Debbie

Possible spoilers

Even though this is only my second CoHo book she seems like the kind of author that likes to mess with your head and make you feel all kinds of feelings. And I'm definitely okay with that.

Regretting You is told from two POVs. Morgan and her 16 year old daughter, Clara. Being a teenager is a difficult time...being one while tragedy strikes makes it all the worse. Morgan became a mother very young and her whole life revolved around her husband and daughter. It's not until he dies in a tragic accident that it comes to light that maybe Chris isn't as wonderful as everyone thought he was.

Finding out your spouse is having an affair after he/she is dead is seriously fucking heavy. There's no one to direct your anger to. No arguments to be had. No questions answered. Morgan has to deal with this while her daughter also takes out her grief on her. Clara is just a teenager who just her father whom she was incredibly close to. Neither one seem to be able to get on the same page about anything. Which is normal but difficult under the best of circumstances.

I liked that Clara found out about the affair...not because I wanted her to hurt. But I wanted her to see that her mother was human with a fuck ton on her plate and she was navigating shit as best she could. Morgan resonated a lot with me. I understood her. As a mother ( a SAH one at ) that I felt a kinship with her. What stopped me from giving it five stars was that we find out nothing else about the affair. I feel like it was the crux of this whole book/situation. Why did it start? When did it start? For how long? I didn't want there to be chapters about it. But some closure? There were letters but at the end of it all Morgan decided she didn't need to know the minute details. And I feel like I did want to know

WOW. Holy shit wow. I was so afraid that I was allowing the Bookstagram hype to get into my head too much over this book...and that when I finally got to read it I'd be sorely disappointed.
I had no reason to be afraid. And it was even better than I thought it could possibly be.
If you're looking for an action packed thriller than this isn't it. This is a slow burn. This slowly sinks it's claws into your brain and by the time you've realized it it's got a grip and it won't let go.
It's told from a couple of points of view and 2 timelines and every chapter it switches so you're basically always getting JUST enough before taking it away and feeding you something new.
I started last night and I'm already done even though I'm tired and should be sleeping because my kids, much like myself, are early risers. And now here I am, everyone is asleep, and I don't know wtf to do with myself. WORTH IT.

Another fun and sexy trilogy by Meghan March. Full of cliffhangers and several twists throughout. As always I'm glad I waited to binge read.

Although I was told that Forge might replace Mount as my favorite March man... He most certainly did not. Lol.

3.5 Stars

SO..HERE IS MY DILEMMA. This is the second book in the series.....and I still don't care about the main characters, Alice or Finch. I kind of wanted them to be more than okay to me at this point. but I liked the story in and of itself. The author has a great skill in writing or reworking a dark fairy tale. I can say that I seriously enjoyed that even more than i did in the first book. However, since i feel like now i should be somewhat more invested in the characters..at least by the end..and i wasn't.. no matter how much I liked the story itself i'll keep it at a 3.5. Also I feel like the first one read and ended as a stand alone so i didn't know where this would go. Not a bad thing. I just can't say I was super hype for anything in particular.

3.5 stars.

Beauty and the Beast meets The Taking of the Shrew?? Uh YES PLEASE. This book had everything you like in regency romances and while it wasn't perfect, it is still worth a read.
Lady Astrid is easy to like. She's headstrong and smart. Everything a lady isn't supposed to be for this particular frame of time. She's protective of her sister and doesn't want her suffering at the hands of a man she knows is without honor. Since years before he lied about her and her virtue after she rejected him.
The Duke of Beswick, or Thane, is a man physically and mentally scarred. As a result, he acts like a beast. Tada

I hadn't heard of or listened to the podcast this book is based off of so this review won't stem from that.
This book wasn't what I was expecting but it was good nonetheless. You read teenagers with powers so you're thinking perhaps some action will be involved..and you'd be thinking wrong. But, I repeat, that's not a bad thing in this case.
Being a teenager is hard. Being a teenager in high school is hard. Being a teenager in high school and finding out you have powers is crazy and hard. Being a teenager in high school and finding out your superpower is to sense others emotions around you is beyond bananas. Teenagers are nothing if not rockets of emotions from the highest of highs to the lowest of lows. I haven't been a teenager for some time but I remember..oh I remember. lol
I love that Caleb went to therapy and wasn't sent of somewhere instead. It showed his struggle between finding out which were his own feelings and which were not.
I like that it wasn't just Caleb's POV but Adam's as well. His chapters bought a nice balance to Calebs.
A story about two young boys finding their way to each other...and I enjoyed it. Even though it was a tad slow. That's why a four star instead of five. It was missing a bit of something.
Nevertheless, a book i feel should be read especially by the teenagey folk.

This was a very cute enemies to lover rom-com situation. We have Emily, who's life is up in the air at the moment and has moved in with her older sister and niece to help out after her sister's accident. Then we have Simon who seems to “have a stick up his butt”. The banter was absolutely the best at the Ren Faire when they were each in their alter ego as bar wench and pirate. I was really enjoying the whole Ren Faire background because I've always wanted to go to one.

This, all in all, was a cute and easy read ( I don't mean that in a bad way). It didn't rock my world but it wasn't a waste of my time either.

4.5 stars

This book was brought to my attention because of BookishFirst. The blurb for book two ( didn't realize it wasn't the first at the time) was calling to me so hard that I used my points to secure an ARC for it and I regret nothing. So then off I went to borrow an e copy of this one. My only mistake was not buying the book ( Soon she shall be mine).

Not only is the female lead strong but so are all the other women and I'm always down with that (girl power and all that jazz). Now throw in hilarious sibling arguments ( just because you love them doesn't mean you have to like them

3.5 stars

YA horror is a fun genre for me. This a ghost story with teenagers. For teenagers. So going in I'm well aware of that. So I'm not going to knock off points for it not really scaring me. I'm an adult who watches and reads heavier stuff. That being said, This was a good book and I don't regret using my Bookish First points to get an ARC.

I have found that I enjoy books have transcripts ( or descriptions of videos, texts, etc etc.) included along the chapters to help bring you into the situations more. The entire book doesn't read this way so it's not too much either.

I only had two issues..they weren't enough to make me stop reading but still worth noting...There are a lot of characters in this book. There could have easily been one or two less. My other is issue that it felt like the author tried to add one of every type of teenager you could think which isn't bad at all..but in this case came across as less authentic as I think it was supposed to.

All in all a good read and I think it would definitely have it's intended reaction were a teenager to read it.

I finished this book days ago...and it's taken me days to figure out how to say something other this book was so dreadfully boring. If I hadn't asked for this book for Christmas and actually got it...I wouldn't have finished it. That's the only reason I pushed through.

I loved the cover. I loved the naked hardcover. I loved the synopsis. I love gothic horror. It had the makings of a good, creepy story. But when I read it, I got nothing. A boarding school isolated deep in Argentina, reopened after so long and only 10 girls as students. I was ready. And then I was lost. I think there were two timelines. Or maybe 2 POVs. I don't think I've ever had this hard a time keeping up with a book but I'm sure my absolute boredom had something to do with it.

Maybe I'll read something by this author again. I won't say that I won't because this is a debut. If you enjoyed this, great. I'm happy one of us wasn't bored to tears.

Sometimes a book screams at me to read it and so I hype it up so much in my own head. You can imagine that can end very badly if I end up not liking the book because the crash back down to earth hurts. Such was not the case here. NOT EVEN A LITTLE BIT.

One private school. Two Black teenagers from the opposite sides of society's tracks. Devon's mom has sacrificed much so the musical protege can lead them to a better life. Chiamaka wants for nothing. One anonymous texter exposing their darkest secrets.

This book is very difficult to review because it is, amongst other things, a thriller. And I'm don't want to give anything away as that really would ruin the book for you. I will say it is twisty and dark. I went in kind of blind and don't regret that at all. It was a Bookish First win and once I saw the cover I knew I had to have it. BOOKWORM INTUITION IS REAL.

It's been years since I've read any nonfiction...but when I did, true crime was 90 percent of it. When I won this in a giveaway I knew it kismet.
This reads like part memoir, part true crime documentary ( which makes up 50 percent of what I watch on tv. Some weeks it's 100 percent.) While I was in it for the murder stories ( yes I get that that sounds weird but I mean from like a clinical POV. Not in a I'm getting off on this stuff kind of way), I got really sucked in by Jensen's stories about his dad. So when I get to the chapters with the crimes, I found myself more invested.
I'm really glad this was my first book back into non fiction. Honestly it set it up for me get back into the genre.

This book was a mind fuck. That is all.

Psych. That is NOT all. This book was bananas. Look..I went into this really cocky. I've read plenty of thrillers. Plenty. Obviously I like them but every so often you read one that makes it feel fresh and new again. Enter this fooking book. I kept telling myself to look for what was the real situation going on and stop following all the detours trying to take me away. The problem was ...EVERYTHING WAS FUCKED UP IN THIS BOOK AND I COULDN'T TELL WHAT WAS WHAT. Even the ending messed me up.

THE ENDING. FUCK THAT INCEPTION LIKE ENDING. UGH. 5 Stars, Colleen. 5 Mind Fuck Stars.

This book just took me all the way out. ALL. THE. WAY OUT.
So many things to unfold that I can't because I don't like spoilers but just know that internally I'm yelling. That ending. THAT ENDING.

For me, what this book does best, is get in your head. Holy shit, does it get in your head. It doesn't scream the scares you... It whispers them ( ha! ) and that's worse then a big old BOO!

HUGE thank you to Celadon Books for this ARC. Easily my most favorite ARC so far.

I'll be checking on my kids more than usual tonight LoL.

Oh me oh my. That's all I'll say until I've finished the binge read LOL

At one point in my life I read historical romances heavily. Not so much no for no other reason that I read a lot of different genres but I still love to go back from time to time. And books like this one is why.

With this being my first Beverly Jenkins book and a bookstagram recommendation (for the life of me I can't remember who was the first to tell me that I must read it) I didn't know that is was book one in the Women Who Dare series but book four in the Le Veq series....which is great because I'd love to read about the rest of the family.

The book is set during the 1860s Reconstruction Era in New Orleans. That means that the setting is pretty heavy. People are trying to rebuild and cope with a massive change of life. But here you have this beautiful slow burn romance. That is not to say that the author shied away from the realness and hardships of the times. She absolutely did not. Which makes the love between Valinda and Drake all the more beautiful. Because between all that struggle and hardship two people managed to find love and you can't help but feel all the hope and beauty.....especially when one of the MCs didn't believe in love at all.

I thought I was getting a romance and bibbidi bobbidi boo shit..and never have I ever been more happy to be wrong.
It was about redemption, courage, fighting fate, taking a chance on yourself, learning that sometimes what you believe about yourself hurts you more than the cruelty people throw your way.

I can see why this book won an award in 2015 (The Watty's). I was immediately drawn in. By the world and Azzy. Mankind has gone underground because magic has tainted and twisted the Above. But even still, Azzy goes above ground for the herbs needed by her people and their crumbling underground city. Armin, her brother, has never been but once he's cast out, Azzy would never let him go alone. Things go awry just about as soon as they get up there. The book kept a pretty consistent beat with the action. Just when I thought it would dip, things would get intense again.

My one issue would be that I would have liked a bit more info on how it all came to be. I DO NOT need to be spoon fed 1,001 background details or endless chapters of info dump. The author just really got me interested in not just the characters but the whole of the world she is building.

3.5 stars

This book was definitely lighter than most of what I have been reading lately and it was a great palate cleanser. I found it to be extremely adorable and funnier than I was expecting.

Alex Claremont-Diaz is a First Son. Prince Henry is..well he's a prince. Neither one can't seemingly stand the other one. But after a very messy mishap at a royal wedding they both have to play nice because before American/British relations go down the drain. Now they have to act like they are the best of friends...and maybe under all of that they find out more then they ever expected.

I will say the middle of the book dragged for me a little bit. Not enough to make me stop reading but overall I thought this was a cute and fresh love story.

I REALLY wanted to five star this one. I love this series. I still love this series. But I've got a few issues. The ending was okay. But I needed more than okay. I needed something WAY more tragic. I know that seems horrible on my part but that was the vibe of the book...Fates, magic, love triangles, lies upon lies, some dude name LEGEND for christ's sake. It didn't really get going until the middle of the book but I'm okay with that since the second book ended with a bang...people need time to recuperate and breathe. Even people in magical stories. Other than that, I will miss the world of Caraval...and I'll be reading this again at some point.

Who doesn't love an enemies to lovers, slow burn, witch and witch hunter marriage of convenience? Just me? Coolcoolcoolcool.
Lou (the witch) is a hot mess. Always had something smart assy to say ( i can relate) and she was running scared trying to do the right thing. Reid (the witch hunter)...so oh so tall, chivalrous, loyal and adorably virginal. So dead set on his black and white views. Watching them both fall in love and realize that things they've learned about either side may not entirely be true was fantastic. Watching them both grow and change internally was beautiful to see.

The magic system was on point. Not your regular run of the mill witch magic. Along with the romance was the story of sister hood. Coco is the shit..and proof positive that blood can bond in more ways than one (IF YOU READ THIS YOU'LL GET IT BWAHAHAHAHAHA). ALSO.....as much as I loved Lou and Reid..I'm going to need more people to make some noise for Ansel. WE MUST PROTECT HIM AT ALL COSTS.

Big Titty Liddy.

3.5 Stars.

I was excited when I received an ARC of this book. Perhaps a little bit too excited. Don't get me wrong. It's a good book...but a little too slow paced for me. I like slow paced thrillers. But there's slow and then there's SLOW. The book is cut up into four different chunks/timelines...with Helen's being my absolute favorite (and the reason i bumped up my rating .5.)

I knew I loved Aeduan from word one. Before they said his name. Just Bloodwitch. I knew. Whether he was a hero or a villain I did not care. I knew he would be my bloody love. So with that being said I was very much looking forward to this book but I was also scared because I was way too hyped

I jumped back and forth about giving this book 4 or 5 stars but I'm sticking with 5 stars. I got from this book what I was expecting from a book a read a few books back..AND I DIDN'T GET. AT ALL....and I wasn't even expecting from this one. So win for me.

I'm not well versed in the story of The Twelve Dancing Princesses but I remembered enough that I knew what it was. And I was excited for 1. a retelling and 2. a retelling that wasn't Beauty and the Beast ( I love BatB retellings..but there are SO MANY).

This book was a YA retelling, gothic horror, murder mystery with a little slow burn romance thrown in. What? That's a lot. And you know what...YOU KNOW WHAT...it was well done. For a debut novel? Shut up. WHAT ELSE YOU GOT, ERIN??

At one point, I didn't know what was real and what wasn't. What was a lie and what wasn't. Definitely had a creepy atmosphere to it. I can't say that the first half was fast paced....But I was already drawn in by the spooky vibes. I'm not going to lose sleep but I'm also not the target demographic. All in all...definitely worth the read if you ask me. And if you didn't ask me..then why are you here? O.O

When I first got the ARC for this book, I was quite hype to get into it. I love playing video games almost as much as i love reading. Almost. So i was ready for this.

I debated hard about giving it 3.5 or 4 stars. The biggest reason being that I didn't really care about the teenaged crew of gamers. I didn't hate them and they didn't annoy me. I just didn't care. And for a book of roughly 500 pages I feel like maybe I should have cared about someone, anyone more. But I'll stick with 4 stars because the story had a great pace, and the suspense was there. At least for me it was. And I can't really say that it dragged anywhere for me. I would definitely love to see this turned into a tv show.