This was a cute one. I don't think it's my favorite in the series but I still enjoyed it. I do like the fake dating trope but I think it's exceedingly tricky to get away with in a small town because well it's a small town. Still, it was nice to reunite with these characters again and I can't wait to read Amber's story.

I really enjoyed this book! I thought the author did a great, maybe even slightly better, job of balancing horror suspense and history. I found myself shivering more than once and that wasn't just did to it being winter where I'm at.

There were a few what heck moments with grandparents, especially the grandma but that all came together in the end. So did everything else including the 'haunting' of the children and the why. It had a fun ending because it's MG but the ride to it was still enjoyable.

Were I a teacher this book and her other would have a permanent spot in my classroom library. Highly recommend.

I listened to this as an audiobook and am really glad that I did. I really liked this book and laughed out loud more than a few times. I know Amber is a comedian so that tracks but her sister Lacey is pretty funny too. And they way they bounced off each other was awesome to witness.

That said, there are still parts of the book that were hard to get through. The random micro and macro aggressions Lacey experienced on the regular boiled my blood more than a few times. I understand the desire to deal with situations like this in a humorous manner but underneath the laughter was still understandable anger, sadness, and on some levels resignation. I actually think a lot of people would benefit from listening to this to understand how some Black people treated from kindergarten. I don't think anyone could listen to this book and still think that we don't have a race problem here in the US.

Highly recommend but be prepared to be upset and/or face some harsh truths.

While I don't ever rehash the plot of a book in my reviews a few of the things I bring up may broach into spoiler territory so be forewarned.

I did enjoy this book. This was a really well written YA book that walked the line of not sounding too juevenille and not sounding too "I'm trying to be grown." It was a perfect fit for me for how people of this age speak and executed it perfectly. It was also written in a timeless way. By this I mean there's no real geographical location given besides the city name and no indication of when it was supposed to take place. Children reading this year's from now wouldn't feel it was dated.

The lyrical style of the writer was still evident here and as beautiful as Vivek Oji. And the story was engaging. That said it wasn't a five star for me for almost the exact opposite reason that Vivek wasn't. Whereas I felt that one went too far in some of the plot devices, I feel like this was didn't go as far as it could have or take the turns that were available. I feel that the 'monster' being who it was fit into a cliche, terrible as it is and that it would have been more shocking and hard hitting for it to have been someone else. All that said it still handled everything well, as terrible as the subject matter was, and had a believable resolution.

Not to sound too Disney, but this book would act as a good springboard for discussions with all types of people as what makes a monster and what makes a man. Appearances are deceiving especially when people are use to wearing a mask for whatever reason. But it also has a glimmer of hope in the idea of rehabilitation. Yes people so terrible things but that doesn't mean they're hopeless and that they can't be helped or rehabilitated and I appreciated that it ended on a find of optimism as opposed to the bittersweet (more bitter for me) that Vivek did.

I definitely will read another book by this author. Their talent cannot be denied and they are damned good at their job of telling an engaging and thought provoking story. And their books always give did for thought.

Amazing collection of essays that highlights the history and importance of Black Love. Of course some hit me more than others but overall it was a very strong collection. I could see something like this being discussed in a college class and it would make a great book club book. The discussions this could foster are limitless.

This book was infinitely more beautiful and poetic than I expected it to be. The writing was extremely lyrical and it dealt with a multitude of different issues with a kind hand. Even if Stella wasn't my favorite person, I could also understand and I appreciated how the author managed to tell the story from four different women's POVs and managed to make each voice unique and balance it all out.

There are a few content and trigger warnings for assault and racist language and scenarios. But again I felt it did it really well. Highly recommend.

I really enjoyed this read, both as a classical music lover and a romance novel fan. Also it was a second chance romance which is always nice. The third act confusion was one that was expected and the ending seemed a bit too rushed in how quickly they got back together but then again they were both also at a point where they didn't want to waste more time, having lost ten years already, so I could understand it a little bit. Can't wait for the other two in the series!

I enjoyed this book. It made me laugh out loud a few times and I appreciated how 'real' Kian's narration was. By that I mean all the conversational tangents he took when telling us the story since almost everyone I know does that. So, that aspect of that was accurate as all get out.

I also love second chance stories and think this handled it well especially considering how young they were. While we were never in Hudson's mind, we got a lot of Kian's introspection over "Am I feeling this way because of our past and that it may be convenient or am I really feeling him again?" It usually is a mixture of both but it was still nice to have that honesty in a book.

There were a few drawbacks, such as both men's sheer stubbornness (since that is ultimately what it was) as well as not having previously dealt with the demons (but they were working on it so brownie points there). They were young and admittedly still immature so they had a lot of work to do on themselves and each other. And it seemed they were going to do that so it was positive..

Next part is also a bit of a spoiler so be warned:

I also didn't appreciate how quickly the issue with Olivia was resolved and it really came down to the threat she made to Kian. It's like I'm sorry that this marriage didn't happen after your family spent all this money but first off your family can afford it. And second off if a five minute conversation with a virtual stranger gave the bride the push she needed to not go through with the wedding? The marriage wasn't going to last. If I were Kian I would have made her work to get back into my good graces, especially if she threatened my livelihood.

Overall it was a good book and a sweet and steamy read. I would read more from this author.

Oh man. This book. I loved it just as much as the first one and, considering that Happily Ever Afters was my favorite book of 2021, that's saying something. And yes it was in the same world but it was a different story and a different girl and that helped.

The synopsis is that Lenore is going on a cruise with her family after her high school graduation. She is in the middle of multiple crossroads, not knowing what she wants to major in at NYU and realizing a boy she thought she had something special with was using her. She is the typical middle child; overlooked for the golden boy older sibling and the prodigy baby of the family. Which isn't to say she wasn't just an intelligent but her parents overlooked her a lot and it was obvious. On the cruise she meets Alex first and then his family, the Lees, who her parent decides to make their vacation buddies. So, they're always hanging out together. Along the way as she and Alex begin to know each other feelings develop but she is uncertain if she can let go of all her past hurts to trust in this new love.

I felt a connection with Lenore just like I did with Tessa, albeit for other reasons. She had her own struggle she was hiding and didn't have an outlet to release it in. She also had a huge heart but, due to how others had treated her, kept it hidden even from the ones who were the closest to her. Call it commiserating with a fellow Cancerian but I felt that deep in my soul.

What was also amazing about this story is that the author managed to make a different an unique voice for Lenore. There are too many authors out there who write multiple books about characters in the same world and the only thing that is different is their names and a few personality traits. Otherwise, it's the same voice, same tone, same everything. Lenore and Tessa are two very different people and Bryant did a great job showcasing it. That speaks volumes to her talent, which means I am even more excited to see what she has next for us.

Highly recommend this and the first one if you haven't read them yet. It's amazingly awesome and you won't regret it.