Was this predictable? Yes, but was it also a fun way to spend a few hours? Absolutely. While I worked out the twist pretty early on, it doesn't detract from the enjoyable journey. This is a fun, easy read romcom that had me laughing. The Letters were entertaining and I loved the barbed flirting. You could really feel the chemistry. I would have loved to have more from Luca's POV though. I wasn't a massive fan of Anne as a friend but their trips were never dull. Perfect If you're looking for a cute romance with just a hint of spice as well as a lot of laughs and cute animals. 

Book received via NetGalley

ARC Review

I’m calling it early but I think this will be my favourite book of the year. I loved it so damn much. Aubrey’s writing just drew me in and I did not want to put it down. It’s an emotional rollercoaster and I lost count of how many times I cried. I loved that whilst the romance element was adorable af there were also beautiful friendships and platonic love. There are so many lovable characters and we get to see enough of them that they’re easy to keep straight and we get to know and love all of them. I dare you to resist falling for Cael Cody. I cannot wait for his book. This found family is chaotic, damaged and so special.  

The mental health and addiction representation is done so beautifully and I just want to give them all a massive hug. The character growth is top notch. Ella & Arlo are so freaking cute and watching them work through both of their issues through the highs and lows was so heartwarming. This has everything, Romance, spice, friendship, found family, and emotional damage.  

This is book 2 and it can be read as a standalone. There is a secondary plot of a court case for a rape trial which follows on from book 1 but everything is explained and I was hooked on the result of the trial. I struggle with Jack. Her as a detective doesn’t seem to mesh with her as a climber. They feel like different characters. Her romantic life was frustrating and the way she acted felt really immature. I didn’t connect with any of the characters. Shauna is also a terrible friend. 

The actual case was interesting with a few suspects and lots of questions. There is a lot of climbing content that doesn’t add anything to the story and takes you out of the investigation. The twist also didn’t really make sense and I don’t understand how the killer was able to do half of the things he did. I’m not sure I’ll continue with this series. 

I received a copy of the ebook via NetGalley

This is my first book from this author and I don’t think I’ll be reading anymore. The cover is stunning but the writing style wasn’t for me. It was unnecessarily wordy and the dialogue didn’t feel natural. I did love the plus sized protagonist and that she was confident in her body but her size wasn’t constantly mentioned. The depression representation was done well but it felt too deep and dark for too long to be a romance. I enjoyed the start but then it starts to drag and nothing much happens.

As for the characters I liked the side characters but I hated both Athena and Matthew. They were both so immature considering they are late 30s. I cannot wrap my head around him becoming obsessed with her after talking for 15mins at her engagement party to his brother. Add that to her flirting at her own engagement party. I just don’t understand why she got engaged. None of her reasoning made sense. Ignoring the whole ruining your brothers engagement only to steal his fiancee for yourself, Matthew was okay to start with but he soon became so needy. Also questioning if he lived under a rock because he doesn’t know anything about memes, famous characters, or songs.  

I don’t think I have ever cringed as much as I did reading this book. Professor Google was funny to start with but it was so overused. The Monster erotica was bad and then we got the chicken man. The sex scenes also made me cringe. The bath scene started cute and then Matthew ruined it. By the end, I was team Johnny. 

I received a copy via NetGalley 

How are we on book 11 already? This is a fantastic series and whilst the books can all be read as standalones you get more from the characters if you read in order. This book also features the final girls from some of the previous cases. I really enjoyed the horror movie feel. I would have loved to have a bit of a refresher on what each of the girls had survived because my memory sucks and I read a lot of books so I couldn’t remember who the characters were. However, it doesn’t take away from the story because all we need to know is they survived a serial killer and were rescued by Morgan. It made it even more heartbreaking that the victims were all characters that we had met before. 

I do struggle with the fact that Morgan is always putting herself in danger, especially when she has such a fantastic team. There are so many lovable characters on her team and I would love to see more of them all working together. I just wanted to give Morgan a hug. My heart hurt for her and her wavering confidence in herself. She’s been through so much.

The case was fast paced and action packed. I only worked out who it was about a chapter before it was revealed. Definitely recommend if you love a crime thriller with twists and turns and lovable characters.  

I received a copy of the ebook via NetGalley and this is my honest review

I’m fully in my cowboy romance era. I adored this book and will be going back for book 1 asap. It gives Elsie Silver Chestnut Springs vibes which I also loved. A steamy kiss opening had me hooked. Both Wes and Ada are so lovable and so damn cute together. The fact that Wes knew exactly what Ada needed even when she didn’t was nearly as swoon worthy as the topless cowboy rescuing and feeding a baby cow. The romance and the spice were perfectly done and the interior design elements were such a fun addition. I could really picture baby blue.  

 

I fell in love with the whole family and can’t wait to get stuck into Emmy & Brookes story. I want to be a part of that girl group so bad. They are all such fun characters. 

I received a copy of the ebook via NetGalley

An insightful look into what it was really like to live in the mansion. I still don’t understand how Hugh managed to convince everyone that he was this sex positive, liberating women icon. He was just a creepy old man who found a way to make a lot of money out of taking advantage of young women. 

For anyone who doesn’t understand why Crystal stayed this book shows how difficult it was for her to leave. It shows that when you’re put down enough and told how lucky you are to be there a prison becomes your safe place and you don’t know how to exist outside of it. It also gives you an insight into all the different emotions at play. 

Some of the writing does go off on a tangent and it is a bit repetitive in places. It’s an interesting read though and reveals the dirty behind the scenes on a lot of what was celebrated back in the early 2000s. 

I received a copy of the ebook via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

This is book 1 in a new series featuring Detective Billie Ann Wilde. I really enjoyed it. It sucked me in and I was kept guessing with twists and turns. The chapters from the past were heartbreaking and the hunt for the killer and missing child had me hooked. The end was so tense. I loved Billie Ann’s character and the coming out later in life representation. It showed how hard it can be to hurt your family in order to be yourself. The end with her mum was cute and I look forward to hopefully seeing them grow more as a family. 

I received a copy of the ebook via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

This wasn’t what I was expecting. I was expecting short stories about what it’s like to work in a crematorium but this felt like more of a memoir with Caitlins trying to get to grips with mortality. I wasn’t a fan of the writing style either. The attempt at humour was forced as if the author was trying to hard to be funny. There was a chapter on her romance which didn’t add anything and was just a bit odd. I also found her to come across as immature and judgemental. She judged someone suicidal for how they died and was constantly judging people for how they chose to deal with their dead family members. It was pretty hypocritical considering how she dealt with her own dead relative. I don’t know, she just didn’t come across as respectful to the dead or the living. There was some interesting information about the death practices in different cultures and I did learn a bit about crematoriums.

I adore this series and somehow book 19 is still as incredible as the first. I’m not normally a locked room thriller kind of gal but I thoroughly enjoyed this one. The setting was creepy and added some extra tension. I had no idea who could be trusted or what the motive was and the reveal was perfect. Seeing Josie question herself so much was heartbreaking and I just wanted to give her and Noah a big hug.   

This can be read as a standalone but I do recommend reading them all for background on Josie & Noah and because it’s such a great series. 

I received a copy of the ebook via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review