The AI bubble is heading towards a burst but it won't be the end of AI
Oct. 15th, 2025 02:08 pm![[syndicated profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/feed.png)
by Kelly Gardiner
July 8, 2025 · HarperVia
Historical: EuropeanMystery/Thriller
This guest review comes from Lisa! A longtime romance aficionado and frequent commenter to SBTB, Lisa is a queer Latine critic with a sharp tongue and lots of opinions. She frequently reviews at All About Romance and Women Write About Comics, where she’s on staff, and you can catch her at @thatbouviergirl on Twitter. There, she shares good reviews, bracing industry opinions and thoughtful commentary when she’s not on her grind looking for the next good freelance job.
A full out delight of a historical mystery, Miss Caroline Bingley: Private Investigator gives us a different perspective on snobby, self-invested Caroline Bingley of Pride and Prejudice fame. While some fans of the book might not be into this notion, here she’s a smart, resourceful, witty, staunch character and a good detective — and someone who manages to bring comfort and support to her other women. Gardiner and Kumar don’t sand off her rough edges, either — she can be prickly, quick to judge and standoffish in turns. But this yields a wonderfully rounded out character and results in a great mystery, though it does have a couple of minor flaws.
It’s been two years since Charles Bingley and Jane Bennet and Elizabeth Bennet and Fitzwilliam Darcy married. Charles and Jane now own a home near Pemberley, and Caroline is staying with her brother, having embraced spinsterhood and grown as a person out of the biting, snarky woman she once was. While dealing with a meaningless social whirl she dislikes, Charles’ spending habits, and feeling like an accessory, Caroline pines for more. She has managed to strike up a friendship with Georgiana Darcy, though, so the situation hasn’t been entirely hopeless. Everything changes when she gets a letter from Georgiana announcing that she’s hieing off to London and expects Caroline to say she’s staying with Caroline and the Bingleys, having lied to the Darcys about her whereabouts.
When Georgiana disappears after her departure, Caroline goes to track her down in spite of the winter chill. Georgiana’s reason for leaving turns out to be that Georgiana’s ladies maid, Jayani “Jade” Smith, has disappeared from the household abruptly. With Colonel Fitzwilliam acting as Georgiana’s guardian and allowing her to stay in his home, the two women go looking for Jade. Caroline does indeed find her – but at a dire time, and at the scene of her beloved brother’s murder, crying over his bloodstained body.
Jade is immediately charged with the crime, but Caroline thinks she’s innocent and being railroaded by a racist investigation. With circumstances too fluid and dire to take the risk of involving either Darcy or Charles in the matter, Caroline decides to roll up her sleeves and investigate the matter herself. The two women and Caroline’s loyal and dry-eyed butler, Gordon, promptly begin looking into the case. The East India Company turns out to be involved – and as Caroline and Georgiana learn about the ugliness of their trade, they soon find themselves in just as much danger as Jade.
Caroline Bingley, Private Detective is one of those rare Pride and Prejudice continuations that has me yearning for more – a whole series of mysteries featuring Caroline and Georgiana growing as they help save the innocent. While this Caroline has her canonically-based staunch sense of reality, she’s managed to grow into a different sort of woman since we last saw her. Some might find this uncanonical – she’s perhaps a little too worldly, a little more understanding of the ways of others. But that doesn’t mean she’s been sanitized – she still shows flashes of snobbishness which stops her from being transmogrified into a saint.
She still feels the need to protect Georgiana’s innocence, even though Georgiana has read Darcy’s newspapers and knows far more about the world than Caroline might guess. Their friendship is an intriguing change to the novel’s strictures, and it really helps embellish this mystery. For Georgiana it’s a real growth story and very much about coming out of her shell and experiencing the world.
I liked Jayani as a character, and definitely rooted for her freedom and wanted to see her be happy and keep growing. The mystery she introduced to the book was interesting, though not without its predictable twists, which made me mark this book down from a squee-level read. Gordon was an interesting addition to the pack – very knowing of Caroline’s flaws, but also willing to help both women out. His many talents were fun to witness — the only butler in the world who can kick butt and take names with the best of them.
The research here is pretty fantastic – I knew something about the East India Company and Britain’s involvement in the slave trade even after slavery had been abolished, but the book does a great job in filling in those blanks and pointing out the evils that were done.
As for romance, there’s only the slightest whisper of it to be had here, but perhaps some of the sparks that fly between Caroline and the men in her life might be built upon in later volumes. Perhaps in future sequels there might be kissing, but this volume is rather light on the romance. But even if we only end up with one volume of Caroline’s adventures, this is enough to amuse and enchant the reader. Miss Caroline Bingley: Private Detective is a total delight, and as a cozy mystery fan I took great joy in reading it. I’m very picky about Pride and Prejudice continuations, but this one definitely hit the spot for me.
Six Wild Crowns by Holly Race is $2.99! This is book one in a series. Elyse reviewed this and gave it a B:
This book is a wonderful reading experience. The setting, clothes and manners are all from a familiar enough place in time that it didn’t require a ton of world building, but Elben was still unique as a fantasy world. The action and the conflict were paced very well so the book grows in momentum. There’s also the “Earl has to die” plotline that I always appreciate.
NO KING CAN RULE THEM ALL.
In a Tudor England infused with deadly magic, a very different history will unfold for the wives of Henry VIII. Perfect for fans of The Priory of the Orange Tree, Six Wild Crowns is an epic fantasy filled with legendary dragons, vicious courtly intrigue, and sapphic yearning.
As tradition has it, the king of Elben must marry six queens and magically bind each of them to one of the island’s palaces or the kingdom will fall.
Clever, ambitious Boleyn is determined to be her beloved Henry’s favorite queen. She relishes the games at court and the political rivalries with his other wives. Seymour is the opposite – originally sent to Boleyn’s court as a reluctant spy and assassin, she ends up catching Henry’s eye and is forced into a loveless marriage with the king.
But when the two queens become the unlikeliest of things – friends and allies – the balance of power begins to shift. Together, they uncover a dark and deadly truth at the heart of the island’s magic. Boleyn and Seymour’s only hope of survival rests on uniting all six of the rival queens – but Henry will never let that happen.
The Library of Borrowed Hearts by Lucy Gilmore is $1.99! This seems to be a mix of contemporary fiction, romance, and mystery. Some reviews mention this is a slow one!
A.J. Fikry meets The Bookish Life of Nina Hill in this charming, hilarious, and moving novel about the way books bring lonely souls together.
Two young lovers. Sixty long years. One bookish mystery worth solving.
Librarian Chloe Sampson has been struggling: to take care of her three younger siblings, to find herself, to make ends meet. She’s just about at the end of her rope when she stumbles across a rare edition of a book from the 1960s at the local flea market. Deciding it’s a sign of her luck turning, she takes it home with her—only to be shocked when her cranky hermit of a neighbor swoops in and offers to buy it for an exorbitant price. Intrigued, Chloe takes a closer look at the book only to find notes scribbled in the margins between two young lovers back when the book was new…one of whom is almost definitely Jasper Holmes, the curmudgeon next door.
When she begins following the clues left behind, she discovers this isn’t the only old book in town filled with romantic marginalia. This kickstarts a literary scavenger hunt that Chloe is determined to see through to the end. What happened to the two tragic lovers who corresponded in the margins of so many different library books? And what does it have to do with the old, sad man next door—who only now has begun to open his home and heart to Chloe and her siblings?
In a romantic tale that spans the decades, Chloe discovers that there’s much more to her grouchy old neighbor than meets the eye. And in allowing herself to accept the unexpected friendship he offers, she learns that some love stories begin in the unlikeliest of places.
What is Love? by Jen Comfort $2.49 on Amazon! Both characters in this romance are quiz game show champions that are brought back for a “champions only” episode. I was kind of eh on this one, but I think I’m in the minority.
Head and heart collide in a story of polar-opposite rivals that’s anything but trivial in this game show romance from Midnight Duet author Jen Comfort.
Answer: From the Latin word for crossroads, this is knowledge so common as to be obscure, the pursuit of which engages millions daily. Question: What is trivia?
Trivia is the magic in the mundane, the connection in the commonplace, and Maxine Hart’s second-favorite pastime. A self-proclaimed Brooklyn street rat and a high school dropout, Maxine has never been a fan of formal education, but thanks to her ADHD “superpowers,” she’s a glutton for knowledge—and a good fight. And when Maxine enters the trivia game show Answers!, her brilliance, coupled with her penchant for big bets, devastates her competition. Even record-holding, 76-time-winner Teddy Ferguson.
Or was it their kiss the night before they faced off that threw the buttoned-up professor off his game?
Now, Maxine and Teddy cross paths again in a high-stakes tournament against all-time Answers! winners, including undefeated champion Hercules McKnight. With nothing in common but an insatiable appetite for knowledge and a desire to win, Maxine offers Teddy a deal: combine their strengths to shore up their weaknesses. She’ll push his tolerance for risk and improve his buzzer speed, if he’ll find creative ways to fill in the gaps in her education.
Except neither one of them foresaw just how scintillating learning could be…
The Tainted Cup by Robert Jackson Bennett is $1.99! This is a fantasy mystery with a Holmes and Watson vibe. I mentioned this on a previous Hide Your Wallet.
A Holmes and Watson-style detective duo take the stage in this fantasy with a mystery twist, from the Edgar-winning, multiple Hugo-nominated Robert Jackson Bennett
In Daretana’s greatest mansion, a high imperial officer lies dead—killed, to all appearances, when a tree erupted from his body. Even here at the Empire’s borders, where contagions abound and the blood of the leviathans works strange magical changes, it’s a death both terrifying and impossible.
Assigned to investigate is Ana Dolabra, a detective whose reputation for brilliance is matched only by her eccentricities. Rumor has it that she wears a blindfold at all times, and that she can solve impossible cases without even stepping outside the walls of her home.
At her side is her new assistant, Dinios Kol, magically altered in ways that make him the perfect aide to Ana’s brilliance. Din is at turns scandalized, perplexed, and utterly infuriated by his new superior—but as the case unfolds and he watches Ana’s mind leap from one startling deduction to the next, he must admit that she is, indeed, the Empire’s greatest detective.
As the two close in on a mastermind and uncover a scheme that threatens the Empire itself, Din realizes he’s barely begun to assemble the puzzle that is Ana Dolabra—and wonders how long he’ll be able to keep his own secrets safe from her piercing intellect.
By an “endlessly inventive” (Vulture) author with a “wicked sense of humor” (NPR), The Tainted Cup mixes the charms of detective fiction with brilliant world-building to deliver a fiendishly clever mystery that’s at once instantly recognizable and thrillingly new.
This HaBO is from Hannah, who wants to find this romance:
I’m looking for a book (maybe series) that I read in high school (probably around 2004-7). It was popular amongst the girls and we were all excited to read it and pass it around (mainly based on the spicy scenes).
It followed a girl who met a bad boy type and fell head over heels. I seem to remember that he was sexually experienced and was showing her the ropes. There were quite a few explicit scenes I’m sure, although I also seem to remember getting it out from the school library so maybe they weren’t that explicit (also could be wrong about the library).
I remember the main character had a girls summer holiday and her and her friends were sunbathing on the roof. I also remember a male best friend of the main character who was jealous of the new “bad boy” and there was a scene where they were at a party but the MC and bad boy were all over each other (maybe against a wall). This was referenced then later between the MC and friend where he was saying she was so engrossed that night she didn’t notice whatever was going on at the party.
It’s driving me crazy that I can’t remember it!
Can we HaBO?
Happy Tuesday!
We’ve reached the midpoint of the month. There’s some good cozy and spooky representation in releases this week.
What new releases are you excited for this Tuesday? Let us know in the comments!
Author: Martha Waters
Released: October 14, 2025 by Atria Books
Genre: Historical: European, Mystery/Thriller, Romance
From Martha Waters, the author of the “enchanting” (Entertainment Weekly) Regency Vows series, a new historical romance set in 1930s England with a murder mystery twist.
In a quaint village in the Cotswolds, Georgiana Radcliffe has accidentally become an amateur detective after helping solve four murders in a single year. When the chairman of the village council turns up dead, everyone agrees with the official ruling of a heart attack, but Georgie can’t help but suspect that the council chairman is a fifth victim. Now, murder tourists are flocking from around the country, in hopes of becoming sleuths themselves.
Along with her reporter friend, she reaches out to a famous London detective for assistance in ascertaining why they have become a magnet for murder. But the fancy detective is simply too busy—or can’t be bothered—to help, and instead dispatches his secretary, Sebastian Fletcher-Ford—a posh womanizer who, truthfully, is just trying to get out of his hair, much to practical, no-nonsense Georgie’s dismay. But as they investigate in the charming Buncombe-upon-Woolly—with plentiful scones, sheep on the village green, and murder tourists at every turn—Georgie finds that her previous assessment of Sebastian may have been wrong, and rather than solving a murder, she may be solving for love instead.
Lara: I adored this cosy mystery romance because I am a sucker for a grumpy heroine in a historical setting. Full review coming!
Author: Kelley Armstrong
Released: October 14, 2025 by St. Martin's Press
Genre: Horror, Mystery/Thriller, Paranormal
From New York Times bestselling author Kelley Armstrong comes a nail-biting supernatural horror about a haunted lakeside property and twisted family secrets.
When Samantha Payne’s grandfather dies, she figures she won’t even get a mention in the will. After all, she hasn’t seen him in fourteen years, not since her father took his own life after being accused of murdering a child at their lakefront cottage. Her grandfather always insisted her father was innocent, despite Sam having caught him burying the child’s body, his clothing streaked with blood.
But when she does attend the reading of the will at the behest of her aunt, she discovers that her grandfather left her the very valuable lakefront property where the family cottage sits. There’s one catch: Sam needs to stay in the cottage for a month. To finally face the fact she was wrong and her father was innocent, in her grandfather’s words.
Traveling to Paynes Hollow, Sam is faced with the realities of her childhood and the secrets kept hidden in the shadows of her memories. When her aunt goes missing a couple days into their stay, Sam begins to question everything again. Plagued by nightmares and paranoia, she begins hearing sounds in the forest and seeing shapes crawling from the water as the rippling waves of the lake promise something unspeakably dark lurking just below their surface.
New spooky mystery from Kelley Armstrong!
Author: Julie Leong
Released: October 14, 2025 by Ace
Genre: LGBTQIA, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
An almost-mage discovers friendship—and maybe something more—in the unlikeliest of places in this delightfully charming novel from the USA Today bestselling author of The Teller of Small Fortunes.
Certainty Bulrush wants to be useful—to the Guild of Mages that took her in as a novice, to the little brother who depends on her, and to anyone else she can help. Unfortunately, her tepid magic hasn’t proven much use to anyone. When Certainty has the chance to earn her magehood via a seemingly straightforward assignment, she takes it. Nevermind that she’ll have to work with Mage Aurelia, the brilliant, unfairly attractive overachiever who’s managed to alienate everyone around her.
The two must transport minorly magical artifacts somewhere Shpelling, the dullest, least magical village around. There, they must fix up an old warehouse, separate the gossipy teapots from the kind-of-flaming swords, corral an unruly little catdragon who has tagged along, and above all, avoid complications. The Guild’s uneasy relationship with citizens is at a tipping point, and the last thing needed is a magical incident.
Still, as mage and novice come to know Shpelling’s residents—and each other—they realize the Guild’s hoarded magic might do more good being shared. Friendships blossom while Certainty and Aurelia work to make Shpelling the haven it could be. But magic is fickle—add attraction and it might spell trouble.
Julie Leong has another cozy fantasy coming out.
Author: Pam Grossman
Released: October 14, 2025 by Penguin Life
Genre: Nonfiction
“Rich descriptions of creativity and magic are paired with a practical roadmap for making a life in devotion to both.” —Jessica Dore, author of Tarot for Change
A magical guide to enhancing your creative process, from “the Terry Gross of witches” (Vulture)
Creativity and magic are one and the same.
Creative people often speak of being channels for inspiration, while others refer to communing with their muse. For many, this is more than mere metaphor, as artists throughout history have employed magical techniques to tap into their creativity, express powerful messages, and make contact with the sacred. From the songwriting divination of David Bowie and the bewitching shapeshifting of Beyoncé, to the Ouija board poetry sessions of Sylvia Plath and the abstract painting séances of Hilma af Klint, to the manifestation method of Octavia E. Butler and the daily meditation of David Lynch, mystical practices have been responsible for generating some of the world’s most beloved creations. While there are many books on creativity out there, none of them examines the specific ways that magic has been embraced by creative visionaries throughout history, nor do they explore how makers can start using these methods in their own creative processes.
Magic Maker is the first. In this book, critically acclaimed author of Waking the Witch Pam Grossman shares how you can use magic to enhance your own creative practices.
Smart, captivating, and gorgeously written, Magic Maker is filled with stories of artists, musicians, writers, filmmakers, and other creatives throughout history who have applied magic to their process. Grossman shows us how we can tap into the same inspiration for our own creative pursuits, whether it’s writing a song, a novel, software code, or figuring out our path in life.
Delving into topics such as spellcasting, invocation, spirit communication, divination, and more, Grossman provides an enchanting and practical guide for anyone who wants to unlock their own creative magic and make whatever it is you’re meant to in this lifetime.
Sarah: This book links creativity to magical practice through stories of creative people who applied different methods to their own generative practice, and I am so curious.
Author: Cait Jacobs
Released: October 14, 2025 by Harper Voyager
Genre: Fantasy/Fairy Tale Romance, Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy
A princess desperate to win back the prince who broke her heart follows him to his kingdom’s prestigious military academy—and in doing so, falls in love, saves the realm, and continues to look fabulous in this delightful debut fantasy.
Domhnall and Clía are an ideal match—or so everyone says. They are prince and princess of neighboring kingdoms. An alliance the gods will smile on. Until Domhnall ruins everything by refusing to propose.
Heartbroken but determined, Clía makes the perfect plan: Follow Domhnall to Caisleán Cósta, the military academy he’s attending. Show she can protect her kingdom. Secure the betrothal. Sure, the castle has a brutal reputation. But how hard can dueling really be?
Warrior Ronan promised himself he’d never lose his focus. He fought and sacrificed for his place at Caisleán Cósta, and he has no time for blonde princesses who waltz intro arenas like they’re attending a ball. Even if she and her otter-like pet are…well, cute.
He doesn’t want to be intrigued by Clía. But her hunger to prove herself is something he understands. He tells himself there’s no harm training her. Even if his heart does race around her. Even if Domhnall is his best friend.
But as they say, love is a battlefield—and unfortunately for them all, a very real war is looming on the horizon. It’s a fight that will threaten all their kingdoms…and test all their hearts.
Amanda: I’m 100% swayed by the cover.
Author: Marie Lu
Released: October 14, 2025 by Tor Books
Genre: Romance, Science Fiction/Fantasy, Urban Fantasy
Series: The New Alchemists #1
The Godfather meets The Magicians in the sweeping adult debut from #1 New York Times bestselling author Marie Lu. Perfect for fans of V.E. Schwab, Red City is a dark and deadly contemporary fantasy of magical warfare, star-crossed ambition, and the pursuit of perfection at any cost, set in a glittering alternate Los Angeles.
Alchemy is the hidden art of transformation. An exclusive power wielded by crime syndicates that market it to the world’s elites in the form of sand, a drug that enhances those who take it into a more perfect version of more beautiful, more charismatic, simply more.
Among the gleaming skyscrapers and rolling foothills of Angel City, alchemy is controlled by two rival syndicates. For years, Grand Central and Lumines have been balanced on a razor’s edge between polite negotiation and outright violence. But when two childhood friends step into that delicate equation, the city—and the paths of their lives—will be irrevocably transformed.
The daughter of a poor single mother, Sam would do anything to claw her way into the ranks of Grand Central in search of a better life. Plucked away from his family as a boy to become a Lumines apprentice, Ari is one of the syndicates’ brightest rising stars. Once, they might have loved each other. But as the two alchemists face off across opposite sides of an ever-escalating conflict, ambition becomes power, loyalty becomes lies, and no transformation may be perfect enough for them both to survive the coming war.
Marie Lu’s adult debut! Giving me Jade City vibes.