Have heard good buzz around this book, can’t wait to read!
Tuesday, December 22, 2020
Reading Update: Page 1
Monday, December 21, 2020
Review: The Twelve Dogs of Christmas
The Twelve Dogs of Christmas by Lizzie ShaneMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Feeling restless and lonely, Ally decides that with a canceled photography gig and her apartment lease up, that now is the perfect time to leave New York and spend some time with her grandparents in small town Pine Hollow, Vermont. She loves helping out with their dog rescue shelter and is heartbroken when the city council decides to cut funding for the shelter.
After his sister and brother-in-law died in a car accident, Ben assumed responsibility for his niece, Astrid. Two years later and he still feels like his head is under water and he's not doing enough of a good job. Even though he has no time in his hectic schedule, he feels bad about being the deciding vote on the city council to defund the town dog shelter and agrees to help their twelve dogs find homes before the end of the year.
Ally's loving Pine Hollow's big holiday celebrations and Ben is nicknamed “Ebeneezer” but the more time they spend together, the more they want the New Year to include each other.
It was sort of adorable, the gruff man with the scruffy beard holding himself so stiffly aloof. Determined not to let the dogs into his heart.
The first in the Pine Hollow series, this introduces us to this holiday obsessed small town in Vermont. If looking for a festive read, this delivers with mistletoe, snow, and holiday celebrations. With more of a Hallmark than Lifetime movie feel, some kisses but that's the extent of the heat, this was leisurely and sweetly paced. Even with Ben's backstory of losing his sister and now caring for his niece, I would still call this very low angst. It was easy to feel for Ben, all the responsibilities he took on to try and be a mother and father to Astrid, while never cracking under the pressure so Astrid never thought he might resent or not want her. His walled up exterior and not wanting to accept help, thinking it was a sign of defeat or he couldn't hack it, made me want to shake him a time or two but overall, you're going to like this bearded gruff but softhearted guy.
Where they dating and she hadn't even known it?
Since Ben's story is so strong, Ally's character fades a bit but I liked how strong and willing to put herself out there for Ben, especially towards the end, she was. I wish we could have gotten even more scenes with her grandparents as I think that could have colored in her character more but I liked the women relationships she started to develop in Pine Hollow and how that gave us a look at different facets of her personality. For awhile, Ally thinks Ben is engaged, and I liked how that brought out conflicting emotions in Ally that in turn showed us how much she was starting to really like him.
“Look, you two! You're under the mistletoe!”
With the more leisure pace and low heat, Ben and Ally spend the majority of the story developing their friendship and I enjoyed the focus on this aspect of a relationship; I felt these two did have a lasting future together as they seemed to actually know one another. Ben has a circle of friends ranging from the town sheriff, a lawyer, and baker and with Ally's teacher and princess party organizer friends, the series future looks to be in good hands. If you're a dog person, you'll greatly enjoy the rescue shelter's residents, especially Partridge, who I'd let drool on my foot all day. If looking for a sweet romance with some doggies and festive cheer, this will be a holiday favorite.
She laughed, stepping out in the wintry softness of the night, and turned to face him, hooking one finger into the lapel of his coat. “You can pretend to be as curmudgeonly as you want. I see you, Ben West.”
He met her eyes---and that thing came alive again, that spark that always seemed to be lingering between them, waiting to be ignited. “I see you, too.”
Saturday, December 19, 2020
50%
"Just because it's not the worst-case scenario doesn't mean it isn't hard. Hard isn't relative. It doesn't get easier because someone else has it worse. It's just hard. You don't need to make your hard seem smaller that someone else's." She glanced up at him, lightening the moment with a quick flashing grin. "Just don't make it bigger."
Friday, December 18, 2020
Reading Update: Page 1
Stomping out any lingering bah-humbug feelings with holiday delights 🥰
I’m always a sucker for holiday themed books 🎄
I make this every Dec (ok, 2x every Dec) and love how easy to how amazingly delicious it is
Thursday, December 17, 2020
Reading Update: 50%
Who knew Tate Rasmussen, the no-nonsense hard-ass, could be devastatingly sweet?
Monday, December 14, 2020
Reading Update: 50%
"I wish someone would look at me the way he looked at you."
Lilith paused, very curious as to what her friend had seen in the Marquis of Dansbury. "How did he look at me?"
"As though he was absorbing everything about you, inside and out."
Sunday, December 13, 2020
Review: The Fiery Crown
The Fiery Crown by Jeffe KennedyMy rating: 2 of 5 stars
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
The Fiery Crown is second in the Forgotten Empires series and can not be read as a standalone as it continues the story of Queen Euthalia and the Slave King, Conri. The first introduced readers to this fantasy world, a world that was ravaged twenty years ago and ruled ever since by the self-proclaimed emperor Anure. Conri was the prince of a kingdom called Oriel that was the first to fall. He was sent to the mines where his thirst for revenge grew until he was old enough to do something about it. He has a friend named Sondra from Oriel with him, a former General named Kara, and wizard named Ambrose, who claims Conri is part of a prophecy that will topple the kingdom. The first ends with Conri completing another part of Ambrose's prophecy, claiming the hand, marrying, the Queen Euthalia of Calanthe.
All my promises to protect her were as empty as my blackened soul. She’d called me a caged wolf, and she was more right than she knew. A trapped animal can never be trusted.
Euthalia was an aloof solitary figure in the first book as she is the only independent ruler left in the land and only because her father betrothed her to Anure. In this second installment, we get to see her open up more as her and Conri become closer through dealing with how to defeat Anure. Again, there was time dedicated to Euthalia's clothing and make-up choices but those were kept more brief as the focus started to turn to why she has such an elaborate get-up. Euthalia is an elemental, she would grow flowers and vines instead of hair if she didn't shave it and can share thoughts and feelings with her land Calanthe. This along, with brief appearances by Ambrose and some other wizards is really the only fantasy elements we get. There really isn't any new worldbuilding as this stagnates on Conri and Euthalia pushing and pulling at each other as Conri works to get his revenge and Euthalia tries to protect her land.
A final joke from the gods who’d abandoned me. It changed nothing that my heart had come to life. It only meant I’d bleed more when I died.
I really felt the first seventy percent of this could have been condensed down to 10-20 percent as I was, quite frankly, bored for the vast majority. The last 30% finally gives us a glimpse of the major villain Anure and has some action and heartbreak that moved the story along. There were times that I felt the vernacular felt a bit modern or off for the time and place this world is set in; it just didn't jive with the medieval feel. With some secrets revealed but more still unexplained and Anure not defeated, this ends with somewhat of a cliffhanger. I don't feel there was enough story here to drag out to three books but if everything is going to be wrapped up in the third, that should be full of revelations and action.
Monday, November 30, 2020
Reading Update: 10%
Monday goodies :)
Fantasy and chickpeas; I needed a lighter meal after all the turkey.
Have a fabulous week, everyone!
Delicious and easy to make
Mini Quick Review: The Orchid Throne
The Orchid Throne by Jeffe KennedyMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
I'm not totally convinced that this wasn't written just to describe Queen Euthalia's outfits and make-up.
A baddie, a wizard, an enslaved prince, and a virgin queen.
Never see the baddie but know he conquered all the lands twenty years ago.
Enslaved prince building his rebellion and grudgingly following his wizard's prophecy.
Some worldbuilding but mostly definitely first in a trilogy skimping to stretch out.
Virgin queen and enslaved prince have their thing.
Basically, meets and greets story that felt YA but characters late twenties and some sex added in to jazz it up for adults.
Sunday, November 29, 2020
Review: When a Rogue Meets His Match
When a Rogue Meets His Match by Elizabeth HoytMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
But that was the point: Messalina was his weakness. There was no way he could've let her go.
Second in the Greycourt series, this picks up where the first (Not the Duke's Darling) ended, Gideon Hawthorne spirits Messalina Greycourt to London on her uncle's orders. Gideon has been the Duke of Windemere's factotum for the last ten years and is rumored to do all sort of shady deeds for him. Messalina fears him and does her best to stay away from her uncle and Gideon. When she learns that she is to marry Gideon, her plans for running away from her uncle and taking her sister Lucretia to America rush to the forefront. With more threats to Lucretia, Messalina ends up marrying Gideon and we have a forced marriage of convenience, enemies-to-lovers, and some unrequited love.
An aristocrat such as she would never give her heart to a baseborn blackguard such as he.
The first book in the series introduced us to the feud between the Greycourts and de Morays; Messalina's sister Aurelia is thought to have been killed by Ran de Moray. This shattered their group of friends and has set-up underlining secrets and mysteries for the series. While I do think it could be possible to start the series here, you'd miss specifics about characters and emotions, you wouldn't get the full understanding and feel for some characters' thoughts and actions. The other big storyline from the first was an ancient society called the Wise Women, no worries there as it's barely discussed and only to say it has disbanded. While the first was too busy with numerous storythreads and plots, this slows down and focused on Messalina and Gideon.
His voice when he replied was husky. “Perhaps I do it for you.”
Focusing on Messalina and Gideon would have worked for me as Gideon's wrong side of the tracks unrequited love for the rich girl could have provided some great angst and tension but for as much as I wanted these two to spark and burn, they more often than not, fell flat. I would have loved a prologue showing a younger Gideon pining for Messalina, showing us why he grew to love her and provide some burning emotion. Messalina, for her part, seems to have always shunned Gideon, so we don't get her really seeing him until they are married. There's some rich girl naivety that Gideon calls out as he is from St. Giles, but there was too much back and forth from Messalina and that caused more of a dragged out feeling than slow burning. Messalina makes the deal that they won't consummate the marriage for one month and the day after, Gideon will give her some of her dowry, which then Messalina plans on using to escape with Lucretia to America. Messalina's plans never truly form, as she's fairly wishy-washy but there is some foreboding tension from the last task Messalina's uncle wants Gideon to complete and why he offered Messalina in marriage to Gideon. The Angst Big Misunderstanding comes and it felt forced in a way that had Messalina looking like she was overreacting and more so to just add some angst.
Then Messalina looked at him with dancing gray eyes, her mouth pursed sweetly to keep from laughing.
She was worth all the trouble in the world.
Overall, I did think this was better than the first that had way too much going on in it. This focuses more on the couple but while there is alluding to storylines dealing with Messalina's siblings for future books, I'm going to flip and say there wasn't enough going on in this one. Messalina and Gideon didn't give me enough for them to carry the book. I never felt why Gideon loved Messalina, besides loving that she smelled like bergamot which was repeated over and over, when Gideon was trying to bond with Messalina she thought he was playing her and when Messalina pushed Gideon to tell the truth about the task her uncle gave him, she punished him for actually telling her. I do think the underlining threads and plot for the overall series, was cleaned up and feels more on track; Aurelia's death that separated the Greycourts and de Morays is obviously going to tie the characters and series together. Messalina and Gideon were adequate but missing that usual Hoyt deliciousness.
Monday, November 23, 2020
Reading Update: Page 1
This first time I made this, I let the oats soak for about three hours and didn't think that was long enough. I made it a second time and let it soak for two days and thought that was perfect
Friday, November 20, 2020
Review: Written in the Stars
Written in the Stars by Alexandria BellefleurMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
4.5 stars
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
“I’m at my wits’ end with my brother’s matchmaking,” Darcy explained. “And you . . . you want your family to think you can hold down a relationship?”
Written in the Stars draws a little inspiration from Elizabeth and Darcy's personality conflicts from Pride and Prejudice and adds some fake relationship to produce a fantastic romcom (I know Romancelandia is wearing thin on everything being called a romcom but I swear, this is actually one). Elle, along with her roommate Margot, run Oh My Stars on social media sites, they produce astrology content. They've recently teamed up with OTP (One True Pairing), a dating app, to help match people. Brendon is the genius behind OTP and as Elle and him work together and get to know one another, Brendan decides Elle would be perfect for his sister Darcy. Elle is a sweet free spirit and even though she thinks about the ramifications of getting involved with her boss' sister, she agrees to go on the date with good intentions. Darcy on the other hand, is tired of being sent on blind dates that her overly romantic brother keeps forcing on her and after Elle is late to the date, she's already over it.
“Just because it started out fake doesn’t mean it can’t become real, right?”
The opposites attract is clear right away but what I enjoyed about Elle and Darcy's connection was that with their initial and mutual physical attraction, with each meeting, it was clear how emotionally they were fitting into each other's grooves. Elle was the more free spirited one but I liked how the author kept her from being the tired silly naive trope who needed the more serious and buttoned up Darcy to mange her and get her life on track. Elle is smart and in a serious career and financial deal with OTP, her family doesn't respect her career and that leads to feelings of inadequacy for her but she has control in her life. While on paper, Darcy would come across as the more stable one, she's actually the one who needs the most help. Her issues stem from her mother being emotionally crushed by their father and never recovering, leading Darcy to equate love with pain and she's coming off a broken engagement where her partner was cheating on her. Darcy has a tough exterior wall but with each date with Elle, it cracks and she lets her in more and more.
Elle loved herself, but what a feeling it must be, being loved by someone else exactly as you are, quirks and warts and all.
Darcy wants Brendon to stop looking at every woman as a potential life partner for her and Elle is sick of being single at family holiday get togethers, so the fake dating trope fits to get these two together. This is a character driven story and I enjoyed how through that, we actually get to see their relationship develop and go on the emotional journey with them. Secondary characters played their roles well but I could have stood for even more background and personality from some, Margot, Annie, and even more Brendon; they seem like they could be future stars of their own books in the series, so getting even more of them to entice interest would have been good. This was an open door romance to spice it up a bit but the funny, sweet, and heartfilled romcom tone was strong throughout. This is definitely a romance I would recommend and I'll be anticipating the always on the lookout for that HEA brother of Darcy, Brendon's book.
Darcy had miscalculated; she wasn’t falling, she’d fallen.
Friday, November 13, 2020
Reading Update: Page 1
This just released on Tuesday, can’t wait to dive in!
Have a great week, everyone 🙂
Great fresh taste to this
Thursday, November 12, 2020
Review: The Truth About Dukes
The Truth About Dukes by Grace BurrowesMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
His eyes...a mere pencil sketch would never do justice to a gaze that complicated. Rothhaven was both calm and turbulent. Distant and intensely present. To study him made Constance thirsty for a glass of wine---or something stronger.
This fifth installment in the Rogues to Riches series could be read as a standalone but I'd suggest at least reading the previous, A Duke by Any Other Name, to settle and familiarize yourself with the family dynamics and emotions going on. Constance is one of the sisters in the Wentworth family, whose members the series is about, and she has been the wallflower one, hovering on the edges. Robert is the older brother of Nathaniel, hero of previous book, and the actual Duke of Rothhaven. Five years ago, Nathaniel discovered that his brother was indeed alive and he rescued him from a private hospital. Their father had placed him there because Robert had the “falling sickness” (epilepsy) and was ashamed and didn't think he could handle the dukedom. When Nathaniel and Althea, Constance's sister, begin their romance, Constance and Robert are not, in fact, introduced but reunited.
Because in some way, he knew her. Not from long acquaintance, but from shared experience.
If you're a frequent reader of Burrowes, like I am, you'll know to expect a more calm, quiet, and loving tone. The dramatics (arguably some theatrics drama at the very end) are left out in favor of a soothing read where you're pulled in by virtue of already being attached to the family by reading previous books. I wish we had gotten flashback scenes of when Constance and Robert first meet and their initial bonding. Burrowes does a good job of having Constance and Robert relay what their friendship meant to them when they first met but that already connection left a lot of the first spark and burn out of the story and the romance feel of this suffered because of it. The first half of this was more about the backstory than readers being involved in real-time of Constance and Robert falling in love. However, the backstory of Constance running away to elope at fifteen but getting abandoned and having to work in the kitchens of the private hospital Robert was held, along with both having abusive fathers, gave me the hows and whys for their bond, it just didn't feel like I was involved in the emotion of it.
“[...]The power of that, of being seen and cared for by a person with the courage to act, made all the difference in the world.”
The second and latter half has our couple solidly together and is more about them dealing with a threat from a crooked solicitor who wants to get Robert declared mentally unfit so he can be declared guardian of his estate and skim some profits for himself. There's also a reveal of a secret Constance has held from most of her family. These two things pull and have Constance and Robert working together, showcasing how well they work together. There's some one-eighty turning from one “villain” and the ending had a thwarting of another villain that felt a bit slap-happy. Constance and Robert were both more still waters run deep characters, especially Robert, I would have liked a bit more from him and you're going to have to find conversation more intimate than a kiss (this statement was even worked into the text) to enjoy their story. There were some truly touching moments but be prepared for this to be less romance and more of a family drama.
“Now I know I can never let you go.” Then he kissed her, with no self-restraint, whatsoever.
Tuesday, November 10, 2020
Reading Update: Page 1
Happy release day to the fifth book in the Rogues to Riches series 🎉
Constance Wentworth, the more wallflower sister, finally gets her chance at a happily ever after with the mysterious Robert Rothmere 💕
Monday, November 9, 2020
Review: Recipe for Persuasion
Recipe for Persuasion by Sonali DevMy rating: 4 of 5 stars
3.5 stars
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
She was the one who couldn’t be the kind of daughter who made her mother want to stay. She was the daughter who wasn’t enough for her father to give up whatever it was he got from his scotch.
Recipe for Persuasion continues an intimate look into the lives of the Raje family members, an Indian royal family living in California who readers were introduced to in Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors. Newcomers could jump in here, as while past characters still remain a part of the story, this focuses on a different branch. Ashna is the daughter of the younger Raje son, a man who let being a prince and the indulgences of such a position lead him to more selfish and easier decisions, choices that greatly affected Ashna's childhood and turned her into an extremely closed off and dealing with depression and anxiety induced by PTSD now adult. Ashna met Rico when they were in highschool and the two secretly dated for two years before there was a major blow-out involving her father. Twelve years later, Rico decides that he wants at least some closure with Ashna and decides to get on the reality cooking show “Cooking With the Stars” where Ashna will be competing as a chef.
She was with him even when she wasn’t with him.
The beginning sets up our characters with Ashna still reeling and dealing with the fallout of her alcoholic father's suicide twelve years earlier. To escape after the suicide, Ashna went to culinary school in Paris, leaving her father's restaurant, Curried Dreams, in the hands of employees who in turn embezzled money and has her still trying to stave off bankruptcy. While Ashna's intensely private and gets severe panic attacks whenever she tries to alter her Baba's (father) recipes, severely hampering her cooking ability, another fight with her mother has her agreeing to be on the show.
We get less of an in depth look at Rico's life, currently, he's just retired from being a star football (soccer) player and musing over the fact he is godfather to more than one ex-girlfriend's children. He lost his parents young and while his mother was his father's mistress, they loved each other and he had a happy childhood. There's some drawing out, in regards to the pain he felt as a child over his father never really being able to claim him publicly, through Ashna wanting to keep their relationship secret in highschool and feeling like she choose her father over him, to give his character's emotions some depth. However, he's more to the side and why I'm not sure I'd fully call this genre romance but more of a mashup of women's fiction and, what I call, literary romance.
Have you ever thought about what it means to hide what’s important to you from those you love?
What isn't immediately apparent but instead is slowly, onion layers peeled away, is that the main relationship of the story isn't about romantic love but mother and daughter. Most of the first half showcases Ashna's point-of-view of how her fierce advocate for girl and women's rights mother, Shoban, constantly abandoned her and how that made her feel unloved and unwanted. The second half gives readers Shoban's side of the story, with flashbacks and her current thoughts and feelings. Shoban's character came very close to stealing the show, if not doing so at times, and I found myself almost wishing this was her story.
She’d finally listen.
If you're going into this strictly for the romance, you'd end up missing what makes Sonali Dev's writing so beautifully piercing at times; the profound way it speaks family relationships and how quietly devastating and loving they can be. Ashna's aunt, Mina, calmly speaks this to Ashna:“I like to believe we changed things at least a little, your mother more than me. But in this changed world, you girls can’t seem to see how it was for us. You can’t see our obstacles because we removed them for you. And now you get to judge us from a perspective that we weren’t lucky enough to enjoy.”. It is a fairly quick moment but has such power when Ashna relates it to her mother.
“Do you mean it?” Her voice was a whisper.
He swallowed, his thickly stubbled jaw tightening. “Mean what?”
“Everything you say to me with your eyes?”
Along with the poignant writing, I took delight in some of the little details, like how Dev continues with her Jane Austen tie-ins. As you can guess by the title, Ashna and Federico 's second chance love story is inspirit of Anne and Frederick from Persuasion. The closeness of their names is cute but the hashtag that grows from fan's love of the pair on the reality cooking show, #Ashico, “which when said out loud sounded far too much like the Hindi word ashiquo which, disastrously enough, meant “lovers.””, is a perfect book's cultural little tie-in bow.
While I didn't quite get all I needed from Rico and his relationship with Ashna, this story was more about the forest than the trees for me. The overarching look at how familial relationships shape and define us and how that leads us to shape and define our own relationships. Dev's writing always has a beating heart underneath it that never fails to move and connect with me some way, I'm looking forward to going on the next emotional journey with the Raje family.
Sunday, November 8, 2020
Reading Update: Page 1
Spending this Sunday, that seems brighter than it has in four years, with some goodies 🥰
Sonali Dev never fails to bring the emotion, can’t wait to revisit the Rajes!
These are delicious and not really that hard to make. The sauce is 😋
Review: Vision in White
Vision in White by Nora RobertsMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
2.5 stars
This isn't really a review, but, in a nod to timing, I wanted to alert anyone that still might have some Steve Kornacki thirst that the hero in this could help carry some of that weight. Dr. Maguire is a high school Lit teacher and a competent cinnamon roll.
The rest of the characters and story, meh, a lot of wedding talk with acronyms (ex. MOB-mother of bride) that ruined the smoothness of reading for me, I couldn't quite sink into the romance, and overall this just had some caustic chaotic energy.
I leave you with some favorite quotes:
The taste of her, the feel . That moment of lips and tongue, and the heat rising in the blood. In the quiet of snowfall, that elemental hush, the sound of her breath sighing out broke in his mind like thunder. A storm gathering.
#KorsnackiAlert
She stopped, threw her hands up again. “Grandfathers wear tweed. Old guys in old British movies wear tweed. Why do I find it sexy that he wears tweed? This is a question that haunts me.”
“Haven’t heard from Carter?”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because you’re going to buy shoes, which is comfort food for you. Have you called him?”
“To say what? I’m sorry? I already said that. I was wrong? I was, I know I was wrong, but it doesn’t change what I feel.”
“Which is?”
“Confused, afraid, stupid. Double all of that because I miss seeing him,” she admitted. “I miss talking to him. So I think it’s better if I don’t see him or talk to him.”
Saturday, November 7, 2020
Review: Notorious
Notorious by Minerva SpencerMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
2.5 stars
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Could there be anything more pitiful than a homely wallflower yearning for an arresting, attractive Corinthian?
The first in the Rebels of the Ton series, Notorious pairs together Drusilla Clare, an heiress but the daughter of a tradesman and Gabriel Marlington, the son of an Englishwoman and the late sultan of Oran. Some of the names in the story may appear familiar, Gabriel's mother and stepfather starred in a previous series (Outcasts – Dangerous). I have not read that book and, in the beginning, I wondered if I missed some of Gabriel's background that was given in that book. We eventually get more of Gabriel's background regarding his family in Oran and what transpired there but it is more towards the end of the story and I felt placing it thus, gave the story some disjointed and pacing problems.
She behaved as though he were a savage libertine with no self-restraint. Restraint was probably her middle name---or perhaps it was Censorious.
I liked the beginning set-up with Drusilla's unrequited love for her friend Eva's stepbrother, Gabriel, and then they're forced marriage to save Drusilla's reputation. However, Drusilla is determined to keep her love for Gabriel a secret from him because she doesn't think there is anyway he could ever feel that way for her, in doing so, she is very caustic and quick to shut him out. They started off with some biting back and forth that felt like it could have some smoldering heat underneath but for the majority of the book, it kept getting dampened instead of building to flames. In the middle, Gabriel did reach out a couple times and try to build a friendship in their marriage but, even though Drusilla beat herself up over it right after, Drusilla kept being biting towards him. It is not until the latter half that we get her warming up and the author writes most of the thawing in very open door sex scenes.
But she could not tell him what she truly feared: that she would be married to a man she loved who would never love her.
The driving force to get these two together is a man named Lord Godric Visel, he hates Gabriel for some reason and creates the scene that has Gabriel offering for Drusilla's hand and a duel. After that scene, Visel hovers more on the edges, a murky danger for Gabriel and Drusilla but that storyline never truly develops as we get no reason for Visel's hate other than he might be “mad”. I would let this go more as the author alludes to racism being a possible reason but Visel looks to be lined up as the hero in the next in the series, and if that was his reason, I can't imagine readers enjoying his story. Visel also has a cousin that is friends with Drusilla that has some shady doings going on, works to help fill out the slight mystery and danger plot but I almost could have done with more scenes of Gabriel and Drusilla's growing friendship to romance more.
I found the way some of the story's plot threads and reveals of characters, Gabriel's past in Oran revealed more towards the end, helped to create some pacing issues; the middle and latter half dragged for me. Drusilla stayed caustic towards Gabriel for too long and their bedroom antics didn't make-up for an emotional connection I was missing. I'm curiously interested in Gabriel's friend Thomas Byer but, as I said, the next in the series seems to pair Gabriel's stepsister Eva with the villain of this story, Visel, which to the way he was portrayed here, I have questions.
View all my reviews
View all my reviews
Sunday, November 1, 2020
Reading Update: Page 1
Ringing in November with good food and a good book ❤️
Saturday, October 31, 2020
Final Update: Halloween Bingo 2020
I didn't manage to get a bingo this year but as always, I had so much fun playing. This helped me with my slumpy reading lately, and I also enjoy the different genre visiting.
The completed picture is at the bottom, I'm bummed I didn't get to show the little spider and black cat but happy the witch got to be shown.
Happy Halloween and see you all next year for bingo!
Bingo squares with books read for them and review links
13 - The Thirteenth Tale by Diane Setterfield
Black Cat - Familiar Showdown by Caroline Burnes
Genre: Mystery - The Sun Down Motel by Simone St. James
Romantic Suspense - The Broken by Shelley Coriell
International Woman of Mystery - My Sister, The Serial Killer by Oyinkan Braithwaite
Aliens - Parasite by Darcy Coates
In the Dark, Dark Woods - On the Night of the Seventh Moon by Victoria Holt
Shifters - Big Bad Wolf by Suleikha Snyder
Trick or Treat - The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
Review: The Night Circus
The Night Circus by Erin MorgensternMy rating: 2 of 5 stars
Mini-Review
For a story that spans over a decade, I can't believe how much doesn't happen. There are two leads, Celia and Marco, and they are competing in some kind of magical war. Why and what it means when either wins, NO CLUE. I spent the majority of this thinking it was just introducing characters, kind of following Celia and Marco, and time jumping. The venue for their competition is the circus and they each build tents trying to showcase their magical abilities. Real people work there and they get caught up and bound into the competition.
The concept was incredibly interesting, a magical circus with two magician opponents, and just a general cool atmosphere. The concept was there but the worldbuilding and character development was not for me. Celia was the most flushed out but Marco and their romance never expanded beyond the storyboard for me. Plus, the whole train that the circus travels on can go across oceans? Magic, I guess but the author left out so many details for me to see and feel this world.
I honestly felt like I had no idea what was really happening or understood a modicum of this world until around the 60-70% mark when we get some explanations. A long time to go in a book and by that time I didn't really care and my eyes kept wanting to glaze over. The ending used a character that was thrown in just to give a, somewhat, happy ending. I don't know, this seemed like a really great second draft that needed more editing and building.
Tuesday, October 27, 2020
Reading Update: Page 1
Reading
for the 
Halloween Bingo square.
Your Halloween themed treats are 
spooky brownies!
Monday, October 26, 2020
Review: Blacklisted
Blacklisted by Jay CrownoverMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
3.5 stars
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
“I'm the one who is going to purposely cross your path. I'm never going to walk the other way when I see you coming. I'm going to head right toward you.”
The third and final installment in the Loveless, Texas series about the Lawton siblings focuses on Dr. Presley Baskins, the half-sibling new to the family. Blacklisted starts right where the second in the series, Unforgiven left off. Presley's half-sister Kody called her to come help a man who was shot. The man turns out to be Palmer “Shot” Caldwell, the president of the motorcycle club Sons of Sorrow. Presley saves his life and is told the club owes her a favor and she can collect anytime. Shot gets antsy after three months of Presley not calling in the favor and ends up staking out her apartment to try and get a read on who his club owes a favor. When Presley comes out to confront him about stalking her, they have an instant pull between them, they also get shot at and with both thinking they were the target, the story takes off from there.
I'd spent so long being calm and serene for the comfort of others, I'd forgotten how cathartic anger could be when it was called for.
This would be technically possible to start without reading the first two (there's also a novella) but you'd miss out on family dynamics and the latter half of this was a lovely wrap-up and send-off of the series that newbies wouldn't get the full emotional impact as much as readers of the series would. I was kind of surprised at how calm and measured the characters, story, and pace was in this. While Shot is the president of Sons of Sorrow, we get almost zero of any motorcycle club story or atmosphere. There are a couple scenes with his vice president Top and their friendship, a mention of dealings out of the country, some prospects guarding Presley, and Presley dealing with not knowing where Shot is because of club business. Shot talks about how the club is a family for him but without scenes with and about, I got no emotional connection from that aspect. I did like how the story focused on Presley and Shot's emerging relationship. They're both closer to forty and I think that came through with how quiet and thoughtful their relationship was at times. The suspense and action lingered on the edges and came from Presley's issue with a former friend that was introduced in the second in the series.
“When I'm with her, things get quiet. I can hear myself think.”
When Presley was brought into the series, the Lawton siblings had no idea about her and then circumstances lined up to make them think that Presley killed their dad to collect her inheritance. The circumstances turned out to be a friend of Presley's named Ashby who has now gone full single white female. Presley got a promotion that would make her Chief Medical Examiner and while Ashby had been content subtly undercutting Presley through their whole friendship, she freaks out and really starts ramping things up. Presley grew-up with just her mother who suffered from kidney disease and this, coupled with how intelligent she was, isolated her and made her a bit of a workaholic. It's only when she suspects that Ashby might have murdered her mother that Presley lets her anger free and decides to leave protective custody and become proactive in getting Ashby finally caught. There's some help from Shot, acting on a favor Presley asks of him, setting guards on her, and helping her be stronger. Presley's half-brother's, a sheriff and Texas Ranger, come up with an idea to have Shot act all lovey dovey with Presley to make Ashby jealous and try to flush her out that way. They want him to get Ashby alone and try to get her to admit on wire all the things she did but they also don't want him to tell Presley about it. As you can guess, this set-up makes for a sure late act disturbance full of danger, mistrust, and hurt.
“I see all the things you don't see. I see how strong you are. I see how resilient you are. I see how brave you are. I see how sexy you are. All the things you've always overlooked. I see them clear as day.”
While I missed more of Shot's background and interaction with his club brothers, I was pleasantly surprised at how sweet he was; he delivers some truly sigh worthy lines to Presley. The suspense lingering on the edges did its job to create some tension and get our leads together but the single white female aspect got a bit wild at times. The ending provided for a pleasantly gratifying close to the Lawton siblings' stories that will leave series readers satisfying and smiling.
View all my reviews
View all my reviews
Saturday, October 24, 2020
Reading Update: Page 1
I’ve been anticipating Shot’s book ever since he first popped up in the Loveless, Texas series.
Dr. Presley Baskin, get your man!
I have so much fun making themed food and these Halloween brownie cupcakes are beyond delicious 😋
Do you theme read or theme bake?
Blacklisted by Jay Crownover preorder (Oct 27) link
Friday, October 23, 2020
Review: Big Bad Wolf
Big Bad Wolf by Suleikha SnyderMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
3.5 stars
I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.
Joe Peluso was the monster in the closet, the creature you were warned about in fairy tales… and still, somehow, not the scariest white man Neha had encountered while doing her job.
Big Bad Wolf kicks off the Third Shift series set in an urban fantasy world full of paranormal and supernatural beings while incorporating a sense of current political times. This is much more of an ensemble piece, and I would say read this as a clear first-in-series world set-up, than a straight focus on one couple. The impetus that starts the story rolling is Neha Ahluwalia, a junior associate with a doctorate in behavioral psych, is brought in on a case her firm took involving Joe Peluso. She's there to analyze him and get him to talk, so that they can come up with a defense for why Joe killed six Russian Bratva members. Through Joe, the reader learns about the Apex Initiative, a secret military project where in Phase 3 Joe was brought in and injected with some kind of serum that gave him the ability to be a wolf shifter. Neha and Joe have instant heat between them and when an attempt to kill Joe happens, Neha goes on the run with him.
They were a ragtag crew who moonlighted fixing other people’s problems. Except the ragtag crew included some werewolves and vampires and sorcerers.
The first half has the reader mostly in the characters' heads, as through them we get a picture of the world they live in. We're told about The Darkest Day where a NSA internal memo was “accidentally” leaked and U.S. citizens learn about the existence of supernatural and paranormal beings. This leads to an increased military state where the creation of the Supernatural Regulation Bureau, Emergency Service Unit Watch, and use of drones overhead to monitor citizens to help them feel “safe”. This is countered a bit by the Sanctuary Alliance, a group of Sanctuary cities that claim to be safer for supernaturals; New York City is one of them and where this story is set. Third Shift Security is also a counter and a group of supernaturals, paranormals, and humans who go on missions and work to protect their brethren. Neha and Joe end up with them as they try to stay safe from officials trying to get Joe back under custody and what becomes a big part of the second half of the story, the Russian Bratva, who are also a clan of bear shifters, that wants to kill Joe in retaliation for the six he murdered.
So he had to watch himself. Wanting her was fine. But liking her? Caring about her? Actually being obsessed with her like he’d pretended to be the last time she was here…? Fuck, no. He had to draw a line. There was way too much to lose if he didn’t.
The second half picks up the pace with less internal monologues and more action. A second romance is highlighted between Danny Yeo, a NYPD detective working for Third Shift and Yulia Vasiliev, sister to the head of the bratva branch hunting Joe. While I thought the romance between Neha and Joe was more erotic in pacing and tone, instant and lusting, Yulia and Danny's relationship definitely captured my interest. We miss their initial meeting and come in months later where Yulia is trying to push Danny away for his own safety but still trying to give information to him about her brother and his activities. I thought these two had more of an emotional connection that I could believe in and therefore, more substance for me to engage with. Due to the worldbuilding taking over, Neha and Joe simply don't get much time together and when they are together, it was mostly about the sex. Neha was the better flushed out character with ties we get to see with her family, friends, and even job, helping to color in her personality. Joe's military career is discussed and how he suffers guilt from it, along with how close he was with a younger neighborhood boy named Kenny, who was murdered by the Russians and why Joe goes after them. Joe just never materialized into a fully solid character for me, I know he's not conventionally attractive and loves to give head (this was brought up over and over), which awesome, but I still needed him to feel fleshed out more.
This was not Neha’s world. She’d stepped through the Looking Glass when she crossed the threshold of Kamchatka. But she couldn’t go back. She’d signed on for this. She’d demanded participation . She was all in now. Because she’d made that call. Used the number Joe had given her… not to save herself, but to find her way back to him.
Ultimately, Neha and Joe's relationship failed for me; there wasn't enough emotional substance between them for me to buy Neha risking so much in the short amount of time she knew Joe. On the other hand, you will want to pick this up for the worldbuilding, I saw another reviewer compare this to Suzanne Brockmann, in terms of storylines, amount of characters and povs, I wholly agree. I think a comparison to Nalini Singh's Psy-Changeling series would also help readers grasp and anticipate the sheer amount of storylines and characters they're about to step into. While Neha and Joe's relationship, and maybe even Yulia and Danny's, looks to be wrapped up, there was a third romance between Neha's friend Nate, and two employees of Third Shift, Grace and Finn, that was left in the air. I would also mention that the author doesn't sprinkle in or is subtle with her views and political thoughts, if you're not ready for that kind of smoke to solidly be in your story, then this probably isn't the book for you. However, if you like some dry wit, a plethora of characters, weaving storylines, and worldbuilding that looks to be able to support a long running series, then you will want to pick up this first installment.
This was their adventure. Because the Third Shift was a shift that never really ended.
Monday, October 19, 2020
Reading Update: Page 1
Happy Monday!
Decided to start this week celebrating Halloween vibes 👻🎃
I’m obsessed with this cover, it gorgeously represents it’s a shifter romance.
My pumpkins (orange bell peppers) stuffed with chicken & rice) maybe not so gorgeously representing 🤣ðŸ˜
How’s everyone else getting into the Halloween spirit?
Review: On the Night of the Seventh Moon
On the Night of the Seventh Moon by Victoria HoltMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
3.3 stars
And I had learned the truth of what happened on the Night of the Seventh Moon; I had taken back those six days of my life; they belonged to me and I had been wantonly deceived.
This story was full of gaslighting, obliviousness, and trickery. Helena starts off as a young girl going to school in Germany, she gets lost wandering in the woods and gets "rescued" by a man. This begins her journey of never forgetting him, going back home to England, time jumps, going back to Germany, reunions, lies, gaslighting, more time jumps, more back and forth between England and Germany, a wild card old nursemaid, danger, and truths revealed.
I don't want to ruin the surprises and mystery, so I'm not going to go into detail of the story but there are some spoilers in my previous updates as I tried to figure things out as I read:
This was good but the ending kind of jumbled together in a hurry and, dare I say, had too happy of a one?? Some Gothic vibes at times and people wilding out with their scheming.
Sunday, October 18, 2020
70%
*Spoilers in updates
How dare you experiment with me! How dare you give me dreams that are without reality! If I have been abused I want to know it. There is nothing worse than uncertainty. Oh yes, there is. There is this terrible loss. The baby who was to have been my consolation has been taken from me.
So Helena ended up pregnant and now they are telling her that the baby died during delivery. I Don't believe it! I don't trust these people. Helena's young, I think almost 20yrs old at this point, and I can see how she gets swept along with everyone at times. But I also really wish she'd wake up and get away from these people.
There's a moment where she's talking to someone and they mention a "wild prince Carl" and the way the story unfolds about him, Helena's count is him, isn't it?????
She's back in England and then we get some big time jumps and Ilse disappears and stops corresponding with her and the whole time I can't help thinking, YOUR BABY IS ALIVE.
Oh wow, so the Anthony guy is now a vicar and still interested in Helena and she decides to tell him the whole story, how she was drugged by a doctor who told her she was raped and she imagined her wedding and lost her baby. I was screaming, "NO, girl, do not tell him this" but Anthony took it all like a champ and was like "So?" On one hand, good for nonjudgy Anthony, and the other, how you not seeing this as a red flag, lol.
It's been nine years now and while Helena is in a bookstore, a German woman named Frau Graben just happens to come in and then offer her a job teaching English to a count's three bastard children. I DO NOT trust this Frau Graben, obviously another set-up.
Oh my god, Fritz has Got to be her son, right???
"It was a mock marriage. It was often done-still is. The girl would not give in to him so the marriage was arranged. The so-called priest who performed the ceremony was no priest at all, but one of the courtiers, so of course the marriage was no true marriage and the girl was tricked. Her scruples were calmed and the honeymoon followed. In these cases when the bridegroom grows tired of the liaison he passes on and the lady realizes the truth.
She says this right to Helena's face and Helena doesn't even blink!!!! What is happening, wake up, girl!
He seems to have been better since you came. Learning English agrees with him. Or perhaps it's you. He seems to have taken a real fancy to you-and you to him." She gave me that rather sly look of hers.
I think I was right about Fritz! Frau Graben makes my skin crawl and I can't believe Helena isn't catching on.
I stared; for there, seated between the Duke and the Princess, was Maximilian.
It was Prince Carl!!! Ahhhh, I hope this is Helena's wakeup call and she starts taking some action and kicking the gaslighting to the curb and admitting to herself what happened. The whole haunted tower at the castle she is staying at is keeping the Gothic vibe lingering on the edges and hope the ghost doesn't turn out to be her. Eeek.
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