Tag: Book Review

Book Review: When the Men Were Gone by Marjorie Herrera Lewis

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Audience: Historical Fiction
Length: 240 pages
Author: Marjorie Herrera Lewis
Publisher: William Morrow
Release Date: October 2nd, 2018
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

It’s a man’s game, until now…
Football is the heartbeat of Brownwood, Texas. Every Friday night for as long as assistant principal Tylene Wilson can remember, the entire town has gathered in the stands, cheering their boys on. Each September brings with it the hope of a good season and a sense of unity and optimism.

Now, the war has changed everything.  Most of the Brownwood men over 18 and under 45 are off fighting, and in a small town the possibilities are limited. Could this mean a season without football? But no one counted on Tylene, who learned the game at her daddy’s knee. She knows more about it than most men, so she does the unthinkable, convincing the school to let her take on the job of coach.

Faced with extreme opposition—by the press, the community, rival coaches, and referees and even the players themselves—Tylene remains resolute. And when her boys rally around her, she leads the team—and the town—to a Friday night and a subsequent season they will never forget.           

Based on a true story, When the Men Were Gone is a powerful and vibrant novel of perseverance and personal courage.

FOOTBALL FOREVER.

I feel like this got an extra star purely for the fact that I love football. And I loved that there was a female coach who refused to let her team down when everyone else in town wanted nothing to do with her.

It’s a very quick read. Which was a pro and a con. I was hoping for a bit more depth in characters and general story. What I did get was fine, but rushed. There were thrown in tidbits of Tylene’s past and why she’s fighting so hard to have her football season. It did help me grasp the fierce nature of wanting these boys to not have to go to war just yet. Letting them be young just a little longer. Those sentiments really hit home in the midst of World War 2.

I wish there was more back story at the end. I wanted to know how the rest of the season went as this book only covers the 2 weeks leading up to their first game of Tylene’s season. Tylene was a strong woman who clearly understood the game. I love how she made jaws drop and men shut their mouths as she proved over and over that she would be the best person for this job.

If you’re a football fan + historical fiction lover, I would try this one out! It was a good combination. And I really felt the rush and remembrance of the fall football atmosphere.

Overall audience notes:

  • Historical fiction
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: bullying, misogyny, mentions of losing men in WW2, loss of a baby, PTSD (a side character)

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Monthly Reading Wrap-Up: October 2021

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Biiiiig fantasy mood this month y’all. Lots of good reads!

Favorite books of the month: Royally Rearranged, my rereads (The Love Hypothesis and The Simple Wid), Dial A for Aunties, Pawn/Knight, As Good As Dead

Least favorite: Crave and The Friend Zone

  • Heartbreak for Hire by Sonia Hartl
  • Royally Rearranged by Emma St. Clair
  • [Reread] The Love Hypothesis by Ali Hazelwood
  • [ARC] The Righteous (The Beautiful #3) by Renee Ahdieh
  • Once Upon a Broken Heart (Once Upon a Broken Heart #1) by Stephanie Garber
  • The Trouble With Hating You (The Trouble With Hating You #1) by Sajni Patel
  • [Novella] Sunreach (Skyward #2.1) by Brandon Sanderson & Janci Patterson
  • The Bronzed Beasts (The Gilded Wolves #3) by Roshani Chokshi
  • Crave (Crave #1) by Tracy Wolff
  • The Friend Zone (End of the Line #1) by Sariah Wilson
  • The Eye of the World (The Wheel of Time #1) by Robert Jordan
  • A Little Bit Witchy (Riddler’s Edge #1) by A.A. Albright
  • The Nabob’s Daughter by Jess Heileman
  • Witchy See, Witchy Do (Riddler’s Edge #2) by A.A. Albright
  • White Hot Kiss (The Dark Elements #1) by JLA
  • The Ex Hex by Erin Sterling
  • [Novella] Memento (The Illuminae Files #0.5) by Jay Kristoff and Amie Kaufman
  • The Gilded Cage (The Prison Healer #2) by Lynette Noni
  • Lucky Witches (Riddler’s Edge #3) by A.A. Albright
  • [ARC] Bound by Firelight (Wickery #2) by Dana Swift
  • [ARC] The Elle Project by Summer Dowell
  • Blackveil (Green Rider #4) by Kristen Britain
  • Dial A For Aunties (Aunties #1) by Jesse Q. Sutanto
  • Pawn (Fae Games #1) by Karen Lynch
  • Stone Cold Touch (The Dark Elements #2) by JLA
  • Gild (The Plated Prisoner #1) by Raven Kennedy
  • Knight (Fae Games #2) by Karen Lynch
  • As Good As Dead (A Good Girl’s Guide to Murder #3) by Holly Jackson
  • Neverseen (Keeper of the Lost Cities #4) by Shannon Messenger
  • [Reread] The Simple Wild (Wild #1) by K.A. Tucker
  • Shiver Me Witches (Riddler’s Edge #4) by A.A. Albright
  • Glint (The Plated Prisoner #2) by Raven Kennedy
  • Voices: The Final Hours of Joan of Arc by David Elliot
  • Kingdom of the Cursed (Kingdom of the Wicked #2) by Kerri Maniscalco
  • Every Last Breath (The Dark Elements #3) by JLA

How was your reading month? What was your favorite read?

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Book Review: The Nabob’s Daughter by Jess Heileman

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Audience: Regency Romance
Length: 444 pages
Author: Jess Heileman
Publisher: Vagabond Publishing
Release Date: June 30th, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

She’ll do anything to escape an arranged marriage. He’ll do anything to help her.

Honora Crauford relishes her life in India. So when her father informs her of his latest business transaction—marrying her off to a bankrupt nobleman in England—her only hope for returning home is to convince her betrothed, by whatever antics necessary, that a marriage to her comes at a cost that not even the greatest fortune can justify.

Graham Whitworth can hardly believe his wretched luck. It seems the only way to save his family’s insolvent estate is to comply with his father’s demands and marry the extremely wealthy, but utterly ridiculous, nabob’s daughter. But when Honora missteps, Graham discerns her farce and begins to see who she truly is—a most impressive lady. A lady likely capable of fixing his family’s financial troubles.

Realizing they both desire freedom, Graham and Honora join forces to restore the Whitworth estate and return Honora to her beloved India. But sometimes love has its own agenda, and the revoking of a once undesirable arrangement may just prove to be the greatest sacrifice of all.

DID NOT DISAPPOINT.

The hype in the regency community about this book is real, and I’m so glad it lived up to what I was hoping for.

Honora is the definition of the head-strong woman who stubbornness occasionally gets in her own way. I liked her character arc and her ability to recognize and acknowledge her faults and when she needed to apologize. Honora stood for her choices too and was a character I wanted to see get her HEA.

Graham was adorable. I loved how tender he was and how open to Honora he spoke. With a slight misstep in their first meeting to a friendship that became more, I was enraptured. He was incredibly sweet and all of Graham’s quiet moments with Honora had me swooning.

The plot was more fresh than most regencies and felt like a new rush of air as I read. My only lower point was that it felt a bit long too me. It might have been so much of the accounting commentary and scenes that took away from the main focus of the romance.

This was a wonderful read though and I look forward to Heileman’s future books. Based off of this one I think there’s more swoony romances ahead.

Overall audience notes:

  • Regency romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of a mother

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Book Review: Failed Future (Air Awakens: Vortex Chronicles #3) by Elise Kova

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆  
Audience: YA Fantasy + Romance
Length: 356 pages
Author: Elise Kova
Publisher: Silver Wing Press
Release Date: July 20th, 2019
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

When worlds collide, and things are rarely what they seem, there may be no one Vi can trust.

Having forsaken her crown for a chance to save her family, and the world, Vi Solaris washes up on the shores of Meru. She’s wounded and barely alive. But Vi’s fight for survival is only just beginning.

As a princess in a foreign land, everyone is after her.

The pirate queen Adela wants to sell her to the evil elfin’ra. The Twilight King wants to use her to settle an old score. And, perhaps most dangerous, is the scheming Lord of the Faithful who sees her as an opportunity to further consolidate his power.

The only path for Vi is forward. But she doesn’t yet know if she’s running toward salvation… or a brutal end to everything she loves.

Vi’s journey continues with even more betrayal, romance, magic, and a twist you never saw coming that leaves readers begging for the next book.

BACK ON THIS STRESSFUL RIDE.

I haven’t gotten back to this series in almost a year. I wasn’t super into book two and then it just fell by the wayside. I finally picked up book three and I see a change of pace before me.

I also remember exactly why this book STRESSES ME OUT SO MUCH.

But you would need to read the Air Awakens series first to understand (which I rave about constantly so please do).

The action picked up a lot here and I thought that Vi really started coming into her own. Taking charge of matters. Leading a team. Saving family. All the things I wanted to see from her. It was great and I look forward to her continued passion towards saving the world.

Romance wise, things were better here too. Now that they are able to have some more interaction, Vi and Taavin are starting to pull me on board their ship. LETS SAIL. The conflicts that arise between them are not over dramatic and actually fit into the plot (the best). I’m anxious to see how things break free for them.

Lots of things happening here. SO MANY. I didn’t feel very lost though after not reading this series for a bit which was really appreciated. The way that things from other books are brought up line up perfectly, keeping me informed and wanting more.

Can’t wait to finish this series up shortly!

Overall audience notes:

  • Young adult fantasy + romance
  • Language: some
  • Romance: kisses to implied closed door scenes
  • Violence: physical altercations, magic, betrayals, weaponry; not overly bloody/gory

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