Book Review: The Hanging City by Charlie N. Holmberg

August 18, 2025July 23, 2024 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★☆
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 344 pages
Author: Charlie N. Holmberg
Publisher: 47North
Release Date: August 1st, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

For a young woman who wields the power of fear, humanity’s greatest enemy is her only hope in a new fairy-tale adventure by Amazon Charts and Wall Street Journal bestselling author Charlie N. Holmberg.

Seven years on the run from her abusive father, and with no hope of sanctuary among the dwindling pockets of human civilization, Lark is out of options. Her only leverage is a cursed power: she can thrust fear onto others, leaving all threats fleeing in terror. It’s a means of survival as she searches for a place to call home. If the campfire myths of her childhood are true, Lark’s sole chance for refuge could lie in Cagmar, the city of trolls—a brutal species and the sworn enemies of humanity.

Valuing combat prowess, the troll high council is intrigued. Lark could be much more useful than the low-caste humans who merely labor in Cagmar. Her gift makes her invaluable as a monster slayer to fight off the unspeakable creatures that torment the trolls’ hanging city, suspended from a bridge over an endless dark canyon.

Lark will do anything to make Cagmar her home, but her new role comes with a caveat: use her power against a troll, and she’ll be killed. Her loyalty is quickly put to the test when she draws the hatred of a powerful troll who loathes humankind. Still, she finds unexpected friendship in the city and, even more surprisingly, love. But if everything else doesn’t undo her, being caught in the arms of a troll surely will. Now in the fight of her life, Lark has a lot to learn—about her past, about trust and hope when all seems lost, and above all, about the extraordinary power of fear itself.

WELL THIS WAS DIFFERENT.

I have been meaning to read more books by this author and finally was able to listen to this audiobook (which was great).

I think where I got off on the wrong foot was thinking the romance was going in a different way than it was so I admit to being caught off guard when I saw what was happening. At that point I had missed some of the emotional intimacy that had been building and it took a bit for me to catch up.

The standalone quality of this was good though. I liked how things came together and wrapped up and this felt like a fully put together story. I enjoyed the side characters and action. There’s some good political dynamics and the world building was cool too.

Overall audience notes:

Fantasy Romance
Language: none
Romance: closed door
Violence: moderate
Content Warnings: past sexual assault, parental abuse

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Book Review: The Backtrack by Erin La Rosa

August 15, 2025July 19, 2024 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance + Magical Realism
Length: 304 pages
Author: Erin La Rosa
Publisher: Canary Street Press
Release Date: July 16th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Life, rewound …

Nearly twenty years ago, Sam Leto left her small hometown of Tybee Island, Georgia, to pursue her dreams of becoming a pilot. While she’d prefer to keep flying away from her painful childhood memories, her beloved grandmother Pearl decides it’s time to sell the family home. Reluctantly, Sam is summoned back to pack up the house.

The 2000s nostalgia from Sam’s old bedroom hits Fall Out Boy posters, drawers of roll-on body glitter and even her favorite CD player with a mixtape from her best friend, Damon Rocha. Damon was always a safe place and Sam often wonders what if her teenage self admitted her feelings for him back then…

Mysteriously, the CD player still works all these years later. And somehow it has the power to show Sam an alternate version of her life.

Song by song, Sam receives flashbacks from her past—senior prom, graduation, leaving home. But the memories aren’t as she remembers them; they show what could have been. Suddenly, Sam knows exactly what would have happened if she’d taken a chance with Damon—and she can’t help feeling she made a terrible mistake leaving Tybee all those years ago.

I TRIED.

I really wanted to enjoy this one, but it felt very lackluster in the romance department. I thought the idea was clever and wasn’t bugged by the magical realism aspects (like I am known to be at times). I loved the nostalgic vibes this gave me and how seeing the flashbacks of what could have been didn’t show a “better” path, just a different one. I loved that message and theme throughout.

The romance was missing something. I didn’t feel that swoon and chemistry between Sam and Damon. They had this chance for reconnection, and did take it and I thought that would create some more heat.

The audiobook production was good and I liked that it was a quick listen. I also enjoyed that this was less spicy than the author’s previous books (personal preference). But I do find myself on the fence now about reading whatever’s next. I’m starting to have more misses than hits.

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary Romance + Magical Realism
Language: moderate
Romance: 1 open door
Content Warnings: brief mention of miscarriage, depression, parental abandonment

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ALC/ARC Book Review: For the Record by Emma Lord

August 14, 2025August 1, 2025 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★.75ish
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 336 pages
Author: Emma Lord
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
Release Date: August 12th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

An electrifying rom com of rivalry and redemption, perfect for fans of Emily Henry and Daisy Jones and the Six, from New York Times bestselling author Emma Lord.

Once the most notorious rivals in the music scene, pop princess Mackenzie Waters and punk rockstar Sam Blaze electrified audiences as their bands clashed on stage. But behind the scenes, their simmering tension grew into something more — until suddenly both bands fell apart, and the idea of Mackenzie and Sam did, too.

Two years later, Sam has traded the rockstar lifestyle for a quiet life raising the son he didn’t know about. Meanwhile, Mackenzie is dealing with a postoperative change in her voice by only singing under a pseudonym. The only way to revive their public careers? A joint comeback album.

With fans over the moon and their futures on the line, Sam and Mackenzie face their biggest challenge yet: giving up the old rivalry and learning to work together. But as old sparks fly and new secrets emerge, they set off a chain reaction neither of them could have anticipated — one that proves that sometimes, the greatest hits are the ones yet to be written.

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the gifted audiobook and SMP Romance for the eARC.

I THINK I LIKED IT?

Here we are with the second adult romance from Emma Lord and I still enjoy her YA/NA books more. This wasn’t bad, but there’s some kind of imbalance still between the plot and romance that bugged me.

What I will say is the banter and flirting was TOP NOTCH between Sam and Mackenzie. It was perfectly heated and the audiobook narrator nailed it. I was in love from the get go with Sam’s persona. WE LOVE A MAN DOWN BAD FOR YEARS.

And I also loved the blended family, co-parent situation. It was wholesome and for the good of the child and I appreciated seeing a healthy dynamic like this in a book.

One of the sub-plots kind of overtook Mackenzie and Sam’s story in the last quarter of the book. And while it was great to see Mackenzie reconnect with her friend and finally get some details that had been withheld the entire book I thought it could have been a lesser plot point (alongside that third act, booooooooo).

I am still a fan of Emma Lord and will continue reading her books. Definitely try the audiobook if you plan to read this one!! It’s dual POV so there are two narrators!!

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary Romance
Language: moderate
Romance: 3+ open door
Violence: mild
Content notes: parental abandonment, life-threatening illness

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Book Review: A Novel Love Story by Ashley Poston

August 8, 2025July 11, 2024 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★☆
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 384 pages
Author: Ashley Poston
Publisher: Berkley
Release Date: June 25th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A professor of literature finds herself caught up in a work of fiction… literally.

Eileen Merriweather loves to get lost in a good happily-ever-after. The fictional kind, anyway. Because at least imaginary men don’t leave you at the altar. She feels safe in a book. At home. Which might be why she’s so set on going to her annual book club retreat this year—she needs good friends, cheap wine, and grand romantic gestures—no matter what.

But when her car unexpectedly breaks down on the way, she finds herself stranded in a quaint town that feels like it’s right out of a novel…

Because it is.

This place can’t be real, and yet… she’s here, in Eloraton, the town of her favorite romance series, where the candy store’s honey taffy is always sweet, the local bar’s burgers are always a little burnt, and rain always comes in the afternoon. It feels like home. It’s perfect—and perfectly frozen, trapped in the late author’s last unfinished story.

Elsy is sure that’s why she must be here: to help bring the town to its storybook ending.

Except there is a character in Eloraton that she can’t place—a grumpy bookstore owner with mint-green eyes, an irritatingly sexy mouth and impeccable taste in novels. And he does not want her finishing this book.

Which is a problem because Elsy is beginning to think the town’s happily-ever-after might just be intertwined with her own.

NOT MY FAVORITE.

Well, this is officially my least favorite of Ashley Poston’s books. I’ll definitely be reading the next one, this one just fell into the miss category.

I think there was too heavy of a focus on the fictional town. I don’t mind that these books have magical realism, but a whole town that was derived from the FMC’s favorite book series, while charming, was the only thing Eileen could focus on. She felt like a side character in her own book. I will say that Eileen did have some decent character growth overall and she had a good journey.

And THEN, there was this twist involving the romance towards the end that had me fully stop in my tracks while listening. Like why???? It took the romantic aspects out of this book even more. While there were sweet moments and I kind of thought they had some chemistry, I am meh about this book.

Overall audience notes: