The Alpha’s Warlock would have been a great book if it was twice as long. As it is, it is entertaining and emotional, but does not contain enough backstory and time to let the characters properly develop. Nate Hawthorne is a warlock with a lot of power, insufficient training, and an evil dad. Because of pack politics plus vampire stuff, he is forced to enter a mating bond with werewolf Ian Armitage. The two have … Continue reading The Alpha’s Warlock by Eliot Grayson →
CW: Child abuse, alcoholism, anorexia Girls of Brackenhill is the kind of Gothic thriller that I love. It’s got supernatural elements, a house that functions as a character in its own right, and an unreliable narrator. This book would have been a solid A except I found the ending a little bit too vague to totally satisfy me. It was so spooky-good that I immediately popped in the mail for Amanda. Hannah Maloney gets a … Continue reading Girls of Brackenhill by Kate Moretti →
Tara: This book is so freaking cute, it should be illegal. And luckily, Aarya agrees with me, so we’re talking about it together! Written in the Stars is an opposites attract, fake relationship romance between Darcy Lowell, an actuary, and Elle Jones, an astrologer. Elle is working with Darcy’s brother, Brendon, on a project and he insists on setting them up on a blind date because they’re both single (also, as the founder of the … Continue reading Written in the Stars by Alexandria Bellefleur →
I’ve mentioned this book a few times in past features because I’ve been savoring the audiobook for weeks. I usually listen while I’m sewing or cross stitching, but this book is so thoughtful and compassionate that I needed to ponder each chapter as I finished. A lot of this book has been tossed into the long-term back-of-my-mind Crock Pot. I’ll be thinking about pieces of the book, the work it asks of its readers/listeners, and … Continue reading The Art of Showing Up by Rachel Wilkerson Miller →
After Poppy’s beautiful “That Moment When…” post, A Handy Guide for Choosing Your Institute of Magical Education, LiteraryCharlie’s Angels, Eleanor Oliphant Wasn’t Completely Fine, and Neither Are Many of Us, and Awesome Non-Human Sidekicks in Books art essays, we are so excited to have some guest reviews from her! Poppy is a long-time fan of SBTB and loves cats, books and coffee, in that order. She illustrates The Loo Cats, an imaginative series starring her … Continue reading So This is Love by Elizabeth Lim →
After Poppy’s beautiful “That Moment When…” post, A Handy Guide for Choosing Your Institute of Magical Education, LiteraryCharlie’s Angels, Eleanor Oliphant Wasn’t Completely Fine, and Neither Are Many of Us, and Awesome Non-Human Sidekicks in Books art essays, we are so excited to have some guest reviews from her! Poppy is a long-time fan of SBTB and loves cats, books and coffee, in that order. She illustrates The Loo Cats, an imaginative series starring her … Continue reading As Old As Time by Liz Braswell →
I rather enjoy fantastical novels in a historical setting. Despite a complete absence of supernatural elements, I see books like these as wish-fulfillment stories, filled with imaginative attitudes and outcomes in outlandish clothes and possibly castles. They could not be more fantastical if unicorns started flying out of everyone’s butt. At their best they are smart, funny, and comforting. Sometimes, I just can’t get enough of this type of fantasy, and Love is a Rogue … Continue reading Love is a Rogue by Lenora Bell →
Wrong Number, Right Woman came to me at exactly the right time. I was ready for a romance with zero angst and adorkable characters, and boy howdy did this deliver. It’s so gentle and sweet, it’s like a warm hug and I enjoyed it very much. Denny is a thoroughly lovely, super-awkward butch lesbian. She’s co-raising her niece with her sister, works at a grocery store, and has a giant crush on her niece’s cute … Continue reading Wrong Number, Right Woman by Jae →
The Secret Ingredient’s premise appealed to me because it has two chefs falling in love in a small town. I expected a fun comfort read and was pleasantly surprised when it delivered more than that, especially through one of the leads, Adah. Adah Campbell’s excited for a fresh start with her son, Pete, in South Bay, Maine. After working her way up from greasy spoons to fine dining restaurants in Chicago over the last decade, … Continue reading The Secret Ingredient by KD Fisher →
My Last Duchess is pure, frothy, Georgian-era historical escapism. Reading it felt like being wrapped up in a warm blanket while watching a picturesque snowfall outside. I can’t say it was particularly substantial or thought-provoking, but for the most part, it was a pleasure. This book is a prequel to Eloisa James’ ongoing Wildes of Lindow Castle series about the numerous Wilde offspring and their exploits. My Last Duchess tells the tale of how the … Continue reading My Last Duchess by Eloisa James →
Vanishing Falls is one of my few DNF’s of the year, and it’s extremely unusual for me to DNF a mystery at all (I need to know what happens!). This book pretty much failed on all counts, though, and I couldn’t force myself to finish it. First of all, I picked up this book expecting a Gothic mystery, but that’s not what this is. The book is set in the Tasmanian town of Vanishing Falls. … Continue reading Vanishing Falls by Poppy Gee →
