Book Critic
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Review: The Girl with the Make-Believe Husband (Rokesbys #2) by Julia Quinn
There is absolutely nothing like a Julia Quinn novel to get me through a reading rut. I can literally pick up any Julia Quinn and be transported by the charming story, romance, and witty dialogue. I adore her Bridgerton books and the Rokesby books are a prequel to the main Bridgerton series. I read Because of Miss Bridgerton earlier in the spring, and I quickly ordered the other books in this series. I actually meant to read this book while I was in Arizona but I forgot it at home and yes I could have downloaded it to my iPad but I already had a copy at home so I…
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Review: A Most Clever Girl: A Novel of an American Spy by Stephanie Marie Thornton
I started reading Stephanie Marie Thornton’s books years ago and absolutely feel in love with her story telling style! One of the things I found the most compelling was she wrote stories about women in antiquity. Women that wouldn’t be likely to have a ‘story’ that was well known. For example the Empress Theodora and the women of Genghis Kahn. I loved that she took well known women in antiquity, but were unlikely to generate mainstream stories, and then created a story for them. I adored her early books and when I saw that she was making the shift into the more modern era, I was a little sad. That…
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Review: Her Perfect Life by Hank Phillippi Ryan
Hank Phillippi Ryan has quickly become a favorite author of mine! I have adored all of her books that I have read and I was super excited to check out her latest novel, Her Perfect Life. One of the things that I have loved about Ryan’s novels is that she always writes compelling female characters that are flawed and complex and this book sounded like it would be right up my alley! Her mysteries are always a fun read and since Ryan is a former investigative reporter each book has this great investigative quality that feels modern and relevant. Ryan has also won numerous awards and accolades for her mysteries…
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Review: Among the Poppies by J’nell Ciesielski
After reading J’nell Ciesielski’s latest novel, The Ice Swan, I was craving more from her and I noticed that I hadn’t read one of her earlier books, Among the Poppies! So a real no-brainer here, as many of you know I am a huge Great War romance fan and this book was literally right up my alley and I couldn’t wait to read it! It was a super fast read—-because it was good! Ciesielski is a hidden gem author for me. She writes consistently well written and researched books and the romance always feels epic and believable. While Will wasn’t as charming and dashing as some of her other heroes,…
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Review: Along Came a Lady (All the Duke’s Sins #1) by Christi Caldwell
This was my first Christi Caldwell romance and I was so excited to read it! I have seen Caldwell’s novels around the bookish world and I have often wondered how they compare to other historical romances. So when this one came up for review, I knew I had to jump on it even if I had to rearrange my reading calendar to make it happen. I know a lot of people raved about this one and said it was the perfect book for fans of the Bridgerton books. I have to say, Caldwell has a voice all her own and while there might be similarities to Julia Quinn, they are…
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Review: Wait for It by Jenn McKinlay
I might be from Oregon, but I lived in Arizona for 10 years and I absolutely love the desert. I hate that more books aren’t set in Phoenix. This summer I was going to spend a month in Phoenix and I was really excited to read a book set in Phoenix that was also a romance! Needless to say I times my review for this book with my trip, I couldn’t wait to read this one. I have read one of McKinlay’s books prior to this and I thought it was good so going into this desert setting book, I was hopeful that I would enjoy it and escape but…
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Review: It Takes Heart (Heart Resort #1) by Tif Marcelo
This author has grown on me over the years. When I picked up one of her books I wasn’t sure what to expect but then I was completely lost in her stories and couldn’t wait to read more from her! One thing I noticed though was Marcelo writes a variety of stories. Not just women’s fiction but romance too. I was super excited to read this latest novel that was more contempo romance than women’s fiction. Second chance romance isn’t really my favorite troupe but I was excited to see what Marcelo did with it in this book. One of the things that I also love about Marcelo’s writing is…
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Review: At Summer’s End by Courtney Ellis
This book was my most anticipated book of the summer! The cover, the premise, swoon! Everything sounded so incredible! I couldn’t wait to dive into this one and I can tell you right now that I read it in a matter of days. I could have finished it in one siting but I breezed through it in just 2 days. It was so addicting and if you are a fan of historical fiction then you need to read this one. It boasts a unique romance, complex characters with a rich backdrop full of history and human rawness. I am a huge fan of WWI historical romances and this should have…
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Review: The Show Girl by Nicola Harrison
I had high expectations for this one. I loved the cover and I thought the premise of the story sounded promising not to mention I love historical fiction with romance so I thought this one would be one of my favorite reads of the summer. While I liked it, I don’t know that it lived up to me high expectations but I did like it and was glad I read it. The 1920s are not necessarily my favorite time period in historical fiction but I liked the glamour that the time period brought to the story plus I liked how the author used that in this story. I will get…
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Review: Crazy about a Cowboy (Tying the Knot in Texas #3) by Dylann Crush
Every year my family and I attend the St Paul Rodeo for the 4th of July here in Oregon and every year after the rodeo I am dying for a cowboy romance! So this was the year that I was like ‘OK I need to read one’ and I reached for the closest cowboy romance I could find. I did a special feature on this book when it was first released and I thought—why not start reading it now?! I don’t know that this was the cowboy romance that I was hoping for but it was sweet and a quick, easy read for sure. I picked it up just before…