I LIKED IT.

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I’m very up and down, hit and miss with Christina Lauren books. This fell somewhere in-between. Honestly I’m feeling a little generous giving four stars, but here we are.

The plot set up and style was fun. I did like that it was unique with the TV show and romance books aspects. I absolutely adore Fizzy and Connor was incredibly swoony too. Definitely felt the chemistry from them and how much they wanted to be together.

BUT. The third act. I can’t. I can’t handle Connor offering up vulnerability, honesty and communication and Fizzy throwing that in his face. Very much rage inducing for me and I even waited until the next day to finish because this book had been going so well?!

I will commend the finale. It went exactly as I hoped and was super cute. SUPER. Therefore, it made me happy and I love a sweet happy ending.

Overall audience notes:
- Contemporary Romance
- Language: strong
- Romance: 2-3 open; high explicit
- Trigger/Content Warnings: parental abandonment mentioned, infidelity mentioned 

Thank you to Covenant Communications and the author for an ARC.

ENJOYABLE.

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I liked this one y’all! It’s very short (180 pages) and still manages to give some good story lines and character arcs throughout. This was a unique premise I haven’t come across before and I loved that it was set in New York.

The main characters Isabella and Prince both had journeys I appreciated seeing. Isabella had to learn to ignore gossip that was truly out of her control and make the best decisions for her and her life regardless of what everyone else will say. And I liked seeing Prince going from over the top spoiled to being humbled by the position he actually does hold in society and what he can do with that power.

The romance was a bit more subtle than I was hoping for, but I do see the necessary progression and slow burn. I would have loved even more moments between the two, yet I did like what was on page. That would be the overall thing I needed most, a longer story with more fleshed out backgrounds and plot.

It’s a quick read. It’s moderately heavy as can be seen from the synopsis. I don’t think it overwhelmed the story though. This was my first book by this author and I would love to try another!

Overall audience notes:
- Historical Romance
- Language: none
- Romance: kisses
- Violence: low
-Trigger/Content Warnings: cancer (a theme throughout), mentions of loss of a parent 

LET DOWN.

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I was really excited for this release when I saw it floating around and now I’m here to say that it wasn’t worth it. This is clearly a The Little Mermaid retelling but attempting to make it adult with little success. I know others might enjoy more of these aspects, so take my thoughts how you will.

For one, I wish it had eventually turned into its own story. I didn’t feel like anything really new was added to the retelling. Every direct component was there and more or less like the original. Just add in awkward innuendo and romance book tangents that didn’t fit the plot and you’re there. Along with that was the heavy use of modern language that took me out of the book. I’m in a fantasy world and too often these small things kept adding up adding to my displeasure overall. I thought some of the world building pieces were cool, and I wish those had been fleshed out more for a more complete story.

Different parts of the romance worked for me. There’s decent banter and I understood the enemies to lovers. For a standalone the pacing and slow burn nature did fit well. But I officially do not like epilogues that are there only to add another *love* scene, it’s just not necessary.

Meh. I’m bummed. Moving on.

Overall audience notes:
- Fantasy Romance Retelling
- Language: some strong
- Romance: innuendo, 2-3 almost scenes, 2 open door; low – med. explicit
- Violence: moderate-high
- Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of loved ones, whipping, near death experiences, murder, small battle themes 

I don't quite understand the point of this one in regards to the Mistborn world. It was short and fine!

I liked this story!! I love Kelsier and this has a bit of an origin story vibe.

 UHM.

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I went with with some good hopes on this one. I know the series is overall well loved and I thought it was about time to give it a chance (thank you hoopla for having the audiobooks). Aaaand I’m really hoping the next book is better because I did not connect well with this one.

There was a rampant amount of miscommunication and theatrics that made everything seem a level more dramatic than necessary. I kept waiting to see some character arcs and the more I think about it the more I realize that I don’t think there was actually any. Just a lot of super cliched characters and dynamics that never felt new.

I also didn’t love the way dieting was spoken about. It was handled poorly and didn’t leave a good feeling with me.

I enjoyed the MMC Trevor and loved that it was dual POV. Always my favorite part of a contemporary romance book. There’s some sweet moments and I did like when Trevor and Lexi had quiet moments together. It’s a fast audio read and I will be trying book two.

Overall audience notes:
- Contemporary Romance
- Language: none
- Romance: kisses
- Trigger/Content Warnings: dieting and weight commentary 

LOOOOOVED.

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This is how you do it folks. This is how you write a beautiful and swoony novella. I’m so happy I circled back to reading this because it did not disappoint in the slightest.

The connection between Jane and Ewan was amazing. I felt like I had known them already. Ewan is full of absolute SWOON and had many quotable lines that left me in a puddle. I enjoyed the story and pacing worked perfectly.

There’s great characters, romance, family moments and more. I thought it set the stage really well for the rest of the series (I’ve read all but the last). Don’t skip out on this one!!

Overall audience notes:
- Regency Romance Novella
- Language: none
- Romance: kisses

 

This was fine but I don't think it added anything to the original story. Honestly should just be included at the end of Elantris.

Working through my Sanderson back list ✅.

I LIKED IT.

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I know that may not seem like much but I kind of tore book one down but still wanted to give this one a chance and thought the development was much better.

One of the things I love most is that these sisters actually work together. There’s care, love and taking care of one another. Rose and Wren don’t always see eye to eye but I appreciate that that strong sister bond is always holding them together.

The romances swooned it up a bit more too. I finally got on board with Rose and her leading man. There were some good twists there that I like for the future story too. Wren’s was good, and then left me head scratching by the end. I don’t know if the added love triangle was actually necessary, crossing my fingers it makes sense.

I liked the story more and the magic, world building, etc. The action is kicked up a notch and the plot thickens. I look forward to book three.

Overall audience notes:
- YA Fantasy Romance
- Language: none
- Romance: implied closed door
- Violence: moderate
- Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of loved ones, battle themes, reincarnation, kidnapping 

HMM.

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This is a book broken into three parts that makes me review feel like three parts.

I really enjoyed part one. It was interesting. I liked the suspense and the drama of it all. I felt on board with Charlie and Silas’s story and was very dang curious about what had happened. Since this wasn’t a sci-fi or fantasy novel what magical realism was playing a part?!

Part two started to slow things down and was a bit repetitive. We know they’ve lost a lot of their memory and things are a bit up and down. There’s some good romantic moments looking at journals and memories I enjoyed.

Then part three brought it all together, but still left me feeling unsatisfied. I wasn’t quite on board with the big reveal of what happened and why. I think it was supposed to make me feel uber romantic, and it did to a point, but I think I was expected more drama as well. There were some story lines that I didn’t find wrapped up well and now that I’m sitting here I’m poking more and more holes into the book.

Oh well, another book off my CoHo back list!

Overall audience notes:
- Contemporary Romantic Suspense
- Language: a little strong
- Romance: closed door
- Violence: moderate
- Trigger/Content Warnings: memory loss, amnesia, kidnapping, incarcerated father, gaslighting parent