It was cute. Not much to add but that. I liked it but I was also able to predict all of it. But it was also comforting and an emotional and easy read. I still really liked it!

Lights Out by Navessa Allen

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challenging dark emotional funny mysterious tense medium-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? Yes

5.0

Wow. I feel eternally grateful to have read this book as an ARC, and for my first ever ARC, I feel like nothing will top it. I went into this book expecting something similar to Haunting Adeline. Lights Out goes beyond the dark romance norm and includes humour, satire, and an MMC with golden retriever energy. By far though my favourite parts were the aftercare. The attention that Josh gives to Aly is something that you don't see in a lot of dark romance books. The MCs practicing kinky, dark, twisted and fucked up sex but also in an emotionally and physically safe way, will always mean 5/5 stars for me. Taken together, I loved the characters and I thought their journey together was well thought out and executed. I particularly fell in love with Josh (the first time I've ever said that about a guy named Josh). His energy, his self-awareness about his past and how he acts are a breath of fresh air. Particularly when you're used to reading dark romances where the men are apathetic, at best, towards self-awareness.

As for the plot, I liked how dynamic it was! The mafia being added halfway through I felt like was a lot at first, but I found that Aly having a dark past like Josh is what ultimately led them to deepen their bond. I loved the rollercoaster ride of the last half of the book after Aly meets a certain monster and how Josh and her resolve it. I don't want to spoil the book for anyone else looking to read it but in short, if you are looking for a dark romance that redefines the genre and shakes things up, look no further than Navessa Allen's Lights Out. I am so excited to get my hands on a hard copy and to immediately add any of her other works to my cart.

Final note: Are we getting a book on Vern next I feel like it was hinted at!

Final Final note: THAT EPILOGUE AHHHHH!!!

Content Warnings

Crush by Tracy Wolff

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adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

4/5 ⭐
0/5 🌶️

Tropes
- fantasy
-love triangle
- chosen one
- paranormal love
- dark academia

📖 My Thoughts
Okay I’m on board with this series now! I wasn’t to sure about continuing it but then I was like “oh I’ll give it a chance could be cute” and then this book was like

My favourite character in this series so far is Hudson because he’s
Chefs kiss, but be warned he’s a raging asshole in the first half of the book. I also like the paradox and character development of Grace.

She came into this school as a human and now she’s a gargoyle and it’s really interesting to see how Wolff interprets that. I’ve never had a novel where The paranormal was a gargoyle and I’m interested to see where she takes that.

I’ll likely read the next book during my upcoming trip or after.

⚠️ Triggers
Blood, serious injuries, concussions, memory loss, death, mentions of psychopathy

🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️ Representation
I can’t say much otherwise I give away a big secret. So I’ll just say there’s representation but the FMC and MMC are both white and able bodied.

🌶️ Spice
This is a YA book. There was no spice beyond kissing.

## 📝 Special Notes
Spoiler!!!! Major spoiler!!!!

I’m personally team Hudson so the last chapter of the book was 😭😭😭❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️

Twisted Love by Ana Huang

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dark funny medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

4/5 ⭐
3/5 🌶️

Tropes
- grumpy sunshine
- touch her and die
- brothers best friend

📖 My Thoughts
I probably would have given this book five stars had i not been currently halfway through the second book which IS SO MUCH BETTER. so the second book kinda ruined me a bit lol. But I still love a good grumpy sunshine book. I find that it’s the trope I can relate to the most because I get a lot of comments that I’m a sunshine type character and my favourite form of self harm is emotionally unavailable men 🤷‍♀️. I liked the added bit about Ava having a fear of water and I found that I related to her PTSD as I have had a traumatic experience (unrelated to water) but felt like I had experienced what she did. I could not put this book down and I’m excited for the rest of the series!

⚠️ Triggers
Drowning, suicide, overdose, self harm, vengeance, killing, death, guns, poison, sexual harassment

🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️Representation
Female MC is Asian. MMC is first generation Ukrainian immigrant. Beyond that not much else representation detected but I’m white so take this info with a grain of salt.

🌶️ Spice
The spice was thereeeee. It was good but it also gave off the vibes that it was a vanilla couple that was like “oh I use handcuffs I’m so kinky!” There was kinky sex but it wasn’t KINKY if you know what I mean. Like the spanking and orgasm control.

📝 Special Notes
My library has the audio books free to download an unlimited amount of times so maybe check to see if that’s the same for y’all!

Content Warnings

Radical Compassion: Learning to Love Yourself and Your World with the Practice of Rain by Tara Brach

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challenging hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

5.0

5/5 ⭐
0/5 🌶️

Tropes
- meditation
- spiritual and Buddhist themes
- self help

📖 My Thoughts
This book was recommended to me by my therapist. I found that I could feel empathy for others but have a hard time holding space for myself. I can recognize my own feelings, but accepting them and nurturing them is another thing. The inner work i feel like will be difficult but totally doable. Where I got triggered was applying compassion to all relationships outside of my inner world. Particularly when it comes to forgiveness. Without diving into too much detail, I don’t have the space right now to forgive the person who is the “cause” of my therapy. However the book describes a philosophy of how learning self compassion is what allows you to extend to other beings. Overall I loved this book and recommend it for anyone who is interested in meditation, mindfulness, and healing trauma.

⚠️ Triggers
Drugs, addiction, disability, eating disorders, mentions of various religions, suicide thoughts, death, divorce and some extras.

🏳️‍🌈Representation
This is non fiction but it did have stories from people from all walks of life. Old/young, disabled and athletes, people with addiction, people of colour, queer folks, etc. Tara acknowledges that she is writing from a white prospective, but she stayed true to an intersectional and compassionate approach.

📝 Special Notes
This is her second most recent book on this topic. I have not read the first.

Content Warnings

Monster Slayer by Eve Newton

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 55%.

Honestly could not connect with the FMC. The smut was good but I kept finding I would get annoyed with her. The insta love trope can be done well, but I felt like that was not the case for this book. I might try to finish it later, but I have other books I am reading that I enjoy more.

The Ruin of Kings by Jenn Lyons

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Did not finish book. Stopped at 18%.

Going to retry this book at a later time. I had a hard time understanding what was going on, and I just got bored with it.

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habkehanna's reviews 105 reviews

habkehanna's reviews
105 reviews