Billionaire Romance

 The Fine Print by Lauren Asher 

This book had two of my top 3 least favorite tropes: age gap and secret keeping, and yet for most of it I found myself giggling and kicking my feet. Zahra was so kind and optimistic and deserved every good thing in the world. Rowan was understandably closed off and suspicious. Together, they made each other better and pushed each other to grow. I understood Rowan's desire to figure out if Zahra liked him for him and wanted to know if she was going to try to blackmail him or something for the first kiss, so his alter-ego made sense. But, it didn't hurt any less when she found out. I loved the friendship he developed with her sister; that was the best thing that happened to him. I was pissed when he broke up with her in the hospital. Are. You. Kidding. Me. He deserved every bit of pain and suffering he was feeling and every hour of lost sleep. The only thing that could have possible saved him was that final presentation and doing the right thing. Martha was the real MVP during that, for the both of them. Zahra telling off his father was just icing on the cake. He needed to grow up, and Zahra and Ani helped him do that, but more, the different relationships he built with the sisters helped him to come to terms with his relationship with his father which is what he needed. I was mad off and on during this book, but I enjoyed it and will be reading the next book in the series.  

Middle Grade Spin Off Series

 The Lords of Night by J.C. Cervantes 

I had originally planned on giving this 2*, but then I discovered that it is the first book in a spin off series and had to reevaluate my assessment of this book. I was reading this and I knew that it was labeled as book 1, but there were a lot of references to things that had happened previously and I had no knowledge of and it was super frustrating because here I was thinking that this was the very first book period and the story was moving like they were already established characters, but (to me) they weren't. Turns out, they were and I missed the memo. I would have liked this much more if I had read the previous series and knew the back story. That being said, Renata is goodhearted and wants to be a good leader and take care of her friends. Edison was fun and I liked his fact dumping. Monty was so excitable, but in a good way. The quest was high stakes enough to keep you invested without making you worried. I wish I had read the previous series so I had more information on the Maya gods; that was interesting and I did not know enough to understand. I do think I will read the initial series then go back and reread this book so I can fully understand the characters and the world that has already been built.  

Second in a YA Trilogy

 It's Not Summer Without You Jenny Han 

This was fast paced and easy to consume. We got answers to questions from the previous book. The characters were fully formed and so frustrating; they were believable teenagers. Conrad irritates my soul. He complains about Belly being a kid, but then he acts just like a kid. She asked him to prom and instead of saying no and holding his ground or sucking it up and going with her and having a good time because they were dating he had to be guilt tripped into going by his mom! Then, they get to prom and he ruins her night and acts so horrible that she has to break up with him. And then, at his mom's funeral he's back with his ex-girlfriend! Then, he has the audacity to be upset when he sees her kissing Jeremiah. You can't have it both ways. Yes, he is upset about the death of his mom, but so is she. I do not understand what she sees in him (teenage me does, but adult me is the one reading this book and she doesn't). I am so irritated with this book but I cannot wait to finish the series.  

Mafia Romance

 Promises and Pomegranates by Sav R. Miller 

This is marketed as a Hades and Persephone retelling but it's not; it's a mafia romance. There are elements that reference the myth and it was definitely influenced by it, but it's not a retelling. Also, the trigger warnings were lacking because don't nobody got time to go to your website to look up the more detailed list of warnings. I also had no idea this was an age gap romance when I started and age gap is in my top 3 most hated tropes, but I do love a fake relationship/forced proximity so this was rough for me. Kal and Elana were caught on tape in an intimate situation and are being blackmailed so her arranged marriage is called off and instead she is forced to marry Kal. He is also using this as his way out of the mafia. But, her dad doesn't tell her mom so mommy leaks to the press that she was kidnapped and now everyone is searching for her and she's falling in love with her husband. But her younger sister has a ballet recital that she wants to go to so her takes her home for that and it's a mess because when he was younger he had an affair with her mother and mommy spills the beans at dinner; she doesn't take it well. But, she also realizes that mommy has been horrible to her her whole life and while she was packing mommy admits to being jealous of her own kid so Elana slaps her and leaves. Elana and Kal finally get back together when she storms back into his house with the annulment papers in hand; he was giving her the choice of whether or not to be with him and when he explains why he didn't come after her she forgives him for everything. He goes to a meeting with the cyber company that's been investigating his blackmailer and it turns out it's the kid sister of the head of the company and she's been doing it because she needs his help. Also, we find out that the initial blackmail file wasn't from a blackmailer; he did that because he wanted Elana. I don't like that; it's yucky. After all of the everything else in this book, that was by far the worst. This was not for me, but it set up book two nicely. I'm not sure how I feel about that. Because I'm not sure I enjoyed this book, but at the same time; I'd like the set.  

Middle Grade Fantasy Adventure

 Fireborn by Aisling Fowler 

This had action, adventure, betrayal, and friendship. The twists were shocking. The growth was earned. I really enjoyed this book. Children show up at the Hunting Lodge for a variety of reasons, but when they get there they give up their names and their history and dedicate themselves to the cause of protection. They get numbers and are put through rigorous training so that they may one day become Hunters themselves. Well, nobody likes Twelve; she's weird and an outcast. Nobody, that is but Seven, who is undersized and not very good at any of the drills. Twelve and Five get into another altercation which gets them sent to the dungeons right before goblins attack and Seven is kidnapped. Twelve decides she is going to rescue her since the Hunters won't and the Guardian, a huge stone dog, refuses. Except, the Guardian, aka Dog, does end up showing up and they team up. They are followed by Five and Six and the four of them go on a quest to find Seven. They encounter cavedwellers that bite Five; their bit is poison and Five is in a bad way until they save a creature from a giant spiderweb. That creature has way more magic than their beast book says and they save Five then take them to a magic tree that sends them back to Seven. Well, that ends up being back to the Lodge because the goblins have taken over, but they don't realize that right away. Twelve gets taken to the dungeon, again, and she thinks she's getting rescued by the weapons master but it turns out Victory (weapon's master) has been working with the goblins this whole time! Twelve and crew manage to rescue the other Hunters and they put up a good fight, but not good enough, until the fire sprites show up and ask Twelve why she's not using her powers. Turns out Twelve is a fire elemental; this was hinted at throughout the book and if you saw the foreshadowing then you already knew. So Twelve learns how to harness her fire and attacks the goblins and saves the day, but Victory gets away. They are saved. The Hunters say that Five, Six, and Twelve are the youngest to have ever become full Hunters, so they get names, but they still have to go to classes because they still have lots to learn. Twelve picks Phoenix, as suggested by Seven, because of her fire powers. Other things that happened during the story: Five has a crush on Six, but it's not reciprocates; Six and Seven are siblings but they had to pretend not to know each other because of the whole give up your past thing; Seven can see the future. This was a good adventure story that I would recommend to my nephew and niece. I will read the next book in the series.  

Poetry

 The Hill We Climb by Amanda Gorman 

I watched Amanda Gorman perform this live so when I found out that it was being published I had to have a copy. It was interesting to see how she envisioned the formatting and the organization of her inaugural poem. I love that I get to have this piece of history that I can return to whenever I choose. It is beautiful and inspiring and I need figure out a way to incorporate it into my AP African American Studies class.  

Not a Lot of Plot

 Officer Off Limits by Tessa Bailey 

Not great, not terrible. This had more plot than the first book in this series at least, and while the main characters had backstories they still didn't feel fully developed. I liked Story and Daniel, but I wanted them to spend time actually getting to know each other. The best part of this book was when they both figured out that Jack was secretly trying to set them up the entire time. Otherwise, they were all sexual attraction and not a lot of substance. This is mindless fluff, which isn't bad.  

Buddy Adventure

 The Mostly True Story of Tanner and Louise by Colleen Oakley 

This was so cute. Tanner and Louise were so good for each other. Tanner, 21, had to drop out of college because of a devastating injury that caused her to lose her soccer scholarship and her parents can't afford the rest of her tuition. Louise, 84, is recovering from hip surgery and needs help getting to places and other such things. Louise's children hire Tanner to move in and take care of Louise. Then, there is a news story about Patricia who is wanted in connection with a jewelry heist 40+ years ago and the age progression looks just like Louise. But Tanner is the only one who sees this. Meanwhile, Louise gets a call from George saying Salvatore is getting out of prison and will be coming for them. So Louise convinces Tanner to drive from Atlanta all the way to California and shenanigans ensue. Tanner thinks they are running from the cops. Louise doesn't know this until halfway through the trip and sets her straight and tells her they are going to visit her dying friend George. Then, when they are stopped for a meal they both see the news report and Louise realizes that oh, she actually is being chased by the cops and they are looking for her very identifiable car, so they leave it with a waiter as a tip. Then Louise calls August, the neighborhood handyman, who is also smoking hot (and how happened to stand Tanner up earlier in the week, before she and Louise left) and he flies out, rents a car, and drives them the rest of the way. They get to the nursing home, but visiting hours are over so they go to a hotel for the night. The next day we find out that George is really a woman and they bust her out on a day pass. When they get back to the hotel Salvatore is there. Tanner tries to shoot him, but has terrible aim. Then the FBI shows up. Turns out, he wasn't looking for stolen jewelry he was looking for his daughter. That's right: Louise aka Patty and George used to run an underground bettered women's network and their last case was Betsy, Salvatore's wife. Only, she told him she was leaving the night it was supposed to go down and he beat her so bad she when to the hospital and died two days later, after she gave birth to a daughter; Jules. So Louise pretended to be a nanny and then stole the baby. They move George out of the nursing home and in with Louse, but that doesn't last long as both women need more care than they can get at home so they move into a home together and Tanner gets a job at the care facility. Tanner gets pulled aside at work and told Louise is dying and go see her, and she's putting lipstick on her because that's what she would have wanted when she wakes up and gives her a present. Turns out, the jewelry heist she was accused of? She actually did do it and she just gave Tanner the 37 caret diamond. And that's basically where the book ends. This was great. I loved the growth of the two characters and their relationship. I will definitely read more from this author!  

Nonfiction - Memoir

 Becoming by Michelle Obama 

Nonfiction is not my preferred genre, but I am trying to step out of my comfort zone and this was a perfect book for that! Michelle writes like she it talking to a friend, and so I have decided we are friends. She gives you a glimpse of her life growing up in Chicago, then touches on college (frankly, I would have liked more from this part of her life), before focusing on her adult life. We get to see lawyer Michelle, dating Barack, job changes, parenthood, and how she rectified her goals with Barack's political ambitions. She owed us nothing, but gave us insights into her life anyway. Her hopes, her fears, her triumphs, and her dreams. I was devastated when she said she and Barack did not like Les Mis and walked out at intermission (it's one of my favorites). The appreciation and admiration that I have for her has only grown from reading her memoir, but now I have facts and not just feelings to back it up.  

First in a YA Trilogy

 The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han 

This was a very fast paced, easy read; I finished it in like 3 hours. Belly is very relatable as both a character and a narrator; her self-absorption, which makes her a bit unreliable actually makes her more reliable and believable because that's true to a 15 going on 16 year old. Her crush on Conrad, jealousy over her best friend Taylor, confusion of the changing nature of her friendship with Jeremiah, love-hate relationship with her brother Steven, and desire to be liked by Cam while liking him back but not really liking him back were all so achingly familiar even if you never had those exact same experiences, yes you did. And then anguish over Susannah was devastating. I didn't like the last chapter; it came out of nowhere. Conrad always kept her at a distance and now he drove 5.5 hours to see her? Why? And why don't we get any closure about Susannah? Aside from the last chapter which felt out of place, I really enjoyed this book and am glad that I bought the entire boxed set.  

Paranormal YA - Book 2

 Crush by Tracy Wolff 

This book did not keep my attention very well; there were parts that felt unnecessary to the story overall and caused it to drag. Then, there were parts that had my undivided attention, which is why I will continue to read the series; when it's good, it's very good. Xavier was unnecessary. Why include him and build him to be a challenger for Cole just to kill him? Why put Macy though that? His entire character was unnecessary and the emotional impact could have been achieved with an already established character. Why did it take them so long to figure out that the Unkillable Beast was a gargoyle? And why is he chained up? They better go back in a later book and free him. Also, Cyrus sucks. I like Flint's mom. Sports ball was fun, but we didn't need so many pages dedicated to it, especially not twice: once for the tournament and then again for the challenge. Hudson really grew on me; the truth about him and what happened, at least from his perspective is very different from what was released to the public. Is Grace ever going to get her memories back? Because that was irritating. Especially with that ending. What do you mean Hudson is her mate? Up until Cole forcible broke the bond Jaxon was her mate. So, what is going on? This cliffhanger wasn't that edge of your seat, making me desperate to find out; but I am curious. Again, this series has too much filler for my liking, but when it's good I really enjoy it.  

Rom-Com

 Beach Read by Emily Henry 

This was a cute, fast paced read. January and Gus are both writers, but they write different kinds of books. They also went to college together and now end up being neighbors when January moves into the house her dad bought so he could cheat on her mom. Now her dad is dead, her boyfriend broke up with her because he couldn't handle her emotions surrounding her dads death and the discovery of his affair, and she's broke. She and Gus make a bet, he will write a romance and she will write literary fiction and whoever finishes and sells their book first the other will write a blurb and promote it. Except during this process they fall in love. And his romance isn't exactly romance and her literary fiction doesn't not have a happily ever after. I loved both of these characters, how they learned to communicate with each other and come to terms with their own insecurities. They were real, their fights were real. This was my second Emily Henry book and it will not be my last.  

Trash, With Some Plot

 Zodiac Academy: Shadow Princess by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti 

 This book was huge but unlike the previous book it spanned a few months instead of a week and things actually happened to move the plot along. A little. Darcy and Lance are together. Lance thinks they are Elysian Mates but nothing ever comes of that. Except Seth catches them and starts blackmailing them. And because they were keeping it a secret from Tory to protect Lance, she didn't know and now she can't know. And Seth is the WORST. And this causes a rift between Tory and Darcy for almost two months until Lance mistakes Tory for Darcy and then they FINALLY tell her everything. Darius and Tory hook up but are still antagonistic to each other and that's super awkward because the four of them have to have super secret shadow practice because the twins have the shadows after the ceremony in the previous book. Geraldine hooked up with Max on the Eclipse but she could care less and aside from the Lance/Darius scenes is my favorite thing about this book. The Twins are pretending to be Fire Harpys and have flying lessons with the new Tarot professor: Gabriel Nox. For Christmas the Twins go to their palace and start learning about their family and their history. They also have a really fun snowball fight with the Heirs, and everyone gets along wonderfully. Maybe the guys should stop being horrible and start working with the girls! Then, there is a Nymph attack and the girls have to stop hiding their Order forms and completely transform into Phoenixes to save everyone and it's great. Lionel was late to the fight; I definitely think he orchestrated the attack and he orchestrated the attack that killed the King and Queen. Darcy and Lance bring Clara back from the Shadow Realm. Darius and Tory were supposed to help them but the stars wanted them to have a magical moment and find out that they are Elysian Mates and Tory rejected the bond because Darius has been horrible to her and the only reason he was apologizing was because he found out about the bond, not because he was sorry. So now they both have black rings around their eyes and are Star Crossed. Meanwhile, Clara attacked Lance and left him for dead; Darcy sends up a beacon and screams for help and that's where the book ends. I'm so irritated with this book. I enjoyed it. I'm going to keep reading it. But, I'm irritated. The characters are so dumb. They need to stop being dumb. 

Slow Start

 The Rose Society by Marie Lu

This book started really slow and I don't know if that was because it's been a while since I read book one and it took some time to get back into this world and these characters or because this book just started slow. Like, I was not enjoying it and was wondering why I was reading this series, it started so slow. Adelina is dark, not ever morally grey; she is fully the bad guy in this book but you can't blame her for all of her decisions. None of the Elites are good people at this point. However, Raffaele figures out that their powers are destroying them from the inside out and Adelina does not care. But, he does not share his findings with anyone else either. The Prince is back from the dead, stronger than ever, and his life is tied to Adelina's but he has left her to rejoin with his Elites, he does this after finding out what she did in order to be the one he was tied to. This was messy and dramatic once it finally got going. It was a slow start, but the finish was strong enough to keep me interested in how the trilogy ends.  

Too Cute

 Assistant to the Villain by Hannah Nicole Maehrer 

This was adorable. I have watched some of the TikTok videos that this author made before she started writing this book and they are funny and adorable and I had such high hopes for this book because of the skits; I was not disappointed. Evie is the sunshine assistant who accidentally gets hired to work for The Villain. Except, he's a bad guy with morals. And as we learn more about him, he might not be quite so bad after all. In fact, the King might actually be the real bad guy in all of this. But, I digress. Trystan, aka The Villain, is crazy in love with Evie, but 1) he's The Villain so he can't have feelings and 2) she's his assistant and he won't cross that line. But, everyone but her can see it, so that's fun when it gets pointed out for them. We meet his siblings and realize that there is more going on than meets the eye; I can't wait for more of that story in book 2. We meet her family, where she is the sole breadwinner because her sister is too young and her father is ill. Except, we find out at the end that he's not ill; no, he's working undercover for the king and has just refused to take care of his family. In fact, he's the one that tried to see her to the blacksmith, which put her in need of employment in the first place. She dealt with both her father and the blacksmith by the end. This had surprises, twists, turns, heart, and laughs. I cannot wait to read book two!  

Cute Contemporary Romance

 Second Chance Summer by Jill Shalvis 

This was a cute, fast paced read. I normally do not like second chance romance or miscommunication as plot devices and this book had both, but it worked. Lily moves back to her hometown because she got fired from her job when her boss had her leak a celebrity client to the press. Now, she is face to face with her teenage crush all grown up. One problem; her dead sister told her that something was going on with her and said guy. So, she refuses to let anything happen with Aiden because she is convinced that she is the reason that Ashley is dead (she's not). But, she and Aiden are electric together and he has had a thing for her since before she left town. They finally hash that out and he had no idea that the dead sister had a crush on him. Then, she does in fact come to terms with idea that it's not her fault that her sister died or that her dad had a heart attack at the funeral. And Lily and Aiden are able to be together. This does not tell us which sibling is going to be the focus of the next book, and that's okay because I will happily read all of them!  

Made for TV cont (again x19)

 Fire and Bones by Kathy Reichs 

We have a change of scenery for this book; Washington D.C., and new characters. The crimes were interesting, arson. We also had an unexpected body in a bag. I liked Ivy, she was a good foil for Tempe and they ended up building a good friendship that I would like to see continue in later books, but I know won't. I did not like the medical examiner, she was manipulative and uncommunicative. I was surprised that the fires were because of a generational feud; that was interesting. That the third fire was set by the cheating boyfriend was not; I knew it before Tempe did. I was not pleased with Ryan in this book, but at the same time, he wasn't wrong; she does get distracted and put cases before their relationship and it needed to be said. The last few books in this series have been much stronger than some of the middle books and as of now I am entirely caught up on this series. Overall, I would say this was a good series to dip my toe into the crime genre; interesting and detailed but not too graphic.  

Should Have Been Shorter

 Murtagh by Christopher Paolini 

It has been over a decade since I read the first four books in this series (I'm not counting the novella of fairy tales since that didn't advance the narrative). I loved this series when I first read and I'm not sure if time or nostalgia has warped my opinion, or if my tastes have changed that much, but this book was not giving what I wanted it to give. It was overly wordy in a lot of areas (not Victor Hugo levels, but there were big unnecessary chunks) and I found myself bored with it. Murtagh is an anti-hero, but you want to like him and this book focused solely on him but instead of being on the edge of my seat, desperate to find out what was going to happen, I kept flipping to the end of the book to see how many more pages I had left. Murtagh, again, finds himself tied to the whims of someone more powerful than himself. And again, he has become their killing machine. He ends up in this position because he is 1) an outcast and 2) trying to find answers to what is going on in the realm. He does finally break free from the enchantment with the help an Urgal and a member of the cult who has become disenchanted because she realizes the leader is perverting their religion. This book was 660 pages when it could have been half of that. And it does set things up for another book, which despite my frustration with this book, I will absolutely go out and buy when it comes out. Also, I got this in hardcover and its literally as long as my forearm and I can barely hold it with one hand, so it was frustrating to read. And, since then they have released a special edition with sprayed edges and I feel like I had to go through all of that torture and I didn't even get the pretty version out of it. 

Better than Book 3, but NOT as Good as Book 2

 Twisted Lies by Ana Huang 

This was better than book 3, but still not as strong as book 2. Again, it was hard to see yourself in the worst parts of the main character. However, Christian was a spectacular book boyfriend. That he had been down bad for Stella for literal years before they had actually met was crazy. So much so that for a hot second I thought he was the stalker, but I got over that quickly because that didn't make sense with his personality. I LOVE a fake relationship. It is one of my top tropes. And the move from fake to real *chefs kiss*. He was really good for her too, helping her find her courage and learn to stand up for herself and chase her dreams. The betrayal she felt was brutal. But, him using that to finally learn to express his emotions, and then sharing them with her. That her stalker was someone she knew; someone she even liked and halfway respected was crazy! That he took out his second in command immediately for selling secrets just to go save her was not unexpected, but that it was Kage that was selling him out was. The best part of this book was the bromance between the four guys. I cackled every single time they were together. I need a whole book of just them.  I'm not sure I would recommend this series, but I'm glad I read it.  

Trash. I Love It.

 Zodiac Academy: The Reckoning by Caroline Peckham and Susanne Valenti 

Again, a lot happened in this book without a lot actually happening. This book is over 600 pages and takes place over the course of one week. The friendship between Lance and Darius continues to be the best part of this series. Darius is insanely jealous of Caleb and Tory. The fact that he still refuses to call her Tory gets on my nerves. Max as gone up in my opinion and Seth has gone down. Lionel is the worst and needs to be taken out. I love how Tory reacted to Xavier; he needs to be protected at all costs. Diego is getting on my nerves and I'm ready for Lance to destroy him. Lance is everything, but his jealousy has got to go. The sneaking around is going to come back and bite him and Darcy, badly. The whole shadows thing is terrifying and nothing good is going to come from that, but at least the twins can remember it. They are phoenixes. That has got to be important since that order is extinct. Obsessed. Can't wait to read more. This is poorly written trash and I can't get enough.  

I Ate This Up!

 The Prince & The Apocalypse  by Kara McDowell 

I devoured this book; it was so cute. Wren is on a class trip to England and it's going horribly; she's sick for most of it. On the last day she is determined to do something right (according to her schedule and her sister), but the restaurant is closed. She runs into a cute guy, who turns out to be the crown prince. He is trying to hide from the paparazzi and she helps him escape. He gives her his phone number and tells her if she needs any help in the next eight days, to call. She misses her flight and at the airport finds out that a meteor is headed to earth and it's an extinction level event. She can't get home; she keeps getting bumped from her flights or they get cancelled, so she calls him. He agrees to meet her and they come up with a plan, but it is going to result in them traveling across Europe together. Meanwhile, the palace is looking for him. She gets arrested in Paris because someone saw them together, so she pretends to be meeting him, and shows the cops "clues" he leaves him in his instagram, so they think she's crazy and they let her go. They end up at his best friends house so he can get a fake passport. They end up at his ex-girlfriends house; she gets drunk for the first time, but she also learns about the bunker. They end up getting married in Greece, but she thinks it was fake because she thought he used his fake name. They finally get to his house in Santorini, and she called him family to save him. The pilot that was supposed to be there to get her home wasn't there, then she showed up and Wren made it home. Then the world doesn't end, but the Queen dies and Theo is now King. She gets some mail with no return address; it's their marriage certificate. He signed his real name. She is married to the King of England.  I ate this up! I will be reading the follow up! 

YA Steampunk

 Etiquette & Espionage by Gail Carriger 

I really wanted to like this book; the title is so cute, but I just didn't. I didn't realize it was steampunk when I started reading it and I was never really able to immerse myself in that. Sophronia gets sent to a finishing school, except it's not just a finishing school; it's also a spy school, and she's surprisingly good at it. The person that was sent to pick her up was not the Headmistress, but one of the older girls who was supposed to be on a dual mission: pick up two students and a prototype, but while she achieved the first they got ambushed for the prototype and the older girl handled it poorly so she got demoted. She had also already hidden the prototype; she was planning on double crossing the school for money and a rich husband, but we didn't find that out until the end of the book. Sophronia makes friends, helps her classmates, and excels at school. She also foils the exchange and recovers the prototype and returns to school at the end of the book. While there were parts of the book that were entertaining, it was not enough to make me continue on with the series.