Book Review: A Steeping of Blood (Blood and Tea #2) by Hafsah Faizal

October 18, 2025October 11, 2025 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★.5
Audience: YA Fantasy
Length: 352 pages
Author: Hafsah Faizal
Publisher: First Ink
Release Date: September 25th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

The epic conclusion to the #1 bestselling A Tempest of Tea by Hafsah Faizal; the gritty fantasy duology about an orphan girl and her crew who get tangled in a heist with vampires, perfect for fans of Leigh Bardugo’s Six of Crows.

She’s had her tea, now she’s out for blood.

White Roaring is sharpening its fangs after the deadly night that left the city in shambles. The press are dead, the public calls for justice, vampires are in danger, and amid the turmoil, the Ram announces a celebration.

Still reeling from the bloodshed, Arthie Casimir has no time to mourn the death of anyone, let alone her own. She has no time for love, either, but it had saved her life. As Arthie navigates new emotions and new allies, she must reassemble her scrambled crew and scrape what little they have left to fight one last time – and she will need to face the ghosts of her past to do it.

In Ceylan.

After the jaw-dropping ending of #1 bestselling A Tempest of Tea, Arthie and her crew still have plenty of hearts to break and crimson-red secrets to uncover. Hafsah Faizal crafts a deliciously twisty and seductive sequel that will leave readers breathless until the very last page.

Thank you to MacMillan Audio for the gifted audiobook.

WELL.

I’ll make a note first about the audiobook. While I thought the narrator read the book perfectly fine I think it’s frustrating when a book has 3+ POV’s and only ONE narrator. It made it difficult to switch to each POV in my mind and things started to run together and I got confused multiple times on who was who. I’d still recommend this but I would say go the eyeball read route.

But also maybe it wasn’t all the audiobook? I do think some of the ending pieces were a flop (ANGER INDUCING FLOP). I guess the plot wrapped up well after that? I DID like the vampire aspects. I’m not really a vampire girlie but this didn’t bug me at all. There were some good found family moments and the heist was fine I suppose.

Overall audience notes:

YA Fantasy
Language: mild
Romance: closed door
Violence: moderate

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Book Review: The Weaver Bride (The Weaver Bride #1) by Lydia Gregovic

October 16, 2025October 3, 2025 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★
Audience: NA Fantasy Romance
Length: 480 pages
Author: Lydia Gregovic
Publisher: Delacorte Press
Release Date: September 30th, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

A sweeping fantasy about a witch who must navigate a ruthless marriage competition—and try not to fall in love along the way. Part twisting mystery, part thrilling romance, The Weaver Bride is an unputdownable romantasy steeped in a lush magical world.

Lovett Tamerlane is a silkwitch. Like all girls of her kind, she holds a rare magic—a magic that can be harnessed only through marriage to a Weaver. But finding a Weaver husband requires status, refinement, and money, all of which Lovett sadly lacks. Her one secret ability, to open any door, is her saving grace. Hidden in plain sight, Lovett spends her days using her gift to steal from wealthy families and her nights avoiding the fate imposed on all unwed silkwitches: a life confined to the cloisters.

But opening doors can be dangerous, and when Lovett steals from the wrong person, she finds herself face to face with Eliot Lear, the notorious son of a prominent Weaver. It turns out Eliot’s been watching Lovett. He knows she’s a silkwitch, and he offers her a life-altering opportunity: entrance to the Vainglory, a competition with the ultimate prize—marriage to Noé Alaire, heir to generations of Weaver wealth. The catch? Last year, the Vainglory ended in tragedy. The winner died. And the winner was Eliot’s sister.

The arrangement is simple: If Lovett solves the mystery of Ophelia Lear’s death and unmasks her killer, Eliot will ensure she has her pick of Weaver suitors, regardless of who wins the competition. Yet unraveling Ophelia’s murder proves far more complicated than either of them anticipated. And Lovett should know better than to take a Weaver at his word.

After all . . . what is love without betrayal?

Thank you to PRH Audio for the gifted audiobook and GetUnderlined for the final copy.

GIMME BOOK TWO.

After enjoying Lydia Gregovic’s debut I knew I had to get my hands on this one and it was a solid upper YA/NA fantasy romance! I liked the world building a lot and the complexity of the silkwitches and how they functioned in society. It set up the perfect atmosphere for rebellion and takedowns that I hope to see in the sequel.

The romance is a good heated enemies to lovers that pushes and pulls as the pages turn. I enjoy betrayal plotlines and I liked the ruthlessness that their story gave off. I do recommend the audiobook as the narrator did a great job voicing Lovett and the other characters (single POV).

I wasn’t 100% convinced by the competition storyline but it’s an easy book to consume. I like LG’s writing style and the way the romances are crafted. Looking forward to more!

Overall audience notes:

Upper YA/NA Fantasy Romance
Language: mild
Romance: closed door
Violence: moderate

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Monthly Reading Wrap-Up: September 2025

September 30, 2025 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

THE BER MONTHS.

I always love seeing these line ups because all of the covers together feel like a quilt of my reads. And I’m continually surprised at what I get through and all of the different genres and niches I fall into.

HAPPY READING!

Epics Etched in Echoes (Tales of Wonder and Woe #3.5) by Renee Dugan
If Not for My Baby by Kate Golden
Entreat Me by Grace Draven
Katabasis by R.F. Kuang
[ARC] An Echo of the Grave (Fallow Creek #4) by Claudia Cain
[ARC/ALC] We Met Like This by Kasie West
Last Night Was Fun by Holly Michelle
Mistress of Bones (Mistress of Bones #1) by Maria Z. Medina
House of Hearts by Skyla Arndt
The Silversmith (The Selvaren #1) by LJ Claren
Scorched Earth (Dark Shores #4) by Danielle L. Jensen
[ARC] It’s Different This Time by Joss Richard
[ARC] Fake Skating by Lynn Painter
Rose in Chains (The Evermore Trilogy #1) by Julie Soto
[Novella] Fearful (The Powerless Trilogy #3.5) by Lauren Roberts
[Novella] Pumpkin to Talk About by Allie Samberts
The Fallen and the Kiss of Dusk (Crowns of Nyaxia #4) by Carissa Broadbent
Rookie Season (The Boys of Loft 3B #1) by Katie Bailey and Leah Brunner
Better Luck Next Time by Cara Bastone
The Crownless Queen (The Blood and Water Saga #4) by Cassidy Clarke
An Embroidery of Souls by Ruby Martinez
Love at Second Down (Boys of Ann Arbor U #2) by Gracie Graham
[Novella] Hot for Slayer (Scared Sexy Collection #1) by Ali Hazelwood
[ARC] Winterset by Tiffany Odekirk
[ALC] Overdue by Stephanie Perkins
[Novella] Falling (Scared Sexy Collection #2) by Christina Lauren
Playing for Keeps by Ranee S. Clark
Silverborn: The Mystery of Morrigan Crow (Nevermoor #4) by Jessica Townsend
[ARC] Alchemy of Secrets by Stephanie Garber
Not Quite Dead Yet by Holly Jackson

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Book Review: House of Hearts by Skyla Arndt

September 25, 2025September 13, 2025 GoodeyReadsLeave a comment

Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Dark Academia Romance
Length: 288 pages
Author: Skyla Arndt
Publisher: Viking Books
Release Date: September 2nd, 2025
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

Solving her best friend’s murder means infiltrating a secret society, resisting a forbidden love, and running from a vengeful ghost in this sophomore novel by the author of Together We Rot.

Violet Harper knows her best friend was murdered. Even if everyone else has labeled her death a “freak accident,” Vi is sure she’d been trying to tell her something right before she died. Cryptic messages about her friend’s elite boarding school, her whirlwind romance, and the mysterious secret society she was entangled in all point to a more sinister fate.

So, Violet does what no one else seems willing to do: She transfers to the same fancy school to dig into the society’s murky history and find out what really happened to her friend. She knows the truth might not be pretty, but what she doesn’t bargain for is the handsome boy at the center of it all—Calvin Lockwell, the brother of her prime suspect and descendant of the school’s founder. He’s obnoxious and privileged, and Violet can’t deny their haunting attraction. It soon becomes clear his family is hiding a dark secret that may not be of this world, and suddenly Violet’s following her friend’s doomed footsteps down the rabbit hole. Even as details emerge of a deadly curse plaguing the school, she can’t escape her true feelings for Calvin. But loving him may be the last thing she ever does.

Thank you to Storygram Tours and the publisher for a gifted copy.

GREAT FOR AUTUMN.

If you’re craving something haunting and heavy on the dark academia, definitely try this one out. It was a quick solid young adult read that kept the mystery alive.

I liked seeing how the curse was controlling so many aspects of the characters and the reveals kept me listening. The FMC was enjoyable and the romance was more on the subtle side but I liked the dynamics between them. I could have used a bit more oomph from them if anything.

It’s perfectly atmospheric and has a great edge of danger and suspense. I would definitely like to read another book from this author!

Overall audience notes: