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bottleblondebookworm's reviews
852 reviews
Not Safe for Work by Nisha J. Tuli
3.75
I adore Nisha J. Tuli’s fantasy series, Artefacts of Ouranos, and was delighted to receive an arc of her first contemporary romance! While this didn't hit like her fantasy novels for me, it was still an enjoyable read.
Tris is an intelligent, feisty, witty, and caring woman working in STEM, a field (and office) dominated by white men. Her opportunities have been limited due to the blatant racism and sexism prevalent in the field. She lost out on a promotion to Rafe, the son of the boss. Nepotism, anyone?? The book opens with Tris being accepted into an exclusive training program for her company and it’s made clear it’s to diversify the company and tick a box. Of course, Rafe is the other pick, and the two are off to Hawaii together to participate in weeks of corporate training with other top company leaders from across the country. With a one bed trope, work adversaries, enemies to lovers, and tons of spice, this was a good read.
I appreciated the messages highlighting the inequity women and BIPOC face daily. This is definitely something that is a relevant issue, especially in our current climate. I also appreciated that Tris suffered from migraines and that chronic pain/illness was represented very well here.
While I loved many aspects of this book, I really didn’t find myself all that invested in the romance or even the MCs individual stories. The romance is very much a Tuli romance, and for whatever reason, I love it in a fantasy but struggled with the transition to a contemporary setting. The enemies to lovers aspect just felt too forced? There wasn’t any real reason for them to be enemies, or maybe it was because we’re just told their enemies/adversaries and not shown. There was a weird love triangle/square thing going on that added nothing to the plot, the banter between the two MCs was good but also kept leading to miscommunication that aggravated me. I did enjoy the last third of the book but the first two thirds were a struggle for me to get into. I still recommend this for fans of contemporary romance, office romance, and dislike/enemies to lovers, but it didn’t end up being a love for me.
Thanks to the publisher for the complimentary arc. All opinions are my own.
Tris is an intelligent, feisty, witty, and caring woman working in STEM, a field (and office) dominated by white men. Her opportunities have been limited due to the blatant racism and sexism prevalent in the field. She lost out on a promotion to Rafe, the son of the boss. Nepotism, anyone?? The book opens with Tris being accepted into an exclusive training program for her company and it’s made clear it’s to diversify the company and tick a box. Of course, Rafe is the other pick, and the two are off to Hawaii together to participate in weeks of corporate training with other top company leaders from across the country. With a one bed trope, work adversaries, enemies to lovers, and tons of spice, this was a good read.
I appreciated the messages highlighting the inequity women and BIPOC face daily. This is definitely something that is a relevant issue, especially in our current climate. I also appreciated that Tris suffered from migraines and that chronic pain/illness was represented very well here.
While I loved many aspects of this book, I really didn’t find myself all that invested in the romance or even the MCs individual stories. The romance is very much a Tuli romance, and for whatever reason, I love it in a fantasy but struggled with the transition to a contemporary setting. The enemies to lovers aspect just felt too forced? There wasn’t any real reason for them to be enemies, or maybe it was because we’re just told their enemies/adversaries and not shown. There was a weird love triangle/square thing going on that added nothing to the plot, the banter between the two MCs was good but also kept leading to miscommunication that aggravated me. I did enjoy the last third of the book but the first two thirds were a struggle for me to get into. I still recommend this for fans of contemporary romance, office romance, and dislike/enemies to lovers, but it didn’t end up being a love for me.
Thanks to the publisher for the complimentary arc. All opinions are my own.
The Stolen Queen by Fiona Davis
4.0
This was outside my typical genre but I found it to be an enjoyable read. I mainly picked it up due to a release blitz on booksta and because I saw the Egyptian antiquities ties, so I wasn’t expecting the emotional hit from the characters’ intense journeys! I’ll be looking at more of this author’s books now because I enjoyed the writing style and the story.
I Got Abducted by Aliens and Now I'm Trapped in a Rom-Com by Kimberly Lemming
4.5
I need more. Upload this into my brain, please. 😭
So what’s keeping it from 5 stars? Well, I just didn’t sense any chemistry between Sol and Lok. It kinda felt like their “relationship” was just there to tick off the “swords cross” box and their connection fell flat. I love MMF, but for this book, I think it would have been better being MFM, or if there had been more time for Sol and Lok to develop a relationship outside of the mating to Dory. But, ya know, it was hot so whatever, I guess. 🤷♀️
So what’s keeping it from 5 stars? Well, I just didn’t sense any chemistry between Sol and Lok. It kinda felt like their “relationship” was just there to tick off the “swords cross” box and their connection fell flat. I love MMF, but for this book, I think it would have been better being MFM, or if there had been more time for Sol and Lok to develop a relationship outside of the mating to Dory. But, ya know, it was hot so whatever, I guess. 🤷♀️
A Wallflower's Guide to Viscounts and Vice by Manda Collins
4.5
A spinster and a viscount team up to solve a kidnapping and inadvertently fall in love along the way!
A Wallflower’s Guide to Viscounts and Vice is the first book in a spin-off series from Manda Collins’ Lady’s Most Scandalous series. Book one follows a new-ish generation of characters that were mostly introduced in the first series. I think it’s best to read this following the Lady’s Most Scandalous series, but it can be read as a standalone if you don’t mind not having the full backstory on side characters.
Lucy is a wealthy spinster and a file clerk in the police office which is most unusual for a lady of her station. Will is the new Viscount Guilford who is returning home to deal with the fact that his steward has absconded with the family wealth! He needs a wealthy bride, but it can’t be Lucy, his younger sister’s best friend. When the two are thrown together over the mysterious kidnapping of Lucy’s friend, Vera, they can’t keep their feelings contained. Will tries to ignore his feelings, but thanks to meddling friends, his jealousy takes over and he confronts his feelings.
I enjoyed the romance and mystery in this histrom. I’m a big fan of Manda Collins, so I wasn’t surprised that I loved this one! The mystery did seem slightly convoluted, but I didn’t clock who-done-it until the very end right before it was revealed! It definitely kept me questioning things!
There were a few editing issues in the arc copy I received, but I assumed it will be corrected before release. It was mainly names being incorrect and a scene basically repeating, so it didn’t take away from my enjoyment but did have me going, “huh?!” A few times.
Thanks to the publisher for the complimentary arc. All opinions are my own.
A Wallflower’s Guide to Viscounts and Vice is the first book in a spin-off series from Manda Collins’ Lady’s Most Scandalous series. Book one follows a new-ish generation of characters that were mostly introduced in the first series. I think it’s best to read this following the Lady’s Most Scandalous series, but it can be read as a standalone if you don’t mind not having the full backstory on side characters.
Lucy is a wealthy spinster and a file clerk in the police office which is most unusual for a lady of her station. Will is the new Viscount Guilford who is returning home to deal with the fact that his steward has absconded with the family wealth! He needs a wealthy bride, but it can’t be Lucy, his younger sister’s best friend. When the two are thrown together over the mysterious kidnapping of Lucy’s friend, Vera, they can’t keep their feelings contained. Will tries to ignore his feelings, but thanks to meddling friends, his jealousy takes over and he confronts his feelings.
I enjoyed the romance and mystery in this histrom. I’m a big fan of Manda Collins, so I wasn’t surprised that I loved this one! The mystery did seem slightly convoluted, but I didn’t clock who-done-it until the very end right before it was revealed! It definitely kept me questioning things!
There were a few editing issues in the arc copy I received, but I assumed it will be corrected before release. It was mainly names being incorrect and a scene basically repeating, so it didn’t take away from my enjoyment but did have me going, “huh?!” A few times.
Thanks to the publisher for the complimentary arc. All opinions are my own.
The Deathly Grimm by Kathryn Purdie
4.0
I enjoyed the first book in the Grimm duology, The Forest Grimm, so much! I love dark, fairytale reimaginings, so this was right up my alley. While the second installment, The Deathly Grimm, held up and was enjoyable, it didn’t have the same dreamy, immersive effect as book one.
In the end of book one, our FMC, Clara, breaks part of the curse holding her small town hostage, and is given a task to break the rest of the curse. Book two picks up at shortly after with a town hall meeting to determine if Clara and her friends who escaped the Forest Grimm in the last book are guilty of keeping the curse alive, even though they broke part of it. So, Clara and Axel flee to the Forest Grimm to solve the curse once and for all.
One of the major selling points in book one was the romance between Clara and Axel which was a slow and sweet burn that was brought closer by the darkness of the forest. This time around, their relationship is put to the test as Clara begins to have visions of the Lost and a new person enters the forest. With Clara’s visions guiding them, and her own internal battle over actions from book one, Clara doubts herself and pulls away from those she loves. I understood this change, but it was very frustrating at times and I found myself wishing Clara would just communicate more! However, Axel was being quite unfair to Clara and expecting her to solve everything, so again, I can see why Clara held back. The Forest Grimm is known to mess with your mind, and this is portrayed very well through Clara’s and Axel’s struggles, both personal and internal.
I read this in one sitting. So while there was a sense of something missing, I was still fully engaged and invested in the story. There were twists and turns and the dark, shifty feel of the forest’s magic and Clara’s visions really kept me from completely figuring everything out.
I definitely recommend this duology for anyone that enjoys a dark, fairytale inspired adventure fantasy with a dash of romance!
Thanks to the publisher for the complimentary arc. All opinions are my own.
In the end of book one, our FMC, Clara, breaks part of the curse holding her small town hostage, and is given a task to break the rest of the curse. Book two picks up at shortly after with a town hall meeting to determine if Clara and her friends who escaped the Forest Grimm in the last book are guilty of keeping the curse alive, even though they broke part of it. So, Clara and Axel flee to the Forest Grimm to solve the curse once and for all.
One of the major selling points in book one was the romance between Clara and Axel which was a slow and sweet burn that was brought closer by the darkness of the forest. This time around, their relationship is put to the test as Clara begins to have visions of the Lost and a new person enters the forest. With Clara’s visions guiding them, and her own internal battle over actions from book one, Clara doubts herself and pulls away from those she loves. I understood this change, but it was very frustrating at times and I found myself wishing Clara would just communicate more! However, Axel was being quite unfair to Clara and expecting her to solve everything, so again, I can see why Clara held back. The Forest Grimm is known to mess with your mind, and this is portrayed very well through Clara’s and Axel’s struggles, both personal and internal.
I read this in one sitting. So while there was a sense of something missing, I was still fully engaged and invested in the story. There were twists and turns and the dark, shifty feel of the forest’s magic and Clara’s visions really kept me from completely figuring everything out.
I definitely recommend this duology for anyone that enjoys a dark, fairytale inspired adventure fantasy with a dash of romance!
Thanks to the publisher for the complimentary arc. All opinions are my own.