Tag: book review

WWW Wednesday | 7/2/25

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sam over on Taking on a World of Words.

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?

Where has June gone? I don’t think I’m ready for the second half of the year!

What are you currently reading?

Wrath of Dragons by. Olivia Rose Darling (Fear the Flames, #2) – 20% don’t know why this one is going too slowly for me.

Soul of Shadow by. Emma Noyes – 4%

A Steeping of Blood by. Hafsah Faizal – 8%

Once a Villain by. Vanessa Len – 1% just started

What have you just finished reading?

The Knight and the Moth by. Rachel Gillig – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Tricks of Fortune by. Lina Chern – ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Of Flame and Fury by. Mikayla Bridge – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Homemade God by. Rachel Joyce – ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Bewitching by. Silvia Moreno-Garcia – ⭐️⭐️⭐️

What are you going to read next?

A Theory of Dreaming by. Ava Reid

Heir of Storms by. Lauryn Hamilton Murray (just waiting on my fairyloot copy but it might come in 2 weeks)

Roots of Darkness by. Demi Winters

The Executioners Three by. Susan Dennard

A Land So Wide by. Erin A. Craig

What are YOU reading right now?

Weekly Wrap Up | 6/29/25

Aloha friends!

Another week is over and here’s what happened:

+. Went to lunch with the whole family to celebrate my nephew turning 20!

+ Started to do some back to school shopping for my kids since they go back in August – summer is going by so fast for them.

Blog Posts:

Books I Finished

Currently Reading:

Wrath of the Dragons by. Olivia Rose Darling

Soul of Shadow by. Emma Noyes

Roots of Darkness by. Demi Winters

Shows/Movies/Music I Watched/Listened To:

  • K-pop Demon Hunters (Netflix) – why was the ending tragic?! Ugh. Loved the music!
  • We Were Liars (Amazon Prime) – trying to see if I remember anything of the story, since I have an arc of the sequel to read this year.
  • The Buccaneers (Apple TV+) – of course they only show one episode a week when I’m so used to binging shows. But I do love that I have something to look forward to and I enjoy this show!

Videos I Posted to Youtube:

My May monthly reading wrap up video which is SUPER late I know. There was just too much happening in May and June to put together a video, but I did it before June came to an end. 😅

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!

Instagram | Tiktok | Youtube

The Knight and the Moth by. Rachel Gillig | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice: 🌶️

Title: The Knight and the Moth (The Stonewater Kingdom, #1)

Author: Rachel Gillig

Format: hardcover (own)

Pages: 400

Publication Date: 5/20/25

Categories: Fantasy, Romance, Gothic


Sybil Delling has spent nine years dreaming of having no dreams at all. Like the other foundling girls who traded a decade of service for a home in the great cathedral, Sybil is a Diviner. In her dreams she receives visions from six unearthly figures known as Omens. From them, she can predict terrible things before they occur, and lords and common folk alike travel across the kingdom of Traum’s windswept moors to learn their futures by her dreams.

Just as she and her sister Diviners near the end of their service, a mysterious knight arrives at the cathedral. Rude, heretical, and devilishly handsome, the knight Rodrick has no respect for Sybil’s visions. But when Sybil’s fellow Diviners begin to vanish one by one, she has no choice but to seek his help in finding them. For the world outside the cathedral’s cloister is wrought with peril. Only the gods have the answers she is seeking, and as much as she’d rather avoid Rodrick’s dark eyes and sharp tongue, only a heretic can defeat a god.


Content Warning: violence, drowning

+ The Knight and the Moth is set in a time of knights, cathedrals, omens, kings and really embodies an eerie gothic vibes from start to finish. I love the mystical nature of the diviners and creatures like sprites. Whenever I put the book down, I couldn’t stop thinking of it and wanted to pick it up again. The whole of the story is very creative, imaginative, and refreshing. I do feel like at times the story was like a fever dream.

+ Sybil or Six, is a diviner. She wears a shroud over her eyes and is drowned in order to give a divination. As the story progresses she uncovers secrets and truths about how she came to be a diviner. It’s quite a journey that Sybil goes through in this story and her story isn’t over yet.

+ When Sybil meets the King and his knights, they eventually form a found family between her, her gargoyle Bartholomew, Rory, Maude and Benji (the young king). I did also like her found family with the other diviners that was present in the beginning of the story, only going by numbers as names like One, Two, Three, etc. This found family is what journeys with Sybil through many quests and obstacles, and I love how close they get.

+ There is a romance between Sybil and Rory and it’s enemies to lovers but I feel like it was more dislike to like. Rory’s a rogue knight, he’s trying his best but he doesn’t make the best knight and Sybil, well he gets under her skin and she can’t stand that. The moment their mutual feelings turn to like though, it becomes a sweet romance between them. I like how Sybil is almost as strong as Rory, she is not a fragile maiden. They are perfect for one another.

+ I really enjoyed how mysterious and mystical this story unfolded. And I found the ending emotional with Bartholomew’s story telling and the twist that occurs at the end. Speaking of Bartholomew, the gargoyle is so funny! I love him. I love how he brought humor to this otherwise dark tale. I also enjoyed the themes about gods, false gods, and power.

~ I think the only minor issue I had with the story is when they are battling the living Omens. Some of them were really good and filled with action like the Oarsman. But the one with the chime happened so fast and was anticlimactic.

Final Thoughts:

This is definitely a gothic fantasy with romance, and not a romantasy. If you are going into this thinking it is a romantasy then you will be disappointed. I loved how imaginative and refreshing this story felt. I didn’t read this book in one day, it took me about four days and I’m kind of glad I read it slowly. I was more immersed in the world and characters and the setting while I read it slow. I enjoyed this one a lot, especially that silly gargoyle Bartholomew! Also, I got the hardcover of this book with the sprayed edges and can I just mention how gorgeous this book is? I can’t wait to see what happens in the sequel!

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Other Books I Read From this Author:

One Dark Window by. Rachel Gillig | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Two Twisted Crowns by. Rachel Gillig | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

WWW Wednesday | 6/25/25

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sam over on Taking on a World of Words.

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?

It’s been a chill week and I’m finally making headway into The Knight and the Moth! I probably would have been done with it if it was an ebook but with hardcovers I actually have to find daylight hours to sit and read it. But it’s summer and when I sit and read, my daughter likes to start talking to me 😅🥰. So many July releases are coming out soon and I think I have 6 July arcs to finish still! I had 19 arcs for July to finish. It was a little too much on top of the books I was borrowing from Libby and books I was buying. 🫠

What are you currently reading?

The Knight and the Moth by. Rachel Gillig – I’m at chapter 9! It’s good so far!

Wrath of Dragons by. Olivia Rose Darling (Fear the Flames, #2) – this is an arc and I’m 14% in. Haven’t made a dent in this one.

The Homemade God by. Rachel Joyce – 20% in – kind of not feeling this one but I’m pushing through

Tricks of Fortune by. Lina Chern – 17% in

Of Flame and Fury by. Mikayla Bridge – 25% – Phoenix racers – pretty cool!

Soul of Shadow by. Emma Noyes – 4%

What have you just finished reading?

Summer in the City by. Alex Aster – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

You Between the Lines by. Katie Naymon– ⭐️⭐️⭐️

House of Hearts by. Skyla Arndt – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Warrior Princess Assassin – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

What are you going to read next?

This list hasn’t changed since I went on vacation! I will be getting to these soon!

A Theory of Dreaming by. Ava Reid

Heir of Storms by. Lauryn Hamilton Murray

The Bewitching by. Silvia Moreno-Garcia

Roots of Darkness by. Demi Winters

What are YOU reading right now?

Weekly Wrap Up | 6/22/25

Aloha friends!

Another week is over and here’s what happened:

+ This week went by kind of fast as I took the time to recover from my trip. Plus there are two kids to kind of entertain so we’ve been going out to the mall, hitting some arcades, and my daughter has all these art projects she wants to do so we’ve been working on that. My son is I think FINALLY kicking the remnants of the cold or virus he caught at the end of May. I’m bummed that he’s been congested for almost a whole month! He only has 7 more weeks of summer vacation left. It’s kind of crazy to think summer vacation is so short now.

+ I definitely miss being on vacation and having buffet breakfasts all week! 😅 Back to cooking for the family.

Blog Posts:

I didn’t post much this week it seems!

Books I Finished

Currently Reading:

Throne of Secrets by. Kerri Maniscalco

The Homemade God by. Rachel Joyce

Wrath of the Dragons by. Olivia Rose Darling

You Between the Lines by. Katie Naymon – audiobook

The Knight and the Moth by. Rachel Gillig

Shows/Movies/Music I Watched/Listened To:

Videos I Posted to Youtube:

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!

Instagram | Tiktok | Youtube

Summer in the City by. Alex Aster | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice: 🌶️🌶️

Title: Summer in the City

Author: Alex Aster

Format: hardcover (own)

Pages: 304

Publication Date: 3/25/25

Categories: Romance, Contemporary, Rom-Com


Twenty-seven-year-old screenwriter Elle has the chance of a lifetime to write a big-budget movie set in New York City. The only problem? She’s had writer’s block for months, and her screenplay is due at the end of the summer.

In a desperate attempt at inspiration, Elle ends up back in the city she swore she would never return to, in an apartment she could never afford (floor-to-ceiling windows, skyline views, and a new coffee shop to haunt included). It’s the perfect place to write her screenplay…until she realizes her new neighbor is tech “Billionaire Bachelor” Parker Warren, her stairwell hookup from two years ago. It’s been a lovers-to-enemies situation ever since.

When seeing him again turns into a full night of hate-fueled writing, Elle realizes her enemy/twisted muse might just be the key to finishing her screenplay… if she can stand being around her polar opposite. She writes anonymously, and he’s on the cover of every business magazine. He frequents fancy red carpeted events, and she doesn’t like leaving her emotional support five block radius.

One summer. One wall apart. He needs to fake a buzzy relationship during his company’s precarious acquisition. She needs to write a movie around a list of NYC locations. Both need a break from their unrelenting schedules, and a chance to rediscover the skyscraper glimmering, pizza crusted, sunlit charms of the city.

Summers always end, and so will this agreement. It’s all pretend. Promise.

Until it isn’t.


Content Warning: parental illness/death

+ I finally read my copy of this book and I’m glad I saved it for summer because I was definitely in the mood for it now.

+ Elle is an anonymous, famous screen-writer who hates New York City even though she went to college at Columbia. But it gives her bad memories of her mom being sick, so college wasn’t easy for her. She also had a fleeting moment with a stranger in a club who ended up being a very famous tech billionaire but she also has bad memories of that too, only because he came off like he wanted to buy her time. Fast-forward a few years and she bumps into him again but this time he convinces her to fake-date him for PR reasons and it will be his one free summer before his company gets sold and he gets busy.

+ I love how the fake-dating and Elle’s screen-writing project takes them all over New York City. The book transported me to the city and made me think of my own fond memories of the one trip I took there years ago. It’s definitely place that feels like anything can happen and the author captures that.

+ Parker is a green-flag fake boyfriend! Even if he came off like he was a jerk in their first meeting, every meeting after that showed how he was a nice guy. I loved him. As for Elle, she’s not going to be likable to many readers because she’s cynical and mad at Parker for nothing. She has major trust issues because of how her dad treated her mom. I can see why she is the way she is. I liked seeing these two people take the summer to get to know one another and it is a slow burn. All the spice comes near the end!

~ This was almost a 4-5 star read for me and then the fake-dating contract ends abruptly, because of Elle and that’s not the only conflict. There is another moment where Elle pulls away again, but I get why because things were happening too soon, too fast and too much, but she so tested my patience. Those two break-ups was unnecessary and brought my enjoyment of the book lower. Parker is a saint for being as patient with her as he was. I get that she had issues but this guy clearly is in love with her and wants to give her the world, patience and understanding that she doesn’t think she deserves. It could have ended perfectly with a happy ever after, but those two moments just ruined it for me.

Final Thoughts:

I saw that this book was going to made into a movie and I think it will be great as a rom-com film because of how it’s set in NYC. Even though I didn’t love the break-up moments, I still think overall this is a fun, perfect for summer reading, rom-com book. I also think I like this author’s contemporary book more than her fantasy series, and will be interested to see if she writes more.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Other Books I Read From this Author:

Lightlark by. Alex Aster | Audiobook/Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Enigma by. RuNyx| Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice: 🌶️🌶️

Title: Enigma (Bloodwing Academy, #2)

Author: RuNyx

Format: ebook (Kindle Unlimited)

Pages: 463

Publication Date: 4/29/25

Categories: Dark Romance, Dark Academia, Gothic


Enigma, a twisted Hades and Persephone meets scorching dark academia romance—a tale of love and obsession between two rivals.

There are secrets she must uncover.

There are secrets he must keep.

Salem Salazar is fascinated with death. The black sheep of her scandal-ridden, wealthy family, she arrives at Mortimer University as a legacy on the hunt for answers about what happened to her perfect, older sister. There, she discovers that her sister is far from the only girl to have gone missing at Mortimer. Salem will do anything to discover what dark forces are killing Mortimer’s students…even if it means using herself as bait.

And Cazimir van der Waal has caught her scent. The mysterious artist and teaching assistant has a dark past, a hidden agenda, and a ravenous appetite for a beautiful, golden-eyed girl who seems determined to risk her life.

Where she is ice, he is fire. Where she is organization, he is chaos. Where she is precision, he is passion. Together they are explosive–their fates linked as secret societies and death stalk them both.

Enigma is a sensual, epic love story for those who also crave the frightful, the puzzling, the suspenseful, the dangerous and the dark.

Welcome to Mortimer.

Enigma
*Dark academia romance
*Steamy suspense
*Rivals to lovers
*Secret societies
*Forbidden love


Content Warning: death, mentions of suicide,

I have never read a book by this author and finally got this one since it was on Kindle Unlimited:

+ Our main male character Caz is a tortured soul, he’s a TA, an artist with a pencil always in his hand but he’s got anger issues. When he zeroes in on Salem, it’s over, he is possessive and wants her bad. Salem has the same attraction towards him, but she really wants to wipe that smirk off his face. She can’t stop wanting this bad boy artist.

+ I do think this book was more romance focused but I didn’t mind because I thought Salem and Caz’s relationship was really addicting. He’s filled with passion and anger and she balances him even though she has a cold and icy personate, inside she’s really not and they complimented one another. His possessiveness is kind of toxic but it works out for them! It is spicy but nothing too overboard.

+ The atmosphere was gothic and dark academia which I enjoyed a lot. It was perfect for the mystery of the deaths on campus and rumors of a secret society. I also thought some side characters were really interesting and wanted to see more of, like Baron.

~ Didn’t really see the rivals to lovers between Salem and Caz. Caz is a teacher’s assistant, so I feel like they weren’t really competing for anything in class, maybe the scholarship? But even with that it wasn’t like they were in a fierce competition for it.

~ This story was more focused on the romance, and I feel like it needed more when it came to the mystery of the deaths and secret society department. Salem is studying criminology and I didn’t think she did much with the investigation except for a few things. Baron and Caz kept things really hush hush and there wasn’t a lot of information coming from them either.

Final Thoughts:

I wasn’t sure how I would like this one but it was a nice little escape and I enjoyed the dark romance between Caz and Salem. I also liked the dark academia setting, I just wish there was more about the secret societies and maybe a little more suspense.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

WWW Wednesday | 6/18/25

WWW Wednesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sam over on Taking on a World of Words.

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?

My trip to South Korea was AMAZING. I had so much fun, it felt too short but wow, it felt like a real vacation – only because vacationing with my kids and husband feels like I’m not on vacation haha, I’m still in caretaker mode…but this shopping tour with my sister was relaxing, even with all the walking we did because tours can be strenuous but it was good exercise for me. I needed that! We met some really fun retired ladies (I hope to be traveling like them when I’m their age!). It felt like I went outside and as the kids say today “touch grass”. 😅 It felt so nice to let my mind let go of responsibilities for a week. SIGH…take me back! I didn’t get much reading done (it was actually nice to take a break from that too), but I did manage to read one book on the trip.

What are you currently reading?

The Knight and the Moth by. Rachel Gillig – I will focus on this one this week.

Summer in the City by. Alex Aster – same reason as above

Wrath of Dragons by. Olivia Rose Darling (Fear the Flames, #2) – this is an arc and I’m 14% in.

The Homemade God by. Rachel Joyce – 20% in

Tricks of Fortune by. Lina Chern – 17% in

What have you just finished reading?

A Spell to Wake the Dead by. Nicole Lesperance – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Enigma by. RunYx – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

A Magic Deep & Drowning by. Hester Fox – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Where the Library Hides by. Isabel Ibañez – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫 (audiobook I finished before vacation)

What are you going to read next?

This list hasn’t changed since I went on vacation! I will be getting to these soon!

A Theory of Dreaming by. Ava Reid

Soul of Shadow by. Emma Noyes

Heir of Storms by. Lauryn Hamilton Murray

The Bewitching by. Silvia Moreno-Garcia

What are YOU reading right now?

Weekly Wrap Up | 6/15/25

Aloha friends!

Another week is over and here’s what happened:

+ I had two Saturdays yesterday. I ended Saturday in Haneda International Airport in Tokyo, boarded our flight home at 9pm, Saturday. And landed in Hawaii at 9:45am, Saturday. So I was all messed up and dealing with jet-lag!

+ I was in Seoul, South Korea all week – and I LOVED it. What a fun tour group we had, a mix of retirees, families, some seniors (which was kind of hard on them with all the walking). But it was a great group!

  • Making our own Tal Masks (to ward of bad spirits/ghosts) at the Bukchon Art Center – made this one for my hubby! Then a walk through the neighborhood, it had lots of hills but loved the old traditional Korean houses.
  • DDP (Dongdaemun Design Plaza) – we had a chance to explore, while most of the group went shopping in the area.

  • Cheonggyecheon Stream – my sister and I at this really pretty stream.
  • Gyeongbok Palace – my sister and I again at the palace. It was a warm day, glad we brought our umbrellas for shade but wow did I sweat and my feet were killing me after this long day.
  • Girls in the Hanbok dresses at the palace! They looked so pretty!
  • After the a day of going to the stream, Gyeongbok Palace, the National Folk Museum and the Blue House and walking a LOT – we were all so hot and tired BUT we still had one more thing to do. We had a cooking class with Food & Culture Korea. The woman who runs this class, Ellie is the food styler for shows like Squid Game (Season 3), Pachinko on Apple TV and other K-drama shows. She is amazing, full of energy and so much fun! We learned to cook japchae (we cooked this) and bulgogi (we watched a demo). Everything was delicious and we got a copy of the recipes and a certificate with our names written in Korean on it.
  • For one of our free days on the tour, my sister and I booked us hair appointments at Juno Hair in Myeongdong (I think she says there are 3 of them in that area alone). We had a haircut at the scalp treatment which was over a fun and relaxing experience! Judy (@juno_judyy on instagram) my stylist was the sweetest. Then we did a LOT of shopping before m sister had a facial at Muse Clinic. I sat and waited with all our shopping bags. After dropping the bags off to the hotel we ended the day with dinner at bhc Chicken to eat some fried chicken and my sister had beer.
  • Our last free day we went back to Namdaemun Market (which is across from our hotel, the Courtyard by Marriott Seoul Namdaemun. We did our last minute shopping, but we also checked out the smaller palace up the street called Deoksugung. It was another day of a lot of walking but we ended the night with our last tour group farewell dinner which was a buffet.

It was such a great trip, and I definitely want to go back again to explore even more!

Blog Posts:

I didn’t post much this week it seems!

Books I Finished

A Spell to Wake the Dead by. Nicole Lesperance

Currently Reading:

A Magic Deep & Drowning by. Hester Fox

Throne of Secrets by. Kerri Maniscalco

The Homemade God by. Rachel Joyce

Wrath of the Dragons by. Olivia Rose Darling

Shows/Movies/Music I Watched/Listened To:

  • Movies I watched on the airplane:
    • Wicked
    • 27 Dresses
    • My Best Friend’s Wedding
    • Inception (but I fell asleep for parts of it)

Videos I Posted to Youtube:

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!

Instagram | Tiktok | Youtube

Weekly Wrap Up | 6/8/25

Aloha friends!

Another week is over and here’s what happened:

+ Today I fly out to South Korea with my older sister and we’ll be gone for a week. It sucks to lose time traveling, because it’s a day ahead there so even though we leave on Sunday we get there Monday night. So we’re only really there for 4 real days to explore. Then fly back on Saturday! Hopefully I’ll have some interesting things to post about South Korea next Sunday.

+ My son’s piano recital is today and I’m sad I’ll miss it. He is still getting over a cough, so I hope he does okay. I know he’ll do great.

+ Did my annual breast MRI on Wednesday and everything looks good – thank god! Being in an MRI machine is like being in a rave lol…it’s so loud and the beats are thumping. I always choose Taylor Swift for my playlist in there but this time around I could barely hear the music and at one point something was tickling my nose – grrr…and you can’t move for like 25 minutes! But I got through it…at least I don’t have to worry about it for another year.

+ My son picked up his new Nintendo Switch 2! He saved money for and he’s been having a blast playing the new Mario Kart game. And yes he has been sharing it with his sister, but she’s not as much as a gamer as he is. Her ipad is still her favorite thing to play Roblox on. Though she does have my old switch, which I actually want back because I want the Hello Kitty game! 😅

I hope you all have a great week!

Blog Posts:

I didn’t post much this week it seems!

Books I Finished:

I haven’t been in the mood to read much – maybe because I had so much to do before my trip.

Where the Library Hides by. Isabel Ibañez (audiobook)

Currently Reading:

Smoke and Scar by. Gretchen Powell Fox

Throne of Secrets by. Kerri Maniscalco

The Homemade God by. Rachel Joyce

Wrath of the Dragons by. Olivia Rose Darling

Shows/Movies/Music I Watched/Listened To:

  • Addison by. Addison Rae – I need a few more listens but I love New York and Diet Pepsi

Videos I Posted to Youtube:

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!

Instagram | Tiktok | Youtube