287: Love is in the Air 2025 - Our Latest Romance Recs

Love is in the air! In our annual February episode, we’re back with some romance recommendations just in time for Valentine’s (or Galentine’s!) season. We’re sharing books that have captured our hearts recently, from star-crossed lovers to unconventional storytelling.

But first, we kick things off with our latest reads, including Matt Haig’s The Life Impossible and Jennifer Croft’s The Extinction of Irena Rey—both of which bring unique narrative structures and compelling protagonists to the table. Join us as we chat about what we’re loving (and maybe not loving) in romance right now, with a mix of new releases and backlist gems.

Want even more from us? Check out our Patreon for bonus content, exclusive guides, and access to our full back catalog: patreon.com/unabridgedpod.

Bookish Check-in

Ashley - Matt Haig’s The Life Impossible (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm)

Jen - Jennifer Croft’s The Extinction of Irena Rey (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm)

Our Romance Recommendations

Ashley - Alexis Castellanos’s Guava and Grudges (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm)

Jen - Jessica Joyce’s You, with a View (Bookshop.org | Libro.fm)

Lit Chat Game

Listen in to hear us play Book Riot's Lit Chat game together!

#shownotes #romance

(A note to our readers: click on the hashtags above to see our other blog posts with the same hashtag.)

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Full Transcript

[00:00:00] Jen: Hi everyone, and welcome to Unabridged. This is our traditional February episode, Love is in the Air. This one, of course, for 2025.Before we get started, I want to remind everyone about our Patreon, where you can access a lot of great material.

[00:00:48] So if you subscribe, you can get our whole back catalog of episodes and resources. And if you don't want to be a continuing member, you can also access guides that you can buy one at a time. That's a new feature in the Patreon shop. So you can check out all of that at patreon. com slash unabridged pod.

[00:01:08] All right. To get started today, we're going to do our bookish check in. Ashley, what are you reading?

[00:01:13] Ashley: So one of the books I'm reading is Matt Haig's The Life Impossible. I am listening to this one thanks to Libro FM and their ALC program. And I have not gotten very far into this and I was reluctant to look... I was like wanting to check a couple of details about the very beginning and I was like, oh no, it's going to tell me something I don't want to know.

[00:01:34] So I'm just really intrigued. I read the Midnight Library and I, I really enjoyed it. I have to say, I don't know that I thought it lived up to the hype personally, but I did really like it.This is set on the island of Ibiza, and I'm enjoying the framing... In the beginning, there is a young man

[00:01:53] who's going through a bit of a existential crisis, it feels like. And he has written his old teacher, he sent this email to her, and has just kind of said like, here's all these things going on. And you were really kind to me, and so I'm just reaching out to you. And so the teacher is an elderly woman named Grace, and she is like, I'm going to tell you this story, and it's hard to believe, but I just want to share it with you.

[00:02:24] And so the book, as far as I can tell, is the story of her telling this experience. So she is explaining how unexpectedly, she's notified that she has inherited this estate on the island of Ibiza, and she kind of explains how she knew the person, and how she came to realize who the person was, and the woman's name had changed, and so she had to like trace it all back, but basically they had been colleagues way, way, way before, and the person said, you were really kind to me at this time when I really needed someone, and so I want to leave this property to you.

[00:02:58] And so she has a series of grief experiences that she's carrying. And so she's just kind of talking about how, as an elderly person with a lot of grief, that the last thing she wants to do is like shake up her life and do something unexpected. She kind of feels this call to go to the island, and basically her plan when she goes, she's thinking like, I'm going to go and I'm going to stay there long enough to where I'm so miserable that when I get back I'll be relieved to be back into my old life that I'm currently hating but that will feel comfortable proportionately, so that's kind of her plan.

[00:03:39] So I am loving it so far. I'm really intrigued by just the premise. I like a story in a story. So I think I liked that part of this like connection at the beginning. And then I also am very curious to see... This as an island I am very interested in visiting, so I like this setting a lot. And, I'm just having fun hearing her story.

[00:03:58] She's a great protagonist, and I love her storytelling of her adventure, and so, like I said, I'm very early on, and I didn't want any spoilers, so I really can't tell you much, but I am very interested to see what happens. So, again, that's Matt Haig's The Life Impossible.

[00:04:14] Jen: I have that on my Libro list as well, so I'm sure I will get to it at some point. Yeah, that sounds really good. And I felt the same way about The Midnight Library. I enjoyed it, but it had been so hyped. So it'd be nice to read one of his that I don't know much about.

[00:04:30] Ashley: What about you, Jen? What are you reading?

[00:04:32] Jen: So I'm working on my tournament of books reading and I am currently working on Jennifer Croft's The Extinction of Irena Rey. And okay, this is going to take a minute to explain. It's a little complicated. So Irena Rey is an established Polish author whose works are translated into eight other languages.

[00:04:54] And as she's finishing each of her books, she has the eight translators of those languages come and stay at her house, and they all translate together. And she doesn't know any of their names. She knows them, but she doesn't use any of their names. They're just called the language that they're translating into.

[00:05:14] So, the story is being written by the Spanish translator, and then what we're reading is the English translation of her account. of this experience. And the English translator has a lot to say about the Spanish translator's account of what happened. So she has all these snarky little footnotes about what the Spanish translator says happened.

[00:05:39] Okay. So you've got these eight translators at Irena Rey's house. They go into this forest in Poland. It's bordering Belarus. And they're there for a couple of days. They've all translated previous books of hers and really admire her, but she's acting very strangely, and suddenly they're there for a couple of days, and she disappears and they have no idea where she has gone.

[00:06:00] And so they're left to figure out what to do. This is where I am right now. They're trying to figure out what to do. They have no idea where she's gone. Each of them is sort of gravitating toward an explanation that matches with the genre of their choice. So like one of them is really into true crime. So they're imagining all of these true crime possibilities.

[00:06:23] Another really likes mystery Agatha Christie kind of thing. And it does feel in certain ways, like an Agatha Christie set up. So yeah, I'm really enjoying it. As you can tell, the narrative has multiple layers, and Croft herself is a translator, which adds an interesting twist. So I'll be anxious to see where it goes.

[00:06:42] I'm very captivated. I'm very much enjoying the dueling voices of the Spanish translator and then the English translator's commentary on her telling of the story. So yeah, it's a lot of fun so far. So that is Jennifer Croft's The Extinction of Irena Rey.

[00:07:00] Ashley: That sounds really interesting, Jen. I feel like I have read very little that explores translation and, like, the art of translating in that profession. So that sounds really cool.

[00:07:11] Jen: Yeah, and that is part of it. There are moments so far, and they've been building more... They're just getting into translating her actual book. But there are moments where both the Spanish translator and the English translator are talking about their explanations for why they've chosen certain words or certain phrases or doing different research into the culture to understand something.

[00:07:32] So it's yeah, that part is, it's very multi layered. It's really cool. Yeah. All right. Well, we are going to get into our main discussion. So, we love to take this opportunity in February to recommend some romances. So, Ashley, what are you going to recommend? Oh,

[00:07:54] Ashley: I am going to share Alexis Castellano's Guava and Grudges. This was one of my favorite reads of 2024. I did not read a lot of romances in 2024. And of those, there were very few that I enjoyed. But right toward the end of the year, there were several that I really liked. I actually had a couple of seasonal ones that I really loved.

[00:08:15] And this one I came across in the fall and I absolutely loved it. This is a bit of a star crossed lovers set up. And so, it's set in the Pacific Northwest and Ana Maria Ybarra is the main character.

[00:08:31] A lot of people in her community call her Amy, which is her A M Y, her initials. And so, She works, her family works at a Cuban bakery. She is Cuban American and it is a family tradition to work there. Her grandparents were the ones who established the bakery and her parents run it now. And Ana Maria also really loves baking.

[00:09:00] But she can tell that her family, her dad particularly, is very traditional and therefore unwilling to do the things that he needs to do in order for the bakery to stay relevant. And as the world changes around them, he doesn't want to change the menu, he doesn't want to do the social media stuff.

[00:09:18] And so because of that, the bakery, which had been very successful, is struggling. Across the street, there is the Morales Bakery, and they are also Cuban American, and they have this feud. And the feud is based on stealing of recipes and stuff that happened generations ago. So the Morales and the Ybaras hate each other, and they hate each other, like, in a very active way. So, Ana Maria's mom is wanting her to Get away from some of this. She wants her to go off to college, be somewhere else, do some exploring, go live her life, and see if she really wants to do the bakery. And so because of that she goes on this college tour down in California. And while she's down there, she meets Miguel.

[00:10:08] And he is also on the tour, and through a series of events, they wind up breaking off from the tour, and they have this lovely day together, and they do not exchange any information at the end of the day, and she thinks she will never see him again. Well, Miguel appears in the Pacific Northwest, and is at a party with You know, with their community and, and Ana Maria, and he like said, you know, he sees her and he's like, Ana Maria.

[00:10:37] And, she's thinking like, what? This is crazy. So, of course, she's super excited to see this guy again. They get to know each other and then what she discovers is that despite a different last name, he is in fact part of the Morales clan, and he is a cousin of them. And so she is devastated, but also like, well there went that and the bridge has burned and that's the end of it.

[00:11:04] And so it's very much the story of her navigating her family and trying to improve the bakery. Miguel is really passionate about photography and video and like that kind of thing, and so he's really wanting to pursue that craft.

[00:11:24] And so it's a lot about I mean, there's a lot of coming of age. It's they're both seniors. And so they're kind of getting to the next step in their life. And then also there's a lot about family dynamics and honoring who you're from. But also again, I mean, the grudge is kind of like a silly, I mean, it's not, it's not silly, but it is long lasting and it's the kind of feud that you think you could like, you know, resolve, but instead it endures.

[00:11:51] And so, there's just a lot of, there's a lot of layers. It's a lot about her cooking. And so I am always here for cooking romances. I think those are fun. And so it's about her perfecting her craft and finding her way that's different from her parents. And so I thought all of that was really lovely. But then also, I mean, I was here for the romance part.

[00:12:11] I think it was a really compelling romance and well told. And sometimes I think those things feel a little bit forced, but this one felt very authentic and... And so, you know, I was rooting for them and hoping they could figure it out despite the very tense family feud. So again, that one is Alexis Castellanos Guava and Grudges.

[00:12:32] And I recommend it because I just thought it was a lot of fun.

[00:12:36] Jen: That sounds great. I don't feel like, I guess I did see you post about it somewhere. Maybe you mentioned it. I don't remember seeing much about it.

[00:12:43] Ashley: I really did not hear much about this one. It was on a Libro. It was also a Libro

[00:12:48] Jen: Oh, maybe..

[00:12:50] Ashley: ALC and I just stumbled across it. And honestly, even then I didn't hear a lot about it. But I was looking for something light at that time, and then I, you know, kind of randomly started it. But right away, I was really sucked into the story, and I thought it was great.

[00:13:05] So yeah, I haven't seen much about it, but I feel like it was really, really well done story. It came out in September of 2024. So still pretty new, but yeah, I mean, I, I really loved it. And I felt like it got into a lot of, it's not a heavy book, but I felt like it explored a lot of important issues about culture, about family traditions, you know, about your heritage.

[00:13:27] I mean, so I just thought it was really great. So, So, yeah, I loved it. I would definitely recommend it. What about you, Jen? What's your recommendation?

[00:13:36] Jen: So I discovered... I always love discovering new authors. So in 2024, I discovered Jessica Joyce. So she actually only has three published books, two full length books and one novella. And I'm going to recommend You With a View, though I think any of them are great. And I think it's fun to get in on an author's list before they have a ton out there.

[00:13:56] So she's someone I'll be following. You With a View has a great premise. So Noel Shepard was very, very close to her grandmother and. After her death, she is going through her home, and she really thought that she knew everything about her grandmother's life and history and that she had this wonderful romance with Noel's grandfather.

[00:14:22] And as she's going through her things, she finds a photo, or some photos and letters, that indicate that she had a romance with someone else. So she is desperate to find out more. So she posts a picture or a video, I mean, of the photos and some of the story on TikTok and asks if anyone has more information.

[00:14:47] And shockingly, she gets a response from someone who says that he thinks it's his grandfather. So they arrange to meet up, and she discovers that the person who responded is her high school nemesis, Theo, but that it is indeed his grandfather, Paul. who was her grandmother's secret romance. So

[00:15:10] her grandmother and Paul had planned this cross country road trip before their romance ended. And so Paul proposes that Noel take him on this road trip and that he will tell her the story of his relationship with her grandmother as they go on the road trip. Theo does not want Noel and his grandfather to be in the car together for this prolonged period of time alone.

[00:15:37] So he of course goes... You can see where this is going, but it's just lovely. I think what I liked about I've... So I've read all three of Joyce's books at this point, and I just really love the way she starts with this premise. That could be kind of silly, but She has a great touch with characters and she really develops each of them as Individuals outside of the romance and I thought that was really well done.

[00:16:03] I loved having nested within the overall romance the story of Noelle's grandmother and there's a lot of consideration there of gender and class and when they were having the romance of that historical perspective that I thought was really well done. So yeah, it was just, it was one of those I did not want to stop reading.

[00:16:25] I couldn't put it down and yeah, I just really loved it. So that is Jessica Joyce's You With a View.

[00:16:33] Ashley: Oh, Jen, that sounds

[00:16:34] Jen: That was really sweet.

[00:16:35] Ashley: And yeah, I haven't read any of hers yet, so I'll have to give it a

[00:16:38] Jen: Yeah, she's great. I'm excited. I hope she's a regular publisher, though I know that's easy for me as the reader to say when I'm not doing the writing.

[00:16:46] Ashley: Ha ha

[00:16:48] Jen: All right, well, we would love to hear what romances you would recommend in February so you can respond on our Instagram at unabridged pod. And to close out our episode, we are going to play the Lit Chat game.

[00:16:59] So as a reminder, this is from book riot, and it has questions. So I'm just going to draw a card.Okay, here's, here's the prompt. One day, your parents decide you should no longer attend ordinary school. Instead, you will be sent off to the fictional school of your choice. Where would you go?

[00:17:20] Ashley: So the first one that came to my mind is B. B. Alston's Amari and the Night Brothers. Amari goes to this magical training school very early on. Her brother, Quentin, is missing, is the very beginning.

[00:17:34] Ashley: So she was determined to find her brother. And according to what she believes, he had received this really illustrious full scholarship to an Ivy League school.

[00:17:44] And she thought that he had this special, you know, like, super high clearance security position related to that, and so she is determined to find him. But then as she's doing some digging and trying to find him, she uncovers the magical world and the training program that he had actually, that Quentin, her brother, had been a part of,

[00:18:07] that then led to him having this entire career that was very different. Like, his education career was totally different than what Amari and her family had believed. And there's all sorts of problems with that particular place. However, I love the setting and am very intrigued by a magical school.

[00:18:25] So I think I'll go with that one.

[00:18:27] Jen: That sounds so good.

[00:18:27] Ashley: So again, that's Amari and the Night Brothers is, is book one of that. And I think that school, that schooling would be an interesting place to be. What about you, Jen? What's your pick?

[00:18:36] Jen: So, first I have to say, I feel like these schools are always horrible, so I'm just going to go ahead and acknowledge that going in, but and I'm tempted to...

[00:18:44] Ashley: I thought that, too. It's like they're dystopian, right? I mean, everything about them is always terrible, but that was definitely what came to my mind.

[00:18:50] Jen: Yeah, my gut answer was Wicked, that shiz and Wicked, because I just watched that, but instead, because I want to recommend this series, I'm going to recommend, or say, the Magisterium School. which is a middle grade series by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare. And that is another school where people are trained to use magic and it has this incredible amount of world building and things are horrible, but ultimately they get better and people are trained to be heroes, not villains.

[00:19:20] Anyway, my son loved that series and recommended it to me, which is always fun. And I really loved it. And I love both Black and Clare. So it was fun to see them. thrive for middle grade series. So yeah, that would be my recommendation. The Magisterium series by Holly Black and Cassandra Clare.

[00:19:38] Ashley: I love it.

[00:19:39] Jen: All right, everybody.

[00:19:39] Thank you so much for listening. And we hope to see you over on Instagram where you can give us your recommendations. Just DM us or reply to our post here at unabridged pod. Thanks so much.

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