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 →
I’ve been in a bit of a reading rut, so I decided that I should try something completely different to break my cycle of ennui. It worked. First off, Contagion isn’t a romance (as you can probably tell from the cover). It’s a YA SciFi/Horror novel about a ragtag team sent to investigate a distress call from a drill site on a remote planet. If you’re like, “Oh hey, I’ve seen this movie. I know how … Continue reading Contagion by Erin Bowman →
Squee from the Keeper Shelf is a feature wherein we share why we love the books we love, specifically the stories which are permanent residents of our Keeper shelves. Despite flaws, despite changes in age and perspective, despite the passage of time, we love particular books beyond reason, and the only thing better than re-reading them is telling other people about them. At length. If you’d like to submit your reasons for loving and keeping … Continue reading Keeper Shelf: The Goodmans by Clare Ashton →
Take a pile of pretty people, a GORGEOUS location, a fish out of water, a “you don’t know what you’re actually getting in to” love story based on a best selling book series, and you have Crazy Rich Asians. This is the story of Rachel Chu and Nick Young, two attractive people in New York who fly to Singapore for Nick’s BFF’s wedding, where Rachel meets Nick’s family… and he never told her that his … Continue reading Movie Review: Crazy Rich Asians →
The Fire Within is a historical romance set in Pompeii right before the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Now, I don’t typically gravitate toward historical romances, but the unconventional setting won me over. I’ll also add that I was reading this for a romance book club and I was determined to finally attend a meeting since my summer travel was over. Unfortunately, my reading experience can be boiled down to several frustrating, eye-rolling, Kindle-throwing moments while … Continue reading The Fire Within by Carmela Dolce →
I haven’t read any of the Chicagoland Vampire series, so I went into the spinoff series with zero world knowledge. The lack of knowledge wasn’t a problem because, boy howdy, is there some infodumpage in the first few chapters. I had to coax myself to keep going on to the next chapter because the setup and construction of the world in the first part was some slow reading. But once the main character moved from … Continue reading Wild Hunger by Chloe Neill →
The Mermaid is a 2016 Chinese movie that broke a ton of box office records in China. It’s a romantic comedy about a mermaid named Shan who is supposed to seduce and kill a destructive billionaire named Xuan. Naturally Shan falls in love with Xuan (despite the fact that he has no redeeming qualities until well into the movie) so she has to persuade him instead, and they both have to fight off his evil … Continue reading Movie Review: The Mermaid →
Conan Doyle for the Defense: The True Story of a Sensational British Murder, a Quest for Justice, and the World’s Most Famous Detective Writer is a nonfiction book about Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s involvement with the case of Oscar Slater, a man who was falsely imprisoned for murder in 1909. This book provides a glimpse into the world of criminal justice during the early 1900s. It gives limited insight into Arthur Conan Doyle, other than painting … Continue reading Conan Doyle for the Defense by Margalit Fox →
If you are lucky in life, you will have a friend or two that you will ride or die for, and will ride or die for you. I highly recommend it. If you are unlucky, you may end up in a situation where you need to get a MacGuffin to Vienna after your roommate’s one night stand murdered your (Ex?) boyfriend who is also a spy. But, if you do end up in that place, … Continue reading Movie Review: The Spy Who Dumped Me →
The main thing you need to know about The Calculating Stars is that it has a slow pace. The other thing you need to know is that it is feminist and nerdy. This alternate-history novel by Mary Robinette Kowal tells a story of women who worked as computers for the US Space Program and who fight to become astronauts. Much of what happens in the book happened in real life (see: Hidden Figures and The Mercury 13). … Continue reading The Calculating Stars by Mary Robinette Kowal →
Girl at the Grave is a YA gothic mystery with a love triangle. It’s not deep, and the solution to the mystery is utterly unbelievable. However, I read it on a rainy day with a cup of tea and enjoyed it for the most part, despite its flaws. If you are in the mood for a weird village and plots and rich snobs and an old decrepit mansion, then this may pass the time quite … Continue reading Girl at the Grave by Teri Bailey Black →
