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Just this month, I read The Duke Who Didn't by Courtney Milan. This is my current #1 recommendation!
In many ways it is a conventional romance (very tropey and delightfully indulgent) but it has some notable features! 1) the leads are of Chinese descent AND it's set in historical England! Do you know how many times I've gotten to read a period romance, set in the West, with Asian leads? Literally never. Until now! (The author herself is Asian-American and has mentioned how much she wanted to write the book bc she's never seen one like it either.) 2) There is REVENGE, a dish best served cold, which I always enjoy. 3) There is some really lovely, really heartfelt stuff with familial (non romantic) relationships. I teared up in a good way. 4) The author's note was also very dear, and you can really tell how much the story meant to the author. 5) there are content notes/warnings on the author's website (mostly depictions-of-racism-related), which I think is a nice touch, and also you can read the first chapter(?) for free there.
re: conventional tropes: lead #1 is Chloe who is a no-nonsense, busy woman who looooves checklists, and she is attempting to enact sauce-based revenge on a company. Lead #2 is Jeremy who is a semi-feckless jokester who is secretly the Duke who owns the whole town Chloe lives in. He "hires" Chloe to write a checklist of (her) qualities so he can use it to select the perfect wife. (Yes they're both stupid, but in a way that is just plain fun.) There is banter. There is kindness. There is a quirky town with a quirky annual fair. There is multiculturalism. There is Only One Bed.* Jeremy is stupid in love with Chloe, and I have a weakness for the thing where the guy basically worships the lady and wants to just hang out around her all the time while she Gets Stuff Done.
I consumed this book, and I have been recommending it to my friends & random acquaintances. Strongly recommended!
In many ways it is a conventional romance (very tropey and delightfully indulgent) but it has some notable features! 1) the leads are of Chinese descent AND it's set in historical England! Do you know how many times I've gotten to read a period romance, set in the West, with Asian leads? Literally never. Until now! (The author herself is Asian-American and has mentioned how much she wanted to write the book bc she's never seen one like it either.) 2) There is REVENGE, a dish best served cold, which I always enjoy. 3) There is some really lovely, really heartfelt stuff with familial (non romantic) relationships. I teared up in a good way. 4) The author's note was also very dear, and you can really tell how much the story meant to the author. 5) there are content notes/warnings on the author's website (mostly depictions-of-racism-related), which I think is a nice touch, and also you can read the first chapter(?) for free there.
re: conventional tropes: lead #1 is Chloe who is a no-nonsense, busy woman who looooves checklists, and she is attempting to enact sauce-based revenge on a company. Lead #2 is Jeremy who is a semi-feckless jokester who is secretly the Duke who owns the whole town Chloe lives in. He "hires" Chloe to write a checklist of (her) qualities so he can use it to select the perfect wife. (Yes they're both stupid, but in a way that is just plain fun.) There is banter. There is kindness. There is a quirky town with a quirky annual fair. There is multiculturalism. There is Only One Bed.* Jeremy is stupid in love with Chloe, and I have a weakness for the thing where the guy basically worships the lady and wants to just hang out around her all the time while she Gets Stuff Done.
I consumed this book, and I have been recommending it to my friends & random acquaintances. Strongly recommended!
