The Business of Love | 1.27.22
Bonus: all protagonists are women of color!
Absolute capitalism corrupts absolutely, yadda yadda, but in romance, we can pretend to live in a world where it’s not always working against us! Today I’ve brought you three books with bossy heroines (literally) who own their own businesses and get 👏🏻 shit 👏🏻 done 👏🏻
A Lot Like Adios by Alexis Daria. After some severe corporate burnout, Michelle is determined to build her freelance graphic design business differently. Then she’s hired (at first, by accident) to spearhead the marketing campaign for childhood bestie and the-one-who-got-away (like, literally across the country) Gabe’s burgeoning private gym business that’s expanding back to their hometown of NYC, and all her carefully laid plans start to go awry.
This is actually book 2 in this series- I already recommended book 1 in my third-ever newsletter.
Both characters are also openly/canonically bisexual! Love that for them.
Rating: 4/5
How hot? 🔥🔥🔥🔥
A Caribbean Heiress in Paris by Adriana Herrera. Luz Alana, Caribbean rum heiress travels to France in 1889 for a liquor expo to expand her recently inherited business, frustrated that her trust fund won’t be released to her until she’s married. Scottish earl James has his own complicated familial issues, plus a side hustle as a whisky distiller, and they agree to a marriage of convenience then [eventual] divorce of convenience so Luz Alana can claim her inheritance. Which definitely goes totally to plan and there’s no big warehouse fires or family betrayals or falling in love. Nuh uh.
Rating: 5/5
How hot? 🔥🔥🔥🔥
The Right Swipe by Alisha Rai. Cynical dating app entrepreneur Rhiannon is fresh off being ghosted by a hookup from her own app (who she met and had a tremendous single night with under an assumed name to protect her own privacy) when she finds herself face to face with him (Samson Lima, recently retired pro football player) unexpectedly, because he’s the face of her rival dating app that she’s determined to buy out and consolidate. Little does she know, he has his own reasons to be in the dating app game.
Rating: 4.5/5
How hot? 🔥🔥🔥🔥
Next week, I’ll be 31 years old (send this newsletter to 31 friends on Jan 31st to help me celebrate maybe!!) and recommending roommate love stories!
What should I be reading next? Let me know in the comments!