Ok, I work at a library and read pretty widely. I'm coming out of a horror novel phase and wanting to dip my toes back into romance. But I'm looking for a very specific kind of romance novel. I like romance that has some other grounding aspect to it besides just the relationship story line. One of my favorites of all time is Akwaeka Emezi's "You Made a Fool of Death With Your Beauty" which has a messy main character in the throes of grief who happens to find love with someone she doesn't expect. I'm looking for more romance like this. I don't mind smut and I have a strong preference for diversity (that isn't tokenizing). I'm F34 so I guess I'm looking for books that don't feel too high school/college romance.
Other romance novels I've liked:
Tia Williams' "Seven Days in June" is a favorite. I enjoyed "Get a Life, Chloe Brown," and "The Heart Principle," and "Ayesha at Last," though I wouldn't call them favorites.
by Sk8r_gurll