Book Review: House of Earth and Blood

House of Earth and Blood by Sarah J Maas 🎧

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

Bryce Quinlan had the perfect life—working hard all day and partying all night—until a demon murdered her closest friends, leaving her bereft, wounded, and alone. When the accused is behind bars but the crimes start up again, Bryce finds herself at the heart of the investigation. She’ll do whatever it takes to avenge their deaths.

Hunt Athalar is a notorious Fallen angel, now enslaved to the Archangels he once attempted to overthrow. His brutal skills and incredible strength have been set to one purpose—to assassinate his boss’s enemies, no questions asked. But with a demon wreaking havoc in the city, he’s offered an irresistible deal: help Bryce find the murderer, and his freedom will be within reach.

As Bryce and Hunt dig deep into Crescent City’s underbelly, they discover a dark power that threatens everything and everyone they hold dear, and they find, in each other, a blazing passion—one that could set them both free, if they’d only let it.

🌙

It’s safe to say that what Sarah J Maas thinks is sexy/romantic and what I think is sexy/romantic are not the same thing. 

😬

Cringey sex scenes and inner monologues about how much dirty sex one character wants to have with the other character aside, this is the best SJM book I’ve ever read. I personally found the writing of all of the ACOTAR books to be super lazy and admittedly only decided to give the Crescent City series a chance as a direct result of peer pressure, but I liked this more than expected.

🤷🏻‍♀️

I should also clarify that this is four stars compared to other Sarah J Maas books I’ve read. If I had to rate it without overlooking the cringe level of the “romance” aspects and all the swearing for the sake of swearing, it would be a solid three stars for me. However, I am willing to add the extra star simply because I knew full well what I was getting myself into with a book written by Maas. She has yet to deviate from a very distinct formula - only the characters and settings seem to change, but the key elements of the story remain the same.

🌙

I keep hearing that the second book in this series has an EPIC ending, so I’m definitely going to press on and read House of Sky and Breath soon. Also because Ruhn Danaan.

💜

 

Book Review: By Any Other Name

 

By Any Other Name by Lauren Kate 📱

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

With a successful career as a romance editor, and an engagement to a man who checks off all ninety-nine boxes on her carefully curated list, Lanie's more than good. She's killing it. Then she’s given the opportunity of a lifetime: to work with world-renowned author and her biggest inspiration in love and life—the Noa Callaway. All Lanie has to do is cure Noa's writer's block and she'll get the promotion she's always dreamed of. Simple, right? 
 
But there's a reason no one has ever seen or spoken to the mysterious Noa Calloway. And that reason will rock Lanie’s world. It will call into question everything she thought she knew. When she finally tosses her ninety-nine expectations to the wind, Lanie may just discover that love By Any Other Name can still be as sweet.

📚💻

This was such an easy, predictable, romcom read and I was 100% there for it!  Something about a book about someone writing a book always appeals to me, I can’t explain it.  I read this ebook in one sitting and enjoyed it from beginning to end.

✍🏻📖

Don’t go into this one expecting swoon-worthy romance or even a dash of spice - you’ll find none of it here. This is more a story about one’s idea of romance and falling in love should feel like. All the while, totally falling for someone you don’t particularly like half the time. Go figure. 

🤷🏻‍♀️

I found both main characters likable as individuals and I was totally rooting for them as a couple.  I recommend this one to anyone looking for a cute and entertaining weekend read.
Thank you to the author along with NetGalley and Penguin Group Putnam for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. 

Book Review: Bone Deep

 

Bone Deep by Charles Bosworth, Jr. & Joel J. Schwartz 🎧

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

First responders concluded that Betsy was dead for hours when Russ discovered her. No blood was found implicating Russ, and surveillance video, receipts, and friends’ testimony all supported his alibi. Yet incredibly, police and the prosecuting attorney ignored the evidence. In their minds, Russ was guilty. But prominent defense attorney Joel J. Schwartz quickly recognized the real killer.

Bone Deep takes readers through the perfect storm of miscalculations and missteps that led to an innocent man’s conviction—and recounts Schwartz’s successful battle to have that conviction overturned. Written with Russ Faria’s cooperation, and filled with chilling new revelations and previously undisclosed evidence, this is the story of what can happen when police, prosecutor, judge, and jury all fail in their duty to protect the innocent—and let a killer get away with murder.

🔪😵💀 

I went into this audiobook having no prior knowledge of the murder case it details. I like the occasional true crime book or documentary and decided to give this one a listen.  The first half of this audiobook was tedious at times because it’s basically a transcript of Russ Faria’s hours long interrogation by police. At just over the halfway mark, the overall vibe changes when the court proceedings begin to unfold. That is when this story went from “meh” to downright insane!  

😱

This is a must read for true crime fans and I promise you that the second half of the book more than makes you for the shortcomings of the first. It wasn’t until near the end that I realized this is the same murder case that has inspired the new NBC mini-series “The Thing About Pam”, starring Renee Zellweger - the trailer for which I had already seen and planned to watch.

Thank you to the authors along with NetGalley and Tantor Audio for this ARC in exchange for my honest review. 

Book Review: The Wedding Season

 

The Wedding Season by Katy Birchall 📱

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️5/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

Freya Scott is getting married. Her wedding to Matthew, her long-term boyfriend, is the first of eight in her calendar this year, and as someone who prides herself on being meticulously organized, Freya is intent on making it the perfect day to remember.

But when Matthew calls things off hours before they walk down the aisle, Freya’s entire life plan goes up in smoke. Humiliated and heartbroken, the last thing she wants is to attend a summer of other peoples’ nuptials on her own.

Fortunately, her friends have an idea: together they devise a series of outrageous challenges for Freya to complete at each event, designed to distract her from Matthew and what might have been.

By the time the final wedding arrives, she will discover that the road to a happy ending sometimes has unexpected detours, that “I do” is only the beginning––and that perhaps her own love story isn’t over just yet.

💒 👰🏻‍♀️💍🤵🏼‍♂️

I should first say that while this story is cute, funny, and a bit of a romp, the cover and title don’t do it justice. The cover is adorable and our main character does have to attend a series of weddings while getting over a horrendous breakup, but there are so many other unexpected layers. 

❤️‍🩹

Freya’s love life may get top billing but there were important, non romantic relationships - like the not so great one she has with her mother - that are explored and beautifully developed.  Life long friendships, new friendships, workplace relationships, and both strong and broken familial ties add to the complexity of this lovely story. 

🦚 

Not really a spoiler - but maybe - some of the interactions between Freya and her estranged mother had me teary-eyed. While this particular relationship evolves throughout the story, it’s still complicated in the end,  and I very much appreciated that.

💐

As a deliciously entertaining romcom - this book ticked all of the boxes. I love the journey, leading to newfound  self compassion and self acceptance that Freya embarks on and I found some of the plot points to be less predictable than most books of this genre. Ultimately, I was elated to find this story to be more than its cute cover led me to expect and I highly recommend it!  Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go read every other book Katy Birchall has written. 

🤷🏻‍♀️😂

Thank you 🙏🏻 to the author along with NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.  

Book Review: The Spanish Love Deception

 

The Spanish Love Deception by Elena Armas 🎧

⭐️⭐️⭐️3/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

Catalina Martín, finally, not single. Her family is happy to announce that she will bring her American boyfriend to her sister’s wedding. Everyone is invited to come and witness the most magical event of the year.

That would certainly be tomorrow’s headline in the local newspaper of the small Spanish town I came from. Or the epitaph on my tombstone, seeing the turn my life had taken in the span of a phone call.

Aaron Blackford. The man whose main occupation was making my blood boil had just offered himself to be my date. Right after inserting his nose in my business, calling me delusional, and calling himself my best option. See? Outrageous. Aggravating. Blood boiling. And much to my total despair, also right. Which left me with a surly and extra large dilemma in my hands. Was it worth the suffering to bring my colleague and bane of my existence as my fake boyfriend to my sister’s wedding? Or was I better off coming clean and facing the consequences of my panic induced lie?

🇪🇸✈️ 💒 

I have to say that I enjoyed most of this book. The enemies to lovers + fake dating tropes = pages of awkward hilarity. I love both main characters independently and enjoyed all of their interactions leading up to the actual “romance”.  I just could not get behind these two as a couple and I can’t really pinpoint why.

Imagine seeing an attractive person from across the room. You’re taking in all of their fine features and thinking “ummm… yes, please” when - record scratch - your great aunt Cheryl is suddenly standing right in front of you, introducing this hottie as your second cousin, once removed. Those butterflies in your stomach turn to piranhas in half a heartbeat, right?  That’s akin to how I felt when Lina and Aaron finally started to hook up.  The slow burn was great fun and I was totally there for it, but by the time everything began to spice up, it was no bueno for me.  The more Aaron called Lina “baby”, the more I internally cringed. 

Book Review: Out Front the Following Sea

Out Front the Following Sea by Leah Angstman 📱

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️5/5 Star Rating

The Summary;

Out Front the Following Sea is a historical epic of one woman’s survival in a time when the wilderness is still wild, heresy is publicly punishable, and being independent is worse than scorned — it is a death sentence. At the onset of King William’s War between French and English settlers in 1689 New England, Ruth Miner is accused of witchcraft for the murder of her parents and must flee the brutality of her town. She stows away on the ship of the only other person who knows her innocence: an audacious sailor — Owen — bound to her by years of attraction, friendship, and shared secrets. But when Owen’s French ancestry finds him at odds with a violent English commander, the turmoil becomes life-or-death for the sailor, the headstrong Ruth, and the cast of Quakers, Pequot Indians, soldiers, highwaymen, and townsfolk dragged into the fray. Now Ruth must choose between sending Owen to the gallows or keeping her own neck from the noose.
Steeped in historical events and culminating in a little-known war on pre-American soil, Out Front the Following Sea is a story of early feminism, misogyny, arbitrary rulings, and the treatment of outcasts, with parallels still mirrored and echoed in today’s society.

🌊🌊🌊

Wow! 

Leah Angstman has penned one of the most gripping historical fiction novels of 2022 with Out Front the Following Sea.  This is a story of perseverance in the face of a myriad of hardships: death, ridicule, loneliness, and the unfortunate fate of being born a woman in 17th Century America - just to name a few.  Ruth Miner’s colonial world comes to life on the page as it is full of both adventure and heartache.  I laughed and I cried - I gasped and raged for a couple of chapters - then I cried some more.  

🌊🌊🌊

Thank you, Leah Angstman for not only writing such an incredible book, but also sharing in the Author’s Note some interesting facts about the Pequot language and culture. I loved everything about Out Front the Following Sea (including that stunning cover that I could gush about for days) and plan to purchase a hardcover copy for my bookshelf.  It’s always such a rare treat to be blown away by an author’s debut novel and it makes me excited for what is to come. 

🌊🌊🌊

Thank you to the author along with BookSirens and Regal House Publishing for a free digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. 

Book Review: The Love That Split the World

The Love That Split the World by Emily Henry

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫3.5/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

Natalie Cleary must risk her future and leap blindly into a vast unknown for the chance to build a new world with the boy she loves. 

Natalie’s last summer in her small Kentucky hometown is off to a magical start... until she starts seeing the “wrong things.” They’re just momentary glimpses at first—her front door is red instead of its usual green, there’s a pre-school where the garden store should be. But then her whole town disappears for hours, fading away into rolling hills and grazing buffalo, and Nat knows something isn’t right.

That’s when she gets a visit from the kind but mysterious apparition she calls “Grandmother,” who tells her: “You have three months to save him.” The next night, under the stadium lights of the high school football field, she meets a beautiful boy named Beau, and it’s as if time just stops and nothing exists. Nothing, except Natalie and Beau.

Quick and dirty review: I didn’t love this as much as I wanted to, but it wasn’t bad.

Emily Henry has become one of my favorite authors and this is her debut novel, published in 2016. The cover is probably the most beautiful book cover I’ve ever seen and the summary grabbed me by the collar - I’m a sucker for a good multiverse story!  My biggest issue with this one was that, in the end, I had no idea what actually happened to Natalie and Beau.

🤷🏻‍♀️

I can’t say for sure if my need for answers is just a personal preference or if other readers would also be left with a feeling of “Say what?” as well. Nevertheless, it was a compelling story with relatable characters and supernatural elements that I quite enjoyed. I’ll be buying a physical copy for my shelf because that cover and would still recommend this as a good, if a little confusing, YA paranormal romance. 

Book Review: Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead

Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead by Elle Cosimano 🎧

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️5/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

Finlay Donovan is―once again―struggling to finish her next novel and keep her head above water as a single mother of two. On the bright side, she has her live-in nanny and confidant Vero to rely on, and the only dead body she's dealt with lately is that of her daughter's pet goldfish.

On the not-so-bright side, someone out there wants her ex-husband, Steven, out of the picture. Permanently. Whatever else Steven may be, he's a good father, but saving him will send her down a rabbit hole of hit-women disguised as soccer moms, and a little bit more involvement with the Russian mob than she'd like.

Meanwhile, Vero's keeping secrets, and Detective Nick Anthony seems determined to get back into her life. He may be a hot cop, but Finlay's first priority is preventing her family from sleeping with the fishes... and if that means bending a few laws then so be it.

With her next book's deadline looming and an ex-husband to keep alive, Finlay is quickly coming to the end of her rope. She can only hope there isn't a noose at the end of it...

📚🕶

Oh, Elle Cosimano, you clever woman! Where is the petition I sign to guarantee at least a dozen books in the Finlay Donovan series? I just never want it to end!  Now, buckle upas I proceed to gush about this book.

🤷🏻‍♀️

WOW, so full disclosure, I did not really expect this follow up to Finlay Donovan Is Killing It to be quite as good as its predecessor. I mean, how often does an author publish a single perfect, genre bending novel in her lifetime - let alone TWO of them?! I have never been so happy to say I was wrong! Finlay Donovan Knocks Em Dead is just as great as - dare I say even better than - the first book! Seriously, I can't even apologize for all of the exclamation points in this review because how else will I convey MY UNDYING LOVE FOR THIS BOOK?!

🕵🏻‍♀️💻

As with the first Finlay Donovan novel, Cosimano delivers a hilarious contemporary murder mystery with enough suspense and romance to keep any reader enthralled. I listened to the audiobook and have to give narrator Angela Dawe all the heart eyes for a job brilliantly done. Thank you Elle Cosimano for knockin’ us dead with this incredibly entertaining book and added thanks to you, NetGalley & Macmillan Audio for a free audio ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review: The Suite Spot

The Suite Spot by Trish Doller

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️4/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

Rachel Beck has hit a brick wall. She’s a single mom, still living at home and trying to keep a dying relationship alive. Aside from her daughter, the one bright light in Rachel’s life is her job as the night reservations manager at a luxury hotel in Miami Beach—until the night she is fired for something she didn’t do. 

On impulse, Rachel inquires about a management position at a brewery hotel on an island in Lake Erie called Kelleys Island. When she’s offered the job, Rachel packs up her daughter and makes the cross country move. 

What she finds on Kelleys Island is Mason, a handsome, moody man who knows everything about brewing beer and nothing about running a hotel. Especially one that’s barely more than foundation and studs. It’s not the job Rachel was looking for, but Mason offers her a chance to help build a hotel—and rebuild her own life—from the ground up.

🏕🍻💖

Absolutely loved this follow up to Float Plan by Trish Doller! She does such a great job of writing three dimensional, relatable characters.  I actually enjoyed this story even more than the first of the Beck Sisters duology, but had one small complaint that prevented this one from receiving a five star rating.  The resolution to the final conflict seemed rushed to me. I would have liked to have seen more time spent on that whole situation to have felt completely satisfied.

🤦🏻‍♀️

I have had an unfortunate run of disappointing contemporary romance reads over the past couple of months. So bless you, Trish Doller, for this refreshing romance that kept me enthralled from beginning to end!

Thank you 🙏🏻 to the author along with NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press for a free copy of this digital ARC in exchange for my honest review. 

Book Review: Fraternity of Brothers Book 1

Fraternity of Brothers Book 1 by Marina Pacheco 📱

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫3.5/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

Medieval Europe, 996 AD. Fifteen-year-old Galen survived a horrendous assault, only to be exiled by his family. Taken in by monks and grateful to be spared as a suspected sinner from the execution block, he ekes out a lonely existence of unrelenting pain. But he gains a chance to prove himself worthy when a famous young illustrator arrives at the abbey and selects him to help with an important manuscript.

Thrilled to be handpicked for his superb scribing skills, Galen fears the other members of the order will sabotage his newfound fellowship with their whispered accusations. But when more brutal attacks rock the quiet community, a confrontation with his assailant might force him to finally speak his truth.

Will Galen find his voice and triumph over trauma and tragedy?

While it took me about 50 pages to really be drawn into The Life of Galen, the first book in Marina Pacheco's Fraternity of Brothers series, I ended up really enjoying this book.  I became so enraptured that I read it in one day.

I loved this story and how it explores the ways true friendship can heal emotional wounds. A young scribe, Galen, learns to trust that he is worthy of a friend as he has become somewhat content with his lonely existence when he meets fellow monk, Alcuin, a  man brave enough to choose the company of an outcast and risk the judgement of his peers.  I aspire to be the type of person who chooses a friend based on my own opinions, not those thrust upon me by others, and I love how that is beautifully represented in this book. 

My chief complaint was how quickly the villain was bested at the crescendo of the conflict in the story. There seemed to be an awful lot of build up to something that was over and down with in just a few short paragraphs.  I still look forward to reading more in this series of five books set in 996 AD Anglo-Saxon England.  

Thanks to the author and Voracious Readers Only for a free copy of this ebook in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review: The White Ship

 

The White Ship by Charles Spencer 🎧

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️5/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

The sinking of the White Ship is one of the greatest disasters in English history. Here, Sunday Times bestselling author Charles Spencer tells the real story behind the legend to show how one cataclysmic shipwreck changed England’s course.

In 1120, the White Ship was known as the fastest ship afloat. When it sank sailing from Normandy to England it was carrying aboard the only legitimate heir to King Henry I, William of Ætheling. The raucous, arrogant young prince had made a party of the voyage, carousing with his companions and pushing wine into the eager hands of the crew. It was the middle of the night when the drunken helmsman rammed the ship into rocks.

The next day only one of the three hundred who had boarded the ship was alive to describe the horrors of the slow shipwreck. William, the face of England’s future had drowned along with scores of the social elite. The royal line severed and with no obvious heir to the crown, a civil war of untold violence erupted. Known fittingly as ‘The Anarchy’, this game of thrones saw families turned in on each other, with English barons, rebellious Welsh leaders and Scottish invaders all playing a part in the bloody, desperate scrum for power.

One incredible shipwreck and two decades of violent uncertainty; England’s course had changed forever.

🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿🤴🏻

Full disclosure: I’m a huge fan of Medieval History. If that’s not your jam, this book may not be as enjoyable for you as it was for me. This is a brilliant piece of nonfiction work from Charles Spencer. The sinking of The White Ship is an event I was mildly familiar with (Didn’t we all read Beowulf in junior high?), but this book was very educational. Wait! I mean that in the absolute best way! It was an enjoyable read and I never once felt bogged down by the details.  

🏰⚔️

This well written account covers the pivotal years at the end of William the Conqueror’s line before the Plantagenet reign began.  I’ve found that there is a more bountiful offering of enjoyable but historically accurate books about the Plantagenet and Tudor Dynasties than the preceding royal bloodlines.  I highly recommend this to anyone interested in England’s monarchy in the High Middle Ages. 

Book Review: Black Cake

 

Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫4.5/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

We can't choose what we inherit. But can we choose who we become?
In present-day California, Eleanor Bennett's death leaves behind a puzzling inheritance for her two children, Byron and Benny: a traditional Caribbean black cake, made from a family recipe with a long history, and a voice recording. In her message, Eleanor shares a tumultuous story about a headstrong young swimmer who escapes her island home under suspicion of murder. The heartbreaking tale Eleanor unfolds, the secrets she still holds back, and the mystery of a long-lost child, challenge everything the siblings thought they knew about their lineage, and themselves.
Can Byron and Benny reclaim their once-close relationship, piece together Eleanor's true history, and fulfill her final request to "share the black cake when the time is right"? Will their mother's revelations bring them back together or leave them feeling more lost than ever?
Charmaine Wilkerson's debut novel is a story of how the inheritance of betrayals, secrets, memories, and even names, can shape relationships and history. Deeply evocative and beautifully written, Black Cake is an extraordinary journey through the life of a family changed forever by the choices of its matriarch.

🍰🌊🏊🏾‍♀️

This was my January pick for my Book of the Month subscription and I am so glad I flipped a coin in favor of this book.  When a debut novel is this incredible, it just gives me warm and fuzzy feels all over. *sigh* Confession: I’d never even heard of black cake before reading this book, so I don’t know which emoji best depicts it and will be using them all.

🥮🤷🏻‍♀️

As you can imagine from my 4.5 star rating, this book was near perfect.  Beautifully written and successfully weaving multiple timelines, I was particularly drawn to the “flashback” timeline being shared by Eleanor Bennett.  However, the characters in the present day timeline, Eleanor’s two adult children, were the weakest part of the story for me.  I did not connect to or care about Byron or Benny and find myself skimming over their parts in the last quarter of the story. Because I found both of those prominent characters in this book to be flat and uninteresting, I knocked off half a star for this otherwise stellar debut.

🎂

Thank you to the author along with NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for the digital ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Book Review: Finlay Donovan Is Killing It

Finlay Donovan Is Killing It by Elle Cosimano 🎧

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️5/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

Finlay Donovan is killing it... except, she's really not. She's a stressed-out single-mom of two and struggling novelist, Finlay's life is in chaos: the new book she promised her literary agent isn't written, her ex-husband fired the nanny without telling her, and this morning she had to send her four-year-old to school with hair duct-taped to her head after an incident with scissors.

When Finlay is overheard discussing the plot of her new suspense novel with her agent over lunch, she's mistaken for a contract killer, and inadvertently accepts an offer to dispose of a problem husband in order to make ends meet... Soon, Finlay discovers that crime in real life is a lot more difficult than its fictional counterpart, as she becomes tangled in a real-life murder investigation.

 📚💻🕶

Finlay Donovan might not actually be killing it, but author Elle Cosimano most certainly is! This book was wildly entertaining, y’all. I’d file this under contemporary murder mystery comedic thriller with a hint of romance. If you’re anything like me, you never even knew you needed a book that hits on all of those genres at the same time - but, believe me, you do!

As if the brilliant execution of this book wasn’t enough, I’ve finished it just in time for the sequel! Elle Cosimano’s follow up to this hilarious book, Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead, was just published on February 1st.  I recommend you binge read these two back to back because when I reached the end of this story, I was not ready to say goodbye to Finlay, unlikely heroine that she may be. 

😂

Book Review: A Brush with Love

A Brush with Love by Mazey Eddings

⭐️⭐️💫2.5/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

Harper is anxiously awaiting placement into a top oral surgery residency program when she crashes (literally) into Dan. Harper would rather endure a Novocaine-free root canal than face any distractions, even one this adorable. 
A first-year dental student with a family legacy to contend with, Dan doesn’t have the same passion for pulling teeth that Harper does. Though he finds himself falling for her, he is willing to play by Harper’s rules.
So with the greatest of intentions and the poorest of follow-throughs, the two set out to be “just friends.” But as they get to know each other better, Harper fears that trading fillings for feelings may make her lose control and can't risk her carefully ordered life coming undone, no matter how drool-worthy Dan is.
Blood, gore, and extra-long roots? No problem. The idea of falling in love? Torture.

 🪥❤️

Unfortunately, this one was a miss for me. The back and forth between Harper and Dan from “just friends” to “I can’t live without you” and back again was very frustrating to me. While I liked both main characters, I reached a point of liking them better apart and no longer rooting for them to be together. 

To be fair, this is a debut novel for Mazey Eddings and I think there was a lot of potential here. I would definitely give future novels by the author a fair chance because it is so satisfying to witness an author’s growth as they hone their craft. Sadly, most of the issues I had with A Brush with Love can be chalked up to “first book flaws”.

🥴

Thank you to the author along with NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the audiobook ARC in exchange for my honest review. 

Book Review: A Million Junes

 

A Million Junes by Emily Henry 🎧

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️5/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

For as long as Jack “June” O’Donnell has been alive, her parents have had only one rule: stay away from the Angert family. But when June collides—quite literally—with Saul Angert, sparks fly, and everything June has known is thrown into chaos.

Who exactly is this gruff, sarcastic, but seemingly harmless boy who has returned to their hometown of Five Fingers, Michigan, after three mysterious years away? And why has June—an O’Donnell to her core—never questioned her late father’s deep hatred of the Angert family? After all, the O’Donnells and the Angerts may have mythic legacies, but for all the tall tales they weave, both founding families are tight-lipped about what caused the century-old rift between them.

As Saul and June’s connection grows deeper, they find that the magic, ghosts, and coywolves of Five Fingers seem to be conspiring to reveal the truth about the harrowing curse that has plagued their bloodlines for generations. Now June must question everything she knows about her family and the father she adored, and she must decide whether it’s finally time for her—and all the O’Donnells before her—to let go

✨

Basically, Emily Henry is a witch! Already, she proved to be a master author of the contemporary romantic comedy (IMO).  Now, I find that her sorcery is no less powerful in the YA fantasy realm.  How, Emily? HOW?

This story was flawless. The magical realism was intoxicating and the characters were three dimensional and relatable.  They made me care and feel so much!  This is one of those times when I finish an audiobook and I’m like, “OOF, I need a copy of this book on my shelf!”

I can’t recommend this book enough. Also, Emily Henry just went from being “one of my favorite romcom writers” to simply one of my favorite authors.  

Book Review: Any Way the Wind Blows

 

Any Way the Winds Blows by Rainbow Rowell 🎧

⭐️⭐️⭐️3/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

In Any Way the Wind Blows, Simon and Baz and Penelope and Agatha have to decide how to move forward.

For Simon, that means deciding whether he still wants to be part of the World of Mages -- and if he doesn't, what does that mean for his relationship with Baz? Meanwhile Baz is bouncing between two family crises and not finding any time to talk to anyone about his newfound vampire knowledge. Penelope would love to help, but she's smuggled an American Normal into London, and now she isn't sure what to do with him. And Agatha? Well, Agatha Wellbelove has had enough.
Any Way the Wind Blows takes the gang back to England, back to Watford, and back to their families for their longest and most emotionally wrenching adventure yet.

This book is a finale. It tells secrets and answers questions and lays ghosts to rest.

☹️

That is an accurate depiction of my face upon reaching the end of this book. I just… expected more. There were a number of things that I needed to be addressed in the final book in this trilogy that were never even mentioned! I’ve sat on this review for a full 24 hours and finally decided to keep it short and sweet because I’m not here to spark a debate with the diehard fans, but I just didn’t like this book. The Simon Snow Series itself was just okay for me, with Wayward Son being my favorite of the three books by far. 

🤭

I still love Rainbow Rowell, but I would recommend you read some of her standalone books because I don’t believe this series is the best she has to offer. My top three favorites of her books would be: Fangirl, Landline, and Eleanor & Park.  Read one of those and then drop me a line, I’d much rather talk about one of those with you.

🤷🏻‍♀️

Book Review: Lucky Leap Day

Lucky Leap Day by Ann Marie Walker 🎧

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫3.5/5 Star Rating

 The Summary:

After one-too-many whiskeys, fledgling screenwriter Cara Kennedy takes a page out of someone else’s script when she gets caught up in the Irish tradition of women proposing on Leap Day. She thought she might have dreamt everything, until she wakes the next morning with a hot guy in her bed and a tin foil ring on her finger. Her flight is in four hours, her clothes are all over the room, and she has the most important meeting of her career in exactly two days—and on top of everything else, her husband has a dog who thinks Cara is a perfect surrogate mother, despite the fact that she has never been much of an animal lover…

Deciding to work things out stateside, Finn and her new fur baby accompany her to LA, where Finn spends his days going on auditions and his nights charming his new bride, leaving Cara to wonder whether this is real love, or if Finn is another aspiring actor just after her Hollywood connections? With limited time on his tourist visa, will Finn be able to convince Cara that she’s the right girl for him, or will time run out on their Hollywood ending?

🍀

This one was super cute, y’all.  I was very excited about receiving this audio arc from NetGalley and Dreamscape Media in exchange for my honest review. For me, so many boxes were ticked before I even began listening: 

cute cover ✔️ 

love interest with a swoon worthy brogue ✔️

accidental marriage (after which hilarity ensues) ✔️

and the cute Irish dude has a dog that loves our quirky heroine ✔️

So much to love here and it delivered on all of those fronts.  However, I was just not buying into the conflict when it finally popped up. I mean, Finn was basically perfect for most of this book and then the conflict that was finally presented felt contrived to me.  While the book started out strong, I feel like it fizzled out in the third act.

🤷🏻‍♀️

All in all, if you’re looking for a fast paced rom com of a story, I definitely recommend Lucky Leap Day. Kudos to Ann Marie Walker for choosing to keep this story clean when so many authors add unnecessary spice to simply appeal to the masses.  Also internet high five for that epilogue because it was such a fun little twist!

Book Review: The Man in the Brown Suit

 

The Man in the Brown Suit by Agatha Christie 🎧

⭐️⭐️⭐️💫3.5/5 Star Rating

The Summary:

Newly-orphaned Anne Beddingfeld is a nice English girl looking for a bit of adventure in London. But she stumbles upon more than she bargained for! Anne is on the platform at Hyde Park Corner tube station when a man falls onto the live track, dying instantly. A doctor examines the man, pronounces him dead, and leaves, dropping a note on his way. Anne picks up the note, which reads "17.1 22 Kilmorden Castle". The next day the newspapers report that a beautiful ballet dancer has been found dead there-- brutally strangled. A fabulous fortune in diamonds has vanished. And now, aboard the luxury liner Kilmorden Castle, mysterious strangers pillage her cabin and try to strangle her. What are they looking for? Why should they want her dead? Lovely Anne is the last person on earth suited to solve this mystery... and the only one who can! Anne's journey to unravel the mystery takes her as far afield as Africa and the tension mounts with every step... and Anne finds herself struggling to unmask a faceless killer known only as 'The Colonel'.

🚢

Confession: this is the first ever Agatha Christie novel I’ve read. First. Ever.

🤦🏻‍♀️

I quite like the murder mystery genre and have no excuse as to why I have never explored the world of Agatha Christie before now, but I intend to add at least one of her books to my TBR each month for the rest of this year.

My takeaway from this novel was not life changing, but the female MC was a competent, capable, and delightfully witty young woman & I just loved her!  I realize I’m late to the party, but it’s safe to say I’ve found another author to binge.

😬