Books, Reading

Special Feature/Excerpt: The Vanishing at Castle Moreau by Jaime Jo Wright

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Special Feature/Excerpt: The Vanishing at Castle Moreau by Jaime Jo Wright

If I was just looking at this book cover I would have thought two things—-it was set in France and it was a historical romance novel. Well I am semi right, it is a historical romance BUT it also has some Gothic elements with a bit of mystery. Though it is not set in France as I suspected but rather a Wisconsin castle. Random.

I haven’t really been to the Midwest and it’s decidedly not the setting I was expecting or can even wrap my mind around but here we are. Even if the setting sounded a bit random for me, I was excited about this one all the same. If for nothing else—-the Gothic elements. This book sounds like it has that in spades and I thought it sounded compelling to have two story lines, one from the past and one from present day. Plus I am open to exploring new settings and I love old dilapidated castles so how could I pass on this one?!

I couldn’t fit it into my review schedule but I definitely have it on my TBR for this fall! This book is right up my alley in terms of content just my calendar was full for the spring. So instead I opted to do an except and I am already loving the tone and mood of this book! If you are a fan of Gothic romances I think you are going to enjoy this book! I am a big Victoria Holt fan so this book is giving my all the Victoria Holt vibes and I am here for it! This author is a new to me author but she has written a number of other Gothic historical mysteries/romances which all have rave reviews, I cannot wait to check this one out! Keep reading to see the excerpt and try before you buy!

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Books

Special Feature/Excerpt: When Tomorrow Came by Hannah Linder

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Special Feature/Excerpt: When Tomorrow Came by Hannah Linder

Authors like Hannah Linder and Julia Klassen have a corner stone on historical Christian fiction for a reason. They are both tried and proven authors and I personally have enjoyed many of their books. I love historical Christian fiction as they often feature a love interest and some kind of mystery a little reminiscent of Victoria Holt. Often the books feature a governess or woman who is down on her luck and happens to find work at a manor house with a checkered past and a dashing but brooding hero that the heroine can’t resist falling for.

It’s a troupe that never gets old for me and one that for whatever reason seems to be the dominant troupe in many historical Christian fiction books. When I saw this book was coming out, I was really excited to share with you guys, I have an excerpt as well as a bunch of other info about the book so be sure to keep reading! Sadly I couldn’t fit this one into my review schedule but know that I have enjoyed many of Linder’s books and found them to be well written with interesting female characters and a great romance, I have no reason to suspect this one would be any different. There are others on this tour who reviews the book so I encourage you to make a stop on their blogs to see what they though! All the details and links can be found below!

In some of the reviews I am seeing online for this book, many have been very favorable with four and five star ratings from many, many reviewers! Many are praising the romance and historical setting saying it has a Great Expectations feel to it and I cannot wait to check it out! Anything that hints at a bit of the Gothic always gets me and this one sounds like it might have a bit of that within the story. But see for yourself by reading this little excerpt below!

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Books, Reading

Special Feature: Before We Were Innocent by Ella Berman

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Special Feature: Before We Were Innocent by Ella Berman

This is author, Ella Burman’s, second novel and at first glance it looked like it was going to be more women’s fiction. The cover implied a carefree summer with friends. But then upon reading the summary I was like—-oh—-not that. This book promises some fun carefree summer of innocence but it also promises to have that illusion dispelled with a mystery! This book will follow three friends who have a life changing experience on a Greek island in their teens.

The tragedy will follow them into adulthood and readers will get to explore what kind of impact that tragedy has on them. I loved the sound of this one. It has a lot of things that appealed to me as a reader, a complex cast of female friends, a glamorous privileged setting, and lots of promised suspense and secrets. I am super excited to check this one out this spring/summer. It ticks a lot of boxes for me when it comes to my choice of thrillers and suspense novels.

Early reviews have been raving about this one, calling it new, unique, and emotional. Lots of reviewers have commented on the tantalizing story that gives readers something new to sink their teeth into and I am simply so excited to share about this book today! While I couldn’t fit it into my review schedule for this month, I do plan on checking this one out and adding to my TBR list. If you are looking for a solid thriller with a glamorous cast of characters then I think you are going to really enjoy this one! Keep reading to get all the details and to snag yourself a copy as it’s out now!

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Books, Reading

Special Feature: Bayou Beloved (Butterfly Bayou #6) by Lexi Blake

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Lexi Blake is a new to me author but I see that she has a well established fan base and multiple romance series under her belt! Some seem more steamy than others but all have a lot of devoted fans. So when this one came across my desk for review, all I saw was this sweet dog on the cover and was instantly intrigued. But since this was a new to me author, I did some research on her background before deciding to feature this book. Which is how I found all her various romance series. It is clear she is an established author with quality books which made me even more excited about this particular book!

This whole series, Butterfly Bayou, features adorable doggos in the story and honestly who doesn’t love that?! They are also set in small town Louisiana and from what I see, they can all be read out of order. They are contempo romance books and with Blake’s romance background, no doubt the romance will be well written with a lot of chemistry! I am really excited for this particular book not just because of the adorable cover but because the story sounds like a quick and easy read that will leave me feeling content. I love a good HEA!

Early reviewers are giving this book (and the series overall) very high marks and I am ultimately decided to read this one later on this summer as one of my beach reads! I love that this book features a former acquaintances turned lovers theme. The main characters knew each other in high school, but weren’t necessarily an item. Now they are both back in their home town and sparks are flying. I think this is going to be a great read for summer and I think fans of romances that feature dogs and strong chemistry between the main characters, then I think you will love this book! Be watching for my review a little later on this summer but for now check out all the details below!

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Book Critic, Book Review, Books, Literary Criticism, Reading

Review: A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses #1) by Sarah J Maas (Audible Edition)

by The Lit BitchLeave a Comment on Review: A Court of Thorns and Roses (A Court of Thorns and Roses #1) by Sarah J Maas (Audible Edition)

I am 100% late to the party on this one. This series has been on my radar for YEARS. I would have to be living under a rock not to have heard of it or seen it’s massive cult following all over the internet and book world platforms! I have had the books on my shelves for years with the intention of reading them ‘next book’ but I just haven’t been able to bring myself to read them. My number one fear was I would just want to binge the series and I just wasn’t ready to dive into another series to binge after binge reading a number of other series lately.

I kept putting it off over and over and over, until turbulence made me read this one. I was on my flight back from Ohio with a lengthy layover and a couple of plane changes. I had a book I had planned on reading on the plane but as soon as we took off from Ohio, we had a lot of bad weather and I just couldn’t read anything. So I went to my Audible library and threw on the first thing I could find to distract me which just so happened to be this book! It was the ONLY book that was downloaded on my Audible app and since I was in airplane mode, it would just have to do.

Naturally I am now currently on the fourth book and binge reading just as I suspected. This book series so far has been both familiar and much like I suspected but also not what I was expecting. That’s what I think makes this series so good. This first book really gave me Beauty and the Beast vibes but as the series has gone on that theme has faded in favor of becoming more of a Game of Thrones for YA readers! What can I say about this book and the series that hasn’t already been said, likely not anything but I am going to do my best!

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