This should be a book I absolutely adored. Romance and Historical Fiction surrounding WWI and a few Greek gods thrown in for good measure? Um, yes please. Sign me up. That, along with all the hype I started seeing about it put it on my list of most anticipated books this year.

I wish it had lived up to the hype for me. I really do. The first couple of chapters I thought were really fun and interesting, with the way Aphrodite would nudge and finagle situations to get Hazel and James together. It had this whimsical aspect that I wasn't expecting when I picked the book up.

In a way, and I almost hate to say this because for the most part it is NOTHING like this book, but the way the author told the story of these mortals through the eyes of gods reminded me of Death narrating The Book Thief. Aside from that and the fact that it takes place during a World War, there really aren't a lot of similarities, but I think if you like the kind of quirky narration of one you may like the other.

As far as the setting goes, I found that all really well done. I haven't read many books about WWI, and it was obvious that the author had done a ton of research into not only the war, but also the state of society at that time.

Probably my favorite part of the book is how music plays into the lives of these characters. One of our main characters, Aubrey, is a young Black American man who is a highly gifted jazz musician and also a member of an all-Black regiment sent to fight in Europe. Two of the other characters are also skilled musicians, and the audiobook had several musical moments. I kind of wish that had been even more present. It gave the story a cinematic quality. I could definitely see this being adapted into a film.

Unfortunately, there were things that kept me from absolutely loving this book.
One of which is the story itself, and perhaps specifically the way it was told. As much as I thought I was going to love the story from the POV of Greek gods, I found that it created a distance from the characters that made it difficult for me to really connect with their stories. I didn't really care about the little interludes we had of the 'trial' Aphrodite was on, and even though there are times when we're told that 'Character A is thinking this and Character B is feeling that' I never really feel like we got inside their heads in the way we would've if the story had been in 1st person or a more intimate 3rd person narration.

Also...and I'm sure this makes me an unfeeling monster, but because I never felt connected to these characters or their stories, nothing in here pulled at my heartstrings. I'd heard from so many reviewers that this book just ripped out their hearts and stomped on them and I finished the reading experience and felt very emotionally underwhelmed. I think part of that feeling comes from a moment about 3/4 of the way through the book where Aphrodite says

that they can end the story right there, where both couples are happy and content, and just pretend that that's the end of the story.

This implies that the real gut punches are about to happen. And I was ready for it. So ready. Leave-me-in-a-puddle-of-my-own-tears-curled-up-in-the-fetal-position ready. And then...nothing. I mean, there's SOMETHING, but it just didn't grab me like I wanted it to.

There's just wasn't much here for me to sink my teeth into. The relationships, which we're told are amazing and deep and so romantic, felt very surface-level to me. I never felt like we got a great foundation for either couple, and most of the scenes between them are very cheesy and melodramatic.

There is a part in the second half of the book where the author attempts to explore grief and PTSD and it wasn't bad, but I kind of wish that had been more of the book. Post-war PTSD is something soldiers today still struggle with, and it feels a little glossed-over here. Of course, that could be intentional, a result of the story being told through the lenses of an omnipotent being, but it feels like something that was tacked on for the specific purpose of throwing obstacles at one of our couples.

This is the first book I've read by Julie Berry. I'm not sure if/when I will try another of her books, but I'm not going to completely write her off, because this book does have merit and I could see why others rate it so highly.

2.5
I keep trying Tessa Dare books because everyone raves about them, but I keep finding myself let down.
There is nothing wrong with this book. There are moments I enjoy, such as the elaborate tales our Hero invents for people he and the heroine meet along their journey. And there are a lot of tropes in here that I am a total sucker for -- forced proximity, sharing a bed, heroine who rebuffs gender stereotypes -- but for one reason or another I found myself bored with this book. It didn't do anything special with the genre. Also, there is some incredibly cheesy, ridiculous dialogue near the end of this that just didn't work for me.
This is not the end for me with Tessa Dare books. I see her talent, and there are some books from her I've loved. I'm just waiting to be blown away.

Trigger warnings: abortion, physical and sexual assault, suicide, death of a parent, discussion of infertility
I cannot believe this is Brit Bennett's debut novel. Wow. I remember when it was coming out a couple of years ago. I heard a few people talking about buying/receiving the book, but didn't hear much about it after that.
A couple of months ago I chose her follow up, The Vanishing Half, from Book of the Month, and decided that I wanted to read this one first.
There is something about the writing that just makes you feel for the characters. Even when you don't agree with their decisions. Even if you don't particularly *like* them, you still feel that their motivations are coming from a place that feels genuine. They are flawed and messy, just like the most interesting people.
This book centers around a Black neighborhood/community in Southern California. Specifically, around a local church in the community. It felt very reminiscent to me of the small village I grew up in, with everyone knowing everyone else's business, or at least talking about it as if they do, and how that kind of atmosphere can breed hypocrisy.
There are some really beautiful lines of prose throughout the course of this novel, and the writing style just worked for me. I do wish that there had been a little more about the character's stories at the end, but that's mostly just selfishness of wanting more.
I can't wait to read The Vanishing Half and whatever she comes out with next.

This is the first book I’ve finished in almost two months. I’m not even sure when I added it on Overdrive, but I’m so thankful that an earlier version of myself who saw this title somewhere and put it on hold.
I really enjoyed this story. For a book called ‘How to Fail at Flirting’ this author’s ability to write banter that is fun, flirty, witty, and cheesy is top notch. Several scenes between our protagonist and her love interest had me smiling to myself.
I would caution anyone interested in this book that there is discussion of domestic violence. Naya, our protagonist, has been in a relationship that was violent, and that informs quite of bit of her character and decision making. If that is something potentially triggering for you, please take care.
That being said, this book was exactly what I needed.

*RE-READ October 2019*
I still love this book as much as I did the first two times I read it. I’m hoping my re-read of Archenemies goes better than my first read, but I can still safely say that this book is excellent.

*RE-READ November 2018*
I listened to the audiobook for this re-read, and it is excellent. The voice actors are superb, especially Rebecca Soler. They bring emotion to their performance. It feels more like acting and less like reading, and they are able to really make the audiobook an experience.



What a wonderful way to start off 2018!

I truly loved my reading experience. I feel like this is Meyer’s strongest book to date, and this comes from someone who is a total sucker for fairy tale re-tellings. Then again, I’m also a sucker for a good superhero story, so I was pretty much destined to love this book.

What I liked (besides everything):

1. Characters. I love these characters. They are wonderfully flawed and rich and real, which may seem like a strange word to use when describing people with super powers. But it’s true. All of the characters were fleshed-out and unique. They all had distinct personalities and were interesting to learn about. They grounded this story in a way that one-dimensional characters never could.
I would love to see some of the more minor characters get even more attention during the next book, although I have no complaints with the amount they were explored in this story.

Nova and Adrian were great main characters. It was funny, because it didn’t matter whose perspective we were following, I found myself agreeing with that person’s philosophies. They may find themselves on opposite sides of these issues, but they both have principles that are guiding them. It’s like the saying goes: Everyone is the hero of their own story.

2. World Building. I thought Meyer did a fantastic job of creating this futuristic world. I could picture everything so clearly.

3. The writing. There is something so addictive about her writing. It’s not super flowery or metaphorical. But it’s descriptive in a way that is very readable and fun. I just didn’t want to put this book down, and a good part of that is due to her writing style.

4. Pacing/plot. This book is over 550 pages. I never once felt like the book was slow or boring at all. And that isn’t to say that it was nonstop action. There are plenty of quieter, character-driven moments. But it’s balanced so well with more action/plot-oriented scenes that this book just flew by for me.

5. The ending. I had a few things I assumed would happen at the end of this book. Specifically, there were a couple of reveals I figured had to be coming. I was right about one, wrong about a couple more, and one came completely out of the blue. I thought this book ended perfectly, but also horribly, because now I have to wait for months until the next book comes out.

6. The message. In the political climate we find ourselves in today in the United States, the idea that an authoritarian type government or an anarchistic society could take over is scary but not wholly unbelievable. There are many ethical and moralistic discussions to be found in this book, and I really appreciated that. I think one of my favorite quotes is:

“Heroism wasn’t about what you could do, it was about what you did. It was about who you saved when they needed saving.”

This really resonated with me. All the money, power, and influence in the world doesn’t make you a quality human being. It’s how you choose to conduct yourself and interact with other people that will determine your worth.

As you could probably tell, I loved this book, and I can’t freaking wait for the follow up to come out this fall!

2.5 stars
I originally gave this a 3-star rating, but as I wrote my review I came to understand that it’s definitely a 2.5 for me.
If I had to describe this book in one word, I think I would choose ‘saccharine’. That’s not necessarily a complaint, but if I’d realized this book was published by Hallmark I probably would’ve passed. But I needed something quick and easy that I could listen to while I did things around the house, and this was available on Overdrive.

I actually liked the premise of this book, and I could absolutely see it as a movie on the Hallmark Channel. Unfortunately, that means that what we end up with is a watered-down romance where two people spend a week together and end up engaged at the end, having shared nothing more than a single kiss about 3/4 of the way through.

The dialogue is cheesy and stilted. Perhaps reading the physical copy would’ve mitigated this, but hearing it read aloud just accentuated how unrealistic it really was.

I really like Angie’s family, specifically her abuela. The scenes with the two of them, along with Angie’s mom, poking fun at one another were probably my favorite in the book.

As far as the romance goes? I was not feeling it. It’s a relatively short book and it feels like it goes on forever. There just isn’t much substance to these characters and the conflict feels very surface level and easily avoidable if people would just use their words.

I would possibly recommend this book for someone looking for a chaste Christmas romance, but I want the R or at least PG-13 rated version...someone give me that book and I’ll eat it up.