Book TW: Violence against women and children including in-text murder. I love a good story about witches and so when Sarah asked what book I wanted to review first, I immediately thought of the audiobook version of The Witches of New York by Ami McKay waiting for me in my Audible TBR pile. The narration by Julia Whelan was excellent. She manages to create distinct voices for the many characters, mostly female, who inhabited this … Continue reading The Witches of New York by Ami McKay →
TW/CW: Potentially disordered eating. Somewhere Only We Know is an adorable YA romance that feels very much like a modern Roman Holiday retelling between a K-Pop star and a freelance tabloid photographer. It’s light and incredibly sweet. This isn’t to imply that it lacks substance; there were just deeper issues that could have used extra exploration. Lucky is a K-Pop superstar who has just wrapped up a multi-city tour ending in Hong Kong. The following … Continue reading Somewhere Only We Know by Maurene Goo →
It frustrates me that I didn’t like Pride more than I did, because the concept is awesome. In this modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice, teenager Zuri Benitez, who is Afro-Latino, lives in Bushwick, New York, with her family. They live next door to a run-down mansion that is purchased and remodeled by a Black family from Manhattan. Zuri can’t stand her new neighbors, especially Darius Darcy. With his rich ways, he doesn’t fit in … Continue reading Pride by Ibi Zoboi →
I loved A Duke by Default so freaking much. This is the second book in Alyssa Cole’s Reluctant Royals series and it focuses on Portia, the best friend of the heroine of the first book, A Princess in Theory. A Duke by Default is fine as a stand alone although characters from the first book do show up. In the first book, Portia was introduced as a party girl who couldn’t stick to anything and who frequently … Continue reading A Duke by Default by Alyssa Cole →
Jennifer Prokop is here with another guest review of a highly anticipated new contemporary romance. If you want to see Jennifer’s other guest reviews, you can see them all here! Jennifer has been reading romance ever since she found a bag of remaindered paperbacks in her grandmother’s basement when she was a teenager. She writes romance reviews for The Book Queen and you can find her on Twitter @JenReadsRomance. She’s also created a website to help … Continue reading Guest Review: Intercepted by Alexa Martin →
Trail of Lightning was preordered around two months in advance and I would have waited triple that amount for this book if I had to. It’s steeped in Native American (namely Navajo) mythology, badassery, and lots and lots of violence. If you’re sensitive to graphic, gritty details, this book is not for you. It was rather early on that I knew this book was going to be amazing. And by early, I meant page two: … Continue reading Trail of Lightning by Rebecca Roanhorse →
Startup Fiancé by Shilpa Mudiganti is a short contemporary romance that features an arranged marriage, corporate rivals, and an enemies-to-lovers storyline. It’s a quick read, but the length inhibited all of the emotional development I craved. Arav Shetty and Nisha Jain are rivals; both are founders of successful app start-ups, Tech Notes and Note Nirvana, respectively. Reading about characters who developed note-taking apps made me realize how much my loves-planners-and-lists brain wants a good note-taking … Continue reading Startup Fiance by Shilpa Mudiganti →
The Lotus Palace is a historical romance/mystery set in Tang Dynasty China. It is the first in the short but fantastic Pingkang Li Mysteries Series. I adore the setting, the characters, and the delicate way that the issue of consent is handled given the many forms of inequality within the society in which our characters live. This is a slow-paced book, but one that allows a relationship to mature over time in a believable way … Continue reading The Lotus Palace by Jeannie Lin →
When Sarah asked me in an upcoming podcast episode how I felt about The Kiss Quotient, I had a sudden spout of verbal constipation. All of the words tried to escape my mouth at once. Sarah also would not let me submit a review that simply read, “Buy it. Read it.” I apologize for the squeeing that is about to coat your eyeballs, as I tell you a million reasons why this book is the … Continue reading The Kiss Quotient by Helen Hoang →
Both Sarah and Amanda read this book and wanted to review it, so ahoy, it is joint review time, wherein we review your meniscus AND this book. Just kidding. Only the book. Your meniscus is fine as far as we know. Sarah: This book is exactly what it says on the tin, which I have to appreciate. There is a fake boyfriend, and he is indeed a little grumpy, but he’s also consistently kind hearted, … Continue reading Grumpy Fake Boyfriend by Jackie Lau →
After the Wedding is the second novel in the Worth Saga, the story of a family trying to survive after disgrace. This book is the story of Camilla, the second oldest sister in a family of five siblings, and Adrian, a biracial man who runs a business and who becomes involved with Camilla in an extremely unexpected way. The first novel in the Worth Saga, Once Upon a Marquess , introduced us to the oldest sister, … Continue reading After the Wedding by Courtney Milan →
