Tag: books

What I Read in October (2024)

Books Read in October: 24
Books Read for the Year: 191/215

Topical Books/Monthly Goal Books:
The Quarry Girls, by Jess Lourey (TBR): This was an engrossing read that I found myself drawn into quickly.
The Blonde Identity, by Ally Carter (TBR): I LOVED this. So much fun.
The Other Half of the Grave, by Jeanine Frost (TBR):
Highland Spy, by Madeline Martin (TBR): I enjoyed the first half of this a lot, but the second half less so.
Full Blast, by Janet Evanovich (TBR): Meh.
Hell’s Spells, by Devon Monk (TBR, audio): Loved this!
Sealed with a Tryst, by Devon Monk (TBR, audio): These audio books are so fun!
Nobody’s Ghoul, by Devon Monk (TBR, audio): I really enjoyed this one!
Catching Echoes, by Meghan Ciana Doidge (TBR): I liked this one. It was nice to see a totally different take on this world.

For Review:

Betrayal at Blackthorn Park, by Julia Kelly. I really love these WWII female-spy novels. I found this one a lot of fun, and stayed up late to finish reading it.

The Fabled Earth, by Kimberly Brock. This historical fiction read ended up being such a good book! I found the setting—for both timelines—fascinating, and the characters were so vivid!

I Did Something Bad, by Pyae Moe Thet War. I wasn’t too sure how this was going to be, based on teh cover blurb, but this was a fun read!

Christmas in Chestnut Ridge, by Nancy Naigle. This was a solid romance read, but nothing unexpected.

The Stone Witch of Florence, by Anna Rasche. This was a good historical fiction in a setting that I’d never read before. I found it quite interesting.

Love Is for the Birds, by Diane Owens Prettyman. The setting alone made me want to read this, but I ended up regretting that choice. I don’t recommend this at all.

The Christmas Cookie Wars, by Eliza Evans. This was a fun, enemies-to-lovers read!

For She Is Wrath, by Emily Varga. I loved the setting and culture in this read! The focus on revenge and retribution wasn’t so great for me, but the world itself was fascinating.

Fondue or Die, by Korina Moss. This was the perfect read for a fall afternoon: not too heavy, some fun moments, and let’s not forget the food and cheese talk.

Sleep in Heavenly Pizza, by Mindy Quigley. This isn’t a bad read, but the MC comes across as way too nosy for me. Yes, it’s a cozy mystery, so some of that is to be expected, but she takes it too far.

The Scholar and the Last Faerie Door, by H. G. Parry. I enjoyed this quite a bit. The world was fascinating, and I liked that friendship was the center of everything, not romance or magic.

The Debutantes, by Olivia Worley. This creeped me out quite a bit–because it was so believable!

Thieves’ Gambit, by Kayvion Lewis. This was a lot of fun! Reminded me quite a bit of Jennifer Lynn Barnes’ The Inheritance Games.

Streetlight People, by Charlene Thomas. I’m still not sure exactly what I think of this book, but I highly recommend it. It’s absolutely riveting and I could not put it down.

The Gardener’s Plot, by Deborah J. Benoit. This was a decent cozy mystery read, but nothing extraordinary.

Left Unfinished:

Some Like it Cold, by Elle McNicoll. This felt very juvenile and the writing just wasn’t developed.

Best Hex Ever, by Nadia El-Fassi. I’m just not the target audience for this.

The Love Elixir of Augusta Stern, by Lynda Cohen Loigman. Yeah, I just didn’t feel any connection to this cranky old lady.

Red in Tooth and Claw, by Lish McBride. I read about 10% of this before putting it down. It felt slow, and the setting was a little too The Handmaid’s Tale for me.

A New Lease on Death, by Olivia Blacke. I read about 15% of this before bedtime. It was okay, but I had no desire to pick it up and keep reading.

Book Review: Thieves’ Gambit, by Kayvion Lewis

Title: Thieves’ Gambit
Author: Kayvion Lewis
Genre: YA
Rating: 4 out of 5

At only seventeen years old, Ross Quest is already a master thief, especially adept at escape plans. Until her plan to run away from her legendary family of thieves takes an unexpected turn, leaving her mother’s life hanging in the balance.

In a desperate bid, she enters the Thieves’ Gambit, a series of dangerous, international heists where killing the competition isn’t exactly off limits, but the grand prize is a wish for anything in the world–a wish that could save her mom. When she learns two of her competitors include her childhood nemesis and a handsome, smooth-talking guy who might also want to steal her heart, winning the Gambit becomes trickier than she imagined.

Ross tries her best to stick to the family creed: trust no one whose last name isn’t Quest. But with the stakes this high, Ross will have to decide who to con and who to trust before time runs out. After all, only one of them can win.

This reminded me of Jennifer Lynn Barnes’ The Inheritance Games—and that’s a good thing. This was a lot of fun from the very beginning, except Ross’s mom is a lot. I always feel really not smart when reading books like this, but they’re also fascinating, seeing how someone else’s mind works. I loved the action in this, but the different characters and their personalities were the real stars of the show. This is a great weekend binge read!

Kayvion Lewis is from Louisiana. Thieves’ Gambit is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Penguin Group in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: The Debutantes, by Olivia Worley

Title: The Debutantes
Author: Olivia Worley
Genre: Mystery/thriller, YA
Rating: 4 out of 5

For the New Orleans elite, the Les Masques Ball is sure to be the social event of the season—if they can avoid another dead Queen. When debutante Margot Landry was found dead the morning after her reign at last year’s ball, it was a tragedy, but not a shocking one. Margot was a wild child with a self-destructive streak, nothing like this year’s Queen, Lily LeBlanc. With a perfectly poised debutante on the throne, everything is going according to plan…until the ball is hijacked by a mysterious figure in a Jester costume. That night, Lily sends a text to three of the Maids on her royal court—her best friend, Vivian; her boyfriend’s sister, Piper; and April, her former frenemy—asking them all to meet the next morning. But Lily never shows up.

On the surface, these three debutantes don’t have anything in common except their exclusive private school and their ties to Les Masques. But soon, they realize why Lily brought them together: something dark is lurking beneath the glamorous surface of the debutante world, and it might be the reason she disappeared. And the further the girls dig, the more they begin to suspect that Margot’s death may not have been an accident—and that Lily may be next. When the Jester starts threatening to expose their own secrets, this unlikely trio must team up to uncover the monsters behind the Mardi Gras masks—before they’re left with another dead debutante.

Not going to lie, this creeped me out on several levels. I used to live outside of New Orleans, so this, while fictional, did not seem completely outside the realm of possibility to me. The writing is solid in this and the setting was vividly done and did justice to New Orleans itself. Debutante culture was both creepy and infuriating, but I thought the mystery and the twists and turns were well-done, keeping me guessing until the end.

Olivia Worley was born in New Orleans but now lives in NYC. The Debutantes is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

Sundays are for Writing #300

This was another excellent writing week! I got in five fiction sessions and four book reviews: For She Is Wrath, by Emily Varga, Fondue or Die, by Korina Moss, Sleep in Heavenly Pizza, by Mindy Quigley, and The Scholar and the Last Faerie Door, by H. G. Parry. I also DNFed A New Lease on Death, by Olivia Blacke—it just didn’t keep me interested.

Happy writing!

Book Review: The Scholar and the Last Faerie Door, by H. G. Parry

Title: The Scholar and the Last Faerie Door
Author: H. G. Parry
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: 4 out of 5

All they needed to break the world was a door, and someone to open it.

Camford, 1920. Gilded and glittering, England’s secret magical academy is no place for Clover, a commoner with neither connections nor magical blood. She tells herself she has fought her way there only to find a cure for her brother Matthew, one of the few survivors of a faerie attack on the battlefields of WWI which left the doors to faerie country sealed, the study of its magic banned, and its victims cursed.

But when Clover catches the eye of golden boy Alden Lennox-Fontaine and his friends, doors that were previously closed to her are flung wide open, and she soon finds herself enmeshed in the seductive world of the country’s magical aristocrats. The summer she spends in Alden’s orbit leaves a fateful mark: months of joyous friendship and mutual study come crashing down when experiments go awry, and old secrets are unearthed.

Years later, when the faerie seals break, Clover knows it’s because of what they did. And she knows that she must seek the help of people she once called friends—and now doesn’t quite know what to call—if there’s any hope of saving the world as they know it.

I loved this setting and world and found it fascinating. The whole magic school premise has been overdone, but this story focuses on the characters and their friendship, not the minutiae of what’s happening in the classroom, and that sets it apart. I loved that friendship was the center of this book, without getting distracted by romance and flirtation. I was drawn into the story from the beginning and found it hard to put it down when I had to go do something else.

H. G. Parry lives in New Zealand. The Scholar and the Last Faerie Door is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Redhook Books in exchange for an honest review.)

Website: https://hgparry.wordpress.com/Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Scholar-Last-Faerie-Door-ebook/dp/B0CTZVT4NG/ref=sr_1_1?crid=UB4Y11NXMXOQ&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.W5eKafWFGHJ67Mh2g_jQ_w.zigeTOhQcqFY3H6YaZNjmyKTtAtWfI59tC2GUkp6Y_4&dib_tag=se&keywords=the+scholar+and+the+last+faerie+door+by+h.+g.+parry&qid=1729873009&sprefix=The+Scholar+and+the+Last+Faerie+Door%2C+by+H.+G.+Parry+%2Caps%2C603&sr=8-1 Title: The Scholar and the Last Faerie Door Author: H. G. Parry Genre: Fantasy Rating: 4 out of 5 All they needed to
break the world was a door, and someone to open it. Camford, 1920. Gilded
and glittering, England’s secret magical academy is no place for Clover, a
commoner with neither connections nor magical blood. She tells herself she has
fought her way there only to find a cure for her brother Matthew, one of the few
survivors of a faerie attack on the battlefields of WWI which left the doors to
faerie country sealed, the study of its magic banned, and its victims cursed. But when Clover catches
the eye of golden boy Alden Lennox-Fontaine and his friends, doors that were
previously closed to her are flung wide open, and she soon finds herself
enmeshed in the seductive world of the country’s magical aristocrats. The
summer she spends in Alden’s orbit leaves a fateful mark: months of joyous
friendship and mutual study come crashing down when experiments go awry, and
old secrets are unearthed. Years later, when the
faerie seals break, Clover knows it’s because of what they did. And she knows
that she must seek the help of people she once called friends—and now doesn’t
quite know what to call—if there’s any hope of saving the world as they know
it. I loved this setting
and world and found it fascinating. The whole magic school premise has been
overdone, but this story focuses on the characters and their friendship, not
the minutiae of what’s happening in the classroom, and that sets it apart. I
loved that friendship was the center of this book, without getting distracted
by romance and flirtation. I was drawn into the story from the beginning and
found it hard to put it down when I had to go do something else. H. G. Parry lives in
New Zealand. The Scholar and the Last Faerie Door is her newest novel. (Galley courtesy of Redhook
Books in exchange for an honest review.) Book Review: The
Scholar and the Last Faerie Door, by H. G. Parry

Book Review: Sleep in Heavenly Pizza, by Mindy Quigley

Title:    Sleep in Heavenly Pizza
Author: Mindy Quigley
Genre: Mystery
Rating: 3.8 out of 5

Pizza chef Delilah O’Leary and her kitty companion, Butterball, get into the holiday spirit as Geneva Bay, Wisconsin hosts the nation’s premier snow sculpting championship. The annual event transforms the charming resort town into a wonderland of snow castles, ice rinks, and cozy cups of cocoa. On the eve of the festival though, a too-good-to-be-true Chrismukkah catering gig brings some frosty tidings and heralds an unexpected visit from Delilah’s high-intensity older sister. Suddenly it seems that the holidays may not be the hap-happiest season of all. And when a missing party guest’s frozen corpse turns up inside one of the town’s snowy sculptures, murder threatens to put the celebrations—and Delilah’s crew—on ice for good.

This was a quick cozy mystery read, but I have to admit, Delilah is just too darned nosy for me. I mean, everybody else’s personal life just isn’t your business, so stay out of it. People like that get on my nerves, so it was really hard for me to forget I was annoyed and just enjoy the story. There were a lot of side plots going on here and I figured out who the killer was about halfway through, but it was a decent enough read.

Mindy Quigley lives in Virginia. Sleep in Heavenly Pizza is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

Website: http://mindyquigley.com/ Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1250326281?ref_=dbs_m_mng_rwt_calw_tmmp_3&storeType=ebooks Title: Sleep in Heavenly PizzaAuthor: Mindy Quigley Genre: Mystery Rating: 3.8 out of 5 Pizza chef Delilah
O’Leary and her kitty companion, Butterball, get into the holiday spirit as
Geneva Bay, Wisconsin hosts the nation’s premier snow sculpting championship.
The annual event transforms the charming resort town into a wonderland of snow
castles, ice rinks, and cozy cups of cocoa. On the eve of the festival though,
a too-good-to-be-true Chrismukkah catering gig brings some frosty tidings and
heralds an unexpected visit from Delilah’s high-intensity older sister.
Suddenly it seems that the holidays may not be the hap-happiest season of all.
And when a missing party guest’s frozen corpse turns up inside one of the
town’s snowy sculptures, murder threatens to put the celebrations—and Delilah’s
crew—on ice for good. This was a quick cozy
mystery read, but I have to admit, Delilah is just too darned nosy for me. I
mean, everybody else’s personal life just isn’t your business, so stay out of
it. People like that get on my nerves, so it was really hard for me to forget I
was annoyed and just enjoy the story. There were a lot of side plots going on
here and I figured out who the killer was about halfway through, but it was a decent
enough read. Mindy Quigley lives in
Virginia. Sleep in Heavenly Pizza is her newest novel. (Galley courtesy of St.
Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.) Book Review: Sleep in
Heavenly Pizza, by Mindy Quigley

Book Review: Fondue or Die, by Korina Moss

Title: Fondue or Die
Author: Korina Moss
Genre: Cozy mystery
Rating: 4 out of 5

The lazy, hazy, dairy days of summer are coming to a close in the Sonoma Valley. . . and so is someone’s life.

The small town of Yarrow Glen’s neighbor, Lockwood, hosts an annual Labor Day weekend bash: Dairy Days. And Willa Bauer and her cheese shop, Curds & Whey, refuse to miss out on the fun. Willa is thrilled to celebrate her favorite thing—she is a cheesemonger after all—and this festival goes all out: butter sculptures, goat races, cheese wheel relays, even a Miss Dairy pageant. Too bad the pageant runner, Nadine, is treating Dairy Days prep like it’s fondue or die and is putting everyone around her on edge. When Willa finds Nadine’s dead body under years’ worth of ceramic milk jugs, the police aren’t sure whether the death was an accident. But fingers are pointing at Willa’s employee, Mrs. Schultz, who steps in to help the pageant after Nadine’s death. Someone wanted Nadine out of the whey, and Willa is going to find out who.

This was a cute cozy mystery story—and all the cheese references made me hungry! The setting here, a cheese shop in a small town, and the people associated with the shop, make this quirky and fun. Nosy people get on my nerves, so in any other situation, Team Cheese would be super annoying to me, but they manage to pull it off and keep me entertained as they try to solve another murder mystery.

Korina Moss is an award-winning author. Fondue or Die is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

Book Review: For She Is Wrath, by Emily Varga

Title: For She Is Wrath
Author: Emily Varga
Genre: YA, fantasy, romance
Rating: 4 out of 5

Three hundred and sixty-four days.

Framed for a crime she didn’t commit, Dania counts down her days in prison until she can exact revenge on Mazin, the boy responsible for her downfall, the boy she once loved—and still can’t forget. When she discovers a fellow prisoner may have the key to exacting that vengeance–a stolen djinn treasure–they execute a daring escape together and search for the hidden treasure.

Armed with dark magic and a new identity, Dania enacts a plan to bring down those who betrayed her and her family, even though Mazin stands in her way. But seeking revenge becomes a complicated game of cat and mouse, especially when an undeniable fire still burns between them, and the power to destroy her enemies has a price. As Dania falls deeper into her web of traps and lies, she risks losing her humanity to her fight for vengeance–and her heart to the only boy she’s ever loved.

I found the culture and setting of this story to be a fascinating mix of different elements that kept me intrigued. Danie was a strong character—and one I enjoyed getting to know more. She’s tough and capable, and so afraid to let anyone close enough to betray her again, but she gradually realizes that she can trust some people. This felt like a dark fantasy, but there was hope there as well.

Emily Varga lives in Canada. For She is Wrath is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.)

Website:      https://emilyvargabooks.com/about/Amazon:    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CQHL8HKV/ref=x_gr_bb_kindle?caller=Goodreads&tag=x_gr_bb_kindle-20 Title: For She Is Wrath Author:   Emily
Varga       Genre: YA, fantasy, romance        Rating: 4 out of 5 Three hundred and
sixty-four days. Framed for a crime she
didn’t commit, Dania counts down her days in prison until she can exact revenge
on Mazin, the boy responsible for her downfall, the boy she once loved—and
still can’t forget. When she discovers a fellow prisoner may have the key to
exacting that vengeance–a stolen djinn treasure–they execute a daring escape
together and search for the hidden treasure. Armed with dark magic
and a new identity, Dania enacts a plan to bring down those who betrayed her
and her family, even though Mazin stands in her way. But seeking revenge
becomes a complicated game of cat and mouse, especially when an undeniable fire
still burns between them, and the power to destroy her enemies has a price. As
Dania falls deeper into her web of traps and lies, she risks losing her
humanity to her fight for vengeance–and her heart to the only boy she’s ever
loved. I found the culture and
setting of this story to be a fascinating mix of different elements that kept
me intrigued. Danie was a strong character—and one I enjoyed getting to know
more. She’s tough and capable, and so afraid to let anyone close enough to
betray her again, but she gradually realizes that she can trust some people.
This felt like a dark fantasy, but there was hope there as well. Emily Varga lives in
Canada. For She is Wrath is her debut novel.  (Galley courtesy of St.
Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.) Book Review: For She Is
Wrath, by Emily Varga

Book Review: The Christmas Cookie Wars, by Eliza Evans

Title: The Christmas Cookie Wars
Author: Eliza Evans
Genre: Romance
Rating: 4 out of 5

Melody Monroe will do anything to help her nine-year-old twin boys muster up the holiday spirit. Especially since they lost their father, the boys have started questioning the point of Christmas at all.

So, when Melody learns the school’s Yuletide Cookie Club has disbanded due to dissension in the top ranks, she knows she must take over the cookie club herself, even if it means dealing with the infuriating school principal, Jonathan Braxton.

But when a small argument turns into a town-wide bake-off between her and Jonathan, Melody finds that her competitive spirits have turned romantic. Love can’t be in the cards. Her focus is on her boys, and saving Christmas. This year, will Melody be willing to let go of the past and embrace the magic of the holidays for herself?

This was a cute, fun read. Melody’s fly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants way of living made me laugh—but kind of made me shudder, too. Jonathan came off as very buttoned-up at first, but it was nice to see him let his guard down. This was a quick read that had me laughing as I breezed through it.

Eliza Evans is a bestselling author. The Christmas Cookie Wars is her newest novel.

(Galley courtesy of Penguin Group Putnam in exchange for an honest review.)

Website: https://elizaevansbooks.com/Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CT2Z779Q/ref=x_gr_bb_kindle?caller=Goodreads&tag=x_gr_bb_kindle-20 Title: The Christmas Cookie Wars Author: Eliza
Evans Genre: Romance Rating: 4 out of 5 Melody Monroe will do
anything to help her nine-year-old twin boys muster up the holiday spirit.
Especially since they lost their father, the boys have started questioning the
point of Christmas at all. So, when Melody learns
the school’s Yuletide Cookie Club has disbanded due to dissension in the top
ranks, she knows she must take over the cookie club herself, even if it means
dealing with the infuriating school principal, Jonathan Braxton. But when a small
argument turns into a town-wide bake-off between her and Jonathan, Melody finds
that her competitive spirits have turned romantic. Love can’t be in the cards.
Her focus is on her boys, and saving Christmas. This year, will Melody be willing
to let go of the past and embrace the magic of the holidays for herself? This was a cute, fun
read. Melody’s fly-by-the-seat-of-her-pants way of living made me laugh—but kind
of made me shudder, too. Jonathan came off as very buttoned-up at first,
but it was nice to see him let his guard down. This was a quick read that had
me laughing as I breezed through it. Eliza Evans is a
bestselling author. The Christmas Cookie Wars is her newest novel. (Galley courtesy of Penguin
Group Putnam in exchange for an honest review.) Book Review: The Christmas Cookie Wars, by Eliza Evans

Book Review: Love Is for the Birds, by Diane Owens Prettyman

Title: Love Is for the Birds
Author: Diane Owens Prettyman
Genre: Romance
Rating: 2.5 out of 3

The Texas Gulf: beautiful yet unpredictable..

A beach town destroyed. Her mother’s candy store swept away. This is what Teddy Wainsworth faces when she returns to Bird Isle. Meanwhile, Jack Shaughness, owner of a popular barbecue restaurant chain and widower still grieving the death of his wife, receives permission to cross over to the island with a smoker full of brisket to feed hurricane survivors. Soon after arriving, he meets Teddy and immediately finds himself drawn to her—which makes him feel he is betraying his wife. When the two find a lost dog, Jack convinces Teddy to take the dog home while they attempt to find the owner, creating a bond that brings them closer.

In the wake of the hurricane, Bird Isle residents fear the Aransas Wildlife Refuge will not be ready for the whooping cranes’ annual migration south. Seeing that Jack has important connections and a love for the island, they enlist him to help restore the habitat of the endangered cranes before they fly to Padre Island for the winter. With their rescued dog always nearby, Teddy and Jack work side by side to rebuild Bird Isle for the return of the whooping cranes. But Jack is harboring a secret that may ruin everything he and Teddy are creating—and he won’t be able to keep that secret forever.

I had high hopes for this, because I love Port Aransas, and that’s what this setting reminded me of. But…this was a disappointing read. This felt very predictable and unrealistic. Teddy’s candy store was wiped out by a hurricane, and mere weeks later, it’s totally rebuilt and open for business? Not believable. Teddy herself was juvenile and indecisive, hung up on Jack’s restaurants’ names and the fact that his wife died five years before.

Jack seemed way too good to be true, and the insta-love aspect really drove me up the wall. Everything seemed really rushed in the amount of time elapsed, and Jack expected Teddy to be over her long-term boyfriend in like a week. The thing that really bothered me the most, though, was Jack and Teddy’s reaction to the teenage girl character’s nose piercing. They acted like it was so horrifying and gross. Was this written decades ago, or was it written recently, when nose piercings are everywhere? Frankly, this made the characters and the author seem judgy and hidebound.

Diane Owens Prettyman’s new novel is Love is for the Birds.

(Galley courtesy of She Writes Press in exchange for an honest review.)

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