Jordan

This book definitely had some middle book syndrome.

Black Sun was one of my favorite books last year. However, I found that when I started Fevered Star, I remembered literally nothing from it. I even googled a recap, but nothing could jog my memory. I think that might have hampered my enjoyment because for the first 25% I was just trying to figure out what was going on. But as I filled in the blanks, I found that this book wasn't that exciting. There wasn't much going on at all. I felt like this whole book was a set up for the next. I felt like some of the characters did things that I felt was a little out of character for them. However, I do still really love this setting and this story, and I hope the third book knocks it out of the park. I do like what this book set up for the third. I think learning more about the gods and their magic was interesting, and hopefully will lead to a lot of interesting action in the third book.

TW: misgendering, suicide, self-harm for blood magic, alcohol consumption, blood & gore depiction, body horror, death of a parent recounted, murder, torture, war themes

I think this book surpasses the first book in the series.

In this addition, we follow Piper's sister, Hanna. She is trying to pursue a career in music in some way and convinces the film she's working on to film in the small town piper moved to. There isn't room for her to stay with Piper, so she stays with Fox. What follows is a touching romance.

The main reason I liked this book more is because I thought Fox was a less annoying LI than Brendan. He was just less douche-y and more fun. I really liked the explorations these two went through within themselves and together. It took some popular tropes and put a spin on them which I appreciated. Overall, an enjoyable book.

Finally, I've started this massive fantasy series. This first installment follows 3 young men from a small town, Rand, Mat, and Perrin. One day, their small village is attacked my monsters. Luckily, an Aes Sedai and her Warder were in town and were able to protect most people. They reveal that the monsters were after these 3 men, and they needed to travel with them to stop imminent danger to the entire world. What follows is a quest fantasy adventure full of monsters, prophecies, and turmoil.

This book was fun. There were definitely some slow parts, as is the case with many quest fantasies. I felt like most of the slow parts were worth being included, it was just hard to get through at times. It definitely took me a while to finish this book. However, I think the characters were all interesting. They all felt unique, and the revelations at the end were incredible about Rand. I wish we had a few chapters from Perrin's POV. The few we had in the middle were all so interesting, and then after everyone reconnected, we didn't have anymore.

I'm very excited to continue in this series. I will definitely need to intersperse with some other books to give my brain breaks, however. I recommend this series to serious fantasy lovers. It is a large undertaking.

TW: misogyny, torture, violence, animal injury

3.5

In this third installment to the trilogy, we follow Elle's best friend, Margot, as she runs into her childhood best friend. In high school, they had hooked up, which cause their friendship to fall apart. Both of them have different ideas of what made their friendship dissolve like this, and they haven't spoken in 11 years. When Olivia becomes the wedding planner for Brendan's wedding, where Margot is the Best Man, their paths collide. Through a twist of fate, Margot and Olivia become roommates. They must confront what happened 11 years ago. What follows is a cute romance!

I love Alexandria Bellefleur. I think her characters are always adorably written, and the steamy scenes are STEAMY. I love that she doesn't fall into the miscommunication trope too hard. While there was hardcore miscommunication in the past, we don't fall into that too hard in this book. I really connected with Margot's otherness feeling in her group of friends. I felt like it was really relatable. The romance itself was cute, steamy, and mature.

I love Alexandria Bellefleur and will read all of her romance books.

TW: alcohol, sexual content, toxic relationship (past)

This book follows a young orphan woman who can see ghosts. All she has of her family is her mothers journal. One day, she gets a letter from an unknown uncle inviting her to the family house, Gallant. What follows is a haunted house story, where this young woman must confront her past and her present family, as well as the horrors beyond the wall.

VE Schwab is an incredible story teller. Her prose is always top notch. This book is no exception. However, I found this story a little predictable. I was a little underwhelmed with the twists and turns. The family was the most intersting part of the story, but I didn't feel like we got enough time exploring the characters. I felt like the house was the focus, which is fair, but I wanted some more character building. I wanted to know more about the people that already lived in this house.

All in all, a good book and worth the read.

TW: abandonment, ableism, bullying, blood, death, grief, self harm, suicide (off page), suicidal thoughts

A masterpiece. Sabaa Tahir is amazing.

This book follows three POVs: Misbah, Salahudin, and Nor. Misbah's story line is happening in the past, while Salahudin and Nor's is happening in the present. Salahudin and Nor were best friends, but when Nor professed feelings for Salahudin, but Salahudin didn't reciprocate, things were awkward between them. All three of these characters are Muslim living in a small town and America, and we get to see them face the challenges that come with that. We also get to see Salahudin and Nor just try to live their lives. Nor is doing everything she can to leave this small town and go to college against her uncle's wishes, while Salahudin just wants to keep the family business alive. The ending was bittersweet, and this book was tough to read at times. Tahir's ability to effortlessly weave this story along really shows why it took her 10 years to write this book. You can feel the pain and the rage she must have also felt while writing this. I was so angry almost the entire time I was reading this book. The rage truly comes off the page.

Go into this book cautiously. It deals with some very heavy topics. But it is an incredible book.

TW: alcoholism, bullying, death, drug addiction, Islamophobia, physical abuse, racism

This book starts with Savvy getting dumped by her long term boyfriend for “letting herself go”. What follows is her learning to love herself and starting a new romance.

I enjoyed this book. However, it wasn't what I was expecting. I thought this would be a fun steamy romance. Instead, I felt like this was more of a fictional self help book. We mostly followed Savvy's relationship with herself and her career. She learned how to balance her home life with her career, as well as learning to feel comfortable in her body. There was a romance element, it just felt more like a side plot than the main story line. Also, I felt like it was a little overdone that Savvy was seeing her ex around town like every time she went somewhere... It started to feel very convenient for the story and very far fetched.

Overall, this was a cute book, but probably not a new favorite. It just wasn't what I was looking for!

TW: alcohol, anxiety, emotional abuse, fatphobia, sexually explicit scenes

This book is a collection of essays that discuss the ways in which the first kidnapped people were brought over from Africa in 1619 has effected history and current day life in the US.

This project and this book are masterfully assembled. This information is incredibly important for Americans to know, and should be taught in schools. So much of our history has been presented to US schoolchildren in a gilded cage. However, we should all be taught this very real history.

Some of the most impactful moments in this book were the poems and short essays from actual enslaved people. It really showed the inhumanity that they had to endure.

I implore you to read this book.

When Imperial Prince Taam dies unexpectedly, his widower Jainan is rushed into an arranged marriage with Taam's cousin, Kiem, to keep the treaty between the Iskat Empire and the planet Thean. However, Jainan isn't sure that Taam's death was an accident, and with Kiem's help, starts investigating into the crash. As their feelings for each other start to grow, they must also deal with preventing interplanetary war and keeping their treaty intact, while also keeping their lives.

I loved loved loved this book. The romance was so fun and heartfelt, and was my main draw to the book. I was gushing constantly while listening to it. The plot was interesting, although a little complex. The politics were a little hard for me to follow. This is probably partially because I was more interested in the character relationships. However, I was able to follow along enough to stay interested and entertained. The last portion of the book I was hanging onto the edge of my seat while the plot spiraled out of control, and I loved every second. This book was very well thought out and the most delicious of slow burns. I recommend this to everyone. (Please check the TW first.)

TW: past domestic abuse, interrogation, mental torture, murder, rape

First, thank you to the publisher and Goodreads for sending me this ARC in a giveaway in exchange for an honest review.

This book, set in the near future, explores what the world would be like if humanity decided to colonize space. It explores the class and race divisions that are sure to be created. The people with the money and the means are the ones that abandon a dying Earth to go live in space with clean air and water. What's left of Earth is a radiation filled planet, where only the wealthiest of cities are able to afford a dome for protection. Many POC are left behind to live on this planet to eke out a life with little resources.

This book was a harrowing read, mostly for it's reality. A lot of this book has real life references in it, such as the Covid-19 pandemic. It talks about how these things changed society and led to space colonization. This created a book that felt like all too real of a possibility. It talks about the BLM protests, and how many white people became educated, but that didn't mean things changed. The Colonies in space learn all about white privilege, but are still the ones in space.

A lot of this book was very confusing. The story telling isn't linear, and there are many POVs. I found myself not knowing what was going on a lot of the time, and I'm sure even by the end I missed things. However, that didn't really bother me. I thought that the story telling made the reader feel how dark and chaotic this life was for these people.

All in all, I think this book is incredible. It is a beautifully crafted exploration of classism, racism, and how the two dictate the kind of life you're allowed to live.

TW: alcohol, alcoholism, amputation, assault, attempted murder, blood, bones, cancer, cannibalism, child death, death, depression, drugs, famine, fire, gore, gun violence, hallucinations, hospitalization, hostages, murder, poisoning, police brutality, racism, slavery, terminal illness, violence

In this addition to the Dark Olympus series, we follow Persephone's sister, Psyche. In a wild twist of events, she is forced to enter into a marriage of convenience with Eros, a ruthless fixer for his mother, Aphrodite. What follows is them exploring their relationship while trying to navigate the political maneuverings of Olympus.

I was really disappointed with this book, and it looks like I'm in the minority that felt that. The first book, Neon Gods, was so good. This one just fell short for me. There are some of my least favorite tropes in this book, including insta-love. This book only takes place over like a week or a two. This made the relationship feel disingenuous. I felt like both characters did so many things that were so out of character. I understand having a false outer persona, but this felt like more than that. I felt like this marriage of convenience was not the only option they had out of their situation, and it felt utterly absurd that that's what the plan was from the start. In a romance book, I can look past some bad plot points if the steamy scenes are good, but these felt so vanilla and boring compared to the first book.

All-in-all, this felt very boring and contrived. It appears most people are loving this though, so I would recommend this to people that liked the first book.

TW: abuse (emotional, financial), body shaming, murder (off-page), guns, explicit sex

In this novel, Tarana Burke gives the reader context for what happened in her life to lead her to founding the Me Too movement. You get to see, as the reader, a strong woman sharing her story of abuse and how she has worked through that over the years. She highlights throughout how sexual violence happens to women everyone without discrimination, but our responses vary widely and discriminately. She has focused her life on helping women and gender non-conforming people get the support they need after something heinous happens to them. It is really beautiful to see how she gets to this point. She doesn't hold back as she talks about her mistakes, her challenges, and her struggles as she gets to where she is today. So many people see activists as these all-knowing beings, but she really shows that she had to learn how to do this just like anyone else. It really made activism seem like an achievable thing instead of something that is too scary. I would ask everyone to read this book. Tarana Burke is a hero, but first she is a human, and she bares her story in this stunning memoir.

TW: sexual assault, sexual violence, rape, physical abuse, emotional abuse, drugs, alcohol

First, I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for an arc of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I'm going to keep this review brief because I'm going to post a more detailed review on my my YouTube channel. This book follows the heirs of the Four Realms: Life, Death, Light and Darkness. These heirs all have the power of their god in their veins, which gives them powers. However, a long time ago, the gods cut this city off, and their city is dying because of it. These 4 heirs must work together to save everyone living here.

I really enjoyed this book. I will say, one thing that really confused me is why these people's parents weren't who this story followed. But that's neither here nor there. I thought the characters were all incredibly thought out. We have 4 very different personalities with very different motivations, but all ultimately wanting the same thing. I loved that some of the characters did bad things and made the hard decisions. I really felt like the stakes were high in this book. The plot was fast paced, if not a little confusing at times, but by the end I felt like I was fully in the loop and understanding.

I will get more in depth in my YouTube review! I would definitely recommend fantasy readers preorder this book, though.

TW: abusive relationship, alcohol, animal abuse, attempted murder, blood, bones, bullying, death, demons, emotional abuse, famine, fire, gore, hospitalization, murder, occult, racism (fantasy), skeletons, snakes, spiders, cannibalism, terminal illness, violence

I want to preface this review by saying that I do not know the original story of Kaikeyi, so I do not know how it holds up to that. My thoughts here are purely based on this story alone.

As most people that have been following me for a while know, I absolutely love mythological retelling. This one was no exception. Most of the retelling I have read have been Greek, so it was so refreshing to read this one from a different culture.

This book follows Kaikeyi, a misunderstood woman who just wants to make a place for herself and other women in the world. This book follows her life, from young childhood to far into her adulthood.

I found all of the characters to just be so well rounded and all of the interpersonal relationships to really grow Kaikeyi's story. We got a really unique view on these relationships because Kaikeyi has the ability to go into the Binding Plane, which only she can see, and where she can view the different bonds she has with people and how strong they are. She can also manipulate these bonds to get people to bend her way. She learns from a young age that this can be manipulated too strongly and she can completely sever bonds accidentally. This story follows her as she tries to toe the line of convincing and manipulating.

I thought this book did such an incredible job of exploring feminism, family, and motherhood. I would highly recommend this book to anyone that loves mythology.

First of all, thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book follows Cassie, an author living on a remote island off the coast of Maine, and James, a man working in finance living in the heart of London. The two both, for their own reasons, are looking to relocate for a few months. They end up swapping homes for the summer. What follows is a funny story about 2 completely different people finding love.

I enjoyed this book. Cassie was relatable and such a badass. James started out seeming very rude, but the island life opens him up. I was especially enjoying Cassie's journey of wanting to have a baby, partner or no partner. This book was fun to read and the romance was cute. I wouldn't say this is a new favorite. It's a pretty standard romance novel. It definitely isn't changing the genre, but it is worth the read if you need a light, fun read this summer.

TW: miscarriage, stalking, cheating

2.5

Olive, a Ph.D. candidate, finds herself in a fake dating situation with a professor after kissing him in front of her friend so her friend would think she was over her ex. What follows is a funny, sweet romance about unexpected love and the brutality of academia.

I really enjoyed this book. I don't know much about the world of academia, but Hazelwood did a wonderful job of making sure the reader understood what this setting is like. Olivia was an incredible perspective to read from. She really is a funny, grounded woman with a hilarious inner dialogue. Adam was sweet and charming and totally unexpected. I kind of wish he was a harder shell to crack since his reputation makes him out to be a hardass. But otherwise, this book was a joy to read. It was sappy and cute, and just what I needed on a Friday.

TW: blackmail, slut shaming, sexual harassment

George Johnson is incredible. I also read their book [b: All Boys Aren't Blue 44280883 All Boys Aren't Blue George M. Johnson https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1559859817l/44280883.SY75.jpg 61592230] which was beautiful. This is a short memoir where George details the life of their grandmother, who recently passed. They detail out all of the goods and the bads in their relationship, as well as with their brothers and cousins. The glimpses into their life they give us is so profound. I always feel so honored to get this peek into their life. I recommend all of their books.

Vivienne, in a fit of drunken anger over a breakup, casts a curse on her ex, with the help of her cousin. They think it's a joke and don't think much of it. 9 years later, when Rhys returns to their small town, the curse goes into effect, and bad luck befalls him at every turn. He must enlist Vivienne's help to find out how to get rid of the curse before it starts doing serious damage. Sparks fly as they become reacquainted.

I loved this book. Reading it in October was perfect. This book definitely has Hocus Pocus vibes, with 3 witches who live in a small town in secret. The romance was adorable, the magic was fun and corny, and the characters were all lovable. Vivienne's character development was a joy to read as she became more confident in her abilities, and in turn, herself. Rhys's support of her throughout the story was beautiful and helped show a really lovely dynamic between the two. The setting and the magic were so corny and stereotypical in a way that made me fall in love with this town. I want to live there so badly. Rhys's family manor cracked me up every time it was described. Just everything about this story was a joy.

Everyone, go read this book.

TW: occult, sexually explicit scenes

Michelle and Gabriel were childhood best friends. They did everything together. However, Gabriel's family overwhelmed him, and he decided to leave and go across the country without talking to Michelle about it. 14 years later, they haven't spoken since. Gabriel's gym needs a marketing consultant, and his business partner contacts Michelle. Gabriel goes back to New York to work with Michelle, and maybe rekindle their friendship and more.

This book was really nice. What I'm loving about Alexis Daria's books is how inclusive they are. She always showcases people with different backgrounds in her stories. I mean, the 2 main characters in this book are both bisexual! I also love that she makes sure her characters find resolution outside of their romantic relationship, as well as in it. Her characters always learn a lot about themselves and their livelihoods, separate from their partners. Gabriel and Michelle are awesome main characters. Their chemistry is off the charts, but they also are both very vulnerable and come with their own flaws.

Alexis Daria is quickly becoming one of my favorite romance writers, and I can't wait for what she comes out with next.

TW: alcohol, sexually explicit scenes

Shizuka Satomi has made a deal with the devil: she must train 7 souls in the way of the violin and then sacrifice them in order to save her soul and get her music back. However, when she finds her 7th student, Katrina, she realizes that this may be harder than she imagined. Katrina, a trans woman who has run away from home, is homeless and desperate. Shizuka's offer to teach her violin while providing housing and food seems too good to be true, but she readily accepts. Lan, a woman from a different planet, has set up shop in a donut shop nearby. These 3 women's lives entangle, and they must work together to overcome their fears and live.

This book is beautiful. At the beginning, I had absolutely no idea what was going on. The story telling is a little confusing. When the POV changes in the audiobook, there is typically no pause or anything to indicate it has changed and the reader has to figure it out. At first, this made everything a little confusing, but as you get to know the characters, you can easily keep up with the changes. After I started to pick up on what this story was about, I fell in love. The characters are all so complex and damaged in a way that felt so real. They all had their own demons, literally and figuratively, that they had to deal with from their pasts and their present, and watching these characters help each other through life felt so rewarding. This book tackles very heavy themes, including racism, transphobia, queerphobia, etc., but Aoki did a great job of balancing these themes with touching moments.

I recommend this book to anyone. It was a lovely, fun, dark story about survival in a world that doesn't want you to survive.

TW: anxiety, deadnaming, domestic abuse, gun violence, homophobia, mentions of war (intergalactic), misgendering, partental physical abuse, racism, rape, self harm, sexual abuse, slut-shaming, suicidal thoughts, transphobia

This short story retelling of Sleeping Beauty was so fun. It created a modern day Aurora, while also establishing a whole multiverse, all in such a short book. Our main “Aurora”, Zinnia, has a rare disease that has a short life expectancy, and she isn't expecting to make it to her next birthday. When her best friends throws her a 21st birthday party, complete with a spinning wheel, she is exstatic. However, when she touches it as a joke, she is transported to a different dimension with another Aurora, but this one is like the full Medieval fairy tale story. What follows is her journey to make it back to her dimension, as well as survive without her medication in this other world.

I loved reading this book. It was touching and fun, while being short and to the point. I thought the characters were what really made this story shine. Also, getting to experience this well-known story, reimagined in a modern setting with a woman who would give anything to be in a fairy tale was very interesting. This book showed a sliver of what it's like living with a deadly disease and having a time limit on your life at a young age. I was definitely tearing up throughout.

I recommend this quick read to anyone that loves a good fairy tale.

TW: ableism, alcohol, death, homophobia, misogyny, suicide (mentioned), terminal illness

I really enjoyed this addition to the Percy Jackson series. This felt like the first point in the story where these teens face real consequences and stakes. The tone felt much more serious in this one. The plot was interesting and fast paced, while the world expansion was well thought out. I really enjoyed the different ways the characters' relationships developed and matured. Rick Riordan did a great job of make these teens feel like teens, with all of the awkward social interactions and everything. However, they still did awesome magic and saved the world, which is the marker of a great middle grade/ya fantasy book. My biggest gripe so far with the series is the stereotypical fatphobia found in a lot of fantasy, where every bad/evil person is fat and ugly. It's just lazy story telling.

I'm really loving this series so far, otherwise!

TW: animal death (mentioned), anxiety, attempted murder, child death, death, hostages, skeletons, stalking, violence, war, fatphobia

First, thank you to the publisher and Goodreads for sending me this ARC as part of a giveaway.

Ren, a British-Japanese Reaper has grown up in Britain, collecting the souls of the dead to pass along to Death. Being biracial, Ren has never really fit in as a British Reaper. When her Shinigami powers manifest in front of other Reapers, she decides to run away to Japan with her half-brother, who is a full Reaper. She hopes that the Shinigami there will accept her. What greets her in Japan is a much darker, brutal place than she was expecting. She must complete a quest for Izanami in order to become a Shinigami, but at what cost?

I honestly went into this book having no idea what to expect, but it definitely wasn't this. I had no idea how dark Japanese folklore was, and this book pulled no punches. First, Ren is the epitome of a morally grey character. I sometimes have a hard time with these types of characters. For me, there's a fine line before they're just unlikable. But I feel like Ren's motivations really make her so interesting, even if the things she does are wrong most of the time. The plot was incredibly fast paced, while the visuals were so entrancing and beautiful, even if they were, quite literally, dark. The struggles Ren faces from being biracial were so complex and really who Ren is as a character. I didn't know there would be another book in this series, and now I am waiting on pins and needles for the next book. This ending was WILD. I honestly think that this could read as a sad, dark stand alone, but I am also so excited to see what Baker creates next.

TW: ableism, amputation, assault, attempted murder, blood, bones, bullying, child abuse, child death, death, decapitation, demons, emotional abuse, fire, genocide, gore, gaslighting, kidnapping, murder, skeletons, slavery, starvation, torture, violence