Self-published creator Jess Okay. Hardy says that Gen X, of which she’s a proud member, is like another readership: “All of us wish to be seen within the books we learn—particularly in romance.” Her novels, taglined “romance, aged up,” embody 2023’s Come as You Are, which launched her Bluebird Basin up to date collection. PW’s evaluation mentioned, “Hardy does an important job creating characters at midlife; the older protagonists are refreshing—and their intercourse scenes are scorching as hell.” She’s a part of a wave of self- and historically printed authors whose new books embrace romance in life’s second and third acts.
Is She Actually Going Out with Him?
Sophie Cousens. Putnam, Nov.
Elder millennial divorcée Anna Appleby eschews on-line relationship, however when her job as a columnist is on the road, she makes a pitch to her editor: she’ll go on seven dates, all discovered offline by her two younger kids. She dates a mailman, chases her superstar crush, and waltzes at a Regency-style ball; in the end, it is the least possible suitor who has extra in frequent together with her than she ever would have thought.
Lips Like Sugar
Jess Okay. Hardy. Pinkity, out now
When 50-something Mira Harlow boldly kisses getting older punk drummer Cole Sanderson to rile up an ex, after which propositions him to play her long-distance boyfriend for the weekend, Cole is recreation. Their brief time collectively reaps actual connection, and when Cole returns to Seattle, Mira has to determine: settle again into life in small-town Montana or take a danger for real love.
Napkins & Different Distractions
M.A. Wardell. Self-published, June
This third e-book in Wardell’s Academics in Love collection pairs 40-year-old Vincent Manda, who fears his extreme OCD is a turnoff, with 50-year-old Kent Lester, a grandparent and bisexual divorcé who’s wanting to date males. After an ungainly, however sexually satisfying, date, Vincent is assigned to supervise a software program set up within the faculty the place Kent teaches; the 2 butt heads whereas studying extra about themselves and one another.
Nearlywed
Nicolas DiDomizio. Sourcebooks Casablanca, Could
It was love at first sight when polar opposites Ray Bruno, a social media–loving millennial journalist, and Kip Hayes, an introverted Gen-X physician, met six years in the past. On a pre-wedding getaway to a coastal New England resort, a collection of miscommunications involving one other couple threatens their vacation, and their impending nuptials, they usually start to rethink whether or not they’re actually prepared for the massive day.
The Undermining of Twyla and Frank
Megan Bannen. Orbit, July
Bannen follows the 2022 fantasy rom-com The Endeavor of Hart and Mercy with a friends-to-lovers romance likewise set within the magical kingdom of Tanria. Twyla Banneker, a middle-aged widow, joins forces with Frank Ellis, her neighbor and greatest buddy of an analogous classic, to uncover who—or what—killed a fellow Tanrian marshal. Amid glitter-spewing beasts and speaking hedgehogs, and discussions of menopause and retirement plans, Twyla and Frank have to deal with their unresolved emotions for one another. PW’s evaluation mentioned, “This cozy, humor-filled romp celebrates the enduring magic of affection at any age.”
A model of this text appeared within the 05/13/2024 challenge of Publishers Weekly below the headline: Don’t You (Neglect About Me)
