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192 reviews
Why don't you make me by Rae Knight
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
“she's our salvation and our ruin, all wrapped into one beautiful soul.“
i normally enjoy dark romance books, and the way that this book was promoted spoke to all the things that i enjoy, but there was just wayyyy too much happening here.
the plot felt like it was all over the place, the relationships between the characters didn’t appeal to me, and i really didn’t like tori’s inner monologue. at some point, the plot points in the book became very predictable, but they also felt like they didn’t fit at the same time. up until a very specific chapter, none of the guys were okay with sharing her with one another even though that’s what the whole idea was (or so i thought). also, tori felt very immature (especially with her inner monologue and some of her actions), which contributed to how disconnected i felt with her character. there were also a few descriptions and comments made toward a specific character that i didn’t like at all, which contributes to my rating of this book.
i do enjoy bully romances, and i’m a big dark romance fan, but this one just didn’t do it for me. i also felt like the bullying wasn’t actually bullying and it bordered on genuine abuse.
this book definitely has potential, it’s just that things were not gone about in a way that i would’ve liked.
thank you so much to rae for the e-arc!
i normally enjoy dark romance books, and the way that this book was promoted spoke to all the things that i enjoy, but there was just wayyyy too much happening here.
the plot felt like it was all over the place, the relationships between the characters didn’t appeal to me, and i really didn’t like tori’s inner monologue. at some point, the plot points in the book became very predictable, but they also felt like they didn’t fit at the same time. up until a very specific chapter, none of the guys were okay with sharing her with one another even though that’s what the whole idea was (or so i thought). also, tori felt very immature (especially with her inner monologue and some of her actions), which contributed to how disconnected i felt with her character. there were also a few descriptions and comments made toward a specific character that i didn’t like at all, which contributes to my rating of this book.
i do enjoy bully romances, and i’m a big dark romance fan, but this one just didn’t do it for me. i also felt like the bullying wasn’t actually bullying and it bordered on genuine abuse.
this book definitely has potential, it’s just that things were not gone about in a way that i would’ve liked.
thank you so much to rae for the e-arc!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Gun violence, Sexual content, Violence, and Blood
Moderate: Child abuse and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Drug use and Rape
Wild Eyes by Elsie Silver
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
“i’ve always loved living in rose hill, but i’m not sure i fully appreciated it until i got to see it through skylar’s eyes.”
west and skylar may seem like an unlikely pairing, but everything about them is just so right.
i loved watching skylar grow into herself through her time in rose hill, especially when she was talking with emmy and ollie. even though they’re only six and eight years old, they were so insightful and real with skylar. she learned to love herself again, albeit in a place where no one would probably imagine she would escape to, but she became the version of herself that she didn’t realise she was missing for decades.
now west? i don’t think i’ve ever fallen in love with a fictional man who tends to horses day in and day out, but here we are. the mouth on him? phew… definitely need that bad. his genuine care for skylar was so heartwarming and raw, especially because he treated her like a real person, not a celebrity or a famous singer (whom he was 100% obsessed with but couldn’t admit it outwardly for some time). the very last chapter with the jar of skittles was so freaking sweet, and i’m not ashamed to say that i had tears in my eyes because the little things get me so hard.
needless to say, i think i am addicted to the elsie silver universe now, and i’m not sure how i will recover.
★ slow burn
★ single dad
★ “who hurt you?”
★ friends to lovers
★ small town romance
west and skylar may seem like an unlikely pairing, but everything about them is just so right.
i loved watching skylar grow into herself through her time in rose hill, especially when she was talking with emmy and ollie. even though they’re only six and eight years old, they were so insightful and real with skylar. she learned to love herself again, albeit in a place where no one would probably imagine she would escape to, but she became the version of herself that she didn’t realise she was missing for decades.
now west? i don’t think i’ve ever fallen in love with a fictional man who tends to horses day in and day out, but here we are. the mouth on him? phew… definitely need that bad. his genuine care for skylar was so heartwarming and raw, especially because he treated her like a real person, not a celebrity or a famous singer (whom he was 100% obsessed with but couldn’t admit it outwardly for some time). the very last chapter with the jar of skittles was so freaking sweet, and i’m not ashamed to say that i had tears in my eyes because the little things get me so hard.
needless to say, i think i am addicted to the elsie silver universe now, and i’m not sure how i will recover.
★ slow burn
★ single dad
★ “who hurt you?”
★ friends to lovers
★ small town romance
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, and Sexual content
Moderate: Child abuse, Gaslighting, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Addiction, Death, Drug abuse, and Violence
Wild Love by Elsie Silver
emotional
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
“i can see why people vie for his attention. it’s addictive. and i think i’ve been addicted to getting his attention since i was a kid. i’m only just realizing i’ve had it all along.”
let me preface this by saying i did not expect this book to live up to the hype, but it absolutely did.
rosie and ford have the type of relationship dynamic that i am always searching for in books, yet can hardly ever find perfectly executed. their banter, their teasing, their jokes, their love for each other, their inability to admit that they’ve always had it bad for each other. everything about them wrapped up in a pretty little pink bow (because obviously) is exactly what i have been looking for.
their game of push and pull, and the tension that came along with it, was so palpable! i found myself giggling and kicking my feet like an idiot throughout this book because i couldn’t get enough of them.
now cora, she was such a fun character. i loved her personality and her attitude, and she deserves the entire world. ford stepped up and became a piece of her life that she was missing, and even though she teased him relentlessly, she grew to love him.
i cannot wait to dive into elsie silver’s other books!
★ single dad
★ small town
★ he falls first
★ billionaire mmc
★ boss x employee
★ brother’s best friend
let me preface this by saying i did not expect this book to live up to the hype, but it absolutely did.
rosie and ford have the type of relationship dynamic that i am always searching for in books, yet can hardly ever find perfectly executed. their banter, their teasing, their jokes, their love for each other, their inability to admit that they’ve always had it bad for each other. everything about them wrapped up in a pretty little pink bow (because obviously) is exactly what i have been looking for.
their game of push and pull, and the tension that came along with it, was so palpable! i found myself giggling and kicking my feet like an idiot throughout this book because i couldn’t get enough of them.
now cora, she was such a fun character. i loved her personality and her attitude, and she deserves the entire world. ford stepped up and became a piece of her life that she was missing, and even though she teased him relentlessly, she grew to love him.
i cannot wait to dive into elsie silver’s other books!
★ single dad
★ small town
★ he falls first
★ billionaire mmc
★ boss x employee
★ brother’s best friend
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Sexual content, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Mental illness, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Infertility, Terminal illness, and Violence
The Ice Out by Mina Myles
emotional
lighthearted
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
“with his words, i swear i feel my heart slowly piece itself back together. it wasn’t perfectly healed, and maybe it never would be, but it would be safe in his hands. that i knew for certain.“
mason and violet were so cute! i’m not usually a fan of friends to lovers, but i adored their story to pieces. i see so much of myself in violet’s tendencies, like over-planning and wanting control over things, and i see myself in mason as well with self-doubt and overthinking things.
penny (the cat) was one of my favourite characters, especially because she gave mason a run for his money, but hey, if it wasn’t for penny, where would mason and violet be? they owe her everything.
mason was so thoughtful and caring when it came to violet— even 3 years later, he still remembered her drink order and had the tea she loved stocked for her return to him. (literally the definition of “if he wanted to, he would”!)
this was such a sweet story, and it just released yesterday (jan 10), so go read it!
★ bipoc rep
★ pining + angst
★ forced proximity
★ mental health rep
★ it’s always been you
★ best friend’s brother
★ right person, wrong time
★ friends to dislike to lovers
thank you so much to love notes pr and mina myles for the e-arc of this book! 💌
mason and violet were so cute! i’m not usually a fan of friends to lovers, but i adored their story to pieces. i see so much of myself in violet’s tendencies, like over-planning and wanting control over things, and i see myself in mason as well with self-doubt and overthinking things.
penny (the cat) was one of my favourite characters, especially because she gave mason a run for his money, but hey, if it wasn’t for penny, where would mason and violet be? they owe her everything.
mason was so thoughtful and caring when it came to violet— even 3 years later, he still remembered her drink order and had the tea she loved stocked for her return to him. (literally the definition of “if he wanted to, he would”!)
this was such a sweet story, and it just released yesterday (jan 10), so go read it!
★ bipoc rep
★ pining + angst
★ forced proximity
★ mental health rep
★ it’s always been you
★ best friend’s brother
★ right person, wrong time
★ friends to dislike to lovers
thank you so much to love notes pr and mina myles for the e-arc of this book! 💌
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Emotional abuse and Medical content
Minor: Animal death and Panic attacks/disorders
The Road Sometimes Taken by Ambar Cordova
adventurous
emotional
lighthearted
medium-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? Yes
3.0
“i will make sure every damn moment for the rest of this trip is worth a new bracelet for her.”
this started off as such a strong read, but unfortunately i didn’t love it by the end. manuel, however, i adored. he was my favourite character in this book, and i’ll forever love his golden retriever energy. cara on the other hand, i felt like she had a lot of growing up to do. manny was loving her out loud for so long and she kept disregarding his feelings for her, even as he was verbally telling her how he felt. there were several instances where cara would constantly berate and belittle herself, despite also telling herself that she’s worth it and deserving of things. i enjoyed their romance, the “they’re not you” trope, and how dedicated manny was to cara, not to mention how delicious he was when they were alone together, but this book was not for me, which is totally okay!
★ small town romance
★ best friend’s brother
★ sunshine x sunshine
★ road trip
★ millionaire
★ multicultural
definitely going to look into this author’s other work, and if you read this book, i hope you enjoy it!
thank you so much to luna literary management and ambar cordova for the e-arc!
this started off as such a strong read, but unfortunately i didn’t love it by the end. manuel, however, i adored. he was my favourite character in this book, and i’ll forever love his golden retriever energy. cara on the other hand, i felt like she had a lot of growing up to do. manny was loving her out loud for so long and she kept disregarding his feelings for her, even as he was verbally telling her how he felt. there were several instances where cara would constantly berate and belittle herself, despite also telling herself that she’s worth it and deserving of things. i enjoyed their romance, the “they’re not you” trope, and how dedicated manny was to cara, not to mention how delicious he was when they were alone together, but this book was not for me, which is totally okay!
★ small town romance
★ best friend’s brother
★ sunshine x sunshine
★ road trip
★ millionaire
★ multicultural
definitely going to look into this author’s other work, and if you read this book, i hope you enjoy it!
thank you so much to luna literary management and ambar cordova for the e-arc!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying and Sexual content
Moderate: Emotional abuse, Infidelity, and Violence
War by Brittanée Nicole
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
“he didn’t play by the rules in order to win me, and i sure as hell threw the rules out the window when it came to our marriage. but let’s be honest: all’s fair in love and war.“
i battled so many emotions during my time reading this book. i was shocked, nervous, happy, sad, confused, and giddy, sometimes all at the same time. ava and tyler’s story isn’t one that i’ve read before, so that made it all the more exciting. josie, scarlett, and brayden were absolute angels, and i found myself laughing at the dialogue from all three of them so many times. you can feel just how much ava and tyler love each of their kids as you’re reading, which is nothing less than what they deserve. my heart broke for ava as she shared information about her past, and i’m so glad she found what she deserved after quite literally living for someone else. as for tyler, i appreciated that he stood his ground and fought for what he believed in, even when other people seemed willing to give up.
definitely going to look into this author’s other works!
thank you so much to love notes pr and brittanee nicole for the e-arc of this book! 💌
i battled so many emotions during my time reading this book. i was shocked, nervous, happy, sad, confused, and giddy, sometimes all at the same time. ava and tyler’s story isn’t one that i’ve read before, so that made it all the more exciting. josie, scarlett, and brayden were absolute angels, and i found myself laughing at the dialogue from all three of them so many times. you can feel just how much ava and tyler love each of their kids as you’re reading, which is nothing less than what they deserve. my heart broke for ava as she shared information about her past, and i’m so glad she found what she deserved after quite literally living for someone else. as for tyler, i appreciated that he stood his ground and fought for what he believed in, even when other people seemed willing to give up.
definitely going to look into this author’s other works!
thank you so much to love notes pr and brittanee nicole for the e-arc of this book! 💌
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Sexual content, and Grief
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Medical content, and Death of parent
Minor: Addiction, Drug abuse, Misogyny, and Pregnancy
Bloodlust by E.L. Lewis
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
4.0
“a promise is a nightmare masquerading as a dream.“
thank you so much to e.l. lewis for the e-arc!
this was such an interesting read. we follow camilla as she takes her father’s place as a mafia boss, how she manages the responsibility and the stress of such a role. there are a few twists and turns that left me staring at my phone with my jaw open because i wasn’t expecting them. i will say, i wish this was dual pov because i wanted to see more from hayden, especially since he had such an important role in camilla’s life. all in all, i really enjoyed this book and i’m crossing my fingers that there’s a second one!
thank you so much to e.l. lewis for the e-arc!
this was such an interesting read. we follow camilla as she takes her father’s place as a mafia boss, how she manages the responsibility and the stress of such a role. there are a few twists and turns that left me staring at my phone with my jaw open because i wasn’t expecting them. i will say, i wish this was dual pov because i wanted to see more from hayden, especially since he had such an important role in camilla’s life. all in all, i really enjoyed this book and i’m crossing my fingers that there’s a second one!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cursing, Domestic abuse, Gun violence, Sexual content, and Violence
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Blood, Grief, and Murder
Minor: Animal death and Death
Apples Dipped in Gold by Scarlett St. Clair
adventurous
dark
emotional
fast-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? Yes
4.5
“samara was so used to horror, i did not want to become another monster in her eyes.”
i originally read this on ku when it first released, but decided to do a reread with the paperback! i will say that i loved the experience of reading the paperback much more than reading it on ku, as per usual when i read anything. originally, i rated this book 4 stars, but after reading the paperback, i am altering my rating to 4.5 stars.
i absolutely love samara and lore, and their journey was a tough but necessary one. lore believes he is cursed, and that he only loves samara because of that curse. it’s been seven years since first they met, and he hasn’t been able to stop thinking about her since. samara has loved him ever since that day, though lore doesn’t know this. he wrongfully assumes that samara hated him for seven years, and the answers to all of his questions lie within the book. read this to follow samara and lore on an adventure that will have you hooked from the first page!
i originally read this on ku when it first released, but decided to do a reread with the paperback! i will say that i loved the experience of reading the paperback much more than reading it on ku, as per usual when i read anything. originally, i rated this book 4 stars, but after reading the paperback, i am altering my rating to 4.5 stars.
i absolutely love samara and lore, and their journey was a tough but necessary one. lore believes he is cursed, and that he only loves samara because of that curse. it’s been seven years since first they met, and he hasn’t been able to stop thinking about her since. samara has loved him ever since that day, though lore doesn’t know this. he wrongfully assumes that samara hated him for seven years, and the answers to all of his questions lie within the book. read this to follow samara and lore on an adventure that will have you hooked from the first page!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Violence, and Murder
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Cursing, and Vomit
Minor: Death and Death of parent
So Long, Honey by Aubrey Taylor
emotional
medium-paced
5.0
“it felt like there had never been enough hours in the day to love her.”
god, i don’t even know where to start with this one. this little novella was everything that i didn’t know i needed until finishing it. in fact, i put it off just to savor it, but now i’m wishing i didn’t finish it so quickly. in this book, you figure out why ryan cody does what he does and what he went through for lorraine as a seventeen year old kid that kept being told he didn’t deserve her. lorraine and ryan deserved each other and each of the stars between them, and it was time that wasn’t on their sides.
thank you so very much to aubrey for the arc of this novella. i will forever cherish it. two steps at a time.
god, i don’t even know where to start with this one. this little novella was everything that i didn’t know i needed until finishing it. in fact, i put it off just to savor it, but now i’m wishing i didn’t finish it so quickly. in this book, you figure out why ryan cody does what he does and what he went through for lorraine as a seventeen year old kid that kept being told he didn’t deserve her. lorraine and ryan deserved each other and each of the stars between them, and it was time that wasn’t on their sides.
thank you so very much to aubrey for the arc of this novella. i will forever cherish it. two steps at a time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Terminal illness and Grief
Sacked and Sleighed by Aurelia Knight
dark
emotional
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
4.5
“you’re the only person to ever take a hit for me, snowflake, and i have never stopped watching you.”
dark and twisted, just the way i like it. i will never look at candy canes the same after reading this book, i fear. klaus most definitely has some screws loose, but that’s what made this book so fun (and festive). i’m most definitely intrigued by the psychiatrist in the epilogue, so i’ll be looking into aurelia knight’s other works, and i can’t wait!
definitely a book you’ll want to read trigger warnings for before reading!
dark and twisted, just the way i like it. i will never look at candy canes the same after reading this book, i fear. klaus most definitely has some screws loose, but that’s what made this book so fun (and festive). i’m most definitely intrigued by the psychiatrist in the epilogue, so i’ll be looking into aurelia knight’s other works, and i can’t wait!
definitely a book you’ll want to read trigger warnings for before reading!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Sexual content, Violence, Blood, and Murder
Moderate: Domestic abuse and Physical abuse
Minor: Child abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, and Death of parent