“Why am I so bad at titles?” –a blog post

Hi, everyone!

How is August treating you so far? I’m currently in the first stage of writing my thesis—I’m going to finish my Master’s degree on time even if it kills me. Boring stuff aside, let me just express how truly excited I am that Nick, Eri, and I are now co-blogging together. If all goes well, I hope to be posting something new every Thursday (and yes I know it’s Saturday today; baby steps and whatnot), mostly updates on my reading and/or mini-reviews. I’ve always planned to blog consistently; fingers crossed I’ll be able to do that on our spanking new blog. 

When I picked the books to talk about in this week’s post, I noticed that they had one thing in common: they all have the ‘older heroine, younger hero’ trope, or what you call “cougar romance”. I have a thing for big age difference in romance, but I admit I don’t read many books that featured older heroines. It’s definitely something I’m planning to rectify.

Anyway, onwards!

SINFUL DISTRACTION [★★★]

I first heard about London Hale from Nick; specifically speaking Nick told Eri and I about Daddy’s Best Friend, and even though I’m a big fan of the age gap trope, I was a little wary about the premise, especially since the heroine is merely 18. I gave that one a pass. However, out of curiosity, I picked up Sinful Temptation (which is honestly more my thing), and got hooked instantly. And yes, I ended up reading Daddy’s Best Friend and loving it, and proceeded to reading everything London Hale wrote.

What I love most about this book is its characters. Sinful Distraction is about Riley Nash, a 26 year old firefighter slash phone sex operator who’s in a relationship (do you call a phone sex arrangement a relationship? I do, in this case) with 42 year old mayor Kate Briscoe for a year. I love that Kate is a strong, independent woman with a high-powered career and that Riley loves her more for it. Their weekly phone calls are hot; Riley could dirty talk like nobody’s business, and when they finally meet face to face? *fans self*

BEARD IN MIND [★★★★]

Beard in Mind is one of my most anticipated reads, and I’m happy that it met my high expectations. Penny Reid’s strength is always in her characters; they are so distinct from each other and have their own strong personalities.

Beau Winston (24) is everyone’s favourite twin (sorry, Duane); he’s the kinder, more charming half of the Winston twins, and I love that we get to see more layers to Beau than his default flirt mode. Shelly Sullivan (30s; there’s no specific age stated for her but I reckon she’s in her early 30s) is a wonderful heroine. I love her blunt honesty and her prickly façade, and I love how underneath it all she’s actually a very passionate woman. She’s also a talented auto mechanic, even more than the Winston brothers. She tries so hard to get her OCD and fears under control, and I admire her efforts to be better so that she can be with her loved ones. This book makes me emotional because Beau and Shelly compliment each other so well. I love seeing them grow with each other and support each other throughout each struggle. This book to me feels a bit darker than its predecessors, probably because of the issues explored in the plot (OCD, self harm, loss), but there is also so much love and passion in this story between Beau and Shelly, Shelly and her brother Quinn, and also in the Winston family. Penny really outdid herself with this one.

THE SCANDAL OF IT ALL [★★★★]

Oh, this one is a surprise. I saw Sarah MacLean raved about this one and I trust her opinion. I was also immediately sold when I saw that it featured an older heroine because I rarely see older heroines in historical romance, so I bought the book.

Graciela, Duchess of Autenberry, is a 36 year old widow with grown stepchildren and daughter. I feel so much for her, for she is constantly snubbed by the society for her Spanish roots and nobody, saved her best friend, knows that her picture-perfect marriage was anything but. She follows her best friend to a sex club to finally “live a little”, and when things go haywire she finds herself rescued by her stepson’s best friend Colin, Lord Strickland.

I love the whole forbidden affair thing going on between Ela and Colin. Colin is 6 years younger than Ela and has been harbouring a crush on her ever since he’s known her, and it takes a lot of convincing to get Ela to take a chance on them. There is a whole lot of seduction going on, discreet encounters, a bit family drama, a boatload of angst, and just overall an entertaining read, which is great considering I can't get into the first book. I only wish we had gotten a lot more on the scandal part; when they decided to marry there wasn’t much of a scandal in the society, which doesn’t make sense considering how much Graciela was snubbed and the age difference between them.

To wrap up today’s post, I’m obliged to give a shout out to my favourite “cougar romance” book: Anne Calhoun’s Liberating Lacey. Lacey is 36, 8 years older than Hunter, and their passionate romance is one of my ultimate favourites; they have strong chemistry and emotional connection, they genuinely like and care about each other, and I just love how their relationship grew. I totally recommend this book. 

Have you read books with the 'older heroine, younger hero' trope?
Let me know in the comments below!