kaitie_reads's reviews
192 reviews

A Harvest of Hearts by Andrea Eames

adventurous medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

3.5

💛 Whimsical 
🫀 Beauty & The Beast Vibes 
💛 Unique Magic 
🫀 Cozy + Animal Companion
💛 Unique Overall Vibe 


I enjoyed this. It's an immersive and slightly odd read. There is a unique overall vibe to this story story, and while the romance fell short for me, I still had a good time.

Foss (our fmc) sets out to find her heart after it's snagged by a mysterious sorcerer. However, she doesn't expect to unearth deeper secrets surrounding these mysterious magic wielders and a mysterious blight that is overpowering her kingdom. 

My favourite thing about this story was Cornelius, the cat. He reminded me of Salem from Sabrina the Teenage Witch with his sassy remarks and no-nonsense quips. He stole the show. I have complicated feelings about Foss (our FMC), she really doesn't hold herself in a remarkable light, but she's also a very good person who wants to help anyone she can. Foss did have some great character development throughout, and I loved her coming to realize her value. Sylvester (MMC), however, felt pretty underdeveloped as a character. He just doesn't stand out, and his limited interactions with the FMC in the first half of the story just didn't sell the romance portion of the story. 

The first half of the story hit me a lot harder than the second. There's a noticeable change in pace and a sense of urgency that develops. The villains also fall a little flat because there's no real depth to why they are bad. It's more just "bad guy wants to be bad and powerful."

That said, Andrea Eames does a great job of building a kind of cute and cozy story that is, at times, quite dark - but has an overall whimsical tone that supersedes the darker themes. The magic system was really neat, the theme of capturing and stealing hearts was well done, and the animal companion was top-notch. Overall, it reads like a coming-of-age, whimsical, dark fairytale, and you can feel the beauty and the beast references seeping through the pages. 

𝓣𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓴 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓽𝓸 𝓝𝓮𝓽𝓰𝓪𝓵𝓵𝓮𝔂 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓚𝓮𝓷𝓼𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓽𝓸𝓷 𝓟𝓾𝓫𝓵𝓲𝓼𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓐𝓡𝓒 𝓸𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓫𝓸𝓸𝓴. 𝓐𝓵𝓵 𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓼 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓭𝓫𝓪𝓬𝓴 𝓬𝓸𝓷𝓽𝓪𝓲𝓷𝓮𝓭 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓻𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀 𝓪𝓻𝓮 𝓶𝔂 𝓸𝔀𝓷.

The Gods Time Forgot by Kelsie Sheridan Gonzalez

adventurous tense medium-paced

2.0

🤍 Irish Mythology 
👗 Banter 
🤍 Bridgerton Vibes 
👗 Fierce FMC 
🤍 Slow Burn 

I *really* wanted to love this, but it just didn't hook me.

Rua finds herself *awoken* in a body that is not her own, with a name she doesn't recall, in a world that feels foreign to her. She is now Emma Harrington, and she is in a world of trouble with her family and with their high society peers for practicing witchcraft. She knows she is not who they say she is, but with the threat of being sent to an asylum and no other means of escape, she tries her best to blend into her newfound circumstances. 

This book felt snail-paced. Outside of some fun banter and trying to unearth how the heck Rua ended up in a body that is not her own, the story wasn't that intriguing. I found that whenever we got a morsel of information, as readers, it was very info-dumpy, spanning pages of suddenly unearthed mythological connections. The plot feels repetitive, and the characters feel a little underdeveloped if I'm being honest.

The romance was just... lacklustre. The banter was fun, but Finn's continued drive to dismiss Rua and do what *society expects from him* was irritating. I think the author was trying to build in a slow burn and forbidden love element, but it just felt frustrating when the same situation kept repeating itself every few chapters. 

I loved the unique roots of Irish mythology. I definitely felt there was a great historical fantasy and an almost Bridgerton-like vibe to the story, and Rua is definitely a fun character. She is sassy, confident, and intelligent. 

Some readers will definitely love the unique premise and delivery here, but this one unfortunately fell flat for me.

𝓣𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓴 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓽𝓸 𝓝𝓮𝓽𝓰𝓪𝓵𝓵𝓮𝔂 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓐𝓵𝓬𝓸𝓿𝓮 𝓟𝓻𝓮𝓼𝓼 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓐𝓡𝓒 𝓸𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓫𝓸𝓸𝓴. 𝓐𝓵𝓵 𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓼 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓭𝓫𝓪𝓬𝓴 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓻𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀 𝓪𝓻𝓮 𝓶𝔂 𝓸𝔀𝓷.

When the Bones Sing by Ginny Myers Sain

dark tense medium-paced

3.0

🪦 YA Folk Horror
🌸 Southern Charm 
🪦 Misfit FMC
🌸 Pinch of Romance 
🪦 Hauntings and Monsters 

I really enjoyed this one, but I also felt like it was lacking a little bit as well.

Dovie is a 17-year-old girl who is a bit of a misfit with a special talent. She can locate people who have died easily because their bones call out and *sing* to her. After an uptick in murders surrounding her small Ozark community - where hikers frequently pass through - this skill definitely comes in handy. 

I thought this was really well written. It's a neat concept. The book has a lot of charm and an overall sense of foreboding throughout with its gothic horror roots. I also found it was pretty unpredictable, but I was also able to guess portions of the conclusion early on. 

The adults were all idiotic, though, especially the police who waited for the bones to sing for Dovie instead of launching their own investigation. There is a little bit of a love triangle, and I didn't feel it really added anything to the story.  The story behind the murders felt very... unhinged and also unbelievable, to be honest. It also felt like Dovie should have been aware of some of the background information in this story before the first page. We kind of just fall directly into her life and story after there have been multiple murders already that she hasn't really questioned. 

Pushing aside the logistical issues, it was still fun, and I was captivated throughout. It was a binge-able story. The scene setting, characters, and concepts were phenomenal, but the plot execution held the story back for me. 

𝓣𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓴 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓽𝓸 𝓝𝓮𝓽𝓰𝓪𝓵𝓵𝓮𝔂 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓟𝓮𝓷𝓰𝓾𝓲𝓷 𝓣𝓮𝓮𝓷 𝓒𝓪𝓷𝓪𝓭𝓪 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓐𝓡𝓒 𝓸𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓫𝓸𝓸𝓴. 𝓐𝓵𝓵 𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽𝓼 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓭𝓫𝓪𝓬𝓴 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓻𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀 𝓪𝓻𝓮 𝓶𝔂 𝓸𝔀𝓷.

The Road of Bones by Demi Winters

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix

5.0

🖤 Strong Feminist Themes 
⚔️ Viking Romantasy 
🖤 Slow Burn 
⚔️ Betrayal and Redemption
🖤 Very Unique Feel 

I really enjoyed this first book in the Ashen Series, and I'm already so invested in this 5-book(!!) series. 

This story follows Silla, a woman who always seems to be on the run with her father and protector in a world dominated by men. I was hooked from the very first chapter. Demi Winters picks us up and drops us right into this cutthroat and cruel world, where the kingdom sentences people [Galdra] to death by stoning for possessing magic-wielding abilities. 

You can feel the craft that the author has layered into the story. It's meticulous. It feels so well-researched and constructed layer by layer. It's unpredictable and unputdownable. There is a little bit of romance that had me swooning (and a hint of spice as well), there are strong female characters, and there is a lot at stake for our FMC. While I did find Silla slightly irritating at times, she comes by it naturally, as she has been very sheltered from the world for much of her life. 

I did find at times I was a little confused because there are many Old Norse words, there are quite a few nicknames and people to follow, and there are alternating POVs, but I'm now working on the sequel and with the groundwork already laid, finding it easy to follow. This is fantasy-forward romantasy, so while the romance is present, the fantasy side is much heavier in this first installment, and there is a prevalent historical vibe as well. 

This is definitely a must-read, and I'm feeling so excited about this series as a whole.

~

𝓘 𝔀𝓪𝓷𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓽𝓸 𝓼𝓮𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓶𝓸𝓶𝓮𝓷𝓽 𝓱𝓮 𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓵𝓲𝔃𝓮𝓭 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓻𝔂𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓱𝓮 𝓱𝓪𝓭 𝓭𝓸𝓷𝓮 𝓽𝓸 𝓶𝓮—𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓻𝔂 𝓼𝓵𝓪𝓹, 𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓻𝔂 𝓹𝓾𝓷𝓬𝓱, 𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓻𝔂 𝓴𝓲𝓬𝓴—𝔀𝓪𝓼 𝓴𝓲𝓷𝓭𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓰. 𝓘𝓽 𝓫𝓾𝓲𝓵𝓽 𝓶𝓮 𝓾𝓹 𝓲𝓷𝓽𝓸 𝓪 𝓻𝓪𝓰𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝔀𝓲𝓵𝓭𝓯𝓲𝓻𝓮, 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓷𝓸𝔀 𝓲𝓽 𝔀𝓪𝓼 𝓽𝓲𝓶𝓮 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓱𝓲𝓶 𝓽𝓸 𝓫𝓾𝓻𝓷.

𝓗𝓮 𝔀𝓪𝓼 𝓳𝓾𝓼𝓽 𝓵𝓲𝓴𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓻𝓮𝓼𝓽 𝓸𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓶, 𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓼𝓮 𝔀𝓱𝓸 𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽 𝓼𝓽𝓻𝓮𝓷𝓰𝓽𝓱 𝔀𝓪𝓼 𝓼𝓲𝓶𝓹𝓵𝔂 𝓪 𝓶𝓮𝓪𝓼𝓾𝓻𝓮 𝓸𝓯 𝓱𝓸𝔀 𝓱𝓪𝓻𝓭 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓼𝔀𝓾𝓷𝓰 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓼𝔀𝓸𝓻𝓭. 𝓗𝓮 𝓾𝓷𝓭𝓮𝓻𝓮𝓼𝓽𝓲𝓶𝓪𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓻𝓮𝓼𝓲𝓵𝓲𝓮𝓷𝓬𝓮. 𝓗𝓮 𝓮𝓺𝓾𝓪𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓷𝓲𝓬𝓮𝓷𝓮𝓼𝓼 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱 𝔀𝓮𝓪𝓴𝓷𝓮𝓼𝓼. “𝓣𝓱𝓮𝓷 𝔀𝓮 𝓼𝓱𝓪𝓵𝓵 𝓼𝓱𝓸𝔀 𝓱𝓲𝓶 𝓳𝓾𝓼𝓽 𝓱𝓸𝔀 𝔀𝓻𝓸𝓷𝓰 𝓱𝓮 𝓲𝓼,” 𝓰𝓻𝓸𝔀𝓵𝓮𝓭 𝓢𝓲𝓵𝓵𝓪, 𝓽𝓾𝓻𝓷𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓸𝓷 𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓱𝓮𝓮𝓵.

House of Hunger by Alexis Henderson

dark mysterious tense medium-paced

4.0

🩸 Gothic + Atmospheric
🖤 LGBTQ+ Rep
🩸 Ominous Tone 
🖤 Immersive 
🩸 Cat + Mouse Horror Dynamic 

This one wasn't quite what I was expecting, but it was amazing. It's a quick and immersive read, and I could not put it down.

Marion, our FMC, is tired of working herself to the bone in what is essentially the slums. After seeing an ad in the newspaper, she offers herself up as a bloodmaid, who will bleed for the rich and elite in exchange for comfort, security, and the promise of a better future... once her service is complete. 

Alexis Henderson has this remarkable ability to not only write an engaging story but write that story while taking direct aim at issues like classism, racism and gender inequality. This book delivers so well by comparing the rich and elite to.... bloodsucking vampires. 

Marion's relationship with Lisavet, the countess of the House of Hunger, is such an amazing representation of exploitative "love." The Rulers of the Houses rely on these bloodmaids but ultimately have the power to discard them as needed while retaining their seat of power. 

I would have liked to see a little bit more worldbuilding and more explanation of the Houses themselves, but overall, I thought that this was really well done and thought-provoking.

~ 

𝓜𝔂 𝓶𝓸𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓸𝓷𝓬𝓮 𝓽𝓸𝓵𝓭 𝓶𝓮 𝓫𝓮𝓪𝓾𝓽𝓲𝓯𝓾𝓵 𝔀𝓪𝓼 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝔀𝓸𝓻𝓼𝓽 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓪 𝓰𝓲𝓻𝓵 𝓬𝓸𝓾𝓵𝓭 𝓫𝓮. 𝓘’𝓶 𝓷𝓸𝔀 𝓲𝓷𝓬𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓮𝓭 𝓽𝓸 𝓫𝓮𝓵𝓲𝓮𝓿𝓮 𝓱𝓮𝓻.
•
𝓨𝓸𝓾 𝓴𝓷𝓸𝔀, 𝔀𝓱𝓮𝓷 𝓘 𝔀𝓪𝓼 𝓪 𝓵𝓲𝓽𝓽𝓵𝓮 𝓰𝓲𝓻𝓵, 𝓶𝔂 𝓯𝓪𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓸𝓷𝓬𝓮 𝓽𝓸𝓵𝓭 𝓶𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓲𝓯 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓮𝓪𝓽 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝔀𝓮𝓪𝓴, 𝔂𝓸𝓾’𝓵𝓵 𝓷𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓻 𝓰𝓸 𝓱𝓾𝓷𝓰𝓻𝔂. 𝓘 𝓵𝓮𝓪𝓻𝓷𝓮𝓭 𝓪𝓽 𝓪 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓷𝓰 𝓪𝓰𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓵𝓸𝓿𝓮 𝓻𝓮𝓺𝓾𝓲𝓻𝓮𝓼 𝓪 𝓴𝓲𝓷𝓭 𝓸𝓯 . . . 𝓭𝓲𝓼𝓶𝓪𝓷𝓽𝓵𝓲𝓷𝓰. 𝓞𝓷𝓮 𝓵𝓮𝓪𝓻𝓷𝓼 𝓽𝓸 𝓶𝓪𝓴𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓸𝓫𝓳𝓮𝓬𝓽 𝓸𝓯 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓱𝓾𝓷𝓰𝓮𝓻 𝓵𝓸𝓿𝓮 𝔂𝓸𝓾. 𝓑𝓮𝓬𝓪𝓾𝓼𝓮 𝔀𝓱𝓮𝓷 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝔂 𝓵𝓸𝓿𝓮 𝔂𝓸𝓾, 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝔂’𝓵𝓵 𝓭𝓸 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓮𝓶𝓸𝓽𝓲𝓸𝓷𝓪𝓵 𝓫𝓾𝓽𝓬𝓱𝓮𝓻𝔂 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓶𝓼𝓮𝓵𝓿𝓮𝓼. 𝓘𝓽 𝔀𝓪𝓼 𝔂𝓸𝓾, 𝓜𝓪𝓻𝓲𝓸𝓷, 𝓷𝓸𝓽 𝓶𝓮, 𝔀𝓱𝓸 𝓬𝓾𝓽 𝓸𝓹𝓮𝓷 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓸𝔀𝓷 𝓬𝓱𝓮𝓼𝓽, 𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓬𝓱𝓮𝓭 𝓲𝓷𝓽𝓸 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝔀𝓮𝓽 𝓬𝓪𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓷 𝓫𝓮𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓭 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓻𝓲𝓫𝓼, 𝓬𝓾𝓽 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓱𝓮𝓪𝓻𝓽 𝓵𝓸𝓸𝓼𝓮 𝓸𝓯 𝓲𝓽𝓼 𝓻𝓲𝓰𝓰𝓲𝓷𝓰, 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓸𝓯𝓯𝓮𝓻𝓮𝓭 𝓲𝓽 𝓽𝓸 𝓶𝓮. 𝓘 𝓱𝓪𝓭 𝓸𝓷𝓵𝔂 𝓽𝓸 𝓽𝓪𝓴𝓮 𝓲𝓽.

Even in Death by Randi Garner

adventurous dark emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes

4.0

🥀 M/M Romance 
💀 Disability Rep (Hearing Loss) 
🥀 Ruthless Gods 
💀 Gorgeous Prose 
🥀 Slow Burn 

This was such a gorgeous sequel to "The Goddess Of." 🤍

Randi Garner transports us yet again to a high-stakes world of ruthless gods and immortal rivals. This sequel follows the slow-burn story of Finnian and Cassian. 

Finnian (The High God of Witchcraft & Sorcery + Necromancer) and Cassian (The High God of Death & Curses) couldn't be more opposite... and have feuded for centuries. They are thrust together by Finnian's desire to overpower death, but can Cassian put a stop to his exploits? I love how the author touches on topics such as grief, loneliness, and feelings of personal inadequacy as she weaves together this stunning enemies-to-lovers story. 

With expanded worldbuilding and lore, a tender romance that pulls on your heartstrings and a yearning that might just break your heart, Even In Death is captivating from the very first page all the way to the last. While the story is centered around new characters, there is still more finality to questions that I had from the previous installment. We get some glimpses into how Naia's story has progressed as well.

Beautiful, tragic, and rich, I would highly recommend these books to anyone who has a deep love for mythology-based fantasy. 

𝓣𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓴 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓼𝓸 𝓶𝓾𝓬𝓱 𝓽𝓸 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓪𝓾𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓻 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓹𝓻𝓸𝓿𝓲𝓭𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓶𝓮 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱 𝓪𝓷 𝓐𝓡𝓒 𝓬𝓸𝓹𝔂 𝓸𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓼𝓽𝓸𝓻𝔂 𝓲𝓷 𝓮𝔁𝓬𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓰𝓮 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓶𝔂 𝓱𝓸𝓷𝓮𝓼𝓽 𝓻𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀.

The Ashes and the Star-Cursed King by Carissa Broadbent

adventurous dark tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

🩸 Vampire Politics 
🖤 Yearning 
🩸 Top-Notch Sequel 
🖤 Rage & Redemption 
🩸 Strong Female Characters 

~ spoiler-free ~

I think I'm in the minority here, but I actually enjoyed this sequel more than I enjoyed Serpent. Although everything that happened in Serpent sets up this sequel, SO well.

Carissa Broadbent really expands on worldbuilding, politics, and the tension between the rival vampire clans in this sequel. I found that for me personally, everything starts coming together in the world that she has created. I understood more about the influence of the gods, the motivations of the characters, and the political climate throughout this book. I also love how Oraya gets to explore this new side of herself, where she finally starts to admit that her world may not have been what it seemed. 

The tension between our MCs - and the world as a whole - was more palpable. There are some great subtle horror nods in this installment. The atmosphere is drearier. It just felt to me like there was so much more at stake and harder decisions for our characters to face while trying to remain whole in that process. 

This duet has some great closure as well, while tensions still remain high for the progression of the series. I read Six Scorched Roses (which is amaaaazing) in between the two books, and I would *highly recommend* doing it this way, as it gave me more appreciation for the characters and the sacrficies they have had to make in this high-stakes society.

I'm so looking forward to continuing with Mische's story because I love her, but I plan to read "Slaying the Vampire Conqueror" first. 

~ quotes I loved below **these contain spoilers** ~ 

"𝓗𝓮'𝓭 𝓻𝓪𝓲𝓼𝓮𝓭 𝓶𝓮 𝓽𝓸 𝓵𝓸𝓸𝓴 𝓪𝓽 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓫𝓪𝓻𝓼 𝓸𝓯 𝓶𝔂 𝓬𝓪𝓰𝓮 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓬𝓪𝓵𝓵 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓶 𝓽𝓻𝓮𝓮𝓼."

"𝓛𝓸𝓿𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓞𝓻𝓪𝔂𝓪 𝔀𝓪𝓼 𝓽𝓮𝓻𝓻𝓲𝓯𝔂𝓲𝓷𝓰. 𝓘𝓽 𝓻𝓮𝓺𝓾𝓲𝓻𝓮𝓭 𝓶𝓮 𝓽𝓸 𝓼𝓮𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓼 𝓘 𝓭𝓲𝓭𝓷’𝓽 𝔀𝓪𝓷𝓽 𝓽𝓸 𝓼𝓮𝓮. 𝓕𝓪𝓬𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓷𝓰𝓼 𝓘 𝓭𝓲𝓭𝓷’𝓽 𝔀𝓪𝓷𝓽 𝓽𝓸 𝓯𝓪𝓬𝓮. 𝓐𝓵𝓵𝓸𝔀 𝓪𝓷𝓸𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻 𝓼𝓸𝓾𝓵 𝓽𝓸 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓷𝓮𝓼𝓼 𝓹𝓪𝓻𝓽𝓼 𝓸𝓯 𝓶𝔂𝓼𝓮𝓵𝓯 𝓘 𝓭𝓲𝓭𝓷’𝓽 𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓷 𝔀𝓪𝓷𝓽 𝓽𝓸 𝓪𝓬𝓴𝓷𝓸𝔀𝓵𝓮𝓭𝓰𝓮."

"𝓡𝓲𝓰𝓱𝓽 𝓷𝓸𝔀, 𝓽𝓱𝓸𝓾𝓰𝓱, 𝓘 𝓭𝓲𝓭𝓷'𝓽 𝓷𝓮𝓮𝓭 𝓪𝓷𝔂 𝓴𝓲𝓷𝓭 𝓸𝓯 𝓶𝓪𝓰𝓲𝓬𝓪𝓵 𝓰𝓸𝓭𝓭𝓮𝓼𝓼-𝓰𝓲𝓯𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓱𝓮𝓪𝓻𝓽 𝓫𝓸𝓷𝓭 𝓽𝓸 𝓴𝓷𝓸𝔀 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓞𝓻𝓪𝔂𝓪 𝔀𝓪𝓼 𝓹𝓲𝓼𝓼𝓮𝓭. 𝓢𝓱𝓮 𝔀𝓪𝓼 𝔀𝓮𝓪𝓻𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓽𝓱𝓪𝓽 𝓪-𝓬𝓪𝓽-𝓲𝓼-𝓹𝓲𝓼𝓼𝓲𝓷𝓰-𝓸𝓷-𝓶𝔂-𝓵𝓮𝓰-𝓪𝓷𝓭-𝔂𝓸𝓾'𝓻𝓮-𝓽𝓱𝓮-𝓬𝓪𝓽 𝓯𝓪𝓬𝓮. 
𝓜𝔂 𝓯𝓪𝓿𝓸𝓻𝓲𝓽𝓮 𝓸𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓭𝓲𝓿𝓮𝓻𝓼𝓮 𝓵𝓲𝓫𝓻𝓪𝓻𝔂 𝓸𝓯 𝓞𝓻𝓪𝔂𝓪 𝓯𝓪𝓬𝓮𝓼."

Cursebound by Saara El-Arifi

adventurous tense medium-paced

• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

2.5

🩵 LGBTQ+ Rep 
🪘 Diverse Characters 
🩵 Bonded Companions 
🪘 Unique Magic Systems
🩵 Elves VS Fae 

2.5⭐️ rounded up.

~ series spoiler-free ~

Unfortunately, this one didn't hit the mark for me, at least not as well as the first book. 

While I really do love the representation in this story and world that Saara El-Arifi has created,  this sequel just felt like it was lacking some heart for me. 

We start out by following Yeeran and Lettle on some new journeys, but those journeys feel kind of...  haphazard. I felt that the plot was a little jumpy, and while I was hoping to feel more emotionally attached to the characters in this second installment, they fell flat for me. I feel like rather than learning from the mistakes made in the first installment, the characters doubled down and made the same mistakes in the sequel. Whereas I was hoping for certain relationships to bloom, they felt stagnant and devoid of feeling. However, there are some wonderful new characters introduced and some twists + turns I didn't see coming.  I do really love the Obeahs and their sassy attitudes!

While I appreciate the uniqueness of these books, I'm not sure if I'll pick up the third installment of this series. I found that while there are some big developments and revelations, the characters are too detached from those occurrences that it dulls any impact for me as a reader. 

I did want to add that the author gave us a wonderful recap of the first book in the epilogue, and I appreciated this so much!  

Thank you to Netgalley and Random House Publishing Group - Del Rey, Random House Worlds, for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Onyx Storm by Rebecca Yarros

adventurous emotional tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

🐲 Sassy Dragons 
⚡️ Um, Ridoc 🔥
🐲 Epic Fantasy Vibe 
⚡️ Expanded Worldbuilding and Lore 
🐲 Fast-Paced 

~ series spoiler-free ~ 

So, I've seen a lot of hate for this book, and I really don't get it... at all. I think Yarros has solidified herself as an author who can write epic political fantasy with this installment of the series.  

It's definitely not as romantic as previous books, Violet isn't as horny (thank the gods), and overall the romance has definitely been toned down but is still very much a heavy theme and plot line. The pacing is leagues better than Iron Flame (and even Fourth Wing). The character growth is phenomenal (Ridoc has moved up quickly as one of my favourite characters), and there's expanded worldbuilding that I know is going to come into play as the series continues.

Some other reviewers have talked about this containing a lot of "filler content," and honestly, I didn't feel that way at all. Usually, fantasy doesn't give us all of the answers until the final book, and I detect what a lot of people thought was filler actually contains some pretty heavy foreshadowing for how the series is going to play out. 

I continue to love Violet as an imperfect character. This girl lives through her heart, and while she can be cunning and intelligent, she always comes back to love. I can definitely see where others take some issue with her as a character, but she's a young woman who is deeply in love... on the precipice of a world-shattering war. The girl is carrying SO. MUCH. WEIGHT. I think Yarros has actually created an extremely realistic character in Violet.

I don't think this series is perfect, but the expanded lore, the military operations, and the romance (with that little pinch of spice) are all done extremely well. It's highly enjoyable romantasy, and this is probably the first book in the series where I didn't find that I was dragging myself through certain parts. The other cultures and customs introduced were fascinating, and the side missions really helped with character growth. I do wish we had seen just a little more of Rhiannon as a character - because I love her - but we do get a POV chapter.

I think Fourth Wing has been my favourite of the series so far, but this book has the best writing. As with many other fantasy series, you can feel the growth that RY as an author has experienced since the first book.

~ 

To avoid spoilers for the series, I'm just going to share the dedication quote because it resonated with me so much: 

"𝓣𝓸 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓸𝓷𝓮𝓼 𝔀𝓱𝓸 𝓭𝓸𝓷’𝓽 𝓻𝓾𝓷 𝔀𝓲𝓽𝓱 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓹𝓸𝓹𝓾𝓵𝓪𝓻 𝓬𝓻𝓸𝔀𝓭, 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓸𝓷𝓮𝓼 𝔀𝓱𝓸 𝓰𝓮𝓽 𝓬𝓪𝓾𝓰𝓱𝓽 𝓻𝓮𝓪𝓭𝓲𝓷𝓰 𝓾𝓷𝓭𝓮𝓻 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓲𝓻 𝓭𝓮𝓼𝓴𝓼, 𝓽𝓱𝓮 𝓸𝓷𝓮𝓼 𝔀𝓱𝓸 𝓯𝓮𝓮𝓵 𝓵𝓲𝓴𝓮 𝓽𝓱𝓮𝔂 𝓷𝓮𝓿𝓮𝓻 𝓰𝓮𝓽 𝓲𝓷𝓿𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭, 𝓲𝓷𝓬𝓵𝓾𝓭𝓮𝓭, 𝓸𝓻 𝓻𝓮𝓹𝓻𝓮𝓼𝓮𝓷𝓽𝓮𝓭. 𝓖𝓮𝓽 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓵𝓮𝓪𝓽𝓱𝓮𝓻𝓼. 𝓦𝓮 𝓱𝓪𝓿𝓮 𝓭𝓻𝓪𝓰𝓸𝓷𝓼 𝓽𝓸 𝓻𝓲𝓭𝓮."

Something in the Walls by Daisy Pearce

dark tense medium-paced

4.0

🐝 Creepy and Ominous 
🖤 Manipulation 
🐝 My Skin was Crawling 
🖤 A Haunting 
🐝 Witchy Folk Horror

This was definitely an eerie and very immersive read. It is rich with folk horror, it has amazing scene setting, and the overall premise is gripping. 

Mina is a new child psychologist who meets Sam at a grief group counselling session. Sam is an investigative journalist and approaches Mina to help him with a case concerning a teenage girl who is being haunted. 

This novel really speaks to how easily people can be influenced or manipulated to the extent that they no longer trust their own perceptions of reality. While I did find the plot slightly predictable (I managed to guess the direction fairly early on), the development is also terrifying. I actually had to read most of this during the light of day because the haunting and horror elements were done so well that it made my skin crawl. I experienced a constant looming feeling of dread while reading. All of the characters have secrets, so their interactions with one another and their impact on the development of the story are riddled with ominosity. 

We are left with some unanswered questions. Some of the plot elements definitely feel a little far-fetched, and I really would've liked just a little bit more closure between our main characters, but I think the story was well written with a satisfying conclusion overall. It was interesting to me how the guilt and anxiety that our protagonist felt influenced her external reaction to the "haunting." 

This was a really good, fast-paced, and vastly uncomfortable read. 

𝓣𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓴 𝔂𝓸𝓾 𝓽𝓸 𝓝𝓮𝓽𝓰𝓪𝓵𝓵𝓮𝔂 𝓪𝓷𝓭 𝓢𝓽. 𝓜𝓪𝓻𝓽𝓲𝓷'𝓼 𝓟𝓻𝓮𝓼𝓼 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓪𝓷 𝓐𝓡𝓒 𝓸𝓯 𝓽𝓱𝓲𝓼 𝓫𝓸𝓸𝓴 𝓲𝓷 𝓮𝔁𝓬𝓱𝓪𝓷𝓰𝓮 𝓯𝓸𝓻 𝓶𝔂 𝓱𝓸𝓷𝓮𝓼𝓽 𝓻𝓮𝓿𝓲𝓮𝔀