You can see all my reviews here: Books Are The New Black

4.5 stars

This is my second Center book and I’m hooked! I loved this book and I could not put it down. I stayed up way too late to finish it.

One of my favorite things about this book was the fact that it was a reversal of roles. You hear about a bodyguard romance and you think it’s not the woman. Not in this story! Hannah has been through it all, and she’s been told to stay off the job. She’s losing it all and desperate to get away. Along comes an opportunity to be the bodyguard for a high-profile celebrity but it’s right there in her state. She’s trying to get out of the country on assignment but they are refusing. She begrudgingly takes the job and the fun begins. I loved Hannah! She’s such a strong protagonist and her journey is very inspiring.

Jack is your superstar movie actor, who has it all. He’s dropped from the limelight after the death of his brother. He’s come back to help out with his mom and has been forced to take on a bodyguard. When Hannah shows up at his door, he has mistaken her for his maid. She puts him in his place, quite literally, and things take a turn. Not only is Hannah his bodyguard, but she is also his fake girlfriend. Jack has a lot he’s dealing with, mostly with his family and the past. It made for some very intense moments. Although, Jack was such fun and had so much charisma. He’s also got some amazing moments that will melt your heart!

Not only are the MCs great but a lot of the supporting characters are too. Some of Hannah’s co-workers were hilarious and it was much needed to break up the intense moments. Jack’s family was also very wonderful and I loved them so much.

There are a lot of heavier topics in this book but it did not take away from the fun. Hannah and Jack were hilarious and I loved them from the beginning. There are so many fun romance tropes in this book like the “one bed” and “fake dating.” I do think that Center did pack a lot in this book. It didn’t take away from my enjoyment but I do think some of it felt rushed. It’s my only complaint about this book. She was handling so many important topics but I kind of rushed over them.

Both MCs in this book have great character arcs and I enjoyed their journey. Not only that they had developed together. They are both giving each other exactly what they need without realizing it. I loved this romance!

Overall, I loved this one and I highly recommend it! Especially, if you want a romance with some deeper issues throughout. It was also a lot of fun and had some great supporting characters. I was drawn in form the very first paragraph!

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin’s Press for a e-ARC to review. All thoughts and opinions are my own! 

 
You can see all my reviews here: Books Are The New Black

3.5 stars

I was able to buddy read this with Julie from One Book More. We have been enjoying reading this series with each other.

This is another Historical fiction mixed with fairytales. It’s been really fun reading these but I didn’t enjoy this one as the first book, Half A Soul. It follows a young maid named Effie and a faerie (Lord Blackthorn) who is trying to help her. Effie is a wonderful seamstress but dreaming of a better life. I thought this book would be about a romance but it was a lot more than that. We explore anger and the injustices between the classes. It’s one of the things I like about Atwater’s work, the many themes she likes to shine a light on.

This is a shorter read and it’s an easy read. With that being said, I struggled with the first half. I couldn’t connect to the characters and it felt very surface level. There are all these hints to where and what’s in Lord Blackthorn’s past but we never get there. I would have loved to know more about it and why he was trying to change. Although I struggled with the first half, I flew through the second half. Since it’s a shorter read, I think that it did make up for the struggle in the beginning. I do wish that it would have been longer or if she would have spaced things about more. The second half was jam-packed full of things that it felt rushed and a little disjointed at times.

There are some whimsical moments and settings in this book. Some of my favorite moments in this and the previous book are when the other side is explored. I wasn’t really invested in the romance, which made me sad. I didn’t hate it but I just didn’t feel it through most of the book.

Overall, I liked the first book better and I did struggle with the beginning of this one. I was very satisfied with the ending and I like Atwater’s unique take on the Historical Regency era. I do plan on picking up the next one in the series!

Many thanks to Orbit for providing me with an e-arc via Netgalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own! 

 

Thanks to Andge @ Down the Rabbit Hole for buddy reading this with me. Please check out her excellent review here !! I’m so sad it took so long to get to this one. Although, I’m glad because I got to buddy-read it with Andge and it’s closer to the second book!

This is a spin-off series from the Caraval series, which I loved. It can be read without reading the previous series first, which is great for so many. Although, there are some cameo characters from the previous series! These stories are so enchanting and I love that it feels like a fairy tale. The magic and curses in these make for such intriguing reads. Garber has a great way of writing these worlds that just suck you right in.

This story follows Evangeline, who I enjoyed as a character. I did think she was a bit naïve at times but I loved rooting for her. Her journey is quite a struggle and I loved how she grew so much by the end of the book. Jacks is the Prince of Hearts and there’s a lot of mystery around him. I’m not sure if I was supposed to love him but I did. He’s your typical “bad magical guy” but I just found him so interesting. I don’t know what that says about me, haha.

The pacing of this book is so fast that I devoured half the book in one sitting. The hardest part was having to stop but I couldn’t wait to dive back in! the world she creates is so vivid but I wish she would have expanded a little more. I would love to know more about the Fates and delve into that a little more. She’s got a lot of mystery going and we don’t really have many answers by the end of the book. I’m not even sure what the overall mystery with Jacks is yet and that was a bit frustrating. The overall writing is quite simple but I liked it. I also got some Cinderella vibes going on in the beginning.

Overall, I really enjoyed this and I cannot wait to get my hands on book two. There’s so much intrigue and Garber had some beautiful prose throughout. There are some things that I found lacking but that’s okay. I’m hoping to get more answers in the next one. I loved Jacks and can’t wait to see more of him and know what his end goal is. If you want a fast-paced and magical read then pick this one up!

 

 

I was so excited to read this book because I had many people telling me how amazing it is. I had hyped it up in my head and it did live up to the hype. This book was captivating from the very beginning.

If you are looking for a book about powerful women and how they rule then pick this one up! I loved all the women in this book and they all had different strengths to offer. From the very beginning, I was in love with Priya. Priya is a maidservant but she is more than what she seems. She’s using her money to help the kids that have been abandoned from the rot. Is it hopeless? Kind of, but she still does it. She was such a wonderful character and I loved all of her depth. Malini was a character that had a lot of depth. Priya even has a hard time trying to decipher all of Malini’s “faces.” It was interesting to see where she started and where she ended in this book. It makes me so excited for the next book. Another character that I loved was Bhumika. She added so much to this book but now I’m not sure if I should trust her or not. So many of these characters are morally grey and kind of self-involved. I feel like I can’t really trust anyone!

There are many supporting characters brilliantly written too, even the not-so-great ones. It was so easy to see all the sides and the reasoning for their actions. It added a lot more to the overall story when we get to see their POV’s too. Sometimes I can get overwhelmed when there are many POV’s in a book but Suri blended them into the story at the most perfect time. It felt natural and I was glad for the particular POV at that time.

I think Suri did a great job with the world-building. It was unique and very well written out. I never felt like there were any info dumps or it was hard to read. It was very easy to read. There are times in the middle that the pacing slowed. This is a long book but I think there’s enough action spread out to keep you from feeling the page count. The political intrigue was interesting but I didn’t overwhelm the book, which I appreciated.

The romance is the slowest burn but it was worth the wait. Their relationship is so complex and so full of trust issues. It makes sense since they are supposed to be enemies. What Suri does though is make them tow that line all the way through. They know how they feel but do they really trust each other? It made the ending of this book so much more intense. I loved a lot of the relationships in this book though. I think one of the most impactful ones for me was the relationship between Priya and Ashok. It was hard to read at times but make complete sense. We can’t ever give up on blood, can we? We always seem to find this need to help when we shouldn’t. It doesn’t matter if we don’t believe in what they do or not.

Overall, this was such a brilliant start to a series. I cannot wait to jump into the second book. Thankfully, I have an arc (Thank you, Orbit!!) and will be jumping in next week! This has a lot to offer so don’t let the size stop you. It can be intimidating but, even if it is slow at times, it was worth the read. The world that Suri has created mixed with the fascinating characters makes this a book that you will not forget. 

 

You all know the story of Rapunzel but what about Mother Gothel? This is her story and it’s much more different than you could ever expect. I always thought that it was a naturally very dark story. It doesn’t change here because there are times I had to step away and take a break. Things are dark and intense. I’m a mood reader and with everything in this world going mad, it made it hard. There are some similar themes to what is going on in real life. This is no way had to do with the writing but my mood. There are some heavy motherhood/birth and Christian vs. Pagan religion themes. A lot that felt so close to what’s going on now.

Anyways, I loved Haelewise as a character. She’s amazing and I felt for her. Throughout her journey, she just gets hit with so many trials. The way she handles them and sticks up for good is quite inspiring. We start her story when she’s a young girl and grow along with her. There is a lot of mystery about her and her mother’s past. We are learning with her along the way. There’s a lot more magic explored in this story, which I loved. Honestly, this was such an original retelling that it felt like it was its own thing.

The writing in this book is superb! From the very beginning, it grabbed me, and didn’t let go. McMyne is a brilliant writer and had a way with words. This is a book that you will not be able to forget. You get so immersed in the story and characters that you almost feel like it’s real! The details and descriptions are so vivid. If you love any folktales and/or fairytales I think this is the book for you. It’s so well done. The world-building is fascinating and unique too.

One of the things that felt off for me was Haelewise’s deep need to be a mother. She wants to be a mother so bad but I felt like it kind of came out of nowhere and we didn’t get a good explanation for that. Was it just a thing that happened? Why didn’t it happen before? Trying to fill a void? I’m not sure. It just didn’t make sense to me. I didn’t think her romance was the best either. It left me unsatisfied and I wasn’t that connected when things happen later.

Overall, this was a fabulous read! As I mentioned before, if you enjoy retellings of folklore and/or fairytales then I think you will love this. It’s got some beautiful prose and the story is so engaging and new. I highly recommend it! It is a darker story but I think it needed to be told. I loved Gothel’s story and I think you will too.

 

I gave The Eye of the World a 3.75. I think it’s more of a 3 now that time has passed. I’m going with a 3.75 for this one because I enjoyed it more than the first one. I am definitely more invested into this story but it took a while!

I think that the plot was really interesting and there’s much more world building. The world is really intriguing but my problem is the pacing. This is so slow and it took me so long to get into it. We really are just dilly dallying around for most of the book. It took about 70% of this book to really hook me and this book is almost 700 pages long!! There’s so much that happens in the last 60ish pages that it felt like whiplash. I loved those pages but I really wish they would have been paced out better. We do get an expanded world that I really enjoyed getting to know. We have more villains that I could have even imagined.

Some of the characters really drove me insane. Honestly, I can’t stand Rand. He’s annoying and all of his POV chapters drove me up a wall. I GET IT. WE ALL GET IT. You don’t need to stop repeating the same things over and over!! That’s one of the things that I cannot stand about this writing, is the repetition. Literally, we could shorten this book by hundreds of pages if we took out all of those instances. On the other hand, I’m still totally in love with Perrin! I do wish we got MORE of what’s going on with him and how that works. I want to delve into that and I think he’s ready for that too. I am not sure what the show is going to do because they killed Loial off. I actually refused to believe it because he is ESSENTIAL to this story. He was one of my favorites in book one and I loved him so much more in this book. Gosh, what an amazing character. He also has some pretty amazing one-liners and come backs!

The women in this book steal the show. Holy smokes their chapters were so good. Nynaeve is so stuck in her ways but it was so awesome to see her just take matters into her own hands later. She’s such a force!! Egwene has been a character that I’ve felt mild about. I think because her character is kind of that personality. Events really have her coming into herself and kind of showing her power. I’m really excited to see where we go from there. I loved Min and Elayne so much! They are such a breath of fresh air and I loved Elayne’s way to cut some of the tension. I think she’s going to be one of my favorites. I love how they come together and really just don’t need a man. haha I do wish that we would have gotten more of Moraine in this one.

I have been pretty good at figuring out a lot of plot points but I did have some surprises! I seriously felt so many emotions in the last 60 pages of this book. It was intense. It really left me wanting for more. Now, this isn’t the best fantasy I’ve read but it really has a lot going for it. I’m actually more excited to jump into book three than I was for book two. I have loved buddy reading this with my husband! 

 

I remember trying to decide whether or not I could fit this in my ARC lineup during this summer. I am so glad that I decided to give this one a chance. I really enjoyed myself and felt like I sped read through this book.

Alessa is a Finestra, who is trying to find her fourth Fonte. She needs him to mesh their powers and kill off the evil that’s coming their way. Despite this, she’s killed three people and the town is starting to turn against her. The people inside her own home and most trusted advisors are also starting to turn. She takes it upon herself to find herself a bodyguard after several attempts on her life. She sneaks out and finds Dante, a criminal, who is street fighting. He decides to help her and then all kinds of chaos ensues.

The beginning of this story was a little slow and a bit overwhelming. The world is very unique and quite expansive. I was trying to get my bearings with the world-building but also attach to characters. I loved Alessa from the very beginning. She’s trying to fit this mold and quickly realizing that it’s not working. he desperately needs to find her own path. The new Fontes that she has to pick from were not people that I was a fan of, at first. I do understand where they are coming from but sheesh, it was rough. I felt so bad for Alessa and how isolated she was. Ultimately, I ended up falling in love with the Fonte squad. They all brought so much to the story with their different personalities. I can’t believe that I ended up loving even Kaleb, who is the biggest jerk, in the beginning. The relationships that Alessa forms with them is so lovely to see.

The absolutely best part of this book is Alessa and Dante’s relationship. The bodyguard falling for who he protects? I’m not usually the biggest fan of that trope but I was loving it here. It was so full of friendship, love, angsty moments, and I ate it up. Dante was so grumpy and I really enjoyed the banter between the two! Not to mention this is a forbidden love which really added to the intensity.

I devoured most of this book in one day. There were some pacing issues in the beginning and then during the end battle scenes. It got a bit muddled and confusing at times but that was okay. Overall, I loved this story and I couldn’t put it down. I loved all the themes about family, finding who you are, and relationships. The ending was satisfying but left me wanting for more with that little cliffhanger. I cannot wait to read book two!

Many thanks to Wednesday Books and NetGalley for providing me with a copy to review. 

 I picked this up when I was struggling with another book. I read this in one day. Is it the best book I’ve ever read? Not even close. I did really enjoy it though and had fun with it. It took me a little while to get my bearings with all her aunties. Once I figured them out, it went a lot smoother. I did think some things were really over the top but that’s the type of book this is. I did like the second chance romance, even if, it was insanely fast. Meddelin was a fun character to root for and the wedding scene was fun.