abetterpaige's reviews
17 reviews

adventurous dark tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

After sleeping on it, I’ve decided to round up instead of down in my ratings for the first time only, making this my first 5 star read of 2023! I struggled immensely with the first 120 pages - I found them so slow and difficult to get into. I’m not sure if it’s because I read this fourth, after Assassin’s Blade (which is fairly fast paced), or if I was just struggling with the characters again. I had Rowan’s importance spoiled for me so I was excited to meet him and I was prepared for the worst but… I have theories as to why he did and said some of the mean things he said and did and they did not turn me off from him in the slightest!

The storyline I struggled with the most was Manon’s. I didn’t think the witch politics were explained well and I found it veryyyyy difficult to keep everything straight at first, especially with our only previous intro to the witches being Baba Yellowlegs and the horror around her. Abraxos was one of my favorite parts of the book, though, and I know that I’m going to like Manon.

I understand that as a whole, the fandom doesn’t really care for Chaol. I’m not sure when I’ll understand that hatred, but I still have a soft spot for him. He’s still relatively young, having had to choose between his family and service, pledging loyalty to his best friend… a lot of his internal struggles are trying to find the “right” thing to do. I respect his deep appreciation for Dorian and I can understand his conflict around Aelin.

Poor, sweet baby Dorian. I can’t even talk about it or I’m going to cry again. Can this man catch a break?!?!????????

Also, Aelin… wow. I just love her. I love her so much. She and Rowan are two of my favorite characters I’ve ever read. Chapter 54 ripped my heart out, literally, and it’s still just laying on the floor of my living room because the rest of the book continued to break me. My previous complaints about her being young, while valid, led her to the woman she became in this book - and learning more of her story, of her sacrifices and loss, has proven her a righteous queen. I’m so ready to take down Adarlan, I could SCREAM!!!!!!!!!

Riches to Riches: Part Two by Ames Mills

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dark mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️ (this review is for the duet as a whole and has been cross posted between both books on review platforms)

Okay y’all I saw one quote on TikTok about this and said “hold up” to my TBR and immediately downloaded this. It’s a mafia why choose, two of my fave things, and there’s literally every variation of sandwich in here that you could possibly imagine. I’ll dig into the plot and my thoughts but please know that if 1. mafia romance AND 2. why choose romances aren’t your thing… this book is most absolutely not for you so mind your business and don’t yuck other people’s yums lol.

Riches to Riches introduces us to Alessa, the US head of the Italian mafia, and her new boyfriend Leo. They’re hooking up for the first time when she notices a tattoo on his chest of the Mexican mafia’s insignia, and all hell breaks loose. She brings Leo back to her home, where she lives with four other guys, Ryder, Dex, Gage, and Holden. Gage and Leo immediately have tension, and for reasons unbeknownst to anyone, Les lets Leo live even though he lied to her. His brothers (the heirs of the Mexican mafia) call a truce with Les and they all agree that Leo should stay with her for further protection. Amidst all of this trouble, Les also has a stalker, and the Russians are going behind her back and breaking the rules of their alliance. Did I mention yet that Les doubles as a serial killer, murdering rapists who get away with their crimes? Yeah this duet kind of bounces all over the place. It’s multiple POVs so we get to get inside of all of the guys’ heads, including Les’s ex-boyfriend Zane (we get more from him in book 2). This makes the spicy scenes, especially the ones with sword fighting, particularly interesting, since we often see them from multiple angles.

All in all, this felt like a Tate James wannabe to me. It was incredibly poorly edited with a multitude of grammatical errors (including the wrong form of “your” more than 4 times) and a plot that fell flat despite the interesting premise. The three stars I gave are all for the boys… because sheesh these spicy scenes are SPICY. I cannot believe I read 1000+ pages of this but ya know what, I gots to see it through!

Content Warnings

Fair Catch by Kandi Steiner

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lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️

Fair Catch is book 1 in the Red Zone Rivals series and is SO cute! We meet Riley, one half of an athletic twin duo, who starts playing football as a kicker after her brother gets paralyzed in a drunk driving accident, and Zeke… her brother’s best friend who happened to be driving in the accident, as they’re going to college to play football on the same team. Riley, a female football player, has enough on her plate, like overcoming misogyny, playing football at a D1 school, and trying to manage her academics, she doesn’t need her sworn rival to be distracting her. Unfortunately, the football dorms fill up, and she’s forced to room with one of her teammates. Lo and behold, the only one who is willing to room with her is none other than Zeke.

I thought that this was just a fun, quick read. It didn’t really tickle any particular fancies, the spice wasn’t super hot, the plot was predictable and basic, and the characters weren’t incredibly developed, but it did the job it set out to do! I plan to read the rest of the series too!

Just as You Are by Camille Kellogg

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.0

⭐️⭐️

Thank you to Dial Press and NetGalley for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Just As You Are tells us the story of a group of queer journalists in New York City that are working for a failing magazine. Just as the magazine was about to close its doors, it got purchased by two investors, Bailey and Daria, who immediately join the team and turn their operations upside down to try to save it. Liz, the FMC, writes “fluff” pieces for the magazine - like listicles, quizzes, and sex toy reviews - and immediately butts heads with the angsty, quiet Daria. A wild ride entails of love, betrayal, and finding themselves, but can they save the magazine? Can they learn to all love themselves and find love elsewhere?

The premise of this book is really, really good but the execution fell entirely flat. The writing is, honest to God, quite awful. It pains me to say it. Liz was the most one dimensional character I ever read, her friends were awful and emotionally abusive, Daria’s communication skills were worse than a kindergarteners and I found everyone extremely unlikeable because of how the author wrote the story. There was soooooo much telling as opposed to showing, and the dialogue was underdeveloped, weak, and exhausting to read. I ended up skimming the latter 40% of the book. I was super disappointed because I had really high hopes of a queer Pride & Prejudice retelling, but this does no justice to the premise itself.

The Assassin's Blade by Sarah J. Maas

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adventurous dark reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

This series… y’all! Why did I hold off on reading TOG for so long? I read Assassin’s blade third per the recommendation of some of my friends and holy hell, did it hit hard. I obviously can’t speak to whether or not reading it third is better than fourth, but I’m so glad I didn’t start with it because I felt like even though these stories were from the past, they showed so much character growth for Cela (my nickname for her bc I’m too lazy to type her name).

My favorite story was by far The Healer - I loved it so much and thought it was a lot more like ACOTAR in its storytelling and writing style. It was a little bit more whimsy and fairytale like, and I thought it was a nice break in some of the heavier stories. I also really enjoyed her time with the Silent Assassins.

Even though I knew how the book would end, I was so heartbroken at the loss and the betrayal. It helped contextualize some of Cela’s earlier actions and also he power and grit, which I think really helped build the emotional connection to her character. 10/10 recommend my reading order!

A Long Time Coming by Meghan Quinn

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lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“I’m spoiling you because I want to, because I get to, and because you deserve nothing but the best, Lia.”

Meghan!!! GIRL!!!! This book was soooo unexpected and different than any romance I’ve read recently and I LOVED it. This is a best friends to lovers romance which is not typically my fave, and while I struggled with the slow start, I absolutely loved Breaker’s character arc and the story as a whole.

Breaker and Lia met in college and became fast, best friends. 10 years later, they live in neighboring apartments and spend a lot of time together, playing games, drinking ciders, and watching TV and movies. They share all of the same nerdy interests and have a peace with one another that they haven’t been able to find anywhere else. Lia is engaged to Brian, a son in a new-money-keeping-up-with-the-Jonses family, and despite being caught off guard by the proposal, Lia says yes. Much to her dismay, Brian’s mom (her future MIL) takes over all of the wedding planning and doesn’t let Lia speak for herself. To help her out, Breaker comes to all of the wedding appointments as her Man of Honor, or Man in Waiting.

Throughout the wedding planning, Breaker quickly realizes, with some guidance from our other favorite Cane brothers and their wives, that his love for Lia extends beyond friendship… but she’s going to get married in 5 weeks.

Breaker’s dirty talk is…next level. His internal monologue is so freaking sweet and I just absolutely adore him. Lia is cute and quirky, but I had more complaints with her (umm.. hello internalized misogyny). I docked a star, though, because of some seriously weird plot holes… What is Lia’s job? Literally, what does she do for work? We got absolutely nothing of her relationship with Brian except for the fights, but we got a lot of positive insight into Breaker’s dating life. I don’t know, it just felt simultaneously a little long but also incomplete to me! All that to say, I still really loved it and loved their happy ending!

The Only One by Daisy Jane

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lighthearted

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Thank you so much to the author for an eARC in exchange for my honest review!

The Only One is the third installment to Daisy Jane’s Wrench Kings series! We finally get to hear Delane and Miller’s story, and y’all aren’t prepared for how cute and unexpected it is. Delane has worked the desk at Wrench Kings for years and quickly became friends with Miller, a mechanic who escaped a religious commune when he was 18. While they’ve always been close, there’s never been tension or physical chemistry between the two of them, until one day, Delane notices Miller get rejected by a customer and decides to step in and help. She proposes a deal - she helps Miller with his confidence and he helps her study to become a mechanic. He agrees and quickly finds out that helping him with confidence means that Delane, the girl he’s had a quiet crush on for YEARS, will be helping him in bed.

This is full of friends-to-lovers/fake dating CUTENESS and I love how much the two characters each grow throughout the story. The spice is SPICY and the plot is fun, fast, and adorable. Some of my favorite books of Daisy’s are ones that have me LOLing on one page, crying on another, and… well, preoccupied on a different one, and this book checks all of those boxes! Would definitely recommend if you want a romance with a twist.

The Brazen One by Daisy Jane

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lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Book two in Daisy Jane’s Wrench Kings series! We finally get Goldie’s story and her love interest is ATTICUS! Which made me so excited! I wasn’t let down by their relationship, either. Goldie takes after her name and is a ray of sunshine. She has walls up because of her traumatic past, but she’s excited to be starting over in Oakcreek with her bestie, Beck, and (hopefully) a new job soon. Atticus is everyone’s favorite grump over at Wrench Kings. Haunted by his inner ghosts, he doesn’t let himself live to the fullest or truly enjoy his life, and he’s hesitant to let anyone get too close to him. The two are forced together repeatedly, starting with Beau volunteering Atticus to help build Goldie’s bed, and eventually lead to them being stuck in a snowed-in cabin together. Their chemistry is off the charts, but can either of them let someone in enough to truly experience love?

I thought that this was a MASSIVE step up from book one in the series - Goldie and Atticus have such well developed backstories and their chemistry was evident from page one. I really, really love Goldie and enjoyed her character arc so much! My biggest complaint was how much she talked about how Atticus smells… lol, but everything else was so good, fun, and spicy.

Content Warnings

Crown of Midnight by Sarah J. Maas

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adventurous challenging dark mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Sheesh! This one got SO good SO fast! Crown of Midnight, the book I read 2nd in the TOG series (reading order: TOG, COM, AB, HOF, QOS, random, KOA), follows Celaena while she works as the King’s Champion - an assassin hired by the king to serve his best interests. She’s still close with Chaol and her relationship with Dorian quickly becomes fuzzy. Plagued by nightmares and chatter about rebellions, Cela struggles to learn who she can and cannot trust with her secrets. The second part of the book expands her story and after a tragic loss (that I truly did NOT see coming), she’s forced to make some tough decisions. At the end of the book, she’s sent on another mission at the hands of Chaol - and nobody can be certain what the outcome of that mission will be.

The first part of this was… not doing it for me but MAN did it pick up at chapter 25! I quickly became unable to put it down and obsessed - though I still don’t find myself really connecting with or feeling for any of the characters yet. Celaena still feels VERY young and emotionally immature, and her relationships with both Chaol and Dorian are hard to understand. All in all, though, I absolutely loved this! Onto Assassin’s Blade!

Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas

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adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

⭐️⭐️⭐️

I finally took the plunge into the first series in the SJM universe and I wasn’t disappointed. Throne of Glass (TOG) introduces us to Celaena Sardothien - a slave at a death camp in Erilea run and operated by the men of the King of Adarlan. The Crown Prince of Adarlan, along with the Captain of the Guard, come to propose a trade for Celaena - compete in the King’s competition to become his champion, and one day earn your freedom, or die at the death camp. Celaena, a newly 18 year old who is known for being Adarlan’s Assassin, can taste nothing but potential freedom when she agrees to the competition.

Taken to the glass castle, where, obviously, the book gets its name, Celaena trains with the Captain of the Guard, Chaol, and falls into an easy flirtation with the Crown Prince. She also quickly develops a friendship with a visiting princess, Nehemia. As their training and the competition continue, more and more sponsored Champions start showing up dead - their bodies in ribbons, insides eaten. Celaena knows, somehow, that she can help solve these horrific murders, but can she do it without risking herself becoming Champion and her inevitable freedom?

I really enjoyed this book! I thought it was obvious that SJM was very young when she wrote this as it kind of felt like a 15 year old dreaming of being a badass 18 year old with men falling at your feet. Celaena is…difficult to like. She has the intelligence and maturity of a preteen, and the emotional capacity of one too. Her character was not developed or hashed out much beyond “she’s a badass with trauma” which felt very similar to the character development in Crescent City for me. I felt like we were TOLD more than we were shown about all of the characters, and I didn’t quite understand why any of them had chemistry or tension with one another. All that to say, the world building was easy to understand and enjoyable, and man is it fun reading this after ACOTAR and CC because IYKYK! Onto Crown of Midnight!

Content Warnings

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abetterpaige's reviews 17 reviews

abetterpaige's reviews
17 reviews