Blog Archives - Antonia Aquilante

Spooky Season Book Recs

10/30/2024

Happy Halloween, my darlings! If you don't know me well yet, I'm going to be completely upfront and tell you that I don't like super scary stuff. I don't spend this time of year (or any time of year) watching horror movies (I'm much more likely to watch Hocus Pocus or Practical Magic). But, I do love books that immerse me in autumn atmosphere and the paranormal and sometimes are a bit spooky too. Here are a few favorites:

A Little Familiar by R Cooper (M/M cozy witch romance)
A Discovery of Witches by Deborah Harkness (M/F paranormal romance)
Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas (YA Trans M/cis M paranormal romance)
Hainted by Jordan L Hawk (M/M paranormal romance)
Darke Passion by Rosanna Leo (M/F paranormal romance)
Vespers by Irene Preston and Liv Rancourt (M/M vampire romance)
Payback's a Witch by Lana Harper (F/F witch romance)
Once Upon a Haunted Moor by Harper Fox (M/M paranormal romance)
The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling (M/F witch romance)

What are some of your favorite books for spooky season?

Rainbow Snippets October 26-27

10/27/2024

The Rainbow Snippets group on Facebook asks its members to share six sentence snippets from their work each weekend. Check out the group's Facebook page to read all the snippets and add lots of great books to your TBR. You'll find all sorts of books with the common thread that the main character identifies as LGBTQ.

I'm continuing to share snippets from The Sorcerer's Guardian. The Sorcerer's Guardian is the fourth book in the Chronicles of Tournai series, but it can be read as a standalone. It's the story of an arrogant, powerful sorcerer and a loyal guard captain sent on a potentially dangerous and certainly arduous mission for the crown. And neither is happy about it, but they clash and snap at each other and somehow stumble into love along the way. This week's snippet follows last week's.

Book Recs for Ace Week

10/24/2024

Happy Ace Week! I'm sharing some ace spec book recs to mark the occasion, and as usual, it was really difficult to narrow down the list. I've tried to recommend books I haven't before, but I might have repeated a favorite anyway.

If you'd like to know about my books with ace spec characters, you can find more about them in this post.

Breeze Spells and Bridegrooms by Sarah Wallace and SO Callahan (M/M historical fantasy romance)
Vespertine by Margaret Rogerson (Fantasy)
A Gentleman's Position by KJ Charles (M/M historical romance)
Not Dead Yet series by Jenn Burke (M/M paranormal romance)
Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger (YA fantasy/paranormal)
Protector of the Small series by Tamora Pierce (YA fantasy)

Do you have any favorite ace spec books?

My Books with Ace Spec Characters for Ace Week

10/23/2024

Happy Ace Week! I'm going to share some book recs for Ace Week in a separate post, but I wanted to do a quick post letting you know about my books with ace spec main (and supporting) characters. While I don't use the words demisexual, asexual, etc on page because these are fantasy worlds, the main characters' orientations are explained on page. With supporting characters, it isn't always as clear but I've explained what to expect with them below.

Rainbow Snippets October 19-20

10/20/2024

The Rainbow Snippets group on Facebook asks its members to share six sentence snippets from their work each weekend. Check out the group's Facebook page to read all the snippets and add lots of great books to your TBR. You'll find all sorts of books with the common thread that the main character identifies as LGBTQ.

I'm continuing to share snippets from The Sorcerer's Guardian. The Sorcerer's Guardian is the fourth book in the Chronicles of Tournai series, but it can be read as a standalone. It's the story of an arrogant, powerful sorcerer and a loyal guard captain sent on a potentially dangerous and certainly arduous mission for the crown. And neither is happy about it, but they clash and snap at each other and somehow stumble into love along the way. This week's snippet follows directly after last week's.

To Know a Dragon Spy Cover Reveal

10/16/2024

It's time share the cover of To Know a Dragon Spy. If you're subscribed to my newsletter, you saw this in October's edition, but this post also includes an excerpt, which wasn't in the newsletter. If you're a newsletter reader, you also know that I meant to have this book finished and released this past spring, but post covid issues completely messed up all my plans for the past year. Natasha Snow (who is amazing) made this gorgeous cover for me with that anticipated release date in mind, and I've been sitting here with it since then.

I'm tired of keeping it a secret.

I'm still not certain when To Know the Dragon Spy will make it into your hands, but I'm doing my best and I'll let you know as soon as I know. In the meantime, feast your eyes on this gorgeous cover, and if you can tear your eyes away from it, read the draft blurb and excerpt from the beginning of the book (just as a warning, both will probably change as I finish the book).

Rainbow Snippets October 12-13

10/13/2024

The Rainbow Snippets group on Facebook asks its members to share six sentence snippets from their work each weekend. Check out the group's Facebook page to read all the snippets and add lots of great books to your TBR. You'll find all sorts of books with the common thread that the main character identifies as LGBTQ.

I'm continuing to share snippets from The Sorcerer's Guardian. The Sorcerer's Guardian is the fourth book in the Chronicles of Tournai series, but it can be read as a standalone. It's the story of an arrogant, powerful sorcerer and a loyal guard captain sent on a potentially dangerous and certainly arduous mission for the crown. And neither is happy about it, but they clash and snap at each other and somehow stumble into love along the way. This week's snippet follows directly after last week's.

Book Recs for Hispanic Heritage Month

10/12/2024

I've chosen a few books to rec (though narrowing down the list is always difficult!), and as a bonus, I'm sharing a few books from by ridiculously long TBR...

Spellbound by Allie Therin (MM historical fantasy romance)
What the Hex by Alexis Daria (MF paranormal romance)
The Sunbearer Duology by Aiden Thomas (YA fantasy)
Labyrinth Lost by Zoraida Córdova (YA fantasy)
Self-Made Boys: A Great Gatsby Remix by Anna-Marie McLemore (Trans MM YA historical romance)
Mangos & Mistletoe by Adriana Herrera (FF contemporary romance)

Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia (Historical fantasy)
Give a Witch a Chance by Colette Rivera (Bisexual MF paranormal romance)
Witch of Wild Things by Raquel Vasquez Gilliland (MF fantasy romance)
What the River Knows by Isabel Ibañez (MF historical fantasy romance)
Bindle Punk Bruja by Desideria Mesa (Historical fantasy)

Rainbow Snippets October 5-6

10/6/2024

The Rainbow Snippets group on Facebook asks its members to share six sentence snippets from their work each weekend. Check out the group's Facebook page to read all the snippets and add lots of great books to your TBR. You'll find all sorts of books with the common thread that the main character identifies as LGBTQ.

I'm continuing to share snippets from The Sorcerer's Guardian. The Sorcerer's Guardian is the fourth book in the Chronicles of Tournai series, but it can be read as a standalone. It's the story of an arrogant, powerful sorcerer and a loyal guard captain sent on a potentially dangerous and certainly arduous mission for the crown. And neither is happy about it, but they clash and snap at each other and somehow stumble into love along the way. This week's snippet follows directly after last week's.

Concern flooded back into her pretty face. “You found her? And the person who took her?”

“Yes, with Master Savarin’s help.” He’d gotten over any resentment he might have had that he needed the help of magic long before today and was happy to use any tool he had access to. Savarin, the most powerful sorcerer in Tournai, was not someone whose help should be turned away, and Savarin never withheld it, serving Tournai whenever he was called upon.

“The sorcerer? How did he help?” Joceline sat forward, a gleam in her eyes he recognized well. She wasn’t simply curious; she wanted to know because she might use the information in a story.

“Joceline.”

“What?”

He sighed and shook his head. “He used his magic to try to track the kidnappers and then to try to find the baby directly. He pointed us in the right direction, let us know where to search for them.” Loriot didn’t bother mentioning the help they’d received from someone else, a scholar at the university. If he read Savarin right, Savarin would be finding Master Corentin at the university soon and asking him about the magic he used, because it also sounded as if Savarin hadn’t heard of anything like it.

“Interesting."

You can find more about The Sorcerer's Guardian here. Thanks for reading today!

My September Reading

10/2/2024

Happy October, everyone! I'm slightly conflicted about it being October—this is my favorite time of year, but I'm also kind of disturbed that it's October already. I am happy that it's fall, though, and spooky season, and I'm diving into some seasonally appropriate reading. But for now, here are some books I enjoyed in September: