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andreai04 · 25 days

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Love—love was a balm as much as it was a poison.

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lovesthepens · 24 days

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From the Pens broadcast last night. This person deserves a raise!

#alex nedeljkovic #jesse puljujarvi #bryan rust #three stars #pittsburgh penguins

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bookishlyvintage · 4 months

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Lovelight Farms, BK Borrison

☆☆☆ || full review

#book review #lovelight farms #bk borrison #romance #romcom #holiday romance #holiday read #books #book aesthetic #winter #christmas #popular books #three stars #bookblr #booklr #bookish #audiobook

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daystar-daydreamer · 4 months

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The Pirates of Pompeii by Caroline Lawrence

Category: Middle-grade

Genre: Historical whodunnit

Rating: 🌟🌟🌟🌑🌑 3/5 stars

Recommended for: 7-10

It is AD 79. The Roman world is reeling from the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. Hundreds of refugees are living in a makeshift camp, trying to come to terms with what has happened. Then even more tragedy strikes: the camp's children begin to disappear. Flavia Gemina and her friends Jonathan, Nubia, and Lupus are determined to find out more and start to investigate a powerful and charismatic man known as the Patron. A dangerous trail leads them to the caves and grottoes of Sorrento, where they encounter pirates, slave dealers, and possible death.

SPOILERS UNDER THE CUT

I’m not going to be reviewing The Secrets of Vesuvius because all I have to say about it is that after the life-or-death (At least for the dogs) stakes of the last book, that glorified easter egg hunt feels like a downgrade. And I can see the author thought so too, so she added a hefty dose of soap opera to make it more exciting. It didn’t work. And Gaius is NASTY for making moves on 14-year-old Miriam. I get the book is set in ancient Rome and that sort of thing was normal, but goddamn!

Now onto the Pirates of Pompeii. This one is much better than SoV, and a little better than ToO.

I like that we get some of Nubia and Lupus’s backstories (Which I suspect will become relevant in later books), and the little seeds of foreshadowing sprinkled throughout the book: Julia . The character work is stronger in this book than the previous two.

I don’t really like that arc where Flavia started acting more like Pulchia. Firstly, it seems really out of character compared to the Flavia from the previous books. At least it didn’t last very long.

I did find it funny how Pulchia kept calling Flavia ‘Fulvia’. And Pulchia’s character development was nice too, though I admit I kind of hoped she’d get offed because she was so insufferable. And even if Pulchra isn't such a piece of crap now, I don't think Leda will be jumping at the chance to be her friend.

It was nice of Flavia to set Nubia free, even if I saw it coming.

#middle grade mystery #middle grade #middle grade historical fiction #ancient history #historical fiction #middle grade mysteries #whodunnit #roman mysteries #Caroline Lawrence #three stars #book blog #book review #bookblr

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whatyawatching · 5 months

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Renfield

Rating: ✨✨✨

Present Day Renfield, Dracula’s bug gobbling familiar, tired of servitude and fetching victims for his vampire master, joins a therapy group for codependent relationships and attempts to take back control of his own afterlife. He accidentally gets on the wrong side of a local crime family in the process and befriends cop Awkwafina.

Quirky and entertaining. This would be a great movie to watch with friends before Halloween.

Also I really want Snickerdoodles now.

#Renfield #comedy #horror #Dracula #ratings #three stars #recommendations

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cupids-chronicles · 7 months

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The Twisted series: Twisted Love #1

Author: Ana Huang

Genre: Romance, New Adult

My Rating: ⭐⭐⭐/5.

Spice: 🌶🌶🌶

Goodreads rating: 3.7/5

Pages: 352

Published: 29 April 2021

Twisted Love Review

Note: This book is intended for mature audiences over the age of 18 due to explicit content (steamy chapters).

If there were a roller coaster named "Twisted Love," you'd need a seatbelt, a helmet, and probably a permission slip from your emotions. Ava Huang, no relation to your blender (I hope), stirs up a potent concoction in this whirlwind of a romance novel that comprises–count them– 43 chapters of "Oh my gosh, did that just happen ?"

The story spotlights Ava Chen, a photography student with a keen eye for drama and Alex Volkow, the best friend of her brother and her knight in damp and stubborn armor. Seriously, their romance kicks off with Ava playing damsel in distress in the rain, only to be saved by Alex.

Cliché ? Yes.

Did I eat it up ? Double yes.

These two are like an onion of emotions - lots of layers and might make you cry. Ava's got a baggage claim's worth of past trauma and an ex-boyfriend who probably never learned the word "no" or "goodbye."

Alex? He's the broody sort, hiding his very own emotional baggage behind that mysterious exterior. (I'd bet if he were real he'd be a softie on the inside, and probably bake cupcakes or something.)

Sparks fly between these two like it's the Fourth of July. It's not all fireworks, though. Their relationship sees more ups and downs than my internet connection on a stormy day. And speaking of stormy… Chapters 19, 22, 24, 26, and 43? They're not weather updates, but you'll need a fan.

Huang, in between the romance and drama, has a checklist of all your favorite romance tropes. Brother's Best Friend? Check. Grumpy meets Sunshine? Check. Interracial romance? Yep. Forced to share the last piece of chocolate (or proximity, whatever)? Check. It's like she raided the romance trope store and thought, "I'll take one of each!"

Now, the pacing is great – though there are times when I wished I could yell, "Calm down !" But hey, that's romance novels for you. And if you're scouting for a quote to slap onto an aesthetically pleasing background and post on Instagram, here's a gem: "You don’t have to work overtime to get people to love you, Ava. Love isn’t earned, it’s given." So deep, it's almost at the Earth's core.

The end of the book? Oh boy, let's just say if you don't grip the edge of your seat, you might fall off. It's dramatic, touching, and everything in between.

To wrap up this twisted little package, "Twisted Love" is like that roller coaster you're a little afraid to get on but can't resist the thrill. Sure, it's part of a series, but it stands strong on it's lonesome. Fans of love, drama, and the occasional eye-roll, this one's for you!

Please note that this book is part of a series, but can be read as a stand alone.

Wait a minute boys and girls, check out these trigger warnings first:

Attempted murder

Blood

Child abuse

Death

Stalking

Violence

Romance Tropes, you ask ?

Brother's best friend

Grumpy/Sunshine

Forced proximity

Only one bed

Hates everyone but her

Touch her and you die

Who do we meet in this book ?

Alex Volkov

Ana Chen

What to read next:

The Ex Talk by Rachel Lynn Solomon

Fix Her Up (Hot And Hammered #1) by Tessa Bailey

To Love Jason Thorn (The Love and Hate Duology #1) by Ella Maise

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xonlictheeverswarm · 1 day

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Wait what? Then why didn't anyone notice before?!

#gushing over magical girls #liveblog #three stars #kiwi chan

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deathsweetblossoms · 4 months

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I can’t believe how much that disappointed me. It’s like he entire series fell apart for me while reading Ruthless Vows. Maybe I’m not in the right headspace to be reading this, but the ending felt so rushed and I feel no emotional peace after some events that transpired. I’m stunned.

#ruthless vows #three stars

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megnificent-reads · 2 months

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Once Upon a Broken Heart, Stephanie Garber - ⅗ ☆

Disclaimer, I read this a couple of weeks ago and didn’t write anything down so, I might misremember things, miss things, or mention things that actually happen in book two. Sorry.

I expected a lot out of this, and ended up not getting much. I tend to get annoyed and start angrily rambling when this happens, but I was mostly just upset. I was recommended this by my best friend, who really enjoyed it. I trust her opinions, so I was excited. But there was just something missing for me.

The plot is kept vague and secretive the entire book. It reminded me a little of “the game” in Masters of Death by Olivie Blake, which I ended up not finishing because of the intentional vagueness. It’s just a personal preference, but I can’t care about the plot if I don’t know what it is.

The characters seemed semi-interesting, but it seemed like most of the attention was given to Jacks, which still wasn’t a lot. It kind of has ACOTAR-syndrome, where the plan is for more books, so development is extremely slow. Maybe I’m just one of those iPad baby dopamine addicts who want plot fast but, this is my opinion blog so you get the iPad baby opinion.

Evangline, my pink-haired princess

Now, the title of this section is misleading, because I don’t actually like her that much. However, her hair is naturally pink so she automatically gets a few points in my book.

I don’t want to call her the dumbest protagonist I’ve ever read, but off the top of my head, I can’t think of a dumber one. I’ll try to be nicer to her and say naive. She sees the best in her obviously evil stepsister, drinks poison that is labeled “POISON” in the name of love, and trusts a guy she was told repeatedly throughout life not to trust because he looked trustworthy and she missed her boyfriend.

In her defense, I’d do anything for my husband, but I think if I turned myself to stone for him he’d do something to un-stone me but hey, what can you do?

She seems to not trust Jacks when he’s doing nice things for her, but trusts him deeply when he’s doing something obviously nefarious.

But again her hair is pink, and I love her.

Jacks, the Prince of My Heart

Sometimes he pisses me off but at the end of the day I love him. Even though he’s blonde.

I was about to say I loved this little freak from the beginning. I didn’t, I actually thought he was a little too weird (rare for me), but in hindsight, I love this little freak from the beginning.

Something so romantic about calling your future love interest pathetic for wanting the very thing you’re cursed to also want.

I hate to say it, but I do love Jacks for more what he could be, not what he is in this book. I love characters that seem themselves as irredemable monsters, simply because they haven’t met anyone that thinks otherwise. (I’ll talk about you later, Selwyn Kane).

But, Jacks doesn’t seem to change his mind at all throughout the entire book. Dedicated to the bit, I guess, but we rarely see who he really is. I got a glimpse of it on page 196 with his masochism speech, which I loved. I was so excited to learn more! Then he returned to exactly what he was a couple of pages earlier. We get a bit of his backstory near the end, but something about it didn’t feel fulfilling. It’s possible I just didn’t care about his ex-true love because I just wanted to pick him and Evangeline up like dolls and make them kiss. I have my faults.

Until next time…

This book in particular I’d love opinions and different perspectives on. I really wanted to like this book. I really wanted to care about Jacks more. It just felt like a lot of setup for the rest of the series, rather than a book that can stand on its own.

#book review #books #bookblr #once upon a broken heart #ouabh #three stars

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andreai04 · 14 days

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Rage didn’t simmer. It burned.

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thatskrakenhockeybaby · 1 year

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KRAKEN WIN!! 7-2 is your final, and the boys lead the series 2-1. 8 game misconducts handed out in the final minute, Dallas bench looked like a ghost town. Maybe don’t be so pissy because it’s your fault you just weren’t good tonight eh?

Your 3 stars (lol)

⭐️ - Matty Beniers

⭐️⭐️ - Gruuuuuu

⭐️⭐️⭐️ - The SOUCE!

#nhl #seattle #seattle kraken #hockey #seattle sports #that’s kraken hockey baby #nhl western conference #stanley cup playoffs #nhl stats #hockey goalies #three stars #matty beniers #calder trophy #the souce #carson soucy #philip grubauer #Gru

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thebookbin · 4 months

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Prince and Bodyguard

Tavia Lark

Publisher: self-published Genre: fantasy, romance Year: 2023

I honestly didn't know this book was self published until I came to write this review, but in hindsight this explains a few things about the book. This book is #4 in the series, and I have not read the first three, but that didn't dampen my experience with the novel at all. This is definitely a "you can just jump right in" kind of novel.

The worldbuilding and magic system are unique and fascinating. I was captivated from the moment I read the prologue. The problem is, right after the prologue, we get a 14 year time-skip. If this author ever decided to reframe her works, she would be a high fantasy writer that was a household name. This book could have so easily been A Taste of Gold and Iron or A Strange and Stubborn Endurance but it falls a just short. With the focus being primarily on the relationship, a few things fell off to the wayside, namely this really cool magic bond that Vana and Daromir seem to have evolved. First of all, sharing each other's pain is the best setup for a hurt/comfort story that I ever heard. Then, for some reason that isn't really explored in-universe, their bond changes and they also share pleasure, which makes for interesting hanky-panky. Besides causing some slight relationship angst when Vana has to tell Daromir about the change in the bond, but that's it.

I would have been so interested to get a story that follows Vana and Daromir from their homeland to Draskora and their blossoming feelings from each other, I would have been in heaven. So much interesting content from those missing 14 years! That said, within the scope of the story this book tells, I think it does a pretty good job. I think the climax could have been a bit higher stakes, and the ending felt abrupt. The premise was so good, all I can really say is that I just wanted more from this novel!

storygraph | bookshop.org | local houston

★★★½ fantastic premise stars

#prince and bodyguard #tavia lark #book review #romantasy #romance #fantasy #a good read #fun but not profound #good but not great #queer #women writers #indie #self published #three stars #three and a half stars #2023

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bookishlyvintage · 12 days

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