This has a tantalizing premise, a vicar who’s also a rake, but reading it was a dreary slog. The amount of plot in Wild Wild Rake almost reached 1990s crazysauce level, yet it wasn’t a compelling read. I found most of the characters in Wild Wild Rake confusing, or unlikable. The hero was both. At the beginning of the book, Devan is a dissolute gentleman who’s cultivated a reputation as a womanizer, and publicly loathes … Continue reading Wild, Wild Rake by Janna MacGregor →
Trigger warning (for the book, not the review): There is a teen pregnancy in the book and the father and sister are trying very hard to make the girl have an abortion when she doesn’t want to. I don’t know how this resolves, because see the DNF grade. But if you have triggers around emotionally abusive families or around other people deciding your healthcare, proceed with caution. I picked up this book because it looked … Continue reading Mix Tape by Jane Sanderson →
Hard Chrome is a contemporary romance where a woman returns home after the death of her dad to take over his auto body shop. The shop also specializes in classic car restoration and repairs. Unfortunately, I realized early on this was going to be a perfect storm of “No thanks” due to rude and judgmental behavior from the protagonists that was offensive and reminded me too much of people I try to stay away from. … Continue reading Hard Chrome by Vanessa North →
As someone who reads tarot cards professionally, I was excited about Tarot, a YA novel about a young woman named Anna locked in a Tower in the Land of Pentacles who escapes and flees to the Land of Cups. Alas, this book fails as an allegory, because it casts certain elements of Tarot in a villainous light in a way that is inconsistent with the actual nature of the deck. It fails even more so … Continue reading Tarot by Marissa Kennerson →
CW/TW: Sexual assault I’ve been a romantic suspense/mystery/thriller mood lately (Ed. note: “always”) so I was excited to read Kat Martin’s latest rom sus about a woman searching for her missing brother. At first, The Conspiracy worked okay for me; the hero was a little bit boner-led, but the action and the plot made up for that flaw. Then I got a graphic sexual assault scene that was totally unnecessary and I just noped on out. The … Continue reading The Conspiracy by Kat Martin →
Full disclosure: I’m not at my cognitive best (stupid fibro fog). The other day I tried to open a box of sidewalk chalk and you’d have thought I was cracking the combo to a safe. I went to the pharmacy and was asked for my birthdate and the spelling of my last name, and I was sorely tempted to say, “Look, if I could do all that, I wouldn’t need to be here.” So I’m … Continue reading The Illegitimate Duke by Sophie Barnes →
THIS BOOK IS SO DUMB. Like, it is ACTIVELY STUPID. I thought I was getting a forced proximity medieval, and I thought maybe this could be cool and fun, and then I saw that it’s a reprint of The Barbarian and the Princess, which Krahn published in 1993, so I thought “Oh, Old Skool wackiness! I’ve kinda missed that!” and then I got some of the shittiest world building EVER and I’m just annoyed. It’s … Continue reading Three Nights With the Princess by Betina Krahn →
Much Ado about Magic looks like the perfect beach book. The back cover promises a psychic portrait painter and a “rogue” sea captain. How could I ask for more? Well, I’ll tell you what more I could ask for – a hero who isn’t sexist and the avoidance of racist stereotypes. I made it more or less halfway through (I skimmed a lot) before even the skimming was too much. TW for racism and sexism … Continue reading Much Ado about Magic by Patricia Rice →
TL;DR: this is one of the most hurtful and painfully cruel books I have ever attempted to read. I have serious concerns about readers’ potential experiences with this story, and the harm and hurt it may cause. My notes begin with the following sentence and I stand by it: THIS BOOK IS TOXIC. Please proceed with this review and with this book with extreme caution. TW/CW: fat shaming, disordered eating, and physical and emotional self-harm … Continue reading Good Luck With That by Kristan Higgins →
One Night in Paris lured me into its clutches because it had “Paris” in the title. It looked like a nice stand-alone romance novella with which I could while away the hours that I spend in grocery store lines. I was mistaken. Reader, this is no moon! The call is coming from inside the house! Run for your lives! Run for it, Marty! While this review is listed as DNF, “Did Not Finish,” please know … Continue reading One Night In Paris by Kayla Perrin →
I loved the cover of this book, I was so curious about it, and I even thought about asking my library to order me a copy, but it was on sale for $1.99, so I grabbed it and started reading immediately. I ignored my ordered and dated to-be-read schedule spreadsheet, and I wish I hadn’t. I love books that explore habits and behavior, and unpack and examine the minutiae of why we do things. In this … Continue reading The Year of Less by Cait Flanders →
