sarahsbookstack's Reviews (2.55k)

3.5 rounded up.

Ok, I flew through this book. It can be triggering as there is a child abduction and drug abuse and mental health stigma.

I can't imagine Hope's terror at realizing her son was missing. I felt really bad that she accused her -standoffish neighbor- of the deed. I became sad when I heard his story.

I would have changed a character arc to be different and handled differently. I've read a lot of books that I feel dealt with mental health a bit better. 

Why did I wait so long to read this?! I loved every single minute of it. I love the wingman trope and the bet they have. I love that they gather together for tacos after dates don't go well. I love that it also includes a bit of friends to best friends to lovers and a one bed trope and a fake dating trope for a wedding that turns into real feelings.

Jack and Hallie are hilarious together, their banter is top notch! I love that they will text each other even when they are in the same room together. The weekend was one of my favorite parts and how they "played" up the "fake ness" and the cat shelter was so fun too. 

Holy cow, how this book flew by! There are so many people who are so shifty and hiding secrets and it was an obsession of mine to find out the killer in this book.

I really liked Andi, the FBI agent who gets involved in a murder at a wedding party where she barely knows Lana anymore, who invited her. Her dad is an interesting side character too that I enjoyed.

The manipulations of so many characters just kept my eyes riveted to the page for the few hours it took me to read it. 

I was in awe of this book the whole time, SO GOOD! No matter how much I love the story or the first in a series, I seem to always have trouble with a sequel....but not this one!

I just love Rey and Silla so much and their romance 🥰 the longing glances and even the sparring are romantic in a way. I loved how patient Rey is while Silla learns about and how to use/control her galdur. I love his protectiveness and care he shows her. 

I loved getting to know the other POV, Saga! I feel for her. She is dealing with some mental issues and it's well written. She's never ashamed of it. I just hated the circumstances she is put in under Queen Signe and King Ivar. I liked her new found relationship with Kass. I'm so interested in getting to know even more about them both.

While this book doesn't have action all the time, even the non action parts are so wonderful to immerse yourself in. I felt the last 20% there was so much action and I know my jaw was on the floor in a lot of it.

I need more of this world, Viking romantasy is a great genre! 

I thought this book was just ok. I didn't think it was scary at all (literary horror is the genre). There is a big mystery as to why Case's friend Drea isn't at the place she was said to be living and which she invited Case to. There are just a pack of teens that live in a very weird way at this place deep in the woods.

Once the mystery is solved, I just felt nothing about it. I applaud Drea's courage but also felt that any normal caring human being would have done the same. 🤷‍♀️ I was also very confused at first with the chapter headings until I realized they were time stamps.

This was a great HF novel to be immersed in.  Evelien is the type of character I love to read about in the face of war. This book tells about the end of WW1 and most of it in just 9 days of time. 

Evelien is working in the house of her employer who had promised her a beloved painting for keeping his possessions safe. When she is approached to get a list of names hidden in the house, she does so on the promise of letters from her husband who left to fight the day after their marriage. 
 
She does this at great risk, but she was smart. I just found myself rooting for her. There is some romance in here too that people might also root for. 

I really like the friendship the two MCs have for each other. Eli makes Stephanie feel valued in her career as a firefighter. Stephanie gives as much crap as any of the guys in the firehouse and they all respect her.

I liked that they were asked by their chief to compete in a charity show and this forced them to not only be teammates in a different sense , but to confront their feelings for each other. Even though there are two bedrooms, there is only one cabin that keeps them in very close proximity. Their desires ignite....in the competition and off. I liked the fire puns used to describe their secret time together.

I really loved that Stephanie and the show got Eli to really look into his passions outside of his firefighter legacy. 

Wells is so freaking grumpy, I loved it!
Josephine is the ultimate Fangirl, never giving up on her celebrity even when he's down.

I never thought I would enjoy a book about golf but this was much more than I was expecting. It has the signature Tessa spice with a great story plot line. I love how Wells cares for Josephine especially given her condition of T1D- downloading an app to help her watch her blood sugar? Ultimate swoon. 

Beatrice lost her mother when she was 15. She developed an ED and had to go to rehab. She is a psychologist and one day a "patient" tells Beatrice that her mother is still alive. This sets her on a path to find out the truth she didn't know about someone she loved so much.

There are some very heavy subject matters here with opioid addiction, eating disorder, and death of a parent but it was so captivating throughout this read.

I appreciate the author showing that especially, with an eating disorder, the person is never "cured". They still struggle daily to keep the dark thoughts at bay. We see Beatrice struggle with this in her present day. 

Wow, I can't believe this is a debut. 

This was an easy fantasy world to be immersed in. Deka was the kind of heroine I really like. She was smart, she figured things out on her own, and she was kind. She never backed down from the challenges she faced.

I like the idea here that's presented by a character that while physical hurts can fade, the memories are always there. We need to remember our hurts so that we can help people who are going through the same thing.  

I didn't like that women are subjected to only being able to do things that will eventually help to run a household. I do like that there was a tribe (which we have two characters from) that didn't follow those mandates.