Tag: prh audio

ARC/ALC Book Review: Guard My Heart by Sabrina Fedel

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Sports Romance
Length: 336 pages
Author: Sabrina Fedel
Publisher: Delacorte Romance
Release Date: October 13th, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A girl who dreams of being a D1 ice hockey goalie meets a hot hockey player who offers a deal to boost her skills in this young adult hockey romance!

Hit me with your best shot . . .

RYLEIGH VENTO has one goal—literally. She dreams of becoming an all-star goalie on a Division 1 women’s ice hockey team. Senior year is her last shot, and she can’t afford distractions. Not injuries. Not family drama. And definitely not a relationship.

Enter Jett Robitaille, the school’s new hockey god. He wants Ryleigh to be his fake girlfriend to make another girl—Ryleigh’s nemesis—jealous. Ryleigh’s answer? To block his goal. Until Jett ups the stakes: He’ll train her, push her, and use his own skills to help her become the best goalie in the league. As the season heats up, Ryleigh has to decide if letting Jett in will make her stronger—or throw her completely off her game. Because sometimes the hardest save isn’t on the ice . . . it’s guarding your heart.

Thank you to Get Underlined and PRH Audio for the gifted copies.

CUTE YA.

This is one of those books that didn’t quite HIT for me but I can absolutely see the merits for the true young adult audience. The characters felt realistic to their age and regards to thought processes and actions, while also not having excess language or anything more than kisses. It’s a sweet young adult hockey romance with some fake dating.

I did love that the FMC is a player too!! And a goalie. Loved this so much. Having both of the leads be athletes was a good dynamic for the story. I liked the banter and that you could see the friendship turn into more. I liked the themes of never knowing what someone is going through and how being kind is key. Both of the MC’s are carrying things that are hard for an adult, even more so for a teen. There’s a pretty classic third act break up that goes back to my first paragraph about this fitting better for a younger audience and that’s okay haha.

🎧: I liked the narrator for the audiobook. Sometimes Jett’s voice wasn’t great and he sounded younger than 17, but otherwise it was fine! I did about 3/4 as audio and it’s a solid format choice for reading Guard My Heart.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Sports Romance
  • Language: none
  • Romance: kisses
  • Violence: low
  • Content warnings: loss of a parent from cancer (recounted), a parent who is in remission from cancer

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ARC/ALC Book Review: Empire (Heir Duology #2) by Sabaa Tahir

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Rating: ★★★★★
Audience: YA Fantasy
Length: 528 pages
Author: Sabaa Tahir
Publisher: GP Putnam’s
Release Date: September 22nd, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

The gripping conclusion to the action-packed, ruthless, and romantic fantasy duology that began with HEIR, from the #1 New York Times bestselling and National Book Award–winning author Sabaa Tahir.

A crumbling empire.
An ancient evil.
A lost homeland.
A lie that could destroy the world.

In the crumbling Martial Empire, crown prince Quil Farrar and his aunt, Empress Helene, are losing a war against the vicious Kegari horde. Quil’s armies dwindle, his faith falters, and the woman he loves vanished months ago, leaving him brokenhearted. Torn between his duty to his people and his desire to discover Sirsha’s fate, Quil embarks on a dangerous quest for aid—from the most treacherous of allies.

Sirsha Westering finds herself tethered to Div, an ancient evil unleashed by a terrible tragedy. Div delights in tormenting Sirsha, hungering for her magical heart. Even as Sirsha struggles for control of her own fate, she is desperate to shield Quil from Div’s destructive power. But Div won’t release Sirsha without a fight. To earn her freedom, Sirsha must uncover Div’s past—and face horrors in her own.

Cero bet-Dafra, former right hand of the Kegari leader, Aiz, now finds himself pitted against her. As Aiz slips further into violence and delusion, Cero must discover if his people have any hope of a future or if they’re condemned to an unending cycle of violence. His journey will force him to confront hidden truths, ancient secrets, and a lie that could destroy the world.

In Empire, #1 New York Times bestselling author Sabaa Tahir returns to the expansive world of fury and vengeance of Heir, weaving a story of legacy and rebellion, of loyalty and freedom, and of what it means to confront the monsters that lurk within us all.

Thank you Penguin Teen for the gifted copy and PRH Audio for the gifted audiobook.

NO NOTES.

Maybe a lot of notes.

But I also don’t want to spoil one thing for anybody so I shall maintain my vague commentary but TRUST that this book was epically beautiful and I loved all the things and you should read it please!!!

Alright anyways, this is exactly the type of ending I have been hoping for in regards to this story. I was locked in to every POV and every moment. I love the multiple POV and the way each storyline impacts the overall plot. I also listened to part of this on audio and there are multiple narrators for each POV so it is definitely a format you should read!

The situations that arose made sense and I knew some of them were coming and while they TORE MY SOUL APART I also understood. Nobody writes fantasy like Sabaa Tahir. The brutal world building and intricate magic system. The complicated villains that create powerful themes. The close family and friendships. And the way background romances are woven in that have you begging for every crumb. I love all of these characters so much and the arcs and growth that each exhibited.

I’m very hopeful for another spin off featuring two of the POV’s I know would provide another incredible journey. Tahir continues to be one of my favorite fantasy authors.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Fantasy
  • Language: mild
  • Romance: fade to black
  • Violence: high
  • Content warnings: loss of life (including children), battle/war themes, near death experiences

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ALC Book Review: Love Felt Like This by Julie Olivia

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: Contemporary Romance
Length: 500 pages
Author: Julie Olivia
Publisher: Berkley
Release Date: September 8th, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A grumpy rock star and a joyful children’s show creator revive television magic in this cozy small-town romance.

Griffin Harvey lives his life in the spotlight. Reluctantly. The brooding famous singer-songwriter is on the cusp of composing his sophomore album . . . if only he could find the notes. But after gaining custody of his two-year-old daughter, the only music he’s writing is about shapes and counting to ten.

Enter Beverly, who lives her life in the background producing children’s television and laughter. Except joy is hard to find when her nonprofit loses funding. She sinks all of her savings to revive the children’s show by herself, but when her variety show appearance collides with Griffin’s, their banter and chemistry is caught on live television.

Suddenly, Griffin is singing a new tune. He needs a muse, and Beverly needs all the help she can get. With his secret daughter in tow, they hide out in her cozy mountain hometown, attempting to script, compose, and revive television magic. Their dynamic shouldn’t work. He’s all harsh tattoos and rough hands while she’s bright colors and gentle touches. Once their three months of work are done, they’ll return to their separate worlds. But what happens when it seems the true magic might be found in each other?

Thank you to PRH Audio (PRH Partner) for the gifted audiobook.

SWEET & COZY.

🎧: Loved the dual narration audiobook. Fantastic narrators and I thought it made the book feel even more cozy. Highly recommend that format!

I would first like to note if you’re like me and don’t usually read the summaries, this book is NOT set in the 1990’s (like If It Makes You Happy — the covers had the same vibe so I thought they were in the same world, they were not and I was confused for a beat).

Now the story is genuinely cozy. It’s slow and steady with a lot of quiet and tender moments. I loved seeing the relationship develop between Beverly and Griffin. It’s very much strangers to friends to lovers. The conversations are good and the build up to that first kiss was amazing. I was full on swooning at the love confessions and thought the closing chapters and epilogue were just right.

I did struggle a little with both MC’s having a repetitive inner dialogue about all of the reasons they couldn’t be with the other person. I understood and didn’t need to be told that many times.

But that small issues aside, I am still a big fan of Julie Olivia’s books. I love that this also wasn’t SPICY (like I know some of her books are). It gave me that vibe of writing spice for the couple/situation rather than making it spicy to be spicy and that is always 100x better. It made the connection and moments that much more sincere.

Can’t wait for her next book!!

Overall audience notes:

  • Contemporary Romance
  • Language: moderate
  • Romance: 2ish open door
  • Violence: low

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ARC/ALC Book Review: Fire to the Stars by Morgan J. Watchorn

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Fantasy Romance
Length: 416 pages
Author: Morgan J. Watchorn
Publisher: Knopf Books
Release Date: August 4th, 2026
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

In a kingdom cursed to turn people into dragons, two teens from opposite worlds, each with nothing left to lose, form an uneasy alliance. Told in dual perspectives, this sweeping debut follows their search for redemption and the slow-burning bond that could save them both.

Every month, the kingdom of Florent braces for the Ignition: a solar event that turns ordinary humans into vicious dragon shifters. And anyone can be a dragon’s next victim.

Claire knows this all too well because the Ignition consumed her and her father, her town, and the life she thought she’d have. Now, she’s scraping by on her wits as part of a sisterhood of thieves—lying, stealing, her heart locked tight—until she tracks down a disgraced dragon slayer who may be the one person who can give her back the life she once had.

Abel has been shunned by the prestigious Slayers Guild for conducting research that’s too…unorthodox to condone. But there’s no one Claire trusts more than a rulebreaker, and that research might be the one thing that could help her. So when Abel reveals he is hunting again, Claire tries to hire him under false pretenses. Abel, however, is reluctant to accept a job from a criminal, no matter how charming she is. And yet…he really needs the money.

Together, Claire and Abel will race through Florent and uncover dangerous secrets in their quests for forgiveness—and survival. But that knowledge may cost them the very thing they’ve grown desperate to protect: each other.

Thank you to Get Underlined for the gifted copy and PRH Audio for the gifted audiobook.

GREAT READ.

🎧: I loved the audiobook! The dual narrators were amazing and did a fantastic job. Highly recommend this format!

I also did eyeball read a chunk of this and enjoyed that format too. You really can’t go wrong with your formatting decisions.

Now to the book! I thought this was a great upper young adult fantasy romance standalone. There is some content I would advise for younger teens so older teens are more the right audience (but as always, do your own research!).

I loved that from the get go Abel and Claire are stuck with each other. I love a reluctant allies x forced proximity moment. Especially for a standalone this helped the progression of their relationship and getting to actually see it on page. Some good banter and care taking moments too.

Also this book has DRAGONS. And I thought a very interesting dynamic surrounding them too. The major plot reveals at the end made everything click together and I thought it was an interesting world and magic system (with only a few holes). I enjoyed the side characters and the traveling journey didn’t bug me all that much. I felt like things were still progressing well enough that it kind of fades into the background.

With characters I liked seeing grow and change from past mistakes and a mystery worth solving, I definitely recommend this book to others!

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Fantasy Romance
  • Language: low
  • Romance: very light innuendo; quick fade to black scene
  • Violence: moderate – high
  • Content warnings: loss of life, mentions of torture (recounted), physical/weapon altercations, mild blood/gore

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