Super cute. Imagine Sheldon Cooper and Amy are stuck in the 1950s. The multiple povs threw me off every once and a while, but overall a cute read.

Another great romance by Emily Henry. I love how she weaves together loss, grief and complex relationships into her stories.

I was given a copy of this book as an ARC through Net Galley.

I give this book five stars!

I really loved the characters and the morally grey-ness they all have.

If you like Six of Crows and Throne of Glass this is the book for you! Faeries, magic, good evil, star crossed lovers and amazing LGBTQ representation.

I realized at about 50% read that this was to be a series and not a standalone. I absolutely cannot get enough of this world and the characters. So well written and so amazingly paced.

Thanks to @netgalley for the ARC of this book!

I almost DNF'd this about halfway through. I couldn't figure out where the plot was going and I was getting lost on the overly detailed descriptions of setting.

I can compare this to the same thematic thread of the Fron Blood and Ash series, as it deals with the politics of the church and state as well as the gods.

All of the main characters are morally grey and you have no idea who is good and who is bad even at the end.

But it does have some great tropes. Hot Priest. Bi-prince. Corsets. Love triangle. Star crossed lovers.

Overall, 3.5 stars out of 5. I will absolutely read the next in the series.

Really lovely take on the story of Joy Davidman.

I received a copy of the second book in this series as an ARC, so of course I had to read the first!

I really loved the overall story, but I really loved how succinct the word building was. Not overly complicated & pretty logical. Enough for you to understand the justification for the heroine's choices throughout the book. I'm assuming there is some sort of basis is mythology, but I'm not well versed so I was just along for the ride. I really enjoyed how it ended as well, and the epilogue was perfect. I also love how the heroine wasn't a teenager and that the love interest was not a 500 year old man (like a certain other series - those age gaps give me the ick).

Now for some critique - there were definitely a few glaring editing mistakes in the grammar and some typos were not corrected. But overall, the pacing was great and I felt that many of the plot hole were filled by the end.

Overall, very enjoyable! I devoured it within a 24 hour period. Now onto the next!

What a lovely sequel!

The political stuff in here was so well done. The explanation was clear, answers to who is on what side was concise and little to no duplicity. Loved that.

Also, the pacing of this book, top notch. Like honestly, chefs kiss. So well done.

However, I felt like I was missing chapters. There were a lot of gaps in the stories that were not the main characters. WHAT DID AURI AND NIX FIGHT ABOUT?! Why did he leave? What happened to Mathias? Why can no one see Jessamine? WHY ARE THE RIBBONS FALLING OFF???

Even with the holes, I'm still screaming for more of this story. Is it 2024 yet?

I've been chosen by @atmospherepress to read an ARC of In the Heart of the Linden Wood by @ektargarg

I really wanted to like this book, but at 260 pages, it really needed to grab me in the first 50 pages. Unfortunately, it did not.

The synopsis of this book outlines a redemption arc of a young king who loses his wife and then goes to the woods to seek healing. I felt there was too much time spent on a political narrative and too many side characters' POV. The plot was lost and didn't actually pick up until halfway through, and by then I'd lost interest and felt the actual adventure was speeding by.

Positives were the world building - however again, I felt there was a lot of time spent building this intricate world for it to not be that relevant to the main plot line.

The excessive POV's were full of internal dialogue that was not really needed to move the plot along.

Overall, a great first draft, but definitely need some editing and streamlining to clean it up.

Aubrey Gordon candidly speaks from her own personal experiences about how our perception and attitude towards fat people needs to change. Citing numerous peer reviewed research articles, news articles and events from popular culture, Gordon makes an emotional and personal argument for a better world for all, not just fat people.

As an avid "Maintenance Phase" podcast listener, this book felt like to liner notes for many of their most popular episodes. I'm glad I have this book on my shelf as a resource.