What I liked: – Cozy Romantasy Vibes – Likable protagonists – Fabulous Audiobook Narration – Magical forest hijinks – In general, just a sweet fun story – Nice tension throughout. I honestly found myself worrying (in a good way) if it would have a satisfying ending or if I’d have to wait for the sequel.
What I didn’t like – The pacing of the last 25% or so didn’t quite fit for me. In some ways, it feels like they’re having the same communication for a little too long.
Recommended for those looking for a fun romantasy with likable protagonists and a pinch of spice. And I’m totally game for book 2!
⭐⭐⭐⭐½
Why yes, I’ll take a cute romance any day of the week, please and thanks.
I really enjoyed this read! It basically reminded me of a mix of Gundam Wing and a medieval joust.
What I liked: – Unique World Building – Strong emotions (all the righteous rage and grief) – Morality is in all shades of gray. – Multi-POVs from characters with very contrasting perspectives – Slowly unfurling political intrigue – Solid audiobook narration
What I didn’t like: – The relationship between Rax and Synali. While I like both Rax and Synali individually, their relationship felt a bit forced to me and rather stagnant. For some reason, I see this is listed in the romantasy genre and brahhh, that is inaccurate. This is a straight sci-fi. – Very plot-driven. In general, there’s not a lot of deep, evolving relationships between the characters but that may be because… (see next bullet) – This book doesn’t stand alone in any way. Most readers won’t mind this, but the end reads like we kind of dropped off in the middle of the book, and it’s a bit of a pet peeve of mine.
Recommended for those looking for an engrossing sci-fi with some interesting world building and intriguing political turmoil. (But definitely not a romantasy)
⭐⭐⭐⭐½
If we can compare it to Gundam Wing, you’ve probably got me already.
This was such a unique premise! Battle of the bands in space with some AI intrigue.
What I liked: – Top-notch world-building! The interplay between the music and the spaceships was well-thought out and described. – A quick, flowing writing style that is easy to get into – The original music?! whaaa! Dude, I’m always a fan of book playlists, but original music to go with the book is going the extra mile. – Naveen and Kindle definitely popped as characters and I enjoyed tagging along with them – Solid audiobook narration
What didn’t quite work for me: – I had a little trouble connecting to Jude as a character, and I wasn’t an Isley fan. Their dynamic wasn’t really there for me. And just in general, this story felt more plot-driven than character-driven.
Recommended for anyone looking for a unique, music-infused sci-fi with a fast-paced, plot-driven story.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
Definitely here for more YA science fiction in the world.
What I liked: The MCs were likable The premise was interesting
What I disliked: The pacing just felt a little too slow for me I didn’t feel like we got as much closure as I wanted I feel like the big twist was too heavily foreshadowed
Recommended for anyone looking with a YA thriller with an interesting premise.
⭐⭐⭐ ½
Foreshadowing is kind of like salt. We definitely need some… but it can definitely be too salty. And then I get the salty look. (as seen here.)
I picked up this one on the recommendation of a friend, and I would describe it as Sherlock meets a paranormal-flavored Doctor Who in the late 19th century. It’s a fun premise and was a quick read, but the characters just didn’t quite shine for me. This is one of my friend’s favorite though, so if the premise calls to you, I recommend you give it a look!
Wow. This book totally blew me away. The emotional journey Rayne goes through hooked me from the start, and I was totally entranced as I followed along with her journey of loss and acceptance. I also incredibly appreciated the insight from the author’s note on her own story, and the choices made to bring Rayne’s experience to the reader. The audiobook narration was amazing, and after being in a reading slump for most of the year, I devoured this one in two days. A fantastic middle-grade for all ages that I highly recommend.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Man, the middle-grade really hit me hard in the feels this year.
Duuuuddddeeee. This one is intense. Exactly what enemies to lovers fantasy is meant to be. I have been in a *serious* reading slump, and DNF’ed my last like 4 reads, but this one kept my attention from start to finish.
What I liked: – The darkness and intensity of this book are pitch-perfect – All the main characters are complex and interesting – The set-up for book 2 – An ACTUAL enemies to lovers (I feel like so many books these days are like dislike or annoyance-to-love, this one is no-kidding justified hatred.
What I am still mulling over: – So, I like Gideon and Rune as people, but for some reason their chemistry as a pair wasn’t quite right for me. Like, I don’t think I’m really rooting for them or against them, but I am *extremely* curious to see how it turns out. This could be the reading slump talking, or it could be that maybe, at the heart of it, I haven’t been converted yet from the “enemies” to “lovers” camp… Emphasis on the “yet.” Which also has me googling when book 2 is getting here, because I need it yesterday.
Also, a side note on the audiobook. This story has dual POVs (which I ADORE), but only one narrator. While the narration was amazing, I’m still hoping book 2 might have two narrators for the two POVs? Pretty please?
Which is all to say, you should definitely check out this read and then lemme know what you think, because it’s definitely one of my top reads this year so far.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
5 stars for being super curious where the sequel takes us. I really need more mortal enemies to lovers in my life.
So I enjoyed The Love Hypothesis, but wasn’t really into Love on the Brain, and it’s been a *long* time since I’ve read a vampire or werewolf book, but this was so fun! Definitely my favorite Ali Hazelwood book so far. Misery’s voice totally pops—both light and relatable, and I found the dynamics of this world to be super interesting. I also really liked Lowe’s character and enjoyed watching them grow together. Overall, just a light, fun read (with werewolf-flavored steam, so beware) that I would definitely recommend to romance fans, and I’m totally hoping for a sequel!
What I liked: – Adam & Juliette have a super cute relationship – I like how the mystery of Juliette & the world in general kind of unfolded – The writing style and format had a intensely emotional/lyrical feel
What I didn’t like: – In many ways, this plot is super simple – While I thought it started out unique, the ending I found to be very much… not. – This book doesn’t really stand on its own – I think it requires the sequel to flesh things out – I’m pretty sure a pair of good gloves could’ve solved most of Juliette’s problems.
Overall, recommend for anyone looking for an engaging YA dystopian with a heavy side of romance and a distinctly X-men flavor.
⭐⭐⭐¾
This one came highly recommended from a friend, but I’m not sold on picking up book 2.
So I picked up this this book on the recommendation of a friend and it is *exactly* what it says it is. If you can’t stomach darky-dark scenes, unhinged main characters, stomach-turning gore, or intense spice, turn back here. This book is like a super R-rated Dexter meets a RomCom and it states its trigger warnings up front.
All that said, I surprisingly enjoyed the read. I thought the concept of two serial killers of serial killers meeting up with romantic sparks, banter, and deranged creepy little competition. This book did *not* shy away from the darkness of the main characters, but at the same time balanced those super intense moments with super sweet ones and intense passion. The narration was fantastic, and interesting in that the male narrator reads all the male dialogue in both POVs, and the female narrator reads all the female dialogue in both POVs.
I’m a “could take it or leave it” spice person, but while, um… intense, the frequency didn’t overwhelm the plot, and I liked the tension leading up to it. So all that said, I recommend this book (especially the audiobook) for those looking for a super dark (but also kind of weirdly light?) quick romcom read. And though this book is satisfying on its own, I think I’ll be picking up the sequel too.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Yes, it was bizarre… but in a way you that made your weird friend recommend it to you… and then made you recommend it to your other weird friend.
**Note, I picked up the sequel and had to DNF. It just didn’t work for me. It also didn’t work for weird friend #1, so it wasn’t just me.*
Hayley Reese Chow 