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CHARMING.
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I can’t wait to read more of the books in this series because I really enjoyed this one.
Selina and Edmund were a charming pair and the love triangle kind-of happening honestly didn’t phase me at all. It’s clear from the start where things are going and I appreciated the transparent everything was between them. Edmund and Selina had some cute banter and moments. For a quick-paced romance I didn’t feel the rush. Probably, also because it’s a regency romance and I always feel those tend towards a faster pace.
I loved the setting. Christmastide on the river Thames. It felt atmospheric and romantic. The writing was great and I felt invested from the start. This had some solid kiss moments and the ending was predictably adorable. I love a good Hallmark-y romance read during the season and this was wonderful.
Overall audience notes:
- Regency romance
- Language: none
- Romance: kisses
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I can’t wait to read more of the books in this series because I really enjoyed this one.
Selina and Edmund were a charming pair and the love triangle kind-of happening honestly didn’t phase me at all. It’s clear from the start where things are going and I appreciated the transparent everything was between them. Edmund and Selina had some cute banter and moments. For a quick-paced romance I didn’t feel the rush. Probably, also because it’s a regency romance and I always feel those tend towards a faster pace.
I loved the setting. Christmastide on the river Thames. It felt atmospheric and romantic. The writing was great and I felt invested from the start. This had some solid kiss moments and the ending was predictably adorable. I love a good Hallmark-y romance read during the season and this was wonderful.
Overall audience notes:
- Regency romance
- Language: none
- Romance: kisses
WHAT A RIDE.
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Am I clever yet?
I didn’t have any sort of expectations going into this. I picked it up at a free little library years ago, and chose this past Christmas to finally read it. I also listened to it on audio and thought it was well read there too. It had fun train sounds between chapters that added to the atmosphere.
This book had its ups and downs. I liked Tom and thought the concept of riding a train during Christmas was a solid idea. I’ve never ridden one so it was fun seeing how everything is set up for a passenger train. Tom ran into a large cast of characters on his travels. Some of it felt a bit scattered, but things came mostly together by the end to not leave wide plot holes.
I liked the soft second-chance romance. It sweet and fit in nicely. I thought they had chemistry and were clearly still into each other. I thought Tom and Ellie were able to finally communicate and work things out together which was was nice to see.
The ending was a bit improbable, but I guess with the other antics and hijinks of the story it worked out well enough. This felt Christmas-y and was a quick read. A nice holiday choice.
Overall audience notes:
- Christmas Fiction
- Language: very little
- Romance: kisses, some innuendo
- Violence: avalanche, theft
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Am I clever yet?
I didn’t have any sort of expectations going into this. I picked it up at a free little library years ago, and chose this past Christmas to finally read it. I also listened to it on audio and thought it was well read there too. It had fun train sounds between chapters that added to the atmosphere.
This book had its ups and downs. I liked Tom and thought the concept of riding a train during Christmas was a solid idea. I’ve never ridden one so it was fun seeing how everything is set up for a passenger train. Tom ran into a large cast of characters on his travels. Some of it felt a bit scattered, but things came mostly together by the end to not leave wide plot holes.
I liked the soft second-chance romance. It sweet and fit in nicely. I thought they had chemistry and were clearly still into each other. I thought Tom and Ellie were able to finally communicate and work things out together which was was nice to see.
The ending was a bit improbable, but I guess with the other antics and hijinks of the story it worked out well enough. This felt Christmas-y and was a quick read. A nice holiday choice.
Overall audience notes:
- Christmas Fiction
- Language: very little
- Romance: kisses, some innuendo
- Violence: avalanche, theft
3.5 stars
PRETTY CUTE.
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I adored this on some levels, and others maybe not so much.
What I did love was the overall story. There was plenty of Hallmark vibes and I love a good princess story. There was a fun meet cute, and I felt the connection between Leo and Gabby immediately. I was surprised that even though this is a small timeline, that things didn’t feel forced between them. Not really insta-love or anything like that, a nice change!
The love scenes were out of place. It went from Hallmark to whoa whoa whoa steamy scenes, that were long and very open door. My general issue is when those scenes don’t match up with the vibe and tone of the rest of the novel.
Without that it was cute. Leo’s little sister Gabby and his friend Dani were wonderful additions. And y’all, there was a ball at the end. I’m a sucker for a good ball in a book and this was definitely hit the mark. Totally cheesy, totally perfect.
Overall audience notes:
- Contemporary romance
- Language: some strong
- Romance: a handful of very open door scenes
- Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of loved one(s)
PRETTY CUTE.
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I adored this on some levels, and others maybe not so much.
What I did love was the overall story. There was plenty of Hallmark vibes and I love a good princess story. There was a fun meet cute, and I felt the connection between Leo and Gabby immediately. I was surprised that even though this is a small timeline, that things didn’t feel forced between them. Not really insta-love or anything like that, a nice change!
The love scenes were out of place. It went from Hallmark to whoa whoa whoa steamy scenes, that were long and very open door. My general issue is when those scenes don’t match up with the vibe and tone of the rest of the novel.
Without that it was cute. Leo’s little sister Gabby and his friend Dani were wonderful additions. And y’all, there was a ball at the end. I’m a sucker for a good ball in a book and this was definitely hit the mark. Totally cheesy, totally perfect.
Overall audience notes:
- Contemporary romance
- Language: some strong
- Romance: a handful of very open door scenes
- Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of loved one(s)
RATHER UNCONVENIENT.
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This was heading towards a strong three star. I wouldn’t say memorable, but I was enjoying the holiday spirit, the single Dad romance was pretty cute and I’m always here for a sunshine/grump trope.
Enter in, the dreaded conflict. We all know they arise each romance read, and sometimes they work out great, other times I turn into a rage monster over the ridiculousness nature of it all. This one was the latter. If a 5 year-old has to tell her Dad he’s being silly because he blew up at the heroine without a good enough reason, something is wrong with that picture. It was laughable and extended the book unnecessarily. Really wish it just had skipped over the conflict and went to the sappy ending.
I liked that the Abby owned her own event business. It was fun to see a different angle to holiday romances with this. Abby and Finn got along together well and I love a cute kid to boot. There’s some goodness here overall, even if things weren’t clicking for me.
Overall audience notes:
- Contemporary Romance
- Language: none
- Romance: closed door
- Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of a grandparent (prior to book, but discussed often), divorce
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This was heading towards a strong three star. I wouldn’t say memorable, but I was enjoying the holiday spirit, the single Dad romance was pretty cute and I’m always here for a sunshine/grump trope.
Enter in, the dreaded conflict. We all know they arise each romance read, and sometimes they work out great, other times I turn into a rage monster over the ridiculousness nature of it all. This one was the latter. If a 5 year-old has to tell her Dad he’s being silly because he blew up at the heroine without a good enough reason, something is wrong with that picture. It was laughable and extended the book unnecessarily. Really wish it just had skipped over the conflict and went to the sappy ending.
I liked that the Abby owned her own event business. It was fun to see a different angle to holiday romances with this. Abby and Finn got along together well and I love a cute kid to boot. There’s some goodness here overall, even if things weren’t clicking for me.
Overall audience notes:
- Contemporary Romance
- Language: none
- Romance: closed door
- Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of a grandparent (prior to book, but discussed often), divorce
Thank you to the publisher for an ARC.
A GREAT READ.
That’s how I feel I can best bottle this one up. It was highly enjoyable and I found myself very much invested by the end hoping for a positive outcome.
I thought this romance was SO DANG SWEET. The way it started out had me laughing and I loved the progression. It’s slow, it’s full of feeling and you can feel Gilles and Marie-Caroline’s connection across the pages. I adored the tender things Gilles did for Marie-Caroline, how Caroline teased Gilles and the way they both protected and pushed each other outside of their confined boxes.
The setting was unique for me in regards to historical fiction and I love a good switch-up! I got to see a bit about the French revolution. I wish there was a bit more of that dynamic on a larger scale, but this small scale version in the seaside town did the trick. I also really liked a lot of the side characters. There’s a few you love to hate, but also people like Gilles father had me absolutely gleeful when they played a bigger role. There were many well thought out and well placed characters.
It’s a slower read, and one I didn’t mind had that facet. The writing is gorgeous and moves the plot along well. I love that this was from the hero’s point of view (with some small pieces from the heroine). Many things made this book unique and I highly recommend for historical fiction fans!
Overall audience notes:
- Historical fiction romance
- Language: none
- Romance: kisses
- Violence: war themes, physical altercations
- Trigger/Content Warnings: discussion/use of guillotine, loss of a sibling, mob attacks
This was a great holiday Novella!
Loved the pacing, story was sweet. Love a good second chance romance.
Loved the pacing, story was sweet. Love a good second chance romance.
HIGHLY ENJOYABLE.
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My first historical romance y’all. I’m not upset about it one bit. I really enjoyed this read and look forward to the next book.
One of the things that worked for me here was the open door scenes didn’t take over the book. I thought they fit in exactly where they should go and furthered the story rather than took me out of it.
Ohemgee, Evan. I loved him y’all. Such a great love interest. He was a “typical Duke,” but also seemed to really value what August wanted. He wanted to ensure she would choose him and not feel like she was being wholly forced into their marriage. It was really sweet and endearing to see his efforts.
August was a gem. I love her fiery attitude and strength of character. She knew what she wanted and took charge of the situations before her. August and Evan clearly had chemistry from the get go. I loved their meet-cute and the love story that followed.
The expected miscommunication didn’t arise intense feelings of annoyance in me. I actually thought it worked perfectly. It made sense for the plot and gave both characters an opportunity to breathe and see what they wanted. Not to mention, gave such a cute coming together at the end. All smiles for me!
Overall audience notes:
- Historical romance
- Language: a little strong
- Romance: kisses to two open door scenes
- Violence: boxing
- Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of a loved one, forced marriage
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My first historical romance y’all. I’m not upset about it one bit. I really enjoyed this read and look forward to the next book.
One of the things that worked for me here was the open door scenes didn’t take over the book. I thought they fit in exactly where they should go and furthered the story rather than took me out of it.
Ohemgee, Evan. I loved him y’all. Such a great love interest. He was a “typical Duke,” but also seemed to really value what August wanted. He wanted to ensure she would choose him and not feel like she was being wholly forced into their marriage. It was really sweet and endearing to see his efforts.
August was a gem. I love her fiery attitude and strength of character. She knew what she wanted and took charge of the situations before her. August and Evan clearly had chemistry from the get go. I loved their meet-cute and the love story that followed.
The expected miscommunication didn’t arise intense feelings of annoyance in me. I actually thought it worked perfectly. It made sense for the plot and gave both characters an opportunity to breathe and see what they wanted. Not to mention, gave such a cute coming together at the end. All smiles for me!
Overall audience notes:
- Historical romance
- Language: a little strong
- Romance: kisses to two open door scenes
- Violence: boxing
- Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of a loved one, forced marriage
ONE NOTE.
I know I’m the unpopular opinion here, buuuut I didn’t love this conclusion.
I really wanted more from Rin. I thought she spent too much of this book hell bent on revenge that the warm themes became very one note. It was travel here, destroy some of the villains, travel here, repeat. It’s very violent, which I was fine with, but wanted something more. I don’t think every book needs a romance. I do think (at least in this books case) it needed ONE soft thing. Something to see that Rin had another side to her (maybe that was the point? These are just my thoughts).
Anyways, it was fine. I listened to it on audio and that was a great medium for this series. I liked seeing Nezha and what he was up to and the twisted way this story played out. It’s very nuanced and intricate in regards to some aspects. This series is harsh in nature and an emotional read at times.
The ending let me down. There was one aspect to it that made me want to throw a book. The longer I sit on it, I can see the intention of the decision, but I still think things could have worked out a bit differently. And it didn’t feel like it actually ended either?? I don’t know. A huge mixed bag of thoughts for a series I was initially in love with.
Overall audience notes:
- High fantasy
- Language: strong
- Romance: none
- Trigger/Content Warnings: extreme depictions of blood/gore, rape, war themes, suicide, mass loss of life, magical and physical altercations, torture, executions, and more that I might have missed; please check into the content before reading!
BUT WHY.
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I kept hearing about this *emotional ending*. I imaginged something catastrophic happening, tears being shed, etc. All I actually felt was RAGE. I know and expect a cliffhanger in Shadowhunter books. It’s fine, but sometimes they don’t match up well for me. This one seemed like it’s going to cause a lot more damage and I am not okay.
COI took a long time to pick up. It was hundreds of pages before I felt really connected to the story. Even with loving a character driven novel, I guess with some many switches between POVs I wasn’t feeling attached to anyone until later down the line.
Granted, once things got going, they got moving quickly. I really liked the second half. And I especially appreciate that this feels like more of a fresh take in the Shadowhunter world. It’s no secret that I’m slowly fading out of wanting to read this series. It’s a lot of books in one world, ya know?
For now, I’m continuing on. Definitely invested enough to read book three and see what happens next. There’s many ships I’m hoping set sail (or for that matter, REMAIN SAILING). I do adore this cast and the whole group of Merry Thieves.
Overall audience notes:
- YA Urban / Historical fiction Fantasy
- Language: very little
- Romance: kisses to closed door scenes
- Violence: battles, demonic attacks, weaponry
- Trigger/Content Warnings: alcohlism
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I kept hearing about this *emotional ending*. I imaginged something catastrophic happening, tears being shed, etc. All I actually felt was RAGE. I know and expect a cliffhanger in Shadowhunter books. It’s fine, but sometimes they don’t match up well for me. This one seemed like it’s going to cause a lot more damage and I am not okay.
COI took a long time to pick up. It was hundreds of pages before I felt really connected to the story. Even with loving a character driven novel, I guess with some many switches between POVs I wasn’t feeling attached to anyone until later down the line.
Granted, once things got going, they got moving quickly. I really liked the second half. And I especially appreciate that this feels like more of a fresh take in the Shadowhunter world. It’s no secret that I’m slowly fading out of wanting to read this series. It’s a lot of books in one world, ya know?
For now, I’m continuing on. Definitely invested enough to read book three and see what happens next. There’s many ships I’m hoping set sail (or for that matter, REMAIN SAILING). I do adore this cast and the whole group of Merry Thieves.
Overall audience notes:
- YA Urban / Historical fiction Fantasy
- Language: very little
- Romance: kisses to closed door scenes
- Violence: battles, demonic attacks, weaponry
- Trigger/Content Warnings: alcohlism
IT WAS GOOD.
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Three stars is mostly a case of not exactly for me, but could be for you so take this review for what you will.
This was a pretty good holiday romance. I loved the Christmastime set-up with the emporium and that the heroine’s Dad actually plays Santa Claus really added to the spirit of the season. Another sunshine/grump trope (common for the holiday reads) was used here too.
I didn’t love the friends with benefits trope. It’s just not for me. And things were waaaaay past my comfort zone for spice and I had to skip a lot more than I hoped/expected. So if you love both of those things, I would say try this out! The writing is good, and the larger story is very heartfelt.
The moments between Shane, Sarah and Sophie were incredibly sweet. Probably my favorites in the entire book. I love watching them become an unconventional family in the midst of tragedy. Sarah worked really hard to light up there lives in anyway possible and it played out well for the story. The conflict wasn’t overdone and led to a nice ending.
Overall audience notes:
- Contemporary Holiday Romance
- Language: strong
- Romance: multiple very open door scenes
- Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of both parents, depictions of grief (most often in a young child)
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Three stars is mostly a case of not exactly for me, but could be for you so take this review for what you will.
This was a pretty good holiday romance. I loved the Christmastime set-up with the emporium and that the heroine’s Dad actually plays Santa Claus really added to the spirit of the season. Another sunshine/grump trope (common for the holiday reads) was used here too.
I didn’t love the friends with benefits trope. It’s just not for me. And things were waaaaay past my comfort zone for spice and I had to skip a lot more than I hoped/expected. So if you love both of those things, I would say try this out! The writing is good, and the larger story is very heartfelt.
The moments between Shane, Sarah and Sophie were incredibly sweet. Probably my favorites in the entire book. I love watching them become an unconventional family in the midst of tragedy. Sarah worked really hard to light up there lives in anyway possible and it played out well for the story. The conflict wasn’t overdone and led to a nice ending.
Overall audience notes:
- Contemporary Holiday Romance
- Language: strong
- Romance: multiple very open door scenes
- Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of both parents, depictions of grief (most often in a young child)