This one’s a little late because my week was busy. My hubby went back to Okinawa yesterday but that only means the wait for him to come home for good is shorter! Just a few months away. My daughter has her teacher meet and greet this Friday and they both start next week Monday and Tuesday. 😢 So summer and the mornings of sleeping in is over – sigh. But I’m glad my kids will be back in school, mostly for my daughter, because she gets really bored. I just can’t believe kids being back in school means we are close to the holidays. I’m not ready! lol but time doesn’t seem to care if I am or not.
The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by. Megan Bannen (audiobook)
Currently Reading:
Can’t Help Falling in Love by. Sophie Sullivan
Nothing Like the Movies by. Lynn Painter
Shadows of Perl by. J. Elle
Shows/Movies/Music I Watched/Listened To:
House of Dragon – I’m an episode behind but it was such a busy week. Hoping I catch up this week.
How was your week? Did you get a lot done? Watch anything good? Read any amazing books or books you didn’t finish? What are you reading?…Leave me a comment below!
Hart is a marshal, tasked with patrolling the strange and magical wilds of Tanria. It’s an unforgiving job, and Hart’s got nothing but time to ponder his loneliness.
Mercy never has a moment to herself. She’s been single-handedly keeping Birdsall & Son Undertakers afloat in defiance of sullen jerks like Hart, who seems to have a gift for showing up right when her patience is thinnest.
After yet another exasperating run-in with Mercy, Hart finds himself penning a letter addressed simply to “A Friend”. Much to his surprise, an anonymous letter comes back in return, and a tentative friendship is born.
If only Hart knew he’s been baring his soul to the person who infuriates him most – Mercy. As the dangers from Tanria grow closer, so do the unlikely correspondents. But can their blossoming romance survive the fated discovery that their pen pals are their worst nightmares – each other?
Content Warning: death, violence, grief
I finally got around to reading or listening to this book and I can see why so many readers love it! This was a fun, engrossing and heart warming story all wrapped up in a sort of “You’ve Got Mail” situation but in a contemporary fantasy world. The world-building is unique and really fleshed out with gods, demigods, talking creatures/animals, and zombies! But what I really loved about this book were the characters.
Mercy is an undertaker and I really love her family dynamics. They are chaotic, but such a lovable bunch. Hart, is gruff and grumpy and he and Mercy do not get along at all. But then they are writing letters without knowing they are writing to each other. Of course they will have to deal with the moment they finally meet and know the truth. There is a lot of chemistry between Mercy and Hart and they have some very spicy moments together.
The secondary characters really rounded this feeling of community in this story from Mercy’s family members, to Hart’s found family.
I might have not caught on to some things because I was listening to the audiobook for about 60% of the book. The last 40% I read the ebook because I felt like I wasn’t getting all the details. I did with Mercy and Hart had more good times together before the fall out and that she gave him a chance to explain at least.
My Final Thoughts:
This was such a unique romance with so much going on but what I really loved were the characters and their interactions with one another. Mercy’s family was just so much fun and the whole world of Tanria was fascinating. I look forward to reading the next book!
I saw this Six in Six post on Wicked Witch’s Blog and it looked like a fun post that I wanted to try! The original creator of this meme is Jo from The Book Jotter! Definitely check out their blogs by clicking on the links!
“The idea being that as the end of June approaches and we are then halfway through the year, let us share the books we have read in those first 6 months. In fact let’s share 6 books in 6 categories, or if time is of the essence then simply share just 6 books. Whatever combination works for you as long as it involves 6 books. Of course the same book can obviously feature in more than one category.”
Sounds fun and easy right? Let’s get to it!
Six books that feature a colour in the title
Black Tide Son by. H.M. Long
The Return of Ellie Black by. Emiko Jean
Red Tigress by. Amelie Wen Zhao
The Indigo Spell by. Richelle Mead
The Scarlet Veil by. Shelby Mahurin
The Scarlet Alchemist by. Kylie Lee Baker
Six audiobooks I’ve listened to
A Fire Endless by. Rebecca Ross
The Fake Mate by. Lana Ferguson
Warrior Girl Unearthed by. Angeline Boulley
When you Wish Upon a Lantern by. Gloria Chao
Emily Wilde’s Encyclopedia of Faeries by. Heather Fawcett
Carris Soto is Back by. Taylor Jenkins Reid
Six Books with Yellow Covers
Heart of the Sun Warrior by. Sue Lynn Tan
The Getaway List by. Emma Lord
Dial A for Aunties by. Jesse Q Sutanto
I’ll be the One by. Lyla Lee
As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow by. Zoulfa Katouh
When the World Tips Over by. Jandy Nelson
Six books that are related to The Great War or Second World War
Six Most recent 5 Star Reads ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
The Women by. Kristin Hannah
Funny Story by. Emily Henry
The Last Bloodcarver by. Vanessa Le
A Tempest of Tea by. Hafsah Faizal
The Blood Years by. Elana K. Arnold
As Long as the Lemon Trees Grow by. Zoulfa Katouh
Six physical books I have read
Dungeons and Drama by. Kristy Boyce
Curious Tides by. Pascale LaCelle
Heavebreaker by. Sara Wolf
The Great Alone by. Kristin Hannah
The Prisoner’s Throne by. Holly Black
A Court of Thorns and Roses by. Sarah J. Maas
And that’s my Six in Six 2024 edition! This was so easy to do and a nice little post to celebrate 6 months of reading. Thanks for reading!
First Lines Fridays is a weekly feature for book lovers hosted by Wandering Words. What if instead of judging a book by its cover, its author or its prestige, we judged it by its opening lines?
Pick a book off your shelf (it could be your current read or on your TBR) and open to the first page
Copy the first few lines, but don’t give anything else about the book away just yet – you need to hook the reader first
Categories: Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance, Chinese Mythology
Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**
Thank you to Delacorte Press for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!
Princess Ying Yue believed in love … once upon a time.
Yet when she’s chosen to wed the crown prince, Ying’s dreams of a fairy tale marriage quickly fall apart. Her husband-to-be is cold and indifferent, confining Ying to her room for reasons he won’t explain. Worse still are the rumors that swirl around the imperial palace: whispers of seven other royal brides who, after their own weddings, mysteriously disappeared.
Left alone with only her own reflection for company, Ying begins to see things. Strange things. Movements in the corners of her mirror. Colorful lights upon its surface. And when, on the eve of her wedding, she unwittingly tears open a gateway, she is pulled into a mirror world.
This realm is full of sentient reflections, including the enigmatic Mirror Prince. Unlike his real-world counterpart, the Mirror Prince is kind and compassionate, and before long Ying falls in love—the kind of love she always dreamed of.
But there is darkness in this new world, too.
It turns out the two worlds have a long and blood-soaked history, and Ying has a part to play in the future of them both. And the brides who came before Ying? By the time they discovered what their role was, it was already too late.
Content Warning: violence, death, profanity
When I first started reading this I was surprised and thought I was maybe reading a horror story but it isn’t! I honestly wouldn’t have minded if it was. Ying is about the marry a prince but she’s not feeling like he cares about her and keeps her trapped in a room except for the times she is allowed to be out. A way to escape this marriage is in front of her – literally. In the mirror!
I thought this was such an interesting story and one that is a little bit creepy because what do you mean there is a whole world inside a mirror and your clone is basically living there? Ying finds out though that not everything is so great on the other side of the mirror. There are monsters, there are untrustworthy mirror-people, and now she has to find a way to close the portal in the mirror or else these monsters will take over the real world. And why does it have to be her? Because there is a prophecy and she is the chosen one.
The romance was enemies to lovers but there is a love triangle, which I thought was messy but very entertaining. I felt like Ying was falling too fast for a guy in the mirror!
Speaking of Ying, there were times I found my eyes rolling because of her behavior and actions. She’s falling fast for a Mirror-Prince yet on the other side of the mirror she hated the real Prince and fought with him every chance she got even when it wasn’t called for. And then the prophecy said Ying is the fish who will close the mirror portal, but I didn’t know why a fish? Maybe because water is reflective? Anyway there’s even dragons in this book. Yeah it gets wild by the end, but I just went with it.
My Thoughts:
In summary…
Reflections are not so nice, Ying is the Fish-the one in the prophecy to close the mirror portal, there is a war, and fights with mythical monsters. There are even dragons in this story! The romance is a love triangle between Ying, a Mirror-Prince and the real Prince. Ying did get on my nerves at some points, but overall the story was still pretty entertaining. I look forward to reading more books from this author!
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 a week right? At least in the news world! I saw my college bestie and we got to catch up, my is here for this week, we went to get my son’s school schedule and I got a mini tour of his new school and is happy at what I saw! I also got my daughter’s room and teacher information so we are ready for school I think. I am reading a bunch of books right now and hoping I can finish at least two books a week.
I never would have seen him coming, not in a million years. Feral. Growling. Terrifying. Until my wolf claimed him as hers. ShayI’m a lot of things; a loyal best friend, music lover, introvert. All labels I’d happily claim as mine. Survivor of abuse, I’ll claim because it’s true, and I’m a survivor. But fated mate? That one feels like an ill-fitting glove. Especially when said mate has been feral for years, and nobody knows what sent him over the edge, let alone how to get him back. But there’s no denying my wolf, and she wants him. So what’s a girl to do? Bathe the stinky wolf if he’s going to sneak into my bed and then play him Mozart until dawn. Obviously. But a fated mate connection is a once in a lifetime bond. And if he can’t turn back into a man . . . will I be alone forever, even with him at my side? DirgeI’ve been on the run for so many years, I don’t remember how to be a man, not really. But Shay calls to that part of me, the part I hid away so long ago. She’s everything a man could want. Gorgeous, intelligent, and funny, all wrapped into a stunning, shyly sweet package. There’s nothing under the moon I want more than to hold her in my arms. That’s the problem, though; if I give into the urge, if I change back and take her as mine . . . I sign her death warrant. The fates have foretold it, and the only way I can save her is to never go back, no matter how badly it hurts. To save her, I have to stay a wolf.
After losing her beloved sister three years ago, Savannah Litchfield has been living half a life. Now seventeen―the age Poppy died―the pain of losing her is worse than ever. When Savannah’s therapist suggests a trip around the world to help teens stricken by loss, she reluctantly agrees to it, clutching the unread journal Poppy left her as she goes.
Cael Woods is angry. One year after losing his older brother―the person who meant the world to him―his life has spiraled into a heady void of nothing. Once the most promising hockey player in the junior league, Cael can no longer step onto the ice without being paralyzed by memories of his brother. When his parents sign him up for a trip abroad for grieving teens, no part of him wants to go―but he does.
As Cael and Savannah embark on a journey of healing, they learn to find solace together, discovering a glimmer of light only the other can bring. And the harder they fall, the more they heal the fractured fragments of their hearts, piece by broken piece.
Top Ten Tuesday was created by The Broke and the Bookish in June of 2010 and was moved to That Artsy Reader Girl in January of 2018. It was born of a love of lists, a love of books, and a desire to bring bookish friends together. Please check out her website for more TTT topics!
This week’s topic is: Debut Novels I Enjoyed
Top Ten New-To-Me Authors
I hardly keep track of debut authors so instead I’ll just showcase new to me authors I have read or will be reading so far in 2024!
Serena Kaylor – I loved The Calculation of You and Me and hoping to read more from her!
Lydia Gregovic – The Monstrous Kind is her debut novel and I enjoyed it!
S.K. Ali – I haven’t read Fledgling yet, but it’s in my NetGalley library. I’m hoping it’s good!
Alexis Castellanos – Guava and Grudges is another arc I got from NetGalley and looking forward to read.
Brynne Weaver – I’ve been waiting for Butcher & Blackbird on my online library for a few weeks now. I’m tempted to just buy the book!
Keshe Chow – I just read The Girl with No Reflection and it was entertaining so I can’t wait to read more from this author.
Carley Fortune – This Summer Will be Different is the first book I’ve read from this popular author. Can’t say I loved it but I’m still willing to check out another book from her.
Hemant Nayak – A Magic Fierce and Bright is the first book I’ve read from this author and I thought the world-building was fascinating.
Isabel Strychacz – House of Thorns, if I want to read more about sentient houses I’ll definitely try this author again.
T.J. Avens – Spindleheart was a book this author asked me to review and I enjoyed it!
May 7: May Flowers — Pick your own title for this one to reflect the direction you choose to go with this prompt (books with flowers on the cover, flower names in the title, characters whose names are flower names, stories involving flowers/gardeners) May 14: Favorite Book Quotes (You can pick your favorite quotes from books, or about books! You can set a theme like quotes from books about love, friendship, hope, etc. or you can just share quotes you loved from your recent reads!) May 21: Authors I’d Love a New Book From (These could be authors that have passed away, who have retired from writing, who have inexplicably gone quiet, or who might jut not be able to keep up with how quickly you read their books!) May 28: Books I Was Super Excited to Get My Hands on but Still Haven’t Read
June~~ June 4: Books I Had VERY Strong Emotions About (Any emotion! Did a book make you super happy or sad? Angry? Terrified? Surprised?) June 11: Bookish Wishes (List the top 10 books you’d love to own and include a link to your wishlist so that people can grant your wishes. Make sure you link your wishlist to your mailing address or include the email address associated with your e-reader in the list description so people know how to get the book to you. After you post, jump around the Linky and grant a wish or two if you’d like. Please don’t feel obligated to send anything to anyone!) June 18: Books on My Summer 2024 To-Read List June 25: Most Anticipated Books Releasing During the Second Half of 2024
July~~ July 2: Books with My Favorite Color on the Cover July 9: Throwback Freebie (Pick a TTT topic that has been previously done. Maybe you missed it, weren’t blogging then, or you’d like to update an old list you made. All previous topics are listed below.) July 16: Ten Things I Loved About [Insert Book Title Here] (Pick any book and tell us ten things you loved about it!) (submitted by Cathy @ WhatCathyReadNext) July 23: Debut Novels I Enjoyed (A debut novel is an author’s first published book. You could also choose to share genre or age group debuts if you’d prefer, such as an adult fiction author’s first YA book or a mystery writer’s first romance.) (submitted by Angela @ Reading Frenzy) July 30: Books I Wish Had More/Less [Insert Your Concept Here] In Them (for example: more/less romance, more/less world building, less info dumping, more/fewer pages, more character development, fewer characters, fewer descriptions, more suspense, etc.)
Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**
Thank you to Del Rey for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!
A young woman wins the role of a lifetime in a film about a legendary heroine — but the real drama is behind the scenes in this sumptuous historical epic from the author of Mexican Gothic.
1950s Hollywood: Every actress wants to play Salome, the star-making role in a big-budget movie about the legendary woman whose story has inspired artists since ancient times.
So when the film’s mercurial director casts Vera Larios, an unknown Mexican ingenue, in the lead role, she quickly becomes the talk of the town. Vera also becomes an object of envy for Nancy Hartley, a bit player whose career has stalled and who will do anything to win the fame she believes she richly deserves.
Two actresses, both determined to make it to the top in Golden Age Hollywood—a city overflowing with gossip, scandal, and intrigue—make for a sizzling combination.
But this is the tale of three women, for it is also the story of the princess Salome herself, consumed with desire for the fiery prophet who foretells the doom of her stepfather, Herod: a woman torn between the decree of duty and the yearning of her heart.
Before the curtain comes down, there will be tears and tragedy aplenty in this sexy Technicolor saga.
Content Warning: sexism, racism, violence, sexual assault, murder
I am always intrigued by what this author’s work and so I had to read this one. Hollywood in the 1950’s? The story of Salome? Mind you I grew up watching the story of John the Baptist in that big budget sword-and-sandal Hollywood movie called King of Kings and I will say the only thing I really remember from that movie is Salome’s dance for King Herod.
The Seventh Veil of Salome, is told in a documentary style. Various people who were around for the making of this movie, The Seventh Veil of Salome, are giving their accounts about what was going on on/off set. The actress playing Salome in the film is a Mexican woman named Vera. The story alternates actually from the documentary style interviews, narration from the main characters, Vera, Nancy and Salome. I did enjoy the story of Salome and the political happenings and how it compared to Vera’s experiences as a new Hollywood star in a big budget film where there are lots of politics and drama happening behind the scenes. I love all the historical context of this story – the Hollywood era, what happens on and off set, the mentions of sexism and racism that occurred in Los Angeles at that time period.
I found Vera to be a compelling character and one who embodied what a female actress was during that time. She’s a good girl, raised to follow authority and not make big waves and start a scandal, and being in Hollywood makes her come out of her shell because she is exposed to many people. She experiences the sexism and racism in the industry but she stays strong and stays a professional. There is a romance for her but it comes with some challenges.
Nancy was a fascinating character too though she is a hateful woman. She was obsessed about the role of Salome being hers and was totally racist towards Vera. Nancy had lots of issues and spiraled out of control and even though I really didn’t like her, I did enjoy her parts of the story. She was Vera’s opposite.
As much as I was enjoying the story, I felt like when the story ended something was missing and I’m not sure what it is. Maybe the alternating documentary style and Salome’s story didn’t flow easily enough for me or the climax didn’t hit hard like I was expecting. Or maybe because it’s not a happy ending for any of the women in the story.
My Thoughts:
As a historical fiction novel, this was an engrossing read because I could picture that time period and the making of this movie. I could actually see this story made into a movie. If you like this author I think you will enjoy this one!
What a week! It started off slow but then Wednesday came around and I got to see my old college friend and her family. We hung out at the beach and talked while our kids played in the sand and water. I haven’t seen her in 5 years and it felt SO nice to catch up with life. I love those friends where you don’t see for years and you pick up where you left off like you were never apart. 🥰 It just made my soul happy to see our kids together.
We hung out for almost three hours but my hubby flew in while we were at the beach so the kids were excited to go see him at home! So it was nice. It was so nice that my hubby and I both forgot the day he flew in was our 13th wedding anniversary LOL. Anyway it was a nice week and tomorrow my son goes to pick up his school schedule. It just makes us realize summer is coming to an end for us, only 2 more weeks left. That’s crazy. It’s going to be August. 🤯
The Undertaking of Hart and Mercy by. Megan Bannen (audiobook)
The Champions by. Kara Thomas
Shows/Movies/Music I Watched/Listened To:
House of Dragon
How was your week? Did you get a lot done? Watch anything good? Read any amazing books or books you didn’t finish? What are you reading?…Leave me a comment below!
Past Midnight Book Reviews & More 