Early Book Review: Talk Bookish to Me by Kate Bromley

Talk Bookish to Me by Kate Bromley is a contemporary romance currently scheduled for release on May 25 2021. Kara Sullivan’s life is full of love—albeit fictional. As a bestselling romance novelist and influential bookstagrammer, she’s fine with getting her happily-ever-after fix between the covers of a book. But right now? Not only is Kara’s best friend getting married next week—which means big wedding stress—but the deadline for her next novel is looming, and she hasn’t written a single word. The last thing she needs is for her infuriating first love, Ryan Thompson, to suddenly appear in the wedding party. But Ryan’s unexpected arrival sparks a creative awakening in Kara that inspires the steamy historical romance she desperately needs to deliver. With her wedding duties intensifying, her deadline getting closer by the second and her bills not paying themselves, Kara knows there’s only one way for her to finish her book and to give her characters the ever-after they deserve. But can she embrace the unlikely, ruggedly handsome muse—who pushes every one of her buttons—to save the wedding, her career and, just maybe, write her own happy ending?

Talk Bookish to Me was a book that shook me out of a reading slump. I loved the fact that Kara and Ryan were both imperfect and accepted that about themselves and were generally comfortable in their own skin. They each had their own issues and awkward moments, and certainly each made their share of mistakes. I really enjoyed that they felt real, and owned their awkward moments and rolled with it. I am typically not a fan of second chance romance, but there is so much of them getting to know each other again and messing things up again that I did not get the feeling I missed something somewhere that I often get with them. I just enjoyed the characters so much- in their perfect imperfections. Even when I disagreed with their action, or lack there of, I could completely understand the choice and empathize with them. I would love to have people like Kara and Ryan- and the secondary characters that make up their friend group- in my life. Even better, with the realistic why they are written I fully expect that I could run into them if I were lucky enough to be in the right neighborhood. 

Talk Bookish to Me is a second chance romance that struck all the right chords with me. Humor and heart are well balanced and will keep the reader engaged.

Top Five Blogs by Fantasy Authors: Real Life from Those that Give Us Fantasy

Blogs are a great way for authors to keep fans and interested parties up to date with their current projects, industry information and any pieces of their personal life that they are willing to share. This is an essential tool for staying in touch with the people that buy their books, so they can keep their audience satisfied. Here are some blogs from fantasy authors that do a fantastic job in informing and entertaining their audience.

My particular favorite is Neil Gaiman. He blogs about author events as well as what he is currently doing on both a personal and professional level. He even offers a message board which he actively participates in, links, downloads and video clips either about him or that he thinks will interest his fans. He really makes it evident that he values the people that appreciate his work and seems to be a genuine and nice person.

Another author that keeps their fans informed with tidbits from both professional and personal life is C.E Murphy. As a fellow mother, I find her day-to-day life as entertaining as her posts about her writing, though I am eagerly awaiting her next release. Maybe it is just the joy of knowing that everyone has the same kind of crazy moments with a new baby in the house, trying to loose the related weight, and still trying to be a productive member of society that makes me love her Livejournal entries.

Piers Anthony keeps a blog like newsletter, so I am including it since he does update regularly and allows access to past entries. He talks about his daily life, the books he is reading and his professional life. I find it interesting to read his perspective and unique voice as he describes news and life as well as his opinions on both.

Richelle Mead keeps her fans updated through Livejournal. Her updates are generally about her professional life, book tours, release dates and signings. However, her in depth description of the event are great, and she has an obvious appreciation for the fans that make it all possible.

Caitlin P. Kiernan is another Livejournal user. She keeps fans up to date with a balance of personal and business information. There are a fair number of posts about news and information that the author just found interested or wants to share with her readers. Her varying user icons and images she places in some of her posts are worth a look.

There are many other authors from this genre that blog, but due to the format, style or lack of frequent updates simply did not make my top five. An example is Laurell K Hamilton's blog. I love her sense of humor and read her Facebook posts and the content of her blog would be worth a look, but I am simply not fond of having to scroll an embedded window to read blog posts.