Sally Bend's Blog, page 10

Weekend Freebies – Trans Tales & Gender Bending Books

Well, if it’s another weekend, then it must be time to bend our hearts and minds around preparing for the week ahead, and how better to do that than with some Weekend Freebies!

Every weekend I search through the free titles on Amazon, looking for those that might interest visitors to the ruins. Even if you don’t have a Kindle, you can still download the titles through one of Amazon’s free reading applications.

Please do be sure to check the price before downloading anything, as most freebies are limited time offers, and some are specific to certain regions.

Enjoy!

Getting Queer and Cozy with Direct Descendant by Tanya Huff

Title: Direct Descendant
Author: Tanya Huff
Publication Date: May 20, 2025 by Orbit
Genres: Cozy Horror | Queer Romance
Representation: Lesbian

I’ve been a fan of Tanya Huff since I first discovered her Vicki Nelson books back in my Forever Knight days, and her Quarters series back in my Xena: Warrior Princess days. She’s one of those authors I am always excited to see appearing on the shelves, so when I saw advance copies of Direct Descendant were available, I jumped at the chance.

I can honestly say this is one of the most unique stories I’ve come across in recent memory. The cover blurb promises cozy horror that’s creepy, charming, snarky, and queer all at once, but just how perfectly this delivers on all of that is delightful. It could have gone so wrong so easily. Seriously, coming out of the first few chapters, I found myself feeling tense, worried that the incongruous tones would become exasperating or infuriating, but Huff’s confidence, her unwavering commitment to the story, navigates any such pitfalls.

Lake Argen is a small town in Northern Ontario that’s equal parts Twin Peaks and Dog River, and to say it has its share of secrets would be an understatement. There’s something in the water (literally), a dead ground upon the hill, a mysterious basement, a remarkable silver mine, a coven of witches, and a quartet of servants of the Dark. Most everyone in town is related through the founders of the town, and visitors either find themselves keenly interested in staying . . . or finding it altogether forgettable.

The story opens with a magical sacrifice that promises dark (or should that be Dark) days ahead, but while that takes its time to develop, it shifts into a missing person’s mystery that introduces the meet-cute sapphic romance that pulls it all together. Along the way, we meet the residents of Lake Argen, including children who gleefully challenge shadows with silver-tipped skewers. It’s as bizarre as it sounds, but it all fits . . . all meshes . . . and all makes sense. By the time we meet the cute little tentacled beastie who may just hold the key to it all, we’re so committed to seeing Cassie and Melanie work out, we’ll accept anything that moves us deeper into the Dark.

Were this not cozy and cute, I’d say the pacing was a bit off, but really, it moves how it needs to, and the uneven pacing is more a result of genres mixing that any narrative weakness. More importantly, for a story to which horror and romance are so important, the relationship challenges are well-resolved and the climax – often a weak spot in the genre – more than pays off.

Rating: 1/2

My sincere thanks to the publisher for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Can’t-Wait Wednesday (Canadian Edition): To Please Her by Elena Abbott

Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted here to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they’re books that have yet to be released. Find out more here.

In light of the political madness creeping North from the orange tyrant, I’m going to be focusing exclusively on Canadian authors this month – with Elena Abbott both Canadian and Queer!

To Please Her

by Elena Abbott
Romance | Erotica
May 13, 2025 by Bold Strokes Books

Sabrina Doyle doesn’t have time for romance. Working two jobs, she’s resigned herself to having a life only after she’s achieved her goals. The universe has other ideas, as a chance meeting—and a spilled coffee cup—introduces her to Delilah Holte, who seems to be everywhere Sabrina needs to be.

Now Sabrina can’t keep Delilah off her mind, despite how much she tries. As Delilah leads her into the world of BDSM, Sabrina discovers a new submissive side to her sexuality. But Delilah only promises her one night: one night of play, of fun, of pleasure.

Sabrina isn’t sure she can handle just one night. And worse, Delilah isn’t in town for long. Desperate to please her, Sabrina must decide: miss out on the opportunity of a lifetime or pine for the woman who tempts her with such pleasure.

Stacking the Shelves & The Sunday Post

Stacking The Shelves (Reading Reality) and The Sunday Post (Caffeinated Reviewer) are both blog memes about sharing the books we’re adding to the shelves and sharing news of the week ahead.

New Purchases

No new purchases this week, although I do have some online orders arriving (hopefully) next week.

For Review

Just the one review title this week…

The Witch Roads by Kate Elliott – Status is hereditary, class is bestowed, trust must be earned in the first book of a new duology by Kate Elliott. Currently Reading

After a couple of rough weeks, I’m back on the bookshelf, but I’ve put a few projects on pause as I commit to reading Canadian all month. Direct Descendant is an advance copy of the new LGBTQIA cozy horror by Tanya Huff; The Uncrowned King is a pull from my massmarket paperback shelves by Michelle West; and The Revenge of Captain Vessia is a vampire/pirate paranormal romance by pirate goth and undead Trans lady Leslie Allen.

Can’t-Wait Wednesday (Canadian Edition): Direct Descendant by Tanya Huff

Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted here to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they’re books that have yet to be released. Find out more here.

In light of the political madness creeping North from the orange tyrant, I’m going to be focusing exclusively on Canadian authors this month – starting with a favorite of mine, Tanya Huff!

Direct Descendant

by Tanya Huff
Queer | Cozy | Horror
April 1, 2025 by DAW

This cozy horror novel set in modern-day Toronto includes phenomenal characters, fantastic writing, and a queer romance—the perfect balance of dark and delightful

This stand-alone novel from the bestselling author of the Peacekeeper novels mixes the creepy with the charming for plenty of snarky, queer fun—for fans of T. Kingfisher, Grady Hendrix, Sangu Mandannaand Erin Sterling

Generations ago, the founders of the idyllic town of Lake Argen made a deal with a dark force. In exchange for their service, the town will stay prosperous and successful, and keep outsiders out. And for generations, it’s worked out great. Until a visitor goes missing, and his wealthy family sends a private investigator to find him, and everything abruptly goes sideways.

Now, Cassidy Prewitt, town baker and part-time servant of the dark force (it’s a family business) has to contend with a rising army of darkness, a very frustrated town, and a very cute PI who she might just be falling for…and who might just be falling for her. And if they can survive their own home-grown apocalypse, they might even just find happiness together.

Queer, cozy, and with a touch of eldritch horror mixed in just for fun, this is a charming love story about a small-town baker, a quick-witted PI, and, yes, an ancient evil.

Weekend Freebies – Queer Romantasy & PNR

Well, if it’s another weekend, then it must be time to bend our hearts and minds around preparing for the week ahead, and how better to do that than with some Weekend Freebies!

Every weekend I search through the free titles on Amazon, looking for those that might interest visitors to the ruins. Even if you don’t have a Kindle, you can still download the titles through one of Amazon’s free reading applications.

Please do be sure to check the price before downloading anything, as most freebies are limited time offers, and some are specific to certain regions.

Enjoy!

Stacking the Shelves & The Sunday Post

Stacking The Shelves (Reading Reality) and The Sunday Post (Caffeinated Reviewer) are both blog memes about sharing the books we’re adding to the shelves and sharing news of the week ahead.

New Purchases

A stack of online purchases showed up this week, including:

Loyalty of Severus by Len Berry , a sweeping, epic sci-fi adventure about a trans woman who is the rightful heir to a deposed empire Dancer’s Lament by Ian C. Esslemont , the first book of his Malazan prequel series, Path to Ascendancy Gun Metal Heart by Dana Haynes , the second Daria Gibron thriller The Last Templar by Raymond Khoury , the first thriller featuring archaeologist Tess Chaykin and FBI agent Sean Reilly The Ladies of Trade Town edited by Lee Martindale , a long sought-after addition to my shelves that explores the world’s oldest profession in alternate pasts, alternative presents, and futures Howling Dark by Christopher Ruocchio , the second of The Sun Eater sci-fi seriesFor Review

Just the one review title this week…

Six Wild Crowns by Holly Race – a breathtaking epic fantasy of dragons, courtly intrigue, sapphic yearning, and the wives of Henry VIII as you’ve never seen them before. Currently Reading

As for what I’m reading this week . . . I have no idea. I mean, I’m going to finish Wooing the Witch Queen by Stephanie Burgis (which I’m thoroughly enjoying), but beyond that . . . no idea. It’s been a high-stress, high-anxiety week, and I desperately want to read something physical, something mass-market paperback and very 80s/90s fantasy, but what that is . . . no idea.

Weekend Freebies – Kinks & Collars

Well, if it’s another weekend, then it must be time to bend our hearts and minds around preparing for the week ahead, and how better to do that than with some Weekend Freebies!

Every weekend I search through the free titles on Amazon, looking for those that might interest visitors to the ruins. Even if you don’t have a Kindle, you can still download the titles through one of Amazon’s free reading applications.

Please do be sure to check the price before downloading anything, as most freebies are limited time offers, and some are specific to certain regions.

Enjoy!

Can’t-Wait Wednesday: Transgender Titles (Spring & Summer)

Can’t-Wait Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted here to spotlight and discuss the books we’re excited about that we have yet to read. Generally they’re books that have yet to be released. Find out more here.

My choices this week are all titles with transgender representation coming up in the first half of the year!

To Please Her

by Elena Abbott
Romance | Transgender | WLW
May 1, 2025 by Bold Strokes Books

Sabrina Doyle doesn’t have time for romance. Working two jobs, she’s resigned herself to having a life only after she’s achieved her goals. The universe has other ideas, as a chance meeting—and a spilled coffee cup—introduces her to Delilah Holte, who seems to be everywhere Sabrina needs to be.

Now Sabrina can’t keep Delilah off her mind, despite how much she tries. As Delilah leads her into the world of BDSM, Sabrina discovers a new submissive side to her sexuality. But Delilah only promises her one night: one night of play, of fun, of pleasure.

Sabrina isn’t sure she can handle just one night. And worse, Delilah isn’t in town for long. Desperate to please her, Sabrina must decide: miss out on the opportunity of a lifetime or pine for the woman who tempts her with such pleasure.

The Intermediaries

by Brandy Schillace
Fiction | History
May 13, 2025 by W. W. Norton & Company

Set in interwar Germany, The Intermediaries tells the forgotten story of the Institute for Sexual Science, the world’s first center for homosexual and transgender rights. Headed by a gay Jewish man, Dr. Magnus Hirschfeld, the institute aided in the first gender-affirming surgeries and hormone treatments, acting as a rebellious base of operations in the face of rising prejudice, nationalism, and Nazi propaganda.

An expert in medical history, Brandy Schillace tells the story of the Institute through the eyes of Dora Richter, an Institute patient whom we follow in her quest to transition and live as a woman. While the colorful but ultimately tragic arc of Weimar Berlin is well documented, The Intermediaries is the first book to assert the inseparable, interdependent relationship of sex science to both the queer rights movement and the permissive Weimar culture, tracking how political factions perverted that same science to suit their own ends.

This riveting book brings together forgotten scientific and surgical discoveries (including previously untranslated archival material from Berlin) with the politics and social history that galvanized the first stirrings of the trans rights movement. Through its unforgettable characters and immersive, urgent storytelling, The Intermediaries charts the relationships between nascent sexual science, queer civil rights, and the fight against fascism. It tells riveting stories of LGBTQ pioneers–a surprising, long-suppressed history–and offers a cautionary tale in the face of today’s oppressive anti-trans legislation.

Amplitudes

edited by Lee Mandelo
Fantasy | LGBTQ+
May 27, 2025 by Erewhon Books

Revolutionary and visionary, these twenty-two speculative stories edited by Lambda, Nebula and Hugo finalist Lee Mandelo explore the vast potentialities of our queer and trans futures.

From self-styled knights fighting in dystopian city streets to conservationists finding love in the Appalachian forests; from social media posts about domestic “bliss” in a lottery-based, state-housing skyscraper to herding feral cats off of one’s scientific equipment; from street drugs that create doppelgangers to dance-club cruising at the edge of the galaxy—Amplitudes: Stories of Queer and Trans Futurity interrogates the farthest borders of the sci-fi landscape to imagine how queer life will look centuries in the future—or ten years from now.

Filled with brutal honesty, raw emotions, sexual escapades, and delightful whimsy, Amplitudes speaks to the longstanding tradition of queer fiction as protest. This essential collection serves as an evolving map of our celebrations, anxieties, wishes, pitfalls, and—most of all—our rallying cry that we’re here, we’re queer—and the future is ours!

Featuring stories by Esther Alter • Bendi Barrett • Ta-wei Chi, trans. Ariel Chu • Colin Dean • Maya Deane • Dominique Dickey • Katharine Duckett • Meg Elison • Paul Evanby • Aysha U. Farah • Sarah Gailey • Ash Huang • Margaret Killjoy • Wen-yi Lee • Ewen Ma • Jamie McGhee • Sam J. Miller • Aiki Mira, trans. CD Covington • Sunny Moraine • Nat X. Ray • Neon Yang • Ramez Yoakeim

A Rare Find

by Joanna Lowell 
Romance| LGBTQ+
June 10, 2025 by Berkley

When an aspiring archaeologist teams up with her childhood enemy for a treasure hunt, they find it impossible to bury their growing feelings, in a charming queer historical romance from the author of A Shore Thing.
 
Elfreda Marsden has finally made a major discovery—an ancient amulet proving the Viking army camped on her family’s estate. Too bad her nemesis is back from London, freshly exiled after a scandal and ready to wreak havoc on her life. Georgie Redmayne is everything Elfreda isn’t–charming, popular, carefree, distractingly attractive, and bored to death by the countryside. When the two collide (literally), the amulet is lost, and with it, Elfreda’s big chance to lead a proper excavation. Now Elfreda needs new evidence of medieval activity, and Georgie needs money to escape the doldrums of Derbyshire. Joining forces to locate a hidden hoard of Viking gold is the best chance for them both. 
 
Marsdens and Redmaynes don’t get along, and that’s the least of the reasons these enemies can’t dream of something more. But as the quest takes them on unexpected adventures, sparks of attraction ignite a feeling increasingly difficult to identify as hatred. It’s far too risky to explore. And far too tempting to resist. Elfreda and Georgie soon find that the real treasure comes with a steep price… and the promise of a happiness beyond all measure.

Hot Girls with Balls

by Benedict Nguyen 
Fiction| LGBTQ+
July 2, 2025 by Catapult

In this outrageous and deeply serious satire, two star indoor volleyball players juggle unspoken jealousies in their off-court romance ahead of their rival teams’ first rematch in a year

Six is 6′7″, scheming to rejoin the starting lineup, and barely checks her phone. Green is 6′1″, always building her brand, and secretly jealous of her more famous girlfriend. Together, they’re going where no Asian American trans woman has gone before: the men’s pro indoor volleyball league. Our hot girls with balls just thought playing with the boys would spare them some controversy . . . haha.

In between their rival teams’ away games across the globe, Six and Green stay connected on SpaceTime and selflessly broadcast their romance to fans on their weekly Instagraph live show. After a long season, they’ll finally reunite for the championship tournament, the first to accommodate in-person fans since the COVIS pandemic struck the world a year ago. Just as they enter an airtight bro bubble of the world’s best, they’re faced with a crisis that demands an indisputably humiliating task: make a public statement online.

Can Green stock up enough clout for her post-ball future? Can Six girlboss her team’s seniority politics? Can they both take a time-out to just grieve? Their rabid fans and horny haters await their next move. We’re all just desperate for a whiff of the sweaty feminine energy that makes that ball thwack with such spectacular force.

No Lies Just Love for The Knight and the Moth by Rachel Gillig

Title: The Knight and the Moth
Author: Rachel Gillig
Publication Date: May 20, 2025 by Orbit
Genres: Romantasy| Gothic
Representation: N/A

“To tell a story is in some part to tell a lie, isn’t it?” That simple line, so enigmatic and suggestive, opens The Knight and the Moth with questions already in our minds . . . but the depth of its meaning does not become apparent until deep into the book. Rachel Gillig does an amazing job of quietly following that lie, setting up a twist (and a twist within a twist) that hits as hard as it should without feeling like a cheat.

But that is getting way ahead of myself. As the story opens, we are presented with a sumptuous fantasy that’s laden with gothic themes and imagery. The cathedral, its gargoyles, the gossamer-clad maidens, and the act of drowning accompanying their prophecies – it’s beautiful, mysterious, and yet deeply unsettling. There’s humor to it as well, sometimes dark, sometimes odd . . . and, sometimes, as we only find out near the end, downright tragic.

This is a book that shifts on you more than once, knocking you down, picking you up, and leading you in a new direction. I found the first such knockdown so disconcerting that I (admittedly) allowed my interest to wane for a while, but when it knocked me down again, and I began to appreciate the questions and the lies, I was more invested in this than ever.

I would describe The Knight and the Moth as a fantasy first and a romantasy second, but that’s not to say both elements aren’t entirely satisfying. The romantic tension between Six and Rodrick is so very well done, and it make sense in the context of the story that it takes so long for either of them to move on it. When they do, it’s not just satisfying, but swoon-worthy in so many ways. I loved their dynamic, their verbal sparring, and the way cracks of humanity appear in their armor.

As for the fantasy, for all that this is a story of magic, monsters, and more, it’s predominantly a story of faith, humanity, and why we choose to believe. I don’t mean that in a heavy-handed religious sense, but more in peeling back the layers of myth. I was not expecting that kind of depth, and when it all comes together . . . when we’re knocked down for the last time . . . it’s as powerful as it is heartbreaking. There are characters here you’ll love or hate so strongly, but don’t expect all those emotions to survive through the end.

There’s so much more I wish I could say about this, but they would all open the door to spoilers, and this is a book that needs to be experienced. Gillig has written something beautiful and meaningful, familiar in so many ways, and yet unexpected in so many others. Just a stunning work of fantasy – and I’m intensely curious to see where the second book takes it.

Rating:

My sincere thanks to the publisher for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.