Hiya and happy Tuesday!
Before getting to all the wonderful new releases, we have some announcements.
The first involves the Book of the Month winners for November. For the first time ever, we had a tie in one of the categories! Click here to find out all the winners. Here you can vote for December’s Book of the Month.
The second is the launch of the 2022 IHL Reading Challenge. This is a yearlong event that encourages peeps to read a wide range of sapphic fiction. While the purpose of the event is to have fun and to discover new stories, there are also prizes to win.
Every month, one reader will be chosen at random to win a $25 Amazon gift card. One of the ways to toss your name into the monthly drawings is by visiting IHL’s Facebook group each Wednesday to respond to our post: What are you reading this week for the challenge? If you haven’t signed up for the group, you might want to do so now. This Wednesday will be the first chance to enter the monthly giveaway.
At the completion of the event, the prizes will range from $50 to a whopping $250 in Amazon gift cards.
Click here to download the PDF that lists all the categories. And, for all the rules, categories, and shizzle, click here.
Finally, please welcome Faith to the IHL team. She’s our virtual assistant helping us with the IHL Reading Challenge. We were able to hire her because many of you contributed to our expenses by buying us a coffee, for which we are truly thankful. If you want to pitch in to help cover the costs of running the IHL website, please visit our Buy Us a Coffee page. Every cup helps us out immensely.
Now, here are this week’s new ebook and audio releases.
Please click on this link for how to submit books (ebook and audio) for the newsletter. IHL will not include books unless they receive an email from either the author or publisher.
Happy reading and listening,
TB & Miranda
ROMANCE
PARTNERS
Unexpected Love: Book 2
by Jae
For ice queen Dee, running a company with her girlfriend takes some getting used to, especially since Austen doesn’t deem knocking heads together to be a smart leadership choice.
Can they figure out how to be as good together as business partners as they are as lovers?
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: Girl Next Door, Cute Pet, Ice Queen, & Grumpy/Sunshine.
SOMEDAY, MAYBE
Moonflower Cove Romances
by Addison Clarke
Available in Kindle Unlimited
Walker Forsyth is two years sober and back in her hometown of Moonflower Cove after two years away. She’s made her amends with her sisters and friends and is ready to start a new chapter in her life. More than anything though, she’s hoping to have a second chance with the love of her life.
Maddie Carlson has spent two years wondering what it would be like when Walker came back to the Cove. The last thing she expected was for things to fall into place so perfectly and naturally. Of course, her depression takes the opportunity to make Maddie question everything.
Will Maddie be able to overcome the darkness surrounding her and let Walker into her world again?
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: Second Chance, Return to Hometown, Cute Animal, Sweet, & Loss/Grieving.
ON THE ROCKS
A Swizzle Stick Romance: Book 2
by Georgia Beers
No straight women. No parents of students. Nobody under thirty-five. Vanessa Martini makes no apologies for her dating checklist. She’s been up close to enough messy breakups to know what havoc they wreak in life. Just because people see her as fun and happy, and just because she loves her life in general, that doesn’t mean she can’t be careful. Or discerning. Or, okay, fine, super picky.
Grace Chapman is tired of being judged by her boss, by the husband she’s divorcing, by her parents. All she cares about now is her seven-year-old son, Oliver. The divorce is making him act out in school, and she just needs to find a way to help him so they can start again. What she does not need is the silent judgment she gets from his teacher. His wildly attractive, super sexy, annoyingly gorgeous teacher.
Grace ticks all Vanessa’s Do Not Date boxes. Vanessa is yet one more person who disapproves of Grace. Of course, they’re never going to fall in love.
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: Holiday Romance & Single Parent.
A CLOSER LOOK
by Michele L. Rivera
Available in Kindle Unlimited
With Boston’s queer community teeming with single women, professional dating coach Harley Cooper’s incomparable match-making abilities are in high demand. Harley attributes her success to her unwavering resolve to maintain professional boundaries with her clients. Of course, her cool demeanor and charming smile don’t hurt. But when Harley meets her newest client, she not only loses her cool, she wavers.
Tessa Pearson is one of Boston’s most acclaimed wedding photographers. And although she has a talent for capturing love on film, she has no desire to be in a relationship. She’s happily committed to her bachelorette lifestyle. Tessa’s best friend, however, has other plans for her.
The last thing Tessa wants is to work with a dating coach. Harley is Tessa’s worst nightmare: prying, overly confident, and guarded. Yet somehow she’s become the star of Tessa’s fantasies.
The last thing Harley wants is to waste her efforts on someone who doesn’t want to date. Tessa is jaded, stubborn, and uncooperative. So why can’t Harley stop thinking about her?
All Harley has to do is her job. All Tessa has to do is play along. But the more time they spend together, the more blurry the lines between work and play become.
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: Enemies to Lovers, Forced Proximity, POC Character, & Grief.
DIAMONDS
by Ellie Green
Available in Kindle Unlimited
Emma didn’t want to be tied down. Until Cordelia tied her up.
Emma has spent her adult life travelling, partying and refusing to put down roots. Whenever her money runs out, she returns to Los Angeles to work a few months until she has enough cash to leave again.
Waitressing at an exclusive party for the rich and infamous, her gaze is caught by an elegant woman with an English accent. Once she’s seen her, it’s hard to look away. She spends her shift watching the other woman drink champagne, win at poker and charm everyone around her.
Beautiful, successful and wealthy, Cordelia is used to getting what she wants, in any way she might want it. That usually means with her in complete control. When the free-spirited Emma catches her attention, there is no exception.
Emma can’t stay away from Cordelia, even when she discovers the other woman’s darker preferences in the bedroom. If anything, it fuels the fire of her attraction.
Their physical relationship burns brightly. But with pressure on Cordelia to return to England and Emma’s reluctance to commit to anything, a future between them seems impossible.
Is there a chance for them to find lasting love?
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: Age Gap, Rich Girl / Poor Girl, & BDSM.
NEW YEAR’S RESOLUTIONS
by Sage Donnell
Available in Kindle Unlimited
After Aiesha leaves Government Camp on the day after Christmas, Kade is doing her best to enjoy her holiday at home with her parents, snowboarding and helping out in their shop, Snacks and Sundries, but the truth is that she misses Aiesha something fierce. When Aiesha shows back up unannounced on New Year’s Eve, does that mean she wants to pursue a relationship like Kade does?
Find out in this short story, the second installment of the Holiday Romance Series.
2022 IHL Reading Categories: Holiday Romance.
CHANGING MAJORS
by Ana Hartnett Reichardt
Suitemates to friends…to happily ever after?
It’s her first night of freshman year at Alder University, a small Catholic college tucked away in the North Georgia mountains, and Bailey Sullivan is ready to be the girl she has always dreamed of becoming: a girl who loves a boy. She quickly meets Luke, a Southern charmer who gives her hope for a traditional future. But her often destructive and messy attempts at being straight are thwarted when she falls for her far-too-female suitemate, Noelle Parker, from whom she quickly becomes inseparable.
Bailey must traverse the rocky terrain of her friendships, her freshman year of college, and her sexuality to discover not only whom she wants to pursue, but her own identity. For Bailey, learning to be true to herself means being brave enough to let go of the limits on love that are holding her back.
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: Friends to Lovers, Coming Out, & YA / NA.
WISDOM
by Jesse J. Thoma
Wisdom is knowing which battles are worth fighting.
Sophia Lamont is the youngest representative her state has ever seen. She’s determined to leave her mark on day one. Old school politics won’t dare stand in her way.
As a prison guard, Reggie Northrup has seen the system fail to provide healing for families or rehabilitation for offenders. She closes herself off emotionally to do her job, but it costs her more than she knows.
When Sophia and Reggie are chosen for the governor’s new community design team and tasked with tackling substance use and mental health issues, battle lines are drawn even as sparks fly. Do Reggie and Sophia have the wisdom to set aside the things they cannot change and fight courageously to change what they can? Love just might depend on it.
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: POC Character & Ladies in Uniform.
HISTORICAL ROMANCE
A FAIRER TOMORROW
by Kathleen Knowles
Maddie Weeks and Gerry Stern leave their homes when Uncle Sam calls for help winning the Second World War. Maddie is desperate to escape the economic and racial oppression of the Jim Crow South. Gerry doesn’t see a future for herself as a farmer’s wife in California’s Central Valley. When they meet by chance in a blues club in San Francisco, not even their differences can prevent them falling in love.
But love doesn’t solve every problem as Maddie and Gerry struggle to hold on to their identities and livelihoods as the war comes to an end and their independence is threatened. The war brought them together, but it could wind up destroying everything, including their future.
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: POC Character and Historical Romance.
EROTICA
LAIA RIOS: SEX RAIDER
Amazon Bondage Trilogy
by Riley Rose
Available in Kindle Unlimited
Laia Rios is the sexiest adventurer and relic hunter on the earth. She travels the globe finding the most hidden artifacts and treasures. While having sex with the most sensual women of every nationality.
When she gets word of a new clue to the legendary Lust Idol of the Amazons, she can’t pass up the opportunity to find it. And all she’ll have to do is pass through a temple filled with the most elaborate sex traps ever.
And once through those sinful snares, she’ll just have to deal with an ancient tribe of ridiculously muscular and beautiful women. Who all want a piece of her super-hot ass!
Will Laia pass all the Amazonian physical and sexual tests and become one of them? Will she become the Queen’s willing sex toy? And how many spankings from strong, sensual Amazonian hands will she be able to take?
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: Hot & Steamy & BDSM.
ALL GIRL 4
by Victoria Rush
Book 1: The Personal Trainer
When recent divorcée Jade notices some subtle changes in her figure, she decides to set up a workout routine to get back into shape. She makes an appointment at her local health club for a personal training session and is floored by how beautiful and shapely her instructor is…
Book 2: The Harem
When Jade travels to Marrakesh for a North African vacation, she’s captivated by the sights and sounds of the bustling metropolis. But when a handsome and mysterious sheik invites her to join him on his desert caravan, she hesitates deciding to accept his offer…
Book 3: The Dominatrix
When Jade searches online for something to change up her boring sex life, she finds an ad for a dominatrix. Intrigued, she clicks on the link and begins to learn all about the exciting world of bondage and domination…
Book 4: Paint Me
When Jade sees an ad for a bodypainting workshop at the local supermarket, her interest is piqued. She books an appointment and is excited when she’s paired with a pretty redhead at their first session…
Book 5: The Masseuse
When Jade is feeling particularly needy one night, she searches online for a personal masseuse. When she sees an interesting listing for tantric massage, she clicks on the link and is surprised to see graphic illustrations of the company’s Goddesses massaging a woman’s private areas…
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: Age Gap, Hot & Steamy, BDSM, & Erotic Romance.
ACTION & ADVENTURE
GIRL ISLAND
by Kate Castle
Available in Kindle Unlimited
TEENAGE GIRLS CAN BE SAVAGE.
Six teenage girls. One deserted island. Removed from civilised society, can they challenge class, identity and toxic femininity to pull together and survive? Or will they descend into savagery?
This is the debut novel from Kate Castle, author of the Amazon.com best-selling adventure/romance novella ‘Born of the Sea’.
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: YA / NA, Slow Burn Romance, Romantic Suspense, Enemies to Lovers, Friends to Lovers, Stranded Together, Second Chances, & Sports.
FANTASY ROMANCE
SONG OF SERENITY
by Brey Willows
Being a muse in the twenty-first century is a lot harder than it was in Ancient Greece.
Life was simple when Calliope Ardalides, firstborn of the nine Muses, only had to concentrate on music and justice. But now she’s arbitrating between arguing gods, answering complaints from cantankerous humans irked by how their prayers are being answered, and keeping her eight sisters in line. When it’s time for her annual break from Afterlife, Inc, she goes to the one place she can count on to keep her sane: the Temple of the Muses in the quiet countryside of Scotland.
But Jordan James shows up with her contractors, builders, and noisy equipment. Her adventure park will take up most of the idyllic region, turning the serenity Calliope treasures into a haven for adrenaline junkies.
Jordan is resistant to Calliope’s powers of persuasion, but Calliope’s beauty remains a potent force. Stubbornly, Jordan vows to take on even the most beautiful immortal to make her dream come true, especially if it means spending more time with her.
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Category: Fantasy Romance.
PIRATES OF ALETHARIA
by Britney Jackson
Available in Kindle Unlimited
Emilia Drakon was once the youngest and kindest of the dragon sorcerers, but she’s now the last of her kind. Betrayed and angry, she trades her meekness for a sword and embarks on a quest for vengeance that will lead her straight into the arms of the legendary Captain Maria Welles.
Captain of the famed pirate ship, the Wicked Fate, Maria is every bit as treacherous and bloodthirsty as they say. She has her own vendetta and practically jumps at the chance to trick Emilia into joining her crew.
But when their animosity toward each other blossoms into a passionate romance, the two women will have to decide what they want most.
Vengeance?
Or love?
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: Fantasy Romance & Enemies to Lovers.
Trigger Warning: Violence, murder, and a character with PTSD.
ROMANTIC SUSPENSE
MOON OVER OLD HOLLYWOOD
by Renn Loraine
Available in Kindle Unlimited
Nicole is shaken. Her ex-girlfriend has been found dead under mysterious circumstances. Now someone is trying to kill her – and she doesn’t know why.
The clues lead Nicole to the set of a television series about the glamorous, women-loving starlets of Hollywood’s Golden Age. Working under the hot lights, Nicole learns of their hidden lives – and finds herself falling for a captivating, auburn-haired actress.
As Nicole gets closer to unearthing the murderer’s motive, however – she will discover that some in Hollywood are still willing to kill to keep its secrets.
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: Thriller, Romantic Suspense, & Slow Burn.
YOUNG ADULT
THE INFINITE SUMMER
by Morgan Lee Miller
Remi Brenner will one day see the world. Literally. She’s one summer away from starting her degree in aerospace at MIT, but then her dad cuts off her college tuition until they repair their estranged relationship. Remi has no choice but to spend her summer with him and her annoyingly famous stepmom in resort town Gaslight Shores, South Carolina.
Harper Hebert wishes her life didn’t revolve around her family’s restaurant, a staple in Gaslight Shores for more than seven decades. When a new restaurant is opened by a famous chef and business begins to decline, Harper’s dreams of ever making it on her own are threatened.
The more Remi and Harper’s friendship blossoms into something deeper, the more Remi becomes tangled in the intense restaurant rivalry between her stepmom and the Heberts. She knows she has to tell Harper, but the truth could scare away the only person who can capture her summer and her heart.
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Category: YA / NA.
NEW AUDIOBOOKS
HUMBUG
by Amanda Radley
narrated by Amy Putt
Ellie Pearce adores Christmas so much she celebrates all year round, earning herself the nickname Christmas Girl. If only she liked her job as much as eggnog lattes and mistletoe. Stuck as a marketing analyst for London-based recruitment company Caldwell & Atkinson, Ellie is desperate for a career change but afraid to take a chance.
CEO Rosalind Caldwell needs a new personal assistant after the last one quit, putting the extremely important corporate Christmas party in jeopardy. Christmas Girl is just the holiday miracle Rosalind needs, and Ellie is quickly promoted to the top floor of the Canary Wharf skyscraper.
Ellie isn’t a PA, has never planned a party in her life, and is terrified of heights. If things weren’t bad enough, she then goes and develops a ridiculous crush on her totally intimidating new boss. With the festive season fast approaching, what could possibly go wrong?
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: Holiday Romance, Age Gap, Single Parent, & Grumpy / Sunshine.
DEMON HUNTER ASHLYN
Sexy Demon Hunter Bundle: Books 1-3
by Riley Rose
narrated by Nikki Monroe
Ashlyn Summersnow is the sexiest demon hunter in the five lands. She’s an expert at getting rid of monsters, demons, and any other kind of supernatural baddie. She’s also an expert at losing her clothes and having steamy sex.
Find out if Ashlyn can fight her illicit desires as she romps in the hay with a hunky farmhand, lets a sexy succubus do naughty things with her tail, and submits to the magical control of a powerful sorceress in this fun fantasy adventure erotica series!
This collection contains Books 1-3 of the Sexy Demon Hunter Series.
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: Fantasy, Hot & Steamy, and BDSM.
WATCHING OVER HER
by Ronica Black
narrated by Keira Grace
All Riley Robinson wants is peace and serenity. She can’t wait to spend the winter at her new cabin in snowy, remote Northern Arizona. On the way Riley meets Zoe Mitchell, a secretive woman whose barely hidden vulnerability captures her curiosity and sparks her interest.
Zoe was doing just fine until without warning she becomes the focus of a stalker. With no idea who is following her and desperate to shrug off the sense of being watched, Zoe takes off to her grandfather’s old cabin. Unfortunately, the cabin hasn’t been used in years, and the snowstorm of the century is moving in. Zoe has no intention of taking chances with a beautiful woman she’s just met, but she can’t turn down Riley’s offer of help and a warm place to take refuge.
As they face the storm and the looming threat of a stalker, Riley and Zoey just might find love in the most unexpected of places.
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Categories: Thriller & Forced Proximity.
IGEN
Forgotten Worlds: Book 7
by Prudence MacLeod
narrated by Kathleen Starr Hall
The hopes, dreams, and ambitions of one generation are not easily passed on to succeeding generations. In the enclosed world of Igen they failed, the people weakened and faltered, staggering to the brink of extinction. Their only hope lay in the arrival of their greatest fear, the Outsiders, but did they come to save or destroy?
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Category: Sci-Fi.
ABBY’S SCAR
by Q.C. Masters
narrated by Cassandra Arnold
Firsts can come in many forms – first loves, first realizations….
Abby knew something wasn’t quite right. She hadn’t found a guy who quite suited her…then Jordan came into her life and taught her, and she realized it wasn’t necessarily a guy she was waiting for….
2022 IHL Reading Challenge Category: Coming Out.
VOTE FOR BOOK OF THE MONTH
LESFIC BOOKCLUBS
JAE’S SAPPHIC BOOK BINGO
FREE ANTHOLOGY
55 excerpts from published novels, each one featuring a first-kiss scene by a popular author of sapphic fiction. You can download the free ebook in the format of your choice (Kindle/mobi, ePub, or PDF) and you don’t have to subscribe to any newsletters.
Have a wonderful day!
Miranda & TB
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