Review: Silver & Blood

Silver & Blood by Jessie Mihalik
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5 stars 

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

He was an Etheri sovereign---the very thing all the cautionary tales warned about. I couldn't lose my head just because he'd smiled at me. 

Silver and Blood was a romantasy story you're going to want to snuggle in for. This first installment ends on a cliffhanger and was more about establishing the fantasy world and relationships, before the big battles. The fantasy world, where our FMC Riela comes raised from the human side and at late twenties has just shown signs of having mage power and our MMC Garrick who at around chronologically one thousand years old but biologically thirties is an Etheri sovereign from the magical world of Lohka, was created and filled out in a complete way that I want the fantasy side in a romance to be. The gist of the story is that Garrick has been locked out of Lohka for decades by the Blood King, and when he finds Riela wondering around in the forest, he thinks she's a honey pot sent by the Blood King to kill him. Riela, for her part, is vastly clueless, she's grown up thinking that Etheri are fairy tale stories and has no clue why she has some magic and why she can't control it. 

“I want everyone to know you're under my protection.” His eyes flashed fully silver. 

A big chunk of the middle of this is Riela and Garrick stuck in his castle, on the human side of the fantasy world along with Garrick's magical wolf Grim, learning to trust each other's motives and having lusty feelings. This was told in dual pov, so you can see the internal struggles of both. I did think there was some slow moving going on in the middle because of Riela's forced obliviously to Garrick's feelings. I know I'm the reader getting both sides but there was some Riela being “completely unaware” that Garrick could ever have feelings for someone like her that got dragged out one, two, twenty-five too many times for the sake of tension, that honestly I couldn't believe/feel between them any longer. You get more of Garrick when the story moves to Lohka for a bit, which helped with his character but I could have stood for more depth from him and less dragged out obliviousness from Riela, but they did deliver on the handful of times they got physical.

There was only one way to protect Riela now, and as much as I might tell myself I didn't want to do it...I did.

As I mentioned, the fantasy side was definitely worth the price of admission with Etheri (think in the fairy family) and their different kingdoms/sovereigns divided into colorful magical houses and the different types of mages and magical beasts. I never felt overwhelmed with the world-building and information which is a testament to the storytelling skill going on here and even though the clues being given throughout about Riela, the clear reveal answers was still exciting to get to. The set-up for the next book, I think, will have more action as the villainous Blood King only discussed here will be getting screen time. 

“I am going to kill the Blood King.” 

Riela's background doesn't give her support from secondary characters, but Garrick's friends Grim and Bria add a lot (yes I'm clinging to that brief moment as promise for a romance). Riela and Garrick struggled with their trust issues and even though both mess up at times, this had some of those cozy vibes because you do think that they'll be gentle with each other as they work it out. The fantasy world had me enjoying this, Riela needed less repeated obliviously, Garrick maybe a little more depth to his character, but overall, it was a story that drew me in and I'm very ready to see what happens when Riela and Garrick face the Blood King.

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Review: Capture the Sun

Capture the Sun by Jessie Mihalik
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.5 stars 

I received this book for free, this does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review 

The man in front of me tilted his head, and I caught a glimpse of a familiar one-sided smile. My breath caught. It couldn't be. 

The third and conclusion to the Starlight's Shadow series, Capture the Sun gives us the ship's wild card recovery specialist Lexi and the Valoff that once betrayed her, Nilo. This would be much better read as a series instead of standalone, book 1 (Hunt the Stars) lays the foundation for the space opera world. Heavy on the politics of the world, you'd be pretty lost, especially in the second half, as all the plot threads laid through out the first two come to a conclusion here. The first half focused more on the relationship between Lexi and Nilo, they get to spend a good amount of time alone without the distraction of all the other crew members and Valoffs. Book one alluded to Lexi and Nilo having previously met and we get the full background story here where Lexi feels Nilo only flirted with her to take a job from her and while accurate, there was truth behind Nilo's attraction. I missed seeing these two in book 2 (Eclipse the Moon) and I think that would have helped me have more of feeling an emotional connection between these two. While they spent good alone time together, I'm not sure I felt all those emotions that has me loving a couple. 

“Starlight's Shadow disappeared.” 

While some of the emotional foundation and depth was missing for me between Lexi and Nilo, I did think this third installment married the blend and pace of romance and space opera together the best of the series. It gave us a first half of romance, where I could spend time with Lexi and Nilo and then a second half of space adventure and bringing in all those characters the worldbuilding had previously got me to care about; this author is really great at managing a bigger character list. If you've read the first two, you'll know about how the Starlight's Shadow crew had fought in the previous big war between the Federated Human Plants and the Valoffs, leading to some initial distrust between our humans and Valoffs but oops, they're falling in love with them and uncovering what looks like some chaos agents trying to destabilize the fragile peace between the FHP and Valovian Empire. At the end of book two, there's strong hints as to the whos and whys but they need the proof. So our crew sets out to rescue a Commodore Morten from the Empress of Valovia and bring him back to an Admiral they know they can trust. This will hopefully lead to a trial with Morten and out who's trying to start the war. Lexi and Nilo are a little outside this but they come in when the Empress makes a play for Lexi to use her for leverage and Nilo rescues her. As they get reacquainted for some romance in the first half, it becomes apparent that something has happened to the Starlight's Shadow and her crew. 

Nilo had somehow wormed his way into my heart, and I wasn't above trying to steal his in return. The second half was full of planning, rescuing, and battles, bringing in all those humans and Valoffs we have grown to care about throughout the series and their antagonists, Morten, Sura Fev the Sun Guardian (Special Forces, elite soldier for the Valoffs) herself, and other Valoff fodder soldiers. The battle and danger scenes, for the most part, kept up the pace (I feel like one or two could have been cut or shortened) and tense tone to leave me fearing for the characters and wondering how it was going to wrap-up. 

“What do you want, Lexi?” he murmured. 

You, just you. 

Like I said, I did think this one blended the romance and space opera elements the best out of the series but I just couldn't feel the depth of emotion between Lexi and Nilo. Told all in Lexi's point-of-view, I enjoyed her character, but with the romance, Nilo came off feeling flat to me; I just didn't feel the vibrancy from him the way the other aspects of the story hit. They were just kind of attracted to each other without the emotions and Nilo seemed all in from the beginning, what they had to work through was Lexi's PTSD from the war (not trusting/fearful of Valoff's and their powers) and her not feeling good enough, always ruining relationships. I will say it did have some hit nice steamy open door scenes, especially towards the end. If you're looking for a space opera with some romance and manageable at only three books to the series, this was a fun one. Each character was memorable some way to me and the space world captured my interest and was plain fun to get involved with, can't wait for the next world and adventure the author has planned.

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40%

"Then I'd say today was a success." I glanced up at him through my eyelashes and decided to play with fire. "How should we celebrate?"

He stilled, his muscles taut, and the gold in his eyes expanded. A groan tore itself free from somewhere deep in his chest. "Ask for what you want, taro, and I will give it to you."

My fingers tightened around the edge of the counter. 

Reading Update: Page 1

 

It's Lexi and Nilo's book!!! 

Lexi is the queen of trickery and thievery, but a certain Valovian teleporter (it's Nilo!) is the one who may have stolen her heart. 

When Lexi's latest contract takes her to Valovia, she only wants to get in and out. But when Lexi's former crew goes missing, she's going to have to work with Nilo to find them and stop two galaxy superpowers from going to war. 

Y'all, I'm so ready for this space opera romance! 

Capture the Sun by Jessie Mihalik preorder (June 20th) link

Thai Chicken Coconut Curry recipe

Pretty easy to make, not wowing but good

Review: Eclipse the Moon

Eclipse the Moon by Jessie Mihalik
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

3.3 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'd wanted Varro from the moment I'd laid eyes on him, and that instant, fierce attraction had only grown into deeper affection the more I'd gotten to know him. 

Falling in love in a space opera is never really a good idea but lucky for us readers, Kee can't help herself as soon as she gets a look at Varro. Eclipse the Moon is second in the Starlight's Shadow series and you're going to want to read the first, Hunt the Stars, before you embark on this journey. Kee is the Starlight's resident hacker, tiny but fierce, not afraid to let out a good cry, and, sometimes, dangerously optimistic. When the war between the Federated Human Planets (FHP) and Valovians managed to come to a tentative peace three years ago, Kee joined the crew of the Starlight, which consists of her found family of Captain Tavi (Hunt the Stars), Eli, newcomer Anja, and sometimes Lexi. In the first book, all the introductions are made and we see the Starlight's human crew get joined by a crew of Valovians, Chira, Havil, Varro, and General Torran. Tavi and Torran fall in love and, oh yeah, they save the Valovian Empress' heir while uncovering a tangled weave of possible traitors, treason, and warmongers who seem to be lead by an FHP Commodore Morten with maybe help from a Valovian Sun Guardian. I liked how the author didn't info dump what happened last book but interwoven some key details that happened in the first but it's a subtle recap that wouldn't work for a new reader. 

“I didn't know,” he said, his voice rough. 

I nodded, glad, at least, that my feelings hadn't been so obvious. “That was the point.” 

“No,” he said, something fierce and dark in his tone, “I didn't know.” 

This starts off pretty soon after the first ended and the Starlight's crew and newly joined Valovians have decided to try and ferret out Morten to expose and stop any possible plans he has for reigniting the war. As the computer expert, Kee has been trying to search for Morten online and with her feeling her attraction towards Varro isn't reciprocated, she makes plans to be dropped off a space station that is having a first of it's kind collaboration fashion show between humans and Valoffs because her instincts are telling her it could be a cover for something else. Of course, Varro ends up on the space station with her and we get a one bedroom (but bunkbeds!) forced proximity couple weeks of them together. This is told in first person pov all from Kee, so you know what I'm going to say, I missed reading Varro's thoughts. There was some delicious tension in the beginning, especially since Kee and Varro are pretty much alone together, so the story gets to really focus on them but every time they start to get closer, Kee comes right out and tells Varro she like likes him at 20%, something has Varro pulling away. Look, since this is romance, it's obvious Varro wants Kee but I want to experience, feel it in a way that most often comes from reading a character's thoughts and emotions, not solely mannerisms and actions. Getting his thoughts and emotions would have also helped with his characterization immensely, too. I never felt like I had a good look at his character, I needed more on his background and why his powers were stronger than the other Valoffs. So, while we definitely get a good amount of our leads together, the instant attraction that started in the first book, gets repeated here and I missed getting more depth between them and from Varro. 

Hope fizzed through my veins. Was it possible that we'd both thought we were being obvious, and we'd both been oblivious? My fingertips tingled with a combination of nerves and excitement, and I couldn't help the smile blooming on my lips. “We have got to work on our communication.” 

Varro's gaze moved over my face with the kind of intent focus that made the butterflies take flight again. “Agreed,” he murmured, his voice a soothing rumble. 

While I enjoyed the first half with Kee and Varro getting to spend some together, there was too much explanation and story given to Kee searching computer systems for Morten, especially since I don't think it's ever given a payoff, in the end she doesn't find Morten that way, so it made all that computer talk feel pretty pointless and dragged the pace down. The Starlight's crew that we got to know and care about from the first also takes a backseat in the first half as Kee and Varro meet and make new friends. When the fashion show gets attacked, Kee, Varro, and now the Starlight crew comes back into the picture, are suddenly on a mission to rescue the two lead fashion designers, one of the fashion designers security, and Liang, one of the Empress' sons who made a surprise appearance at the show. The second half gives us more of that space political drama and the crew is back to rescuing, trying to figure out if it's humans or Valoffs working to spark the war back up, and Morten and the telekinetic Sun Guardian pop back up. 

Varro cupped my jaw and tipped my head up until he could meet my eyes. “Cho wubr chil tavoz,” he murmured. My life for yours. 

The last 30% was a lot of action with the romance getting left in the dust more but the last 15 pages gave us a bedroom scene between Kee and Varro that felt a bit jolting because of the previous 400 pages of, mostly, there was two scenes of heaving making out, kisses. Varro also drops one or two lines of dirty talk that nicely had my eyes widen but mostly I was wondering where in the world did it come from; that whole missing a lot of Varro's characterization. I liked the thought of Kee and Varro together and they delivered on some moments but their relationship development wasn't deep enough for me and had one too many stop and go moments. 

Eli winced. “You know I don't love the status quo.” 

“But are you willing to do anything about it?” I demanded softly. 

The crew manages to survive this battle but with some known and unknown villains still in the wind, their work isn't done but this time, they'll have an FHP Admiral in the wings. I was a little disappointed that Lexi and Nilo, we get to know them a little bit in the first, didn't show up here at all and the next in the series looks to star them. The author managed to grow this fun space opera world nicely and from what I remember, Lexi and Nilo had some eye-catching unresolved tension between them, so I'll be looking forward to the third book, hoping Morten gets his due and finding out more about a certain Sun Guardian.

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30%

This feels timely, the sluttiest thing a man (or Valovian!) can do,

Varro looked at me and then pulled the tie free and let the ends hang over his waistcoat.

30%

 

"You talked to the plants," Varro said, his voice low and rough. I bet he sounded just like that in the morning, sleepy and rumpled after a night in bed.

Heat crept into my cheeks at the imagined visual, and I redirected my thoughts to a safer subject. I peeked at him, but his eyes remained closed, so I went back to staring at the ceiling. "I thought you were asleep."

"It's harder to sneak up on me than you might imagine. Your approach was quiet but not that quiet." After a pause, he added, "But the talking was nice."

"It's supposed to help the plants grow better, and it gives me something to do."

"I enjoyed listening to you. It was soothing."

I laughed quietly. "Most people would disagree." I rolled my head toward him with a grin. "Have you considered that you may be part plant?"

"Mmm," he murmured without opening his eyes, "perhaps that is why I'm drawn to sunshine."

😭 The gooey mess I become when trying to keep emotions hidden double speak happens. GAH help. He just told her his feelings but she misses it because she doesn't know how he sees her yet. SHE'S HIS SUNSHINE. I LOVE these moments in the beginning of stories because of that delicious secret tension they deliver. 

Reading Update: Page 1

 

Space Opera time 🌌❣️ 

I've really been craving paranormal, fantasy, and space romance lately, so very excited to head back into the Starlight's Shadow series. 

Y'all, this is about our bubbly hacker Kee and our grumpy weapons expert Varro! 

When I say 😍 I mean 😍😍😍 

I made this pizza from scratch (yes the dough!) and my partner is under a strict don't-bug-me contact rule for the rest of the day. I'm treating myself. 

Eclipse the Moon by Jessie Mihalik (Releases tomorrow Jul. 12th!) purchase link

Buffalo Chicken Pizza recipe

I'm not the best at making from scratch dough-y things, so when I saw this was easy, believe it, lol. Fresh pizza that was yummy :)

Review: Hunt the Stars

Hunt the Stars by Jessie Mihalik
My rating: 2 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. 

It was an impossible task, and one I didn't relish tackling while a Valovian general breathed down my neck. 

Captain Octavia Zarola feels there's trouble on the horizon when top Valovian General Torran Fletcher approaches her with a job. It's been three years of peace between humans and Valovians but Tavi is known as the Hero of Rodeni for her efforts in the war and knows there's still a bounty on her in Valovian space. Why would a Valoff want to hire her as a bounty hunter? Told in all first person point-of-view from Tavi, Hunt the Stars, starts off the new science fiction series Starlight's Shadow about human and Valovian relations and politics. Torran claims that a very valuable family heirloom was stolen from his home and he needs bounty hunter Tavi and her team to search for it. Money has been extremely tight and while Tavi doesn't trust Torran is being completely honest with her, her ship needs repairs and updates and decides to take the contract. 

Torran was a payday and nothing else. Anything more was far too dangerous. 

Told all from Tavi's pov, the reader gets to know her and the humans very well but it left Torran and his crew more in the shadows. I never really felt like I knew Torran and therefore, the romance between Tavi and him didn't move past lust and I had a hard time connecting with him. The first half was slow for me as there wasn't much movement on plot, we do get some world setting and building but there were too many kitchen scenes and while I liked Luna, a pet of Tavi and her crew that is a cross between a fox, ferret, and cat, I was done reading how often Luna wanted to be feed, as it was brought up over and over. The first half has Tavi and her crew tentatively interacting with Torran and his crew as they travel to get to Torran's home in Valovian space. I felt this was stretched out for too long as I wanted more movement on story. 

My body demanded satisfaction, but my head warned of danger and my heart wanted more. 

The second half did deliver on story movement as some of the mystery behind what Torran hired Tavi to find and why gets slowly revealed. The story advances with more political intrigue and we get a deeper look at the world politics. The main plot is that there was a war between the Federated Human Planets (FHP) and the Valovians and even though there is peace right now, it's not completely settled between them. Having Tavi and Torran on different sides had me ready for some great tension but the one pov hurt this for me because I couldn't delve into Torran's character as much. The relationships ended up feeling lighter and surface. There seem to be many hints at future match-ups between Tavi and Torran's crew members that have me interested to see where they go (Kee the sunshine one on Tavi's crew and Varro the grumpy on Torran's is next in the series). 

“My life is mine, but my heart is yours.” 

I enjoyed the space setting and the author did a pretty good job filling it out with futuristic weapons, travel, space ships, and the Valoff's telekinetic “powers” to create a scifi mood. Very much at the heart though, is the politics and relationships between everyone. Tavi and her found family crew take most of the emotional spotlight but the last part of the second half have Tavi and Torran starting to act on their attraction (there is one bedroom scene but it is in the last few pages of the story). The last 20% had more of the pace I was looking for and we get action battle scenes, reveals, and more mysteries that will obviously lead into and connect future books in the series. This was a little too slow moving for me and Tavi and Torran's romance didn't quite reach the depth I wanted but with the world building done in this first book, I'm looking forward to the next in the series having the time to deepen the romance. This was an interesting world to visit and with a plot thread that still needs answers, I'll be looking forward to Kee and Varro's story. 

“So, we're decided then?” I asked. Everyone nodded, and Torran squeezed my hand with a smile. I grinned. “Then let's go stop a war.”

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Reading Update: Page 1

 

Back to snow for me, so I'm celebrating🥴 with some soup. 

I've become more interested in space and fantasy romance novels lately, I'm really excited to start this new series with a woman bounty hunter and the man who is her sworn enemy. 

Enemies to lovers set in space! 😍

Hunt the Stars by Jessie Mihalik purchase link

Chicken Alfredo Tortellini Soup recipe

I would season the chicken next time, too blah tasting for me

Top Three Reads of January

A contemporary intoxicating murder suspense, A Victorian murder mystery immersed in the art world, and A fun, absorbing sci-fi space opera with slow burn romance.
Looks like I was feeling the murder and mayhem in January :)

What were your favs from the month?

Click links to read reviews

4.7 stars - A Madness of Sunshine by Nalini Singh

3.7 stars - Aurora Blazing by Jessie Mihalik

3.5 stars - A Trace of Deceit by Karen Odden

Review: Aurora Blazing

Aurora Blazing by Jessie Mihalik
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

3.7 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.

Lady Bianca von Hasenberg still emotionally and physically deals with the trauma her first marriage caused. Now a widow, she works to help other girls and women through her network of spies and her technological skills. When her brother Ferdinand and the von Hasenberg heir disappears, she won't be patted on the head and told to stay home by her father or their Director of Security, Ian Bishop.
Ian shut down Bianca's flirting when he was her bodyguard and even now as the Director of Security, he still doesn't think he is worthy of her, but he can't stop his protective feelings for her. Bianca manages to get information he needs and she won't take no for an answer when it comes to rescuing her brother. Ian needs to rescue the heir, keep his own secrets, and never let Bianca know how deep his feelings really go.

Softly, he asked, “Why do you have to fight me on everything?”

Second in the Consortium Rebellion series, Aurora Blazing stars Bianca von Hasenberg, the sister of the heroine from the first book, Polaris Rising. The first book gave us glimpses of Bianca as she helped her sister and a few glimpses at the tension between Bianca and the Director of Security Ian Bishop. The author makes good on the tension and slow burn she hinted at in the first. Polaris Rising was a debut and one of the complaints I had was about the story needing a lot of fat trimmed, Aurora Blazing had none of those problems, the author did a great job shoring up the story and fulfilling on the promise I found in the first.

The Consortium series, so far, follows two main characters threads, one has readers following one of the three major ruling houses, the von Hasenbergs. Aurora Blazing is told solely from Bianca von Hasenbergs' point of view. The second is about soldiers that were part of the Genesis Project (soldiers who were experimented on to create “super” soldiers), Ian Bishop is hinted at being tied into that. These two threads are swirled into plot threads that involve the three ruling houses conspiring, maneuvering, and possibly going to war with each other for power and resources. This creates a fun, absorbing, and intriguing space opera/scifi ride.

“I promise I won’t ever use any of your secrets against you,” I said quietly.

As I mentioned, the romance is a slow burn, as in you won't see the (soft) snap in the fraying rope between these two until around 50%; the space opera aspect controls more of the attention in this series with the romance being more of a very important secondary character. I loved the dynamic and tension between Bianca and Ian, I could feel the emotion bubbling underneath. For the most part, I enjoyed how the author didn't blatantly spell out Ian's emotions but towards the end of the story, when we're supposed to get the big payoff, I felt like things were rushed. The ending sex scenes also felt out of place, they felt graphic and jarring placed at the end because the preceding 90% of story had a different tone between the couple.

His gaze was scorching, his eyes hot with desire. “We are not done,” he said, his voice a low command.

Without Ian's point of view and more of a look into his background, I found Bianca to be the stronger of the two characters. Learning about her first marriage and how her health issues causes her to lie to her family, thus isolating her even further, was heartbreaking. It was immensely satisfying to watch her not gain emotional and mental strength from what was done to her but instead use the strength that she already had but had been a bit too young to mature to. The times she refused to back down because she knew she had the skills and know-how to get the information quicker than Ian made me cheer for her even harder.

I was engrossed in the first half of this story and while I was locked into the space opera plots, the romance was too rushed for a satisfying payoff. I would love if Bianca and Ian got a second book as I think their story definitely supports it and the series would benefit from it. I don't know if it is due to the first person pov structure but there were at times I felt like I was only getting half the story on some things, scenes felt left out, and more background was needed. Overall, though, I found this an amazing continuation of the series and the author has dangled threads (the leak in the von Hasenberg house, the war between the three houses, and Ferdinand and his romance with the daughter of an enemy house) that I'm fully on board and can't wait for the next in the series.

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Reading Update: 30%

The issue I had with the fat needing to be trimmed in the first is fixed here; much tighter story.
I’m about 30% in and loving this so far!
Slow burn couple with Tension

Aurora Blazing by Jessie Mihalik purchase link

S'mores Popcorn Balls recipe

What are the holidays without popcorn balls?? This was a fun, yummy, and easy twist on them.

Review: Polaris Rising

Polaris Rising by Jessie Mihalik
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

2.5 stars

This definitely had a The League series by Sherrilyn Kenyon vibe, scifi/space opera/warring factions, if you liked that series, you'll want to give this one a go.

This was a debut and I felt like I could tell with how the overall story needed to be tightened up more. This was first person pov by the heroine Ada and while I enjoyed her voice and character, there was too much talk of going through the motions of menial tasks. 20-50% and around the 70% mark, my eyes glazed over a couple times. I just thought the fat needed to be trimmed and the story tightened up.

This was very much a first in the series with the world building and setting up of plot threads, like I said, I enjoyed Ada's character but her love interest, Loch, was only a pencil sketch to me. Not having his pov probably added to this but only hinting at and introducing the Genesis Project plot, instead of investing some time on it, kept me from fully knowing his character.

Ada and Loch spend a lot of time together and their attraction is very much a part of the story but at the same time, not really the focus. Their attraction and relationship never matured enough for me to feel it was solid and therefore wasn't very emotionally investing for me.

The strength here was the setting up of plot threads, warring Houses, modifying human DNA, faked death, political intrigue, teasing of future romance couples, and what, I'll intelligently, call space stuff/atmosphere.

The writing has a smoothness and, like I said, there are some intriguing threads set-up, that I'm on board for reading the second in the series.


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Reading Update: 50%

Why were the attractive ones always criminals?

This has a definite The League series vibe by Sherrilyn Kenyon to it.