ARC Book Review: The House on Biscayne Bay by Chanel Cleeton

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Rating: ★★★★☆
Audience: Historical Mystery
Length: 336 pages
Author: Chanel Cleeton
Publisher: Berkley
Release Date: April 9th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

As death stalks a gothic mansion in Miami, the lives of two women intertwine as the past and present collide in New York Times bestselling author Chanel Cleeton’s atmospheric new novel.

With the Great War finally behind them, many Americans flock to South Florida with their sights set on making a fortune. When wealthy industrialist Robert Barnes and his wife, Anna, build Marbrisa, a glamorous estate on Biscayne Bay, they become the toast of the newly burgeoning society. Anna and Robert appear to have it all, but in a town like Miami, appearances can be deceiving, and one scandal can change everything.

Years later following the tragic death of her parents in Havana, Carmen Acosta journeys to Marbrisa, the grand home of her estranged older sister, Carolina, and her husband, Asher Wyatt. On the surface, the gilded estate looks like paradise, but Carmen quickly learns that nothing at Marbrisa is as it seems. The house has a treacherous legacy, and Carmen’s own life is soon in jeopardy . . . unless she can unravel the secrets buried beneath the mansion’s facade and stop history from repeating itself.

Thank you Berkley Pub for the eARC.

LOVED THIS MYSTERY.

A fantastic historical mystery that kept me on my toes. I was in the dark (in the best ways) about how this entire plot was going to come together and it delivered. I love when I feel like shouting I KNEW IT because I’m enjoying the book so much that I can’t put it down, needing to know what happened next.

In classic Cleeton fashion, there’s history, intrigue and even a small subtle dash of romance. I looooved the setting. It was haunting and just the right side of creepy where I was wondering what was lurking in the shadows each evening. I loved the dual POV between Anna and Carmen. Each chapter begged me to keep going. The flow and ease of the author’s writing is one of the reasons I always have grabby hands every time I see a new book annoucement.

Highly recommend. Seriously a great book. Beautiful writing, the location and historical aspects are clearly well researched, and you’ll be hoping that your favorite characters make it out of the story in the end.

Overall audience notes:

  • Historical Mystery
  • Language: low
  • Romance: closed door
  • Violence: moderate
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: cheating, murder, loss of loved ones

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ARC Book Review: The Outlaw Noble Salt by Amy Harmon

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Historical Fiction Romance
Length: 367 pages
Author: Amy Harmon
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing
Release Date: April 9th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

From New York Times bestselling author Amy Harmon comes a sweepingly romantic tale of risk, redemption, and what happens when America’s most famous outlaw falls in love. When infamous outlaw Butch Cassidy decides to go straight, he discovers that too many of the powerful men he crossed won’t let bygones be bygones. To have a chance at a new life, he’ll have to become someone else entirely. A brief, fateful encounter with the celebrated singer Jane Touissant on the eve of his escape offers a glimpse of what might have been, but Butch disappears, leaving her behind, until their paths unexpectedly converge again in Paris. Despite having discovered his true identity, Jane trusts the outlaw and enlists his protection on her upcoming American tour. Although Butch is reluctant to agree, fearing his sordid past may put the woman and her young son in danger, the salvation she offers is too hard to resist. As they set forth on their journey, Butch’s past and Jane’s secrets put them at risk from threats far greater than the law, and this legend of the American West will have to decide what matters most―his life, his legacy, or the woman he loves.

Thank you to Amy Harmon for the gifted book.

FEELING EVERYTHING.

I don’t even know how to put into words how beautiful this book was. I was swept away (again, because let’s be honest, Amy Harmon books always sweep me away) into the early 1900’s and Butch Cassidy’s life, and what a life it was.

I looooved the exploration of Cassidy and his life and how he ended up where he did. I love how the inclusion of history was woven in with the romance. Good heavens I loved Jane. Her continued strength through a difficult life and being the mother she wanted and needed to be for Augustus while allowing herself a chance to be with Butch. It was incredibly romantic and heartfelt and raw with truth and longing.

Also Augustus? In love with him. He was the sweetest boy who had to grow up too soon. And he was the perfect addition to this story. I found strength is his courage and the way he handled himself throughout the book.

I loved the setting and story and the intensity of what was slowly closing in. My heart was in my throat and had to hope with everything in me that we’d get to the ending I was begging for.

Another masterpiece where I fell in love with a ‘villain’.

Overall audience notes:

  • Historical Romance
  • Language: low
  • Romance: fade to black
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: suicide, rape (mentioned a few times, recounted), gun violence

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Book Review: Oathbound (The Royal Rose Chronicles #1) by Victoria McCombs

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Fantasy Romance
Length: 304 pages
Author: Victoria McCombs
Publisher: Enclave Publishing
Release Date: January 1st, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Beware the waters. The dangerous deep brings ruin to all.

Emme has spent her life avoiding anything to do with pirates. But the fates are cruel, and now a hidden sickness leads her to partner with pirates for the one thing that can save her—a cure on an island none are certain exists.

The pirate captain’s secrets are darker than the deep and threaten to kill them all. His obligations are tinged with betrayal, for his oathbind must be fulfilled. To ignore it is to invite peril of unimaginable destruction.

As the adventure unfolds, the sea takes more than she expects and the sea gives more than he wants.

A BIT SOFT.

I don’t know that I’ve ever called a pirate, high seas adventure fantasy, soft. But that’s the only word that keeps triggering in my mind after finishing. I don’t fully think it was a bad thing for me, just different. Nobody wanted to unalive anybody and I had a hard time grasping that ideal with the way the story is set up.

The romance is super soft, minimal angst, added in with some drama. Once I got that vibe I thought it was cute. Emme and Arn were clearly into each other and they learned to work together and solve problems with the rest of the crew.

For the plot, it’s a typical pirate adventure with mysterious sea creatures, ship battles and hidden treasure. I still had a good time reading it and didn’t have any noticeable issues. It’s a solid younger YA read and I do have plans to continue the series and see some other points of view.

Audiobook note: I thought the narrators voice overall was great. BUT this is dual POV between Arn and Emme and the voice did not change enough between the chapters that I felt confused at times as to whose POV I was listeing to.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Fantasy Romance
  • Language: very little
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: moderate
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of life, loss of a parent, creature attacks, murder, alcohol consumption

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Book Review: The Foxglove King (The Nightshade Crown #1) by Hannah F. Whitten

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: NA Fantasy Romance
Length: 467 pages
Author: Hannah F. Whitten
Publisher: Orbit
Release Date: March 7th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

When Lore was thirteen, she escaped a cult in the catacombs beneath the city of Dellaire. And in the ten years since, she’s lived by one rule: don’t let them find you. Easier said than done, when her death magic ties her to the city.

Mortem, the magic born from death, is a high-priced and illicit commodity in Dellaire, and Lore’s job running poisons keeps her in food, shelter, and relative security. But when a run goes wrong and Lore’s power is revealed, she’s taken by the Presque Mort, a group of warrior-monks sanctioned to use Mortem working for the Sainted King. Lore fully expects a pyre, but King August has a different plan. Entire villages on the outskirts of the country have been dying overnight, seemingly at random. Lore can either use her magic to find out what’s happening and who in the King’s court is responsible, or die.

Lore is thrust into the Sainted King’s glittering court, where no one can be believed and even fewer can be trusted. Guarded by Gabriel, a duke-turned-monk, and continually running up against Bastian, August’s ne’er-do-well heir, Lore tangles in politics, religion, and forbidden romance as she attempts to navigate a debauched and opulent society.

But the life she left behind in the catacombs is catching up with her. And even as Lore makes her way through the Sainted court above, they might be drawing closer than she thinks.

In this lush, romantic new epic fantasy series from New York Times bestselling author Hannah Whitten, a young woman’s secret power to raise the dead plunges her into the dangerous and glamorous world of the Sainted King’s royal court.

Thank you to Orbit Books for the free copy.

VERY INTO THIS.

Uh, y’all. I was not expecting to love this as much as I did and I’m so excited it blew my expectations out of the water. What a twisty romantic tale that left me needing the second book nowwww.

I loved Lore. I thought the whole general plot of the book was interesting too. A mash of things I’ve read before but filled with a lot of nuance that kept me listening and intrigued by what was going to happen next.

The romance has me doing some major side eye. I don’t know who I want and I don’t know who’s I need to run from. Gosh I love morally gray men with magic. It’s very much a slow burn romance with just the right level of love triangle for me.

Betrayals and turns kept coming and every time I thought I was going one way I was yanked another way. I love fantasies like this. I loved the atmosphere and vibe and all the things in between. I’m going to go pick up book two ASAP.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy Romance
  • Language: moderate
  • Romance: heated kisses
  • Violence: high

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