|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
my rating |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0063058480
| 9780063058484
| 0063058480
| 4.10
| 7,148
| Apr 05, 2022
| Apr 05, 2022
|
really liked it
|
3.5 stars "I am Verne Amari's granddaughter. I won't break." You really have to hit the ground running to keep up with this story. It's got magic, g 3.5 stars "I am Verne Amari's granddaughter. I won't break." You really have to hit the ground running to keep up with this story. It's got magic, gods, wars, scifi, fantasy mish mashed all into a New Adult tone. You only get a sense of the world through the characters mentioning things, no solid grounding explanation to the structure of this world. It's all told from a first person pov from Ikenna, a nineteen year old who's grandfather just died. Racism and sexism are prevalent in this world and therefore mentioned, acknowledged, and raged against. Ikenna's that her grandfather, who was born of Mareen (dominantly white country) and Khanaian (dominantly Black country) parents and was a Tribunal because of how he won the war for Mareen, didn't just die of a heartattack but was assassinated. This motivates her to go through the Trials, a Hunger Game-ish, SEAL Hell Week like war games that weed out/kill the weak for the strong so they can go on to become Praetorian Guards. Ikenna wants to become a Praetorian so she can get closer to the people in charge and find out who gave the orders for her grandfather to be killed. The bulk of the story is the Trials and Ikenna trying to fight through her act first think later rage and discern friend from foe. The first 70% read super fast as you're just trying to keep up with Ikenna and hope for her survival. The last bit ends the trials and then more of the world politics comes into play and it really slowed the story down for me as I still wasn't fully immersed into the world and the moving bits now coming into play. Ikenna's also dealing with Blood Magic, it's apparently a power bestowed upon people by the Gods, but the Blood Emperor is who Mareen fought the war against (Ikenna's grandfather won the war for them but his daughter, Ikenna's mother was killed by the emperor). So, Ikenna is trying to hide this part of herself to not be killed as assumed a traitor. There's, obviously, a lot of moving parts and elements, but having most of the story centered around Ikenna helped, it was when the outside world that hadn't been flushed out too clearly came in, that I struggled. This ends on a cliffhanger and I'm going to dive right into the second because I'm very curious to see how it all ends up. If you can handle some worldbuilding pushed to the side, want some scifi and fantasy elements, a step above YA, and want to see a lead character not hold back their anger/rage (it did get frustrating at times as I wanted Ikenna to stop, take a breathe, and think), then this would be a hold onto your butts one to pick up. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
May 02, 2023
|
May 09, 2023
|
May 02, 2023
|
Hardcover
| ||||||||||||||
| 0369736028
| 9780369736024
| 4.22
| 111
| Apr 25, 2023
| Apr 25, 2023
|
it was ok
|
2.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review They'd come from places where peopl 2.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review They'd come from places where people didn't care, not on the regular, and Camp Phoenix had shown them they were worth something. The Comeback Cowboy was an anthology with a cool concept of having four different authors continue the story of the same characters, giving each couple a starring role. I thought this would give four different perspectives and vibes to each couple but set in the same world, instead it delivered a whole lot of sameness. The men are all tall with “barely reaching” shoulder height women and except for one couple where it was reversed, the guys are the ones wanting to keep it to just open door bedroom scenes and fearing love. All of the men work/ed in law enforcement, along with one woman, but the stories were too short to really delve into that, they are all just “protective”. The setting is a camp that they all spent time at as teenagers, it's a juvenile retreat to try and help teens change their life path, and after the death of their mentor, Bill McClain, one of the former campers buys it and asks/guilt trips for volunteers to get it back running. Until the last story though, the camp setting wasn't really felt by me and I was kind of disappointed in that aspect. If you were looking for a certain kind of vibe, short, not deep, men scared of love, teenage crushes finally getting fulfilled, then each story had these notes. I was looking for different perspectives and instead got same one after the other. The One With the Hat by Jackie Ashenden 2 stars Flint Decker. Sheriff Flint Decker and his stupid hat. This story had the added responsibility of introducing all the characters, setting, and the whos and whys of everyone. When Bree was fourteen, Officer Flint Decker took her in for stealing food, she says arrested but he really took her to Sheriff Bill McClain, who sent her to Camp Phoenix. Flint was twenty at the time and while Bree had a crush on him, he obviously never felt anything. I started to get a little “ok, enough” over how many times it was brought up how she was fourteen and his “arresting” her, it started to feel a little nothankyou, I wanted a focus on here and now. He remembers her and when Bree moved back to town (Jasper Creek, this is #4 in the city named series) he gets up in his feels how she ignores him. All our characters, well, except for one, come from families of neglect or crooks, providing the issues our characters have to work to deal with or overcome. Bree has worked to become a real estate agent and distant herself from her no account brothers but still has some problem with authority and feeling ashamed of how Flint first met her. Flint is the new Sheriff and feels he has to always be setting an example, his self-righteousness ruffles Bree's feathers. “Am I getting to you, wildcat?” he murmured as she got in, his deep voice sending the most delicious chills right down her spine. With the crushes going on, there was also our four heroines bunking in a cabin together and starting off a bit cool and adversarial to each other. They start to bond as they come up with the plan for Bree to steal Flint's hat to teach him a lesson. It's a theme that runs through the whole book, each heroine trying to steal something from their hero. It was at turns cute and immature, most of the heroines had an immature feel to them while most of the heroes were production line tough, stoic. When Bree goes to steal Flint's hat the attraction flairs and it kicks off a bedroom relationship. We seem to miss all the good bonding as it's said weeks go by of them continuing their bedroom antics. It comes to ahead as Bree wants more and Flint has to get over his issues for the eventual happily ever after. The One With the Locket by Caitlin Crews 2.5 stars Lincoln Traeger was not easily riled. As Bree and Flint's relationship is getting settled, Violet and Lincoln move into frame. Lincoln is a calm, cool, U.S. Marshal and Violet an argumentative lawyer. As with the other couples, for forced proximity trope, they get paired up and are supposed to clean up the campgrounds chapel. Violet had a crush on Lincoln when they were at camp, she, 15 and he 19, and now grown up, she's still annoyed that she can't wind him around her little finger like she does all other men. It forces her to want to be seen for other than looks but also be scared to be liked or disliked for who she really is. Lincoln catches on to this about her and after he kisses her when she says she only thinks of him as a brother, he then ignores her. This prompts Violet to want to steal a locket of his to prove that she really does hate him to her bunkmates, who she's growing closer to. This man was trouble. There was no getting around it. As with the first, Violet gets caught stealing and it ends with Lincoln and her hitting the bedroom scenes. This did the same thing where all the time they spend together is basically skipped and I was left not seeing or feeling the emotional developments between these two. These two had logistics issues with some of Violet's emotional (Lincoln seemed to just accept the seriousness between them right away??), Violet lives across the country. This has Lincoln just boldly stating that Violet needs to quit her job and move to him. There's a tiny little background on Violet wanting a change in life but it was side-eyeing how comfortable Lincoln was with only saying she should move to him and not ever a consideration for the reverse. This one had a little more enjoyable heat to it for me but, again, lacked the emotional depth and Violet just expected to upheaval her life was meh. The One With the Bullhorn by Nicole Helm 2 stars Because Kinley was not a rash, belligerent person. She was shy. She liked to hide and be left to her own devices. But when she was mad...well. Jackson Hart better watch out. Jackson is the leader of the camp and putting his whole energy behind it because he's been forced to retire from the DEA, he has leg damage after being shot and trying to run into a burning building to save his partner. Kinley has always been a wallflower and after only feeling like she could belong at camp, she moved to Jasper Creek years ago but has felt stagnated. Jackson hires her on as the camp's cook but his militant attitude has her destructive tendencies flaring, she used to act out to try and get attention from her parents, and mixed with the crush she's had on him, it has her agreeing to steal his beloved bullhorn. Except he catches her and she blindly snatches up his cane he sometimes uses for his limp. Jackson decides to teach her a teasing lesson and, you guessed it, it leads to them starting up the bedroom antics. No one had ever treated her like this. Like she might be precious, or someone to be careful with. She found herself wanting to cry and hold on to him forever. Kinley was a character that had probably the deepest hurt, she has a burn scar from an ex now in jail, and frequently talked about therapy but the shorter page count had her issues getting rushed through. She's also the one who was afraid and running away when Jackson told her he was all in. Jackson was a pretty stoic guy, some little flashes of lighter personality, I never felt like we got a look behind his brick wall, but he did feel the most mature of all the characters. I would have liked a better look at the guys' friendship in his story as he's the one who brought them all together, we really only get quick mentions of poker night and a few short conversations here and there in the short stories, the women's friendship gave more of a growth thread. Jackson's calm, steadiness eventually has Kinley feeling deserving of his love, but while the words were said on paper, I'm not sure I felt their romance. The One With the Trophy by Maisey Yates 3 stars He worried about her, and he shouldn't. He worried about her, and it made her feel special. He worried about her, and she wished he wouldn't. And she wished he would. Forever. This was my favorite of the anthology, Clementine, the daughter of Sheriff Bill, she spent her summers at the camp. As she wasn't forced or sent there because she wasn't a juvenile delinquent, she always felt like an outsider and then growing up without a mother, while her father loved her, he never seemed to know what to do with a little girl, she has also always felt like an outsider with women. Working now as a deputy with Flint and Duke, another of her father's proteges, she always tried to hide her feelings for Duke. Being ten years older than Clementine, Duke has always tried to watch out for her as his mentor's daughter but the last few months have had him seeing her in a different light. He's trying to say she's like a sister to him but when he overhears her tell the other women that she's going to lose her virginity tonight, his emotions are all over the place. He kept imagining it. Some guy kissing her. Putting his hands on her. Clementine was really talking about losing her thief virginity and stealing his MVP football trophy from highschool but when he catches her and alludes to attraction to her, Clementine decides to take her chance. This had more of that emotional feelings I was looking for and had some light laughter with heat. Duke was still missing some fully formed character feel but Clementine came out stronger with working out her issues and growing from someone who felt they had to hide their emotions and feeling like an outsider. I also thought their prior friendship helped me believe in their romance more. This did follow the same old, same old trend of the anthology of having the guy scared to trust in love and move it from casual with the woman declaring her love first and saying she wanted more. Duke does get over his parental hang-ups and they get a happily ever after. This also wraps-up the Camp Phoenix setting with the camp welcoming in a new generation of juveniles that need help. This didn't have much of a camp setting and while it seems at least two of the guys wear cowboy hats and own ranch/land, there really wasn't a western feel that the cover looked like to promise. But, again, if you're looking for the particular vibes I mentioned, those pretty much get repeated in all four stories. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
May 22, 2023
|
Jun 04, 2023
|
Apr 29, 2023
|
ebook
| |||||||||||||||
| 0063051117
| 9780063051119
| B0B93XWLCF
| 3.76
| 2,634
| Jun 20, 2023
| Jun 20, 2023
|
really liked it
|
3.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review The man in front of me tilted his h 3.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review The man in front of me tilted his head, and I caught a glimpse of a familiar one-sided smile. My breath caught. It couldn't be. The third and conclusion to the Starlight's Shadow series, Capture the Sun gives us the ship's wild card recovery specialist Lexi and the Valoff that once betrayed her, Nilo. This would be much better read as a series instead of standalone, book 1 (Hunt the Stars) lays the foundation for the space opera world. Heavy on the politics of the world, you'd be pretty lost, especially in the second half, as all the plot threads laid through out the first two come to a conclusion here. The first half focused more on the relationship between Lexi and Nilo, they get to spend a good amount of time alone without the distraction of all the other crew members and Valoffs. Book one alluded to Lexi and Nilo having previously met and we get the full background story here where Lexi feels Nilo only flirted with her to take a job from her and while accurate, there was truth behind Nilo's attraction. I missed seeing these two in book 2 (Eclipse the Moon) and I think that would have helped me have more of feeling an emotional connection between these two. While they spent good alone time together, I'm not sure I felt all those emotions that has me loving a couple. “Starlight's Shadow disappeared.” While some of the emotional foundation and depth was missing for me between Lexi and Nilo, I did think this third installment married the blend and pace of romance and space opera together the best of the series. It gave us a first half of romance, where I could spend time with Lexi and Nilo and then a second half of space adventure and bringing in all those characters the worldbuilding had previously got me to care about; this author is really great at managing a bigger character list. If you've read the first two, you'll know about how the Starlight's Shadow crew had fought in the previous big war between the Federated Human Plants and the Valoffs, leading to some initial distrust between our humans and Valoffs but oops, they're falling in love with them and uncovering what looks like some chaos agents trying to destabilize the fragile peace between the FHP and Valovian Empire. At the end of book two, there's strong hints as to the whos and whys but they need the proof. So our crew sets out to rescue a Commodore Morten from the Empress of Valovia and bring him back to an Admiral they know they can trust. This will hopefully lead to a trial with Morten and out who's trying to start the war. Lexi and Nilo are a little outside this but they come in when the Empress makes a play for Lexi to use her for leverage and Nilo rescues her. As they get reacquainted for some romance in the first half, it becomes apparent that something has happened to the Starlight's Shadow and her crew. Nilo had somehow wormed his way into my heart, and I wasn't above trying to steal his in return. The second half was full of planning, rescuing, and battles, bringing in all those humans and Valoffs we have grown to care about throughout the series and their antagonists, Morten, Sura Fev the Sun Guardian (Special Forces, elite soldier for the Valoffs) herself, and other Valoff fodder soldiers. The battle and danger scenes, for the most part, kept up the pace (I feel like one or two could have been cut or shortened) and tense tone to leave me fearing for the characters and wondering how it was going to wrap-up. “What do you want, Lexi?” he murmured. You, just you. Like I said, I did think this one blended the romance and space opera elements the best out of the series but I just couldn't feel the depth of emotion between Lexi and Nilo. Told all in Lexi's point-of-view, I enjoyed her character, but with the romance, Nilo came off feeling flat to me; I just didn't feel the vibrancy from him the way the other aspects of the story hit. They were just kind of attracted to each other without the emotions and Nilo seemed all in from the beginning, what they had to work through was Lexi's PTSD from the war (not trusting/fearful of Valoff's and their powers) and her not feeling good enough, always ruining relationships. I will say it did have some hit nice steamy open door scenes, especially towards the end. If you're looking for a space opera with some romance and manageable at only three books to the series, this was a fun one. Each character was memorable some way to me and the space world captured my interest and was plain fun to get involved with, can't wait for the next world and adventure the author has planned. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Jun 05, 2023
|
Jun 16, 2023
|
Apr 24, 2023
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||
| 0373768850
| 9780373768851
| 0373768850
| 3.58
| 269
| 2008
| Aug 12, 2008
|
liked it
|
None
|
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Apr 21, 2023
|
Apr 29, 2023
|
Apr 21, 2023
|
Paperback
| ||||||||||||||
| 0063058537
| 9780063058538
| 0063058537
| 3.65
| 2,527
| Apr 18, 2023
| Apr 18, 2023
|
really liked it
|
3.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. I will burn the world down, I promise 3.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. I will burn the world down, I promise Reed and myself. I will annihilate the world for him, for us, for the team if it comes to that. Picking up where The Blood Trials ended, this continues the story of Ikenna and her quest to avenge her grandfather while also fighting for her nation. This is a duology, you can't just dive in here as you'd miss how the chess game started. It's a scifi fantasy world with war, gods, magic, and power hungry individuals. Ikenna's grandfather was a Legatus for Mareen, she finds out that he was murdered by other tribunals and this sets her off on becoming a Praetorian (Mareen fighting elite) to get access to investigate who was behind the murder. In book one, enemies and friends were made and lost and it ended with Ikenna being made to, slash, deciding to go on her own, along with five other friends she made along the way. She knows who was behind her grandfather's murder, and for the most part, has gotten her revenge, but now it's about once again trying to put a stop to The Blood Emperor. We're literal children of war, born and bred to fight. To do battle. So that's what we do, and we take the punches that come with it and keep going. Children of war don't have the freedom, or the luxury, to do anything else. The first was very fast paced, this started off giving Ikenna and Reed, a Praetorian who trained her in the Blood Trials and her grandfather's protege, a breathing moment to explore and define their developing romance. I appreciated this pause to sit with the characters more and how Reed calms and centers Ikenna. Ikenna has a lot of rage from her grandfather's betrayal, the racist and sexist society of Mareen, and just general stress and conditioning that comes from a society at war. Her feeling and not swallowing her rage endured her to me and added some thrilling get it action but it also crosses over into frustration at her not stopping and thinking for a moment. I would have liked to have seen more growth from Ikenna here, it made her character seem childish as times, especially later in the story when Ajani comes in and you compare and contrast the characters. As if in answer, my nausea ticks up as I wonder: What did the goddess do to me? What precisely did Amaka make me evolve into? What does becoming her Chosen and Blood Daughter entail? The alluded to danger of the Blood Emperor from the first comes into play here, as he's actually gathered some allies and is attacking Mareen. Ikenna and her friends get taken by some Accacians (Blood Emperor's people) and brought to the Emperor's second in command, Ajani. This starts off another journey of plans to defeat the Emperor and who can't they trust and who can they, as Ajani comes to Ikenna with a plan to kill the Emperor. This whole plot was intriguing and had just enough of suspense to keep me on my toes as Ajani stays mysterious enough to wonder if Ikenna can trust him. But what I can do as long as I've got breath left to breathe and blood in my body is what I've always done best: fight. Ajani comes to Ikenna because he thinks she is the only one who can kill the Emperor, he's heard about the gold in her blood. Questions I had in the first about Ikenna's magic get answered here and the Gods fantasy part of the duology gets flushed out more. There's more explanation of how the Pantheon gods were chased out of Ikenna's world but how they can still bestow gifts on people, like Ikenna. We get to meet the God of War and Ikenna's patreon goddess and learn the gods have their own whole story going on in the background to Ikenna's world. This storyline was fascinating to me but, as you can tell, there was a lot going on in this book, probably too much. I do think some could have been cut out, like Ikenna traveling to a Queen to get an ally. I liked the Queen character and her story but that thread never really got utilized and in the end, only made the story feel cluttered as it took away from other more interesting or important threads. I'm a warrior first and foremost. We all are. Always have been. Always will be. So let's warrior the fuck out. The built up and looming danger of the Blood Emperor makes his appearance halfway through the book but by 70% Ikenna pretty much dealt with it and I ended up being a little disappointed by how it felt too here and gone (a little of The Night King from GOT feelings). The last thirty percent deals with and reveals if Ikenna's trust was misplaced in Ajani, the future of Mareen, and a new looming threat. Ikenna also had to take on another opponent and I thought this was rushed even more than the Blood Emperor. We will do this because we love one another. The Blood Gift gave me more of the world flushing out I was missing in the beginning and I'm definitely fascinated by the Gods aspect of it. I cheer on Ikenna's warrior attitude but do get frustrated when her rage has her blinded to reason and would like character experience and maturity to show growth. With a new enemy on the horizon, a frenemie in the wind, and a country to stabilize, Ikenna and her crew definitely have material for a new adventure. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
May 02, 2023
|
May 15, 2023
|
Apr 20, 2023
|
Hardcover
| ||||||||||||||
| 0063139626
| 9780063139626
| 0063139626
| 3.97
| 5,321
| Jul 25, 2023
| Jul 25, 2023
|
really liked it
|
3.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review “I will never marry Lady Stella.” D 3.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review “I will never marry Lady Stella.” Divided into two parts, you'll notice if you read the second in the Would-Be Wallflowers series, that the first of this is happening concurrently with that one. I haven't read the second and didn't have a problem following along here but there was some displacement that I felt might not have happened if I'd had the other part of the story. Basically, Stella has a crush/feelings for Silvester but as a short, freckled, wearing spectacles, bluestocking, she doesn't get the attention of the beautiful en vogue Yasmin. Yasmin has caught the attention of the ton men and has Silvester thinking he could be in love with her as he's dazzled by her smile and how well they seem to get along. Silvester's friend Giles, seems like he'd be a good match for Stella but Stella has caught the looks between Giles and Yasmin and, rightly, thinks they'll be married by seasons end. This first part takes up the first half of the book, there's some time jumps as they just seem to go from party to event, Yasmin getting the attention, some mean girlness from the chorus, and Stella enjoying the friendship she has developed with Silvester but trying to not fall in love with him as the rumors are that he's going to propose to Yasmin at any moment. The very sad, very secret, truth was that she was captivated by a frivolous aristocrat. Like I said, I didn't feel lost in the first half but while I was getting to know Lady Stella, orphaned at eight and sent to live with her aunt and uncle, who while distantly caring never quite meshed with Stella, causing her to feel somewhat unlovable for who she is, Silvester, the Duke of Huntington, who never felt cardboard but also felt like a distant character, I felt I couldn't quite sink into his distant emotions. After the dolloped here and then there with some time jumps first half, the second half settled down and focused on Stella and Silvester. While we got some telling of Silvester visiting Stella a lot, Stella and her aunt felt it was in friendship, even brotherly, there's enough to allude to the reader that he is genuinely starting to develop feelings for Stella, though. It did still feel a little abrupt when he asks her to marry him (reading the second book could have helped here with more context) and we get a little time devoted to Stella not believing in any feelings he may have for her, allowing that he may feel lust for her, and then getting strong armed into accepting his proposal. For the rest of his life, Silvester never forgot the experience of desiring his new wife so desperately that his hands shook as he removed garment, after garment, after garment. From there, we get sexcapades for a while, which were satisfyingly steamy but even though we were 65% into the story, I still felt new to this couple because of how the first half went. Then the latter second half gave us different povs from a chorus character named Blanche and Silvester's mother. Both felt out of place and gave a disjointed feel to the story. Blanche's felt like a jammed in pov to make readers anticipate her book and while I, for the most part, liked Silvester's mother, the placement of her pov didn't quite fit right, especially since goodwill feelings for her started to whither with how self-assured she was with saying Silvester still loved Yasmin and the like, creating more problems for our couple where they weren't needed. “We can make this marriage work,” she whispered. Since I didn't read the second book, I didn't have any feelings toward Yasmin or Giles, one way or the other but oh boy is Yasmin discussed in this one; I wonder if her name appears more times than Stella's. While that couple is featured, you don't get to know them, thoughts or feelings, so by the last twenty percent, I was done with hearing about Yasmin. It came off a little forced with Stella still thinking so surely that Silvester still had feelings for Yasmin and the last dark moment felt more annoying with, aforementioned mom, and Stella blowing out of proportion how Silvester acted at a party that Yasmin showed up to. I know I'm reading outside and not “in it” as the characters and Thee Emotion and Drama plus Stella's insecurities and all, but Silvester was pretty clearly head-over-heels for his wife, so yeah, some annoying forced in for drama ending. He seemed to...to care too much for his wife. There were also a good amount of little historical additives that helped to, outwardly anyway, to give this a feeling of time and place. Overall, I did enjoy this one, there was something about the chemistry between Stella and Silvester that couldn't be denied. There was a quick ending speech, I think readers would have loved a more immediate public showing/grovel, from Silvester to finally convince Stella his love was true and we got our happily ever after with an epilogue to expand on it. If you read the second, you'd definitely have to continue with this one but don't be afraid to jump in here either as I did, Stella and Silvester were at turns friendship and bedroom goals. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Jul 24, 2023
|
Jul 25, 2023
|
Apr 10, 2023
|
Mass Market Paperback
| ||||||||||||||
| B0BRK8CVHT
| 4.28
| 25
| unknown
| Apr 01, 2023
|
liked it
|
2.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review Breath and Starshine is second in the 2.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review Breath and Starshine is second in the Medicus Corpus series and while I saw some mentioning you could start the series here, it was better to read book one first. I'm here to say it is better, BETTER to start with book one and not two like I did. This one seems to pick up right after the first ended and I was totally lost and struggled to connect with the characters and world; y'all, I was downright wishing for an info-dump. Told in three alternating povs from characters Aurelia, Roe, and Hale, it probably took until around forty percent before I felt like I could understand some whos, whys, whats, and hows and then try and get into the story. Medicus Corpus was my new family. Devil's Meadows my new home. This seems to be set in a post-apocalyptic world with the settlement of Devil's Meadows being somewhere around the Hoover Dam (I'm guessing that was the big dam they visited in the story). I feel like it was the current contemporary world when wars started and then a veering into fiction when the author writes that The Grand Divagation happened. The Divagation was when some form of leaders got together and decided to shut-off modern conveniences (electricity, travel, plumbing, wifi (HORRORS), etc.) and cut-off, stop distribution of medicines. After the chaos and numerous deaths this causes, a new group of leaders create the Medicus Corpus, an institution that seems to run how hospitals, medicine, and healthcare are run and provided. This story is pretty focused on the hospital and healthcare aspect of this world and we don't get much outside of it as our three pov characters all work in the hospital. Maybe more of background world setting was giving in the first but after I got to the halfway point I thought I had enough to have a good enough understanding of the setting I was in. This had a YA feel to it, unless I missed it, our main characters ages were never given. Book one obviously had them going through an adventure that started with Aurelia and Roe, paired to work together by the Medicus Corpus and became bestfriends, and then brought in Roe's brother Hale, who has a very barely there romance with Aurelia in this one, and other side characters like Holdan, who has a mysterious magical(?) healing gift like Aurelia that he has been helping her learn to control but must be kept secret because the Medicus Corpus would jail(?) them for it, and a married couple who seem to be protectors/guards for the hospital workers, Geneva and Asher. Their friend and relationship dynamics are already set in this one and I missed some of that development. I would call this mostly a slice of life story as it seems done with the first book's adventure, they start on a new one with mysterious deaths of young women are happening in their settlement and a new character, Campbell, comes into the picture alluding that he is from a not well known other settlement and is on the trail of an almost, energy vampire illness struck person, an illness that befalls men at random from where he comes from. There's a lot of following our characters to the hospital and back, with Aurelia getting attacked and then having to be protected, and an ending bait set-up that ended that storyline pretty abruptly. That was the first night I slept on the ground outside Aurelia's door. I did have problems at times trying to distinguish the different voices of our povs and for Hale supposed to be a big part of Aurelia's life, he was very absent. The end did give a scene where, I guess, they decide they're dating and have a couple kisses that leads to a firmly shut-door scene. The magic aspect of Aurelia's “wonder-working” is the obvious thread that will keep going (the ending definitely alludes to at least a book three) and while I can see the path of keeping it going through the serious, I would have liked more of it worked into the world-building, again, could have been developed more in the first. This did read quick but not having read the first in the series had me lost for most of the first half and the second half fell a little short in the plot momentum, somewhat stagnated and time jumping abrupt at that same time and fell a lot short in the romance aspect. This did read quick and if looking for a post apocalyptic slice of life this is the adventure they have to get through in this book, some medical jargon, and with a YA tone, this maybe is one of the few out there to fit that particular bill. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
May 22, 2023
|
Jun 05, 2023
|
Apr 04, 2023
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||||
| 1982180021
| 9781982180027
| 1982180021
| 4.24
| 8,519
| Apr 11, 2023
| Apr 11, 2023
|
liked it
|
“I haven't stopped thinking of you,” he said. “I might have been gone, but I took you with me.”
I've only read the first ten books in the BDB serie “I haven't stopped thinking of you,” he said. “I might have been gone, but I took you with me.” I've only read the first ten books in the BDB series, so while I've got a firm footing in the world, I'm not up-up-date on the latest happenings, which I think may have helped me here? Where I left off, Lassiter was just being introduced, so I haven't had to suffer and wait with all you for his book all these years, the anticipation building. The war with the Lessers seems to have been settled? But, oh wait, Lash is back? The only disappointment I really felt about this is that I've missed the climatic war ending, but oh boy can I see you all feeling manipulated that, record scratch, it's not over? “Wrong deeds for the right reasons,” she intoned. There were the,usual, numerous offshoot threads going on in this, and since I didn't come into this with a big connection with Lassiter and/or Rahvyn, this might be why I enjoyed the story. I can't say I ever really felt like I knew Rahvyn, she seemed too ethereal(?) good to me. It seems I came in after they've already connected and have love formed between them and this was just about Lassiter accepting that he could have Rahvyn in his life. It felt a little disconnected that Devina seemed to play a huge part in keeping them apart, but there was never a big battle scene or anything between them? It was just Lassiter figuring out that the curse kind of worked in his favor and instead of staying away from Rahvyn, he should be with her. “I bonded with who I thought you were,” he whispered. “But yeah, I'm in love with who you actually are.” That third act breakup, with Rahvyn pushing Lassiter away, felt so forced and contrived, she asked questions but didn't really stay and listen for the answers. I didn't get how it seemed important that Lassiter didn't have his halo and then suddenly, he did? This just felt like a rush job to do what happened to Wrath (oh my gosh, I see what all the emotion was about now!) and get that thirty year jump so the kids can be grown up. I've been dying for Nalla's book years ago when I read Zsadist, so, I'm not completely upset, lol. Anyway, it was fun to check in and see where things are and the world still keeps my interest because the world-building has such width and breadth. I do wish there was a new enemy, because it does feel like another Lessening war is rinse and repeat, but my attention is remained caught and I'll still be checking into this series. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Jun 06, 2024
|
Jun 11, 2024
|
Mar 27, 2023
|
Hardcover
| ||||||||||||||
| 0446612324
| 9780446612326
| 0446612324
| 3.61
| 777
| Jan 01, 2003
| Jan 01, 2003
|
it was ok
|
1.5 stars Sorry, but Boring. Friend from book one gets asked to to marry heroine from book 1's sister to protect her from an evil Englishman. Friend is 1.5 stars Sorry, but Boring. Friend from book one gets asked to to marry heroine from book 1's sister to protect her from an evil Englishman. Friend is an Englishman but lives that Scottish life. Sister wants nothing to do with Englishman or men really because of a past sexual assault but is willing to do a marriage of convenience, no bedroom action. Friend shows up and is instantly in love with sister because she reminds him so much of his buddy's wife. Could have been juicy but wasn't. He will not agree to marriage of convenience no bedroom action because wants the real thing. Listen, if Pinterest was around in this guy's time, he'd have a Marriage board, complete with dream dress and ring, just insert any bride. The eyes were a glazing but Friend being a good boy (his name was Marmaduke, could think of nothing else but good boy doggie) trying to convince sister to marry him, get her to leave her castle to her step-son and come live at his castle, a traitor lurking around, a Laird's Stone and the friend's first wife's ghost because why not some fun thrown in supernatural. Written fine but bored me to tears because the heroine could have been anyone and the hero was going to "love" her and just too much ho-hum diddly-do nothing happening. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Mar 23, 2023
|
Mar 27, 2023
|
Mar 23, 2023
|
Mass Market Paperback
| ||||||||||||||
| B01CUVB7MQ
| 4.06
| 1,246
| Mar 14, 2016
| Mar 10, 2016
|
it was ok
|
[image] The story is incomplete, it's a cliffhanger, folks. Now that is out of the way because SIGH, here's my personal opinion. [image] It clearly state [image] The story is incomplete, it's a cliffhanger, folks. Now that is out of the way because SIGH, here's my personal opinion. [image] It clearly states this is book 1 but I felt lost as all get out in the beginning as people and relationships are thrown at you with no context or explanation. The hero and heroine supposedly have this epic friendship, but other than it being said over and over, I see no evidence of it. Every dude wants the heroine, every woman wants the hero and he likes to partake, heroine is the hero's emotional crutch, and hero likes to throw money at heroine. This was almost 200pgs of the hero and heroine wanting to make a move on each other but scared the other one still just wanted to be friends. Which could have worked wonderfully but that was the only depth to our characters. The heroine has a little bit background with her father having a traumatic brain injury but even that wasn't fleshed out too great. The hero's fmx bike career somewhat touched on, the author has a brief scene listing a bunch of tricks and the over and over mentioning of hero having women throw themselves at him. More context needed and less NA cliche been there done that. I also almost lost an eye rolling it so hard at the ending cliffhanger. Merged review: [image] The story is incomplete, it's a cliffhanger, folks. Now that is out of the way because SIGH, here's my personal opinion. [image] It clearly states this is book 1 but I felt lost as all get out in the beginning as people and relationships are thrown at you with no context or explanation. The hero and heroine supposedly have this epic friendship, but other than it being said over and over, I see no evidence of it. Every dude wants the heroine, every woman wants the hero and he likes to partake, heroine is the hero's emotional crutch, and hero likes to throw money at heroine. This was almost 200pgs of the hero and heroine wanting to make a move on each other but scared the other one still just wanted to be friends. Which could have worked wonderfully but that was the only depth to our characters. The heroine has a little bit background with her father having a traumatic brain injury but even that wasn't fleshed out too great. The hero's fmx bike career somewhat touched on, the author has a brief scene listing a bunch of tricks and the over and over mentioning of hero having women throw themselves at him. More context needed and less NA cliche been there done that. I also almost lost an eye rolling it so hard at the ending cliffhanger. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
2
|
Aug 08, 2017
not set
|
Aug 09, 2017
not set
|
Mar 16, 2023
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||||
| 1250873010
| 9781250873019
| B0BQGHKG2D
| 3.49
| 3,608
| Sep 19, 2023
| Sep 19, 2023
|
it was ok
|
I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review “Tell me again, Grandmère, the story of how I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review “Tell me again, Grandmère, the story of how I die.” Grimm's Hollow was cursed when someone made a wish for murder on the Sortes Fortunae (Book of Fortunes). Sixty-six people from the village have walked into The Forest Grimm and never returned, The Lost Ones. The first Lost One was Clara's mother and Clara's determined to be picked in this month's Devotion Day. Once a month the village holds The Lottery, once someone turns sixteen their name is written on a piece of paper and put into a goblet, which then is drawn from. If your name is picked, you're allowed to try and enter the Forest to search for the Lost Ones. For three years people have been missing and going missing but the Forest has yet to allow anyone from the lottery to enter. Clara decides to try and rig the system, adding more than one piece of paper of her name but her friend Axel is chosen instead but narrowly misses being killed when the Forest rejects him. I’ve done the forbidden. Crossed the line without the sanction of the lottery. I don’t turn back. The Forest Grimm was more story driven than character and the beginning really focuses more on giving you the story about what has been happening in Grimm's Hollow. Even though its all in first person pov from Clara, I still felt we didn't get a strong feeling for her character. We learn that her grandmère is a fortune teller and is scared for Clara as her cards delivered the message that she will die. Constantly thinking she is going to die, Clara kind of develops a personality of living for others and is why she is so willing to sacrifice herself to the Forest to try and save her mother. Eventually, Clara learns that a red cloak made by her mother, will protect her from the Forest and allow her to enter. Figuring out that its the red rampion plant that dyed the cloak red, she shares a scarf with her friend Axel as he joins her in the search. “Because fate never lies.” When Clara enters the woods, the story then becomes a mish-mash of altered fairy tales, Rapunzel, Cinderella, Hansel and Gretel, Sleeping Beauty, and etc. As Clara, Axel, and her other friend Henni who joins in later, encounter village people that have gone missing, each then represents a fairy tale. It's not a bad concept but none of this ever seems to come together and gel. Clara entered the woods to mainly look for the Book of Fortunes because, even though she's already made her one wish you get, she plans on making a wish that will somehow save the village and her mom. The Book had disappeared and left a cryptic message for how to find it when the unknown person wished for a murder. While the Forest is constantly changing, disorienting them when they wake up, there still didn't seem to be much organized searching for the book, it's more of in sections surviving the fairy tale villagers, Clara constantly saying she has to save her mom, and then a friends-to-boyfriend/girlfriend. This is the story of how I save my mother. And, as it has been from the beginning, this remains the story of how I die. This is tagged as YA (Clara is 17 and Axel 19) and I definitely think it fits it, the romance consisted of Clara ogling Axel's looks/chest and longing looks from Axel towards Clara. They have some kisses but it's definitely more in the sweet blush of kid's first romance. There was a decent amount of focus on their relationship, as Axel was engaged to be married but his fiancee became one of the Lost Ones. He's in the woods to search for her but it's obvious that there is more to the story of why he feels the need to search for her and Clara needing to open her eyes. “Sortes Fortunae, hear my voice,” I say. “Understand my heart and its deepest desire. My name is Clara Thurn, and this is my one wish.” Eventually, Clara finds the book and her mom and we get a mini little battle scene where suddenly there was shapeshifters and vampires (a ghost is also in the story). Like I said, the concept was there but the elements were jumbled together and the story lacked some cohesiveness. With this being more story driven and the plot needing some more working out, the lack of fully connecting to the characters hurt my enjoyment. The ending does have a continuing the story thread cliffhanger, as the curse on Grimm's Hollow hasn't fully been lifted yet and Clara needs to venture back into the woods. If you won't mind lack of cohesiveness and just want to read some new spins on old classic fairy tales, this would give you that this Fall season. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Sep 10, 2023
|
Sep 17, 2023
|
Mar 12, 2023
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||
| 0369719298
| 9780369719294
| B0B1MW339X
| 3.57
| 170
| unknown
| Mar 28, 2023
|
liked it
|
**spoiler alert** I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. When had his best friend **spoiler alert** I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. When had his best friend started stirring these feelings of desire and yearning within him? Third in the Wild Coast series, I think I was a little hampered by jumping in here; missing some previous relationship development between our leads Carly and Oliver. These two lead busy lives, Carly runs her own bookstore and museum and Oliver gives tours and maintains the town's historic lighthouse and with tourist season starting, their schedules get packed. The first half, these two barely spent any time together but they were constantly thinking about each other. Oliver lost his wife Alison and eldest daughter Catherine to the sea three years ago, the mystery of why they never came home after sailing has yet to be solved. Alison was Carly's friend, with the tragedy affecting them both, they grew closer to lean on another. That friendship has now had both developing romantic feelings towards each other but both Carly and Oliver are scared to admit it to one another with the fear that it could ruin their friendship. If he wasn't careful, he was going to lose the only person besides his daughter who meant anything to him. It's when the town hires a new head of tourism, Sebastian, that Oliver wakes up a bit and gets the nudge he needs towards stepping out of the past. Sebastian and Carly have a little flirt relationship bubbling and Oliver realizes that if he doesn't admit his feelings, he could lose his chance. Carly has pretty much just been in a holding pattern, trying to hide her feelings for Oliver but scared to rush him out of his mourning. Around midway through the book, these two realize they share the same feelings and kiss. Then they spend two days apart and then have an open (warehouse, naughty Oliver is wearing overalls with no underwear!) door scene. I can't say I really felt that sweet tension breaking emotions but if you've followed this couple through the previous two books, it might hit better for you. It wasn't the kiss of a man afraid of losing his best friend; it was the kiss of a man prepared to fight for what he wanted. The second half was a little more generous with time given to the leads together, it was mostly open door scenes. Even though I was new to the world and Oliver's pain of losing his wife and daughter, when answers get revealed, I found myself getting emotional during the scene. I really liked how this author wrote her characters' relationships, especially Oliver with his youngest daughter Tess. I thought they felt natural and enjoyed how they seemed to get through the tragedy of losing such important people in their lives together; I would have liked to see Carly and Tess interact more to see the bonding in their relationship. Now he just needed to figure out a way to prove to Carly that he was all in---and hope that she was too. Like I said, these two had a lot going on in their lives, Carly with her business, building a float for the Sealena Festival, and keeping under wraps her very lucrative side hustle and Oliver with the lighthouse, Tess, and deciding if staying in Port Serenity and remaining the guardian of the lighthouse was still for him, all while Sebastian's flirting and business dealings were pushing Oliver to open his eyes to how he really felt about Carly and decide once and for all about how he wants his future in Port Serenity to look. It was a good contemporary story but it honestly felt like Carly and Oliver spent a total of three chapters together (a chunk of that in bedroom scenes) and with that lack of time, I felt the romance genre part of this was the weakest. However, with me missing perhaps some previous relationship development, series readers might not have the same problem I did. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Mar 23, 2023
|
Mar 26, 2023
|
Mar 12, 2023
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||
| 0369706374
| 9780369706379
| 0369706374
| 3.97
| 1,861
| May 30, 2023
| May 30, 2023
|
really liked it
|
4.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. In six weeks she would have to ret 4.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. In six weeks she would have to return to Venezuela to be married. Second in the Las Léonas series, An Island Princess Starts a Scandal, gives us Manuela’s story. Manuela has traveled to Paris with her friends, telling her parents it’s to compile her trousseau for the marriage she is being forced into; it’s to save her parents from financial and social ruin. Really though, Manuela plans on living her best scandalous life. Happening concurrently with book one (A Caribbean Heiress in Paris) you could start here to get Manuela’s romance but you’d miss out on the emotional connection between the Las Léonas, Manuela, Luz (book 1), and Aurora. Luz is mostly absent in this one while Aurora shows up more and provides the link to that friendship. Their chaperone is mostly absent and while the first had readers traveling, this stays, for the vast majority, in Paris. “What if I told you that my price isn’t just money?” Manuela heard herself ask. The duchess arched a manicured eyebrow. Close to her grandmother, Manuela inherited a parcel of land after her death, a parcel that they discussed being used for an art school or collective for women as Manuela is an artist. This parcel turns out to be highly valuable as it’s the missing piece for a railroad company to complete their track. The company is led by Cora Kemp-Bristol, Duchess of Sundridge. Cora has been in Paris for years with her stepson and tía, after leaving London in scandal. Missing her husband, who while not her lover, was her bestfriend, Cora fell prey to a woman using her for her own gain. Determined to never be used again and build an empire that will never have anyone daring to snub her stepson when he returns to London to take his place as Duke, Cora just needs this parcel of land to complete the railroad and show her male business partners that she deserves a seat at the table. When Manuela accepts Cora’s business invitation, they are both shocked to realize they’ve already met. If you’ve read book one, you’ll know all about the Le Bureau (a brothel) and here, readers learn what Manuela got up to there. That was the precise moment it dawned on Cora with unequivocal certainty that Manuela Caceres Galvan could wreak absolute havoc on her life. Realizing that Cora has the connections to get into the spaces and introduce her to the women she wants to be around, not to mention the sizzling attraction between them, Manuela makes a deal that Cora must chaperone her on a certain number of outings, along with purchasing the land for a large sum of money. Cora agrees because she needs the land but plans on showing Manuela a boring time as she can’t risk her reputation. What followed was a character driven story that was passionate and sensual, delivered on the historical feel, and delved into the heart of feminism. “You deserve more than what you’ve been told you can have.” Manuela started off willing to sacrifice for her spendthrift parents, as it was the only kind of life she could imagine but as she spends time in Paris, her world view opens up and with the help of Aurora and then Cora, because she sees a different option, she begins to believe in one and develops the strength to reach for it. I liked how the author showed this evolution of Manuela and had her deliver this: “I don’t need protection from the opinions of morally bankrupt people. Not from the men willing to ravage anything in their path to feed their greed, and not from the women who turn a blind eye to it to protect themselves.” Suddenly everything that had always felt so nebulous for Manuela, about her life, her purpose, seemed to come into perfect clarity. “I was going to be one of those women. My mother has been one for so long she can’t see she’s bartered herself away in the process. But that is not what I want. We don’t have to be pawns in this game anymore, Cora.”. Cora’s struggle was more about letting go of indoctrinated desires and anger, hurt payback wants. Cora has been punished for who she is and who she wants to love, making her want to succeed in a structure that wants and works to keep her out. I enjoyed Cora’s journey even more as the twisted emotions of wanting to succeed in the world but also doing it on your own terms, had to be battled out by her. Her speech was shorter but just as sweet with delivering this line: “I am done measuring my success with a ruler that was made to strike me down.” Cora Kemp-Bristol, the unflappable Duchess of Sundridge, the woman who had challenged every convention and won, was coming apart at the seams. The sensuality between the two was from the beginning and around halfway the bedroom door got opened. The latter second half rushes the timeline a bit with some time jumps, we get our third act break-up moment with Manuela’s parents and fiancé making an appearance, and Cora taking a misstep before taking a stand on what she won’t compromise anymore and will stand for. The hero from book one half-brother, Apollo, shows up and gets some screen time as he looks poised to be paired with our last Léonas, Aurora. While I missed the Las Léonas being together more, Aurora had a sweet friendship moment with Manuela: “This place is for pleasure, that is true, but mostly it’s for women who don’t have a place to be themselves to do so. It’s their haven, their safe place. Above all things, I want the world to be safe for us. These women can nurture a part of you that Luz Alana and I never could, and I am glad that you’ve found a community that can. I want that for you, Leona. A place where you can be your wildest, most Manuela self.” Dios, but she loved this woman. The first had more travel and setting up the friend group while this stayed in Paris and focused on the sensuality and emotional toll and gain of what it would mean for Manuela and Cora to be together. The historical contexts and setting additives (Exposition Universelle and, I just knew Flora Tristan was going to get a shout-out in this series!) added to the real struggle of falling in love and what living their lives on their own terms would look like for Manuela and Cora. Sensual, fierce, living life on your terms, An Island Princess Starts a Scandal was a marvelous story. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Apr 04, 2023
|
Apr 20, 2023
|
Mar 09, 2023
|
ebook
| ||||||||||||||
| 1402238665
| 9781402238666
| 1402238665
| 3.83
| 1,285
| Oct 01, 2010
| Oct 01, 2010
|
it was ok
|
1.5 stars
|
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Mar 06, 2023
|
Mar 13, 2023
|
Mar 06, 2023
|
Mass Market Paperback
| ||||||||||||||
| 9798987112212
| B0BTJ6JS76
| 4.41
| 378
| unknown
| Feb 06, 2023
|
it was ok
|
2.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. My knowing's neither good nor evil 2.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. My knowing's neither good nor evil...it just is. All her life, Madeline has gotten tingling sensations from certain items that lead to intuition that turns out to be eerily accurate. When she buys a box with trinkets from a local estate sale, she suddenly starts to have dreams about a Puritan girl from the 1710s. With the encouragement of her aunt Phoebe and friend Chelsea, she enlists the help of a History professor she had a connection with at a bar one night, Evan, to try and find out who this Maria girl was, and a mysterious old sailor, Noah, helps her explore her unearthly talents. Normal was a boundary I'd worked hard to live within because it meant being accepted by society and loved by my mom. Sea Magic started off as an intriguing fantasy mystery, mentions of the Penbrook Mermaid, Madeline's dreams that start off more watching a film observant but morph into time travel, veered into Historical Fiction, and then ended in the metaphysical. I liked the beginning mystery aspect of searching out who Maria was for Madeline. I am someone who went through a Golden Age of Piracy phase, so when Maria's full name (Hallett) popped up, I got my own tingling sensations and then when her suitor introduced himself as Samuel Bellamy, I knew all the spoilers. I still enjoyed Madeline working with Evan to put the puzzle pieces together and the tidbits about the Whydah incorporated into the story. However, at the midway point, that whole puzzle is parsed out and the second half went more into the metaphysical and began to lose me. What was it about a woman's power that made men vilify her, turn her into something dark, dreadful? There was a lot of co-opting different cultures spiritual practices (Evan's totem is a mermaid, Madeline does Shamanic conscious dreaming) along with characters adopting pseudoscience (astrology). The second half and especially the last 20% went metaphysical with Madeline's goal shepherding Maria's wandering soul into the afterlife, guided by Noah. It tied into Madeline's magical gift of intuition but not really the first half tone of searching out who Maria was mystery. The story was told from Madeline's point-of-view (the dreams start off from Maria's) making her the most filled out character but I felt all the other characters needed to be flushed out more, especially Evan since he had a romance with Madeline. The romance ended up feeling underdeveloped because it was pushed to the side and Evan's character just never developed for me. They kiss and have an open-door scene but it was dry more than emotional. I enjoyed the historical fiction aspects with the Whydah (Screecham sisters get a shout-out, too) and the connection to Madeline searching out the mystery of who Maria was but the romance didn't evolve the emotions I was looking for and the metaphysical turn at the end lost me. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Feb 15, 2023
|
Feb 22, 2023
|
Feb 13, 2023
|
Paperback
| |||||||||||||||
| 1838885951
| 9781838885953
| B085DXVTQJ
| 3.88
| 397
| Jun 16, 2020
| Jun 16, 2020
|
it was ok
|
I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. 2.5 stars The truth was that May Anderson lef I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. 2.5 stars The truth was that May Anderson left Tom Riley. You've got to remember that, because no one else in Hillsboro did. The youngest Anderson sister has kept to herself ever since something happened between her and her highschool sweetheart Tom, caused him to leave town without her after graduation. May's sisters, parents, and whole town assumed Tom left her behind breaking her heart because in a small-town, youthful indiscretions, like accidentally throwing a baseball through a window, aren't forgotten and Tom got the reputation as a “bad boy”. May never told the truth, she ended up being too scared to trust Tom to leave her when they went into the big wide world and broke up with him. So May ended up being pitied and protected by the townspeople and not wanting to lose that, as her family's farm business relied on the towns good favor, she didn't correct anyone. But now Tom is back in town, trying to save his family's winery and seeing how everyone is treating him is making May feel very guilty and when they have to work together for a festival, old hurts and buried emotions are coming out in the open. Even after everything, holding her this close was like coming home. Second in the Full Bloom Farm series, Sweet Pea Summer brings readers back to the small-town of Hillsboro, CA and the Anderson family. If you read book one, you'll remember that Tom was engaged to Annie, the sister of book one's male main character but it didn't last long and they're just friends now. A lot of this story was spent in May and Tom's heads. The crux of the issue is that May doesn't want to admit that she lied by omission and let Tom unfairly take the blame for their break-up, the whole town treats him like dirt, causing his wine business to be suffering, but May doesn't want to tell the truth because she doesn't want the town to turn on her. It's cloaked in May wanting to stay in her “safe” life space but after two-hundred plus pages, it got frustrating and, frankly, whiny. It was all too drawn out and mewling and, as there are not flashbacks to the couple's romance in highschool, you'll begin to wonder why Tom is even waiting around for May. She'd let the small-minded gossip of people they didn't even particularly like---gossip they'd spent most of their lives laughing at and ignoring---completely alter the trajectory of their lives. The Anderson family and sisters, Harper and Rosie, for the most part, were out of the story but they came in a little at the end to hassle Tom, find out the truth and be angry with May, and then have their make-up scene. Dad Anderson shows up to have a father-daughter talk and Tom gets some friendship scenes with Annie and a kick in the pants talk from his grandmother but other than that, it's pretty much character head space and May-Tom interactions. Why did he want nothing more than to throw the past away and start over with the one person who'd made that very thing so impossible? This kisses only story had May and Tom mostly made-up a little after the half-way point and into the second half, May finally starts to take direct action to help Tom's reputation (still too scared to tell the truth, though). We then get a very late third act break-up that just about had me wishing they were done for good because of how ineffectual May was still being, our female main character gives us the Grand Gesture and it finishes with a happily ever after. She'd missed him. And having to miss him in the first place was entirely her fault. May was too scared to trust Tom and leave with him after graduation breaking both their hearts, lived the next eight years cocooned in a safe haven protected by the lie that gave her the goodwill of their small-town and Tom traveled the world lonely only to come back home and find out he was the “bad guy” and thought it was honorable to wait for May to the tell the truth. As May kept being quiet, it was harder for me to give her character the benefit of the doubt and therefore harder for me to cheer for their romance. This did have small-town vibes, cozy and mean gossip, a touch of women's fiction, and an eventual happily ever after. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Feb 26, 2023
|
Mar 2023
|
Feb 12, 2023
|
Kindle Edition
| ||||||||||||||
| 9781492683865
| 3.21
| 1,254
| Apr 11, 2023
| Apr 11, 2023
|
liked it
|
I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. He was different, like her. Someone who mig I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. He was different, like her. Someone who might look human, but was distinctly not. Peeraphan has always known she is different, a Thai mythological kinnaree born in a family of humans. Hiding from outsiders what she is, has made her feel that she can never truly be herself and allow herself to shine. Dancing has been an outlet and when her frenemie Sirin offers her a pair of beautiful red shoes, she wonders why Sirin is being so generous but is compelled to try them on. Bennett is a centuries old vampire and a member of the Darke Consortium, supernaturals and humans who search out magical items to collect and safe guard them. When he arrives too late to stop the red shoes that make their victims dance to their death from being worn, he deadens any feelings he might have for the dancer he can't take his eyes off of. When the dancer manages to stop dancing, Bennett is shocked and is thrown into a battle against an old enemy vampire, while growing closer to the one he's trying to save. “The wearer might be doomed, but at the same time, only the wearer has the chance to break the curse of the red shoes with a true acknowledgment of everything they are, everything they have ever done, everything they have the potential to do. Such honesty would counter pride and vanity and set you free.” With a gorgeous cover that centers the female main character, Peeraphan, Wings Once Cursed and Bound begins the Mythwoven series. To me, this was more of an urban fantasy story that had a romantic element in it, integrating a lot of cool mythological, supernatural, paranormal, and folklore. Peeraphan knows she's kinnaree but not all that means, as far as her abilities and origins. At the end of the book, after the story, there was a Field Notes on the Supernatural and Paranormal and while I liked how it summarized all the beings introduced, I wished more of the kinnaree could have been explored in the story; I liked and cared for Peeraphan and wished this important aspect of her had been filled out more. Through Bennett, we learn that vampires can be made and born, he's born, and some other trademarks but, like with an aspect of Peeraphan, I wished we could have explored more of his background. If this is supposed to be romance genre, I want my two main characters to have more of a center stage for their romance, this felt more like a fantasy story with Peeraphan leading us into this newly discovered world. She needed help to save her own life. As far as world-building, I thought this focused on the right part, all the different supernatural characters and their characteristics. Like I said, I considered this urban fantasy, so the world is as we the reader know it, the fantasy component is through all the different beings existing in the reader's world. We learn that the Darke Consortium is actually one of many groups around the world, they're the good guys with trying to protect humankind by collecting the intentionally dangerous magical artifacts. Bennett's enemy, Francesco is the bad guy and as the story goes on, we learn that he's also tied to a “Babel”, a single or group trying to cause havoc or gain for evil purposes from the artifacts. When Bennett brings back Peeraphan to the sanctuary of the Darke Consortium , we see they have an attraction to each other that could grow and the world gets filled out as we're introduced to all the Darke members, one including a distant cousin of Peeraphan. “I am kinnaree.” There were two really great scenes that stuck out to me, Peeraphan and Bennett dancing in the air and then the sponsor of the Darke turns out to be a dragon and when Peerphan first meets the dragon, it will suck you right in. The dragon informs Peeraphan and Bennett that there is a way to save Peeraphan's life and get the red shoes off, a cave of truth and around the mid-way point, we get a journey to the cave. It was after the cave and Peeraphan doing what needed to be done to save herself, that I thought the story slowed some for me. This was mostly told in Peeraphan and Bennett's pov but we get some from Thomas (Peeraphan's cousin) and a witch named Marie that works for the Darke and while I liked those characters, I did think it slowed some of the momentum as it stole away from Peeraphan and Bennett's romance; first in a series issues. For the first time in not just days, but years— maybe the majority of her life— she had something she wanted to do that was bigger than just herself and the expectations of her immediate family. This felt like a purpose. The last 30% gives a climax scene between Peeraphan, the Darke members, Francesco, and “Babel”. It was after the battle that I thought even more steam was lost, unfortunately, it's when we get back to the romance. Bennett deals with his feelings of possibly outliving Peeraphan (there was some filling out of his character with having loved and lost before), each declaring their love, and then two bedroom scenes. I thought the fully intimate scenes felt both tagged on the end and since their romance didn't have the depth I was looking for, they didn't hit me they way they were supposed to, that tagged on feeling. This is an adult fantasy, Peeraphan is early thirties, but it also had a tone of YA to me at times, the way her learning about herself journey was relayed and most of the romance tone between her and Bennett. To me, this was a good urban fantasy story that just happened to have a little romance in it. I did like how the writing style had a leading me into the story, instead of pushing, feel and with all the cool different supernatural and mythology incorporated, I can see these elements and plot sustaining a series. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Mar 06, 2023
|
Mar 23, 2023
|
Feb 07, 2023
|
Paperback
| ||||||||||||||||
| 0778334058
| 9780778334057
| 3.65
| 3,919
| May 16, 2023
| May 16, 2023
|
really liked it
|
3.7 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. It’s seven fifteen on a Thursday, a 3.7 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. It’s seven fifteen on a Thursday, and I’ve lost my dream job, and an unworthy boyfriend, and the apartment that comes along with him, and worst of all, maybe even myself along the way. Harlow was just let go from her job as a book editor due to cut backs and when she overhears her boyfriend saying a snide remark about her, she throws her drink in his face and decides it’s time to leave New York City and go home to the Estrada family farm in Mexico. For four generations the Estrada women have been running the flower farm, using the magic gifted to them from the Aztec goddess Mayahuel to infuse the flowers with magic. Each woman in Harlow’s family has their own brand of magic, except for her, the only one not named for a flower. Back home, she gets left with the responsibility of the farm, meets a man that finally has her feeling alive, and starts to think that she might just have her own brand of magic. “I want to find the better and truer way,” I whisper. Told all in Harlow’s first person pov, The Enchanted Hacienda was a story of coming from a loving family but still feeling like an outsider, finding and learning to believe in yourself, and trusting in love. A lot of have compared this to Encanto (Disney movie) but I haven’t seen it, I will say this had some Practical Magic movie vibes. Harlow, coming home and helped by her mother, tía, two sisters, and cousins in the beginning created a warm loving atmosphere but halfway through they leave the immediate picture and Harlow has to work things out on her own, while Ben comes into the picture. A chance meeting at a café has Harlow and Ben sparking off each other and then it’s clear, with their other chance meetings, that the universe and magic are invested in getting these two together. For once I don’t want to choose safe. It always leads to the same outcome: a belief that good is enough. While this is mostly Harlow’s story of finding herself, Ben plays a big part of that in the second half and we get more of a romance plot than I was expecting. They were are turns cute and sparking with their shy approaching and flirting. It was clear that Ben liked Harlow but without his point-of-view, the romance was more lopsided with it being more about Harlow. As they grow closer together, the angst comes in the latter second half when Harlow discovers that magic may be playing a conniving part in their relationship and her trust issues has her fearing their feelings might not be completely real. However, as Harlow comes into her magic and self, trust builds and we get a sweet ending HEA. With a half sigh, half groan, he presses his forehead to mine. “Truth?” I nod. “I think I’m in a lot of trouble.” This wasn’t quite an ensemble story, Harlow is always front and center, but the author brings readers into a world full of characters that they are going to love and want to get their own stories. There will always be the grounding spot, foundation of the Estrada family flower farm with Harlow’s mother and tía and I can see Harlow’s two sisters, Camilla and Lily, her cousins Dahlia and Lantana, and her bestfriend Laini visiting and then starting off the journey to their own books. This was more character driven, the magical realism world was contained to flowers and bouquets infused with magic and spell that played, for the most part, to the side. I liked how through Harlow’s journey to find herself we get the history of how the Estrada family has this magic, giving some world-setting. With the world set and the other women having lived with their magic longer, I can see their books having more magic in them. It was all magic. Harlow’s journey to finding and believing in herself, coming into her own magic, and learning to trust in her love with Ben, will sweep you away with its sweet and spark. If you like to make midnight margaritas, then you need to visit the Estrada family farm. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Mar 23, 2023
|
Apr 03, 2023
|
Feb 07, 2023
|
Hardcover
| |||||||||||||||
| 0515141704
| 9780515141702
| 0515141704
| 3.72
| 128
| Aug 29, 2006
| Aug 29, 2006
|
liked it
|
3.5 stars A fun Indiana Jones/The Mummy with fun combative leads and adventure in a South American jungle. Enjoyed the byplay between main couple, the 3.5 stars A fun Indiana Jones/The Mummy with fun combative leads and adventure in a South American jungle. Enjoyed the byplay between main couple, the second half brought in more of the adventure and the romance got left behind a little; the "I love yous" felt suddenly said. Fun time overall though, the heroine was a blast with her competence along the hero's befuddlement turned attraction to her capabilities. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Feb 04, 2023
|
Feb 15, 2023
|
Jan 31, 2023
|
Paperback
| ||||||||||||||
| 1728255856
| 9781728255859
| 1728255856
| 4.13
| 10,916
| Mar 07, 2023
| Mar 07, 2023
|
really liked it
|
3.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. He smiled, and the dazzling force 3.5 stars I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. He smiled, and the dazzling force of it close up rocked Gareth in his seat. “You’re London, then? Nice to meet you, London.” Gareth smiled back, hopelessly enthralled. “You too, Kent.” After heated eye contact that lead to a week of secret rendezvouses, Gareth is devastated and hurt when “Kent” tells him he's leaving the London area to go back home. With a father that abandoned him to his uncaring uncle after his mother's death when he was six, Gareth leans into that childhood pain and feels unwanted and unloved all over again. Even though Kent is trying to tell him he still wants to meet up when he's in town, Gareth can't hear him and breaks it off with hurtful words. Two days later, Gareth learns of his father's death and has inherited his Baronet, this has him traveling to Romney Marsh where he discovers his father's mistress, a half-sister, and that he has unwittingly followed Kent. “This is the Marsh,” Catherine had said, and as so often, that was all the explanation there was. The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen was a more quiet and reflective toned story, even though it had mystery, suspense, and open door scenes. When Gareth gets to the Marsh, his feeling as an outsider is exacerbated as everyone looks at him as “outmarsh”. Catherine, his father's mistress is kind to him but she's also dependent on his generosity as she has no where else to go and his half-sister Cecy is an emotional seventeen year old who swings from wanting to build a relationship with him to angry when he doesn't do exactly as she wants. When Gareth unthinkingly tells someone he saw a group of smugglers, especially a female one, he gets pulled into testifying, trying to get on Cecy's good-side as she is seeing a Revenue officer. Ignoring warnings that informing on the Doomsday smuggling group will make him many Marsh enemies, Gareth thinks he's doing the right thing but when Josiah Doomsday steps into the court room and threatens to tell his own secrets, to save his sister Sophy, who Gareth is testifying he saw, Gareth has to back-down in front of everyone, because Josiah is Kent. “You threatened me,” Sir Gareth said, low and savage. “You used—what we did.” He whispered that last. As you can imagine, Gareth is raging angry, this breaks the fragile bond he was starting to build with Cecy and Josiah used an extremely dangerous and emotional secret against him. The hurt, also from Josiah on how Gareth broke things off, and anger do get talked through and Gareth works through his father abandonment issues. The plot also forces these two to have to work together, so by the half-way point, they're together, if still tentative. With the initial breaking apart and coming together mostly dealt with, Gareth learns that his father was receiving mysterious payments every month from somewhere and with Josiah saying that he had no smuggling deals with the man, men coming into Doomsday territory to frighten and harass Gareth and Cecy, and Gareth's uncle and cousin suddenly wanting to stay at his home with him, they start to investigate together to work out what is going on. “Because you’re a smuggler and I’m a baronet. You’re Joss Doomsday and I’m outmarsh. I informed against your sister and you blackmailed me in public!” One argument might have been convincing; three was the opposite. Three was encouraging, even. “Eh, details,” Joss said. “You still haven’t given me a good reason.” This had a large cast of characters, the Doomsday family is many and Josiah also has to deal with some family dynamic business, mainly an uncle who feels he should be in charge. A rival, different territory smuggling group, Sweetwater, also comes into play and you have a good amount of moving pieces to keep track of. While I appreciated the detail to naming the places the characters were going, the place names became too many in conjunction with all the characters I was trying to keep track of. I thought it was a sweet, emotional layer to Gareth's character when he takes his father's incomplete naturalist (book cover tie-in!) studying notes and walks the marsh following in his father's footsteps to try and know the man better but it also gets a little lost in all the other moving pieces. Josiah had a few in depth moments, his talk with his granda, but for the most part, his character was on the move a lot and I wanted more settled moments with him. “I missed you so much.” It was a whisper. The last twenty percent brings all the plot threads together, Josiah having to once and for all deal with his uncle, Gareth also dealing with his uncle, and the mystery of the smuggling business Gareth's father was maybe involved in; the seemingly separate threads all weaved together in the end. There was also a quick, and again, I think got lost in the other going-on, character depth moment of Gareth giving us a third act break-up because of emotional growth he needed to do. As I said, a good amount of moving pieces, some economic class and warfare serving country versus community talk, a romance that was a little too quick developed for me, a few, almost got buried in the mix emotional depth moments, but all told with a care to language that really helped set the atmosphere. ...more |
Notes are private!
|
1
|
Feb 15, 2023
|
Feb 26, 2023
|
Jan 25, 2023
|
Paperback
|
WhiskeyintheJar
>
Books:
series
(2312)
|
|
|
|
|
|
my rating |
|
|
||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
| 4.10
|
really liked it
|
May 09, 2023
|
May 02, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 4.22
|
it was ok
|
Jun 04, 2023
|
Apr 29, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 3.76
|
really liked it
|
Jun 16, 2023
|
Apr 24, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 3.58
|
liked it
|
Apr 29, 2023
|
Apr 21, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 3.65
|
really liked it
|
May 15, 2023
|
Apr 20, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 3.97
|
really liked it
|
Jul 25, 2023
|
Apr 10, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 4.28
|
liked it
|
Jun 05, 2023
|
Apr 04, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 4.24
|
liked it
|
Jun 11, 2024
|
Mar 27, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 3.61
|
it was ok
|
Mar 27, 2023
|
Mar 23, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 4.06
|
it was ok
|
Aug 09, 2017
not set
|
Mar 16, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 3.49
|
it was ok
|
Sep 17, 2023
|
Mar 12, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 3.57
|
liked it
|
Mar 26, 2023
|
Mar 12, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 3.97
|
really liked it
|
Apr 20, 2023
|
Mar 09, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 3.83
|
it was ok
|
Mar 13, 2023
|
Mar 06, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 4.41
|
it was ok
|
Feb 22, 2023
|
Feb 13, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 3.88
|
it was ok
|
Mar 2023
|
Feb 12, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 3.21
|
liked it
|
Mar 23, 2023
|
Feb 07, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 3.65
|
really liked it
|
Apr 03, 2023
|
Feb 07, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 3.72
|
liked it
|
Feb 15, 2023
|
Jan 31, 2023
|
|||||
|
| 4.13
|
really liked it
|
Feb 26, 2023
|
Jan 25, 2023
|
Loading...
