booksbytheglass's Reviews (904)

what a fun and twisty debut thriller!! 🖤 I love when I’m utterly consumed by the mystery (and yes I binged this one in a day)

kelsey cox created a wonderful cast of unreliable narrators, from the ex wife to the current wife to the best friend to the nanny to the daughter’s friend… they were all so well fleshed out & holding their own secrets that I was desperate to see how the pieces all fit together at the end

and boy, was I shocked! it takes a lot to surprise me with mysteries these days, and while I did guess some of the twists, there were a few secrets that had me GAGGED 🤯 I loved how it all played out, slowly revealing the characters’ fates in a dual timeline POV rather than a typical linear timeline 

thank you minotaur for the gifted advanced copy! this one’s a perfect read for july!!!

rating: 4.5 stars
wine pairing: veuve clicquot rosé champagne  

I’ve been eagerly awaiting the sequel to IMMORTAL LONGINGS forever, and then I’ve been putting it off since it came out last night due to the mediocre reviews - but I should stop listening to those because I loved this one!!!

picking up immediately after that brutal cliffhanger, calla is adjusting to the new world where she unalived her lover, anton, only for him to take the body of her friend and newly crowned king, august. and boy, the tension was palpable!! 

the story mostly revolved around calla stepping into her new role and becoming the queen she never was 🥲 I loved her journey and unapologetic ways of protecting the kingdom and her peace all at the same time!! and anton, lil manchild anton, just couldn’t get over the fact that she sacrificed him for the greater good 🙄 like he wouldn’t do the same thing if the roles were reversed 

the introduction of otta and her own scheming ways was a welcome change of pace among the slower world building & repetitive plot points… and while we as readers knew something was off with her, that ending had me gasping!!! love chloe gong’s plot twists!!

it was a bit monotonous at times and while the plot further the tension of the revolution and coup of san-er, nothing major truly happened until the last 15% of the book… but I thoroughly enjoyed this sequel!! can’t wait for the next one pls 🫠

rating: 4 stars
wine pairing: south african pinotage

janice hallett’s creativity is unmatched!! her way of storytelling through emails, transcripts, and text messages is captive, fast-paced, and always a jaw dropping great time!

this time, the epistolary writer tackles the mystery behind an english pub quiz bowl and its owners, and boy was it a fun cast of characters! it took me a bit to get back into the style of writing & the large quantity of characters / storylines - but it had me so invested from the beginning!

the way the story unfolds is not linear, which I loved since it kept the reader wondering how all of these storylines intersect until the very end… and while a few of the characters got on my nerves with their self-righteous attitudes, it all made sense by the end!

and that ending? had my jaw on the floor 😳😳

another bravo to janice for creating another intelligent and fun mystery!! thank you atria books for the gifted advanced copy!

rating: 4.5 stars
wine pairing: mosel riesling 

ok hear me out, this had no point? I was reading on and on to try and get where the plot twist was going & how it was all going to connect in the end, and it simply did the bare minimum…

I was invested in the prologue and the mysterious figure on the island who was unaliving everyone, but when it fast forwarded to five years later, I got bored quickly… there was no introduction to the present day characters nor how they all connected…

that being said, it was a fast paced and bingeable book! I just wanted more from the story to keep my interest! and the lack of diversity and lovable characters just wasn’t doing it for me to root for anyone in this mystery 🙃

#gifted minotaur books

rating: 2 stars
wine pairing: sonoma coast chardonnay 

POV: me sobbing at another TJR book 😭❤️ I love joan’s story so much

TJR knows how to write masterpieces, combining historical fiction with heart wrenching friendships and romances effortlessly! and this one was no exception - this time focusing on joan, one of the first female astronauts to qualify for NASA’s program 🥹 it’s here that we meet joan’s team and family and how they impact her life over the five years in texas

while this was an astronaut star-gazer story at its core (and reading TJR’s foreword is a must!), it was joan and vanessa and frances who stole the spotlight… I adored their relationship to each other and how they were able to still love each other in their own ways despite their jobs and society in the 80s 🥲

and I immediately fell in love with the group 9 of astronauts alongside joan & their own struggles through space and life 😭 it was so beautifully written!! and equally heartbreaking as the POVs and timelines shifted back and forth over five years… 

my heartstrings were pulled to the max - and it’s truly a special author like TJR that can make you care so much about a character over 300 pages ❤️ I’m constantly in awe of her dedication to her stories

#gifted by ballantine books 

rating: 5 endless stars
wine pairing: new zealand sauvignon blanc

leave it to the last book I read in may to be the most captivating, thrilling read!! charlie donalea writes so fast-paced it makes my head spin, and those twists? remarkable 👏🏼

when I first started this story, I truly thought this was a sequel & I missed the first one because it jumped right into the characters and recapping information from their pasts 🤔 I wanted more backstory from them in a showing manner rather than just telling what happened to them…

however, the format of the plot itself was brilliant! a retired detective is pulled back into the throng of a missing person cold case to dig up any details & new information… and boy, was it full of surprises! it kept me on my toes the entire time!

even when it seemed all of the pieces were scattered and different (how does a former 🥣 killer who unalived the detective’s dad link up with the governor’s missing daughter from ten years ago?!), they all fit together! not as neat as a jigsaw puzzle, but a messy collage (which I loved) 😳

and that ending? those last chapters? FLOORED 

this story is super dark and depressing, especially for those suffering from child and parent losses, so take that into consideration when picking this one up! but it’s definitely a shocker and winner from me!

#gifted by kensington press 

rating: 4.5 stars
wine pairing: napa valley merlot 

a slow burn, cold case solving, family drama of a thriller!! I do love a great slower paced thriller if it can keep my interest, and judging by the fact that I binged this one in a day, I’d say it was a win!!

professional ghostwriter olivia returns home to write her father’s memoir, both due to the fact that she has no choice and money but also because a part of her truly wants to see if her father murdered her aunt and uncle when they were young 😳😳 and I loved the detail orientated plot!!

while I will admit that olivia took a long time to figure out the truth, I was so satisfied with her sleuthing on the side after interviewing her father. comparing the events of decades ago kept me guessing on who was telling the truth and who had something to hide!

the twist at the end wasn’t anything new or exciting, but I enjoyed the slow revelation regardless! it was satisfying to see how the pieces finally all clicked together at the end!

olivia’s characterization, though, needed some help. her relationship with people seemed very superficial & the only time I felt anything close to emotions with her was the trauma and closure with her father. the stories about their childhood and how trauma can warp someone’s view on situations was very well written!

thank you to sourcebooks landmarked for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review! this one’s out this week!

rating: 4 stars
wine pairing: napa valley cabernet merlot blend 

I forgot how much I ADORE lauren asher’s writing!! even though this is her first series & it feels juvenile at times, it gives that guilty pleasure rush that I get reading elle kennedy and other sports romances 🥵

maya was everything in this book!! we have to stan a woman living in her famous brother’s shadow but never feeling second or less than because she’s always chasing her dreams 🥹 and her family dynamic was so so cute! I loved the banter between her and santi and her parents!!!!!

noah, on the other hand, took a bit to warm up to. his fuckboy attitude was really quite irritating, and the fact that he clearly objectified maya before he got to know her as a person was major ick 🥲 the growth was A+ but it felt forced as he only wanted to change for maya (and not really for himself)

all of that aside, getting to know the F1 racers and their dynamics was SO fun! I cannot wait for the rest of this series to explore it even more!! the heart pounding descriptions of the races and prix was so well written! 

overall, probably not going to be my favorite in the series because of noah’s dynamic (even though he grew on me by the end), but I still binged it all the same!

rating: 4 stars
wine pairing: columbia valley pinot noir

this series absolutely had my entire heart!! while this was my least favorite of the trilogy, I still adored hendrix’s story and her journey towards self love and happily ever afters 💜

hendrix was always a rock in the previous two skyland novels, so it was genuinely heartwarming to see her family and friends be there for her as well! and while I’m not a fan of insta love, maverick was PERSISTENT in his journey to capture hendrix’s heart and I couldn’t help but love that too!

what truly shined for me throughout this story was the emphasis on hen and mav’s businesses and how they’re using their wealth to give back to the community, especially with an emphasis on black creators! they truly were so in sync the entire book & I loved seeing their support for each other rather than just saying it 

and hendrix’s mother’s alzheimer’s story completely shattered my heart 💔 as someone who has dealt with this disease in my family, the emotions sprawled on the page were beautifully written and straight from my own heart at times

what didn’t work for me as well as the rest of the series was hendrix and maverick’s relationship as a whole. the chemistry was off the charts, but there was a lot of mistrust and hesitation on hen’s end that had me screaming!!! and while maverick was so patient with her, I was frustrated as a reader that she couldn’t believe that someone might actually love her…

rating: 4 stars
wine pairing: 19 crimes red blend 

this book was a wild trip - and I support women’s rights AND wrongs!! I was fully invested in the first half of the book (especially with the mystery behind what julie and chloe’s lives are really like) but the second half completely fell apart for me 🤪

after julie decides to take over her twin sister’s life, she discovers that the life of an influencer is not all it’s cracked up to be. and I loved the tension of whether she was going to pull it off or not! julie’s ability to assimilate into the life of her sister was foolish and satirical, but I was invested regardless…

it was when the story turned more into a cult thriller that I lost interest… julie/chloe’s group of “friends” called the belladonnas was a little intense to say the least, but their adventures on bella’s private island had me ill 🥴 (iykyk) and I couldn’t wrap my head around why everyone was just so drugged and brainwashed 

I wished this stuck more to the vibes of YELLOWFACE because it had fabulous conversations about racial divide among the rich, as well as adaptations about making money in today’s society. instead, I was cringed out with the secret cult-like worshippers of some random god by the end 🫠🤢🥴

rating: 3 stars
wine pairing: california rosé