Andie
This would've worked much, much better as a movie. A 90's slasher movie, to be more specific.
I enjoyed it, I was intrigued, kept thinking the story couldn't be as simpler as it seemed, was scared for the MC and I definitely wanted to figure out what was going on.
The thing is... I struggled a lot with Charlie. So MANY DUMB decisions. It got to a point I couldn't care less about what would happen to her.
I still found it very entertaining and surprising. The ending was not what I was expecting at all, I'll give it that.
I was expecting the story to be darker, but despite having some dark elements, it really wasn't dark.
I loved the characters: Cas and Lena. Some of their interactions were quite funny.
I guessed very early on what was going to happen, but I enjoyed the investigation and the characters' quests anyway.
An enjoyable, fun, entertaining standalone fantasy book.
I really loved this one! The setting, the friendship, the characters, the slow burn, all of it kept me invested and I struggled to stop listening to it. The writing was great too and I enjoyed how EH told the story, the time jumps were really well done IMO.
I need to read Beach Read YESTERDAY.
2.5 stars
The plot was all over the place, the pacing was weird and honestly, I disliked Alex. He annoyed me a lot throughout the story, the way he talked to Ava... not my thing at all. It was too over the top and it didn't flow well. Ava was ok, I enjoyed her personality and her friendship with Bridget, Jules, and Stella.
The best part was the groveling but even that was ruined by the time jump. And the time jump didn't make any sense at all! Why do that when the hero needed to make the heroine (and the readers) swoon? A very weird choice if you ask me.
I enjoyed the secondary characters and I'm still interested in reading the next book.
Overall, it was an average read for me. Not bad, not good, just average.
2.5 stars
It was underwhelming to me. I enjoyed it but I didn't love it. The premise was unique. I found Jess annoying at first, however, I warmed up to her. The banter was good at times but it wasn't consistent. River was an interesting and likable character but his reaction, in the conflict near the end, was disappointing. The chemistry between Jess and River wasn't really there. I enjoyed the secondary characters and the sci-fi elements in it.
Matthew McConaughey's narration was really good and he was a funny story teller.
I had mixed feelings through it, some of it was interesting and enjoyable, part of it felt unnecessary and oversimplified or maybe Matthew McConaughey just wanted to keep it light.
I enjoyed listening to it but I didn't love it.
Books, Coffee & Passion
August was a college student that just moved to New York, she was a loner and she was trying to make it on her own. She got a job and she managed to get a room in an apartment with three other roomates. The story truly begins to unfold when she meets a mysterious, gorgeous girl on the subway and can't stop thinking about her.
August was a very sweet character, really smart – her detective moments were so enjoyable. I liked her relationship, with its ups and downs, with her mom. It felt realistic. Her character growth was wonderful, the way she got more confortable with herself and how she connected with her roommates and Jane was genuinely entertaining.
Jane was very hot, very cool with her punk rock style and very, very interesting. I devoured the glimpses we got of her life, the 70s music, her life as a biracial lesbian in the 70s, etc. I think she was the most interesting character, so I wanted more of Jane at some moments. Considering her location, I get it was hard to have her on page as much as August but, regardless, I definitely wanted more of her.
I loved August and Jane together and I loved the found family aspect in this story too. AMAZING. The secondary characters stole my heart: Myla, Niko and Wes were EVERYTHING! I loved their interactions, loved their friendship, loved their relationships, loved them! I laughed a lot while listening to the audiobook.
Overall, One Last Stop felt unique, creative and refreshing. The scifi element in this book was very well done. However, the pacing was off at times, it felt like the book dragged for a bit especially at the beginning. Fortunately, it got better in the second half of the book and I still enjoyed it a lot. I wish we got a glimpse into the future of August and Jane's relationship, it would've wrap up the story much better.
Vlad and Elena's story is by far the sweetest in the Bromance Book Club series. I loved it!
Vlad is an amazing character, kind, sweet and terrified of losing Elena. His fear was so paralysing that it almost cost them their relationship. Elena is a complex character, closed off, with a very sad backstory and I enjoyed how slowly she revealed her true self.
A sweet slow burn romance, childhood friends to lovers, Vlad and Elena's story was perfect.
The Bromance Book Club's moments with all the guys together were amazing! I hope we get Colton's story and Cheese Man too!
I wasn't very invested in Vlad's novel, but I did enjoy the fact that he was writing one.
3.5 stars
The romance and the steamy scenes were so good!
I wish there had been a little more plot and a little more world-building. I enjoyed Persephone and looooved Hades! Their dynamic was great and the chemistry was off the charts. Not much happened plot-wise until 90% of the book, so it felt a little too slow sometimes. It was still an entertaining story.
Super interested in reading the next one.
It had so much potential, the premise was very interesting but the narrative voice was weird. It felt detached somehow and that was strange considering it was narrated by the MC. It had nothing to do with the fact that I listened to the audiobook.
I was interested in the story, regardless, but the buildup was never really there. There was no suspense. The ending sealed this one in the 3-star rating.
The very last reveal felt unnecessary.
Whoa, I wasn't ready for this book. I wasn't ready for that ending!!!
Kingdom of the Wicked was amazing! The setting, the atmosphere, the Princes of Hell, the witches... Absolutely fantastic!
Full review coming soon
Very science-heavy but super entertaining. Ryland and Rocky were great characters and I needed to know what was going to happen. The humor in it was amazing and the dual timeline worked perfectly.
Vandar Raiders are amazing and I'm officially obsessed with this series. Hot Viking Space Aliens... Couldn't read this fast enough!
Kratos was a Vandar Warlord and leader of a raider horde, Vandar raiders mission is to fight the Zagrath Empire. Vandars are very advanced technologically, they are ruthless warriors and they take no prisoners. Kratos was on his ship when he was informed that there was a ship that had entered Vandars' space. He didn't hesitate to pursue the ship and board it. Astrid made a navigation error that put her and everyone in her sister's ship in danger. When they're boarded by huge, ruthless, bare chested Vandars, she sacrifices her freedom to their leader and becomes his captive. Vandars aren't exactly known for taking prisoners, but Kratos feels a strong pull to this short, curvy female human...
Kratos and Astrid were great characters, it was funny to see their relationship evolving in the Vandars' warship. At first, Kratos didn't knew how to handle a female human, he only wanted her in his bed. Astrid didn't make it easy on Kratos but their attraction was insane and she just couldn't resist him. I absolutely loved Astrid's relationship with the young apprentice warrior that Kratos ordered to stay with her, their bond was sweet and I enjoyed how Astrid shared some human culture details with the kid.
I enjoyed the world building, it wasn't fully developed but it definitely made me picture how the Zagrath empire, the Vandars, the humans functioned. I love SciFi so I wouldn't exactly mind if the world was more explored but I get that the focus is the romance between the main characters and I enjoyed that. There were a few events mainly related to Kratos actions or words that I would like that happened in a different way, but I also understand that his actions made sense considering he was a Vandar.
Overall, Possessed was a engaging, fast paced, steamy, fated mates story and I'll definitely continue with this series.
I liked the Beauty and the Beast aspect of this one. Miko was a great character, didn't really like Nessa much. It was entertaining, though.
It was better than the first book in this series, in my opinion.
The pacing was somewhat off, the first 50% were slow and then everything started happening at the same time.
Everything wrapped up a little too nicely at the end.
A very powerful debut that hooked me from page 1. I loved Deka's journey!
TWs: a lot of physical violence (very descriptive); PTSD; sexual violence (not on page); misogyny; abuse; xenophobia; enslavement.
I really enjoyed this one!
I wouldn't say it's exactly an enemies to lovers romance because they never actually hated each other. The family feud was very real though, Sophia's father and Wes' father really did hate each other and Sophia disliked Wes. Wes, on the other hand, didn't hate Sophia and didn't dislike her AT ALL. However, it was a very interesting dynamic.
There were aspects of this book that I really, really loved. Wes was letting himself be defined by his past and his alcoholism and I loved how Sophia shared with him how she saw him and how he was so much more than that. (meaning: how he was so much more than a savior baby and an alcoholic ) Those dialogues and the moments they opened up to each other about their pasts and their problematic families were freaking AMAZING! I also loved their insane chemistry and their fights, it was amusing and Wes antics were so funny. In addition, Mr. Thorne was definitely my favorite secondary character, his conversations with Wes were HILARIOUS!
There were a few aspects that I disliked: some random thoughts Sophia had; Wes' obsession with her neck was just too much and irked me a little; some parts felt rushed; Sophia's behavior regarding a situation, that lead to the final conflict at the 84% mark, was very problematic in my opinion.
Still, I loved the ending and I think the epilogue was absolutely amazing.
Overall, a very enjoyable book with lots of angry sex and great banter, highly entertaining.
Warning: There's a lot of sex in this book, most of Wes and Sophia's fights ended up in bed so if you don't like the sound of this, I don't recommend you read it.
2.5 stars
An ok read. Didn't enjoy Aida or Callum, they acted mostly like two spoiled brats.
The chemistry was there and there was no insta-love but the lust kind of came out of nowhere IMO.
I enjoyed Aida's brothers though and I was super into the families dynamics.
I might check the next one.
I loved, loved, loved this book! Soraya's story is amazing and unexpected and I couldn't put this book down not even for one second!
Full review coming soon
I didn't know how much I needed this story.
Blaise and Aspen's first interaction was not my favorite but their story packed an emotional punch. It was rough and an emotional roller coaster.
This book really made read Always Crew like NOW!
Trigger warnings: abuse, trauma, loss of a loved one, grief, violence.
So good! I enjoyed the world-building, the political conflict, the characters, and the spy aspect of it.
The plot was solid and I NEEDED to know where this was going.
The only thing less positive about it was that the conflict between Aren and Lara was very predictable. It didn't make sense that Lara, as smart as she was and with as much training as she had, would miss one opportunity and one detail opportunity: come clean to Aren about the letters and immediately destroy them; detail: the mysterious woman's identity which led to that conflict. I get why the author did it, but it didn't make sense for the character to behave that way.
I really enjoyed this one! Can't wait to read the next one.
4.5 stars
Obsessed with these characters and the dark, gritty world of The First Law.
Can't wait to read the next book in the series.
Books, Coffee & Passion
I'm utterly, completely, totally in love with Hollis. She was a fantastic character, a tiger, a warrior! She was brave, snarky, funny, strong, sweet and flawed. Absolutely amazing. Definitely my favorite heroine in this series!
Now that I've gushed about Hollis, there was Cannon too. Honestly, at first it took me a minute to warm up to him. Even though I understood some of his behavior at the beginning of the book, I was siding with Hollis in all of it. Anyway, Cannon was torned between family loyalty, his feelings for Hollis and a few preconceived notions regarding women in sports. Fortunately, his character growth was done beautifully and the boy started to pitch like a dream in more ways than one. The way he stood at Hollis' corner was so sweet and swoon worthy!
Furthermore, I loved Cannon's dad, I really loved the Cannon's bromance with Tory, who is still my absolute favorite hero in this series, and I enjoyed the moments with Lucas, June and Lola too. As a sports fan, I also adored the fact that the story had a lot of baseball in it: the training, the workouts, the game moments, the bonding moments between Hollis and Cannon as teammates. It made the atmosphere perfect.
Varsity Rulebreaker was a beautifully written fantastic YA mature sports romance with captivating strong characters, steamy scenes, teen angst, all the feels and so much girl power. A perfect home run! I loved every second of it and I'm sad to say goodbye to these characters. I would definitely keep reading more and more in Ginger Scott's Varsity world. I highly recommend this series, definitely one of my top favorite series of 2020.