Once Ghosted, Twice Shy
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Alyssa Cole is truly a master of her craft. Like, I think her books would translate so well to the screen — even the novellas would. Once Ghosted, Twice Shy is the first novella from the Reluctant Royals story. It takes on the second chance love trope AND is about a sapphic romance.
Once Ghosted, Twice Shy stars Likotsi who you might remember from A Princess In Theory as she works for Prince Thabiso. She had a romance of her own with Fabiola while on a dating app while visiting New York City. Fabiola ghosted Likotsi and as Likotsi left NYC, you would think that was it. Well, Likotsi is back in New York City and the two happen to be on the same train which stalls. Fabiola asks Likotsi to grab a cup of tea with her and from there the story of why Fabiola ghosted her is slowly unraveled.
As said, Alyssa Cole is the deal. I love her writing and this novella is no different. It’s really good!! I ended up loving both Likotsi and Fabiola. I also loved the exploration of New York City. As for the format, I listened to this novella via Hoopla. It is narrated by Karen Chilton who is an excellent narrator. It is 3 hours and 20 minutes unabridged and just goes really fast. I would recommend you use your library Hoopla credit on this book — particularly as a palate cleanser, it is a great way to wind down — listening to this book.
Can’t Escape Love
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Alyssa Cole is an iconic writer. Whether it is a novella or a full sized book, I am obsessed. Can’t Escape Love is the second novella from her Reluctant Royals series. For a bite sized story, I just loved it. Yes, it is short but it hits on everything I want in a story.
Can’t Escape Love is about Regina Hobbs who is a Black wheelchair user who runs the media enterprise Girls With Glasses. She’s about to take it to the next level, only she has insomnia. Regina has the cure to her insomnia though – listening to live streamer Gustave Nguyen who is obsessed with puzzles. Only, one day all of his archives are gone. In desperate need of sleep, Regina reaches out to Gustave to pay him to lull her to sleep with his voice. As it turns out, they make a trade. He talks her to sleep and she will help him with this escape room project he has — featuring a subject he doesn’t know a whole lot about – Romantic anime. Of course, there’s chemistry and the sparks fly.
I loved this novella. Regina and Gustave are sweet. And honestly, who doesn’t love a nerdy couple? I loved Gustave’s love of puzzles as a fellow puzzler myself. Also, this made me want to watch anime again although it has been nearly twenty years since I have done so. As per usual, I listened to Can’t Escape Love via audio via Hoopla. Worth the library borrow, particularly as I guess authors get royalties from Hoopla borrows if I understand correctly. Karen Chilton narrates and it is 4 hours and 23 minutes, so if you have a big marathon cleaning task, this is perfect to knock that right out.
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Karen Chilton did such a great job with ONCE GHOSTED, TWICE SHY. I’ll have to see if Can’t Escape Love is on my Hoopla.