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Harnessing The Power of Paperbacks

March 13, 2020 by Talia 1 Comment

Paperbacks: Do they matter? Should indie authors bother? Are they worth it? And Talia, why are you typing out questions to yourself and posting them on the internet? Read closely, my majestic moppet, and all shall become clear. (Or more complicated, depending on how well you parse my particular ...
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A Sneak Peek at Work for It – My Angsty, M/M, Small-Town Romance

August 27, 2019 by Talia 3 Comments

Aloha, beanios, If you follow my social media screechings at all, you should be aware that my grumpy fruit farmer x cynical playboy hate-to-love extravaganza Work for It comes out on the 3rd of September. Here's a taste of Griff and Olu to keep you going until then... Olu This, I suppose, ...
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Race and Historical Romance, or: The Duke is Black, Now Deal With It.

July 10, 2019 by Talia 33 Comments

Romancelandia has been eagerly awaiting Netflix's adaptation of Julia Quinn's Bridgertons for... oh, centuries, at least. Now the casting decisions have finally been made public, and I for one, was pleasantly surprised to see a few brown actors included. Unfortunately, that pleasure was swiftly ...
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The Princess Trap: Now on Audio!

May 8, 2019 by Talia Leave a Comment

Good morrow, my chocolate truffles! Today is a beautiful day, and not just because I had a Bakewell tart after lunch. Can you believe that the audiobook version of The Princess Trap is now out there in the wild for anyone to purchase and hear? Can you?! Because I cannot. I am so excited, the ...
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That Kind of Guy: Chapter One

April 12, 2019 by Talia 16 Comments

Zach was furious, and it felt good. He bent over the anvil, laser-focused, a vicious energy burning through his bloodstream. This was his molten world of metal and flame, where his anger was acceptable, even reasonable: here, it gave him strength. And so, at work, where no-one he loved could see, ...
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Get a Life, Chloe Brown: Entertainment Weekly, Plus Everything Else You Need to Know

March 25, 2019 by Talia 6 Comments

Hola, friends! Since this is my website, I feel like it's supposed to be a sort of... Talia-central. You know, with all relevant events neatly catalogued for your convenience. So, here's an event and a half: the cover for my first book with Avon, Get a Life, Chloe Brown, has been revealed. And by ...
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Sep 14

I annoyed the ethical gremlins with all the Danger Words in this post so I’m whacking it up again because The People Need to Know:

All hail Goddess of Romance Nalini Singh who can do no wrong in my eyes and ultimately Owns My Heart. Feel free to read on for a completely objective review.

I haven’t finished this book yet but it’s definitely Book of the Year. I am absolutely blown away. Not sure how Nalini consistently mashes me up like this but she is welcome to continue (please please please continue, not sure I could live without). The Psy-Changeling universe is my home (except not literally I would 💀 within seconds) and I am freshly in love with Ivan (tortured icon) and Soleil (badass cherry pie). Every glimpse at, mention of, or reference to previous characters in the series clears my skin and waters my crops. The plot? The intrigue? The poetic mystical science? 11/10.

On a more serious note, this series always addresses such complex elements of human nature (despite rarely featuring actual humans, I guess that’s the ✨literature✨ of it all) and as usual I am obsessed. Trash for these characters and the way they grapple with their trauma & self-worth and navigate not just their romantic relationship but their familial bonds and place within their community. If you haven’t read any Psy-Changeling books yet, hurry up, you’re hurting my feelings. But make sure to check for CWs!

I annoyed the ethical gremlins with all the Danger Words in this post so I’m whacking it up again because The People Need to Know:

All hail Goddess of Romance Nalini Singh who can do no wrong in my eyes and ultimately Owns My Heart. Feel free to read on for a completely objective review.

I haven’t finished this book yet but it’s definitely Book of the Year. I am absolutely blown away. Not sure how Nalini consistently mashes me up like this but she is welcome to continue (please please please continue, not sure I could live without). The Psy-Changeling universe is my home (except not literally I would 💀 within seconds) and I am freshly in love with Ivan (tortured icon) and Soleil (badass cherry pie). Every glimpse at, mention of, or reference to previous characters in the series clears my skin and waters my crops. The plot? The intrigue? The poetic mystical science? 11/10.

On a more serious note, this series always addresses such complex elements of human nature (despite rarely featuring actual humans, I guess that’s the ✨literature✨ of it all) and as usual I am obsessed. Trash for these characters and the way they grapple with their trauma & self-worth and navigate not just their romantic relationship but their familial bonds and place within their community. If you haven’t read any Psy-Changeling books yet, hurry up, you’re hurting my feelings. But make sure to check for CWs! ...

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Sep 7

Early copies of my next romcom! 😍 #HighlySuspiciousandUnfairlyCute is my YA debut and according to the people who’ve already read it, it’s quite funny and romantic. The plot is basically:

What if you hated 90% of human beings and loved conspiracy theories and had a super hot best friend who slowly became popular and abandoned you and then you had a MAJOR ARGUMENT that turned you into outright enemies (and academic rivals) and then you despised each other for a few years but then in your final year you had to sit next to each other and you got detention for arguing the whole time and on the way to detention you were GRAVELY INJURED and it was ENTIRELY HIS FAULT so he offered to drive you to an informative extracurricular meeting to make it up to you, and the meeting was about an enrichment programme for the best students in the country, and he decided to apply, and you both got in, and then you had to, like, enrich yourselves together in a variety of British forests for the rest of the year??? What if that happened?? What then?

Find out, I suppose, by reading this book. Preorder now via my bio 🥰 comes out January 3!

Early copies of my next romcom! 😍 #HighlySuspiciousandUnfairlyCute is my YA debut and according to the people who’ve already read it, it’s quite funny and romantic. The plot is basically:

What if you hated 90% of human beings and loved conspiracy theories and had a super hot best friend who slowly became popular and abandoned you and then you had a MAJOR ARGUMENT that turned you into outright enemies (and academic rivals) and then you despised each other for a few years but then in your final year you had to sit next to each other and you got detention for arguing the whole time and on the way to detention you were GRAVELY INJURED and it was ENTIRELY HIS FAULT so he offered to drive you to an informative extracurricular meeting to make it up to you, and the meeting was about an enrichment programme for the best students in the country, and he decided to apply, and you both got in, and then you had to, like, enrich yourselves together in a variety of British forests for the rest of the year??? What if that happened?? What then?

Find out, I suppose, by reading this book. Preorder now via my bio 🥰 comes out January 3! ...

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Sep 5

I went on holiday! And yes I did wear a little grandma scarf on my head the whole time ✨ this modern sun is hot you know! Interesting Holiday Things:

1. There was a bridge leading from our hotel to the equivalent rich people hotel & it was password protected but I got someone to let me in by hovering innocently nearby while looking Fancy & Lost. I intended to go over there and check out their Bacchanalian revels & designer swimwear (for research!!!) but I unfortunately chickened out halfway over the bridge. I’m sorry! I have failed you! Maybe next time.

2. I got a massage at the hotel and the lady was Very Very Small. I prefer firm/verging on violent massages so I was prepared to be disappointed. However, after ordering me to strip and stuffing me into some paper knickers (!!!!????) she proceeded to massage me so hard that the bed I was lying on *bounced across the floor*. And every time it happened she calmly dragged the bed back into place without breaking a sweat. I left faintly bruised and very pleased indeed.

3. Apparently Portugal is ice cream heaven. We were staying in a small town with approximately zero nightlife, but we went on the prowl for some anyway because, English. What we found instead was a cornucopia of tiny ice cream shops, all of which sold a WILD AND WONDERFUL array of ice cream flavours that absolutely rocked my world. So if you are going to Portugal, dear followers, take your lactase tablets.

This was my first holiday abroad in five years and it has sparked a fire in me!!!! If you come from a country that is not in the UK and you think people should holiday there, please let me know?? I am now building a travel list!

I went on holiday! And yes I did wear a little grandma scarf on my head the whole time ✨ this modern sun is hot you know! Interesting Holiday Things:

1. There was a bridge leading from our hotel to the equivalent rich people hotel & it was password protected but I got someone to let me in by hovering innocently nearby while looking Fancy & Lost. I intended to go over there and check out their Bacchanalian revels & designer swimwear (for research!!!) but I unfortunately chickened out halfway over the bridge. I’m sorry! I have failed you! Maybe next time.

2. I got a massage at the hotel and the lady was Very Very Small. I prefer firm/verging on violent massages so I was prepared to be disappointed. However, after ordering me to strip and stuffing me into some paper knickers (!!!!????) she proceeded to massage me so hard that the bed I was lying on *bounced across the floor*. And every time it happened she calmly dragged the bed back into place without breaking a sweat. I left faintly bruised and very pleased indeed.

3. Apparently Portugal is ice cream heaven. We were staying in a small town with approximately zero nightlife, but we went on the prowl for some anyway because, English. What we found instead was a cornucopia of tiny ice cream shops, all of which sold a WILD AND WONDERFUL array of ice cream flavours that absolutely rocked my world. So if you are going to Portugal, dear followers, take your lactase tablets.

This was my first holiday abroad in five years and it has sparked a fire in me!!!! If you come from a country that is not in the UK and you think people should holiday there, please let me know?? I am now building a travel list! ...

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Aug 8

Dani Brown in Portuguese 😍 😍 😍 adoramos vê-lo (Portuguese speakers let me know if I've got that right please 😂 I tried to say, 'We love to see it')

Wonderful photo from
@nocasoumabookaholic

#SeLigaDaniBrown #TakeAHintDaniBrown

Dani Brown in Portuguese 😍 😍 😍 adoramos vê-lo (Portuguese speakers let me know if I've got that right please 😂 I tried to say, 'We love to see it')

Wonderful photo from
@nocasoumabookaholic

#SeLigaDaniBrown #TakeAHintDaniBrown ...

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Aug 4

#QOTD , a fave quote from Take a hint, Dani Brown. 💖

It's nearly the weekend 🎉 Do you have any nice weekend plans? 💗

#TakeAHintDaniBrown

#QOTD , a fave quote from Take a hint, Dani Brown. 💖

It's nearly the weekend 🎉 Do you have any nice weekend plans? 💗

#TakeAHintDaniBrown ...

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Aug 2

Love this photo of #TheBrownSisters and #ThePrincessTrap 😍 😍 😍

*slight spoilers ahead*

Speaking of Royalty, last month I watched Young Royals on @NetflixUK and I'm only mentioning it now, because it ruined my life.

Five heartbreakingly homophobic stars out of five, I guess?

Please @netflixuk, give my babies a happy ending in season two!!

Photo credit to @bookslovereaders 💖

Love this photo of #TheBrownSisters and #ThePrincessTrap 😍 😍 😍

*slight spoilers ahead*

Speaking of Royalty, last month I watched Young Royals on @NetflixUK and I'm only mentioning it now, because it ruined my life.

Five heartbreakingly homophobic stars out of five, I guess?

Please @netflixuk, give my babies a happy ending in season two!!

Photo credit to @bookslovereaders 💖 ...