I wholeheartedly believe that embracing your geeky side is an important part of life and self-discovery. When romance novels incorporate nerdiness, it gives characters (and therefore readers) the ability to understand themselves and what they want on another level, and to gain the courage to pursue what they want. I know that my own forays into TTRPGs, LARPing, Ren Faires, and other such interests have helped shape me as a person. I’m more confident and embodied because I embrace my inner geek, and I want that for my characters and my readers, too. That’s why I want to read and write as many of these stories as possible!
I grew up going to Renaissance Faires, and there’s something so romantic and escapist about them. So when I came across this book (and the rest of the series), I knew I had to read it. I had already written my own Ren Faire romance, which made it even sweeter.
It was so immersive, and it expertly toed the line between swoon-worthy escapist romance and realistic story beats and characters. I especially loved the descriptions of the Ren Faire setting, and I still think about the hunky MMC! The rest of the series is fab as well, continuing the Ren Faire focus whilst exploring new stories and romances.
All's faire in love and war for two sworn enemies who indulge in a harmless flirtation in a laugh-out-loud rom-com from debut author Jen DeLuca.
Emily knew there would be strings attached when she relocated to the small town of Willow Creek, Maryland, for the summer to help her sister recover from an accident, but who could anticipate getting roped into volunteering for the local Renaissance Faire alongside her teenaged niece? Or that the irritating and inscrutable schoolteacher in charge of the volunteers would be so annoying that she finds it impossible to stop thinking about him?
RPGs and romance novels are two of my greatest passions in life, and this book perfectly combines the two. It’s not often that a book feels so realistic and relatable and yet swoony and exciting at the same time, but this book nails the combination.
And bonus points for featuring more mature characters and for integrating the families so expertly. Both main characters are walking green flags, which is so refreshing!
From Cathy Yardley, author of Love, Comment, Subscribe, comes an emotional rom-com about two middle-aged gamers who grow their online connection into an IRL love story.
Maggie is an unapologetically grumpy forty-eight-year-old hermit. But when her college-aged son makes her a deal―he’ll be more social if she does the same―she can’t refuse. She joins a new online gaming guild led by a friendly healer named Otter. So that nobody gets the wrong idea, she calls herself Bogwitch.
Otter is Aiden, a fifty-year-old optimist using the guild as an emotional outlet from his family drama caring for his aging mother while…
Though written for a younger audience, this romcom is no less fun and romantic for it. I love D&D, and I love how this book shows just how addictive and immersive roleplaying can be. It’s got that classic rom-com vibe, breezy and heartwarming and full of yearning all at once.
When it comes to romance, sometimes it doesn't hurt to play games. A fun YA romcom full of fake dating hijinks!
No one loves musicals more than Riley Morris—her dream is to be a Broadway director. But when the spring show is canceled, Riley has to figure out a way to bring it back. Easier said than done—she’s stuck working at her dad’s game store. The place that means more to him than his family does.
Riley can't waste time at a dead-end job when her entire future is resting on making a name for herself. So…
Olivia Dade is the queen of romcoms with twists, and this may be her best work, IMO! Marcus is so sexy and such a golden retriever MMC, and I loved April just as much. This is a perfect example of two main characters who are both great but somehow even better together.
And Olivia Dade is truly hilarious–I especially loved the interlude chapters with the awful scripts Marcus had encountered over the years. This is one of the easiest romances for me to recommend to people because there’s something for everybody!
Olivia Dade bursts onto the scene in this delightfully fun romantic comedy set in the world of fanfiction, in which a devoted fan goes on an unexpected date with her celebrity crush, who's secretly posting fanfiction of his own.
Marcus Caster-Rupp has a secret. While the world knows him as Aeneas, the star of the biggest show on TV, Gods of the Gates, he's known to fanfiction readers as Book!AeneasWouldNever, an anonymous and popular poster. Marcus is able to get out his own frustrations with his character through his stories, especially the ones that feature the internet's favorite couple to…
This rom-com is as lighthearted and fun as it gets, but it maintains the nerdy bent we’re all here for. I love LARPing, and this book paints it in the most exciting light! I loved how Daisy used her alter ego, Lade Alenthaea, on her journey to growth, and how this story kept the agency around her personal growth firmly in Daisy’s own hands.
She's no damsel in distress, and he's certainly not wearing shining armour. But one knight can change everything...
Daisy Hastings has always thought she was born in the wrong era. So when she bags a summer job at the Tower of London helping to run their Knight school, it feels like a step in the right direction.
Theodore 'Teddy' Fairfax is a loose cannon. A disgraced distant relative of the royal family, he's tall, dark and now (begrudgingly) helping with the Tower of London's summer programme - and there's nowhere he'd like to be less.
A slow-burn friends-to-lovers rom-com with a nerdy twist and a touch of spice. When life goes rogue, roll for romance…
Avid role-playing gamer Morgan is on a quest–to step out of her comfort zone and become her own knight in shining armor. Jack, the group’s loveable cleric character, is also looking to rewrite a more exciting story for himself. When they and their friends plan a Renaissance Faire adventure, Morgan and Jack embrace the magic of their alter egos–is it possible they might just fall for each other in real life, too?
As a child, I lived in a small valley sheltered from the night city lights. I could see the stars, and from that time, that is where my imagination dwelled. As a teenager, I read several of the books I have listed here, and from that point, I was inspired to read more and also to write myself. I sincerely believe that despite our current problems, humanity will outlive its troubled childhood and reach for the stars. We are destined for the stars, and only in the works of science fiction writers is that future explored. The books below helped me to become a successful author in my own right.
An alien starship appears in the Solar System! Humanity faces a glorious future, or total extinction, and only Joe Falcon can make the choice. Never would Joe have imagined it would fall to him to make the decision that would alter the destiny of two worlds, launching humanity towards a glorious future, or to extinction.
Falcon's Call is an action packed dive into the unknown, written in the style of the great, classic, science-fiction stories. If you like surprising plot twists, compelling characters and a hero who actually cares, you must read this new novel by Mike Waller.
Reader's Favorite Gold Medal winner 2019 B.R.A.G. Medallion Honoree 2019 Chill With A Book Premier Award 2019
In a heart-pounding battle for humanity's survival, one man holds the key to a glorious future or utter extinction.
In a race against time, Earth and Mars race to claim a derelict alien ship as it enters the Solar System, both aware that whichever planet succeeds might in so doing achieve technological advantage over the other. But who should they send? Joe Falcon, an unlikely candidate, never saw himself as the "right" person. Accompanied by a crew of misfits, each fleeing their own…
