Monthly Reading Wrap-Up: May 2024

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Is it summer yet?
I almost went through another month without any two stars, but one found me via surprise book mail I felt obligated to read. But there’s lots of great five stars to pick from!

Favorite Books this Month:

  • When Gods Fall
  • Savor It
  • Fragile Sanctuary
  • The Familiar
  • Beneath a Crescent Shadow
  • Swift and Saddled
  • A Convenient Fiction
  • Saints and Monsters
  • Emma Lion Vol. 7
  • Woke Up Like This
  • Burning Crowns
  • The Perfect Putt
  • To Charm a Lady
  • A Kingdom to Claim
  • Of Jade and Dragons
  • Summer in the Highlands

Least Favorites this Month:

  • One Last Summer
  • [Novella] Powerful (The Powerless Trilogy #1.5) by Lauren Roberts
  • When Gods Fall (The Gifts of Gods #1) by S.E. Bouvier
  • [ALC] Savor It by Tarah Dewitt
  • Clandestine (House of Oak #3) by Nichole Van
  • [ARC] Fragile Sanctuary (Sparrow Falls #1) by Catherine Cowles
  • [ALC] I Wish You Would by Eva Des Lauriers
  • [ARC] Sincerely, Secretary of Doom (High Court of the Coffee Bean #2) by Jennifer Kropf
  • The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo
  • [ALC] The Darkness Within Us (The Shadows Between Us #2) by Tricia Levenseller
  • An Improper Scheme (Improper Agreements #3) by Audra Wells
  • Five Broken Blades (The Broken Blades #1) by Mai Corland
  • [ARC] Beneath a Crescent Shadow (The Balkan Legends #1) by A.L. Sowards
  • Swift and Saddled (Blue Rebel Ranch #2) by Lyla Sage
  • A Convenient Fiction (Parish Orphans of Devon #3) by Mimi Matthews
  • Saints and Monsters by Ellen McGinty
  • [ALC] Icon and Inferno (Stars and Smoke #2) by Marie Lu
  • Emma M. Lion Vol. 7 by Beth Brower
  • Woke Up Like This by Amy Lea
  • The Winter Companion (Parish Orphans of Devon #4) by Mimi Matthews
  • The Goddess Of by Randi Garner
  • Maybe This Time by Cara Bastone
  • Burning Crowns (Twin Crowns #3) by Catherine Doyle and Katherine Webber
  • [ARC] One Last Summer by Kate Spencer
  • [ARC] All’s Fair in Love and War by Virginia Heath
  • [ARC] Lady of Basilikas (The Droseran Saga #5) by Ronie Kendig
  • [ARC] The Perfect Putt (More Than a Game #2) by Annah Conwell
  • The Gathering Storm (The Wheel of Time #12) by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson
  • Beyond the Aching Door (The Fatebound Duology #1) by Victoria Mier
  • Heavenbreaker by Sara Wolf
  • [ARC] To Charm a Lady (The Cartwells #2) by Joanna Barker
  • [ARC] A Kingdom to Claim by Sian Ann Bessey
  • Happy Medium by Sarah Adler
  • [ARC] Of Jade and Dragons (Fall of the Dragon #1) by Amber Chen
  • Brand of Light (The Droseran Saga #1) by Ronie Kendig
  • [ARC] Seven Summer Weekends by Jane L. Rosen
  • [ARC] Summer in the Highlands by Nichole Van, Heidi Kimball and Michele Paige Holmes

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Book Review: The Letter Tree by Rachel Fordham

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Historical Romance
Length: 352 pages
Author: Rachel Fordham
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Release Date: October 31st, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Mere words can’t end their families’ feud, but the Campbell heir and the Bradshaw heiress plan to write a future together. Buffalo, NY, 1924 Laura Bradshaw adores stories with happily ever afters. But since her mother died seven years ago, the Bradshaw Shoe Company heiress has been as good as locked away in a tower. Her overbearing father cares little for her dreams, throwing himself instead into his tireless takedown of his competitor, the Campbell Shoe Company. However, Laura has been gifted with a a mysterious friend with whom she’s been exchanging letters. As heir to the Campbell Shoe Company, Isaac Campbell is a sought-after bachelor who has never felt an inkling of desire for the women who constantly bat their eyes at him. His thoughts are consumed by an oak tree in the Buffalo Zoo—or rather, the mystery woman he exchanges letters with courtesy of the tree. She’s been one of Isaac’s only joys in a life consumed by his father’s tireless hatred of Bradshaw. A hatred that, Isaac is coming to realize, may affect him more personally than he ever imagined. When Laura’s father orchestrates a match between her and an important business owner, she resolves to pursue her only chance at freedom. But Isaac believes their story isn’t bound for a tragic ending. He’s certain there’s more to the Bradshaw-Campbell feud than meets the eye. And he won’t stop digging until he uncovers the truth that might bridge the divide between him and the woman whose words have captured his heart. 

ADORED.

This was just SWEET y’all. That’s the best way to describe it. I was enchanted by the entire concept and loved how it played out. I seem to love hidden identity letter writing books and need to go find more of those.

I loved the time period and setting, the zoo content was this nice little addition. I loved the main characters (dual POV and dual narrators y’all!). Laura and Isaac clearly have this connection that is undeniable. I loved how they found a way to each other. There’s a subtle Romeo and Juliet vibe that played a distinct part in the plot that I enjoyed too. There’s lots of themes of forgiveness, hope and fighting for the truth.

This book took me by surprise in all the best ways. Highly recommend the audio. It is gentle and tender and brimming with all the good things.

Overall audience notes:

  • Historical Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: low
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: watching a parent die (car accident), loss of a loved one (WW1), consuming alcohol without consent

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Book Review: The Goddess Of by Randi Garner

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Urban Fantasy Romance
Length: 516 pages
Author: Randi Garner
Publisher: Self published
Release Date: April 28th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

No gods or curses will keep them from each other.

Naia, the daughter of the High Sea Goddess, is an embarrassment. She holds no title and no power but is the key to a curse placed centuries ago on her mother: Naia must form a union with a god from an opposing family.

When the day arrives for her arranged marriage, she turns to the High God of Death and Curses for help.

He assists Naia under one condition—she must accept a curse, blindly. Willing to do whatever it takes to escape her mother’s kingdom beneath the sea, Naia agrees and flees to the Mortal Land.

When she wakes up in Ronin Kahale’s childhood home, she’s greeted by the warm, welcoming twenty-eight-year-old mortal. Distrustful of Ronin and his selfless hospitality, she’s convinced there’s more to him than what he’s sharing.

However, he’s her one-way ticket into Hollow City, an ominous concrete jungle infested with witches. Somewhere among its streets lies Finnian, Naia’s younger brother and the only one capable of helping her hide from their cruel mother.

Naia desperately tries not to care for another mortal, but as her life intertwines with Ronin’s, she questions the lengths she will go to keep him safe from the gods who hunt her down—and the curse that looms over her.

With gods, though, everything comes with a price.

The Goddess Of is not intended for readers under 18 years of age. Please check content warnings as some material may be sensitive for some readers.

Thank you Book of Matches Media and the author for the gifted copy!

COVER OBSESSION.

The way I am obsessed with this cover y’all. It’s the reason I picked this book up and I found a pretty good story inside too. This was a debut where I enjoyed the writing style and endeared me enough to be curious about the next book in the series (which I believe follows a new couple).

This wasn’t a FANTASY book for me though. It’s much more urban fantasy with a lot of contemporary amenities like cars, cell phones, etc. That threw me a bit, but it worked for the story. I liked seeing Naia navigate everything and make friends and find a home with those around her. I love the way the theme came full circle of Naia finding what she’s the goddess of. It’s such a clever title and the “ah-ha” moment was fantastic. She’s a soft spot in a dark fantasy and I enjoyed that contrast.

The romance was a bit more insta-attraction than I generally enjoy, but I was endeared as the pages went on. This had a fated romance quality to it and I really liked Ronin. I loved finding out his secrets and seeing some of that world building unfold. There’s some flashback chapters that set the stage well and added to Naia’s character.

I did find a few pacing issues where I felt like the timeline kept going from short to long and lacked a little flow. I do love a dark fantasy though and this had a lot of those qualities as well. I liked the story and themes a lot and will definitely be following the author to see what’s next.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy Romance
  • Language: low
  • Romance: 2ish open door; fade to black
  • Violence: high
  • Content Warnings: verbal/physical/emotional abuse, pregnancy/childbirth, plenty of blood/gore, sexual abuse, loss of life, suicidal ideation, grief, PTSD

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Book Review: The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo

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Rating: ★★★★☆
Audience: Historical Fantasy
Length: 387 pages
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Publisher: Flatiron Books
Release Date: April 9th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

From the New York Times bestselling author of Ninth House, Hell Bent, and creator of the Grishaverse series comes a highly anticipated historical fantasy set during the Spanish Golden Age

In a shabby house, on a shabby street, in the new capital of Madrid, Luzia Cotado uses scraps of magic to get through her days of endless toil as a scullion. But when her scheming mistress discovers the lump of a servant cowering in the kitchen is actually hiding a talent for little miracles, she demands Luzia use those gifts to better the family’s social position.

What begins as simple amusement for the bored nobility takes a perilous turn when Luzia garners the notice of Antonio Pérez, the disgraced secretary to Spain’s king. Still reeling from the defeat of his armada, the king is desperate for any advantage in the war against England’s heretic queen—and Pérez will stop at nothing to regain the king’s favor.

Determined to seize this one chance to better her fortunes, Luzia plunges into a world of seers and alchemists, holy men and hucksters, where the line between magic, science, and fraud is never certain. But as her notoriety grows, so does the danger that her Jewish blood will doom her to the Inquisition’s wrath. She will have to use every bit of her wit and will to survive—even if that means enlisting the help of Guillén Santangel, an embittered immortal familiar whose own secrets could prove deadly for them both.

BETTER THAN I HOPED.

I really enjoyed this audiobook and story. I didn’t quite know what to expect and I hadn’t read the synopsis. I just knew I love Leigh Bardugo and went for it.

This had my attention from the beginning. I loved the gothic atmosphere and the intensity of the story. The unique way the historical aspects wove into the fantastical was a great combination. It’s haunting and has awesome horror vibes too.

I liked the main characters and enjoyed the romance between them too. The last quarter had me on the edge of my seat because I truly had no idea where things were going to land for them.

This is multiple POV and I think helped build the story. The differences between those speaking gave way to insight and decisions made from multiple facets of the plot. I do think it slowed down a bit too much in the second half during a particular moment that dragged out, but otherwise, a great book.

Overall audience notes:

  • Historical fantasy + romance
  • Language: moderate-high
  • Romance: fade to black
  • Violence: high
  • Content Warnings: loss of loved ones, suicide, antisemitism, colonization, abuse, sexual assault, torture, forced nudity, blood/gore depiction

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