Arrow recap? Don't mind if I do. Filling in for the lovely Chelsea Mueller—go easy on me!

Previously on Arrow: Laurel's being set up as Detective Lance's bait? “Stone cold,” indeed, Daddy. And a Felicity-Oliver alliance? This could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship, no? Oh, and then there was that proof that Mom's been up to some shady stuff...

(Need to catch up? Don't miss H&H recaps of the pilot episode, episode 1.02, episode 1.03, episode 1.04, episode 1.05, episode 1.06, episode 1.07, episode 1.08, episode 1.09, episode 1.10, episode 1.11, and episode 1.12). Plus, read Jennifer Proffitt's report on the Arrow cast panel at NYCC!)

***SPOILERS TO FOLLOW FOR ARROW 1.13, “BETRAYAL”***

Highlights

I'm still trying to figure out why, exactly, I haven't fallen head over heels for Arrow, because I like so much of what I see:

[Like Laurel kicking ass; bring that part on, please!...]

Rainbow Rowell
Eleanor & Park
St. Martin's Press / February 26, 2013 / $18.99 print, $9.99 digital

Bono met his wife in high school, Park says.

So did Jerry Lee Lewis, Eleanor answers.

I’m not kidding, he says.

You should be, she says, we’re 16.

What about Romeo and Juliet?

Shallow, confused, then dead.

I love you, Park says.

Wherefore art thou, Eleanor answers.

I’m not kidding, he says.

You should be.

Set over the course of one school year in 1986, this is the story of two star-crossed misfits—smart enough to know that first love almost never lasts, but brave and desperate enough to try. When Eleanor meets Park, you’ll remember your own first love—and just how hard it pulled you under.

True story: After reading Rainbow Rowell's Eleanor & Park, I immediately went in search of any previous books by Rowell (Attachments) and details for her next book, Fangirl (out later this year). This book triggered the urge to glom, majorly, not to mention the urge to list it as one of my top 3 favorite books of 2012. So what did it?

[Do tell!...]

*****MAJOR SPOILERS for New Girl 2.15, “Cooler,” below*****

Did you see that scene coming? Because I did not see that scene coming. At least, not until the end of the season or even later. But last night, New Girl—and Nick and Jess—really went for it, giving shippers something they've wanted for a while now: a first kiss! And I don't know about you, but I thought it was pretty damn epic. (This from someone who has always been pretty ambivalent about the pairing, too!)

After basically being dared by their friends and potential hookups to kiss each other (you know, long story short—if you haven't seen the episode, what are you doing reading this??? go watch!), Nick and Jess spend the bulk of the episode locked out of the apartment until they do the thing already. Except that it turns out to be more nerve-wracking than they would have expected (if not at all surprising to anyone watching at home) and Nick actually ends up balking and refusing to kiss Jess, exclaiming “Not like this!” He tries to backpedal, of course, seeing that she's pretty confused/offended, and when this proves unsuccessful, he actually  CLIMBS OUT A WINDOW to escape the situation. Smooth, Nick. Smooth.

That's the end of that until the episode's very last scene, when, before the two make their way to their respective bedrooms that same night—where, mind you, Jess's very cute boyfriend is waiting—Nick grabs Jess and kisses the hell out of her. And she kisses him back. Again, it's all pretty epic. And then the kicker: “I meant something like that,” Nick says before disappearing into his room, leaving Jess looking as shocked as I felt. Whoa!

Did you catch last night's episode? What did you think? Any guesses on where those crazy kids will go from here?

Academically put, tropes are “common or overused theme[s] or device[s]," which makes them sound like cliches, which makes them seem like a bad thing.

But they’re totally not! Romance novel fans all have their favorite—not to mention least favorite—tropes, from friends to lovers, chick in pants, secret baby, marriage of convenience, opposites attract, May-December, boss-assistant...the list goes on.

Each month, we’ll be picking a romance novel trope and ask you to offer recommendations falling under the trope rubric (again with the academic talk!).

This month, we're thinking about blurring class distinctions—namely, books where either the hero or heroine is of a lower class than the hero (Pretty in Pink, Jane Eyre, or Pride and Prejudice, for example!).

Come across the tracks:

• Mary Balogh's A Christmas Promise
• Anne Calhoun's Liberating Lacey
• Heidi Cullinan's A Private Gentleman
• Molly O'Keefe's Can't Hurry Love
• Elizabeth Hoyt's Thief of Shadows
• Ava March's Thief

The Carrie Diaries, a prequel of sorts to Sex in the City, debuted on The CW last night. Did you watch, and if so, what did you think? Was AnnaSophia Robb's young Carrie Bradshaw too much like Sarah Jessica Parker's? Not enough? Just right?

While I haven't yet watched myself, I've been hearing good things about the first few episodes and about Robb's performance. I've never really gotten into Sex in the City, either the show or movies, but I am looking forward to checking out this show for the clothes and music alone. I want all that '80s culture—give it all to me, Carrie Diaries!

For those, like me, who missed last night's episode, the pilot is already available to watch online.

Hey, so if you love clothes and films and TV, you probably tuned in last night to watch the Golden Globes awards in Los Angeles. It's come a long way since Pia Zadora's husband bought her an award, hasn't it?

Anyhoo, here are some quick thoughts about it; we'd love to hear your opinions:

• Lena Dunham needs to either a) figure out how to walk in heels or b) wear some sneaks under those dresses, 'cause Girlfriend could not make it to the stage in a reasonable amount of time. That said, her dress was nice.
• Megan Fox doesn't look like herself anymore. It wasn't like she was a pooch to begin with, either! Sheesh, lady.
• Jodie Foster's speech was long, and meandering, and alternately touching and bizarre. Someone might have cried watching (ahem!).
• Downton Abbey's Michelle Dockery (Lady Mary) seemed to be having a fantastic time. Every time the camera caught her, she was cracking up.
• Jeremy Irons was dressed like an undertaker. And not a foxy one, either; dude looks like he's well on his way to dead himself.
• Many fashion folks were praising Jennifer Garner's red sequin dress, but it didn't look like it fit all that well—was that just the light, or was it saggy in spots? 
• Jennifer Lawrence's “I beat Meryl!” — Whoa! Really, JLaw?
• Tina and Amy rocked as hosts, and we'd love to see 'em back next year; just...maybe...on stage more often?
• Could reactions to Amy Poehler's line about trusting Zero Dark Thirty director Kathryn Bigelow on torture because she was married to James Cameron for three years have been any more epic? Jessica Chastain's was already making the rounds as a gif last night.

If you were a tween in the ’90s, chances are good that you remember K. A. Applegate’s middle-grade sci-fi/fantasy Animorphs series, whether you read the novels or watched the television show or both. After a few of us here at H&H HQ realized this*, we had a grand time talking about the golden days of Animorphs, only to stop and consider: Could Animorphs have been our first shifter romance story?!

The Animorphs, a long-running series of 54 books published between 1996 and 2001, is about a group of five human teenagers (later joined by one alien)—Jake, Rachel, Cassie, Tobias, and Marco—who stumble across an alien spaceship on their walk home one evening and are given the ability to morph, or shapeshift, into any creature they touch by the peace-loving alien who crash landed. They’re meant to use their powers to help battle an attempt to take over the Earth by a race of parasitic aliens known as Yeerks.**

Cool abilities that nevertheless can bring the angst, epic battle brewing that will literally determine the fate of the world...it’s actually kind of a familiar premise, right?

[When you put it that way...]

Last night, a few of us at Team H&H were lucky enough to attend a screening of Gangster Squad (out tomorrow), which is inspired by the book by the same name and which you may have heard stars two of my favorites: Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone.

****Light spoilers below****

As Sgt. Jerry Wooters and Grace Faraday, the pair are as charming together as they were in Crazy, Stupid Love, their playful chemistry a treat amid a tense, very violent mobster plot where bullets are constantly flying and ugliness is all around. Even the forbidden aspect of their relationship (he's in the gangster squad; she's mobster Mickey Cohen's ettiquette teacher/arm candy) makes for some lighthearted moments in the film, including a stolen kiss in the middle of crazy tense situation. And, okay, they look GREAT in period costume, it has to be said.

Side note: Surprisingly enough, the movie's romance wasn't limited to that between Gosling and Stone's characters. Another subplot revolves around Sgt. John O'Mara (Josh Brolin) and his pregnant wife, Connie (Mireille Enos), who not only understands why her husband is the way he is, but accepts that she can't change him—and that, really, she wouldn't want to. Plus...she's tough as nails, pretty much. It's awesome.

Here's a clip of Grace and Jerry's first meeting:

Will you see Gangster Squad, or sit this one out?

Alisa Kwitney
New Avengers: Breakout
Marvel / January 1, 2013 / $24.99 print

Fantasy/romantic fiction/comics author Alisa Kwitney (A Flight of Angels, Moonburn) reveals the secret backstory of Avengers couple Hawkeye and the Black Widow. Under secret orders to assassinate the Widow, the rough-edged marksman finds himself caught up in a violent prison break that releases some of the world's most vicious and powerful criminals. Defying his superiors, Hawkeye joins forces with the sultry Russian spy—and with a mismatched group of personalities that include Spider-Man, Spider-Woman, Luke Cage, Captain America and Iron Man. Unexpected betrayals and shocking revelations will lead the team from Manhattan's top security Raft prison to the untamed jungle of the Savage Land in dramatically different take on Brian Michael Bendis' blockbuster Avengers comics debut. Learn the sizzling backstory of your favorite big-screen heroes in this adaptation, inspired by the best of page and screen!

Fans of the Black Widow/Hawkeye pairing from this summer's The Avengers can get their next fix with Alisa Kwitney's New Avengers: Breakout prose novel, which combines an Avengers comics story line (namely Brian Michael Bendis's New Avengers: Breakout) and elements from the movie, like the chemistry that actors Scarlett Johansson and Jeremy Renner brought to their portrayals of the master assassins on the big screen. If you couldn't get enough of them in the movie but aren't sure how to jump into the vast comics universe where their story originated, New Avengers: Breakout may help bridge the gap. Plus...well, it's a fun take on Black Widow and Hawkeye's backstory!

[And who could resist that?...]

May old friends be forgot? We don't think so! We're celebrating our favorite reads with five days of the Best of 2012. We asked our bloggers for their favorite recommendations of 2012, with one stipulation, they had to be new to them and not necessarily new to 2012. We know we got a few recommendations to add to our to be read piles and it's a great way to feed those readers!

Don't miss out on the shopping list for these great recommendations once you finish reading, and check out the recommendations from Day One, Day Two, Day Three, and Day Five! Click here to view the Day Four shopping list.

Heather Waters:

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell
Rowell’s young adult debut impressed me so much, I immediately purchased her adult novel, Attachments (another enjoyable read). Teenage outsiders Eleanor and Park, each dealing with wholly relatable problems, quickly win you over individually and only become more compelling together.Their story is funny, sweet, sad, and heart-melting—sometimes all at once.

[The best combination possible!]

Academically put, tropes are “common or overused theme[s] or device[s]," which makes them sound like cliches, which makes them seem like a bad thing.

But they’re totally not! Romance novel fans all have their favorite—not to mention least favorite—tropes, from friends to lovers, chick in pants, secret baby, marriage of convenience, opposites attract, May-December, boss-assistant...the list goes on.

Each month, we’ll be picking a romance novel trope and ask you to offer recommendations falling under the trope rubric (again with the academic talk!). This month, we want your recommendations for amnesia romances, or novels where either the hero or heroine has no clue who they are. As usual, we tried to remember (!) ourselves, but then went to our friends at Twitter.

Don't you forget about me...

• Sherry Thomas Tempting the Bride
• Lisa Kleypas Someone to Watch Over Me
• Miranda Neville Amorous Education of Celia Seaton
• Delilah Marvelle Forever and a Day
• Anne Stuart Winter's Edge
• Mary Balogh Slightly Sinful
• Anne Gracie Accidental Wedding
• Mary Jo Putney Uncommon Vows
• Beth Williamson The Redemption of Micah
• Author Vivian Arend shares that her forthcoming High Risk has a heroine who's missing some memories.

There are a lot of historicals on there—anyone got suggestions for the other genres? More historicals are welcome as well!

This post contains SPOILERS for all aired episodes of Homeland, including last night's Season 2 finale, episode 12, “The Choice.”

Homeland is one of those shows I went into not expecting much, if any, romance; I tuned in pretty much just because of all the buzz it was getting. After this past season and especially the finale, though, I can see I was very wrong—the heart of the show really has become the relationship between CIA analyst Carrie Mathison and marine/prisoner of war/terrorist/double agent Nicholas Brody, and, much to my surprise given the premise of the show, there's been a ton of screen time devoted to this romance.

In “The Choice,” Carrie has to decide between her career with the CIA and the possibility of a Happily Ever After with Brody; because of Brody's past, she can't have both. And yet, in the end, her hand is forced and she kinda actually does get both, wouldn't you say? [highlight for more detailed episode spoilers]After a bomb in Brody's car goes off and kills most of the attendees of Vice President Walden's memorial service, Carrie decides to trust Brody when he says he didn't have anything to do with it and helps shuttle him out of the country (leaving him with the promise that she'll clear his name and that it isn't good-bye, implying that she may be choosing the CIA for now but that maybe they'll get their chance later) before heading back home to her mentor Saul—and her job.[/spoilers]

While I can't say I ship Carrie/Brody (I feel like he could very well STILL be lying his ass off, about everything, and no matter what he's done since, Brody would have killed many innocent people with that suicide bomber vest if it hadn't malfunctioned in Season 1), the actors do have fantastic chemistry and I'm looking forward to seeing where the relationship goes next season. How about you?

Christmas with Holly, the Hallmark Hall of Fame movie based on Lisa Kleypas's contemporary romance Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor, first in the Friday Harbor series, debuts on ABC tonight at 9 p.m. EST. Will you watch?

And stick with H&H for special coverage of the next book in Lisa's Friday Harbor series, Crystal Cove, starting in January!

Last week's episode of Arrow led Arrow recapper Chelsea Mueller to abandon (at least for now) Team Oliver/Laurel in favor of Team Oliver/Helena—as in Helena Bertinelli, mob daughter and masked vigilante Huntress. And while I'm holding out hope that Laurel will don the Black Canary persona and get in on more of the show's action at some point, I gotta say that going into tonight's episode, I was right there with Chelsea: Oliver/Helena FTW! Did that remain true after “Vendetta”? Only the recap will tell.

(Need to catch up? Don't miss H&H recaps of the pilot episode, episode 1.02, episode 1.03, episode 1.04, episode 1.05, episode 1.06, and episode 1.07. Plus, read Jennifer Proffitt's report on the Arrow cast panel at NYCC!)

**********SPOILERS**********

The episode opens with Helena awakening to the realization that she's spooning Oliver after what one would assume was a very enjoyable night. Now, while I would have taken at least a moment to enjoy, Helena apparently has no such appreciation for her situation and slides out of bed right away, failing to notice, I guess, that her leaving did not go unnoticed.

[C'mon, Huntress, you can be sneakier than that...]

On Facebook, Darynda Jones and St. Martin's Press are taking a poll to determine the cover for the next Grave series/Charley Davidson novel, Fifth Grave Past the Light. 

After you like the page, you can take a first look at the cover and then use the like button to cast your own vote: Purple or blue?

The cover with the most likes by December 10 will be the one you see on bookshelves in July 2013, so what are you waiting for? Go vote!

Note: If you haven't seen last night's episode of The Vampire Diaries (4.07, “My Brother's Keeper”), read no further. MAJOR spoilers ahead.

**********SPOILERS**********

Last night's episode of The Vampire Diaries (episode 4.07, “My Brother's Keeper”) brought the culmination of everything Damon/Elena fans have been waiting for since, well, since the first episode. [highlight for spoilers]After years of surviving on unresolved sexual tension, death-bed kisses, and interrupted makeouts, Delena fans finally saw their favorite couple give into their feelings. A dance turned into a kiss turned into one incredibly hot sex scene.[/spoilers]

But. And this is The Vampire Diaries, so we all knew there'd be a but, right?

But while Damon and Elena were otherwise engaged, Caroline and Stefan were coming to a pretty disturbing conclusion: [spoilers]Elena is sired to Damon, meaning that her will is pretty much his to command.[/spoilers]

What did you make of the episode? Are you flying high, feeling low, or somewhere in between? And where do you think Delena will go from here?

Academically put, tropes are “common or overused theme[s] or device[s]," which makes them sound like cliches, which makes them seem like a bad thing. But they’re totally not! Romance novel fans all have their favorite—not to mention least favorite—tropes, from friends to lovers, chick in pants, secret baby, marriage of convenience, opposites attract, May-December, boss-assistant...the list goes on.

Each month, we’ll be picking a romance novel trope and ask you to offer recommendations falling under the trope rubric (again with the academic talk!).

This month's trope is marriage of convenience, where the hero and heroine are married before they've fallen in love. The most common example of MOC plots occur in historicals, where arranged marriages are commonplace, but they can also happen in contemporaries.

Some recommended marriage-of-convenience books include:

• My Darling Caroline by Adele Ashworth
• The Temporary Wife by Mary Balogh
• Mrs. Drew Plays Her Hand by Carla Kelly
• His Wife for One Night by Molly O'Keefe
• To Wed a Stranger by Edith Layton
• Morning Glory by LaVyrle Spencer
• His Secondhand Wife by Cheryl St. John

Do you like this trope? Which are your favorites? Share your recommendations in the comments!

*****SPOILERS*****

Last week, Arrow brought some good things for shippers who don't like to wait—namely, some Oliver/Laurel smooching! Can “Legacies” possibly compare? Let's see!

(Need to catch up? Don't miss Tori Benson's thoughts on the pilot episode, Heather and Chris's episode 1.02 recap, or Chelsea Mueller's recaps of episode 1.03, episode 1.04, and episode 1.05. Plus, read Jennifer Proffitt's report on the Arrow cast panel at NYCC!)

Chris

What I find myself really liking about Arrow as a show is the attention the creators are giving to creating all the characters, not just Oliver. The depth of the supporting characters make it imperative for Oliver to go beyond just the “I'm going to kill all the things” point that he was at at the beginning of the show.

So far the Villains of the Week whom Oliver has faced down have either just been kind of flat/generic evil corporation owners, or serve as the embodiment of a lesson that Oliver himself has to learn. Which brings us to this week.

[Ah, yes, this week...]

Academically put, tropes are “common or overused theme[s] or device[s]," which makes them sound like cliches, which makes them seem like a bad thing. But they’re totally not! Romance novel fans all have their favorite—not to mention least favorite—tropes, from friends to lovers, chick in pants, secret baby, marriage of convenience, opposites attract, May-December, boss-assistant...the list goes on.

Each month, we’ll be picking a romance novel trope and ask you to offer recommendations falling under the trope rubric (again with the academic talk!).

You've known him or her forever—been to the movies, shared French fries, maybe engaged in innocent correspondence. And then, one day, you realize your friend is really kind of hot, and isn't that interesting? At some point, your friend thinks something similar, and then there's all sorts of very friendly action going on, resulting in the friends-to-lovers book.

Some of the books that come to mind for us are:

• Kristan Higgins' Just One of the Guys
• Connie Brockway's As You Desire
• Miranda Kenneally's Catching Jordan
• Lisa Kleypas's Seduce Me at Sunrise
• Stephanie Perkins's Anna and the French Kiss
• Sarah Mayberry's Anything for You
• Shannon McKelden's The Kiss Test
• Julia Quinn's When He Was Wicked
• Diana Gabaldon's Outlander
• Jennifer Crusie's Anyone But You
• Kristin Cashore's Graceling

Do you like this trope? Which are your favorites? Share your recommendations in the comments!

Parks and Recreation's Leslie and Ben's adorkable relationship has always been ridiculously charming, and it's been a pleasure to watch it develop. But after last night's episode, in which Ben [highlight for spoilers] shows up unexpectedly and proposes to the woman he wants to spend the rest of his life with (awwww!), they must officially be the Cutest. Couple. Ever.

Did you see last night's “Halloween Surprise”? What'd you think? Where do you think they—and the show—will go from here, and are you looking forward to the journey? (Beware of spoilers in the comments!)