Disclaimer: I received this book from someone working with the author for a review. Thanks! All opinions are my own. 

 

Book: Hello Quarterback 

 

Author: Kelsie Hoss 

 

Book Series: Hello Book 8 

 

Rating: 5/5 

 

Spice Rating: 4/5 

 

Diversity: Plus size older (late thirties) FMC 

 

Recommended For...: Adult readers, Sports Romance, Contemporary, Fake Dating, Football, Forced Proximity, Plus Size, He Falls First 

 

Publication Date: November 16, 2024 

 

Genre: Sports Romance 

 

Age Relevance: 18+ (Romance, Sexual Content, Alcohol Consumption, Language, Parental Death, Cancer) 

 

Explanation of CWs: There is romance and sexual content in this book. There are mentions of alcohol consumption. There is some cursing. There are mentions of parental death due to cancer. 

 

If This Was a Taylor Swift Song: Cowboy Like Me 

 

Publisher: Curvy Girl Romance 

 

Pages: 326 

 

Synopsis: A confident, plus size CEO running a billion dollar company and the country’s best professional quarterback… it sounds like the ultimate power couple, if it wasn’t all pretend. Fake dating was not in the plan this year. Especially since I hardly have time for actual dating. That is until Ford Madigan makes me an offer I can’t refuse: a fake relationship that will benefit us both. He’ll get away from the team owner’s entitled daughter while I score some points with members of the company’s board who love him more than they hate me. It all seems like a simple business transaction–make a few public appearances and pretend we’re in love until we both get what we want. The problem is… I find out he’s more than just another jock. He’s a humanitarian using his fortune to help kids all over Texas. Not to mention, he isn’t intimidated by my success like most men. Now I want more from him. I want something real. But scars from his past keep him from risking his heart a second time. I haven’t gotten where I am in life from settling, but I’m also not the kind of woman who will wait around for a man to realize what’s right in front of him. Will he make this relationship more? Or will I be the one who got away? 

 

Review: I thought that this was a cute, sweet, and fast little romance book. I was very invested with the characters, especially Mia. I liked that it was multi-pov and I really like the fake dating trope aspect of it. I also really liked that Ford fell first and fell harder in my opinion LOL. And I really am looking forward to reading the rest of the series about this family. The World building was great, as was the character development and I also loved the emphasis on mental health and therapy at the end. I also really love seeing a plus size female main character in this book and I loved seeing that she was older AKA in her mid-thirties because honestly we do not have a lot of romance books that have that. Romance is not just for the youngins LOL!
 
 The only thing that I thought good to use a little bit of work was the pacing. I thought it was a little too fast, but it's a great quick little romance one if you're looking for that. 

 

Verdict: I loved this one and I can’t wait to read the rest of the series! 

 

Disclaimer: I received this audiobook for free from Love Y’all Fest. Thanks! All opinions are my own. 

 

Book: I Got Abducted by Aliens and Now I’m Trapped in a Rom-Com 

 

Author: Kimberly Lemming 

 

Book Series: Cosmic Chaos Book 1 

 

Rating: 5/5 

 

Spice Rating: 5/5 

 

Diversity: Black FMC and characters 

 

Recommended For...: Adult readers, Romance, Romantasy, Sci-Fi, Humor, Aliens 

 

Publication Date: February 18, 2025 

 

Genre: Sci-Fi Romantasy 

 

Age Relevance: 18+ (Sexual Content, Language, Forced Mating, Breeding, Violence, Animal Injury, Pregnancy, Animal Violence, Torture, Romance) 

 

Explanation of CWs: This is a spicy romance, so there is a lot of sexual content and romance. The tropes in this book are Breeding Program , Why Choose, Knotting, Forced Mating (in that her romantic ties were chosen for her, as was another character’s) and Polyam. There is some animal injury and violence. There is some violence and torture. There are also mentions of pregnancy. 

 

If This Was a Taylor Swift Song: Mine 

 

Publisher: Berkley 

 

Pages: 287 

 

Synopsis: Dorothy Valentine is close to getting her PhD in wildlife biology when she’s attacked by a lion. On the bright side, she’s saved! On the not-so-bright side, it’s because they’re abducted by aliens. In her scramble to escape, Dory and the lion commandeer an escape pod and crash-land on an alien planet that has...dinosaurs? Dory and her new lion bestie, Toto, are saved in the nick of time by a mysterious and sexy alien, Sol. On their new adventure, they team up with the equally hot, equally dangerous Lok, who may or may not be a war criminal. Whether it be trauma, fate, or intrigue, Dory can’t resist the attraction that’s developing in their trio.... As this ragtag group of misfits explore their new planet, Dory learns more about how and why they’ve all ended up together, battles more prehistoric creatures than she imagined (she imagined...zero), and questions if she even wants to go back home to Earth in this hilarious and steamy alien romance adventure comedy romp. 

 

Review: I went into this book not expecting to really like it. And then I listened to it and I immediately liked it from the first page. I thought overall that the book is completely hilarious and that the author has a great talent for mixing in humor and sex scenes. The book was very hot and very smutty. The world development, while weird, was absolutely fantastic. And I really just want to know how the author managed to pitch this type of a book to her publisher or agent. Because in my opinion, it feels like none of the elements that were in this book should have worked together. But the way that the author put them together made them work absolutely amazingly well. And I want to jump into another audiobook by this author. Like, I might go buy one after I finish this review LOL. 
 
 The only thing I really didn't like about the book is that it did feel a little bit fast-paced in the beginning, but other than that absolutely fantastic book. I loved it. 

 

Verdict: I was very surprised and I can’t wait for the next book in this series! I recommend if you’re a spicy lover! 

 

Disclaimer: I borrowed this book from my local library. Support your libraries! All opinions are my own. 

 

Book: Salt Houses 

 

Author: Hala Alyan 

 

Book Series: Standalone 

 

Rating: 5/5 

 

Diversity: Palestinian Muslim MCs and characters, Indian characters, Kuwaiti Muslim MCs and characters 

 

Recommended For...: Adult readers, Historical Fiction, Literary Fiction, War, Palestine, Contemporary 

 

Publication Date: May 2, 2017 

 

Genre: Historical Fiction 

 

Age Relevance: 18+ (Religion, Parental Death, Grief, Pregnancy, Miscarriage, War, Genocide, Violence, Gore, Torture, Sexual Content, Rape, Sibling Death, PTSD, Postpartum Depression and Anger, Alcohol Consumption, Racism, Alcoholism, Parental Abandonment, Disapora) 

 

Explanation of CWs: There are multiple scenes of grief, death, parental death, and sibling death. Pregnancy and miscarriage are shown. The book features scenes and discussions about the Islamic religion. There are scenes discussing and showing war, violence, torture, blood and body gore, and genocide. There is some sexual content and a scene with rape. PTSD and Postpartum Depression and Anger are shown. There is a couple of scenes involving alcohol consumption and alcoholism. Racism is shown and discussed. Parental Abandonment is mentioned. Diaspora (the dispersion of this family from their home in Palestine) is shown and discussed throughout the book. 

 

If This Was a Taylor Swift Song: Marjorie 

 

Publisher: Harper 

 

Pages: 312 

 

Synopsis: On the eve of her daughter Alia’s wedding, Salma reads the girl’s future in a cup of coffee dregs. She sees an unsettled life for Alia and her children; she also sees travel, and luck. While she chooses to keep her predictions to herself that day, they will all soon come to pass when the family is uprooted in the wake of the Six-Day War of 1967.  Salma is forced to leave her home in Nablus; Alia’s brother gets pulled into a politically militarized world he can’t escape; and Alia and her gentle-spirited husband move to Kuwait City, where they reluctantly build a life with their three children. When Saddam Hussein invades Kuwait in 1990, Alia and her family once again lose their home, their land, and their story as they know it, scattering to Beirut, Paris, Boston, and beyond. Soon Alia’s children begin families of their own, once again navigating the burdens (and blessings) of assimilation in foreign cities.  Lyrical and heartbreaking, Salt Houses is a remarkable debut novel that challenges and humanizes an age-old conflict we might think we understand—one that asks us to confront that most devastating of all truths: you can’t go home again. 

 

Review: I really liked this book! This book focuses on one family throughout many generations in the Middle East area. There's talk and discussion about Israeli forces, both back in the 60s and into the 2010s. The book is multi-POV, skipping a couple of decades each time to jump to a new family member to increase the story. The book had distinct voices in each of the POVs. My favorite part of the book is how well it told the story of grief for family, land, and time. I thought it had great world building and character development as well.
 
 My only issue is that it's a little funky to get into at first but then after it's such a good read. There's also a lot of bulk to each chapter and I felt sometimes some stuff was just fluff, but it was very well done overall. 

 

Verdict: It was an eye-opening book and I would love to see more people talk about it. Highly recommend! 

 

Disclaimer: I received this audiobook from the publisher on Netgalley. Thanks! All opinions are my own. 

 

Book: The Sword and The Sophomore 

 

Author: B.P. Sweany 

 

Book Series: American Martyr Trilogy Book 1 

 

Rating: 2.5/5 

 

Diversity: Deaf character 

 

Recommended For...: Young Adult readers, Urban Fantasy, Fantasy, Arthurian, King Arthur 

 

Publication Date: July 9, 2024 

 

Genre: YA Urban Fantasy 

 

Age Relevance: 15+ (pregnancy, labor, drugs, religion, sexual content, romance, gore, attempted sexual assault, underage alcohol consumption, violence, death, grief) 

 

Explanation of CWs: There is one scene involving pregnancy and labor. There are some romance and mentions of sexual content, but nothing is shown. There is one scene where there is an attempted sexual assault, but nothing graphic is shown the most that happens is the attempt. There are mentions of marijuana. There is some religious (Catholicism) mentions. There is some violence and blood gore. There are a couple of scenes of underage alcohol consumption. There is some death and grief. 

 

If This Was a Taylor Swift Song: The Prophecy 

 

Publisher: Th3rd World Studios 

 

Pages: 297 

 

Synopsis: Arlynn Rosemary Banson is an atypical sixteen-year-old—the cool, popular outsider, effortlessly straddling the line between divas and dorks. Her forever young mother, Jennifer, is dedicated to making her life awkward by trying to be her friend. Her father, Alan, is a workaholic history professor who barely acknowledges his family’s existence. Her boyfriend, Benz, the quarterback and homecoming king, has just broken up with her, while her best friend, Joslin, bears reluctant witness to Rosemary’s romantic drama. But nothing prepares any of them for a Welsh foreign exchange student named Emrys Balin. Emrys looks like a teenager, but he seems to act much, much older. Rosemary discovers she is part of the Lust Borne Tide, children born to the royal line of King Uther Pendragon who are imbued with mystical powers after being conceived in lust. Rosemary’s parents are Guinevere and Lancelot, banished by King Arthur to twenty-first century suburban America prior to Rosemary’s birth as punishment for their affair. Rosemary is the third in the Lust Borne line, after King Arthur and his son Mordred, the latter of whom has traveled to the future to continue the line of the Lust Born Tide by retrieving Rosemary and returning her to the late fifth century to conceive a child with her. But Rosemary has other plans—plans that involve training under Emrys and kicking Mordred’s butt, as long as it doesn’t interfere with prom or getting back with her boyfriend Benz. 

 

Review: I felt like this was a good story. I like Arthurian based stories and I felt like this was a good plot for one. The story was strong and I was definitely interested in the ending as the story went on. I felt like the characters were well developed and overall it was a decent story.
 
 However, I wasn't that pleased with this book. I feel like most of the story wasn't focused on the plot but rather on random side issues that didn't even come into the plot later. The climax of the story came about 85% into the book. The pacing was off throughout the read and it felt more like a first draft than a nearly finished read. I found myself wondering what the point of the chapters were multiple times throughout the book and I definitely think it could have been a smaller story given what was plot relevant in it. Definitely not my favorite read, but one I felt was interesting in it's own right. 

 

Verdict: It was good, just not for me. 

 

Disclaimer: I bought this book because I was recommended it as a former American Historical Girl girl. Thanks for the rec whoever you were! All opinions are my own. 

 

Book: The Great Alone 

 

Author: Kristin Hannah 

 

Book Series: Standalone 

 

Rating: 5/5 

 

Spice Rating: 1/5 

 

Diversity: Black character, Native character 

 

Recommended For...: Adult readers, Historical Fiction, Romance, Alaska, Post-Vietnam War, Frontier/Homesteading 

 

Publication Date: February 6, 2018 

 

Genre: Historical Fiction 

 

Age Relevance: 17+ (domestic violence, PTSD, war, language, POW, death, misogyny, racism, alcohol consumption, alcoholism, underage alcohol consumption, sexual content, teenage pregnancy and birth, animal death, animal gore, parental death, cancer) 

 

Explanation of CWs: There are scenes and discussion about the Vietnam war, PTSD, and being a POW in the book. There are scenes involving domestic violence and death. There are some showings of misogyny and racism. There are some scenes showing alcohol consumption, underage alcohol consumption, and alcoholism. There is some vague sexual content mentioned and teenage pregnancy and birth. There is animal death and gore shown. Parental death is shown. Cancer is mentioned. 

 

If This Was a Taylor Swift Song: You’ll Always Find Your Way Back Home 

 

Publisher: St. Martin’s Press 

 

Pages: 560 

 

Synopsis: Alaska, 1974. Unpredictable. Unforgiving. Untamed. For a family in crisis, the ultimate test of survival. Ernt Allbright, a former POW, comes home from the Vietnam war a changed and volatile man. When he loses yet another job, he makes an impulsive decision: he will move his family north, to Alaska, where they will live off the grid in America’s last true frontier. Thirteen-year-old Leni, a girl coming of age in a tumultuous time, caught in the riptide of her parents’ passionate, stormy relationship, dares to hope that a new land will lead to a better future for her family. She is desperate for a place to belong. Her mother, Cora, will do anything and go anywhere for the man she loves, even if it means following him into the unknown. At first, Alaska seems to be the answer to their prayers. In a wild, remote corner of the state, they find a fiercely independent community of strong men and even stronger women. The long, sunlit days and the generosity of the locals make up for the Allbrights’ lack of preparation and dwindling resources. But as winter approaches and darkness descends on Alaska, Ernt’s fragile mental state deteriorates and the family begins to fracture. Soon the perils outside pale in comparison to threats from within. In their small cabin, covered in snow, blanketed in eighteen hours of night, Leni and her mother learn the terrible truth: they are on their own. In the wild, there is no one to save them but themselves. In this unforgettable portrait of human frailty and resilience, Kristin Hannah reveals the indomitable character of the modern American pioneer and the spirit of a vanishing Alaska―a place of incomparable beauty and danger. The Great Alone is a daring, beautiful, stay-up-all-night story about love and loss, the fight for survival, and the wildness that lives in both man and nature. 

 

Review: I don't know how to express into words how wonderful this read was while on my adventures in Alaska. I loved everything about this book, but also loved looking out onto the landscape of the land I was stepping on and seeing for myself how wild and wonderful Alaska truly is. I loved the story, I felt for the characters instantly, and I loved how much it discussed the aftermath of the Vietnam War that was felt on the homefront. I also loved how raw the book was about the ill effects of PTSD on a person, how something can change you so irrovacably. This book also utilized the multi POV well and I feel like this truly was the "grown up" version of an American Girls book. It was truly one of the best historical fiction books I've ever read.
 
 The only issues I had is that I wished it told you when the POV changed in the book so I wasn't confused and that I had to come home from Alaska (although that isn't the fault of the book but on my own that I booked a return plane ticket). 

 

Verdict: I have found my newest hyper-fixation. Highly recommend. 

Disclaimer: I bought this cause I love this author. You go Diana Urban! All opinions are my own.

Book: Lying in the Deep

Author: Diana Urban

Book Series: Standalone

Rating: 5/5

Diversity: Queer characters, BIPOC characters, Orphan character

Recommended For...: Young Adult readers, Mystery, Thriller, Murder Mystery, Cruise, Horror

Publication Date: May 2, 2023

Genre: YA Thriller Mystery

Age Relevance: 16+ (gore, death, grief, underage alcohol consumption, bullying, sexual content, parental death, murder, drugs, cancer, violence)

Explanation of CWs: There is scenes with blood gore, body gore, murder, death, and violence shown in this book. There are scenes with alcohol consumption, both legally allowed and underage illegally allowed (depending on the country and the rules of the cruise ship). Grief is shown in the book. There are scenes involving bullying. There is some sexual content mentioned. Parental death is mentioned. Drugs, specifically meth and opioids, are mentioned. Cancer is mentioned.

If This Was a Taylor Swift Song: Getaway Car

Publisher: Razorbill

Pages: 384

Synopsis: After being jilted by her ex-boyfriend and best friend, Jade couldn't be more ready to embark on the adventure of a lifetime—11 countries in 4 months, all from the luxurious Campus on Board ship—and to wedge an entire globe between her and the people who broke her heart. But when Jade discovers the backstabbing couple are also setting sail, her obsession with them grows and festers, leading to a shocking murder. And as their friends begin to drop like flies, Jade and her new crush must race to clear her name and find the killer they’re trapped at sea with….before anyone else winds up in body bags.

Review: I fell absolutely in love with this book. I'm a huge fan of murder mysteries in elevator settings (enclosed areas without outside influence) so this murser mystery on a cruise ship already had me sold, but I absolutely devoured what I read on the inside. The book had a somewhat imperfect FMC who had not so strong alibis throughout the book and it was refreshing to have someone in that fashion. The book reminded me a lot of Gone Girl and also included a fake dating trope. I loved the world building and the characters and I do have to say that reading this book on a cruise brings the reading to the next level.

The only issue I had with the book is that I did find some of the personality quirks of the FMC to be annoying, but it was very on brand for a teenager in my opinion.

Verdict: This was a fun murder mystery! Highly recommend!

 

Disclaimer: I got this book from a former friend. Thanks. All opinions are my own. 

 

Book: The Sneaky Lass 

 

Author: Kennedy Sutton 

 

Book Series: The Silver Locket Book 1 

 

Rating: 5/5 

 

Spice Rating: 2/5 

 

Diversity: Gay characters, Queer, pansexual or bisexual, character 

 

Recommended For...: Adult readers, Romantasy, Pirate Romance, Fantasy, Historical Fiction, Pirates 

 

Publication Date: June 30, 2022 

 

Genre: Romantasy 

 

Age Relevance: 18+ (language, violence, sexual content, romance, prostitution, alcoholism, alcohol consumption, animal violence, death, gore, infant death, death) 

 

Explanation of CWs: There is cursing and some animal violence shown in the book. There are scenes with violence, blood gore, and death. Infant death is mentioned. There is some slight sexual content, prostitution, and romance in the book. There are scenes and mentions of alcohol consumption and alcoholism. 

 

If This Was a Taylor Swift Song: Enchanted 

 

Publisher: Indie Author 

 

Pages: 280 

 

Synopsis: Jane has been many things in her life. A wife. A widow. A thief. A prostitute. Most recently, a woman seeking any means of escape from Grand Port. Flying no colors and desperate for crew, Sneaky Lass is a damaged brig in no position to look too closely at any volunteers, no matter how ill-suited to sea life they may be. After a series of decisions Jane can’t turn back from, she commits one final act of desperation; she dons stolen boots, shorn hair, and the name Dixon Ables to take up with the crew of Sneaky Lass. Now she finds herself in a position where she must keep up her boyish disguise or be thrown into the briny deep. Concrete plans to leave the ship at the next port turn fluid as Jane becomes enamored by the mystery of the ropes, the lullaby of waves against the hull, and the wind in the sails. That the crewmen are far from the salty rogues she expected doesn't help her resolve. Among the filthy men, the roar of cannons, the critical eye of a whip-wielding quartermaster, and beneath the weight of her own lies, Jane finds something she long believed a fantasy—Family. Even the frequent gaze of the fine and fair-minded captain isn't enough to send her towards shore… yet. She doesn't want to sacrifice everything until she is sure he knows her secret, or perhaps his attentions are something else, something more. The problem is her new life belongs to the man called Dixon, not the woman called Jane. The longer she stays aboard Sneaky Lass, the closer she grows to losing everything she's come to value; new friends, the only home she's ever known, her life. Deceptions are difficult on land, but in the close quarters of a pirate ship, they can be deadly. 

 

Review: This was such a great read! I loved following Jane's journey from the streets to the ship. I fell so hard and fast in love with this book that I have been craving the rest of the series since chapter 6. I love the world building, the characters, and all of the possibilities this series can bring. I think this just became my favorite series.
 
 The only slight issue I had was some small pacing issues here and there but other than that I'm completely satisfied and will be reading the next in the series. 

 

Verdict: I found a new obsession! Highly recommend! 

 

Disclaimer: I received this arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own. 

 

Book: The Girl, The Gate, and The Dragon 

 

Author: Grace Lin 

 

Book Series: Standalone 

 

Rating: 3.5/5 

 

Diversity: Chinese folklore based with Chinese MC and characters 

 

Recommended For...: Middle Grade readers, Fantasy, Chinese Folklore, Dragons 

 

Publication Date: May 13, 2025 

 

Genre: Middle Grade Fantasy 

 

Age Relevance: 8+ (getting lost, pregnancy, scary scenes, death, grief) 

 

Explanation of CWs: There is a pregnant character with some slightly scary pregnancy issues mentioned in the book. There are some scary scenes and the main character gets lost at the beginning of the book as a part of the main plotline. There is a scene with death and grief shown. 

 

If This Was a Taylor Swift Song: Robin 

 

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers 

 

Pages: 352 

 

Synopsis: Jin is a Stone Lion—one of the guardians of the Old City Gate who is charged to watch over humans and protect the Sacred Sphere. But to Jin, those boring duties feel like a waste of time. What isn’t a waste of time? Perfecting his zuqiu kick, scoring a Golden Goal, and becoming the most legendary player of all the spirit world. But when Jin’s perfect kick accidentally knocks the Sacred Sphere out through the gate, he has no choice but to run after it, tumbling out of the realm he calls home and into the human world as the gate closes behind him. Stuck outside the gate, Jin must find help from unlikely allies, including a girl who can hear a mysterious voice and a worm who claims he is a dragon. Together, they must find the sphere and return it to the world beyond the gate…or risk losing everything. 

 

Review: Overall, I really liked this one. I liked that this book is based on Chinese (???) mythology and we follow a little lion statue named Jin throughout most of the book. However, we have a few different point of views along with a back and forth timeline in the narrative. The storytelling is very unique and builds upon itself constantly. The book is very fun, but serious, making it a great bedtime tale.
 
 The only issue I had was that it was a bit weird in the pacing, but other than that I was hooked from the first page. 

 

Verdict: This was a good one, especially for newer middle grade readers! 

 

Disclaimer: I bought my copy of this book from Vania’s job at Brave and Kind, but I also received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks and support your local indie bookstores! All opinions are my own. 

 

Book: Why on Earth 

 

Author: Vania Stoyanova (Editor), Rosiee Thor (Editor), Alex Brown, Beth Revis, Emily Lloyd-Jones, Eric Smith, Julian Winters, Laura Pohl, Maya Gittelman, M.K. England, Rebecca Kim Wells, S.J. Whitby 

 

Book Series: Standalone 

 

Rating: 5/5 

 

Diversity: Bisexual character, Black gay MMC, Brazilian FMC and characters, Immigrant-like characters, Queer MCs and characters, Trans MC, Genderqueer characters, Nonbinary character 

 

Recommended For...: Young Adult Readers, Sci-Fi, Anthology, Queer, Aliens, Romance 

 

Publication Date: February 4, 2025 

 

Genre: Young Adult Sci-Fi Anthology 

 

Age Relevance: 13+ (romance, torture, language, grief, death, parental death, sibling death, parental abandonment, animal death) 

 

Explanation of CWs: There is some slight romance throughout the different stories in the book. Torture is mentioned in one story. There is some slight language in a couple of different stories. There is parental and/or sibling death and parental abandonment mentioned in a couple of stories. There is a scene with an animal death. There is death mentioned in a couple of stories. There is some grief present in a few of the stories. 

 

If This Was a Taylor Swift Song: Wonderland 

 

Publisher: Page Street YA 

 

Pages: 336 

 

Synopsis: What starts as a simple rescue mission for a crew of teen aliens to recover one of their own soon becomes an interstellar encounter no one will forget. Captain Iona is organizing an impromptu retrieval for her brother, an undercover alien posing as a movie star. But her efforts go awry when a technical malfunction turns her heroic rescue into an unintentional invasion. With tales of disguised extraterrestrials stuck in theme parks, starship engineers hitchhiking to get home, and myth-inspired intergalactic sibling reunions, each story in this multi-author anthology explores the universal desire to be loved and understood, no matter where you come from. After all...aliens are just like us. 

 

Review: I really liked this anthology and I'm not normally one for them. I liked the conversation about the different types of discrimination and I think the book is symbolic overall of the experience immigrants have who come over to America, misunderstood being the biggest obstacle. There was also a sense of "othering" in multiple stories as a theme that connected the human characters to the alien characters and to the experience many readers might have in their own world. The world building was great and I'd love to read more of any story in this book.
 
 The only issue I really had with the book is the pacing in some stories and how back and forth the timeline is overall. I'd also have liked an ending outro with all of the alien characters, but that's just me. 

 

Verdict: This was such a fun adventure! Highly recommend! 

 

Disclaimer: I bought this book cause I like this series! Support your authors! All opinions are my own. 

 

Book: Cursed Cruise 

 

Author: Victoria Fulton and Faith McClaren 

 

Book Series: Horror Hotel Book 2 

 

Rating: 5/5 

 

Diversity: Half Filipino MMC, Sapphic Aro FMC, F/F Romance, Queer characters 

 

Recommended For...: Young Adult readers, Horror, Mystery, Paranormal, Ghosts, Mystery Thriller 

 

Publication Date: March 19, 2024 

 

Genre: Young Adult Horror 

 

Age Relevance: 15+ (death, romance, affair, homophobia, religion, suicide, alcoholism, violence, ghosts, gore, possession) 

 

Explanation of CWs: There is death and ghosts mentioned and shown in this book, along with possession scenes. There are scenes involving and depicting violence, blood gore, and body gore. Homophobia is mentioned. There are some Christian religious aspects mentioned. Suicide is mentioned. Alcoholism is mentioned. There is romance and an affair is mentioned. 

 

If This Was a Taylor Swift Song: Haunted 

 

Publisher: Underlined 

 

Pages: 288 

 

Synopsis: All aboard... After their fateful stay at the Hearst Hotel, the Ghost Gang is back with more spooks and more subscribers. They’ve been invited to record onboard the RMS Queen Anne, a transatlantic luxury ocean liner with a colorful past of violent deaths of hundreds of passengers—souls that bought a one-way ticket to the afterlife (and never disembarked). When Chrissy, Chase, Kiki, and Emma board the ship, they have a funny feeling they’ve been sucked into a ghostly time warp—a theory that takes a frightening turn when Chrissy goes missing on the first night. Unbeknownst to the rest of the group, Chrissy has been sucked into another time by a passenger who wants the Ghost Gang to know her untimely death was not an accident and the perpetrator is still alive—and on board this ship. 

 

Review: I love this little series so much! I loved seeing the Ghost Gang back in action and on a cruise ship this time. The intro helped me remember where we left off. The book had great character development and good world building. I was hooked from start to finish and I loved that the story was told in multi-POV fashion.
 
 The only things that irked me was a bit of pacing issues here and there and that there was a random "no Taylor Swift fans" line? What's that about? 

 

Verdict: I want more now!