Y. M. Nelson and Nerdy Romantics guests Marcie, Staci, Pam, Jen, and Mary recommend interracial and multicultural romance reads as part of the “Who Gets An HEA?” miniseries. The mini-series showcases romances with marginalized heroes and heroines, and in episode 23, we feature romance novels by Tracey Livesay, Farah Heron, Twyla Turner, Eliana West, Angelina M. Lopez, Rebekah Weatherspoon, and D. A. Young. All of these are worthy of everyone’s TBR list. Mine is sure to fill up after finding out about these great reads.
In this episode, we recommend:
Accidentally Engaged by Farah Heron:
Reena’s into baking–so much so she has 14 sourdough starters around her apartment. She’s not into her parents meddling in her love life–which is not doing well at the moment–or her boring job in Finance. Enter Nadim, a new neighbor in her building that’s got the body of Captain America. On one hand, he’s been tapped by her parents as marriage potential. Yuck. But on the other; she needs him so she can enter a couples baking reality competition that could change her life.
Link to Y. M.’s Friday Fun review for Accidentally Engaged
The Way Forward by Eliana West (Heart of Colton #1):
Dax is a long way from the argumentative boy he was when he left his Colton, MS hometown. He’s travelled the world and grown up a lot, and now he’s back to help revitalize the town. Callie used to spend such wonderful childhood summers in Colton, despite being antagonized by Dax, that she decided to move there and become the librarian.
Also mentioned: After Hours on Milagro Street by Angelina M. Lopez (Book 1): A white college professor and a Latina bartender butt heads in this enemies-to-lovers romance. But then, they come together to battle a neighborhood enemy-and find love in the process.
Sweet Obsession by D.A. Young (The Men of Whiskey Row, Book 1):
The Sullivan brothers in Tennessee are fiercely loyal alphas who will do anything to protect their family and their loves. But then again, their loves can stand just fine on their own. When Noelle Kramer finds herself and her family in the middle of a possible scandal cooked up by her ex, she turns to her crush Jack Sullivan to help. After all he’s been through something like this before.
American Royalty by Tracey Livesay:
In this romance loosely inspired by real life couple Meghan and Prince Harry, rapper Dani, known to her fans as Duchess, is currently in a tiff with another pop star and needs to clean up her image. Reclusive Prince Jameson is tasked with putting on a concert to help the royal family with their image. Jameson signs Dani to the bill, not knowing her. It’s bad for the concert’s goal, but good for their love lives.
Xeni by Rebekah Weatherspoon (Loose Ends, Book 2):
Xeni has just lost her aunt Sable Everly … and gained a sizeable fortune. The only way she can claim it is by marrying this big Scot named Mason. Mason was also willed a significant amount: enough to clear debts that have been hanging over him ever since he met Ms. Sable.
Trigger warnings: homophobia. Content warnings: 1 graphic sex scene of an alternative lifestyle
Also mentioned: Rafe by Rebekah Weatherspoon (Loose Ends, Book 1)
The Red Scot by Twyla Turner (Curvy Girls Club #1):
Once a fat unpopular kid, Bradyn is now an alpha beast MMA fighter. When Payton Bailey walks into his gym, he’s smitten. Payton however is having none of that. She’d rather be gaming or reading comic books instead of hanging out with this muscly beast of a man.
Trigger Warning: scene of sexual assault
What we point out:
- Book or series’ title and author
- What the selection is about
- Why we love these marginalized main characters
- Why we love the stories in general
- Who these stories would be perfect for (heat levels, tropes, character types)
Other topics addressed:
Where to find these books:
*The image above is linked to our list of books on Bookshop.org. I will receive a small commission for each purchase when using these links. (This does not affect what you pay.)
Where you can find some of our Nerdy Romantics Guests
Staci:
While Staci represents herself here, she is also a permanent guest on the L-5 podcast, a YouTube podcast reviewing newly-released movies and TV shows. Check it out!
Jen Graybeal
Jen Graybeal is “a book coach and freelance editor working with romance authors that want to take their books and their business to the next level.” She also loves talking all things nerdy, so look for her on some future episodes.
Want to contact her?
Jen is accepting new clients for both coaching and editing. She offers a free 30-min coaching session for new clients. (sign up on her website).
Website: www.jengraybeal.com
Instagram: www.instagram.com/jentheeditor/
Clubhouse: Romance Author Community https://www.clubhouse.com/club/romance-author-community
Mary Warren:
Mary Warren lives in central Illinois with her husband and 3 children. Her journey to seek out and encourage fat representation began after reading a book that had the fat representation she didn’t even know she needed. This spark inspired her to read as many fat main characters as she could.
After a while, she became an activist for representation on TikTok under #fatgirlsinfiction and then founded fatgirlsinfiction.com a website dedicated to the books and authors featuring positive portrayals of fat characters. Since then, she has kept reading and talking about fat girls.
She is now also writing about fat girls. In March of 2022 she will be contributing to the anthology Curves and Magic. A Highlander for Hannah, Mary Warren’s debut novel, has time travel, magic, and of course romance complete with HEA and will be available September 20, 2022.
*This button is an Amazon affiliate link. (This does not affect what you pay.)
Want to contact her?
Website: https://fatgirlsinfiction.com/
Instagram: instagram.com/fatgirlsinfiction/
TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@marywarrenwrites
Listen on your favorite podcast provider:
