Top Ten Tuesday: Bespectacled Book Boyfriends

It’s another Top Ten Tuesday, hosted by That Artsy Reader Girl!

Today’s topic is a FREEBIE! This concept has been sitting in my drafts for a while, and I’ve added to it along the way. I’m talking here about bespectacled book boyfriends! I know this is a superficial way to categorize a hero, but it’s just so darn fun to recognize glasses as a little everyday accessory that add a bit of intelligence to any face (I say this as I wear them myself 😉 ). So, welcome to my new fan club.

The Bespectacled Book Boyfriends Club

Tom Finchley from A Modest Independence by Mimi Matthews

Titus from Jane By the Book by Pepper Basham

Nate from Veiled in Smoke by Jocelyn Green

Peter from When Twilight Breaks by Sarah Sundin

Will from Love at First by Kate Clayborn

Zivon from A Portrait of Loyalty by Roseanna M. White

Simon from The Mozart Code by Rachel McMillan AND Oliver Thorne in Rose in Three Quarter Time by Rachel McMillan (shoutout to Hamish from her Van Buren and DeLuca mysteries!)

From my TBR

I have been told these are wonderful heroes, who also happen to be bespectacled

Quin from The Lady in Residence by Allison Pittman

Ray from The Kindred Spirits Supper Club by Amy E. Reichert

Amos from Heart on the Line by Karen Witemeyer

Have you “met” any of these book boyfriends? Do you have any bespectacled characters I need to add to my list? What did you feature for this week’s TTT?

Review: “When Twilight Breaks” by Sarah Sundin

I’m reviewing a book that’s been on my TBR for too long! When Twilight Breaks by Sarah Sundin has a gorgeous cover and a beautiful story of resilience inside. It was recently a historical romance finalist for the 2021 Christy Awards!

Evelyn Brand is an American foreign correspondent determined to prove her worth in a male-dominated profession and to expose the growing tyranny in Nazi Germany. To do so, she must walk a thin line. If she offends the government, she could be expelled from the country—or worse. If she does not report truthfully, she’ll betray the oppressed and fail to wake up the folks back home.

Peter Lang is an American graduate student working on his PhD in German. Disillusioned with the chaos in the world due to the Great Depression, he is impressed with the prosperity and order of German society. But when the brutality of the regime hits close, he discovers a far better way to use his contacts within the Nazi party—to feed information to the shrewd reporter he can’t get off his mind.

As the world marches relentlessly toward war, Evelyn and Peter are on a collision course with destiny.

Goodreads | Amazon

When Twilight Breaks is now my favorite Sarah Sundin novel! It explores a lesser-written side of pre-WWII Germany from the perspective of two Americans in Munich during pivotal events of 1938.

Evelyn Brand is a strong heroine in character and determination, and I love how the hero, Peter Lang, matches her will and lets her shine. Theirs is a tumultuous relationship in some ways as the events of the Nazis and their restrictions inhibit normalcy and begin to personally infringe upon their world. Important and endearing secondary characters add meaning, intrigue, and wisdom to the plot as the plight of the Jewish people plays a pivotal part in the novel’s themes of justice, truth, and sacrifice.

The romance is a slow-burn in the best way, with a strong friendship becoming a foundation for sacrificial love. Their match is idyllic and complimentary, with each growing to see the worth in the other and each becoming extremely (and swoonily) protective of the other over time. With his steady determination and almost-handsome looks, Peter Lang has worked his way onto my unofficial “bespectacled book boyfriends” list!

Thank you to the publisher for the review copy. This is my honest review.