sarahsbookstack's Reviews (2.55k)

I was so excited for another book by Etta and it was as fun as the first.

Brianna is a middle school vice principal who yearns for a new library and is promised a new one by the Principal..... Until he decides they need the football field redone instead. So Brianna enters a "Mars simulation" another teacher had asked for volunteers for before and she rejected. If this team of teachers win, they could get prize money to get a library back on track. 

6 weeks of trying to get the teachers to see her as not only their semi-boss but as a friend without her getting too close at the same time. Roman, the science teacher and Principal's son makes it hard. 

I liked the 4 tasks they had to do in the simulation. Tempers can run high, Jordan (the team leader) is bossy, the "food" sucks and close quarters are not always ideal. There is an incident with the school nurse and a spider and I felt bad for what happened to her, though...SAME GIRL! I would have freaked too!

I really loved that this gave Brianna the courage to pursue something that is a better fit for her. I never felt suspicious of Roman though he gave some valid reasons TO suspect him sometimes. 

This was a fun, second chance romance on a hiking trail through the Scottish Highlands.

Brooke and Jack fell for each other while he was a TA (not hers as there were 2) and she was a student. Then things happened that made them have to walk away from each other. Now Brooke is ghostwriting Mhairi's memoir and needs to hike the trail Mhairi made to make it even more authentic.... The problem is Jack is the photographer going with her. 

This hike was full of rain, a little bit of fog to get lost in, and memories too strong to ignore for long. I felt the pain and she that Brooke held into. I also felt that it kept her from pursuing her actual dream. But at the same time, I'm so happy she was able to gift Mhairi in one small way. 

I love the rekindling of Brooke and Jack. The heat between them is super charged even when they are on the outs. They just felt that they were a perfect fit for each other and they just needed to find that perfect time for their relationship to really bloom. 

Olivia is approaching her 39th birthday and her friend Marian takes them both to a genetic test that can determine the when of your demise but not the how.

I thought Olivia was a breath of fresh air. I loved that she's almost in her 40s but still feels young. She's got a great life but this test will test her! It will stress her and that to start to filter into every aspect of her life. 

It really makes you think of what you might do/say/behave if you knew the "when". Would you finally do that one big thing you've always wanted to do? I really felt, just like Olivia, that knowing would stress me out more than not knowing. 

Hudson has been in love with Amelia since he met her. He steps aside when his brother fell for and married her. After his tragic death, Hudson was there for Amelia and her daughter Quinn until he left for work in the Alaskan town he grew up in. 

Now they are back together for Rosie and Dylan's wedding. Because of antics of their friends, they are stranded on an island in a storm with dire circumstances. They are forced to finally open up their hearts and find what they really feel for each other.

I love that everyone has their backs as they watched those two fall in love. Even though the two MCs know it's difficult and maybe a bit awkward because of things life handed them. I love the symbolism of the blue bird that is sun twice in this story... Beautiful and inspiring. 

This was a charged romance between Max, a landscaper and Paloma, an interior designer. They have a strong attraction but as they have a big job to do together, they need to not mix business and pleasure... But Max can't resist and tries to break Paloma down. 

I did like the boundaries Paloma put on herself because of a prior relationship in a business that went south. I wish Max, even with all the chemistry they had, didn't put her in a position where she could have lost it all.

But it was an easy and fast read

It's love the sprinkle of magic in this building! It knows what it's doing. I really liked the movie references especially to the Princess Bride and The Fugitive-two of my favorites.

Willa has not been able to leave beyond her town because of a diagnosed condition. Archer comes to hide in Serendipity Springs to escape his destructive father and to change the Serendipity but things happen to change his plans. 

Willa is a great baker and person. She'd been disappointed in relationships before but there's something about Archer that draws her in. Her parents are a riot, especially her dad. Archer is a great real estate developer despite his father. I love Bellamy, he's a fun man. I hope we get to see him more. 

Did I just read a "teen" CW show? I feel like I might have just done that.

This was a love letter to those types of shows and fandoms. I'm usually not into werewolf books but I liked to see Alex and Devin go through the trials to try and harness/control the shifts.

I wish the ages had been brought down a bit... Especially for Devin. He didn't feel 42 years old to me (that's my age...I feel I should know lol). I liked Alex's grumpiness. I liked that there was talk about her condition but I really wish it hadn't been just glanced over and only had one scene...I felt like it should have been a bigger part of her character.

I hated the way that Devin's parents used him for his money and didn't really care about him just as their child. I'm glad they weren't in any scenes.

A fantastic romantasy ride to conclude this wonderful duology. I love how this picked up right away and never let go of the action and the enemies to lovers fueling the fire.

Rune is about to marry the Prince to help Cressida secure an army of witches to rule the land. Gideon is sent to get rid of Rune on sight, but the sight of her brings up the uncertain feelings he has for her again. He also hears of a half sister, a Roseblood living heir, that could be used to resurrect the Queen sisters 

But they find they have to be on the same side (in theory but practice of it is not easy) to stop Cressida's grand plan while the cat and mouse game continues between Rune and Gideon. 

Oh these two and their relationship is fire! The tension between them is DRIPPING off the page. I was about to have a bit of a heart attack near the end..... Don't scare me like that! 🤣

Though I have never read Little Women (but having been a long time fan of the movie with Christian Bale) I appreciated this for what it was. So take what I say at the value of me having seen the movie and not having the book in mind.
It's nice to get other perspectives of the story I know. 

Beth's story here might have made me more sad than before. She is such a sweet and loving girl that had a really bad lot given her from an illness that almost took her life. 

Meg was brave at helping women with certain issues at a time when it was probably even more controversial than today. 

Amy is still seen as a spoiled girl that she is portrayed as before, but I do appreciate getting to see how her vast knowledge she gains in her travels led to some growth. 

Mia is just trying her hardest to raise money for her sister's baby, Grace, who has a rare disorder and could possibly go to the US for a trial to help ... But they need to raise £300,000. 

Little does she know that doing one small "favor" for her landlord/coworker/maybe friend will have dire consequences. 

To be honest, the part I liked best was all the effort to fundraise for Grace and the tension of Mia's involvement with Kat and all that comes after was like a second string plot in my mind. It was all so good though. It's very full of tension and just happy new tiring pages to see where it all goes. The chapters are mostly short and you fly through them!