emmreadsbooks's Reviews (1.28k)

There's no way that this is a stand-alone, but I'd be happy even if it was. I went into this book thinking that it would be some sort of journey to find Atlantis (happily wrong!), and instead got a novel about an elite maritime focused private school that suffers an immense tragedy during the freshman field trip. We have an intense school rivalry, a dynamic cast of characters, and a plot that makes me want to read Jules Verne! I loved how it focused on Verne's books rather than mythology, something very different for Riordan. Not to mention how he incorporated those characters to create a lush new world for them that Ana and her friends must navigate. There are still twists and turns that surprised even me, plus the best orangutan chef known to man. A fabulous read!

This book is CUUUUTE!! But also sexy at the same time? It's definitely more NA than YA, that's all I'll say. But you get an adorable friends to lovers romance, mixed in with some puppy love for the irresistible Dean. Keely quickly finds out that life isn't like the movies and I just wanted to scream "HE LOVES YOU!!" the entire time. But it's definitely a realistic high school book complete with Cameron Lund's patented mean queen. I don't know why I put off reading this book for so long, but I'm glad I finally got around to it.

I definitely was expecting a lot from this book with the comparisons to Jane the Virgin, and it lost a little bit because of it. Mainly, I wanted to see the drama characteristic of a telenovela. I'm talking evil twins, people coming back from the dead, and the like. But that's not what this book was, and that's okay. Instead we got Jasmine Lin, an up and coming streaming star, who's battling a public breakup while trying to be perceived as a leading lady. Jasmine was confident but relatable, plus she comes with the Primas of Power. And the steam... OH THE STEAM. It takes awhile for these two to get together, but the chemistry is definitely there. If you want a solid rom-com, this one's for you.

You had me at clairvoyant karaoke. Like seriously.

But this is also an amazing cozy mystery whose audio had me feeling all snuggly. Watching Leda grow into her psychic abilities and solve the murder of her fiance was SO fun. Plus the chemistry between her and Grady? I dig it. I can't wait to see more of Castaways, even if I was humming The Backyardigans every time they brought up its name. The only thing this book was missing was a little romance, but I hope we'll see that in Book 2!

I wasn't expecting this to be a deep non-fiction dive into the history of Greek females across genres, but I'm weirdly glad that it was. In any other book, discussing Buffy and Beyonce might seem out of place but it worked! While slow at times, I enjoyed learning more about some of the underrepresented females like Jocasta and Penthesilea as well as the QUEEEEEN Medea. The writing style was easy to follow, feeling similar to an AP essay, and it was broken down into sections by each female character. I'm not sure why it took me so long to finish this book, but it's worth the read for any mythology fan.

*Thank you to Harper Perennial and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for my honest review*

Alex Finlay does it again. A well crafted mystery/thriller that will keep you guessing as the twists unravel. My initial guess of the killer was correct, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't waffle on it a little bit. I loved this take on a final girl, especially when Ella and Jesse meet for the first time. There's a lot going on in this book, but I loved that it exists in the same universe as Every Last Fear through Sarah Keller. This book flies by and was just really enjoyable!

*Thank you to Minotaur Books and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review*

The latest installment in the "Emm reads a series out of order" and I'm really satisfied with this book. It's an enemies to lovers romance steeped in culture, but not without Sara Desai's trademark humor. The ensemble of Layla's suitors is just hilarious and left me wondering if one of them really was in the CIA... And it was such a classic grump & sunshine combo, with Sam grinding Layla's (and my) gears. I did feel as though the revenge subplot was a little underwhelming and we didn't get to see Layla focus as much on her career, but it's still a great book overall.

Soooo... I read this book immediately after The Marriage Game. Like put the book down and grabbed the next one. And I feel like Sara Desai really hits her stride in this one. The sexual tension is there from the start, the subplots feel more fleshed out, and I just ADORE Daisy. And Max of course, can't forget the little pakora muncher. It felt like this book had real stakes, rather than just a "will they get married or not?". I loved that Daisy was a huge Marvel nerd, a successful software engineer, and had anxiety - basically just like me. And getting to interact with the families more made this book even funnier. I'll never get over shark stew.

This is a gorgeous follow-up to Black Girls Must Die Exhausted that maintains the pace we got to know. We follow Tabby through her sudden pregnancy, discrimination based on her hair, and complicated family dynamics and it all just flies by. Add on her complicated friendship dynamics - like seriously Lexi... Leave Laila alone - and you have a contemporary novel that feels like real life. Jayne Allen leaves us with her near-patented cliffhanger, so I'm desperate for the third installment.

*Thank you to Harper Perennial and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review*

This book is positively appetizing. I did make the mistake of starting it right before bed, which is probably why I couldn't fall asleep... My heart was just beating so fast! I loved the connections between this book and The Obsession, both in the foreground and sneaky connections. There's a general dark academia atmosphere cultivated at Draycott that's just so thrilling. Lia isn't conniving by any means, rather thrust into a dog eat dog world where everyone has secrets. Add in Draycott Dirt, where everyone knows everything? It cultivates paranoia in the best way. This is a great book to start with for YA thriller fans, even if you haven't read The Obsession as it's kind of a prequel of sorts.

*Thank you to Sourcebooks FIRE and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review*