Better Than Revenge by. Kasie West | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Title: Better Than Revenge

Author: Kasie West

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 320

Publication Date: 12/31/24

Publisher: Delacorte Romance

Categories: Romance, Contemporary, Young Adult

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 Romance for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

A swoony new romance from the author of Sunkissed! When her football-player boyfriend and now ex lands the podcast job she’s been dreaming of, a girl takes matters into her own hands by enlisting the help of his nemesis to get revenge.

Seventeen-year-old Finley has only ever had one to become a famous podcaster. This includes coming up with the perfect pitch to land her on her school’s podcast team. But when her football-obsessed boyfriend, Jensen, decides to also try out—and uses her idea—she’s left confused and betrayed.

Determined to get back at him, Finley and her friends try to find the perfect revenge scheme, but quickly discover that Jensen is almost-impossible to best. Keyword, almost.

By chance, Finley discovers a knack for kicking and decides to take Jensen’s spot on the football team. To help her train, she recruits Jensen’s cute but conceited nemeses, Theo. Soon the two discover that their connection runs deeper than football. But Finley can’t let herself get distracted, and Theo has secrets of his own. Is true love really better than the perfect revenge?

I haven’t read a Kasie West book in awhile! Here are my thoughts:

Likes:

+ Finley is out for revenge because he boyfriend took the podcast spot at school that she was trying for. I didn’t blame Finley at all for her revenge plot because her boyfriend, or should I say ex, was really a jerk. Throughout the whole book he was taking her ideas, making her feel like she wasn’t good enough and that sucked a lot. But I liked her journey with trying to figure what she wanted to do after her dreams were crushed and making things right in the end.

+ One of the cutest things in this story though is Finley’s relationship with her grandmother who has the beginning stages of Alzheimer’s. Finley does a podcast interview with her throughout the story and I love how it’s how she bonds with her grandmother and shows off her talent with podcasting and interviewing people.

+ Finley’s friends are really the best. They are with her even when this revenge plot goes into uncharted territory and when she messes up sometimes they don’t shut her out but they work it out. I loved Max!

+ The romance between Finley and Theo (her ex’s rival) is really cute. Theo is the popular guy with a reputation. Theo and Finley have really good chemistry when it comes to being rivals, then friendship and then into a romance. I like how they pushed one another to be better. I thought the way it paralleled somewhat with her grandma’s romance story was super cute!

Dislikes:

~ I did not like Jensen. And Finley wasn’t perfect, especially with her desperately wanting to get back at him so bad – but I can understand where she is coming from. Jensen, not so much, he was just a jerk.

Final Thoughts:

This story has heartfelt moments between family and friends and there is a cute romance Theo and Finley. It’s a quick read and teens and young adults will enjoy this one, especially if you have read other books by this author.

Find me here: Instagram (bookstagram📚) | Instagram (crafts🎨) | Twitter (X) | Etsy (Shop)

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Other Books I’ve Read From This Author:

Maybe This Time | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Dating and Dragons by. Kristy Boyce | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Title: Dating and Dragons

Author: Kristy Boyce

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 336

Publication Date: 12/31/24

Publisher: Delacorte Romance

Categories: Romance, Young Adult, D&D, Contemporary

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 Romance for giving me a chance to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

From the author of the nationally bestselling Dungeons and Drama comes another gaming romance that’s sure to win you over!

After moving to a new high school, Quinn is desperate for friends, so she joins a D&D group with their own livestream and serious rules—most no dating fellow party members.

But when sparks fly with a cute but irritating player, and ex-friends from an old campaign start stirring up trouble, she’ll need to figure out where her loyalties—and heart—lie beyond the game.

Content Warning: bullying, cyberbullying

I LOVED Dungeons and Drama, and so I though I’d read this one by the same author. Here are my thoughts:

Likes:

+ If you like Dungeons & Dragons (the game), you will probably enjoy this book. I’m neutral about it. I loved it in the previous book because it combined the game and the drama kids. I think this one is just most about D&D, which gives me more insight into the game.

+ The romance is cute, Quinn has joined a D&D group but one person in the group, Logan, doesn’t seem to want her there. It’s only because he doesn’t want his attraction to her to disrupt the group. Also Quinn is trying not to let her past haunt her.

+ The friend group was fun and I thought Quinn’s grandma was quite a personality!

Dislikes:

~ I’m an older reader, so I might just be too old for this kind of book now but there were some angsty, dramatic stuff that made me laugh. This one is definitely for the teen readers!

~ I thought it was interesting how for the most part the attraction is held back but when they couldn’t fight it anymore, Logan was saying some heated stuff and I thought, whoa this guy is 16? That was a little off to me.

Final Thoughts:

Can I just say I love whoever did the book cover for this book and the last one? This is what some of the adult romance books need for their cover art, especially when they do the cartoonish designs. Overall, I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I loved Dungeons and Drama but I think teen readers will really like this one!

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Other Books I’ve Read By This Author:

Dungeons and Drama by. Kristy Boyce | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

A Song to Drown Rivers by. Ann Liang | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Title: A Song to Drown Rivers

Author: Ann Liang

Format: eBook (Kindle Unlimited)

Pages: 325

Publication Date: 10/1/24

Categories: Historical Fiction, Romance, Politics

Inspired by the legend of Xishi, one of the famous Four Beauties of Ancient China, A Song to Drown Rivers is an epic historical fantasy about womanhood, war, sacrifice, and love against all odds.
Her beauty hides a deadly purpose.

Xishi’s beauty is seen as a blessing to the villagers of Yue—convinced that the best fate for a girl is to marry well and support her family. When Xishi draws the attention of the famous young military advisor, Fanli, he presents her with a rare opportunity: to use her beauty as a weapon. One that could topple the rival neighboring kingdom of Wu, improve the lives of her people, and avenge her sister’s murder. All she has to do is infiltrate the enemy palace as a spy, seduce their immoral king, and weaken them from within.

Trained by Fanli in everything from classical instruments to concealing emotion, Xishi hones her beauty into the perfect blade. But she knows Fanli can see through every deception she masters, the attraction between them burning away any falsehoods.

Once inside the enemy palace, Xishi finds herself under the hungry gaze of the king’s advisors while the king himself shows her great affection. Despite his gentleness, a brutality lurks and Xishi knows she can never let her guard down. But the higher Xishi climbs in the Wu court, the farther she and Fanli have to fall—and if she is unmasked as a traitor, she will bring both kingdoms down.

Content Warning: violence, death

I’ve heard lots of good things about this book so when I saw it on KU I had to read it.

This is a really fascinating historical fiction story about Xishi, one of the most beautiful women in China, and I had never heard about her and her legendary beauty but I was engrossed with this tale.

Xishi is telling this tale about how she has had a rough childhood because of the war between the Yue and Wu. And we learn she is the most beautiful girl in the village and that draws the attention from a military advisor from the Yue side. They want to use her to infiltrate the Wu kingdom, make the king fall so deeply in love with her that they won’t know what hit them when the Yue attack. But can she do it? This girl from a lowly village with the most beautiful face?

I thought the training part of the book went super fast and wish it was more detailed. I wasn’t confident in Xishi’s skill to woo a king at the end of her training. At times I felt her character was so weak, I wasn’t sure how Fuchai would become obsessed with her, but he does. She must be that beautiful but I wanted more from her personality. Also I felt like Zhendang’s story fizzled out too fast – she poses as Xishi’s lady’s maid but I felt like she barely had a role when they are at the Wu’s.

The romance that built between her and Fanli was filled with so much tension, angst, longing even if they don’t have many scenes together. Maybe it’s a bit of insta-love but I don’t mind it with how things were taking place for Xishi.

And even though King Fuchai of the Wu was the enemy I liked how he and Xishi interacted with one another. She had to pretend to like him but I think eventually she did, at least as a friend. It was just sad all around how everything ended but I love how this story showed how war is something created by the powerful and everyone else is a bystander and gets caught in the crossfire.

Quotes from the Book:

“When men say they want a lover, what they often mean is they want a mirror; they wish to see themselves reflected back at them in the best light.”
Ann Liang – “A Song to Drown Rivers”

“The men will fight for their thrones and their power and their legacies, but to them we are nothing more than crickets and ants, insignificant, expendable.”
Ann Liang – “A Song to Drown Rivers”

Final Thoughts:

This story is tragic but so compelling. I love how the story was told and how everything unfolded with some twists and turns that I was not expecting. At times I did want more from the characters and the political drama but it was still entertaining. The bravery of Xishi to basically go into a lion’s den to try and take down the opposition was inspiring but her realization who the true enemy was came too late. The love story is filled with such longing – oh the heartbreak! I thought this was a great read and look forward to reading more from this author.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Not Here to Be Liked by. Michelle Quach | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Title: Not Here to Be Liked

Author: Michelle Quach

Format: eBook (Kindle Unlimited)

Pages: 384

Publication Date: 9/14/21

Categories: Young Adult, Romance, High School, Feminism

Emergency Contact meets Moxie in this cheeky and searing novel that unpacks just how complicated new love can get…when you fall for your enemy.

Eliza Quan is the perfect candidate for editor in chief of her school paper. That is, until ex-jock Len DiMartile decides on a whim to run against her. Suddenly her vast qualifications mean squat because inexperienced Len—who is tall, handsome, and male—just seems more like a leader.

When Eliza’s frustration spills out in a viral essay, she finds herself inspiring a feminist movement she never meant to start, caught between those who believe she’s a gender equality champion and others who think she’s simply crying misogyny.

Amid this growing tension, the school asks Eliza and Len to work side by side to demonstrate civility. But as they get to know one another, Eliza feels increasingly trapped by a horrifying realization—she just might be falling for the face of the patriarchy himself.

Content Warning: misogyny, bullying, sexism

Eliza has being Editor in Chief for the school newspaper, the Bugle, in the bag…or so she thought. Plans change when Len challenges her for the spot and wins.

Eliza’s a pretty strong character but not really likable. She kind of has tunnel vision when it comes to the Bugle – her whole life is about the Bugle. Eliza marches to the beat of her own drum. She is tenacious and doesn’t back down even when bad things happen, which I loved about her but she definitely had flaws. It’s nice that she represents the immigrant family and I like how it showed how children of immigrant parents they have to do things like help their parent with filling out forms or making phone calls because of the language barriers. I could relate to some of that!

The romance is very interesting. I can’t say I loved Len at first but I actually like how he calls Eliza out so many things. Both Len and Eliza had imperfections which I liked a lot and it’s very much a rivals to lovers trope but I loved that both of them weren’t totally likable – but they still made a cute couple by the end of the story.

Feminism, and sexism is a main theme of the book and though Eliza’s stances are strong, I thought it was interesting how different situations start too complicate her original feelings on these issues. I do wish she could have avoided that conflict with her best friend by just being honest.

Quotes from the Book:

“Because everyone loves a girlboss until she tries to tell you what to do.”
Michelle Quach – “Not Here to Be Liked”

Final Thoughts:

The more I learned about Eliza and Len, they grew on me and I was rooting for the romance by the end of the book. I like how the story touched on feminism, sexism and being a child of immigrant parents. I thought this was an entertaining story.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Blood of the Gods by. Sapir A. Englard | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Title: Blood of the Gods (Cloak of the Vampire, #2)

Author: Sapir A. Englard

Format: eBook (Kindle Unlimited)

Pages: 315

Publication Date: 11/19/24

Categories: New Adult, Romance, Urban Fantasy, Paranormal

From the creator of the Millennium Wolves series comes the heart-stopping sequel to Cloak of the Vampire, the epic romantasy set in a brutal world of bloodthirsty and power-hungry vampires.

Aileen Henderson didn’t choose to die. That choice was stolen from her, brutally, at the hands—and lips—of a monster. With a singular kiss, Lord Ragnor Rayne condemned the twenty-one-year-old to an eternity she never wanted. And a future she refuses to accept.

Despite the fury now coursing through her veins, Aileen fights the pull of attraction to Ragnor, a need with a will of its own. But now, she’s determined to make her way without the vampire lord’s help.

Carving out her new existence, Aileen finds allies, even family, among the ruthless and competitive vampire leagues. But untold dangers abound, and soon, Aileen encounters new and more evil monsters.

When ancient, all-powerful gods dredge up nightmares from her past, Aileen discovers she has an important role to play in this world. And if she can learn to control her powers and her desires, she may find a way to survive both her enemies and Ragnor Rayne.

Content Warning: violence, death, mentions of rape and child abuse

This story takes on a turn from vampire lore to the Morrow Gods and Children of Kahil which is something mentioned in book one in connection to Aileen’s background. But that’s not the only part of the world-building opening up. We learn more about the Jinn and I believe the seraphim (angels) are mentioned as well but I think that will be explored more in book three.

As far as the story goes – Aileen goes to a new league and at first she seems like it’s an okay place to be, except she finds her new lord, Atalon, is not as benevolent as he seems. We do get more information of Aileen’s upbringing and it is dark. Makes me sad and angry for her child-self that she was exposed to such depravity by her father.

The romance between Aileen and Ragnor hits a rough spot because he’s let her go to Atalon but wants her back. She wants to make Ragnor pay but she can’t resist him so it’s predictable and I wasn’t really invested in their romance during this story. I was much more interested in the new characters being introduced and the world-building opening up. The spice is there again but I don’t know, I just don’t connect to their relationship. But Ragnor being a vampire and Aileen being who she is seems like it’s going to be complicated for them to be together.

Final Thoughts:

I did like how the world opened up but I didn’t feel invested anymore in Aileen and Ragnor’s romance. I think I can figure out what will happen from here at least with their romance. I am curious to see what happens with the world-building in book three but I’m not sure I’m eager to read it. It might be one of those books I’ll wait to read and pick up if I don’t have anything else to read.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Other Books I’ve Read By This Author:

Cloak of the Vampire by. Sapir A. Englard | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Cloak of the Vampire by. Sapir A. Englard | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Title: Cloak of the Vampire (#1)

Author: Sapir A. Englard

Format: eBook (Kindle Unlimited)

Pages: 349

Publication Date: 6/18/24

Categories: New Adult, Romance, Urban Fantasy, Paranormal

From the author of The Millennium Wolves series comes the hauntingly romantic story of a young woman’s descent into a League of vampires, and the Lord who means to keep her there.

Aileen Henderson’s unassuming life conceals a dark past. Outside of work, she hides behind her larger-than-life best friend, Cassidy, whose constant need for attention suits Aileen—and her secrets—just fine.

Until the night Aileen dies.

Awakening to a new world of brutality, bloodlust, and betrayal, Aileen plots revenge against Ragnor Rayne, the monster who cursed her with the Imprint. The demon who turned her into a vampire. The man whose eyes haunt her dreams.

She is going to make this vampire Lord regret the day he kissed her with the curse of immortality and made her his. If she can survive the Auction, and resist temptations of the flesh…

Content Warning: violence, death, mentions of rape and child abuse, trafficking

I needed a palate cleanser book and thought to read this one about vampires. I really enjoyed the world-building about Vampires and their different Leagues around USA. Instead of vampires going around changing people, there is an exclusive list that humans can try to get on to be changed into a vampire. I like the choice in that! Of course then comes along Aileen. There are other things in this world that will probably be more explained in book two.

Aileen is a very mysterious character – someone playing a role to erase whatever is in her past. And her past is DARK. Super dark because her dad was a convicted rapist and child abuser – and those topics made this one at times a bit too dark to read. But because she’s keeping her past secret, we get bits and pieces here and there and still not even the full story by the end of this book.

Ragnor is her Lord – the vampire that changed her. And of course right away there is an attraction between them which I really enjoyed since I was looking for an easy, smutty read filled with tension. But then Aileen’s messed up feelings about attachment started to test my patience and honestly I do not blame her much because she comes from a very MESSED up childhood. Like…it’s bad. I wanted to put her back into therapy – she needs therapy more than falling for a vampire! Ragnor also got his own issues about falling in love.

The leagues are like academies (I love academies) but a lot of the academic parts are weak. Like their fighting classes kind of sucked – did anyone improve? And the friendships in Aileen’s life are SO bad. It made me angry for her but also…that’s what she did choose on purpose which also made me angry AT her. LOL. Yeah it was messy but I was there for the drama. At times it felt young adult – but the spiciness definitely makes it new adult.

Final Thoughts:

This one is spicy with very dark topics. I like the world building a lot with the different vampire leagues. I think Aileen is a very interesting character and we shall see what develops for her story – she has a scary past but I kind of want her strong and cold like she claims. Ragnor has definitely brought out her needy, attachment side and I don’t love it. Lots of people will love the romance between Aileen and Ragnor – it’s spicy, full of some angst on her part but they are definitely a work in progress. I was definitely entertained. I’m reading book two now because I am so curious about the other creatures in this world building.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Darkness Within Us by. Tricia Levenseller | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Title: The Darkness Within Us (The Shadows Between Us, #2)

Author: Tricia Levenseller

Format: eBook (Kindle Unlimited)

Pages: 336

Publication Date: 7/9/24

Categories: Young Adult, Romance, Fantasy, Series

Chrysantha Stathos has won.

By hiding her intelligence and ambition behind the mask of a beautiful air-headed girl, she has gathered important secrets, earned her father’s constant care, and become a wealthy duchess—all by age nineteen. Now, she is only one elderly, dying duke away from having all the freedom, money, and safety she’s ever wanted.

Or so she thought.

Turns out her little sister somehow snatched the true victory away from her: Alessandra is wedding the Shadow King, the most powerful man in the world. Meanwhile, after the death of Chrysantha’s no-good, lecherous husband, a man claiming to be the duke’s estranged grandson turns up to inherit everything that should be hers.

Chrysantha is enraged. There is no way that she’s going to let some man take everything from her. Never mind that he’s extremely handsome and secretive and alluring with mysterious powers… No, Chrysantha wants Eryx Demos dead, and in the end, a Stathos girl always gets what she wants.

Content Warning: violence, death, misogyny, abuse, murder

I didn’t love The Shadows Between Us when I read it 4 years ago. But The Darkness Within Us, I did like! Chrysantha, like her sister Alessandra, is a very strong young lady who has plotted, murdered, and poisoned to try and get her way. She does get what she wants but only for a moment, because Eryx Demos, her late husband’s true heir comes to take it all from her.

I loved the enemies to lover romance between Chrysantha and Eryx. She is a woman on a mission, and he is a man full of secrets. I love their interactions because I found her character so compelling. She’s beautiful, but clearly flawed and also I loved that in this book Chrysantha and Alessandra try to finally make amends. I didn’t love their relationship in book one and I had my reservations about it in this book but I think it was nice to see them trying to understand one another (although I didn’t quite trust either of them). They have such an uncomfortable relationship but I guess that can be relatable. They have more in common than they realized though.

Although I loved the romance, I was bummed that this was young adult and not new adult. The potential steamy scenes are fade to black and honestly with characters like Chrysantha who is taking lovers and taking what she wants, I was looking forward to a little spice. But this has very mild spice.

Final Thoughts:

My favorite part of this book was when Chrysantha and Eryx were driving one another crazy. I did like Eryx’s secret and how Chrysantha and her sister starting to mend their relationship. I really enjoy the feminist stance of the two sisters – they are not the perfect, nice, abiding females but have had to do what needed to be done to survive the world they live. Women are considered the weaker sex but not according to Chrysantha who will do anything too have power of her own. I wish there was more spice but it’s a young adult novel and I still enjoyed it.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Other Books By this Author:

The Shadows Between Us | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Blade of Secrets by. Tricia Levenseller | Book Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Bloodguard by. Cecy Robson | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️

Title: Bloodguard (Old Erth, #1)

Author: Cecy Robson

Format: eBook (Kindle Unlimited)

Pages: 448

Publication Date: 10/22/24

Categories: Romance, Fantasy, New Adult, Elves, Gladiators

One hundred years. Tens of thousands of gladiators. And today, only one will rise…

Everything in the Kingdom of Arrow is a lie.

Leith of Grey thought coming to this new land and volunteering to fight in the gladiator arena—vicious, bloodthirsty tournaments where only the strongest survive—would earn him enough gold to save his dying sister. He thought there was nothing left to lose.

He was wrong—and they took everything. His hope. His freedom. His very humanity.

All Leith has left is his battle-scarred body, fueled by rage and hardened from years of fighting for the right to live another day.

Then Leith meets Maeve, an elven royal who is everything he despises. Everything he should hate. Until the alluring princess offers him the one thing he needs most: a chance to win the coveted title of Bloodguard—and his freedom.

But in a kingdom built on secrets and lies, hope doesn’t come cheap.

Nor will his ultimate revenge…

Content Warning: violence, death

This story is set in an interesting world of gladiators, elves, trolls, ogres and other fantastical creatures. The fights in the arena are brutal but Leith is close to winning the title of Bloodguard. He’s doing it for his family back home. Maeve is a princess who wants the throne but there are many people in her life blocking her path, like her uncle and cousin. There is a lot of politics going on and Maeve is trying to get back the throne but she barely has any power. I mean she was getting physically hit a few times by these despicable men around her. I was so angry for her. Also this story doesn’t hold back on death – there is a lot of it.

Leith is a gladiator, violent but honorable. He and Maeve fall for one another and I thought their love and relationship was very sweet. I love how he is this big protector of a guy. Maeve has her moments of fighting also but she’s a sweetheart and cares for the people in the kingdom. The two of them made a great couple.

I had some issues with the pacing of the story. There were fight scenes which were somewhat exciting in the beginning but I did skip the ones in the end. Then Maeve’s political battles would take over with her uncle and she just came off weak at times and naive. She has a good heart yes, but I was hoping she would be smarter when judging her uncle and his character. I expected more from the political intrigue but it fell flat. Soro, her cousin is the worst human being, and I was satisfied with what happened to him.

I also needed more from the world-building. There are so many different types of creatures in this world, but I never felt like I was immersed in this world.

Final Thoughts:

I thought this one had promise but I found myself skipping a bunch of the gladiator fighting parts by the end even though it’s supposed to make me more emotional towards the plight of Maeve and Leith’s situation. The fighting is brutal – actually many things in this book is brutal, but for some reason, I didn’t feel immersed in it emotionally. I also wanted more from the world-building. I did love the romance between Leith and Maeve though. I like how they are opposites and find something beautiful in their feelings for one another. Overall, it was mostly entertaining and we’ll see if I pick up book two. I did like how it ended and I’m not sure what will happen in the next book.

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

A Monsoon Rising by. Thea Guazon | ARC Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Title: A Monsoon Rising (The Hurricane Wars, #2)

Author: Thea Guanzon

Format: eBook (NetGalley)

Pages: 400

Publication Date: 12/10/24

Publisher: Harper Voyager

Categories: New Adult, Romance, Fantasy, Sci-Fi, Series

Disclaimer: **I received this book free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

Thank you to Harper Voyager for giving me a chance to read this eARC in exchange for an honest review!

Two hearts circle each other in the eye of the storm in this highly-anticipated follow-up to The Hurricane Wars—prepare for more enemies-to-lovers romance, magical adventures, and political schemes in this Southeast Asian-inspired world.

After a lifetime of war, Alaric and Talasyn were thrust into an alliance between their homelands that was supposed to end the fighting; however, being married to their sworn foe feels far from peaceful. Now Talasyn must play the part of Alaric’s willing empress while her allies secretly plot to overthrow his reign. But the longer the couple are forced together, the harder it becomes to deny the feelings crackling like lightning between them. When the time comes to act, can she trust him, or must she ignore her heart for the sake of so many others?

As the master of the Shadowforged Legion, Alaric has trained for battle all his life, but marrying a Lightweaver might be his most dangerous challenge yet. With tensions between nations churning, he needs to focus on the greater threat—the Moonless Dark, a cataclysmic magical event that could devour everything. Only he and Talasyn can stop it, with a powerful merging of light and shadow that they alone can create together. But saving their world from this disaster is a mere preface to his father’s more sinister schemes, and his wife is a burning flame in the darkness, tempting both his loyalties and his desires.

The Hurricane Wars aren’t over. It’s time to choose what—and who—to fight for. The world holds its breath amidst a whirlwind of new magic and old secrets that could change everything.

Content Warning: death, violence, war

I enjoyed the first book in this series called The Hurricane Wars. I wasn’t sure what would happen in book two but here are my thoughts:

Likes:

All my stars for this book is for the romance. Oh my, their marriage of convenience has them bickering, and then the slow burn turns into an actual inferno that ignites between them. It’s my favorite part of the whole book, Talasyn and Alaric and their spicy scenes! I think I love them so much because even when their in the throes of passion, Talasyn tries to still take the upper-hand and I think it’s so funny to see how Alaric reacts. They are definitely falling for one another but fighting it so hard.
As for the story around the romance, it is such a tricky situation for both. It’s truly an enemies to lovers romance because they both are in it for their own country but they will have to make a choice – they can’t always be enemies, can they? This fighting can’t keep going on especially since what’s happening to Talasyn and Alaric is going to complicate things.
It’s such a mix of fantasy and sci-fi but so far I think it works to make it a very unique world.
We get to see more of Alaric’s relationship with his evil father. His father is a horrible man so it will be interesting to see how Alaric breaks free of him.

Dislikes:

Honestly, I was so invested in Talasyn and Alaric’s romance that I felt like everything else took a back seat, which I didn’t mind but I can’t tell you much about what’s happening plot-wise to the story. I was always rushing a chapter to see if Talasyn and Alaric were in it. But there is a choice the both of them have to make.

My Thoughts:

I didn’t expect all the spice in this book but I loved it! Talasyn and Alaric together are so fun because she’s a spitfire and he calls her on it but adores that about her. They are such opposites. Now we just have to see them accept that they are falling for one another. As for the story, it will be interesting to see how Alaric deals with his father’s influence on his life. I’m so looking forward to book three!

Find me here: Instagram (bookstagram📚) | Instagram (crafts🎨) | Twitter (X) | Etsy (Shop)

Book Links:

Goodreads | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

The Hurricane Wars by. Thea Guanzon | ARC Review ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Hate Mail by. Donna Marchetti | Book Review

My Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️💫

Title: Hate Mail

Author: Donna Marchetti

Format: eBook (Kindle Unlimited)

Pages: 355

Publication Date: 3/14/24

Categories: Romance, Contemporary, Penpals, New Adult

Naomi and Luca have been pen-pals since fifth-grade. Well, more like bitter rivals caught in an epic battle of insults and verbal jousting…

But what starts as a hilarious chain of hate filled letters, slowly develops into a friendship spanning coasts and years. That is until one day, years later, when the letters suddenly stop.

It’s been two years since Naomi last heard from Luca. Two years since the letter that changed everything.

But when a new envelope turns up out of the blue at her desk at the local news station, Naomi is determined not to let Luca have the final word.

Content Warning: stalking

I’ve been seeing this all over my Amazon page and it was on Kindle Unlimited so I decided to read it. Here are my thoughts:

Likes:

+ Penpals! Do people still do that? I’m old enough that people did that back in the day. I thought how Luca and Naomi wrote letters to each was so funny because they were both so mean to one another. I love their dedication to trolling one another for years! Like why were some of their insults so dark?

+ Yes, Naomi gets into a bit of stalker behavior trying to find out what Luca’s address. I don’t think I would ever fly all over the USA to find info on a guy, but I thought her relationship with her bestie, Anne, who joins her on these adventures is so much fun! I like that we get to see their work relationship and friendship.

+ The romance, after all the wild stuff taking place, is actually really cute. It’s an enemies to lovers romance, sort of You’ve Got Mail-ish (minus the emails) – I love that this was all done with snail mail. I mean, who writes letters anymore?! So I love that it was featured in this book. Obviously, there was a lot these two had to work out once they realized what was happening but I liked the way it turned out.

Dislikes:

~ There was a point where Luca’s stalking behavior was creeping me out. I mean, they lived at the same complex! Obviously, he knew her and if he just actually told her who he was from the get go, so many of this drama would have been avoided. I know, she was the same and the whole flying to different cities to find out more about him was stalker-ish too but I think hers was genuine curiosity!

Final Thoughts:

This was a quick read and I enjoyed it, minus some of Luca’s behavior with the not-telling-her-the- truth-right-away part. Overall, I thought it was cute that two penpals who basically hated one another since they were kids, found one another like it was fate for them to meet.