a_stylish_bookworm's Reviews (1.53k)

This was such a fun Groundhog Day romance. We have Noelle that is in a rut in her job and goes to a street food fair after work. She eats some delicious dumplings and when she wakes up the next morning, she finds she is reliving the same day. 

Time loop books I think is always tough to write because it can get very repetitive. This did happen in the beginning as Noelle tries to figure out what is happening. Once she finds another person that is stuck with her, the story picks up.

I enjoyed how Noelle and Avery tried to figure out how they are stuck in the loop. At the same time, the took risks and did things that IRL would be afraid to try. 

It was entertaining to see Noelle try and connect to Cam each time. I could feel her frustration as she knows more about him each time and he doesn't but has a vague sense of connection to her. 

Noelle does get out of the time loop and the story continues with her and Cam starting over. I also loved that Noelle and Avery continued their friendship. The connection with the dumpling and the time loop was great and I love how the story wrapped up.

Thank you @atriabooks for a copy of the book. 

I have been a fan of Hiaasen and have read his books in years. It was fun to see Twilly again, still up to his deeds on fighting for justice for nature in his vigilante ways.

This book is full of political satire and makes fun of far right believers. We have Dale Figgo who is the founder of Strokes for Liberty and basically is a white supremacist. He was kicked out of Proud Boys for defacing the wrong statue on Jan 6th. He is not the sharpest tool in the shed and his recruits aren't either.

His roommate, Viva, works for an ultra wealthy couple's nonprofit and can't stand Dale. Dale and his hooligans are funded by a crooked politician and they plan a big way to be the next big right winged group. 

Twilly and Viva randomly meets at a bar and hit off. They soon begin to try and find out what Dale is up to. 

The story is classic Hiaasen with his views and humor. I think I am having political burn out with the state of our country and this may be too close to truth. 

Thank you @aaknopf for a copy of the book

I am always so impressed with all the different genres that Roberts writes. This is a romantic suspense set in a small town with Sloan who is back home to heal from an injury. While she is there, there is a case of a local woman missing and is intrigued by it and tries to help the local police solve it. At the same time, Nash and Theo moves to town and starts a small business. 

Despite knowing who the killers are and their motivation, it was interesting to see their perspective. I think knowing this, the story does become predictable. 

I enjoyed the slow burn romance of Sloan and Nash. They were focused on Sloan's home renovations and slowly getting to know each other better. I appreciate that Nash didn't try to be alpha and was impressed with Sloan's independence and strength. 

January LaVoy is a phenomenal narrator. She did so many different voices to distinguish between the characters. 

Thank you @stmartinspress @macmillan.audio for a copy of the book.

Wilsner knows how to write spicy romances with representation of sexuality spectrum. We have Elise, who breaks her engagement a week before getting married and goes to her non-refundable honeymoon with Ginny, her best friend. 

In true Wilsner style, this one is spicy. I had a hard time with how both of them got sexy so quickly when Elsie just broke off her engagement. I needed more romance between the two. 

I liked that story is told in both POV and Blair Baker and Emily Shaw did a good job with the narration. Though this wasn't a favorite, I will continue to read what Wilsner writes. 

Thank you @youhadmeathea @macmillan.audio for a copy of this book.

I really enjoyed the first book of this series and excited to read Angela's story. She is a late bloomer and accidentally gone viral for posting a video about never been kissed. 

There are few things that were a miss for me:
- For age, 27, she acted very young 
- The scavenger hunt idea was just weird for me
- The ending was a bit of a let down 
- I didn't buy the romance between Anglea and Krystal
- the never been kissed part confused me a little as usually, the kiss leads to other levels of spice. However, it got spicy for an asexual pretty quickly

I did enjoy aspects of the story:
- Angela finding her voice and standing up to her family 
- Her friendship with her coworker, Marcela
- The representation of asexual 

Ruby Corazon did a good job with the narration but the story was not the right fit for me. 

Thank you @hachette.audio @readforeverpub for a copy of the audiobook.

It was so nice to be back in Spunes, OR and reading Wren and Ellis's story. They were each other's first love, had a child young and divorced. The story starts with their son moving away for college and they have a road trip together. 

There is so much to love about this book. I loved how well the letters were woven into the story and it was told in a duet style narration. The flash back to the past worked so well to see what happened to them. 

The character growth of Ellis is one of the best I've seen. Miscommunication is one of my least favorite trope, I loved that this was the redemption of the story. 

I loved seeing characters from Savor It play a role in the story. Connor Crais and Megan Wicks did a phenomenal job bringing out the angst and emotions. 

Thank you @youhadmeathea @macmillan.audio for a copy of this.

Thank you @prhaudio @berkleyromance for a copy of this much anticipated book. 

As a fan of EH, I will read anything that she writes. This books was very reminiscent of Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo with Margaret , a former screen star, that slipped into a quiet life and is ready to share her story. It comes down to Alice and Hayden and they must spend a month with her and she decides at the end of the month who gets the job. 

Stuck in the small town, Alice and Hayden starts hanging out together and their romance develops. I wanted to see more romance between the two and not as much insta love. 

I enjoyed learning about Margaret's life. There is a twist in the story that I saw coming which I think impacted my love for this book. 

As always, Julia Whalen does a phenomenal job with the narration.

Thank you @berkleyromance @prhaudio for a copy of the audiobook. 

A book with a reverse age gap, forced proximity and lots of alone time sounds like an interesting premise. Lexi and Zeke meets and ends up with a great one night stand until the find the next morning that they have drifted out to sea.

Lexi and Zeke are forced to sail together in the sea with limited supports and no communication to anyone. They were in quite an adventure with no knowing if they would be rescued. 

I didn't buy their love story with it just a bit too insta for me. However, I did enjoy them working together to survive this journey. Connor Swindells and Rebekah Hinds are both new to me narrators that did a great job with bringing the intensity to the story.

I thought this book is timely as AI is getting incorporated so much into our lives. We have Sophie, an established best seller author, releasing her final installment of her series with an up and coming writer, Hartley sharing the event with her release party. Instead of celebrating her release, the event makes a turn with Hartley confessing her book was written by AI. 

The story from there goes on how the public reacts to this news. It was an interesting premise and it was fun to see it set in book community with book signings and events. 

I was hoping the story would focus on this but it took a turn and it focused on Sophie and her actions. For someone that is older, I did not agree with her actions. 

The story redeemed the story when it revealed Hartley's side. 

Courtney Patterson did a good job with the narration. Thank you Harlequin Audio @netgalley for a copy of the audiobook.

I do love books set in an academic setting. We are at beautiful Northern California on parents weekend when 5 kids are missing. The story is told in so many POV that I lost track of which parent belongs to which kid. 

It was great to see Agent Sarah Keller from Night Shift back and my favorite POV. Unforgettable with so many POV, I lost interest in the story and wasn't vested in any of the characters and the story moved slowly. 

Once you find out what happens, it was a bit unrealistic. Brittany Presley is one of my favorite narrators but I think with so many POV, it would have been more suitable to have multiple narrators. 

Thank you @minotaur_books @macmillan.audio for a copy of the audiobook.