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ARC Book Review: Echoes and Empires (Echoes and Empires #1) by Morgan Rhodes

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆
Audience: YA Fantasy Romance
Length: 400 pages
Author: Morgan Rhodes
Publisher: Razorbill
Release Date: January 4th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A snarky seventeen-year-old must team up with an enigmatic criminal to cure herself of dangerous forbidden magic in the first book of a new fantasy duology from Morgan Rhodes, the New York Times bestselling author of the Falling Kingdoms series.

Josslyn Drake knows only three things about magic: it’s rare, illegal, and always deadly. So when she’s caught up in a robbery gone wrong at the Queen’s Gala and infected by a dangerous piece of magic—one that allows her to step into the memories of an infamously evil warlock—she finds herself living her worst nightmare. Joss needs the magic removed before it corrupts her soul and kills her. But in Ironport, the cost of doing magic is death, and seeking help might mean scheduling her own execution. There’s nobody she can trust.

Nobody, that is, except wanted criminal Jericho Nox, who offers her a deal: his help extracting the magic in exchange for the magic itself. And though she’s not thrilled to be working with a thief, especially one as infuriating (and infuriatingly handsome) as Jericho, Joss is desperate enough to accept.

But Jericho is nothing like Joss expects. The closer she grows with Jericho and the more she sees of the world outside her pampered life in the city, the more Joss begins to question the beliefs she’s always taken for granted—beliefs about right and wrong, about power and magic, and even about herself.

In an empire built on lies, the truth may be her greatest weapon.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an eARC.

ENCHANTED.

This didn’t have the best start for me. I wasn’t vibing with the main character at all. But I also could recognize the option for some major growth and gave Josslyn the benefit of the doubt. It paid off!

Josslyn really grew on me. From high and mighty, stuck in her opinions and way to learning to listen and absorb new information to fit into a better narrative of the world around her. I liked how she found strength and called Jericho out when he needed it. Joss had so much thrown at her and many reveals that she handled well and now she’s a main character I can get behind.

I adored the beginnings of some enemies to lovers romance. The banter is top notch and I found myself smirking right alongside Jericho. The teamwork and a few quiet scenes. Yesss. The only thing missing were a few more kissing scenes. Though I imagine book two is going to bring the heat.

The plot gets kind of wild and even when I saw the reveals coming I still appreciated the set up and ingenuity. The world building is interesting and took me a minute to grasp. It’s a mix of urban fantasy + technologically advanced society + elemental magic I want more info on. A unique combination that I look forward to further exploration in the second book.

Lots of good stuff here. I just couldn’t put it down. I loved Rhodes Falling Kingdoms series and have been anxiously awaiting getting a chance to read this. Not one to miss!

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Fantasy Romance
  • Language: a little
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: physical, gun violence, magical altercations, blood depiction, torture, loss of loved ones

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Book Review: Life’s Too Short (The Friend Zone #3) by Abby Jimenez

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆ 1/2
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 384 pages
Author: Abby Jimenez
Publisher: Forever
Release Date: April 6th, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A brilliant and touching romantic comedy from the USA Today bestselling author of The Friend Zone and The Happy Ever After Playlist.

When Vanessa Price quit her job to pursue her dream of traveling the globe, she wasn’t expecting to gain millions of YouTube followers who shared her joy of seizing every moment. For her, living each day to its fullest isn’t just a motto. Her mother and sister never saw the age of 30, and Vanessa doesn’t want to take anything for granted.

But after her half sister suddenly leaves Vanessa in custody of her baby daughter, life goes from “daily adventure” to “next-level bad” (now with bonus baby vomit in hair). The last person Vanessa expects to show up offering help is the hot lawyer next door, Adrian Copeland. After all, she barely knows him. No one warned her that he was the Secret Baby Tamer or that she’d be spending a whole lot of time with him and his geriatric Chihuahua.

Now she’s feeling things she’s vowed not to feel. Because the only thing worse than falling for Adrian is finding a little hope for a future she may never see.

BEST OF THE SERIES.

This series (but not a series because you can read them out of order) has progressively gotten better with each book. I’m so happy I kept up with it because WOW. This was a gem.

Adrian has me absolutely smitten and swooning all over the place. He was such a dreamy guy. And his relationship with Vanessa was perfectly imperfect. They had me smiling, wanting to pass around many hugs, and full on cheering for them. I loved the conversations and shortcomings both characters had. There was raw emotions and learning to come to terms with the possible futures ahead. There whole dynamic was everything I could hope for in a romance. It was fast-paced and felt authentic.

My only tiny tidbit I didn’t like was Vanessa’s family dynamics. It came across as trying to add a bunch more drama to the story, but instead was overdone. Each member had something intense happening and I wanted to go back to Vanessa and Adrian more than anything.

Filled with plenty of moments to make your heart thump faster I couldn’t recommend this enough. It was just SO SWEET. I couldn’t put this book down and I’m not even mad about the super cheesy ending. CAUSE I LOVED IT.

If you choose to read any from this series, I’d say this one easily. Nothing is spoiled for the other two (besides who ends up with who, but honestly it’s a HEA romance, you know where those are going?).

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary romance
  • Language: some
  • Romance: kisses to closed door scenes
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: loved one dealing with substance abuse, loved one exhibiting extreme hoarding, loss of loved ones through illness, main character dealing with potential incurable condition (ALS)

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Monthly Reading Wrap-Up: December 2021

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Hellooooo the end of the year. Wow did I end the year with a lot of reads. All of those short Christmas novellas added up! Even if only a few were okay.

Favorite Reads: All My Rage, The Mistletoe Motive, Project Hail Mary, ACOTAR [reread], Faking Under the Mistletoe [reread], Tokyo Ever After, The Bird and the Sword [reread], Our Violent Ends, Lore Olympus [reread]

Least Favorite: Falling Under the Mistletoe, Kiss the Girl

  • Falling Under the Mistletoe by Evelyn Mae
  • [ARC] Hunt the Stars (Starlight’s Shadow) by Jessie Mihalik
  • [Novella] (Not so) Alone for Christmas by Jenny Proctor
  • [Novella] The Mistletoe Motive by Chloe Liese
  • Go Tell the Bees That I Am Gone (Outlander #9) by Diana Gabaldon
  • A Shadow in the Ember (Flesh and Fire #1) by Jennifer L. Armentrout
  • A Loyal Heart (An Uncertain Choice #4) by Jody Hedlund
  • Christmas As We Know It by Sarah Sutton
  • Atlas of the Heart by Brene Brown
  • [ARC] Finlay Donovan Knocks ‘Em Dead (Finlay Donovan #2) by Elle Cosimano
  • Year of the Reaper by Makiia Lucier
  • Lake Mistletoe by Amber Kelly
  • [ARC] Mr. Wrong Number by Lynn Painter
  • Dreams Lie Beneath by Rebecca Ross
  • [ARC] All My Rage by Sabaa Tahir
  • Kiss the Girl (Creekville Kisses #2) by Melanie Jacobson
  • Hail Mary by Andy Weir
  • Charting Stars (The Nine Realms Tales #1) by Micheline Ryckman
  • Eight Perfect Hours by Lia Louis
  • Today Tonight Tomorrow by Rachel Lynn Solomon
  • [Reread] A Court of Thorns and Roses (ACOTAR #1) by Sarah J. Maas
  • Come Back to Me (Come Back to Me #1) by Mila Gray
  • [Reread] Faking Under the Mistletoe by Ashley Shepherd
  • Tokyo Ever After (Tokyo Ever After #1) by Emiko Jean
  • [ARC] Always Jane by Jenn Bennett
  • If the Shoe Fits (Meant to Be #1) by Julie Murphy
  • On These Black Sands (Aisling Sea #1) by Vanessa Rasanen
  • [Reread] The Bird and the Sword (The Bird and the Sword Chronicles #1) by Amy Harmon
  • The Twelve Dogs of Christmas (Pine Hollow #1) by Lizzie Shane
  • The Holiday Switch by Tif Marcelo
  • You’ll Be the Death of Me by Karen M. McManus
  • Our Violent Ends (These Violent Delights #2) by Chloe Gong
  • [Novella] Silver Bells and Secrets (Twelfth Night Novellas #1) by Laura Rollins
  • [Novella] Stranded Ranch by Cindy Steel
  • [Novella] Believe Me (Shatter Me #6.5) by Tahereh Mafi
  • [Graphic Novel] Lore Olympus: Volume One by Rachel Smythe
  • This Shattered World (Starbound #2) by Amie Kaufman
  • A Trial of Sorcerers (A Trial of Sorcerers #1) by Elise Kova

How did reading go for you in December?

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ARC Book Review: When You Get the Chance by Emma Lord

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆☆
Audience: YA Contemporary + Romance
Length: 320 pages
Author: Emma Lord
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Release Date: January 4th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Nothing will get in the way of Millie Price’s dream to become a Broadway star. Not her lovable but super-introverted dad, who after raising Millie alone, doesn’t want to watch her leave home to pursue her dream. Not her pesky and ongoing drama club rival, Oliver, who is the very definition of Simmering Romantic Tension. And not the “Millie Moods,” the feelings of intense emotion that threaten to overwhelm, always at maddeningly inconvenient times. Millie needs an ally. And when a left-open browser brings Millie to her dad’s embarrassingly moody LiveJournal from 2003, Millie knows just what to do. She’s going to find her mom.

There’s Steph, a still-aspiring stage actress and receptionist at a talent agency. There’s Farrah, ethereal dance teacher who clearly doesn’t have the two left feet Millie has. And Beth, the chipper and sweet stage enthusiast with an equally exuberant fifteen-year-old daughter (A possible sister?! This is getting out of hand). But how can you find a new part of your life and expect it to fit into your old one, without leaving any marks? And why is it that when you go looking for the past, it somehow keeps bringing you back to what you’ve had all along?

Thank you to Wednesday Books and Netgalley for an eARC.

ABSOLUTELY LOVED.

New favorite of Emma Lord’s books!!!

I in no way, connect with Millie and her expressive, extrovert self. But wow did I enjoy the ride. This was everything I could’ve hoped for when I got this book and refreshed my love of young adult contemporaries.

Millie is a force to be reckoned with. I love her wild sense of self and how slowly over the chapters, layers were peeled back and I was able to see the true heart of what Millie was trying to prove and accomplish. She’s a teen searching for more, trying to forge a path for her future, while not wanting to lose the connections she already has.

I adore a great Dad/daughter dynamic and this had it. Along with a wonderful Aunt/Niece relationship too. Even her best friend, Teddy was a dream. All of these characters were well conceived and I felt like I knew and wanted to cheer for them alongside Millie.

The ROMANCE. It’s one of the many plots here and it was perfect. A dash of enemies to lovers that moved at a beautiful pace. I was full on grinning whenever the kiss scenes finally arrived and looooove Oliver and Millie so much. Shipping them was the easiest move.

Millie finding her Mom tore at many heart strings. I was tearing up at some deep, needed conversations between Millie and her Dad, and then Millie when she met her Mom. There was plenty to unpack and I was completely enthralled by how everything was going to work out.

Enter a little epilogue that gave closure to many avenues. Absolutely precious and what was needed. Wow do I love Emma Lord’s books. I can’t wait to see what she writes next. I love the combination of coming of age, first love, and finding your truth.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Contemporary + Romance
  • Language: little
  • Romance: kisses
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: parental abandonment

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