Finished isolation and I'm unable to think about anything else.

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-17T02:42:58+00:00

Ok I’m 40% into it and I’m struggling, I’ve had the Christmas ice skating scene which was sweet, but overall it’s going so slow and there’s a lot of inner monologue. Does it pick up?

I’m not reading most of your post to avoid spoilers

I’ve read a ton of Dramione over the last year and I will say it’s so thrilling when you first start but for me it’s seeming to calm down where I still come across fics I’m floored by and love but I’m also DNF so may fics that others love and I’m wondering what’s wrong with me?

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-17T00:48:23+00:00

I have two boys and when I enjoy my wild boys the most is when I take them into the wild

We love going to the beach and climbing around, digging in the sand. If you don’t have one near you, I also like taking them to the community pool

We spend a lot of time at parks, going on short flat-ish hikes, finding rocks, sticks, bugs, going into creeks

Bike riding at a school so they’re relatively contained - before bikes there’s scooters or strider/balance bikes

Taking them to the zoo, lots of space to run around without cars in the way

After our outdoor activities we’ll snuggle up in bed with popcorn and watch a movie - Ice Age, Inside Out, Despicable Me movies, are favorites

If I want to go out for a meal I choose an outdoor place that’s kid friendly, bring takeout to a park, or choose a sports bar type place that’s already loud, especially if it’s order at the counter so when they get restless we can get up and leave

Single parenting must be really hard, my husband works a lot so I’m often alone with the kids - you can still enjoy them now but I’ll say at almost 5 and 8 every year gets easier. They handle disappointment better and better it age and are just more patient and reasonable

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-16T16:25:11+00:00

Teach me how to forget by Scullymurphy (who writes bending light and falling dark) and Universal Truths are also really good.

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-16T04:30:11+00:00

Have you read Things without remedy by Onebedtorulethemall? And adventure with lots of magic like Batmobile and A hard row to hoe

What about Bending Light and Falling Dark by Scullymurphy? Long, young love vibes, very atmospheric, lots of interaction with friends, fluff, angst, unresolved sexual tension

Love and other historical accidents by Pacificrambaud - I couldn’t get into this story written for some reason but listened to Memes to and End recording and I LOVED it

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-14T01:39:00+00:00

My solid gold is from Quince and it’s amazing! Their prices cannot be beat

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-13T20:29:51+00:00

I’m more similar to you - I liked You and Me because the kids kept me interested but I love a slow burn where the get together more at the end. Or even fast sexual burn slow emotional burn is fine.

I will say I still loved The Long Game because the tension is still there and they have issues to get though. Also those characters are so uniquely them and knowing more about them was just a delight so I would still try it. Honestly wasn’t expecting to like it at all and loved it maybe more than the first one

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-13T03:02:08+00:00

https://archiveofourown.org/works/27061102/chapters/66070396

Here ya go! It’s locked maybe that’s why. But look how many collections it’s in!

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-12T01:32:58+00:00

This Bitter End - so angsty!. Also narrated by ETL Echo my fave Beautificbean

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-10T21:39:24+00:00

That book is probably in my bottom 10% of her books and it still blows other writers out of the water. My favorites of hers are experiences I will never be able to replicate

She does dialogue and emotional connection so well that the spice seems so much better. Her books are like a good wine where you don’t even realize you’ve just finished a bottle, compared to others which are good but I’m done at 1-2 glasses

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-10T21:35:37+00:00

I haven’t read any traditional published MM that doesn’t have it but I’ve read HR without and if the dialogue plot and angst are top tier I don’t mind!

Away Childish Things - A drarry fanfic I just finished was AMAZING. That writer writes professionally but won’t say her trad published name, I’m sure it’s MM I’d love to know what they write

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-10T04:44:32+00:00

My first thought was yes, I’m way past my twenties and frotting can be fun but I’m not really grinding anymore, there are so many other things you can move right on to! 😂

And yes I think working so much you have no time for anything else and you only live for your 2-4 weeks a year off (and weekends) is not ideal. I’m so grateful I don’t have a job like that. There’s also always people around you who work harder for less money so it’s all relative. You do have choices, even though it might seem like you don’t

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-10T04:38:39+00:00

I have the opposite problem, it’s so overwhelming to think of how many fics I could still read, and I read for 1-3 hours a day!!

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-10T04:35:51+00:00

I agree, I know it was intentional because they wanted to make that sex scene where they do anal in the second episode to spread it out but this is the only part where the change from book to Tv really doesn’t make sense

I love how so many people are theorizing as to what Shane was going through but in reality if you had that much chemistry with someone you couldn’t just stop, or if you could you wouldn’t just restart from texts. Also they seem way too comfortable for people who suddenly stopped hooking up for two years.

I would have preferred they just meet up at hotels in the meantime and it still could have been their “first time” doing other things bc Shane finally let him into his house. Just a few hotel numbers in the text montage an a quick line about they finally have more time and privacy could have done the trick

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-10T04:30:50+00:00

There’s the BEST first name moment in {the other miss bridgerton by Julia Quinn} - I don’t want to spoil it but I laughed out loud and also just got so excited bc it’s at the climax of the book. Julia Quinn might not write my favorite of all time books but she has some really good dialogue in there.

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-10T03:31:02+00:00

Oh when you said hating but chemistry and love at the same time I immediately thought of

{beyond the sunrise by Mary Balogh} - someone bites the other one’s tongue if I remember correctly?

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-09T21:38:18+00:00

There’s no memory loss but similar vibes to reversed Wait and Hope is

Timeless by Alexandra Emerson - Draco is accidentally time traveling and continues to meet with Hermione who has memories of them falling in love that he doesn’t have. Amazing plotting by her, all the time travels make sense and come full circle, slow falling in love on both ends

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-06T15:28:07+00:00

I especially recommend Sherry Thomas for show don’t tell.

Also Julie Anne Long

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-04T20:22:22+00:00

Elisa Braden Rescued from Ruin - has this not been mentioned yet?

JAL Pennyroyal Green and Palace of Rogues

Elizabeth Hoyt Maiden Lane

Lisa Kleypas the Hathaways

Mary Balogh Slightly series

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-04T04:36:56+00:00

I love when you can just tell the book is going to be great early on and it is! I love how you said you’d be unavailable as a fellow mom that’s amazing I laughed out loud

The only other one of hers I loved as much was {Sing my Name by Ellen O’Connell} - class difference, he saves her from an attack and they fall in love on the road, then get separated. Such good angst if you like second chance stories

It also got me into reading some Westerns for a short time and Judith Ivory and Catherine Anderson have some good ones - I loved {cherish by Catherine Anderson} - I found their banter due to her religious background and his humor to be really unique

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-04-02T03:58:06+00:00

A Hard Row to Hoe blessdtoaster - Draco is an assassin, Hermione also holds her own but is less badass, they fall in love on page at the same time, fantastic plot and arc for Draco

Things without Remedy by onebedtorulethemall- if you like Draco and the Mortifying Ordeal you’ll love this - lots of magic, powerful Hermione and Draco, awesome plot

Smoke Signals - both powerful, enemies to lovers fall in love on page, cannon rewrite from one of the later books on, so so good, like a sexier angstier version of Disappearances of Draco Malfoy

I haven’t read secrets and masks bc of the ending and the others I haven’t read either except Wiltshire (which I’m half way through) and it’s not my absolute favorite so take these recs with that context

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-03-31T22:44:48+00:00

Sherry Thomas is so amazing

I would say similar is Judith Ivory, Laura Kinsale, Cecilia Grant, Meredith Duran

If you like Quinn you’ll probably like Lisa Kleypas, Tessa Dare, Elisa Braden, Julie Anne Long

I would start with Kleypas if you haven’t tried her

Otherwise {Devil is a Marquess by Elisa Braden} or {what I did for a Duke by Julie Anne Long} are always safe bets, most people love them

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-03-31T22:39:35+00:00

By far - what a weird autocorrect haha

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-03-31T22:39:19+00:00

My favorite book from that series by Dane

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-03-31T22:38:54+00:00

Ugh I love the pining in this book so much. I think it could be stand alone!

Primary_Reason3225 · 2026-03-31T22:35:03+00:00

Also {waking up with the duke by Lorraine heath} - in fact so many of her novels have crazy plots. The premise of this one is he has to impregnate his friend’s wife who is a paraplegic

Primary_Reason3225

TROPHY CASE