Loren

Thanks to @/coloredpagesbt for the finished copy and selecting me for this tour!

This is the first book I've read by Mason Deaver, and it was a sweet one.

Okay, Cupid is a very cute YA (rom-comish vibes) book where our main character Jude is having a bit of a hard time being a Cupid.

I really loved the story as a whole. We see our MC Jude faced with the “do what's expected of you or do what best for you” dilemma. Since Jude is still a young Cupid we see him face the complexity of his fears, his greater responsibilities, and choosing the unknown.

The concept of Cupid in this world was something that I truly loved. When I think of Cupid I always thing of stereotypical cherubs in diapers with wings, but here we have cupids that are blending in with society, and doing subtle things in their targets life to complete their tasks.

I still have mixed feelings about the ending mainly because it kinda broke my heart. I'm not going to spoil it because it was a big decision made by Jude in the end.

Now I have to backtrack and read I Wish You All Best!

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Oh... my god. 

Talk about judging a book by its cover. This cover is GORGEOUS... the inside??? eehhhh. 

The storytelling was just so surface level, and as someone who read A LOT of YA this was just really cringy? Yes, we're in the perspective of a high schooler, but the writing just feels so off. 

If I don't have to see the word “Gooseberries” or the phrase “Gooseberries Galore” ever again, I think I will be set for life. 

From the moment I picked up Masquerade I was absolutely captivated by O.O Sangoyomi's level of storytelling. Inspired by the myth of Persephone, we follow Òdòdò, a blacksmith in Timbuktu, whose life takes a dramatic turn when she is kidnapped by the Warrior King. What follows is a journey of transformation and empowerment as Òdòdò navigates the treacherous waters of betrayal and the royal court in Șàngóté. 
When I tell you Sangoyomi has a way with words, and immersing you into a world that felt both ancient and timeless. I was truly captivated by her writing. This story had me on my toes the entire time! I cannot tell you how many times I had to stop reading to digest the twists and turns of Òdòdò's story! 
Òdòdò's journey was truly a testament to personal empowerment and resilience (personally would have given up a few times, Òdòdò was truly that girl). 
Masquerade is a MUST READ. I finished the book a week ago, and I'm still thinking about it. And this is a DEBUT!! I can't wait for whatever she had next! 
Thank you Colored Pages Book Tours for free book, and Macmillan Audio for the ALC. 

This book really delves into the importance of speaking up for what's right and staying true to your values. 
The one thing I genuinely enjoyed about this book is how committed Jordyn was to doing better. To not be a bystander to bullying and harassment even when we was faced with her past resurfacing. 
I can say that I couldn't predict correctly who the podcaster was. I had my theories, but I'm happy I didn't get it right.
It did frustrate me how little her parents believed her, and how it took her aunt to kinda chew them out to hear her story and what really happened. 
Overall this was a solid read! I was hesitant with the beginning if I was going to actually get into it or not, but to my surprise it did pick up and I was locked in until the very end! 
Thank you Colored Pages Book Tours for the opportunity, and I Read Ya for this Arc! 

🩶 Morally Grey FMC  🗡️ Revenge & Betrayal (and some forgiveness)   🫶🏾 Found Family 
Are we surprised??? 
Sing me to sleep was one of my Top 5 books of 2023! I still think it is one of the best showcases of what a morally grey character is (IMO), and Drown me with Dreams just wrapped up the story with a perfect bow! 
Finishing Drown me With Dreams was bittersweet, and filed with emotional pain!   We finally get across the magical barrier that separates Keirdre from its “enemies”, and let me tell y'all how I couldn't predict anything! The betrayals, and the new found powers kept me on my toes the whole time. 
I honestly wished this was a trilogy because I still have questions 😭 and would have love to see more of Saoirse and Rain. 
I'm trying to not spoil anything!! Which is super hard since SMTS ended on sort of cliffhanger, and DMWD was a strong sequel! 
I have definitely added the SMTS and DMWD dreams to the list of series I will be rereading in the future! 
Thank you Bloomsbury and Gabi Burton for the arc copy and allowing me to be apart of this street team!! 

I don't knoooooowww what to say about this. I did not like Vivian or empathize with her after the full story of the death of her sister was revealed. That demon should have haunted her for the rest of her days. The girl is just a pathological liar for no good reason. I'm assuming she's supposed to be unlikable, and we aren't really meant to genuinely root for her. 

 But then when we get to the part where she confesses, and I don't get why everyone was so sympathetic to her ESPECIALLY HER PARENTS??? Her mother thought she was the reason her daughter died, and this whole time it was Vivian's fault. Like you knew what guilt your mom held, and you said nothing???? The demon getting her to confess was AGAINST HER OWN WILL.
Now the horror aspect of this story!!! chef's kiss I was actually scared. We had a “The Ring” girl crawling out of the TV type moment. It was described and written so well. The imagery was there throughout the whole story! 
I would recommend this just based on the Horror aspect. From the other YA horror books I've read the is year this is definitely Top 5 even with the dislike I hold for Vivian. 
Thank you Pagestreet YA for the ARC copy! 

I feel like this is the perfect book to be my 100th post! 

I was holding off reading this book for NO REASON AT ALL. I tell myself I'm not that into Romance and I've been side eying it at the library refusing to give in. This “not that into romance” is of course a bold face lie as my most read genre this year is romance 🌝

Before I Let Go is such a beautiful book on loss, grieving, and second chance love. I quite literally have the biggest smile plastered on my face writing this. Ugh I'm now the biggest fan of Kennedy Ryan. I'm gonna get on my zoom and catch up on all her books 😩

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This review is hard for me to write because I just loved the book... It wasn't perfect BUT the lore and the storytelling were all there for me. 

It is very easy to get lost in the intricacies of reading high fantasy. Forgetting lore, characters coming and going, but everything in Faebound connected so seamlessly. I had several “Ah Ha” moments, which I love to experience while reading!

Getting into the story was kind of difficult because the part where Yeeran made her “fatal mistake” felt super choppy to me. I just didn't understand why it panned out the way it did? It felt super clunky, and a plot line that was thrown in there. This didn't deter me from progressing, but I was definitely unsure I would like the rest of the story.

Also if you are going into this for the romance aspect I would lower your expectation a bit! This is not a romantasy! Yes there is romance, but it is not the focus... so that's your warning 🫡🤣

Overall, I will definitely be reading the next book! I loved all the twist and turns the story took, and how we, as the reader, are also looking for the truth!

Where shall I begin this book was a lot. 

As a character I can see my friends in Feyi. Her messiness, her passion, and her yearning to heal. BUT some of the decisions that were made were just... why. I wanted to shake this woman VIOLENTLY. 

Feyi is an artist and her art is centered around her trauma, understandable. Her decisions... are also based around her trauma. The relationship that brews between Alim and Feyi is built around a shared trauma of losing a spouse. And that's the sole thing that brings them together? Which I just don't think is healthy, but I digress. 

Although not based in reality I found myself slamming my kindle closed and staring in the distance while whispering BFFR. 

I certainly did not like the ending where Alim's kids were basically villainized for their nonacceptance of the situation in which I think any human being with emotions would not handle lightly. 

Overall... I did recommend this to friends because I need everyone to share in foolishness I went through.

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I picked this up at the library mainly because of the cover thinking it was going to be just a short cute graphic novel on ghosts and laundry... BOY WAS I WRONG! 

This explored themes like grieving, coming of age, family, and death of a parent. 

Getting into the story initially was rough, but once we get into the life of Marjorie, our FMC, and how she is trying to hold together her school life, and life at home after the death of her mother. During all this she is taking care of her family's laundromat, her brother who just started kindergarten, and her father who is basically withdrawing from his children.

This entire story was completely unexpected. Now that I'm reflecting I loved that I went in completely blind, and just wanted to read based off the cute deceptive cover lol. 

Well... it's happened again a Booktok sensation has disappointed me. 

I don't normally get my recommendations from TikTok since I truly believe books are over sensationalized over there, and I don't have time to be disappointed so frequently 🤣🤣

But this one got me. I saw all the blurbs, and gave it a chance. 

LET IT BE KNOWN... this book is not horrible. It's just that I didn't like it 🧍🏾‍♀️. I didn't like Alex or Ava and I found majority of their actions excruciatingly cringe. I sped read through majority of because the vibes weren't DNF but we were getting there.

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Thank you for the early copy Coloredpagesbt and Sourcebooksfire! 
This was a really rough read for me. Especially since this was one of my most anticipated reads of 2024. There are things about this book that I thought were absolutely phenomenal! I loved that there was a spectrum of love when it came to brewing potions. I loved that Venus was truly a “morally grey” character, and that it was family above everything. The complexity of the magic system and how witches brew their potions. The different powers that each witch possessed, and how the brewers couldn't delve into each other's respective practices. 
 Annnddd I think that's where my love for this book dies. 
I found myself being frustrated with the pacing, the plot, and the characters. 
The pacing of this book truly threw me off. It was terribly staggering, and sometimes just slow. I felt like plot lines linger for what longer than they need to. The so called “gotcha” or the big revelations that happened just fell so flat for me, that as I was reading I had to keep verbally saying “huh” “what” “why did that happen” because the lead up, and dialogue before had just didn't build up like how it was supposed to. I almost DNF'd at 60% because I kept have to rereading and going back thinking I was missing things. I don't really want to spoil anything, so I'm just gonna leave it at that. 
When it came to the characters I truly did not like Venus OVERALL. Yes, I did appreciate some parts of her character and personality BUT her as whole was just infuriated my soul. At some parts it felt like she was combative to just be combative. Like holy shit girl you are staggering your own progress in your own ordeal. And then it just kept happening over and over and over again. Like... at some point in even morally grey characters have to have some kind of growth in their demeanor in order to get to that next step right? 
I didn't rate this any lower because I feel like I did enjoy a lot of parts when it came to reading this BUT I didn't have a good experience overall especially with this being such a highly anticipated book for me. 
I also want to add that I think this should have been categorized outside of YA? But that's not my ministry to speak on in depth, just my opinion. 

Thanks to @/hearourvoicestours and @/levinequerido for the finished copy and selecting me for this tour! 🩵

The Queer Girl is Going to be Okay is definitely one of those books that younger Loren needed. 

The representation in this book was unmatched which was to be expected. 

The complexity of the relationships between the friend groups and their families, the school struggles with the daunting feeling of college, and the worries of what is next or yet to come. 

I truly loved the unconditional love that Dawn, Georgia, and Edie all had for each other. They all knew they needed each other to succeed, and would go above and beyond what truly a good friend is. Those girls are family. 

I honestly wish we got more of Edie and Georgia's story. The main focus of the story was Dawn and her film, but those two went through some stuff that truly defines a character and how they move through a story. 

Overall, I loved this book and all it entailed! I will be donating my copy to my library :) hoping to get this books into a queer kid hands 🏳️‍🌈

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For Christmas... I want a Judah UNDER THE TREE and whoever I need to speak to to make that happen needs to reveal themselves IMMEDIATELY.

Okay but in all seriousness this was such a great read.

Putting aside the romance aspect for a minute to admire how Soledad as a character! Her strength and her resilience is something else. Coming close to losing almost everything, and managed to make something of her own... ugh I love her.

Back to the romance... JUDAH lord. Make all men like Judah! PLEASE

Judah a man of patience. WHEW!

I loved that Judah just wanted the best for Soledad, but wanted her overall. He was willing to wait out her dating herself, and her back and forth for what she truly wanted. He wanted to make she was sure in her decision before stepping in fully, and whenever she faltered he took a step back. UGH.

I am truly in love with this series and I can't wait for Hendrix being next!!! Rich auntie is going to find lovvveee.

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Thank you, Partner @cocoachapters @legacylitbooks for the finished copy.

This book was absolutely beautiful.
As someone who worked in the mental health field right out of college for almost 3 years, working mainly with patients suffering from depression, anxiety, bipolar disorder, and schizophrenia the bonds you create with patients and their families is truly a special experience. Holding pt accountable to their treatment plan, wanting to see them succeed and continue to rehabilitate themselves once they leave treatment. Reading Madness was truly heartbreaking. 
The topic of mental illness in the black community is often seen as a taboo topic. To read the treatment of black patients in Crownsville hospital, and how the hospital became a dumping ground for “aggressive and combative” black men, women, and children. How patients were deferred to the hospital rather than a jail, and left there for years with no proper diagnosis. Families thought their loved ones were dead after not being able to find them for 20+ plus, all this time were just in the hospital. 
The research and time that went into Madness was probably very daunting but Hylton brought to light a very disturbing history that needed to be made whole.
Madness made me question how far have we truly come from black people getting the mental help they truly need? How long do we go over diagnosed or undiagnosed or even misdiagnosed once we seek out treatment? 
(New flash: black people are still frequently misdiagnosed and under treated)

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What an amazing collaboration between these two authors! 
This book had so many valuable aspects jammed into it. From parental expectations to cultural burdens. And with that we are getting immersed in this tight knit Muslim community and their culture along with Said and Tiwa rebuilding their fallen friendship. 
I wish we got more of that Romance aspect, and that it wasn't resolved so close to the end. 

TW: STALKING, SA of a minor 

I've always been interested in the story of Medusa. For the longest time not knowing her true story. Only to find out she was punished by Athena for no good reason. 

This retelling of her story positions Medusa in a place where she actively advocates for herself and accepts who she has become regardless of the wrong doings of others. 

A pretty solid retelling, very short and sweet. I can see why so many people loved it. 

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The last 70ish pages of this book is where anything actually starts to happen. And even then is super unfortunate how everything plays out. 
The beginning of this story was super slow and frustrating to get through. Which surprised me because the writing is really good. I wanted to stop reading at so many points while reading because I couldn't understand why all this filler was needed. It honestly felt like 200+ pages of straight filler. None of it was conducive to the lack of a plot line at all. 
Thank you to Colored Pages Book tour and Fierce Fire Reads for the finished copy!