Category: arc review

Thief of Night by. Holly Black | ALC Review | Audiobook

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Spice Rating: 🌶️

Title: Thief of Night (The Charlatan Duology, #2)

Author: Holly Black

Narrator(s): Jonathan Davis, Sara Amini, Vikas Adam

Format: audiobook (NetGalley)

Pages: 288

Publication Date: 9/23/25

Publisher: Macmillan Audio

Categories: Urban Fantasy, Paranormal, Romance, Mystery

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to Macmillan Audio for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

The highly anticipated sequel to the #1 New York Times bestselling author Holly Black’s stunning adult debut, Book of Night . This program features multicast narration.

“Award-winning YA author Holly Black has created an imaginary masterpiece yet again with her first foray into adult fantasy, narrated with perfection by Sara Amini.”— AudioFile on Book of Night (an Earphones Award winner)

“Sara Amini’s narration is exceptional, providing unique voices for the broad range of characters.”— Library Journal on Book of Night

There’d always been something wrong with Charlie Hall. Crooked from the day she was born. Never met a bad decision she wasn’t willing to double down on. She may be good enough to steal a shadow from a tower, but will she be good enough to steal back a heart?

A Macmillan Audio production from Tor Books

Content Warning: violence

+ The narrators for this story really kept me invested in the story even when the story itself moved slow – they did an amazing drop bringing the characters to life. I feel like the narrator for Charlie really did a great job and it’s how I imagine Charlie’s voice to be.

+ Charlie is such an interesting character. She’s a con-artist, and is always lying but she’s good at what she does. She’s the hierophant and trying to find out who is leaving these dead bodies. While trying to investigate she has to deal with other things like her sister and Red/Vincent.

+ Charlie and Red/Vincent’s relationship is so complicated because of what happened to him in book one. There is very little heat, but they did have some moments. I like that Charlie had to finally realize he was different. The romance was not the focus of the story though.

~ I feel like I should have re-read Book of Night so I remembered what happened. I got confused because I didn’t remember the whole thing about shadows.

~ It took me until 50% into this story to really get into it. I do feel like the first part was slower than the second half. And it’s a mystery but I honestly couldn’t follow what exactly Charlie was trying to do because I had a hard time paying attention, I was bored in the first half.

~ I think I enjoyed book one better than this one.

Final Thoughts:

I thought the narrators did a great job but it took me until 50% into the book to get invested in the story. The first half moved to slow for me and I was trying to remember things from book one. And I do recommend re-reading book one, Book of Night, if you are going to read Thief of Night. Maybe I would have enjoyed this one better if I had remember all the details from book one. Overall, I think mystery lovers would enjoy this one!

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Other Books I’ve Read From This Author:

The Prisoner’s Throne by. Holly Black | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

The Stolen Heir by. Holly Black | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Book of Night by. Holly Black | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

How the King of Elfhame Learned to Hate Stories by. Holly Black | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Cruel Prince by. Holly Black ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Wicked King by. Holly Black ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Queen of Nothing by. Holly Black ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Lost Sister’s by. Holly Black ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Tithe by. Holly Black ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Darkest Part of the Forest by. Holly Black ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

What Fury Brings by. Tricia Levenseller | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice Rating: 🌶️🌶️🌶️

Title: What Fury Brings (Wrath and Fury, #1)

Author: Tricia Levenseller

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 368

Publication Date: 9/23/25

Publisher: FEIWEL

Categories: Fantasy, Dark Romance, Revenge Fantasy

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to FEIWEL for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

There’s a shortage of men in the kingdom of Amarra. After a failed rebellion against the matriarchy, most noblemen in the country are dead. Now the women of Amarra must obtain their husbands (should they want one) by kidnapping them from other kingdoms.

Olerra, a warrior princess vying for the throne, is determined to prove her worth by kidnapping a husband. And not just any husband. To outmaneuver her treacherous cousin, she needs the best. Fortunately, the second-born prince of their greatest enemy is widely known for both his looks and his sweet, docile temperament. He’s the perfect choice to secure her claim to the throne.

Sanos, heir to the Kingdom of Brutus, has nothing but contempt for the idea of a society run by women. Trained from birth to fight, lead, and follow in his father’s overbearing footsteps, his path has always been set. Until he takes his younger brother’s place in a drunken prank and finds himself kidnapped, carted off to the Amarran Palace, and informed that he is to become the husband of Queen Potential Olerra. Sanos needs to escape before anyone learns his real identity, but the more he gets to know his captor, the less sure he is of what he truly wants.

Content Warning: violence, physical abuse, mentions of sexual assault, kidnapping, dubious consent, auctioning/selling men/children, mentions of grooming and underage sexual partners, animal death, penis guillotine

+ I went into this arc, seeing the reviews for it online being very polarizing. People either love it or hate it and it made me very curious as to why. The world building is different – especially for a romantasy. We hear romantasy and think certain tropes, but this is most definitely a reversal of the gender roles and this is a dark romantasy. Olerra is from the kingdom of Amarra where the women are in power. And I don’t mean they just are the rulers of this place, oh no, they housebreak their men – yes, that’s what the call it. Men are the subordinate, they are the househusband, they are used for breeding, they are punished if out of line, they are the whores, and they are the ones being bought. Personally, I thought it was very eye opening and I wanted to see how this story played out.

+ Olerra, as a character, she’s powerful. She fights with men, wins against them, she’s a commander of the military, she’s a big woman and she’s ambitious. I kind of got a kick out of her husband-hunting/kidnapping and being the one to save him in the end. Is she perfect? No. Because she does punish Sanos, put him on display, plays on his lust for her – but this is a role reversal, this is how Olerra has been raised. Readers of dark romance have seen similar scenarios take place in the traditional roles of men and women. The man doing the kidnapping, displaying the woman, etc…so it was really fascinating to see Olerra do all of this to Sanos, who is not a weak man himself. He’s a warrior and fighter just like her, and she emasculates him so she can be viewed as powerful among her people.

+ I like how this book bent my brain because I’m so used to the usual gender roles in all the romantasy I read – and I read a LOT of them. So this book was so good at challenging my thoughts on what I’m used to reading, things I just readily accept about female and male characters. I thought Amarra being a mirror to the Brutes was interesting. The society in Amarra is the result of men doing what they do to women – but instead of flourishing as an open society (which they do – they accept different sexualities), they treat the men as women have been treated. They treat criminals like an eye for an eye – male rapists get their privates removed. The women don’t seem to have evolved but are carrying out revenge. Instead of Amarra’s women taking the high road and saying, this won’t happen here – they do it full force, exactly what’s been done to them, because that’s “what fury brings“. But not going to lie, I was kind of scared for these men!

+~ There is spicy scenes and one that includes bondage. So it’s spicy but might also make some readers uncomfortable because of dubious consent.

~ This is marketed as a romantasy but I felt like the romance was under-developed. It’s enemies to lovers, clearly – the enemies being very obvious, Sanos has been kidnapped and is being forced to marry Olerra. It’s definitely Stockholm Syndrome but again…I’ve read this in regular romance and didn’t mind it. He eventually has feelings for her but I felt like it was all lust. Would have loved to see some tender moments between them, that shows that feelings, more than lust, were growing.

~ Please heed the trigger warnings – this is a dark romance. Stockholm syndrome anyone? There are mentions of grooming, buying young boys and it’s gross and uncomfortable.

~ I kind of wanted to see at the end how Olerra and Sanos would rule Amarra and Brutish because they both win their crowns so would book two show progress as Sanos points out things Olerra can change in Amarra and vice versa? I’m very curious! I did feel Olerra did exactly say all the things she would change as Queen, she mentioned not being as cruel as her cousin. But that doesn’t mean much. Would also like to see Sanos change some things in Brute.

Final Thoughts:

This is a dark romance fantasy where the gender roles have swapped in Amarra and women in take their revenge on men. I like that it was like holding up a mirror to how men treat women but it doesn’t mean what they are doing in Amarra is right. Men sell young women in many dark books – well the Amarran women sell young boys in this book. It’s ugly, but I think that is the point of the mirror. Men do it…but women could do it too. Sanos basically falls for his kidnapper – but we’re not new to stories like this, are we? Nope. Just new to who does the kidnapping and who is doling out punishment in this book. Either way, it’s wrong to live like this or behave this way and I think that’s what I got out of this story. Now there were many uncomfortable moments in this story but I also found it a quick read and there were even some funny moments. So I think you have to read this one at your own risk, read some reviews on this one, and definitely check out the trigger list before going into it. Overall, I found it a fascinating read but did want more out of the romance and maybe see both main characters commit to doing more to change how their kingdoms treat people.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Other Books I’ve Read From this Author:

The Darkness Within Us by. Tricia Levenseller | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Blade of Secrets by. Tricia Levenseller | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

The Shadows Between Us | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Daughter of the Pirate King – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Daughter of the Siren King – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Warrior of the Wild – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Hekate – The Witch by. Nikita Gill | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Spice Rating:

Title: Hekate – The Witch

Author: Tricia Levenseller

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 384

Publication Date: 9/16/25

Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers

Categories: Greek Mythology, Poetry Prose

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

A propulsive, electrifying and enraging retelling of the life ofGreek goddess Hekate, child of war turned all-powerful goddess of witchcraft and necromancy, by internationally bestselling poet Nikita Gill.

Born into a world on fire, Godling Hekate has never known safety. After her parents are on the losing side of the war between the ruling Titans and new Olympian Gods, Hekate is taken by her mother Asteria to the Underworld, where Styx and Hades agree to raise her. Meanwhile, Asteria is pursued across the world by Zeus and Poseidon and, to escape their clutches, transforms herself into an island in a stormy sea.

Orphaned and alone, Hekate grows up amongst the horrors and beauties of the Underworld, desperate to find her divine purpose and a sense of belonging in the land of the dead. 

When Hekate finally uncovers her powers and ascends to Goddess status, she realises that even the most powerful Olympians are terrified of her. But when immortal war breaks out again, threatening to destroy everything from Mount Olympus to the Underworld itself, the Goddess of witchcraft and necromancy is the only one who can bring the deadly conflict to an end. . .

Content Warning: violence, separated from parents

+ When I started reading this arc and realized it was poetry – I was hesitant on how much I was going to enjoy this because I don’t read poetry and so I was really unsure about this. But I’m surprised to say, for someone like myself who read Greek mythology retellings and it’s a hit or miss, mostly miss – the way this one is written really worked for me! It’s written in verse and then some parts in paragraphs.

+ Greek mythology is not my favorite thing and I don’t know why. I like knowing what they are gods and goddesses of but to remember all their stories? I just never was interested. But I requested this book because this was about Hekate and I didn’t know much about her. And the title says The Witch and I was intrigued. I love how this book sucked me in with Hekate telling her story from when she was a child to when she is grown.

+ I loved Hekate’s journey. She’s a child of Titans and it touches on the war between the Titans and Olympus, and then later on where Olympians fight the giants and ask for Hekate’s help. I loved her growth and getting to know her power with necromancy. I love that she was a witch and had an apothecary.

+ I thought her relationship with Styx, who is basically her adoptive parent was complicated. Styx wanted to protect her but Hekate only naturally had questions and wanted to be stretch her boundaries. The story touched on the sacrifices mothers make and I related to that.

~ The poetry and verse worked for me but I know that it won’t for everyone.

Final Thoughts:

If you love Greek mythology, definitely give this one a read. I enjoyed it a lot and I’m not someone who loves Greek mythology. But I love Hekate’s story and I’m glad I learned more about her.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Dead of Summer by. Ryan La Sala | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice Rating:

Title: The Dead of Summer

Author: Ryan La Sala

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 400

Publication Date: 9/16/25

Publisher:  PUSH

Categories: Young Adult, Horror, Sci-fi, Mystery, LGBT+

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to PUSH for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!


Stephen King meets Holly Jackson by way of We Were Liars in this action-packed story of queer horror from the acclaimed author of The Honeys!

Two days before…

Ollie Veltman is finally coming home to the quaint island of Anchor’s Mercy after a year away while his mom battled cancer. It should be a celebration — his mom is cancer free, and she’s determined to have the best summer ever — but Ollie’s (now ex) best friends think he abandoned them, and he’s returning with a lot questions. Because for a place that’s perfect on the outside, a secret rots inside. A secret that could explain his mom’s illness, and the illness of so many other locals.

Ollie’s desperate search for the truth turns life or death when a storm descends upon the island. In its wake, a long-sunken horror rises . . .

Three weeks after…

Ollie is being held in isolation aboard a military hospital ship in the harbor. They say he’s a survivor, but they only know half the story. The truth is more dangerous than Ollie ever believed, and he suspects his saviors aren’t here to save anyone. Only Ollie can stop what comes next, but that means getting back to Anchor’s Mercy before it vanishes below the waves, taking with it everyone he has ever loved.

Content Warning: violence, death, zombies, cancer, body horror

+ I’ve been wanting to read a book by this author and requested this one because the premise sounded so intriguing. A quaint island? A military hospital ship? What happened on this island. Well it was not what I was expecting!

+ Ollie and his mom, Grace are back at Anchor’s Mercy – their home, after being away for a year because Grace was sick with cancer. Now she has a new outlook on life and Ollie is going along with it but there has been so much changes for him. Will his friend group, the Suds, forgive him for leaving? There are so many questions when they first arrive but I love how they do arrive in chaos and revelry – it gave me a good impression of what life was like on Anchor’s Mercy before Ollie left.

+ The story is told in the past and present, but not the far past. Ollie and his mom arrive at Anchor’s Mercy but it’s not too long until everything starts happening. Something strange is going on, strange until it turns scary and people have no clue as to what is happening, just that people are changing and turning into zombies. Expect some body horror! In the present moment, Ollie is in quarantine and we get more of the story. Some outbreak has happened, scientist want to know the cause and trying to figure that out by interviewing Ollie. This definitely kept the mystery going, because I needed to know what exactly was the outbreak.

+ As we find out more about the outbreak the reality of what the government has done to Anchor’s Mercy, a safe haven for the LGBT+ community is coming to light and it’s not good. There is a lot of action in this one, as Ollie and his friends try to stay safe. It’s a wild time and I love that singing is what can kind of get through to those infected. I loved the community of Anchor’s Mercy and I was as devastated as Ollie to see it undergo this outbreak and trauma.

~ This is young adult so expect Ollie and his friends to act like it!

~ I’m not the biggest fan of sci-fi so all the scientific parts of the coral infections or manifestations kind of went over my head.

Final Thoughts:

This one if for the young adult horror lovers! I really enjoyed the themes of family, community, and belonging. This island of Anchor’s Mercy was a safe and vibrant place for the LGBT+ and I loved it. The horror was pretty wild – people turning into zombies due to coral and the government is involved? This story is full of mystery, action, sci-fi, body horror and if that appeals to you then I think you will enjoy this one.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Austen Affair by. Madeline Bell | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice Rating: 🌶️

Title: The Austen Affair

Author: Madeline Bell

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 336

Publication Date: 9/16/25

Publisher:  St. Martin’s Griffin

Categories: Romance, Time-Travel, Historical Fiction

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to St. Martin’s Griffin for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!


Two feuding co-stars in a Jane Austen film adaptation accidentally travel back in time to the Regency Era in this delightfully clever and riotously funny debut

Tess Bright just scored her dream role starring in an adaptation of Jane Austen’s Northanger Abbey. It’s not just the role of a lifetime, but it’s also her last chance to prove herself as a serious actress (no easy feat after being fired from her last TV gig) and more importantly, it’s her opportunity to honor her mom, who was the biggest fan of Jane Austen ever. But one thing is standing in Tess’s way—well, one very tall, annoyingly handsome person, actually: Hugh Balfour.

A serious British method actor, Hugh wants nothing to do with Tess (whose Teen Choice Awards somehow don’t quite compare to his BAFTA nominations). Hugh is a type-A, no-nonsense, Royal Academy prodigy, whereas Tess is big-hearted, a little reckless, and admittedly, kind of a mess. But the film needs chemistry—and Tess’s career depends on it.

Sparks fly, but not in the way Tess hoped, when an electrical accident sends the two feuding co-stars back in time to Jane Austen’s era. 200 years in the past with only each other to rely on, Tess and Hugh need to ad-lib their way through the Regency period in order to make it back home, and hopefully not screw up history along the way. But if a certain someone looks particularly dashing in those 19th century breeches…well, Tess won’t be complaining.

A wickedly funny, delightfully charming story, The Austen Affair is a tribute to Jane Austen, second chances, and love across the space-time continuum.

Content Warning: grief, illness

+ Tess has scored a role in the movie, Northanger Abbey, the story written by the famous Jane Austen. Thing is she and her co-star, Hugh, do not get along. He is grumpy and she is sunshine. When something happens to make them time-travel into the past (Jane Austen’s past), they have to learn to put those acting skills to the test and pretend they are engaged!

+ I love Tess and Hugh’s interactions as they travel to the past and try to convince people they aren’t imposters. Their personalities are such opposites and it was fun to see them try to navigate regency England. I love a Jane Austen inspired story!

+ It’s a funny, quick read but also had some themes dealing with grief.

~ I thought their plan to get back home was so random! But kind of funny and lent to the whole light-hearted, rom-com elements.

Final Thoughts:

Overall, I thought this was a cute read and definitely for the Jane Austen fans!

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Game On by. Ki Stephens | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Spice Rating: 🌶️🌶️

Title: Game On

Author: Ki Stephens

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 336

Publication Date: 9/8/25

Publisher:  St. Martin’s Griffin

Categories: Contemporary Romance, New Adult, Sports Romance

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to  St. Martin’s Griffin for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!



Ella Davies didn’t trade her life in England for a year in Nashville to let anything—or anyone—throw her off her game. She only has one to prove herself on her new school’s elite cheer squad.

What she hadn’t planned for was meeting a gorgeous stranger on her first evening in America.

Hudson Fox is Whitland’s prized possession, a star quarterback who’s never lacked admirers. But this year, he’s sworn off temptation—especially the new English cheerleader who’s proving impossible to ignore.

When Ella and Hudson are forced to spend more time together, their “just one night” pact soon shatters.

Until tumbling from the pyramid becomes the least of Ella’s worries. Because instead of hitting the mat, she’s falling hard for the quarterback. . .


Content Warning:

+ Ella is a cheerleader from England who goes to Whitland in Nashville, Tennessee. Along with the culture shock, which hasn’t really fazed her, he boyfriend of a few years dumped her and then she has a one-night stand with the star quarterback at Whitland. I thought Ella was a cool character, typical college girl going through the growing pains of relationships and school.

+~ The romance is a one-night stand to friends to lovers. There is a lot of back and forth between Ella and Hudson, which was not my favorite of the romance. I do think their relationship is relatable because it’s set in college and young love can start and end so fast. There is spice but because these two kept things mostly casual throughout the book I didn’t quite connect to their romance.

+ I enjoyed the cheer parts of the book and it gave me flashbacks to Netflix’s show Cheer (where the star cheerleader was a girl named Gabi haha – there is a Gabi in this book also, coincidentally). I thought Ash was an intriguing character.

~ The conflict that comes at the end of the book was minor and it didn’t feel like the big deal, Ella made it out to be. It was resolved with communication.

Final Thoughts:

This was a light, sports romance and a very quick read. I don’t feel like I connected much to the characters, because of the back and forth and miscommunication but I did enjoy all the cheer aspects to the story – I thought that was interesting and fun! Overall, this was not for me but if you like sports romance, you might enjoy this one.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Coffin Moon by. Keith Rosson | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Title: Coffin Moon

Author: Keith Rosson

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 320

Publication Date: 9/9/25

Publisher: Random House

Categories: Horror, Thriller, Mystery

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to Random House for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

From the author of the “exciting, suspenseful, horrifying” (Stephen King) Fever House, a Vietnam veteran and his adopted niece hunt—and are hunted by—the vampire that slaughtered their family.

It’s the winter of 1975, and Portland, Oregon, is all sleet and neon. Duane Minor is back home after a tour in Vietnam, a bartender just trying to stay sober; save his marriage with his wife, Heidi; and connect with his thirteen-year-old niece, Julia, now that he’s responsible for raising her. Things aren’t easy, but Minor is scraping by.

Then a vampire walks into his bar and ruins his life.

When Minor crosses John Varley, a killer who sleeps during the day beneath loose drifts of earth and grows teeth in the light of the moon, Varley brutally retaliates by murdering Heidi, leaving Minor broken with guilt and Julia filled with rage. What’s left of their splintered family is united by only one desire: vengeance.

So begins a furious, frenzied pursuit across the Pacific Northwest and beyond. From grimy alleyways to desolate highways to snow-lashed plains, Minor and Julia are cast into the dark orbit of undead children, silver bullet casters, and the bevy of broken men transfixed by Varley’s ferocity. Everyone’s out for blood.

Gritty, unforgettable, and emotionally devastating, Coffin Moon asks what will be left of our humanity when grief transmutes into violence, when monsters wear human faces, and when our thirst for revenge eclipses everything else.

Content Warning: violence, murder, death, gore

+ What did I just read? By the way, I did not request this book. Someone from the publisher emailed me saying I might want to try out this book. It did not sound like something I wanted to read BUT I was looking for more thrillers and horror to showcase for fall. And so I downloaded this book – I’m glad I did.

+ This story is set in 1975 – and since I was born in 1978, I could already see it, how things looked back in the day. The clothes, the cars, the people, the music and even the political commentary about war – Vietnam. I did grow up watching Full Metal Jacket and Platoon – so Duane Minor was a character that was not hard to envision and picture at all. But what I love about this setting is that there are vampires in this story and it totally fits! I’ve been reading too many romantasy vampires – but these modern vampires in Coffin Moon – are killers.

+ Duane Minor is a Vietnam vet with PTSD. He and his friends have seen and done horrible things and being back home in America, they have to deal with that the best they can. That means coping with rage by drowning it in alcohol or even taking out that anger out on people. But Duane isn’t a bad man, he’s taking care of his sister-in-law’s daughter, Julia because her mother is in jail for killing her abusive dad. He doesn’t know how to be a dad, but he and his wife Heidi have done their best. I liked Duane a lot and was horrified at what he had to go through. I didn’t expect to be emotional about his predicament but I was rooting for him and Julia so hard.

+ There are a lot of themes in this book like grief, rage, and revenge which I loved. It’s not only a vampire horror book, it’s got depth.

+ This book is a wild ride. It is so gory, gruesome, and John Varley is the most villainous character I’ve ever read this year and I wanted him dead by the end of this book. I was hooked onto this book just to see if it would happen. My face was in a grimace with all the gory scenes in this book. He is a psycho vampire, a sociopath, he relishes blood, bathes in it, heady and aroused by it. I was scared no one would be able to take him down.

~ This isn’t my usual kind of book to read – yes once upon a time in high school I was in a horror phase but I only pick it up once in awhile now and usually during fall because of the vibes. So the gore was almost too much for me! I was scared of John Varley, he seemed invincible.

Final Thoughts:

I’m rating this as someone who hardly reads this genre and I have to say I loved it. It gripped me from the first chapter, and wouldn’t let go! The gore might be just a tad bit too much for me, but it made me want John Varley eliminated as much as Duane and Julia wanted him gone. I was rooting so hard for Duane and Julia. Overall, if you like your modern vampires psychotic, but with a story about grief and revenge – you will enjoy this one!

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Blood Moon by. Britney S. Lewis | ALC Review | Audiobook

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice Rating: 🌶️

Title: Blood Moon (Blood Moon, #1)

Author: Britney S. Lewis

Narrator(s): Adenrele Ojo (Narrator)

Format: audiobook (NetGalley)

Pages: 384

Publication Date: 9/9/25

Publisher: Page Street YA

Categories: Young Adult, Romance, Paranormal, Vampires, Werewolves

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to Page Street YA for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Eighteen-year-old Mirabella “Mira” Owens grew up in Timber Plains, Kansas hearing all about the local legend—that werewolves had, many years ago, traveled to their small Midwest town to protect humans from the growing threat of a vampire enclave. Just a story of course, a fairy tale, one Mira had stopped believing in when she was young—just like she stopped believing in the idea of her mom returning, after she up and left without a trace when she was only thirteen.

Mira is grown up now, starting freshman year at the nearby Lakeland University. College feels normal, exactly the thing she’s been craving most… except for one particular classmate: Julian Santos, a mysterious boy with long hair, golden eyes, and a coldness that seems directed exclusively at Mira for reasons she can’t understand and he won’t explain.

When Mira receives an unaddressed letter from her mother, she’s told the world isn’t as it seems. She suspects her mom might be telling the truth when she stumbles across strange animal tracks on a hiking trail, and when she’s miraculously saved from a twenty foot drop by the one and only, Julian Santos.

The problem? Julian would have had to jump the length of the cliff to catch her, making him incredibly fast and strong beyond belief. When she confronts him about this, he denies everything.

But when a Blood Moon rises, Mira soon finds herself caught in the middle of an ancient, magical war, with Julian on the other side of the line. She discovers there’s much more truth to the old town legends than she could ever have anticipated—and her family’s historic role in it will change her world forever.

BLOOD MOON is a dark and thrilling, intensely romantic ride, a fresh take on a werewolf love story for a new generation of paranormal romance readers, and is the first book in a series. It is set against a high-stakes paranormal backdrop—a world ripe with secret identities, rich supernatural lore, and a forbidden romance… that comes with a deadly bite.

Content Warning: violence

+ Mira is off to college but very reluctantly. She’s trying to move forward in life while missing her mom who left her and her dad years ago. But she gets accepted to a nearby college, under suspicious circumstances, and realizes college might not be so bad. She makes a few friends and have met a few guys. They live in a town with a very known legend about werewolves coming there long ago to defeat vampires – but it’s just a story…right?

+ I love that this was set in college. I liked seeing her making friends, and learning to really make the most of her time there.

+ There is a love triangle – and yes this book has Twilight vibes, but this time it’s the werewolves who are the focus. Mira reunites with an old acquaintance, Seven. He’s on the football team, popular, good looking and seems like a nice guy. But there is another guy, Julian, who is broody, glares at her, threatens her to leave campus, she hates him but he’s gorgeous too and of course Mira feels a strong connection to him. It’s a slow burn, fated mates romance.

+ The ending has a few twists and it kept me invested in the story for sure! There is betrayal, and I wonder what will happen in book two.

~ Mira is clueless about werewolves and vampires, even though the legend is well known in their town. And it doesn’t help that Julian can’t just tell her things so that kind of got frustrating because she’s very mad at him, which he loves I think, but it got kind of tiring after awhile that she has to keep begging for answers and it made me wonder why she couldn’t figure some things out. She was in major denial about some things.

~ This has Twilight all over it and for me I mostly noticed it in the angst between Mira and Julian, which was kind of fun to reminisce to but also made me giggle because it’s so dramatic. Some other similarities, is the small town, her dad being a sheriff, her name being Mirabella (“bella”), her not knowing why Julian is drawn to her but pushes away, little things like that. I found it nostalgic though.

Final Thoughts:

I thought this was a fun vampire/werewolves story! It brought me back to the Twilight and Vampire Diaries days but with a different twist at the end. The romance and angst is there between Mira and Julian. I also loved that Mira had a college life, making friends, and going to school events. Some things were too similar to Twilight though and I did wish Mira could put some things together instead of feeling lost about everything but this is a young adult book so she is acting appropriately. I think the narrator did a great job bringing this story to life and I look forward to reading book two!

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Dating Prohibition by. Taj McCoy | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Spice Rating: 🌶️🌶️

Title: The Dating Prohibition

Author: Taj McCoy

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 315

Publication Date: 9/2/25

Publisher:  MIRA

Categories: Contemporary, Romance, Rom-Com

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to  MIRA for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!



In this spicy new rom-com, an ambitious entrepreneur working to get her speakeasy supper club off the ground is pushed off balance when her childhood crush turns up, hotter than ever––then tells her she’s off-limits.

Now that Kendra’s returned home, she can’t help feeling like a kid again—back in her big brother’s shadow, trying to get her restaurant off the ground while his new venture is flying high right out the gate. It doesn’t help that everyone refuses to stop calling her Keke, the childhood nickname she loathes.

The only bright spot is her longtime crush BJ. He’s been her big brother’s best friend for most of her life, and he’s always been that cool, chill guy who was easy to talk to and made her laugh. Now he’s looking at her like she’s all grown up, and there’s nothing childish about the chemistry brewing between them. Even better, he takes her dreams seriously, and he’s ready to help her make her supper club a reality.

But then BJ extinguishes the sparks flying between them, insisting nothing romantic can ever happen because she’s “off limits.” As her investors fall through and her best chance at fulfilling her professional dreams points toward leaving home again for a fresh start, will BJ be ready for love before Kendra moves on? Or will he sweep her off her feet when she least expects it?

Content Warning: misogyny

+ There are a lot of things I enjoyed about this rom-com. One of them being the strong theme of family. Kendra is back home in Washington, D.C. and staying with her older brother and his wife while she gets her feet back under her. She’s helping at his new restaurant but she has dreams of opening a speakeasy of her own. I love how her cousin is almost like a sister – I totally relate to that! I love that her family is tight-knit and though at times critical, there is always support somewhere in the family. When she is with her cousin, Lani and her sister-in-law, Shonda, they are so funny together – I loved their family friendship.

+ I love the different ethnicities being represented. Kendra is half Black on her mom’s side and Filipino and Thai on her dad’s side which was cool! I loved hearing about filipino food dishes in the book.

+ The romance is a brother’s best-friend kind of romance, and there are a few spicy scenes. There are some challenges between Kendra and BJ/Ben though but it is resolved in the end.

~ Now as much as I love her tight-knit family, there was definitely favoritism. She got criticism which is again totally relatable but I felt bad for Kendra. She was putting in the work and had all her plans laid out. Her brother was supportive but also a little bit overprotective. Kind of wished there a moment with her parents at the end where they work things out.

~ Speaking of overprotective – BJ is her brother’s best friend so yes her brother would have thoughts about that. But the way BJ kind of strung her along, saying no they can’t act on their desire and then acted on it, then pushed her away? I did not like that and started not to like him. Also, he had no personality – he was definitely there for a booty call, but he didn’t open up to Kendra at all.

Final Thoughts:

There were a lot of things I liked about this story – the family themes, the food, the girlfriend group, and Kendra trying to make her dreams come true. I didn’t love the romance, even though the spice was good. I just didn’t like how BJ was going back and forth – keeping her at a distance, then pulling her in, then pushing away again. So I didn’t love the romance but I think everything else, at least for me, made up for it, plus it was a quick read.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Other Books I’ve Read by This Author:

Savvy Sheldon Feels Good as Hell by. Taj McCoy | ARC Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Girl, Goddess, Queen by. Bea Fitzgerald | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️💫

Spice Rating: 🌶️

Title: Girl, Goddess, Queen

Author: Bea Fitzgerald

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 496

Publication Date: 9/2/25

Publisher:  Sourcebooks Fire

Categories: Greek Mythology Retelling, Young Adult, Romantasy

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.  All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to  Sourcebooks Fire for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!



To hell with love, this goddess has other plans…

Thousands of years ago, the gods told a lie: how Persephone was a pawn in the politics of other gods. How Hades kidnapped Persephone to be his bride. How her mother, Demeter, was so distraught she caused the Earth to start dying.

The real story is much more interesting.

Persephone wasn’t taken to hell: she jumped. There was no way she was going to be married off to some smug god more in love with himself than her.

Now all she has to do is convince the Underworld’s annoyingly sexy, arrogant and frankly rude ruler, Hades, to fall in line with her plan. A plan that will shake Mount Olympus to its very core.

But consequences can be deadly, especially when you’re already in hell . . .

Content Warning: parental neglect

I thought this was an interesting way to retell the Hades/Persephone mythology because it fells modern and Kore/Persephone seems to be calling the shots, or eventually does by the end. Hades just kind of lets it happen and that’s not how I usually see Hades. So in that aspect, I thought this was a fresh retelling that will appeal to a teen audience, especially since the speech is modern. I also enjoyed some side characters like Styx.

Kore doesn’t want to marry and to avoid that she goes to the Underworld and hides there with a reluctant Hades. Hades doesn’t know what to do with Kore, she’s headstrong, stubborn and is basically a brat and she got on my nerves. She didn’t want to marry a man, so she runs away but basically places herself in Hades’ world (a man), and takes over his territory? There is something about Greek mythology retellings that I have to be in the mood for, to enjoy. I don’t think I was in the right mood for this one.

I found myself skimming this one from the middle of the story to the end because it wasn’t holding my attention. Plus I think this one was a little too long.

Final Thoughts:

This one wasn’t for me – maybe because I wasn’t in the mood or maybe because I see Hades in a certain way and was waiting for those characteristics. I did find his softer side more fun though! As for Kore/Persephone, it’s great that she was trying to get power but her bratty personality turned me off. I do think Greek mythology lovers will enjoy this one and it’s a refreshing take on the mythology that will appeal to teen readers.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble