On top of being a ghostwriter for the most popular romance author in the industry, Florence Day has a secret... she can also see ghosts. After a horrible breakup she no longer believes in love and has been blocked on writing her next novel which is overdue and her very handsome new editor is not going to give her an extension. Yet on the very night she runs into the ex that not only betrayed her but broke her heart she also kisses her editor... and receives a phone call that her beloved dad has passed away. It’s been 10 years since Florence has been home to the town that ran her out... when she was young she saw the ghost of a boy and helped him solve his murder but that lead her being bullied and ridiculed. Now she has returned home to her family, which own and operate their own funeral home. For all her bad memories her Florence is re-awakened to the warm Souther nights, her eccentric but loving family, and all the actual warmth her home has. Florence then runs into... the ghost of her very handsome editor whom she just kissed, Ben... who apparently was in a car accident the very day she left. Ben is far more connected to her life than she thought and he is convinced that he can’t move on unless he helps her realize that love is in fact, not dead... yet she finds herself falling for him, the one person she shouldn’t be because... well.. hes a ghost. This was such a cute autumnal read with a little bit of ghosts and a splash of romance. This is a story about someone learning to open themselves up to not only love but to opening themselves to asking for help and not closing themselves off. Florence and Ben had a very sweet romance and this was an overall cute read!

A book store owner who hates books and a hopeless romantic and author come together in this story about falling in love. Drew Young is a book hater but she has inherited her grandmother’s bookstore Book and Nook and now she finds herself in over her head with running it. Drew is a talented photographer but now she is focused on trying to maintain her grandmother’s store. When famous author Jasper Williams comes to town to not only do a signing event but to do research for his new book who better than to be his personal guide than Drew? While she is being his tour guide he is determined to create a book bucket list for her to fall in love with books. From concerts, river rafting, and cute restaurants, both Drew and Jasper fall in love with each other. But messy family drama, pressure to maintain her grandmother’s store, and secrets all begin to weigh down on Drew and if she and Jasper want to make it they’ll have to see if they can figure it out. This book was okay at best, at times I didn’t really like Drew but in the end it is what it is. The romance was sweet, but the book itself felt like it was dragging on and on. I was hoping for something sweeter or more romantic because the initial premise was great and I guess the book just didn’t really meet the expectations that I had when I first read the blurb. Overall, its a cute and sweet book so definitely give it a try if you’re looking for a nice read.

*Thank you Berkley Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

The prequel and backstory of the Darkling- as a young boy dealing with enormous power. Constantly on the run and taking up different names, his mother and him have been trying to just survive as they are not only Grisha but the deadliest and rarest of their kind. On their latest stop their journeys will rich a new point as betrayal, friendship, and survival all come together. This was such a fun read as you get to see the backstory of this character. The artwork was beautiful and you really get to see him before he becomes the iconic character that he is, you get to see him as a lonely young man who strives for connection and wanting to just survive.

A witch who has just killed a man finds herself in a school for other witches and meeting a mysterious boy who comes into her dreams as she works towards resurrecting her brother and finding his killer. Frances lives a quiet life as a seamstress after her brother has died, slowly trying to figure out what happened to him, but when her boss attacks her and she fights back... her magic is awakened and she is promptly whisked away to Haxahaven Academy for girls who are witches. Franches now finds a whole new world of magic opened up to her but then she meets Finn, a handsome witch who has been coming into her dreams and offering to help her learn magic as well as help her in her quest to resurrect her brother.... yet while she might be falling in love with him he night have more sinister plans for her. This book felt a bit drawn out and long for what the actual plot was. It started off exciting but then got boring and I found myself less invested in the story and characters. You start off liking Frances but then she starts behaving like a love sick teenager and making decisions that have you questioning why she would even do this??? In the end I just felt it was too long and the actual plot was lacking in excitement and magic (despite being a magic story). Frances is so focused on resurrecting her brother but she doesn’e exactly do any investigative work and she wants to resurrect him but doesn’t actually work on studying magic all that much. This book could have been shaved in half and it would have been better. Overall this is a historical witchy romance with academia but definitely for younger readers like maybe 13 years old. This is the first book in the duology.

After receiving a strange and worrying letter from her newlywed cousin, Noemi is sent by her father to go and check on her cousin’s condition. Noemi is to leave behind her home in the Mexican countryside and travel into the mysterious and cursed High Place. Noemi is a socialite, a glamorous debutante who wants to get a masters in anthropology and enjoy her life filled with beautiful boys, fashion, and champagne. Traveling to a isolated home in which her cousin believes her new husband is trying to kill her was not on Noemi’s schedule but when her father promises to support her college dreams Noemi packs her bags and sets off into the gothic home. When she arrives she is greeted with rude staff, creepy pictures, a family with a murderous family history, a cousin who is erratic and sick, and an unsettling atmosphere. Noemi soon finds herself digging into the mysterious family history and the sinister happenings at High Place. She is haunted with strange and disturbing dreams, noises that occur during the night, and visions and hallucinations that slowly start driving her mad. She must find a way to save her cousin and herself before it is too late and this family and house consumes her too. This book absolutely lives up to it’s gothic name. This was the epitome of a gothic story filled with a creepy home, a sinister family, dark secrets, and mysterious. I have to say my favorite character by the end of the book was Noemi’s cousin Catalina. Catalina fought for her sanity, she never stopped fighting to escape, and when it came to the climax of the story oh boy did she pull through and get her revenge. The relationship between Noemi and Francis was tentative and sweet to read. I found myself thoroughly enjoying this story and definitely shocked and disgusted by the secrets of the family. Overall, I would HIGHLY recommend this book, especially with the spooky season coming!

“What is more lovely, after all, than a monster undone with want?”

“I still wanted to believe I was living in a fairy tale, that I laid down every night with a prince instead of a wolf. I wanted to believe you.”

A beautiful and dreamy reimagining of Dracula’s brides, as told from one of the brides. It recounts her death, her rebirth, her life, and ultimately the ending. It deals with the bonds of love, of family, of trust, and above all, the bonds that are tested when love is corrupted. The story follows Constanta, a medieval peasant turned into bride, into Dracula’s Bride. It shows how her love is twisted and turned, of how it went from first love to obsession, to hurt, and ultimately to survival and freedom. She slowly starts to see under the veil of her new life and how her prince, her husband, is not as princely as he seems. It was a gorgeous book to read. I absolutely adored it! It even had a little name drop of our favorite victorian family, the Harkers, haha. It’s a great read for fans of Dracula and gothic romance! It’s a story of family, of survival, and of the love that twist and turn in all of us. If we love a monster, does that in turn make us monsters?

*Thanks Netgalley and Nyx Publishing for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

A knight is tasked with retrieving the illegitimate daughter of the king to be a sacrificial bride to the fae king in order to break a curse and end the war.... but upon meeting her he begins to question his own duty. Haldur is a knight, his family was killed in the wars and the war is taking a toll on his men and him. He is barely 20 and has been forced to endure so much all he wants is to find peace and for this war to end. Yet when he is called by the king to bring a child the King never even knew he had to be a sacrificial bride to the monstrous fae King, Haldur knows he is willing to do anything to achieve peace for his men and him. He is thrown when he meets said bride, Iva, a warm and kind girl who has been made to be a servant to a lady. Iva is kind and caring, she evokes home for Haldar... yet he knows he has his duty to do despite what his heart is telling him. Their journey will be filled with complications, sadness, and falling in love which neither of them expected. At the end of the day, can Haldur do his duty and sacrifice the one person who has cone to take his heart? This was a short and sweet story and I liked how Iva and Haldur’s relationship grew.

A group of friends come together to celebrate the wedding of two friends, except it’s at a haunted house that has ghosts of its own. The story follows Cat, who is recovering from depression, and the very complicated relationships between everyone in this friend group. The friends include Phillip, a golden boy, Faiz the nerdy groom, Nadia the bride, and Lin, Cat’s friend. Everyone has their own strained relationship and this getaway is testing it. The location they have it as does not help, it is said to be a haunted house where girls were walled up in and is haunted by the ghost of a bride waiting for her groom. Throw in alcohol, secrets coming out, and messing with the dead, and what we have is a short and thrilling ghost story. I loved the creepiness and atmosphere it set.The story was told from Cat’s point of view, but my favorite character had to be Lin, cuz boy oh boy did he echo my thoughts about horror movie rules and everyone knows you have to leave as soon as someone starts messing with the ghosts.

*Thanks Netgalley and Macmillan-Tor/Forge for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*