialities.
A really wonderful fantasy debut and such a well written tale.
4.5⭐️ - A sweet academic love story, with sexy pottery lessons, and a lot of yearning for a tweed clad professor!
Audrey has dedicated her life to academics and is thrilled to finally have an assistant professor position, albeit temporary, back at her alma mater. It brings back more than just nostalgia when she finds that her new office is directly opposite Dr. Michelle Thompson, the British professor who gave her the push into academics when she studied here.. and was her first burning crush.
The stand-offish woman she encounters now though is nothing like the passionate educator she knew as a student. In the decade since Audrey left, Michelle has experienced divorce and a stalling academic career, with nothing being published, unengaged students, and constant push backs against her proposed Women in Art class. Despite her initial anger at Audrey swooping in with all her enthusiasm and being handed that exact class that she was denied for so many years, she can't stop wanting to be around her.
As Audrey's enthusiasm reinvigorates something in Michelle, the two find themselves becoming closer and closer. Age gaps and workplace politics are a big concern though and with Andrey's place in the faculty a tenuous one, how much would the two risk for a relationship?
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I love an academic romance, not least because I work for a university, and this perfectly captured the academic politics, the need to keep things under-wraps, and the frustrations regarding advancement. Lacey has rendered with great detail this small college campus experience and the halls of academia and it felt really nice. The wintery environment in Vermont, trail walking and animals, it was all so wholesome. There was also really lovely descriptions the art and discussion of art history that fit with the theming perfectly.
Audrey and Michelle's yearning for each other was palpable at times and their healthy communication and talking things through properly was really affirming to see. One of the things that I regularly find with sapphic romances vs straight ones is that there's so much less of this frustrating misunderstanding and it makes it so much more lovely to read.
4.5⭐️ - A sweet academic love story, with sexy pottery lessons, and a lot of yearning for a tweed clad professor!
Audrey has dedicated her life to academics and is thrilled to finally have an assistant professor position, albeit temporary, back at her alma mater. It brings back more than just nostalgia when she finds that her new office is directly opposite Dr. Michelle Thompson, the British professor who gave her the push into academics when she studied here.. and was her first burning crush.
The stand-offish woman she encounters now though is nothing like the passionate educator she knew as a student. In the decade since Audrey left, Michelle has experienced divorce and a stalling academic career, with nothing being published, unengaged students, and constant push backs against her proposed Women in Art class. Despite her initial anger at Audrey swooping in with all her enthusiasm and being handed that exact class that she was denied for so many years, she can't stop wanting to be around her.
As Audrey's enthusiasm reinvigorates something in Michelle, the two find themselves becoming closer and closer. Age gaps and workplace politics are a big concern though and with Andrey's place in the faculty a tenuous one, how much would the two risk for a relationship?
-----------------
I love an academic romance, not least because I work for a university, and this perfectly captured the academic politics, the need to keep things under-wraps, and the frustrations regarding advancement. Lacey has rendered with great detail this small college campus experience and the halls of academia and it felt really nice. The wintery environment in Vermont, trail walking and animals, it was all so wholesome. There was also really lovely descriptions the art and discussion of art history that fit with the theming perfectly.
Audrey and Michelle's yearning for each other was palpable at times and their healthy communication and talking things through properly was really affirming to see. One of the things that I regularly find with sapphic romances vs straight ones is that there's so much less of this frustrating misunderstanding and it makes it so much more lovely to read.
4.5⭐️ - A land built on stories, a couple fated to kill each other over and over again - a beguiling sapphic romance!
The tale has been repeated so many times, the witch ensures the knight, they fall in love for real, then the knight kills the witch. It's immutable and integral to the Isle itself, where these reincarnations and reoccurrences control the shape of the land itself.
Simran is the latest witch, living a secretive life working as a scribe, passing powers of tales to people through magical ink. Vina is the knight who will be her destiny, sequestered in the Queen's court, the daughter of a minister, she bucks against the chains of expectations upon her. When the two meet by fate, they deny their tale for as long as they can, but the forces are too great to resist and soon they are falling for each other hard.
Determined to break this cycle and not be forced to end each other's lives, the two must do the unthinkable - re-write the tale itself to ensure a future for themselves together and to free everyone from this forced repetition of suffering.
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This was an utterly beautiful story with such sumptuous world building. The exploration of the power of stories was really well done, a curious mix of anthropomorphism, apotheosis, and metamorphoses - a world in which these tales can literally shape the world, empower individuals with gifts, change them physically, and force them to fill rolls.
Simran and Vina are complex characters with a lot of trauma informing their behaviours - profoundly human in their feelings, in this very fantastical world. The larger cast is similarly well written, from Simran's long time companion Hari, to the antagonistic assassin stalking these 'Incarnates'.
It was one of those wonderful cases where the story really didn't go the direction I thought it would and it was all the more rewarding for it!
4.5⭐️ - A land built on stories, a couple fated to kill each other over and over again - a beguiling sapphic romance!
The tale has been repeated so many times, the witch ensures the knight, they fall in love for real, then the knight kills the witch. It's immutable and integral to the Isle itself, where these reincarnations and reoccurrences control the shape of the land itself.
Simran is the latest witch, living a secretive life working as a scribe, passing powers of tales to people through magical ink. Vina is the knight who will be her destiny, sequestered in the Queen's court, the daughter of a minister, she bucks against the chains of expectations upon her. When the two meet by fate, they deny their tale for as long as they can, but the forces are too great to resist and soon they are falling for each other hard.
Determined to break this cycle and not be forced to end each other's lives, the two must do the unthinkable - re-write the tale itself to ensure a future for themselves together and to free everyone from this forced repetition of suffering.
---------------
This was an utterly beautiful story with such sumptuous world building. The exploration of the power of stories was really well done, a curious mix of anthropomorphism, apotheosis, and metamorphoses - a world in which these tales can literally shape the world, empower individuals with gifts, change them physically, and force them to fill rolls.
Simran and Vina are complex characters with a lot of trauma informing their behaviours - profoundly human in their feelings, in this very fantastical world. The larger cast is similarly well written, from Simran's long time companion Hari, to the antagonistic assassin stalking these 'Incarnates'.
It was one of those wonderful cases where the story really didn't go the direction I thought it would and it was all the more rewarding for it!
4.75⭐️ - All the sapphic yearning, respectful boundaries, and empathetic help toward healing!
Hallie has really experienced a roller coaster lately; her best friend moved home, then her parent's sold the inn she'd grown up in, then said best friend fell in love with the new owner, and now they're living together and Hallie is alone again. Despite the brave face she puts on, she's really at a loss.
Brynn has been finding herself after dumping her horrible chewing fiancé grant. A perpetual people pleaser, she's more than happy to help Hallie out when Reese needs to step back from managing the inn and Hallie is truly the best person she could ask to learn from, in more ways that one. She's happy in this new role, though wishes that her sweet but overbearing parents would give her little space.
With the two spending so much time together, both during work, and in tipsy nights of watching TV and sharing truths, they quickly become close. They both want the best for each other and so when they cajole each other to dip their toes back into dating, they've got lots of opinions about the potential suiters. What neither of them expect is to find themselves getting jealous.
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I was so happy to return to Stoneport and get some time with Hallie and Brynn. I completely fell in love with Hallie during the first book and Brynn is such a sweet and supportive person - they work so well together. There's so many threads of story continued here, from Hallie, Reese, and Brynn's families, to Sydney's new career, and it's all woven in such an elegant way to give that context in a satisfying way without taking too much away from the focus on Hallie and Brynn.
It was so cute seeing them falling for each other and really entertaining how they tried to hide it from the very suspicious Sydney, who could see the change in her best friend quite easily. I really love the trope (if you can call it that) of the couple from the first book rooting for the two friends in the second to get together. Their little circle of friends is adorable and although there aren't any obvious candidates for a third book, I still secretly hope!
4.75⭐️ - All the sapphic yearning, respectful boundaries, and empathetic help toward healing!
Hallie has really experienced a roller coaster lately; her best friend moved home, then her parent's sold the inn she'd grown up in, then said best friend fell in love with the new owner, and now they're living together and Hallie is alone again. Despite the brave face she puts on, she's really at a loss.
Brynn has been finding herself after dumping her horrible chewing fiancé grant. A perpetual people pleaser, she's more than happy to help Hallie out when Reese needs to step back from managing the inn and Hallie is truly the best person she could ask to learn from, in more ways that one. She's happy in this new role, though wishes that her sweet but overbearing parents would give her little space.
With the two spending so much time together, both during work, and in tipsy nights of watching TV and sharing truths, they quickly become close. They both want the best for each other and so when they cajole each other to dip their toes back into dating, they've got lots of opinions about the potential suiters. What neither of them expect is to find themselves getting jealous.
---------------
I was so happy to return to Stoneport and get some time with Hallie and Brynn. I completely fell in love with Hallie during the first book and Brynn is such a sweet and supportive person - they work so well together. There's so many threads of story continued here, from Hallie, Reese, and Brynn's families, to Sydney's new career, and it's all woven in such an elegant way to give that context in a satisfying way without taking too much away from the focus on Hallie and Brynn.
It was so cute seeing them falling for each other and really entertaining how they tried to hide it from the very suspicious Sydney, who could see the change in her best friend quite easily. I really love the trope (if you can call it that) of the couple from the first book rooting for the two friends in the second to get together. Their little circle of friends is adorable and although there aren't any obvious candidates for a third book, I still secretly hope!
4.75⭐️ - A super cute winter sapphic hockey romance, with tons of trauma healing!
"If they can't see how incredible you are, that is their failure, not yours"
JT is back in her home town following her Olympic victory for Team USA, but as the only athlete in her family of artists, nobody really seems to care about her accomplishments or show up for her. She's thankful to be able to fall back on the friendship of her best friend though.. and his cute sister, Ali.
Ali is newly divorced and despite having realised she was bi- a while ago, she's never had a chance to be with another woman and so the flirty and fun JT turns her head in a major way. Aiming to have a good time together and to beat not just Ali's ex- but also JT's siblings, the two team up for the town's holiday contest. As they get closer, it becomes clear that her childhood crush has turned into something much stronger, but can JT really stay in Hart's Landing with all this family trauma and meddling around?
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This was such a cute story and I absolutely adored the way Ali supported JT. Having spent so much of her life feeling like she had less value than her family, Ali's unflinching holding up of her worth was beautiful - seeing her for the kind and sweet friend person she truly was. I had several moments of being brought to tears by the way Ali revealed the community's love for JT's achievements, and how that love gave JT the strength to express her feelings to her family and heal those relationships.
This had so much small town charm, affirming queer growth, all the healing and finding of oneself that you could want and it made me so happy.
4.75⭐️ - A super cute winter sapphic hockey romance, with tons of trauma healing!
"If they can't see how incredible you are, that is their failure, not yours"
JT is back in her home town following her Olympic victory for Team USA, but as the only athlete in her family of artists, nobody really seems to care about her accomplishments or show up for her. She's thankful to be able to fall back on the friendship of her best friend though.. and his cute sister, Ali.
Ali is newly divorced and despite having realised she was bi- a while ago, she's never had a chance to be with another woman and so the flirty and fun JT turns her head in a major way. Aiming to have a good time together and to beat not just Ali's ex- but also JT's siblings, the two team up for the town's holiday contest. As they get closer, it becomes clear that her childhood crush has turned into something much stronger, but can JT really stay in Hart's Landing with all this family trauma and meddling around?
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This was such a cute story and I absolutely adored the way Ali supported JT. Having spent so much of her life feeling like she had less value than her family, Ali's unflinching holding up of her worth was beautiful - seeing her for the kind and sweet friend person she truly was. I had several moments of being brought to tears by the way Ali revealed the community's love for JT's achievements, and how that love gave JT the strength to express her feelings to her family and heal those relationships.
This had so much small town charm, affirming queer growth, all the healing and finding of oneself that you could want and it made me so happy.
4.5⭐️- A sweet and affirming romance, with some great fake dating leading to karmic retribution!
Sydney's life is kind of falling apart. First she walks in and finds that her long-term boyfriend is cheating on her in the place they share when she comes back from a competition. Then she suffers a career ending injury that puts a sharp end to her place in the professional tennis circuit just before Wimbledon.So she's taking some time to recover back in her hometown, staying in one of the places she feels safest; with her best-friend Hallie at her parent's Stone's Throw Inn. Giving herself permission to wallow on the sofa for a week, the last thing she expects the day she finally manages to motivate herself to get up and shower is to have her cheating ex- Grant's sister walk in on her.
It turns out that Reese has just bought the inn, Hallie's parents having sold it without even bothering to tell Hallie it was happening, which is an issue in and of itself. The unexpected surprises keep coming when Grant comes looking for Reese that same day and shows up as well - making certain assumptions upon finding his sister with his ex-, the latter just wearing a towel. Given that Grant is getting married soon to the girl he cheated on Sydney with and attending those pre-wedding events together would be helpful to make Grant uncomfortable and get some gossip, neither woman feels like disabusing Grant of his assumption that they're a couple.
As the pre-wedding events get underway, it quickly becomes clear that Sydney was investing her emotions in the wrong sibling all along!
This was such a sweet small today romance and I adored Sydney and Reese together so much. They have a really great supportive and empathetic dynamic and it's so affirming to see. Hallie is great too and I'm so excited she gets her own book next!
4.5⭐️- A sweet and affirming romance, with some great fake dating leading to karmic retribution!
Sydney's life is kind of falling apart. First she walks in and finds that her long-term boyfriend is cheating on her in the place they share when she comes back from a competition. Then she suffers a career ending injury that puts a sharp end to her place in the professional tennis circuit just before Wimbledon.So she's taking some time to recover back in her hometown, staying in one of the places she feels safest; with her best-friend Hallie at her parent's Stone's Throw Inn. Giving herself permission to wallow on the sofa for a week, the last thing she expects the day she finally manages to motivate herself to get up and shower is to have her cheating ex- Grant's sister walk in on her.
It turns out that Reese has just bought the inn, Hallie's parents having sold it without even bothering to tell Hallie it was happening, which is an issue in and of itself. The unexpected surprises keep coming when Grant comes looking for Reese that same day and shows up as well - making certain assumptions upon finding his sister with his ex-, the latter just wearing a towel. Given that Grant is getting married soon to the girl he cheated on Sydney with and attending those pre-wedding events together would be helpful to make Grant uncomfortable and get some gossip, neither woman feels like disabusing Grant of his assumption that they're a couple.
As the pre-wedding events get underway, it quickly becomes clear that Sydney was investing her emotions in the wrong sibling all along!
This was such a sweet small today romance and I adored Sydney and Reese together so much. They have a really great supportive and empathetic dynamic and it's so affirming to see. Hallie is great too and I'm so excited she gets her own book next!