Tag: Book blog

Book Review: Summoned to the Wilds (Villains & Virtues #2) by A.K. Caggiano

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 450 pages
Author: A.K. Caggiano
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Release Date: November 30th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

She’s promised to be loyal, dutiful, and obedient, but to whom?

Lady Ammalie Avington, Baroness of Faebarrow, has discovered the truth, and it should not come as a surprise: the blood mage who threatened, spellbound, and abducted her intends to bring ruin to the realm–the very one she is sworn to serve. It’s just a terribly inconvenient fact to learn because, well…he’s rather cute.

But it’s not safe to pine after the son of a demon, especially not whilst locked up in a tower surrounded by infernal beings and a rival for your affection, nor trapped below ground in a den of beguiling vampires, nor even in the heart of a wild jungle under the tutelage of esoteric witches. Amma just can’t help herself around Damien Maleficus Bloodthorne, danger be damned, but, truly, what danger is there? Damien’s heart, the one he swears to not have, has been softening right before her eyes. Nevermind the weird smoke that sometimes unwittingly emanates from his hands or that faraway look he gets to his eyes, and a voice she can’t hear telling him that he’s meant to be a vessel? Surely it’s all just a bad dream.

After finally tasting freedom and learning that Amma may have ancient, innate magical powers of her own, why not use them to do exactly as she pleases?

FUN SERIES.

If you’ve been missing the vibes of Assistant to the Villain may I suggest trying this series out? Book two was wonderful and I can’t wait to read the next. I love how quirky these are while also still providing world building and magic.

I find them to be an easy listen and this genuinely has one of the slowest of slow burns and I HAVE MISSED THESE KINDS OF SLOW BURN ROMANCES. Give me books of yearning y’all. I BEG OF YOU.

I can’t really say much more without spoilers but I’m definitely going to be downloading book three soon to see what happens next.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy Romance
  • Language: moderate
  • Romance: heated make-outs
  • Violence: moderate

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Monthly Reading Wrap-up: December 2025

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How is it the end of 2025 already? I love that I somehow wrapped up the book so *evenly* with 40 books read and a grand total of 420 for the year! There were a lot of Sanderson novellas this month and I’m looking forward to all of the awesome books coming in 2026.

  • Red Tempest Brother (The Winter Sea #3) by H.M. Long
  • [Novella] You Better Not Pout (Home for the Holidays) by Mia Sosa
  • Ruin the Friendship by K. Sinko
  • The Last Wish of Bristol Keats (The Courting of Bristol Keats #2) by Mary E. Pearson
  • [Novella] I Hate Dragons by Brandon Sanderson
  • [Novella] Dreamer by Brandon Sanderson
  • Falling in a Sea of Stars (Green Rider #8) by Kristen Britain
  • A Bond so Fierce and Fragile (Compelling Fates Saga #3) by Sophia St. Germain
  • [Novella] I’m Gonna Get You Back by Elena Armas
  • [Novella] Perfect State by Brandon Sanderson
  • The Rebel and the Rose (The City of Fantome #2) by Catherine Doyle
  • [Novella] Mitosis (The Reckoners #1.5) by Brandon Sanderson
  • [Novella] Firstborn by Brandon Sanderson
  • Gilded in Vengeance by Lyssa Mia Smith
  • Meet Me at the Christmas Cottage by Christen Krumm
  • [Novella] The Holiday Club by Ashley Manley
  • [ARC] Tailored Realities by Brandon Sanderson
  • The Strength of the Few (Hierarchy #2) by James Islington
  • [ARC/ALC] In Your Dreams (When in Rome #4) by Sarah Adams
  • The Lost Story of Eva Fuentes by Chane Cleeton
  • [ARC] To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before the Graphic Novel by Jenny Han
  • Love Arranged (Lakefront Billionaires #3) by Lauren Asher
  • The Sacred Space Between by Kalie Reid
  • Seven Deadly Thorns by Amber Hamilton
  • Pick Me by Victoria Schade
  • I’ll Be Home for Christmas by Jenny Bayliss
  • [ARC/ALC] Room to Breathe by Kasie West
  • Planes, Reins, and Automobiles (Catching Feelings #2) by Kate Watson
  • [ARC] House of Shadows (Royal Houses #2) by K.A. Linde
  • [ARC] Silver & Blood (Silver & Blood #1) by Jessie Mihalik
  • Anne of Avenue A (For the Love of Austen #3) by Audrey Bellezza and Emily Harding
  • Lessons in Falling by Christy Schillig
  • Some Kind of Famous by Ava Wilder
  • Mourner for Hire by Caitlin Moss
  • The Tempest Blade (The Bridge Kingdom #6) by Danielle L. Jensen
  • Love’s Racing Line by Hope Snyder
  • Everything’s Coming Up Rosie by Courtney Walsh
  • Bound by Ali Hazelwood
  • Fallen Gods (Fallen Gods #1) by Rachel Van Dyken
  • The Governess and the Rogue (Somerset Stories #6) by Mimi Matthews

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Book Review: A Little Holiday Fling by Farah Heron

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Christmas Romance
Length: 368 pages
Author: Farah Heron
Publisher: Forever
Release Date: October 21st, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

There are two things that Ruby Dhanji loves with her whole entire Christmas and anything to do with the UK. For Ruby the holiday season means joy, generosity, and warm memories with her late mother. And now she’s on the verge of realizing the dream she and her mom always moving to England and opening a cozy inn. The only problem, Ruby needs some hotel experience first. 
 
Rashid just doesn’t get all the holiday hype. But when he meets a woman dragging home a Christmas tree alone from the Winter Market, he has to offer to help—even if he soon finds Ruby adores all the things he dislikes. When Ruby discovers that Rashid’s family owns a luxury boutique hotel chain in Britain, she offers him a she’ll help him give his young nieces an amazing Christmas if he’ll facilitate an introduction to his family. 
 
As Ruby and Rashid get closer, she realizes that the great big grump loves his large, eccentric family fiercely. And when their friendship turns to something more, she’s afraid she’s falling for someone weeks before she moves across the Atlantic and she’ll soon have to decide which dream she wants to chase. 

PRETTY GOOD.

This is my first book by this author and I liked it! I especially appreciated that this wasn’t spice forward and provided a lot of relationship build up and self growth in the midst of the holiday moments. Also, the audiobook was good too.

I struggled with the FMC at first because of a general personality clash, but decided to continue and the longer it went on the more I did like Ruby and backstory and overall why for this book. I liked her connection with Rashid and the enemies-ish banter as they both realized there are many layers to each other and started opening up.

The third act did make me a bit cranky but that was my only big complaint. I would love to read another book from Farah Heron.

Overall audience notes:

  • Holiday Romance
  • Language: mild
  • Romance: 2ish quick open door
  • Violence: low
  • Content warnings: mention of breast cancer (and losing a parent), emotional abuse

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Book Review: Games Untold (The Inheritance Games #4.5) by Jennifer Lynn Barnes

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Mystery Novella Collection
Length: 448 pages
Author: Jennifer Lynn Barnes
Publisher: Little Brown Books
Release Date: November 12th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Romance, luxury, and secrets abound in this thrilling new collection that take readers deeper into the world of the #1 bestselling Inheritance Games series

There is nothing frivolous about the way a Hawthorne man loves.

An amnesiac playboy and the woman with every reason to hate him. A daredevil, his favorite heiress, and three nights in Prague. An unlikely pairing between a cowboy and a goth. Four brothers with an inescapable bond, strengthened by the family they chose, in a house of wonders that promises to always deliver one more secret.

Discover their stories of love and loss, power, puzzles, and life-and-death secrets in this mind-blowingly romantic collection that proves that when you love the way Hawthornes love, there is no going back.

This collection includes:
That Night in Prague (novella)
The Same Backward as Forward (novella)
The Cowboy and the Goth
Five Times Xander Tackled Someone (and One Time He Didn’t)
One Hawthorne Night*
What Happens in the Treehouse*
$3CR3T $@NT@
Pain at the Right Gun
*previously published in limited release

THIS WAS FUN.

I had a good time with this collection set! I didn’t even know this was releasing so it was a fun listen to get some more background information (and lots of romantic moments that I was missing from the original trilogy) on all of these characters.

The puzzles are entertaining to follow and I loved the depth that these stories gave. While I don’t think this is a necessity to read I do think it enhanced the trilogy for me.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Mystery Novella Collection
  • Language: low
  • Romance: closed door
  • Violence: low

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