2.5/5 stars. (I listened to the audiobook so if anything is spelled wrong, whoopsies)

General Description: Liz Buxbaum is going to get her romantic comedy happy ending, despite losing her mother at a young age, and even if she has to give up everything for the Michael Young. Liz has loved Michael since she was a kid, but she can't get Michael alone. She has to enlist the help of Wes, her annoying neighbor, in order to get close to Michael. However, will Liz be so blinded by Michael she can't see Wes, or is it Wes's time to shine as a rom-com star?

The okay:
- I really think Helena saved a lot of this book for me. I loved her.
- Tbh the concept, in the beginning, was cute! Definitely gave me rom-com vibes, but...

The confusion of this book that caused it to lose 2.5 star:
- I really didn't find this book that funny at all. It was either cringy or just too ridiculous. And i was a high school teacher, I saw what those kids did in class, but those were freshmen. NOT seniors.
- Speaking of seniors, Liz did not seem her age at all. It was just a weird vibe with everyone CONTINUING to call her "lil liz". She just seemed disconnected from her entire class for like no specific reason? I don't understand why she literally seems to hate or not even want to interact with the majority of her classmates...
- There are parts of this book where I literally re-wound the book to see if I missed a description of something (ex: Liz's tattoo). It was just such an odd writing style.

Overall: If there was a movie of this, it'd probably be better!

4.5/5 Stars

General Description: College can mean a lot to different people, but for both Molly and Alex, it's a chance to be themselves, away from their homelives. Molly gets to explore who she is without her mother hovering around every corner. Alex gets to explore who she is but still worries her mom is going to drink herself to death. however, Alex does want to hold onto a piece of her home: her girlfriend Natalie. And of course, before Alex left, Natalie said Alex was too flirty with other girls. Well, Alex wants to use MOlly to prove Natalie wrong. It's Alex's mission to help Molly get her girl: Cora. Molly has been pining after Cora for four years and after one party, Alex decides it's time for Molly to fulfill all her dreams. But will Molly's dreams stay the same?

All the good:
- I need this as a film b/c it gives me all the comfy rom-com vibes
- I like the natural progression of Alex and Molly
- I think the side characters (good and bad) were written in a very realistic way, I could picture them in my head so vividly
- I feel like the scenes in this book were extremely well crafted and felt down to earth for a college based novel.

The half-star loss:
- The subplot with Molly's mother to me could have been left out. There was already so much going on, I think if her mother was not a character we see in the book, it would have made no difference. Her mother left me feeling uncomfortable and confused.

Overall: If you're looking for a rom-com WLW book, this fits the bill.

3.5/5 Stars

General Description: Bridget, as seen in Twisted Love, got a new body guard named Rhys. We find out Bridget must take the throne in her old country and Rhys isn't too happy about that. With feelings building between princess and bodyguard, will they be able to overcome the traditional rules of the country where Bridget is meant to rule, or will Rhy let go of the one person who's made him feel alive after all these years?

The good:
- The overall story and where it fit in the series was interesting, especially seeing some scenes from book 1 told in a book 2 perspective
- I personally like court politics as a whole, so the entire back story of this country and it's rules were interesting to me
- The plot twists did catch me off guard and I enjoyed the little mysteries in this book.

The not so good:
- I just didn't like Rhys. I feel like he lacked empathy for Bridget's situation and didn't really talk to her...definitely did not like him as much as I liked Alex.
- So many jumps in time I was getting confused. 

Overall: I think if you read Twisted Love, you'll like Twisted Games (maybe more, maybe less, I don't really know)

2/5 Stars

The General Description: Catalina is the maid of honor in her sister's wedding, but Catalina is boyfriend-less. She must find a date! Oh look, her co-worker, Aaron Blackford, has offered to be her date. But that's not possible, they 'hate' each other! Will Catalina allow Aaron to be her date to the wedding and will she discover more beyond the co-worker she has seen every day for a year and eight months?

The saving stars:
- I liked Rosie a lot in this book, along with the other side characters. So I feel like I can't rate it a one when I'm actually excited for Rosie's story

The downfall:
- Milking/milk me? I've blocked it from my mind. Just know the terming milking is in this book and it ain't a farm book.
- I did not like Catalina. I felt she was just too dense and didn't truly make a decision for herself during any point of this book.
- I did not like Aaron. He was just a creeper not communicating clearer with ANYONE in this book, ESPECIALLY CATALINA

Overall: There are better romance books out there for sure, maybe choose one of those :) 

4.5/5 stars

General Description: A dark witch is plaguing the land and the two people who can fix the issue are not who you would expect. You'd expect an established coven to take on this challenge but no, it's two unlikely companions. First: Wren, a source, someone who gives witches more power, but she's unregistered and has to care for her sick father, so she's hiding from the coven. Second: Tamsin, a powerful known witch but who was banished for mistakes she made when she was twelve. Wren and Tamsin find themselves in this unlikely pair due to different goals, where they need the other to achieve them. The question is: will they be able to find this dark witch?

The good:
- I love the dynamic between Wren and Tamsin, and seeing how seamlessly it progressed.
- For a standalone, the worldbuilding was easily digestible, making enjoying the story easy.
- I felt like all plot points in the book were enticing and kept me engaged.
- The mystery of the book was thrilling and the twist along the way were marvelous.

The loss of a half star:
- I personally felt one plot point was not fully fleshed out/explained and then it came to the end of the book and I was still suspicious of this plot point. It's been bugging me since I've finished the book! If there was a second book, maybe there'd be an explanation, but since it's a standalone, we'll never know and it will endlessly bug me

Overall: A FANTASTIC fantasy standalone, especially if it's the first fantasy standalone you pick up.

4.5/5 stars

General Description: We're back in the Hawthrone house, except this time, the mystery isn't about the grandfather. It's about the uncle that apparently died 20 years ago. Well, not Avery's uncle of course, because she's the unrelated heiress to the Hawthrone Empire.  Is she going to be a puzzle piece in this mystery, or will she be the one to use all of the Hawthrone brothers to find this lost uncle?

The good:
- I absolutely LOVED seeing more of Xander in this book. He's probably my favorite.
- I felt the mystery was twisty and shocking once again.
- the romance was definitely upped in this book, which was nice to see!
- I love the additional side characters that get more spotlight in this book, whether they were the good or the bad guys...

The loss of a half star:
- It's just TOO fast some times. I feel like I have to go back and re-read because so much is packed into parts. I definitely feel like this writing style lends to the mystery but it is overwhelming at time.

Overall: If you like YA mystery, this is a series I think you'd enjoy!

5/5 stars (definitely check the content warnings before reading; Kara does make these very clear!)

General Description: Madison's mom leaves her after being in her life for 17 years. This leads Madison to fall behind in school, forcing a tutor to enter her life. That tutor is Liam Strom, social outcast, as deemed by Madison's friends. However, Madison shows up to tutor and discovers Liam has more going on behind the scenes than anyone was expecting. Will Madison and Liam be able to heal together, or are they too broken to put their pieces back together?

ALLL the good:
- The way the characters were written felt extremely authentic.
- This book had some major twists I didn't see coming but it kept me engaged the entire time.
- I love the progression of both Madison and Liam. It felt more realistic than I feel most YA books are.
- The raw emotions this book made me feel was something I haven't felt reading in a while!
- The friendship Madison also develops on the side (not with Liam) was beautiful

Overall: If you like YA contemporary books, this should be your next read.

4/5 stars

General Description: Cinderella's ball has always been seen as something that freed Cinderella from poverty, but that's not what the ball means for Sophia. In her world (200 years after Cinderellas has died), the ball means being chosen by a man who will most likely not treat you like a princess. For Sophia, she's never wanted a man. After escaping the ball, Sophia starts to question Cinderella's story and finds an unlikely companion to help her find the truth. If Sophia can expose the truth, maybe she can finally be who she truly is in her hometown. however, will Sohpia be able to unravel the 200 year mystery of Cinderella's story?

The good:
- The overall adventure was exciting to watch unfold (once we get to the adventure)
- The world (once fully explained) is extremely creative and I'm hopeful Kailynn will do this with other fairytales in the future.
- The twists and mystery in this book was spectacular
- I really like Sophia, her head-strong attitude and wanting to truly be herself was refreshing in this world.

The loss of a star:
- The pacing was slower than my preferred taste, and I believe the reason for this was because the world building was so spread out. I didn't fully feel immersed in the world until maybe half way through the book? I wish the world building was earlier and maybe the pacing would have felt a bit faster.

Overall: If you're okay with slower paced book and looking for a darker take on a fairytale, with a WLW romance subplot, this is the book for you!

4/5 books (Note: I've only listened to the audiobook, if I spell something wrong, I was not reading this with my eyes so I apologize)

General description: We're heading back to the Shadow Realm with Hudson, Grace, Jackson, Finn, Eden, Macy, and Heather? We have a human joining the crew. Our group is trying to save Mekiah after being poisoned in Book #4. However, only Grace and Hudson have been to the Shadow Realm, and that was before what happened in Book #5...so we have no clue what the Realm truly looks like or if they'll even be able to get into the realm. Will the crew be able to save Mekiah, or get trapped in the Shadow Realm?

All the good:
- The characters are some of my favorite I've ever read.
- I was skeptical about these 2 seemingly added-on books, especially after reading Charm, but I actually enjoyed the plotlines weaved in this book!
- The callbacks to past characters pulled on my heartstring the entire time.
- The ending did make me feel so satisfied with the series over, however...

The loss of the star: I feel like this book was rushed. I feel like we could have had books 6 and 7 to fully explore all the plot points Tracy had laid out. Which is weird to say, but I was finding myself wishing there was another book just to fully experience the end of the series because it felt rushed!

Overall: I mean, if you've read the other 5 books, of course! But I recommend the entire series in order.

3/5 stars

General Description: Well, Emilia's in hell. Literally. Prince Wrath has taken her to marry Prince Pride and follow through with her wordly promises. However, hell holds more mysteries than the earthly world does. Emilia is still searching for her sister (don't forgot that, even if I did while reading) but she has to worry about getting to her betrothed's home while avoiding the lingering emotions Prince Wrath makes her feel. Will she be able to survive in hell or will it freeze her over?

The 3 stars:
- I was interested in finding out the mystery, so Kerri did hook me a bit
- The world building was extremely enticing and I definitely would want to visit
- I like court politics, so that plotline was fine.

The loss of 2 stars:
- Gosh do I DISLIKE Emilia still in this book. She just has this infuriating character arc that still haunts me. No character gets under my skin like Emilia. She feels inconsistent with her motives, inconsistent with her feelings, and I am tired of trying to follow her winding thoughts.
- I'm sorry but the plot twists in this book were just so out of left field, I wish there were at least bread crumbs to get us to the plot twists, especially the ending one. 

Overall: If you read the first book, I guess read this one.