claireisbookish's Reviews (59)

Thank you Ace Pub and Netgalley for the eARC, all thoughts are my own.

I’m undecided between rating this a 3.75 or a 4 but I think I’ll do a solid 4 since I can’t stop thinking about it!

I honestly wasn’t sure what to expect with this one. I went in not knowing anything about it so I was pleasantly surprised when it turned out to be a pirate adventure with some romance and a marriage of convenience! Every time I picked up this book I did not want to put it back down. The adventure was intriguing and the relationship between Saoirse and Faolan was what made me want to keep reading.

My favorite thing about this book has to be Saoirse’s character. I loved the self discovery journey she goes on and it was amazing to follow along with. Faolan was also a great love interest and all the characters were equally captivating. Back to Saoirse, “soft girl” archetypes are severely lacking in the romantasy/fantasy romance genre so I really, really loved how the author wrote her. AND no dark haired morally grey MMC, instead he’s a chaotic man with golden retriever energy and wild stories. Loved everything about their relationship. 

The Irish influences were great too. My only gripe is that if you’re going to write a book heavily influenced by Irish myths and culture then you could at least spell “Kiara” as “Ciara” lol.

I do think the world building could have been explained better in the beginning, especially Saoirse’s “curse” and the soul stones but I did have a good grasp of it by the end of the story. I also think the book was a touch too long. 

All in all I really enjoyed this one and am looking forward to book two!

I have to preface this review by stating that the Wolf Hotel series is one of my all time favorite book series. I’ve reread several times and Abbi and Henry mean so much to me. When I heard that KA Tucker was continuing the series from Ronan’s perspective, I freaked out! Ronan is one of the most lovable side characters and you meet him in the Wolf Hotel series. Getting to read the start of a new series centered around him was a blast. I loved getting inside the quiet, reformed playboys head. 

While this one didn’t have quite the same spark for me as Wolf Hotel I still read it in under 24 hours which should tell you something. And that ending?? I’m so glad book two comes out sooner rather than later!! 

The reason my rating isn’t as high as I thought it would be is solely because of the first half of this book. This is just my opinion, obviously, but I don’t really think part one was necessary. I know the author wanted to include the original novella with this book but it threw the pacing off for me and I felt like it didn’t contribute too much besides some minor context. 

The chemistry between Sloane and Ronan also felt forced. Again I contribute the rushed development of their relationship to the first part of the story. The romance to me wasn’t too believable. Ronan has been celibate for months, still half in love with Abbi, but one interaction with Sloane and he’s head over heels? However, as the story went on I enjoyed their dynamic more. With more books coming that leaves plenty of room for their relationship to develop further and I can’t wait!

I also liked the way a new hotel being built in an established town was approached. We get to see Henry’s endeavors from a different perspective and how his business affects the local towns he infiltrates. 

KA Tucker did not have to continue writing books in this world/series but she is and I couldn’t be more grateful for more books to escape into. 

Thank you to the author and Valentine PR for the ARC