What is wrong meets what feels right in this romance set in Italy by the New York Times bestselling author of Deep End. Maya Killgore is twenty-three and still in the process of figuring out her life. Conor Harkness is thirty-eight, and Maya cannot stop thinking about him. It’s such a cliché, it almost makes her heart implode: older man and younger woman; successful biotech guy and struggling grad student; brother’s best friend and the girl he never even knew existed. As Conor loves to remind her, the power dynamic is too imbalanced. Any relationship between them would be problematic in too many ways to count, and Maya should just get over him. After all, he has made it clear that he wants her gone from his life. But not everything is as it seems—and clichés sometimes become plot twists. When Maya’s brother decides to get married in Taormina, she and Conor end up stuck together in a romantic Sicilian villa for over a week. There, on the beautiful Ionian coast, between ancient ruins, delicious foods, and natural caves, Maya realizes that Conor might be hiding something from her. And as the destination wedding begins to erupt out of control, she decides that a summer fling might be just what she needs—even if it’s a problematic one.

In this lush, slow-burning romance, two childhood neighbors, connected by a shared tragedy, unexpectedly reunite to ghostwrite a love story for a reclusive author. Spending the summer at her secluded Hamptons estate, they soon discover that dozens of classic romance tropes, including the ones they’re crafting on page, are mysteriously playing out in real life. Katie Caruso is a completely normal twenty-five-year-old girl. At least, for the past eight years, she’s tried to be. She likes glitter and sequins and flirting with cute boys at New York City bars. She’s also a ghostwriter for Meredith Bradford, the bestselling romance novelist of all time. But then Tyler McNally walks back into Katie’s life, and that bedazzled facade crumbles at her platform-sneakered feet. Katie and Tyler haven’t seen or spoken to each other since the overdose death of Katie’s older brother, a standout MLB pitching prospect. Tyler was her brother’s best friend, and Katie—naturally—was the girl next door. But now, Tyler is a sleeve-tattooed, Ivy League-educated aspiring literary fiction novelist, nine years sober . . . and Katie’s writing partner for the summer. As genre conventions require, Katie and Tyler soon find themselves removed from Manhattan and instead writing their love story in “forced proximity” at Meredith’s isolated Southampton home. As the summer unfolds, the tropes Katie and Tyler have written into their novel begin to play out in their own lives. Call it destiny, fate, or magic It’s clear their love story is unfinished. This time, though, they’ll fight for their happy ending. Heart-wrenching and tender, Tropesick is a love letter to the romance genre. With a wink and a nod, Okie has packed the novel with listeners’ favorite Grumpy/Sunshine Brother’s best friend Girl next door Forced proximity Forbidden love Kissing in the rain Groveling hero Second-chance romance Slow burn Only one bed

What happens to all the mind-controlled minions when the evil villain is finally vanquished? When Oaklin Nettlewood (accidentally) joined an evil cult, they and the rest of their small community were promptly whammied by mind control magic and forced to do unspeakable things. Now, years later, the realm's heroes have saved the day, defeated the villain, and shattered the last remnants of the spell...leaving destruction in their wake. Because the minions who were nothing more than obstacles were Oaklin's last remaining family and friends, and now as the entire realm celebrates, Oaklin is left alone to pick up the pieces. And so, with a spell-damaged memory and whole bushel of trauma, they buy a small farm on the edge of Mossley's Rest and swear an After all the things they were forced to do with their magic, they will never use it again. Ever. But the gentle ghost who lives in Oaklin's house has other ideas. And as she coaxes Oaklin out of their shell and back into the world, Oaklin begins to find companionship (a grumpy horse and a very good boy dog), friendship (a local bard and magical baker who should just kiss already), and even romance (a paladin-librarian who makes Oaklin's heart flutter.) Healing comes in gentle waves, and Oaklin doesn't have to do it alone. So what does it mean when an inquisitor comes to town just as Oaklin begins to think that maybe, just maybe, they deserve a happy ending after all?

A grassroots tour of the nation's lesbian bars that illuminates their past, present, and hopeful future, from the co-creator of the hit podcast CruisingLesbian bars are so much more than a place to get a drink. For over a century, they’ve acted as community posts, political organizing grounds, and sanctuaries. Yet whereas in the 1980s there were an estimated 200 lesbian bars across the US, the current count sits at a few dozen.In The Lesbian Bar Chronicles, author and co-creator of the hit podcast Cruising Rachel Karp embarks across the country with her wife and best friend to chronicle the stories of the remaining US lesbian bars. Recent narratives have claimed lesbian bars are dying, but Karp’s group finds many of the places they visit to be thriving, their communities sustaining themselves over decades of change and challenges.Weaving together over 100 hours of immersive interviews with bar owners, staff, and regulars, Karp highlights places like-Chicago spot Nobody’s Darling, where readers meet “the mayor” Shirley J, who in the 1970s was instrumental in the birth of house music-Frankie’s in Oklahoma City, where readers attend a “family night” to learn how a lesbian bar can birth a chosen family-Redz, a Chicana lesbian bar in East LA involved in the precedent setting court case that followed years of arrests for patrons wearing men’s clothingA heartfelt reclamation of queer history and queer lives, Karp’s narrative examines how these beacons for community and inclusion can teach us to live openly, cultivate connection, and continue to take up space.

From Emmy-nominated writer and creator of the Netflix series Special, hilarious essays about being a Millennial in the social media era, and learning to live with a disability in order to enjoy a fully gay life For years, Ryan O'Connell tried to ignore his cerebral palsy, and hoped others would ignore it too. Growing up outside Los Angeles, he was desperate to fit in, even though he struggled to crack an egg in his physical therapy sessions, his dad had taken off for greener pastures, and his alcoholic mom packed him lunches that resembled science projects. The one thing he enjoyed was writing, and so he set out to “construct the narrative of my life before anyone can construct it for me.” In essays that range from the poignant to the side-splitting, Ryan takes us along as he quits drugs and alcohol, navigates the early days of writing for online media in NYC, and uses his voice to gain entrance into the cutthroat world of Hollywood—where he becomes a sought-after writer and creator. In other essays, he celebrates the joys and the miseries of having straight friends, the dangerous allure of constructing an aspirational online identity, and the healing power of Provincetown that celebrated gay summer mecca. Finally, Ryan writes about opening up his committed relationship and embracing his desire to have sex without emotional attachments, only to learn that some limitations make life more meaningful. In the tradition of writers like Samantha Irby and Scaachi Koul, Inspiration Porn is a candid and often raunchy look at a life lived without apologies.

From the bestselling author of The Collected Regrets of Clover comes a vibrant, heartfelt novel about friendship over the decades, self-discovery, and what it means to have a life well-lived. Break the rules. Find your joy. For over eighty years, Joy Bridport has played by the rules: she's been a devoted wife and mother, contributing to the community in her small Hudson Valley town. But her quiet existence is jolted when she learns that her best friend, Hazel, only has months left to live. Hazel has always been the more adventurous one of their duo, and she seems at peace with all that she’s squeezed out of her long life. Yet Joy realizes she can’t say the same. Determined to live boldly and make the most of the time that she and Hazel have left together, Joy steps outside of her comfort zone—and into a bit of trouble. But as her foray into rule-breaking escalates into committing petty crime, Joy must consider what kind of legacy she wants to leave behind, and whether there's a way for her to embrace the liberation that "Bad Joy" offers without losing all that she holds dear. Is it ever too late to become who we're meant to be? With laugh-out-loud hijnks and emotional heft, Good Joy, Bad Joy is a heartwarming and wise celebration of the choices we make, the friendships we cherish, and the lengths we go for love.

Chaol Westfall and Nesryn Faliq have arrived in the shining city of Antica to forge an alliance with the Khagan of the Southern Continent, whose vast armies are Erilea's last hope. But they have also come to Antica for another purpose: to seek healing at the famed Torre Cesme for the wounds Chaol received in Rifthold. After enduring unspeakable horrors as a child, Yrene Towers has no desire to help the young lord from Adarlan, let alone heal him. Yet she has sworn an oath to assist those in need—and will honor it. But Lord Westfall carries shadows from his own past, and Yrene soon comes to realize they could engulf them both. In this sweeping parallel novel to the New York Times bestselling Empire of Storms, Chaol, Nesryn, and Yrene will have to draw on every scrap of their resilience if they wish to save their friends. But while they become entangled in the political webs of the khaganate, deep in the shadows of mighty mountains where warriors soar on legendary ruks, long-awaited answers slumber. Answers that might offer their world a chance at survival—or doom them all . . .