Posted on by hrchow12

Audiobook Review – Bared Magic

What a charming story! Wynne lives in magical world full of were-beasts and other interesting magics, but as a siphon, she finds herself often on the run from those who would misuse her own gifts. And they manage to chase her right into the cottage of three were-bears.

This is a fast-paced, light story that takes place in a intriguing and yet cozy magical world. I really enjoyed all the characters, there’s quite a bit of fun action to keep them going, and I thought the audiobook narration was fantastic. The romance does happen rather quickly, but I really liked watching the connection grow from both POVs, and overall I just thought it was unique, clever adaption of Goldilocks that I thoroughly enjoyed.

Thanks to the publisher for the free audible promocode!

⭐⭐⭐⭐½ 

Thumbs up for a fun, fast-paced fairytale retelling!

Thanks for reading!

Posted on by hrchow12

Audiobook Review – People We Meet on Vacation

So after I read Beach Read by Emily Henry, I’ll admit, I jumped into this with some high expectations. After all, my husband and I go on a big traveling trip every year, this should’ve been right up my alley!

And there’s still a part of me that believes that I really should’ve liked this book… the characters were likable, I love traveling, and I like the writing style… but this one fell a little flat for me.

The premise is that Alex and Poppy are two very different (just) friends that take a summer trip every year for the last 10+ years. Half of the book is Poppy talking about those trips in flashbacks, and how basically for the last 10 years she’s been trying to convince herself she’s not into Alex. The other half of the book goes through their current trip, after they’ve gone two years without talking to each other, and it feels… super awkward.

And I can handle friends-to-lovers if it’s over a gradual (and relatively short) timescale, or if there’s something obviously in their way that needs to be fixed or lots of other if’s! But none of those things applied here, and in general, I felt like the concept of time was just way off in a lot of ways. Also their interactions felt strange to me- like in that uncanny valley between platonic love and not, and on top of that, if their vacations did have some kind of magic to them, I wasn’t feeling it.

But lots of people have liked this book, so maybe it was just me! If you like friends-to-lovers romance, don’t let me stop you! (But I might recommend Beach Read instead!)

⭐⭐⭐¼ 

Okay, I know I said more Emily Henry books… but now I’m having second thoughts. Time for something new!

Thanks for reading!

Posted on by hrchow12

Audiobook Review – Beach Read

This romance was adorable, and I could totally go for a movie adaption. Gus and January are college frenemies with chemistry that, years later, find themselves as neighbors during a particularly difficult summer.

I absolutely loved the history-with-chemistry vibe between Gus and January, and their slow-burn challenge throughout is pitch perfect. Their relationship builds naturally, and it still goes deeper than just their romance, as they both heal from the wounds that life has dealt them. Together they pick each other up, dust each other off, and remind one another of who they used to be.

Fantastically satisfying story I would recommend to anyone looking for a wonderful romance with some deeper themes of the ups and downs of life, and how much you can truly know someone. (And the audiobook was fantastic too!)

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

More please!

Thanks for reading!

Posted on by hrchow12

Audiobook Review – Don’t Look for Me


Picked this audiobook kind of randomly since it was available at the library, so I really didn’t know what to expect going into it. Don’t Look for Me takes the reader step-by-step through Molly Clark’s abduction, and then, simultaneously lets us into the POV of Molly’s 22ish-year-old daughter, Nicole, as she searches for her two weeks after her disappearance and the case has already been deemed a walk-away.

Molly’s abduction is terrifying in its gradualness, planning behind it, and the plausible deniability up until the moment when it’s too late to get away.

Similarly, as Nicole follows the clues (and the false ones) closer to her mother, the impending dread as she gets sucked into the creepy little town, ever nearing danger, is super intense and so well done.

Along the way, Molly and Nicole reflect on what led them to this moment and the parts they played in the breaking of their family.

The climax was a little weird to me, but this dark thriller still manages to leave its characters better off than where we left them, which I always appreciate!

With believable characters, a (mostly) satisfying resolution, and a growing sense of dread that will keep you turning pages, I highly recommend this tense thriller. (And the audiobook is especially good!)

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Because who doesn’t want to listen to an increasing swell of impending dread on a Sunday morning??

Thanks for reading!

Posted on by hrchow12

Book Review – Everlong

I heard great things about this one through the Twitterverse, and when I saw it pitched for my little free library contest, I knew I had it grab it. It totally did not disappoint!

Everlong is a whimsical paranormal that follows Lily as she walks to “her bench” every night to write. There, she runs into sweet Sam, and they strike up an easy friendship. From there, things get a little more complicated for the pair as they come to learn more about each other.

The writing is beautiful, and the relationship that grows between the two feels incredibly natural. If you like friends-to-lovers, this story gets it exactly right. It is sweet, and poignant, and though we are in the mysterious world of paranormal, this story uses it to cast a light on the human side of it.

After the things I’d heard about this book, I was braced for the end, but honestly I found it a wonderful, poignant end to a great love story. (No tissues required over here, but if you’re a crier you might want to be armed in case.)

This story hits right in the feels, capturing our humanity in a little jar of whimsical paranormal. I’m so glad I picked this one up and can’t wait to share it with our little free library. Highly recommended to anyone who wants paranormal romance that goes beyond the surface.

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

I love adding wonderful books to our little free library!

Thanks for reading!

Posted on by hrchow12

Picture Book Review – This Town


Okay, I’ve read a few new picture books today, but This Town by Mark Restaino was definitely my favorite. The story is about a little girl as she grows up in a small town, all the people she meets along the way, and how her life is connected to the town around her. The illustrations are pleasing to the eye, the prose has a nice lilting rhyme to it, and when the story comes full circle, it’s very satisfying. This is actually the second excellently poignant picture book by Restaino I’ve read ,and I would also recommend taking a look at “How Could I Ever Forget?”

Would totally recommend this for ages 2-6! Thanks to Sandra’s Book Club for the free ARC in exchange for an honest review!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Cheers to another great picture book!

Thanks for reading!

Posted on by hrchow12

Audiobook Review – Betwixt


Okay, continuing my Darynda Jones marathon. I *loved* the first two books of the Sunshine series, I thought the first two books of her Charley Davidson series were okay, so I picked up Betwixt.

This story follows Defiance as she comes in to a rather large inheritance in the town of Salem with lots of paranormal fun involved.

Once again, the author’s strengths shine here with lots of voice, an interesting world and setting, and lots of banter. But… once again the romance veered into insta-love territory that fell a little flat for me (Although I like Roan more than I like Reyes from Charley Davidson).

To add to that, about 70% of this book is someone telling the MC to do something: watch this video, do this other thing, we don’t have a lot of time and you’re in GRAVE danger – to which the MC finds some way to put off said thing she needs to do, OR she keeps getting interrupted by someone knocking on the door. Seriously, someone interrupts her by knocking on the door probably about 10 times! It was driving me insane!

I didn’t think the MC was quite as likeable as Charley or Sunshine, and some of the plotline (mainly not being able to afford the house) seemed a little contrived. And there’s a cliffhanger, which I’m not super a fan of. Overall, while I think the sequel has potential (there was a lot of set-up in this one) I don’t think I’ll be picking it up. However, the writing voice is fun, so if you’re into quirky paranormal, I still recommend you might try it from the library… although I think I’d point you to the author’s other series first.

⭐⭐⭐½

Curl up with the Sunshine Vicram books first!

Thanks for reading!

Posted on by hrchow12

Book Review – The Drift


This sci-fi dystopian follows Samara, an enslaved, enhanced assassin, and her mark, the idealistic resistance leader, Tristan, as their fates intertwine with that of their brutal, divided world.

I really enjoyed the intricate world-building in this tiered, futuristic society, and the action scenes kept the plot moving at a quick pace. Tristan is easy to like with his unassailable optimism, his devotion to his friends, his cause, and his interesting powers. And while it took me some time to warm up to Samara, she comes a long way throughout the story, and I was rooting for her by the end. Wyatt makes for an interesting, conflicted villain, and the side characters all have very distinct personalities. Probably my only real critique is there is an interesting element of fate running through the book which gave it a little bit of an insta-love spark that I wasn’t a huge fan of, but I think that’s just my subjective opinion.

Overall, I thought this was a very engaging, unique story that I would definitely recommend for fans of sci-fi, dystopian, and a slow burn romance. Heads up though, because the cliffhanger will definitely have you asking for the sequel!

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Real talk, we need more sci-fi romance in the world! NEED!!!

Thanks for reading!

Posted on by hrchow12

Audiobook Review – Second Grave on the Left


Second Grave on the Left has most of the charm of the first book: humor, banter, great voice, and the return of our funny, badass grim reaper heroine. But once again we have another rather forgettable “solving a murder” plot and the insta-love romance with the dark & otherworldly Reyes didn’t really grow as much as I would’ve hoped. The additional world building was interesting with Charley’s powers growing, but although I’d say I enjoyed it (once again the audiobook narration is great), I expect the sequel to be more of the same, so I think I’ll probably stop the series here. If you really loved the first one though, I think you’ll also totally be into this one.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Still good, just not as good as some of Jones’s others.

Thanks for reading!

Posted on by hrchow12

Audiobook Review – A Good Day for Chardonnay

So I absolutely LOVED the first Sunshine Vicram book, and I got my hands on this one as fast as I possibly could. In general, it has everything I loved about the first one, the quirky town, the wonderful side characters, our badass main character, the sassy romance, the slowburn romance that’s still killing us, and a the slowly unfolding mystery around Sunshine’s abduction. The only thing I thought wasn’t quite as strong was the little mystery they were investigating, AND IT ENDS ON A CLIFFHANGER. Like seriously, how could you?!?! Now I have to pine for Book 3 until it comes out next winter.😭

Highly, HIGHLY recommend this quirky contemporary mystery heavy on the slowburn romance, and I can’t wait to get my grabby hands on book 3!

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Can’t wait for book 3!

Thanks for reading!