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ARC Book Review: Even If It Breaks Your Heart by Erin Hahn

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: NA Contemporary Romance
Length: 320 pages
Author: Erin Hahn
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Release Date: February 6th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A heart-buckling ride of a romance by beloved author Erin Hahn, Even If It Breaks Your Heart is about two teens finding out that sometimes, the hardest part of discovering what you want is getting the courage to pursue it.

The only thing keeping nineteen-year-old Case Michaels together after the death of his best friend, Walker, is a list Walker left behind of things he wants Case to accomplish in his absence. So far, though, Case hasn’t even been able to continue riding bulls in the rodeo circuit, something he’s done his entire life, balking at the thought of competing without Walker by his side. But the list? Case is determined to follow it to the letter– and he follows it all the way to Winnie Sutton.

Eighteen-year-old Winnie Sutton just wants to keep her family together. She graduated high school early to work long shifts at the Michaels family ranch so she can support her younger siblings and a father who’s more than happy to let Winnie fill the responsible parent role. If she sometimes sneaks out to ride the horses herself and forget about life for a while– well, that’s no one else’s business– until the day she crashes headfirst into Case Michaels. Case sees her riding skills and immediately ropes her into competing for the ranch and becoming his friend.

Winnie and Case couldn’t be more different, but Case can’t help but be inspired by Winnie’s badly-hidden passion for riding and competition. And there’s something about Case that makes Winnie want to try grasping onto a dream for herself, whether that’s a shot at a rodeo trophy, the annoyingly handsome rancher’s son who won’t leave her alone, or maybe both.

Thank you to Wednesday Books for the eARC.

ABSOLUTELY LOVED.

This is now my new favorite Erin Hahn book. I love the way she writes new adult stories and wow did this one just hit every single thing right. I LOVED the setting and all of the cowboy content. The ranch and horses, bull riding and rodeos, it was all magnetic and I was entranced.

And the romance?? ARE YOU KIDDING ME. This was the softest friends to lovers. That genuine, I am here to be your friend, and then realizing that person means a whole lot more to you. Oh my gosh I was WEAK. I adored Case, I loved seeing his grief and his awakenings and the way he cares for those he loves. And how he found what made him passionate and the future he wanted to pursue (which also was one of the 10 reasons I was tearing up reading this). Winnie was also spectacular. I was cheering her on from the beginning. Her tenacity and strength, bless her for finding ways to lets others help in her life too. I loved the deep sibling bond she had with Garrett and Jesse and the way everything worked out for them in the end.

This book was pure magic. I have zero complaints. NO NOTES. It was everything I needed when I picked it up. I loved the story and how Walker was woven in. I loved the friends and so many small moments that packed a punch and really brought this entire book together. There’s even no third act nonsense, AND IT WAS BLISS Y’ALL. The whole book, just go read it. Thank me later.

Overall audience notes:

  • NA Contemporary Romance
  • Language: strong and high
  • Romance: 2 closed door scenes
  • Violence: low
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of a friend (grief depictions throughout), underage drinking, absentee father

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Book Review: The Alice Network by Kate Quinn

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: Historical Fiction
Length: 502 pages
Author: Kate Quinn
Publisher: William Morrow
Release Date: June 6th, 2017
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

In an enthralling new historical novel from national bestselling author Kate Quinn, two women—a female spy recruited to the real-life Alice Network in France during World War I and an unconventional American socialite searching for her cousin in 1947—are brought together in a mesmerizing story of courage and redemption.

1947. In the chaotic aftermath of World War II, American college girl Charlie St. Clair is pregnant, unmarried, and on the verge of being thrown out of her very proper family. She’s also nursing a desperate hope that her beloved cousin Rose, who disappeared in Nazi-occupied France during the war, might still be alive. So when Charlie’s parents banish her to Europe to have her “little problem” taken care of, Charlie breaks free and heads to London, determined to find out what happened to the cousin she loves like a sister.

1915. A year into the Great War, Eve Gardiner burns to join the fight against the Germans and unexpectedly gets her chance when she’s recruited to work as a spy. Sent into enemy-occupied France, she’s trained by the mesmerizing Lili, code name Alice, the “queen of spies”, who manages a vast network of secret agents right under the enemy’s nose.

Thirty years later, haunted by the betrayal that ultimately tore apart the Alice Network, Eve spends her days drunk and secluded in her crumbling London house. Until a young American barges in uttering a name Eve hasn’t heard in decades, and launches them both on a mission to find the truth…no matter where it leads.

NOT MY FAVORITE.

The only other Quinn book I’ve read with The Diamond Eye and I LOVED it. When I happen to pick up this one I was hoping for the same kind of experience but I’m left wanting more. I think mood wise I wasn’t quite prepared for all of the topics covered (see trigger warnings because there’s a lot).

I felt let down by one of the plot lines. I thought there would be a different kind of reveal and when that wasn’t the case I then was left with some thoughts about the plot overall. It was as if it was missing some larger over arching story rather than the meandering story that was given.

The ending was very intense and that was one of the few times I felt really invested in everything happening. And I did like the characters for the most part too. Like I said, this book was FINE. But that’s it for me.

Overall audience notes:

  • Historical fiction
  • Language: some strong
  • Romance: fade to black
  • Violence: high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: antisemitism, Nazism, sexual assault, suicide, pregnancy, abortion, blood/gore depiction, emesis, death of a child, torture, stalking, drinking/smoking while pregnant

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ARC Book Review: An Unexpected Roomie (Love Tucson #3) by Laura Langa

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 268 pages
Author: Laura Langa
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: February 1st, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

What’s a little marriage of convenience between friends?

Claire Winesett never expected to be sleeping on her best friend’s brother’s couch. But the last nine years as a solo-travel influencer has been anything but predictable. Luckily, Claire thrives on spontaneity, and after all, it’s only temporary.

Boundaries define every aspect of Rowan Bellamy’s life, and having his teenage crush under his roof is disrupting his routines. Especially now that Claire seems to be seeing him as more than the boy she left behind—the chemistry between them sizzling hotter than the Arizonan summer.

When a trip to the ER leads Claire on a path to crushing medical debt, Rowan shocks her with an unexpected proposal. But Claire can’t accept a paper-only marriage to gain Rowan’s health insurance without offering something in return—a Fun Pact. Two nights a week, they add a little variety to Rowan’s measured life.

Old West bar fights, silent desert discos, and improv lessons aren’t Rowan’s idea of fun, but he’ll do anything to hear Claire’s snort laugh. The problem is the more time they spend together, the harder it is for Rowan to subdue the possessive impulse to kiss his wife.

Enjoy all the forced proximity tension and sizzling kisses of this best friend’s brother, marriage of convenience, opposites attract closed-door/fade-to-black romance by grabbing your copy TODAY!This is the third book in the Love Tucson series, but can be read as a standalone.

Thank you to the author for an eARC.

LOVABLE MMC.

I do love a good introvert love interest and Rowan was that man for me. Filled with the right amount of grumpiness and protectiveness and a good dose of that’s my wife and that’s what I hope for when I pick up a marriage of convenience book.

There were a lot of little aspects that added up to the bigger story. Sometimes these felt forced rather than a natural inclusion to the progression of the plot, nonetheless, I did like seeing Rowan and Claire have opportunities to be closer together and realize the feelings they had for one another.

I thought there were some plot holes involving the reasoning behind the MOC. It was briefly explained why, and then never really discussed again?

Rowan was easily my favorite of the whole book. I love the way he loved Claire. There were some great themes of mental health and anxiety. And I liked the discussions surrounding anger control too. All of the hiking content was fun and the book is easy to fly through if you’re in need of something closed door, and quick.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Romance
  • Language: none-low
  • Romance: closed door
  • Violence: low
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: mentions of a Dad with anger issues, celiac disease, loss of a grandmother

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Book Review: The Frozen River by Ariel Lawhon

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Historical Mystery
Length: 432 pages
Author: Ariel Lawhon
Publisher: Doubleday
Release Date: December 5th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

From the New York Times bestselling author of I Was Anastasia and Code Name Hélène comes a gripping historical mystery inspired by the life and diary of Martha Ballard, a renowned 18th-century midwife who defied the legal system and wrote herself into American history.

Maine, 1789: When the Kennebec River freezes, entombing a man in the ice, Martha Ballard is summoned to examine the body and determine cause of death. As a midwife and healer, she is privy to much of what goes on behind closed doors in Hallowell. Her diary is a record of every birth and death, crime and debacle that unfolds in the close-knit community. Months earlier, Martha documented the details of an alleged rape committed by two of the town’s most respected gentlemen—one of whom has now been found dead in the ice. But when a local physician undermines her conclusion, declaring the death to be an accident, Martha is forced to investigate the shocking murder on her own.

Over the course of one winter, as the trial nears, and whispers and prejudices mount, Martha doggedly pursues the truth. Her diary soon lands at the center of the scandal, implicating those she loves, and compelling Martha to decide where her own loyalties lie.

Clever, layered, and subversive, Ariel Lawhon’s newest offering introduces an unsung heroine who refused to accept anything less than justice at a time when women were considered best seen and not heard. The Frozen River is a thrilling, tense, and tender story about a remarkable woman who left an unparalleled legacy yet remains nearly forgotten to this day.

Thank you to LibroFM for the gifted audiobook!

ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE.

This book had me in a chokehold within the first few chapters. Oh my goodness, this was exquisitely executed from page one. I felt the intensity of this story and had to keep listening with a need to know that things worked out in the end.

The post Revolutionary War setting was enthralling. I rarely read books in this time period and loved seeing how the world worked then. I felt a spectrum of emotions from the heavy topics and waiting to see if any justice could be found. I loved the main character Martha and her family. Ephraim is a man that must be protected at all costs. I loved seeing their love story through flashbacks while seeing how their family had grown in the present.

There’s an exploration of many themes and at times incredibly hard to read. I thought the narrator did a beautiful job bringing this story to life. The legal drama, murder mystery, many births, small town gossip and the beauty of love all weave together for a story that I will be telling everyone to read.

Overall audience notes:

  • Historical fiction mystery
  • Language: light
  • Romance: vague descriptions
  • Violence: high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: rape is a major focus in the story (and is recounted and discussed throughout), multiple birth scenes (with difficult births presented too), murder, weapons violence, physical altercations, violent assault

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