Book Review: A Murderous Relation (Veronica Speedwell #5)

A Murderous Relation
Deanna Raybourn
5/5

Words cannot describe how much I love this series. I've been waiting a full year for this one and the next one hasn't been officially announced yet so I'm losing it. Veronica Speedwell has spent years traveling the world studying lepidoptery, catching and selling butterflies, writing research papers, and going on adventures. She is fiercely independent and completely and totally unique. I love Veronica because she's a perfect embodiment of everything that I want from a heroine- she's not perfect but recognizes her flaws and grows from them and she's hilarious.

Stoker is equally amazing, and I really appreciate that he has never been sacrificed as a character despite this book being entirely from Veronica's perspective. Their romance is honestly one of my favorite in any book ever, and also one of the slowest burns that I've ever read. If I don't get another book full of their amazing interactions I might implode.

The only criticism I would have is how short these are! I respect it because they're all so self-contained and individually interesting, but I need so much more content. If you've ever been interested in regency books, murder mysteries, or amazing female leads, this book is a must-read!

Book Review: Caged in Winter (Reluctant Hearts #1)

Caged in Winter
Brighton Walsh
2/5

Winter grew up in the foster system, she has trust issues and literally no friends. Cade has also kind of been through it in life, an orphan at 22 and with a younger sister and niece to take care of, he's used to taking care of people. He sees Winter working at the bar and he can't stop himself from helping her, he just sees her and wants to know her- kind of a lot for a person who has never felt wanted in her life.

The premise of this book was okay, but I couldn't rate it any higher because a lot of the elements irritated me. We have this character who keeps saying she's strong, and I agree because she's definitely strong, yet Cade kind of disregards everything she says. Also, neither of their backstories were developed all that well, even though it was a full length book it felt like a novella. No really fleshed out flashbacks, nothing that really called out their tragedies. I just didn't feel connected to them and the ending didn't really hit me as that significant. Like the epilogue was two months later, that's not enough time and I wasn't really feeling the impact.

Probably should have been rated higher than two stars because I didn't hate it, but I wasn't really feeling three stars. If you're into short books that are super straightforward I'd recommend it, otherwise, there are better things to read.

Book Review: The Final Empire (Mistborn #1)

Mistborn
Brandon Sanderson
4/5

People have been telling me to read this book forever. It's a high fantasy where Mistborn individuals can burn a variety of metals to unlock a variety of powers. Our heroine, Vin, grew up on the streets with an abusive brother, not knowing that she had all of these powers. When Kelsier finds her, he trains her to aid in his rebellion, in overthrowing the god-like ruler who has been dominating the country for centuries.

I loved it, it's exactly the kind of high fantasy that has enough to keep you occupied without overloading you with too many names and too much information. Vin was a great character, she rose past her tragic past and learned to be a truly powerful individual- both mentally and physically. Kelsier was also great event though I went through periods of disliking him, but honestly he had me crying by the end.

The only reason I couldn't give it five stars was probably the length and the romance. The first thirty percent of the book had me kind of bored and I was considering DNF, but I held on and it was totally worth it. The romance started off strong, he was reading at a ball so I was instantly in love with him. That's where the real problem arose, it was very insta-love even though Elend and Vin didn't talk all that much. I like it but I'm going to have to see where it goes in the next book to truly be on board with it.

Overall though I would totally recommend! It has some amazing magical elements that are very well-developed and complex, a beautiful universe and some characters with real potential. Can't wait to see where the sequel goes!

Book Review: The Duchess Deal (Girl Meets Duke #1)

The Duchess Deal
Tessa Dare
2/5

I used to steer clear of books like this because I was snobby, but now I can't seem to read anything but them. Emma is a seamstress on the verge of being evicted. She's out of cash because a duchess-to-be ordered an insanely intricate wedding dress and then never paid the bill. She goes to the duke to demand payment and he proposes to her instead.

I don't know, I used to think that these books were always demeaning and anti-feminist, but even the angsty angry ones like Ash have a difficult time making their wives do anything. Their relationship was pretty decent in that aspect, but the randomness of so many of the characters really annoyed me. It felt almost costumed, the people were pretending to use the societal conventions of the period but were really doing whatever they want. Which is fine and all, it just felt like their was zero-effort to make it fit into the peerage and like that's one of the coolest part of this time period.

If everything didn't have to be repeated a thousand times, if Emma and Ash could just forget about their own traumas for five seconds, I would have rated it higher. I know that may not be fair for me to say when I read the description of the book before starting it, but there was really no other conflict in the entire book and that's just boring. It wasn't a bad book, it was just unoriginal and not consistent with its time. 

Book Review: Blood Heir (Blood Heir Trilogy #1)

Blood Heir
Amélie Wen Zhao
3/5

In the past year, Ana has lost everything. Her one living parent, her reputation, and her kingdom. After being framed for her father's murder, she's desperate to prove her innocence and get revenge. She has to rely on a conman to do so, learning the dark secrets of her empire along the way. If you're into the magic vs. magicless Red Queen type book, or any YA where the chosen one rises against her oppressors, this one has a lot to offer.

I did have a bit of trouble establishing the setting of the novel. It was labeled as a retelling on Goodreads, and I didn't really read into it but I'm not really sure what it was a retelling of. Maybe that's just my own fault for not doing due research but it felt as though it had some confusing cultural vibes. It was also hard for me to get really involved with a lot of what was happening, things moved fast for the timeline provided, but also I couldn't understand what she had done for the past year and why she didn't approach the issue more directly sooner? It seemed fast but slow given circumstances, just a weird pacing that made the events hard for me to be invested in.

I also didn't like the deaths which were used to motivate her character arc, I always feel like that's a weak tactic so early on in a series. That being said though, I did like the morally gray nature of Ana's character. I don't think Ramson should try to justify her as good, I think he should just embrace the fact that she is going to have to do evil things. More SOC style, embrace the darkness while still holding onto the good parts of life.

It has a lot of interesting elements which I'm excited to see in the second book. Like I said before, very similar to the Red Queen so if you're interested in that, then this is definitely a great read for you.

Book Review: Lovely War

Lovely War
Julie Berry
5/5

I was hesitant with this one, because it started a little slowly for me and there are many different story lines and characters which usually makes me lose interest. But after I got a hundred pages in, I was hooked. Two love stories during World War I, narrated by a goddess on trial along with the testimonies of other gods. Hazel and James, Colette and Aubrey, both couples have suffered and prospered at the hands of the gods, and we get to hear a little about their love stories.

It had a great vibe, the tragedy of the war, the agony of living when those around you die. There was also the struggles of race and working past physical and mental scars. It might not be the perfect book for hardcore war enthusiasts, because while the war is an integral piece, the narration style would take some getting used to. It's not a hardcore fantasy, but it has the fantastical element of the gods.

I think that everything had a great balance, no one was suffering more than anyone else, they all had their own stuff to deal with. Which goes for the gods as well. I don't know if I bought the whole line with Hephaestus and Aphrodite at the end, just because it's not very consistent with the flow of Greek mythology, but I still appreciated it for the extra happiness it brought. Overall, it was a great read that had a lot more to it than I had anticipated and I would totally recommend.

Book Review: The Simple Wild (Wild #1)

The Simple Wild
K.A. Tucker
4/5

I liked this book a lot more than I though I would when I started reading it. Calla was born in Alaska but left before she was two when her mom got fed up with her father's risky lifestyle. It was also the typical "if you had tried I would have come back" type trope between them, but it never worked because both of her parents were afraid to make the leap. Calla returns to Alaska to meet her father for the first time after finding out about his diagnosis. There's also a slowburn romance happening that makes everything a lot better.

I thought I would hate Calla because I don't usually like high-maintenance people and she seemed like a total mooch. I still think she's a fairly big mooch but she had some redeeming character qualities that kept me interested. The biggest problem that I had with it was both of them trying to change each other. Specifically Jonah's whole tangent against her makeup and routine. Personally, I don't wear makeup that often and I don't have the same schedule as her, but him stealing it because he "felt she looked better" triggered my fight or flight. I hate it when people comment on aesthetic choices like that, that she puts so much time and effort into and like what if it's a mask and she's very insecure? You can't take someone's choice away like that.

Other than that though this book was very sweet and it made me cry. Both Jonah and Calla are people who can be difficult but they compliment each other in that way. Also Wren was so good and I loved his character a lot. Simon was another character who I feel was majorly underrated while her mother was someone who I feel was overrated. Her mom ruined a lot of things, not saying it wasn't also Wren's fault, but she just came across as demanding and selfish and all the qualities I hated in Calla.

Anyways, it was a great read and I'm already on the waitlist for the sequel which I am super excited for!

Book Review: Seeing Mary (Dalton Family #1)

Seeing Mary
Sarah Adams
1/5

This is an extremely short novella following a week(ish?) in the life of Mary, the wary daughter of a duke, as she falls for Robert, a "mysterious" earl who sweeps her off her feet.

Kindle Unlimited novellas are probably not the way I should go but I was bored and it was a quick read. I had the usual problem which I have with novellas but at a greater magnitude, the characters had no substance. The earl was supposed to be mysterious, which is an annoying enough trope on its own, but he wasn't even mysterious he was just a basic guy. Her tragic backstory wasn't tragic at all and her hurt felt so weird and fake. Their love story? No chemistry, no build-up, nothing that made it all that interesting at all.

I also don't know how it's a novella that's an introduction to the series because why wouldn't they get their own full-length? It doesn't seem as though the characters in the next book are more important or more deserving of a full-length novel. It's all confusing and felt cheap and just pointless. I usually don't finish books that I think deserve 1 star but it was so short that I finished it just cause it was faster than not doing so.

Book Review: Flamebringer (Heartstone #3)

Flamebringer
Elle Katharine White
3/5

Unfortunately, this installment in the trilogy kind of let me down. I would still recommend reading the series, it's Pride and Prejudice but with dragons. I also appreciated how it went on, though the universe is very different from the original, it gave us a glimpse into how Mr. Darby and Elizabeth's lives could have persisted- a risky endeavor that paid off in the second but missed the mark here.

I think my main issue was how much build-up there was, 2/3rd of the book was just them trying to put all the clues together but with the awkward breaks to have an anti-climatic fight scene. I also felt like the chemistry between Aliza and Alastair was different from what it was in the first two books. I just didn't vibe with it as much, it wasn't as exciting or romantic. There was too much tragedy and not enough of the lighter scenes which balanced it all in the other two.

Still a great series with great world building, it just maybe should have stopped at a duology for me. Or should have focused more on characterization rather than the ultimate fight I don't know. Nothing will beat the first for me though and it'll always be one of my favorites.

Book Review: To be Loved by the Earl

To be Loved by the Earl
Kasey Stockton
3/5

It was pretty standard. A novella so the plot was very short and nothing all that significant happened. I was hoping that the lying sister was going to be more of a plot point. It wasn't as significant as it seemed and I think that in a way, it made no sense. I could understand how the girl could feel like she wasn't his first choice, but considering the premises on which he married her, it all just felt a little confusing.

So very basic, straightforward type of regency romance. I think 200 pages could be cut from it, since it's a novella, just because she never had a season and it was more of a marriage of proximity. I guess that's interesting, a different perspective to what people usually write, but could have been better. Would recommend if you're super bored on Kindle Unlimited and into this genre just because of how quick it is.

Promises and Primroses (Mayfield Family #1)

Promises and Primroses
Josi S. Kilpack
3/5

This book was tricky for me to rate because it wasn't bad, it was fairly good, it just had nothing to distinguish it from other books. I read a lot of this same genre, for a book to be really good it has to have something that makes it special, a character or a plot that I like. Here, Julia wants her independence and gets it through her governess position. Her mother finds out that it is in the household of a man who courted her and then abandoned her and tries to get her out of there in fear that her daughter will fall the same way that she did. Peter, the man whose home she's living in, strives against any impropriety because of the scandal of his birth.

It's similar to so many books but I didn't really love the characters so I couldn't say that it was great. It's relatively likable it's just not anything that will stick in my mind. I did like the simultaneous romances of both the mother and the daughter, it's just neither of them came across as particularly strong characters. It also annoyed me that it was so close to christian fiction, since those stories can get very repetitive to me, without actually advertising itself as christian fiction. Don't think that I would have read it if I had known.

I don't think I'd recommend it, it wasn't a bad read, just completely average in every way. But if you like second chance romances and you like regency romances that are extremely clean then this would be the book for you.

Book Review: Unmasking Lady Caroline (Belles of Christmas #1)

Unmasking Lady Caroline
Mindy Burbidge Strunk
3/5

After pining for him for over ten years, Lady Caroline finally sees Peter, her childhood crush, again and he doesn't recognize her. To be fair, it's a masquerade ball and she's dressed as a peacock, but they flirt and she feels like he takes her seriously for the first time in their lives. When returning to their neighboring estates, he doesn't know it was her and she's afraid to say. But circumstances still pull them together and their relationship builds more naturally.

It's a cute book, looks exactly like the Hallmark movie which it is. I'm stupid because I didn't get the whole Ms Tree thing until they explained it and I thought that Caroline just picked a completely subjective name and they all found it hilarious. The reason that I couldn't rank it higher was because of how preoccupied Peter was with Ms Tree when he talked to her for about five minutes. It wasn't even a particularly witty meet-up, it was just his first conversation with someone after returning from his extended world tour.

I also hated Caroline's relationship with her mother and I feel like there was a missed opportunity with her telling her mom off. I get that she did it a bit and that was nice, it was just kind of weak. The romance was cute but I feel like Lady Caroline had so much more untapped potential. Don't advertise a character as witty and charming if she can't string three sentences together in front of her parents.

Overall though it was pretty enjoyable, short and cute. Just wish the characters had been given a little more room to grow outside of their relationship.

Book Review: On My Honour (Brethren in Arms #1)

On My Honour
Elizabeth Johns
2/5

I didn't like this book. The only thing that really kept me reading was the fact that I had gotten so far and didn't want to DNF it entirely, but I really debated giving it one star. Lady Margaret Blake is an orphan who has been sold to an American merchant, only narrowly escaping marriage by jumping off a ship at the docks. She meets Luke the duke trying to get away and he feels honor bound to help her, falling in love with her along the way.

I'm just very bored and trying to find good Kindle Unlimited books to read, this one dragged on forever. Lady Margaret was not a good heroine, she couldn't do basically anything without someone else's assistance. She wasn't very smart or very vocal, she did escape the marriage but that's about where her character peaked. The chemistry between her and Luke was basically non-existent, I felt more chemistry between her and Luke's steward.

I wouldn't recommend it because it's boring and not even historically insightful, just an all around drag.

Book Review: How to Walk Away

How to Walk Away
Katherine Center
4/5

I was super hesitant to read this book because the cover and general summary gave me Me Before You vibes and I'm still traumatized from that read. I'm happy to report that this book is a lot more uplifting, says a lot about life and resilience, but also had a lot of bittersweet moments that had me literally screaming.

Margaret has an accident and she comes out with burns and a spinal injury that leaves her unable to walk. That was heartbreaking and frustrating and had me feeling all kinds of sympathy for her. She loses a lot of what previously defined her and that's always tragic. She wasn't flawless in her recovery, though I think that she took it a lot better than most people would. She also had to deal with people significantly worse than what I think anyone would hope to deal with in that situation. I literally wanted to punch people in the face, I can't imagine letting the way she got talked to go, like ever.

The epilogue reminded me of the ending of Legally Blonde the Musical, it was super similar in the way things were summed up. The trash guy got a trash ending, everyone else got kids and happiness. I did appreciate that her disability wasn't glossed over, and it wasn't overly-focused on either. It became a part of who she was, she came to terms with it and she lived past it. I was getting weirdly nostalgic during the epilogue even though I read this in one day. What kept me from five stars was how many issues were ditched in favor of focusing on other weird plot points. Like the legality of it- I wanted a certain scumbag to get sued or go to prison or something, she definitely didn't sign a waiver of any sort- and then just the magnitude of the tragedy which this family suffered. Difficult to put into words, but everything worked out too well in both good ways and bad ways. That sounds contradictory, and it totally is, it just felt like everything was resolved as either bad or good.

After that confusing paragraph, I'll end by saying that it's a great book that I'd recommend to people. If it had taken me longer than a day to read it, I may have lost interest or rated it lower, but as it stands it was a very enjoyable little read.

Book Review: Love is Blind

Love is Blind
Lynsay Sands
3/5

Love is Blind depicts the story of a woman in regency-era England who is pretty severely near-sighted. Which would be fine except for the fact that she isn't allowed to wear her spectacles because of the mandates of her stepmother. This makes her season pretty bad as she keeps dumping hot tea in people's laps and lighting people on fire. Adrian Montfort sees it as the perfect opportunity because he hopes to hide his face scar from her and secure a match based on love rather than his title. The kind of premise we all love to see, and executed fairly well, in a lighthearted and comical way.

I liked it because I love romances and I love seeing how people operated in the past. I just can't handle reading historical accounts when things like this are so much more fun, albeit sometimes not as historically accurate. Here, I would have liked to see a lot more focus on optometry in the 1800s, she just walked into a shop, got her spectacles and they worked perfectly? It felt like a flawed approach to what was a central plot conflict. Same with his scarring, we didn't hear anything about his time as a soldier or even really how it impacted him. It just felt like we were being occasionally told that a certain thing had happened to him when it was convenient in the plot for that to be his history.

The main villains weren't really villains, everyone was given their own redemption. I think that's fine to each their own, but I prefer being able to vilify and hate someone at the end of the day. Maybe that makes me basic but I think that just makes me human.

I always have so much more to write about books that I have negative critiques on. Like I said in the introduction, it was lighthearted and comical and books like this always get me thinking on how much less women were allowed to do and know even just 150 years ago. I liked it, I just wish it had had more depth to it.

Book Review: A Provision for Love (Entangled Inheritance #1)

A Provision for Love
Heather Chapman
4/5

A Provision for Love is a really short and cute regency romance. Ivy's step-grandfather was her grandfather in everything but blood. Because she's not his heir, she's set to lose the property where she spent much of her childhood to his grand-nephew. At least she thought, until she learns of a stipulation that would allow her to inherit if she gets married by the end of her first season to a man that meets her grandmother's list of criteria.

It's a really funny list of criteria, and while some of it sounds obviously dated and ridiculously sexist, the gist of it is pretty accurate. I think the whole book has a much deeper message though, about finding someone who fits your own list and not one set for you by someone else. Finding independence and not sticking too strictly to the mandates of society.

It was slightly repetitive in certain ways, as can be expected from a book like this. Overall though I liked it and I'd recommend it for people in this genre.

Book Review: Rescuing Lord Inglewood (Inglewood #1)

Rescuing Lord Inglewood
Sally Britton
4/5

I think that this was a well-written historical fiction, perfect for people who love strong heroines and a romance with a more natural progression. Esther saves a man from being crushed, knocking herself unconscious in the process. Despite this heroism, society is trying to shun her as a disgrace. To protect her character, Lord Inglewood swoops in and does the honorable thing by marrying her- since she's the sister of one of his oldest and closest friends and he can't stand the thought of her being ruined.

Esther is pretty relatable as a younger sibling because she's sick of being left behind. Being left behind and being treated nicely only because everyone around her is a friend of her brother's. You can imagine that a forced marriage with her brother's best friend could be problematic. But they work through it in their own way and it's actually pretty nice how the relationship progresses. The reason that it wasn't really five stars was because of the random leaps backwards that happened a couple of times. I understand why it had to happen it just felt kind of weird and not-fitting and got a little boring.

I would recommend this one though, it was super cute and super wholesome, plus a quick read. It's on Kindle Unlimited too, so if you have that then this is a great book to read.

Book Review: Year One (Chronicles of The One #1)

Year One
Nora Roberts
3/5

This is a great book to read with all the panic happening about coronavirus. A plague has taken out a major chunk of the world's population and different factions are just trying to stay alive. As people die, more magic comes into the world, and now there's a whole different war as people struggle to understand their new world. It had a lot of different POVs, a lot going on, and a fairly believable portrayal of the struggle for power if more than half of the population died out.

From this point on I'm going to be pretty spoilery, so on Goodreads I'll block it out, but on my blog you'll just have to read at your own risk. I knew from the second that I read the synopsis that Max was a goner- you can't call someone a "lover" in a book description and get away with it. I think his death was lackluster, I think the culmination of the separate groups into New Hope was dull, and I think that Lana almost immediately getting into another relationship with the literal first person she talked to after Max's death was weird. The first half of the book was great, we're dealing with the Doom and the evil brothers and just generally horrible people who survived, but after we get into the actual survival and rebuilding part this book lost me.

I might being too harsh here, but I think I was also bored because it reminded me so much of The Stand. When there isn't enough to distinguish a book as special, I tend to be meaner about the review. There was a much more complex system of magic and magical creatures but I don't feel like it got enough attention for it to be unique. Maybe that'll be something that is further described in the next one, but this one should have had more given everything that was going on.

Here's where the spoilers end. I liked it to a certain point, I probably wouldn't recommend it. I got it for a dollar at Goodwill so I'm not mad about it, it wasn't horrible, it just wasn't special.