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Book Review: Vesselless by Cortney L. Winn

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 483 pages
Author: Cortney L. Winn
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: March 23rd, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

She’s heiress to the throne. The throne her family stole from him.

Nizzara has always been able to perceive spirits better than the average caster. As heiress to the Zarr throne and an avid dueler, she enters a deadly tournament of swords and bonded spirit magic to win the freedom to choose her own suitor. Not wanting to become a power-hungry tyrant like her father, Nizzara is determined to win the tournament without succumbing to the addictive spirit magic she channels or taking a life in the duel ring.

When she finds herself outmatched, Nizzara must choose to bond with Dagen (a powerful spirit) or lose her life in the tournament.

Dagen, the last King of Zarr, was killed by Nizzara’s father ten years ago. Now a half-ghost—able to phase between his human and spirit form—Dagen is stuck in another realm, hunting and ripping wretched souls from their bodies. When his keeper offers him a chance to reclaim his freedom and his kingdom in exchange for Nizzara’s pure soul, Dagen takes the deal.

There’s only one catch: she must freely give it to him by the tournament’s end or his own soul is forfeit.

Fourth Wing meets The Serpent of Wings of Night in the first instalment of this action packed romantasy as they deal with the bargain hanging over their heads. Family, love, power and deception collide as the characters need to make decisions that could change their realm forever.

THE VIBES WERE THERE.

I am a fantasy reader with a penchant for world building alongside my romance. That’s the only place where this book lost me. I am confused by the fact that there were cars and guns? Not unheard of in fantasy, of course, but I felt like there were different pieces throughout the book where I just needed more explanation.

The storyline is good though. I thought the male POV had a very unique dynamic and I liked the crossing worlds aspects. There’s some good slow burn chemistry between the two leads that I steadily fell in love with. I enjoyed all of the action and the competition. I’m hopeful about where all of the open threads could go in the next book.

An enjoyable read and one I would recommend. It didn’t give me Fourth Wing or Serpents vibes (as mentioned in the summary) so I would be weary of going in thinking the book is along those lines or anything.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy Romance
  • Language: moderate-high
  • Romance: 1 open door; low innuendo
  • Violence: moderate-high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: physical abuse, near death experiences, executions, drugging and sexual assault

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Book Review: Emily Wilde’s Encyclopaedia of Faeries (Emily Wilde #1) by Heather Fawcett

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Fantasy + Romance
Length: 336 pages
Author: Heather Fawcett
Publisher: Del Rey
Release Date: January 10th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A curmudgeonly professor journeys to a small town in the far north to study faerie folklore and discovers dark fae magic, friendship, and love, in this heartwarming and enchanting fantasy.

Cambridge professor Emily Wilde is good at many things: She is the foremost expert on the study of faeries. She is a genius scholar and a meticulous researcher who is writing the world’s first encyclopaedia of faerie lore. But Emily Wilde is not good at people. She could never make small talk at a party–or even get invited to one. And she prefers the company of her books, her dog, Shadow, and the Fair Folk to other people.

So when she arrives in the hardscrabble village of Hrafnsvik, Emily has no intention of befriending the gruff townsfolk. Nor does she care to spend time with another new arrival: her dashing and insufferably handsome academic rival Wendell Bambleby, who manages to charm the townsfolk, get in the middle of Emily’s research, and utterly confound and frustrate her.

But as Emily gets closer and closer to uncovering the secrets of the Hidden Ones–the most elusive of all faeries–lurking in the shadowy forest outside the town, she also finds herself on the trail of another mystery: Who is Wendell Bambleby, and what does he really want? To find the answer, she’ll have to unlock the greatest mystery of all–her own heart.

I DON’T KNOW HOW I FEEL.

On one hand, this was an interesting read. Had some unique touches that I enjoyed and I liked the whole set-up of Emily Wilde out in the field, learning about faeries. I’d overall consider this a soft four star read.

But it also lost me for a lot of the middle. I thought that things slowed waaaay down. There were a lot more encyclopedic tangents and I was missing the point of the whole book in the first place. I did like most of the romance. It had its own flair and Wendell had snarky golden retriever vibes that I liked. Emily is fine for a FMC. I don’t really have any intense opinions on her one way or another.

The last quarter was intriguing. I have a lot of questions about some of the fae world, the king, the powers, and a few [redacted] stuff too. I want to read the next, and I’ll definitely do that through the library again.

Overall audience notes:

  • Urban Fantasy
  • Language: little
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: moderate

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ARC Book Review: To Charm a Lady (The Cartwells #2) by Joanna Barker

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Historical Romance
Length: 312 pages
Author: Joanna Barker
Publisher: Rose Petal Press
Release Date: June 6th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Cora Atherton wants nothing more than to finally fall in love—real love, not the unrequited sort. When she is invited to attend a house party without her disapproving, overbearing mother, Cora leaps at the chance, desperate to make a match of her own. That is, until she finds that Oliver Cartwell is also attending the party. Oliver, the boy she has loved since she was a girl and the man she is determined to forget.A house party in the country is just what Oliver needs to distract himself from the shadows of his past. When he discovers that Cora, his sister’s best friend, is in need of a little matchmaking, he resolves to help her in her search for a husband. He quickly learns that no man is good enough for her, least of all himself. Why, then, does he find himself fighting his attraction to gentle, beautiful Cora at every step?As the two draw closer together, Cora is forced to confront the feelings that have tortured her for years. With her future on the line and a deadline fast approaching, can she trust that flirtatious Oliver has changed for the better—or will he leave her heart in pieces once again?

Thank you to the author for a gifted copy.

FLAWLESS.

I mean, I don’t even know where to begin with this review. When you love a book so incredibly much that you feel like no words will do it justice. This book made me actually tear up because it was beautifully wholesome and heated with the tension between Cora and Oliver. I loved how the house party was used to bring the forced proximity at the fore front and how many times Cora and Oliver got a chance to reconnect from their childhood. Cora and her unrequited crush had a grip on my heart and watching Oliver fall, and fall HARD was EVERYTHING.

There were so many moments I highlighted because this romance brings the sweeping tale of hope and change and growing into the person you want to be. I loved how low drama the plot was without slowing anything down. The will they/won’t they was impeccable and I hit that moment where I was BEGGING for a kiss to happen.

I loved all of the characters and the sweet friendships that blossomed. I loved getting to see Marigold and Tristan again. I loved the setting and atmosphere. I’m pretty sure this is my new favorite from Joanna Barker. She is a historical romance queen.

Overall audience notes:

  • Historical romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: low

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ARC Book Review: The Perfect Putt (More Than a Game #2) by Annah Conwell

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Sports Romance
Length: 250 pages
Author: Annah Conwell
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: June 6th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Golf is for rich, pretentious jerks who need something to do while they gossip.

That’s always been my opinion. So when my best friend lands me an interview with Miles Day–the youngest golfer to ever win the Masters–I almost say no.

But the six-figure salary attached to the position is too good to pass up.

Miles gives me the job as his assistant, with one caveat–don’t fall in love with him. Easy. So easy that I laugh in his face when he so much as suggests the possibility.

Except… the more time I spend with Miles, the harder it is to resist his charming smile and glittering green eyes.

Catching feelings for him isn’t an option though, because I have goals to reach, and he has an aversion to commitment. Falling in love would be a mistake, one neither of us are willing to make.

Thank you to the author for a gifted copy!

DO I LIKE GOLF NOW?

I am not a golf fan, but maybe I’ll try it out now after reading this romance. I loved this one y’all! If you’re looking for a short and fast sweet romance, I would recommend Annah Conwell’s books.

I enjoyed the way the boss x assistant romance was handled. There was a lot of good angst and tension and the heated glances and little touches left me in a puddle. I connected a lot with both characters. I loved that Ellie was the natural grump who loved and loved deeply. I loved that Miles was passionate and dedicated and finally had the epiphany he needed about breaking his own cycle (been there Miles, I see you!!). While a lighter read, this is still filled with that depth I crave. And gosh dang, do I love a heated argument that turns into a feverish kiss.

Shaw and Fitz were my fav too. I’m all for men helping men realize they are acting like idiots. Having Shaw and Fitz dedicate time to helping MIles see past his own insecurities and mental blocks showed off the best kind of friendships. I loved how they cared for each other.

Fantastic banter, swoony kisses, and a quick read that has the best kind of summer vibes.

Overall audience notes:

  • Golf Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: heated kisses
  • Content Warnings: mentions of divorce

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