Book Review: The Ballad of Falling Dragons (Moonfall #2) by Sarah A. Parker

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 704 pages
Author: Sarah A. Parker
Publisher: Harper Voyager
Release Date: May 19th, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

The Ballad of Falling Dragons is the much-anticipated sequel to the New York Times bestselling phenomenon When the Moon Hatched, featuring an immersive, vibrant world with mysterious creatures, a unique magic system, and a love that blazes through the ages.

“Moonbeam. A moonfall is coming.”

Raeve’s thirst for vengeance continues to burn, as does her love for Kaan Vaegor—a staunch beacon from a past she’s yet to face. With Rekk’s blood still fresh on her hands, she learns the world will face its most devastating moonfall yet, forcing her to pick a path:

Chase death.

Or life.

Desperate to save his kingdom from ruin, Kaan’s crown has never felt so heavy. His many larks to scattered friends and family remain unanswered, and time is running out.

As allies merge and enemies surge with bloodlusting agendas of their own, secrets brew hot enough to burn, but none so mighty as the truth nesting within the icy depths of Raeve’s long forgotten past.

Something … Other.

Something with the knowledge to change it all.

BEAUTIFUL SEQUEL.

This is one of my most anticipated sequels in 2026 and I’m grateful this held up!! I did listen to the audiobook instead of eyeball reading. The audiobook was wonderful. Different narrators for different POV’s. Good accents. No complaints. I *do* think I might have enjoyed eyeball reading this more? It is so intricate and complicated that I would have probably caught more (sad it wasn’t on KU this go round).

The progression and addition of more POV’s was exactly what I was hoping for. I love getting a larger lay of the land and more of how the magic system x dragons work in context. The new POV’s were intriguing for a variety of reasons and I can’t wait to see how those continue to develop in the future books (how many books are we going for here??).

I’m obsessed with the main romance too. I love the tension between them and how down bad Kaan is for Raeve. Also super duper appreciate that while a spicy romantasy it is not spice > plot. There is absolutely a ton of story and plot and I have missed having such a complicated story to read. Bring back these kind of epically intricate and also have amazing romantic storylines too.

This is a series I am happy to own copies of, can’t wait for more!!

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy Romance
  • Language: moderate – high
  • Romance: 3-4ish open door
  • Violence: high
  • Content warnings: animal cruelty/death, blood/gore, torture, traumatic childbirth, threat of sexual assault, murder, suicidal thoughts

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Book Review: Playing for Keeps by Ranee S. Clark

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Rating: ★
Audience: NA Sports Romance
Length: 300 pages
Author: Ranee S. Clark
Publisher: Sweetly Us Press
Release Date: June 1st, 2015
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Football-loving TyAnne Daws has long admired BYU’s star quarterback from afar. This semester, she’s determined to step away from the sidelines and she has the perfect game plan for winning the heart of Anthony Rocket Rogers. When some smart moves land her in one of his classes, she finds herself in the perfect position to make her play. But as she gets to know the real Anthony, away from the lights of the stadium, Ty realizes that this is no game; she’s falling in love . . .
Anthony takes full advantage of his all-star status, holding girls at arm’s length for one reason: it keeps him from repeating the same mistakes that once led to a devastating heartbreak. When he meets Ty, his assumption that she’s just another pretty face is quickly proven wrong. Though he’s completely drawn in by this sweet young woman, her intriguing mix of amusing football know-how, and her quiet selflessness, he will not let himself fall in love. But when faced with the reality of losing the woman he’s come to care for despite himself, Anthony’s resolve is tested. It’s getting harder to keep his head in the game when his heart’s on the line.

IT DOESN’T HAPPEN OFTEN.

I won’t spend a lot of time on this because there’s too many things to touch on that made me rage as I read this book. Essentially all of these “college kids” act like middle schoolers and the drama is roll your eye worthy to the nth degree.

And there’s a stalker that everyone is way too lenient with? I don’t know why they kept brushing him off and then he’d just pop back up again like the worst game of whack-a-mole.

This poor FMC (and the MMC) made me want to bang my head against a wall. BLESS YOUR HEARTS.

Overall audience notes:

  • NA Sports Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: mild
  • Content warning: a side character who stalks the FMC

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Book Review: What Echoes in the Dark (What Blooms From Death #2) by S.M. Gaither

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 566 pages
Author: S.M. Gaither
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: January 27th, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Months ago, Bellanova Halestorn brought her world back from the dead.

But life is a fragile thing.

The magic reviving the decayed realm of Noctaris is unstable. Unpredictable. Worse, the one who helped Nova begin to balance that realm—Aleksander—is gone, his body overtaken by the vengeful divine being known as Lorien Blackvale.

As the survivors of her ravaged world look to her for salvation, Lorien offers Nova a dangerous bargain: Undo the curse that ruined him centuries ago, restore the scattered pieces of his true self, and she can have Aleks back.

Desperate to save the man she loves, Nova agrees.

But every step she takes uncovers secrets far more dangerous than Lorien himself. Secrets about her past, about a fanatical order hellbent on controlling the Vaeloran cycle…and about Aleksander’s true nature.

Because his Light is changing.

Something darker is waking.

And saving her world from that darkness might mean losing him for good

BETTER THAN BOOK ONE.

I’ve been sitting on the fence about picking up book two but I’m glad I did! I think this one was better than the first. I like the drama and tension between Aleks and Nova. The push and pull with wild circumstances keep them circling around each other until things burst. A bit of the spice was out of pocket but I thought was preferable to the management of it in book one.

I also liked the background I got on the antagonist and how that affected the overall plot. More things started to click and that drove my engagement level. There’s a strong found family that I love seeing work together and fight for peace. Some of the other world building pieces were lost to me (more than likely because I read What Blooms From Death over a year ago).

This was definitely enough for me to pick up the conclusion and to continue reading Gaither’s books. Her Shadows & Crowns series still remains my overall favorite.

Overall audience notes:

  • Romantasy
  • Language: moderate
  • Romance: 6ish open door
  • Violence: high
  • Content warnings: loss of life, mentions of past child abuse

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Book Review: An Embroidery of Souls by Ruby Martinez

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: YA Fantasy Romance
Length: 416 pages
Author: Ruby Martinez
Publisher: Knopf Books
Release Date: September 9th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Jade can manipulate souls with the tug of a thread–it’s up to her, and a boy with a soul as bright as the universe to stop a creature on the loose before it claims its next victim in this lush, Mexican & German inspired romantasy.

Jade Aguilar can kill a man with nothing more than a needle and thread. Like her mother, a thread speaker in the queendom of Mérecal, she has the unique ability to stitch love, beauty, intelligence and to unravel even death. When her mother goes missing, the queen orders Jade to find her or be conscripted into a life of servitude.
Lukas Keller is desperate to feed his family and makes a deal with a vicious gang leader. Though he swore never to seek the help of a thread speaker, he’s in over his head and it might be his only option.
Jade and Lukas form a mistrustful alliance. But as Mérecal erupts into chaos and the killer closes in, they must cling to one another for survival–and perhaps . . . something more?

LACKED DEPTH.

While I do think this is appropriate for YA audiences I was missing depth for multiple aspects of the story. The romance leans towards insta-love and that is always a problem for me. I do think there were some sweet/cute moments in here, but gimme MOOOORE.

The concept of the magic system was really cool. I liked learning more about it. There needed to be some boundaries to the way it worked because every time a new issue came up, all of a sudden the magic system could fix it.

The villains and twists aren’t anything surprising and you can see from far away. I did like the writing style and would be interesting in at least trying another book from this author.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Fantasy Romance
  • Language: low
  • Romance: closed door
  • Violence: moderate

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