Plot Trysts

I swear the Grand Palace on the Thames generates more marriages than mid-sized liberal arts colleges in Ohio. Our latest couple is a reserved and honorable duke and a street-smart actress with less generational wealth and a bigger age gap than you may be used to. It's a fun addition to the series, but Meg and Laine disagree over which age gap has been the biggest deal.

Marriage of convenience with agreement to produce an heir after a dumb ruination has never been so sexy. We had a lot of fun with this one, and we think you will too.

A kidnapped earth woman abandoned by her cruel abductors is rescued by her soulmate, who is basically an Avatar with genitalia. I don't even know, you guys.

Val and Caro are a second chance romance we're totally on board with! We were super impressed with how deliberate and well designed many of the scenes and plot points were in this one as well. Now if only it had a title that made it stand out so we could remember how much we liked it.

The second book in the Spoiler Alert series builds on the super fun universe of the first book in a way we both found extremely charming. It takes a while for this to go from adversaries to friends to lovers, but the payoff is excellent.

If anyone knows what the fairy tale is in this one please tell us because it's driving Laine crazy. Regardless, we very much enjoyed this sunshine/grump book with a no-nonsense heroine and her satanic cat.

Meg and Laine are always here for friends to lovers and sexy lessons, so you know we enjoyed the heck out of this one. Ana Maria has a level of independence rarely seen in romance novel heroines and both of them have a mentality toward sex and relationships that we found very refreshing. 

First of all, I can not be held responsible for keeping track of Amanda Quick/Jayne Castle's noms de plume. Meg has a lot of affection for the romantic-couple-solves-mystery, but in space! thing this book has going on. Laine wishes it made more sense and/or that the romance was given more development. Marriage of convenience is fun trope, you just have to know what you're getting into. 

BRB going to law school to become a divorce attorney, then learning how to time travel and make fictional universes real so I can FINALLY GET LORD INGRAM HIS DIVORCE. This book is very good, we discuss where the series is going, we rave about the character growth. Did I mention Lord Ingram is an archeologist and spy who is still married?

Kissing lessons, house parties, and women upsetting the patriarchy are all right up our alley, and this book has all of them! Laine quibbled a bit over some of the characterization and plot points, but Meg loved the dynamic between the main characters completely. Now if only we understood why her mom was THE WORST.

The premise of this book is perfect. It's basically a gender-swapped Anastasia which hit us right in the feels, and our heroes get to spend a surprising amount of time alone together given the time period. We're not complaining.

Laine and Meg have a difference of opinion on this one. Meg admits to a bias toward Amanda Quick and all of her other noms de plume, which Laine lacks. Laine admits to expecting a very different book based on the novella, and Meg had read this before. Scooby Doo, plucky women in consulting, and sassy best friends are all topics of conversation for this one.

We both thought this was a cute concept, even if Meg is a self-proclaimed Wine Grinch. We would have loved a bit more from both of these characters, but the ending makes it worth the read.

Not only does April get to go out with a hot celebrity from her favorite TV show, it turns out he's secretly been her online BFF all along. Olivia Dade is a great writer and this story is VERY well crafted. Laine was a little bothered by their poor communication skills, but the ending is adorable enough to make up for it.

Laine and Meg talk about kissing your future wife next to your cousin’s body, very stupid nicknames, and familial justice. Buckle up, this one is wild.

Meg and Laine gush about perfect books, talk about what it means to be ruined, and don't question what keeps happening to their clothing even a little bit.

Meg and Laine talk about doll funerals, non-penetrative sex, and science that isn’t botany.

Laine and Meg talk about wedding tropes and scars. Also cats.

This book is so full of tropes there's no way we got them all. We both agree this is light reading with great cooperation and heat between the main characters,.but disagree on whether or not that's a good thing.

This bachelor-esque tale was right up Meg's alley, and we both loved the way these men fell in love. The author does a great job outlining the trigger warnings, and we suggest you read them.

Laine and Meg go back to the beginning with the Mating Habits of Scoundrels to see where it all began. We love a good road trip romance, but this book has a few too many of our pet peeves to be a favorite. The series premise remains excellent, and we'll definitely be reading more Lorret.

Laine and Meg are joined by special guest Natalie to discuss the most recent in the Grand Palace on the Thames series. The series' charm remains as strong as the heroes and we definitely recommend this one.

Somehow Laura Lee Guhrke manages to take some of our least favorite tropes and turn them into a downright charming book with complex and consistent characters. It's hot, too!

This Fairytale retelling hits all the right spots for us. Whimsical and funny with two characters who cannot stop making out? Mirror mirror on the wall, that's our favorite thing of all!

Laine and Meg some of our favorite outtakes, romance musings, and excerpts from our conversations with the Lit Wallflowers!