Literary Criticism
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Review: The Wicked King (The Folk of the Air #2) by Holly Black
So as soon as I finished the first book in this series, The Cruel Prince, I knew I immediately needed the next two books so I ordered them before I was done with the first book. I will say this, it’s been a long time since I have woken up early to read a book, let alone finishing a series of three books in four days. But this series made me fall back in love with YA fantasy and made me love early morning reading sessions again! I’ll be honest, it’s hard for me to write this review because the three books all blurred together because I read them so…
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Review: Christmas from the Heart by Sheila Roberts
Sheila Roberts is another prolific writer with a huge fan base and a number of titles to her name. I have only read a couple of her books but found them to be enjoyable and light. I wanted something relaxing after coming off of a few fast pace reads as well as something to get me into the holiday spirit….this book totally fit the bill. I originally only did a special feature for this one as I wasn’t sure that I could fit it in to my review schedule, but I thought it sounded so fun that I decided to make some room and squeeze it in for the holidays.
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REVIEW: The Family Upstairs by Lisa Jewell
Lisa Jewell is a wonderful writer and when I saw this book come up for review, I needed little convincing. The cover is beautiful and the premise for the story sounds great as well. This is my first read by her but I am not a stranger to her books. I have a couple of friends who have read them all and are constantly thrusting the latest Jewell release into my hands. I decided that this was going to be my first read by her and I couldn’t be more excited. Plus it was all over IG and it was also the Book of the Month pick so I knew…
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Review: The Cruel Prince (The Folk of the Air #1) by Holly Black
I saw The Cruel Prince all over my IG feed for months. I see it on all the recommended reading lists and people are raving about it. But I was determined to not like this one. I love YA fantasy just as much as the next person, but I went through a long period where that was all I read and I frankly got burnt out on it so I took a lengthy break. Then this one started popping up all over and I was convinced that it was overrated and sure to disappoint….also I am not into fairies like not even at all so I was sure this on…
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Review: Lady Takes the Case (Manor Cat Mystery #1) by Eliza Casey
As soon as this book appeared on my desk I was eager to read it. I thought the cover was pretty and I love lady detective novels so basically this book was a must read for me. I was looking for something light and just fun since I had come off reading a few heaver read, it sounded perfect. This book boasts a well known romance writer writing under a pseudonym, though we are never told who the well known writer is. I was curious to see how that translated into a mystery novel, and I was admittedly even more curious about who said writer was.
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Review: The Last Affair by Margot Hunt
As many of us know, domestic thrillers are quite the rage right now. I’ve read some that were outstanding and others that were just ok, but I’ll be completely honest…..even the just ok ones fascinate me! There is something about taking a peak into the lives of your neighbors and coworkers that just never gets old. You know the whole, the grass is greener situation never ceases to disappoint me. This book of course is a domestic thriller, but I thought it sounded promising. Torrid affair, perfect suburban family, secrets, lies, and of course murder. I couldn’t wait to start turning the pages of this one!
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Review: The Duke and I (Bridgertons #1) by Julia Quinn
Do you ever have one of those days where you are just randomly searching Goodreads for ‘recommended’ reads and one just jumps out at you for no apparent reason? Well that’s what happened with this book. I saw it and normally would have kept scrolling but I liked the cover and saw that it was soon to be a Netflix show and I wanted to read something romantic so why not I thought! I had never read anything by Julia Quinn before but I have heard she is known for her snappy dialogue and charming romances so I downloaded the book and became instantly distracted by it and the characters.
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Review: A Jewel Bright Sea (Mage and Empire #1) by Claire O’Dell
This book had a lot to recommend itself….pirates, adventure, magic, romance, fantasy. So many things that made it sound like a fun book to escape into. I also thought the cover was pretty, though a little on the busy side. But ultimately I thought the promise of adventure and pirates sounded like a winning combo so picking up this one up when the time came, was full of promise for me. I haven’t read anything by O’dell before but I know she has written a couple of other books that are part of a series, so I was curious to see what her writing style was and how the magic…
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Review: A Noël Killing (Verlaque and Bonnet #8) by M.L. Longworth
The Verlaque and Bonnet series is one that I came into a little late, but have always enjoyed the mysteries. They have a sophisticated feel to them but they still manage to maintain their charm. I think one of the things that always keeps this series in the forefront of my mind is the covers. The covers are incredible and eye catching. Every time I see one I instantly think, ‘oh yes another Verlaque and Bonnet mystery!‘. The covers are so recognizable and admittedly why I picked up the series in the first place. This book features the new redesigned covers and while I think it’s a pretty design, it…
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Review: Midnight at the Blackbird Cafe by Heather Webber
I picked this book up because of the delicious looking pie on the front cover. I mean seriously, that pie looks so delicious and I hoped that the story inside would be equally satisfying. I don’t think I even stopped to read what it was about, I simply saw pie and said YES. So when I picked it up, I basically went in blind and without any real expectations other than I hoped to read it while eating pie of my own (which did happen by the way!) This book surprised me in a number of ways, both with the author’s practiced hand and with the little hints of magic…