whenimreading's reviews
984 reviews

One-Star Romance by Laura Hankin

slow-paced

2.0

The Sky on Fire by Jenn Lyons

adventurous mysterious reflective medium-paced

4.5

This had a lot of elements I look for in a fantasy, engaging world building and fun characters to follow - I was hooked from the opening chapter! 

We are introduced to a societal hierarchy world where dragons are all but gods, ruling the Skylands and humans alike. Anahrod has been in hiding for seventeen years. Executed for betrayal and presumed dead, only to be found in the jungles of the Deep by a rag tag team of characters wanting to steal a dragon’s horde. 

Heists and dragons, this was a fun and chill fantasy, I really liked Anahrod and all the various characters we meet like Ris, Claw, and Sicaryon - they had an entertaining camaraderie throughout. The world building aspects had me eating up the story, everything flowed effortlessly from the magical system to the fluidity of relationships and sexuality. It was very refreshing in that regard. While this isn’t a full blown romance, I think it worked very well within the story and I made an emotional connection to these characters and their battles. 

Slow burning to a larger climax towards the end felt a little rushed but I still enjoyed the ride! Performed by my favorite narrator Lauren Fortgang, the voice changes she achieves are always top tier, from the feminine characters to the gruff and rumbling dragons, playing out the story like a movie in my head, amazing! 4.5⭐️

Thank you Macmillan Audio and Tor Books for the review copies. 

The Midnight Feast by Lucy Foley
Did not finish book. Stopped at 16%.

I hate first person POV and really there's too many characters already, jumping different timelines and I'm not into it 🫠

Middle of the Night by Riley Sager

adventurous emotional mysterious reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.0

I’ve only read two of his other books, but this is my favorite Riley Sager to date. I love paranormal themes and this had a spooky summer camp vibe throughout, reminiscent to Goonies and Stranger Things and I loved that atmosphere. Goosebumps and ghost stories! I thought Ethan was a good character to follow and the secrets were revealed very methodically. I loved all the flashback scenes, they gave a sense of adventure and all the interactions between the boys were kinda wholesome. Interesting character dynamics had me eating up the story, Henry was adorable! 💚 

Mysterious and poignant, I maybe cried thrice but who’s counting?! There were many emotions packed in this story, very enjoyable and also reflective. Summer nostalgia and all that. The audiobook performance by Santino Fontana was very well done, his voices added entertainment and youthfulness to the book that I really loved. 

Late Bloomer by Mazey Eddings

lighthearted medium-paced

3.0

There was a lot going on in this book but also not a whole lot of plot so I’m a bit on the fence about it. I love the cover, the flower farm, lottery scratch off winner, sapphic and neurodivergent rep.

The setup of Opal being sunshine and Pepper being grumpy was a cute start but I felt like they were very similar and I didn’t connect with either of them as I had hoped. There was a lot of miscommunication and contrived drama between them that was a little too immature for my tastes. I think the one driving plot of the farm/house that brought them together left me with more questions that I would have liked answered but alas…

It was a fluffy spicy sapphic romance but ultimately fell a little short. 

Foul Days by Genoveva Dimova

adventurous dark mysterious medium-paced

4.0

I quite enjoyed the storytelling in this book, it had a fantastic setting and interesting lore with a great character to follow. Kosara is a witch in Chernograd when the Foul Days begin where the monsters roam free for 12 days, and the Zmey is back to claim his bride. Caught in a corner, Kosara makes a hasty decision to accept help from a stranger in exchange for her shadow, leaving her vulnerable without her magic. This starts an adventure with monsters, mobsters, hunters, and curses. 

I love the recent emergence of Slavic based stories and I had a lot of fun with Foul Days, it was atmospheric but also very cozy? Mysterious, dark, magical, yet very easy to follow. Audiobook narration by Zura Johnson was so effortless, I loved her accents and character voices, it was a wonderful performance! The monster compendium at the end of the book was a nice addition in the world building, I’m looking forward to reading the next book in this series!

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for the listening copy to review. 

Not in Love by Ali Hazelwood

medium-paced

3.5

I honestly love the set ups and STEM themes in all of Ali’s books. Rue and Eli had an immediate connection and crazy chemistry. The dialogue and side characters always add a little spark to the book and this is no exception. I really liked Rue and thought she was cool, even if she didn’t think so sometimes. There were a lot of layers in this story from both sides, family trauma and then professional sabotage. I know Ali said she loves when guys fall first and Eli was a goner! 

The STEM plot is what I really wanted and while it took a backseat in this book, I thought it was still creative enough and added the drama I wanted. Maybe just not as much! It went a little heavy handed on the erotica, me from ten years ago would have given this all the stars, it’s just not something I look for nowadays. But I can’t skip a new Hazelwood so 3.5⭐️ it is. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content

Not Another Love Song by Julie Soto

adventurous inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

4.0

Not Another Love Song is a hot romance for the summer, I was very into this musical world, the characters, and the STEAM!!! The banter and spice are a-plenty here and I loved the Reylo vibes, it was very well done!

All the scenes between Gwen and Xander composing and playing were everything to me. The drama in second half was a little off but I really enjoyed this story as a whole. Julie’s first book Forget and Not was a huge favorite of mine and I liked seeing those characters make a cameo!

Secretly wishing we had a real Thorne and Roses band to obsess over, classical pop is having a resurgence and I caught myself imagining my favorite songs on violin, great concept for a catchy book!

Thank you to Forever for the review copy if this book expected to publish July 16, 2024

The Serial Killer Guide to San Francisco: A Novel by Michelle Chouinard

adventurous mysterious medium-paced

3.0

As the granddaughter of convicted serial killer Overkill Bill, Capri always believed her grandfather was innocent. When two women are killed, including her ex-mother-in-law, Sylvia, questions of a copycat killer haunt Capri and her family. 

I was drawn to the description and San Francisco setting of this book. While the setting was fantastic and I loved the historical facts about the city, the actual murder mystery plot was too predictable for me and I was hoping for something a little bit different. 

Majority of the book follows Capri as she tries to solve Sylvia’s murder, traveling through San Francisco and working for her tour company, it was enjoyable getting into the true-crime aspect, albeit a tad slow and repetitive at times. I’m recommending this book to fans of crime procedural and investigation themes, with a little side of family secrets. Overall a good read with an average outcome. 

Thank you to Netgalley and Minotaur Books for the review copy. 

Tangled Up In You by Christina Lauren

adventurous funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

4.0

This was a fun modern retelling of Rapunzel and I love what the authors created with these characters. 

Ren was adorable, quirky, and so book smart! I called her MacGyver at her ability to fix things that were broken, how she absorbed information and learned quickly was fun to follow. When she crosses paths with Fitz we get such cute grumpy/sunshine banter from them, his roadtrip rules and slow thaw towards her was again, adorable!

There’s an interesting mystery plot woven into this romance that had me flipping pages to get answers. It was a little over the top but I much enjoyed that suspense and conclusion. A theme of growth and living life in the moment is a big feature throughout and overall it made for a fun summer read!

Thank you to Hyperion Avenue and Netgalley for the early review copy.