reread 2023. not proud to say tiny tim had me almost in tears this time around. as always a lovely book, hopefully rereading yearly will be an easy tareread 2023. not proud to say tiny tim had me almost in tears this time around. as always a lovely book, hopefully rereading yearly will be an easy task!
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this has been on my list for several years and i'm happy i finally got to check it off on christmas eve and christmas day! it's exactly what you would expect from pop culture and its multiple retellings. short and sweet, elegantly written but not over the top. it feels all the more cozy thinking about how the spirit of christmas was the same over 150 years ago....more
this is the first audiobook i've listened to in a while and i really enjoyed it! will i forget every detail of this book in 3 business days? most likethis is the first audiobook i've listened to in a while and i really enjoyed it! will i forget every detail of this book in 3 business days? most likely. but the narrator is great and even in the places where this book probably would have lagged if i'd read it physically, it was easy to follow.
there's definitely more action in this than book one, which i appreciated. the moments of tension are done really well and keep you rooting for the main character. the one hurdle i still can't quite get over is that this book is good but not absolutely amazing, partly because i wish we had more description. the author goes so deep into the world building but not so much in actually putting you there, and even after two books my grasp of certain things is shaky.
usually romance is the life vest that keeps me going through a hefty series, and these books do have a sprinkling of that, but i'm really torn on how i feel about it. the forbidden romance aspects of it are interesting but i can't get over the inevitable mortal x immortal foreshadowing to be able to fully commit. one of my character flaws is i can forgive a book with stockholm syndrome but this one feels kinda like a stretch and sometimes they don't have much chemistry other than the have the same goals. but we'll see how the rest of it unfolds.
there's 2 more installments and i'm definitely going to continue after a brief pause to read holiday themed books....more
listen. i almost didn't rate these on goodreads because i was content to let the fact go to the grave with me that i did indeed read the first four bolisten. i almost didn't rate these on goodreads because i was content to let the fact go to the grave with me that i did indeed read the first four books (eh, novellas) of this series all in one night.
when i say i want depraved amounts of smut in a book, this is what i'm talking about!!! quick pacing and a sprinkling of plot, but the rest is pure sex. each novella reads swiftly with enough set-up to get your oriented with the world, but the rest is history. each book has a different pairing, both with gender and magical creatures, as well as a new set of kinks and preferences. in a ten book series, i think you'd find something you like. unless you skip sex scenes in books, in which case, move along lol.
if you're into kathryn moon but want something shorter and more porn than plot, i'd recommend these. [tiktok voice] it's like a reward....more
this is the most violently fatphobic book i've read in my entire life--up until I DNFed it 90 pages in. skinny authortw - disordered eating, fatphobia
this is the most violently fatphobic book i've read in my entire life--up until I DNFed it 90 pages in. skinny author writes about a 400-lb teenager determined to kill himself by eating himself to death because he's so hungry and can't lose the weight and everyone makes fun of him and he thinks he's a burden to his family and he'll never get the girl he has a crush on, so that's clearly the only solution, right?
i picked up this book because i thought it would be a think piece on the internet being detrimental to mental health but instead was berated with gratuitous imagery of the author shoving in your face how gross and depressed and mean fat people are. i almost wanted to push through to the end just to see where she goes with that but it was so over the top and disgusting that i don't even want to waste one more second on it.
i'm frustrated because parts of this book are 5 stars, but overall, rounding up to 3 is generous. we all know by now that fake dating books to me are i'm frustrated because parts of this book are 5 stars, but overall, rounding up to 3 is generous. we all know by now that fake dating books to me are not my fave because plausibly it just never happens, but i stuck to this one because it was also friends to lovers, which is my shit! however, i haaaated how the main character was so naive and had an "omg he'll never love me we're gonna ruin our friendship" even though it's VERY clear the opposite.
this book had some amazing moments of cozy description which I loved, but those moments were so specific to scenes where the love interests are together. the entire plot around them was just a mess and i'm no longer the kind of reader who can forgive a plot for being unrealistic and corny, so i was rolling my eyes a lot at the convenience of a lot of these plot points falling into place and the sickly sweet language the main character used to talk about her job and her romantic life.
this definitely scratched the itch of a christmas romance even though tbh christmas never even happens in this book. and i would argue not a lot of wintry things happen except its setting is mentioned so frequently. basically i have a lot of complaints and hate that i do because i wish i could just shut up and enjoy things....more
i seem to have misplaced my ability to just enjoy things. i will be jumping out a window.
okay this book had its moments. IT HAD ITS MOMENTS. but i rei seem to have misplaced my ability to just enjoy things. i will be jumping out a window.
okay this book had its moments. IT HAD ITS MOMENTS. but i really cant stand the plot hole-ridden world building of this (JUST MAKE IT A RETELLING GODDAMN IT!!) and the cringy dialogue even though these are supposed to be gods and goddesses. it just felt silly for this book to have instagram drama in it even though it's literally about a goddess.
i liked eros and psyche, but fake dating/marriage is also just not a trope i care about nor think is realistic. points for having a plus size main character and some solid sex scenes but that's about it.
will i be reading the third one? absolutely. but i am now not afraid to start skimming over the plots of these just to get to the romance because i find the world pretty silly....more
pros: i read this in one day, dirty talk was on point, incredible
cons: i cant do monster smut in books where the love interest has a non-human face whpros: i read this in one day, dirty talk was on point, incredible
cons: i cant do monster smut in books where the love interest has a non-human face where they can't kiss the main character. kisses are essential to plot. also there were only 3 sex scenes in this? and idc about the plot and im not into tentacles so i dont think i'll continue the series...more
oh how the mighty fall. i really wish this book was a continuation of bastien and celine's story rather than the aimless and insta-love ridden adventuoh how the mighty fall. i really wish this book was a continuation of bastien and celine's story rather than the aimless and insta-love ridden adventures of pippa and arjun. i love arjun and his back must be hurting from carrying this storyline. but this book had major middle book syndrome where really nothing happens. If the writing weren't pretty and the characters interestingly written, then I definitely would have given up on this. i'm still not convinced that i'll read the final installment though....more
i read this today on my sick day off work and was wondering why it felt so unending and boring. then i looked it up just now and saw it's FIVE HUNDREDi read this today on my sick day off work and was wondering why it felt so unending and boring. then i looked it up just now and saw it's FIVE HUNDRED AND FIFTY PAGES?! no wonder i found myself skimming the last 30%.
this book was waaaaay longer than it needed to be for what it is. i liked the world and the characters but not the writing, and i'm honestly impressed that i read like 50% of this in one sitting and it didn't make my headache return.
tik tok has deceived me once again. i got recommended this book because the reviews were imploring how smutty it was, only for me to find out at the etik tok has deceived me once again. i got recommended this book because the reviews were imploring how smutty it was, only for me to find out at the end of this book that it's part of a NINE book series! this first volume was so slow burn that i don't even consider it that. there was just no burn. the fire was off.
maybe this picks up in future volumes but i didn't care enough about the world and characters to want to continue (view spoiler)[even though, problematically, i am a sucker for a damsel in distress main character like this one (hide spoiler)]...more
i read this one because i trust kathryn moon and it was available on scribd, and i had no clue it's her debut!! solid book but not a favorite. i honesi read this one because i trust kathryn moon and it was available on scribd, and i had no clue it's her debut!! solid book but not a favorite. i honestly wish it were more of a contemporary book than the non-human characters it ended up being because that felt under explained, but this had me hooked and was a quick and run read. i guess i'm unofficially making my way through kathryn moon's whole archive of books...more
book two is definitely where this series peaked. this one brought in a lot of world building/politics and had me skim reading a bit, not gonna lie. bobook two is definitely where this series peaked. this one brought in a lot of world building/politics and had me skim reading a bit, not gonna lie. book four i basically just skipped my way through so i'm not even going to bother marking it as read but yeah this series is meh, i'd focus on her newer stuff...more
this book was a clear step up from book one, purely evidenced by the fact that i didn't skim read over boring plot to get to the smut!! at first i wasthis book was a clear step up from book one, purely evidenced by the fact that i didn't skim read over boring plot to get to the smut!! at first i was confused why the series was taking the turn it did, but i ended up appreciating the action and the characters' smart thinking. joanna is fun to read about because she doesn't come off as the typical romance vehicle who moves from plot point to plot point in between scenes where she gets railed. she was a whole lot less annoying than in book one, and i began to appreciate her personality and magic a lot more in this one.
also..... kathryn moon's writing is unparalleled. i have read SO much smut that sometimes it can come off as repetitive, but kathryn manages to write scenes with fresh description and emotion that feels so unique. which is a huge compliment from me.
as i write this i'm already 50% into the next installment. after not expecting to continue with this series, this volume was a nice surprise! ...more
i thought it was the last in the series but it is in fact, not. so it was just a boring middle installment with so muthis book was a big honk mimimimi
i thought it was the last in the series but it is in fact, not. so it was just a boring middle installment with so much action i didnt care about. but the wolf was cool.
anyway im giving up on this series because the author is dragging it out so unnecessarily....more
i love that this installment leaned more into the paranormal world even though the shatter me series has ruined me for the (view spoiler)[amnesia (hidi love that this installment leaned more into the paranormal world even though the shatter me series has ruined me for the (view spoiler)[amnesia (hide spoiler)] trope. i went into it with pretty low expectations but found this book a lot more gripping than book one, even though i still have issues with the pacing of the information reveals in this and how things that could serve as plot twists are just randomly fed to the reader.
at no point in this book did i know where it was gonna go next, which is kinda fun, but i also feel like now we have literally no set up for book three. i still plan to continue on with it but now i'm invested because i love how well written celine and bastien are, even though the world and conflict around them isn't the best written....more
this was really cute and actually made me laugh out loud a few times! by far the most christmassy book i read this month, and just the right amount ofthis was really cute and actually made me laugh out loud a few times! by far the most christmassy book i read this month, and just the right amount of heat vs heart. i'm surprised i liked this so much because i typically cringe at contemporary romances, especially ones containing celebrities as characters, but this really pulled it off. if you can somehow squeeze this into your reading agenda before the 25th, i would definitely recommend....more
Love love love Kathryn Moon's writing so I was excited when I saw this whole series on Scribd, but even though I read this first installment in one siLove love love Kathryn Moon's writing so I was excited when I saw this whole series on Scribd, but even though I read this first installment in one sitting, I'm not sure if I want to continue with this. For a book that has more plot than smut than I prefer in a fantasy romance, the world was pretty under-explained. The sequel is set up to go somewhere completely new and idk how I feel about it so I'm debating whether or not I'll continue.
But I did like the characters and set-up of this one: a country girl turns city girl when she gets a job at a university library. enter three hot wizard professors who want to court her to be the fourth in their coven, and it was a recipe for success. I just wished the action was better explained, and the main character didn't have so severe of a teenage "why would anyone like me?" complex.
I'm torn on whether I would recommend this because Kathryn has a lot more recent works that I think are fabulous, so maybe start with those first....more
this book was objectively meh and a money grab to get you to pay for three volumes that could all be combined into one, but goddamn if i won't be swinthis book was objectively meh and a money grab to get you to pay for three volumes that could all be combined into one, but goddamn if i won't be swindled in exchange for a beauty and the beast retelling...more
this book has confirmed i don't have a ddlg kink because even though it started out interesting, i couldn't help but cringe at all the infantilizationthis book has confirmed i don't have a ddlg kink because even though it started out interesting, i couldn't help but cringe at all the infantilization of the main character. maybe it just wasn't properly done to make it believable but yikes. the writing in this also just wasn't my favorite, and i found the book quite plain other than the fact that it was easy to read and i read it all in one sitting. i don't have much else to say lol...more
out of all the books i downloaded on the stuff your kindle day, i was most excited about this one because it was pitched as pirates with bdsm. like heout of all the books i downloaded on the stuff your kindle day, i was most excited about this one because it was pitched as pirates with bdsm. like hello!!! on a ship full of ropes, that sounds great!! but it was really not. awkward writing, awkward characters, rushed action. no development, annoying main character, predictable. thankfully it was short enough to get through quickly, but this really left me unimpressed and disappointed....more
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