Wow! I am IMPRESSED with this book! I love fantasy romance but it is very common for these books to use fantasy as a backdrop to the love story. Or thWow! I am IMPRESSED with this book! I love fantasy romance but it is very common for these books to use fantasy as a backdrop to the love story. Or the ones that have great world building and fantasy elements tend to have the romance as a subplot. It is so rare to find a book that strikes the perfect balance but this one totally succeeded! I am just in love with this book and waiting for the next one impatiently. In the meantime I purchased this author's other trilogy like the moment I finished this book. If it is half as good, I swear I am going to read anything this author ever writes....more
I read this because I realised that this one was super hyped after months away from the book community. You can say I was lHello my new favorite book!
I read this because I realised that this one was super hyped after months away from the book community. You can say I was living under a rock.
This was soooooooo good, slow burn, fake dating, grumpy/sunshine, soooooo many good tropes here! 10-star romance for me! I would put this on the same level with my other favourite romances the likes of the Kiss Quotient and the Hating Game. Few books have this level of charm.
Also a conclusion I came to while reading this book is that sometimes it's the heroine that makes it or breaks it for me. I mean I adooooored this hero but I loved this heroine just as much which is quite rare as I find half of them either annoying or not particularly interesting but this one was great!
I adooooored this book so much! It's my second favourite read of the year after the Bridge Kingdom. The books I se*Re-read in 2022 and still loved it!
I adooooored this book so much! It's my second favourite read of the year after the Bridge Kingdom. The books I seem to be enjoying the most at the moment are fantasy books where the romance subplot is as important as the fantasy elements but doesn't take a front seat with the fantasy part ending up being underdeveloped. I loved the characters, both the main ones and the secondary ones, I adored the setting, the lore, the world-building and the slow-burn romance is exactly what I want in a fantasy setting! Everything was so great!! I would highly recommend this one and I am so looking forward to the sequel! I feel like I got into a mini reading slump after reading this book, though, as I don't seem to be enjoying the books I am reading at the moment, after finishing this one, quite as much....more
This is hands-down my favourite book of 2021 so far. I wouldn't change anything about this book, it is perf*Re-read in 2022 and loved it just as much.
This is hands-down my favourite book of 2021 so far. I wouldn't change anything about this book, it is perfection. I don't know if any other book has gotten the balance between the (slow-burn) romance and fantasy elements quite so right for me. Perfection!...more
This book, along with the Nordic King that I read right before this one, are my favourite romance books for 2019. I read this practical5++++++++ stars
This book, along with the Nordic King that I read right before this one, are my favourite romance books for 2019. I read this practically in one sitting, I only stopped when I fell asleep at 4 in the morning and picked it back up right when I woke up in the morning.
It’s a very slow-burn romance and it’s quite on the long side as well with it being close to 500 pages.
It’s probably not for everyone but fans of Mariana Zapata will definitely adore this one, it has a similar feel to it but I think I liked it even more than MZ’s books.
I found this book wildly romantic, the hero and the heroine were both alone in the world and they became each other’s family. There was so much love and respect and they always looked after one another.
Unfortunately, it’s been a couple of weeks since I read it so I'm struggling with the review but I so highly, highly recommend this one!
Hands down one of the best romances I’ve ever read, I’m glad to see authors write such mature romances. It’s what we need....more
I stand by this book and will do so forever. It was just as good the second time around and that movie (if it's indeed happening)Re-read February 2022
I stand by this book and will do so forever. It was just as good the second time around and that movie (if it's indeed happening) cannot come soon enough!
Original review
Awwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww!
This is exactly what I needed and I didn't know I did. Unbelievably cute and wildly romantic, this book warmed my heart and gave me fuzzy feelings. So cute!!!
This is an easy 5-star read and has made it to my favorite m/m romances of all time. Seriously, so cute!!!! I can't even!!!
The book stroke the perfect balance for me, not too dark, not too light, angsty enough to keep things interesting but not too much that it would torture the reader, not too serious but not just funny without any depth either.
Amazing! I kept finding myself re-reading whole chapters because of all the feels! Especially chapter 11 with those emails killed me! Awwwwww! So so cute!!!
I have no idea how this book has so many ratings already or why it exploded everywhere months before it came out even though it's a debut. Imagine that! I can't believe how great this book was for a debut!
My only warning would be for readers who don't like escapism. I think they need to stay away from this one. The book is set in an "alternate reality" where the president of the United States is a woman and where the queen of England is named Mary and has a gay grandson. This alternate reality is probably a bit more utopian than the world we actually live in and some events that happened in this book, though amazing, would probably not happen in real life. But maybe one day...
Honestly, I didn't care. This book made me so happy!
There's so much hype surrounding this book. Y'all, trust the hype! The hype is real!
I hate this fucking book! Okay, this is a lie, I don't hate this book, I love it so so so much. But this book turned me into a sobbing mess so I hate I hate this fucking book! Okay, this is a lie, I don't hate this book, I love it so so so much. But this book turned me into a sobbing mess so I hate it just a little bit for that. But mostly I love it...
First of all, this book is a retelling of the Iliad. I'm embarrassed to say I have never read the Iliad (if you look at my name you will make the connection). Not only that, but my dad's name happens to be Achilles. I swear this is completely random, unfortunately my family are not history junkies, I was named after my grandma and I doubt she even knows what the Iliad is but I've always found it funny. I wish my mom's name was Helen or something, we could put up a play between the lot of us.
I doubt I will actually ever read the Iliad. Sure, I had to study it at school and I've read excerpts of it and I know the story quite well but reading a huge book about war written in verse is not my idea of fun, which is sad. Nevertheless, I was so intrigued by a retelling written in the form of a novel even though I always secretely thought the Odyssey was the better book.
This book took me completely by surprise. I had not realised that the love story between Patroclus and Achilles would be the main focus of this book. I have found myself drifting away from romances lately (I'm not bashing romances, I would never do that, I think they're amazing and I don't get all the book racism for romance readers as if reading fantasy or mysteries makes you a reader while reading romances is viewed as the equivalent of watching porn without plot for film-lovers but that's a different topic better not to be discussed here). But because I read so many romances over the past 6 years, I started feeling unsatisfied when reading romances. And while this book does not have the structure of a romance, the love story is at the core of the book. I still do love my books to have a strong love story in them though. I honestly don't know if there is anything in this world that can touch me more deeply than a good love story and this one was powerful.
I have no words to express how much I loved this book. Nevertheless, read it at your own peril, it will break your heart. You have been warned....more
Daisy Jones & The Six is the story of the rise and fall of a fictional band in the '70s.
Right off the bat, I didn't think I would like this book. But Daisy Jones & The Six is the story of the rise and fall of a fictional band in the '70s.
Right off the bat, I didn't think I would like this book. But it has exploded in the social media and when I found a signed copy in my bookstore, I thought why not? I've been trying to read books outside my comfort zone lately anyway.
This book is about love, sex, drugs and rock n' roll in the '70s. I don't know anything about this time period, I'm not into '70s music and I don't usually like reading about drug addictions so I didn't expect to love this book as much as I did.
This book is written in a very unique format. The whole book is written in the form of interview transcripts, the book is like a biography of the members of the band Daisy Jones & The Six and the events that led to them falling apart. I don't know if this format is for everyone - I listened to the audiobook while reading this book and I think this was part of why this book was such an amazing experience. I would definitely recommend the audiobook if you have that option. The audiobook has a full cast, there are a lot of characters in this book and every single character in the book gets their own voice.
In addition, these interviews are taking place in our own time, so the story is narrated to us 40 years after the events in the book took place. People forget, and people interpret things in a different way, so here you will get conflicting pieces of information coming from the different band members and from the people who surround them. This could be about very simple things, e.g. one person would say that character was wearing a white shirt that day and another character would say they were wearing a yellow shirt, to more important things, such as conflicts between the band members where one character would claim that person said that thing and another person would say they said a completely different thing. Every character here is an unreliable narrator and the truth, as usually, lies in the middle.
I think what stands out more to me about this book is how real the characters felt. None of these characters is completely likeable or completely unlikeable but they are so real. It is hard to believe Daisy Jones & The Six is not a real band, that these characters do not exist in real life.
Disclaimer: This is a heart-breaking book and there are A LOT of drugs, but if you think you can take it, you should definitely read Daisy Jones & The Six....more
Re-read Novemer 2019 Glad to say this series is just as strong the second time reading it! I love these characters. Oh. My. God.
Original review This serRe-read Novemer 2019 Glad to say this series is just as strong the second time reading it! I love these characters. Oh. My. God.
Original review This series is life itself. I can't keep up with the twists.
The quality of these books is so consistent. Let's take a moment to appreciate a sequel that is equally as good as the first book.
And let's take another moment to lament the fact that I'll have to wait another year for the third book to come out....more
This book was whimsical and amazing, it was raw, it was magic.
Go into this book knowing nothing but one thing, this is a family saga that follows threThis book was whimsical and amazing, it was raw, it was magic.
Go into this book knowing nothing but one thing, this is a family saga that follows three generations of women and the events that shaped their lives.
This is the most apt title I have ever seen, the book and the writing (oh the writing) is exactly what the title promises, strange and beautiful, sometimes sorrowful, sometimes hopeful and at all times magical....more
I cannot think of anything that is better than this book except for possibly the first book in the series.
But still, I cannot compare them as they're I cannot think of anything that is better than this book except for possibly the first book in the series.
But still, I cannot compare them as they're both part of the same story - and what a story it is - and one is incomplete without the other.
I am, once more, amazed at Leigh Bardugo's brilliance.
Anything I can say about this book will probably be a spoiler. One thing I can say is that I loved the addition of Wylan's perspective in this book as it's something I really missed in the first book.
Just... go read these books, I have no words....more
This book is a true masterpiece and hands-down one of the best books I have ever read. I don't know how an author can be that clever as to write a booThis book is a true masterpiece and hands-down one of the best books I have ever read. I don't know how an author can be that clever as to write a book like this. When I think about books that are unputdownable in the future, it is going to be Six of Crows that comes to mind first. This book is flawless to me, I loved all the characters - every single one of them - they were so unique and not one of them annoyed me to the least.
And let's talk about Kaz... he is the best anti-hero I've ever read about. There can never be another character that complex and brilliant. Kaz is a character that did nothing to earn my sympathy, he was completely unapalogetic, but still has all my love.
This was my first book of the year, which can be both a blessing and a curse as I can't see what book could ever top this one.
And even though I find it hard to believe that a bunch of teenagers can be that brilliant, I completely and willingly suspend my disbelief. Not only this, but I think this book has reawakened my love for YA fantasy novels.
All the stars in the world for this book, it can't get better than this....more
Decided to re-read this as I wanted it all to be fresh in my head in preparation for Queen of Nothing. Just as good the second tiRe-read November 2019
Decided to re-read this as I wanted it all to be fresh in my head in preparation for Queen of Nothing. Just as good the second time around!
Original review
This book is in my top 5 favourite ya fantasy books, it is dark and gritty and has totally stolen ACOTAR's place as my favourite fae fantasy novel.
I don't really know what makes a good book. I cannot tell what made this book stand out so much for me. I can only describe the feeling I get when I'm reading a very good book, a book that I love. LIke nothing else matters until I finish the book, like the characters are real and will jump out of the pages.
I love flawed characters, they are life itself. I'm not sure if this book has any likeable characters. And yet I loved them all the better for all their flaws.
I am in awe of this book and this world, how dark and strangely beautiful it is. I was blown away by all the twists, there isn't a single boring moment in this book. I loved it, every page, every word. It was perfect.
There isn't a lot of romance in this book and yet I ship it. I ship it so hard! I will be here to watch this happening, holding my breath all the way....more
Oh my God! Oh my God! I should probably sleep on it before making any dramatic announcements but this is the 85th book I've read in 2 1 billion stars
Oh my God! Oh my God! I should probably sleep on it before making any dramatic announcements but this is the 85th book I've read in 2019 (yep, I need a life!) and at the moment I feel like it's the best one I've read this year, and I've read some pretty good books!
Maybe it's because I've read a great variety of genres this year instead of just romances, but I feel like I'm finding my lost enthusiasm for romance again.
This book was everything I love! Everything! It's like Karina Halle wrote this book just for me.
Yes, sure, the book is escapism, but let me explain why it's so right for me.
The pacing Spectacular! - The book takes place over the course of a year so there is no insta-love here. Insta-lust maybe but the MCs didn't act on it until much later on. - Which leads me to point #2, roughly 50% of the book was before the characters got together and the other 50% was after they did. This was so right!!! - It was a such an amazing slow-burn and it really paid off when these characters got together. It was explosive! - The main characters were already deeply in love with each other by the time anything happened between them and they were just struggling to find a way to express their feelings without being turned down. How amazing is that? And their struggles were so real. Aurora was the nanny for Aksel's kids and she didn't want to jeopardise her job and lose all the people she came to love if she was turned down and Aksel was Aurora's boss and a king so he didn't want to make a move and force her to sleep with him because she might think that her turning him down would result in her losing her job. - There was still enough substance and issues to be resolved to carry the book forward even after the characters get together. I think the reason why a lot of books end when the couples admit/realise they love each other is because it's hard to carry the story forward without the book losing steam after the "I love yous" have been said but not here!
A contemporary Jane Eyre story I could definitely see where Karina Halle got inspiration from Jane Eyre, I called it early on as there were a couple of scenes where I thought "this reminds me of that scen from Jane Eyre" - plus the whole nanny plotline obviously - and I was right! She said in the acknowledgements that she did get inspired by Jane Eyre when writing this book. And Jane Eyre is my favourite classic novel of all time so I'm not complaining.
Enemies to lovers Yes, this trope has been done a million times but I feel like it's a reader favourite and it can be so good if done right! The hero was a bit of an asshole early on in the book (later though, OMG, the man is perfection!) but he didn't do anything unredeemable, he was just rude to the heroine but she never took his BS, our girl has spunk!
The cliche factor Who cares?! I love cliches if they're done right! And this one was done so right!
The kids Normally I'm not too fond of kids, but they were so cute here!
The cheese factor Yeah, it was there, but instead of making the book silly and sickeningly sweet it was so utterly romantic. I'm swooning so hard! SWOONING
That hero, man! How perfect can this man be?! He was such a great combination of different qualities, self-assured and cocky but vulnerable, sexy and bossy but so sweet and supportive. I LOVE THIS MAN. Can I have one for myself? Where do they make them?
The heroine I don't know about you, but I don't usually read romances for the heroines. They can destroy a book though if not done right but I really liked this one.
The audiobook If you like audiobooks, go for it, it's free on Scribd too. Really really loved the male narrator's voice, there was something regal about it that really fit Aksel. The female narrator was really good too with female and kids' voices. The only thing I didn't like was her voice for Aksel but it wasn't a big deal.
I don't know, there's just something so wonderful about a guy being so much in love he would literally do anything for a woman. This king was brought down to his knees by love. Like I said, SWOONING!
On the negative side, I'm terrified this book will throw me in a reading slump because how does anything top that?
Also, I'm not fond of covers with naked men but it's decent for a cover of this type (and the cover is honestly the only thing I can think to complain about). Also, this is Denmark, why is the dude naked on a beach? I guess he's a King so he could go anywhere he wants though so a beach for the photoshooting it is....more
Re-ready February 2022 I'm trying to go through the best romances for 2021 and 2022 (based on the Goodreads awards) and seeing how both of the sequels Re-ready February 2022 I'm trying to go through the best romances for 2021 and 2022 (based on the Goodreads awards) and seeing how both of the sequels in this series are in the lists, I thought a re-read was due before I move on with the series. This book is just so perfect. SO PERFECT!
Original review There are 5-star books and then there are books like this one that come along maybe a couple of times a year if one's lucky, not at all if unlucky. I admit I am having an amazing reading year. I have read a few books that are 5-star reads and even a couple that made it to my favourites but this book knocked out of the park almost every other contemporary romance I have ever read with only a few notable exceptions.
There is nothing I didn't love about this book, from the quirky, intelligent but autistic and socially awkward heroine to the wonderful hero (seriously, guys like Michael don't exist) who took the heroine's quirkiness in stride and cherished everything about her. My God, this book! It made my heart grow three sizes. I picked it up late on a Sunday evening and I read it in one sitting. I had to stay up reading until 4 in the morning even though I had to wake up at 7 to go to work the next day, but sleep was not even an option until I had finished this amazing book.
If I had to compare this with any other book, The Hating Game would be the only one that comes to mind. These books are nothing alike but the fact that this is a debut novel but still so amazing and the charmingness of the characters, refreshing plot and general adorableness (is that even a word?) of the story can only be compared to The Hating Game for me.
If it's not clear, I freaking LOVED this book. Please, please pick up this one! You won't regret it!...more
I read this book in one sitting. It's one of these rare books I knew from the first chapter that I was going to love. The writing is amazing. It just I read this book in one sitting. It's one of these rare books I knew from the first chapter that I was going to love. The writing is amazing. It just amplified everything and made it so much more emotional. I would definitely be looking to read more from this author as I was super impressed....more
This book is everything. It is everything I love about books. It is the reason why sometimes I'd rather turn down friends who want to go out for a driThis book is everything. It is everything I love about books. It is the reason why sometimes I'd rather turn down friends who want to go out for a drink in order to stay home by myself and read, so I'm definitely glad all books aren't as good as this one.
Great books are definitely the hardest to review so I will say this about this book. When you not only have a tortured hero but also a heroine with heavy emotional baggage, it is so easy for the book to go south and turn into a melodrama. Emma Scott is a great author for not only avoiding this trap a lot of authors fall into but also for creating a masterpiece within the romance genre I think everyone should read. This one pulls at the heartstrings and never lets go.
Of course it didn't hurt that this book probably had all of my favourite tropes: slow-burn romance, friends to lovers, blond beta hero. There is nothing I didn't like about this book.
On a side note, this book was so realistic and hit so close to home with all the struggles of living in a big city and having to spend half your salary on rent and bills and trying to make ends meet. It seems that most men in books have it all figured out before they hit thirty and are brilliant, handsome and billionaires to boot. Well, I'm sorry to break it to you but a lot of people do struggle with simple things such as paying the rent and having to share a flat to make ends meet is definitely something I can relate to.
I can't recommend this highly enough! For quite a long time now, I've been seeing nothing but rave reviews for Emma Scott's books. She's been on my radar for a while and I honestly can't tell what kept me from picking up one of her books until now.I'm definitely going to rectify that and read more from this author in the future.
Note: I wish all romances had gorgeous covers like this one....more
For me this book was perfection and it goes straight in my favourites self.
It was everything that I could ask for, a taboo slow-burn love story with sFor me this book was perfection and it goes straight in my favourites self.
It was everything that I could ask for, a taboo slow-burn love story with so much longing, angst, love and a happy ever after that I couldn't help but cheer for....more
It's been over 4 months since I read this book so I can't write a proper review to do it justice. I remember that I read this in one day and I went toIt's been over 4 months since I read this book so I can't write a proper review to do it justice. I remember that I read this in one day and I went to work with 2 hours of sleep just to finish this book, it was that good!
It is tropey as hell - seriously, the author hit all the tropes that you could except from an old-school m/f historical romance with pirates - but is so, so good! Definitely in my top two mm historical romances, I can only think of one other book in this category I loved that much....more
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