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Are Auto-Buy Authors Still a Thing? + New Releases and Reviews
Published 24 days ago • 9 min read
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Hello Reader,
When I was younger and first discovering the beautiful world of sapphic fiction there were maybe four to six sapphic fiction titles being published every month. Most of them were contemporary romance and about half of them were good reads. (I spent a lot of money importing books to South Africa back then).
So it was really easy to have auto-buy authors. Radclyffe, Kallmaker, Beers all became those for me.
Over the years I have discovered many more authors whose work I absolutely love and would read all their books if the time allowed it.
My balance comes from trying new authors and still returning to authors I love.
It’s a great problem to have as a reader but a terrible one for authors. But even if I don’t read all the books coming from my favourite authors, I still gaze longingly at them when I see them. My heart will always have space for my favourite authors, even if my kindle doesn’t always.
Do you still have auto-buy authors?
Patrons
This week certain patron tiers got to add their personal favourite badge to books we have reviewed that they loved. This is a pretty cool perk because it means authors get recognition from readers and it can affect where the book is ranked on TLR.
Patrons also got a new poll and the results of the last poll.
Reviews
As we head closer to the spooky season we are seeing a pick up in horror books coming through which is great. We have a new review for a horror science fiction and another for a gothic horror.
And for those who would “rather use horror books by burning it to signal an airplane” if you were on a desert island, we have got you - we also reviewed a romance.
New Releases
We have a number of new releases this week and a lot of fun flavours to choose from. I love how creative our authors are with the kinds of stories and characters we are getting.
Guess the Book
Brand new book. Brand new clues, Can you guess what it is?
AI in Sapphic Fiction Event
There is a small update about this.
Author Interviews
Right at the end of the newsletter is a list of all the author interviews we have done so far on our Patreon. They are free to read for everyone.
Have a beautiful Sunday and enjoy filling up your reading pile,
Sheena
P.S. Our Patrons keep the website going. Without them we would have to charge a lot more for adverts just to pay the bills. If you love what we do and want some cool exclusive content like monthly word searches (sapphic, of course) and early access to content then sign up for as little as $8 a month. We will forever be grateful.
These are the latest reviews from TheLesbianReview.com - click on the cover or title of the book to read the full review. The great thing about reviews is that we read books and share ones we like, upping the chances of you finding only the best books out there.
Space Station X by AZ Rozkillis is a sci-fi, horror/comedy thrill ride.
From our review: “I’m not usually one for horror tropes, and this one treads extremely closely to that line. But the line is held in such a way with the romance there keeping things light, and the banter that Jax and Saunders have with each other as a good reprieve.”
Escorting the Senator by Maggie Brown is a prickly romance between a severe ice queen and the mysteriously adept woman she hires to accompany her at a political conference.
From our review: "The thawing of the ice queen is especially yummy, with Maxine being a clandestine power player herself.”
Pearl Bound by Natalie G. Bergman is a gothic horror tale set in the 1800s in New England. It is a chilling novel about excessive wealth, class constraints, and finding your true power.
From our review: “Natalie G. Bergman's Pearl Bound is a powerhouse of a debut novel. The gothic atmosphere oozes off the page and it hooked me from the opening lines.”
In case you missed last week's reviews, here they are again.
Transcendence by S.R. Shah is a love story to India, and a slow-burn romance with a lot of mental angst for one of the main characters.
From our review: “This is a love story in two parts – the story of Mahek and Isha, and Shah’s love of her country, India. It is a very descriptive and colorfully detailed account of the country, its people and its food.”
Remnants: Disruption by Mourning Star is a gripping thriller in a post-apocalyptic America where the world of super humans metes out its own type of justice.
From our review: “I am a sucker for immersive world building, add humans with superpowers, and super humans with god-like powers and I am all in.”
New Releases: These are books that have just gone live on TLR. They are books that have released for the first time within the last three months, pre-releases, or new versions or editions of the books. We only feature each book once.
Touch of Class by Rachel Spangler
Touch of Class is a snuggly sapphic romance about learning how to let go in order to find someone worth holding onto.
Title: Touch of Class
Author: Rachel Spangler
Release date: 3 September 2026
Publisher: Bigger Table Books
Genre and Tropes: Ice Queen, Enemies to Lovers, Second Chance, Opposites Attract, Workplace, Slow Burn, Low Angst, Forced Proximity, MCs over 40.
One luxury house, two bickering roomies, and a plan to make life right.
Title: The Reluctant Roommate
Author: Cheyenne Blue
Release date: 12 August 2026
Publisher: Ylva Publishing
Genre and Tropes: Bisexual/ pansexual main character, Family Relationships, Found Family, Grumpy / Sunshine, Low Angst, Main character is a blue collar worker, Misfit / Socially Awkward, Only One Bed, Opposites Attract, Road Trip, Roommate romance, Slow Burn
Sometimes it's about surviving long enough to believe you deserve to be saved.
Title: Tabitha Unleashed
Author: Robert W Adams
Release date: 29September 2026
Publisher: Indie Author
Genre and Tropes: Young Adult, Speculative Fiction, Contemporary Fantasy, LGBTQ+ Fiction, Coming-of-Age, Sapphic first love, secret powers, hidden identity, twin/sister bond, talent competition, reluctant hero, found family/unlikely friendships, forced into the spotlight, social justice. mental health
Rebecca returned to the Bay Area to start a new life; Allison arrived to take center stage. Will the love that still burns between them force them to face the regrets and heartache from their past to create a second chance for a future?
Title: Didn't See That Coming
Author: Alaina Erdell
Release date: 1 September 2026
Publisher: Frankenberg Press
Genre and Tropes: second chance, betrayal, found family, community, San Francisco, competence porn, musician, psychologist, friends to lovers, Bay Area, California
Guess the book: In this series I give you clues to a book that is featured in our Best of the Best category on TLR. That means it has at least two favourite badges from the team. Can you guess the book? Play to find out.
Clues:
This book is written by a UK author.
It is set in Wales.
It features two women who were childhood friends and then one suddenly became distant and pulled away.
Now, many years later she returns to the small town making waves.
During Covid the author did video reading of it on Youtube. (sadly it is gone now)
What's Happening on TLR: General info about what's buzzing around on your favourite website.
AI In Sapphic Fiction 2 Hour Event
I am pleased to announce that this event is coming along nicely in terms of planning.
We are working on the downloadable handouts at the moment, plus we are likely to have at least one giveaway from one of the authors during the live event.
We always have been and always will be Human Made, just like cookies. We do not review or promote AI work and ask authors to be honest about their books when they submit to us.
In case you missed it, these interviews are available for free on our Patreon Page.
Carly Bryant
How she went from hiding her stories to publishing them.
Writing two types of stories and using two author names.
Download the images in this email to ensure the best reading experience. Make sure to whitelist our email address so we don't end up in your spam folder. Hello Reader, This week we have a new Must Watch List - this time focused on Apple TV. I scrummaged around on there, watched a bunch of things and came out with a list of shows that I think are pretty cool, and all of them are sapphic. We also have some cool new book reviews, one is a weird and madcap journey while the other is a sweet cozy...
Download the images in this email to ensure the best reading experience. Make sure to whitelist our email address so we don't end up in your spam folder. Hello Reader, It's the spooky season! I love a good horror light, or dark. I adore cozy witchy things and wish I was cool enough to be a kitchen witch. So expect some cozy book love coming your way this month from TLR. COZY READ OF THE WEEK: A Wish Upon A Star by Jeannie Levig If you love a story that warms your heart, is about family, pets,...
Download the images in this email to ensure the best reading experience. Make sure to whitelist our email address so we don't end up in your spam folder. Hello Reader, Author Interview I did a short author interview with Carly Bryant and it was a lot of fun. It’s free to read for everyone in text form and Patrons got it as a pdf download that is nicely designed. Wow. I was not expecting this Over the years I have had a number of run-ins with vitriol online. I don’t think you can be a content...
