King of Battle and Blood by Scarlett St. Clair | A Review

Their Union Is His Revenge.
Isolde de Lara considers her wedding day her death day. To end a years-long war, she is to marry vampire king, Adrian Aleksandr Vasiliev, and kill him.
But her assassination attempt is thwarted and Adrian threatens that if Isolde tries to kill him again, he will raise her as the undead. Faced with the possibility of becoming the thing she hates most, Isolde seeks other ways to defy him and survive the brutal vampire court.
Except it isn’t the court she fears most — it’s Adrian. Despite their undeniable chemistry, she wonders why the king — fierce, savage, merciless — chose her as consort.
The answer will shatter her world.

⭐⭐

Rating: 2 out of 5.

This book was a mess.

Readers who have stumbled upon my reviews before will know I’m not a big fan of descriptions. I don’t care too much for what a character looks like or what color the kitchen cabinets are. I wanna know the plot and the details pertaining to the plot.

This book, however, spent a lot of time describing the world around the characters and not as much about what was actually happening in the story. It felt as though the entire book was filled with lines such as “the sun was shining, the birds were singing, the sky was blue, and I was getting married to a vampire.”

Thanks, but no.

I also couldn’t get into the reason why Adrian and Isolde were so into each other. At one point in the story, it is made clear that their attraction to each other wasn’t due to any sort of magical interference. However, the writing felt exactly like a story where something is going on behind the scenes to make these two characters be obsessed with each other, such as a mating bond or some sort of magical spell over them. Even finishing the book, I still don’t think Isolde’s attraction and obsession with Adrian throughout this book made perfect sense.

There is, of course, more to this story than it first is saying, and I believe a lot of readers will immediately understand what exactly is going on here. I found it frustrating to read about a character who had no idea something so blatantly obvious was happening to her. Even the reveal, when the main character is finally caught up to what the readers have known this whole time, is unsatisfying, as the book leaves no room for her to reflect and think about this. She practically becomes a completely new character within the span of a sentence, understanding far more than even the book details, and deus ex machinas her way to the ending.

This book ends on a cliffhanger to entice readers to read a sequel, but I will not be picking it up.

Just My Type by Falon Ballard | An ARC Review

Lana Parker has never been single for long. After a disastrous break-up with her high school boyfriend, Seth Carson, Lana’s bounced from long-term relationship to long-term relationship. She’s an expert girlfriend, even acting as the resident dating and relationship columnist for one of Los Angeles’s trendiest websites. But now, at the age of thirty, Lana suddenly finds herself single again, and she’s determined to stay that way, no matter how challenging.
That is, until her high school ex, Seth, now a journalist in his own right, takes an assignment at Lana’s site. Ready to put down roots after years of traveling and freelancing, Seth becomes not only Lana’s colleague but also her competitor. With their combative relationship history–and undeniable chemistry–they quickly find themselves pitted against each other in a battle of wits: writing an article series that goes against dating type. For Lana, that means writing about staying single and embracing it. For Seth, it’s learning to settle down and become boyfriend material. Whoever’s is most popular wins a highly coveted columnist spot that either could only dream of. But when the two square off against one another, it’s not only their careers on the line–it’s also their hearts.

Just My Type gets published February 7th, 2023!

⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

Is it weird to not really like the beginning of a book, but think it had a pretty solid ending?

When I first started Just My Type, I wasn’t all that into both Lana and Seth as characters. Everything felt a bit too Hallmark-y for me, and I didn’t enjoy how much this book focused on their past relationship without ever showing details of their past together. It just felt like the book was telling me “these two have a really complex history together you will never understand. Now love them,” and I couldn’t deliver.

And then, as I got further into this book, I started enjoying it a little more.

This book focuses a lot on Lana’s development as she realizes that she forces herself to never be alone and how her past has shaped who she is as an adult. Throughout the book, Lana realizes she has the tools she needs to be her own person, and that she doesn’t have to rush into relationships that aren’t perfect for her just because she is single.

I really liked the plot of Lana and Seth competing for the same column, especially toward the end when we learned a secret about one of the side characters that completely changed the game. However, because this detail didn’t appear until very close to the ending of the entire book, the first 75% of the book or so was very slow and difficult to read.

Also, a large part of the plot focuses on miscommunication, which some readers may not enjoy.

However, I really feel like it had a solid ending. Once I got into the plot, I found myself enjoying this book a lot more than I had before. It’s just a shame it didn’t happen until I was already at the end.

The Lake by Natasha Preston | A Review

Esme and Kayla once were campers at Camp Pine Lake. Now they’re back as counselors-in-training. Esme loves the little girls in her cabin and thinks it’s funny how scared they are of everything–the woods, the bugs, the boys…even swimming in the lake. It reminds her of how she and Kayla used to be. Before…
Because Esme and Kayla did something terrible when they were campers. Something they’ve kept a secret all these years. They vow that this summer will be awesome. Two months of sun, s’mores, and flirting with the cute boy counselors. But then they get a message:
THE LAKE NEVER FORGETS.
The secret they’ve kept buried for so many years is about to resurface.

⭐⭐

Rating: 2 out of 5.

The biggest surprise to me in this book was that it was published in 2021 and not 2013 like the incredibly juvenile writing suggests.

The Lake is the story of two girls haunted by their past when they realize the girl they left for dead isn’t actually dead. However, the entire plot could be solved just by the girls telling literally anyone about what they did in their past. They know they wouldn’t get in trouble for it. Readers know they wouldn’t get in trouble for it. And yet, they hide this secret from everyone they meet for no good reason.

The ending to this book is very abrupt in what I assume was the author’s attempt to shock readers. However, I felt absolutely nothing but confusion and fury for this book. I don’t know if the author forgot about one specific aspect of their own story or if they assumed readers would be stupid enough to not notice, but there’s a very big detail that would help the main character get out of this “shocking situation” easily.

If you’re thinking of picking this book up: don’t.

Not The Witch You Wed (Supernatural Singles #1) by April Asher | A Review

Magic-less witch Violet Maxwell wants nothing to do with alpha wolf shifter Lincoln Thorne—the man who broke her fragile, teenage heart. But when the two of them are forced by arcane Supernatural Laws to find mates, Violet and Lincoln agree to fake-date their way to a fake-mating in order to conjure themselves some time.
The joke’s on them. When old feelings make a reappearance—along with Violet’s magic—they both realize there’s nothing fake about their feelings. But there are old secrets and looming threats that could snatch away their happily ever after, again. One thing’s for sure: magic doesn’t make dating and love any easier.

⭐⭐

Rating: 2 out of 5.

I love a good fake-dating between enemies, so I was really excited to hop into this book and see the banter turn into love.

Except this book didn’t really give me the banter I wished for.

To be fair, there was a bit of banter in this story. But this was definitely more of a one-sided-feelings story than it was an enemies-to-lovers kind of story, which wasn’t exactly what I signed up for.

One thing I really liked about this story was how the author works with a world full of supernaturals in New York City. Rather than having a story where witches and werewolves are secret, April Asher instead creates a version of NYC where the supernaturals live in plain sight of humans. I always love books that take basic concepts like this and give them a little twist, so I enjoyed seeing this aspect in Not The Witch You Wed.

However, I didn’t like this book. It was a bit boring, with nothing really interesting happening, and most of the book was obvious to anyone who has read a story like this before. A few things seemed like they were only there for plot convenience, not really making sense, such as the main conflict dividing these two characters from true love.

I also was very surprised to find that this book wasn’t that spicy. For a book that jumpscared me on page 11 with the word “vibrator” and whose writing style and humor reminded me of The Brown Sisters trilogy by Talia Hibbert, the sex scene was just kinda “meh”.

I am so sorry for the people out there who think “werewolf” is a kind of spice all by itself, but it isn’t.

All in all, I was disappointed in this book. And, most unfortunately of all, I have an ARC copy of the sequel.

I hope I like Violet’s sister better than I like Violet.

Can’t Take That Away by Steven Salvatore | A Review

Carey Parker dreams of being a diva, and bringing the house down with song. But despite their talent, emotional scars from an incident with a homophobic classmate and their grandmother’s spiraling dementia make it harder and harder for Carey to find their voice.
Then Carey meets Cris, a singer/guitarist who makes Carey feel seen for the first time in their life. With the rush of a promising new romantic relationship, Carey finds the confidence to audition for the role of Elphaba, the Wicked Witch of the West, in the school musical, setting off a chain reaction of prejudice by Carey’s tormentor and others in the school. It’s up to Carey, Cris, and their friends to defend their rights–and they refuse to be silenced.

⭐⭐

Rating: 2 out of 5.

I don’t think I completely understood what I was getting myself into before I picked up this book. I kinda just saw the words “genderqueer singer” and was sold.

Which is a lesson in fully reading the description before I pick up a book.

It’s not that this book is terrible. I’m just so tired of constantly reading stories over and over again about trans teens having to fight to have their identities respected. Every time I get excited to see a trans character in a book, I’m suddenly bombarded with talks of protests and hate crimes.

For once in my life, I wanna read a story with a trans main character who doesn’t have to deal with transphobia.

That doesn’t mean that this book isn’t valid, or that I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone. If someone out there feels empowered and more confident in their gender identity because of this book, great! If this book helps even one person, then it has accomplished what it set out to do.

However, I largely did not have fun with this book.

Let’s talk about the writing style in general, which I found to be too fast paced and not as descriptive as I would have liked. By page 50 of this book, our main character, Carey, begins a relationship with a different character. I’m not sure how readers are expected to care for this character and relationship by page 50, but I certainly did not. In fact, I was a little weirded out by the fact that Cris was practically thrown at me and how I was expected to like him simply because Carey likes him.

There were also certain moments talked about in the book that I wanted to see played out instead, such as the text commenting that Phoebe has been over to Carey’s house multiple times to practice for the play without ever showing a single time Phoebe was at Carey’s house. The book referencing these moments without showing them made me feel like I was missing things, which is not a fun feeling to have as a reader.

The majority of this book was depressing, yet somehow I was hit with emotional whiplash between different depressing topics. The book never really lets up and allows readers to have a moment to process what is happening, instead moving from one topic to another without breaks. Not finished crying over Carey’s beloved grandmother dying? Too bad! Let’s start a riot because one of Carey’s teachers is homophobic!

As much as I can appreciate how this book had some topics it wanted to discuss and tries to bring a little trans appreciation into the world, I hate depressing stories. This book was definitely not for me.

Always The Almost by Edward Underhill | An ARC Review

Sixteen-year-old trans boy Miles Jacobson has two New Year’s resolutions: 1) win back his ex-boyfriend (and star of the football team) Shane McIntyre, and 2) finally beat his slimy arch-nemesis at the Midwest’s biggest classical piano competition. But that’s not going to be so easy. For one thing, Shane broke up with Miles two weeks after Miles came out as trans, and now Shane’s stubbornly ignoring him, even when they literally bump into each other. Plus, Miles’ new, slightly terrifying piano teacher keeps telling him that he’s playing like he “doesn’t know who he is”—whatever that means.
Then Miles meets the new boy in town, Eric Mendez, a proudly queer cartoonist from Seattle who asks his pronouns, cares about art as much as he does—and makes his stomach flutter. Not what he needs to be focusing on right now. But after Eric and Miles pretend to date so they can score an invite to a couples-only Valentine’s party, the ruse turns real with a kiss, which is also definitely not in the plan. If only Miles could figure out why Eric likes him so much. After all, it’s not like he’s cool or confident or comfortable in his own skin. He’s not even good enough at piano to get his fellow competitors to respect him, especially now, as Miles. Nothing’s ever been as easy for him as for other people—other boys. He’s only ever been almost enough.
So why, when he’s with Eric, does it feel like the only person he’s ever really not been enough for…is himself?

Always The Almost gets published February 14th, 2023!

⭐⭐

Rating: 2 out of 5.

I hate when I have to rate an okay book lowly because I personally didn’t like it.

My personal star rating system goes off of how much I enjoyed a book. So an absolutely perfect book for someone else can have a low rating from me, and a book I adored can be one someone else doesn’t like.

One of the first things that frustrated me in this book was our main character, Miles, and his obsession over his ex boyfriend. Before Miles came out, he was dating Shane. But after coming out and beginning his social transition, Shane breaks up with him.

Now, I totally understand still having feelings for your ex, and I get that someone coming out as trans doesn’t mean they’re a different person. But the thing that frustrated me the most about this book was that Shane repeatedly tells Miles he’s not attracted to guys, and Miles never understands.

Let me put it in a metaphorical situation: Let’s say Miles, who is socially male, is dating Shane, a straight man. If someone comes up to Shane and asks if he is gay, Shane now has to either sit with the uncomfortable decision of being perceived as being attracted to a gender he isn’t or out Miles as trans. If Miles physically transitions as well, now Shane is forced to stay together with someone he does not find physically attractive. Either way, Miles coming out as trans changes the entire situation for Shane, and he has that right to tell Miles “I appreciate you and support you coming out as trans, but I’m not attracted to men.”

To put this into perspective, especially if you are a reader who doesn’t know me: Hi. I’m Kit. I’m nonbinary. I completely understand what Miles is going through re: being trans. I’m still on Shane’s side here.

I typically think, even for “unlikable main characters”, there has to be something that makes readers want to cheer a main character on. They can be disliked by their peers and the other characters in the book, but if they’re disliked by readers, no one will want to read their story. And I just wasn’t a fan of Miles.

I did, however, like this book when we focused on Eric and his part in this story. Completely taking out Shane, I would have rated this book four or five stars. The fake dating turning into actual dating was great. Eric’s younger sister having down syndrome and being treated no differently because of it was something I really enjoyed. Miles learning how to express himself through music and the fight to be better than Cameron in the piano competition was a fun plot.

But every time I thought Miles had moved on, the book suddenly veered towards Shane again. And my enjoyment for this book veered off as well.

The Alpha’s Son by Penny Jessup | A Review

Max Remus couldn’t care less about finding his mate—unlike the rest of his fate-obsessed pack. He totally prefers hanging with his bestie, eating his dad’s steak sandwiches, and drawing in his trusty sketchbook.
But all that is about to change at the Blue Moon Festival—a summer camp where Elite Pack wolves go to find their mates. The festival is a right of passage for every teen werewolf, and this year’s festival will be one to howl home about. The alpha’s son, Jasper Apollo, is attending for the first time.
When Max finds himself inexplicably linked with the exceptionally handsome but totally jerk-faced heir, he’s forced to grapple with the unexpected feelings clawing at his soul.
If Max rejects his destiny, will fate’s bite be worse than its bark?

⭐⭐

Rating: 2 out of 5.

If you know me, you’ll know I’m a sucker for werewolf romance. Therefore, it’s no surprise to find that I was really excited to read this book.

But it didn’t deliver.

For one, it was difficult for me to figure out the sort of werewolves this story uses. With so many different werewolf stories out there, each author has a different set of lore and tropes they use. Some things are the same universally, such as the inclusion of alphas and betas. But omegas? Gammas? Rogues and mating runs? I needed more information to help figure out how exactly werewolves in this universe worked, and this story didn’t give me enough.

I also didn’t enjoy the fact that this is the story of the first gay werewolves ever. This book takes place in current, real-world times and even goes as far as talking about how being LGBT is common in human cultures. But throughout all of history there has never been an LGBT werewolf? I call bullshit.

The writing in this book also left much to be desired. While I couldn’t find anything really concrete and obvious to point out, the whole story definitely felt like it was using Max and Jasper being mates for drama and intrigue, as though two boys getting into a relationship is scandalous. With the author being very open about enjoying anime, my only thought is that this book is written by a fujoshi who still hasn’t quite figured out that the world has evolved past 2013’s yaoi lemons.

Also note how I call these two “boys.” Max, our main character, is 16. In this world, werewolves begin attending a retreat starting from the year they turn 16 in order to find their mates. During this retreat, there are a lot of references to alcohol and horny werewolves, but it is also stated that a large majority of attending werewolves find their mates every year. So, if I’m doing the math right and a lot of 16 year old werewolves are finding their mates, that leaves a very small percentage of the population returning year after year to this mating retreat who can actually partake in the alcohol and “horny werewolf” activities. So how is it that Max states that the retreat is full of these horny werewolves?

Just some food for thought.

The plot of this book is unnecessarily dramatic, and the ending was annoying. There’s supposed to be a sequel coming soon, but I’m definitely not getting in line to read it.

A Court of Frost and Starlight (A Court of Thorns and Roses #3.1) by Sarah J. Maas | A Review

Feyre, Rhysand, and their close-knit circle of friends are still busy rebuilding the Night Court and the vastly-changed world beyond. But Winter Solstice is finally near, and with it, a hard-earned reprieve. Yet even the festive atmosphere can’t keep the shadows of the past from looming. As Feyre navigates her first Winter Solstice as High Lady, she finds that those dearest to her have more wounds than she anticipated — scars that will have a far-reaching impact on the future of their Court.

⭐⭐⭐

Rating: 2.5 out of 5.

Y’know when authors write an epilogue or extra content for their book and post it on their website for fans to get just a little bit more of their favorite characters? Imagine that, but you have to pay the full price of a book for it.

There’s nothing necessarily wrong with A Court of Frost and Starlight from an epilogue view. It’s the story of the characters celebrating the winter solstice together, buying each other gifts and taking a breather from all that war stuff SJM likes to put her characters through. A little bit pointless, but we aren’t here for the plot. We’re here for the characters.

Still, I can’t justify that price tag. $16 for a paperback? $26 for a hardcover? When this kind of content is generally free on any other author’s website? I’m pissed off for the people who had to pay money to read this book, and pissed off for my friend having to pay to gift me this book.

(Appreciative, but still. This didn’t deserve to be published.)

NetGalley’s Book Advocate Toolkit | A Review

Are you ready to start your journey with NetGalley? Or maybe you’re a long-time member looking to take your book advocacy up a notch? No matter where your starting point is, this toolkit is designed to have everything you need to succeed.
From guidelines for creating your member Profile to tips for maintaining a strong Feedback Ratio, these pages are packed with advice for utilizing NetGalley to your advantage.
Once you have a few books on your Shelf, pop over to this toolkit’s review section to brush up on tips for crafting book reviews—even those tricky critical ones!
When you’re ready to share those reviews, this toolkit can help jumpstart your bookish social media platforms and offer suggestions for reviewing and creating content on social.

⭐⭐

Rating: 2 out of 5.

Even though I have been using NetGalley for quite some time now, when I saw that they had come out with a little info booklet on how to review books and grow as a book blogger, I figured I’d try it out. Maybe there was information I didn’t know before, or maybe it would be a helpful tool I could recommend to others.

Unfortunately, it’s neither.

NetGalley’s Book Advocate Toolkit is too little, too late for most beginner book bloggers. I think by the time a newbie even so much as hears about NetGalley, they will already be a little familiar of the world of book reviews and the different social media websites the book community uses.

While there is a lot of basic, beginner info that would be useful to new book reviewers, a simple Google search would also show the same info without having to tell someone “okay, so go to netgalley.com and sign up and then download this .pdf–yeah, no worries, it’s totally safe. NetGalley is–” and the rest of a big, long description.

This info booklet also has some incorrect information that jumped out at me, such as it’s recommendations with Facebook and a video editing software.

For Facebook in particular, this booklet recommends new book reviewers to create a separate Facebook account so users can befriend other bookish people without a link back to their personal family members. While this is great advice (keep your personal life safe!), it’s also 100% against Facebook policies to have more than one account.

The booklet also recommends in it’s booktube section for Windows users to edit their videos with Windows Movie Maker. You know, the application that was discontinued in 2017? For a booklet published in 2022, the people behind this sure didn’t do their research, huh?

There are some basic tips in this booklet that are solid information for beginners. However, most new book reviewers will find the same information (and probably much more updated information) with a simple Google search.

Authentically, Izzy by Pepper Basham | An ARC Review

“Dear Izzy—I feel certain there’s a book-loving man living relatively nearby waiting to speak bookish to you ’til death do you part. You just haven’t met yet.”
Izzy Edgewood is a wannabe bookstore owner, quote queen, and Lord of the Rings nerd who has been waiting for Prince Charming to sweep her off her sneakered feet. But it’s hard to meet people when you spend more time with fictional humans than real ones. Which is why her pragmatist cousin Josephine decides to take Izzy’s future into her own meddling hands and create an online dating profile for the hopeful romantic.
To Izzy’s shock (and suspicion), Josie’s plan works. Soon, she’s dialoguing with a Hobbit-loving man named Brodie who lives in a small town an ocean away from her home in the Blue Ridge Mountains. But is their shared love of books, family, and correspondence enough to overcome Izzy’s fear of flying and the literal distance between them? And is a long-distance relationship even worth considering when a local author has been frequenting the library where she works and is proving to be a perfectly fine gentleman?

Authentically, Izzy gets published November 15th, 2022!

⭐⭐

Rating: 2 out of 5.

I think the best description for my feelings on this book is “it wasn’t for me.”

I went into this book with different expectations than what it gave me. In a quick list form:

• I thought this book was going to be New Adult. Izzy is 30.
• The description says Izzy is a “Lord of the Rings nerd”, which I thought meant more emphasis on the “nerd” part. Instead, the book references Lord of the Rings a lot. I’ve never interacted with any LOTR media and had no idea what I was reading. That’s my fault.
• There’s a lot of references to god and religion in this book. I’m an atheist.

I also went into this book knowing it was an epistolary, but I think I bit off more than I could chew with this. This book contains so many emails. A tiring amount of emails. Enough emails that I never want to look at another email in my life.

I think this book is about 200 pages longer than it should be. There’s a lot of content in this book, but not a lot of it is important. It feels as though you’re reading through a whole server of emails and text messages between these characters and hoping you’ll find even so much as a glimpse into something interesting, which makes this book a very tiring read.

93% of the way through the book introduces conflict, but this conflict is something readers will already have known from the very first page. Instead of being surprised, readers instead have to watch the main character find out this information and go through a period of shock as she wrestles with her feelings on the matter, which works in some books. Not this one.

As I say in my vlog for this book: “Smash or pass? It’s a pass.”