cozybec's reviews
308 reviews
The Monstrous Duke and I, by Dee St. Holm
emotional
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
"There was something about being surrounded by so many stories that made her feel alive and free."
Penelope Essex has had a failure of a season, with no desire to wed and no prospects among the human members of the Ton, she's sent to the Monsters Ball as a last attempt. It's there she reunites with her childhood friend, and now duke, William Warwick, a devilishly demonic blue monster coated in flame and determined not to wed for his own reasons. When the two strike up a bargain for a marriage of convenience, it's to no one's surprise that old flames begin to reignite.
There was something so fun about this book! This is a pretty intense departure from How to Marry a Marble Marquis (the first in the Monsters Ball set of monster regency romances) in that it definitely reads more as a traditional historical romance with a sprinkling of monstrous characters and backstory. I really enjoyed how St. Holm explained why there were suddenly monsters in London and around the world, the plague approach to explain that some humans were stricken with disease and transformed was really fascinating to me and I enjoyed it from a fantasy aspect to have a reason for the monsters suddenly being involved in the world.
Penny and William were so cute together, with so many moments of the two of them dancing around their own feelings, this felt like a typical marriage of convenience/"oh no we have feelings" plot that still kept me on my toes. My only real gripe was the ending, it felt like there was a little bit of floundering after Penny and Will agreed to go forward with their fake engagement after leaving the Monsters Ball and there were a few time skips that irritated me. I would have loved to get more scenes of their relationship truly developing into love. This probably makes this one a 4.5 star for me, but I rounded up because I enjoyed the writing style and the way this novel developed some of the side characters and established information about the world!
All in all, I had a good time with this one. A fun, lighthearted romance to pick up, with a slow burn and low spice. It felt like a great palette cleanser and I'd recommend it to monster romance newcomers (because it's pretty tame compared to others I've read!)
Content warnings: mentions of grief, death of a family member/parent (off page), spousal abuse (off page, not between the main characters), sexual content (a brief carriage scene, they sleep together after their marriage), sexism from the world/parent
Penelope Essex has had a failure of a season, with no desire to wed and no prospects among the human members of the Ton, she's sent to the Monsters Ball as a last attempt. It's there she reunites with her childhood friend, and now duke, William Warwick, a devilishly demonic blue monster coated in flame and determined not to wed for his own reasons. When the two strike up a bargain for a marriage of convenience, it's to no one's surprise that old flames begin to reignite.
There was something so fun about this book! This is a pretty intense departure from How to Marry a Marble Marquis (the first in the Monsters Ball set of monster regency romances) in that it definitely reads more as a traditional historical romance with a sprinkling of monstrous characters and backstory. I really enjoyed how St. Holm explained why there were suddenly monsters in London and around the world, the plague approach to explain that some humans were stricken with disease and transformed was really fascinating to me and I enjoyed it from a fantasy aspect to have a reason for the monsters suddenly being involved in the world.
Penny and William were so cute together, with so many moments of the two of them dancing around their own feelings, this felt like a typical marriage of convenience/"oh no we have feelings" plot that still kept me on my toes. My only real gripe was the ending, it felt like there was a little bit of floundering after Penny and Will agreed to go forward with their fake engagement after leaving the Monsters Ball and there were a few time skips that irritated me. I would have loved to get more scenes of their relationship truly developing into love. This probably makes this one a 4.5 star for me, but I rounded up because I enjoyed the writing style and the way this novel developed some of the side characters and established information about the world!
All in all, I had a good time with this one. A fun, lighthearted romance to pick up, with a slow burn and low spice. It felt like a great palette cleanser and I'd recommend it to monster romance newcomers (because it's pretty tame compared to others I've read!)
Content warnings: mentions of grief, death of a family member/parent (off page), spousal abuse (off page, not between the main characters), sexual content (a brief carriage scene, they sleep together after their marriage), sexism from the world/parent
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Sexism, Death of parent, and Sexual content
Minor: Domestic abuse
We Find Our Way, by Reyna Biddy
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.0
"my issue / is i'm always / missing / old versions / of people" (22)
Reyna Biddy's we find our way is a hard collection to describe. It's in part self-reflective, but part reflective of how the world has systematically treated black people, and specifically, black women their entire lives. Biddy's voice is like a drum beat, building with each poem in intensity, reminding the reader that life takes work and life is often not as pretty as some poets describe it.
I think I would have liked this collection more had I known going into it that it was more serious. These topics aren't light-hearted and they don't read in an easy manner. Biddy takes time to discuss not only systematic racism, but miscarriage, death of a parent, police brutality, and the covid-19 pandemic. A lot of these poems had a wonderful cadence to them - but that also meant that I felt like something was missing as I read. It was the equivalent of reading a play instead of being able to see it acted out on a stage, these poem's needed the weight of Biddy's voice reading them.
While I did enjoy a handful of the poems in this collection, it overall felt like it didn't connect with me. I had a hard time relating to the mentions of pregnancy and miscarriage and I feel like that personally impacted my ability to enjoy the overall collection. The tone is somber at times, but the writing is beautiful. I would highly recommend readers seek out Reyna Biddy's spoken word performances online to get the full impact of the author's talent.
Disclaimer, I received a free physical copy of this book via Andrews McMeel's influencer program.
Content warnings: brief mention of miscarriage, death of a parent description, racism, and police brutality.
Reyna Biddy's we find our way is a hard collection to describe. It's in part self-reflective, but part reflective of how the world has systematically treated black people, and specifically, black women their entire lives. Biddy's voice is like a drum beat, building with each poem in intensity, reminding the reader that life takes work and life is often not as pretty as some poets describe it.
I think I would have liked this collection more had I known going into it that it was more serious. These topics aren't light-hearted and they don't read in an easy manner. Biddy takes time to discuss not only systematic racism, but miscarriage, death of a parent, police brutality, and the covid-19 pandemic. A lot of these poems had a wonderful cadence to them - but that also meant that I felt like something was missing as I read. It was the equivalent of reading a play instead of being able to see it acted out on a stage, these poem's needed the weight of Biddy's voice reading them.
While I did enjoy a handful of the poems in this collection, it overall felt like it didn't connect with me. I had a hard time relating to the mentions of pregnancy and miscarriage and I feel like that personally impacted my ability to enjoy the overall collection. The tone is somber at times, but the writing is beautiful. I would highly recommend readers seek out Reyna Biddy's spoken word performances online to get the full impact of the author's talent.
Disclaimer, I received a free physical copy of this book via Andrews McMeel's influencer program.
Content warnings: brief mention of miscarriage, death of a parent description, racism, and police brutality.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Racism, Miscarriage, and Police brutality
How To Marry A Marble Marquis, by C.M. Nascosta
funny
lighthearted
medium-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
"The scandal is the point."
Miss Eleanor Eastwick has a very unfortunate stumble into her late London season. When she learns that her reputation has been so thoroughly sullied that her last chance for a husband lies in the Monsters Ball - a place where she will have to win the eye and proposal from a monster rather than a human. She'll need some tips, however, and who better to do it than the notoriously rakish Marquis of Basingstone, Silas Stride, a gargoyle experienced in the art of love and who might just be Eleanor's perfect match.
This was literally everything I hoped for AND MORE. I am so thrilled that this exceeded all my expectations. I've been eagerly awaiting this release for months, keeping any eye out for my chance to snag my early copy from Patreon (which is why this review is a day early!). I devoured this, completely enamored with the way Nascosta chose to wrote Eleanor and Silas' budding relationship. There was so much in here that I adore in historical romances, down to the little details of courtly behavior and hints of the larger world of what regency monster romance entails. The little details dropped throughout about the world, the mothpeople (I love them, y'all I love them so, so much), and the gargoyles were all so interesting.
Eleanor was a fantastic main character, easily one of my new favorites. She's determined to get a good match so her younger sisters don't have to worry about her future like she has - and she takes all of Silas' rakish, terrible behavior in stride. He's such an asshole, but it's in an undeniably lovable way where I just wanted to slap his marble cheek and then kiss him. AND MARIS. MY ABSOLUTE GARGOYLE QUEEN. I loved her, I loved every inch of her dramatic dressing to her ability to call Silas out on his shit so thoroughly. I loved the ending of this and how the tension grew and grew and grew until it absolutely caved in on the two main characters. I genuinely can't wait for more in this world from not only Nascosta but the rest of the authors in this line up!
This book is 100% for the monster romance fanatics, the Bridgerton binge-watchers (hello Anthony, your daddy issues have been challenged), and fans of some high-spice escapades. (There are kissing lessons, praise Nascosta.)
Content warnings: sexual content (throughout, multiple scenes), light sexism (from the world, et. all), death of a parent (mention), pregnancy (Silas' sister is pregnant throughout the book)
Miss Eleanor Eastwick has a very unfortunate stumble into her late London season. When she learns that her reputation has been so thoroughly sullied that her last chance for a husband lies in the Monsters Ball - a place where she will have to win the eye and proposal from a monster rather than a human. She'll need some tips, however, and who better to do it than the notoriously rakish Marquis of Basingstone, Silas Stride, a gargoyle experienced in the art of love and who might just be Eleanor's perfect match.
This was literally everything I hoped for AND MORE. I am so thrilled that this exceeded all my expectations. I've been eagerly awaiting this release for months, keeping any eye out for my chance to snag my early copy from Patreon (which is why this review is a day early!). I devoured this, completely enamored with the way Nascosta chose to wrote Eleanor and Silas' budding relationship. There was so much in here that I adore in historical romances, down to the little details of courtly behavior and hints of the larger world of what regency monster romance entails. The little details dropped throughout about the world, the mothpeople (I love them, y'all I love them so, so much), and the gargoyles were all so interesting.
Eleanor was a fantastic main character, easily one of my new favorites. She's determined to get a good match so her younger sisters don't have to worry about her future like she has - and she takes all of Silas' rakish, terrible behavior in stride. He's such an asshole, but it's in an undeniably lovable way where I just wanted to slap his marble cheek and then kiss him. AND MARIS. MY ABSOLUTE GARGOYLE QUEEN. I loved her, I loved every inch of her dramatic dressing to her ability to call Silas out on his shit so thoroughly. I loved the ending of this and how the tension grew and grew and grew until it absolutely caved in on the two main characters. I genuinely can't wait for more in this world from not only Nascosta but the rest of the authors in this line up!
This book is 100% for the monster romance fanatics, the Bridgerton binge-watchers (hello Anthony, your daddy issues have been challenged), and fans of some high-spice escapades. (There are kissing lessons, praise Nascosta.)
Content warnings: sexual content (throughout, multiple scenes), light sexism (from the world, et. all), death of a parent (mention), pregnancy (Silas' sister is pregnant throughout the book)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Sexism
The Dalwick Demon, by Ashley Bennett
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
0.0
This was so startlingly bad I don't know what to say.
Iris gets thrown into a cave near her home because she's accused of prostitution, theft, and witchcraft. There she discovers the demon in the cave that has been receiving the sacrifices has been taking them through the mountain and helping them start new lives in the next town over. They fall instantly in lust and touch each other a lot.
Listen, I can be on board with just about anything but this was so poorly developed that I sat in baffled awe the entire time I read it. The dialogue is so unnatural that it pulled me out of the vaguely medieval setting time and time again, coupled with the fact the "spice" reads like a grocery list this was just not for me. It was not it.
The sad thing is this could have been good. It had a lot of promise and a lot of moments that read as interesting if it had been expanded on... instead we got a story of two people walking for a bit and every time they stopped they fondled each other until they fell asleep.
No thanks. Skip this one. I need to go bleach my eyeballs.
Content warnings: sexual content, allusions to sexual assault (thinly veiled as they were it might bother some people), death of a parent, epilogue baby, poorly written everything
Iris gets thrown into a cave near her home because she's accused of prostitution, theft, and witchcraft. There she discovers the demon in the cave that has been receiving the sacrifices has been taking them through the mountain and helping them start new lives in the next town over. They fall instantly in lust and touch each other a lot.
Listen, I can be on board with just about anything but this was so poorly developed that I sat in baffled awe the entire time I read it. The dialogue is so unnatural that it pulled me out of the vaguely medieval setting time and time again, coupled with the fact the "spice" reads like a grocery list this was just not for me. It was not it.
The sad thing is this could have been good. It had a lot of promise and a lot of moments that read as interesting if it had been expanded on... instead we got a story of two people walking for a bit and every time they stopped they fondled each other until they fell asleep.
No thanks. Skip this one. I need to go bleach my eyeballs.
Content warnings: sexual content, allusions to sexual assault (thinly veiled as they were it might bother some people), death of a parent, epilogue baby, poorly written everything
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual content
Minor: Sexual assault, Pregnancy, and Death of parent
Blood Orange, by Karina Halle
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
"The darkness in me calls to the darkness in you."
Centuries ago the man, Valtu Aminoff watched the love of his life, Mina, die. In that very same moment, he succumbed to the long-held tradition of the males in his family becoming vampires. London, 1800 - Valtu finds himself now called Dracula, a vampire of infamy - but then he sees a woman named Lucy in a museum and she looks eerily similar to his first love, Mina. Italy, now - Dahlia Abernathy has been sent to kill the most dangerous vampire in the world, but why is it that she feels drawn to him in ways she's never felt before? Why does it feel like there is history between them when she's certain they've never met?
Turns out the way to slap my reading slump into submission is to serve me up all my favorite tropes on a silver platter. This has, in no semblance of order: fated mates, reincarnation, Dracula retelling, vampires, the spiciest smut I've ever read, a dark and rich world, VAMPIRE POLITICS BABY, neurodivergent rep, queer rep, horrifically gory scenes, and quite possibly my favorite ending I've ever read in a vampire book. She hit different, she's a gem.
I picked Blood Orange up on a whim because I was in such a bad slump that nothing was getting through to me. Even some five star reads just weren't delivering. I've always been an absolute hoe for vampires so I knew this would either make or break me. It did both, in such a wonderful way. I was initially a little hesitant, the first 25% of this book is incredibly slow. Barring the fact that you know a good portion of the plot going into it (if you're familiar with Dracula as Bram Stoker wrote it, if not you'll be surprised!) I think Halle did a wonderful job at establishing the world and it's differences from the source material she was pulling from.
This book deals with a lot in it's pages, we have grief, the loss of a child, spousal loss, aging, war, familial loss, and toxic relationships - and it's all blurred together in a really compelling way. There is something so great about the fact this book embraces it's a vampire novel and then doesn't let that go. There are moments that are spine-tingling dark, horrifically violent and vicious, but there are also so many lighthearted moments I laughed out loud or found my heart being warmed. I really, really adored the way Valtu was written. Every time we got chapters of him reminiscing on his long life, I knew I was in for a treat. Halle has such an incredible voice and it shines absolutely, toeing the line between a man who's lived for hundreds of years between a contemporary voice that would feel more familiar in a romcom. It's great. I loved this, what else can I say?
This book isn't perfect, but at the same time I can't give it less than five stars. It has so many tropes and things that I adore in it, plus some seriously well-informed scenes (content warnings in the beginning were the perfect list of, "this is what you're signing up for" and "but I'm going to let the writing speak for itself"). Like I said, the smut is off the charts, I'm coming away questioning myself a bit but also... My Lord.
If you, like me, have an unhealthy obsession with vampires and also love literature and retellings this is probably going to be for you. Go forth, read this impeccably done smutty Dracula retelling, you won't regret it.
Content warnings: sexual content (multiple scenes, kinks are listed in the beginning of the book*), grief, blood, death, miscarriage (forced)/child death (still birth, mild medical content warning), death of a parent (off page)
*adding a note here: Halle mentions dubcon in the content warnings, the singular scene happens in Valtu's reminiscence and it's more consensual than dubious, there is a similar scene later on which is also more consensual than dubious. They were both done really, really well and toed the line beautifully. Read with care, but as someone who often has this as a hard no, they passed my test.
Centuries ago the man, Valtu Aminoff watched the love of his life, Mina, die. In that very same moment, he succumbed to the long-held tradition of the males in his family becoming vampires. London, 1800 - Valtu finds himself now called Dracula, a vampire of infamy - but then he sees a woman named Lucy in a museum and she looks eerily similar to his first love, Mina. Italy, now - Dahlia Abernathy has been sent to kill the most dangerous vampire in the world, but why is it that she feels drawn to him in ways she's never felt before? Why does it feel like there is history between them when she's certain they've never met?
Turns out the way to slap my reading slump into submission is to serve me up all my favorite tropes on a silver platter. This has, in no semblance of order: fated mates, reincarnation, Dracula retelling, vampires, the spiciest smut I've ever read, a dark and rich world, VAMPIRE POLITICS BABY, neurodivergent rep, queer rep, horrifically gory scenes, and quite possibly my favorite ending I've ever read in a vampire book. She hit different, she's a gem.
I picked Blood Orange up on a whim because I was in such a bad slump that nothing was getting through to me. Even some five star reads just weren't delivering. I've always been an absolute hoe for vampires so I knew this would either make or break me. It did both, in such a wonderful way. I was initially a little hesitant, the first 25% of this book is incredibly slow. Barring the fact that you know a good portion of the plot going into it (if you're familiar with Dracula as Bram Stoker wrote it, if not you'll be surprised!) I think Halle did a wonderful job at establishing the world and it's differences from the source material she was pulling from.
This book deals with a lot in it's pages, we have grief, the loss of a child, spousal loss, aging, war, familial loss, and toxic relationships - and it's all blurred together in a really compelling way. There is something so great about the fact this book embraces it's a vampire novel and then doesn't let that go. There are moments that are spine-tingling dark, horrifically violent and vicious, but there are also so many lighthearted moments I laughed out loud or found my heart being warmed. I really, really adored the way Valtu was written. Every time we got chapters of him reminiscing on his long life, I knew I was in for a treat. Halle has such an incredible voice and it shines absolutely, toeing the line between a man who's lived for hundreds of years between a contemporary voice that would feel more familiar in a romcom. It's great. I loved this, what else can I say?
This book isn't perfect, but at the same time I can't give it less than five stars. It has so many tropes and things that I adore in it, plus some seriously well-informed scenes (content warnings in the beginning were the perfect list of, "this is what you're signing up for" and "but I'm going to let the writing speak for itself"). Like I said, the smut is off the charts, I'm coming away questioning myself a bit but also... My Lord.
If you, like me, have an unhealthy obsession with vampires and also love literature and retellings this is probably going to be for you. Go forth, read this impeccably done smutty Dracula retelling, you won't regret it.
Content warnings: sexual content (multiple scenes, kinks are listed in the beginning of the book*), grief, blood, death, miscarriage (forced)/child death (still birth, mild medical content warning), death of a parent (off page)
*adding a note here: Halle mentions dubcon in the content warnings, the singular scene happens in Valtu's reminiscence and it's more consensual than dubious, there is a similar scene later on which is also more consensual than dubious. They were both done really, really well and toed the line beautifully. Read with care, but as someone who often has this as a hard no, they passed my test.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Sexual content, and Death
Moderate: Child death, Grief, and Miscarriage
Minor: Medical content and Death of parent
Husband Material, by Alexis Hall
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
Well... this was disappointing.
Off the heels of Boyfriend Material, Husband Material picks up with Luc and Oliver's relationship years later, decidedly both in their phase of adulthood where everyone around them is getting married, having babies, and moving on with their lives. But for both Luc and Oliver, they're not quite sure where they stand in the timeline of expectations versus what they actually want for their futures.
I won't lie, I've been in a slump this entire month of February, but I was really, really hopeful that this audiobook would get me out of it. Instead, I quickly realized it was only making it worse. I loved the beginning of this, setting up multiple weddings and multiple moments of proving Luc and Oliver's relationship had grown were great - until it very much wasn't for me. When they began to seem to have the same arguments over and over again that were cornerstones of the first book, I began to get really irritated because even though this was set years later, I felt like neither of them had grown at all.
This is also on me, but I had no idea this was a Four Weddings and a Funeral type of story, so the funeral aspect really threw me and upset me. For a multitude of personal reasons it hit way too close to home and at a moment I didn't really want to be reading about funerals and the messy aspects of grief and the ways people who are dead are loved, but not absolved of their bad behaviour. It was just a bit much for me and heavily, heavily impacted my reading experience and rating.
I wished I had liked this more. I wish that the ending had the "it's us against the world" feeling that it seemed to be going for. But it just didn't for me. This wasn't the happily ever after I wanted to read about, and being bogged down with too many other, hard topics made this a really unpleasant listening experience towards the end.
Content warnings: death of a parent (major plot point, with funeral), grief, homophobia, vomit, mentions to eating disorders
Off the heels of Boyfriend Material, Husband Material picks up with Luc and Oliver's relationship years later, decidedly both in their phase of adulthood where everyone around them is getting married, having babies, and moving on with their lives. But for both Luc and Oliver, they're not quite sure where they stand in the timeline of expectations versus what they actually want for their futures.
I won't lie, I've been in a slump this entire month of February, but I was really, really hopeful that this audiobook would get me out of it. Instead, I quickly realized it was only making it worse. I loved the beginning of this, setting up multiple weddings and multiple moments of proving Luc and Oliver's relationship had grown were great - until it very much wasn't for me. When they began to seem to have the same arguments over and over again that were cornerstones of the first book, I began to get really irritated because even though this was set years later, I felt like neither of them had grown at all.
This is also on me, but I had no idea this was a Four Weddings and a Funeral type of story, so the funeral aspect really threw me and upset me. For a multitude of personal reasons it hit way too close to home and at a moment I didn't really want to be reading about funerals and the messy aspects of grief and the ways people who are dead are loved, but not absolved of their bad behaviour. It was just a bit much for me and heavily, heavily impacted my reading experience and rating.
I wished I had liked this more. I wish that the ending had the "it's us against the world" feeling that it seemed to be going for. But it just didn't for me. This wasn't the happily ever after I wanted to read about, and being bogged down with too many other, hard topics made this a really unpleasant listening experience towards the end.
Content warnings: death of a parent (major plot point, with funeral), grief, homophobia, vomit, mentions to eating disorders
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Death, Death of parent, and Grief
Moderate: Vomit
Minor: Eating disorder
When She Unravels, by Gabrielle Sands
Did not finish book. Stopped at 53%.
Did not finish book. Stopped at 53%.
I was cautiously excited about this book after seeing a random quote on Instagram. I never pick up books because of that and thought I'd at least give it a shot since I adored the other mafia romance I just read. Unfortunately, this was 100% not for me.
Valentina started out as a very strong woman, angry at the horrific situation and marriage her family forced her into, and I was ready to ride or die for her. But the moment she 'escapes' it's like her personality did a 180. She made numerous stupid decisions, put herself at risk, and then was too silly to see she had involved herself with another man in an even more dangerous position than before.
What made me DNF was the "climax" of the book, maybe dark romance isn't for me, but it made me wildly uncomfortable and didn't seem to fit the two characters AT ALL. It sucks, because there was a lot of genuine moments I thought were interesting, but overall the characters got flatter and flatter the more I read.
Content warnings: guns, violence, death, murder, sexual content, stalking, harassment, sexual harassment, blood, injury, and dubcon (poorly written at that), suicide attempt/suicidal thoughts (it was giving Bella jumping off a cliff to see Edward)
Valentina started out as a very strong woman, angry at the horrific situation and marriage her family forced her into, and I was ready to ride or die for her. But the moment she 'escapes' it's like her personality did a 180. She made numerous stupid decisions, put herself at risk, and then was too silly to see she had involved herself with another man in an even more dangerous position than before.
What made me DNF was the "climax" of the book, maybe dark romance isn't for me, but it made me wildly uncomfortable and didn't seem to fit the two characters AT ALL. It sucks, because there was a lot of genuine moments I thought were interesting, but overall the characters got flatter and flatter the more I read.
Content warnings: guns, violence, death, murder, sexual content, stalking, harassment, sexual harassment, blood, injury, and dubcon (poorly written at that), suicide attempt/suicidal thoughts (it was giving Bella jumping off a cliff to see Edward)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, Gun violence, and Torture
Moderate: Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Sexual content, and Injury/injury detail
Exes and O's, by Amy Lea
emotional
funny
lighthearted
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
"You really think you're a sidekick?"
Tara Chen is fresh off the heels of a hot-ass mess of a failed engagement. After things ended horribly with her ex, Seth, ending in her giving her entire already booked wedding away - she's floundering. Combine that with a move into an awkward roommate situation (her future brother-in-law's best friend has a vacant room for her, of course) and the fact she's still working with said ex, Tara is certain her future is only going to be full of fictional men from here on out. That is, until she gets the idea to just go through her list of exes and revisit the men that didn't quite work out, effectively cutting out the awkward get-to-know-you period and jumping right back into a second-chance romance. Only Tara's head over heels approach to romance has caught the attention of her new (very hot) fireman roommate and under his tutelage Tara is certain she won't mess it up this time, or she will, and she'll fall for the very off-limits man who she shares an apartment with.
This book brought me to tears. It made me laugh out loud too many times. It had me closing the pages in sheer desperation that the next pages would hold what I hoped for - and then it delivered on all my hopes and dreams and even more. Cheesy? Maybe, but I freaking love Amy Lea and I would fall to my knees in front of her to thank her for the gift that is Trevor Metcalfe. I loved Set On You, I actually made it my entire personality last year and it still has a grip on me, but Exes and O's is a whole-ass love letter to the book community, the hopeless romantics, and the swifties wailing the lyrics to You Belong With Me.
I adored how this book approached Tara's romance. She's thirty, she's been through her fair share of exes, and they've all treated her kind of garbage in one way or another. Including the fact that she can't shake the gaslighting behavior of Seth, this just felt like a stupendously self-aware book that tackles the stereotype of the "crazy" ex, the clingy girlfriend, and all the horrible things women are called in and out of relationships. I loved seeing Tara embrace and unpack the names and labels she was given, just as much as I loved Trevor unpacking his own labels and understanding his own pitfalls. They danced around each other beautifully and I'll die on this hill, but Amy Lea's third acts are the best part of her books. Each character reaches a moment where they have to come to terms with themselves first and I adore that there's no question about it, there's no falling back on the love interest to save them, everyone figures their own shit out first and then you get the happily ever after you deserve.
This book was everything I hoped for and more, which is honestly so incredibly satisfying considering it was my biggest hopeful of the year. I thought Amy couldn't pass my love for Set On You, but she did and I love Exes and O's in ways I didn't even anticipate. No notes, I'm going to blast some Taylor Swift and maybe go stalk a fire station.
Content warnings: sexual content (a few very steamy scenes), gaslighting (from an ex/coworker), emotional abuse (from an ex), medical content (Tara is a nurse, Seth (ex) is a doctor, and Trevor has a plot point revolving around the hospital, it's present throughout the novel), toxic relationships (various), death/death of a parent (discussed in a couple scenes), and abandonment (discussed throughout)
Tara Chen is fresh off the heels of a hot-ass mess of a failed engagement. After things ended horribly with her ex, Seth, ending in her giving her entire already booked wedding away - she's floundering. Combine that with a move into an awkward roommate situation (her future brother-in-law's best friend has a vacant room for her, of course) and the fact she's still working with said ex, Tara is certain her future is only going to be full of fictional men from here on out. That is, until she gets the idea to just go through her list of exes and revisit the men that didn't quite work out, effectively cutting out the awkward get-to-know-you period and jumping right back into a second-chance romance. Only Tara's head over heels approach to romance has caught the attention of her new (very hot) fireman roommate and under his tutelage Tara is certain she won't mess it up this time, or she will, and she'll fall for the very off-limits man who she shares an apartment with.
This book brought me to tears. It made me laugh out loud too many times. It had me closing the pages in sheer desperation that the next pages would hold what I hoped for - and then it delivered on all my hopes and dreams and even more. Cheesy? Maybe, but I freaking love Amy Lea and I would fall to my knees in front of her to thank her for the gift that is Trevor Metcalfe. I loved Set On You, I actually made it my entire personality last year and it still has a grip on me, but Exes and O's is a whole-ass love letter to the book community, the hopeless romantics, and the swifties wailing the lyrics to You Belong With Me.
I adored how this book approached Tara's romance. She's thirty, she's been through her fair share of exes, and they've all treated her kind of garbage in one way or another. Including the fact that she can't shake the gaslighting behavior of Seth, this just felt like a stupendously self-aware book that tackles the stereotype of the "crazy" ex, the clingy girlfriend, and all the horrible things women are called in and out of relationships. I loved seeing Tara embrace and unpack the names and labels she was given, just as much as I loved Trevor unpacking his own labels and understanding his own pitfalls. They danced around each other beautifully and I'll die on this hill, but Amy Lea's third acts are the best part of her books. Each character reaches a moment where they have to come to terms with themselves first and I adore that there's no question about it, there's no falling back on the love interest to save them, everyone figures their own shit out first and then you get the happily ever after you deserve.
This book was everything I hoped for and more, which is honestly so incredibly satisfying considering it was my biggest hopeful of the year. I thought Amy couldn't pass my love for Set On You, but she did and I love Exes and O's in ways I didn't even anticipate. No notes, I'm going to blast some Taylor Swift and maybe go stalk a fire station.
Content warnings: sexual content (a few very steamy scenes), gaslighting (from an ex/coworker), emotional abuse (from an ex), medical content (Tara is a nurse, Seth (ex) is a doctor, and Trevor has a plot point revolving around the hospital, it's present throughout the novel), toxic relationships (various), death/death of a parent (discussed in a couple scenes), and abandonment (discussed throughout)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Gaslighting, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Medical content and Toxic relationship
Minor: Abandonment, Death, and Death of parent
The Mabon Feast, by C.M. Nascosta
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
"She didn't know what Anzan did, nor what he ate, nor what goddess he worshipped, if it was a goddess at all, but she knew he was there, and it was nice."
Ladybug is a witch without a coven. After she refuses to take part in her ancestral coven's rituals, she's cast out, leaving her to flounder in her family home in Cambric Creek and attempt to be her own coven. When she realizes she needs a tenant in her home to help cover costs, she leases out the attic to Anzan, an aranean who's escaping his own turmoil-filled past. As the months pass, Ladybug quickly realizes there might be more to the silent man who lives above her.
Nascosta, you've got me on my KNEES. I picked this up on a whim because a friend said that I should consider reading it to get myself out of a pretty awful reading slump. I went in knowing nearly nothing and that made the experience of getting to know Ladybug and Anzan a total dream. Ladybug is an autistic-coded main character, struggling with herself, her purpose, and what it means to be so cut off from her community and history. I loved how Nascosta wrote the ways Ladybug was uncomfortable with social situations, uncertain how to respond to people making jokes, and just generally struggling with connections.
In that same vein, Anzan was SO WONDERFUL. The big, beefy spiderman of my dreams, honestly. He was sweet, silent, and kind - something I've come to love from Nascosta's more wholesome love interests. The little insights to his background and the explanation for his sudden appearance in Cambric Creek tugged at my heartstrings and made me so eager to read the rest of his and Ladybug's story. This entire short piece just notched itself into my heart and I know, without a doubt, that I'll be rereading it for these characters again and again.
This is my year of monster romances and I am having the time of my LIFE.
Content warnings: sexual content (70% onward, heats/mating), panic attacks/grief/death of family (Ladybug's background deals with a lot of this), violence/death/dark magic (tied to the reasons Ladybug was cast out of her coven)
Ladybug is a witch without a coven. After she refuses to take part in her ancestral coven's rituals, she's cast out, leaving her to flounder in her family home in Cambric Creek and attempt to be her own coven. When she realizes she needs a tenant in her home to help cover costs, she leases out the attic to Anzan, an aranean who's escaping his own turmoil-filled past. As the months pass, Ladybug quickly realizes there might be more to the silent man who lives above her.
Nascosta, you've got me on my KNEES. I picked this up on a whim because a friend said that I should consider reading it to get myself out of a pretty awful reading slump. I went in knowing nearly nothing and that made the experience of getting to know Ladybug and Anzan a total dream. Ladybug is an autistic-coded main character, struggling with herself, her purpose, and what it means to be so cut off from her community and history. I loved how Nascosta wrote the ways Ladybug was uncomfortable with social situations, uncertain how to respond to people making jokes, and just generally struggling with connections.
In that same vein, Anzan was SO WONDERFUL. The big, beefy spiderman of my dreams, honestly. He was sweet, silent, and kind - something I've come to love from Nascosta's more wholesome love interests. The little insights to his background and the explanation for his sudden appearance in Cambric Creek tugged at my heartstrings and made me so eager to read the rest of his and Ladybug's story. This entire short piece just notched itself into my heart and I know, without a doubt, that I'll be rereading it for these characters again and again.
This is my year of monster romances and I am having the time of my LIFE.
Content warnings: sexual content (70% onward, heats/mating), panic attacks/grief/death of family (Ladybug's background deals with a lot of this), violence/death/dark magic (tied to the reasons Ladybug was cast out of her coven)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Grief, Panic attacks/disorders, and Death of parent
Minor: Death and Violence
Happenstance, by Tessa Bailey
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
"There is not way I'm considering this. Obviously. Because it's straight up kooky."
All Elise wants is to become a journalist. Well, that's what she wants now - after a failed food truck start-up, military career, and various other half-finished careers. But when she's following a story about the corrupt politics in her home of New York City, she finds herself trapped on a tram during a power surge with three men: Tobias, an ex-adult film star, Banks, the coach of the New York Rugby team, and Gabe, a construction foreman. When the four of them have an electric connection, Elise starts to question what life would be like if she did embrace the sudden feelings she has for not just one, but three men.
Y'all, I don't know how to review this. I'm not an expert in reverse harems or why choose romances, but this one made me feel like ripping my hair out at the root. At the end of the day it's not a BAD book - Tessa Bailey has an incredible way of making even the most ridiculous of situations fun and endearing, but so much of this just absolutely enraged me. Especially since this is coming off the heels of me reading and adoring Ruthless Boys - which gave me five books of slow burn and relationships that made sense, I feel like I was handed an empty plate and a fork and told to enjoy. Enjoy what? Nothing? Air?? Where is the SEASONING.
Elise absolutely infuriated me. If you don't have a journalistic background, I don't think you're going to care about her wacky side-plot and the end it comes to, but as someone who spent endless years in the trenches I was ready to foam at the mouth from sheer fury. She's an idiot and it made me mad. The end of this book was like driving a nail into my eye socket from the sheer ludicrous nature of how it wraps up. I need to go read Scandalized by Ivy Owens again to cleanse my palate.
I enjoyed the men - for what it's worth. Banks was a delight (but I'm severely grumpy that we never get an individual bonding moment with him), Tobias was a nice change of pace (cocky but needy man with rampant trust issues? Say less), and Gabe was your traditional himbo with a dark past, but he made it work. I just couldn't buy this entire book. Maybe I just have an easier time with RH when it's presented in a fantasy setting, but I was ready to cringe out of my skin every time they all kissed each other in public. It's me, I'm the problem. But also... no, just no.
There was also this weird thing through the entire book where Tessa Bailey seemed to try to keep the writing light-hearted, but it just came across as painfully awkward. Terminology non-withstanding, I'd rather just read the word "ass" ten times in a row instead of being subjected to "globes" or "buttocks." I probably won't be rereading this, and I wished this had been the silly, lighthearted read I needed to get me out of this slump, but my God, I'm still over here struggling.
If you've read this far: Happenstance is a good introduction if you've never read a well-written RH before. But that's all it is. It's "Intro to Why Choose Romance 101" and I'm in the upper-level classes with a headache wishing I'd just picked up Zodiac Academy or restarted Ruthless Boys.
Content warnings: sexual content (handful of scenes, some kinks), kidnapping (both as a joke and very much not a joke), gun violence (on page, very startling, last 10%), stalking (Elise is "pursuing leads" and also Gabe has a tendency to track her like a bloodhound), infidelity (not by the Tram Fam, but a huge part of Gabe's story), sexual innuendos/brash sexual advances (I feel like Tobias needs a warning for being a giant prick for 70% of this story)
All Elise wants is to become a journalist. Well, that's what she wants now - after a failed food truck start-up, military career, and various other half-finished careers. But when she's following a story about the corrupt politics in her home of New York City, she finds herself trapped on a tram during a power surge with three men: Tobias, an ex-adult film star, Banks, the coach of the New York Rugby team, and Gabe, a construction foreman. When the four of them have an electric connection, Elise starts to question what life would be like if she did embrace the sudden feelings she has for not just one, but three men.
Y'all, I don't know how to review this. I'm not an expert in reverse harems or why choose romances, but this one made me feel like ripping my hair out at the root. At the end of the day it's not a BAD book - Tessa Bailey has an incredible way of making even the most ridiculous of situations fun and endearing, but so much of this just absolutely enraged me. Especially since this is coming off the heels of me reading and adoring Ruthless Boys - which gave me five books of slow burn and relationships that made sense, I feel like I was handed an empty plate and a fork and told to enjoy. Enjoy what? Nothing? Air?? Where is the SEASONING.
Elise absolutely infuriated me. If you don't have a journalistic background, I don't think you're going to care about her wacky side-plot and the end it comes to, but as someone who spent endless years in the trenches I was ready to foam at the mouth from sheer fury. She's an idiot and it made me mad. The end of this book was like driving a nail into my eye socket from the sheer ludicrous nature of how it wraps up. I need to go read Scandalized by Ivy Owens again to cleanse my palate.
I enjoyed the men - for what it's worth. Banks was a delight (but I'm severely grumpy that we never get an individual bonding moment with him), Tobias was a nice change of pace (cocky but needy man with rampant trust issues? Say less), and Gabe was your traditional himbo with a dark past, but he made it work. I just couldn't buy this entire book. Maybe I just have an easier time with RH when it's presented in a fantasy setting, but I was ready to cringe out of my skin every time they all kissed each other in public. It's me, I'm the problem. But also... no, just no.
There was also this weird thing through the entire book where Tessa Bailey seemed to try to keep the writing light-hearted, but it just came across as painfully awkward. Terminology non-withstanding, I'd rather just read the word "ass" ten times in a row instead of being subjected to "globes" or "buttocks." I probably won't be rereading this, and I wished this had been the silly, lighthearted read I needed to get me out of this slump, but my God, I'm still over here struggling.
If you've read this far: Happenstance is a good introduction if you've never read a well-written RH before. But that's all it is. It's "Intro to Why Choose Romance 101" and I'm in the upper-level classes with a headache wishing I'd just picked up Zodiac Academy or restarted Ruthless Boys.
Content warnings: sexual content (handful of scenes, some kinks), kidnapping (both as a joke and very much not a joke), gun violence (on page, very startling, last 10%), stalking (Elise is "pursuing leads" and also Gabe has a tendency to track her like a bloodhound), infidelity (not by the Tram Fam, but a huge part of Gabe's story), sexual innuendos/brash sexual advances (I feel like Tobias needs a warning for being a giant prick for 70% of this story)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Kidnapping, and Gun violence
Moderate: Stalking and Infidelity