Monthly Reading Wrap-Up: August 2023

September 2, 2023 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Is it fall yet? We’ve made it to the end of formal summer and I really would love if the temperature would dip under 100 degrees.

Favorites of August:

What the River Knows
Check & Mate
The Jasad Heir
Bring Me Your Midnight
Realm Breaker
The Blonde Identity
Yumi and the NIghtmare Painter
Desire or Defense
How to Kiss a Movie Star
Belladonna
Babel
A Fate Inked in Blood
Just Don’t Fall
Foxglove
Garden of the Midnights
Flirtation or Faceoff
But He’s My Grumpy Neighbor
Assistant to the Villain

Least favorites:

An Empress of Air & Chaos
All’s Fair in Love and Christmas
The Invisible Hour

[ARC] What the River Knows by Isabel Ibanez
[Gifted] Thief of Sorrows by Kristen M. Long
You, with a View by Jessica Joyce
[ARC] Check & Mate by Ali Hazelwood
An Empress of Air & Chaos (An Empress #1) by Noelle Rayne
The Jasad Heir (The Scorched Throne #1) by Sara Hashem
Bring Me Your Midnight by Rachel Griffin
A City of Flames (A City of Flames #1) by Rina Vasquez
This Violent Reckoning (The Curse of the Blessed #2) by Renee Dugan
[ARC] All’s Fair in Love and Christmas by Sarah Monzon
Realm Breaker (Realm Breaker #1) by Victoria Aveyard
The Blonde Identity by Ally Carter
Play Your Part by Kathryn Kincaid
Yumi and the Nightmare Painter (Cosmere) by Brandon Sanderson
[Reread] Desire or Defense (D.C. Eagles #1) by Leah Brunner
The Marriage Effect (Washington Wolves #3) by Karla Sorensen
[ARC] To Spark a Match (The Matchmakers #2) by Jen Turano
[ARC] How to Kiss a Movie Star (Hawthorne Brothers #4) by Jenny Proctor
Omen of Ice (Omen of Ice #1) by Jus Accardo
Slow Dance in Purgatory (Purgatory #1) by Amy Harmon
A Duet with the Siren Duke (Married to Magic #4) by Elise Kova
Belladonna (Belladonna #1) by Adalyn Grace
Hands Down by Mariana Zapata
Babel: An Arcane History by R.F. Kuang
[ARC] A Fate Inked in Blood (Saga of the Unfated #1) by Danielle L. Jensen
Prom Night in Purgatory (Purgatory #2) by Amy Harmon
[ARC] Betting on You by Lynn Painter
One of Us Is Back (One Of Us Is Lying #3) by Karen M. McManus
[ARC] Just Don’t Fall (Sweater Weather #1) by Emma St. Clair
[Reread] A Darker Shade of Magic (Shades of Magic #1) by V.E. Schwab
Face the Night by Lani Forbes
Heavenly Bodies (Heavenly Bodies #1) by Imani Erriu
The Invisible Hour by Alice Hoffman
Foxglove (Belladonna #2) by Adalyn Grace
[ARC] Garden of the Midnights by Hannah Linder
Heirs of Falcon Point (Falcon Point #0) by Traci Hunter Abramson, Sian Ann Bessey, Paige Edwards and A.L. Sowards
[ARC] Flirtation or Faceoff (D.C. Eagles Hockey #2) by Leah Brunner
Karma is a Witch (Deadlights Cove #5) by Aimee Vance and B. Perkins
House of Roots and Ruin (Sisters of the Salt #2) by Erin A. Craig
But He’s My Grumpy Neighbor (But He’s a Carter Brother #1) by Annah Conwell
Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer
[ARC] Unholy Terrors by Lyndall Clipstone

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Book Review: Queen Charlotte by Julie Quinn and Shonda Rhimes

September 2, 2023June 9, 2023 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Historical Romance
Length: 352 pages
Author: Julie Quinn and Shonda Rhimes
Publisher: Avon
Release Date: May 9th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

From #1 New York Times bestselling author Julia Quinn and television pioneer Shonda Rhimes comes a powerful and romantic novel of Bridgerton’s Queen Charlotte and King George III’s great love story and how it sparked a societal shift, inspired by the original series Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, created by Shondaland for Netflix.

“We are one crown. His weight is mine, and mine is his…”

In 1761, on a sunny day in September, a King and Queen met for the very first time. They were married within hours.

Born a German Princess, Charlotte of Mecklenburg-Strelitz was beautiful, headstrong, and fiercely intelligent… not precisely the attributes the British Court had been seeking in a spouse for the young King George III. But her fire and independence were exactly what she needed, because George had secrets… secrets with the potential to shake the very foundations of the monarchy.

Thrust into her new role as a royal, Charlotte must learn to navigate the intricate politics of the court… all the while guarding her heart, because she is falling in love with the King, even as he pushes her away. Above all she must learn to rule, and to understand that she has been given the power to remake society. She must fight—for herself, for her husband, and for all her new subjects who look to her for guidance and grace. For she will never be just Charlotte again. She must instead fulfill her destiny… as Queen.

Thank you to Bibliolifestyle and Avon for the gifted copy!

I LIKED IT.

I didn’t know how I would feel about this one and was pleasantly surprised at how much I ended up enjoying it. THOUGH NOTE: I wouldn’t watch the show before reading this if you have plans to read the book at all. You can tell that it reads a bit like a movie script and (after only watching episode 1) it was an exact cross over in the book. I don’t think I would have been able to make it through the book if I had already watched the show.

ANYWAYS. It’s a really good, heart breaking romance. I adore Charlotte and George. I love the way they love each other. The passionate enemies to bonded tighter together than they realized they would be. There’s some good romance, I love the friendship with Agatha and it was an enjoyable read.

There’s small scenes here or there that I felt kind of forced in the book (maybe this isn’t an issue in the show, I still need to finish watching it). Otherwise, I loved the audiobook, and happy to have it on my shelves!

Overall audience notes:

Historical Romance
Language: some strong
Romance: 2-3 open; moderate explicit
Violence: moderate
Trigger/Content Warnings: descriptive childbirth, mental experimentation (reads akin to torture)

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ARC Book Review: Flirtation or Faceoff (D.C. Eagles Hockey #2) by Leah Bruner

September 1, 2023August 27, 2023 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Sports Romance
Length: 265 pages
Author: Leah Brunner
Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: September 1st, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

After getting my heart broken, I’ve sworn off athletes forever.

Then my best friend has to go and marry an NHL player, and his teammate, Colby Knight, won’t leave me alone.

Colby is a master at scoring (on and off the ice), and he’s not used to being told no. So he takes my disinterest as an invitation to pursue me even harder. I ignore him… until I realize I can use his expertise to help me get my crush’s attention.

But now that he’s my dating coach, and we’re spending so much time together, I’m growing more and more distracted. I mean, those dimples? Very enticing.

Just when I think he might be more than just a playboy hockey player, a blast from the past comes back and reminds me why I swore off athletes in the first place.

Can I trust Colby, or is he just another jerk who will break my heart?

(This is a dual POV, fade-to-black romance, and can be read as a standalone. This book contains mild language. Trigger warnings: cheating exes.)

Thank you to the author for an eARC.

CLOSED DOOR HOCKEY QUEEN.

I don’t care that we’re only three books into this series (including the prequel!), Leah Brunner is creating the best closed door hockey romance series around.

I LOVED THIS BOOK. Colby was absolutely GONE for Noel from the get-go and he was so dang sweet. Good heavens. I loved how much he cared. For Noel, his friends, family and those around him. I loved his passion and commitment. I just loved HIM.

And Noel. I loved her too. I loved how incredibly intelligent and nerdy she was. I loved her character arc too and how she learned to trust and move forward with the things she wanted in life.

The chemistry between Colby and Noel was off the charts. I loved how soft it was, but also sexy. It’s a fiery combination that sets the book A FLAME. I loved the dating lessons, and protective moments. All of the family get together and the seeing my favorite D.C. Eagles again.

This book had it all. I already want to read it again.

Overall audience notes:

Sports Romance
Language: some light – moderate
Romance: heated kisses
Violence: low
Trigger/Content Warnings: brief physical altercation, cheating ex (recounted)

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Book Review: My Imaginary Mary (Mary #2) by Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows

September 1, 2023September 21, 2022 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Fantasy Historical Romance
Length: 496 pages
Author: Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton & Jodi Meadows
Publisher: HarperTeen
Release Date: August 2nd 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

It’s aliiiiiiiive! The bestselling authors of My Lady Jane are back with the electric, poetic, and (almost) historical tale of the one and only Mary Shelley.

Mary may have inherited the brilliant mind of her late mother, Mary Wollstonecraft, but she lives a drab life above her father’s bookstore, waiting for an extraordinary idea that’ll inspire a work worthy of her parentage—and impress her rakishly handsome (and super-secret) beau, Percy Shelley.

Ada Lovelace knows a thing or two about superstar parents, what with her dad being Lord Byron, the most famous poet on Earth. But her passions lie far beyond the arts—in mechanical engineering, to be exact. Alas, no matter how precise Ada’s calculations, there’s always a man willing to claim her ingenious ideas as his own.

Pan, a.k.a. Practical Automaton Number One, is Ada’s greatest idea yet: a machine that will change the world, if only she can figure out how to make him truly autonomous . . . or how to make him work at all.

When fate connects our two masterminds, Mary and Ada learn that they are fae—magical people with the ability to make whatever they imagine become real. But when their dream team results in a living, breathing, thinking PAN, Mary and Ada find themselves hunted by a mad scientist who won’t stop until he finds out how they made a real boy out of spare parts.

With comic genius and a truly electrifying sense of adventure, Cynthia Hand, Brodi Ashton, and Jodi Meadows continue their campaign to turn history on its head in this YA fantasy that’s perfect for fans of The Princess Bride and A Gentleman’s Guide to Vice and Virtue.

IT’S [MOSTLY] ALIVE.

I have an up and down relationship with these books. In the previous set, I loved the first and then things started going downhill from there.

This felt like a turn back to the original My Lady Jane. HALLELUJAH.

What a fun book. It’s very quirkny and had interesting twists and turn of phrases that absolutely made me laugh more than once. I love the vibe of these reads and the unique take on historical and fantastical combinations.

Frankenstein turned automaton was cool!! I really liked this switch and it made the plot feel different with all of the hints of the original. Who knew I’d be into Frankenstein based books so much? I enjoyed the characters and nods to different figures and not to mention a lot of well placed pop culture references.

Towards the end things do start to feel a bit stretched and lengthy. Luckily I was able to kick my audio speed up a few notches. Otherwise, a good read that makes me hopeful to continue the other books (and go back to the first) in this series.

Overall audience notes: