Tag: book review

Blood Bound by. Ellis Hunter | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice Rating: 🌶️🌶️

Title: Blood Bound (Cursed Covenant, #1)

Author: Ellis Hunter

Pages: 485

Format: ebook (borrowed)

Publication Date: 4/28/26

Categories: Romantasy, Romance, Series


A debut high-stakes fantasy romance trilogy set against a once-in-a-generation duel to the death between rival witches and dragon riders as they battle to control the source of all magic in their kingdoms. Perfect for fans of Fourth Wing, Throne of Glass, and Quicksilver.

You duel or you die.

Astrid has always known she is destined to die. She is the last Nachstern witch and heir to the Queendom of Arturea, cursed by a centuries-old covenant to duel the heir to the Kingdom of Vatra for the source of all magic: the Heart. And now Astrid’s time is up. She is heading into enemy territory to face Prince Zryan, the most powerful dragon rider in eons, with only her familiar, her potions, and her wits to aid her. She is going to die, and any chance her queendom has of curing the Blight that’s ravaging the lands and killing her people will die with her.

Meanwhile, deep in dragon country, Skylar and her travelling troupe arrive in Vatra’s capital, ready to profit off the legions of spectators swarming to the city ahead of the duel. She despises the royals and all they stand for, especially as the King’s guard murdered her mother. But when her best friend disappears, suspected to have been taken in the conscription, her search takes her closer to the royals than she ever could have imagined.

As the duel looms over the kingdom, Skylar and Astrid’s fates intertwine. They must battle a growing rebellion, their inner demons, and ultimately, those they love most, to determine if together they will save—or doom—their world.

Content Warning: violence, death

World Building: A duel for possession of the Heart is about to take place between the witch princess, Astrid and the Vatra heir, Prince Zryan. Until plans change. This fantasy world is filled with magic, dragons, and familiars.

Characters: Princess Astrid has trouble casting her magic so she thinks she will die, because she can’t fight Zryan and his dragon. But when things change and Skylar (Zryan’s sister he never knew existed) becomes the one to beat well, the relationship between Astrid and Skylar is the main focus, which I enjoyed since they were opposites – destined to try and kill one another, but becoming friends instead. I did want more from Astrid though because she was training for this duel but she just seemed to be resigned to be the one to die. Zryan comes off like a heartless, cruel prince but there are layers to him too.

Romance: It’s an enemies to lovers and there is an instant attraction between Astrid and Zryan that they fight naturally since they are enemies. They can’t fight for long though and there is some spice between them. I did wish there was more build-up between them.

Story: This story is told with 2 POVs – Astrid gives us the insight into witches, their world, magic and familiars. Skylar gives us the POV of a citizen of Vatra who has been suffering in the kingdom, who hates the king, and wants better for the people. It’s got the usual romantasy factors like rebellion, and enemies to lovers. I enjoyed the familiars, Bastet, Astrid’s familiar was funny! But I do think the pacing was off for me, with some things being repetitive and it just made the story move slow. It took me a few days to read because I kept putting it down. It felt like a young adult book at times also, so that was throwing me off.

Final Thoughts:

It took me a little too long to finish this one because there were many times the story felt like it moved too slow, or felt like a young adult novel (but I was expecting adult). But I did enjoyed the second half much more than the first and I like the familiars. What I really loved was the friendship between Astrid and Skylar that grew even though they were supposed to kill each other. Despite the issues I had with it, I was still entertained but not sure if I would continue the series only because if felt to young adult when I was expecting adult.

Read if you like:

  • magic, witches
  • dragons and familiars
  • sisterhood
  • romance

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Caged by Fallen Crows: Part Two by. Ava Larksen | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Spice Rating:

Title: Caged by Fallen Crows: Part Two (Of Crows and Thorns Saga, #3)

Author: Ava Larksen

Pages: 330

Format: ebook (kindle unlimited)

Publication Date: 6/10/26

Categories: Romantasy, Series


The first threat looms—the Crowthers’ desperate need for a Goods Appraisal.

The Crowthers are running out of time.

They must secure a Horned God’s demand for a Goods Appraisal—and claim the god‑forged weapon Byron refuses to surrender, a crucial piece in their relentless path toward the Blacksmith.

There’s only one place certain to ignite a Horned God’s interest.

The Emporium.

A sinister, macabre bordello.

An underrealm of ruthless power, dark secrets, and decadent desire.

And the perfect arena to weaponize their leverage and force Byron’s hand.

But the Crowthers have forgotten one truth.

Nelle Wychthorn bows to no one.

Content Warning: violence

World Building: Back in this fantasy world where there are Gods, portals, and a young woman who is caught in this conflict between powerful families.

Characters: All I’ve been waiting for the past two books is for Nelle to get stronger and act on her rage, and for Graysen to get on his knees and fall for Nelle. 😅. Graysen is softening towards Nelle, he can’t help falling for her, but he is also in the way of his aunt’s revenge plans – so they need him out of the way. Nelle, is stewing in her rage but this girl is really trapped in this cage the Crowthers have her in. I’m just waiting for her to break out!

Romance: Graysen finally falls! It’s what I was waiting for since book one since most of their relationship was sexual. Nelle definitely feels for him but she isn’t saying it yet and I’m glad because Graysen and his family needs to do some therapy and begging for forgiveness with how they treat her! I’m still waiting for Nelle to go on her revenge tour. But I’ll settle for Graysen and Nelle to find happiness in some way with one another.

Story: Finally…this is what I wanted from book one – more plot and less smut. I don’t hate the smut, but I just wanted more storyline and we finally get it in this book. Graysen’s aunt is vile and wants him out of the way so she can basically do whatever she wants to Nelle. I didn’t even blame Nelle for doing what she does to Graysen’s brother! Graysen is on a mission for the Horned God Sirro, and I like that we get to know him better even more in this story – like his devotion to his best friend but him falling for Nelle also. Though we get close to figuring out what happened to Graysen’s mom, we still have nothing concrete. There is still more to learn about – especially with the mysterious group – Children of the Harbinger.

Vibes: Romeo and Juliet but with lots of revenge.

Final Thoughts:

Finally got more plot than smut in this 3rd book of this series. I will say this series so far has been addictive even though I didn’t love certain elements in book one. I have been hooked on Nelle and Graysen’s journey together as enemies to lovers. I don’t know how I feel about Graysen’s family – I know they are loyal and doing things to find his mom, and that’s devotion and love – but the things they do to Nelle, is unforgivable in my eyes so I am very eager to see how this ends! I still want to know more about certain parts of this story and hope we get all of it in book four.

Read if you like:

  • warring families
  • Gods
  • betrayal, mystery

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Other Books I’ve Read From This Author:

Caged by Fallen Crows: Part One by. Ava Larksen | Book Review – 3 stars/2 chilis

Bound in Inked Flame by. Ava Larksen| Book Review – 3 stars/2 chilis

Weekly Wrap Up | 6/14/26

Aloha friends!

I am BACK.

+ I was supposed to fly with my son, daughter and parents to the Philippines but the night before the flight my son came down with a bad cold. I thought okay…it’s just a cold, but then he was throwing up all night, and I couldn’t sleep worrying about him and knew I had to make a decision in the morning. My parents paid for this trip, so I couldn’t back all three of us out. Morning comes and my son has a fever so at least I had packed his bag separately the night before in case he wasn’t going to come. I was SO bummed, sad for him (he was sad) and me…but at least my hubby was already staying back to watch the dog – so I had to let go of my anxiety and prepare my daughter and I for the Philippines.

+ We landed in Manila after almost 11 hours and had to take a connecting flight to Laoag which is in the northern Philippines. It was hot, 91 degrees at night. At least the second flight was only 45 minutes. From there we were met with so much family and headed to the apartment we were renting out. For about 10 days we were in Laoag hanging out with so much family. I cannot understand or speak Tagalog (their national language), but in the north they speak Ilocano which I can understand but barely speak. It was HOT for most of the days but a week later we had nights of monsoon type rain, lightning and thunder! And some days there were scheduled power outages 🥵, but honestly it was just fun being with so much family. We went to Pagudpud, which is almost at the northern coast of the Philippines – gorgeous landscapes.

+ After time with family my cousins drove us down to Manila (an 8 hour drive). I was the one who wanted to spend some time in Manila but honestly once I was there, I was missing the cleaner air of the countryside! My mom and daughter caught something – my mom had a cold, my daughter I think was allergies because the air is so hazy in the city. And it was just so packed with people, I was trying not to get sick.

+ We didn’t realize another cousin of mine was visiting the Philippines also, so we visited her and she was about an hour outside of Manila in Laguna but she made us follow her to Tagaytay for lunch. There were gorgeous views from higher elevation – but it was traffic on those 2 lane roads. We then met more family who was in Manila! 😅

+ The day before our flight we planned to do a buffet lunch at the Okada which is basically like the Bellagio – they even have a fountain show! While we were exploring the resort my cousin said her son could get us an executive suite there for a really cheap price. She basically pressured my parents into doing it – but I wanted to do this before the trip even happened but I was overruled. Well they couldn’t overrule her haha, or felt bad doing it so we got to stay a night at the fancy hotel, which was lovely.

+ I was fine for the whole trip with some sinus issues here and there but of course, the hours right before the flight, my nose starts to drip and my throat starts to itch! I blame all the smoking in the casino at the resort. 😩. I felt like crap on the plane but it’s not like I haven’t been sick on a plane before. Thank god my daughter slept through almost the whole flight – she got to lay down since her brother’s seat was empty! But we made it back!

+ I’ve kinda been jet lagged, plus had to get over the cough which only lasted 2 nights – so it was definitely allergies. Now I’m catching up on my blog and social media accounts – I’ve been making a few mistakes here and there but I’m blaming the jet lag!!

Blog Posts:

Books I Finished

  • Beneath by. Ariel Sullivan
  • The Winged Game by. Sophie Kim
  • Deviant King by. Rina Kent
  • Caged by Fallen Crows: Part Two by. Ava Larksen
  • Blood Bound by. Ellis Hunter
  • Black River by. Ruby Jean Cottle
  • The Secret World of Briar Rose by. Cindy Pham

Currently Reading:

  • The False Vow by. Lydia Gregovi
  • You Won’t Forget Me by. Mazey Eddings
  • Light Wielder by. Rachel Schneider

Shows/Movies/Music I Watched/Listened To:

+ Every Year After (Prime Video) – I’m watching this one but it’s kind of slow so I stopped at episode 3. Will continue when I have more time.

+ Olivia Rodrigo – You Seem Pretty Sad For A Girl So In Love – this album is AMAZING. It’s on REPEAT and I need to get tickets to her tour. 😩 I need to hear it live and sing my heart out. I love EVERY song!!! My daughter who is 9 has loved her since GUTS (how did a 6 year old love All American Bitch? LOL…I don’t know but I think it’s the screaming she loves), I loved her since SOUR, my son also became more of a fan from GUTS. So yeah I need tickets…🙏🏽

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!

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Beneath by. Ariel Sullivan | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice Rating: 🌶️🌶️

Title: Fury Bound (Rebirth, #0)

Author: Ariel Sullivan

Pages: 464

Format: ebook (borrowed)

Publication Date: 3/24/26

Categories: Dystopian, Romance, Series


Hundreds of years before the Illum ruled supreme, humanity risked everything to rebuild after a devastating war in this explosive dystopian romance and prequel to Conform.

Twenty-three-year-old Sasha Cadell knows time is running out in the underground city, filled with survivors of the nuclear fallout six years ago. She works in the Expansion Sector, trying to escape the memories of those she lost. Her bleak existence is upended when Tristian Hayes, a stunningly handsome, frustratingly determined commander of the Force, recruits her to join him and his elite team of soldiers as they embark on a secret mission to the surface.

Sasha is thrust into brutal training with stakes far beyond mere survival. The fate of the remaining humankind depends on their success—or failure. As she confronts her own demons, Sasha finds both allies and foes in the training program, as well as a sizzling attraction between her and Tristian that threatens the walls she’s built around her heart.

But under the surface, secrets and deception run as rampant as illnesses. And not everyone will survive the rise of a power more terrifying than anything they’ve ever known.

Content Warning: violence, death

World Building: The world has been ruined and destroyed by war and radiation so the survivors created a city underground but resources are running out. Time is ticking on Haven and Tristian Hates and his Force is going on missions above to try to find resources – but he wants Sasha on his team to help them survive the missions.

Characters: Sasha has gone through tremendous trauma and loss. Now she’s called Death’s Angel because she was the one who always stayed by people’s bedside when they died or survived. She was at Tristian’s bedside too and now he wants her on his team as a medic to help them out. But Sasha doesn’t want to join a team, doesn’t want to get close to people because if you start to care, it hurts to lose them. Sasha is not as cold as everyone things though and Tristian is the hope for Haven. Tristian’s team is full of different characters and I got invested in all of them – they all have trauma but they fight for Haven. The found family trope in this story is a strong focused and I loved it.

Romance: Tristian falls first, for sure, but Sasha has trauma and is not someone who wants to get close to anyone. So theirs is a very slow burn, with some spice, but I felt for both of them. I wanted Tristian to break down her walls, but I also could sympathize with why Sasha kept her walls up. He’s a good guy and she had so much self-loathing she felt like she didn’t deserve someone good. I was definitely happy when they found some time together that made them escape the danger of their world for a little bit, but hope for an amazing love story for them.

Story: I love the setting and high stakes of this story – there was so much tension from start to finish and a sense of foreboding. I was emotionally invested in Sasha’s story but also the stories of Tristian’s teammates. It felt like there was no hope for Haven but Tristian’s faith in the mission really held his team together and even made Sasha believe for a little bit. I love Sasha’s journey – her grief was such a deep darkness she had to learn to climb out of, I just wanted to give her a hug. There are a few twists in the story but the ending is a twist I wasn’t expecting and wonder if there will be a book after this one, because I am emotionally invested in these characters! I know it’s the prequel to Conform, which I haven’t read yet because I’m waiting for my Libby hold to become available – but I’d love a sequel for Beneath especially after that ending.

Final Thoughts:

I was emotionally invested in this book from start to finish because Sasha’s story of loss and grief struck me so hard. There was so much tension and then Tristian’s faith in humanity was so hopeful. This story took me on an unexpected emotional journey and I want more!

Read if you like:

  • dystopian
  • journey through grief
  • found family

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

WWW Wednesday | 6/10/26

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?

I am back from my 2 week trip in the Philippines, and what a wild trip it was! It started off with my son being sick with a bad cold and fever the day of the flight to Philippines so I had to make a stressful decision and leave him behind with his dad (who couldn’t take off from work anyway?). So yeah…I was stressed and then trusted my hubby could handle things. Anyway I’m back – I did manage to read 3 books while on vacay and I’m still working on another one.

What are you currently reading?

The False Vow by. Lydia Gregovic – (alc) 12%

Blood Bound by. Ellis Hunter – 64%

You Won’t Forget Me by. Mazey Eddings – (alc) 21%

What have you just finished reading?

Black River by. Ruby Jean Cottle – (arc) ⭐️⭐️⭐️

The Winged Game by. Sophie Kim – (arc) ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/🌶️

Beneath by. Ariel Sullivan – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/🌶️🌶️

What are you going to read next?

Witch Season by. Julia Blanco

Caged by Fallen Crows: Part Two by. Ava Larksen

Dominion by. Jean Kwok

Light Wielder by. Rachel Schneider

Glow of the Everflame by. Penn Cole

Our Perfect Storm by. Carley Fortune

The Tempest Bride by. Danielle L. Jensen

What are YOU reading right now?

Monthly Wrap Up | May 2026

May is coming to an end and this post will be going up a little early because I will be in the Philippines for two weeks. I’m not sure wh

***edited on 6/11/26*** I didn’t realize this posted – it was not correct!! lol…so sorry, things were crazy at the end of May because I was rushing to go to the Philippines. So here is the edited version!!

I read 12 books in May!

Books I Read – 12 books

  1. This Book Made Me Think of You by. Libby Page 🎧
  2. Shadow Reaper by. Lynette Noni (arc)
  3. Curses, Keys, and Secret Societies by. Breanne Randall (arc)
  4. When the Light Returns by. Joanna Ruth Meyer (arc)
  5. Hart’s Landing by. Melanie Harlow (arc)
  6. Prince of Swords by. Elise Kova (arc)
  7. Fury Bound by. Sable Sorensen
  8. Game of Rogues by. Julie Anne Long (arc)
  9. Their Will Undone by. R.J. Valldeperas (arc)
  10. White Lights by. Lauren Kate (arc)
  11. Nobody’s Quest by. Alyssa Day (arc)
  12. Unbound by. Penelope Bloom

Reviews I Posted On My Blog: 17 Books

5 Star Reads – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

4.5 Star Reads – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

4 Star Reads – ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

3.5 Star Reads – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫:

3 Star Reads – ⭐️⭐️⭐️:

2.5 Star Reads – ⭐️⭐️💫

2 Star Reads – ⭐️⭐️

Book Tags:

Birthstone Book Covers: May – Emerald | 2026

Blog Tours:

Other:

How was your month?

Find me here: Instagram (bookstagram) | TikTok | Etsy

Weekly Wrap Up | 5/24/26

Aloha friends!

Another week is over and here’s what happened:

+ Last weekend I was in Palo Alto, California to see BTS at Stanford Stadium. It was quite an experience! It was the first time for me flying into San Jose Airport and I like how small and not busy it was – not sure if that is usual, but it was such an easy place to fly into. Our hotel was a small vintage boutique hotel, built in 1924, called the Cardinal Hotel and it’s close by to the University. It’s vintage but renovated and I loved the room, even though it had no a/c – it did have a ceiling fan. I love how walkable it was – it is basically in Silicon Valley so it was interesting seeing Waymo driverless cars everywhere!

+ The concert was an experience! It’s my second stadium concert this year. This one being at a university stadium – there was a lot of walking involved since we didn’t rent a car. I had to pick up my pre-ordered army bomb light stick, which was easy, it’s for my daughter, since I was going to dance and take some video during the concert. We didn’t even try for merch. I was not about to stand all morning to try and get a shirt. 😅 We got to the stadium but I told my sister we didn’t need to stand in the lines, it will go down. Plus it was hot in the sun, and DUSTY – I didn’t anticipate the wind and it kicking up all the dry dirt around the stadium. So we stood in the shade across the street from the lines until the gates opened and the lines went down. My sister even got a chance to go to the merch lines to see what they had left…she got me a shirt that only had 2XL for sizes lol…I can sleep in it. We got in easy, found our seats and waited. What was fun about waiting is people passing out freebies. My sister made some freebies to pass out also.

+ BTS was amazing – my sister is ARMY, but my daughter and I are casual fans. Doesn’t matter, I was dancing my booty off and singing as best I could. I just love concerts in general, it’s my stress reliever. Expensive, I know! Also my bias (favorite) is Jungkook because his voice and that man is beautiful. I also love Jimin and Jin. So I was ecstatic that Jungkook came down the ramp on our side. 🥰 I saw lots of kids, families, elderly at the concert, which I thought was sweet!

+ I tried to post some videos but for some reason they are saying it’s “private” on wordpress. 🤷🏻‍♀️. So here are a few pics of Jungkook and V. Anyway, a time was had. I was EXHAUSTED after the walk back to the hotel, plus why was the street cleaning vehicle out in full force on our hotel street at 11:30PM?! Like…why?!…so I slept I think around 12:30am, a very restless sleep because my body/legs were aching, and I was winding down from the concert. We needed to get up at 5am to catch our flight, once again so happy there was no traffic and it was a Monday, airport was small and quiet – easy to get through. And I knocked out on the plane.

Here are some of the freebies we got at the concert from ARMY – they are so sweet and creative! Like, the time and energy to make these or buy them, pack it up, and carry them around then pass it out – I’m so grateful. Overall, it was a fun experience/concert – my sister hadn’t gone to a concert in 15 years…and now she’s even more addicted to BTS. I’m more addicted to Jung Kook after that concert 😅.

I told my daughter on the plane, I’m done with concerts this year but honestly I really want to go to Olivia Rodrigo. 😩 Me and my kids love her and I lost the Ticketmaster war for that one. But maybe that’s a good thing because I need to get my money back up after Bruno and BTS. 😅

+ My youngest nephew graduated from high school yesterday! We went to attend the ceremony and give him leis afterwards.

We are leaving for the Philippines on Tuesday, and will be gone for 2 weeks! Can’t wait to see family and do a trip where it’s not a concert, standing in lines, being with thousands of people, and buying expensive merch. 😂 So this will be our real vacation – time to relax, chill and see family! Can’t wait!

Blog Posts:

Books I Finished

  • Nobody’s Quest by. Alyssa Day
  • Fury Bound by. Sable Sorensen
  • Their Will Undone by. R.J. Valldeperas
  • Game of Rogues by. Julie Anne Long

Currently Reading:

  • The False Vow by. Lydia Gregovi
  • You Won’t Forget Me by. Mazey Eddings

Shows/Movies/Music I Watched/Listened To:

+ I can’t wait for Olivia Rodrigo’s new album – and her single The Cure just came out. I LOVE it – it feels nostalgic and reminds me of the alternative/rock music I used to listen to as a teen in the 90’s.

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!

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WWW Wednesday | 5/20/26

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?

I am in recovery mode after my BTS concert weekend in Palo Alto, California this weekend. SO tired and achy but we had so much fun.

Now I have to pack for the Philippines! 😅

What are you currently reading?

The False Vow by. Lydia Gregovic – 12%

Game of Rogues by. Julie Anne Long – 1%

Their Will Undone by. R.J. Valldeperas – 8%

What have you just finished reading?

Fury Bound by. Sable Sorensen – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/🌶️🌶️

Nobody’s Quest by. Alyssa Day – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/🌶️

White Lights by. Lauren Kate – arc – ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫/🌶️🌶️

What are you going to read next?

There is so much I want to read! Hopefully I can get some reading done on my two week trip in the Philippines! I’ll have these on my kindle for sure and then some.

You Won’t Forget Me by. Mazey Eddings

Black River by. Ruby Jean Cottle

Witch Season by. Julia Blanco

The Winged Game by. Sophie Kim

What are YOU reading right now?

Fury Bound by. Sable Sorensen | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Spice Rating: 🌶️🌶️

Title: Fury Bound (The Wolves of Ruin, #2)

Author: Sable Sorensen

Pages: 608

Format: ebook (own)

Publication Date: 5/5/26

Categories: Romantasy, Romance, Fantasy, Series, Wolves


Revenge demands sacrifice. Don’t miss this action-packed, jaw-dropping, dark and romantic sequel to Dire Bound.

CROWNED BY DESTINY. CONSUMED BY VENGEANCE.

Against all odds, Meryn Cooper has inherited the crown—and a deadly war. As the Kingdom of Nocturna splinters under the weight of generations of lies, it is up to Meryn, her bonded direwolf Anassa, and their allies to bring the country back from the brink.

But the commoners, the Bonded, and the nobles are distrustful of their new queen and Meryn is caught in a deadly game of politics. Meanwhile, Meryn’s beloved younger sister, Saela, is more at risk than ever.

Confusingly, the one person Meryn can trust is Stark Therion—the dark, dangerous Alpha she thought hated her as much as she loathed him. Yet, his loyalty is unshakeable. His presence is intoxicating. And with his guidance, Meryn can seize an unthinkable level of power.

With enemies closing in and shadows stirring in her dreams, Meryn stands to lose her kingdom—and her heart.

Blood will spill. Bonds will break. Fate will be tested.

Content Warning: violence, death

World Building: Back in the world of Dire Bound, Meryn needs to prove she can be the new queen of Nocturna. But Killian isn’t giving up his throne that easily. Meryn doesn’t stay put in Nocturna though because there is a quest in this story. It brings her, Stark and her crew across the last to Astreona where we get to learn more about Siphons (vampires). So there is a lot of travel in this story but I like that the world is opened up, especially when it comes to learning about Siphons and gods and goddesses.

Characters: Meryn is trying to assert herself as queen even if she doesn’t really know what she is doing – but there are a lot of challenges in the way. One challenge is to convince the packs to stay with her, which is tough because many are loyal to Killian. Also, Stark’s mother, comes in and takes over things, trying to assert her authority while Meryn is new to being a queen. So Meryn has a lot to deal with, along with figuring out how to help her sister who is now a Siphon. I hope there is still more growth because some of her actions were questionable. Stark is true to his word and sticks by Meryn’s side throughout everything and their relationship grows a lot but something happens that will make book three very interesting. I think one of the new characters I enjoyed a lot was Lucien, who is King of Astreona and a Siphon.

Romance: There is romance because it’s hard for Meryn and Stark to deny the bond and yes there is spice, but I didn’t feel like they had chemistry for some reason. Maybe I just wanted more banter between them or more scenes, just more build-up? More tension, more yearning – Not sure. I am glad they got together, but I was expecting more. Now what happens in book three after the ending though? We shall see!

Story: I thought it started well, with Meryn trying to figure out how to convince people to accept her rule. But Killian is a problem and then the story goes in a new direction with the Siphons, gods and goddesses. I didn’t mind where the story went and actually thought Lucien was an interesting character and the whole quest of finding Tears was interesting. There is more politics, and the world opens up. But I do feel like the pacing was off a bit. There were times I was into the story and then some moments it lost me so I would put it down to come back to it. I also didn’t like how some characters were being killed off – because I didn’t feel the emotions of the loss from Meryn. I think overall the story lacked emotionally connection. The ending is a plot twist I wasn’t expecting and not sure that I love but I guess we’ll see what happens in book three.

Final Thoughts:

I think this sequel was solid and there were some things I liked and others I didn’t. I think what it was missing most for me was emotional connection. Also, I was expecting more from the romance and though I like that it progressed, I felt like the tension and yearning was missing. I did enjoy the politics, and how the world building opens up. The ending is a very interesting plot twist that I don’t really love, but I’m willing to read book three to see how it plays out.

Read if you like:

  • wolves and vampires
  • romantasy
  • political intrigue

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Other Books I’ve Read From This Author:

Direbound by. Sable Sorensen | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Weekly Wrap Up | 5/17/26

Aloha friends!

Another week is over and here’s what happened:

+ I hope everyone who celebrated had a good Mother’s Day last weekend – I totally forgot to do a post for that day! 🤦🏻‍♀️ I’ve just been so consumed with my trips – right now I’m in Palo Alto, California to see BTS perform at Stanford Stadium tonight! But my Philippines trip is right after and I’ve been stressed trying to figure out packing, etc….also not knowing what to expect because my parents have planned this trip. I’m excited to see so many family I haven’t seen in decades, plus my grandmother who is 103 years old. It will be nice to see her and have her meet my kids!

+ So this week I’ll just be packing and probably not get a lot of reading done. I guess this means I’ll be gone from this blog for 2 weeks. I’ll have things pre-posted like reviews and Top Ten Tuesdays, I think. But essentially won’t be answering comments. I’ll do that when I get back.

Blog Posts:

Books I Finished

  • White Lights by. Lauren Kate
  • Prince of Swords by. Elise Kova
  • Hart’s Landing by. Melanie Harlow
  • When the Light Returns by. Joanna Ruth Meyer

Currently Reading:

  • The False Vow by. Lydia Gregovi
  • Nobody’s Quest by. Alyssa Day
  • Their Will Undone by. R.J. Valldeperas
  • Fury Bound by. Sable Sorensen

Shows/Movies/Music I Watched/Listened To:

+ Off Campus (Prime) – I read the books 10 years ago when they came out so all I remember is Hannah and Garrett because he was the hotshot, popular hockey guy. Also remember Dean because he was the naughty one always sleeping around. Other than that I’m glad I don’t remember everyone and everything so I wasn’t comparing details to the books! Overall I enjoyed it – but I did find myself drawn to John Logan’s character and I love Dean and Allie’s chemistry.

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!

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