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?
One week ago it was Christmas Eve and now it’s New Year’s Eve!! Well friends, what a year it’s been right? I’ve had ups and downs, but throughout it all, I had books. I hope all of you have a Happy New Year!!!
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?
Merry Christmas Eve (to those who celebrate)! We have a potluck with family tonight, so that should be fun. Tomorrow we have Christmas lunch at my mom’s house, and then on Friday we will go to Shabbat service because it’s my father-in-law’s anniversary of his passing. So it’s a busy few days but this is it – the rush will be over. And then I have to get gifts for my daughter’s birthday which is on the first weekend of January. 😅
I was so busy the past week that I forgot to do a WWW Wednesday post for 12/17 and a Weekly Wrap up on 12/21!
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 was a busy weekend, which I thought led into an okay Monday, I did have stuff to do but I got a lot of reading done. Then yesterday was busy like I didn’t expect 😩 it’s that holiday “spirit” – busyness 😅.
BTW I am having fantasy fatigue I think – I was reading two books at the same time and both books had a side character named Kole, both were set in academia, both had magic – it’s all starting to blend. 🫠 Which means I need more palate cleansers! Please leave me any recs below that isn’t Fantasy or Dark Academia! lol
Dawn in Ruins by. Magda Mizzi – 1% I was gifted this by the author but I’m kind of not in the mood to read a covid/dystopian book. I’ll try it again after Christmas.
Song of the Stars by. Kaiti Mills – 42% – she’s an indie author and I saw her book on tiktok so I wanted to try it. It is very magical and kind of a cozy fantasy right now, so a bit too slow moving for me even though the characters are on a quest.
Mate by. Ali Hazelwood – 4% – but I think I’m going to return, not because I don’t like it, I just started, but I think I’ll be getting the audiobook in a few weeks and I could finish it faster that way.
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?
Happy December! I’m trying to catch up as much reading as I can and trying to stay ahead of my arcs, woohoo! So far, I’ve been doing good and almost finished with January arcs and will be starting on February arcs. I can’t believe I’ve been on top of it!😅.
I think because I’m ahead of my arcs, I have been reaching for anything and everything on Kindle Unlimited that I’ve been wanting to read. Or just new titles I’ve been seeing here and there on socials or just looking on Amazon. I like that I have this “free” time to read. I really should also tackle my hardcover books but I only have 2 that I haven’t read yet.
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 Thanksgiving tomorrow so Happy Thanksgiving to all those who celebrate! I got asked to read some books from a few indie authors and since I have time in my schedule (done with my December arcs yay!), I’m going to give these a try. I might even be done with my January arcs soon! I did tell myself not to go overboard on NetGalley for 2026 so let’s see if I can stick to that goal.
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 Brimstone week! And that’s all I’ve been reading since it released. 🤭
I think everyone is counting down to Thanksgiving Break – or is that me? I don’t know why but lately it’s just so hard waking up when it’s still dark out. Yet I’ve been doing that like clockwork for awhile now. I don’t know why this year it feels harder to wake up – I just wanna sleep in. 😅
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 mid-November and I finally slowed down with reading because I don’t have as many arcs for December! So now I’m going to work on January arcs and hardcovers on my shelf, and some Kindle Unlimited books. It would be nice if my Libby holds would appear lol…now that I have time!
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?
We are in November and I only have one arc to finish for this month since I finished most of them in October. So I will be starting on my December arcs and maybe January ones too since my month is wide open! I’m also excited to read some non-arc books! I downloaded a few from Kindle Unlimited, so we’ll see how those go.
Also, I’ve come so far in my audiobook listening journey. I used to hate it – only could get through 2 a year, sometimes only 1. I thought it was too slow, sometimes the voices I just couldn’t vibe with. But now that I know I can speed it up faster than 2X (yes it took me 2 years before knowing this LOL 😆) – I’ve been on a roll and actually finding some 5 star reads because of it. So I’m patting myself on the back for keep trying with audiobooks. I love them!
Categories: Fantasy, Dark Romance, Revenge Fantasy
Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**
Thank you to FEIWEL for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!
There’s a shortage of men in the kingdom of Amarra. After a failed rebellion against the matriarchy, most noblemen in the country are dead. Now the women of Amarra must obtain their husbands (should they want one) by kidnapping them from other kingdoms.
Olerra, a warrior princess vying for the throne, is determined to prove her worth by kidnapping a husband. And not just any husband. To outmaneuver her treacherous cousin, she needs the best. Fortunately, the second-born prince of their greatest enemy is widely known for both his looks and his sweet, docile temperament. He’s the perfect choice to secure her claim to the throne.
Sanos, heir to the Kingdom of Brutus, has nothing but contempt for the idea of a society run by women. Trained from birth to fight, lead, and follow in his father’s overbearing footsteps, his path has always been set. Until he takes his younger brother’s place in a drunken prank and finds himself kidnapped, carted off to the Amarran Palace, and informed that he is to become the husband of Queen Potential Olerra. Sanos needs to escape before anyone learns his real identity, but the more he gets to know his captor, the less sure he is of what he truly wants.
Content Warning: violence, physical abuse, mentions of sexual assault, kidnapping, dubious consent, auctioning/selling men/children, mentions of grooming and underage sexual partners, animal death, penis guillotine
+ I went into this arc, seeing the reviews for it online being very polarizing. People either love it or hate it and it made me very curious as to why. The world building is different – especially for a romantasy. We hear romantasy and think certain tropes, but this is most definitely a reversal of the gender roles and this is a dark romantasy. Olerra is from the kingdom of Amarra where the women are in power. And I don’t mean they just are the rulers of this place, oh no, they housebreak their men – yes, that’s what the call it. Men are the subordinate, they are the househusband, they are used for breeding, they are punished if out of line, they are the whores, and they are the ones being bought. Personally, I thought it was very eye opening and I wanted to see how this story played out.
+ Olerra, as a character, she’s powerful. She fights with men, wins against them, she’s a commander of the military, she’s a big woman and she’s ambitious. I kind of got a kick out of her husband-hunting/kidnapping and being the one to save him in the end. Is she perfect? No. Because she does punish Sanos, put him on display, plays on his lust for her – but this is a role reversal, this is how Olerra has been raised. Readers of dark romance have seen similar scenarios take place in the traditional roles of men and women. The man doing the kidnapping, displaying the woman, etc…so it was really fascinating to see Olerra do all of this to Sanos, who is not a weak man himself. He’s a warrior and fighter just like her, and she emasculates him so she can be viewed as powerful among her people.
+ I like how this book bent my brain because I’m so used to the usual gender roles in all the romantasy I read – and I read a LOT of them. So this book was so good at challenging my thoughts on what I’m used to reading, things I just readily accept about female and male characters. I thought Amarra being a mirror to the Brutes was interesting. The society in Amarra is the result of men doing what they do to women – but instead of flourishing as an open society (which they do – they accept different sexualities), they treat the men as women have been treated. They treat criminals like an eye for an eye – male rapists get their privates removed. The women don’t seem to have evolved but are carrying out revenge. Instead of Amarra’s women taking the high road and saying, this won’t happen here – they do it full force, exactly what’s been done to them, because that’s “what fury brings“. But not going to lie, I was kind of scared for these men!
+~ There is spicy scenes and one that includes bondage. So it’s spicy but might also make some readers uncomfortable because of dubious consent.
~ This is marketed as a romantasy but I felt like the romance was under-developed. It’s enemies to lovers, clearly – the enemies being very obvious, Sanos has been kidnapped and is being forced to marry Olerra. It’s definitely Stockholm Syndrome but again…I’ve read this in regular romance and didn’t mind it. He eventually has feelings for her but I felt like it was all lust. Would have loved to see some tender moments between them, that shows that feelings, more than lust, were growing.
~ Please heed the trigger warnings – this is a dark romance. Stockholm syndrome anyone? There are mentions of grooming, buying young boys and it’s gross and uncomfortable.
~ I kind of wanted to see at the end how Olerra and Sanos would rule Amarra and Brutish because they both win their crowns so would book two show progress as Sanos points out things Olerra can change in Amarra and vice versa? I’m very curious! I did feel Olerra did exactly say all the things she would change as Queen, she mentioned not being as cruel as her cousin. But that doesn’t mean much. Would also like to see Sanos change some things in Brute.
Final Thoughts:
This is a dark romance fantasy where the gender roles have swapped in Amarra and women in take their revenge on men. I like that it was like holding up a mirror to how men treat women but it doesn’t mean what they are doing in Amarra is right. Men sell young women in many dark books – well the Amarran women sell young boys in this book. It’s ugly, but I think that is the point of the mirror. Men do it…but women could do it too. Sanos basically falls for his kidnapper – but we’re not new to stories like this, are we? Nope. Just new to who does the kidnapping and who is doling out punishment in this book. Either way, it’s wrong to live like this or behave this way and I think that’s what I got out of this story. Now there were many uncomfortable moments in this story but I also found it a quick read and there were even some funny moments. So I think you have to read this one at your own risk, read some reviews on this one, and definitely check out the trigger list before going into it. Overall, I found it a fascinating read but did want more out of the romance and maybe see both main characters commit to doing more to change how their kingdoms treat people.
Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**
Thank you to Little, Brown Books for Young Readers for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!
A propulsive, electrifying and enraging retelling of the life ofGreek goddess Hekate, child of war turned all-powerful goddess of witchcraft and necromancy, by internationally bestselling poet Nikita Gill.
Born into a world on fire, Godling Hekate has never known safety. After her parents are on the losing side of the war between the ruling Titans and new Olympian Gods, Hekate is taken by her mother Asteria to the Underworld, where Styx and Hades agree to raise her. Meanwhile, Asteria is pursued across the world by Zeus and Poseidon and, to escape their clutches, transforms herself into an island in a stormy sea.
Orphaned and alone, Hekate grows up amongst the horrors and beauties of the Underworld, desperate to find her divine purpose and a sense of belonging in the land of the dead.
When Hekate finally uncovers her powers and ascends to Goddess status, she realises that even the most powerful Olympians are terrified of her. But when immortal war breaks out again, threatening to destroy everything from Mount Olympus to the Underworld itself, the Goddess of witchcraft and necromancy is the only one who can bring the deadly conflict to an end. . .
Content Warning: violence, separated from parents
+ When I started reading this arc and realized it was poetry – I was hesitant on how much I was going to enjoy this because I don’t read poetry and so I was really unsure about this. But I’m surprised to say, for someone like myself who read Greek mythology retellings and it’s a hit or miss, mostly miss – the way this one is written really worked for me! It’s written in verse and then some parts in paragraphs.
+ Greek mythology is not my favorite thing and I don’t know why. I like knowing what they are gods and goddesses of but to remember all their stories? I just never was interested. But I requested this book because this was about Hekate and I didn’t know much about her. And the title says The Witch and I was intrigued. I love how this book sucked me in with Hekate telling her story from when she was a child to when she is grown.
+ I loved Hekate’s journey. She’s a child of Titans and it touches on the war between the Titans and Olympus, and then later on where Olympians fight the giants and ask for Hekate’s help. I loved her growth and getting to know her power with necromancy. I love that she was a witch and had an apothecary.
+ I thought her relationship with Styx, who is basically her adoptive parent was complicated. Styx wanted to protect her but Hekate only naturally had questions and wanted to be stretch her boundaries. The story touched on the sacrifices mothers make and I related to that.
~ The poetry and verse worked for me but I know that it won’t for everyone.
Final Thoughts:
If you love Greek mythology, definitely give this one a read. I enjoyed it a lot and I’m not someone who loves Greek mythology. But I love Hekate’s story and I’m glad I learned more about her.
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