Top Sapphic Books, Alison R. Solomon, Freebies, and More

Oct 13, 2023 | Friday Feels Fun

We’ve made it to another Friday and it’s time to celebrate!

Find out the top 3 sapphic books with the most clicks this week, 5 Random Things about sapphic author Alison R. Solomon, and a sweet dog named Mr. B. And don’t forget to scroll all the way to the end of this post for good news about books for kids.

YOU CAN HELP IHS WITH YOUR HOLIDAY SHOPPING!

TB is already getting her holiday shopping done. She only has a few more gifts to buy. She’s not usually this on the ball, but the next couple of months are going to be stressful with organizing the November Mega Sale, mapping out the 2024 Reading Challenge, the December 99c sale, and traveling to attend 20Books to 50K in Las Vegas. Not to mention writing one final book before the end of the year!

If you’re shopping for gifts on Amazon, it would be fantastic if you could click on one of our affiliate links first. That way we earn a small commission for your purchase. Every penny we get helps keep the lights on and it’s a simple way to support I Heart SapphFic. Here’s a link you can click to get you to Amazon.

Thanks so much for the help!

CALLING ALL SAPPHIC AUTHORS

If you haven’t submitted your 2024 Reading Challenge forms yet, don’t wait. Nearly half the slots for next year are already filled.

We’re relying on the reading challenge forms we receive to map out the categories and books. Please note that inclusion is not automatic. You must submit a reading challenge form to have your book(s) involved.

The reading challenge is by far the most popular weekly post on the website, receiving the most visitors and clicks. It’s a wonderful and free way to promote either a new release or the books in your backlist.

You can submit as many books as you want and we recommend ticking as many categories as apply for each book to increase the odds of your book being selected. We can only feature an author once in each category, so submitting 5 books with Ice Queen as their only category means 4 of your books will automatically be excluded. The more options you provide, the better.

The submission deadline is December 1, 2023.

Here’s the 2024 Reading Challenge Submission form: https://forms.gle/ZLBmJatXgd8NLm9C9

NOW FOR FRIDAY FUN!

Please remember that sale prices listed in today’s post are valid for a limited time only and may change without notice. International prices may vary. Always check the price in your local marketplace before purchasing.

Most Clicked Books:

Contemporary Romance

Pumpkin Spice

By Tagan Shepard

Nicki Russell has never been smooth.

More like a bumbling, awkward mess always falling short of her dreams. Good college? She never had the money. Post-grad? She’ll get around to it someday. Happy ever after with the perfect woman? One major heartbreak is enough to have her swearing off love forever. Current life plan? Avoid all unnecessary human contact. That goes double for Carter, the hot new butch in town.
Romantic Comedy

A Heart to Call Home

By Jeannie Levig

When Jessie Weldon returns to her hometown after thirty years, can she and her childhood crush Dakota Scott heal the tragic past that links them?

Dakota Scott has spent her entire adult life trying to outrun her past, but even the privilege and reputation her family name affords her haven’t helped her forget. Her mother’s mental illness and the memory of the night that haunts her from so long ago won’t release her. When the one woman with the power to set her free shows up, Dakota is drawn to her, but she is a painful reminder of everything Dakota has been trying desperately to escape.
Contemporary Romance

Sweat Equity

By Aurora Rey

Burned-out chef Sy Travino never expected to wind up on a goat farm in rural Vermont, but that’s exactly where she lands after leaving the restaurant world to become a cheese maker.

It’s a great place to flex her muscles and make a name for herself, though. Too bad the house she bought is practically unlivable.

Maddie Barrow can’t believe anyone would be dumb enough to buy a house sight unseen, but she’s not about to turn down the job of renovating it, especially since her best friend just hired Sy to turn Grumpy Old Goat into the chèvre everyone is talking about. When the estimate on the house exceeds Sy’s budget, Maddie puts her to work.

Random Things:

5 Random Things is our way of helping readers to get to know top sapphic book authors all the while having a bit of fun.

Here are five random facts about Alison R. Solomon.

1. When I was 16 my goal in life was to be a rabbi’s wife. (In those days all rabbis were male.) Fast forward 25 years, I slept with a rabbi’s wife.

2. On my first date with a woman called Carol, I told her I wasn’t looking for a long-term relationship and she assured me that was fine because she wasn’t either. We’ve been together 31 years.

3. We currently live in a 400 sq. ft. house in the mountains of North Carolina. The first house we bought together was 1000 sq ft and it seemed massive to me.

4. I grew up in England still use certain phrases that I only discover are Britspeak when people look at me with weird expressions and then ask, “what does that mean?”

5. I am related to the royal family. OK, not exactly but my brother-in-law was knighted, so my sister’s official title is Lady Deborah.

Have you read Before She Left yet?

Free Books:

Pet of the Week!

Meet Mr. B dog

Meet Mr. B! He’s 17 years old and has bad hearing no eyes but still follows me everywhere, even the bathroom. Mr. B right now is insisting he lay with me cause I have a boo boo. Submitted by Sherri, a reader.

QUEER NEWS THAT’LL MAKE YOU SMILE

It can seem sometimes like all the news these days is bad. We won’t deny there’s a lot of troubling things going on, including a rise in hate crimes. But it’s not all terrible out there! We want to do our best to highlight good news, because while it may seem like the world is filled with hate, there are many individuals who are living their best lives with a rainbow in their heart.

This week’s good news involves children’s books.

Olly Pike, CEO and founder of Pop’n’Olly, is donating 300 LGBTQ+ books to primary schools in the Richmond, North Yorkshire. This is the constituency of prime minister Rishi Sunak. They’re also giving books to Fareham, Hampshire, which is the constituency of home secretary Suella Braverman. Pop’n’Olly selected these two areas in response to the anti-LGBTQ comments both UK politicians recently made at the annual Conservative Party Conference in Manchester.

Since 2019, Pop’n’Olly has given away more than 10,000 and they like to donate to locations who have experienced something terrible, such as after the death of a 16-year-old transgender student named Brianna Ghey in Warrington, Cheshire, England this past February.

Here at IHS we applaud Pop’n’Olly efforts. This is a fantastic way to combat the rising hate in the world.

Click here to learn more Pop’n’Olly and the comments made by Sunak and Braverman.

That’s all for today.

Wishing all of you a wonderful Friday!

Miranda & TB

IHS has big plans to grow our offerings in 2024. More books! New features! So many ways to find your next favorite sapphic read! Our wish list is long, and the expenses add up fast. If what we do is valuable to you and you’d like us to be able to do even more, please consider helping out with a donation of any size. Every little bit helps!