Tag: Book Review

Book Review: Trial of the Sun Queen (Artefacts of Ouranos #1) by Nisha J. Tuli

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 400 pages
Author: Nisha J. Tuli
Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: November 15th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

The Bachelor meets the Hunger Games. Ten women. A deadly contest. Only one can win the Sun King’s heart.

Lor has endured twelve long years of torment under the Aurora King’s rule. Her only desire is to get free and pay him back for every moment of misery.

When a surprise release finds her in the hands of the Sun King, Lor is thrust into the spotlight when she competes against nine other Tributes for the role of queen. If she wins his heart, she’ll earn her freedom and finally get her revenge.

But Lor doesn’t belong in the Sun Queen Trials. She doesn’t understand why she was freed, and she isn’t a citizen of the Sun King’s court. The other Tributes resent her presence and will stop at nothing to ensure Lor is wiped off the gameboard, permanently.

Now Lor must win, because if she loses, she dies. Or worse, she’ll be sent back into the hands of the Aurora King.

THAT’S A NO FOR ME.

This book has a pretty solid rating and I am convinced I must have read a different book because many things didn’t work for me in this one.

The whole the first guy isn’t the true love interest trope can be great, I’ve read ACOTAR, I know the drill. This was executed poorly. Filled with insta-love and unnecessary smut scenes that did nothing for the plot other than to call it “spicy”. That was my biggest turn-off.

I also didn’t love the FMC. And I’m easy to please in that regard. There was this hot/cold nature that did not make sense and I felt like I kept looking at a different character depending on the scene. Could have used some consistency.

The big “twist” with the end could be seen from the beginning of the book. It resembles another few books I’ve read, of which, the secret was hidden much better and felt like a true surprise. While cool, at this point I don’t think I’ll pick up book two.

The idea of the trials was fine, There’s small things here and there I didn’t mind. And it still gets three stars because I think others could enjoy this.

Overall audience notes:

  • Fantasy Romance
  • Language: some strong
  • Romance: 1-2 open; moderate explicit, some innuendo
  • Violence: high
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: brief mentions of past rape/sexual assault, near death experiences, loss of loved ones

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Book Review: Where the Dark Stands Still by A.B. Poranek

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Rating: ★★★★☆
Audience: YA Fantasy Romance
Length: 336 pages
Author: A.B. Poranek
Publisher: McElderry Books
Release Date: February 27th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Raised in a small village near the spirit-wood, Liska Radost knows that Magic is monstrous, and its practitioners, monsters. After Liska unleashes her own powers with devastating consequences, she is caught by the demon warden of the wood – the Leszy – who offers her a bargain: one year of servitude in exchange for a wish.

Whisked away to his crumbling manor, Liska soon discovers the sinister roots of their bargain. And if she wants to survive the year and return home, she must unravel her host’s spool of secrets and face the ghosts of his past.

Those who enter the wood do not always return…

Thank you to Simon and Schuster Audio for the gifted audiobook.

SURPRISED.

I was hopeful this was would be a good read, and it turned out to be a great read. This gave me Bear and the Nightingale + Beauty and the Beast vibes and I loved it all the more for noticing those aspects. I loved all of the folklore and the whole aura of the book. It’s moody and atmospheric and everything I was after when I picked it up.

The slow burn romance worked well for me too. I loved the time they took to get to know each other and the subtle ways that their connection started to build. There’s a good haunting tale woven in with a bit of mystery that had me reading this as much as I could.

I think the ending stretched out just a little bit long but that’s the only thing I really noticed. I was here for the vibes on this one and it did not disappoint. Not to mention, I am absolutely obsessed with this cover. Oh! And it’s a standalone! A really fantastic standalone at that too.

Overall audience notes:

  • Upper YA Fantasy Romance
  • Language: low
  • Romance: closed door
  • Violence: moderate

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Book Review: Sir Andrew and the Authoress (Clairvoir Castle Romances #3) by Sally Britton

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Regency Romance
Length: 234 pages
Author: Sally Britton
Publisher: Pink Citrus Books
Release Date: April 9th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Lady Josephine, the duke’s eldest daughter, has a secret. When her brother’s horrid best friend discovers what she’s been hiding up in the castle tower, she has no choice but to take him into her confidence.

As the daughter of a duke, Lady Josephine has a long list of responsibilities, and an even longer list of things she must never do to dishonor the family name. Josephine knows exactly which side becoming an author falls upon, but she’s determined to try her hand at it anyway. For months she has worked on her novel in secret, writing chapter after chapter of intrigue and romance. Unfortunately for Josephine, her sworn enemy stumbles upon her secret.

Sir Andrew Wycomb’s close relationship to the Duke of Montfort’s family and heir gives him more than one advantage in life. His loyalty to the family is absolute, even if he finds at least one of its members an annoyance. He and Lady Josephine have never seen eye-to-eye. But when he discovers that she’s written a novel upon a subject she knows nothing about, he cannot help but sympathize with her dream. This creates an unlikely ceasefire between them.

But things at the castle are always changing, and when a determined suitor arrives to court Josephine, Andrew has to decide which secrets he’s going to keep. Especially when he discovers the one he’s kept even from himself – that perhaps he doesn’t find Josephine an annoyance at all. In fact, she is quite charming. The more time they spend together, the more he hopes she will realize they aren’t enemies, and they could be so much more…

SWEET.

Another gentle and sweet book from this series. I love how easy they are (and that’s a big compliment). Sometimes what you want is a tender romance that brings some good feels but doesn’t overwhelm you. This is that sunshine of a book.

I can’t remember the last time I read brother’s best friend in regency. I love the play on that here and how much forced proximity we got between Andrew and Josephine. They had snappy chemistry from the get-go (I’d say a dash of enemies to lovers) and I loved watching them slowly realize how much care actually lied between them.

Plot wise I think I was hoping for a little bit more. The reasons they were in the country made sense, but they didn’t seem to be that big of a deal too? I don’t know if that makes any sense, it was just the vibe I had reading.

I’m really enjoying this series and reading Sally Britton books. I’m turning into a big fan!

Overall audience notes:

  • Regency Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: low

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ALC Book Review: The Trail of Lost Hearts by Tracey Garvis Graves

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Rating: ★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 304 pages
Author: Tracey Garvis Graves
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Release Date: March 26th, 2024
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

New York Times bestselling author Tracey Garvis Graves takes readers on a life affirming journey, where two lost souls find the unexpected courage to love again.

Thirty-four-year-old Wren Waters believes that if you pay attention, the universe will send you exactly what you need. But her worldview shatters when the universe delivers two life-altering blows she didn’t see coming, and all she wants to do is put the whole heartbreaking mess behind her. No one is more surprised than Wren when she discovers that geocaching―the outdoor activity of using GPS to look for hidden objects―is the only thing getting her out of bed and out of her head. She decides that a weeklong solo quest geocaching in Oregon is exactly what she needs to take back control of her life.

Enter Marshall Hendricks, a psychologist searching for distraction as he struggles with a life-altering blow of his own. Though Wren initially rebuffs Marshall’s attempt at hiker small talk, she’s beyond grateful when he rescues her from a horrifying encounter farther down the trail. In the interest of safety, Marshall suggests partnering up to look for additional caches. Wren’s no longer quite so trusting of the universe―or men in general―but her inner circle might argue that a smart, charismatic psychologist isn’t the worst thing the universe could place in her path.

What begins as a platonic road trip gradually blossoms into something deeper, and the more Wren learns about Marshall, the more she wants to know. Now all she can do is hope that the universe gets it right this time.

Thank you Macmillan Audio and Netgalley for the audiobook.

WISH I HAD KNOWN.

Some might find this *spoilery* regarding a specific trope. Read at your own discretion.

I know there’s plenty of discord over whether or not tropes should be included when discussing a book, but y’all, this is prime example number one why I appreciate them and how I wish just one review I happened to scan through had mentioned the surprise in this one.

It made me feel like things could have been handled better. With only a week together and confessing a lot of things about yourself, but not feeling that reciprocity (and calling the MMC out on it) to then being secretive yourself? I don’t know, didn’t work for me.

This was a super quick (less than 9 hours) audiobook and I will say, I LOVED the narrator. I had no issues with the production or anything of that nature. My issues are about the book themselves.

And I was really loving all of the outdoorsy content that after the halfway point just disappeared. I feel like a little more length within the book would have allowed some deeper exploration of feelings and combining what felt like two different halves of this book.

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Romance
  • Language: low-moderate
  • Romance: 2-3 brief, low explicit open door
  • Violence: low
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of a fiancé, infidelity, loss of a sibling, brief mentions of gun violence, birth scene

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