G. Bianco, 2019
Known for her hockey romance books, Lasairiona McMaster tries her hand at BDSM romance under a new pen name (Lasairiona Lewis) with the release of Control. Meant to be the first book in a new series, this novel comes out on September 7th and is sure to open up her current readers to a whole new world of romance! There are certain things Addison expected after a one night stand: breakfast, small talk, maybe some more pleasure before the awkward walk of shame in last night’s clothes. She doesn’t expect to open the door to his house and find a kid surrounded by all his earthly possessions. Protocol. Routine. Control. Not anymore. Thor’s life turned on a dime in the blink of an eye. From making pancakes for the curvy redhead he met at the club, to being the single dad of an autistic, eleven-year-old boy. He needs help. She needs a job. He’s usually a one-and-done kind of guy, but Addison draws him in, holding him hostage with her green eyes and sass. Will something more develop from this mutually beneficial relationship? This book was definitely different from Lasairiona’s previous books, which have predominantly been hockey romances, but I really enjoyed the start of this new book series! This book probably won’t be for everyone, but I really loved some of the tropes that were in here (neurodivergent rep, single dad, found family, etc.). I also loved how communication in Thor and Addison’s relationships was prioritized and how they worked to make their relationship stronger, despite the challenges thrown at them. I also really liked the cameo of Austin and Kenzie from her Snow Pirates Series! They just added that little bit of familiarity to the story world that I like, but you definitely don’t need to read their book to enjoy this one. Overall, I’m excited for the rest of this series to come out and sincerely hope we get Slade’s book next (iykyk)! *I received an ARC from the author in exchange for my honest opinion.
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Bestselling author Meg Cabot returns to the romance field with a new novel to kick off a brand new series: The Witches of West Harbor. Releasing on September 5th, Enchanted to Meet You is full of supernatural hijinks and adventure. In her teenage years, lovelorn Jessica Gold cast a spell that went disastrously wrong, and brought her all the wrong kind of attention—as well as a lifetime ban from the World Council of Witches. So no one is more surprised than Jess when, fifteen years later, tall, handsome WCW member Derrick Winters shows up in her quaint little village of West Harbor and claims that Jess is the Chosen One. Not chosen by West Harbor’s snobby elite to style them for the town’s tricentennial ball—though Jess owns the chicest clothing boutique in town. And not chosen finally to be on the WCW, either—not that Jess would have said yes, anyway, since she’s done with any organization that tries to dictate what makes a “true” witch. No, Jess has been chosen to help save West Harbor itself . . . But just when Jess is beginning to think that she and Derrick might have a certain magic of their own—and not of the supernatural variety—Jess learns he may not be who she thought he was. And suddenly Jess finds herself having to make another kind of choice: trust Derrick and work with him to combat the sinister force battling to bring down West Harbor, or use her gift as she always has: to keep herself, and her heart, safe. This supernatural romance started off a bit rocky and made me confused as to how the past and present connected, but eventually this book found its groove and I was interested to see what was going to happen next in this small town romance. Honestly, this book is just a light and fun read about some witches trying to save their town, so if you’re looking for something profound or emotional, you’re not going to find that here. But if you’re looking for a cutesy binge read to pick up during spooky season, then this is a great choice. Fans of cozy spooky season reads will definitely want to add this romance to their TBRs! *I received an ARC from the author in exchange for my honest opinion. YA Fantasy lovers, do I have the book for you! J Elle’s newest novel House of Marionne comes out on August 29th and it is definitely a book you don’t want to miss! Seventeen-year-old Quell has lived her entire life on the run. She and her mother have fled from city to city in order to hide the deadly magic that flows through Quell’s veins. Until someone discovers her dark secret. To hide from the assassin hunting her and keep her mother out of harm’s way, Quell reluctantly inducts into a debutante society of magical social elites called the Order that she never knew existed. If she can pass their three rites of membership, mastering their proper form of magic, she’ll be able to secretly bury her forbidden magic forever. If caught, she will be killed. But becoming the perfect debutante is a lot harder than Quell imagined, especially when there’s more than tutoring happening with Jordan, her brooding mentor and assassin-in-training. When Quell uncovers the deadly lengths the Order will go to defend its wealth and power, she’s forced to choose: Embrace the dark magic she’s been running from her entire life, or risk losing everything, and everyone, she’s grown to love. Still, she fears the most formidable monster she’ll have to face is the one inside. I really appreciated the world-building in this book and found myself wanting to keep reading or try and figure out what the heck was going on and how the different plot points were connected. And then I got to the last chapter and holy goodness EVERYTHING MADE SENSE AND I LITERALLY GASPED 3 TIMES WHILE READING. But aside from the fantastic plot, I really enjoyed Quell as a character and her journey was really great to read about. I also loved the supporting cast of characters and how they rounded out and connected to certain plot points. I am very excited to see what will happen in the next book and highly recommend this book for all YA Fantasy lovers! *I received an ARC from Penguin Teen in exchange for my honest opinion. The third installment in Lasairiona McMaster’s Cedar Rapids Raccoons Series, Crashing the Net, has arrived and after the cliffhanger of the last book, this book (which comes out today) was definitely a pleasure to get my hands on! In the blink of an eye, everything Edith has worked her whole life to achieve is gone, maybe forever. She’s not prepared to accept that she’ll never dance again. It’s all she’s ever known, and she’s scared to find out who she is without it. The only person still in her corner is her hockey playing, son-of-a-billionaire best friend, Apollo de la Peña. But no amount of money can help her walk again. And while his intentions are admirable, she can’t risk falling for him. Waking up after a near fatal car crash, Apollo realizes he’s been in love with Edith for as long as he’s known her. Nothing matters anymore. Nothing but his beautiful, smart, funny best friend who is convinced their relationship is doomed to fail. Money can solve a lot of problems, but not this one. How can Apollo persuade Edith to take a chance on him when she’s lost so much already? While I thought the romance in this book happened a bit too quickly, I ended up really liking Edith and Apollo’s story. How they comfort and care for one another during the rough patches in their lives was so heartwarming and nothing beats a good friends-to-lovers romance! A lot of plot was carried over into this book from previous ones and I feel like there are still a lot of plot lines to wrap up so I’d definitely recommend reading the first two books in this series before reading this one. Overall, if you’re looking for a fun hockey romance, I’d definitely pick up this series! *I received an ARC from the author in exchange for my honest opinion. Listen, I know everybody and their mother has read this book and it’s been a Booktok/Bookstagram favorite for months, but I’m still going to share my review of Things We Never Got Over by Lucy Score because it’s that good of a book! Naomi wasn’t just running away from her wedding. She was riding to the rescue of her estranged twin to Knockemout, Virginia, a rough-around-the-edges town where disputes are settled the old-fashioned way…with fists and beer. Usually in that order. Too bad for Naomi her evil twin hasn’t changed at all. After helping herself to Naomi’s car and cash, Tina leaves her with something unexpected. The niece Naomi didn’t know she had. Now she’s stuck in town with no car, no job, no plan, and no home with an 11-year-old going on thirty to take care of. There’s a reason Knox doesn’t do complications or high-maintenance women, especially not the romantic ones. But since Naomi’s life imploded right in front of him, the least he can do is help her out of her jam. And just as soon as she stops getting into new trouble he can leave her alone and get back to his peaceful, solitary life. At least, that’s the plan until the trouble turns to real danger. I went into this book with only the knowledge that BookTok and Bookstagram were both obsessed with this book and barely knowing what the plot was about. I can now confirm that it was 100% worth the hype! I absolutely fell in love with this book! Between the hate-to-love romance, grump x sunshine trope, and the suspense mixed into the romance plot, I was hooked! The cast of characters was amazing and Score really knows how to weave a wonderful story! This book was amazing and 100% worth the hype! Romance lovers: go read this book! A great read for music and book lovers alike, Tehlor Kay Mejia’s novel Sammy Espinoza’s Last Review (which comes out today) shares what life is like when you’re trying to look towards the future, even if you haven’t fully reconciled with your past. Sammy Espinoza’s life is a raging dumpster fire. Her desperate attempt to win back her singer ex-girlfriend has landed her in hot water at work, and she has one last chance before her editor cuts her column. Luckily, Sammy has a plan to redeem herself, but it won’t be easy. Rumor has it that Max Ryan, the former rock god, is secretly recording his first-ever solo album years after he dramatically quit performing. And it just so happens that he and Sammy have history: Right before Max got his big break, he and Sammy spent an unforgettable night together. Exclusive access to Max’s new music would guarantee Sammy’s professional comeback and, even better, give her the opportunity to serve some long-awaited revenge for his traumatic ghosting. But Max lives in Ridley Falls, Washington, and Sammy has history there as well: a family that never wanted her and a million unanswered questions. Going back would mean confronting it all—but what else does she have to lose? I don’t think Sammy’s story can be classified as strictly a romance because there were just so many moments of self-discovery for her to go through before getting to the actual love protein of the book. While I found myself wanting to just throw my book across the room and knock some sense into Sammy, I still appreciated her journey as a person and seeing her reconcile her past with her present. The full cast of characters was really well developed and I’ll admit to shedding more than a few tears at the ending. Overall, this was a great adult debut and if your looking for a pseudo-coming-of-age adult romance novel, then this is a great choice! *I received an ARC from Random House in exchange for my honest opinion. I have too many thoughts about the amazingness that is Hello Stranger by Katherine Center (which is out today!), so let’s just go straight to the review, okay? It’s all starting to come together for struggling artist Sadie Montgomery. She was just named a finalist in the national portrait competition of her dreams. But when she winds up with a rare, but real, condition where human faces look like jumbled puzzle pieces . . . it is, to say the least, not good. With only a few weeks to paint the best portrait of her entire life, Sadie will do anything to reverse her condition and get back to work, but it’s anyone’s guess when (or even if) that'll happen. Enter her dog’s charming veterinarian (who may or may not be Sadie’s daydream fiancé), and her bowling-jacket-wearing, Vespa-riding neighbor (who she can’t seem to stay away from)―both vying for her attention and adding to the chaos. It’s a lot, but that doesn’t mean it’s bad. Because the truth is, seeing the world differently has its upsides. And love has an undeniable way of giving us courage. And the best way of looking is always, always with the heart. Did I binge read this book in one day? Yes. Did I cry multiple times while reading it? Yes. Will I be recommending it to everyone I talk to this summer? Absolutely yes! Listen, this is like the sixth Katherine Center Book I’ve read over the years, so I pretty much know the drill when it comes to her books. That being said, every single one of her books finds a way to just hit me right in the feels and get me too wrapped up in the story that I can’t focus on anything else but finishing the book to see what’s going to happen next. This novel isn’t just another cutesy romance; it’s a story about hope, dealing with a massive life-altering change, finding your sense of self, and asking for help when you need it. Honestly, this book went from a good 4 star book to a fantastic 5 star book within just a few chapters! I loved the character development and the way the story flowed, but the emotion that Center just infuses into the story really packs a punch and bumps this novel up to five stars. Basically, all hail Katherine Center, the Queen of Clean Romance/Women’s Fiction! We are not worthy of your amazing writing (but please continue to bless us with it)! *I received an ARC from St. Martin’s Press in exchange for my honest opinion. What happens when you win the lottery and you have to tell your estranged husband? Find out in Play to Win by Jodie Slaughter which comes out tomorrow, July 11th! Miriam Butler’s life is going nowhere in the slowest, most excruciating way possible. Stuck in the same barely-paying job she’s had since she was sixteen and spending every night sleeping in the spare twin bed in her mother’s house, her existence might be hilarious if it wasn’t so bleak. One trip to her favorite corner store upends everything when she finds herself the winner of a Mega Millions Lottery Jackpot. Unfortunately, not even life-altering roses come without their painful thorns. Hers just so happen to be in the form of an estranged husband who has the right to claim his share of her money. It’s been eight years since Leo Vaughn has had a conversation with his wife. When she calls out of the blue, practically begging him to come back to Greenbelt, the last thing he expects her to tell him when he gets there is that she’s come into a whole heap of money. She offers him a life-changing proposition of his own. Take a lump sum, finally sign the divorce papers, and be done with her for good. Only, a forever without her is the last thing Leo wants. So he gives a proposition of his own. One that won’t cost her nearly as many millions, but will buy him the time to do the one thing he’s been hungry to do since he left -- win her back. I like this book and found it easy to binge read, but I was honestly hoping for more of a redemption arc for these characters and their love story. The plot concept had such potential (a drastic life change forces two lovers to reconnect), but I think it could’ve been better executed. One of my favorite tropes is marriage in crisis, but this one just didn’t fully hit the mark for me. I know that relationships are complicated and I appreciated how this story showed the realities of that, but I just couldn’t understand certain characters' actions and couldn’t forgive them for it. Plus I could tell if I liked the side characters because they were actually decent people or disliked them because they let the two main characters act like fools. However, if you read Slaughter’s previous book, Bet On It, you will appreciate returning to the same small town of Greenbelt, South Carolina. While some might like this book, this marriage in crisis lottery romance missed the mark for me. *I received an ARC from St. Martin’s Press in exchange for my honest opinion. To all my YA lovers, do I have the book for you! Anna Sortino’s debut novel, Give Me a Sign, (which comes out on July 11th) takes a fun summer camp novel, but shares it through the lens of a different narrator. Lilah is stuck in the middle. At least, that’s what having a hearing loss seems like sometimes—when you don’t feel “deaf enough” to identify as Deaf or hearing enough to meet the world’s expectations. But this summer, Lilah is ready for a change. When Lilah becomes a counselor at a summer camp for the deaf and blind, her plan is to brush up on her ASL. Once there, she also finds a community. There are cute British lifeguards who break hearts but not rules, a YouTuber who’s just a bit desperate for clout, the campers Lilah’s responsible for (and overwhelmed by)—and then there’s Isaac, the dreamy Deaf counselor who volunteers to help Lilah with her signing. Romance was never on the agenda, and Lilah’s not positive Isaac likes her that way. But all signs seem to point to love. Unless she’s reading them wrong? One thing’s for sure: Lilah wanted change, and things here . . . they're certainly different than what she’s used to. This debut novel was fantastic! As someone who isn’t deaf and barely knows the ASL Alphabet, I was so interested in this story from the beginning and immediately fell in love with this glimpse into the diversity of the Deaf community that this book offered. I loved all of the characters and how each of them represented varying types of deafness and how Lilah, our main character, learns to connect with her community and learn more about herself over the course of the story. Aside from being informative about the Deaf community, this book also has all of the fun summer camp and teenage summer romance vibes I always look for in YA books! I binge-read this book in about 24 hours and I loved how easy it was to fall in love with this story and the character in it. For anyone looking for a summertime read that offers insight into someone else’s experiences as a disabled person, then I definitely recommend checking this book out! *I received an ARC from Penguin Teen in exchange for my honest review. Attention readers: Carolyn Mackler’s new novel, The Wife App (which comes out today) is the book you need to add to your TBR this summer! Brimming with wit, humor, and camaraderie, this book will definitely change the way you view the women in your life. Lauren, mother of twins, wakes up one morning to her Wife Alarm Bells sounding. She sleuths on her husband’s phone and stumbles on a dirty secret that explodes her marriage. Madeline has it all—a penthouse apartment, a perfect daughter, and no-strings-attached romps with handsome men. But when she learns she might lose her child to her ex in England, it stirs up a decades-old personal tragedy. Sophie, with too much FOMO and never enough money, obsesses over her ex-husband’s Family 2.0—all while keeping her true desires hidden, even from herself. It starts as a joke during a tipsy night out, as Lauren, Madeline, and Sophie rail against everything wives do for free. Let’s build an app that monetizes the mental load. And maybe revenge on our exes in the process. Soon, the Wife App is born, and before long, it’s the fastest growing start-up in New York City. But then life intervenes. Love intervenes. Ex-husbands intervene. And the consequences are bigger than anything Lauren, Madeline, or Sophie could have expected. Carolyn Mackler marks her debut into adult fiction with a rollercoaster ride of revenge and redemption that is at once a send-up of modern marriage and a celebration of female friendship and love in all forms. This book has such an interesting concept and I enjoyed this story more than I thought I would! Looking at motherhood and wifehood through the scope of these three different women definitely highlights how every person’s situation and circumstances are different and how tough it is to live your own life when you're constantly concerned about how others perceive you, and even how you perceive yourself. All three of our main characters really flourish throughout this book and I really enjoyed seeing how they take The Wife App and use it to change and reevaluate their lives. I think it just highlights how you’re never too old or too young to change your life! This book also made me respect wives, moms, parents, and spouses with so much more (shout out to my own amazing mom lol!) Overall, I really like this feminism book and how everyone’s journeys and “happy endings” turn out differently. If you’re looking for a binge-able book with strong female characters, then this is the book for you! *I received an ARC from Simon and Schuster in exchange for my honest opinion. |
AuthorHi! My name is Elisa and my bookshelf is quite literally overflowing! Join me in my journey of reading as many books as humanly possible! Archives
February 2023
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