Ash

Oh my god. Every one of these stars are for Aaron and his trust exercise. I got more out of that scene than 90% of the women's fiction/erotica I have read. I'm in love with Aaron. I really didn't care about Lina. I didn't hate her, but I also wasn't super rooting for her specifically. But Aaron. woof. I feel like I give more credit to romance authors that can give me a full squee going only to first base. It's like burlesque vs. stripping, while I fully enjoy erotica, making me actually feel things with a kiss or a brush of a hand is worth so much more. The end of this book did border on becoming too sappy for my liking, but as I said, I'm in love with Aaron and he can do what he wants I guess.

It took me a while to get into this one. Not having the male leads actually be there until a good chunk of the book has gone by is probably why. I loved Ted. I love complex male counterparts. Laura was annoying for the first part of the book, but she grew on me too. I also loved every side character. I think the author did a really good job of depicting Jasper. Even though he was literally perfect, he gave off a little bit of an ick that made Ted the clear choice. Him ending up with Suki was perfect. I also liked the clever way the author wrote the sex scene by comparing to movie sex scene shots of just the hand in the sheets or kissing the neck to make it not remotely spicy, but get the point across without a frustrating fade to black. It was a good read overall.

Most of this book made me cringe. The vapid mc's, constant talk about Taylor Swift (literally mentioned 9 times and there's a full playlist in the back), and complete fumble with awkward usage of euphemisms and slang during the heated scenes. I hate Charlie. This was an absolute no for me. The bare bones and the cultural aspects were the only saving grace. Never a good sign when I keep catching myself saying, “Please let this end soon.”

The pacing in this book hurt my feelings. It wasn't interesting until about halfway through. I liked the twist, though I was kind of hoping for ghosts or for Eloise to really be Bee, but I accept the real story. I wish we had more of a backstory on the characters that Levi made up for Maggie/Calla and Travis/Theo. Why those names? And how did it take 7 years for someone who gardens to find something that was shallowly buried? The mystery genre always seems to be lacking for me.

I loved Orquídea and Ray. I loved the star and the river monster. I loved the fantastical elements and the zombie rooster. They more than made up for the unfaithful partner, the secrets, and the murder. I was not a fan of the flowers. It creeped me tf out. I would not be okay with a flower sprouting out of my body. I think the author did such a great job of capturing this family and the tumultuous dynamics within.

Ngl, I googled the qualifications to receive a Pulitzer because I couldn't figure out what would make this book receive such an award other than the manifestations of the main character in the story. I couldn't find much information other than if the board likes the submission, they vote and someone wins. This book was suggested to me by a book loving friend, but it took me two years to attempt to read it. I judged from the cover that it would be about the misfortunes of a white male so you can imagine my surprise when not only is that exactly what the book is about, but the characters even talk about it not being a good selling plot. It's not that I didn't enjoy this book, it was just mundane and okay at best. I will not read the second one.

Classic rom-com “fake-dating” trope, classic main character who feels super insecure and almost ruins everything at every turn, and classic brooding male lead who is soft and gentle only to the main character. Just classic. I loved the science background and the constant quippy banter. It was a good time.

This book read as if it was written by AI. The plot, the dialogue, the lack of chemistry or meaningful conversations, just contrived. Ivy is kind of a bitch and not in an endearing way. I didn't really understand why Ezra is coming on so strongly to Ivy after she had been so rude to him, but him cyberstalking her gave me all the ick. Ngl, the “you could stand to eat a few cheeseburgers” line knocked a star off all by itself. Ezra in general was a consent nightmare. It's never a good time for me when the male lead of a romance novel is icky. The whole Phoebe and Cody business and her trying to lose 10 pounds just so she can be catfished too, was gross. The only saving grace for this book was Lawrence seeing Carlette again.

An interesting take on Dracula's brides. I liked the way it felt like we were simultaneously reading a journal entry/confession/love letter for the duration of this book. It held my interest from start to finish as I read it in one sitting. I feel like I'm still processing it. I don't think I loved it, but I also didn't hate it. It existed and told me a story, but it won't stick with me.

I really thought I had figured out who Robin was before she was revealed. Lol. Not even close. I was so worried about Bob and Oscar. I feel like Robin deserved someone better than Adam. Finding a selfish writer as a partner when you are the child of one is just sad. Also, going from being fully on Amelia's side and stressing about her inhaler to literally looking forward to an asthma attack that will take her ass out was trippy. I have never switched feelings for a character faster. I really liked this book. I like that it made you think it was going in the unreliable narrator route, but it didn't. I loved the rock, paper, and scissors on the grave. I still think Adam is a pos and doesn't deserve to be with anyone, but... it was a good read.

I've realized my brain categorizes the romance genre into two distinct onomatopoeia categories. There's the “Ugh” category and the “Squee” category. This book was a squee. It was adorable and sweet from start to finish. It's definitely hallmark movie-esque, but reading it versus watching it, let me cast the characters. I loved how fast-paced and wholesome the entire story was. All the characters were all good without it being annoying. The perfect holiday romance. Loved it.

As someone that used to belong to a fanfic community and has also been a longtime fat person (lol), I loved this book. I related to April in so many ways. I loved reading about the way Marcus viewed her and how he described her body with reverence. I gathered from the references throughout that Marcus Caster-Rupp was not so loosely modeled after Nikolaj Coster-Waldau as Jaime Lannister, that Gods of the Gates was Game of Thrones, and that E. Wade was George R. Martin. Fanfiction inception. I wanted to watch Gods of the Gates and read the books though so I could be a fan. I loved the tags for the fanfics and the mention of kudos. I also loved that the biggest complement April (as a fanfic writer) received, was that her smut was great from E. Wade. The relationships Marcus and April had with their parents were important. I think this was almost a 5 star, but sometimes it teetered over the edge of fluffy into corny. I definitely want to continue this series, and I haven't looked into who the next book is about, but I realllllly hope it's Lauren and Alex.

I'm growing fonder and fonder of celebrity memoires lately. Reading the actual experiences from these people instead of what the creepy paparazzi capture and the stories they create based off of nothing, makes me furious for them. Growing up watching iCarly, I would never have guessed that the person behind the character “Sam” was experiencing such a different life than what was presented. I remember feeling jealous that she could eat so much and stay so skinny. I hope Jennette writes more. I like her writing and I love watching interviews during the promotion of this book.

A great way to end International Women's Day by finishing this collection of short stories by my favorite author. I didn't know that is was short stories when I picked it up, but Chimamanda has an amazing talent for making you feel strongly about her characters in less than a full page. The way she strings words together is always artful. I love how defiant and sometimes self righteous her characters are and yet all of them are unique in their experiences through political and personal trials. I'm excited to read anything and everything she publishes in the future.

The best part about Christina and Lauren's writing is all the squee moments. This one sucked me in and held me the whole way through. I love their books. I genuinely liked and understood all of the characters. Every scene where Jess and River were together was so electric and believable. Definitely pictured River as William Levy. ;) They are my favorite fluffy romance authors, for sure.

This book had me bouncing back and forth between loving it and cringing super hard. I couldn't handle some of the outdated and contrived tropes. The virginal main character with the rakish, centuries old immortal, hit way too close to the obsession with purity culture that skeeves me out about YA vampire books. That being said, the parts that I liked outweighed the uncomfortable bits. I liked the twist, even if I was glaringly obvious the whole time because every character hinted at it. I also like the lore and her powers. On to the next one.

I went into this book without knowing what the premise was. I went off of ratings alone and I'm glad I did. This book is beautifully written. The author's purpose in educating readers about the governmentally sanctioned sterilizations of poor brown and black women was effective. I liked that the narrator was describing this story to her daughter the whole time and not one of the two sisters because it cemented the fact that she wasn't their savior and they had their own lives to live. This was a great book.

Let me preface this with, these are just my opinions and I am a nobody. I had too high of expectations going into this one. The constant name dropping, the technical language during the spicy bits, just all of it was trying too hard. It read like satire and I'm pretty sure it wasn't supposed to. Most of the characters felt unreal to me because of the lack of descriptive language. It was inadequate overall. The bare bones of the story had so much potential. The independent single black mother with an invisible disability who is raising her daughter with mindfulness of her mental well-being, rekindles the love she had with the first person to truly see her. Said person is also broken from traumatic life experiences. Ughhhh. All of the potential. So frustrated that this wasn't written better!!! The only character I genuinely liked was Audre. She was one of the only characters not spouting pop culture allusions in every dialogue. You'd think the 12 year old would be the one who would. I feel like this story would have been better if it was written by someone else.

I am biased towards the historical fantasy genre. So it will come to the surprise of no one that I loved this book. It reads like a series in the best way and the writing itself is so beautiful. I forced everyone I saw while this book was on my person to read the paragraph about March on page 20. I've never liked the month of March before, but now I feel like I understand why and I will probably like it just a bit more from now on.
Okay, I don't know how to continue this review without gushing so I'm just going to do it anyway.
I loved Addie. I loved Henry and Luc. I loved Bea and Book and Sam! I loved the historical aspects and the ties to famous people who have sold their souls. I loved the bittersweet ending. I loved the relationships between the characters. I loved how different Addie was from Henry and Luc, but they complimented each other in different ways. I loved the different forms of art Addie placed herself in. I loved how the musical one was somehow more intense than the physical art. I love the specific millennial culture references. I loved that both Addie and Henry were interested in people regardless of their gender. I loved Addie's constellation of freckles and how they were the hidden key to recognizing her throughout the ages. I loved so many things about this book, I didn't even mind seeing the word “palimpsest” 20 times.

Questions: Why was Addie able to play the piano if she wasn't able to draw or write? How was Addie able to replant the sapling over Estelle's grave with her inability to disrupt her surroundings? Why did no one use the restroom while on a date with Addie? All I could think of was how no one with IBS could ever have gone out with her...

I wish that the cover of the book was in cursive like the book describes Henry's version to be. I fully recommend this book to anyone who loves the historical fiction or fantasy genre.
Every other book this author has written has been added to my tbr list.

After falling in love with Daisy Jones and Evelyn Hugo, this book was somewhat of a let down. Mick Riva is interchangeable with Billy Dunne and was one of Evelyn's husbands. The being cheated on but sticking around trope is not one I can stomach anymore in a TJR book. Nothing new was given with this book.

This book was equal parts frustrating and heart-warming. The back and forth dialogue made me anxious so I had to take many Criminal Minds breaks to calm down, (because who isn't soothed by serial killers when Shemar Moore is catching them...) even though the frustration was hilarious. The way every character had their storyline packaged up at the end was beautiful. I love that this book's overall message is that at the end of the day, as long as you have made it through, you've done alright. I also love that it touches on suicide, but does it carefully and offers support at the end. Zara and Estelle were my favorite.