ARC Book Review: The Heart’s Choice (The Jewels of Kalispell #1) by Tracie Peterson and Kimberley Woodhouse

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Rating: ★★
Audience: Christian Historical Romance
Length: 336 pages
Author: Tracie Peterson and Kimberley Woodhouse
Publisher: Bethany House
Release Date: May 16th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

After witnessing a wrongful conviction as a young girl, Rebecca McCutcheon–the first female court reporter in Montana–is now determined to defend the innocent. During a murder trial, something doesn’t sit well with her about the case, but no one except for the handsome new Carnegie librarian will listen to her.

Librarian Mark Andrews’s father sent him off to college hoping he would take over the business side of the family ranch. Mark would rather wrangle books than cows, but when a patron seeks help with research in hopes of proving a man’s innocence, Mark is immediately drawn to her and her cause.

In a race against time, will Rebecca and Mark be able to find the evidence to free the man before it’s too late?

Escape to Kalispell, Montana, for a daring and romantic tale from the talented pens of bestselling authors Tracie Peterson and Kimberley Woodhouse.

Thank you to Bethany House for the ARC.

DID NOT CLICK.

I gave this an honest try and did enjoy the first 30-40% of it. Then some stuff went downhill and I never recovered my attachment to the story. I struggled with the way some of the faith elements were addressed and handled that ultimately let to a disconnection from the novel. There might have been some reasoning with the time period? But it didn’t work for me.

The romance between Mark and Rebecca was pretty sweet. They had some cute moments and really seemed to connect with each other across the board. I liked their happy ending and their unique career paths in the early 1900’s.

With the little bit of mystery and multiple points of view it kept the general plot progression moving. There was a bit of a full circle moment that was nice to see and while this didn’t work for me I think it could work for others.

Overall audience notes:

  • Christian Historical Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: moderate
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: murder, poisoning, attempted murder

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ARC Book Review: The Never Heir (The Otherworlds #1) by Courtney Millecam

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Historical Fantasy
Length: 340 pages
Author: Courtney Millecam
Publisher: Laurel Ink Press
Release Date: May 16th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Charlie ‘Tootles’ Tulane risked everything to break the spell binding the lost boys to Pan and escape Neverland. Now seventeen and living in 1923 London, Charlie’s freedom from the land of Faerie has never felt better. But even the noblest of actions have consequences. Neverland demands a leader, and without one, chaos spills into the mortal world.

Spending his nights as an amateur boxer, Charlie meets the ‘Bright Young Things’ of London’s upper class. Part of that group is Evie, a girl whose ravings about mermaids abducting her sister got her sent to an asylum. Now that she’s back among polite society, Evie’s under strict orders from her mother to avoid any further scandal and to attract a suitable match. But that proves difficult when Evie’s friend and confidant from Faerie turns demanding and sinister, forcing her into a deal she can’t refuse: In exchange for locating Pan’s lost relics of power, the Fae will return the one thing Evie wants most.

When Charlie learns his past betrayals set off a chain reaction resulting in the abduction of Evie’s sister, the two must return to the place of Charlie’s nightmares in an attempt to set things right. But this time, the price for rectitude might prove too steep for either one of them to pay.

Thank you to Book of Matches Media and Courtney Millecam for the eARC.

A FANTASTIC RETELLING.

I’m pretty sure this is my first Peter Pan retelling and it did not disappoint!! I had a great time reading this and absolutely loved the combination of fae and 1920’s London. Historical fantasies are a new favorite sub-genre of mine and this is one that must be read by all!

I really liked the main characters Evie and Charlie. Both out there doing their best and also making some mistakes. I enjoy seeing flawed characters and the ups and downs of progression throughout. Romantically, I loved the slow burn between them and thought it was all very sweet and I am rooting for them come book two!

There were many interesting plot twists and turns and I would be curious to see more of the fae lands in the next book. I didn’t always love the frenemies group that Charlie and Evie ran around with though. They just weren’t my favorite.

It’s a fantastic debut and series starter book. I liked the pacing and that I felt engaged to the story the entire time. The little historical tidbits like boxing, speakeasy’s, and more rounded out this book incredibly well.

I’m so curious what will happen next!!

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Historical Fantasy
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: mild
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of life, physical altercations, light blood depiction

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Book Review: The Serpent’s Curse (The Last Magician #3) by Lisa Maxwell

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Rating: ★★★☆ (3.5)
Audience: Historical Fiction + Magical Realism
Length: 768 pages
Author: Lisa Maxwell
Publisher: Margaret K. McElderry Books
Release Date: April 13th, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Evade the serpent.

Heed the curse.

Rewrite the present.

Esta isn’t a stranger to high-stakes heists. She’s a seasoned thief who has no reservations about using her affinity for time to give her an edge, and she’s trained her whole life for one mission: travel back to 1902 New York, steal the ancient Book of Mysteries, and use its power to destroy the Brink and free the Mageus from the Order’s control.

But the Book held a danger that no one anticipated—Seshat, an angry goddess was trapped within its pages. Now that terrible power lives within Harte, and if given the chance, Seshat will use Esta to destroy the world and take her revenge.

Only Esta and Harte stand in her way.

Yet in their search to recover the elemental stones needed to bind Seshat’s power, Esta and Harte have found themselves stranded in time with a continent between them. As Esta fights to get back to Harte, the Order is no longer the only obstacle standing in her way.

Saving Harte—and magic itself—will put even Esta’s skills to the test. And all the while, another danger grows, one more terrible than both Seshat and the Order combined…

BETTER.

I liked this a lot more than book two.

The pacing felt more consistent throughout 800 pages rather than a drag out situation of me trying to pick the book up to continue reading. The first half was definitely slower, with at least a much quicker paced back half. I was hoping for more action overall (it somehow lacked in this area??). There were plenty of new developments for the story at least.

Namely that there was finally a time change!! I’ve been stuck on the fact that the two sets of characters have only been separated by two years so I was excited to have a bigger gap with more opportunity to explore new areas and new/old characters alike. I still have so many questions, and it’s enough for me to want to continue the series.

I loved that some romantic development occurred after 2000 pages of waiting. Good heavens. THEN HARTE HAD TO OPEN HIS MOUTH. He’s my favorite character, easy. That boy has some groveling to do and may have blown the next book wide open. I am really curious to see where the (last??) book goes!

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Historical Fiction + Magical Realism
  • Language: a little
  • Romance: closed door
  • Violence: high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of loved ones, explosions, weapons violence, incapacitating illness, kidnapping, physical violence, alcoholism, child abuse, racism, xenophobia, suicide ideation

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ARC Book Review: The Enchanted Hacienda by J.C. Cervantes

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Magical Realism + Romance
Length: 368 pages
Author: J.C. Cervantes
Publisher: Park Row
Release Date: May 16th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

When there’s magic all around you, the possibilities are endless…

When Harlow Estrada is abruptly fired from her dream job and her boyfriend proves to be a jerk, her world turns upside down. She flees New York City to the one place she can always call home—the enchanted Hacienda Estrada.

The Estrada family farm in Mexico houses an abundance of charmed flowers cultivated by Harlow’s mother, sisters, aunt, and cousins. By harnessing the magic in these flowers, they can heal hearts, erase memories, interpret dreams—but not Harlow. So when her mother and aunt give her a special task involving the family’s magic, she panics. How can she rise to the occasion when she is magicless? But maybe it’s not magic she’s missing, but belief in herself. When she finally embraces her unique gifts and opens her heart to a handsome stranger, she discovers she’s far more powerful than she imagined.

With unforeseen twists, romance, and a heavy sprinkle of magic, The Enchanted Hacienda is a captivating coming-of-age debut exploring identity, unconditional family love, and uncovering the magic within us all.

Thank you to Park Row for an ARC.

DEFINITELY ENCHANTING.

I liked this a lot more than I could have hoped when I took a chance on reading it. It very much has Encanto vibes but make it all about flowers and adult. I thought the magical realism aspects were woven in beautifully. I loooved all of the flower discussion and gardening and learning about the uniqueness of each bloom. That itself was really charming.

This was much more romance than I was expecting (yay!). I loved Ben and his entire demeanor and sense of self. He was sweet and I thought he and Harlow had some great chemistry. It’s fast paced without feeling like insta-love and I’m so glad there was an happy ending for them.

Lots of emotions and pulling at the heart strings as Harlow had to take a long hard look at what her life was like before she came back home and the newness of things that occurred over the book. Did she always handle it in the best way? No, but I liked that and appreciated the stumbling that it took to get to where she landed. The road isn’t easy, but hopefully worth it.

I was caught up in the the bit of mystery that was added and how the third act was going to be resolved. I LOVED the whole family, sisters, cousins, aunts, etc. Strong and tight family bonds are some of my favorite things in books and this had a great group. It’s a magical, good read and one to check out!

Overall audience notes:

  • Magical Realism + Romance
  • Language: some strong
  • Romance: two almost open scenes, + 1 very brief/vague open
  • Violence: low
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: a loved one with memory loss (side character)