jennireadsmaybe's Reviews (678)

Emotionally, I'm unwell. Physically, I'm unwell. Mentally, I'm unwell. Oye shows that love is expansive especially from a grandmother. I miss mine every day. It's an out of body experience learning new things about a constant presence in your life. For me, there was great joy in getting to know my grandma, but also great pain. There's a life time of pain and horrible moments that you didn't experience first hand. Melissa Mollogon masterfully captures the grief of losing a love one that hasn't died yet. You know it's around the corner and that nothing can stop it from happening but by god do you wish you could. 

I want to protect Luciana with my whole being. She's forced into the impossibly difficult situation of being Abue's caretaker while trying to graduate high school and failing to meet her mom's impossible high standards. Her story resonates with me in many ways. I'm glad this story exists even if it caused me immeasurable pain. 

I tried your honor. 60 pages in and they haven't even physically had a conversation yet. I put it down hoping I'd get the motivation to return eventually, but it just isn't happening. 

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin for providing me with an eARC in exchange for my honest thoughts <3

I fear I have to move to a coastal town and open a cheese shop now. In all seriousness, this low-stakes, cozy, beachy, sapphic historical romance was just the cutest. It centers a working class community seaside community that is trying its hardest not to be swallowed up by the neighboring seaside resort town. The FMCs are opposite in every way. Sylvia is a down on her luck, lady from the ton whose uncle has taken away her families wealth following her father's death. Hannah is part of a multi-generational farming family and just wants to open the cheese shop of her dreams. Much to their dismay, Sylvia and Hannah are forced to work together after a disastrous first meeting that left Hannah with a sour taste in her mouth. 

These two hatch a bonkers plan to get Sylvia married off to a rich suitor so she can reclaim her status and also buy Hannah that cheese shop. Of course, along the way, feelings develop. Sylvia hasn't felt so much as a flutter at any of the men she's pursued, but she begins to wonder if that exciting feeling she gets around Hannah is more than friendly. I enjoyed their relationship especially after they began to realize the other may be their person. There's so much chemistry and trust between these two. I could feel their love story in the pitter patter of my own heart. The epilogue!!!! I will never be the same!!! Gah I just love them!!! 

I look forward to reading more from Emma-Claire Sunday after enjoying both her debut and The Fortune Hunter's Guide to Love. 

Notting Hill but make Hugh Grant's character a butch lesbian, which obviously I'm here for. Jude and Kat come to life on the page from their meet cute to their HEA. I truly enjoyed this. They're obviously coming from two very different lives, but they find this peace in each other that they've never had before. Their love story is quiet and charming and soft and full of heart. As much as I loved the tension between them, I found that I loved the little moments of them lounging around Jude's apartment more.  I love that their relationship is so messy. They're both learning how to be together, how to communicate, and how to navigate heartbreak and life changes. It was very realistic for being a celebrity romance. 

Celebrity romances are so much fun because there's always an element of outside drama. Can my non-celeb partner really put up with what being with me means for their private life? Am I worth sticking around for if that means being in the public eye? Camille Kellogg captures these feelings so well in Kat all while juggling Kat coming to terms with her sexuality and her very public coming out. Her life's a mess and she's far from perfect, but she's so damn endearing. I couldn't help but root for her. 

Jude is stuck. She's running her late mother's bookstore with her best friends, but she's also struggling with panic attacks, dating after a not-so-great relationship, and the ever present grief from losing her mom. I love that her arc revolves around learning to accept change; it's hard to admit that you need to change, but Jude eventually leans into change in such a brave way. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for providing me with an e-ARC in exchange for my honest thoughts <3

Every single time I read this title I sing the Hannah Montana song in my head, and if that's not good marketing I don't know what is. If We Were a Movie is a YA sapphic romance between former childhood friends turned rivals. The single POV follows Rochelle, who's more focused on getting into Wharton and following in her parent's footsteps than having the "typical" high school experience. She's desperate to find a job to boost her college application, but no one seems to be hiring; until, she gets a random call from Horizon Cinemas. Things are finally starting to go her way. Then, boom, her supervisor is Amira (the last person she'd ever want to work with). Now that they have to spend all this time together, it's impossible for Rochelle to push her true feelings down. 

This is a sweet, low stakes romance. Everything works out in the end for Horizon and Rochelle. There's also a bit of a mystery (a very, very small bit). I had fun. I'm intrigued to see where Zakiya N. Jamal goes from here. I'd love to get a bit more emotional depth in the future. Overall, a good read. 

thank you M.J. Marlowe for giving me the transgender cowboy I've always wanted!!! 

Cleat Cute meets Friday Night Lights, I'm sat. Ready to Score is fun, hot, and full of high school football charm.  Jade has spent her whole career trying to become head coach of the local high school football team; she's got a lot of slack from some parents for being a Black woman coach in an industry that is dominated by cis white men. Still, she fights and fights and fights until the current head coach announces that he's retiring and will name his replacement at the end of the season. She's really the only assistant coach in the running until Franny, the art teacher she's destests, joins the running. 

The book heavily focuses on this "competition" between Jade and Franny. Their rivalry is mostly one sided because we know almost immediatley that Franny is attracted to Jade and not even apart of the team like Jade is. Jade makes some risky calls and goes through a lot of growth in the second half of the book. As a character driven reader I ended up liking this more than the romance. 

Jade and Franny's romance takes a quick turn from one sided rivalry to essentially living together, but I still enjoyed it. There's this super obvious tension between them that Jade is scared of leaning into because it might ruin her chance to become the head football coach. Franny is really down bad from the start, but Jade takes some time. I, personally, would have liked a bit more time with them exploring their feelings, but I was plenty happy with what was there. 

need manson's boot on my throat biblically

I read over 1000 pages to catch up on the Confession series and read Tempting Tara, and honestly, I would do it again!!! Each book follows a different relationship, but you still get to be with the characters from the previous novels as they continue to navigate their relationships. Cozy DuBois mentions in the content warnings that friends lives don't remain stagnant as you fall in love; there's still hardships and joy to be found in everyone's lives. These books are romances, so they're full of queer and trans joy, but they not afraid to stray from the hard parts of life (especially LGBTQIA+ people living in a conservative area). 

As each book goes on we see characters continue to grow so much. Tempting Tara especially feels like a sweet victory after getting to know Tara and Gabe's trauma from the previous two books. They've had a messy, on-and-off, situationship for two years. They're learning to communicate with each other and how to show up each other in every way. It's so sweet. I feel like I've grown with them. Obviously, there's a ton of simmering sexual tension between them, but seeing them finally acknowledge their feelings and what that means as they finally pursue a romantic relationship is what romance is all about. They're not perfect. They don't "deserve each other." But hell if they're not going to do whatever it takes to be together. 

I am so grateful that the author provided me with an eARC of Tempting Tara in exchange for my honest thoughts. 

Your Honor, I don’t have much to say except that I love them! From their very first magical hook up to the last, I was so down bad for Keelan and Silas. Keelan is just chugging along through life, dreaming of love, but also stuck in a bit of a rut; his best friend just married and he’s feeling really lonely now. I want to carry him around in my pocket and protect him from all life has to throw at him. Silas is gruff, grumpy, and unimpressed with what the ton has to offer him. He’s only there to keep his promise to Torquil and help further study Fae-Human magic. 

Of course, when these two can’t seem to stop thinking of each other, they’re thrown in close-proximity. They’re forced to orbit around each other for weeks on end as they both help with the council’s study. Y’all there is more yearning in this book than anything else!! Even though they seem to be polar opposites (city boy x country boy), they manage to find solace in these quiet, hidden moments. There’s so much I want to say about their relationship, but I don’t want to spoil their LOVE story. Just know, the angst and the yearning and the denial of their feelings and literally everything about them is perfect!!!