juliesbooklandreviews's reviews
60 reviews

Miss Memory Lane: A Memoir by Colton Haynes

emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

This is the second celebrity memoir I've read and I normally don't rate them either but Colton's story deserved to be rated and it definitely made me a new fan of his after reading what he went through and what encouraged him to fight his own inner demons as well as the courage to come out and truly live the life he now has. And I hope this reaches everyone who felt like their lives was spiraling out of control to the point of no return but then they manage to take back said life and now they live their truth out loud and don't let others tear them down even though other people still try to do so. Bravo Colton for letting us hear your truth even though it was ugly and beautiful at the same time. Highly recommend others to read this rather you're going through it or not because it still really is worth your time and just maybe it'll make you an even bigger fan of his or you just might find that you'd love to become a fan just like I have over the course of reading this heartbreakingly beautiful person's story...

The House Across the Lake by Riley Sager

dark mysterious tense fast-paced

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

5.0

This is my fourth book by this author and I gotta say, He definitely continues to amaze me with his writing chops and this book was no exception. It had me on a roller coaster and there were multiple moments that reminded me of some of his books in clue form especially the Lock Every Door clue which I hope people who had read that book notices. Now I need to read Final Girls and The Last Time I lied and I'll be caught up. Now back to this book, I hope everyone picks it up and devours it as much as I did. Highly recommend that you do it before the year is up because you won't be disappointed when you do read it, I'll tell you that much. And the ending was wrapped up in a nice little bow. It's a definite favorite of 2022 that's for sure....

Neon Gods by Katee Robert

adventurous dark emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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

5.0

This was my first time reading Katee Robert and I must say, the plot of Hades and Persephone's dark love story was absolutely perfect and the smut was super hot throughout the book, but I personally loved how they liked to protect one another at costs. Highly recommend this author if you haven't read anything by her yet and not to mention, I seriously cannot wait to read more from her in the future.

One Last Stop by Casey McQuiston

adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective medium-paced

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

5.0

This is my second book by this author so I listened to the audiobook from Libro.fm /read this book from my local library. First, I like to say, I loved the narrator, she was very great with the voices of each character in the book that was mentioned and of course talked throughout the story. August and Jane as love interests were pretty convincing and I saw how much each of them wanted one another but continued to fight it until they couldn't anymore. The side characters were so likable and funny and wholesome. And the ending was just perfect for a LGBTQ+ romance with all the happiness that is brought to August and Jane. Once again Casey McQuiston, thanks for giving us yet another wholesome and beautiful love story and I can't wait to read more from you in the future...

Stroke of Midnight by K Webster

dark emotional funny sad tense 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

5.0

Triggers: Sexual Assault by family member & playful degrading from male hero as well as horrible degrading by a family member.

This was my first introduction into K Webster's writing and I thought this book was in my opinion a really good dark retelling of the children's book Cinderella and I absolutely loved how protective Winston was of Ash even though the agreement was for her to get paid doing random if not weird things for money but as the story progresses, it becomes more than that which is also another reason I liked this book and the cliffhanger left me wanting more of their story and it's a good thing that there are two more books left of this trilogy to still read.
Will I read more of this trilogy? Absolutely.
But will I read more books of K Webster in the future? Most definitely. But before I go, I just want to say that you seriously need to start this book today because it was just that freaking good of a dark romance.

The Reluctant Bride by Monica Murphy

adventurous dark funny lighthearted tense 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

5.0

(Triggers: Emotional & Physical abuse by a parent.)

What can I tell you about this book other than it was everything in a dark romance that I love. I loved everything about Perry and Charolette's relationship even though it started out with a enemies to lovers trope, but by the end besides the cliffhanger that we're left on which will continue in The Ruthless Groom when it releases on June 14th, it was the most fascinating read of my life and that's saying something about my reading tastes. Also I loved the arranged marriage part because I've never read this trope in my life and that was a good place to start in my opinion. And before I go, I just wanna say that this has the trigger of abuse by a parent, so if you have had this done to you then don't read it, but if you're okay with this sort of trigger then at least now you know to proceed with caution. Highly recommend if you're okay with dark elements in your books.

Twisted Rage by N. Isabelle Blanco

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Triggers: Mention of rape, drug usuage, Alcohol addiction & Suicidal thoughts and attempts and a mention of incesturous of a side character's past.

Twisted Rage picks off where book 1 Twisted Heartbreak ended off and I gotta say the revenge plot of this book was dark amongst other things and you get in vivid detail of what Happened to Lexi about seven years ago so if you can't handle the rape trigger then don't start this duet, but if you're okay with it then I highly recoomend you start this series right away. Before I go I just want to say that this book brings Andrew and Lexi even closer to one another in ways not many people would be okay with but nonetheless it was still a pleasurable to read if you like dark romances that are really dark in nature. And if you decide to give this duet a try then by all means get it now... 

King of Spades by Alta Hensley

dark emotional sad tense 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

5.0

This is a dark retelling of Alice in Wonderland. It's also my first book by this author as well and I gotta say, this was such a dark, but fun read. I loved Lyriope and Nick dynamic from the banter to the sexy times. And it leaves on a cliffhanger so I can't wait to see what happens in Queen of Hearts coming July 5th.

Twisted Heartbreak by N. Isabelle Blanco

dark funny tense fast-paced

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

4.0

This is the first book that I've read by this author and it had everything that I love in a dark romance, the second chance love between two characters whose known one another since they were kids and how they were torn apart by something that happens in their lives, I also love how one of them despises  the other for something that the other person didn't do but later on life they find their way back to one another and it continues like no amount of time has passed. One more thing I want to share is that before you go in it has a few triggers so look them up before you decide to read this and also this ends on a cliffhanger and I can't wait to read the last book in this series which will be called Twisted Rage so I can see how Andrew and Lexi's story ends.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape

The Honey-Don't List by Christina Lauren

funny informative inspiring slow-paced

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

3.0

This was my first time reading this female author duo and this book was mediocre to say the least and the characters to me were bland but overall it was an okay read but I'll be willing to try another book of theirs again in the future. But don't let my review discourage you to give it a try it just wasn't for me so to the readers who loved it when they read it just don't come for me with pitchforks if this was one of your favorite books from this talented duo.