Tag: young adult romance

ARC Book Review: Wild is the Witch by Rachel Griffin

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Rating: ★★★★
Audience: YA Paranormal Romance
Length: 320 pages
Author: Rachel Griffin
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Release Date: August 2nd, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

When eighteen-year-old witch Iris Gray accidentally enacts a curse that could have dire consequences, she must team up with a boy who hates witches to make sure her magic isn’t unleashed on the world.

Iris Gray knows witches aren’t welcome in most towns. When she was forced to leave her last home, she left behind a father who was no longer willing to start over. And while the Witches’ Council was lenient in their punishment, Iris knows they’re keeping tabs on her. Now settled in Washington, Iris never lets anyone see who she really is; instead, she vents her frustrations by writing curses she never intends to cast. Otherwise, she spends her days at the wildlife refuge which would be the perfect job if not for Pike Alder, the witch-hating aspiring ornithologist who interns with them.

Iris concocts the perfect curse for Pike: one that will turn him into a witch. But just as she’s about to dispel it, a bird swoops down and steals the curse before flying away. If the bird dies, the curse will be unleashed―and the bird is a powerful amplifier, and unleashing the curse would turn not just Pike, but everyone in the region, into a witch.

New witches have no idea how to control their magic and the consequences would be dire. And the Witches’ Council does not look kindly on multiple offenses; if they found out, Iris could be stripped of her magic for good. Iris begs Pike to help her track the bird, and they set out on a trek through the Pacific Northwest looking for a single bird that could destroy everything. 

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an audio ARC.

TAKE ME TO THE WILDS.

I was craving a witchy read and this delivered. Wow do I love how atmospheric and moody Griffin is able to create in a setting. I felt like I was out in the wood with Iris and Pike. The vibes are all there to bring about the best things in paranormal reads.

A ridiculous meddling owl caused all sorts of problems leading to an adventure that brought our couple together. There were solid loath to love nods and I definitely felt the initial animosity between Iris and Pike. I liked the development of their relationship and the trust they formed together. And even when things fell apart the admittance of a connection had my heart swelling.

It’s a very fast paced read with the big focus on Iris righting her wrongs. The tumultuous events lead to declarations of feelings and powerful magical moments. I liked the choices made for the story including how the curse was resolved and the relationships in general. There’s great exploration of forgiveness and working through grief too.

All in all, a vivid read filled with perseverance and hope that the sun really will rise in the morning. I love the sense of learning to let go and let be and the many aspects of growing up.

Audiobook notes: I have none! I LOVED the audio and the narration. It was well done and definitely enhanced the story for me.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Paranormal Romance
  • Language: a little
  • Romance: make-outs
  • Violence: medium
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: parental divorce mentioned, PTSD & trauma, anxiety, panic attacks, blood & injury depiction, cancer mentioned, fire, animal death and injury

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Book Review: Illusionary (Hollow Crown #2) by Zoraida Córdova

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Rating: ☆☆☆☆
Audience: YA Fantasy
Length: 368 pages
Author: Zoraida Córdova
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Release Date: May 11th, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

In Zoraida Córdova’s thrilling sequel to Incendiary, Renata embarks on a dangerous journey to bring justice to the kingdom — perfect for fans of Sabaa Tahir and Sarah J. Maas.
Reeling from betrayal at the hands of the Whispers, Renata Convida is a girl on the run. With few options and fewer allies, she’s reluctantly joined forces with none other than Prince Castian, her most infuriating and intriguing enemy. They’re united by lofty goals: find the fabled Knife of Memory, kill the ruthless King Fernando, and bring peace to the nation. Together, Ren and Castian have a chance to save everything, if only they can set aside their complex and intense feelings for each other.
With the king’s forces on their heels at every turn, their quest across Puerto Leones and beyond leaves little room for mistakes. But the greatest danger is within Ren. The Gray, her fortress of stolen memories, has begun to crumble, threatening her grip on reality. She’ll have to control her magics–and her mind–to unlock her power and protect the Moria people once and for all.
For years, she was wielded as weapon. Now it’s her time to fight back. 

A GOOD DUO.

Ah yes, the illusive duology that didn’t make me want to throw the second book across the room. Would recommend purely based off of the previous sentence alone.

If you’re looking for a bit more information though, here we go!

I enjoyed all of the action and political intrigue that was involved. Things went a lot more in depth with the villain and their true motives. Instead of seeming like a wicked dude with no layers, you start to understand where the hatred comes from. He got the ending necessary for the story so I’m glad that bow was tied up nicely.

Realllllly loved where the romance went to here. This became a tad bit of a love triangle, but not in your face and not full of eye rolls. it was a nice, natural progression and I am team CASTIAN all the way. It was the definition of swooning and I love a broody prince y’all. I will say I didn’t think there was enough closure between Ren and Dez? She kind of jumped ship when he literally jumped ship and I thought there was more unresolved between them. Oh well.

This duo is gritty and complex. It’s steeped in a deep history built into the world and the lore of a magic knife and those with magic wanting to feel safe and belong somewhere. The chosen one trope plays beautifully strong here with Ren knowing her worth.

Plus, an extended epilogue that gives you all the feels and the full endings I was looking for!!

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Fantasy + Romance
  • Language: a little
  • Romance: kisses to closed door
  • Violence: murder, physical altercations, magical weaponry, loss of loved ones

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Book Review: A Taste for Love by Jennifer Yen

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Rating: ☆☆☆
Audience: YA Contemporary Romance
Length: 304 pages
Author: Jennifer Yen
Publisher: Razorbill
Release Date: February 2nd, 2021
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

For fans of Jenny Han, Jane Austen, and The Great British Baking Show, A Taste for Love, is a delicious rom com about first love, familial expectations, and making the perfect bao.

To her friends, high school senior Liza Yang is nearly perfect. Smart, kind, and pretty, she dreams big and never shies away from a challenge. But to her mom, Liza is anything but. Compared to her older sister Jeannie, Liza is stubborn, rebellious, and worst of all, determined to push back against all of Mrs. Yang’s traditional values, especially when it comes to dating.

The one thing mother and daughter do agree on is their love of baking. Mrs. Yang is the owner of Houston’s popular Yin & Yang Bakery. With college just around the corner, Liza agrees to help out at the bakery’s annual junior competition to prove to her mom that she’s more than her rebellious tendencies once and for all. But when Liza arrives on the first day of the bake-off, she realizes there’s a catch: all of the contestants are young Asian American men her mother has handpicked for Liza to date.

The bachelorette situation Liza has found herself in is made even worse when she happens to be grudgingly attracted to one of the contestants; the stoic, impenetrable, annoyingly hot James Wong. As she battles against her feelings for James, and for her mother’s approval, Liza begins to realize there’s no tried and true recipe for love.

MOSTLY CUTE.

I read this in about a day (via audio book). I loved the fast pace and all of the baking. It made me want to whip out my mixer and try out new recipes. The GBBO allusions were clear, but the addition of the “dating pool” idea was humorous.

The other side plots were a biiiiit much. I felt like they added extreme levels of drama and took away from the romance. I didn’t know where I was supposed to see the focus. There were many side stories that didn’t truly affect the main character or even necessarily the love interest. All of this took me out of the novel multiple times.

What I got of the romance was pretty cute. It was a very little enemies to lovers, but once misunderstandings were put aside I thought Liza and James were adorable. I would have really loved to see even more of them and have the story feel like it was directed at them.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Contemporary Romance
  • Language: a little
  • Romance: kisses
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: body shaming, racism, sexual assault mentioned, cheating

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ARC Book Review: Stealing Infinity (Stolen Beauty #1) by Alyson Noel

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Rating: ★★★☆
Audience: YA Magical Realism / Fantasy + Romance
Length: 480 pages
Author: Alyson Noel
Publisher: Entangled Publishing
Release Date: June 28th, 2022
Image & Other Reviews on: Goodreads

BOOK SUMMARY:

These days, I’ve been killing it when it comes to letting people down. Now I’ve been kicked out of high school, arrested, and accepted into a remote, off-the-grid school owned and operated by an inscrutable billionaire tech guru.

Gray Wolf Academy is looking for a certain kind of student. Ones that no one will miss. Like me.

Then there’s Braxton. The beautiful, oddly anachronistic guy who showed up right when the trouble started. And he’s a total enigma—which means that I definitely can’t trust him, even if there’s something about him that makes me want to.
They all tell me I have a gift. A very rare gift. And Gray Wolf Academy wants me to learn it. To use it. Because if what they say is true, I have all the time in the world.
And that makes me the most dangerous high school student you’ll never know…

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for an audio ARC.

KIND OF INTO IT.

I picked this one up after a lot of hype from Bookstagram friends and I think it did it’s job well. As this was an audiobook ARC I’ll speak to that first, LOVED. No complaints here about the narration or anything. I thought it was wonderful and I was able to listen at a 2.5x – 3x speed easily.

The set-up for this was fun. I liked the time travel aspects and getting to see different facets of history. The school setting wasn’t a big factor (as someone who doesn’t love that setting). It was more in the background to everything else Nat was learning and doing.

I didn’t love the side characters. Some in the context of not great antagonists which came off childish. And others is just that I wanted more! There were many opportunities for some found family moments and I think those should have been capitalized on.

This was somehow upper YA and lower YA all in the same book. The dialogue and personalities leaned towards younger while the themes and some of the scenes (like attempted rape) were definitely in the older group. This clash caused a issue with me finding the right niche for the story overall.

I am intrigued by the plot though and definitely want to continue. I really liked the banter at the beginning of the romance and am curious how that is going to continue to play out. Maybe a love triangle? I’m not sure. BUT I did like what Braxton brought to the table.

Overall audience notes:

  • YA Magical Realism/Fantasy + Romance
  • Language: some light
  • Romance: heated make-outs
  • Violence: medium
  • Trigger/Content Warnings: sexual assault, attempted rape, loss of loved ones, near death experiences

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