Category Archives: Representation

Jeremiah by Jayce Ellis

Jeremiah Stewart’s sexuality is no one’s business. Not that he’s hiding it. When—if—he finds the right one, he’ll absolutely introduce him to Mom. But a late-night brush with a sexy stranger in too much lip gloss has him rethinking nearly everything… To Collin Galloway, direction is a four-letter word. Sure, he hates his job, he hates living with his parents and he really hates watching everyone move on without him. But he doesn’t know what he wants to do, long-term, and he won’t figure it out by thirsting over Jeremiah, the superhot, superintense paramedic who is suddenly everywhere Collin looks. When Jeremiah’s… Read more.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Homophobia & coming out themes
  • Parental infidelity mentioned
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Pregnancy mentioned (secondary character)
  • Emesis (off-page)
  • Allergic reaction
  • Physical assault (protagonist’s brother fights him when he comes out as gay)

If You Love Something by Jayce Ellis

As executive chef at one of the hottest restaurants in DC, DeShawn Franklin has almost everything he’s ever wanted. He’s well-known, his restaurant is Michelin starred and he can write his own ticket anywhere he wants. Until his grandmother calls him home and drops two 1) She has cancer and she’s not seeking treatment. 2) She’s willing half her estate to DeShawn’s ex-husband, Malik. Make that three bombshells. 3) That whole divorce thing? It didn’t quite go through. DeShawn and Malik are still married. And when DeShawn’s shady uncle contests Grandma… Read more.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Divorce discussed
  • Gambling addiction & gambling mentioned
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Grief & loss depiction
  • Death of a grandmother from terminal cancer (off-page)

Learned Reactions by Jayce Ellis

Carlton Monroe is finally getting his groove back. After a year playing dad to his nephew and sending him safely off to college, it’s back to his bachelor ways. But when his teenaged niece shows up on his doorstep looking for a permanent home, his plan comes to a screeching halt. Family is everything, and in the eyes of social services, a couple makes a better adoptive family than an overworked bachelor father. A fake relationship with his closest friend is the best way to keep his family together. If things between him and Deion are complicated, well, it only needs to last… Read more.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Homophobia
  • Fatal car accident recounted (secondary character)

Learned Behaviors by Jayce Ellis

Sending his daughter off to college is the proudest day of single dad JaQuan Reynolds’ life. Everything took a back seat to raising her—including his career. He has no idea what comes next, but his newfound freedom is quickly curtailed by a crash deadline at work and the uptight, hovering presence of consultant Matthew Donaldson. He’s surly and insufferably sexy, and Jaq’s ready to check him out and write him off—right up until a work assignment forces them together. Every day. From now until Thanksgiving. Work and fatherhood have been Matt’s whole world for years now… Read more.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Racism & homophobia

The Extraordinary Education of Nicholas Benedict by Trenton Lee Stewart

Nine-year-old Nicholas Benedict has more problems than most children his age. Not only is he an orphan with an unfortunate nose, but he also has narcolepsy, a condition that gives him terrible nightmares and makes him fall asleep at the worst possible moments. Now he’s being sent to a new orphanage, where he will encounter vicious bullies, selfish adults, strange circumstances and a mystery that could change his life forever. Luckily, he has one important thing in his favor: He’s a genius. On his quest to solve the mystery, Nicholas finds enemies around every corner, but also friends in unexpected places — and discovers along the way that the greatest puzzle of all is himself.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Nightmares & narcolepsy
  • Smoking mentioned
  • Death of a brother
  • Death of a parent
  • Near-drowning incident
  • Bullying

Savage Blooms by S.T. Gibson

Adam has been in love with his best friend Nicola since college, but the closest he can come to admitting his feelings is inviting her to travel with him to Scotland in search of a legendary cave from his grandfather’s bedtime stories. When a storm washes out the road, Adam and Nicola find themselves at the mercy of Eileen, an eccentric aristocrat, and Finley, her brooding groundskeeper. The Americans quickly get more than they bargained for as they become entangled in Eileen and Finley’s world of mind games, kink, and ancient enchantment.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Forced marriage
  • Child abuse & neglect
  • Consensual non-consent
  • Suicidal ideation
  • Alcohol abuse
  • Traumatic childbirth & infertility mentioned
  • Near-drowning incident

An Education in Malice by S.T. Gibson

Deep in the forgotten hills of Massachusetts stands Saint Perpetua’s College. Isolated and ancient, it is not a place for timid girls. Here, secrets are currency, ambition is lifeblood, and strange ceremonies welcome students into the fold. On her first day of class, Laura Sheridan is thrust into an intense academic rivalry with the beautiful and enigmatic Carmilla. Together, they are drawn into the confidence of their demanding poetry professor, De Lafontaine, who holds her own dark obsession with Carmilla. But as their rivalry blossoms into something far more delicious, Laura must confront her own strange hungers. Tangled in a… Read more.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Racism, misogyny & homophobia
  • Alcohol consumption & smoking
  • Blood & gore depiction including emesis, blood-drinking, dead bodies & decapitation
  • Death of a mother recounted
  • Murder
  • Death of a kitten mentioned (brief)

In Your Dreams by Sarah Adams

Madison Walker left Rome, Kentucky, determined to prove she could make it in the culinary world. But after years of chasing success in New York, all she has to show for it is a shattered confidence and a desperate need for a fresh start. Coming home isn’t part of the plan—until an unexpected job offer lands in her lap, giving her a chance to rebuild everything she’s lost: the head chef position at a new farm-to-table restaurant in her hometown. The only catch? It comes from James Huxley, owner of Huxley Farm, her brother’s best friend… and the last person she wants… Read more.

Goodreads

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
  • Drug use (smoking)
  • Death of a parent mentioned

Dream On, Ramona Riley by Ashley Herring Blake

Once upon a time, Ramona Riley was a student at a prestigious art school, with dreams of landing in Hollywood as a costume designer to the stars. But after her father’s car accident, she had to quit and return to her small New Hampshire town, Clover Lake, to help take care of her younger sister. Twelve years later, Ramona is still working at the town’s café, all but given up on her dream. But when a big-budget romantic comedy comes to Clover Lake to film, she wonders if this could be her chance. There’s only one problem—Dylan Monroe, her first kiss and Hollywood’s favorite wild child—is the star. Dylan Monroe has… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Parental abandonment & neglect recounted
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Injury mentioned (parent)
  • Panic attacks

Make the Season Bright by Ashley Herring Blake

It’s been five years since Charlotte Donovan was ditched at the altar by her ex-fiancée, and she’s doing more than okay. Sure, her single mother never checks in, but she has her strings ensemble, the Rosalind Quartet, and her life in New York is a dream come true. As the holidays draw near, her ensemble mate Sloane persuades Charlotte and the rest of the quartet to spend Christmas with her family in Colorado—it is much cozier and quieter than Manhattan, and it would guarantee more practice time for the quartet’s upcoming tour. But when Charlotte arrives, she discovers that Sloane’s sister Adele also… Read more.

Goodreads • The Story Graph

Trigger and Content Warnings

  • Homophobia mentioned
  • Parental estrangement & neglect
  • Alcohol consumption
  • Panic attacks
  • Emesis