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4 Stars!!

Thank you to Camille Wolfewood for a complimentary copy of this book for review. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

What a start!

I liked the epigraph's in-between the chapters. They told their own story that helped with the world building! I'd be interested to see more on some of them (especially that one letter...someone knows things aren't going their way and I'm curious what other strings they're attempting to pull). The overall world building is intriguing and I liked how Alethea was able to start learning more about things; you kind of got to see aspects through her eyes because she'd been so sheltered.

Alethea was intriguing on her own. I felt so bad for her when you realized how far Zenobia was willing to go, and what she was willing to do to hold onto her power. I do think that everyone blaming Alethea (even herself) for that one prophecy at the beginning is wrong. Alethea just thinks it because she's never been told otherwise, but Zenobia is just terrified and used it to control her. I did like that underneath things, while she admitted a few times that she was scared, she still stepped into the unknown when she decided to stay with Nakir. And again when she basically announced it to the kingdom. The end, I understand where she was coming from, but I do agree she made a mistake. I get she wanted to help but she didn't consider things. You'd think that being an Oracle, she might have seen that, but I wonder if she can't see her own path? Not sure if that was explained and I missed it or not...

Nakir! Oh how I loved him! Man was gone for Alethea the minute he saved her from running off that cliff, even if he was trying not to give in. I liked that the people he has with him aren't afraid to call him out on his crap. Even as hard as it was, I liked Balthasar telling him that if he took used the Truth-Teller, he'd walk. Then he admitted things to Alethea and I'm kind of hoping she doesn't run away when they have that conversation again.

There is a cliffhanger, in the fact that there's people separated and you're not 100% on how close the danger physically is. But hopefully people are fairly close on other's tails and we don't have to worry about that for too long!

Book releases July 7th, 2026

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Storygraph

4.5 Stars!!

Thank you to Megan Phillips for an eARC of this book for review. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

Wow! What a way to make a debut!

Lexa's story is interesting. I liked the way she had to learn all the ins and outs, and while she complained a bit because certain people *cough* Zachariah *cough* treated her, she still realized she wanted to help. I will say that sometimes it felt like she was able to master everything super easy, until it was appropriate(?) that she didn't or that her not quite making it was important, but still. It was also interesting seeing all the connections she started making, especially as she started reading more of Violet's journal. I did roll my eyes a little at her constant back and forth regarding Griff. Granted, he didn't help, but still. I did like the way she handled Aine at the ball, although why she couldn't keep up that attitude every time she saw her, I'll never know. I was excited once she finally told Griff how she felt.

Griff was honestly amazing. Yes, he was hot and cold and I did roll my eyes at him too, but once he explained things, I rolled my eyes a little less. He was a protective pain in the ass, but it was honestly hilarious because he even acknowledged that he knew Lexa wouldn't like it, but he was going to do it anyway. I did find myself laughing at all the ways he managed to see through her various attempts at sneaking away. I loved the fact that he started showing Lexa the little parts of himself he kept locked down, because even though he was trying so hard to let her come to realizations and choices on her own, he was gone from her from the word go. I liked his relationship with Finn and Freya and the way he told off Zachariah.

The pieces of Violet's journal that we got at the start of every chapter were interesting and I liked the way they told their own story. I'd be curious to see more of her and Wraith because with all the "you'll have your moment" talk, it feels like there's more at play!

The magic system is intriguing. I liked how people all have their own channels and what you can do can depend on how much of an affinity you have for said channel. It was also interesting how Lexa would see things as different colors.

Overall, the pace of the book was interesting. It kind of felt like there was a lot of not-quite-nothing happening in the beginning. We spent a lot of that time with Lexa getting her world thrown upside down and then half moaning about everything, but then all of a sudden the story picked up speed and honestly I think the only reason I didn't finish earlier is that I was visiting family and was distracted by the dorky dog. Can't wait to see what happens in the next book!

Book releases June 23rd, 2026

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Storygraph

4.5 Stars!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for an eARC of this book for review. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was a fun book!

I liked the chasing aspect, although I did wish we'd gotten some kind of dictionary/glossary. The author is a storm chaser as well and there was a lot of terminology thrown around that I was having to either stop and look up or spend a little more time trying to piece together context clues to figure out what was going on. I did like the way the storms were described though. I did like the friendships that the chasers all had and how they all showed up for each other. Not just when Tracy and Matt made their decision but also when the tornado took out the town. Yeah, some people were more popular, but also sounded like there was more than just the chasing going on with that.

Sloane was both pretty awesome and also slightly frustrating. I liked the way she took to storm chasing and how you could feel the way she loved it. Even before things were admitted, I liked the banter between she and Wes; they snarked at each other and you could also feel that tension, even if they were both hiding from it for a bit. Now onto some frustrations. Sloane spent so much time telling herself that she didn't want to become her mother, that she came this close to doing it. At the beginning, even when she was sniping with Wes, there were still all the internal "he needs to stay in the buckets of reckless and wild" because that's clearly all he was. Then the 3rd act happened and yeah, Sloane finally admitted things about her feelings regarding her mother, but still. It felt like she'd just been looking for an excuse to run, even after all the heart to heart conversations she and Wes had, the conversations about hard limits on the relationship, all the stuff they'd shared, all of it. And yes, Wes messed up. Not denying that. But he not only admitted it, he said he'd fix it. AND HE FREAKING DID! Yes, you find out there were also extenuating circumstances going on, but if Sloane had bothered to be an adult for two seconds instead of immediately going to "this is just like mom's relationships and you've lost all my trust", maybe we wouldn't have had to deal with her telling herself that this was for the best so much.

Wes was pretty fantastic though. Reckless and definitely lived up to the "Wild Wes" nickname. But like Sloane found out, that man had hidden depths and he went out of his way to show them when it was needed. I liked the way he figured Sloane out and did all the little things for her. Even the car tagging he did; might have been a teeny bit overboard, but he still defended her in a way. I liked the way he talked about things and finally got Sloane to mostly pull her head out about the fact that she didn't need to take care of her family. It would have been interesting to see more of his relationship with his mother, even a little bit more on the tension with his father, since that was so much of the reasons that he had gotten the nickname. When he goofed, I actually understood it. He knew Sloane would balk, would take the safe bet. Do I think he made a mistake? Yes, 100%. Do I get why he did it? Absolutely, 100%. Do I think Sloane should have punished him like she did? Absolutely not. I did like the fact that he was true to his word; he fixed things and then he gave her space. Then the reveal at the gala was amazingly sweet and it was nice that even when he was uncertain where they were going to go, he was wanting her to have her time in the spotlight.

Book releases June 23rd, 2026

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Storygraph

5 Stars!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Berkley for a complimentary copy of this book for review. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

What a fun start to this series!

I'm definitely curious about who's going to win the summer house and how that's all going to play out. Something tells me things aren't going to go quite the way the brothers all seem to think!

Tamsin was pretty great. While it was a horrid situation, I loved her drive to find her siblings. I did wish she didn't try so hard to the detriment of herself so often, but I get why she did. I wished she'd been able to stand up to the Brown's, but I liked her mother being able to step in. I laughed when she managed to get Big John to let them stay, although I don't really think she had to twist his arm as much as he pretended (although her mother was a little harder to convince). As she spent time with Garrett, I liked her realizing all the ways she loved him and his family and how she kind of opened his eyes to things.

Garrett was actually pretty funny. He went from "must marry an heiress" to "that thief's a girl!" to "I love her so much" and it was glorious. He was smitten from the Belgrave Ball. Part of me wishes it had been since the violet incident, but at the same time, having his feelings for Tamsin be real from the Ball makes it better. He did have some eye roll moments where he attempted to be a martyr but I loved his family telling him to knock it off. I loved the relationship he has with his whole family, especially his brothers. While he didn't want to, I liked that they came up with the idea to marry an heiress instead of letting Mariah's choice be taken; although why their father didn't come up with that idea in the first place, I don't know.

I ended up really liking Lady Callista. When Garrett first tried to apologize, I will admit to feeling like she was a little bit spoiled, maybe a little bit of a twit. But after her conversation in the garden with Garrett, she's definitely more than she appears! I liked the conversation the two of them had and how Garrett realized he'd like to be friends with her. I feel like she's going to be one of the FMCs but I can't decide if she'll give Liam, Killian, or Daire a better run for their money!

Loved this intro to this series and can't wait to see the rest of the Kildare's fall in love!

Book releases June 9th, 2026

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Storygraph

3.5 Stars!!

Thank you to Valentine PR, Blackstone Publishing & Monica Murphy for an eARC of this book. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

The overall premise of this was so fun!

I will admit I had some issues because the overall pacing felt...off(?) I'm not sure if that's the word I'm looking for, but let me see if I can describe it. Things started pretty decently; Rachel running and hiding from her breakup, the fire, the run-in with Wyatt first, then she sticks around and she and Wyatt are hooking up. But then we get to 80% and suddenly we're having massive time jumps of weeks/months and the end sort of felt rushed/incomplete.

I wished we'd had a little more about Rachel's relationship with her family; that was clearly a weird situation. And while I do understand what her dad was doing, the timing just didn't quite feel like it worked. Like maybe if we'd had one or two conversations where she at least mentioned her parents trying to convince her to do something else, getting a job, or even the whole "business merger" piece her dad was talking about, then I could buy it. But the fact that it came out of nowhere, while it did cause Rachel to stand on her own two feet, I just felt like it sort of pushed things a little bit.

For the most part, Rachel was pretty decent. She definitely was spoiled at the beginning and extremely naïve. But then there was her choice to run back into the house for a bag and I questioned things a little. But as she stuck around and started working at Mitchell's, she had some growth. I did like the friendship she developed with Paige and even with Nate, although I'll talk about that relationship in a second. I also liked the way Rachel took to Dottie and just settled in in Foxglove Bay. The relationship with Wyatt was decent but also kind of went from zero to relationship kind of fast. We did see both of them struggling with whether or not they were smart to say "I love you", so I did like that. When Rachel went back to New York, while at the end of the day it was the right thing to do, she was attempting to do so for all the wrong reasons. Even if Wyatt wasn't helping. But I was glad that Nate told her not to come back and that she did find her footing in New York.

Wyatt was also decent. It was interesting seeing him walk through his feelings for Cheryl and how that may have messed him up and all that entailed. His frustration with Rachel initially was understandable, but I liked that he was able to walk himself to what he needed to. I loved the way he was with Dottie and how he clearly cared for her. Then the accident happened and he was a grumpy PITA. Again, while Rachel's going to New York was needed, she was leaving for all the wrong reasons and Wyatt just allowed all his anger to get in the way. Once Nate called him on it, I liked his grand gesture and the fact that he realized how he cared for Rachel.

I'm very curious about Paige and Nate, so hopefully we get a story for them! That has the potential to be a decent second chance! Especially because we know they were a thing once upon a time, but Nate is afraid of something. Whatever else he might say, he's afraid of being in a relationship with Paige because he does care. So I'm definitely curious how that would play out and crossing my fingers we get their story! Also hoping to get a story about Scarlett and Tate because that could be interesting too!

Book releases May 26th, 2026

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Storygraph

4 Stars!!

Thank you to Lyonne Riley for an eARC of this story. Thoughts and opinions are my own

This is a short story, about 59 pages total, but it's super cute! 

I liked the relationship between Selvanar and Trisha and even though it came on pretty quick (considering the length of the story, that's not a surprise), it didn't feel rushed at all! The description of the meadow where they located Trisha's mushrooms, as well as Selvanar's hive were so intriguing! I loved the aspect of the colors and everything with that.

5 Stars!!

Thank you to H.E. Bauman for an eARC of this book. Thoughts and opinions are my own. 

If I just put AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!! does that get my point across?

I enjoyed the first one, but this one upped things a bit. We've got a bit more danger, there's a few more stakes, and the spicy starts spicing! I liked the friendships that developed between Mo, Cass, Kynn and Ezra. Mo, Cass, and Kynn were definitely family before but Ezra has just slipped in there and he gets to stay! I loved that Cass and Kynn had no problems calling people out (even if it didn't happen in the way one might think). Then Ezra and Mo finally had a conversation and while things are going a little slow (love that Ezra is all over that and doesn't mind), they're moving along!

We find out a little more about things with the gods and what's going on with Ikna. The reveals on like what sets them apart is intriguing and I'm curious about what's going on on their plane! Of course, that end makes me less curious about that and more curious about how they're going to solve those problems at the end. With the choice that Mo made, I wonder how that's going to play into it. What she saw was unfortunate, but it points to how strong she really is.

The way Livia showed up has me...concerned. I know people think it's Rifel but I really hope it doesn't turn out to be someone closer.

Hopefully we get book 3 soon because after THAT ENDING, I need to find out what happens next!

Book releases May 18th, 2026

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Goodreads

I know it's a few days late, but here's my April Reading Stats! Graphs/data from The Storygraph. Total books read: 10 Total pages: 3278 ARCs: 2 Owned books read: 4

4 Stars!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Whimsical Publishing for an ARC of this book. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was so cute! I loved the chapter titles!

The worldbuilding is interesting but there's still a lot left to explore and I can't wait to see what we find out in future books! I liked the aspect of the different magics though, things like Dessa's abilities and the Vampires, Werewolves and Magickers. Even the Hexxers have some stuff going on, although they are really shady so not sure I trust anything about them yet. Then you have Kiwi-Fred who is more than he appears.

Dessa's past is not talked about in too great a deal, but you get the gist. She mentions that she and the others were ambushed and what happened with that, but you don't find out all the nitty gritty and I'm definitely curious because there's a lot about it. It's sad that Dessa's the only one who kind of came back, but hopefully future books give her more closure. I liked that while she was upset at Jamison going to the graveyard, she was able to acknowledge that a)it needed to be done and b)while she wasn't ready to go yet, she knew she would at some point. I liked the relationship she developed with Jamison, even if it won't go anywhere yet. They make a good team and they're so good together! The reveal on her Uncanny abilities was intriguing and I'm curious if there's more she can do.

Jamison really piqued my interest! The curse business seems like there's a lot more too it, especially after that conversation with Xavier. Jamison really wants to make his own path and I liked that he settled into working at AzRIO and how he wants to be there. Granted, a lot of that is because of Dessa but he's making inroads with Arthur and Richard, and Melba is his secret champion so it seems like he's settling in! I'm definitely curious about what happened a year ago because similar to Dessa's past, we're told a broad overview and we do get a little more, but even with Noah's connection to Rachel, we're still not told everything.

This was a super fun book that had me laughing occasionally. I liked the worldbuilding and I'm super intrigued about what could happen going forward! Hopefully Hayley Reese Chow gets to write at least a couple more books in this series!

Book releases May 26, 2026

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Storygraph

3.75 Stars!!

Thank you to NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca for a complimentary copy of the book for review. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

Okay, so this is book 4 in this series, but if you haven't read the others/missed one or two (for example, I haven't read Ruthless Devotion yet, but I've read the others), you won't be totally lost. It will make references make more sense but you won't miss big details on this story.

I liked that the author moved things from France to Nashville, but also made things fit. The paranormal aspects were intriguing as well. This series has worked well at building that mythology out and I liked getting more as things went on. The reveals on Lloyd-Henry's doings (and I'll admit I'm a little upset that he wasn't 100% nuked after the crap he pulled in Charming Devil , but at the same time, we wouldn't have gotten the story we did if he had been so yeah. At least the Phantom made his realizations and kind of got that closure, even if Lloyd-Henry thought he was a god himself). Then there was the reveal on what, or more specifically who he was unable to locate and I'm wondering if the author might have another series up her sleeve.

The relationship between Christine, Raoul, and the Phantom/Erik was a weird combination of just what they all needed and very toxic. Christine pointed things out when she tried to run, but she also walked herself to the realization that they might be what each other needs to keep the toxicity at bay and somehow it made their relationship work. It was definitely rocky for a minute, but I liked the three of them finding their footing.

The reveal on Raoul was interesting. Made the reasons his family was a sh*tty to him as they had been make a bit more sense. Didn't excuse a thing, but it explained it. Then there's the reveal on Phillipa's hold, and his choice to leave via email was actually smart. Although I'll admit part of me kind of wanted him to reveal he was an alpha, but that also wouldn't have quite fit Raoul's character so having things fall out in the way they did really was for the best.

This book releases April 14, 2026

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Storygraph

5 Stars!!

Thanks to Lyonne Riley for an ARC of this book. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

This was so cute!!

I liked this spin on Beauty and the Beast, especially the way that Rupert stayed a monster and how that result came about.

I did roll my eyes a little at Rupert because dude became kind of a self-fulfilling prophecy, even though he had both Kellen and Peony telling him to knock it off. But the flipside is that he had both Kellen and Peony telling him he was being a butt and then Peony didn't back down. I laughed at Kellen's behavior whenever Rupert messed up and how he told him off. I did like that before Rupert went sideways, and after Kellen kicked his butt about the dinner, he started trying to show stuff to Peony. He was still afraid but at least at the manor he was participating. The calm moments when they were cooking in the kitchen were so sweet, and I loved how playful he was with it.

Peony was great. It was unfortunate what happened with Andy, and I did like that she decided to start trying to reach out again, even if she was scared. I did like her determination to make it work, even if her aunt was a witch about "helping" (I liked Rupert's anger about it honestly...granted that was after he'd realized his feelings but he was still upset at her aunt). I liked the friendship she struck up with Kellen. And at the end, I liked her not walking away when Rupert was being stupid.

The situation with Andy felt both like it had been coming the whole time (I figured he was going to show up at some point), but also like it was slightly shoehorned in. I did think that things were going to go south when she ran into Mandy, but I really hope it was a slip because Mandy didn't know rather than an intentional "I found her for you". Even though it was bad, I liked the way Rupert handled the situation and the fact that he listened to Peony instead of doing what he wanted.

Book released March 20, 2026

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Storygraph

4 Stars!!

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press/Griffin for a complimentary copy of the book for review. Thoughts and opinions are my own.

I liked the banter/chemistry between Daisy and Caleb! From the beginning it was great and I liked that their history helped shape it too. The "then chapters" definitely helped show what their relationship was previously and while it kind of colored things in the now, it also was interesting to see those things through that "then" lens.

Daisy was pretty great. I liked that she wanted her company to succeed and I could understand her feelings of too much. It's unfortunate it took her a minute to realize that you might be too much for some people, but the ones who matter won't care. But I did like her connection with Caleb and how she was able to push him, even if at first she was doing it because she'd realized he'd run first chance he got and he needed to not do that. Then the end when she finally read him and realized why he was how he was, and how she was able to reframe all the stuff he was trying to paint in a bad light to prove he was wrong was amazing.

Even when Caleb was a gruff butt, he was still weirdly sweet (even if it took a minute to get there). He was frustrated about Daisy riding along, although that was less annoyance and more not wanting to feel, but he still started trying to do things she liked. Without her saying so, showing that he remembered things and he even just saw her as she is now. The end reveals, when he was trying to paint himself in such a bad light were surprising and a little sad that he saw himself that way. I did giggle a bit when he was wedged in the window because that had to be awkward. I did wish we'd gotten a little more on his dad/sister because that felt kind of like a big thing but it kind of got steamrolled over as far as explanations go.

I will admit that I realized the connection(?) on his dedication's pretty early on. I was surprised it took Daisy so long to make the connection, but to be fair, she had all the "then" lens stuff to pull from so why would she? And Caleb was doing his best to run away from emotions, so he wouldn't have said anything.

Book releases April 14, 2026

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Storygraph