ARC Book Review: Juniper Bean Resorts to Murder by Gracie Ruth Mitchell

March 31, 2023March 21, 2023 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance + Mystery
Length: 368 pages
Author: Gracie Ruth Mitchell
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: March 31st, 2023
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Juniper Bean has big plans for her writing career. Swoony kisses, sigh-inducing happily ever afters—she’s going to write them all.

There’s just one problem: she can’t seem to stop killing off her main characters.

After accepting that a genre change is in order, Juniper sets out to do some research. What’s the best way to carry a dead body? How exactly does one pick a lock? Juniper is going to find out—with the unwilling help of her new roommate, Aiden.

But Juniper’s plans go haywire when she stumbles across an actual, real-life dead body—and before she knows it, she and Aiden are thrust into the middle of a murder mystery that seems suspiciously tied to Juniper’s past.

Who killed the girl in the woods? Can Juniper ever get the hang of mystery writing? And, perhaps the biggest question of all: Why the heck does Aiden look so good in a tweed jacket?

Thank you to the author for an eARC.

WHAT A COMBINATION.

I increasingly became obsessed with this story the more I read. It was a beautiful combination of romance, mystery, vulnerability and humor. My new favorite book by Gracie Ruth Mitchell.

This romance was off the charts tender. With a dash of second chance and a feeling of fate playing a role, Juniper and Aiden found each other [again]. I loved the way they bounced off of each other and how you could really see the growth in their bond as they worked together to solve a murder mystery. There were incredibly vulnerable moments from both Aiden and Juniper about how they perceive themselves and things they knew they needed to work on and it had me all misty-eyed at the end. I felt all the feels.

The mystery played out well!! It was woven in behind the romance (without overshadowing) and I was still very much intensely involved in solving the crimes. Those more intense ending scenes were exactly what I was hoping for and all of the grand reveals simultaneously broke my heart and gave me relief for the characters involved.

A really great read. I could keep gushing about all of the tiny moments I absolutely adored that came together to make this book huggable. I know this was a mix-up in what GRM usually writes and she NAILED IT.

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary Romance + Mystery
Language: none
Romance: kisses
Violence: moderate
Trigger/Content Warnings: murder, knife violence, alludes to sexual assault and rape (of a side character), loss of a mother, lack of food resources

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Book Review: The Luck of Finding You (The Nelson Sisters #1) by Taylor Epperson

March 28, 2023September 7, 2022 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 280 pages
Author: Taylor Epperson
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: August 23rd, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Can you fall in love with the same person twice?

Exactly five years, five months, and three days ago I spent a single afternoon with a guy, Noah, and promptly fell in love with him. Then he left without leaving a number or his last name.

Now he’s standing above me in the same tiny cafe we met all those years ago. And he’s a grown man with an easy smile that’s making me feel eighteen again. But I don’t fall in love, not anymore.

Which is why I make this promise to myself. I will not fall in love with Noah. Again. Even if I do have to work with him every day for the next year in his Grandma’s book store, thanks to her will.

And I will not fall in love with Mo, my online best friend who’s suggesting that we finally meet in person after two years of talking.

Because in the end, guys always leave, and happily ever afters only exist in romance novels.

CUTE.

I enjoyed this one! It had a cute You’ve Got Mail-esque plot with some decent main characters. I adored the bookstore set-up and the forced proximity. There’s a very fast tempo to the story so if you’re looking for a sweet rom-com to read in a day, this could be it!

The insta-love was a bit of a struggle for me. I think pacing + insta was where it lost me. I have read books where insta-connections work, this though, fell flat. I wanted more depth from the main characters (praises for dual POV at least!). Trying to add in hard backgrounds + everything happening in present time + the romance was a tricky combination that didn’t always succeed.

There is a miscommunication trope here too. It isn’t over the top dramatic but I know this is a controversial trope to use so I figured I’d mention it. I liked the charming moments and the second chance these two took at love. The kissing scenes were nice and swoony and I think book two has the potential to be even better.

Overall audience notes:

Contemporary Romance
Language: none
Romance: kisses
Trigger/Content Warnings: loss of a mother (recounted)

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ARC Audio Book Review: Long Live the Elf Queen (The Elf Queen #2) by J.M. Kearl

March 14, 2023March 5, 2023 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★☆
Audience: Fantasy Romance
Length: 560 pages
Author: J.M. Kearl
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: October 26th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

The enthralling and romantic sequel to J.M. Kearl’s enchanting Bow Before the Elf Queen.
Layala fought against falling in love with him. Thane battled to win his mate’s heart. Now they’ll discover if their love can withstand those who tore them apart.
Held for weeks without food or water, Layala’s resolve begins to fracture as an evil darkness looms over her. She’s the key to destroying the Void or reviving its creator— the long-dead Black Mage she has a mysterious connection to.

Layala and Thane learn what it truly means to fight for love as their enemies surround them and it becomes a struggle for revenge, the kingdom, and finding the truth about why Layala seems to harbor the power of whether Palenor falls into darkness or if her Lightbringer name holds true.

Author’s note: Long Live the Elf Queen is book 2 in the Elf Queen series and ends on a cliffhanger. It contains romantic steam, violence, war, and mature themes with morally grey characters.

Thank you to House Valor Books and Netgalley for an ALC.

THAT CLIFFHANGER Y’ALL.

I don’t really mind cliffhangers, even if they cause me high amounts of stress. And this book definitely ended with a wild one that I LOVEEEE. I have no clue where this will go and why and you better believe I’ll be picking up the next book.

Audiobook thoughts: As an ALC wanted to touch base here too. I did love that within this dual narration any feminine characters were by one actor and the male characters by the other. It gave a real life conversation tone to it and made for a positive listening experiences. What I didn’t love was a few of the side characters voices. They were kind of hard to listen to and was grateful when their roles became more minimal so they didn’t show up as often.

Back to the general bookish thoughts. I really like this romance. Luckily there wasn’t a long separation here and we got to see Layala and Thane work together as a couple (my favorite for fantasy romances). There’s just the right amount of spice that works well within the plot and the story moves forward in interesting ways. I liked all of the dragons that showed up. There’s a good amount of action and I’m intrigued by the antagonists and figuring out who belongs on what side.

Overall audience notes:

Fantasy Romance
Language: a little strong
Romance: 2 brief/vague open + mild innuendo
Violence: high
Trigger/Content Warnings: near death experiences, weapons violence, magical and physical violence, loss of loved ones, battle themes

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Book Review: A Confirmed Rake (The Donovans #2) by Martha Keyes

March 14, 2023August 29, 2022 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Regency Romance
Length: 320 pages
Author: Martha Keyes
Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: August 24th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

When Rebecca Russell’s brother marries, she finally has the opportunity she has been dreaming of: to leave the seclusion of her reclusive grandfather’s home and enter into Society. But when her inexperience has her making blunders and courting embarrassment, help comes from an unexpected source: the brooding, irritable brother of her chaperone.

Valentine Donovan is a rake, mountains of gaming debt and all. With his only hope for financial relief tied up in the Admiralty Court, he must temporarily rely on his father’s charity—and all the strings attached to it. His father demands Valentine show evidence that he is changing his ways, so when the engaging but naive young woman living with his sister presents a plan, he can’t refuse the opportunity to fulfill some of his father’s requirements, albeit reluctantly.

But Valentine is unprepared for Rebecca’s guileless optimism and how impossible he finds it to say no to her increasingly onerous requests—requests that put both their hearts and reputations in danger.

LOVE THESE TWO.

I think this is my new favorite Martha Keyes book. I looooved Valentine and Rebecca.

Rebecca was the sweet naive woman who cracked me up multiple times at her learning the ways of society. I loved it. This wasn’t an annoying thing to watch unfold. I genuinely loved Rebecca and would want to be friends with someone so filled with light and hope. The juxtaposition between her and Valentine was perfect.

Valentine, my reformed rake, OH HOW I ADORE YOU. He was swoony and kind and I could not get enough of watching Rebecca slowly wrap her way around his heart. There were even some beautiful moments towards the end that about got me misty eyed. The sinner and saint vibes (without being preachy) was one of the best things about this book.

Some aspects towards the end seemed to extend the book a little longer than I was looking for, but that’s mostly the only issue I had with it. This has been a fantastic series so far and Rebecca and Valentine definitely hold a place in my heart now.

Overall audience notes: