The Beeswax: From The American Revolution To The Kitchen
- Amanda Hayes
- Mar 6, 2024
- 7 min read
Our Beeswax post is meant to offer recommendations to those readers who want a wholesome and worthwhile story while not keen on any of the spice some novels lean into. And so this month, we have two exceptional stories that embrace the best part of the chick lit genre and can appeal to all readers. First, we will return to the dawn of the United States on a journey of love, self-discovery, and heartbreak. Then, we will return to modern society and tune into the tweet war between two restaurants while waiting for our order. As a reminder, below is our Sticky Scale to help enlighten on how our spice ratings are broken down.
Wax
The first of the three ratings---and the one to which we dedicate this post---is Wax. Anyone who has previously handled wax knows it can be a slippery substance, but it becomes brittle when dried. Therefore, Wax books have no explicit sensuality. Physical romance
may be described in general terms or implied, but your innocence will remain intact.
Honey
Moving up a step, the second rating is Honey. As you can imagine, honey is significantly stickier than wax, but more importantly, it is sweeter. Honey's monthly section is The Sweet Spot because these books will be the perfect option for those looking for a more...
adventurous read while not devolving into spicy territory. In simpler terms, think fade to black. There is sure to be moderate sensuality, and physical actions will be described and detailed but will not be explicitly written. If you're unsure of whether you are ready for a
true spicy book, these recommendations are sure to help!
Nectar
At last, we have arrived at the last of the ratings: Nectar. These books are not for the faint of heart; I can guarantee you that. Nectar's monthly section has been deemed The Spice Rack (if you know, you know). These books will have your blood flowing, your palms
sweating, and your heartbeat racing. Whether you're into the sweet stuff, the taboos, or any of the laundry list of kinks out there, this section will surely have something for you! Be warned, our Nectar recommendations will have explicit sensuality and go beyond what is
appropriate for anyone under the age of 18. Sex will be written in graphic detail, and there is always a chance that acts beyond intercourse may make an appearance. So strap in, grab your favorite drink, and settle into your favorite spot as you venture into a world of
new experiences, or revisit your favorite smutty reads.
All's Fair In Love and War
A Revolutionary Romance
The American Revolution (1765-1783) was a period in American history that saw the American Colonies incite a war against King George III for independence. This was a time of deep turmoil, controversy, enlightenment, and change for the colonists. As they severed their ties to the Kingdom of Great Britain, they faced the challenge of birthing a nation. Here, we meet Elizabeth Schuyler, the daughter of an American General, who, growing up in New York, met and fell in love with Alexander Hamilton, a penniless bastard working as George Washington's chief aide.
Elizabeth's love and devotion to Alexander, whom she wed, laid the foundation for her life. The couple welcomed eight children together, but their relationship was far more than that. As Hamilton stepped into his role amidst the new government and social order, Elizabeth worked alongside him, helping him perfect his craft and better their society. The Hamilton's lives would see heavy tragedy despite escaping the horrors of the war. The first would come in what has come to be known as America's first sex scandal when Alexanders' affair came to light and threatened to destroy their life together. Despite persevering through heartbreak and finding forgiveness for Alexander, their eldest child, Philip, would later be killed in a duel. Elizabeth, however, faced an even greater loss, as just three years after Philip's death, Alexander would be shot and killed by Aaron Burr, a former colleague, with the same guns that killed her son, no less.
Tragedy continued to surround her, But Elizabeth pushed through, keeping her family afloat and cared for. She would go on to dedicate her life to charity as a philanthropist and, along with others, founded New York's first private orphanage. She was well documented as being intelligent and remarkable, even into her old age, and when her death came at the age of 97, she was remembered for being a powerful force. Her legacy would live on through her indelible mark on American History.
A Force of Nature
The first of this month's Wax book recommendations is My Dear Hamilton by Stephanie Dray and Laura Kamoie.
From the New York Times bestselling authors of America’s First Daughter comes the epic story of Eliza Schuyler Hamilton—a revolutionary woman who, like her new nation, struggled to define herself in the wake of war, betrayal, and tragedy. Haunting, moving, and beautifully written, Dray and Kamoie used thousands of letters and original sources to tell Eliza’s story as it’s never been told before—not just as the wronged wife at the center of a political sex scandal—but also as a founding mother who shaped an American legacy in her own right. A general’s daughter… Coming of age on the perilous frontier of revolutionary New York, Elizabeth Schuyler champions the fight for independence. And when she meets Alexander Hamilton, Washington’s penniless but passionate aide-de-camp, she’s captivated by the young officer’s charisma and brilliance. They fall in love, despite Hamilton’s bastard birth and the uncertainties of war. A founding father’s wife... But the union they create—in their marriage and the new nation—is far from perfect. From glittering inaugural balls to bloody street riots, the Hamiltons are at the center of it all—including the political treachery of America’s first sex scandal, which forces Eliza to struggle through heartbreak and betrayal to find forgiveness. The last surviving light of the Revolution… When a duel destroys Eliza’s hard-won peace, the grieving widow fights her husband’s enemies to preserve Alexander’s legacy. But long-buried secrets threaten everything Eliza believes about her marriage and her own legacy. Questioning her tireless devotion to the man and country that have broken her heart, she’s left with one last battle—to understand the flawed man she married and the imperfect union he could never have created without her… |
It is a story that will take you on a rollercoaster ride of emotions. One that tells the legacy of the founding mother so often overshadowed by that of her husband. A story that has become all the more popular with the release of the hit Broadway show, Hamilton, created by Lin Manuel Miranda. The play recounts the story, life, and history of Alexander hamilton, including the turmoil of his life, love, career, affair, loss, and death. But moe than that it highlights the characters, such as Eliza, who are too often overshadowed. Dray and Kamoie pull the spotlight away from the infamous founding father that fumbled his presidential bid with his affair, onto the powerful force that was his wife, founding mother Elizabeth Schuyler Hamilton. In a story that will crhricnle her life from before Alexander to preserving their love and his legacy long after his death, all while carving out her own place in history.
Stephanie Dray is a New York Times, Wall Street Journal & USA Today bestselling author of historical women’s fiction. Her award-winning work has been translated into many languages and tops lists for the most anticipated reads of the year. Now she lives in Maryland with her husband, cats, and history books. You can learn more about Dray and her works at her website stephaniedray.com.
Laura Kamoie is a Wall Street Journal, New York Times and USA Today Bestseller, who has always been fascinated by the people, stories, and physical presence of the past, which led her to a lifetime of historical and archaeological study and training. She holds a doctoral degree in early American history from The College of William and Mary, published two non-fiction books on early America, and most recently held the position of Associate Professor of History at the U.S. Naval Academy before transitioning to a full-time career writing genre fiction as the New York Times bestselling author, Laura Kaye. Writing historical fiction allows her the exciting opportunity to combine her love of history with her passion for storytelling. Laura lives among the colonial charm of Annapolis, Maryland with her husband, two daughters, and monster German shepherd, Schuyler. You can learn more about Kamoie by visiting her website laurakamoie.com.
All Good Things Take Time
A Modern Battleground
There are three things a business needs to have in today's world to be successful: a good product, dedicated employees, and a fierce marketing strategy. It is a competitive world out there, and for those who rely on steady business, it's sink or swim. Social Media is easily our modern day battleground, where conflicts and scandals break out on a daily basis. But as the characters in our book find out, there is one thing that rivals all other online conflict: the Twitter war. Relationships have been broken, friendships turned to rivalries, allies turned competitors, all over Twitter wars. And in this modern day battleground, businesses must find a way to spread their brand and products while avoiding the scaqndals and conflicts.
Of course, there is always someone who finds a way to attract conflict---or to start it. Sometimes one is given no choice but to start a war. When one has been wronged by say, a stolen recipe, that is the key to keeping the family business afloat. Want to make matters worse? It doesn;t matter if you do, because regardless that's where we're going. Imagine inciting a Twitter war with your rivals over a stolen recipe only for your rival to also be the one person who you've connected with via your own anonymous chat app. Are you keeping up? No? Did I lose you along the way? Well that's okay, because our next book is here to help.
Food Is The Key to the Heart
Don your apron...or maybe grab your phone because our second Wax Book recommendation is about to drop bring the heat---the oven heat, that is: Tweet Cute by Emma Lord.
Meet Pepper, swim team captain, chronic overachiever, and all-around perfectionist. Her family may be falling apart, but their massive fast-food chain is booming ― mainly thanks to Pepper, who is barely managing to juggle real life while secretly running Big League Burger’s massive Twitter account. Enter Jack, class clown and constant thorn in Pepper’s side. When he isn’t trying to duck out of his obscenely popular twin’s shadow, he’s busy working in his family’s deli. His relationship with the business that holds his future might be love/hate, but when Big League Burger steals his grandma’s iconic grilled cheese recipe, he’ll do whatever it takes to take them down, one tweet at a time. All’s fair in love and cheese ― that is, until Pepper and Jack’s spat turns into a viral Twitter war. Little do they know, while they’re publicly duking it out with snarky memes and retweet battles, they’re also falling for each other in real life ― on an anonymous chat app Jack built. As their relationship deepens and their online shenanigans escalate ― people on the internet are shipping them?? ― their battle gets more and more personal, until even these two rivals can’t ignore they were destined for the most unexpected, awkward, all-the-feels romance that neither of them expected. |
Ah, the internet. The birthplace of social media, memes, and unlimited information. Anyone miss writing letters and learning about things from an almanac you borrowed from the library? No, just me, okay. Anyway,s, meet Piper and Jack, secret admirers to each other and very public rivals if their tweet war is any indication. Sometimes, things are best settled in person and not online, as Piper and Jack quickly find out as their tweet war spirals out of control and has the internet shipping them together. Talk about turning up the heat, and no, I don't mean on the oven. Piper and Jack have to juggle their public online rivalry and the growing interest in them as a couple, and did we mention Jack also developed an anonymous chat app on which they have both been falling in love with each other? Talk about stakes (get it?). Okay, no more cooking puns, but if you'll excuse me I have a tweet war to tune in to.
Emma Lord is the NYT bestselling author of You Have a Match and Tweet Cute, a BuzzFeed market editor, and dessert gremlin living in New York City, where she spends whatever time she isn’t writing either running or belting show tunes in community theater. She graduated from the University of Virginia with a major in psychology and a minor in how to tilt your computer screen so nobody will notice you updating your fan fiction from the back row. She was raised on glitter, a whole lot of love, and copious amounts of grilled cheese. You can learn more about her works and the author herself by visiting her website emmalordwriting.com.
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