Just finished: The Amendments, Niamh Mulvey. I was sent an advance review copy by picador. It took me a while to warm up to this one, but in the end I really enjoyed the way Mulvey delivers complex difficult emotions using straightforward language, not wallowing in grief but also not flinching away from some of the hardest conversations around birth, death and religion. And I do have a soft spot for Irish writers, and multi-generational stories

Okay, so remember how I've been Ded Of Editing this last year and just absolutely consumed by bookish stuff?

The bookish stuff is now out in the world.

TIME AND TIDE

Releases November 2024.

Exciting news: the eGalley is up on NetGalley and Edelweiss! This means, with the promise of an honest review, you could potentially read the book right now. However, if you're not interested in an ARC, you can preorder your Copy Here.

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Historical fiction with a touch of time travel, for fans of Diana Gabaldon, Alexis Hall, and Olivia Waite’s Feminine Pursuits series, where a modern bisexual woman is thrown into Regency England and must figure out how to survive, while she falls in love with a woman who will become a famous author.

Just a twenty-first century gal with nineteenth-century problems…

When Sam’s plane crashes catastrophically over the Atlantic, it defies all odds for Sam to be the sole survivor. But it seems impossible that she’s rescued by a warship in 1805. With a dashing sea captain as her guide, she begins to find her footing in a world she’d only seen in movies.

Then Sam is betrayed. At the mercy of the men and morals of the time, and without the means to survive on her own, she’s left with no choice but to throw herself on the charity of the captain's sisters. She resigns herself to a quiet life of forever hiding her true self. What she doesn't expect is that her new landlady is Margaret Goodenough—the world-famous author whose yet-to-be-completed novel will contain the first lesbian kiss in the history of British Literature, and a clever woman. Clever enough to know her new companion has a secret.

As the two women grow ever closer, Sam must tread the tenuous line between finding her own happiness in a place where she doesn’t think she’ll ever fit in, and possibly (accidentally) changing the course of history.

Book Review: Late Bloomer

Rating: 4/5 Stars

Late Bloomer was such a cute book! It satisfied all of my cottagecore, sapphic fantasies from the special interest in flowers to the sprawling farm in Asheville. It was an adorable comfort read straight out of Taylor Swift's folklore music album. One of the characters buys the other character greenhouses… What is more classic than that?

I loved Opal and Pepper's story. I deeply enjoyed the character development alongside the romance. For example, I thought (at first) that Opal was going to be a major pick-me with all the people-pleasing tendencies, but I was completely wrong. As the plot progresses, we see what a strong, smart, and loyal person she is to the people she loves. That was a refreshing arc! Both characters are neurodiverse (though Opal isn't sure what label fits her exactly), which was very relatable to an autistic person like me.

If there is a cozy, comforting (sapphic) version of Gilmore Girls, then this is it. Every detail was spot-on from autistic sensory issues to shoe art to niche special interests. (I loved Opal's fleeting special interest in the Victorian era. I felt seen.) The epilogue was so perfect! I wish I lived in Opal's and Pepper's world! If you like sapphic romance, this will pander directly to your most iconic and cottagecore princess fantasies!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers at St. Martin's Griffin for my e-arc! I hope Mazey Eddings keeps writing sapphic romances, because I will most definitely be reading them all.

The God and the Gumiho review

5/5 stars Recommended if you like: fantasy, mythology, Korean mythology, multiple POVs, enemies to lovers, mystery

Big thanks to Netgalley, Del Rey, and the author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

This was definitely one of my favorite reads of February! It's got the perfect blend of magic, shenanigans, scheming, enemies-to-lovers, and humor. I was definitely on the edge of my seat as Hani and Seokga searched for the eoduksini, and while they got closer to one another with Hani still hiding her identity.

I definitely thought the worldbuilding was interesting. Most of the time is spent on a world where humans and immortals exist side-by-side, with the former completely unaware. So the characters have normal, everyday things like coffee, cars, and cellphones, but also have more magical items like swords and charms, and come across humans and magical creatures alike. I also liked the details about items the magical community could by from the store, particularly the non-human-liver alternatives the gumiho eat since Hani's Scarlet Fox spree resulted in the banning of eating human livers and souls. It's a small part of the book, but I thought it was a nice touch.

I absolutely love Hani. Her hidden past as the Scarlet Fox means she's notorious in immortal circles and not only is responsible for the ban on gumiho eating human livers and souls, but is also the gumiho with the highest kill count. Despite this, she's actually pretty normal and down to earth. She's also pretty funny, both intentionally and unintentionally, and I liked her blasé attitude about eating livers (and thus killing people). Hani clearly cares deeply and while she's dedicated to misguiding Seokga in regards to his Scarlet Fox investigation, she earnestly wants to help find and defeat the eoduksini. She also strives to help her friend Somi throughout the book and feels responsible over the younger gumiho.

Seokga, on the other hand, is a complete and utter asshole. But he grows on you. The trickster god is still bitter about being thrown out of the godly world and having his own realm of darkness locked up after his attempted coup. It's unclear how much of his personality is residual from that and how much is just him naturally, but Seokga really does not seem to care about anyone, nor very many things (other than coffee, man is particular about his coffee) prior to the events of the book. That being said, it becomes clear that Seokga does have deeper ties to his exiled life than it seems, and even he comes to the realization that there are some people that he cares about. It's easy to forget that Seokga was a trickster god because he's fairly serious and dedicated to his investigation(s), but it shows up in odd moments, such as when he cheats at rock, paper, scissors. Despite the fact that he's an asshole, Seokga does have a certain charm about him, even before he begins being a more...tolerable person.

The romance is, obviously, between Hani and Seokga. They balance each other out pretty well once they get past their barista-customer annoyance. Seokga is able to play 'bad cop' with ease while Hani is a much more soothing figure and the type who can calm crying witnesses enough to give a cohesive statement. I liked seeing the quirks they brought out in each other and am glad they get their chance at a happy ending.

The whole Scarlet Fox thing really is a mess. Hani was just enacting a kind of vigilante justice when she got the bright idea to take their livers as a treat for a friend. Unfortunately, the killings align too much with her 1888 spree and whaddya know suddenly there's a hunt on for the Scarlet Fox. Hani definitely does not want to get caught, and she definitely doesn't want another gumiho taking the fall in her place, she'd rather the whole thing just fizzle out and get written off as a fluke, and she's willing to attach herself to the investigation, and thus her least favorite customer Seokga, in order to achieve that. While there were some tense moments when I was worried about her getting caught, it was humorous to read about Hani doing her best to thwart Seogka's investigation and coming up with absurdities to get it done.

The eoduksini is the more serious of the two, particularly since the eoduksini has the potential to create a dark world in the realm shared by humans and immortals, something no one wants happening. There are a lot of twists and turns in this part of the investigation and I was definitely trying to work it out myself as the characters were. At times I felt confident I knew who it was, and then something new would happen and I would second-guess myself or Seokga and Hani. I was very invested in finding out who the eoduksini was and seeing how things would play out there.

Overall I greatly enjoyed this book and definitely recommend it to fantasy lovers. Seokga and Hani are pretty different but each bring humor to the novel and the two of them fit well together. I thought the worldbuilding was pretty interesting and I enjoyed getting to know the world and the magic within it.

Over The Dragon's Gate by Juliana Jones & Riley Sanderson

While ‘Over The Dragon’s Gate’ starts off a little slower than I’d usually like, this co-written story gives you enough hints, enough clues, and enough thoughtfully teased out tidbits to keep its readers engaged and invested.

Much like one of our main characters, Treya, there’s an underlying sense that there’s more to this than meets the eye, and the authors cleverly reveal it all to the reader alongside Treya as he discovers the parts of himself that he’s forgotten.

All the while Treya is rediscovering his past, he’s learning about his future and the possibilities that his friendship with Eli opens up for him.

‘Over The Dragon’s Gate’ is a delightful read, full of magic and touching moments of humanity in the face of darkness we can all find ourselves facing. It had me scowling at the villian, and grinning at the clumsy exploration of teenage affection, and by the last lines I found myself smiling at the screen.

It’s a feel good book, that I immediately have a handful of people I want to recommend it too, and future stories from either of these authors will be getting added to my TBR piles.

I received a free copy of this book from the authors and am voluntarily leaving my honest review.

guess who has an arc of henry henry and is not ok?

I'm currently reading a book about a female serial killer who kills Bad Men. And she has a *crush*... On a true crime podcaster.

So, tell me why I've been hoping she eventually corrupts him and gets him to kill someone.

Reading Ali Hazelwood's Love on the Brain and the pick me energy is strong with this one.

I'm hoping Unfortunately Yours by Tessa Bailey will get me out of my reading slump. *fingers crossed*

Baby X Book Review

Rating: 5/5 Stars

Wow, what a fun ride!! Baby X is a unique and fast-paced science-fiction/medical/bioethics thriller about the dangers (and rewards) of engineering children. Baby X takes place on a future earth where, instead of having sex to create children, parents provide DNA samples to a lab. The lab then creates pluripotent stem cells from the sample, creates eggs and sperm, and engineers several embryos for the parents to choose from. The parents then choose (based on the stats and risk assessments) which embryo will be implanted for pregnancy.

This book contains everything we want in a sci-fi thriller: Morally grey heroines, total psychopaths, engineered babies, stolen DNA, kidnappings, celebrity stalking, family secrets, and a good dose of bioethical moral dilemmas. I was on the edge of my seat the entire time! Baby X is described as Black Mirror meets Gattaca, and this was so true. I am always looking for sci-fi books that parallel the existential themes in Black Mirror, but it is so hard to find good ones that are grounded and focused. Kira Peikoff nailed it!

Kira Peikoff was compared to Blake Crouch and John Marrs in the book's description, and I could not agree more. Since science-fiction can be extremely intimidating to newcomers, especially if it is "hard" sci-fi, the niche sci-fi/thriller genre is an incredibly attractive entry point for people who want to dive in for the first time. As a science-fiction veteran reader, I can honestly say that some sci-fis are just flat out dry. I am so grateful to authors like Kira Peikoff for demonstrating that science-fiction can be speculative in a grounded way, while meeting the needs of readers who want more than jargon and engineering blueprints from their reading experience. Science-fiction does not always have to occur in the "out there" regions of space. Sometimes the most poignant stories are the ones that feel much closer to home… This is one of the ways Baby X sources its power.

Baby X made me feel hopeful, even though it also caters to that delicious "angst" we love from Black Mirror. Perhaps we are not so very far away from a similar earth experience where we can bring children into the world with the confidence that they will have the best chances of succeeding in life without dealing with horrific diseases or unnecessary suffering. Baby X is a symbol of how we are asking the big questions and preparing ourselves for such a time in the near future!

Thank you so much to Crooked Lane Books and NetGalley for providing me with an e-ARC, so I could read this early. I feel incredibly lucky, and cannot wait to buy the hard copy version! Can someone please convince the author to write more Black Mirror-esque books? I am obsessed!

Dead Again by Nichole Severn - A Review

Dead Again is Macie Barclay’s secret story as her life is about to be upended by a past from where Detective Riggs Karig reappears. In Book Six of Defenders of Battle Mountain, the past needs to be kept hidden, lest the serial killer from yore starts his killing spree again. My Rating: 5/5 Genre: Romantic Suspense Pages: 195 (Kindle) Publisher: Harlequin Intrigue Date of Publication: 11 May 2023

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ARC REVIEW 📖

“Trade Secret of a Messy Relationship” by Frances Blackthorn - available April 6th!

This book follows Petra and Rodrigo as their lives are thrown off kilter when they’re assigned to work together, years after a messy breakup. What ensues is a push and pull of snarky banter, romantic tension, all while having to face the emotional turmoil of their past. Can they rekindle their feelings and have a second chance at love?

I did enjoy this book. It was a fun read and I always love a romance novel that balances wit and humor with some real and raw emotional elements that make the characters and circumstances feel relatable. Petra and Rodrigo each battle with themselves over their attraction for one another and the desire to be together while navigating complicated feelings and past resentments. The blend of being a workplace romance but also a family business also gives the book a cozier and heartwarming feel since we get to see the familial love between different characters and not just the romance that is the center of the story.

At some points the story felt a little slower paced than I would have hoped for but I was satisfied with the ending and the tie in potential for a second book. The actual family business itself is slightly confusing, I found myself trying to figure out what exactly the business itself was, as it’s often referred to simply as the company. The dual POV is one of my favorite things about most romance novels and I loved it in this story as well. Who doesn’t want to see into the heart of each character?? Some of the chapter endings did feel a little abrupt and rushed, as if there should be a little more body to each one.

Overall I rated this between a personal 3.5-4. I think it’s a solid second chance rom-com and an easy read with a hint of spice that offers a good story of two people trying to navigate a complicated relationship and find their way back to one another with some laughs along the way!

Book Review: A perfect weekend read!

Arc Review of 'Soul of the Sorceress' by Cassandra Diviak - @queen-kass-the-writer

I'll keep this review spoiler free, but in Soul of the Sorceress we're back in Runswick with Cordelia and Percy! I have to admit to having missed these two, so I was looking forward to settling into this second book in the Shadow and Soul series.

While the book opens quickly on our two main characters, it's made apparent early on that this book has not been written for new readers in mind. If you pick this book up without realising it's book two, you're going to find yourself very lost, very quickly. There's little-to-no recap, and it has sections that allude to character histories that, without context, simply mean nothing to the reader but, honestly, I'm nitpicking. This is a second book, and it has deep lore, established backstory and character histories that I was aware of going in.

Despite these small areas of potential improvement, Cassandra's skillful storytelling pulls us into a world of magic and romance very quickly. I devoured this book in just a few hours, but it's got a lovely pacing that lends its content to a quiet evening and a glass of wine, or a relaxed weekend perusal.

There is intrigue and high stakes, but you never feel pushed to rush the story. It's cleverly interspersed with periods of soft romance, and quiet affection between Cordelia and Percy and despite my ever growing desire to understand the motivations behind the other players on the board, and what allies or dangers they might turn out to be, it was my love of Percy and Cordelia's relationship that truly captured my attention throughout.

A gorgeous addition to the series, and I'll be keeping my eyes peeled for the next installment to add to my collection!

You can purchase a copy of Soul of the Sorceress, in e-book or paperback form via; Amazon UK or Amazon US Barnes & Noble

Book Review #24 of 2023--

The True Love Experiment by Christina Lauren. Rating: 4.25 stars.

Read from February 23rd to 25th.

Before I get into my review, a quick thank you to both NetGalley and the publishers over at Gallery Books for giving me access to this ARC in exchange for an honest review. When I saw my request for this one had been approved I had to get it on my TBR as soon as possible. I found Christina Lauren through a Christmas romance and have been loving their new releases since. This one is a companion novel to The Soulmate Equation where the main character finds love through a genetic test to find soulmates. In this one, we follow Fizzy who is a romance novelist who has lost her spark. She can’t write and she can’t do her second favorite thing in the world--find a romantic connection of her own. So when she’s approached by Connor, a single dad who produces TV shows, to do a reality dating program featuring her favorite hero archetypes she can’t say no. But what happens when the connection between the two of them can be felt through the screen? The True Love Experiment comes out on May 15th and is available for preorder now.

At this point, Christina Lauren releases are just auto buys for me. I have yet to be disappointed by them. And I was so shocked when I read this one to find that I actually like Fizzy’s story better than the original couple in the first book. Fizzy was a great side character in The Soulmate Equation but she really got to shine in this one. Even though I knew what the ending would be pretty much straight away, I found so much joy in following Fizzy and Connor on their journey. I also love how the author manages to still give so much life and authenticity to the side characters. And I cannot get over Juno and Stevie fangirl-ing it up at a boyband concerts while Connor and Fizzy watch them from the sidelines. It was so obvious that Connor loves his daughter and Fizzy is the amazing cool aunt that shows so much unconditional love for Juno. But I think the thing that got me in this one is actual two pronged: the romance. First, that pining though as Fizzy goes on date after date with these men who all seem great. Second, the believability of the romance. I completely bought in to the romance from the word go. Even when they had just met and had some misunderstandings I was there for it. The sex scenes were tasteful but hot which you know is my preference as an asexual romance reader. There were more of them in this one than in the Soulmate Equation which surprisingly helped the rating for me.

I, of course, wish there was more. Is this my brand? Good books are never long enough for me and have room to get even better. Bad books are bad because they aren’t long enough for the story they’re trying to tell. Excellent books need to be longer because I don’t want to be done. In this one, I would have loved to see more of the actual dates Fizzy goes on during the dating show portion. I know they probably didn’t want it to feel repetitive, but I could have done with so many more scenes of their pining and longing and angst. I want the angst to make me physically hurt for them. (Stop judging me. I can feel the weight of your judgment from here.) But overall, this was so fun and so cute and just another hit from this author duo. I absolutely cannot wait to read more from them.

Have you read Fourth Wing yet?

Originally posted on my Instagram