Welcome back to celebrating Black History Month! Did you see the Super Bowl Halftime Show? Now there was a celebration of Black History. Didn’t like it? Perhaps a little introspection would do you some good. Why didn’t you like it? Did you understand the messages? Sit with that a bit and see if you have some internalized racism you need to work on.
In the meantime, here are some happy things you can celebrate, like Black romance and Black folks living their best lives with these great authors. I’ve enjoyed all these authors and you should definitely check out their stories. So worth your time. Happy reading!
LaQuette writes great contemporary romance, and that’s saying something since I don’t usually like contemporary. But her stories are full of real-world drama and mature characters who know how to work through their issues. The author in real life is a fantastic woman working on her PhD in Black Women’s Studies. I LOVED this cover because the woman reminds me of Queen Latifah!
When Reese Ryan announced this book coming out, I had to grab a copy. I LOVED the cover and the premise of the NEVER THE RIGHT TIME. How much stress is there on entertainers, especially women, in the music industry? How does each person deal with the constant hype, physical demands, and the anxiety of such a life? Add into that the predators in the industry and you have a pretty potent tale that shows second chances are about listening and learning, and letting go of your fears. Great story. Be sure to grab book 1, SPIN THE BLOCK
Beverly Jenkins writes some fantastic historical romance. I stumbled across NIGHT HAWK when someone was asking Ms. Bev about it and I fell in love with the cover. The story is a well-crafted historical romanece where the Night Hawk is a former gunslinger turned Marshal and the woman he falls for is a Native American accused of killing a yt man (who’d been trying SA on her). Great story and a rich HEA too.
Naima Simone‘s Rose Bend series is a great small town romance with real-life people. Her tales in the series made me happy – every single one – and brought together some hurt people to find love and connection and their well-deserved happily ever after. I love Ms. Simone’s writing and I highly recommend picking up her books.
I first came across Alyssa Cole by reading her Reluctant Royals series. I loved the premise that people really didn’t want to be royalty and they had legitimate reasons why. Her spin-off series of the Runaway Royals is just as entertaining. I also loved her historical romance, especially the Loyal League Series about spies during the Civil War in the U.S. Hard-hitting with truths white folks tend to ignore, and yet, still hold the HEAs we all crave, I highly recommend reading any of Ms. Cole’s books.
Oh, I love sharing my favorite Black romance authors to all y’all. There are more to come with great stories to share. I hope you’ve added to your TBR pile. Again, happy reading!