Jordan

In this first installment of the folow-up series to the Caraval series, Evangeline thinks her true love has been put under a curse by her stepmother. All of a sudden, he wanted to marry Evangeline's stepsister and stopped talking to Evangeline. Evangeline ends up making a deal with the fate, Jacks, to stop this wedding from happening. But of course, making a deal with the Fates is never a good idea, and everyone at this wedding turns to stone. From there, Evangeline must reluctantly work with Jacks to figure out the politics of the North, all while trying to protect herself from all of the machinations going on around her.

I love a good fairy tale story. I love the whimsical, fantastical setting that quickly turns dark and malevolent. Stephanie Garber is incredible at this type of story, as shown in the Caraval series. The plot was ever-changing, full of plot twists and betrayals. The characters were all complex with hidden motivations. This all combined to create a fast paced, wonderful story. The naivete of Evangeline would normally be annoying to a reader, but because Garber employs the fairy tale devices, it just adds to the fantastical nature of the story. Jacks is the perfect broody anti-hero/villain (depending how you look at him) who keeps the story interesting. He is constantly being pushed and pulled to and from Evangeline in ways that make the reader want to scream (in a good way). I can't believe I have to wait for the sequel for who knows how long!

TW: attempted murder, blood, bones, cults, death, emotional abuse, hostages, murder, poisoning, violence, questionable consent

First, thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for the advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

I won't get too far into the plot so as not to spoil the first books.

I am going to formally request that all fantasy readers stop reading this right now and go buy this series. It's so good. In this second installment, we get a lot of character development as all of the characters try to live in and change the ever changing world around them. The plot was incredibly fast paced and political, but never got confusing. All of the romance subplots didn't distract from the story and were so sweet. We get a lot more exploration of the magic system, which is much more complex and varied than the first book indicated. The bone shard magic is just as fascinating as it was in the first book, and we also learn a lot more about Jovis's type of magic. The cliffhanger ending has me dyyiiiinnngggg for the next installment.

I recommend this to all fantasy readers.

TW: amputation, animal abuse, assault, blood, bones, child death, death, emotional abuse, gore, murder, racism, snakes, violence, war

I buddy read this book with Khushi Kishore.

I went into this really knowing next to nothing about it. All I know was that it was based on Japanese folklore. Ultimately, I thought this was so cute. It deals with themes of sexism and transphobia, as well as some other dark themes. However, these were all handled very well. The MC is a young teen girl, and she ends up surrounding herself with the most incredible, whimsical friends that just made for a beautiful, touching story. I highly recommend for readers of ya and folklore.

In this Indian-inspired story, we follow a set of four siblings. Their lives have all split in very different ways, and they all have different goals. However, their paths all merge when they each get tasked with a common goal: find the Ivory Key that will restore magic. While they all have different motives for getting this key, they all decide to band together and use their unique talents to get this key back and protect the people they love.

I enjoyed this book. I felt like the characters and setting were all unique and fun to read about. The plot, while predictable, was still fast paced and enjoyable. I was engaged throughout. I think the setting is really the winner of the story. This world feels so rich and well thought out. Throughout their explorations, I was just so excited to see what they found next. The big plot twist at the end I saw coming from near the beginning of the book, so I didn't feel as shocked by it, but I do think it adds a whole new layer of intrigue to explore in the next book.

Overall, this book was fun and engaging. I would recommend this to anyone that enjoys a good YA fantasy.

TW: graphic descriptions of dead bodies, high volume of discussion of grief and loss, death of family members, recovering from trauma, blood, violence, emotional manipulation, alcohol, discussion of identity policing/microaggressions directed toward a biracial character, allusions to human experimentation, discussions of war/an invading country

The book community led me astray with this one...

In this, we follow a man who is set on a revenge path to ruin the person who killed his parents. We also follow a woman who is all sunshine and rainbows, but can't remember a large chunk of her childhood due to trauma. A romance ensues.

This book was bad. I was led to believe this was a super steamy, dark romance. And it was a dark romance. But all of the twists and turns were dumb. While they weren't predictable at least, they were all just there to make the story worse. So I was hopeful the steamy scenes would at least make up for it. And they also sucked. They were short and boring. This book was not worth the read.

TW: attempted murder, blood, child abuse, death, stalking, violence

Guys, Talia Hibbert can do no wrong. This novella is so cute and perfect to read for the holidays. The banter between her characters in every book she writes is some of the funniest content I've ever read. I was cackling out loud alone in my apartment. She has the perfect way of portraying anxiety in her characters, while making it relatable and funny. I found myself saying “omg, I literally think this all the time” multiple times while reading. The romance is steamy and cute, and I cannot wait for her to release more books. She has become one of my top favorite romance authors.

This book picks up right where the last book leaves off, and we follow the riders as they prepare for their final battle. I won't get any further into the plot so as not to spoil the previous books.

I know that the first 2 books, many people mentioned they had problems with the pacing. I didn't have a problem with the pacing in those. However, I felt this one did. It was too long. A couple hundred pages could've been shaved off. I still think that the story was overall incredibly successful. I love the characters so much, and the plot was incredibly interesting throughout the series. I just think this one was a little long. The last 200 pages were so fast paced and fun, though. There was so much intense drama, and I found myself furious flipping the pages. I think Sev and Kade's story line is for sure my favorite. While I think Veronyka and Tristan's story was nice, there was something more relatable in Sev and Kade's story. Their struggles, within their relationship and with external forces, were so interesting complex, and I couldn't wait to get to Sev's chapters. I will admit in the beginning he was a little whiny, but by the middle and the end, I was enraptured.

This series is a success for me. I agree there were some issues with pacing, but I think the characters and the plot more than make up for that. I would recommend this to YA fantasy readers everywhere!

TW: abusive relationship, amputation, animal death, assault, attempted murder, blood, bones, death, fire, hospitalization, murder, poisoning, slavery, violence, war

Christina Lauren never fails to make me fall in love with their characters. They still are holding the spot of being my favorite romance authors.

This book follows Jess, a single mom who is a freelance statistician, and River, a scientist who developed technology that uses DNA to find soulmates. Through a hilarious course of events, River and Jess have to spend time together in the spotlight for River's new company.

The plot of this book was corny and perfect. The whole concept of DNA based soul mate searching seems so silly, but in actuality was very fun and created some hilarious interactions. The characters were superb, as usual. Jess is such a down to earth, fun, strong woman, and River is a hard working, good guy. I do think that Jess's character development outshone River's. His character wasn't as fully fleshed out I felt like. But I didn't think it detracted from the story that much.

I recommend this book to romance readers. It isn't as steamy as some of the duo's other books (I'm looking at you, Beautiful series), but the romance is still full of heart and humor. It's an easy read, and will leave you with a smile on your face.

TW: alcohol, alcoholism, drugs, hospitalization, cheating

When Piper, a rich socialite in LA, has a crazy night and ends up in jail, her stepfather sends her back to her small hometown to teach her a lesson. Her sister goes with her so she isn't alone. In this small fishing town where their father died lives Brendan, a grumpy widower who's only love is the ocean. What follows is a hilarious, touching, lovely story about grief, loss, and love.

I really enjoyed this book. This is my first Tessa Bailey novel, and it did not disappoint. The characters were so unique and fun. My favorite aspect was that Brendan never once wanted Piper to change. Just because she fell in love with the town, the way of living, and Brendan, she was never expected to change the way she felt or acted or the things she liked. That was incredibly refreshing to see. The romance was sweet and heartfelt, there were some great steamy moments, and the other relationships between characters were nice. The only downside for me was how domineering Brendan was. That normally doesn't bother me, but he was very confrontational.

Overall, I definitely recommend this to anyone looking for a cute, steamy summer romance.

TW: alcohol, death, sexually explicit scenes

This book is Clint Smith's recounting of different historical places he visited around the world that had a connection to American slavery. He describes what he sees, who he meets, and the personal impacts these places had on him.

This book was harrowing. While I knew a lot of the horrors that happened during slavery, Smith had a way of wording things that made me really confront what that must have been like, instead of seeing it through the lens of time. These places are so important to our past, yet I had only heard of one of them. This in and of itself highlights how much the American education system leaves out from our teachings. Growing up in Texas, we were only vaguely taught about slavery. I knew it happened and I knew it was bad. It's been through my own research that I've truly discovered how disgusting it was. At the end of the day, Americans owned other humans. This book also shows that the North was not the savior of enslaved people. One of the places Clint Smith visits is NYC, where he showcases how prevalent slavery was even up North.

I think this book should be required reading in schools. I recommend and implore everyone to pick this up.

Wooooooowwwwww. This is one of my new favorite series.

In the second book of The Burning series, we follow Tau and his sword brothers as they try to figure out how to defeat the enemy using their newfound status. I won't go too far into it so as not to spoil the first.

This series is so enthralling. You just don't want to put it down while reading. Winter is a master at weaving together a character and plot that makes the reader feel completely immersed in this bleak world of demons and politics. The characters all experience a lot of growth, and there's enough conflict to leave the reader guessing about where everyone stands at any given moment. The politics are also superbly done. Whenever I read a book that's heavy in politics or in war strategy, I typically feel bogged down and uninterested. But somehow, Evan Winter has made me look forward to this. Since he has created a character, Tau, who isn't smart about those maneuverings, the reader sees these discussions happening without being in the brain of the person making the plans. It allows for a very straight forward presentation of the information, which I'm incredibly grateful for.

The plot is fast paced and interesting, while not being overly-complicated and hard to follow. There is a romance sub-plot that wasn't distracting, and a lot of things were revealed at the end that left me dying for the next book. I think Winter has done a fantastic job of making no characters “good”. Everyone thinks they're doing the right thing, and they are all making mistakes and hard choices. It makes the brutality of the story that much harder, but interesting, to read.

The only reason I am giving it 4 stars is because the beginning took a little bit of time to build up and get going. I was a little bored waiting for the serious action to start in the beginning.

Ultimately, I recommend this series to anyone and I am going to be counting the days until the 3rd book comes out. Read this book if you like dope fantasy!

TW: death, decapitation, gore, mutilation, war

Roxane Dunbar-Ortiz does it again. In this book, she explores the myth of America being a “nation of immigrants” and debunks it. She does this by showing the history of America and all of the racist/xenophobic ways in which it has dealt with immigration. She does a masterful job of presenting this information. She presents the facts, with laws and direct quotes from America's past that really show how they have only ever wanted European immigrants, and have done their best to limit all other immigrants. She also discusses the ways they have dealt with Native Americans that were/are living here since before Europeans ever showed up and forcefully took their land.

All in all, Dunbar-Ortiz is incredibly knowledgeable about American history and her books really highlight that. I would recommend this book and all of her others to anyone. These should be read in schools.

Woah.

First, I would like to thank NetGalley and the publisher for access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Woah. I went into this book completely blind. I have not listened to the podcast or consumed any other media related to this story. I'm kind of glad I didn't. The best way I could tell someone about this story is that it's like if “Ready Player One” was set in real life, and scarier, and slightly magical.

This book follows K, whose life obsession has been playing a game called Rabbits, where the goal and instructions for the game are covered in mystery, and you're not supposed to talk about it. He follows patterns and connections in everyday life, trying to find out information about the game. When he is confronted by an unexpected visitor about the game, his entire life is flipped on its head. Between missing chunks of memory and weird things existing where they won't before, K has to confront the concept of reality and what is and isn't real in his world.

This book was honestly terrifying. I don't know if it would be classified as fantasy, sci-fi, thriller, or horror. I guess all of the above! I really enjoyed this story and the characters. I found myself slack jawed multiple times, and confused more than once. My heart rate accelerated as the characters encountered more and more obstacles in the game, and experienced increasing amounts of life threatening events. The plot was captivating, the characters funny and relatable, and the pacing incredible.

This book is incredibly well thought out and crafted. I recommend this to anyone looking for a thrilling, thought provoking book.

TW: alcohol, anxiety, assault, Attempted murder, blood, bones, death, drugs, gore, gun, gun violence, hallucinations, murder, violence

This sequel to “The Extraordinaries” was a book I was greatly looking forward to. While this was a fun book, I don't think it lived up to how successful the first was.

This book starts off after the first book ends, with Nick and his friends just trying to get through high school while also dealing with the Extraordinaries from Nova City. One of the biggest things I loved in the first book was how funny it was. I was laughing constantly, and even when things got serious, I still had fun. This book was much more serious than the first one. At the beginning, I thought it would have the same hilarity, and I found myself laughing aloud multiple times. However, as the book went on, that was kind of lost. There were a few one-liners here and there, but I wasn't rolling. The stakes in the first story felt higher, but it was still able to brign that fun nature. This one got very serious.

While I understand what Klune was trying to do with grappling with Nick's dad being a cop, I don't know if he pulled it off or not. There was a lot of discussion throughout about cops in America and Nick's dad's part in that. While I think in a way this was an important discussion to have, it felt weird seeing it all from Nick's perspective. Not sure how to put it into words, but it just felt a little off.

While this book didn't live up to the first one, I still love the found family in this book. Nick, Seth, Gibby, and Jazz are the cutest group of friends in the world. Their interactions are so genuine, and they are all just there to support each other through whatever they go through. This trope is definitely one of my favorites, and Klune has proven to be a master at it.

All in all, this series is a fun read. It's cute and funny. However, not sure if this one had the same impact as the first.

TW: assault, blood, bullying, fire, hostages, kidnpaping, police brutality, profanity, racism, violence

In this urban fantasy novel set in Malaysia, we follow a young woman named Jessamyn. She has moved from the US to Malaysia with her parents, and shortly upon arrival, she starts hearing voices. She realizes that she has become a medium for her dead grandmother, who is out looking for vengeance. What follows is a story full of betrayal, plot twists, and the exploration of family ties.

The premise of this book is a good one. It uses different Malaysian beliefs to create it's magic system. However, I found myself bored through a lot of this book. I think much of this was because of the urban fantasy setting. I'm not normally a fan of urban fantasy. I do think that the relationships throughout this book were well thought out, they just didn't hold my attention well. All in all, I think the plot and the characters were very well thought out, and I really liked the exploration of the what women have suffered through throughout the ages. However, I found myself getting bored throughout, whether from the pacing or the urban fantasy setting, I'm not sure.

I would still recommend this book to people that like urban fantasy. I definitely understand the draw of this story, and fans of urban fantasy will love this one!

TW: death, physical abuse, sexual abuse (one incident of near-rape), casual homophobia

Rep: Lesbian Malaysian heroine, sapphic Indian love interest, Malaysian cast, Malaysian-Indian side character

I listened to this on audiobook and don't think I was as focused as I could've been while listening. I found it to be boring and hard to follow, but I don't want to give a full review since I'm not sure I really absorbed the story. May try to read a physical copy later. Not going to give a star rating.

Alexandria Bellefluer is quickly climbing the ranks of my favorite romance authors. This novel follows Darcy's brother, Brendan. We were introduced to him in the first book, but he played a supporting role. Ever the optimist, and also the founder of a popular dating app, Brendan is a romantic at heart. When Darcy's best friend, and his childhood crush, Annie, comes into town, Brendan decides to show her around Seattle to show her romance isn't dead. However, he doesn't expect to get feelings for her. What follows is a rom-com that will lift your spirits.

I'm a sucker for a happy, sappy romance novel. However, I want some realism sprinkled in. This book did just that. Annie has to battle with a career she doesn't love in a place she doesn't love, but isn't ready to just throw away her whole life for something that could be a mistake. This felt very real to me. Most people have faced a decision like this, that is a huge risk and completely life changing, but ultimately terrifying.

I laughed out loud multiple times while listening to this audiobook. I never thought peeing in a cup could be so funny, but I was trying to hold back raucous laughter while at work listening. The interactions between Brendan and Annie are hysterical of course, but honestly every character interaction had humor in it. Darcy and Annie's interactions were equally hilarious. The book delivered on steaminess, happiness, a touch of sadness, and ultimately left me with a smile on my face, which is all I ask of a good romance novel. I would recommend this book to anyone needing a happy pick-me-up.

TW: parental abandonment, sexually explicit scenes

WOOOOOOWWWWW. Brb while I finish crying and gushing.

This book follows Poppy and Alex, two best friends who take an annual summer vacation together. They're two very different people, but their relationship works so well together. The story follows them through their 12 year relationship as they date other people and figure out what they want in life, only to figure out maybe they already had it.

This book is so heartfelt and wonderful. Alex and Poppy are hilarious, and their banter made me laugh out loud multiple times. The romance was definitely a slow burn, but it was completely worth it. Their struggles were so relatable. I found myself tearing up at the end when they talked about their fears because I've felt the very same. I loved this book and will forever read any book that Emily Henry comes out with.

TW: alcohol, anxiety, bullying, death, depression, drugs, sexually explicit scenes

First, I would like to thank the author for sending me this ARC as part of an Instagram giveaway.

Everyone should go ahead and preorder this book now. I had such a fun time reading this. While this is only the second book I've read by Moreno-Garcia, (the first being “Mexican Gothic”) I already know I will like anything she puts out, and I already have some books on hold with my library.

This book takes place in present day Mexico City, where vampires are not allowed within city limits. When vampires were revealed to be a real thing in the 1970's, the world was in an uproar. Vampires took over media by storm, and many misconceptions were quickly made. This story follows a woman, Atl, who is part of a species of vampires that are descendants of the Aztecs. Her entire family has been killed and she's on the run from the Necros, the vampires that killed them. When she stumbles upon a human named Domingo who is willing to help her, she brings him on and together they try to escape Mexico City.

This book is a quick read, both in terms of page count and pacing. Everything moved so quickly. The characters were very well fleshed out for such a short book, and the world building was spectacular. I could've read multiple books set in this world. There was such a rich tapestry created of this alternate Mexico City. I was immensely fascinated by the history of Atl's family, because they were very traditional and traced their roots back to such a rich time period.

All-in-all, I think this is the perfect book to pick up for the start of fall. It's spooky, thrilling, and enthralling.

TW: alcohol, amputation, assault, blood, bones, death, decaptiation, drugs, fire, gore, gun violence, hostages, kidnapping, misogyny, murder, police brutality, profanity, prostitution, sexual assault, torture, violence

I'm going to do a dedicated review for this on my YouTube channel, so I won't get too far into this review.

This book definitely made up for how much I disliked the last one in the series. The plot didn't drag like the last one, and I feel like we got some good character development throughout. This one so far is probably the best one of the series plot-wise.

However, we still had some annoying things. There is so much stuff that is repeated throughout, i.e. someone not understand people of another gender, or Nynaeve tugging her braid, or making it abundantly clear how much weaker women are than men physically. It all got very tedious and annoying. Every time one of these phrases came up, I just rolled my eyes. It was nonstop. Also, since there's so many characters in this book, Jordan tries to give them all some distinguishing mannerism or trait so we remember who he's talking about, but at some point, it gets to just feel like all of the side characters are 2 dimensional.

Complaints aside, I actually did really enjoy the plot and lore of this book. We got to explore the Aiel a lot more and that was great. Overall, a good book with some annoying writing mixed in.

TW: attempted murder, blood, bones, death, decapitation, violence

Booktok made me do it.

This story is a retelling of the story of Hades and Persephone, set in a modern world where Zeus reigns over the city of Olympus. When Persephone's mother blindsides her with a promised marriage to Zeus, who is notorious for his brutality, Persephone runs away. She ends up across the river Styx, where she strikes a bargain with the elusive Hades to get them both out of their situations. What follows is a super steamy, yet incredibly sweet, story about 2 people who just want acceptance and love.

I really enjoyed this book. I don't know a whole lot about Greek mythology, but this book didn't make me feel like I was missing anything. The characters were all relatable and unique, while the romance was sooooo steamy, while also showing a lot of vulnerability and love. While there was definitely a little bit of insta-love here, I don't think it detracted too much from the story. I think it was well executed and made to be believable. The story was vaguely reminiscent of ACOTAR, but a lot darker. Incredibly enjoyable! I finished it in a day! I definitely recommend the audiobook. The narrators really brought this story to life.

TW: assault, blood, parental death, fire, gore, gun violence, murder, sexual assault (not on page), sexually explicit scenes, violence

This book delves into the intricacies of border patrol policies around the world. Walia shows the reader, through extensive research, the effect racist border patrol policies have on marginalized peoples throughout the world.

Most of these border policies are based on racist people trying to make sure only “good” immigrants come into their countries. Marginalized people seeking to immigrate are only allowed if they are “beneficial” to that country, meaning they can do cheap, often dangerous labor without any rights. Most of these people don't have a path to citizenship, and their lives are tied to their employer. They don't have the same rights in terms of minimum wage, maximum hours, etc. Asylum seekers are often denied due to extraneous reasons that are intentionally set in place by these countries to curb the migration of “undesirable” immigrants.

I'm not doing nearly as well at explaining these concepts as Walia does in this book. I highly recommend this book to everyone to read. It really opened my eyes to how unnecessary, racist, and cruel these imaginary lines we've created are. Please read this book. It is brilliantly researched and formatted, and should be taught in schools.

Touraine was stolen as a child to fight in the Balladairan army. This life is all she's known, and she's taught to be grateful that she was saved from being “uncivilized” and given a much nicer life. However, when her unit is sent on an assignment to her home country to stop a rebellion fomenting there, she starts to realize that Balladaire may not have her best interests at heart. Luca is next in line for the throne of Balladaire, and is sent to quell this rebellion as a test of her abilities. When her's and Touraine's paths cross, they must figure out where their loyalties lie.

I really enjoyed this book. There were so many layers and complexities that were expertly woven together to create this story of colonialism. The characters were very memorable and endearing. The reader was really shown how difficult the decisions everyone had to make were, and really solidified that everyone is doing what they think is best. The plot was fast paced and intense. The only part of the story I wasn't as invested in was the romance. I didn't feel like there was enough there for the feelings to cause such internal conflict within the characters. Their feelings were very strong. However, I don't believe this detracted from the story much. Everything else made up for it in a great way.

I recommend this book to anyone looking for an intense, epic queer fantasy story.

TW: ableism, abuse (mental, emotional, physical), attempted rape (past), blood, colonization, death, drugging, grief, murder, sexual assault (mentioned), slavery, torture, violence, war

As a big fan of the Red Queen series, I was very excited to read this new start to a series by Victoria Aveyard. I went into the novel having no idea what the premise was. Overall, I think this was a good start to the series, even though it had a slow start.

This book follows a whole cast of characters. There are a lot of POVs. Essentially, there are these rips in the world called Spindles that allow access to different realms. There is a man and a wizard that are going around trying to open a lot of these and bring over monsters to destroy and/or control this realm. A merry band of misfits joins together to try to stop them.

The biggest downfall to this book is how long it took to get going. There is so much lore that had to be told, that the first 250 pages or so felt like one massive info dump. Not much happened. However, the lore was interesting enough to keep me reading. The second half of the book was action packed, and I found myself really enjoying it. Still, half a book of boring info dumping is not the greatest, hence my 3 star rating.

This book had one of my favorite tropes of a found family, and I really enjoyed this one. I think the characters were well thought out and their inter-relationships within the group were unique and fun to read. The plot, once it got going, was swift and exciting. I think that the lore of this world has set up for a great series. I'm very excited to read the second one. Now that the reader knows the whole backstory to this world, I'm hoping the pace will be accelerated for the rest of the series.

All in all, I would recommend this book. I completely understand if reading 250 pages of not much action isn't your jam, but I will say that I think the pay off is worth it. Excited for the next one!

TW: alcohol, animal abuse, animal death, blood, death, demons, gore murder, poisoning, violence, war

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

When a small life form starts feeding on energy from the sun, humans on Earth must find a way to stop them quickly before they go into a mass extinction event. After finding a planet 12 light years away that's star hadn't dimmed, but had this life form, they send out an expedition to this star system to find out how this star is surviving. Once out there, the scientist discovers alien life.

This book was so heartwarming and fun. The relationship between Rocky and Dr. Grace is so cute and wholesome. The beginning instantly grabbed my attention and I was sucked into this story. Some of the middle bits were a little slow. It was a lot of scientific experiments as Ryland and Rocky were trying to figure out how this star was surviving. There wasn't as much action, and there was a lot of scientific explanation. However, by the ending, I was fully invested again. The end was completely unexpected, but I think was an incredibly fitting ending to this fun, cute story. This book has inspired me to read “The Martian” in the future, considering this is my first Weir book I've read.

I highly recommend this book to sci-fi and non-sci-fi readers everywhere. It's a story about space exploration, but also a story about friendship, discovery, and perseverance.

TW: alcohol, death, drugs, fire, kidnapping, needles, skeletons, poisoning