the_cover_contessa's Reviews (1.75k)

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/St. Martin's Griffin for supplying me with an egalley of this book to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
I really enjoyed the first book. in this series. The idea of three brawny football players opening a cupcake shop is just great. I'm glad I got to read this second one and see what August and Sloane's story was all about.
I really love August. He's this big quiet guy who just wants to stay out of the limelight. Of course it's him who ends up as the face of Sugar Blitz Cupcakes when he accidentally goes viral after he goes off on a few guys bad talking cupcakes. It's always the quiet ones who have the most to say!   I liked how Sloane was able to step in and use her social media manager powers to really help Sugar Blitz. Of course she and August have some history and spend the entire book pining for each other. I loved their banter and how easily they got along with each other. Their push and pull was fun, even if it was a little frustrating and I wanted to bop them both in the head and yell, "snap out of it!"
That being said, they were both very relatable despite August's fame as a pro football player. 
The plot is nothing special but it was fun. And it did touch on a few social issues that I think are important for people to know about: gentrification being the foremost. 
The one thing that bothered me was the sexual harassment August received. It was peppered throughout the book but never really addressed. For a man who was standing up for women, I was surprised to see the reverse happening and no one stepping in to say anything.
Jamie's writing is easy to read. It flows well and keeps the pace going. I liked the third person point of view used for this story, as well. It's an interesting way to go.
Overall this one was fun, though not great for me as the first. If you're looking for a cute second chance love story with lots of slow burn, this one will fit the bill!

This was just ok. I'm still wondering why she called him by his full name for the ENTIRE book. WTH is that about?

This was just ok. I liked the story line but the narrator really took away from my enjoyment. She was so monotone.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Group/Penguin Young Readers Group/Nancy Paulson Books for providing me with an egalley of this title to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
I enjoyed Thieves' Gambit a lot. It was a fun filled, action packed, story. Of course I wanted to see what the next adventure brought so I dove into this one. And I'm happy to say it was just as fun.
The first book definitely left you feeling there could be more, or it could have been done. So I'm glad the author decided to do another book. 
This one was filled with action, adventure, unbelievable stunts, and a bit of romance (which started in the first book but never really blossomed). 
We get a return of the old characters from the first book: Ross, Noelia, Deveroe, and others. But we are also introduced to a few new characters, which I enjoyed. 
The story reminded me of Marie Lu's Stars and Smoke series. And  if you like John Wick or James Bond, you'll definitely get those vibes here with the heists and shenanigans the characters are able to pull off. Reading this felt like a movie playing out in my head. But it's geared towards the younger YA crowd, in my opinion.
The plot is similar to the first book, but the stakes are set a bit higher with this one. I liked the twistiness of the story but I will say the ending felt a bit rushed to me. The writing is good but not fabulous. I had a hard time with some of the transitions the author made. I had to flip back a few pages to understand who was talking, what they were talking about, and why. Sometimes it felt like conversations were completely cut off other times it felt like the conversation switched gears in the middle or picked up on something I didn't even know was being discussed.
The only thing I would say for anyone who wants to read this, suspend your beliefs. Just like the first book, I had a hard time believing these young kids were basically spies sent to do unbelievable things in order to win a game.
Overall this was fun and I think a great book for YA readers who want a little mystery and thrill.

Thank you to Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, Margaret K. McElderry Books, Edelweiss, and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this title to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
If you have not read the first book in this series, Curious Tides, stop here. There will more than likely be spoilers for that book below. And you'll need to read that first book to understand what happens in this one.
Curious Tides was my favorite book of 2023. I will admit, when it was sent to me I was unsure I'd really want to read it. The length was intimidating but I also judged the book by its cover and it just didn't look inviting to me. Boy was I WRONG! Not only do I now love that cover, but I am in love with all the characters and the world Lacelle has built. It's a very unique magical system and the world building was amazing.
I was super excited to jump into this one seeing as the first one pretty much ended on a cliff hanger. I needed to know what happened to all the characters! This installment of The Drowned Gods series is full of action and adventure. It delves deeper into the magical system and gives a ton of history and background world. 
This book is told from four points of view. Yep, two new POVs are added and I'm sure you can imagine that changed the story up quite a bit. Having Romie's POV really expanded how the story progressed. And we got a dip into Kai's POV at the end of the first book so I knew he was going to be included! Plus we still hear from Baz and Emory. It's great to watch the story unfold from all these characters who are complex, real, and very reliable. Do their emotions get involved? They sure do. But it brings just the right amount of drama and intrigue to pull the reader along. I loved seeing the two characters we got to know so well in book one through the eyes of their best friends. We're also introduced to a slew of new characters. One of which is the author of the story which started all the characters down the road of this story. 
The romance takes a bit of a turn in this book. We did see it somewhat towards the end of book 1 but it ramps up much more in this book. And those you thought were pining for each other turns out to be a bit different than what we first thought. It's a very slow burn so if you're expecting it to pop out and be real early on, you're in for a surprise. Expect a build until things combust.
This book introduces time travel. Lacelle does a good job with is, as well. I'm always worried that time travel books will have too many complicated things happening and make it hard to understand but that is not the case here. I will say I was surprised at what was reveled by the characters who did travel. I was worried how it would alter the other timeline. The alternating time lines were easy to understand and keep up with. We don't really see the intersection of the timelines until the end, so I'll be interested to see how it plays out in the third book of the series.
Often times the second book of a trilogy suffers from middle books syndrome where the book becomes just filler to get you to the third book that wraps the story up. This is not that book. This book absolutely lends so much to the story. Especially because it explores more worlds than what we saw in the first book. It expands the universe so well. It gives more depth to the characters, plot, and world.
I loved the mystery and intrigue in this book. I will admit it was a long one. I am very intimidated by long books. I did have to take a few breaks. And I did find myself jumping back at times to make sure I understood what was happening as it did get complicated at times. And I love that Lacelle continued using the dark academia introduced int book one in this book. She doesn't take you away from that part of the book which really is so important to the overall story.
While I wanted to love this book as much as the first, I did feel the pacing was not quite as on point with this installment as the first. I struggled at times to understand some of what was happening. There was so much new stuff introduced, such a large expansion of the universe, I sometimes had a hard time keeping it all straight. This brought my rating down. But overall, this is a great continuation of interesting and unique lore with complex characters and time lines that keep you turning the page. Once again we're left with a cliff hanger which leave me wondering just how the author is going to solve the pickle these characters have gotten themselves into! Excited for the next book already!

Thank you to Macmillan Audio, Tor Books, and NetGalley for providing me with an audio galley of this title to read and review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
I was sent a copy of the first book in this series through the mail. I was very unsure wether I would enjoy it. Then the audio popped up for review so I decided to do a read along with the ARC I was sent and I'm so glad I did. I wasn't sure what to expect but I didn't expect to fall in love with the world Dimova built; a world full of monsters, witches, and things that go bump in the night. When I saw the second book was coming to print, I jumped at the chance to grab the audio to listen to for review and I'm glad I did.
If you didn't read the first book in this duet, I highly recommend you do. You will not understand the relationships in this book, or the world, since the book picks up about 6 months after the ending of the previous book. And, while the previous book did not truly end on a cliffhanger, all that happened in that book is very important to the folklore in this one.
I'll start with the narrators of this story. The female main character is narrated by Zura Johnson. I did enjoy her voice for the previous book, so it was nice to have that consistency with narrators. But unlike the first book, this book also had a male narrator for the male main character: Tim Campbell. I was so happy to see Asen get his own POV. While I really liked him in the first book, this book elevated him to another level because he had his own voice. I have not listened to anything narrated by Campbell before and I found that I really did love his voice for this book. They were able to do the Slavic accents well and each character was distinct and easy to pick out.
Dimova took this book to the next level of monsters and watching the main character, Kosara, fight against the evil that threatens her home. Kosara is a strong character who has built walls around herself, too afraid to truly let anyone in or let anyone help her for fear of becoming attached and losing them. In this book, we see those walls crumble a bit and watch her begin to understand her found family truly wants to help her and be there for her.
I will say you really saw Dimova come in to her story with this book. It's much smoother than the first book; much more put together. And she continues with the Slavic folklore and introduces more monsters than in the first book. One of my favorite parts of this book was the very end when you can truly learn about all the monsters in the compendium the witches have compiled. And this book read faster than the first for me. The action was ramped up, the conflicts were more dire, and the outcome of beating the real monster was huge.
Dark and gritty, this book is also just fun and even includes a bit of romance, which I was happy to see (though I think it could have been infused with even more to really bring the characters into the light as they fought side by side to ensure the safety of those around them). 
I will admit, this book reads very much like YA but the characters are definitely not of YA age. I'm actually not quite sure how old they are but seems like they would be close to 30. For that reason there were some melodramatic areas I really thought would be more suited for a younger audience. I do wish there was a bit more adult infused into the book as it really seems like that's the audience it's meant for.
Dimova is a truly creative author who has a great talent for pulling you into a story, making you care about the characters, and pulling you through to the other side while cheering for everything to turn out ok. I'm impressed this is only her second book and I am looking forward to seeing what else she comes up with in the future!

Thank you to NetGalley and Avon Harper Voyager for providing me with an egalley of this title to read and give my honest review. The opinions expressed here are my own.
I honestly thought this was the first Lia Riley book I had ever read. But when I look back at my reading list, I see I have actually read a few of her titles in the past and enjoyed them. I'm glad I picked this one up.
I'm not much for historical books but give me a good regency love affair and I'm all there. This one mixed for me two of my favorite things: regency romance and hockey. Though it's light on the hockey, the vibe is there. Plus, Riley threw in a little time travel to boot.
The chemistry between the two main characters is definitely at the forefront of this book. It truly is strict romance. There is not much other plot unless you count the fake marriage that occurs. Lizzy is not your typical stuck up regency lady looking for a man to marry and take care of her. She wants to be independent; not an easy feat in her error. But she's determined to do it and having Tuck Taylor fall into her world, literally through a time portal, is just what she needs. Tuck is handsome and funny but he's also modern and teaches Lizzy a thing or two about how great she is and standing up for herself and what she wants. Tuck, on the other hand, misses his modern hockey player life and just wants to get back to his time. He never expects to find the love of his life. Told in alternating points of view, the story follows these two as they navigate friendship, then attraction, and ultimately a longing to be together though they never can be. Lizzy must stay in her time and be who she was always meant to be and Tuck must get back to his time, his hockey career, and his sister.
I enjoyed watching the relationship between these two grow.. Were they attracted to each other right off, pretty much. But it wasn't really insta-love, which I liked. They got to know each other and learn about each other's worlds and through that process fell for each other. Of course Lizzy has some family members who are not on her side. But she also has some friends, including Jane Eyre!, who support everything and anything she wants to do. With lots of laughter and some dodging of villains, specifically LIzzy's brother and mother, the two pull off their sham and ultimately both get what they want in the end.
The ending of the story was just ok for me. I did like that no one gave up their lives for the other but the compromise was a bit unbelievable and I had a hard time suspending my belief of reality for it.
If you're looking for a fun romantic read with not much other plot but some smut and a story that would truly never happen, this one is it. I do wish there was more depth to what Lizzy wanted to do with her life and ultimately how it shaped what happened to the two in the end.