Cozy Mystery to End the Year

 Evil Eclairs by Jessica Beck 

This was a cute, fast paced, cozy mystery. There were enough suspects that it kept you on your toes and it was surprising when the killer was revealed. I was surprised when it ended up being the producer of the radio show that killed him, but I was not surprised that money ended up being the motive. She did a good job of casting suspicion around on other people. Based on how things went, I would not be surprised if we ended up with Frank or mayor Cam as victims in upcoming books. Suzanne's relationship with Jake is progressing nicely. I hope her business bounces back now that the killer is caught.  I love a cozy mystery!  

Not Good

 Lark and Kasim Start a Revolution by Kacen Callender 

I waited before writing this review so I would have time to sit with the book and really ruminate on my feelings. But after sleeping on it my feelings haven't changed. Neither Lark nor Kasim resonated with me. I understand that I am not the target audience, but that doesn't change the fact that strong characters will resonate. I am not a tall black teenage girl, but I am when reading Legendborn. I am not a gay prince or a bisexual first son, but I am when reading Red, White, and Royal Blue. i am not Hispanic transgender teenager, but I am when reading Cemetery Boys. Strong characters resonate and neither Lark nor Kasim did. And it's not just that the characters didn't resonate, I didn't like the writing style and the story was flat.  I had many of the same complaints that Lark was getting from the literary agents; the writing wasn't cohesive, the story was all over the place, and there wasn't really any point. The main plot was about how people need to be able to grow and change, and how teenagers need to not be on social media because it's detrimental to their mental health. And the story didn't seem related to the title, which is what intrigued me in the first place. My favorite thing about art is that it's so subjective. If this writers style, which was very frenetic and almost stream of consciousness, works for you then you will enjoy it, but it's not for me.   

Sixth Holiday Book of the Season

 Love You a Latke by Amanda Elliot 

This book started out so strong; like smiling and kicking my feet but it fell off in the middle. It came back a bit in the end, but it didn't quite recapture the feelings of the beginning. Most of that has to do with Abby; her character growth wasn't as strong as Seth's. But, I did like how her friendship with Freya developed. I understand that she had a hard time building and believing in a real relationship because her parents were a nightmare. However, she would not have realized Seth was really interested in her had she not overheard that conversation between him and his dad. Seth knew her and understood her better than she knew and understood herself. Yes, she helped him grow and change too, he was able to face conflict because of knowing her, but he got there faster than she did in that regard as well. There were multiple times where I was waiting for Abby to have a heart to heart with Bev and it only happened once, at the salon. Seth was extremely patient with Abby and it paid off in the end. I liked being immersed in the Jewish culture and traditions. It was nice that we had Abby explain the importance of the holiday once and then we got to see her decide what was important about it for her. I don't know of any Hanukkah festivals in my area, but if put on by the Jewish community, I think it could be a beautiful way to learn about the faith.   

First in a Fanstasy Trilogy

 Mistborn by Brandon Sanderson 

I like fantasy and everyone says Brandon Sanderson is the GOAT of fantasy and this is where to start with his world, so I decided to jump in. I am not new to the fantasy game, and know that with the first book you have to let the world build, but this was a very slow build. Additionally, I like fantasy, but I do not like sci-fi and there were times that this was very much giving sci-fi. However, once the story finally got going, it was hard to put down. (while it was building, I kept taking breaks) The burning metals thing and the Push vs. Pull, I struggled with and eventually gave up trying to keep straight in my head and just rolled with. I was much more interested in the interactions between the characters than the allomancy. I liked watching Vin grow and learn to trust people. I did not like the age gap between her and Elend; that's gross. I was pissed at Kell. How dare you become a father figure to Vin and then abandon her like everyone else by dying! At least she still has Sazed, Marsh, Ham, and Breeze; and to a lesser extent Clubs. Marsh being alive (sort of) as a Steel Inquisitor and saving the day was a huge surprise! That Elend's father not only plotted to kill him, but then set him up to take the fall when his assassination didn't go as planned and it backfired and he is not King was crazy work. I can't wait to see how that plays out in the next book. That is former fiancee was the would be assassin and that Vin was able to kill her was great! I wish she had more training; stupid Kell dying and not staying alive to help her! This was a great first book to get things started and I am interested as to where the rest of the story is going to go.  

Fifth Holiday Book of the Season

 A Newport Christmess  by Jess Heileman 

I really enjoyed the audiobook narrators for this. Quinn and Landon are both divorced. She has been hired to make the centerpieces for Nikki's wedding. He is the brother of the bride. She is staying in his house, but doesn't realize it's house until he shows up. He is convinced that Nikki is trying to play matchmaker, but Nikki tells them both that she has other people in mind for each of them. When he hears who she has in mind for Quinn, it's an immediate no and he steps in. He proposes that they be each others fake dates to the wedding. But, they start developing real feelings for each other from spending time with each other. He takes her on this hike and while there they run into his ex, and he gets some much needed closure. She is still really struggling. In fact, one day when things are going well, she decides to look at her ex's instagram feed and goes into a tailspin. She posts a photo of her and Landon and then her ex calls. She agrees to talk with him after the holidays because she needs to know why he left. But, then on the day of the rehearsal dinner he shows up. She leaves with him and they end up back at his hotel so they can talk in private. He basically didnt' have a good reason for leaving, but now he's jealous that she's moving on. She has no feelings for him and calls Landon but he doesn't answer. She sees his truck; hes dropping off another girl at the hotel and she gets jealous and hides, then ignores his calls, until she doesn't. She tells him she's staying at a hotel and not going to the wedding with him and ends up in tears in the hotel lobby and said girl comes to her rescue. She finds out that the girl has a boyfriend, that Nikki set her up with. She ends up going to the wedding. She and Landon make up. She spends Christmas with him and his family, and finally stands up to her family about how she doesn't want to be with them for the holiday and that she's stronger than they think she is. The epilogue is several years in the future, with them happily married with kids. She is a successful social media influencer and we can assume he is still a lawyer. I liked that the epilogue was so far in the future; it let us know that things really did work out.   

Crime Series #5

 The Body Farm by Patricia Cornwell 

There was a lot going on in this book. First, we have a child victim in a small town that is made to look like the victim from the previous book, the killer is still out there. Then, we have Lucy having an internship at the FBI and her being set up for espionage and terrorism charges, that were eventually proven false and she was able to return to the FBI. Then we have Merino falling for the mom of the dead girl. Then we have Kay having an affair with Wesley, the profiler from the FBI. Then we have the escaped killer from the previous book being seen at the mall by Kay and her running away from him. Then, it turns out that mom was the one that actually killed her daughter and she was in the process of killing Merino, but Kay was able to get to his car, get his shotgun, and kill her and save him. Then there's Dorothy. Kay got Lucy into a treatment center for her alcohol consumption, and Dorothy wouldn't let Kay go with them to drop her off, and Dorothy told Lucy that Kay didn't want to go. Then, Dorothy made it all about her, instead of being concerned about Lucy and her well being, she was just concerned about how this would impact her next book. It was high time Kay finally yelled at her and told her she was a horrible parent. This was a lot. I am disappointed by most of what went on in this book. Lucy is the only character that I'm not mad at; she's still young and can't be faulted for being fooled easily.  

Fourth Holiday Book of the Season

 Nick and Noel's Christmas Playlist by Codi Hall 

This was a cute read, but the characters were very millennial coded for not being in that age group. For being a lighthearted Christmas book, the characters had some baggage. Nick just gets out of the military and immediately gets broken up with. Then, said ex spends the entire book trying to get back together with him. Noel is an orphan who hasn't processed the death of her parents and because of that can't handle emotionally complex relationships. She starts the book finding out her situationship has moved on to a real relationship. She and Nick decide to make out on the dance floor in front of both of their exes to show how fine they are with the situation. But, this complicates things for their friendship. They decide to pretend to date for the town, but not for his family. They get cock blocked twice, which was hysterical. On their first official date Nick helps his ex change a flat tire and when she tries to come onto him again he firmly puts her in her place, but Noel is done. She leaves. Her guy friends take her home, but when they hear what happens the side with Nick and tell her she needs to get her shit together. She does, by making Nick a playlist because that's how they communicate best. They end up at the Christmas concert. His mic is on and the ex tries, again. He gives his great speech about Noel and the whole town gives him a round of applause. They make up on stage. Also, said ex is a bridesmaid in a wedding with Noel and things aren't going well, until after that moment, then they are able to make a truce. Nick and Noel are finally together. This was a little longer than it needed to be, but it was enjoyable enough that I will read his sister's books. 

 

Third Holiday Book of the Season

 Christmas Baggage  by Deborah M. Hathaway 

This was a cute, fast paced book. Claire agrees to spend Christmas in London with her friend Melody. But from the jump, it's no good. A well meaning mad on the plane helps her with her bag, but it's the wrong bag and the bags owner is a jerk about it instead of just realizing that it was a mistake. Then, later that same night, while she is asleep in her bed at Aunt Tasha's house said jerk walks into her room. It's Tasha's son, Liam. So now she has to spend the trip in the same room as Melody and spend the whole trip with the hot jerk who was mean to her at the airport. The first day they all go to a botanical garden and then have Chinese food and Melody and Tasha get food poisoning meaning Liam is forced to take her to the museums. Things start to defrost between the two. Then Melody wants to set up a double date with them and this guy Dean. Dean is a tool and they find every excuse they can to avoid them. Claire and Liam are cute together but they fall in love really fast, like one week fast. But at least the epilogue is one year later. They have made long distance work and now she is moving to England permanently. He proposes at the botanical garden. It was very sweet. I'm glad the epilogue was so far in the future, because the bulk of the story was very fast.  

Misleading Title

 The Brothers Hawthorne by Jennifer Lynn Barnes 

The title implies it's about all four brothers, but really it's about Grayson and Jameson. I will hear no Grayson slander. We get time jumps and learn a little about what the boys were like as children. But, mostly it's about them now. Nash has proposed to Libby and that's the catalyst that brings them all together; his bachelor party. Jameson gets contacted by his father and is asked to find a way to earn a spot into the Devils Mercy so he can win the game and earn back the house that his father lost last year. Avery has a much easier time getting noticed and invited into the game, but he does eventually get his invitation. They play it together and she breaks one of the rules by getting into a fight so that he can have a chance. It appears that he has lost, but the person that thought they won, didn't and Jameson was able to explain the clue and won. He refused to give over the prize to his father because he realized that he was just a pawn. Also, his uncle was one of the players in the game and he found out that said uncle didn't know about him until right then, and they form a bond. Grayson has been keeping tabs on his sisters and one of them, Juliet aka GiGi, gets arrested. He picks her up from jail, takes her home, and forms a friendship with her to get into the house to search it for any clues his father may have left that indicate his plans about Avery, and that would lead to Grayson. Turns out the other twin, Savannah, has known about him since she was 14, and their mother has known for almost 2 years. The IRS is involved because of tax evasion issues. And mom's lawyer is a huge creep. He has been stealing from and bankrupting her, and trying to find ways to steal from the twins. Grayson is able to stop that, in front of a judge. He's also able to get the mom all of her money back. The truth about his connection comes out and GiGi is ecstatic to have a brother, Savannah takes some time. Grayson is also getting mysterious calls from someone he doesn't know with a riddle he can't solve. And Eve is back. I couldn't really remember who she was when the book started, but by the end, she mostly came back. This was better than book 3 because the format was different than the previous books, so it wasn't quite as formulaic. But I still maintain that Avery made the wrong choice.  

Third in the Historical Romance Series

 The Lady Tempts an Heir by Harper St. George

This was stronger than book 2 and almost as strong as book 1. We are talking: giggling, smiling, kicking my feet. Max is everything you want in a MMC, not just for a historical romance, but for any time period. He was strong, smart, and not afraid to stand up for what was right. Helena was brave and independent and did not care about what society thought about her. Together they were magic. Max's parents were, specifically his father, were meddling, again. This time, Max was to get married or the project that August was working on for the docks was going to lose it's funding. Papa was using August to manipulate Max. He had until the end of the year to get married, or at least engaged. Enter Helena. They agreed to a fake courtship that would lead to a fake engagement, which she would then end when he went back to America, to keep his father happy and to help her secure the funds she needed for her shelter for fallen women. Well, in addition to falling for each other for real, they were both interested in the same property for their respective properties. They came to an agreement: she would get the church for her shelter and he would get everything else for August's project. They got "engaged" and then he had to leave sooner than expected because of a pending strike at the factory. Papa wanted to crush it and all hope from the workers, Max wanted to compromise. He got the board to agree to remove Papa and put him in charge; it helped that Papa was on bed rest from a heart attack. Max was able to compromise and quell the strike. Violet had her baby. Helena ended up going to America to see Max and he told her that he had time to think and while he mourned the idea of never having kids, he would rather be with her. I was convinced that the reason she never had kids with her first husband was going to end up being his fault and was surprised when it turned out that it was actually her that couldn't conceive. Helena and Max reconcile and two years later they return to England for the christening of August's son. This is also the first time they see Papa again, and he has had another small heart attack and learned that he has been too harsh and wants to make amends. Also, Caroline's husband (she's the one who started all of this back in book 1) dies in the bed of his mistress right after Helena and Max get fake engaged, so she's finally free. This was just spectacular. I love this series. I love this author. Anything she writes, I'm going to read.  

Second Holiday Book of the Season

 The Christmas Bookshop by Jenny Colgan 

While this was a "Christmas" book, it wasn't JUST a Christmas book. It was an actual story, with an actual plot; there was nothing Hallmark about it. Carmen gets fired when the store she works at closes. She is forced to move back in with her parents and can't find a job anywhere. Enter her *perfect* sister, Sofia. Sofia is a lawyer and one of her clients is struggling with his finances. He's going to have to sell his beloved bookshop, but will only be able to get any money for it if he can finally turn a profit. Sofia convinces Mr. McCreedy to hire Carmen. She is able to turn his shop around and turn a profit and get him to open up and heal some old wounds. But, it's not without some challenges. There is a self-help author who is just the absolute worst, but Carmen likes to flirt with him. There's the live in nanny, Sklyer, who makes the author look not-so-bad. Then there's Oaky, the real love interest. Plus, Carmen and Sofia mend their relationship. Carmen bonds with her nieces and nephew and supports her sister through the birth of her fourth since she goes into labor early and her husband isn't home from his business trip yet. This was heartwarming but had real stakes to it. The only thing I didn't like was that it seemed a bit unfinished. But, I have since learned that there is a second book, which hopefully answers some of the questions that were left hanging. I have requested the book and have high hopes for it!  

Cozy Mystery #4

 Icing on the Murder by Valerie Burns

This was much faster than the previous books in the series; it was a one day mystery. Maddy and company are at a bridal expo both as guests and vendors. Maddy entered herself and Michael into a contest to win a wedding planned by Serafina. Unfortunately, Serafina is the worst. It was obvious that she was going to be the murder victim. Three couples made the final cut and she calls each one up on stage for an "interview" to help her decide which couple she is going to work with, but really it's to embarrass them publicly since this is all a reality show for Serafina. The first couple breaks up. Maddy is second, and she takes Baby with her. Serafina uses footage from when she got stood up at the altar and Maddy handles it well. Michael shows up, takes down two security guards who are trying to get to Maddy because Baby is protecting her from Serafina, and then they continue the interview. We don't get to see the third couple. Serafina is killed with cake skewers that Maddy had and was seen with. There is enough circumstantial evidence to arrest her videographer, Lucas, which is what Patrick, her husband and killer wanted. Maddy and company were investigating and Baby ended up with a sliver of glass in his foot that came from a pair of prescription eye glasses. The only person who was wearing glasses then changed into contacts was Patrick. He was hiding in a closet and heard them figure that out. When everyone but Maddy left, he came out with a gun, made her get rid of Baby and then started monologuing which gave Baby time to go get Michael, who brought the rest of the police force (minus Trooper Bob who had a minor heart attack earlier in the story). Baby and Michael saved Maddy. Patrick got arrested. Maddy started making decisions about the wedding, proving what Michael knew all along; she didn't really need a wedding planner. I love a cozy mystery and this series is so much fun. Light and fluffy with the right amount of suspense.  

Holiday Book

 Write Before Christmas by Julie Hammerle 

This was a cute Christmas story. Not quite a Hallmark level, but close. My favorite thing about it was that the main characters were in their 40s, which is not something you see very often in romance novels, and is even more rare in a Christmas romance. My least favorite thing is that the chapter titles on the audiobook didn't match with the character names. The FMC is Dani, but when it was her perspective the chapter title would say Tanny. That is just sloppy production, especially since it had real people recording the voices and not AI, presumably it would have a real person doing post production and taking care of things like that. DANI is recently divorced and because she was a stay at home mom, she has no money and no skills. She is forced to move back in with her parents. Her 19 year old daughter has been living with them for college, so now everyone is under one roof. Her sister in law and her twins are also there for the holidays, but this story takes place over six weeks and there is never any mention of any of the kids going to school which is weird because college doesn't let out after thanksgiving and neither does high school. But, that's irrelevant to the story. Matt is a famous-ish author who is renting a house so he can finish writing the third and final book in his trilogy. He has to get it done before Christmas because season 2 of the show will be premiering and they are reading to start production on season 3. His assistant Jane encourages him to hire someone to cook and clean, enter Dani. They have met twice while she has been walking the dog and he's been running. She gets the job without realizing who her boss is going to be, which ends up being awkward when she shows up at his house the day after making out with him in the street. They decide to start seeing each other casually, knowing that it's only temporary, because he's leaving after New Years. She ends up being his muse and he gets the book done and it's his best work yet. But the studio is unhappy and they want a bunch of changes. He has to do a lot of rewrites. He breaks up with her because of said rewrites. She caters the premier party, arranges a new job with the head of the hotel, and then leaves. He realizes he doesn't want to make the changes, tells the studio he is leaving the project and writes the book his way, the tries to climb out of his window to get to her but falls and breaks his ankle. The star of the show puts him on the back of his motorcycle and takes him to her parents house, but her daughter answers the door and tells him she's out at dinner. Matt and the actor go to the hospital then the actor takes the daughter to the restaurant to get Dani and then the actor takes her to the hospital. They reconcile and return to the premier, where the daughter and actor are now making heart eyes at each other. The epilogue is one year later and it is perfect. The family has a gift exchange and Matt has it orchestrated with the entire family so that he gets the last exchange so he can make sure Dani gets the gift he wants her to have; an engagement ring.  This was everything you expect a Christmas book to be.  

Silly and Fun

The Big A.S.S. Party  by Susanne Valenti and CAroline Peckham 

This was a fun novella. Geraldine and Max are currently my favorite characters in this series so getting anything from their perspective is a treat. This book starts with the night of the Lunar Eclipse, when Max and Geraldine first hook up. The rest of the book basically takes place in the middle of book 5, since Diego is still alive. Geraldine plans a huge surprise party for the twins. She finds out that Darius is planning something for them as well and storms over to stop it and then invites the Heirs. Then, she finds out that Mildred knows and calls Max and makes him keep her away so they use Darius as bait and trap her so she can't get out and ruin it. The twins definitely think it's going to be a low key party and then have to pretend to be joking about not wanting anything big. Max and Geraldine are crazy about each other, but we find out at the end that Geraldine is engaged to Justin Masters. Max basically begs her to give him two years; they can be public or not but please let them be together. She agrees since she wants to be with him too. But, only until she has to marry Justin after she graduates. These two are going to destroy me. They desperately want to be together but can't for so many reasons, her engagement and their divided loyalties to the throne being the biggest.  This was a nice change from the horror that usually comes with a Zodiac Academy book.  

Lighthearted Mystery

 Twisted Twenty-Six by Janet Evanovich 

This had the signature humor that you expect from a Stephanie Plum novel, but it also had some existential dread that is new. The book starts with Grandma getting married and her new husband immediately dropping dead. Except he was in the mob and he was the keeper of the keys so now everyone in town is after Grandma. Stephanie has to do her job of rounding up people that skip on their bonds while also watching out for Grandma. Grandma ends up getting kidnapped at a bake sale and it's not anybody that they expected; it's the son in law of the dead guys first wife and neither his wife nor the first wife had any idea. Well, he was hired by two of the dead guys friends and instead of paying him off, they kill him because they're the mob. They're about to start working on Stephanie and Grandma, but they don't have any gas for the blowtorch so off to Home Depot they go. Stephanie is able to find the keys to the chains on the dead guy and get them out and they steal a concrete truck. Morelli and Ranger have called in literally everyone and the traffic chopper finds them first so all the cops converge on them. Grandma is returned home safely, still no idea where the keys are. The next day, the one remaining mob guy who didn't participate in the kidnapping sends Grandma a present, her dead husbands chair from the club. Dad is excited because it's a good chair, only thing is the seat cushion needs to be flipped and lo and behold, there are the keys. That's where the book ends, with Stephanie agreeing with Grandma that they will figure out what the keys open and what the treasure is. Normally these books have a neat and tidy ending, but this one is going to roll over into the next book. That's new and with how long this series has been going on, connecting the books isn't a bad idea.  

Nonfiction

 Beekeeping for Dummies by Howland Blackiston 

I want bees, but this made me realize that it's much more involved that I thought. The diagrams are helpful but because the pictures are not in color it's often hard to really see what you are looking at. While it did breakdown what is involved in caring for bees, it feels overwhelming. I think this is, for me at least, something that I would have to see in order to determine if I could actually be successful at it or not. I went through probably half to three quarters of a container of flags marking up this book and still feel unprepared to care for bees.  

Crime Series #4

 Cruel and Unusual by Patricia Cornwell

This was giving Green Mile vibes at the beginning. It didn't end that way, but that was what came to mind when I started it. We have a man sent to death row, given the electric chair, and they have to shock him twice. Then, his fingerprints aren't taken at the morgue. The morgue assistant is making mistakes, blaming on her pregnancy. Then, the guys whole file starts to go missing. Then, we have another body that is staged to look just like the one the guy killed. Then, the morgue assistant is killed and her husband is saying all kinds of crazy stuff to the paper. Also, the morgue administrator is acting shady. It's a whole mess. Lucy is in town and the FBI is letting her help with computer stuff. Mark dies off the page, so now the love interest is gone and his death is being used as a potential excuse for erratic behavior. Kay is being persecuted and they call a grand jury for her; nothing comes of that. And people from the jail start dying. Turns out, the original guy, who was executed, really did commit the first crime; but the now governor is trying to cover up his affair and so he had the jail release a prisoner they weren't supposed to and he's been blackmailing the morgue administrator and assistant, but then he kills the assistant and he killed the kid, and the people from the jail. He gets away but they know who he is. It was all very convoluted. This didn't seem to wrap up as nicely as some of the previous books, but it was still interesting.   

Not Continuing the Series

 Priest by Sierra Simone 

I have very mixed feelings about this book. Yes, I knew what I was getting into when I started it, I have read this author before. But, the New Camelot series had some plot to it, this didn't. Also, when I was trying to find out which brother was the focus of the second book I discovered that Tyler and Poppy get a novella and the description makes it seem like they aren't happy; like their marriage is stagnant. This made the book and its ending feel unworthy, like she was only with him because she liked the thrill of doing something (or someone) she shouldn't; she didn't like him she liked his job and the sneaking around of it all. I am not Catholic, but I felt dirty (not in a good way) with all of the sex happening in the church. When it was his church it at least made sense for the story, but when it was some random church that was not it. And the defiling of the holy objects. Again, not Catholic, but that was a bit much. I can see how some people would be titillated by the taboo of it, but it's not for me. Book two has a huge age gap which is one of my least favorite tropes, so knowing that I will not be continuing with this series.  

Fast YA

 A Thousand Heartbeats by Kiera Cass

I really enjoyed this book; it was fast paced, easy to digest, and a good pallet cleanser. However, it's been a while since I've read a true YA book and I kept forgetting that it was YA so I was frustrated with some of the decisions that the characters were making. Annika and Lennox were destined for each other, having met as children and both left an impression on each other. Now, as young adults they are leading their people in different ways; she is the princess and he is the real power of his people, despite being kept down by the current ruler. She gets engaged to distant cousin to secure the throne and Nickolas is lame. While they are out starting their engagement tour of the kingdom Lennox is leading his first Commission with a team that he didn't get to pick, but that ends up having a lot of skills that he can use. His plan is to sneak into the castle and steal the crown to boost morale, but when presented with the opportunity to capture the princess, he does that instead. Nickolas abandons her. Annika and Lennox have some banter before she is put in the dungeon and left without a guard. She knows how to pick locks and is able to escape. Lennox and crew are sent to find her; she is hiding in a hollowed out tree and he finds her, gives her food and his cloak, says he didn't see her, and lets her go. She returns home and tells her brother and father of her escape. Her father sends three soldiers to parlay with Lennox's area and they think that they are setting up a peace accord. Lennox takes them to the sea and makes it so that one of them, Palmer, can escape and free the other two and then survival is up to them. The peace accord is really an attack. Both Annika's brother and father are injured in the battle. Annika and Lennox fight each other until a hurricane rises then they take shelter together in a cave (this is where I forgot that it was YA). While in the cave they not only call a truce but start opening up to each other and fall in love. Once the storm passes they return to their respective sides; Lennox's people are happy to see him (they weren't happy to see their ruler) and Annika finds out her father has fallen ill and her brother, who got shot with an arrow, names her regent and immediately falls into a coma. Palmer returns and gives his accounting of what happens. Annika sends him to Lennox and Lennox immediately defects to Annika. He protects her when his side attacks. Nickolas is killed. Her brother wakes up, their father dies, brother runs away with the maid, leaves a note naming her Queen, she finds a book that proves that Lennox is the rightful ruler of the kingdom. They FINALLY figure out that the way to solve all of their problems is for them to get married and unite the two people. Epilogue is a year later with her having just gave birth. I spent a lot of time yelling at the characters to just make better decisions, but of course they couldn't because 1)they couldn't hear me and 2)if they could hear me they wouldn't have listened because they were like 18-20 years old and therefore incapable of listening. Still, I enjoyed this book, despite the characters making ridiculous decisions that just made their lives harder.  

Too Much Going On

 Fall I Want by Lyra Parish 

Fake dating? Love it! Insta-love? Hate it. Prophecies? Fine. Billionaire? Absolutely. This started out so cute; like giggling and kicking my feet cute. But it got so repetitive. And the insta-love just doesn't work for me. Autumn had dreams about her perfect man her whole adult life. And then in walks the physical embodiment of Mr. Dreamy himself. Their first meeting is bad, but neither can get the other out of their head. And then they keep running into each other and it gets much better. So much better that they get engaged after two weeks. You are both in your 30s. You need to have a bit more sense than that. And, after one day of being engaged you fly to Vegas, fly your families to Vegas, to get married and change your minds at the last minute and fly home to get married there. Luckily, his sister Harper has the gift of Sight, and saw this all happening and had the chapel ready for the venue change. (Just typing this out I realize how ridiculous it sounds). Both of their exes have tried to make scenes in the two weeks they were fake dating. Like a week later his dad gets remarried. Also, his ex-best friend is now his step-brother. And she introduces Nicholas (the new brother in law) to her bestie (Julie) but it's not an introduction as they already know each other. So, that how the book ends. This was a bit much. It didn't seem like it was I was reading it, but putting it down, I realize just how much was going on is a cute little fall rom-com. I'm not sure if I'm going to read any more by this author, especially if it's more insta-love. While that's not my top 3 most hated tropes, I'm not a fan either.  

And We Are Back to Bad

 Last Chance Rebel by Maisey Yates 

The previous book was so good and I was so happy that I decided to stick it out with this series and then this was just not it. I didn't like the premise. It didn't have a trope that I hate. It just gave me the ick. Rebecca was in an accident when she was 11 that left her very visibly scarred. Gage West was the cause of said accident. So, when he came back into town she decides he is the one man she wants. And he agrees. That was a weird way to deal with you trauma. Frankly, her brother Jonathan was the only person that had a logical response to them. This did solidify for us that Nathan West is a grade A asshole, if you didn't already know that from how he treated his illegitimate son. The writing isn't bad. And the books that are good are really enjoyable so I don't want to give up on this series, but the ones that are bad are just really not good at all.   

Egyptian Fantasy

 The Jasad Heir by Sara Hashem 

This. Was. So. Good. I'm obsessed. It had everything. Action, adventure, backstabbing, betrayal, yearning, passion, growth, longing, friendship. I laughed, I was shocked, I giggled and kicked my feet, I yelled at the characters for being ridiculous. The audiobook narrators did a fantastic job. Sylvia is the presumed heir to the Jesad throne. Arin is the heir to Nizahl throne. He picks her to be his champion in the trials, believing her to be Jasad but not knowing who exactly she is. Then, he trains her to not only survive the trials but to win. His best friend and most trusted guard hates her and brutally attacks her during a training session so he fires him. Arin's father listens to said guard and during the second challenge she is forced to kill a man from her past, to prove she is not from Jasad but she can't so he kills himself so she doesn't get exposed. Meanwhile, Sylvia and Arin are constantly together, constantly flirting. He tells her how his ability to detect magic works, about the curse that was put on him as a child but couldn't be completed which left him able to detect and drain magic. She lets him help her try to figure out how to use her magic, which is bound by invisible cuffs. Also, there are two separate factions of Jasad's who are trying to capture her so during the third task Arin sets a trap, and it works - mostly. The more aggressive faction actually turned the challenge into poison and Sylvia is the only one that woke up, thereby making her the victor. But, Arin was able to capture all of the attackers. Then, at the banquet, her friends, who were in glamors, were brought in and all hell breaks lose. She offers to exchange herself for them, and that's where she finally reveals her true identity. See, she had been fighting herself the entire time, but now she understands who and what she really is and who and what she is willing to fight for. Her claiming herself causes the cuffs to fall off and Arin is the only one who notices the cuffs. He is both impressed and devastated because he loves her and he has to pretend like he didn't know she was a Jasad all along. She gets captured by the other group that has been hunting her. The book ends with Arin's POV about how he's going to find her. This. Was. So. Good. I can't wait to find out how it ends!

This was A Lot

 Empire of the Vampire by Jay Kristoff

This book is the reason why I don't borrow physical books from the library during the school year. It took me two whole entire months to read this book. And I'm not sure how I feel about it now that I'm done. This book was A LOT. Like a lot a lot. It was dark and intense and there were times I had to put it down and turn on something light and happy to clear my mind. Gabriel is a half-vampire (his mother is human and his father was a vampire). He is inducted into the order of the Silver Saints and his job is to kill vampires. He falls in love with Astrid, the bastard daughter of the king who was sent to the same holy church as him, only she is to be a nun. She eventually becomes Prioress of the abbey there, but they are also in a relationship and when it is discovered that she is pregnant they are kicked out and excommunicated from the church. Gabriel is the best fighter the Order has ever seen and the most prolific killer. So, when they excommunicate him he loses faith in the order but not in God. Then, one of the sons of the five lines of the vampires shows up to get revenge on Gabriel because he killed his sister and he gets his revenge by killing Gabe's wife and daughter, but not killing them killing them; he turns them into vampires (potentially). So Gabe has to kill them and bury them. He sets out on a quest for vengeance, and he has no more faith in God so his silver tattoos no longer protect him. Along the way he runs into his old friend Chloe, a priest, a bard, a huntress and her lion, and a thief. One by one they are killed until it's just Gabe and the thief, Dior. Turns out, Dior is the key to killing the vampires because her blood can heal, but it can also kill the vampires. Chloe didn't die, we just thought she did when she fell into a river, but really she just got separated and they get reunited. They end up back where it all started, the church. Gabe's old mentor tries to kill him when Gabe finds out that they are going to sacrifice Dior and he won't let them. But Gabe is saved by a vampire and he rescues Dior; that vampire is his baby sister who he thought was dead this whole time. The book ends with Gabe trying to kill the vampire that he has been recounting this story to, but being unsuccessful and getting locked in the cell. The story was compelling and engaging. But so long. I think I'm interested in what happens next, but I don't know if I actually enjoyed the book.  

Second in the Historical Romance Series

 The Devil and the Heiress by Harper St. George 

This had the problem that I thought it was going to have, which was living up to book 1. I enjoyed it, but book 1 was so good that this was going to struggle and it did. Violet is the star now and with news that August has finally been married she thinks that her parents will be happy and let her get married to Teddy like she has planned. She thought wrong. They want to marry her to an Viscount, who she hated. Enter Christian Lee. He has a better title and the man her parents are considering her marrying, but he doesn't have land with mineral rights that he can include in the marriage discussions so they reject his offer. She overhears her parents plotting about the horrible man and she decides to run away and plans for it to happen at a lecture. He just happens to be there with her carriage and offers to give her a lift. They travel together. They start falling for each other. Now, when they have to decide to head toward the boarding house where she is going or to Scotland where he is going, she's asleep so he goes to Scotland. They end up in an accident and she gets hurt badly. He pretends they are newlyweds so they can stay with the local doctor and his wife and she can get care. When she wakes up he proposes for real and she accepts. Then they solidify their union. Then her brother shows up and confronts them and Lee tells her what his plan was. She leaves him and goes home with her brother. Obviously, they reunite and have a small wedding and a cold marriage. Then, she realizes she's pregnant. Meanwhile, he is working to prove to her that he does love her and is using his title to try to bring about change to women. She forgives him and they move in together and are happy. It was good, but not as good as the first. But I am still enjoying the series and cannot wait for their brother's book!  

Better in Audio

 The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo by Taylor Jenkins Reid 

Here's the thing, I love Fleetwood Mac but I HATED Daisy Jones and the Six. HATED. IT. So much so that I vowed to never read another book by Taylor Jenkins Reid again. The style wasn't for me. But I heard so many good things about The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, WITHOUT hearing who the author was, that I added it to my TBR. I had no idea what the book was about (I was expecting a murder mystery if we're being honest). So, I pushed play on the audiobook and when the narrator said the author I said "oh, shit" because I was CONVINCED I was going to hate it. I was so wrong. I think my issue with Daisy Jones was that I read it instead of listened to it, because I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have liked Evelyn Hugo had I read it. This format was the same as Daisy Jones: an interview; I don't like that format. But hearing it worked so well. I was enthralled from the beginning with this book. Evelyn Hugo is a compilation of multiple Old Hollywood starlets. You can see Elizebeth Taylor very obviously in the husband aspect and Rita Hayworth in the name portion. I liked how we saw Monique grow as a person because of her association with Evelyn; she really came into her own. The revelations about Monique's dad, I saw coming, but was surprised at how and when Evelyn decided to share them. As soon as she said Harry had a car accident and his lover was with him; I knew. That she kept the reveal until the end of her personal narrative was both well done and hurtful. The only thing we didn't get any closure on was the result of Monique's book; how much did she sell it for? I wanted to know what happened to her career after the fact, which I know is not relevant to the overall story of Evelyn Hugo, but Evelyn herself made it a part of her history. I will not return to and give Daisy Jones another chance, she's already ruined for me. But I will consider listening to other books by this author now that I know that they work so well in audio format.  

Crime Series #3

 All That Remains by Patricia Cornwell 

This was another strong mystery. The time frame was interesting; it was much longer, more spread out which made it feel more accurate to the actual pace of an investigation. This involved a serial killer who targeted couples. They were killed in the off season then discovered by hunters months later so that the bodies had either decomposed so much or been scavenged too much to determine a cause of death. The killer was meticulous and didn't leave any usable evidence. But, Kay and Moreno were determined and eventually got a break. Moreno is really growing on me; Mark is not. But I know that there has to be a love interest, so Mark is here to stay. I was surprised that Abby was killed; she wasn't part of the killers plan. I'm not a huge fan of the FBI character, the profiler. Finding out that the DNA didn't match because the killer had a bone marrow transplant was interesting, and using the brain matter to match was cool science. I like that this series is still so different from one case to the next and I will continue to read it.  

Finally a Good One in the Series

 Tough Luck Hero by Maisey Yates 

Up to this point the novellas have been the best part of this series. I'm glad I decided not to give up because this book was great. From the jump, it was spectacular. It starts with Lydia waking up, naked, in a hotel room. Colton is with her. Then she looks out the window and sees they are in Vegas. Then she notices the ring on her finger. That's right. This book starts with a drunken Vegas wedding. Colton was left at the alter, gets drunk with one of the bridesmaids, flies her to Vegas, and marries her. But, they can't get divorced or annulled because Lydia is running for Mayor. Which means this now has two of my favorite tropes: fake relationship and forces proximity. They decided to stay married until after the election, and Colton now has to be her army candy at campaign events. And she has to move into his house. And they have chemistry. Lydia has an awkward encounter with Natalie, his ex-fiancee, at the coffee shop and turns out Natalie was jealous of Lydia because she was convinced that Colton was interested in her because of their chemistry. Also, Natalie left him at the alter because she cheated on him, but she was still hoping to talk to him and that they could get back together. But, then the relationship turns very real for Colton; Lydia is fighting it. On election night his father has a stroke and everyone heads to the hospital. Jack shows up and the long lost brother, Gage, shows up. Lydia leaves. When Colton notices he goes home too after telling everyone that they are adults and they can manage without him. He and Lydia have their confrontation and work it out. Fast forward to a year later; she is trying to surprise him but can't; she's pregnant. This was so much better than the previous book. The introduction was stronger. The tropes were better. All around, it was a better book.  

New Historical Romance Series

 The Heiress Gets a Duke by Harper St. George 

The only reason this book is not 5 stars is because of how it started. Otherwise, I ate this up. Giggling. Kicking my feet. Jaw hanging open looking a fool. Grinning so hard my face hurt. I loved this book. It starts with Camille, a New York heiress, being married off to an older Duke so her new money family can get some "respectability" from the old money families. Enter August and her younger sister Violet. They are convinced that their parents would never do something like that; August works for her family business and is valued for her insights! They go to London to visit Camille and she convinces August to go with her to see a bare knuckle boxing match. Enter The Hellion. Nobody knows who he is, but he is hot. He's doing well and August gets pushed into the ring and the Hellion saves her. He asks her for a kiss for luck, and she gives it to him. Then the fight continues and the other guy has a knife in his boot and stabs him in the leg. Enter Evan, the Duke. He is in dire straights and has a meeting with his solicitor and his mother and they both agree that he has to marry. His mother proposes Violet Crenshaw and agrees, thinking that it's the woman from the fight. They go to a dinner and when he meets the family, turns out his "intended" isn't who he thought it was. Afterwards, his mother asks him what the thought of Violet and he flat out tells her he wants August instead and she's just like okey dokey. Mommy dearest doesn't care who he marries as long as she is rich! A few days later there is a ball. Evan never goes to balls, but he goes to this one and seeks out August. August knows that if he dances with Violet that will mean him declaring his intentions for her so she asks him not to dance with her. He doesn't. He waltz's with August then leaves. This sends everyone into a tizzy. August is confused as to why everyone is looking at her and one of her friends has to spell it out for her. Then, he convinces her to bring her family to one of his estates for a week so she can see what their marriage would really mean. And they start to fall for each other. Then, he finds out that he doesn't actually have to get married, that his father bought a mine in Montana and his old solicitor was pretending to be working for him and was stealing from him, but he has millions. So, he calls off the wedding because he thinks that's what she wants. But, they are both miserable and they get talk it out and get back together. This book had everything and frankly I'm a little afraid to read book two because I enjoyed this one so much, that I don't know if the second can live up to this!   

Cozy Fantasy

 Impractical Magic by Emily Grimoire 

Despite this being a book about witches, the main character was so very relatable; the never feeling like you are enough, the desire to prove yourself, the uncomfortable family dynamics. Even if you aren't that person in your family, you know someone who fills that role. But, the book was not just angst, there was plenty of humor. And the yearning! So. Much. Yearning. And, in the midst of the yearning, Scarlett couldn't stop sticking her foot in her mouth. The secondhand embarrassment. Her mom was horrible to her. Nobody wanted to take Scarlett seriously but Nate. Nate was everything. Scarlett's jealously over Polly was valid. The only thing I didn't like was that it felt like we never figured out how the magicians were able to capture one of the Scarlett as a Starling birds. We know that they did, but how? Otherwise, this was so well done. Nate with his vigil and his trek to the bridge. But him never going all the way there for over a year was so frustrating! But, him never giving up hope. He always believed in her, more than anyone else. He was everything. And her being the one to fix everything was exactly what she needed to be able to heal herself. I really enjoyed this book and will be reading the rest of the series.  

YA Fantasy - The Sequel

 Shadow Coven by S. Isabelle

I'm not sure if this book was actually better than the first, or I was just paying more attention to the beginning of the book so I liked it more. It stared with a review of all of the characters and their powers/skill sets which was good since I didn't pay attention to that in the first book. This is the summer after book 1, and how the girls are dealing with it. Thalia goes home to deal with her past and realizes it wasn't what she thought it was. She gets drugged by one of the remaining siblings of the kid she killed and they realize they were both in the wrong, which is hard for the other girl to handle and they know they aren't done with each other. Thalia's mom kills her dad after Thalia discovers that her dad didn't always hate witches. Jailah has a meeting with the head of all witches and she should be excited but she's realizing that's not the life she wants anymore after Logan shows her a picture of blackthorn under the school. Jailah is working with her former tether to help her get her magic back and bucking the rules. Iris realizes that Matty isn't her tether, it's his sister. But, Matty is her rune keeper and also they are definitely in love but don't want to admit it to each other (Matty is willing to admit it, but Iris isn't ready). Logan is seeing the ghost of the wolf-boy and now she can control the wolves. Trent is really a witch but his mom hid his powers to protect him from Jailah's mom. A lot happened in this book, but it didn't feel finished. It seemed like there was going to be another book, but there is nothing on her website to indicate if or when another book is coming.  

Crime Series #2

 Body of Evidence by Patricia Cornwell 

The science of this was still interesting, but the stereotyping was a big issue and it's easy to say it was a product of it's time and that it didn't age well, but compassion never gets old. The mystery was intriguing and I was surprised about the killer. I was shocked that one suspect, who ended up not being the killer, ended up killing himself. How the killer was able to trick people into letting him in their house was clever; he worked for airport and would steal their bags, then would deliver it to their house when it was "found" and be admitted inside to drop it/them off. He almost got Kay that way, but she realized she gave her work address and was ready to fight back, plus Moreno was watching the house. I was disgusted by the secondary story surrounding Beryl; the contents of her book, that she was abused as a child and that the woman she was living with knew the man was abusing her but did nothing about it. That her slimy lawyer (publisher?) was trying to intimidate people to get his hands on the book so he could spin it any way he wanted to after her death. That whole plot was unnecessary and irrelevant to the murder mystery. There was a lot of extraneous material in this book, but the science and mystery were good.   

Fall Book

 The Pumpkin Spice Cafe by Laurie Gilmore 

This was super cute. I can see why people say it has Gilmore Girls vibes, but really it's just a small town, it's way more Hallmark than anything. Jeanie and Logan are adorable together and both so relatable. I can only imagine the fear, anxiety, and stress Jeanie experienced when she found her boss dead. So, when given the opportunity to move to a small town and run her Aunt Dot's cafe of course she would jump at it. And I can understand why Logan would not want to be anywhere near the town when it seems like, from his perspective, they were always in his business. Their chemistry was great. The stakeout leading to a cat was adorable. I new it was Norman that was doing the sabotage, but his reasoning was bonkers. And then when Dot finally returned from her trip and confronted him about it! They had both been pining after each other for YEARS and neither had said anything!!! Annie and Hazel are hysterical and I cannot wait for their books! I will definitely be reading the next book in this series!  

The Novellas are the Best Part of This Series

 Hometown Heartbreaker by Maisey Yates 

If this is book 3.5, then why was it attached to the end of book 4? This was a novella so it was supposed to be fast paced, but this was fast paced. Casey is a drifter who ended up in Copper Ridge when her car broke down. She's living in a tent at the camp grounds and working at Ace's bar. Aiden is as straight laced as they come and they meet for the first time when he has to pull his alcoholic father out of the bar and drag him home. He leaves his father's keys with her and says he will be back for them tomorrow. She borrows the car because it'll be much faster than walking back to her tent. But, when he shows up for the car the next day, it's gone. Just as he's trying to figure out what to do she pulls in. They agree that he will meet her after work, she will follow him home in the car then he will take her back to her place. When they get to his parent's house his mom invites her in, feeds her, and offers her the use of the trailer on the property when she finds out she living in a tent. When they get to the tent it escalates. She ends up staying with him instead of in the trailer. After about a week things are going well until his dad's truck gets repossessed and they get into a screaming match about the farm. She tells him she loves him and he doesn't say it back and basically tells her she doesn't know what love is. She leaves. He is miserable. He goes to the bar, apologies, and asks her to stay. He stops taking care of his parents and they sell the farm. He gets a rental and goes to work for the Garrett's. Fast forward 2 years later, they are still together. He bought some land so they can build their dream home and the book ends with him proposing.  Insta-love isn't high on my favorite tropes, but I don't hate it either. It works for a novella.  

Hate Reading at This Point

 One Night Charmer by Maisey Yates 

This book had 2 of my 3 most hated tropes: age gap and pregnancy. Which is a shame because parts of this book were really enjoyable, but I couldn't get past how much I HATE those two tropes. Sierra leaves home because she finally finds out about Jack and she can't look at her dad anymore. She moves in with her brother and his fiancee who everyone hates (some of the best parts of the book were everyone taking trash about Natalie). She gets a job at Ace's bar, because Jack asks Ace to do him a favor. She works hard so it's not a big deal, but they have a lot of chemistry, which is a problem. He is opening a new restaurant, more upscale, and is struggling with some of the design elements and she starts helping him (the initial get together over alcohol tastings was great, until it led to said pregnancy - which I saw from a mile away). Her going to the bigger town with her sister for the pregnancy test was a great scene, all of the scenes with her sister were good. She and Ace fought, a lot. He had lots of issues to work out. Him working them out in a church, with his father, was nice, but a little too easy. If I wasn't so mad at the book I probably would have like how easy that was, truthfully. I have truly enjoyed only one of these books and at this point it almost feels like I'm hate reading them; but the one I enjoyed I really liked and I keep hoping for that same spark because obviously it can happen.  

Cozy Mystery #3

 A Cup of Flour, A Pinch of Death by Valerie Burns 

This cozy mystery series is continuing to be enjoyable. We have multiple people from Maddy's past show up starting with a frenemy who is truly more of an enemy but in all truthfulness she did her a favor when she stole her fiance. And now she's here to try to make Maddy look bad, except it's not working because Maddy likes her new life. But, she does hit all of her insecurities when she posts a photo with Michael. Then, after arguing with Maddy, she turns up dead and Maddy is the only suspect. We also find out Elliot, the ex-fiance, is here with his new girlfriend (another frenemy). And, we have an art guy who has a package for Maddy from her aunt. But, he is killed before he can give it to her; and Maddy and her father are the ones that find the body. Well, turns out Elliot's new girl doesn't actually like him, she was really in love with the art guy; so we can cross her off of the suspect list. Michael got to punch Elliot, which was satisfying, but unfortunately for us, Elliot wasn't the killer; turns out he broke up with Maddy and dated her friend because said friend told him to do it to humiliate her and in hopes she would come crawling back to him and he was pissed when she didn't (that's what led to him getting punched). The Admiral is in this book a lot, and he has a bit of a flirtation going with Carson Law, the milliner and namesake of the fanciest hotel in town. We also find out that Aunt Octavia didn't use Chris Russell as her attorney, she used his father, but he died right before she did; luckily she had her will and all of her other documents iron clad and Chris couldn't mess with them. When Maddy was cast as a suspect he wanted her to sign a document saying he could make decisions for her should she be arrested, but she wouldn't sign them without reading them, which pissed him off but was smart on her part. Turns out I was right and he was super shady. He was the mastermind behind all of the bad things that have been happening in the books and he killed Octavia. But, now it doesn't matter. Maddy ends up in the hospital and when she waked up she proposes to Michael and he says no because of all of the medication she's on. Also, because he was going to propose to her, he even had a ring. She says yes.  I love a cozy mystery; it's a fun, fast read, and such a good palate cleanser. It gives you a mystery but is low stakes.  

Cozy Found Family Fantasy

 The Teller of Small Fortunes by Julie Leong 

I had no idea what this was going to be when I started it and yet it defied my expectations. This is a cozy fantasy meets adventure meets found family. I laughed. I was worried. I was surprised. I was constantly entertained. Tao has the sight, both small and greater. But she refuses to use the greater sight because you can't change it no matter what you do. So, she tells small fortunes. And she is constantly on the move because she is running from the Guild. She stops in town, does her thing, then when she is leaving she gets stopped by a fallen tree and is doing a truly horrible job of breaking it apart when two men appear on the other side. She, of course, is fearful but they help her. She tells Nash that he will give his daughter a kitten and she will name it after a pirate and he doesn't believe her because they are searching for his daughter who has been kidnapped. The three of them agree to travel together and he sees her fortunes start to come true which makes him hopeful. Then, they meet a baker (her goods are delicious but ugly) and she joins them. So the four of them are traveling when a Guild messenger finds them and invited Tao to join, but she declines. Then he finds her in another town and they have to run away. Then they have to do a quest to find a treasure, but it turns out it's a phoenix egg so they leave the treasure. Then she decides to join the Guild to use their resources to help Nash find his daughter because they haven't been having any luck. Turns out the Guild wants her because they think a war is coming; it's not. She reunites with her mom and step-father. She and her mom clear the air about what caused her to leave in the first place. Her friends break into the Guild to save her. She had already struck a deal that she wouldn't stay, but they could call on her again and she could go in peace. So she keeps traveling. They get to another town and find his daughter; she wasn't kidnapped but had instead been playing and fell asleep on a boat and by the time she woke up they were long gone and she didn't know the name of her town so a lady took her in and has been keeping her safe. He takes her home and all of them go to his house. His daughter wants to be a traveler and his wife agrees, so now they are a band of 6 and they travel from town to town and Tao tells small fortunes. This was so good! I will definitely be reading more from this author!  

Historical Romance #3

 The Lord I Left by Scarlett Peckham 

I enjoyed this more than the previous 2 books in this series. There were times when I was full on cackling at the shenanigans. I did not like Henry in the previous book, so I was not convinced he was going to be a compelling MMC, but I was VERY wrong. He was complex. And Anne was a delight. I love it when the roles are reversed and he is the innocent and she is the experienced one and this was so well done. The only issue I had was with the ending because he's not titled or independently wealthy and we are led to believe that she will not be a governess at a whipping house now that they are wed, so what are they going to do for money? Yes, she is writing music for what's her name from book 2, but that can't be enough to live off of. So, the ending was too open ended for me. This series has gotten better as it has progressed.   

I'm No Longer Mad

 Capone III by Jahquel J. 

I owe Capone an apology. I'm sorry I ever doubted him. Because he absolutely stepped up in this book. I didn't think book 1 or 2 was that slow, but compared to THIS? Those book may has well have been a turtle moving in reverse! This was one. thing. after. another. It did not stop, but it didn't feel like action for the sake of action.  In no particular order because I can't decide what's most important! We finally got some resolution on the Timmy situation and while I don't like that Jayden is the one that killed him, I understand it. I appreciate that Capone has been making him learn how to handle weapons, but also that everyone is in agreement that this life isn't for him and that he's still going to college. And when they finally got there, he called Tasha and made her listen?! That was cold blooded. Ella is still the dumbest character in the book, but I don't hate her as much as I did. Yes, a lot of their problems were her fault; she is the reason that C.J. almost got killed, all because she refused to listen and decided to take him out of Capone's house. And then this dummy had been sharing her location with Dante, who Trilla killed (his own nephew!) - all because he couldn't manage to kill a child - and then Trilla used said location sharing to break into Capone's house and attack Erin, Jayden, Jo, Ella, and C.J.; because this child isn't traumatized enough. We met two new characters: the Carters, a drag racing couple who make friends with Capri and end up helping Capone out when everyone is being chased and shot at and they need new cars. Ella and Erin make peace. Capri decides to divorce Nahiem and then he ends up in the hospital and it's real bad for him for a while, but he survives. He and Kincade aren't friends anymore but they are still able to work together. Capri and Kincade are taking things slow. Speaking of Kincade; he's crazy. Like crazy. Capone killed everyone in Trilla's family, including his mom, who was a federal judge, and then he and Kincade showed up at Trilla's house and Capone gave him two choices: 1. you use your own gun to kill yourself or 2. Kincade will slowly strangle you, but not kill you, and keep bringing you back so he can slowly remove your fingers and whatever else he wants, before killing your. Trilla picked the gun. Erin had the baby; a beautiful little girl with down syndrome they named Capri Jo and are calling CeCe. The book ends with Cappadonna getting out of prison and Capone telling him that he's tired of being in charge and he wants to spend time with his family and he's going to turn the empire over to him. Everything about this was so good. The audiobook narrators did a fabulous job. The writing had me on the edge of my seat. Cappadonna's books aren't available on hoopla or libby (yet) and it has me stressing out because I need MORE!  

At Least it was Free

 Thirsty by Lucy Lehane 

I won this book from a goodreads giveaway. This book contains one of my least favorite plot devices, secret keeping. When I entered the giveaway, the blurb did not make that clear, otherwise I would not have entered because I can't stand that trope. But, since I won the book I felt compelled to finish it. The writing was fine. I didn't form an attachment to either of the main characters, but two of the side characters were fun. Charles writes an advice column, anonymously. He's the Wise Old Crone. Except, when he started his column supernatural beings didn't exist, publicly. Now, they have come out of the shadows and that's all that people are writing to him about. And they think that he has the inside track because his moniker is a crone, which implies a supernatural being. So, when he moves back to his hometown and runs into his old friends ex-boyfriend, and he discovers that said ex is in fact a vampire he asks him for help. Well, the ex is holding a grudge against him because Charles is the reason that she broke up with him. Lorenzo (the ex) decides to help Charles with his thesis, because he told him he was a grad student and that nobody would ever read it, but in reality he is going to try to find ways to get even with him. Only, his roommates end up liking Charles and they invite him over places and then the two of them spend time together and it turns out they are attracted to each other. Then, neither can figure out what's real and what's not. Then, Charles convinces Lorenzo to host a gathering of all of the "outcasts" and see how many other supernaturals are also feeling lonely, and Charles' dad shows up and exposes him as the Crone effectively breaking them up. Well, Charles has been getting offers from big publisher for it and as a grand gesture he not only doesn't take the offer, he gets complete ownership and gives it to Lorenzo so he knows it was real. They get back together and with his roommates and Charles' agent turn it into something new and unique for the supernatural community. It was fine; parts were funny and even charming but it all felt tainted because of how much I hate the secret keeping aspect. If you don't mind this trope, then the book would probably be really good; but it colored every good thing this had going for it.   

YA Fantasy

 The Witchery by S. Isabelle 

I was clearly NOT paying attention at the beginning of this book because I completely missed the introduction to the characters and their powers. Whoops. Therefore, I spent a good portion of the book trying to figure out who was who and what they were doing. That really detracted from the story, which was my fault. But, the audiobook narrator was very robotic, so much so that I had to stop and check to make sure that it was an actual human and not AI.  I know that this was YA, but it felt both very young and too old at the same time, which can be on brand for high schoolers. But, it hurt the flow of the story. Sometimes they acted more like they were in college than high school, then they would do something that reminded you they definitely were still teenagers. Logan was the most age appropriate character; she was confused about her powers, wanted to fit in, and found a boy she liked. We never really got any answers about Trent; who was he promised to? What kinds of powers does he have? It seemed like he was going to be the wolf boy, but he wasn't. That the witch that Iris saw as a mentor ended up being bad really messed her up, and is going to impact her relationship with Matthew. That his twin became a witch at the end of the book is interesting.  I will listen to book 2, mostly to see if any of the unanswered questions get answered, but if it doesn't start pulling things together I will not be continuing.  

I LOVED This RomCom

 The Spanish Love Deception by Elena Armas 

This book had some of my favorite tropes: fake dating, enemies to lovers, only one bed. Aside from office romance, what's not to like? The banter was top tier. The yearning. The longing. I was smiling and kicking my feet for most of this book. If you're going to tell me that some Clark Kent looking man with the body of superman wants to be my fake date to a wedding in SPAIN and he wants me to be his date to a charity gala where I have to spend his money to make sure that nobody else wins him in a bachelor auction, count me in. Immediate yes. The way their communication improved throughout the course of this book. And when he told her, 'when I kiss you, I want you to know it's for real' or whatever he said? He was making sure she knew from the jump that he wasn't pretending. He was only pretending because that's what she needed in the moment. He was so down bad for her. He started learning Spanish for her specifically for this trip. The only thing this needed was for them to end up engaged. And when she FINALLY confronted her ex! She needed that. That was the thing that finally allowed her to really acknowledge and accept her feelings for Aaron. I ate this up. I don't care. I was down bad for Aaron. Whatever Elena wants to write, I'm reading. I'm not sure how she's going to top Aaron for a love interest, but I'm going to buy it.  

First in a Crime Series

 Postmortem by Patricia Cornwell 

There was a lot in this book that hasn't aged well. There was a lot in this book that was interesting, science wise. I do not like thrillers or true crime, but I do like a good mystery, cop show, and crime novel. I think this is going to fit that bill. Kay is a medical examiner. We are starting with a serial killer. The cop, who she is not a fan of, initially suspects the husband. We are led to believe it might be the District Attorney, who Kay is casually dating; it's not him but he's bad news and they break up by the end of the book. Suspicion is cast on her 10 year old niece, Lucy, because of a computer break in; turns out that was her boss, and a plucky reporter was able to get him fired. The real culprit was a 911 operator who liked the way the callers sounded. Each victim had called once before for some reason and that's how he picked them. He had maple syrup urine disease, that's how they found him. And, he showed up at Kay's house to kill her. The cop was watching her house, on a hunch. I could not believe that disease was real. I looked it up on either the Mayo or Cleveland Clinic; it's real. The science aspect of this book was interesting, despite the fact that everyone was smoking and a doctor should know better. I will read the next book before making up my mind about this series.  

Prequel

 This might be a prequel, but it is attached to the end of the third audiobook. For a novella it was the strongest of the series. We have a quites divorcee who is trying to get her life back on track with her coffee shop. We have a guy who is only back in town to settle his dad's estate. They knew each other in high school; she was the smart girl who was his math tutor, and he was the bad boy. They both had a crush on each other but never did anything about it. Now, they are older and both know it's only temporary but willing to act on it. Then, while cleaning up some papers at he finds an apology note of sorts, that changes everything for him and he decides to stay. So, they get to give this a real shot.  Their break up and reconciliation was rushed, but it was a novella so that's to be expected. Otherwise, this was enjoyable. But, it definitely should have come first instead of after book 3.  

Better Than Book 2

 Bad News Cowboy by Maisey Yates 

This was better than book 2, but it had some tropes that I don't like (older brother's best friend). Kate has a crush on Jack, but she doesn't realize she has a crush on Jack. Then, she's out at the bar flirting with a guy and Jack doesn't like it and he punches the guy. Jack agrees to teach her how to flirt, just so she can know what she's doing for when she joins the pro rodeo circuit next year. And then it's downhill from there because she gets her first kiss from Jack. And then he agrees to help coach her. And then they work on a charity event together. And they decide to have a purely physical relationship after Jack has a bad encounter with her father, who has had nothing to do with him his entire life and he decided to open up to Kate. Then Jack falls in love with Kate, but she can't handle it. And when he takes her out on a date and confesses his love to her, it ends with Connor punching him in the face in front of the whole town. Then Liss has her baby and he shows up to the hospital because he's that kind of guy. Then he pays back his father the money he took which means the NDA he signed it no longer valid, but he doesn't really care if people know who is dad is or not. Oh, and Kate wins the charity rodeo event. And then, she goes to him and apologizes and they get back together. It went about the way I expected it to go.  

So Unique!

 Midnight on the Celestial by Julia Alexandra 

I won this in a goodreads give away and I'm so glad I did. This is one of the most interesting and unique books I have read in a while. I was expecting it to be dystopian in nature, which I love, but it's not. It's a fantasy dystopia mix with a YA romance thrown in. I am assuming I got an unedited proof, which I hope gets cleaned up before publication because I would hate for the grammar police to destroy this book over a few misplaced commas and typos. So, in this society some people are born with abilities, called morphias. Our main character can bring back the dead. When you turn 18 you are given a trial to see if you and your power are a danger to society or not. She fails. There are two choices, have your power stripped from you or go on board the Celestial and over the course of four years try to earn a retrial. The catch: you only get one chance at retrial and if you fail your powers are stripped on the spot. She opts for the ship, even though her family doesn't want that, so she runs away to it. Her first day is rough, but her roomie is nice and helps her out. Her last name carries a lot of weight and she gets a good job on the ship because of it, but she had a rough go at first. She makes friends, and has a blossoming relationship. But, the ship is having issues. You can't be out of your room at night or bad things happen; a girl is murdered toward the end of the month and she is set up to take the fall but the family she is serving just so happens to be there and vouches for her so they can't blame it on her. And, she ends up being one of the people to earn a retrial. Except, it's not a trial, it's an extraction. So, she uses her powers to attack the bad guys and they are able to get off the ship and she and her friends go to her house to her dad. Well, he's actually a really bad guy. He's trying to start a war and he's using the morphic prison to do so. He even faked his son's death to send him to the prison so he could lead the army. Her older sister has been working to stop him and breaks her, her friends, and their brother out of prison. Brother makes a potion that wakes up all of the prisoners because daddy dearest has been keeping them drugged. They capture him and turn him in, but he eventually escapes. But, the plans that she and her boyfriend have been making to build a school for morphics have come to fruition and it all ends well. I was hooked from the first page. I would read more books from this world. I want to know what happens next. Give me more.  

Korean Mythology

 The God and the Gumiho by Sophie Kim 

I think this would have been higher if I had read a physical copy of this book instead of listened to it. I am not familiar with Korean mythology (this is only the second book of Korean mythology I have ever read and both have featured a nine tailed fox, so that is as far as my knowledge goes). If I had a physical book I would have (hopefully) had an index, a dictionary, a cast of characters or something so that I could have flipped back to remind myself of what the different creatures were, their characteristics, and abilities. Instead, I was floundering if they were just named and it was not a fight scene. Aside from that, it was very interesting; I am a huge mythology fan so that was my entire reason for picking up this audiobook.  I loved the relationship between Hani and Seokga the Fallen. I love a grumpy x sunshine (or in this case reverse it since I put her first and she was the sunshine) and they fulfilled their roles wonderfully. But, they were also both really well developed characters. She was not just a nine tailed fox, but a notorious one at that. He was on a quest for redemption, but basically only going through the motions as he hadn't really learned anything until he met her. She didn't pander or treat him like a god, and I think that was what endeared her most to him. His brother, despite being the "good" god was really all that virtuous since he was just going to let them lose the big battle. The only reason he got involved is because he wanted what she had; a relationship with his brother. When I started this I did not realize that it was the first in at least a duology, but I will definitely be listening to the second book. I can't wait to find out what these two get up to next!  

This PMO

 Zodiac Academy: Cursed Fates by Susanne Valenti and Caroline Peckham 

I had hoped to get this book read before school started, but no such luck. Instead, it took me basically the entire month of August to read. And it RUINED MY LIFE for the entire month.  Tory and Darius are feeling the effects of her rejecting the mating bond and are pining after each other. And worse than that, they finally talk out their issues. He stops being horrible to her and he actually realizes what he did, and just how bad it was. One way that he tries to make it up to her is by going to the mortal realm and finding her ex-boyfriend who left her to drown and beating him up and forcing him to apologize. Then, he and the other heirs find their apartment and get their stuff; he realizes just how bad their lives were before and hits him like a train the stark differences and what he was doing and trying to take away. Tory realizes she can remove dark coercion when she helps his mom, then she is able to help Xavier, twice. First, she removes his dark coercion, then she records herself pushing him out of a window and posts it, outing him as a Pegasus, so Lionel can't keep him locked up anymore. And, he can't hurt him either. Darius is done for; he is so in love with her. Then there's Darcy and Lance. They are happy as can be. But, Kylie still thinks she is sleeping with Seth so she tries to prove it, but instead catches the two of them, and Lance gets arrested. Darius gets him a fabulous lawyer and they have a great plan, then Lance burns it all down to try to protect her and gets himself sent to Darkmore Penitentiary for 25 years. The one time Darius is able to sneak her in to visit him, he's a jerk to her so she can move on with her life, except that's not working. The book ends with Lionel and Clara trying to force the twins to be on his side, but Darcy is able to break away from the shadows after Clara has been using her to attack the heirs; she burns away the shadows with her phoenix fire. But Tory is forced to become Lionel's Guardian and has to protect him against her will. And the book ends with Darius and Tory on opposite sides. Oh, and we find out Diego is a nymph and he dies trying to protect Darcy. I need a break from this series because I am so mad at it. I still like it, but this is too much and I can't look at these characters any more. They keep doing the dumbest things. Max and Geraldine are the only characters behaving in a way that makes sense. I need a break from all of them and their nonsense.  

Cozy Mystery #2

 Murder is a Piece of Cake by Valerie Burns

This series is still so cute. Maddy is such a good lead for a cozy mystery; she is funny without being vapid, likeable without being a pick me, she is not afraid to make mistake and learn and grow and she's not an irritating know it all; you want her to succeed, which is not always the case in a mystery or cozy mystery. I adore her! And her bravery is inspiring; she just up and moved to a completely different state where she didn't know a single person in the first book like it was nothing. In this book we get introduced to a new character who is immediately unlikable, and it turns out he's the sheriff's estranged husband, not her ex-husband, her still husband. So, when he is killed (because he was the worst) Maddy and the Sheriff are the top two suspects. Then, the horrible jerk of a mayor is also killed by the lawyer to "protect" Maddy. And, we still have the whole, 'someone close to me isn't loyal' clue left by her dearly departed great-aunt to deal with. So, that's suspicious. This was cute and fast paced and I can't wait to see what comes next!  

Historical Romance #2

 The Earl I Ruined by Scarlett Pechkam 

This was both better and worse than the previous book. Better because I love a fake relationship. Worse because both characters were so stupid. So. Stupid. Just desperately trying to ruin their own happiness and for why? For some self-righteous idea that they were helping the other person. They were ridiculous. I ate it up. The third act break up pissed me off. But he came in and rescued her and they FINALLY realized that neither was pretending to love the other. Then, her brother showed up to save the day and talk some sense into her. And instead of this lavish wedding, which she stood him up at, their real wedding was a small, intimate affair. I can't wait for the next book in this series, as long at it keeps the momentum that this one had.   

Adorable RomCom

 Best Hex Ever by Nadia El-Fassi 

This. Was. So. Cute. I love a cute, witchy, rom-com. Dina and her cafe are delightful. Scott and his museum job are a surprise; you don't expect a MMC to work as a curator at a museum! Together they were magic (pun intended). I loved this being set around Eric and Emmy's wedding and them both trying to play match maker; so cute. I was so frustrated with Dina; I kept yelling at the book to "just go tell mommy so she can fix it!" but she wouldn't listen to me! I adored the house and how it was sentient and was working to help things as best as it could. When we FINALLY got mommy involved, I was surprised but not SURPRISED that Dina was the one who put the hex on herself. That the binding spell didn't take because Rory lost consciousness was interesting, but Dina's guilt being why she was cursed was interesting; and that it wasn't just guilt over the binding spell, but fear and guilt. For being a cutesy little rom-com it was very deep. Her making a grand gesture at his big event was sweet, and Emmy and Eric continuing to do some real wing men work was adorable. I liked that the epilogue was farther in the future and that it sets up a book for Rosemary. This was so cute and I will be reading more from this author! 

African Mythology

Masquerade by O.O. Sangoyomi 

The audiobook narrator struggled with her male voices but her overall narration was spectacular. The amount of research that went into this book to make it immersive and historically accurate was superb. My only issue that dropped it from a 4* was the ending was predictable; I wanted the ending to happen, but I saw it coming and I ended up being disappointed because I wanted it to happen in a different way. (I listened to the audiobook so I never saw the names spelled and will not disrespect the author or the characters by trying to spell them). FMC is a blacksmith and she is approached by what she thinks is a vagrant, but she is kind to him which impresses him, so he has her kidnapped because he was actually the ruler of their land and he wants to make her his wife. Once she knows this she goes along willingly because anything is better than the life she has been living, but she has one condition: she will not marry him until they can find her mother and she can be there for the ceremony. He agrees and he sends men out to get her mother. One problem, she is missing. And now blacksmiths all across the land are abandoning their forges. Also, his mother is mean and manipulative and is trying to stop the marriage. His first wife the only friend she has, until she doesn't. Because there is a slave uprising and first wife is stuck in the city and she forces him to go after her, but it turns out first wife was the one behind it and she pushes FMC back into a burning building. She has to cut off her hand to escape when she finally wakes up, and when she is walking into the town they are having a masquerade, for her death. But MMC sees her and realizes the body they found wasn't hers. Then, she is finally able to meet with her mother and gets caught and he thinks she was secretly plotting with the blacksmiths so he makes her kill her own mother to prove her loyalty. They finally get married. Then he goes off on a fight that should have been fast, but he is gone for a long time and she starts taking over his duties and the generals listen to her and value her. She is the one to come up with the plan to save him when they finally find out where he is. And the day he gets back, she kills him because he disregards her and her ideas. She gives him a chance, but he basically says you're too pretty for strategy and she tells him I'm the one that saved you and he says thanks now we can go back to the way we were, so she slits his throat. She walks into the throne room, takes his seat, and the generals all fall in line. There was a lot more action, adventure, and political intrigue, but that was the gist of the story. Her revenge on his mom was killing him. We knew she was going to take power, I just wish it had ended differently; that something more had gone down with his mother, that she hadn't slit his throat. Something. This middle and the build up were great, but the finale left me wanting.  

Rushed Ending

 Brokedown Cowboy by Maisey Yates 

I do not mind friends to lovers, what I mind is a rushed ending and this very much had a rushed ending. Liss and Conner have been friends for years so when she needs a place to stay he lets her move into his house. Then he starts to realize that she's very attractive. She has found him sexy forever but has never acted on it. Then they kiss and it's great until he feels guilty the next day and vows that it can never happen again. And she has to convince him that it would be good for him to get back on the horse, so to speak, and that it's just physical and they can still be friends. So he agrees. And the freaks out. And then gets over it. Except she loves him and can't keep it just physical. She ends things with him and moves out. Eli wins his race for sheriff and proposes and then gives Connor a talking to because he's finally come back to life since his wife died. Oh, and Eli knew that Connor was going to be a father but he never said anything because he wasn't sure if Connor knew that Jessie was pregnant when she died and was waiting for Connor to bring it up, but since he wasn't going to now was the time. And Eli tells him that it's okay to move on and that he needs to man up and go get the woman he loves. And Connor does. And Liss just takes him back. Just like that. And they decide to get engaged in the same conversation. Like, what is that? The ending was rushed and I was made. I get that you have loved him for over half of your life, but you were literally just crying over him and now it's fine? No. It's not fine. I liked book 1, but this pissed me off. I hope book 3 goes back to being cutesie and fun of I will be giving up on this series because this seriously irritated me.  

First in a Cozy Mystery Series

 Two Parts Sugar, One Part Murder by Valerie Burns 

I LOVE a cozy mystery. The audiobook narrator struggled with her male voices but her overall narration was great. I listened to almost the entire book while setting up my classroom and then finished the rest once I got home and got ready for school by packing my lunch and things. This was so cute. Maddy inherits her great aunts house, bakery, and giant dog with the catch that she live there for a year and work the bakery before selling everything. But, it seems like the entire town is conspiring to get her to break the will and sell her shop, house, and dog. Then the mayor turns up dead, stabbed with a knife from her shop. Then her shop has a fire. Then a shop owner from across the street turns up dead in her store. The sheriff knows Maddy didn't do it, but is having a hard time figuring out who did. We have two love interests: Mike the vet, and the real estate guy who seems slimey but she keeps giving him a change. Except, then he tries to kill her because he's the killer! So, no more love triangle. I will be reading the rest of this series. This was a great start!  

Still Mad part 2

 Capone II by Jhaquel J.

I listened to this book in two days and the majority of it was while I was setting up my classroom for the new school year. I was SWEATING it was stressing me out! The same narrators were back for this book as book 1 and by the end of the book Erin was the only character I liked. We pick up right where we left off, with Jayden and Joy being shot. Jayden survives and Joy, who seems like she is getting better, dies from a blood clot. That was horrible! Capone moves Erin and Jayden into his house and changes the code so Ella can't just come and go whenever she feels like it; her chapters were the least enjoyable (she's so jealous). Ry was getting on my nerves; she was so caught up in herself and her NBA player boyfriend she couldn't even be there for Erin and Jayden. Capone pays Jo's salary so she can be his full time nurse and she ends up moving in as well when her boyfriend gets jealous of all the time she's spending there and their relationship ends. Capone proposes to Erin and she says yes, and she's pregnant. When she goes to tell Jayden we find out that he already knows; Capone asked for his permission to marry her (which is pretty cute). We find out that Capri has been cheating on Nahiem with Kincade! And then Kincade takes her out to this bar and he gets high on pills and almost gets her kidnapped and sex trafficked, but she had her wits about her and was able to get them back to safety. At that point she realizes she really does want to give it another shot with her husband, but Tasha shows back up. Turns out they didn't actually kill her son Timmy and she buried some stranger and was just pretending at the funeral. She finds Capri and Nahiem while they are at dinner with one of Capri's friends from law school and tells Nahiem that he's going to be a father and that's where the book ends.  I am on hold for the next book and cannot wait to find out what happens because right now, I'm still not convinced about Capone but he's growing on me a little. Erin is still my favorite. Jayden and Jo both need something good in their lives and I can't wait to see what's going on in the soap opera that is Capri and Nahiem!  

Historical Romance

 The Duke I Tempted by Scarlett Peckham 

I was pretty irritated with Archer through most of this book. The ending wrapped things up nicely, but for most of it; he didn't deserve Poppy. Yes, you have a tragic backstory. It sucked that your father was so horrible that he started a fire to kill you first wife and son, but that doesn't mean that you can keep secrets from Poppy after deliberately pulling her into your life. You are the one who decided a marriage was the only option. You are the one who bought her a house. You are the one who built her a nursery for her plant business. Then, you are the one who flirted and charmed her and changed the rules and decided to go back to strictly business. You can't have it both ways. Was she wrong to run into a burning building to try to save some papers? Yes, of course. But, you were wrong to tell her that she has things other than plants to live for when you have literally given her nothing and taken everything else away from her. Maybe, if you had talked to your WIFE about things instead of hiding them from her, you wouldn't be in this position. Then, they had a fight and he stormed out of the house and she her the address so she followed. When she wasn't admitted she broke in and discovered the source of his scars and fled to the house he built for him. And he decided the best way to show her that he loves her is by drawing up divorce papers. He's. So. Dumb. When they finally started to talk to each other, they were able to learn she's not opposed to being his dominatrix. In fact, she went to the club to learn how to do it properly. COMMUNICATION ARCHER! I was irritated, but I will probably listen to book 2, just not immediately.  

First Reads

 For The Ring by Jennifer Hennessy 

I won this from a goodreads giveaway and while it doesn't say so on the cover, I'm pretty sure it was an unedited proof because there were some grammar issues and some typos. I really hope those get taken care of before the actual print and release date because I would hate for tiny issues like that to bring out that to bring out the grammar police and cause this book to get lower reviews than it deserves. I LOVE baseball, which may have clouded my judgement a bit, but this was great. I was smiling and giggling and kicking my feet during most of this book. I can't believe I was teased with the only one bed trope and then it wasn't acted on! How DARE he be a gentleman and sleep on the couch! This book starts out with Frankie (Francesca) working analytics for the Dodgers who just lost the world series to the Yankees and Charlie, the catcher for the Dodgers playing his last ever game. She sees him having a moment after everyone else has left and despite the fact that she thinks he hates her, she goes to him and they walk out together. Then, he says, now that we don't work together anymore, and gives her the best kiss of her life. Fast forward two years and she has moved to New York to work for the Eagles (fictional team) as an assistant general manager and he is now the coach of the team. They have to work together to build a team that can compete, the problem is that the Eagles finished dead last the previous year and the best pitcher in the world is from Japan and they may not be able to get him. Charlie messes up a deal with one of their current pitchers but afterwards they are on the same page. She takes him to Arizona to watch three kids from their minor league team play, which is a huge part of her plan to make the team great, and once he sees them in action he's all in. Then they work on their pitch to Kai, the Japanese pitcher. There's only one problem; his agent. She revamps the pitch; they do it from Charlie's house, then take him to Arizona to meet the three kids and they get on like a house on fire. But the agent doesn't like it so he calls the board and she gets fired. But, Kai doesn't care and fires his agent. He's ready to sign with the Eagles, but he learns that Frankie has been let go and that changes his plans so they frantically call her in and beg her to come back; there's only one problem: the Yankees have already made her a great offer. Charlie says, he supports her in whatever she decides. She goes to the meeting with the Eagles and they offer the GM job, which is her mentor, Stew's, job. He says he will still be around as an advisor but after his heart attack he needs to start slowing down and besides, she's ready. The book ends with her and Charlie heading down to Spring Training with the Eagles, greeting Kai and the other 3 kids.  This was delightful. And while I am a Joey Votto girl through and through, Charlie was peak Johnny Damon (I'm aware Damon wasn't a catcher, but that's his vibe). Jennifer Hennessy has a fan in me!