Update in Reading

Currently reading still…hoping to finish this E-Arc soon!!

Next up will be:

Then I got approved for three more E-Arcs listed below! I hope I can do all this reading…..with all the other things I have to do in life?

E-Arc Review: A Song to Drown Rivers by Ann Liang

I received an E-Arc from Netgalley and the publisher for an honest review!
Thank you!

Author: Ann Liang
Date: October 1, 2024
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press
Pages: 336
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Summary
Her beauty hides a deadly purpose.

Xishi’s beauty is seen as a blessing to the villagers of Yue―convinced that the best fate for a girl is to marry well and support her family. When Xishi draws the attention of the famous young military advisor, Fanli, he presents her with a rare opportunity: to use her beauty as a weapon. One that could topple the rival neighboring kingdom of Wu, improve the lives of her people, and avenge her sister’s murder. All she has to do is infiltrate the enemy palace as a spy, seduce their immoral king, and weaken them from within.

Trained by Fanli in everything from classical instruments to concealing emotion, Xishi hones her beauty into the perfect blade. But she knows Fanli can see through every deception she masters, the attraction between them burning away any falsehoods.

Once inside the enemy palace, Xishi finds herself under the hungry gaze of the king’s advisors while the king himself shows her great affection. Despite his gentleness, a brutality lurks and Xishi knows she can never let her guard down. But the higher Xishi climbs in the Wu court, the farther she and Fanli have to fall―and if she is unmasked as a traitor, she will bring both kingdoms down.

Review:
This book was beautifully written. I was hooked from the beginning to end. It had a bit of everything and more. The way the story unfolded with waves moving in many ways just had me hooked! I had to know what was going to happen to Xishi. So much richness, emotions and actions! Even the relationships in this story were amazing. Such a beautiful story.

I love the cover of this E-Arc too…well if the physical book comes out like the E-Arc or the photo up above, I am definitely going to buy a physical copy of this beauty.

So much…it’s a must read if you like historical, action, drama, richness and a tiny bit of romance! I will admit this story did have me yell a few times which is a good thing. You must get this when it comes out October 1, 2024, trust me!

Currently Reading

Loving this book so far. I just stared and the adventure begins….

The book is about:
Forced to choose between loyalty and love…

Avery is a Golden Child with the ability to heal any illness or injury. She lives a sheltered life, dutifully healing hopefuls from around the globe. Although she dreams of freedom, she fears disrupting the status quo—that is, until her powers go on the fritz, threatening her health and her relationship with her government caretakers.

In search of answers, Avery travels through The Rift to the realm of the fae, intimidatingly beautiful beings with powers humans don’t understand. Their prince, Riel, has motivations of his own when he agrees to teach her about her rare magic. But as they work together, the two are drawn to each other.

Just as Avery manages to unlock the full potential of her powers, a betrayal shakes Riel’s House, putting pressure on the already tenuous relationship between humans and the fae. Caught in the middle, Avery and Riel will have to decide what matters most to them: loyalty to their respective nations, or their feelings for one another.

E-Arc Review: Under Your Spell by Laura Wood

I received an E-Arc from Netgalley and the publisher for an honest review!
Thank you!

Author: Laura Wood
Pages: 352
Publisher: Atria Books
Date: June 25, 2024
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Summary:
She wants three things. He isn’t one of them…

Dumped by her cheating ex, fired from her dream job, and about to lose her flat: Clementine Monroe is not having a good day. So when her sisters get her drunk and suggest reviving a childhood ritual called the Breakup Spell, she doesn’t see the harm in it.

But now Clemmie has accidentally ruined a funeral, had her first one-night stand, and she’s stuck with a new job she definitely doesn’t want—spending six weeks alone with the gorgeous and very-off-limits rock star, Theo Eliott.

He’s the most famous man on the planet. Her life’s a disaster. As their summer together turns into its own kind of magic, is Clemmie cursed to repeat the mistakes of her past—or will her future see all her wishes come true?

Review:
The beginning chapter caught my attention… Then the next and next. It is nonstop story. I could not stop reading this amazing story even when I was doing laundry! Yup it was that good.

The story dives into Clemmie who is the main character for like the 99 percent of the time. Enter Theo! He joins Clemmie in the story for a while like 90 percent of the time. The two of them have this very cool chemistry together. It’s so sweet.

I love Clemmie’s sisters, Lil and Serena. All three of them have such an epic family connection. Those sisters would do anything for each other!

I loved the growth in Clemmie. She learns how to cope with the emotions she has gone through in life. This shows that life is messy and yet it can be a lesson to learn from! She is amazing and real.

Theo is quite the nice man with a kind heart considering he is labeled as a rock star. A heart of gold! A talented writer! A musician! What more can I say about him?

I had so many laughing out loud moments, sweet moments with awwwing at it and drama where I yelled at the story! This book was full full of chemistry and banter.

This is a must read!!

Pick it up on June 25, 2024!

E-Arc Review: The Design of Us by Sajni Patel

I received an E-Arc from Netgalley, the publisher and the author for an honest review!
Loved this story, Sajni!!
Thank you so much for letting me read it!

Author: Sajni Patel
Pages: 368
Publisher: Berkley
Date: July 16, 2024
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Summary:
Sunshine incarnate Bhanu brings big UX energy to whatever she does, including going for the promotion where her only serious competition is her work nemesis, AKA Sunny, the grump with the Denzel voice. She expected to get a reprieve from him while visiting her family in Hawai’i, but the universe has other plans. When Bhanu runs into Sunny at the hotel and witnesses his ex criticizing him about being single, Bhanu does the first thing that comes to mind: she impetuously claims to be Sunny’s girlfriend just to get some peace and quiet. Except Sunny is on island for a friend’s wedding and his ex has already texted the entire wedding party about this mysterious girlfriend.

Bhanu truly is the bane of Sunny’s existence. But the last thing he wants to do is cause tension during his friend’s wedding festivities, much less be the object of their pity. He has no choice except to play along, if only he and Bhanu can put aside their quarreling and act like a real couple.

Between Bhanu’s hilariously meddling family and Sunny’s ecstatic friends, the two are pushed closer together, even as stress mounts over the impending promotion.

They say what happens on island, stays on island. But as Sunny and Bhanu let their guards down, will either of them be able to resist this romantic getaway without crossing the line?

Review:
Oh my gosh…I laughed and squealed with delight reading this story! A rom comedy of two work co-workers which are enemies in a way. Both the main characters end up fake dating while in Hawaii! Cue the drama and more! (Hawaii is on my bucket list to visit one day!). It’s a must read if you enjoy all the themes I have mentioned.

The story was fast paced which I enjoyed personally. Some people don’t like that but I don’ t mind. I could see this book being played out as a movie. (I watch way too many rom com movies too!).

There were quite a few funny remarks of all kinds between Sunny and Bhanu. I loved that. I loved how their connection slowly began to develop. It just clicked in a sense. It gave me the feels from the movie “The Proposal” sarcastic vibe. Enemies to lovers type of moments!

I do love the family dynamics from Sunny and Bhanu along with the fact they take their career seriously too! I wish both main characters talked to each other more about their families. I do love Bhanu’s sister! She’s a riot.

Hiking, swimming, dancing, and food were all the cute moments in this story that I can remember. I’m not giving it all away because you have to pick this gem up to read for yourself! Do they get their happy ever after or not?

It comes out in July 2024!

Psst..isn’t the cover so pretty?

Next up to read!

Currently E-Arc reading right now:

Then I will read these E-Arcs:

E-Arc : The Next Best Fling Review

I received an E-Arc from the publisher and Netgalley for an honest review! Thank you.

Author: Gabriella Gamez
Date: July 9, 2024
Pages: 384
Publisher: Forever
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Summary:
Librarian Marcela Ortiz has been secretly in love with her best friend for years—and when he gets engaged, she knows it’s long past time to move on. But before she gets the chance, she has a bigger problem to contend with in the form of Theo Young, ex-NFL player and older brother of the man she’s in love with. When she discovers Theo’s plans to confess his feelings for his brother’s fiancée at their engagement party, Marcela is quick to stop him—despite how tempting it is to let him run away with the bride-to-be. She manages to convince Theo to sleep off his drunken almost-mistake at her place and when they arrive at a family brunch the next day together, everyone wrongly assumes they hooked up.

Since Theo needs a cover for his feelings for the bride and Marcela needs a distraction from her unrequited feelings for the groom, they decide to roll with the lie. Until one late night at a bar, they take it a step further and discover a layer of attraction neither realized existed. Soon, they find themselves exploring the simmering chemistry between them, whether in library aisles or Marcela’s bed. There are no boundaries for the rebound relationship they form—just a host of complicated feelings, messy familial dynamics, and uncovered secrets that threaten to tear them apart before they can even admit to themselves that their rebound is working. Maybe a little too well. 

Review:
This story was so cute and emotional! Gosh I don’t know where to start.

There was was cute moments, spicy moment and moments that made me giggle. I was not expecting moments where I had to do a double read to make sure what I read was happening! It was that good.

Theo and Marcela both had discoveries to make throughout the story. Feelings and life! The story and characters showed that relationships can be scary and you never know what can happen. Sometimes relationships and life is a risk and sometimes it is not. It hit some pretty real truths like a roller coaster ride going up and down and sideways. Whoo!

The connection between Marcela and Theo were great characters in this book. I think they were made for each other but do they end up together or not?

This beautiful story took me a few day to read due to life being busy. I will say that the cover is so pretty. I may have to purchase a physical copy of this book due to the it’s cover and the story.

This is a must read!
You must get it for this summer.
Put it on your list.
Pick it up in July 2024 and you won’t regret it.
 

E-Arc : Ne’er Duke Well by Alexandra Vasti

I received an E-Arc from Netgalley and the publisher for an honest review! 
Thank you!!

Author: Alexandra Vasti
Pages: 352
Date: July 23, 2024
Publisher: St. Martin’s Griffin
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Summary:
Peter Kent―newly inherited Duke of Stanhope and recently of New Orleans, Louisiana―must become respectable. Between his radical politics and the time he interrupted a minor royal wedding with a flock of sheep―not his fault!―he’s developed a scandalous reputation at odds with his goal of becoming guardian to his half siblings. For help, he turns to the cleverest and most managing woman of his acquaintance, Lady Selina Ravenscroft.

Selina is society’s most proper debutante, save one tiny secret: she runs an erotic circulating library for women. When Peter asks for her help, she suggests courtship and marriage to a lady of unimpeachable reputation. (Which is to say, definitely not herself.)

But matchmaking doesn’t go according to plan. Peter’s siblings run rampant on Bond Street. Selina ends up in the Serpentine. And worst of all, the scorching chemistry between Peter and Selina proves impossible to resist. For the disreputable duke and his unpredictable matchmaker, falling in love just might be the ultimate scandal.

Review:
The beginning of the story immediately held my attention! I had to know what was going to happen with Peter and his younger half siblings. Would he get them? Would he find the lady he needs? Will he realize he fancies Selina? What will happen?

It’s a must read for historical rom com romance. It had sweet moments such as saving a puppy and more (I can’t give it all away, you need to get this book)… some spicy moments… and a bit …*Gasp*….of a drama regarding to your reputation and the ton! The story revolved around caring for family. That seemed to be the major theme along with all the other bits that I have mentioned up above. I loved this story.

I will say I love the communication and sparks between Peter and Selina. In my opinion it is so good.  

I hope you will go pick up this sweet, fun, cute book when it comes out in July 2023!!

Update in the land of reading

Still reading….so far so good…..

Next up will be two E-Arcs…..

E-Arc Review: Canadian Boyfriend by Jenny

I received an E-Arc from the publisher and Netgalley for an honest review! 

Thank you!

This book is out today!

Author: Jenny Holiday
Publisher: Forever
Pages: 384
Date: January 30, 2024

SUMMARY:
Once upon a time teenage Aurora Evans met a hockey player at the Mall of America. He was from Canada. And soon, he was the perfect fake boyfriend, a get-out-of-jail-free card for all kinds of sticky situations. I can’t go to prom. I’m going to be visiting my boyfriend in Canada. He was just what she needed to cover her social awkwardness. He never had to know. It wasn’t like she was ever going to see him again…

Years later, Aurora is teaching kids’ dance classes and battling panic and eating disorders—souvenirs from her failed ballet career—when pro hockey player Mike Martin walks in with his daughter. Mike’s honesty about his struggles with widowhood helps Aurora confront some of her own demons, and the two forge an unlikely friendship. There’s just one problem: Mike is the boy she spent years pretending was her “Canadian boyfriend.”

The longer she keeps her secret, the more she knows it will shatter the trust between them. But to have the life she wants, she needs to tackle the most important thing of all—believing in herself.

MY REVIEW
I know the book is out today and my review is on time, right?? 

Anyways, I could not stop reading this story. It took me a little time to read it because of life throwing things at me. Go figure!  The story was cute, fun and a healing process for the main characters. I love the connection between Mike and Aurora.  They just fit nicely together, listened to each other and helped each other out when needed. Of course it was not perfect. 

Mike and Aurora had a few own personal things to deal. Do they overcome it? Do they share it? There is lots to unload here from both which made the story interesting to me. To talk about these things and to trust someone with them, takes courage.  Some of the issues are panic disorders, eating disorder, grief, and car accident. Therapy is mentioned in the story which I thought was nice to see. Just letting you know that some families that can be overbearing and that said, it’s mentioned in the story.  I really did not like Aurora’s mother at all. Mike’s family on the other hand was pretty chill.

Hockey, dancing, doing errands for a kid, healing, romance and so much was happening in this story. I think the author balances well in topics that can be fun, light, heart warming and heavy. Besides isn’t life like that too? I will say there are a few steamy moments which I thought fit nice into the story.  I thought the making out bits were lovely too. Sometimes it’s nice to have a mixture of things in that department.

I would recommend to go pick this book up today if you are looking for something different to read. There are some triggers so be prepared.

I’m glad I got to read this unique story. Go get it now!