My kids love drawing with the Procreate app. I actually got it for myself and didn’t do much with it but I did have many grand plans, as crafters often do. But it wasn’t until my four year old daughter became obsessed with it that I took another look at it. She loves the app and because of her I learned to do more things with it…like make stickers!
Again, youtube tutorials were my teachers in this project. There are tons of videos on how to draw on procreate then turn them into stickers with a Cricut. Here’s what I made…
My pink Cricut
Here are some of the supplies I used to make the stickers – sticker paper (photo on the left) that I bought at Target. I did buy a bulk pack from Amazon (not pictured), a different sticker paper brand but the quality of the paper feels thinner.
The self-adhesive laminating sheets I bought on Amazon and it’s used to make the stickers waterproof, it gives it that shiny finish.
Here is what I made haha – they aren’t the greatest. I haven’t drawn anything since my college art classes almost 20+ years ago! But my daughter loves all the rainbows I made. I’ve been in a rainbow moon lately and I don’t know why. What will I be using these for? My Etsy shop – I like to add little free gifts for customers, so these would make good ones to insert in the package. 😊
Are any of you crafters into making stickers? What do you make with your Cricut?
Categories: Romance, Enemies to Lovers, Cooking, Contemporary, Adult
In this finger-licking good rom-com, two is the perfect number of cooks in the kitchen.
Nikki DiMarco knew life wouldn’t be all sunshine and coconuts when she quit her dream job to help her mom serve up mouthwatering Filipino dishes to hungry beach goers, but she didn’t expect the Maui food truck scene to be so eat-or-be-eaten—or the competition to be so smoking hot.
But Tiva’s Filipina Kusina has faced bigger road bumps than the arrival of Callum James. Nikki doesn’t care how delectable the British food truck owner is—he rudely set up shop next to her coveted beach parking spot. He’s stealing her customers and fanning the flames of a public feud that makes her see sparks.
The solution? Let the upcoming Maui Food Festival decide their fate. Winner keeps the spot. Loser pounds sand. But the longer their rivalry simmers, the more Nikki starts to see a different side of Callum…a sweet, protective side. Is she brave enough to call a truce? Or will trusting Callum with her heart mean jumping from the frying pan into the fire?
As the title Simmer Down implies, there is some heat in this book – and I thought it was going to come from the cooking. Oh no…no, no…the heat is between Nikki and Callum who start off on the wrong foot, becoming rival food trucks due to both parking in a coveted location. Nikki was there first but Callum refuses to leave. So the pranks start between them, their rivalry even caught on social media but bad publicity is good publicity, right? The two definitely need to “simmer down” but that doesn’t happen. The heat turns up a notch when they give in and become frenemies with benefits!
I thought Nikki’s story of someone from Oregon relocating to Maui was interesting, because I live in Hawaii (Oahu) and it is one of the most expensive states to live in, if not the most expensive…so wanting to do the food truck life and getting by in Hawaii? Yikes, that is tough…but it wasn’t her dream. It was her parents’ dream to have a food truck in retirement but all of that changes when her dad dies and leaves the bills with her mom. Nikki and her mom are grieving and trying to make the best of everything but food truck life is hard.
The setting of Maui is lovely of course but the story also jumps to London for a bit, because Nikki does some traveling. It gives us a chance to see Callum in his element as well. The chemistry between Nikki and Callum are definitely off the charts. Nikki wasn’t afraid to tell him what she wanted in bed, that’s for sure! Outside of the two of them, I also enjoyed Nikki’s budding friendship with Penelope.
And the mention of some Filipino foods like pansit (why have I always spelled it pancit though??), lumpia (can’t have a family party without lumpia!), and adobo (pork is my fave though haha) was nice to sit and Nikki’s mom’s use of the word “anak” for her daughter, it means child.
Triggers: grief
I think I was expecting more Filipno foods in the story, but lumpia seems to be this family’s specialty. And it’s one of my favorite dishes, don’t get me wrong…but I felt like there was a chance to introduce readers to more dishes other than the usuals. I guess I was expecting more filipino culture in the story but didn’t get any more than what I mentioned above.
Nikki is a strong character and I loved that as an only child she dropped everything to be with her mom, but with her relationship with Callum – did she really have to jump to every conclusion, like him cheating when all she could have done was talk to him about it? Aren’t we adults here? Haha…but I get she didn’t want to be caught falling for him and getting hurt because the pain of losing someone if it doesn’t work out. We all have our issues, I get it. I know we need some drama in the story haha.
Why you should read it:
Maui setting, a cat, nude beaches, food trucks and food 😋
Rivals to lovers, they may fight a lot but that translates into a good time in bed
quick read
Why you might not want to read it:
Relationship drama that seem trivial
Nikki making Callum out to be super horrible when he wasn’t
My Final Thoughts:
This one is a quick read filled with food, beaches, and an enemies to lovers romance filled with some unnecessary drama. I enjoyed it for what it was and wish there was a little more about filipino culture, but I’m filipino so my expectations were a tiny bit higher than usual. It didn’t quite meet my expectations but still I thought it was a fun story perfect for a summer read.
#SixforSunday is… it’s really just that. You choose 6 books (normally) that you’d choose to fit whatever the prompt is that week. This meme is hosted by A Little but a Lot and you can follow the link to find the prompts for July to September.
This week’s topic:
Sun in the Title/on the Cover
I hope you all are having a wonderful summer! ~ Yolanda
Categories: Young Adult, Dark Academia, Mystery, Thriller, Witchcraft, LGBT+, Mental Health
Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**
For fans of Wilder Girls and Ninth House comes a dark, twisty, atmospheric thriller about a boarding school haunted by its history of witchcraft and two girls dangerously close to digging up the past.
Felicity Morrow is back at Dalloway School.
Perched in the Catskill mountains, the centuries-old, ivy-covered campus was home until the tragic death of her girlfriend. Now, after a year away, she’s returned to graduate. She even has her old room in Godwin House, the exclusive dormitory rumored to be haunted by the spirits of five Dalloway students—girls some say were witches. The Dalloway Five all died mysteriously, one after another, right on Godwin grounds.
Witchcraft is woven into Dalloway’s history. The school doesn’t talk about it, but the students do. In secret rooms and shadowy corners, girls convene. And before her girlfriend died, Felicity was drawn to the dark. She’s determined to leave that behind her now; all Felicity wants is to focus on her senior thesis and graduate. But it’s hard when Dalloway’s occult history is everywhere. And when the new girl won’t let her forget.
It’s Ellis Haley’s first year at Dalloway, and she’s already amassed a loyal following. A prodigy novelist at seventeen, Ellis is a so-called “method writer.” She’s eccentric and brilliant, and Felicity can’t shake the pull she feels to her. So when Ellis asks Felicity for help researching the Dalloway Five for her second book, Felicity can’t say no. Given her history with the arcane, Felicity is the perfect resource.
And when history begins to repeat itself, Felicity will have to face the darkness in Dalloway–and in herself.
The vibe in A Lesson in Vengeance is dark and it’s done so well. Our setting is Dalloway School which is a boarding school for girls but the school comes with a history of murder and witchcraft. The girls who come here are intellectuals, I mean I had to google some big words in this one. They talked like intellectuals, dressed like it, smoked like it too (Ellis did at least) and these are teenagers! How are they so sophisticated?
Felicity has a dark past at Dalloway, her ex-girlfriend, Alex, died there. Ellis Halley is a new student, a novelist at seventeen and the two girls become friends. Felicity is dealing with grief and guilt because of how Alex had died. She has seen a therapist and was on anti-depressants but being back at Dalloway is getting to her. Felicity feels like Alex is haunting her. She thinks that maybe her intense research into the witchcraft the Dalloway Five had practiced years ago lead to an evil presence on campus, that she herself is cursed when she delved too deep. But Ellis wants to prove to Felicity that magic isn’t real and the deaths of the Dalloway Five were straight-up murders instead. It helps that Ellis is a novelist and doing research to write a story about murder anyway – so the girls set out to replica certain events of the past. But these girls are not who we think they are. They play off one another so well – two mysterious, very intellectual girls, one with a hidden agenda, the other just trying to keep up.
There is blood, tarot and tea readings, secrets, history, research, books (so many books) and events that make you question everything.
The setting of Dalloway is so dreary and gloomy with fall turning into winter as shadows creep on this old campus. I really enjoyed it and this would make a wonderful book to read in the fall.
This book is twisty! I found myself surprised at some of the twist and turns and it made me read this book in one sitting. At one point the beginning reminded me of a female cast of Dead Poets Society. Felicity is an unreliable character dealing with her past with Alex, and it made me question a lot of things and even her sanity. Ellis is mysterious and we only know so much about her until the end where a lot of reveals take place.
Triggers: death, self-harm, killing of animal, drowning
I like how the story progresses, the twists and turns, but the ending was a little anti-climatic for me. It built up nicely but then it resolves quickly, like it was that easy for Felicity to fix everything yet we do learn why…which was another mind blowing moment – but I almost missed it. I caught it and re-read the passage a few times to make sure I wasn’t misreading but it was rushed.
The pacing was okay, the beginning is slow, and the ending is rushed. It’s supposed to be slow and atmospheric I guess because we are being immersed in the setting, we get lost in Felicity’s thoughts because she is lost in grief, guilt, obsessed with the witchcraft history and wondering if she is being haunted. There were times I wanted that part to speed up, I wanted to know was it murder or witchcraft? Both?
This one kept me interested from start to finish and I enjoyed it a lot despite some issues. I can’t say I read a lot of dark academia but this definitely opened me up to this genre and it’s aesthetic. The atmosphere and setting was well written and the twists were shocking and fantastic. Felicity and Ellis are two very smart girls, but in the end we figure out who was the more clever one, I suppose. If you like eerie settings, an unreliable narrator, twists and turns that make you question what you are reading, then you will enjoy this one.
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 for an honest review!
WWII historical fiction inspired by the real women of the Women’s Air Raid Defense, RADAR GIRLS follows one unlikely recruit as she trains and serves in secrecy as a radar plotter on Hawaii. A tale of resilience and sisterhood, it sees the battles of the Pacific through the eyes of these pioneering women, and will appeal to fans of Kate Quinn and Pam Jenoff.
An extraordinary story inspired by the real Women’s Air Raid Defense, where an unlikely recruit and her sisters-in-arms forge their place in WWII history.
Daisy Wilder prefers the company of horses to people, bare feet and saltwater to high heels and society parties. Then, in the dizzying aftermath of the attack on Pearl Harbor, Daisy enlists in a top-secret program, replacing male soldiers in a war zone for the first time. Under fear of imminent invasion, the WARDs guide pilots into blacked-out air strips and track unidentified planes across Pacific skies.
But not everyone thinks the women are up to the job, and the new recruits must rise above their differences and work side-by-side despite the resistance and heartache they meet along the way. With America’s future on the line, Daisy is determined to prove herself worthy. And with the man she’s falling in love with out on the front lines, she cannot fail. From radar towers on remote mountaintops to flooded bomb shelters, she’ll need her new team when the stakes are highest. Because the most important battles are fought—and won—together.
This inspiring and uplifting tale of pioneering, unsung heroines vividly transports the reader to wartime Hawaii, where one woman’s call to duty leads her to find courage, strength and sisterhood.
I was drawn to this book because it is set in Hawaii, on the island of Oahu (where I live) during World War II. The author did such a wonderful job with describing my island of Oahu.
The author got the Hawaiian words right, and I appreciated that. Even though I live here, I didn’t know about the women recruited to form the Women’s Air Raid Defense. The crazy thing is that I grew up 5 minutes from Fort Shafter where the story is set, which is pretty cool. It was nice to see Hawaii represented accurately.
I loved learning alongside Daisy and her friends about Radar. I found these women to be motivated, smart, and capable.
Daisy is our main character and she’s a strong young lady without any real family on the island. She befriends some of the other women who are recruited to WARD and they form a tight-knit grip trying to figure out men, love, life on base, and learning everything they need to to help in the war effort. I liked the woman power especially because this was set in the 1940’s when women were expected to be at home cooking, cleaning and making babies. I liked learning of these women helping the military which is a male dominant world.
Triggers: sexual assault, grief, war
I felt like Daisy’s background and the drama connected to her (a missing horse) didn’t seem to flow well into the story about her being part of WARD. I found those aspects of the story much more interesting and wanted to know more about her life as part of the program.
There is a light romance taking place in the story but I wasn’t very invested in it.
Radar Girls made me learn something new about World War II and appreciate the role of women in such a challenging time. It’s a story about Daisy and her friends, women who were recruited to help fly our boys home during the war. There were some parts of the story that didn’t engage my interest, like Daisy’s personal life problems. I did enjoy her camaraderie with her new friends though. If you love historical fiction, you will enjoy this one.
📚 ~ Yolanda
Book Excerpt~
2
The Bust
Their shack, as Daisy referred to the house, was nestled in a cluster of bent ironwood trees, all by its lonesome. Set back far from the beach to protect it from a direct blast of onshore winds, it still took a constant battering and the salty air and elements had done a fine job reclaiming it. Windowpanes had been blasted opaque, you could see through the back wall, and flowers had taken up residence in the gutters. The siding had gone from forest green to pale green to peeling gray, the roof turned to rust.
When he had first started working up at the ranch, Daisy’s father had somehow persuaded Mr. Montgomery to sell him the small parcel of beachfront property for the price of a bag of sand. Most likely because it was in no-man’s-land between Waialua and the ranch. And because her father had been the best horse trainer in Hawai’i and everyone knew it.
She flung open the front door and ran inside. “Mom?” she called.
All quiet. She tiptoed across the lauhala mat in the living room, avoiding the creaking floorboards. Her mother spent much of her life in one of two states—sleeping or staring out to sea. The bedroom door was cracked and a lump lay under the blankets, pillow over her head. There was no point in trying to wake her, so Daisy ran back outside, hopped on her bike and rode for the stables.
The air was ripe with burnt sugarcane and a scratchy feeling of dread. She bumped along a dirt road as fast as her old bike would carry her. That plume of black smoke above Schofield caused her heart to sink. So many Japanese planes could mean only one thing. An attack or invasion of some kind was happening. But the sky remained empty and she saw no signs of ships on the horizon.
By the time she reached the stables, she had worked out what to tell Mr. Silva—the only person at the ranch who was even close to being a friend—and beg that he help her find Moon. Whether or not he would risk his job was another story. Jobs were not easy to come by, especially on this side of the island. Daisy counted herself lucky to have one. When she rounded the corner by the entrance, she about fell over on her bike. Mr. Silva’s rusted truck was gone and in its place sat Mr. Montgomery’s shiny new Ford, motor running and door open.
As far as old Hal Montgomery was concerned, Daisy was mostly invisible. She had worked for him going on seven years now—since she was sixteen—but she was a girl and girls were fluffy, pretty things who wore fancy dresses and attended parties. Not short-haired, trouser-wearing, outdoorsy misfits. And certainly not horse trainers and skin divers. Nope, those jobs belonged to men. There was also the matter of her father’s death, but she preferred not to think about that.
Should she turn around and hightail it out of there before he caught sight of her? He’d find out eventually, and he would be livid. Daisy pulled her bike behind the toolshed and slipped around the back side of the stables, peering in through a cloudy window. The tension in the air from earlier had dissipated and the horses were all quiet. A tall form stood in front of the old horse—Ka‘ena—she was supposed to ride. It was hard to tell through the foggy pane, but the man looked too tall and too thin to be Hal Montgomery.
Horsefeathers! It was Walker, Montgomery’s son. A line of perspiration formed on the back of her neck and she had the strong urge to flee. Not that Daisy had had much interaction with Walker in recent years. He was aloof and intimidating and the kind of person who made her forget how to speak, but he loved Moon fiercely. Of that she was sure. Just then, he turned and started jogging toward the door. His face was in shadow but it felt like he was looking right at her. She froze. If she ducked away now, he would surely catch the movement. She did it anyway.
She had just made it to her bike when Walker tore out of the tack room with a wild look in his eye. He had a rifle hanging across his chest, and he was carrying two others. He stopped when he saw her. “Hey!” he said.
“Oh, hello, Mr. Montgomery.”
He wore his flight suit, which was only halfway buttoned, like he’d been interrupted either trying to get in it or trying to get out of it. His face was flushed and lined with sweat. “Don’t you know we’ve been attacked? You ought to head for cover, somewhere inland.”
He was visibly shaken.
“I saw the planes. What do you know?” she said.
“Wheeler and Schofield are all shot up, and they did a number on Pearl. Battleships down, bay on fire. God knows how many dead.” His gaze dropped to her body for a moment and she felt her skin burn. There had been no time to change or even think about changing, and she was still in her half-wet swimsuit, hair probably sticking out in eleven directions. “What are you doing here?” he asked.
“I was worried about the horses,” she said.
“That makes two of us. And goddamn Moon is not in his stall. You know anything about that?”
Taking Moon had been about the dumbest thing she could have done. But at the time, it seemed a perfectly sane idea. The kind of thinking that got her into plenty of trouble over the years. Why hadn’t she learned? She looked at the coconut tree just past him as she spoke. “I have no idea. Perhaps Mr. Silva has him?”
“Mr. Silva went to town last night to see his sister,” he said.
She forced herself to look at him, feeling like she had the word guilty inked onto her forehead. “Looks like you have somewhere to be. You go on, I’ll find Moon. I promise.”
Her next order of business would be scouring the coast and finding that horse before Walker returned. There would be no sleeping until Moon was safely back at the stables.
“I sure hope so. That horse is mighty important to me,” he said.
Tell him!
She was about to come clean, when he moved around her, hopped in the car and slammed the door. He leaned out the window and said, “Something tells me you know more than you’re letting on, Wilder.”
With that, he sped off, leaving her standing in a cloud of red dirt and sand.
In the stables, the horses knew the sound of her footsteps, or maybe they smelled the salt on her hair. A concert of nickers and snorts erupted in the stalls. Daisy went to the coatrack first, and slid on an oversize button-up that she kept there for chilly days. It smelled of hay.
“How is everyone?” she said, stopping at each one to rub their necks or kiss their noses. “Quite a morning, hasn’t it been?”
Peanut was pacing with nostrils flared, and she spent a few minutes stroking his long neck before moving on. Horses were her lifeblood. Feeding, grooming, riding, loving. She only wished that Mr. Montgomery would let her train them—officially, that was. Without being asked as a last resort by Mr. Silva when everyone else had tried. Lord knew she was better than the rest of the guys. When she got to Moon’s stall, all the blood rushed from her head. The door had been left open and two Japanese slippers hung from the knob. She had hidden them in the corner under some straw—apparently not well enough.
Damn.
Just then she heard another car pull up. The ranch truck. A couple of the ranch hands poured out, making a beeline to the stables. Mr. Montgomery followed on their heels with a machete in his hand and a gun on his hip. Daisy felt the skin tighten on the back of her neck. His ever-present limp seemed even more pronounced.
When he saw her, he said, “Where’s Silva?”
No mention that they were under attack.
“In town,” she answered.
“What about Walker?”
“Walker just left in a big hurry,” she answered.
One of the guys had his hunting dog with him. It was a big mutt that enjoyed staring down the horses and making them nervous, as if they needed to be any more nervous right now. Daisy wanted to tell him to get the dog out of there, but knew it would be pointless.
“The hosses in the pasture need to be secured,” Mr. M said.
“Do you need my help?” she offered.
“Nah, you should get out of here. Get home. Fuckers blew up all our planes and now paratroopers are coming down in the pineapple fields. Ain’t no place for a woman right now.”
Daisy wanted to stay and help, but also wanted to get the hell away before he noticed that Moon was not here. “Yes, sir.”
He stopped and sized her up for a moment, his thick brows pinched. “You still got that shotgun of your old man’s?”
“I do.”
“Make sure it’s loaded.”
On her way home, Daisy passed through Japanese camp, hoping to get more information from Mr. Sasaki, who always knew the latest happenings. A long row of cottages lined the road, every rock and leaf in its place. The houses were painted barn red with crisp, white trim. On any given Sunday, there would have been gangs of kids roaming the area, but now the place was eerily empty.
“Hello?” she called, letting her bike fall into the naupaka hedge.
When she knocked and no one answered, she started pounding. A curtain pulled aside and a small face peered out at her and waved her away. Mrs. Sasaki. She was torn, but chose to leave them be. With the whispers of paranoia lately, all the local Japanese folks were bound to be nervous. She didn’t blame them.
This time when Daisy ran up to the shack, her mother was sitting on the porch drinking coffee from her chipped mug.
She was still in her nightgown, staring out beyond the ocean. When she was in this state, a person could have walked into their house and made off with all of their belongings and her mother would not even bat an eye.
Daisy sat down next to her. “Mom, the Japanese Army attacked Pearl Harbor and Wheeler and who knows where else.”
Her mother clenched her jaw slightly, took a sip of her coffee, then set it down on the mango stump next to her chair. “They said it would happen,” she said flatly.
“This is serious, mom. People are dead. Civilians, too. I don’t know how many, but the islands are in danger of being invaded and there are Japanese ships and planes all around. They’re telling us to stay inside.”
A look of worry came over her mom’s face. “You should go find a safer place to stay, away from the coast.”
“And leave you here?”
“I’ll be fine.”
“I’m not leaving you.”
Her mom shrugged.
She knew Louise couldn’t help it, but a tiny part of Daisy was waiting for that day her mother would wake up and be the old Louise Wilder. The mother of red lipstick and coconut macaroons, of beach bonfires and salty hugs. The one who rode bikes with her daughter to school every day, singing with the birds along the way. The highs and lows had been there before, but now there were only lows and deeper lows.
After some time, her mother finally spoke. “Men, they do the dumbest things.”
“That may be true, but we’re at war. Does that mean anything to you?” Daisy said, her voice rising in frustration.
“Course it does, but what can we do?”
She had a point. Aside from hiding in the house or running away, what other options were there? Used to doing things, Daisy was desperate to help, but how? Their home was under attack and she felt as useful as a sack of dirt.
Louise leaned back. On days like these, she retreated so far into herself that she was unreachable. You could tell by looking in her eyes. Blank and bottomless. Mr. Silva always said that you could see the spirit in the eyes. Dull eyes, dull spirit. That Louise looked this way always made Daisy feel deeply alone. The onshore winds kicked up a notch and ruffled the surface of the ocean. She knew she should stay with her mom, but more than anything, she wanted to go in search of the horse. Moon meant more to her than just the job. She loved him something fierce.
Only one thing was clear: their lives would never be the same.
USA Today bestselling author Sara Ackerman was born and raised in Hawaii. She studied journalism and earned graduate degrees in psychology and Chinese medicine. She blames Hawaii for her addiction to writing, and sees no end to its untapped stories. When she’s not writing or teaching, you’ll find her in the mountains or in the ocean. She currently lives on the Big Island with her boyfriend and a houseful of bossy animals. Find out more about Sara and her books at http://www.ackermanbooks.com and follow her on Instagram @saraackermanbooks and on FB @ackermanbooks.
I was thinking of making a post about all the Indie authors I’ve read in 2021 but then I saw this in the blogosphere today, a Self-published Authors Appreciation Week post on One Book More and followed the link back to Jodie at Witty and Sarcastic Book Club who is organizing this event.
I love that self-published authors are getting love this week because they really do deserve it! Here are some of the indie books I’ve read, copies provided to me by the authors for an honest review over the two years I’ve been blogging.
Hedy Leckenmaul runs a strange little bakery in the sleepy town of Enumclaw, Washington. Her bakery may be bizarre but it is the non-human guests who stay at her home, along with her resident ghost, and her menagerie of talking animals that truly is strange. Hedy hosts a waystation for supernatural travelers and while hosting two such travelers, the town is rocked by an arsonist who is kidnapping women, and pitting the residents of Enumclaw against each other. Hedy and her friends must solve the mystery when one of their own vanishes, leaving them racing to find out who is behind it all before it is too late.
Resurrected into present-day New York, Nadira Holden is asked to save the world … again.
Nadira achieved legendary status when she gave her life to protect humans from the demons. To her, it was yesterday. To the rest of the world, it was twenty years ago.
People have made peace with the demons, worshipping them like celebrities. No one wants to believe that the beautiful creatures who brought magic to humans could be causing the disappearance of so many. When Nadira’s father goes missing, she refuses to play nice. Gloves off. She has to do what she does best. Fight.
Experience why not even death can stop her.
Nadira Holden, Demon Hunter is a fresh urban fantasy series from Azaaa Davis that combines monster-slaying action, family drama, and simmering romance.
Fans of Vampire Hunter Anita Blake, Succubus Georgina Kincaid, Buffy The Vampire Slayer, and Vampire Death Dealer Selene are enthralled and eagerly awaiting the next Nadira Holden novel.
Magic rolls through Orion Tamura’s history classroom like a tidal wave of golden light that only he can see. The spell is deadly, and Orion has no idea who cast it or what they want.
Answers are scarce—all of Port Monica’s sorcerers vanished fourteen years before, including Orion’s father. Armed with his limited knowledge of magic, Orion is the only one left in the city who is strong enough to investigate the origins of the spell.
But the city’s leaders will stop at nothing to censor and sabotage anyone who gets close to the truth. Invisible otherworlders watch every move Orion and his friends make, and a mysterious sorcerer who knows the answers haunts Orion’s dreams.
Life dealt Her a hard blow, but His back was a shield…
Leah… After being duped by her intended, kicked out of her home, and left on the streets of Black Valley, young seamstress, Leah Karin, signs her life over to her country, Aghi, to relocate to and populate its growing town, Luctown. Too late Leah realizes the scheme is filled with lies and injustice. Beaten, bruised and without hope, Leah is prepared to die… but fate has other plans.
Andrew… All he wanted was freedom. So willingly, Andrew Code trades slavery for exile to the new town. As his team uncovers the lies and deceit of the new town, Andrew remains determined to carve out a life worth living for himself.
In an untamed forest filled with ex-convicts, starving residents, schemers, and murderers, will love and hope conquer all?
Sometimes the ones who save us are the ones we need to fear the most.
In a world where dark faeries have stepped in to save the planet from humanity’s mistakes, seventeen-year-old December Thorne is nothing but a shadow. Shunned by her peers, bullied at school, and paid a little too much attention by her sleazy foster father, she lives in constant fear and perpetual solitude.
Until the day everything changes.
Offered a scholarship to the prestigious Oberon Academy, December finds herself living in a whole new world. Boundless food, clean clothes, a safe place to sleep, and the potential for true friendship make her new life seem almost too good to be true—but the school has a secret.
The truth is, Oberon Academy isn’t just a prep school for society’s elite. It’s a training ground for a secret race of magical beings no one knows exists. And they’re preparing for war.
Filled with fear and denial, December has a choice to make. She can either return to her pathetic life with her dangerous foster parents, try to survive on her own, or make Oberon Academy her home and discover the truth about who, and what she really is.
And that truth could save the world.
This island alone boasts more ghost stories than all of Louisiana combined. And I’m one of them.
In the Louisiana swamplands, ghost stories are as much a part of childhood as chasing fireflies and crawfishing. They never much scared me, though, nor the possibility of evil out to do me harm. Until the night I watched shadows come to life and butcher everything I loved.
With a stranger’s help, I managed to escape to an isolated place miles north, and, in time, became my own ghost story. A cautionary tale for the locals. Nearly a decade passed, before I returned to my birthplace, in hopes of unearthing long-awaited answers. Instead, I found something I wasn’t looking for. Someone. A remedy for my loneliness.
Or so I thought.
Turns out, Thierry Bergeron is no elixir. He’s a deadly poison, cursed by the demons of his past, and feared by those who call him the elusive Rougarou of the bayou. A devious rogue, whose seductive whispers and rough hands haunt my dreams. The big bad wolf that defiles me without apology, or remorse. I should resist him, but I can’t.And when the shadows return to stake their claim on me, his darkness is the only safe place to hide.
**The Isle of Sin and Shadows is a slow-burn southern gothic mystery romance standalone, set on a darkly enchanting fictional island.
Olexia is a wild and dangerous world filled with magic.
Miri and Nick find Olexia by chance but choose their fate when they step through the portal. A shard of glass and a hastily-written letter from their mother are all they have to solve their puzzling past.
In Olexia Miri and Nick find danger and unlikely allies, and with their help, they learn to wield their newfound powers and find out the truth about Olexia’s buried secrets.
When the ruthless Council leader learns the siblings harbor a powerful artifact, he sends his bloodthirsty LaKaio soldiers to hunt them down at any cost.
With time running out and secrets about their past being revealed around every corner, Miri and Nick must decide if they’re going to hide away or rise up against the sinister leaders of Olexia.
Categories: Romance, Contemporary, Modern Cinderella Twist, Fashion, Reality TV
Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**
After having just graduated with a degree in shoe design, and trying to get her feet on the ground, Cindy is working for her stepmother, who happens to be the executive producer of America’s favorite reality show, Before Midnight. When a spot on the show needs filling ASAP, Cindy volunteers, hoping it might help jump-start her fashion career, or at least give her something to do while her peers land jobs in the world of high fashion.
Turns out being the only plus size woman on a reality dating competition makes a splash, and soon Cindy becomes a body positivity icon for women everywhere. What she doesn’t expect? That she may just find inspiration-and love-in the process. Ultimately, Cindy learns that if the shoe doesn’t fit, maybe it’s time to design your own.
I love this modern twist on the Cinderella story. Instead of a girl who cleans and slaves away for her stepfamily, we have a curvy girl who is trying to jumpstart her fashion career – her particular love being…shoes. Instead of an evil stepmother and stepsisters, we get a supportive family, which was actually really refreshing.
The reality show/Bachelor inspired storyline mixed with the fashion industry worked for me and I have never watched The Bachelor! It even had a tiny of Project Runway moment which was fun. Having Cindy and Henry build a relationship on the reality show brought in suspicion, hope, and so much insecurities for Cindy.
Cindy is a great character – being plus size doesn’t stop her from living her life, looking good in the clothes and shoes she wears. She’s confident even when she doesn’t feel it and even when she feels insecure, she doesn’t let it hinder her from her goals. I love that she became an inspiration to people in the public through her appearance on the show, even if it was all rigged.
Henry and Cindy are a great match. I love how they meet but wow, I’d never be able to like someone and watch them kiss all these other women for a show! So I’m actually glad at Cindy’s decision in the end, I thought it was awesome how she put herself first since there was no guarantees on how’d everything work out after the show. It does work out in the end though.
I enjoyed the side characters like Sarah Claire and Stacy, would love books about them too! I loved her stepsisters and the triplets. Even the crew was crazy yet fun like Beck and Irina.
Because Henry and Cindy are on this reality show, they don’t get a lot of time together until their one date and I guess I was hoping he’d pick her for more private dates but as we find out, everything is set and rigged for tv ratings.
It does feel more like a young adult book than New Adult or Adult.
This would make a cute rom-com movie.
I found If the Shoe Fits a fun, quick read. I wasn’t expecting to finish it in one night but it was fast-paced with The Bachelor inspired storyline which meant something was always happening to Cindy or the other girls going after Henry. I loved that it features Cindy, a plus size girl and a Cinderella retelling where her family isn’t vicious but supportive. I found Henry and Cindy’s building romance to be sweet and yet as realistic as it can be in a reality tv setting. I loved them more when there were no cameras around. I think many romance lovers will find this one an enjoyable read.
The idea is pretty simple, every week you dedicate a post to the three W’s:
What are you currently reading?
What have you just finished reading?
What are you going to read next?
What are you currently reading?
What have you just finished reading?
What are you going to read next?
I just realized I have a bunch of half read books on my kindle app. Not because they weren’t good but because I had some arcs to finish up for August! 😆 Also I had a week of miserable PMS 😣, I had the headache and cramping…yuck and that’s not usually how I roll. Yes I always have the headaches but not the cramping. This time it’s both – UGH. Anyway, TMI, I know haha. Hope you got some good reading done!
On Sunday, my family – along with my sister, went to the Van Gogh Immersive Exhibit. Vincent Van Gogh is my favorite artist. His paintings always evoked the strongest feelings in me – I like how he layered paint and how his moods were expressed in his paintings. He dealt with a lot of mental health issues and yes he eventually cut part of his ear in an episode but I think that’s why I love his work. His emotions are all there on his canvas and his letters.
I thought my kids would enjoy the experience because it’s like a moving art show instead of a canvas for them to stand there and look at. Here are some photos from our experience.
The first part of the Immersive event are these quotes from letters Vincent wrote to his brother Theo. I’m so happy he had Theo.
Since I was with my kids, they wanted to get to the main room…but first we walked through this room called the waterfall, I think. It’s where the images basically fall on a black backdrop and dark lighting.
Do you see Van Gogh’s face?
And then we walked down a hallway…my daughter and sister went ahead of us, this was like a mini date day for the two of them. My daughter loves her Aunt and my sister adores her as equally…she has only two older boys, so my little girl…we share HAHA. 🥰
Walking with my son to the main room. ❤️
The main room is where the 35 minute “show” is held. There were some people standing around, some people sitting on the floor, a few elderly people were smart and brought folding chairs. We found a spot and took a seat – we didn’t see it from the beginning, not sure what part we came in because it plays on loop.
I’ve been real lucky to see actual Van Gogh paintings at the different museums I’ve visited over the years. During our European honeymoon we even got to visit the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, it was a dream come true for me. The only thing that seems out of my reach is seeing Starry Night in person! When I went to MoMA in NYC back in 2009, it was on loan to a museum in Paris. I was oh so sad…because it’s my favorite of his paintings.
This immersive experience with the music playing and the images moving was really amazing to me. I could have stayed there for hours just sitting there. I wish museums would have an immersive rooms like this, I’d probably stayed there awhile.
My daughter was definitely feeling the experience, she danced when the music played. She’s four and she told me she loves Starry Night too. ♥️ It’s the swirls around the stars and in the immersive experience it kept swirling and moving. My son enjoyed it but he got freaked out when the self portrait eyes blinked HAHA.
The tickets were pricey and I like I said I wish I could have stayed longer, but the kids would not have want to linger forever there. My daughter told me she wanted more rooms to visit. Yes, that would be nice too actually. My sister and I agreed it would have been amazing to have cafe chairs to sit on or even benches. And maybe a drink in hand, haha…both of us said we would have liked to just sit and linger and stare at the images with the music playing. It’s really beautiful.
My daughter entranced by Van Gogh
She’s feeling the moment!
I really should put her back in ballet…😅
I enjoyed it a lot and glad I could show my kids my favorite artist. My son learned a bit about how Van Gogh’s mental illness helped shaped his creations. The color of his work depicted his moods and maybe that’s why I love them so much – it makes me feel something – I always said I liked how much paint he put on the canvas, like it looks so heavy with paint, and I can just imagine him painting with passion. His letters to his brother are so honest about his despair and also that he still had hope…especially when he looked at the stars.
Ahh…the dreamer in me just vibes with him. It was worth going to the show just to watch my daughter dance to the music and images…it made my heart overflow with joy. 🥰
Happy Book Birthday to these new releases! What are you excited about it this week?
From New York Times best-selling author Lexi Ryan, Cruel Prince meets A Court of Thorns and Roses in this sexy, action-packed fantasy about a girl who is caught between two treacherous faerie courts and their dangerously seductive princes.
Brie hates the Fae and refuses to have anything to do with them, even if that means starving on the street. But when her sister is sold to the sadistic king of the Unseelie court to pay a debt, she’ll do whatever it takes to get her back—including making a deal with the king himself to steal three magical relics from the Seelie court.
Gaining unfettered access to the Seelie court is easier said than done. Brie’s only choice is to pose as a potential bride for Prince Ronan, and she soon finds herself falling for him. Unwilling to let her heart distract her, she accepts help from a band of Unseelie misfits with their own secret agenda. As Brie spends time with their mysterious leader, Finn, she struggles to resist his seductive charm.
Caught between two dangerous courts, Brie must decide who to trust with her loyalty. And with her heart.
For fans of Sorcery of Thorns and Furyborn comes the thrilling sequel to Shielded about a world in a deadly magical war and the newly crowned king and feisty princess who must defeat the deadliest of foes before there’s nothing left to save.
Although King Atháren’s sister, Jennesara, saved Hálendi from the Gray Mage, the reprieve came at a steep price–the life of their father. Now Ren rules over a divided kingdom, with some who want him dead, and a Medallion that warns of worse trouble brewing in the south.
As second born, Princess Chiara is the perfect Turian royal–perfectly invisible. She longs to help restore peace on the Plateau, but with no magic and no fighting skills, she doesn’t stand a chance against a mage. So when a member of the Turian royal family goes missing and Chiara finds a clue about the rumored resting place of the mages’ long-lost artifacts, she decides it’s time to be seen.
As Ren’s and Chiara’s paths cross, they find the depth of the mages’ hold on the Plateau is more powerful than anyone suspected, and that they must learn to trust themselves, and each other, before the mages retrieve their artifacts and become too powerful to ever defeat.
Mulan meets The Song of Achilles in Shelley Parker-Chan’s She Who Became the Sun, a bold, queer, and lyrical reimagining of the rise of the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty from an amazing new voice in literary fantasy.
To possess the Mandate of Heaven, the female monk Zhu will do anything
“I refuse to be nothing…”
In a famine-stricken village on a dusty yellow plain, two children are given two fates. A boy, greatness. A girl, nothingness…
In 1345, China lies under harsh Mongol rule. For the starving peasants of the Central Plains, greatness is something found only in stories. When the Zhu family’s eighth-born son, Zhu Chongba, is given a fate of greatness, everyone is mystified as to how it will come to pass. The fate of nothingness received by the family’s clever and capable second daughter, on the other hand, is only as expected.
When a bandit attack orphans the two children, though, it is Zhu Chongba who succumbs to despair and dies. Desperate to escape her own fated death, the girl uses her brother’s identity to enter a monastery as a young male novice. There, propelled by her burning desire to survive, Zhu learns she is capable of doing whatever it takes, no matter how callous, to stay hidden from her fate.
After her sanctuary is destroyed for supporting the rebellion against Mongol rule, Zhu takes the chance to claim another future altogether: her brother’s abandoned greatness.
Natasha’s sister is missing.
Her car was found abandoned on the edge of a local nature preserve known as the Bend, but as the case goes cold, Natasha’s loss turns to burning anger.
She’ll do anything to find answers.
Della’s family has channeled magic from the Bend for generations, providing spells for the desperate. But when Natasha appears on her doorstep, Della knows it will take more than simple potions to help her.
But Della has her own secrets to hide.
Because Della thinks she knows the beast who’s responsible for the disappearance — her own mother, who was turned into a terrible monster by magic gone wrong.
Past Midnight Book Reviews & More 