Opium and Absinthe is a mystery with a romance thrown in. In this book, a Gilded Age heroine tries to solve the mystery of how her sister died, and who killed her. The book is lush with vampire lore, grounded in social issues, and bathed in the nightmare atmosphere of addiction. While I thought this book could have gone deeper into issues and characters, I adored it overall because of the protagonist’s character growth and … Continue reading Opium and Absinthe by Lydia Kang →
TW: Sexual assault Joanna Shupe is one of my auto-buy authors, so I was bummed when The Heiress Hunt fell flat for me. This first book in her Fifth Avenue Rebels series promised a friends-to-lovers romance, which I adore, but the hero’s inability to grow or change left me lukewarm at the end. Harrison Archer is the second son to a tycoon and grew up in a pretty awful household. While his older brother, Teddy, … Continue reading The Heiress Hunt by Joanna Shupe →
I’ll be honest, I probably wouldn’t have picked up An Heiress to Remember had I not liked the other books in the series (and Maya Rodale’s writing in general). It’s got that “dude seeks revenge on the woman who didn’t choose him” plotline, something I find tiresome and rarely resolved to my satisfaction. I’m so glad I gave it a chance though because this book, while not perfect, was absolutely a ton of fun to … Continue reading An Heiress to Remember by Maya Rodale →
Some Like It Scandalous delivers on its premise: childhood enemies-to-lovers, fake engagement, scientist-slash-businesswoman heroine, and a rich and fleshed-out Gilded Age setting. Despite the intriguing premise, I had difficulties with the first half (it drags on far too long before getting to the most interesting parts of the novel), the portrayal of the hero as witty and creative when evidence suggests otherwise, the absence of Daisy’s father when he is responsible for the climactic conflict, … Continue reading Some Like It Scandalous by Maya Rodale →
Edited 14 December 2017: This review has been revised and the grade has been changed. Please see note at the bottom of this review for amended grade information. This week, while hanging out with the residents of my local cat café, I read my first Joanna Shupe historical. Shupe is known for writing American historicals set in the Gilded Age, and the first book of The Four Hundred Series, A Daring Arrangement, sticks to that theme. … Continue reading A Daring Arrangement by Joanna Shupe →
The first full novel in Shupe’s Knickerbocker series, Magnate is about the Gilded Age in New York, a man who went from Five Points childhood to owning basically half of New York City, and a woman who wants to start an investment firm. It’s also one of those situations where the hero is a huge asshole, and the heroine only goes about halfway to call him out on it. Elizabeth Sloan is the only daughter … Continue reading Magnate by Joanna Shupe →
