Shelved: August 2018

I created an empty draft for this post and it sat empty until now which is after I already started writing September’s post. I’m trying. Anyway. August is another month that’s kind of blurry in the rear view. But here’s what I can tell you:

Things that were good:

Samantha Wayland. I really like her writing and it’s only made better by the fact that she writes about hockey. I love M/M hockey! More so than any other sport romance. I think football comes in second and every other sport comes in third. But hockey, there’s something just so right about it. Especially when the stories are set in the minor leagues. The possibilities!

Max Hawthorn. Good writing. Great at putting her government background to work. I’m learning I have a thing for the alphabet agencies and a very particular thing for inter-bureau romance.

Sloane Kennedy. I really don’t know why I’ve waited so long to pick up one of her titles. Good stuff.

Things that were not as good:

Lingerie. I am not into it. On anyone. In any situation. That I am party to. I don’t like it. But of course I ended the month having read two books with characters who felt more like themselves in satin and lace. The first one, there was no hint of it in the synopsis, so I was caught off guard. The second one was the second book in the series, so I was aware, but I kind of forgot. While I generally pass on books that seem like the character’s inclination will be a big part of the story, when it gets down to it, I view it the same as I do books with MCs whose BFFs are pushy and judgy and generally unappealing: It won’t kill me to read it, but I’m probably going to be frowning the whole way through.

Things that were bad:

HJ Welch. I honestly think they created the Men of Hidden Creek series so that they could ride the coattails of more seasoned writers. That isn’t wrong, exactly, but when there is an obvious gap in skill between the contributing writers, it throws the flow and atmosphere of the series off balance. The series has two seasons and I think it was part of Welch’s strategy for the first season to not have an explicitly stated reading order–not that I could find, anyway. This would increase the chance of someone reading two or more of the more polished titles and becoming invested in the series and grin-and-bearing their way through Welch’s when they got around to it. I accidentally read Welch’s Ashes, book 1 from season 2, first. It was not great, so I wasn’t holding out too much hope for the rest of the series, even though there was an author or two included that I’ve read and enjoyed. After I sorted which reading order I would follow for the first season, I made my way through most of it. I know I dropped one book, but, thankfully, I picked up Max Hawthorn before all was said and done. I ended up hopscotching through the second season by just opting not to read some books rather than reading and then dropping them. I’m sure it worked out for the best.

That’s all for now. Since September’s post already has words in its draft, it should not take the whole month to finish and publish, so maybe I’ll see you soon.