Literary Criticism
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Review: The Socialite by J’nell Ciesielski
This cover is absolutely stunning. The red dress just draws my eye right to the book and I knew before even reading the summary that this was going to be a book that I would want to read. If you are a fan of historical fiction, then this book is likely already on your radar but if it’s not then it should be because it was a fun read! While this book has romance at its center, there is plenty of historical details and information for fans of historical fiction to love as well.
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Review: Who Speaks for the Damned (Sebastian St. Cyr #15) by C.S. Harris
When I started reading the Sebastian St Cyr books from beginning to end in December, I had this book in the forefront of my mind. I had really jumped around in this series over the years and that often left me feeling a little confused as to different character relations. I was tried of feeling lost in the series, so before this book came out I went back and read the entire series beginning to end starting in December. There wasn’t a single minute that I regretted that decision. I loved all of the books, though some were better than others, I still enjoyed watching the characters evolve and change.…
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Review: A Stroke of Malice (Lady Darby Mystery #8) by Anna Lee Huber
2019 wasn’t even over yet before I sunk my teeth into this one on a cold December afternoon. I adore this series and couldn’t resist picking this one up well before the official release date to see what adventures Gage and Lady Darby get up to this time around! I am sure a huge fan of Anna Lee Huber, I have read every single book she’s written and while some are better than others, both her Lady Darby and Verity Kent series are solid and tried and true favorites of mine and I would gladly clear my calendar for any of her books! I picked this one up on a…
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Review: To Have and to Hoax by Martha Waters
When I was pitched this novel, I was in love with the concept and thought it sounded so charming and sweet. But it wasn’t until the book actually arrived in my mailbox that I was so ready to start it. The cover is outstanding and totally matches the sweet rom-com that is written inside of the eye catching wrapping! I couldn’t wait to start reading it and more or less put everything else I was reading on hold to dive into this one. That bright purple cover just kept calling my name from my nightstand begging to be read! I couldn’t deny it any longer—I had to start it!
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Review: Miss Austen by Gill Hornby
As a Jane Austen fan, this was a must read for me. While it is a fictionalized account of Cassandra Austen’s life, it was one that I was eager to read and enjoy. This book came in at just under 300 pages (about 290) and to be honest, I was worried that because of the length, it would only scratch the surface of Cassandra’s story. But I have never been more pleased to be wrong in my assumption! This book packed an emotional punch that I wasn’t expecting but it worked so well and I happily passed a few quarantined days reading this book!
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Review: The Arrangement (The Survivors’ Club #2) by Mary Balogh
As many of you might recall, my mom set me the first book in this series for Valentines Day with the PSA to skip all the sex parts. Which was entirely unnecessary as the sex was shockingly tame in the first book, though I can’t say that I loved Hugo very much. So when I finished that one, I was not at all surprised when the second book in the series showed up thanks to my mother. Again, when I opened the box and saw this cover, I had to laugh once more. It screams cliche tacky romance novel. I love romances so much though (tacky cover or not!) and…
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Review: The Last Bathing Beauty by Amy Sue Nathan
This cover makes me so excited for summer and long walks on the beach. I have had it on my radar for quite some time and when it was picked as the March Amazon First Reads selection, I knew it was going to be a big new release. I haven’t read anything by this author before but she has written three other well received books and I was excited to give this one a try. Besides all the hype and the beautiful eye catching cover, this book boasted a sassy heroine and I was most excited to read about her, but beyond that I didn’t really know too much about…
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Review: Sin Eater by Megan Campisi
This book has been receiving a ton advanced praise. It’s been talked about as one of the next big Indie Picks and many are characterizing it as a cross between The Handmaid’s Tale meets Alice in Wonderland. When I heard all the praise and hype about this book, I was a little hesitant to read it because I worried that my expectations wouldn’t live up to the hype. However the summary sounded so promising that I didn’t feel like I could pass on it, nor did I want to. The summary promised a dark and innovative novel with lots of imagination mixed with some historical fiction. I was so glad…
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Review: Marguerite by Marina Kemp
When I first encountered this book, my mind ran to the assumption that it was going to be a very ‘high brow’ read. Don’t get me wrong, I love intelligent and more serious novels from time to time but I also enjoy just escaping into a trashy romance too, so it just depends on my mood. But this novel continued to stand out and intrigue me. I loved the cover and thought it was elegant and eye catching, but I also thought the story sounded compelling and smart. By the time I was ready to pick it up, my interest in it was well and truly caught. The book had…
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Review: All the Ways We Said Goodbye by Beatriz Williams, Lauren Willig, Karen White (Audible Edition)
Team W is an auto buy group of authors for me! I have read all of Lauren Willig’s books and many by Beatriz Williams and Karen White and I have read all of the Team W books so far, each one is so wonderful. These three authors are tried and true writers and I have been anxiously awaiting the release of this latest Team W read. I decided to download it on Audible rather than read the physical copy as I have had great luck with the narrators of the Team W books and I was pleased with my choice to listen instead of physically reading. I couldn’t wait to…