Tag: Book blog

Book Review: Simply the Best (Chicago Stars #10) by Susan Elizabeth Phillips

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 384 pages
Author: Susan Elizabeth Phillips
Publisher: Avon
Release Date: February 13th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

#1 New York Times bestselling author Susan Elizabeth Phillips returns with the next book in her Chicago Stars series where a successful sports agent and the sister of his biggest client engage in a take-no-prisoners battle of the sexes.

Take one hard-driving sports agent…

Throw in a failed chocolatier…

And her superstar football player brother…

Add a quirky pink and purple food truck…

Then, to really screw things up, mix in a very unfortunate murder.

Brett Rivers is the hottest sports agent in the business—fast and furious, swift and deadly. Failure? Not an option.

Rory Garrett is—let’s be honest—a disaster. She has a big heart, an empty bank account, a passion for making exquisite chocolate, and a huge inferiority complex from living in the shadow of Brett’s most important client, her football legend brother.

Brett and Rory should never have met, and they absolutely, positively should never have had to deal with the consequences of one stupid, drunken night…one disastrous lie…one career in jeopardy…one missing football player…and a very dead body.

It’s going to get messy…and dangerous…and heartbreaking…and sexy. To Rory, Brett represents skewed values and a devious mind. To Brett, Rory is forbidden fruit, off limits, do not disturb, and no entry—definitely no entry.

A woman who has succeeded at nothing and a man who’s succeeded at everything confront the challenge of their lives as they struggle with themselves and each other. When it comes to love—what price are any of us willing to pay to be simply the best?

A NICE SWITCH.

I have never read this author before so I had no idea what I was getting into. I thought this was a quirky contemporary that had some added murder mystery dynamics that made for a good and quick read.

I absolutely loved the banter between the two main characters. It made me snicker multiple times. As someone who doesn’t love the one night stand trope I liked how this was approached for the book. It’s clever and on the lighter side too.

I wasn’t quite sure why there was a third POV in here and it kind of took me out of the story and didn’t feel necessary. And I was hoping for more romance rather than mystery. This was at least a fresh vibe for me and that made it an overall delight.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Romance
  • Language: low-moderate
  • Romance: 2-3 fade to black
  • Violence: low
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: murder

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Book Review: Watch Me (Shatter Me: The New Republic #1) by Tahereh Mafi

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: NA Dystopian Fantasy Romance
Length: 368 pages
Author: Tahereh Mafi
Publisher: Storytide
Release Date: April 15th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Lose yourself in this exhilarating return to the #1 global bestselling Shatter Me universe, the first book in a new series set ten years after the fall of The Reestablishment.

James Anderson had a plan. Or half of one. All that matters is that he managed to do what his older brother, the famous Aaron Warner Anderson, never did: infiltrate Ark Island, the last refuge of The Reestablishment. In the past decade no outsider has breached the stronghold of the authoritarian regime, but James is in. In a prison cell, sure, but as far as James is concerned, a win is a win.

It’s been ten years since the fall of The Reestablishment. Ten years since the notorious duo — Juliette Ferrars and Aaron Warner Anderson — led a worldwide rebellion and established the New Republic of the West. But after a decade of unsettling quiet, The Reestablishment is ready to make a devastating move, and they have the perfect person for the job.

Rosabelle Wolff had a plan. She always has a plan. On Ark Island, where constant surveillance is packaged as security, even emotions must be experienced with caution. A trained assassin, her every movement is monitored by synthetic intelligence—and when she’s given an order to kill, she never hesitates.

Brimming with pulse-pounding action and torturous romance, Watch Me is an explosive journey through a dystopian landscape where enemies-to-lovers has never felt more impossible. Step into a beloved and breathtaking world that demands an answer to a desperate question—

Who are we when no one is watching?

THE JOY THIS BROUGHT ME.

Oh my gosh did I love reading this book so dang much. I had no idea how I would feel about this spin off series and it delivered. NOW, I will say, this is not a series to ponder every single page and break it down. Enjoy the ride, the drama, the banter and the family. Speaking of found family, I highly recommend reading the original Shatter Me series first to get a full understanding of the characters and world. This is set 10 years later and I think my basis of the previous series helped me enjoyment level for this one.

I loooved the banter and chemistry between James and Rosabelle. I love that he’s the sunshine character and the interactions between them set me of every time. They are a hoot. I love the push and pull and waiting to see who’s going to betray who and when all the secrets will come out. I liked that there was enough information here to turn the pages but that there’s plenty more to uncover as the series goes on.

And I loved seeing all of my favorites again. GOSH I MISSED THEM.

Overall audience notes:

  • NA Dystopian Fantasy Romance
  • Language: moderate
  • Romance: almost kisses
  • Violence: moderate
  • Content warnings: torture, starvation and lack of food

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Book Review: Murtagh (The Inheritance Cycle #5) by Christopher Paolini

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: YA Fantasy
Length: 688 pages
Author: Christopher Paolini
Publisher: Penguin Teen
Release Date: November 7th, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Master storyteller and internationally bestselling author Christopher Paolini returns to the World of Eragon in this stunning epic fantasy set a year after the events of the Inheritance Cycle. Join Dragon Rider—and fan favorite—Murtagh and his dragon as they confront a perilous new enemy!

The world is no longer safe for the Dragon Rider Murtagh and his dragon, Thorn. An evil king has been toppled, and they are left to face the consequences of the reluctant role they played in his reign of terror. Now they are hated and alone, exiled to the outskirts of society.

Throughout the land, hushed voices whisper of brittle ground and a faint scent of brimstone in the air—and Murtagh senses that something wicked lurks in the shadows of Alagaësia. So begins an epic journey into lands both familiar and untraveled, where Murtagh and Thorn must use every weapon in their arsenal, from brains to brawn, to find and outwit a mysterious witch. A witch who is much more than she seems.

In this gripping novel starring one of the most popular characters from Christopher Paolini’s blockbuster Inheritance Cycle, a Dragon Rider must discover what he stands for in a world that has abandoned him. Murtagh is the perfect book to enter the World of Eragon for the first time . . . or to joyfully return.

Thank you to GetUnderlined for the free copy.

DID ANYTHING HAPPEN?

I was hoping that this spin-off would reignite something in this series for me. Instead I listened to 25 hours of Murtagh not quite doing anything. It felt like an adventure quest video game. He’d mosey from one place to the other and complete a task before moving to the next without the true larger plot showing up until somewhere till the end.

I like Murtagh, I think there’s a lot of potential there for him. He’s that morally gray, misunderstood guy. I kept waiting to really FEEL, and that just never occurred.

For a very long book I feel like I don’t have much of a review to give. I feel super meh about the whole experience.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Fantasy
  • Language: low
  • Romance: none
  • Violence: moderate-high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: torture

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ALC Book Review: Not Safe for Work by Nisha J. Tuli

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 352 pages
Author: Nisha J. Tuli
Publisher: Forever
Release Date: May 20th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Rival engineers dabble in personal chemistry while at a tropical company retreat in this smart, zippy romcom.

Engineer Trishara Malik once dreamed of being the first woman of color to smash the glass ceiling at WMC Purcell, but after years of dealing with white male privilege and blatant nepotism, she watches her hard-earned promotion go to her nemesis, Rafe Gallagher—the boss’s son. Teetering on the edge of burnout, Tris is stunned when she’s picked to attend WMC’s corporate leadership retreat in Hawaii. It’s a chance to revive her stalled career and compete for a coveted spot in an executive training program—plus, three weeks in paradise! The only downside? Rafe is her co-attendee.

Tris plans to avoid Rafe entirely, but when she arrives in Maui, a booking error has them stuck sharing the honeymoon suite. Sure, it’s not all torture. Rafe is a smoldering ten—okay fine, an eleven—but after years of competition, they can barely stand being in the same time zone. As they vie against each other during aptitude tests and team-building exercises, Tris begins to realize Rafe might not be the villain after all. With her dreams at stake, can she learn to trust the man who might have been standing in her corner all along?

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an ALC.

WELL I AM SURPRISED.

I did not like the fantasy series by this author. And so picking up the contemporary made me hesitant, but you know what, I’m not mad I read it. I actually liked more of this than I thought. A soft four stars feels like an apt rating for me.

It’s very much a summer romance type of read. On location in Hawaii there were many beach activities, hanging out on boats and more. The idea behind having a three week work conference seemed a little far fetched, but I could be wrong, maybe they are that long. At least there was an intense amount of forced proximity thanks to a hotel snafu (IYKYK).

I did find the FMC quick to complain a lot (mostly about the hotel situation, it got repetitive. But I did love her tenacity in other areas. Trishara had a great character arc where she found the best ways to fight for what she deserved and the way to do so. I thought the themes were very obvious but I didn’t think they were heavy handed.

The romance was super swoony. I loved the slow burn (though when the spice hit, watch out). I just adored Rafe. He communicated [mostly] well and was sweet and protective and broody while rolling out good banter and heat too. The ex-girlfriend drama though? I hated it. It’s just a plot device that I don’t love seeing and I also find goes a step too far. That was my biggest gripe.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Romance
  • Language: moderate
  • Romance: 4ish open door
  • Content warnings: sexism, misogyny, racism, nonconsensual touching, blackmail

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