Category: Serena’s Reviews

Serena’s Review: “A River of Golden Bones”

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Book: “A River of Golden Bones” by A.K. Mulford

Publishing Info: Harper Voyager, December 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: eARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: From bestselling author and TikTok sensation A.K. Mulford comes the first riveting, enchanting book in the all-new Golden Court romantasy trilogy— A River of Golden Bones  begins a journey of self-discovery, romance, and adventure for a young heir as she/they comes out of hiding to save her sister from a malicious, powerful sorceress and her dangerous sleeping curse. A sleeping curse. A fallen court. A secret twin. Twins Calla and Briar have spent their entire lives hiding from the powerful sorceress who destroyed their kingdom…and from the humans who don’t know they are Wolves. Each twin has their own purpose in Briar’s is to marry the prince of an ally pack and save the Golden Court. Calla’s purpose is to remain a secret, her twin’s shadow . . . the backup plan. No one knows who Calla truly is except for her childhood friend—and sister’s betrothed—the distractingly handsome Prince Grae. But when Calla and Briar journey out of hiding for Briar’s wedding, all of their well-made plans go awry. The evil sorceress is back with another sleeping curse for the last heir to the Golden Court. Calla must step out of the shadows to save their sister, their kingdom, and their own legacy. Continuing to hide as a human and denying who she truly is, Calla embarks on a quest across the realm, discovering a whole world she never knew existed. Outside the confines of rigid Wolf society, Calla begins to who could she be if she dared to try? Full of adventure, love, gender exploration, and self-discovery, A River of Golden Bones follows Calla’s journey through treacherous Wolf kingdoms, monster-filled realms, and the depths of their own heart in this thrilling romantic fantasy.

Review: I was initially drawn to this book due to the unique cover. It’s definitely a “second look” style, in that it is bright, colorful, and unlike any of the current trends we often see on fantasy books. That said, when I looked a bit closer and saw the golden wolf head at the top, it did drop a few points in my estimation due to the inherent “cheese” factor of it all. But still, it got the job done and I placed a request to check this one out.

Vampires are currently back in trend it seems, so it’s interesting running across a werewolf high fantasy book in our current environment. With werewolves come a whole lot of fairly routine elements and tropes, and I was fairly disappointed to see so many of them trotted out quickly here. We have the tried and true “fated mates” trope, the “werewolf protectors” trope, and, of course, a good healthy dose of fairly sexist stereotypes and society structures. And while the book does take an interesting look at the black and white nature of this aspect of werewolf society, it was very much presented through the lens of the main character’s personal identity journey. Unforunately, at times, I felt like this reinforeced other stereotypes even as it worked to deconstruct other limitations.

For example, much of Calla’s experience with her identity, particularly in the beginning of the book, is directly drawn from her sister Briar. From Briar’s figure, from the clothes Briar wears, etc., all of which is opposite of Calla’s body type and preferences. But we never hear from Briar herself. Obviously, she didn’t pick her body type. And what she wears says very little about who she is. It felt strange to have so much exploration of personal identity built around a character who was never given a voice for expressing how she felt about herself or her role.

I also struggled to connect with this story due to the competing content it seemed to offer. On one hand, most of Calla’s journey is a “coming of age” story and much of this exploration gave off very strong “YA” vibes. But then the romance was very adult, with a healthy dose of spicy scenes that are anything but young adult. The combination didn’t work well for my reading experience.

I also didn’t enjoy the romance. It felt very predictable, and I often found both characters at their most tiresome when they were together. The angst and drama was more annoying than it was enticing. Supposedly these characters had been best friends at some point, but we see nothing that would even hint at that sort of relationship on the page.

And then, to make matters worse, in the final conflict with the big bad, an individual who had committed atrocities, the climax of it all seemed to be the accusation made that Grae wasn’t going to accept Calla’s true identity. This, again, felt very YA. That somehow we have a battle going on with a murderous, horrific individual, and the real crisis is coming down to Calla’s own personal journey. Obviously, that is a crucial part of her and of her story. But one’s own individual journey and experience with others, while important, is not going to pair well when brought into a fight about life-and-death events taking place within an entire kingdom.

Overall, I struggled to really connect with anything in this story. I thought the exploration of Calla’s journey was unique and interesting, but it wasn’t enough to offset my dislike of the romance and my frustration with the strange mix of YA/adult themes throughout the book. If you’re looking for a fantasy novel that tackles gender identity, this one definitely is a creative look at the topic. But ultimately, this book didn’t work for me.

Rating 6: Fairly disappointing, with a mismatched combination of YA and adult thematic elements.

Reader’s Advisory:

“A River of Golden Bones” can be found on this Goodreads list: Best Queer Romantasy Books.

Serena’s Review: “The Witchwood Knot”

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Book: “The Witchwood Knot” by Olivia Atwater

Publishing Info: Starwatch Press, November 2023

Where Did I Get this Book:

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Victorian governess Winifred Hall knows a con when she sees one. When her bratty young charge transforms overnight into a perfectly behaved block of wood, she soon realizes that the real boy has been abducted by the Fair Folk. Unfortunately, the lord of Witchwood Manor is the only man in England who doesn’t believe in faeries—which leaves Winnie in the unenviable position of rescuing the young lord-to-be all by herself.

Witchwood Manor is bigger than its inhabitants realize, however, and full of otherworldly dangers. As Winnie delves deeper into the other side of the house, she enlists the aid of its dark and dubious faerie butler, Mr Quincy, who hides several awful secrets behind his charming smile. Winnie hopes to make her way to the centre of the Witchwood Knot through wit and cleverness… but when all of her usual tricks fail, who will she dare to trust?

Review: Olivia Atwater came out of nowhere for me as a reader. On a whim, I requested the first book I saw by her, “Half a Soul,” and that’s all it took! I quickly read all three in that series over the course of the summer. I know she has another book coming out sometime in the next year, something about baked good and the supernatural (sounds perfect to me!) so I was super surprised to see this book pop up on NetGalley when I was browsing one night. I didn’t even look into what it was, so I was that much more surprised to find that it is a story set in the same world as her original books, only this time taking place in the Victorian era, rather than Regency. Gothic horror and gothic romance? Count me in!

I’ve loved this shift towards gothic fantasy over the last year or so. Of course, there will always come a point where you can have too much of a good thing, but I haven’t reached it yet, as far as this trend goes. I was curious to see, however, how Atwater would fair taking on this sort of fantasy story. Her original three books were the epitome of light-hearted, comical, comfort reads. But a haunted house story and the gothic vibes that are meant to pair with it, well, that’s an entirely different tone! Low and behold, not only was this shift in tone successful, but the book also explores some fairly dark themes regarding assault and the nature of what makes a monster. I was incredibly impressed by how carefully these topics were covered, all without losing the overall appeal that is at the heart of Atwater’s style.

While this book is definitely more dark than her original trilogy, it also fit naturally within the greater world that had been created. In the other books, we saw hints of the darkness that existed in the world of the Fae and the nature of their strict, but confounding, approach to the rules of existence. Here, those aspects are drawn out and painted in darker colors. This book doesn’t shy away from its moments of horror, with violence seeping into scenes, as well as some truly creepy imagery. That said, this is by no means a horror novel. Not only was it laugh-out-loud funny at times, but within the story was an incredibly sweet romance as well as an unexpectedly touching relationship between Winnie and her ward.

I loved the main characters, as well. Winnie was a strong central character, working to unravel the mysteries at the heart of the Witchwood Knot while slowly beginning to form connections to those around her, breaking down walls that she had long-ago established for her own protection. I particularly liked the slow-burn romance between her and Mr. Quincy. The beginning of the book has him firmly slotted into a villain role, and I was impressed by how thoroughly the author worked to change the mind of both her main character and the reader. It was done in a very slow, subtle way. I will say that some of the character’s physical descriptions were a bit, um, unnerving, especially as a romantic interest. But on the other hand, I’m impressed with Atwater’s sheer audacity at just going with it and not trying to magic away the “otherness.”

I loved this book! It was right up there with “Half a Soul” as one of my favorites by this author. I’ve enjoyed all of her books, for sure, but I did appreciate this one more than some for the more serious themes at its heart. The balance felt more complete, with the lightness mixing naturally alongside the darker shades of grey, creating a more fulfilling read all around. Definitely check this one out if you’re a fan of this author or are looking for a solid stand-alone gothic fantasy novel!

Rating 9: Gothic fantasy at its finest, Atwater brilliantly combines her natural light-hearted style with the exploration of darker themes of redemption and what makes a monster.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Witchwood Knot” isn’t currently on any Goodreads lists, but it should be on Haunted House Stories and Gothic Fantasy Books.

Serena’s Review: “Fall of Ruin and Wrath”

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Book: “Fall of Wrath and Ruin” by Jennifer L. Armentrout

Publishing Info: Bramble, September 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Long ago, the world was destroyed by gods. Only nine cities were spared. Separated by vast wilderness teeming with monsters and unimaginable dangers, each city is now ruled by a guardian―royalty who feed on mortal pleasure.

Born with an intuition that never fails, Calista knows her talents are of great value to the power-hungry of the world, so she lives hidden as a courtesan of the Baron of Archwood. In exchange for his protection, she grants him information.

When her intuition leads her to save a traveling prince in dire trouble, the voice inside her blazes with warning―and promise. Today he’ll bring her joy. One day he’ll be her doom.

When the Baron takes an interest in the traveling prince and the prince takes an interest in Calista, she becomes the prince’s temporary companion. But the city simmers with rebellion, and with knights and monsters at her city gates and a hungry prince in her bed, intuition may not be enough to keep her safe.

Calista must follow her intuition to safety or follow her heart to her downfall.

Review: I’ve used this gif before in my “Great Animorphs Re-Read” several years ago, but it’s just to apropos for my feelings now whenever I see that Jennifer Armentrout is coming out with a new romantasy title:

Am I expecting a work of art? No. Am I concerned that, even if I enjoy the first book, the series as a whole will quickly nose dive into nonsense? Yes. But will I still pick it up out of sheer, self-destructive curiosity? Yeah, probably. Plus, Bramble picked up this series, and I was curious to see how Armentrout did in the hands of a large publishing house. Would they be able to wrangle in her use of ellipses? (Spoiler: no, no they could not.)

This is another tough review to write, simply because I did enjoy myself reading this book, but I also can look at it critically and see a good number of flaws. I don’t know what it is, but there’s something about Armentrout’s style, or her near perfect understanding of how to best employ romance tropes, that always manages to reel me in, almost despite myself as a critical reader. So let’s start with the obvious pros, and the first one is just that: readability. I whipped through this book in no time. Partly this is because much of the world-building, characters, and magic felt very familiar from other books and didn’t require much thought from me. But the other part is that the style of writing is very approachable and sure to suck readers in. The story could be funny when it wanted, dramatic when it needed to be, and even suspenseful as the action picked up towards the ends.

I will also say that if you enjoy spicy romance, this is the book for you. Conversely, if you don’t enjoy smutty books, this is NOT the book for you. While there is a plot, if you dig around and really look, this book is definitely more focused on its characters and the steamy situations they get themselves into. Perhaps even more so than the other books I’ve read, this book leans in on these scenes, sometimes unnecessarily so, I felt. There was one moment I can remember from early in the book where the main character is having a conversation with one of her friends, and of course they can’t just talk together, they have to be messing around at the same time. This is where the spiciness was a bit much for me. This scene wasn’t part of the central romance, these two characters were actually discussing important things, but for some reason we needed to up the ante and add erotica to the situation.

I did enjoy the central romance, however. Yes, it will feel very familiar to fans of Armentrout’s other books, but it was also satisfying in a similar way. This dynamic between romantic characters clearly works, and I’m definitely a “don’t fix what’s not broken” type of person. That said, the love story, like the characters and the world-building did feel almost TOO familiar at times. As I was reading this book, there were aspects of the world and its magic that honestly felt like “cut and paste” copies of Armentrout’s “Blood and Ash” series. The types of beings that populate the world, Calista’s role as a “special person” with hints of “super specialness” being laid down heavily, even some of the supernatural threats felt like almost exact carbon copies of ones I’ve seen before from her. So, while I was having a fun time and all, I also couldn’t get over the feeling that the author had picked up scraps from her other books and cobbled them into a new story here. Not only did this all seem familiar, but I feel like I can easily see the road this series will travel and, man, does that look familiar, too.

And, alas, the ellipses. I had real hopes that the editors over at Bramble could have exerted some more copyediting control and beaten this writing tic into submission. And yet I feel like there are even more here than in other books! And the more you notice it, the worse it gets. There are, you know, words that can be used to convey hesitation, caution, uncertainty. But instead, every time, she falls back on simply inserting ellipses before, between, and after words. I know she’s a best-selling, popular author. But there’s always room for improvement and this is where professional editors are needed most, places where writers are stuck in certain habits.

So where does this leave us. Like I said, for all of its flaws, my level of enjoyment was mostly around an 8. This is the definition of a “guilty pleasure” read for me. I liked it probably more than it deserves, and I’m fully prepared to flame out on it the same way I did with her other series. On the other hand, objectively, this book felt very familiar to other books she’s written, the spice-levels were verging on ridiculous, and some of her writing bad habits were on full display. So this would probably land it around a 6. To be fair, we’re giving it a solid 7, and you can do with that what you will!

Rating 7: I enjoyed the heck out of this book and judged myself for it the entire time.

Reader’s Advisory:

“Fall of Ruin and Wrath” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Deja Title: _ of _ and _ and 2023 – September Fantasy Releases

Year of Sanderson: “The Sunlit Man”

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“Year of Sanderson” is an on-going, monthly series that will post on the last Friday of each month in which I will cover various Brandon Sanderson-related things. This will largely be comprised of book reviews (some from his back catalog and some from the books being released this year), as well as assorted other topics like reviews of the items in the swag boxes that will be coming out as part of Sanderson’s Kickstarted campaign. Frankly, we’ll just have to see what we get from this series, very much like the Kickstarter itself!

Book: “The Sunlit Man” by Brandon Sanderson

Publishing Info: Dragonsteel Entertainment, October 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: own it!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org| Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Years ago he had comrades in arms and a cause to believe in, but now the man who calls himself Nomad knows only a life on the run. Forced to hop from world to world in the Cosmere whenever the relentless Night Brigade gets too close, Nomad lands on a new planet and is instantly caught up in the struggle between a tyrant and the rebels who want only to escape being turned into mindless slaves—all under the constant threat of a sunrise whose heat will melt the very stones. Unable to understand the language, can he navigate the conflict and gain enough power to leap offworld before his mind or body pay the ultimate price?

Review: Here we are at last, the bittersweet final book of the four new releases from Brandon Sanderon we received this year! I’ll have one more post in this review series, but that will be a post focused on the book boxes I received over the course of the year, so this will be the last official book review of my “Year of Sanderson” series. There have been highs (both “Yumi” and “Tress”) and there have been lows (looking at you “Wizard’s Guide”); where does this last book fall on the spectrum?

As always with these special editions, I want to start off by once again commenting on the high value we’re getting here. These books are simply gorgeous, no two ways about it. Not only does the cover art on the book itself perfectly illustrate the type of sci-fi/Mad Max style book that you’re about to read, but throughout the book, there are so many beautiful spreads. This book is unique to the other three we’ve seen in that it features artwork by many different artists, rather than just a single artist who illustrates the entire project. I think this was an excellent choice; it was lovely to see so many examples of the type of talent that exists out there and the very different approaches that these artists take when depicting the same characters and world. As always, as I was reading, I was always looking forward to the next illustration that I would come across.

Now, this book does stand out from the other three in one very important way. While technically one could read this book without having any prior exposure to Sanderson’s larger catalog, I do think this that would significantly impact the experience of the book. Like the other three, there are references to other stories and worlds peppered throughout this book. But unlike those, this one is very centered around the characters, magic system, and world found in “The Stormlight Archive.” There are so many references, in fact, that I do think it would be a struggle to piece together certain parts of this book without some understanding of that series. Beyond that, this book is infinitely more rewarding to fans who are caught up on the “Stormlight” books. It seems to take place some number of years in the future from where that series has currently left off, so the diligent fan has a plethora of opportunities to try to piece together clues as to what the future has to offer there.

The main character himself, Nomad, is directly connected to that series in a way that will only really hit for fans of the “Stormlight” books. That said, as I was reading this book, I did find myself becoming increasingly frustrated by the delayed reveal of just who Nomad really is. It’s strongly implied early in the book that this is a character that Cosmere fans will recognize, but then the story itself holds off on this reveal for quite some time. For me, instead of increasing the suspense, this central mystery proved to be more of a distraction than a delayed gratification situation. I found myself so busy trying to piece things together who exactly Nomad was that I was often disconnected from the actual story I was reading. Instead, had this reveal come earlier, I could have appreciated these connections to the “Stormlight” books without this mystery eating up my attention span.

When I did focus more on the story at hand, I very much enjoyed it. Sanderson mentions that he was partially inspired by “Mad Max” when writing this book, and that is very evident. Like “Mad Max: Fury Road,” this book has a frenetic energy to it, with the pacing driving forward relentlessly. This does create an exciting reading experience, but I’ll also admit that I had to take more breaks while reading this book than usual simply because the nonstop nature of the story doesn’t give you any breaks itself. As always, though, I’m continually impressed by the sheer creativity of Sanderson’s work. He manages to capture the same energy as “Fury Road” but does so in such a unique manner: the idea of a planet where the entire population must constantly out-run the deadly sunlight.

I very much enjoyed this last book in the secret projects bundle! As a big fan of Sanderson’s work, I enjoyed a book that was very clearly written first and foremost for readers who are all-in on the author’s larger Cosmere series. However, for readers who are less familiar, this book might be more of a struggle.

Rating 8: Relentless and fast-paced, this book will leave you out-of-breath as you try to keep up!

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Sunlit Man” is on a bunch of not useful Goodreads lists but it should also be on Best Action/Fantasy Books.

Serena’s Review: “The Hurricane Wars”

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Book: “The Hurricane Wars” by Thea Guanzon

Publishing Info: HarperVoyager, October 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from ALAAC 2023

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: All Talasyn has ever known is the Hurricane Wars. Growing up an orphan in a nation under siege by the ruthless Night Emperor, Talasyn has found her family among the soldiers who fight for freedom. But she is hiding a deadly secret: light magic courses through her veins, a blazing power believed to have been wiped out years ago that can cut through the Night Empire’s shadows.

Prince Alaric, the emperor’s only son and heir, has been forged into a weapon by his father. Tasked with obliterating any threats to the Night Empire’s rule with the strength of his armies and mighty Shadow magic, Alaric has never been bested. That is until he sees Talasyn burning brightly on the battlefield with the magic that killed his grandfather, turned his father into a monster, and ignited the Hurricane Wars. In a clash of light and dark, their powers merge and create a force the likes of which has never been seen.

Talasyn and Alaric both know this war can only end with them. But a greater threat is coming, and the strange new magic they can create together could be the only way to overcome it. Thrust into an uneasy alliance, they will confront the secrets at the heart of the war and find, in each other, a searing passion–one that could save their world…or destroy it.

An exquisite fantasy brimming with unforgettable characters, sizzling enemies-to-lovers romance, and richly drawn worlds, The Hurricane Wars marks the breathtaking debut of an extraordinary new writer.

Review: This is another highly anticipated read for the fall. How do I know? Well, let’s just say that the booth at ALA that had these ARCs was…um…

At the time, I didn’t know why, but I have since discovered that this book was developed from a very popular fanfiction story. And, the world being what it is, of course that fanfiction was Reylo. We’ll get into that more a bit later. All of this being the case, I was a bit apprehensive when I started the book. Me and hyped books don’t have a great track record, and believe it or not, I don’t always love being the downer who rains on fan parades. But the clouds have parted, miracles happen, and I, in fact, enjoyed this one quite a bit!

Overall, I think this book has a lot to recommend it. At the same time, I’m not above admitting that I think this might also be a case of “right book, right mood” for me, as there are definitely aspects of this story that I think, in other books, I’d be focusing on more critically.

It’s always a tough job to re-interpret a previously existing story, but I think this one gives a good template for how it’s done. I haven’t read the original story, and while I can easily see where changes were made, I can also fairly confidently say that if I had read this book blind, I wouldn’t have questioned anything I was reading. The world-building felt complete. The magic system felt fully fleshed out and worked on the strength of its own concept, no “Force” references needed. I also thought the conflict and building romantic tension between the two main characters built in a natural way, not relying on any previously established buy-in of these two as Rey and Kylo cutouts.

The story is split between their POVS, but we spend much more of our time in Talasyn’s head, making her feel like the primary character with only brief glimpses of Alaric. As someone who struggles with dual POV, I appreciated this uneven approach to page time, as it better allowed me to understand Talasyn’s own story and arc. If the next book switches to a bigger focus on Alaraic, that would be a nice balance, too. As it is, Talasyn’s journey in this story is very much centered around loyalty, trust, and the tensions between the family you’re born to and the family you choose. All of this felt very well-established and really centered Talasyn’s conflicts throughout the story, beyond just her relationship with Alarcic. This is one example of how I think this book succeeded for me where other very hyped books have not.

Readers of fan fiction may recognize some of the stylizations of the writing in this book, especially in the way that the romance is built up and ebbs and flows throughout. But I think that the solid world-building and the centering of Talasyn’s history as a solider and her drive to protect those she claims as her own elevates the story beyond some of the limitations often found in books that get too bogged down in the central romantic conflict. Instead, because I felt invested in the larger story, it was easier for me to also become invested in the romance, which had its fair share of drama and angst, something that is usually an immediate turn off for me. But, like the best fan fiction, I was fully in it, fully caught up in the whirl wind of these two.

Beyond that, I appreciated how dark the author allowed this book to be. Both Alaric and Talasyn are soldiers. They have killed people and witnessed horrors. Even more importantly, the book doesn’t fail to take a hard look at Alaric’s role in the destructive force that is his country, a tyrannical institution that has razed everything before it, all in the name of “the greater good.” I especially appreciated the fact that much of this goes unresolved by the end of this book. These are big topics and for Talasyn to somehow get over it, or even for Alaric to open his eyes to the reality around him, all in the first book would have done some severe damage to the believability of the tale. Instead, the story commits’ to the ongoing saga that it is, with this book very much reading as just the jumping off platform for the larger conflict, both world-wide and between these two.

So, where does that leave us? Well, I’m currently debating whether I can resist spoiling myself by reading the original fanfiction or trying to hold out for the second book. So far, so good, but we’ll see how it goes as the months pass. Readers of the original story I’m sure will enjoy this, as well as fantasy lovers who enjoy dramatic, slow-burn romances. However, I can admit that, objectively, this does lean in to the angst and miscommunication as far as the love story goes, so if those are pet peeves of yours, you might need to beware. For me, I guess the rest of it worked so well that, for once, I didn’t mind and simply enjoyed the ride!

Rating 8: Electrifying, with sparks flying not only on the battle field but also within a swoon-worthy enemies-to-lovers romance!

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Hurricane Wars ” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Epic High Fantasy/Romance/Mythology in 2023 and Published fan fiction

Serena’s Review: “Tonight, I Burn”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “Tonight, I Burn” by Katharine J. Adams

Publishing Info: Orbit, October 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: A thorn witch with the power to walk between the realms of Life and Death finds herself at the center of a magical rebellion—and a dangerous romance—that could destroy her coven and her soul in this dark and decadent debut. 

Thorns, Tides, Embers, Storms, and Ores. All five covens are bound in servitude to the tyrant High Warden of Halstett. 

Penny Albright is a daughter of the thorn coven, forced to patrol the veil between the realms of Life and Death. Each night, one thorn witch—and only one—must cross the veil by burning at the stake. Each morning, that witch draws on their magic to return. Failure to follow the rules risks the veil and risks them all.

But one morning, Penny’s favorite sister Ella doesn’t return. And that night, determined to find her, Penny breaks the rules. She burns in secret. And she discovers that all isn’t as it seems in Life or Death. 

Her journey leads her to Malin, a devastating lord with too many secrets; to Alice, a mysterious captive prophet; and to a rebellion brewing in the shadows beneath the city. And as Penny’s world splits, she’ll face a devastating choice. Because it’s not just her sister’s life that hangs in the balance. It’s the fate of all magic. 

All it takes is one witch—and one spark—to set the world ablaze.

Review: I’ve read a number of witch books this fall and mostly enjoyed them all! Of course, it is the time of year for this type of book, but it also seems that there is a current trend in YA and adult fantasy towards these types of stories recently. That being the case, I was excited to check out this book that promised an intricate new world, darker thematic content, plus a swoon-worthy romance! Unfortunately, while I think it might work well for other readers, I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I had hoped.

But let’s start with the positives. Right there in the premise the book is setting up a truly dark existence, one in which a witch must be burned at the stake every night to patrol the realm. Yes, they are meant to come back to life the next day, but that does very little to combat the true horror of a death in that manner every night. This was such an interesting concept to begin with. Added on top of that you have the mystery of why one witch fails to return which propels the action of our heroine. It’s an excellent set up and I was quickly pulled into the general concept of the story.

However, as the book progressed, I began to struggle. First with the heroine herself and then with the romances as they were introduced. Fairly quickly, I began to feel frustrated with Penny and some of her decision making. It felt at times that she was simply doing things to prove that she was doing something in the first place, rather than for any true reason. Moments like this left me with the impression of her as a fairly immature character. Again and again she received praise for making decisions that were, on their face, pretty bad.

And then we get into the romance and the love interests. So, I’ll be honest, part of this is on me in that I read the book description and didn’t pick up on the fact that this was a polyamory story. In my defense, I don’t think it’s super obvious in the summary either. But either way, as a reader I often struggle to enjoy polyamory stories. That being the case, I usually avoid them simply so I don’t have a host of middling to negative reviews here on the blog of a subgenre that I know others enjoy but just aren’t for me. Know thyself and all of that.

This book does a good job (back hand compliment time!) in highlighting one of my struggles with this type of romance: it’s hard enough to write a solid, fully-fleshed out love story between two characters in the page count of a single book; thusly, it’s almost impossible to do justice to three characters and two love stories within the same number of pages. And here, like in so many other instances, I simply couldn’t become invested in these romances. Sure, they were each attracted to each other. But beyond that? I never felt like any time was given to why these characters were falling for one another, what true connections bound them together other than the fairly rote parallels between Penny’s powers and the fact that one love interest represents Death and the other Life. Beyond that, I personally just don’t enjoy polyamory romances, so this was probably never going to be a great success for me. But for readers who do enjoy these stories, this might still work, though objectively, in this case, I still think the love stories themselves were fairly watered down to simple attraction and not much else.

Overall, I really enjoyed the world-building and magic of this world, but I struggled with the main character and the romances too much to truly enjoy this book. But if you’re a fan of polyamory stories and want to check out an interesting, fresh take on witches and witch burning, this might be a good book for you!

Rating 6: Not to my taste, but it did offer some interesting fantasy concepts that I’d never come across before!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Tonight, I Burn” isn’t on any Goodreads lists, but it should be on Vampires and Werewolves and Witches…Oh My!

Serena’s Review: “Foxglove”

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Book: “Foxglove” by Adalyn Grace

Publishing Info:Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, August 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: own it!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: The captivating sequel to the Gothic-infused Belladonna, in which Signa and Death face a supernatural foe determined to tear them apart.

A duke has been murdered. The lord of Thorn Grove has been framed. And Fate, the elusive brother of Death, has taken up residence in a sumptuous estate nearby. He’s hellbent on revenge after Death took the life of the woman he loved many years ago…and now he’s determined to have Signa for himself, no matter the cost.

Signa and her cousin Blythe are certain that Fate can save Elijah Hawthorne from prison if they will entertain his presence. But the more time the girls spend with Fate, the more frightening their reality becomes as Signa exhibits dramatic new powers that link her to Fate’s past. With mysteries and danger around every corner, the cousins must decide if they can trust one another as they navigate their futures in high society, unravel the murders that haunt their family, and play Fate’s unexpected games—all with their destinies hanging in the balance.

Dangerous, suspenseful, and seductive, this sequel to Signa and Death’s story is as utterly romantic as it is perfectly deadly.

Review: After loving “Belladonna” when I read it two summers ago, this was one of my most anticipated reads for this year. But as you may have noticed, this was published back in August and here I am only just getting to a review in November. Well, that’s because I have very complicated feelings regarding this book, and even while composing this review, I’m not quite sure how I feel about it all. So, let’s just see where things take us.

One thing I can easily say without qualification is that overall quality of the writing remains excellent in this book. The author has a natural, seamless style to her writing that excels at both painting vivid settings as well as describing deep wells of emotion. My struggles with this book were definitely not down to any lack of ability or talent. Ultimately, I think it’s the structure of the book that failed it. And even saying that, I don’t necessarily have a good solution to the problem, which is probably why I’ve held off on reviewing this one for so long. It’s hard to write a critical review when you can also look at it and understand why all of the choices were made and not have many alternative options to offer for improvement. It’s the rock-meets-hard-place of reviews!

The book is essentially now trying to tell two stories, and that is most notably demonstrated by the fact that the POV is now split between Signa and Blythe. Unfortunately, the needs of either character’s arc individually negatively affected the outcomes of the other character’s story throughout the book. For example, we meet Fate at the very end of the first book. Much of this book is made up of Signa and Death attempting to out-maneuver Fate who, for his own reasons, is out to claim Signa for his own. Thusly, Fate is very much the antagonist of this tale and can be truly despicable at times. Conversely, from Blythe’s perspective we see the fairly obvious set up for book three that is placing these two in a distinctive “enemies-to-lovers” position. So here you have Fate who has been (rightly!) a villain for most of this book also being set up as a romantic interest for the other main character. It’s an uncomfortable and awkward experience when trying to establish how you’re meant to feel about this character.

Further, there’s a great mystery at the heart of this book about Signa’s own identity and Fate’s interest in her. But the very nature of this mystery is at its core one that undercuts much of the progress made in the previous book. “Belladonna” was a perfect exploration of Signa’s identity and abilities, so to have that all regurgitated here was both frustrating and disappointing. Especially when, given the nature of other story decisions, much of the explanation for this mystery felt very obvious right from the start to anyone who was paying attention. I will say, I very much appreciated how the author avoided allowing any of this upheaval to undercut the love story between Signa and Death. There is a very real way that this could have played out differently in a much more angsty, disappointing manner. On the other hand, while what we got from these two was ultimately very good, there also wasn’t very much of it, again because the story was trying to do too much. Death barely showed up on the page at all, it seemed.

The interesting part of this all is that I didn’t dislike Blythe’s chapters. It would be easy to look at this book and think that the solution would be to simply cut out her POV and allow the story more breathing room to finish up Signa’s story. But, as much as I loved Signa in the first book, she was also a fairly passive, frustrating character in this book. There’s another murder mystery (here is the REAL part of the story that could perhaps have been cut somehow) and yet while Signa is constantly saying that she is working on figuring this murder out, Blythe is the one who takes action. Much of this book is Signa reacting to what is going on around her and Blythe, for better or worse, charging in full speed to do something, anything about the madness swirling around her. And, while Fate is made out largely as a villain in this book, the few glimpses we get of him and Blythe outside of this arena were very compelling. For example, they play a game of croquet and I was getting major Anthony/Kate vibes from Fate and Bythe’s competive nature.

Fate angry clapping as a human woman outplays an immortal at croquet

So, where does this mess of a review (and book, honestly) leave us? I’m not sure. The story we get for Signa and Death is necessary to wrap up their own tale. And the introduction to Fate and Blythe is necessary to set-up what I imagine will be solely their story in book three. But these two stories don’t sit well together at all, often actively undercutting the success of the other. I was probably most disappointed with the change in Signa from the spunky, coming-into-her-own woman we had in the last book to the much more passive character we had here, one who is again retreading tired ground about her powers and identity. But I’m also super excited about Blythe’s story going forward, so in that way, the book was definitely a success as I’ll be first in line to get my hands on that one. Ultimately, I think that this book will be a bit disappointing to fans of the first book. That said, I also strongly recommend reading it to those same fans as I’m hopeful that some of the discomfort of this book will pay off in the potential strength of the next.

Rating 7: Weighed down by added characters and lore, “Foxglove” fails to live up to the high that was “Belladonna.” That said, it introduces a lot of strong potential for the third book, and I’ll definitely be checking that one out when it arrives!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Foxglove” can be found on these Goodreads lists: Flower Faces and Death as a Character.

Serena’s Review: “The Hunting Moon”

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Book: “The Hunting Moon” by Susan Dennard

Publishing Info: Tor Teen, November 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: Winnie Wednesday has gotten everything she thought she wanted. She passed the deadly hunter trials, her family has been welcomed back into the Luminaries, and overnight, she has become a local celebrity.

The Girl Who Jumped. The Girl Who Got Bitten.

Unfortunately, it all feels wrong. For one, nobody will believe her about the new nightmare called the Whisperer that’s killing hunters each night. Everyone blames the werewolf, even though Winnie is certain the wolf is innocent.

On top of that, following her dad’s convoluted clues about the Dianas, their magic, and what happened in Hemlock Falls four years ago is leaving her with more questions than answers.

Then to complicate it all, there is still only one person who can help her: Jay Friday, the boy with plenty of problems all his own.

As bodies and secrets pile up around town, Winnie finds herself questioning what it means to be a true Wednesday and a true Luminary—and also where her fierce-hearted loyalties might ultimately have to lie.

Previously Reviewed: “The Luminaries”

Review: So, it may surprise some of you that I’m even reviewing this book given how little I enjoyed the first book. But as I have liked books from Dennard in the past, I wanted to give this series another go. Some of my negative reaction to the first book came down to aspects of the plot and the writing that I wasn’t expecting. Namely, the fact that it was a contemporary fantasy story and the style of writing itself. Knowing both of those factors now, I wanted to see what my experience of the second book in this series would be like. And, while it still wasn’t a huge success for me, I did end up liking this one more than the first.

Let’s start with what I did like! While the YA and adult fantasy genre has been having a moment in the sun for the last few years, I think this book stands out from the pack in the heavy focus on magical creatures and various monsters. Usually, you have a book that has one monster/mythical creature (like the “Mothman” books we’ve seen this fall), but not a book like this that includes a number of different supernatural beings. Speaking of supernatural, this aspect of the storytelling definitely reminded me of the TV show, “Supernatural,” and that’s a pretty high compliment as far as I’m concerned!

As for the plot itself, I was able to stay mostly invested, however I wasn’t overly surprised by any of the twists and turns that we saw. In fact, there was one particular “reveal” that I thought was so obvious that surely there was something else going on, that characters did in fact know this thing and simply weren’t really addressing it for a mysterious reason, or something! I even went back and looked at my ebook of the first book to confirm that no, I guess this particularly thing wasn’t revealed and was, indeed, still a “mystery.”

Much of Winnie’s story and the romance were just OK for me, too. Having a better sense of the type of book that I was going to read did help set my expectations more appropriately. But this book did highlight that while I can still enjoy YA books, sometimes greatly so, there are distinct examples where a book is not going to fit for the simple fact that I am well past the target age group. The love story, in particular, felt very young, even for YA. And while many of Winnie’s thoughts and feelings read as true to a teenage girl, they were not the sorts of struggles that I personally find as compelling to read about anymore.

All of that said, if you enjoyed the first book, I’m sure you’ll enjoy this one. On the other hand, if the first book didn’t work for you as well, this one probably isn’t going to be turning that opinion fully around, even if it was stronger in some aspects.

Rating 7: While a bit predictable as far as the plot goes, this book will likely appeal to readers who enjoyed this world and these characters, particularly its emphasis on supernatural beings.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Hunting Moon” can be found on this (who knew there was a list for this?) Goodreads list: Animal Sculls on Cover.

Serena’s Review: “Calamity”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “Calamity” by Constance Fay

Publishing Info: Bramble, November 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: She’s got a ramshackle spaceship, a misfit crew, and a big problem with its sexy newest member…

Temperance Reed, banished from the wealthy and dangerous Fifteen Families, just wants to keep her crew together after their feckless captain ran off with the intern. But she’s drowning in debt and revolutionary new engine technology is about to make her beloved ship obsolete.

Enter Arcadio Escajeda. Second child of the terrifying Escajeda Family, he’s the thorn in Temper’s side as they’re sent off on a scouting mission on the backwater desert planet of Herschel 2. They throw sparks every time they meet but Temper’s suspicions of his ulterior motives only serve to fuel the flames between them.

Despite volcanic eruptions, secret cultists, and deadly galactic fighters, the greatest threat on this mission may be to Temper’s heart.

Review: I was so excited when I heard that Tor was rolling out a new imprint, Bramble, a smaller offshoot that would focus on romantic SFF. And this book is exactly why! While there is a whole subgenre now called “romantasy” due to the popularity of romantic fantasy fiction, there seems to be some strange hold out on the science fiction front. Where are my love stories in space? I mean, I get that “romantascific” doesn’t roll off the tongue in quite the same way, but c’mon! But here we are, a good example of just what we’re all missing out on by forgetting that romance can also happen in space.

Honestly, it’s pretty impressive that this book works at all. It’s trying to do a lot of things all at once, many of which are hard to accomplish well even on their own. We have Temper’s story, that of a captain coming into her own as a leader, but we also have that paired against a romance, something that too often ends up hindering the strength of its female member. Beyond that, the story is introducing us to an entire universe with its own political structures that definitely do play into the plot of the book. And lastly, this is the first book in a series, so the story must do a lot of heavy lifting to properly lay out the various crew members of the ship who are likely to feature in their own stories going forward. It’s like black magic (except that’s the wrong genre, sooo) that it all works, but it does!

So, in that order, let’s start with Temper. I really loved this main character! Seriously, she was checking all of the right boxes for me. She was a strong woman, but we also see her make mistakes, and her journey is one of both learning to trust those around her, but also letting others help her when she is prone to going-it-alone. The development of the romance was paced perfectly, neither falling into any insta-love/lust traps or being too drawn out to feel complete. Just when I was beginning to become concerned that her distrust was going to be played up one too many times, the story would swerve into moments of vulnerability and honesty. I also loved the fact that the natural chemistry between the two was first seen in their instant ability to work together as a team under high pressure situations, rather than on the romance front which came later. There was also all of the required quippiness that we love to see in a romance, but this levity also didn’t cut away from the deeper, more heartfelt moments.

For all that this is a romance, there was also a solid plot to this book with all of the requisite world-building that comes with it. I was honestly surprised by just how into the actual plot of the book I became. There was one action-packed scene after another, plus a lot of comedy gold interspersed within as we saw the team tackle the challenges before them. Which leads me to the last aspect of the book that truly impressed me: the crew themselves.

This book was billed as a read-alike for “Firefly.” Now, that’s a big claim to make and, honestly, one that has been tossed around quite a lot for science fiction new releases, mostly without any basis in reality. But I have to say, this is probably the first time where I truly feel like that comparison is warranted! This truly had the same level of group dynamics and chemistry for which “Firefly” was best known. I understood who all of these characters were individually, but I loved them best when they were interacting with each other. The book was also successful in making me very interested in all of their individual romances that are sure to come. I have a pretty good guess as to who the next couple will be (just checked Goodreads, and I see that it’s been updated since I originally read this book and, indeed, the next book is about this couple!) and I can’t wait to check out their story!

Overall, this was a blast of a book to read! It’s definitely not “hard” science fiction, but I was also surprised to find just how much excellent plotting and world-building went into a book that was being released from a romance imprint. I feel like that sounds like a backhand insult to romance, but, let’s be honest, the love story is the primary bit of romance novels, with the plot coming in sometimes as an after thought. But here, the balance is perfect between love story and, well, actual story. Definitely check this one out if you enjoy science fiction adventures and space opera with an emphasis on romance!

Rating 8: If comparisons to “Firefly” are ever warranted, this is it! A romp of an adventure paired with a swoon-worthy romance, I can’t wait to see what this crew gets up to next time!

Reader’s Advisory:

“Calamity” isn’t on any Goodreads lists yet, but it should be on Get Your Firefly Space Opera Fix.

Serena’s Review: “The Queen of Days”

This post may contain affiliate links for books we recommend.  Read the full disclosure here.

Book: “The Queen of Days” by Greta Kelly

Publishing Info: Harper Voyager, October 2023

Where Did I Get this Book: ARC from the publisher!

Where Can You Get this Book: WorldCat.org | Amazon | IndieBound

Book Description: For Balthazar and his family of thieves, stealing a statue during the annual celebration of the god Karanis was just a good bit of fun…or a way to stick it to the governor who murdered his parents. And yeah, the small fortune in reward doesn’t hurt—even if his boss also hired the mysterious Queen of Days to join the crew as “the weapon of last resort…”

Whatever that means.

But Bal doesn’t know the ceremony isn’t simply empty words and dusty tradition; it’s true magic. The kind of magic that rips open a portal for the god himself. Only the idol that Karanis planned on using for a body now lies broken at the Queen of Days’ feet. And half of it is missing.

With the aid of a lovable brawler, a society lady turned bomb maker, a disgraced soldier, and a time-eating demon, Bal must hunt down the missing half of the statue if he has any hope of earning his money, keeping his crew alive…and perhaps even saving all of humanity. But as his journey sends him racing through the city—and across realities—he discovers that doing all this might just doom the city.

The city be damned. It’s time to kill a god.

Review: Heaven knows I’ve had an up and down experience with these multi-POV heist books. And yet I keep coming back! I guess it simply feels like one of those situations where if multi-POV is going to work, a heist book is the place to find it! And I’ve read the good, the bad, and man oh man, the ugly. This one stood out, however, in that it has been marketed as an adult high fantasy novel, rather than the typical YA fare that we’ve usually seen. So, let’s see how it stands up to all the other books like this!

I’ll just lead with the bad news: while this wasn’t the bad or the ugly, it was also just on the edge of good for me. In that, I enjoyed this book overall, but the reading experience was also frustrating at times and left me feeling a bit let down in the end. But let’s get into what did work. First off, the writing was strong, vividly depicting the rich world-building that went into this story. It was easy for me to quickly settle myself in this world and look forward to what was to come. I also appreciated the style choice to use both first person and third person to distinguish between a few of the view points. As I mentioned in my review for “Starling House,” I think this “one simple trick” can do a lot to help elevate a multi-POV book into a more interesting reading experience all around.

That said, I’m not sure that the first person style helped with some of the characters themselves. Bal, the leader of the group, reads as the main character of the book, something that the first person tense further emphasizes. However, he was also the most frustrating character, often making choices that seemed to prioritize his own goals while risking the safety of his crew. Using the first person perspective, the reader has an up close and personal look at some of the inner workings of these decisions, and, frankly, that didn’t help matters as he fixated on his ex-fiancé and other similarly frustrating topics. On the other hand, I did enjoy the other characters more, something that was probably helped by the more omniscient view from the third person perspective. Plus, cool magical powers are always a draw!

This was also one of those rather frustrating reads where I was able to get into the book quite quickly but struggled to maintain my focus over the course of the book. Much of the plot and pacing felt very familiar, and I wasn’t truly surprised by any of the twists and turns the story took. Of course, a book doesn’t need to be surprising to be a success, but something about the reading experience felt familiar in a bland way, for me. That said, if you’re a high fantasy reader who really enjoys multi-POV books, this one may be worth checking out!

Rating 7: While the world-building was compelling, I struggled to maintain my interest in a story that felt very familiar.

Reader’s Advisory:

“The Queen of Days” can be found on this Goodreads list: Best books of October, 2023