Viola nearly died as a soldier at Waterloo, and took that opportunity to fake her own death and live her life as the woman she always has bee3.5 stars
Viola nearly died as a soldier at Waterloo, and took that opportunity to fake her own death and live her life as the woman she always has been. After years of being sequestered from anyone who knew her past self except her family, she is sent to the house of her former best friend, who is still in mourning for her.
I read this for my book club, Three of Clubs, for our quarter of reading Friends to Lovers books. This theme is over, but if you'd like to join us for July-Sept 2024, we're reading books about rogues - thieves, assassins, and spies! Link to the discord: join us here!
This book was so close to being absolutely fantastic, but the first 200ish pages and the last 300ish pages are just entirely different books. In the first half, we have so much emotion just pouring off the page. The tension is so high, the characters are feeling so much, and we're discussing some things that aren't really touched in regency fiction such as PTSD, disability, and addiction. Then at that mark, there's a series of incredible scenes that cover a big conflict. I was interested to see that this part, which normally would have been a third act conflict, was put so early. But unfortunately, having it that early pulled all the tension out of the book. It didn't feel like the characters had any reason to not be together (by the standards of the book, not real life). The plot then didn't even focus on our main characters anymore and was, frankly, boring. I still like the conflict where it was, but the back half should have been shorter, more focused on the protagonists, and more in line with the established tone.
Otherwise, some more comments: I liked that the main character being trans isn't the source of conflict for the book - she still has to keep it a secret, but there isn't a problem with her loved ones loving her. I liked the inclusion of the intimate scene, as it represented some things not often covered in the genre. The communication between our characters (once secrets are out) is fantastic. I liked Gracewood a lot and thought he felt different to a lot of male romance leads. Viola's personality I thought could've used a little more show and not telling. I also thought it was strange how little she thinks of the war, which obviously was super formative in her life. I also could have used more past recollections on their friendship.
Overall, the first half of this book was stellar, but the second half is far too long for having very little to do with our main characters....more
Ballet teacher Bree and football player Nathan have been in love with each other since they were teenagers, but since they've never been single at theBallet teacher Bree and football player Nathan have been in love with each other since they were teenagers, but since they've never been single at the same time, they've never admitted their feelings. When they now are and a clip of drunk Bree talking about him goes viral, they decide to fake date. But Nathan and his team have made a cheat sheet up his sleeve to get Bree to finally see him as more than a friend.
I read this with my book club, Three of Clubs, for our quarter where we read Friends to Lovers books. Join us in June 2024 for A Lady For A Duke! Link to the discord: join us here!
Sometimes you can't trust BookTok because the books are problematic, but sometimes you can't trust BookTok because the books just aren't good. This is the latter. I read too many romances in a row (as a non-romance reader) and they all had a venn diagram of things I didn't like about them. The couple of good things: I did believe that these two have been best friends for a long time. There was a panic attack scene that was really good. The football team making the cheat sheet was actually really funny (but that wasn't much of the book). The not great things: so much of the relationship stuff made me cringe so hard that I had to pause the audiobook and not return for a while. That happened multiple times. This is made worse by the fact that there is NOTHING in this book except the relationship - it doesn't feel like these characters exist outside each other, with very few scenes of exception. In the first chapter, Bree acts like such a terrible person to Nathan's girlfriend at the time and we're just supposed to root for her in that scene? There's not any other scene where there's a girl liking Nathan, so this ugly side of her isn't shown again, but multiple people were turned off the book because of this. The ending - while Bree says it's what she wanted and to each their own - left a weird taste in my mouth. There were a few good scenes hidden amongst an otherwise not great romcom. Hopefully her future titles have a better proportion because I actually own a different one of her books... oops.
Overall, while there were some scenes that were great, the majority of this book had me cringing and regretting picking it as a book club read....more
In an alternate Victorian England, magic has been discovered that have allowed people to make houses fly - and now pirating has taken to the land as tIn an alternate Victorian England, magic has been discovered that have allowed people to make houses fly - and now pirating has taken to the land as the pirates use their manor houses rather than ships. Cecilia is a junior member of the Wisteria Society, a group of female pirates as often trading quips as stealing prized possessions from each other. When charming Ned is sent to assassinate Cecilia, she will have to do her best to save the society that raised her, but hasn't yet accepted her into their mix.
Do you want a quirky/random mindless book? Then this could be for you. It took me a while to get into it, and I eventually had a good amount of fun with it, but it's definitely not the strongest thing I've ever read. It's not trying to be sophisticated, but I think it had potential it didn't execute on. For some context, I am more of a fantasy reader than a romance reader. The humor is pretty solid, mostly about literal criminals being super obsessed with propriety - a very fun dichotomy. There's also an aunt who is very similar to Mr. Woodhouse from Emma. While there's definitely instalove, as the book went on, I became really invested in the romance. The characters could be fun but weren't that fleshed out. The writing style took a minute to get into. The world building felt very one-note. You're introduced to a super quirky idea at the beginning, and then it wasn't really expanded upon past that first idea. The weakest part of this book was the plotting and pacing - it was pretty aimless. It didn't really know where it was going or what the stakes were. Plus, the main character even admits in the story that she doesn't really contribute to the plot, which felt pretty counterintuitive to the premise.
Overall, this was a mindless read that was good fare for the flight I read it on. I think it might find more of an audience or better execution if it was made into a TV show....more
Logan and Rosemary were best friends as kids, but something tore them apart and turned them into enemies. Despite being total opposites, the two have Logan and Rosemary were best friends as kids, but something tore them apart and turned them into enemies. Despite being total opposites, the two have both returned to their high school as teachers. When their mentor tells them that he only has months to live, he asks for them to fulfill his final wish - to drive from Washington to his house in Maine to die peacefully. Stuck together for weeks trying to come to grips with the future loss of their mentor, this road trip isn't going to go to plan.
I read this for my book club, Three of Clubs, for our quarter where we read friends to lovers books. Join us for future titles - we're reading A Lady for a Duke in June 2024 and our next hand (July-Sept) has been announced: we're reading books about rogues, thieves, and assassins! Link to the discord: join us here!
I picked this because I had quite enjoyed Cochrun's debut, The Charm Offensive, which was a very silly but solid romcom. This new book was interesting because it still had a lot of the comedy of her previous stuff - I read this all on a plane and my boyfriend said I kept laughing - but this time balanced that with the very real, hard emotions of experiencing the death of a loved one. Joe, the mentor, was the best part of this book on so many levels. He's such a fantastic guy and teacher and community member who has been such a role model for these girls as an openly gay man. It was great to see queer representation from an older generation. He's also hilarious despite literally being in the middle of dying. The thing I cared about most in this book was the journey of actually getting Joe to Maine as his health is deteriorating - any stumble they had made me so worried. I also appreciated that they showed an appropriate amount of the uglier side of dying and caring for a dying loved one. I really enjoyed the different stops on the road trip and felt like it dictated the pacing well. For the girls, I really liked that both of them had stuff they needed to work on with themselves for them to improve their personal lives as well as to be in a relationship. Their relationship definitely took a back seat to the rest of the book. Don't get me wrong, I love a romance that focuses on other things as well, but I think them being a couple should've been developed more. Oh yeah, and I loved how very very queer this was!
Overall, the general fiction elements of this book worked extremely well for me, but I think the romance left a bit to be desired....more
Chandler feels unrewarded in her career as a ghost writer despite her success. After getting rejected by her crush of many years and shunted by the2.5
Chandler feels unrewarded in her career as a ghost writer despite her success. After getting rejected by her crush of many years and shunted by the influencer she just wrote a NYT bestseller for, she has an amazing date with a stranger... only to have the world's most awkward one night stand. Then when she's given a sudden offer for a new ghost writing project of a former star of a teen werewolf show, it turns out the former star in question is her one night stand. When it's revealed that Chandler was less than thrilled by his talents in the bedroom, she winds up not only writing his memoir but giving him intimacy lessons.
So this book didn't do anything criminal... but that doesn't mean it went well. This was a string of mid things with the occasional annoying thing - which sucks from a 5 star prediction. Somehow this is her highest rated adult book, which I can only imagine is because those who didn't like her first two (which I gave 5 and 4 respectively) didn't pick this one up. Because I don't see how this book is somehow better than her others.
First, the main characters and the relationship. I don't get it. I thought Chandler and Finn were both individually fairly boring, and together I didn't see the chemistry at all. In order for me to be sold on you to cross the line of sleeping with someone who's hired you, I need to feel literally anything! I was fairly frustrated with Chandler because her reasons for not being able to go out with Finn seemed to be prioritized way out of order. Then her being in denial of what he verbally confirmed to feel for her bugged me as well. The bedroom lessons didn't work for me - which is pretty important given it's the impetus of the book. I'd say one out of at least five of such scenes was actually good/desirable. Part of this is because, again, I wasn't invested in the relationship emotionally, but also I just didn't love how they were written. I was more often than not just waiting for them to be over. I did, however, like how the relationship is left at the end of the book.
Then, plot stuff and style. Here's a good thing: I thought the portrayal of both their careers were realistic. I wasn't really interested in the whole con circuit plot, but it felt really true to what a Finn-like celebrity has to do. Chandler's writing dilemmas I liked, where we see that writing fiction is more often than not unfeasible as a full time job. I also liked that both of these characters have solid relationships with family and friends. I think the worst thing this book does is in the third act: (view spoiler)[ Chandler is never revealed as Finn's ghost writer. What's more toxic - having it hanging over your head for your whole relationship that the world doesn't know I wrote your story, or it getting revealed and bringing all that unwanted attention to the relationship, that's probably going to happen anyway? (hide spoiler)] I was expecting the opposite to happen from the very beginning of the book and it feels pretty toxic that it doesn't happen. Also, Solomon tries to have way too many serious conversations in this book - ab*rtion, aging parents, OCD, anxiety, etc. - but doesn't dedicate much time to any of them. I would've preferred if she would've picked fewer and gone deeper. Obviously real people contain multitudes and characters should too, but this felt like she was just checking boxes. Lastly, the humor. Solomon absolutely nails how cringey their one night stand should be... but then it continues to stay cringey with lots of millennial humor. Her other books have some, but not this bad IMO.
Overall, this was a huge let down for me and the things I didn't like are going to stay with me longer than the things I thought were just okay....more
In a fantasy world not unlike our own during WWI, two gods are at war, calling humans to their armies. Iris' brother is one such soldier. Iris, a jourIn a fantasy world not unlike our own during WWI, two gods are at war, calling humans to their armies. Iris' brother is one such soldier. Iris, a journalist vying for a columnist position against the brilliant but ultra-privileged Roman, writes letters to her brother in her grief. The letters magically disappear, and then someone other than her brother starts responding. Roman starts getting letters from Iris and begins to fall for her words, but won't tell her who he is - then they're both thrown into the war.
I read this with my book club, Three of Clubs, for our theme of Historical Fantasy books. Join us with the link in my bio as we read The Wolf and the Woodsman in March!
I'm so glad I picked this for the club because it showed a side to historical fantasy that's not as common - a fantasy world setting that is inspired by history, rather than a historical setting with fantasy elements. I've read it before, but definitely not from a book inspired by any modern time. This makes it into a sort of urban fantasy that I thought was pretty interesting. I really enjoyed the writing style, which was beautiful without being pretentious. Even though it could have been developed more, I got sold on this romance. I wanted them to be together so badly, and I think the dramatic irony of knowing who Roman was while Iris didn't know worked to aid this. If I was Iris I would've been a bit more mad at Roman's pre-reveal behavior, but post-reveal everything was great. They might move a bit fast, but it made a lot of sense in wartime. I thought that the portrayal of the front was good from what we saw. I thought the magical typewriters were such a cute idea. However, I wanted more grounding in the fantasy of this world. The typewriters are a one-off magic that we don't see any counterparts to. We see some creatures (and what we saw of them was good) but I didn't feel like I had enough grounding in the gods and what the magical elements of this world could entail. I do expect that to be resolved in book 2, though. I'm not sure if the ending was meant to be a plot twist but it felt very predictable. Also, as a side note, I think this is meant to be adapted. This is going to get a movie for sure - or I even think this would appeal to the musical theatre crowd. Fans of Hadestown or Anastasia or Newsies?
Overall, I had a really good time with this and while I think it could've been a little bit more developed, I do think this lived up to the hype with how invested I was in the characters. ...more
When Alexa gets stuck in an elevator with hot stranger Drew, she doesn't expect him to ask her to be his fake girlfriend for a wedding the next day, aWhen Alexa gets stuck in an elevator with hot stranger Drew, she doesn't expect him to ask her to be his fake girlfriend for a wedding the next day, and she definitely doesn't expect to accept. They hit it off so well, but they live hours apart and Drew isn't looking for commitment.
Alexa is such a great character. We get a curvy Black female MC who's super awesome at her job, which is working in politics to help Black and brown communities and youth. Unfortunately, she goes through such a shitty time in this book - which she shouldn't, given this is meant to be a romcom! There is nothing desirable about Alexa being strung along by a guy who can't communicate and is allergic to his own feelings. I wanted her to break up with him the whole time. Drew is a dick, no matter how hot Alexa thinks he is. It's not a miscommunication trope, it's Drew being incapable of communicating. He's a player, has no emotional intelligence, takes his emotions out on his friends and his SICK CHILD PATIENTS, and treats Alexa like she's nothing. He was less bad at the beginning, but the way he acted in the second half was so unforgivable. In a normal romcom, you'd have the main character be insecure about the love interest not liking her and they actually love her - but in this, everything she's insecure about in their relationship about his feelings IS ENTIRELY TRUE. Seeing his perspective and how he views her made me feel so bad for her. When he finally tries to tell his feelings the first time before the 3rd act break up, he does it in such a creepy, gross way. Does he eventually come around? Yes. But I wouldn't want my friend to be with someone who thought of her like that. The POV also switches within chapters and scenes, which a) came across as an immature writing choice and b) was confusing while listening to the audiobook. Also, the scenes of their weekends together were really repetitive - they just sit around and eat take out? Let's shake it up.
Overall, this was good until the second half where our love interest showed that he actually sucks and doesn't deserve the main character. I'm not interested in reading a toxic relationship when a book is marketed as a romcom....more
Following the events of The Inadequate Heir, our protagonists have been forced apart again. Zarrah has been banished by her aunt the Empress to an islFollowing the events of The Inadequate Heir, our protagonists have been forced apart again. Zarrah has been banished by her aunt the Empress to an island where the nation's worst prisoners are left for life, gangs and starvation and cannibalism and all. Meanwhile, Keris has been crowned King of Maridrina and is struggling to keep his country safe, especially when his personal desires get in the way of being a good king.
Unfortunately, this is my least favorite Bridge Kingdom book. Even though Keris and Zarrah are just as good as Lara and Aren, the fantasy plot of this middle duology is just not as strong. Let's talk about what I liked first. I really do love the relationship between these two. Both of them break away from the cookie cutter mold of a lot of fantasy romance protagonists. The intimate scenes were great, and there was a reasonable amount considering the dire circumstances of the plot. I thought the use of a flashback for one of these scenes was a good way to show the relationship while also keeping the characters in their respective settings. I love how ride or die Keris is compared to Zarrah not knowing who to trust, which plays into the great gaslighting character arc she goes through in this book. I loved how Jensen shows how a parental figure can manipulate one's worldview. I also liked the plot of the second half and wish that was a larger portion of the book. The resolution of these two feels like it has a bow on it, but a bow that actually is for the best of the fantasy world. Now what I didn't like. The first half of this book is all about the prisoner island plot, and while I've praised Jensen's settings before, this one didn't do it for me at all. I was so bored and just wanted it to be over already! That half felt out of place compared to the rest of the series and was also very predictable. The other thing I disliked was a certain development with Lara. It felt as if now that Lara isn't the main character, Jensen is putting her out to pasture. Yeah, sure, it's realistic, but it felt icky.
Overall, I still had fun with this relationship and the continuation of this fantasy world, but I thought that this was noticeably the weakest book in the series so far....more
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
June went back to her small beach hometown wheThank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC in exchange for an honest review.
June went back to her small beach hometown when her sister died to take over the tea shop they created together. When both her and Levi - her sister's best friend turned family friend turned her high school crush who turned her down - go through viral break ups at the same time, they decide to fake date while helping plan for June's brothers wedding. June can get attention to her business, Levi can get his ex back, and June's best friend can publish everything. And it'll all be okay because they're just friends! Totally!
I hadn't read from this author before, but I'm usually a sucker for friends to lovers, so I thought I'd give this a shot. My main takeaway from this book was that it was so bogged down with trying to accomplish so many tropes that it didn't really succeed in any of them. For friends to lovers, I didn't fully believe that they were such close friends for a long time. For fake dating, I found a lot of the romantic stuff they were trying to do cringey instead of swoon-worthy - and all the "trying to go viral" stuff felt so untrue to real life to the point of being annoying. This book has solidified that I will avoid romances with the internet anywhere in them like the plague. Then with the wedding planning forced proximity, it didn't pay off in the end (because we don't see the wedding) and they even say in the book that most of it has been planned so what they're doing doesn't really even matter. This book is the exemplification of the romance genre sticking way too hard to tropes rather than telling interesting stories. I didn't have any huge problems with the characters, but I didn't find myself invested. I did think the small beach town/ small business was cute, but I wish that June's arc about what she wants to do with the business was much more developed. This third act conflict was one that I typically don't like, and I didn't like the beginning of it, but for some reason the ending did end up landing for me. I thought the characters handled everything in a really mature way. I think that's the first time I've ever liked the ending of a romance book I otherwise didn't end up liking.
Overall, this book tried to do too much and ended up with very little. I didn't find myself invested with any portion of this, and often was annoyed. ...more
4.5 stars In this 60's set retelling of Carmilla, Laura is dedicated to her poetry. For the first time in her life, she leaves her sleepy town to go t4.5 stars In this 60's set retelling of Carmilla, Laura is dedicated to her poetry. For the first time in her life, she leaves her sleepy town to go to a prestigious women's college to grow her craft. Despite her being a freshman, her work impresses the distinguished Professor de Lafontaine enough to let her into the class. de Lafontaine's star student, the beautiful and enigmatic Carmilla, feels her spot is threatened, despite all the secret time she spends with the professor. As the two students are pitted against each other, they find themselves on the line between obsession and hatred - but the professor's dark secret may tear them asunder.
The biggest question about this book is going to be: Does it live up to A Dowry of Blood? I think it does. I don't think it's quite as strong, but I do think it lives up to that legacy. The atmosphere and the metaphoric writing style made it very clear that this was a companion. The vibes were the same, and I got the feelings that I was looking for! There were so many quotes that I read and reread because they gave such a complete image of these characters. I absolutely love the rivals to lovers arc of Carmilla and Laura; I was so obsessed with them getting together despite the circumstances. Gibson is unmatched in how she writes desire and desperation; you can feel their want oozing through the page. I thought it was an interesting twist on the original text to have Carmilla originally be a vampire's blood supply and be a victim of grooming rather than Carmilla being the ultimate villain of the story. This showed how strongly a young person can be manipulated by someone older because they believe they're in love. There is a side plot of the professor vampire dealing with her sire which took up a good amount of the back half of the book, but I didn't think that portion was developed enough to really feel successful. This made the book split focus despite it being pretty short. Dowry is so short and still works flawlessly because it is singularly focused in a way that Education is not. Because of that, I think that this book could've been longer to flesh out the arcs to their fullest.
Overall, this is definitely a spiritual sister to ADOB and while I adored so much of it, I think it could have delved even deeper to flesh out its multiple plotlines....more
I don't really read a lot of graphic novels, but I love greek mythology so this was fun! The art style was beautiful and while it took a minute to groI don't really read a lot of graphic novels, but I love greek mythology so this was fun! The art style was beautiful and while it took a minute to grow on me, the humor did have me laughing by the end. Curious to see how the series handles more serious subject matter introduced at the end of this....more
Iris is a romance author and artist who has been burned by romance enough times that she knows it's not for her. Stevie is an actress with crippling aIris is a romance author and artist who has been burned by romance enough times that she knows it's not for her. Stevie is an actress with crippling anxiety whose 9 year relationship ended recently. After the two have a failed one night stand and Stevie fibs to her friends that they're dating, they get cast as romantic leads in a show together. They decide to fake date in front of Stevie's friends and otherwise teach each other how to have intimate and romantic relationships respectively.
I read this in a vlog! I read a bunch of LGBTQ+ books from different genres for Pride Month. Watch it here: Queer Books Vlog
Well this seems like it's going to now be one of my favorite romance books. This was maybe the least interested I was in any of the Bright Falls books, but I'm so glad I trusted Blake because this is the best, in my opinion.
Our two main characters are both so well-characterized. I loved following from both points of view to see how each of them saw each other and themselves. I really liked their banter together, but more so the amount of care they put into the other person from the very beginning, even before they acknowledged their feelings to themselves. This makes it so easy for the reader to root for them. Individually, each had personal life conflicts that are very relatable to anyone trying to pursue a creative career nowadays. I also loved that, while this implements some popular tropes here and there, it doesn't lock itself into those tropes. It deviates and evolves away from them when it makes sense, which too many romance books nowadays don't do at risk of being redundant. Maybe my favorite part of the book is when they decide to do away with the fake dating and just date for real well before the end of the book.
What this did most successfully was the third act breakup, the hardest part of a romance book to nail. Blake's last two books had conflicts that felt rushed and the stakes felt way out of proportion. In this one, the conflict is caused by an external source but makes them confront the parts of themselves they need to work on to be in a relationship. Stevie avoids getting into conflict by burying the problem; Iris avoids conflict by leaving at the first sign of it. They have a lot of similar anxieties, but deal with them in opposite ways, which creates realistic conflict that doesn't make them incompatible (like a lot of romance books do). The conflict takes place over an appropriate amount of pages and is paced well with the rest of the book, still leaving room for a HEA that doesn't feel too short or cheap or fake.
There were a couple things that I thought could've been nudged to make this perfect. First, the previous couples appearances in this book - getting together has sapped away all the personality of these previous protagonists. Every person in a relationship talks the exact same way (regardless of previous behavior) and acts like they can't breathe without their partner. If my friends were like this, they wouldn't be my friends. Also, I could've used a little more expansion on our MC's personal lives. Iris' life felt a little cluttered, where some things (hobbies/job/family) felt like they would get more development and didn't. I was interested enough in Stevie's life and friend and Much Ado that I'd have liked to see a bit more there as well. I get why all that was cut down, though.
Overall, I think this is objectively Blake's best romance yet. So excited for her holiday release this winter!...more
Astrid Parker has been struggling ever since her engagement ended. For the first time, she's failing to live up to the golden child expectations her tAstrid Parker has been struggling ever since her engagement ended. For the first time, she's failing to live up to the golden child expectations her toxic mom has for her. So, she's determined to succeed when she's given the opportunity to redesign an old manor house HGTV. Jordan has been mourning what she thought was the perfect relationship. Throwing herself into remodeling the house she spent her childhood summers in is exactly what she needs. But when Astrid and Jordan's designs clash, sparks start to fly.
I think this is my favorite romance I've read this year! That's definitely a surprise, considering that I had higher hopes for Delilah than this one based on the synopsis. This book has almost everything I'm looking for in a romcom. Both of our characters have arcs individual of the relationship that are satisfying and characterize them well. I particularly loved Astrid's arcs. She's trying to disentangle herself from her mother's expectations and go for the life that she wants - both in her career and in her love life. Astrid's realization of her queer identity was so relatable and well done. I loved how the book handled Jordan not wanting to be someone's queer "experiment" as well. I loved their banter and how their personalities/styles balanced each other. This leads to funny moments when they're talking, insightful moments when having heart to hearts, and spicy moments when they're getting intimate (I loved those scenes!). We had just the right amount of the house redesign and it intersected perfectly with their individual arcs. I liked the friend group that we have in this series, even though I thought Delilah and Claire's PDA/couple talk was insufferable when not reading from their POVs. I am usually hard to please when it comes to third act breakups and then ending chapters, and while this did have a breakup I thought that this did a great job wrapping up things with the relationship and with the outside plot without feeling like it was an abrupt ending.
Overall, I was so pleased with this and couldn't put it down. This has a chance of being added to my favorite romcoms!...more
3.75 stars Thank you so much to Del Rey for sending me a physical ARC in return for an honest review.
Freya has hidden that she is blessed by a goddess 3.75 stars Thank you so much to Del Rey for sending me a physical ARC in return for an honest review.
Freya has hidden that she is blessed by a goddess her entire life, since there is a prophecy claiming that the one who has her blessing will become the shield maiden of the one who will unite the lands. When her abusive husband sells her out to the king, the much older king takes her to be his bride and shield maiden, with his warrior son Bjorn as her bodyguard.
The Bridge Kingdom is one of my favorite series, so I have been highly anticipating this book since it was announced. While I had a good time, I was left wanting more from most every aspect of this book. My favorite part of this was the style of the magic system - especially how the main characters would experiment with their powers - and how the gods/religion impacted society. I wanted to see much more of the magic and the gods! I liked how fate vs. destiny was a big theme, and how that had actual fantasy-plot consequences. The beginnings of anti-colonialist/monarchist themes are present, and I'd like to see how that expands. While I liked the setup of the characters, I wanted more from them and wanted to be more attached. Freya was at first an interesting protagonist, but I didn't get more connected to her as it went along. The chemistry between the love interests started out great, but I didn't think it escalated as it should have - I only ended up medium-level into the romance. There were some scenes that felt a little redundant and the focus of some scenes were not where I wanted them to be. Also, nitpicky, but I swear Freya throws up thirty different times in this book.
Overall, there were a lot of things I liked but didn't love in this book. It didn't particularly do anything wrong, but it didn't nail a lot of what it was trying to accomplish. I'd definitely consider picking up book 2 to see how the story improves....more
Hani's two best friends since childhood don't believe her when she says she's bisexual. Ishu wants to become head girl, despite her unpopularity, to pHani's two best friends since childhood don't believe her when she says she's bisexual. Ishu wants to become head girl, despite her unpopularity, to prove her worth to her strict parents. The two decide to fake date each other in order to achieve both their goals, but end up finding a safe space with each other in their shared identity as queer brown girls in a very white Irish community.
I haven't read a lot of YA contemporary books in a while, but I gave this a shot as it was available on audio from my library, and I'm very glad I did. A lot of this book is these two girls trying to fit themselves into a mold that has been presented to them - for Hani, it's being palatable to her intolerant friends; to Ishu, that's being the perfect daughter now that her sister has finally messed up. I loved that these two end up being the opposite that the other needs to show them that their current way of life doesn't need to be that way. The fake dating element was fun and didn't get annoying when they started realizing they had feelings for each other. The part that I was the most invested in was trying to get Hani out of her toxic "friendships" - the girls are actively biphobic/islamophobic/xenophobic and it is so saddening to watch Hani just put up with it. The ending was also realistic, with not everything turning out sunshine and rainbows (intolerant people are going to stay intolerant).
Overall, I'm so glad that books like this are available to teen readers, to show more underrepresented identities and show readers that everyone deserves to be their authentic selves. I'm so glad I took a chance on this book....more
Oraya is a human in a land of vampires. Rescued and adopted by her vampire king father from the ruins of her human village, she has always had a targeOraya is a human in a land of vampires. Rescued and adopted by her vampire king father from the ruins of her human village, she has always had a target on her back without the heightened abilities of a vampire. Now that the legendary Kejari has returned - a tournament to the death hosted by a goddess - she is determined to win it so that she can be blessed with her father's powers without having to be turned. But her only chance is to find allies among her competitors, and it looks like her father's enemy is her only choice.
I am still on my journey of finding a new favorite fantasy romance. Unfortunately this is not the one, but I didn't hate this. It was exactly what you expect when you think of a fantasy romance, so if you're looking for tropes, here they are. In all honesty, a lot of the specifics are fading in my memory, so I'll try my best to remember.
Let's talk about the things that I liked first. I liked the dialogue between the characters. The actual tournament was fun to read; the magical trials were creative. For the most part, communicating emotions (and etc) was good between the characters. The goddess of death was written so fascinatingly, I'd love to see more of her. There's also potential for an interesting dynamic between the main characters in the next book. Then there's what I'm less a fan of. The biggest gripe I had was that the world did not feel very well defined - what is the aesthetic? What are the different groups that don't like each other? There was also a bl00d play scene that icked me beyond belief, considering that the very book itself condemns vampires for draining humans. The ending also had massive cliches that first books in fantasy romance books find themselves in way too often. It had me rolling my eyes. Other than that, a lot of this book was just middle of the road. I don't think it deserve the hype or the hate I'm seeing.
Overall, this was exactly what you expect a fantasy romance to be. Unfortunately, it didn't do anything to stand out to me, but didn't have too many bad points either....more
The renewal of the alliance between the small planet of Thea and the larger Iskat Empire is looming, and it is imperative to the lives of so 3.5 stars
The renewal of the alliance between the small planet of Thea and the larger Iskat Empire is looming, and it is imperative to the lives of so many that it goes on without a hitch. Native Thean Jainan and his Iskan husband Prince Taam are meant to be the representatives of their cultures for the renewal, but when Taam dies suddenly, Jainan is hurriedly married to Taam's cousin, Prince Kiem, so they may be the representatives. Sunshiney Kiem and reserved Jainan don't get off on the right foot after their rushed wedding, but will have to work together when it's revealed that Taam's death has been ruled as suspicious.
I buddy read this with my friend Katie (@forevermorepages) which was super fun! Hi Katie :)
My main thought was that there's a lot of good bones here, but that some things needed to be built out a little more to be fully successful - let's get into why. First, this is such an interesting book because it's a genre I don't see that often - a 50/50 blend of scifi and romance. Fantasy romance is so popular now, but scifi and romance are so often antonyms. I'd like to see more of this for sure! I liked this version of a queernorm world (universe), especially because it doesn't eliminate discussions of sexuality or gender. There's cool scenes where we see the differences between how different cultures perform gender. The strongest suit is the relationship itself and the reader's opinion of it will make or break the book for them. There was a lot of miscommunication, which was sometimes a bit frustrating, but it did make some sense given the characters' backstories. The pacing wasn't always consistent throughout the story, some parts being slower than others, but I thought that the ending was an excellent summary of the characters and their arcs. The main thing I would have qualms with is that while we see some worldbuilding, there's not enough context/immersion given to the political intrigue plot, which is a larger part of the book. I think that either the political plot needed to be stronger, or it needed to take a backseat for the romance to take full center stage. I do have faith that this could improve in further books, so I'm interested in picking up the sequels. Also, note that while the author is queer, it is not Own Voices M/M (which is something I try to avoid usually), so do with that what you will.
Overall, this just needed some fleshing out of the scifi aspects to reach its full potential, which I think the sequels are capable of achieving. ...more
Cherisse is a pastry chef who had a very public breakup with her cheating musician ex-boyfriend. She's hoping that her sister's wedding, at which she'Cherisse is a pastry chef who had a very public breakup with her cheating musician ex-boyfriend. She's hoping that her sister's wedding, at which she'll be the maid of honor, will get her scheming mother off her back about finding a good man. Not only is that not the case, but it turns out the best man - who she'll have to work closely with to plan wedding events - is Keiran, a musician who she's hated since they were teenagers.
This was the first read of 2023 for my book club, Three of Clubs, were our first theme of the year is forced proximity. If you'd like to join us, here's the link to the club discord: discord.
So the thing about running a book club is that you don't read the book before you pick it. You just have to guess that you'll like it. For the first time, I didn't like the book. I'd say nine out of ten isn't too bad of a record, so I won't kick myself too hard, but I was looking forward to this one quite a bit.
Generally, this book needed editing. It had the bones of a romance/romcom that could have worked, but there were several things that got in the way. The good things: both love interests having strong passion for their professions, fun side characters, a wedding plot, quid pro quo between the love interests. The spice was pretty good as well. However, a lot of these good set ups were knocked down by a lack of depth that could have been fixed! Cherisse supposedly hates Keiran - but never in her inner monologues do we actually see her being annoyed by him. There is a scene very early on where she addresses a terrible rumor about him, but that is immediately dismissed as not true. All she does is be mad that he's hot and think about how she can't be with him. But why? She doesn't think, oh, men can't be trusted because my toxic ex sucked, she just has the thought "I can't be serious with him." This turns her to be a toxic love interest for Keiran, at least for the duration of the book. Keiran is sweet and at her beck and call, and she is mean (which, he's at least into that) and strings him along like a toy. Lots of minor plot points were dropped (the rumor, the song release). Some of the dialogue was weird, except Remi, she's my favorite lol. This book was pitched as sweet, but it was unnecessarily angsty and unhealthy.
Overall, I was let down by this one. I was still entertained enough that I didn't want to DNF, but the book did not execute on what it set out to do, unfortunately....more
Anastasia is a pairs figure skater with her eyes on the Olympics - despite her difficulties with her partner. Nate is the very dedicated captain of thAnastasia is a pairs figure skater with her eyes on the Olympics - despite her difficulties with her partner. Nate is the very dedicated captain of the hockey team. When one of the rinks at their university has to be repaired, the two have to share the ice. They have an immediate attraction to each other, even if she claims she can't stand him.
I read this for my readathon, Friendathon, which is based around reading your friend's tastes in books. I read this for the prompt to read a genre your friend (Katie) reads more than you (romance).
Look, I don't normally pick up this type of recommendation from BookTok, but I love hockey and really want to like one of these recommendations. A couple years ago, I didn't think I'd like romance at all, so I'm still trying out things in the genre I'm unsure about. Unfortunately, this did not go well, and I have plenty to say about why.
Let's talk about the couple of good things first. One, we have good representation of a wheelchair-bound character and of the benefits of therapy. Two, the toxic relationship shown in here is a friend instead of a partner or parent, which is something that I appreciated (even if it was an infuriating plot). Three, some of the spicy scenes were well done. Four, some of the side characters were really fun.
Unfortunately, there was much more that I didn't like in this. First, the plot synopsis is entirely misleading: this isn't forced proximity, Nate being her skating partner is barely in the book, and the enemies to lovers is one-sided and very short lived. These two main characters were annoying to follow. Anastasia is bratty, and not in a cute way. The author describes Nate as so sweet and kind, but he acts like an alpha male more than anything (in what is supposed to be a "fluffy" realistic romance). While they have good chemistry, some of the spicy scenes have choices that weirded me out intensely (namely, Nate being in a Halloween Gru costume) and then unsafe practices. The number one problem with this book is the editing, or lack thereof. The pacing of this book was majorly off in the development of the relationship and the plot. There were also plenty of places that scenes and information could have been cut out. The epilogue was also hugely disappointing, absolutely dashing Anastasia's dreams, but it's presented as desirable. And in personal offenses, Anastasia also reads and loves my favorite romance book - how dare you mention my favorite while being so bad!
Overall, this book will seriously deter me from reading any romance book recommended by fans of this. This needed eight more editors working on it....more
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