wordsofclover's Reviews (2.16k)

Kitty Talbot has arrived in London for the season and she's on a mission - her parents have recently passed away, leaving Kitty and her sisters with a lot of debt. If Kitty doesn't manage to find a rich husband, the future prospects for her sisters are ruined and she's determined to provide them with what they need for success. When Kitty sets her eyes on Archie De Lacy, she doesn't realise she also has to contend with her brother, Lord Radcliffe who sees Kitty for exactly who she is and what she wants.

This was just a brilliant, enjoyable read that ended up thoroughly surprising me in many ways, and I was sooo gripped by the end as I waited for that P&P moment for the characters to finally touch, let alone kiss. This is a true slow burn book which is actually something I haven't found a lot in the historical/regency romance I have read before and I loved the mix up where it took about 70% through for the characters to actively stop hating each other and 99% done for anything to actually happen.

There is no spice in this book at all which I also found a bit refreshing as regency romance can tend to be a bit bodice busting but the chastity in this book felt more natural for the type of character we are following and who they are, and particularly what Kitty is trying to do - any kind of physical intimacy would have been way too dangerous for her to try.

I loved the pacing of this even though it was slower than other books in the genre I've read as well, and it's a real build-up of the novel and it really feels like it takes the characters a VERY long time to realise their feelings (like almost the last page). I would have liked a few more moments of sexual tension and chemistry between Kitty and Radcliffe just to make things even more exciting between the two.

This is also a novel in which I really missed an epilogue - I would have liked to have seen Kitty and Radcliffe in a few more years and maybe got a glimpse of what happened between Cecily and Montagu. 

When Lela and Donovan were in college, they were best friends before life got complicated and they drifted apart. Now years later, in their early fifties, they reconnect but again it's not meant to be. But faith has other plans, and Donovan ends up consulting on Lela's new make up business and before too long, sparks fly again as Lela dominated headlines with her gray hair, and Donovan's heart.

This was a sweet, fun read - I appreciated reading about 'older' characters than a lot of romance books focus on and showing that you can be fifty but still young, beautiful and sexy (and with a healthy sex life). There were great messages in this book about embracing your beauty and loving your aging self. The romance was more sweet than chemistry-laden to be honest, and it was a nice second chance romance where the characters had a deep history between them that bolstered up the relationship when it turned romantic.

I did feel the story ebbed a bit about 60% through and I felt very done with the story and ready for it to wrap up. 

When Yui loses her mother and daughter in a terrible natural disaster that strikes Japan, she feels lost and confused. She hears about a special phone box in a country village which people use to talk to their dead loved ones, and she travels there, striking up a friendship with Takeshi who lost his wife.

This is a very quiet, sweet novel that showcases the powerful human ability of moving on despite tremendous heartbreak and continuing to find the lovely things in life. I listened to this on audiobook and it was a lovely, relaxing read. Despite the very sad moments in this when we learn about the extent of Yui's loss, as well as Takeshi's and Hannah's and numerous other characters who come in and out of the story, it remained fairly light-hearted. 

When four women travel to a remote island off the coast of Canada for the semi-finals in a reality dating show, they have no idea that a night under the stars is about to go terribly wrong. As the women, and the crew are hunted by a mysterious monster in the forest, one contestant finds herself drawn to the dark, hairy being and the soul within.

This is a fast-paced romp of the book that really scoops you up and takes you along for the ride. I very much enjoyed this and found it really entertaining - as well as just very funny in parts. As someone who is partial to Love Island, I thought the dating show concept in this book was great and I loved that the characters we were following were all so different in their own ways.

I would have loved more time with all of the characters just to flesh them out even more, and really get a deep dive into their brains, and improve their relationships with one another. While the book's pacing was fun in that I got really swept up in the story, I definitely think parts of it could have been slowed down so elements of the story could have been more fleshed out and given a bit more explanation. I didn't really like that there wasn't really an explanation given for Patricia being on the island - and I found it a bit unrealistic that so much death could be just swept under the rug?!