Fidele

JENNA LYNN BROWN

There's a time-honored tradition of governesses falling for the guardians of their pupils."
"I'm not Jane Eyre," I replied.

Slow-burn, Gothic, m/m romance set in a haunted Louisiana mansion in the early 1950s. The main characters are both WWII vets in their 30s; Malcolm Carmichael is an artist and private tutor to Noel Thibodeaux's young traumatized nephew. I thoroughly enjoyed this one, even though the cover doesn't really suit the story at all.

Permanent Ink

AVON GALE & PIPER VAUGHN

Tattoo shop owner with something of a past who agrees to hire and mentor his best friend's son whose penchant for graffiti will land him a criminal record if he doesn't watch out. May-December romance, mild daddy kink, and thankfully some major character growth on the part of Poe, the bratty punk street artist who finds a new outlet in tattooing. And a new love, of course.

Jeremiah

JAYCE ELLIS

I liked this contemporary story about a Black paramedic who's not hiding his sexuality but hasn't found anyone yet to take home to his family and a white lip-gloss-wearing twink who's got his own hangups. I especially liked that it's set in Washington, DC, since I lived there for several years and enjoyed reading about familiar places and scenes. 

The next book in this series apparently comes out this summer and I expect I'll read that one too. 

American Fairytale

ADRIANA HERRERA

I snapped this up immediately when I saw that it was on sale. I really liked Herrera's first book in this series, American Dreamer, and I'm looking forward to hearing Camilo's story.