I received an eARC of this book via NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.

This is my favorite read so far this year, even bumping House of Sky and Breath off the top! This Vicious Grace by Emily Thiede is a high fantasy about a girl chosen by the goddess and tasked with saving her home. I absolutely loved the world-building, the desperation of impending doom that haunts every page, and the flickers of hope that flash when we need it.

Alessa was chosen by the goddess when she was 14. She is one of the strongest Finestra the island has ever seen, but that strength is also a curse. As Finestra, Alessa acts as a power amplifier, directing and controlling her Fonte’s gift. However, Alessa’s touch is deadly. She cannot control how much of the Fonte’s power she takes and as a results kills them. Now after three failed Fontes, Alessa is desperate. Her people are questioning if she is from Dea or Crollo, sent to destroy them. After an assassination attempt to bring forth a new Finestra fails, Alessa must find someone she can trust and a Fonte to save her home.

I love Alessa. She is so lonely and closed off from all around her. She cannot touch anyone for fear of killing them, and as a result she is starved for touch, desperate to find a Fonte who can withstand her, someone that can simply give her a hug. My heart was so broken for her in the beginning. Her only friend is her twin brother, who technically isn’t even supposed to acknowledge her anymore as a part of her becoming Finestra. After two failed assassination attempts, Alessa seeks out Dante, a street fighter, to be her bodyguard.

Dante *sigh* I love him too. While the story is told almost entirely from Alessa’s perspective, it is so easy to fall in love with him. He is constantly telling Alessa how untrustworthy he is, that he is cruel and unkind. Yet his actions speak louder than his words, which is why Alessa seeks him out in the first place. But there is SO much more to him than meets the eye. He sees Alessa for what she is, a girl blessed with a gift she didn’t want and cursed as a result. He offers her companionship and his own knowledge of the ancient texts may prove useful as he helps her determine a way to work with her Fontes.

This debut took me completely off-guard. Thiede’s world-building is outstanding. I love the blend of fantasy and the Italian-inspired island. She’s built an entire religion and mythology into this book. It’s immersive, beautiful, and haunting all at the same time. I found myself invested in Alessa’s fate within just a few paragraphs of the opening pages. With the Divorando–the demon horde purge from Crollo–approaching, it adds a sense of urgency to the story, conveying Alessa’s desperation to the reader. I could not sit it down!

Overall, I loved This Vicious Grace and eagerly wait its sequel. YA fantasy fans will devour this one and delight in the characters, the world, and the battles that ensue. If you are a fan of YA fantasy and enjoy a little romance with a lot of fun banter, I highly recommend it.

I received an eARC of this book via NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.

Absolutely loved this charming, small town romance! The True Love Bookshop by Annie Rains is the third book in her series Somerset Lake that features the men and women of the fictional North Carolina town. Tess Lane is the owner of Lakeside Books where she hosts a romance book club with her closest friends. The store and book club have been her lifeline since losing her husband three years prior. Then enters River Harrison, her husband’s ex-best friend and the man who ruined their wedding by objecting all those years ago. Showing up in her shop nearly on death’s door, Tess has to reconcile her feelings for the man and how her prejudice view of him as together they unravel the mystery of her husband’s death.

Tess and River are fantastic characters and so easy to root for. Rains does not shy away from the hard topics in this book which include grief and infidelity. She handles them with grace and shows them realistically through Tess and River. Tess, even three years later, is grieving her husband, not ready to move on from this perfect marriage she’s built in her head. However, the circumstances surrounding Jared’s death haunt her. Why was he in this small town in the middle of nowhere? He said he was gone for work, but work denies it. So where was he and why? The answers aren’t pretty, but she is determined to find them.

River is the complete opposite of what Tess expected of him. He broke my heart on so many different levels. He is a loner, but has a beautiful personality and a fierce loyalty to those who love him back. Even all these years after his falling out with Jared, River still loves and mourns his best friend’s death. He regrets that they were never able to mend that friendship, and like Tess he needs answers. He never plans to bring Tess in on his investigation, however she has as much as right as he does to know the truth. And y’all the truth sometimes hurts.

The begrudging friendship that Tess offers River quickly turns into something sweeter and more. I love how this naturally progresses between the characters instead of feeling rushed or out of character. Both move at a snail’s pace, but it is worth it in the end. I absolutely loved that we were given both characters’ points of view. This helped to understand their actions and endeared River to me.

Overall, I really enjoyed The True Love Bookshop. River and Tess’s friendship that blooms into more is beautiful and exactly what I needed. Rains doesn’t shy away from the heavy emotions for this one. While it does have some sweet romcom moments, it will also pull on heartstrings. If you are a fan of romance and women’s lit, I highly recommend it.

Gemina by Amie Kaufman, Jay Kristoff begins in the middle of a United Terran Authority (UTA) tribunal against BeiTech Industries and their knowledge of the Kerenza IV attack and destruction of Heimdall station. Told through transcripts, instant messaging, and surveillance footage, the attack on Heimdall station plays out. To place it in time with the first book, the events here take place a few weeks after the end of Illuminae.

Hanna is our main protagonist, and y’all she was SO hard to like at first. She’s the daughter of the station’s captain, spoiled, rich, and despite her brains, quite the party girl. Hanna isn’t concerned in the least about what is going on outside of her bubble of friends and fashion. In fact, she is meeting with her drug dealer when the attack begins. We quickly see a new side of Hanna as all the training and “war games” her father played with her kicks in. Hanna is a badass!

Nik Malikov is not at all what I expected him to be. He is the son of a crime/drug lord, and while he happens to supply Hanna with her drugs, Nik is overall a good guy put in a crappy life situation. It’s Nik’s life style that allows BeiTech access to the station and as a result he feels partially responsible for all the killing currently happening. So he teams up with Hanna (who is quite reluctant) to attempt to take control of the station back.

If you miss Kady, Ezra and AIDAN, you won’t for long. Unbeknownst to Nik and Hanna, the crew of the Hypatia are on their way with news of Kerenza IV which went dark several months prior, and Heimdall has been fed a bunch of lies about why. Needless to say, they are all in for a shock.

Just like book one, Gemina unfolds at neck-breaking speeds, action-packed with twists and turns you won’t see coming. I devoured this one. The characters are fantastic, the world-building immersive, and the enemies, seen and unseen, are truly terrifying. I opted to listen to the audiobook again and was pleased with the performance. It’s a full cast and breathes life into the pages. Highly recommend this one for fans of sci-fi, Doctor Who, and Star Trek.

I received an eARC of this book via NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.

Always Be My Duchess by Amalie Howard is the first in her historical romance series Taming of the Dukes. Following a ballerina barely making ends meet and a duke in need of a fiancé, the story is reminiscent of classic 90s romcoms and would make Nora Ephron proud. There is so much to love about this story: fake relationship, grumpy-sunshine trope, neurodivergent main character, and banter.

The story opens on the Duke of Montcroix, Lysander Blackstone, on his way home from a night of drinking, theater, and failed attempts to buy a piece of land needed to expand his railroad when he comes across a beautiful specter of a woman upset and muttering things that would make a sailor blush. Never let it be said that the duke is not a gentleman. Intrigued he stops to make sure she is alright, and quickly the pair become tangled with a group of street thugs. The woman aids in his escape, and as he doesn’t quite want to let her go just yet, he makes a proposal: she attends a ball with him the next evening, pretending to be his fiancé and he pays her an ungodly amount to do so. Pretty Woman vibes?

I fell in love with Lysander nearly immediately. His quirks are endearing, and my heart broke for him on several occasions. The author beautifully illustrates a type of neurodivergence with him that will resonate with readers familiar with it. Lysander thinks literally and takes things as at face value, a black and white version of events with no grey middle. This makes it hard for him to relate to others on an emotional level. His upbringing also taught him to hide his feelings behind an uncaring mask. Though when a smile breaks through it is beautiful.

Nevé is a wonderful character to complement Lysander. She has an emotionally driven, artistic soul which can often clash with the duke’s line of thinking. It’s hard for her to understand how cold and oftentimes callous he is. However those little glimpses behind his mask endear him to her. I love her passion and her loyalty to those she loves. She also takes a moral stance and pushes for those things during a time when most women would have been ridiculed for doing so.

Overall, I really enjoyed Always Be My Duchess. I loved the banter and sweet relationship that builds between Nevé and Lysander. They are easy to root for. Highly recommend this steamy historical romance for readers who enjoy romcoms.

I received an eARC of this audiobook from the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.



The drama of the American Royals continues! Rivals by Katharine McGee is the third installment of the series and picks up at the end of summer, a few months after the end of Majesty. Following the house of Washington, the series is told from the perspective of four women. Full of political intrigue, romance, and drama, Rivals exceeded all of my expectations and blew all of my preconceived notions out of the water. Please note that if you have not read the first two books of the series that there may be spoilers in this review as it pertains to book three in an ongoing series.

Beatrice, queen of America, is attending the League of Kings conference and, as it is America’s turn, also hosting it in her first year as the monarch. While last book we saw Beatrice come into her own as queen, here we see a bit of her insecurities come back. She is now facing her fellow heirs and monarches, people she’s known her entire life, and she wants to impress them. This comes at a price though, one she doesn’t realize: Teddy.

Samantha is one of my favorite characters in the series. Of all the girls, she’s shown the most growth and maturity. At the end of the summer royal tour, Sam is staying in Orange with Marshall and his family for the League of Kings conference. However it isn’t all sunshine and roses. She has to face facts: she is Beatrice’s heir and will always be a Washington. Marshall is the heir to the Duke of Orange. For them to have any kind of serious relationship, Marshall will have to renounce his title…or will he?

Nina has come full circle. She was such a great character to start the series, but by the end of the first book and the crumbling of her and Jeff’s relationship, her spunk was gone. It’s back here, even if she kicked Ethan to the curb. She just spent the entire summer on tour with Samantha, her best friend, and she feels like she is getting a sense of who she is again. She even tentatively accepts Jeff’s offer of friendship as they will both be the same college. Old feelings spark though, and even with Daphne in the picture, Nina can’t help but wonder what if.

Of all the girls, Daphne is the one I like least of all. That said, the author actually made me like her a little in this book. She is finally growing as a character, realizing that all her scheming and plans hurt the ones she cares about and actually questioning the goals she’s set for herself. I like this Daphne. But there is a new girl in town vying for Prince Jefferson’s affections, and Daphne enlists Nina’s help in making sure the girl stays away. There’s just one problem: the truth will eventually come out.

There is SO much to unpack about this book. There are really two stories unfolding: one at the League of Kings conference with Beatrice and Sam and the other at the college with Jeff, Nina, and Daphne. These two converge at the final ball of the conference. I love how the author ties these young women together, and then just lets the drama unfold as it will. I’ve said it before, but it bears repeating: this is one of those books that is like a train wreck you can’t look away from. There are so many plot twists and backstabbing and dramatic irony that you really don’t know who to root for and who to watch crash and burn. I typically avoid these kinds of books, but this one with its political schemes and convoluted love interests keeps me thoroughly engrossed.

Overall, I really enjoyed Rivals. My thoughts are chaotic after finishing though. I could seriously write a novel on the ending alone

Of all the books in the series, I may like and dislike this one the most. One Grave at a Time by Jeaniene Frost is the sixth installment of the Night Huntress series which follows Cat and her vampire husband Bones. For the first time in this series, the story picks up exactly where the last one left off plunging us into a new adventure. Please note there may be spoilers to the previous books in the series from this point forward.

Cat and Bones are dealing with Don who is now a ghost and seemingly cannot move on. Cat was under the assumption it had to do with her safety, however there seems to be more at play. A new guy has taken over Don’s old role, kicking out his chosen replacement. As the drama unfolds, Cat is also reconciling the gift she received from the voodoo queen of New Orleans. Ghosts are still flocking to her, and this time one of them needs her help.

I really enjoy the world-building this series has to offer. There is so much to learn, and the author adds new elements with each book. Here we see a new side of ghosts and learn quite a bit more about them than we previously have. I loved this, especially seeing as how Don is now ghost.

Now for the downside. I really enjoyed the storyline and plot arc of this particular book. A ghost asks for Cat’s help in stoping Heinrich Kramer, a witch hunter who died hundreds of years prior and returns in physical form every All Hallows Eve to torture and ultimately kill women he claims are witches. There is a lot of lead and action-packed moments that bring Cat and Bones ever closer to Kramer. But the execution of the ending was a let down. It felt rushed and incomplete in a way none of the other books have.

Overall, I enjoyed One Grave at a Time. It was action packed and fast paced, which I’ve come to expect from the books. Tavia Gilbert’s narration is finally growing on me (after 6 books!). Bones didn’t sound so much like a little boy this time

I received an eARC of this book via the publisher. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.

I did not realize how much I’ve missed fantasy until I started reading this book! The Darkening by debut author Sunya Mara is the first in a dark fantasy series about the daughter of failed revolutionaries and a prince fearful of his destiny. All the tropes I love are present in this one: experimental magic, a cursed storm, royal love interest, a rebel in disguise, and a city on the verge of ruin. The fully fleshed-out characters and immersive world-building delivers a debut that fantasy lovers will devour.

Vesper Vale is the daughter of a failed rebellion. Her parents were the leaders, and her mother paid the price by walking into the Storm that surrounds their city. Living in hiding with her father for the last ten years in the fifth ring, Vesper is desperate to matter, to be someone, to live up to her family’s legacy. When her father is captured, Vesper goes undercover as an apprentice in the palace to save him. Once there, she learns that not everything is as black and white as she once thought. Her father’s knowledge may be the key to saving her city.

I love Vesper. She is a fantastic narrator for the story. Her growth and self-discovery drive the plot as much as the action itself does. While she starts out quite naive, she is a quick study. I enjoyed reading about her internal struggles as much as I did her adventures. Vesper struggles with her father’s fate and that of the city and what she has learned against what she’s always believed. Her feelings for a prince she should despise confuse her and plague her thoughts.

Dalca is an interesting character as well. He is the prince and will one day soon become the Regia, the avatar of the Great King. Seeing what the Great King has done to his mother, Dalca is terrified to ascend his throne and determined to find a way to save her and in turn himself from that fate. He believes that Vesper’s father is the key and will stop at nothing til he gets what he wants. Dalca comes off as a hard character, but he is also endlessly empathetic towards his people and the city. He says at one point that he will do a thousand tiny evils to save his city and that resonates with Vesper who is technically doing the same thing to save her father.

The Storm surrounding the city is as much a character as anyone else in the book. It’s this impressive, magical things that has slowly been consuming the city one ring at a time. It houses terrifying shadow beasts that emerge from the walls when it surges. Anyone touched by the Storm becomes cursed, twisting some part of themselves. Vesper’s mother was sentenced to walk into the Storm after being caught killing the former Regia and never heard from again. It’s this big, looming foe that adds a sense of dread and despair to the story as you never know what will happen with it.

Overall I really enjoyed The Darkening. The mythology that the author builds around the Great King and the Storm adds a layer to the story, immersing the reader into Vesper’s world. I loved the ikonomancy, which is their experimental magic. Her father calls it a language of its own, and it truly is. Casvian and Izamal, who I haven’t mentioned yet, are amazing side characters who offer depth and understanding of what is going on throughout the city, how it affects citizens of different rings, and their bond with Dalca and Vesper. Cas grew on me

I was hesitant starting this one. I didn’t think I would like Anthony as much as Simon, but I do. In fact, I think I love him more! The Viscount Who Loved Me by Julia Quinn is the second book in her series about the Bridgertons. This one is about the eldest as he comes to the realization that it is past time to fulfill his duty to his family. That means marriage and producing an heir. As with the first, there are plenty of laugh out loud moments with an emotionally driven romance. Rosalyn Landor’s narration is fantastic. The book comes to life on the pages as if you were reading a society paper, and I couldn’t help but love her.

Anthony Bridgerton is not an easy man to like. He’s bullheaded and the very definition of a rogue. However, with the POV chapters we are given by the author, I fell in love with him quite thoroughly. Losing his father at the cusp of becoming a man and having to step into a role he believed he wouldn’t fulfill for years broke something in him. That grief and anger became its own force. As a result, Anthony believes he is destined to die young like his father, and with the clock rapidly ticking away, he’s decided it is time to wed. His choice is the diamond of the season, but only one thing stands in his way: the girl’s older sister.

Kate Sheffield is determined to help her sister find a suitable husband this season. It is the only season they can afford to be in town, attending lavish balls. I love Kate. She is shrewd in her outlook and has a large, caring heart. Despite being the eldest sister, Kate has no intentions of marrying. With the death of her father, they do not have much money for a dowry and what they do have she wants saved for her sister. Kate is content to be a governess or teacher and not a wife. At least that is the lie she continues to tell her self.

I love how these two wind up in each other’s paths over and over again. Anthony is determined to get Kate to like him so that he can marry her sister, yet sparks fly between them. This is very much an enemies-to-lovers trope as the two cannot stand each other. But you know what they say, there’s a thin line between love and hate.

Overall, I really enjoyed The Viscount Who Loved Me. I liked it even more than the first book. This one is focused on two opposites, forced to marry who fall in love. It was so easy to root for Anthony and Kate, even when I wanted to reach through the pages and slap sense into one or both of them. If you are a fan of historical romance, I highly recommend it.

I received an eARC of this book via NetGalley. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of this review.

Love these small town romances! Sea Glass Summer by Miranda Liasson is the second book in her series Seashell Harbor, named for the fictional small coastal town it is set in. Each book in the series features a new set of characters and can technically be read as a standalone. This book tells Kit’s and Alex’s story.

Kit is a single mom and widow who is ready to begin moving on with her, in whatever form that may take. She’s ready to sell her deceased husband’s inherited home, return to college, and live on her own with their son. There’s only one problem to that: the house is a wreck and will cost more than she can afford to fix it up. Then enters Alex. Alex was Carson’s best friend and is still swimming in the grief of losing him. To make things right and take care of Kit and their son Oliver, Alex returns to Sea Shell Harbor to fix up the old house, but he doesn’t plan for old feelings to resurface.

This is a beautiful story of grief and its ever present fluctuation in your life. Kit is to the point in this story that she can remember her husband fondly without feeling overwhelmed, and yet there are still times that grief overshadows her and drags her under. Alex, in addition to losing his best friend, is dealing with PTSD that comes with being in a war zone. His therapist recommends that he do something to confront it and the house is his choice. While Alex and Kit avoid each other, it is the friendship that blossoms out of their shared grief that drives this story. The romance is achingly sweet here as Alex has harbored an unrequited crush on Kit since high school while Kit has always thought he didn’t like her at all.

Overall I really enjoyed Sea Glass Summer. Kit and Alex are an easy couple to root for and cheer on. I loved Ollie, Kit’s son. He’s feisty and a breath of fresh air, adding levity to the otherwise heavy topics. I love how Alex and Kit find each other in their shared grief. It’s heartbreaking and sweet all at the same time. If you enjoy sweet romance, I highly recommend this one.